A

INTERIM REPORT
ON
A STUDY ON CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
ON POST-SALES SERVICE WITH
REFERENCE TO TWO-WHEELER
AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY

AT
AGARTALA

BY
JOYDEEP DAS

ICFAI UNIVERSITY TRIPURA

KAMALGHAT, TRIPURA (WEST)

A
 INTERIM REPORT ON

A STUDY ON CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

ON POST-SALES SERVICE WITH
REFERENCE TO TWO-WHEELER
AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY
AT
AGARTALA

BY

JOYDEEP DAS
MBA; SEMESTER-IV, BATCH- 2010

A REPORT SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FUFILLMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENTS OF
THE MBA PROGRAM
(THE CLASS OF 2008-2010)

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1) Summary of the progress till date……………………………………………………….

2) Scheduling progress till now……………………………………………………………

3) Objectives of the study…………………………………………………………………

4) Company profile………………………………………………………………………..

5) Introduction…………………………………………………………………………….

5.1) Background of the study…………………………………………………………..

5.2) Importance of the study……………………………………………………………

5.3) Scope of the study………………………………………………………………...

5.4) Limitation of the study……………………………………………………………

6) Body of the thesis………………………………………………………………………

6.1) Research methodology……………………………………………………………

6.2) Choice of the subject……………………………………………………………...

7) References……………………………………………………………………………….

8) Appendices………………………………………………………………………………

SUMMARY OF THE PROGRESS TILL DATE

The progress of my thesis started when I have finalized the title of the thesis. Then I have
started surveying the literature, prepared synopsis and submitted the same to my faculty
guide. Then I have started gathering detailed idea about the working area. After gathering
certain knowledge about the working area, I have started designing and preparation of the
Questionnaire and sampling plan. Visiting the organization and collecting primary and
secondary data from the customers according to the predetermined sample size. Preparing the
questionnaire was not an easy job. I have consulted with my faculty guide Mr. Sujit Deb in
order to clarify the doubts that were arousing in my mind while preparing the questionnaire.

To prepare a questionnaire one must be clear with what is it that you want to ask, or research.
Then based on that, develop a list of questions on whom? What? When? Where? Why?
and How? The questions must be relevant to what you want to research. And the answers
must lead you to your research objective. Questions are also divided into closed-ended.
Closed-ended is when you provide a list of answers for the subject to choose..
I have tried to stick to closed-ended questions so that the data I
collect won't deviate too far away. After preparing the questionnaire I have visited the
organization tried to show them my work. There were certain changes which they wanted to
make and accordingly I made those changes. I have also collected some data regarding the
customers.
According to my initial survey, I find out that maximum people
were neutral in regards to attention given to them in the waiting area during the time of
servicing of bike. Maximum people were satisfied regarding the understanding of the vehicle
problem by the service staff and availability of spare parts. But most of the customer were not
satisfied with the help provided by the service staff and also the customer were neutral in
regards to the interest shown by the service staff in specific problems.
This will help the company to improve their performance in this related area and also
help to maintain customer loyal towards their servicing.

SCHEDULING PROGRESS TILL NOW

 1st Week: Gathering idea about the Management Thesis and selecting the sector and
company for my thesis work.

 2nd Week: Selection of title for Management Thesis.

 3rd Week: Literature survey and preparation of synopsis, which includes objectives,
research methodology, limitation and reference.

 4th Week: Gathering detailed idea about the working area.

 5th Week: Designing and preparation of Questionnaire and sampling plan.

 6th Week: Designing and preparation of Questionnaire and sampling plan.

 6th Week: Visiting the organization and collect some data from the and the user of
two-wheeler and also the company executives according to the predetermined sample
size.

OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

 To know the customer perception on post-sales service of two-wheeler automobile

industry;

 To identify whether services of two-wheeler automobile industry are up to the

customer’s expectations or not;

 To find out the customer satisfaction level on post-sales service of two-wheeler

automobile industry;

 To identify the areas of improvement so that the quality of two-wheeler automobile

industry is enhanced;
 COMPANY PROFILE

Bajaj Auto limited is one of the largest two wheeler manufacturing company in India
apart from producing two wheelers they also manufacture three wheelers. The company had
started way back in 1945. Initially it used to import the two wheelers from outside, but from
1959 it started manufacturing of two wheelers in the country. By the year 1970 Bajaj Auto
had rolled out their 100,000th vehicle. Bajaj scooters and motor cycles have become an
integral part of the Indian milieu and over the years have come to represent the aspirations of
modern India. Bajaj Auto also has a technical tie up with Kawasaki heavy industries of Japan
to produce the latest motorcycles in India which are of world class quality The Bajaj
Kawasaki eliminator has emerged straight out of the drawing board of Kawasaki heavy
industries. The core brand values of Bajaj Auto limited includes Learning, Innovation,
Perfection, Speed and Transparency.

Bajaj Auto has three manufacturing units in the country at Akurdi, Waluj and Chakan
in Maharashtra, western India, which produced 2,314,787 vehicles in 2005-06. The sales are
backed by a network of after sales service and maintenance work shops all over the country.

India has the largest number of two wheelers in the world with 41.6 million vehicles. India
has a mix of 30 percent automobiles and 70 percent two wheelers in the country. India was
the second largest two wheeler manufacturer in the world starting in the 1950’s with the birth
of Automobile Products of India (API) that manufactured scooters. API manufactured the
Lambrettas but, another company, Bajaj Auto Ltd. surpassed API and remained through the
turn of the century from its association with Piaggio of Italy (manufacturer of Vespa).
The license raj that existed between the1940s to1980s in India, did not allow foreign
companies to enter the market and imports were tightly controlled. This regulatory maze,
before the economic liberalization, made business easier for local players to have a seller’s
market. Customers in India were forced to wait 12 years to buy a scooter from Bajaj. The
CEO of Bajaj commented that he did not need a marketing department, only a dispatch
department. By the year 1990, Bajaj had a waiting list that was twenty-six times its annual
output for scooters.

The TVS group was established in 1911 by Shri. T. V. Sundaram Iyengar. As one of India’s
largest industrial entities it epitomizes Trust, Value and Service. It all began way back in
1984 when Sundaram Clayton Limited (A TVS Group company) introduced its 50 CC
mopeds in the arena of road racing, notching up unbelievable speeds of 105 kmph. Since
then, there has been no looking back for TVS Motor Company. TVS Racing was established
in 1987 with the objective of improving the performance of its bikes. Over the years it has
provided valuable data, design inputs, development of reliable motorcycle models, excellent
vehicle dynamics & handling etc. The true evidence of it is seen in today's TVS Victor and
TVS Fiero. Today, there are over thirty companies in the TVS Group, employing more than
40,000 people worldwide and with a turnover in excess of USD 2.2 billion.
 INTRODUCTION
In the competitive high-tech marketplace, industries have long gone head-to head, openly
vying for market share around the world. Now industries are seeking an edge over their rivals
in the often undervalued area of service. The quality and delivery of post-sales service is
becoming increasingly critical as businesses do everything in their power to be more cost-
effective, boost profit margins and meet customer demand for near-continuous availability of
products. For finance directors, inventory reduction has become the corporate mantra as they
seek to squeeze days-stock-on-hand, while increasing the level of customer service.
Companies face a number of inefficiencies in post-sales service that increase costs and cause
delays. Topping the list is inefficient network design, followed by factors such as poor
visibility into inventory, long cycle times, inconsistent customer service, inventory
obsolescence and the significant costs of brick-and-mortar investments.
To overcome these obstacles and turn post-sales service into a competitive advantage, more
manufacturers are seeking global service parts logistics assistance. The service parts logistics
(SPL) industry supports the overall repair and maintenance of equipment as it moves through
its post-sales lifecycle. SPL includes the management, distribution and return of parts, as well
as parts repair and refurbishment. A service parts network includes order and inventory
management, distribution and technical support, call centers, technical couriers, repair
engineers and repair centers. Given client uptime requirements, an effective SPL network
must provide for storage of parts in close proximity to field engineers and customer sites
around the world.
This project deals with study on customer satisfaction after sales service in Two-
wheeler Automobile industry especially Bajaj, Hero Honda and TVS. The project was done
to know how retain the customer and thereby improve loyalty. The researcher found out lack
of customer satisfaction.

“Maximizing the customer satisfaction will maximize profitability and market share”.

Focusing on satisfaction helps eliminate the negative word of mouth potential of

dissatisfied customers. It has been found that more than 90 percent of dissatisfied customers
won’t exert their own effort to contact a company to complain; they simply voicing their
dissatisfaction to other potential customers. Losing one dissatisfied customer may be
more severe than it sounds. One dissatisfied customer may speak to as many as nine others,
multiplying his/her dissatisfaction nine fold!

Hence this project was undertaken to study the customer satisfaction and find
out lack of customer satisfaction which will help to provide customer requirements.

Customer support following the purchase of a product or service. In some cases, after-
sales service can be almost as important as the initial purchase. The manufacturer, retailer, or
service provider determines what is included in any warranty (or guarantee) package. This
will include the duration of the warranty traditionally one year from the date of purchase, but
increasingly two or more year’s maintenance and/or replacement policy, items
included/excluded, labour costs, and speed of response. In the case of a service provider,
after-sales service might include additional training or helpdesk availability. Of equal
importance is the customer's perception of the degree of willingness with which a supplier
deals with a question or complaint, speed of response, and action taken.

IMPORTANCE OF THE STUDY

Customer Satisfaction is the buzzword used by the business people for the success of
organization in the present days. Due to the increases of heavy competition in every product –
line it become difficult for the companies to retain the customers for longer time. So retain
the customer for longer time the marketer has to do only one things i.e. customer
satisfaction .If customer is fully satisfied by the product it not only rub the organization
successfully but also fetch many benefits for the company . They are less process sensitive
and they remain customer for a longer period. They buy addition products overtimes as the
company introduce related produce related products or improved, so customer satisfactions is
gaining a lot of importance in the present day. Every company is conducting survey on
customer satisfaction level on their products .To make the products up to the satisfaction
level of customers.
This project is also done to know the customers satisfaction on
the two-wheeler regarding post-sales service. The impact of automobile industry on the rest
of the economy has been so pervasive and momentous that is characterized as second
industrial. It played a vital role in helping the nation to produce higher value good and
services and in the enhancing their skills and impose tremendous demand for automobile. The
decrease in the interest rate and easy available of loans from 2 to 3 years, lot of two-wheelers
manufacturers company facing cut throat competition in the fields of technology and price,
So to gain the market share it is important for the institutes to satisfy its customers and to
retain the reputation and its image.
This project will help me in getting job in future as I’ll make myself acquainted with
the practical aspects of consumer perception and behavior with regard to post-sales service.
As most of the company trying to retain its loyal customer, this project will be of great help
to sustain in the competitive era and also maintain its market share and also help me in job
interviews for the jobs in Two-wheeler Auto-mobile Industry.

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Since time immemorial man has been trying to make things which would make life
easier. Among this is the transportation for himself and the goods. The invention of wheel
revolutionized concept of transportation. Initially human beings and animals were used
drawings carts but the zest to faster and deliver large quantities in faster period resulted in
constant improvement of wheel driven carts.

In 1985 Gattlib palmer and Kalt benz invented the first petrol driven two wheeler
.This was the beginning of the trend, which revolutionized the concept of personal transport.
But with the passage of time the need for a fuel efficient light weight vehicle was felt.
 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The study has been conducted on “Consumer Satisfaction on Post –Sales Service with
Reference to Two-Wheeler Automobile Industry”

To the Organization

 This project would enable the organization to find the customer requirements.

 It would help the organization to make efficient service to the customer.

To the researcher

 This project would help the researcher in the partial fulfillment of Master of Business
Administration degree.

 The project has helped the researcher know about the organization and to know how
customer satisfaction is important to the business.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

 The research will be conducted in a limited area.

 The internet information can be irrelevant.

 Time will be a major constraint.

 Smaller sample may not always give better results. Sample may not be true representative

of the whole population.

 The possibility of biased responses can’t be ruled out.

 Lack of availability of full information.

 Lack of interest of respondents.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The description of the procedure used to carry out the study, comes under the methodological
section of research report. The methodology includes the overall research design sampling
and the field analysis procedure. As far my project report is concerned I have done my
project on Two-Wheeler Automobile Industry and the title of my projects is “Consumer
Satisfaction on Post –Sales Service with Reference to Two-Wheeler Automobile Industry.”
and accordingly the methodology used is the following:

Selection of sample: The study was carried out in Agartala.

Sample size: 50
Sampling method: The sampling method used will be of Simple Random sampling
(Respondent should have a two-wheeler)
Sample Composition:

a) Student

b) Business persons

c) Employee

Collection of Data: It is an elaborate process in which the researcher makes a planned

search for all the relevant data. Collection of data is the basic requirement of all marketing
research. In this study both primary and secondary data has been used.
 Primary data: Structured Questionnaire

 Secondary data: The secondary data will be collected from Internet,

different types of publication, articles, magazine, internet etc.
Research tool: Questionnaire is the most effective and convenient research instruments used
for collecting data in preparing projects reports. In this study also questionnaire is prepared to
collect data. Beside questionnaire observation method is also used.
Modes of Analysis and interpretation: The research tools represent the information
collected. The data collected are analysed in the form of bar diagram, cylindrical diagram, pie
diagram, column diagram and then the interpretation is carried out.
 CHOICE OF THE SUBJECT

In our country the growth of service marketing especially two-wheeler automobile industry at
Agartala is still in its embryonic stage, as compared to the industrially advanced countries. It
is for the fact that the economy of our country has been in the developing stage. There are
various states in India where the two-wheeler automobile industry has been growing at rapid
pace and they are playing an essential role in fulfilling the needs of the customers. Now-a-
days, the customers are more dynamic. Their taste, needs and preference can be changing as
per current scenario. Hence the development of two-wheeler automobile industry mainly
depends on the customer buying behavior and post-sales service satisfaction. The objective of
incorporating Management Thesis in the curriculum is to train the student in designing and
implementing a research work against a business problem and also to check whether the
student can work under pressure and show creativity. As thesis is a vast field I have decided
to do my thesis in the automobile industry sector especially two-wheelers section as because
it help me find the areas of improvement of various two-wheeler company so that they can
focus on it and maintain better relation with customer which will give me a better scope in
the coming future. The subject of the thesis is to study the “Customer Satisfaction on Post-
Sales Service with Reference to Two-wheeler automobile Industry”. I have chosen this
very sector because here I will be able to implement my theoretical knowledge into practical
situations. Moreover automobile industry sector especially two-wheelers is a huge sector,
there is ample scope of implementing a research work against a business problem. My major
specialization is marketing so the topic is very similar in nature.
 REFERENCES
 “Consumer Behavior”, ICFAI, 2005.( MBA second year)

 “Research methodology” “Vishwa Publication, New Delhi,

 Author: Kothari C.R.
 Edition: 2nd edition

 “Marketing Management”, Prentice Hall of India Pvt. Ltd. New

Delhi,
 Author: Kotler, Philip
 Edition: 9th edition

 Marketing Research Text and Cases

 Edition: 2nd edition

Author: Rajendra Nargundkar

 APPENDICES:
QUESTIONNAIRE:

Name:
Age: 18-25 25-45 above 45
Occupation:
Address:

1. Which company’s motorbike do you have?

Bajaj Hero Honda TVS

2. Do you aware of the service center?

Yes No

3. Do you get any reminder from the dealer free service?

Yes No

4. Do you use the waiting area in service center?

Yes No

5. Do the vehicle examine in your presence by service staff?

Yes No

6. Does the service staff fill the job cards in presence of you?
Yes No

7. Did the service staff take your permission when additional work is to
be done?
Yes No

8. Do you pay any minimum charges during free service?

Yes No

9. Did you asked for a test ride at the time of delivery?

Yes No

10. Do you offered test ride before you demand your vehicle?
 Yes No

11. Do you choose to go for test ride after servicing?

Yes No

Rank the following factor according to your level of satisfaction

Attributes Extrem Satisfi Neutr Dissatis Extremel

ely ed al fied y
Satisfi Dissatisf
ed ied

Overall reception at the service

center

The location of the outlet

Cleanliness of the outlet
Getting a service appointment
Comfort level in the waiting area
Ambience in the waiting area
Space available in the waiting area
Attention given in the waiting area
Information given in the owner’s
manual
Help provided by the service staff
Interest shown by service staff in
specific
problems
Understanding of vehicle problem
by
service staff
Availability of the spare parts
Clarity In delivery time information
Accuracy in delivery time
Readiness of the vehicle at the
time of delivery

Cleanliness of the vehicle at the

time of
delivery
Handling and delivery of vehicle
Satisfaction after test ride
Rating of dealer in terms of quality
of
service
Technical skill of mechanic