In India, liberalization has paved the way for people to possess luxury items such
as television, refrigerator, home appliances and car. Motorcar is one of the commonly
used conveyances by the upper and middle-class people. Two decades ago, only a
few industrialists and rich people owned cars. There was a time when one had to wait
for weeks, months or even years to buy a car in India. The option of cars was limited to a
few models. But, after liberalization, the earning capacity of the middle-class people
increased. Nowadays, motorcar is not only bought for social status, but has become a
necessity. Moreover, every middle/upper middle-class person wants to have a car today. Taking
the above into consideration, the researchers study the level of perception of the
factors influencing the purchase of a car. They also make an attempt to capture the
dimensions reflecting brand preference for passenger cars.
Literature on brand preference shows that only a limited number of attempts have
been made to study the brand preference for passenger cars and variables which are used
to measure the brand preference to purchase a passenger cars. Moreover, studies relating
to the development of scale variables and measuring the level of perception of the
factors influencing the purchase of the car are also limited. In order to address this gap,
the researchers have developed variables which are more relevant and important for the
study. A consumer's decision to buy a product or service is the result of interplay of
many internal and external forces or stimuli. The starting point is the manufacturers
and marketers' stimuli in the form of product offering through integrated
marketing communication methods which help the marketers position their products or
services appropriately. After gaining the customers, the retention efforts initiated through a
slew of customer relationship measures build a lasting brand relationship. |
