impacts of branding on the competitiveness in the vehicle industry

impacts of branding on the competitiveness in the vehicle industry

Introduction

In this final report, it analytically takes a look at the impacts of branding on the competitiveness in the vehicle industry. This research is conducted on the Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL). This research study covers various features. These aspects are as follows; literature review, data analysis, research design, and problem statement. However, it also contains essential elements like ethical issues and standards to ensure the objective of the research study is met. Various variables, such as confounder variables, are also highlighted to confirm the precision of the findings of these research studies. This report study also contains data analysis; this information is gathered by using graphs and tables. It will help to ensure that the accumulated data makes sense. The thesis of this research study is that branding affects the competition of MSIL. However, MSIL needs to make sure that its operations are the best in the market of the automobile.

Business Problem

In the business world, competitiveness is healthy since it helps organizations to manufacture and to keep on making high standard goods at all times. In the automotive industry, competition happens to become a challenge since it has resulted in the closing of operations of several companies worldwide. Several organizations are unable to meet consumer satisfaction by failing to meet the demanded quality hence making losses. However, this happens because the clients intend to transfer their loyalty to firms that qualify to produce high-quality products. Financially unstable firms find it difficult to compete against financially stable and nicely established firms. Maruti Suzuki India Limited has been proactive and assertive in the automotive market. It has a variety of products hence staying in business for many years.

MSIL is currently facing severe rivalry from other companies like TATA Motors Limited, Hyundai Motor Company, and Bajaj Auto Limited. MSIL is about to face challenges in maintaining competitive advantages in the market. It will make it impossible for them to improve or retain their market share position. MSIL tries to develop and manage its current market share aiming to achieve its objectives and satisfy its stakeholders’ desires. And therefore, it becomes essential for the MSIL to improve and intensify the image of its brand. It enables them to outdo their competitors that act as a threat to the company’s future.

In this case, the query on whether or not the image of the brand plays a significant role in speeding up growth and increasing competitiveness is seen. The MSIL has been the market leader in the production of dependable products. In terms of prices, the general cost of its spare parts and cars has helped it to outdo its competitors consistently. The inability of a company to notice the needs of their clients is damaging to the global growth of a company, hence making it a challenge to compete efficiently with well-established companies. In India, this is the case; other vehicles producing companies haven’t been able to compete with MSIL effectively. And it raises a query which is researchable, ‘is the image of MSIL brand important in increasing its competition?’. It is the study’s goal to establish explain the effects of brand image to ensure the competitive advantage of MSIL. It is also this study’s goal to develop solutions that can be used by MSIL to increase the representation of its brand.

Research query: in consumer behavior and the enhancement of MSIL competition in the automotive industry, is the image of the brand relevant?

Hypothesis: MSIL is feasible to the stakeholders since it has been performing well over the past years, due to a well-built brand image that it holds. The shareholders’ desire to maximize their returns from their investments is confident since the company possesses a powerful brand image that enables it to dominate the market share. This research also shows how employees prefer to work in an organization that has a sharp brand image. This study also explores the desires of the local community. And how it gains from the involvement of the MSIL in the future. It is made inevitable by the achievements of the brand image. The research study satisfies the management of MSIL and its objectives of leading in the market share since the research result led to the recommendations that will be executed to improve its performance in the future.

Ethical Issues in the Research

In this research, there are ethical problems experienced. For example, the analysis relies on unreliable information sources. The study has utilized secondary sources of information like the internet; however, this affects the reliability of the information gathered. And it can result in inaccurate results in this study. This issue can be solved by using data from trustworthy internet sites like MSIL official web page. This research is biased since it is subjected to individual opinions; hence, this can discredit the results. The issue comes when the studies provide personal viewpoints on the analysis in the absence of active support of the gathered information. The implementation of impartiality will solve this problem. The utilization of the appropriate techniques when analyzing the accumulated data is essential (Creswel, 2009). In this case, it is necessary to ensure credibility.

Biasness can make the approximates of the findings to be either more or less the actual findings. However, in other utmost cases, biasness can make the viewed findings to be contrary different from the actual outcomes. In this research, a survey was conducted, and there was also the use of a questionnaire. The information gathered manifested that competitiveness is high, depending on the consumption. And this leads to an increase in the production level in several growing organizations. Approximations that are made by guesswork, it leads to objectivity. According to Salian and Gopakumar (2008), guesswork is a problem mainly when calculating since it also results in providing false data.

Another ethical issue is choosing the correct method; however, one should use the technique that works well in the organization. Porter (2000) suggested that the aim of the study is to examine how organizational managers utilize the available resources to plan for the company’s future. In this research, competition is mostly affected by the image of the brand, especially in the management sections. According to the researchers, they viewed about twenty organizational managers that provided them with unobstructed views of what takes place in the management sectors to deal with competition. From the research journals used to do this research, showed that competitiveness happens to be a primary factor that leads to the fast rate rising of the company’s economy.

When it comes to increasing competitiveness, one needs to brand the products well. The researches experienced a lot of issues, and they also had to use many processes. Researchers’ behavior in approaching the employees was challenging. The method used by the researchers to conduct these researches resulted in a lot of weight on the expected findings; analysts had to analyze and compute the data receives to enable them to get the information needed clearly. The investigators researching these projects were faced with ambiguity and confidentiality issues since the employees gave limited information, and therefore it could not satisfy their findings. Selected participants weren’t willing to provide enough and accurate data (Creswel, 2009). To solve this issue, the investigators could have sent the employees the data earlier to enable them to prepare and gather information on what the researchers needed. According to Richard Rosenbaum-Elliott, 2013, this could have helped the researchers to get enough data since the workers could have been honest and provide relevant information that was required.

Researchers are also required to view the findings, ideas, and models of different authors. It will enable them to get a clear understanding Ion the information that they have gathered. They will also get to know what they should expect and even understand the things they need to avoid during their research. The researchers will also be able to understand the models, ideas, and interpretations they should make from the information they come across during their study.

Literature Review

The vehicle industry in India is the center of the swift growth of the country’s economy (Gupta, Gupta, and Maheshwari, n.d). In this case, the participants in this industry can’t be underestimated. Economic growth is based on the approaches used, which are determined by the techniques used for the growth of the business sector. The brand image of the participants in this economy is one feature that leads to the swift growth of these industries hence leading to the growth of the country’s economy.

The growth of inflation in India is threatening investments (Salian and Gopakumar, 2008). When there is inflation growth, the capability of the automotive companies to run in the future is affected since it reduces the purchasing powers of the consumers. When the buying powers of consumers are affected, there’s sales decline; hence it leads to a reduction in companies’ returns. Companies can satisfy the stakeholders by performing well in the market. When people face hardships, it reduces the capability of the companies to achieve their objectives. In the Maruti Suzuki India Limited, the high rate of inflation in the Indian economy has affected the company over the years.

The importance of the automotive industry in India to attain profitability for companies which is supported by the added value services on the vehicles. In India, it is apparent that the identity of the brand is vital for the companies’ performances in the automotive industry. The commitment of MSIL on the value-added services has been the center of ensuring that the company enjoys a significant market share since it brings positive consumer behavior towards the company. MSIL makes the company appealing to more customers since it understands the value of high purchases. Maruti Suzuki India Limited understands that more purchases mean more profits in the company. MSIL views its clients with importance; they consider them as part of their company rather than basically buyers. It has helped the performance of MSIL in the automotive industry.

The theories connected to this research include the hypothesis, is consumers’ behaviors which are influenced by the identity of the brand. People can establish loyalty and buy more products from companies that have the right brand image. Following the decision theory on human desires, people decide based on the aspects that seem appealing to them. Human beings’ preferences depend on their rationality of what looks like a viable option. Another theory in this study is the differentiation of products. It helps to ensure the loyalty of the clients to the brand. According to Dubois and Jodar-Rosell (2010), the underlying assumptions on product differentiation makes it difficult for products to have substitutes in the market.

The theory of management is the first scholarly peer-reviewed theory used in this research. The primary objective of reviewing and using the journal was to find the financial statistics in this competitive market. This journal helps to understand the relationship between the behavior of the management practice in different organizations. The study was carried out in four firms manufacturing the same product. It investigated the production process of the products and how it was managed in various sectors before the final product was given out. According to the journal’s findings, it was apparent that the quality of the products determined competitiveness. In connection to financial management, the managers need to be capable to plan for the future of the organization.

Another theory is the corporate governance theory; companies and stakeholders’ relationship are vital. A company should be able to satisfy the stakeholders’; however, this is challenging due to the conflict of interests. Companies should ensure there is a balance so that they can reduce these conflicts. Currently, the relationship between the satisfaction of the stakeholders and the companies’ performances in the automotive industry isn’t completely covered. In the MSIL case, this research focuses on the effects of companies’ performances in the satisfaction of the shareholders.

British American Tobacco is an example of a company that faced similar issues. The branding of the product caused this challenge; in this case, it discouraged the consumer purchases since the population that was targeted had changed their perceptions. It was hindered by the use of a declaration that the consumption of tobacco was harmful to one’s health in the advertisements of their products. These positive public relations sabotaged the chances of individuals to buy this product. The organization addressed this issue by establishing programs that geared up towards treating the effects of the utilization of tobacco on the consumers of their product. The company came up with support programs for tobacco victims; this is the strategy that is being used by the company to date. The impact of this strategy enhanced the brand image since it highlighted the well-being of its consumers as the company’s primary concern. This strategy is similar to the value-added services offered by the Maruti Suzuki India Limited company in the automotive industry.

Research Design

This study relies on the information gathered from questionnaires and surveys. There is also the use of an exploratory method which explores the causes of business problems and the solutions to these problems. The use of analytical studies explores the queries of these studies, but it doesn’t offer the final solution. The research method in this study is the correlation method which relies on secondary sources. It shows the connection between consumer behavior based on the identity of the brand. It also shows the relation among identity brand and the competitive advantage of Maruti Suzuki India Limited in the automotive industry. This technique utilizes a quantitative strategy to establish the company’s performance in the automotive industry. This technique also shows the effectiveness of the organization based on the sales results led by positive consumer behavior towards the brand. The inflation rate over the study period is also recorded since it influences consumer behavior. The review technique is also used to explain the aspects that are covered in this study.

Data

The data utilized shows consumer behavior which is represented by the number of sales based on the inflation rate in India. This information was acquired from the Maruti Suzuki India Limited database, which contains a financial summary from March 2014 to March 2019. The data on the rate of inflation was attained from the International Monetary Fund Forecast. This data focuses on the net sales of MSIL and the rate of inflation in India during this period.

• The year 2014 – 2019 net sales: 43,656.30, 49,970.60, 57,538.10, 68,034.80, and 79,762.70, respectively (Maruti Suzuki”, 2019)
• The year 2014 – 2019 inflation rate: 5.8%, 4.9%, 4.5%, 3.6%, and 3.5%, respectively (“International Monetary Fund Forecast,” n.d cited in “India Inflation”, 2019).
• This data contains the net sales of the company in the following years from 2014 to 2018, respectively.
• It also contains the rate of inflation in India in several years, that is, from 2014 to 2018.

Table 1: net sales made by the company and the inflation rate from 2014 to 2018

Graph 1: Inflation rate in India from 2014 to 2018

Graph 2: Net Sales made by MSIL from 2014 to 2018

Ethics in Data Analysis

When analyzing the data, objectivity is a vital principle since it acts as a guiding tool. Objectivity ensures the elimination of biasness by making conclusions based on the data available. In this research, it was achieved by the use of reliable findings to make the conclusions. Correct analysis related to variables is a technique that combines subjectivity in interpretation. The use of both line and bar graph has established the trends of the data. Biasness is removed by analyzing the inflation rate in India from the year 2014 to 2018 since it influences consumer behaviors through the value of MSIL net sales. An exploration of the research done under the literature review is another technique used to ensure the establishment of new ideas and subjectivity is upheld. This study focuses on the relevant issues that have been covered. And that is the relationship between the stakeholders’ satisfaction. According to Dubios and Jodar-Rosell (2010), earlier field research mainly focused on the relationship between stakeholders and the management sectors.

Descriptive Analysis

By using descriptive statistics, it is clear that the data from the net sales of the company has steadily risen from the year 2014 to 2018, while the rate of inflation in India has declined. The net sales value from the year 2014 to 2018 is enhanced by the substantial reduction in the rate of inflation.

Inferential Analysis

According to the hypothesis that Maruti Suzuki India Limited owns a strong brand identity due to the rise in sales from the year 2014 to 2018, the returns analysis of the company can anticipate these explanations. The company’s return analysis from the year 2014 to 2018 shows a stable rise trend in graph 2. This trend concludes that the research completely supports the hypothesis upon which it was based on.

Results of the Research

The findings of the research indicated a rise in sales in the Maruti Suzuki India Limited from the year 2014 to 2018 and continuous reduction of the inflation rate at the same time. It concludes that the rate of inflation influences consumer behavior. It also concludes that the stakeholders of MSIL are highly satisfied. The capability of Maruti Suzuki India Limited to increase net sales despite a decline in the inflation rate shows the ability of MSIL to make more sales. The rise in the company’s returns translates high profits that can be utilized to pay high returns on stocks. Maruti Suzuki India Limited shareholders get high returns from their investments in the company. The rise in MSIL yields also suggests an increase in consumer satisfaction with the company’s products hence receiving a positive consumer behavior. This finding actively collaborates the hypothesis of this research that a strong brand identity supports the companies’ performances hence making them highly viable to the shareholders (Dubois and Jodar-Rosell, 2010). It also supports that consumer behavior is based on inflation rate and a strong brand image of a product,

According to the study, the research problem is determined by the effect of brand image on competition in business sectors. The critical variable in this research, therefore, is how competitiveness and consumer behavior are impacted by branding. However, to determine how branding can affect competition, one needs to recognize the specific variables that define branding and how they impact the competition. Identification of such variables, the study can provide a clear introduction to the study. It also helps to do effective and efficient research as well as identify the preferable research study method.

According to this research, a brand refers to names, ideas, or an image of a service or product. This image helps the clients to recognize the goods due to its uniqueness and presented with the value that it is impossible to find in other products (Pike, Bianchi, Kerr and Patti, 2010). Market knowledge is one of the crucial aspects of branding. For a product’s brand to become successful, the clients must have been fully aware of the existence of the brand to enable them easily identify themselves with it. This feature allows the company’s brand to thrive in the competition; it also influences consumer behavior since the clients can easily see themselves with it.

Another aspect of a brand lies in its uniqueness. Rosenbaum-Elliot, Percy and Pervan (2015), suggested that a brand requires to be outstanding and distinctive from other competing brands. This aspect makes the brand to be more competitive and thriving in the market. The quality of the brand shouldn’t fluctuate; it should always be consistent. In this case, when clients return for more of the company’s products, the quality should be the same to satisfy their needs. The brand should be competitive in the market. In this case, the brand should go beyond the expectations of the market. And to overtake other competitors in the market. With all these aspects, the study can determine how branding affects competition in the business world.

Dependent variables are elements being experimented and expected to change as a result of changes in the independent variables. However, independent variables are elements that are stable and cannot be affected by any transitions. According to this study, determining how branding affects competition and the behavior of consumers in the business sector brings out independent and dependent variables. Branding is an independent variable where else consumer behavior and competition is a dependent variable. Competition and consumer behavior are measured by analyzing the number of returns a company gets over some time in the research. Where else, branding is measured by utilizing the added value service by firms to their clients, since, the researchers investigate how branding influences competition of businesses in the market.

First and foremost, Greenwald (2005) commented that competition in business is the rivalry between sellers of a similar commodity to have a larger market share, more volume sales as well as higher profit margins. The definition of a brand is a technique of making unique images of products, and this makes it attractive to the consumers of the product. Branding involves proper packaging of a product that strives to produce high standard goods and meeting the consumers’ expectations in the market. Branding, however, impacts the competition and consumer behavior in the ways that follow.

Branding encourages promotion in the market. Therefore, a stable business owning the right branding image of its product is likely to be known in the market. And therefore, causing an impact on the behavior of consumers. However, the competitors with a weak branding of its goods fail to be recognized by the consumers. It happens because clients are most likely to buy products and services from an organization that they are well familiar with than companies they do not quite know about. And therefore, with a well-established and reputable business, one is likely to be recognized in the market. However, it ensures that the products are moving swiftly than their rivals hence being ahead in the competition (Pike et al., 2010).

In the branding issues, the business with valuable proposition than their competitors. A brand happens to be a company’s asset that is valued. It provides the consumers with a distinctive value which makes them prefer its products than those of its competitors. According to Gregory (2003), this helps to increase the company’s sales than its competitors hence making it to lead in the market.

Branding also helps a business to rise in the market share with a more significant margin than its competitors. Consumers prefer to buy goods from a reliable brand since it satisfies their needs than the competitor’s products. According to Hakim (2012), if the brand attracts more consumers than the rivals, then the market share widens and therefore being more competitive.

Branding also helps the firm to enhance its profits. Consumers are likely to identify themselves with a strong brand which satisfies their needs and therefore, firms with the best branding have the chances to rise in the market share. It makes their products to move out at a higher rate hence leading to high volume sales. According to Pike et al. (2010), it means that the company can maximize its profits since it has high sales volumes than its competitors, giving them a competitive advantage.

Recommendations and Conclusion

      Increase in returns by the firm underestimates the fact that the company retains an intense competition in the market. And therefore, it is clear that the companies’ performances influence the satisfaction of the shareholders. Maruti Suzuki India Limited case, clients are among the stakeholders since their satisfaction with the company is shown by the increase in sales throughout this study. Maruti Suzuki India Limited needs to focus on the added value services to enhance the identity of the brand and satisfy the stakeholders’ needs. In this case, for example, an increase in net sales in the company results in more sales units in the company. The fundamental assumption, in this case, is increased sales units that are formed by the products that address better concerns for the consumers. It influences consumer behaviors because consumers prefer to engage with firms that produce products which are relevant to their preferences. The rise in sales in the firm also leads to a decrease in its competitor’s sales. According to Dubois and Jodar-Rosell (2010), MSIL’s unique techniques appeared better in the eyes of their clients compared to those of their competitors.

Some of the solutions that should be adopted by Maruti Suzuki India Limited includes improvement of their products, advancing their delivery services to their clients and consumer relations. It will enhance their clients’ loyalty as well as attract new clients. They should also establish strategies that promote the viability of Maruti Suzuki India Limited compared to that of their rivals. This approach can also be used by organizations that have a low first choice preference probability in the industry. They should also continue to enhance the image of the brand to avoid stiff competition from other firms like TATA Motors Limited and Hyundai Motor Company. If this happens to Maruti Suzuki India Limited, it can reduce the viability of MSIL.

There are solutions to address the stakeholders’ concerns which include enhancing the identity of the brand to ensure considerable returns in the company. The Maruti Suzuki India Limited shareholders are concerned with the maximization of the gains from their investments. In the case of consumers, their concerns should be addressed by facilitating the delivery services to ensure that the clients are satisfied. Consumers main concern is their relationship with the company and the quality of products. In the case of employees, their primary care is better compensations for their hard work, and this is enhanced through an improved brand identity that leads to high returns. It makes the company afford resources to better the employees’ compensations. However, employees are also concerned with the company’s image of the brand on its products. Employees are attracted to companies that have a desirable brand image, and it can be achieved by enhancing the brand of the organization.

The company needs to do more research on what amounts to the image of a brand. The present division of researchers on this study brings about ambiguity. And therefore, it is underestimating the establishment of attempts that should be carried out to enhance the brand identity. According to Sekaran and Bougie (2016), the impacts of confounder variables such as pricing on the first-choice preferences probabilities requires the establishment of the centrality of the product branding so that to secure competition.

It is therefore clear that the identity of a brand influences the consumer behaviors and the competitiveness of a firm in any given industry. And, it takes place through the enhancement of viabilities of the company to the clients. In this case, Maruti Suzuki India Limited has a strong brand identity which attributes to substantial thrive that the company enjoys over the years. At this point, the success of a company is determined by the increasing number in returns. It is attributed as an excellent performance of the firm in a specific industry due to strong brand identity.

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