Significance of Brand name in Brand Loyalty-An Empirical Study in Automobile Sector

Abstract

This paper attempts to examine whether the consumer is brand conscious and he thinks that the brand name is important for him or not. According to the pilot study and interview method applied in this paper, the most important attributes considered by the customers while repurchasing the car are Price, Comfort and safety, Brand name and Customer Service. The study is based on primary data, collected from Jalandhar city of Punjab. Conjoint analysis is employed to determine which combinations of a limited number of attributes are most influential for the respondents while taking a decision in purchase of passenger car. In conjoint analysis, we use full profile approach in which profiles are reduced using orthogonal array approach. The empirical findings reiterate that consumers in this region experience that the most important attribute in Brand Loyalty is comfort and safety. This is because customers think that the features like front passenger airbags, advanced braking systems and air conditioning are very essential in the today are set up. The second important determinant of Brand Loyalty is price which may be accounted to affordability of the customer. The customers have also given relevance to customer service because the process of building the relationship with customer starts with the purchase of car but it keeps on evolving after the sale. The least importance is given to the attribute - brand name as per the empirical findings of the study.