MARKETING MANAGEMENT

TO STUDY THE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION WITH RESPECT TO BIG BAZAAR

(Assignment towards the partial fulfillment of the assessment in the subject of Marketing Management)

DATED: - 11 SEPTEMBER, 2012

PREPARED BY: KARTIKEY JAIN B.B.A. LL.B. (HONS) III SEMESTER ROLL NO.: - 866

SUBMITTED TO: Dr. ARCHI MATHUR FACULTY OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES (ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR & ASSISTANT DEAN)

SUMMER SEMESTER (JULY 2012 NOVEMBER 2012) NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY, JODHPUR

Page |2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Apart from the efforts put in by me, the success of any project depends largely on the encouragement and guidelines of many others. I take this opportunity to express my gratitude to the people who have been instrumental in the successful completion of this project. I would like to show my deepest gratitude to Dr. Archi Mathur, Faculty of Marketing Management, for giving me an opportunity to work on this project. Without her encouragement and guidance this project would not have materialized. I would also like to thank the library staff of NLU Jodhpur for providing me with all the essential research material which I required during the course of this project. This acknowledgement will be incomplete without thanking my parents and friends who always held my back, their encouragement has been instrumental in motivating me and making this project a success. Thanking you all once again.

Page |3 T TA AB BL LE EO OF FC CO ON NT TE EN NT TS S

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ............................................................................................................ 4 OBJECTIVES ................................................................................................................................. 5 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY.................................................................................................... 5 CUSTOMER SATISFACTION IN RETAIL SECTOR................................................................. 6 BIG BAZAAR .............................................................................................................................. 16 DATA TABULATION ................................................................................................................. 25 ANALYSIS ................................................................................................................................... 36 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................. 40 RECOMMENDATIONS .............................................................................................................. 43 ANNEXURES .............................................................................................................................. 44 LIMITATIONS ............................................................................................................................. 49 BIBLIOGRAPHY ......................................................................................................................... 50

Page |4 E EX XE EC CU UT TIIV VE ES SU UM MM MA AR RY Y

Customer satisfaction is generally understood as the sense of satisfaction that a consumer feels when comparing his preliminary expectations with the actual quality of the acquired product. Thus, satisfaction is closely linked with the quality of the product (service). The quality of services is extremely difficult to assess, because services is are intangible and heterogeneous. It is not feasible to develop well-defined quality standards that will allow the manufacturer to exercise full control and reject "unsuitable" services before they are sold to the consumer. The direct involvement of consumers in the provision of services leads us to talk about quality not as the recruitment of certain objective characteristics corresponding to stated standards, but as quality conceived by the consumer. Quality = Customer satisfaction = Value/ Cost

This definition of quality implies a close relationship between the product or service and the consumers. In current market conditions, the consumer plays the role of arbiter, so failure will result if customer satisfaction is not taken into account. The above defined concept of Customer Satisfaction has been understood with respect to a supermarket retailing chain, Big Bazaar. In the survey conducted, I came across many factors that influence the consumers perception of a store and their subsequent shopping and buying decisions. Here, I present a culmination of the findings gathered and the suggestions based on the data gathered and analyzed. If set in descending order of influence as indicated by the consumers, the factors can be listed as: Quality, Affordability, Brand name, All products under one roof, Proximity, Fashion, Loyalty, Service, Variety and Store atmosphere. These are the factors influencing the satisfaction level of the customers. A little more than half of the respondents indicated that they are satisfied with Big Bazaar, while almost one-forth indicated that they are highly satisfied with the store. However, almost onefourth of the number of respondents indicated that they were unsatisfied with Big Bazaar.

Page |5 This goes to show that although Big Bazaar may have an overall goodwill from the consumers, there are still some things that they are not doing right. Big Bazaar must identify exactly what the problem areas are and must address them quickly and swiftly.

O OB BJ JE EC CT TIIV VE ES S

To identify and analyze the factors that influences the buyers to visit Big Bazaar. To understand the factors leading to customer satisfaction with respect to Big Bazaar. To critically examine the factors leading to customer satisfaction with respect to Big Bazaar and suggest recommendations, if necessary.

R RE ES SE EA AR RC CH HM ME ET TH HO OD DO OL LO OG GY Y

The method of research would be deductive. The nature of data would be both primary and secondary. The data would be collected through the use of questionnaires. The secondary data would include information from books, websites, articles etc. The research technique used would be field study where information would be collected by the use of questionnaires on the topic.

Page |6 CHAPTER - I

According to Philip Kotler, satisfaction is a persons feelings of pressure or disappointment resulting from products perceived performance (outcome) in relation to his or her expectations. Customer satisfaction is the level of a persons felt state resulting from comparing a products perceived performance (outcome) in relation to the persons expectations. A major goal of any enterprise is to create a ratings system of customer satisfaction, goods and services. It is obvious that the company cannot change what is not measured. In order to get a clearer picture of the preferences of the major consumer groups, this stage should be based on extensive research, including a variety of interviews and surveys. It is necessary to know the key benefits, which determine customer satisfaction in the market segment, of the properties of certain goods and services. It is important to estimate the terms of these preferences from the viewpoint of the client. This article discusses the importance of customer satisfaction, and ways of assessing it. 1

C CU US ST TO OM ME ER RS SA AT TIIS SF FA AC CT TIIO ON N IIN NR RE ET TA AIIL LS SE EC CT TO OR R Customer satisfaction is generally understood as the sense of satisfaction that a consumer feels when comparing his preliminary expectations with the actual quality of the acquired product. Thus, satisfaction is closely linked with the quality of the product (service). The quality of services is extremely difficult to assess, because services is are intangible and heterogeneous. It is not feasible to develop well-defined quality standards that will allow the manufacturer to exercise full control and reject "unsuitable" services before they are sold to the consumer. The direct involvement of consumers in the provision of services leads us to talk about quality not as

Olga V. Krivobokova, Evaluating Customer Satisfaction as an Aspect of Quality Management, World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology,2009

Page |7 the recruitment of certain objective characteristics corresponding to stated standards, but as quality conceived by the consumer. Quality = Customer satisfaction = Value/ Cost2

This definition of quality implies a close relationship between the product or service and the consumers. In current market conditions, the consumer plays the role of arbiter, so failure will result if customer satisfaction is not taken into account. The potential financial benefits of an increased number of satisfied customers are often quite substantial. The greater the satisfaction of the buyer's company, the more willing he will be to buy again from the same provider. However, these benefits are not immediately apparent, and the company needs to be able to see the prospects. In contrast, the consequences of consumer dissatisfaction may be felt much faster and can be very severe. One disappointed buyer will talk about the problems he has encountered with another 35 potential clients, on average, and this secondary effect can impact future sales. The production of quality products helps to increase profitability and the return on capital expenditure. It also increases the prestige of the firm. If its products are widely perceived to be of high quality, the company need not spend so much on advertising or offer an expensive package to attract buyers.

The interests of manufacturers in improving the quality of products are as follows:

Promote their products to new markets, expand market share; Increase labor productivity by eliminating the shortcomings of technological processes, reducing defects; Reduce the risk of loss during the warranty period; Obtain a higher profit.

T.Glushakova, Evaluation of Customer Satisfaction and Company Management , Ri-Vita Marketing

Page |8 For the manufacturer, the quality of the companys product is the determining factor in all its industrial and economic activities. The process of improving quality has to be aimed at consumers. In this task, the manufacturer must do the following:

Identify customers and define their requirements for products; Transform the customer requirements into technical terms; Identify the stages in the technological process of manufacturing products, and develop criteria of the process; Assess the results and the level of customer satisfaction.

It is important to provide for the customer:3

User-friendly and reliable devices Qualified technical services on time Characteristics that correspond to product prices

Typically, improved quality of a product is accompanied by an increase in the cost of establishing it, but this trend can be reduced by using scientific and technological advances, by introducing innovations, by improving the production management, and by increasing labor productivity. Moral aging of products also leads to a relative decrease in quality, though the cost of production remains unchanged. This satisfaction level is a function of difference between perceived performance and expectations. If the products performance, exceed expectation the customer highly satisfied or delighted. If the performance matches the expectations the customer is satisfied. If the products performance fall shorts of expectations the customer is dissatisfied. 1. Many companies are aiming for high satisfaction because customers who are just satisfied still find it easy to switch when a better offer comes along. High satisfaction or delight creates an emotional affinity with brand.

A. Nikiforov, Quality Management, Drofa, 2004

Page |9 2. Variety of factors that affect customer satisfaction includes product quality, product availability and after sales support such as warranties and services. Customer satisfaction is seen as a proof of delivering a quality product or service. It is believed that customer satisfaction brings sales growth, and market share. A company can always increase customer satisfaction by lowering its price or increasing its services but this may result in lower profits. Thus the purpose of marketing is to generate customer value profitability. 3. India is on the threshold of a new millennium. India chose for global economy, exposing her to winds of change in the market place, which has expanded vastly and become fiercely competitive. In the changed environment, decision makers view the marketing concept as the key to success. Marketing in practice has to manage products, pricing, promotion and distribution. 4. A successful product can be developed by exploding these opportunities. While delivering the value of the consumer we make use of marketing support. This support is based on the knowledge of consumers and distribution. Marketing support both at the introduction of products and maturing is considered 5. Marketing, as suggested by the American Marketing Association is "an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, communicating and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders". 6. The two major factors of marketing are the recruitment of new customers (acquisition) and the retention and expansion of relationships with existing customers (base management). Marketing methods are informed by many of the social, particularly psychology, sociology, and economics. Anthropology is also a small, but growing, influence. Market research underpins these activities. Through advertising, it is also related to many of the creative arts. 7. For a marketing plan to be successful, the mix of the four "Ps" i.e. product, price, place, promotion must reflect the wants and desires of the consumers in the target market. Trying to convince a market segment to buy something they don't want is extremely expensive and seldom successful. Marketers depend on marketing research, both formal and informal, to determine what consumers want and what they are willing to pay for. Marketers hope that this process will give them a sustainable competitive advantage.

P a g e | 10 Marketing management is the practical application of this process. The offer is also an important addition to the 4P's theory.

SKILLS OF MARKETER Marketers have 4 main skill sets that they bring to an enterprise: 1. Opportunity Identification Marketing begins before there is a product to sell. Many people think marketing is just selling whatever comes out of the manufacturing plant. It's the job of marketing to decide WHAT comes out of the manufacturing plant in the first place. Before a business can make money there must be opportunities for money to be made and it's marketing's job to define what those opportunities are. Marketers analyze markets, market gaps, trends, products, competition, and distribution channels to come up with opportunities to make money.

2. Competitive strategy/positioning Markets consist of groups of competitors competing for a customer's business. The job of marketing is to decide how to create a defensible sustainable competitive advantage against competitors. Marketers conceive strategies, tactics, and business models to make it hard if not impossible for competition to take away customers from their business. 3. Demand generation/management It's the job of marketing to create and sustain demand for a company's products. Marketers manage demand for a company's products by influencing the probability and frequency of their customer's purchase behavior. 4. Sales The ultimate goal of marketing is to make money for a business. In most companys sales is a different discipline and department from marketing. But in order for salespeople to have any

P a g e | 11 long term success in a company they must be led by marketing. The better job a company does of identifying opportunities, creating a differential sustainable competitive advantage, and generating demand for their products the easier it will be for salespeople to make sales.

EVALUATION METHOD OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION Evaluations of customer satisfaction are based on an examination of two major factors: Firstly, how well the staff of organizations focused on the consumer understand the relationship between consumer satisfaction and stability of consumers on the one hand, and profit on the other. Employees of these organizations know how to use market research in order to achieve a competitive advantage. However, they are aware that there is no simple model of management and no research methodology that will give a clear and unambiguous answer to the question: what drives customer satisfaction and consumer constancy? Secondly, the business device that helps the organization to understand problems related to the perception, attitude and behavior of their customers. Some of these tools are located inside the company, and others are located in the professional agencies involved in market research. Those two teams have to cooperate with each other to help customer-oriented companies fully realize their potential. To achieve this goal, market researchers should be the right hand of business, rather than just information providers. Market researchers must therefore extend their knowledge into other business disciplines: from finance to manufacturing processes, from marketing to strategic planning, and from the relationships among employees to customer service. Options for analyses: Non-recurrent - Individual assessment of customer satisfaction is used to compare a product or service with the products or services of major competitors Periodic (every three, six or twelve months) - Periodic evaluation of customer satisfaction is applied in order to compare the product/service with the products/services of competitors, to evaluate the dynamics of changes in satisfaction that occurred following the market activities or implementation of changes, etc.

P a g e | 12

In the case of a periodic study, the customer satisfaction rating is evaluated on the basis of a comparison of the composition (conditions of selection, sex, age, etc.) and the size of consumer audiences.

In the evaluation, the following indicators are measured: Overall satisfaction with products/services Satisfaction with the parameters of a product or service (an example of the attributes price, range of assortment, speed of supply, shopping convenience, etc.) The parameters of the product/service are based either on results of earlier studies (e.g., quality) or they are established by an expert.

The method can be expanded by including in the study not only an evaluation of satisfaction with the various parameters of a product or service, and also an evaluation of the importance each parameter to the consumer. Methods for evaluating satisfaction with a product/service provide an opportunity to: Evaluate the overall satisfaction of customers Identify narrow points of a product or service (i.e., aspects that do not evoke enough satisfaction) In addition, the evaluation of customer satisfaction with a product or service provides an opportunity to: Evaluate the importance that consumers attach to a particular parameter Define the strategic direction of work with the parameters of a product or service4

It is therefore advisable to use several methods simultaneously. It is important to remember that when choosing the direction for improving the company it is necessary not only to have a reliable evaluation of satisfaction, but also to take into account the importance for clients of each of the criteria by which they evaluate the effectiveness of the company.
4

Cronin J.J. and Taylor S.A., Measuring Service Quality - A Reexamination And Extension, Journal of Marketing, Vol 56 (July 1992), pp.55-68

P a g e | 13 1. The Likert scale, Likerts multi-evaluation method, in which respondents have to make choices, using the suggested answers: completely satisfied, somewhat satisfied, etc. 2. The Importance-Satisfaction (I-S) model. 3. SIMALTO (Simultaneous Multi-Attribute Level Trade-Off) - a descriptive verbal scale5; 4. Customer Satisfaction Measurement Customer satisfaction affects the efficiency of the companys operation as a whole. Statistics confirm that the cost of attracting new customers is many times higher than the cost of retaining existing customers (depending on the business sector, but in the service sector this is the most important parameter). The current service market leaves no other choice, because of: 1. Excess supply - A wide range of services in the market makes consumers more readable and weaker 2. High quality - The massive improvement in the quality of products and services as a result of the development of new management systems in all market segments. 3. Information - Modern consumers have almost full information about products and services and are able to compare prices, the characteristics of the goods, etc. They can adequately assess what value they get for their money. 4. Education - The rising level of education has led to the formation of consumer confidence in their range of consumer rights 5. Service suppliers - Suppliers are forced to engage in tough competition for each customer, and therefore make more efforts to meet the requirements of customers.6 Thus objective and accurate indicators of customer satisfaction are the best and the main indicator of consumer loyalty.

METHOD TO MEASURE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION Companies use the following methods to measure customer satisfaction.

5 6

K.Seryakov, Four Methods of Customer Satisfaction Evaluation , Business Excellence Magazine I.Vasiljeva, Customer Satisfaction Measurement

P a g e | 14 1. Complaints and suggestion system: companies obtaining complaints through their customer service centres, and further suggestions were given by customers to satisfy their desires. 2. Customer satisfaction surveys Responsive companies obtain a direct measure of customer satisfaction by periodic surveys. They send questionnaires to random sample of their customers to find out how they feel about various aspects of the companys performance and also solicit views on their competitors performance. It is useful to measure the customers willingness to recommend the company and brand to other persons. 3. Lost Customer Analysis Companies should contact customers who have stopped buying or who have switched to another supplier to learn why this happened. 4. Consumer Behavior Vs Consumption Behavior Consumer behavior refers to the manner in which an individual reaches decision related to the selection, purchases and use of goods and services. Walters and Paul says that, consumer behavior is the process where by the individuals decides what, when, how and from whom to purchase goods & services. Consumer behavior relates to an individual person (Micro behavior) where as consumption behavior relates to and to the mass or aggregate of individuals (Macro behavior) consumers behavior as a study focuses on the decision process of the individual consumer or consuming unit such as the family. In contrast the consumption behavior as a study is to do with the explanation of the behavior of the aggregate of consumers or the consuming unit. Consumer is a pivot, around which the entire system of marketing revolves. The study of buyer behavior is one of the most important keys to successful mark.

P a g e | 15 THE IMPORTANCE OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION The most obvious reason why companies have to worry about customer satisfaction is that they need customers to be ready to repurchase their services in future. A positive evaluation of products that have been purchased helps to retain customers. People who evaluate a product or service negatively are unlikely to use them and pay for them again. It is usually cheaper to retain existing clients than to attract new ones. Therefore, companies focus on ensuring that their customers have a satisfactory experience of using their products. Frustrated consumers not only have a negative experience and share it with their friends and relatives, but may even go to court to seek redress. Companies will receive negative publicity that will affect their prestige and will require extra effort, time and money to be invested in protecting the reputation of the business, including dealing with court cases and the press. In a tough competitive environment, rival firms can take advantage of the situation. The gulf between satisfied customers and completely satisfied customers can swallow a business.

P a g e | 16 CHAPTER - II

B BIIG GB BA AZ ZA AA AR R

Big Bazaar is a chain of hypermarket in India. As of June 2, 2012 there are 214 stores across 90 cities and towns in India covering around 16 million square feet of retail space. Big Bazaar is designed as an agglomeration of bazaars or Indian markets with clusters offering a wide range of merchandise including fashion and apparels, food products, general merchandise, furniture, electronics, books, fast food and leisure and entertainment sections. Big Bazaar is part of Future Group, which also owns the Central Hypermarket, Brand Factory, Pantaloons, eZONE, HomeTown, futurebazaar.com, KB's Fair Price to name a few and is owned through a wholly owned subsidiary of Pantaloon Retail India Limited(BSE: 523574 523574), that is listed on Indian stock exchanges. Big Bazaar has clearly emerged as the favorite shopping destination for millions of its consumers, across the country, its success is a true testament to the emotional bonding it has established with the Indian consumer, on account of its value offerings, aspirational appeal and service levels. Shop till you drop! Big Bazaar has democratized shopping in India and is so much more than a hypermarket. Here, you will find over 170,000 products under one roof that cater to every need of a family, making Big Bazaar Indias favorite shopping destination.

P a g e | 17 At Big Bazaar, you will get the best products at the best prices from apparel to general merchandise like plastics, home furnishings, utensils, crockery, cutlery, sports goods, car accessories, books and music, computer accessories and many, many more.

Big Bazaar is the destination where you get products available at prices lower than the MRP, setting a new level of standard in price, convenience and quality. If you are a fashion conscious buyer who wants great clothes at great prices, Big Bazaar is the place to be. Leveraging on the companys inherent strength of fashion, Big Bazaar has created a strong value-for-money proposition for its customers. This highlights the uniqueness of Big Bazaar as compared to traditional hypermarkets, which principally revolve around food, groceries and general merchandise. Boasting of an impressive array of private labels, Big Bazaar is continually striving to provide customers with a complete look. So be it mens wear, womens wear, kids wear, sportswear or party wear, Big Bazaar fashions has it all!

HISTORY Big Bazaar was launched in September, 2001 with the opening of its first four stores in Calcutta, Indore, Bangalore and Hyderabad in 22 days. Within a span of ten years, there are now 161 Big Bazaar stores in 90 cities and towns across India. By September 2012 BIG BAZAAR will have two more stores in North east namely SILCHAR and JORHAT in Assam. Big Bazaar was started by Kishore Biyani, the Group CEO and Managing Director of Pantaloon Retail India. Though Big Bazaar was launched purely as a fashion format including apparel, cosmetics, accessory and general merchandise, over the years Big Bazaar has included a wide range of products and service offerings under their retail chain. The current formats include Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar, Electronic Bazaar and Furniture Bazaar. The inspiration behind this entire retail format was from Saravana Stores, a local store in T. Nagar, Chennai

P a g e | 18 The stores are customized to provide the feel of mandis and melas while offering the modern retail features like Quality, Choice and Convenience. As the modern Indian family's favorite retail store, Big Bazaar is popularly known as the "Indian Walmart". On successful completion of ten years in Indian retail industry, in 2011, Big Bazaar has come up a new logo with a new tag line: Naye India Ka Bazaar, replacing the earlier one: 'Isse Sasta Aur Accha Kahin Nahin'.

STRATEGY

3-C Theory According to Kishore Biyani's 3-C theory, Change and Confidence among the entire population is leading to rise in Consumption, through better employment and income which in turn is creating value to the agricultural products across the country. Big Bazaar has divided India into three segments: India one: Consuming class which includes upper middle and lower middle class (14% of India's population). India two: Serving class which includes people like drivers, household helps, office peons, liftmen, washermen, etc. (55% of India's population) and India three: Struggling class (remaining 31% of India's population). While Big Bazaar is targeted at the population across India one and India two segments, Aadhaar Wholesale is aimed at reaching the population in India three segment. With this, Future Group emerged as a retail destination for consumers across all classes in the Indian society.

OPERATIONS

P a g e | 19 Most Big Bazaar stores are multi-level and are located in stand-alone buildings in city centers as well as within shopping malls. These stores offer over 200,000 SKUs in a wide range of categories led primarily by fashion and food products. Food Bazaar, a supermarket format was incorporated within Big Bazaar in 2002 and is now present within every Big Bazaar as well as in independent locations. A typical Big Bazaar is spread across around 50,000 square feet (4,600 m2) of retail space. While the larger metropolises have Big Bazaar Family centres measuring between 75,000 square feet (7,000 m2) and 160,000 square feet (15,000 m2), Big Bazaar Express stores in smaller towns measure around 30,000 square feet (2,800 m2). Big Bazaar has the facility to purchase products online through its official web page, and offers free shipping on some of their products.

INNOVATIONS Wednesday Bazaar Big Bazaar introduced the Wednesday Bazaar concept and promoted it as Hafte Ka Sabse Sasta Din. It was mainly to draw customers to the stores on Wednesdays, when least number of customers is observed. According to the chain, the aim of the concept is "to give home makers the power to save the most and even the stores in the city don a fresh look to make customers feel that it is their day". Sabse Sasta Din With a desire to achieve sales of Rs 26 Crore in a one single day, Big Bazaar introduced the concept of "Sabse Sasta Din". The idea was to simply create a day in a year that truly belonged to Big Bazaar. This was launched on January 26, 2006 and the result was exceptional that police had to come in to control the mammoth crowd. The concept was such a huge hit that the offer was increased from one day to three days in 2009 (24 to 26 Jan) and to five days in 2011 (22-26 Jan).

P a g e | 20 Maha Bachat Maha Bachat was started off in 2006 as a single day campaign with attractive promotional offers across all Big Bazaar stores. Over the years it has grown into a 6 days biannual campaign. It has attractive offers in all its value formats such as Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar, Electronic Bazaar and Furniture Bazaar - catering to the entire needs of a consumer. The Great Exchange Offer On February 12, 2009 Big Bazaar launched "The Great Exchange Offer", through with the customers can exchange their old goods in for Big Bazaar coupons. Later, consumers can redeem these coupons for brand new goods across the nation.

TIMELINE 2001 Three Big Bazaar stores launched within a span of 22 days in Kolkata, Bangalore and Hyderabad. 2002 Big Bazaar - ICICI Bank Card is launched. Food Bazaar becomes part of Big Bazaar with the launch of the first store in Mumbai at High Street Phoenix 2003 2004 Big Bazaar enters Tier II cities with the launch of the store in Nagpur Big Bazaar welcomes its 10 million-th customer at its new store in Gurgaon

P a g e | 21 Big Bazaar wins its first award and national recognition. Big Bazaar and Food Bazaar awarded the countrys most admired retailer award in value retailing and food retailing segment at the India Retail Forum A day before Diwali, the store at Lower Parel becomes the first to touch Rs 10 million turnover on a single day 2005 Initiates the implementation of SAP and pilots a RFID project at its central warehouse in Tarapur Launches a unique shopping program: the Big Bazaar Exchange Offer, inviting customers to exchange household junk at Big Bazaar Electronic Bazaar and Furniture Bazaar are launched Big Bazaar and ICICI Bank launched ICICI Bank-Big Bazaar Gold credit card program to reward its loyal customers. 2006 2007 The 50th Big Bazaar store is launched in Kanpur Big Bazaar partners with Futurebazaar.com to launch India's most popular shopping portal Big Bazaar initiates the "Power of One" campaign to help raise funds for the Save The Children India Fund Pantaloon Retail wins the International Retailer of the Year at US-based National Retail Federation convention in New York and Emerging Retailer of the Year award at the World Retail Congress held in Barcelona. Mohan Jadhav sets a national record at Big Bazaar Sangli with a Rs 1,37,367 shopping bill. The Sangli farmer becomes Big Bazaars largest ever customer. Big Bazaar launches Shakti, Indias first credit card program tailored for housewives Navaras the jewellery store launched within Big Bazaar stores

P a g e | 22 2008 Big Bazaar becomes the fastest growing hypermarket format in the world with the launch of its 101st store within 7 years of launch Big Bazaar dons a new look with a fresh new section, Fashion@Big Bazaar Big Bazaar joins the league of Indias Business Super brands. It is voted among the top ten service brands in the country in the latest Pitch-IMRB international survey Big Bazaar initiated the Mega Saving "Monthly Bachat Bazaar" campaign, to provide exceptional deals on groceries and food items during the first week of every month. 2009 Big Bazaar opens its second store in Assam at Tinsukia Big Bazaar initiates Maha Annasantarpane program at its stores in South India a unique initiative to offer meals to visitors and support local social organizations Big Bazaar captures almost one-third share in food and grocery products sold through modern retail in India Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Asin, youth icons of India, were chosen as the brand ambassadors of Big Bazaar Big Bazaar announced the launch of 'The Great Exchange Offer' Formed a joint venture with Hidesign to launch Holii, a new brand of handbags, laptop bags and other accessories. 2010 Future Value Retail Limited is formed as a specialized subsidiary to spearhead the groups value retail business through Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar and other formats. Big Bazaar wins CNBC Awaaz Consumer Awards for the third consecutive year. Adjudged the Most Preferred Multi Brand Food & Beverage Chain, Most Preferred Multi Brand Retail Outlet and Most Preferred Multi Brand One Stop Shop Big Bazaar connects over 30,000 small and medium Indian manufacturers and entrepreneurs with around 200 million customers visiting its stores Big Bazaar opens its third store in Kanpur at Z Square Mall

P a g e | 23 2011 Big Bazaar forays into the rural wholesale and distribution business through Aadhaar Wholesale store at Kalol, Gujarat. Big Bazaar has come up a new logo with a new tag line: Naye India Ka Bazaar. 200th store opened in India. Future Group has launched its latest venture, Foodhall a premium food destination across 10 metros in India For the convenience of the online customers, Big Bazaar has started free shipping on all orders above Rs. 1000 Entered into an agreement with Hindustan Unilever to co-develop and co-brand bakery products, which would be sold exclusively at Big Bazaar stores. 2012 Big Bazaar entered into a five year multi-million dollar deal with Cognizant Technology Solutions for IT infrastructure services that support Future Group's network of stores, warehouses, offices, and data centers. Partnered with Disney to launch "Kidz Cookies", exclusively for kids across India. Big Bazaar is planning to add further value to its retail services by offering Value added services like grinding, de-seeding, vegetables cutting at free of cost. Big Bazaar opens its fourth store in Kanpur at Jajmau which is the largest leather tannery garrison of Asia Vidya Balan was chosen as the brand ambassador of Big Bazaar's Price Challenge exercise Ranked 6 among the Top 50 Service Brands in India.

P a g e | 24

CUSTOMER PROBLEM SOLVING PROCESS GUIDELINES

1. Problem Identification Identify a problem faced by customer.

2. Involve Managers Who manage process that touch customers

3. Do Customer research
Regarding problem faced & customer history if possible.

8. Record keeping Record keeping of various problem & solution provided for future reference.

4. Find Alternatives
Various solutions, which can be provided for problem solving

7. Check satisfaction level. Try to find the level of customer satisfaction; whether he/she is delighted?

6. Implementation. Take appointment, personally meet the customer and provide solution.

5. Select the best solution.

Select the optimum solution considering customer lifetime value.

P a g e | 25 CHAPTER - III

D DA AT TA AT TA AB BU UL LA AT TIIO ON N

1. HOW DO YOU RATE BIG BAZAAR PRICES?

BIG BAZAAR PRICES

10% 10% Excellent 10% 50% Very Good Good 20% Fair Poor

P a g e | 26 2. HOW DO YOU RATE QUALITY & VARIETY OF PRODUCT?

QUALITY AND VARIETY OF PRODUCTS

0% 10% Strongly Agree Agree 20% 60% Neither Agree/Disagree Disagree Strongly Disagree

10%

P a g e | 27 3. HOW DO YOU RATE OUR OFFERS & DISCOUNTS?

OFFERS AND DISCOUNTS

10% 40% 30% Strongly Agree Agree Neither Agree/Disagree Disagree 20% 0% Strongly Disagree

P a g e | 28 4. HOW DO YOU RATE STAFFS BEHAVIOR?

STAFF BEHAVIOR
10% 10% Excellent 10% Very Good Good Fair 50% Poor 20%

P a g e | 29 5. HOW DO YOU RATE STORES AMBIENCE & CLEANLINESS?

AMBIENCE AND CLEANLINESS

10% 10% 50% 20% Strongly Agree Agree Neither Agree/Disagree Disagree 10% Strongly Disagree

P a g e | 30 6. HOW DO YOU RATE OUR CUSTOMER SERVICE DESK & IN-STORE ANNOUNCEMENTS?

OFFERS AND DISCOUNTS

10%

10% 10% Strongly Agree

30%

Agree Neither Agree/Disagree 40% Disagree Strongly Disagree

P a g e | 31 7. HOW WAS YOUR BILLING EXPERIENCE?

BILLING EXPERIENCE

10% 40% 10% Strongly Agree Agree 20% Neither Agree/Disagree Disagree 20% Strongly Disagree

P a g e | 32 8. HOW DO YOU RATE SECURITYS BEHAVIOR?

SECURITY BEHAVIOR
10% 20% Excellent Very Good 40% 30% Good Fair Poor

0%

P a g e | 33 9. HOW WAS YOUR OVERALL EXPERIENCE IN STORE?

OVERALL EXPERIENCE
10% 30% 20% Excellent Very Good Good 20% 20% Fair Poor

P a g e | 34 10. HOW DO YOU RATE PARKING FACILITY AT BIG-BAZAAR?

PARKING FACILITY

30%

30% Excellent Very Good Good

10% 20%

10%

Fair Poor

P a g e | 35 11. WHICH IS THE FACTOR THAT APPEALS YOU THE MOST?

Most Influencing Factor

10% 10% 5% 15% 25% 5% 30% Quality Brand Price Store Layout Proximity One-Stop Shop Staff Behavior

P a g e | 36 CHAPTER - IV

A AN NA AL LY YS SIIS S

There are several ways to gather input from customers. The simplest way to find out how customers feel about the brand is to gather information through questionnaire. If you have only 20 customers, you can talk to each one personally. The advantage of this approach is that you'll get a personal "feel" for each customer. The disadvantage is that you'll gather different information from each customer depending on how the conversation goes. Therefore, in order to overcome the disadvantage, a close-ended questionnaire has been prepared using measurement tools such as Likerts Scale and Rating Scale. Customer surveys with standardized survey question insure that you will collect the same information from everyone. Remember that few of your customers will be interested in "filling out a questionnaire". It's work for them without much reward. By launching a customer survey as an attempt to find out "how we can serve you better" -- your customers will feel less put upon. Here are a few of the possible dimensions that one could measure: Quality of product Pricing Offers and discounts Staffs behavior Complaints or problems Billing experience Securitys behavior Stores ambience & cleanliness Overall experience in store Parking Facility

P a g e | 37

Using satisfaction Surveys to achieve a Competitive advantage Consider these statistics: Only 4% of all customers with problems complain The average person with a problem eventually tells 9 other people Satisfied patients and customers tell 5 other people about their good treatment Cost of acquiring a new customer is usually 5-7 times greater than retaining current ones Cost of hiring and training a new employee is up to 10 times greater than retaining current ones. These facts underscore the need to satisfy your current customers so they remain with your organization. Ensuring their satisfaction is vital to your long-term business survival and profitability. The technology available to both you and your competitors has made it easier to duplicate each others products or services. Because of this, it is increasingly difficult to rely on features alone to differentiate yourself from the competition. Excellent customer satisfaction is one of the few ways to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. Satisfaction (and dissatisfaction) affects your organizations bottom line The value of satisfaction is often underestimated. Loyal customers affect an organizations success, which can be difficult to quantify. Loyal customers grow your business by increasing market share. Over a lifetime, a loyal customer purchases more, purchases at a premium (they are less sensitive to price), costs less to sell to, and refers your business to others. An essential part of assessing satisfaction includes identifying dissatisfaction. Dissatisfied customers often hold the information you need to succeed. Understanding when and why dissatisfaction occurs, helps you implement changes to gain and retain future customers. No matter what type of business you are in, surveys are an important tool to help you collect the information you need to understand and evaluate satisfaction.

P a g e | 38 Questionnaire Analysis The questionnaire is close-ended and most of the questions are based on Likerts Scale and Rating Scale for objective measurement. Since there is no standard tool for measuring satisfaction, therefore, the above questionnaire has been prepared for objective analysis. This questionnaire has been filled by 20 random Big Bazaars customers without prejudiced by age, sex, race caste or religion. The first pie diagram deals with the prices of products sold by Big Bazaar. As per the findings, 80% of the customers are satisfied with the pricing of the hyper-market. Rest 20% of the respondents feel that prices not justifying the quality. The second pie diagram deals with quality and variety of products offered by Big Bazaar. This is the most satisfying prospect for the organization as 90% of the customers feel that quality offered is very good. The third pie diagram deals with offers and discounts. The survey says that 60% agree that the offers and discounts are one of the major constituents determining the levels of satisfaction whereas 40% doesnt agree. The fourth pie diagram deals with behavior of the staff employed in the retail store. 80% of the survey population says that the behavior is decent whereas 20% of the respondents say that the staff behavior is rude and indecent. This aspect also influences satisfaction levels; therefore, it is good for the organization as majority is in favor. The fifth pie diagram deals with the ambience and cleanliness of the retail chain. As per 50% of the sample, it plays a very important role in determining satisfaction of the customers whereas 20% of the customers think it to be an unimportant factor. Rest of the population of the survey is indifferent towards this factor of satisfaction. The sixth pie diagram deals with customer desk service and in-store announcements. 40% of respondents do not care about the announcements. 20% of them say that it is a good feature and 40% of them dont agree with announcements made. They feel that the sound is unclear and hazy and this needs to be worked upon. The seventh pie diagram deals with billing experience. 60% of the respondents say that the billing experience is not at all satisfactory. The long queue and the inefficiency of the

P a g e | 39 billing staff is a prospect which harms the reputation of the store. 20% of the sample is fine with it and rests of the respondents are indifferent. The eighth pie diagram deals with the behavior of security personnel. The number of respondents favoring are equal to number who are against it. Therefore, since everybody has to go through security checks this prospect is also lowering down the satisfaction levels of the customers. The ninth pie diagram deals with overall experience in the store. 20% of the customers say that the overall experience was good, 20% of them say it was very good, 30% say it to be excellent and rest say it to be bad. The tenth pie diagram deals with parking facility at the store. As per the 60% of the respondents, the parking spacious and more uniform and systematic. Rest of the sample says that it is not very much hazzle free. The last pie diagram deals with the factors which influences the satisfaction level of the buyers. The order of preference of the respondents is as below: o 30% - Quality o 25% - Price o 15% - Brand o 10% - Proximity & One-Stop Shop o 5% - Store Layout & Staff Behavior

P a g e | 40 CHAPTER V

C CO ON NC CL LU US SIIO ON N Big bazaar is a major shopping complex for todays customers. It is a place where customers find variety of products at a reasonable price. Big bazaar has a good reputation of itself in the market. It has positioned itself in the market as a discounted store. It holds a huge customer base. The majority of customers belong to middle class family. The youth generation also likes shopping and moving around big bazaar. Volume sales always take place in big bazaar. Impulse buying behavior of customers comes in to play most of the times in big bazaar. Big bazaar is a hypermarket as it provides various kinds of goods like apparels, grocery, stationary, food items, electronic items, leather items, watches, jewellery, crockery, decorative items, sport items, chocolates and many more. It competes with all the specialty stores of different products which provide goods at a discounted rate all through the year. It holds a large customer base and it seemed from the study that the customers are quite satisfied with big bazaar. As of now there are 30+ big bazaars in different cities of India, it seems that there is a vast growth of big bazaar lying as customers demand is increasing for big bazaars. PROS: 1. Variety: Big Bazaar offers a wide variety of products of different prices and different qualities satisfying most of its customers. 2. Quality: Providing quality at low prices and having different types of products for different income customers is another advantage. 3. Price: As noted the prices and offers in Big Bazaar have been one of the main attractions and reasons for its popularity. The price ranges and the products offered are very satisfying to the customers. 4. Location: The location of Big Bazaar has been mainly in the heart of the city or in the out skirts giving a chance to both the City and the people living outside the city to shop.

P a g e | 41 5. Advertisements: Big bazaar has endorsed very popular figure like M S Dhoni and other famous personalities which has attracted a lot of customers. This has resulted in increase of sale and the outdoor advertising techniques have also helped Big Bazaar. 6. Middle class appeal: Considering the fact that there are a lot middle class families in India, Big bazaar has had a huge impact on the middle class section of India, the prices, quality and sales strategy has helped in getting the middle income groups getting attracted towards Big Bazaar. 7. Attractive sales: Big bazaar has been known for its great sale and great offers. Big bazaar has had long lines of people waiting to get into the store for the sale. Therefore, the sales that Big Bazaar has had has increased sales in a huge way due to the sales and offers, thus this has been one of the main advantages of Big Bazaar.

CONS: 1. Store layout: The store layout and the assortment of goods is not the best at Big Bazaar, as the quantity of goods sold is more the arrangement and assortment of goods in the store is the greatest. Hence at times customers find it hard to find what they require, this leads to dissatisfaction of customers. 2. Lower quality of goods: As Big bazaar aims more toward the middle income group, the quality of goods is not of the highest quality, and this is sometimes a disadvantage as some would prefer better quality to the price, making customers to search for different places. Moreover, as the sore is trying to concentrate on the middle income group the type of products used is not of the most superior quality and most of the times nor branded, this may dissatisfy certain customers 3. Does not appeal to the elite: As mentioned above, the main customers are middle income and a few high income groups, the elite do not like to shop at Big Bazaar as the quality of goods is lower and they would prefer a higher price and get a better brand, this decreases sales from the elite class 4. Not acclaimed for very good service: Big Bazaar is not known for high class service. The staff recruited is not very well trained and the billing queues take a long time to move, this irritates customers which makes them visit the store more seldom

P a g e | 42 5. Consumer satisfaction: Long queues and lower quality leads to dissatisfaction of customers. Due to factors mentioned above Big Bazaar shoppers are not always satisfied, this is not a positive for the store.

Therefore, in order to keep its brand image and improve the level of satisfaction, these cons must be countered through policy decisions and provide greater services to the customers through improvised mechanisms and greater choice.

P a g e | 43 CHAPTER - VI

R RE EC CO OM MM ME EN ND DA AT TIIO ON NS S Billing should be hassle free. There should be no security hassles before entering the store. There should be a delivery desk so that Customer receives the goods from delivery desk and does not have to carry the same. Home delivery should provide with area limitations. Allow the carrying of water bottles in the store. There should be a customer care number to solve any problems faced by customers. Parking should be more spacious, organized and hassle free. The announcements must be audible. The staff should be properly trained and must be polite.

Increase the range of other company product, especially in apparels and food items. Big bazaar should include more of branded products its product category so as to attract the brand choosy people to come in to big bazaar.

It should make different cash counters for different customers. Cash counter and credit card payment counter should be placed differently in order to reduce the rush and save the customers time. This will be a kind of motivator for the customers of big bazaar.

During the off peak hours big bazaar should provide some offers to its customers so that people would be encouraged to come to big bazaar during off peak hours. The customers who are present in the mall during the off peak hours of big bazaar will definitely go in to big bazaar if surprise offers are made at that time.

P a g e | 44 A AN NN NE EX XU UR RE ES S

QUESTIONNAIRE ON CUSTOMER SATISFACTION (USING LIKERTS SCALE AND RATING SCALE)

NAME: - .. ADDRESS: - .. .. ..

1. HOW DO YOU RATE BIG BAZAAR PRICES?

o o o o o o o o o o

Excellent Very Good Good Fair Poor

2. HOW DO YOU RATE QUALITY & VARIETY OF PRODUCT? Strongly Agree Agree Neither Agree/Disagree Disagree Strongly Disagree

P a g e | 45 3. HOW DO YOU RATE BIG-BAZAARS OFFERS & DISCOUNTS?

o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o

Strongly Agree Agree Neither Agree/Disagree Disagree Strongly Disagree

4. HOW DO YOU RATE STAFFS BEHAVIOR? Excellent Very Good Good Fair Poor

5. HOW DO YOU RATE STORES AMBIENCE & CLEANLINESS? Strongly Agree Agree Neither Agree/Disagree Disagree Strongly Disagree

P a g e | 46

6. HOW DO YOU RATE OUR CUSTOMER SERVICE DESK & IN-STORE ANNOUNCEMENTS?

o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o

Strongly Agree Agree Neither Agree/Disagree Disagree Strongly Disagree

7. HOW WAS YOUR BILLING EXPERIENCE? Strongly Agree Agree Neither Agree/Disagree Disagree Strongly Disagree

8. HOW DO YOU RATE SECURITYS BEHAVIOR? Excellent Very Good Good Fair Poor

9. HOW WAS YOUR OVERALL EXPERIENCE IN STORE?

P a g e | 47

o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o

Excellent Very Good Good Fair Poor

10. HOW DO YOU RATE THE PARKING FACILITY AT BIG-BAZAAR?

Excellent Very Good Good Fair Poor

11. WHICH IS THE FACTOR THAT APPEALS YOU THE MOST? Quality Brand Price Store Layout Proximity One-Stop Shop Staff Behavior

P a g e | 48

12. WOULD YOU LIKE TO GIVE ANY SUGGESTIONS?

P a g e | 49 L LIIM MIIT TA AT TIIO ON NS S These are limitations with respect to the market survey and the instruments used for the market research. The study is limited to the areas of Jodhpur. Data collected is based on questionnaire and other secondary information. The information collected by the method adopted is limited. Non availability of adequate data also limited the scope of the study to some extent. Respondents were reluctant to go into details because of their busy schedules. The result would be varying according to the individuals as well as time. Some respondents hesitated to give the actual situation. The findings and conclusions are based on knowledge and experience of the respondents sometime may subject to bias. Some respondents level of seriousness while filling the Questionnaire is doubted (although effort was made to make the process more interactive and interesting). Since there is no standard scale to measure level of satisfaction, therefore, the findings cannot be said to be accurate. Due to time constraint and other imperative work load during the t period it could not be made possible to explore more area of concern pertaining to study. Also impossible for company to prove information is confidential. Due to fast pace of life, some customers were not able to do justification to the questionnaire.

P a g e | 50 B BIIB BL LIIO OG GR RA AP PH HY Y Books: 1. Kotler Philips, Marketing Management, 11th Edition, Prentice Hall of India, 2002; 2. C.R. Kothari, Research Methodology: Methods and Techniques, 2nd revised Edition, New Age International Publishers, 2008 3. Derek R. Allen, Customer Satisfaction Research Management, ASQ Quality Press, 2004 4. Berman B and Evans J.R, Retail Management (Pearson education, 10th edition) 5. Louden D.L. & Bitta Delia, Consumer Behavior (Tata Mc. Graw hill, 4th edition ) 6. Newman A.J. and Cullen P, Retailing, Environment and Operations(Vikas,1st Ed.)

Articles: -

1. Olga V. Krivobokova, Evaluating Customer satisfaction as an Aspect of Quality Management, 2009

Websites: -

1. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Bazaar 2. http://www.learnmarketing.net 3. http://www.scribd.com/doc/21349941/Big-Bazaar-Project 4. http://www.qualtrics.com/university/researcsuite/survey-types/marketsurvey/customer-satisfaction-theory 5. http://www.docstoc.com/?doc_id=46500277&download=1 6. http://www.scribd.com/doc/49255595/Customer-Satisfaction-in-Big-Bazaar