INDEX

Sr Content Page
No No
1 Executive Summary 6
2 Introduction 8
3 Profile Of The Study 9
4 Big Players In The Bike Segment 11

5 Consumer Behavior 17
6 Significance of the Study 21
7 Objectives of the Study 22
8 Literature Review 23
9 Research Methodology 25
10 Multi-Dimensional Scaling 28

11 MDS Interpretation 31
12 Data Collection Method 35
13 Limitation Of The Study 37

14 Company Profile 38
15 Environmental Analysis 42
16 Customer Analysis 46
17 Decision Type For The Honda Lead 49
18 Swat Analysis 53
19 Results and Discussions 60
20 Recommendations 68
21 Bibliography 69
22 Questionnaire 70

1
 Executive Summary
Recently, motorcycles are the most popular means of transportation
in Vietnam. Currently, there are more than 21 million circulated
motorbikes, counting for 4 Vietnamese persons per motorbike on average
with some popular trade names such as Honda, Yamaha, Sym, and
Suzuki …, which meets about 90% traveling demand of Vietnamese. The
demand for motorbikes is more and more increasing with the
development of Vietnam economy. Seeing this, the competition among
motorcycles makers in Vietnam is more and more powerful. In order to
attract customers as well as to satisfy customers’ needs about product
quality, reasonable price, fashion styles… motorcycles makers have
carried out a lot of marketing strategies because marketing management
has the task of attracting and building relationships with customers by
creating customer value and satisfaction so that organization can sell its
products as many as possible, more importantly, higher than its
competitors. However, it is not easy for any organization to set up a
successful marketing plan because the development of the marketing plan
is influenced by the situation analysis which provides a gather of relevant
market information at both micro and macro environment of an
organization. Among motorcycles makers, Honda Vietnam makes a huge
effort to remain their brand name and ensure the quality of product with a
reasonable price. And it is said that Honda motorcycles always take up
the leading market shares in Vietnam making Honda to be the leading
company in motorbike industry. So, this report is aimed at providing
situation analysis of Honda Vietnam including company, environmental,
competitor, customer, brand and SWOT analysis.

2
To know about the consumer buying behavior and factor which affect the
consumer buying decision process. As the objectives of my study is to
analyze the customer perception and the customer satisfaction to wards
specific brands of bike (TVS, HONDA, BAJAJ) between the age group
of 18-25 College going student on the basis of Price, Fuel efficiency,
Brand, Style and comfort name.
Consumer buyer behavior refers to the buying behavior of final
consumers – individuals and households who buys services and goods for
personal consumption. Consumer behavior is influenced strongly by
culture, social, personal and psychological factors. Culture factors include
the set of basic values, perceptions, wants and behavior learned by a
member of society from family and other important institutions. The
social factors include consumer’s family, small group, social roles and
status. The personal characteristics such as buyer’s age, life cycle stage,
occupation, economic situations and life style influenced by four major
psychological factors: Motivation, Perception, Learning, Belief and
Attitudes.
In this era of cut throat competition, no company can even survive
in the market place without knowing its and its products strengths and
weaknesses. It has to fortify itself against threats from the environment
and exploit its strengths or increase profits. And in order to do so, the
company has to conduct regular surveys to know the customer’s opinions,
needs, and preferences. This helps the company to manufacture the
product like wise for each customer’s expectations.

3
 INTRODUCTION
On the global market, when the competition in international
economic integration becomes more and more blazing hot, especially in
the context of financial crisis and economic downturn, enterprises need to
create and maintain competitive advantage which makes them
outstanding compared with their competitors so that organizations can be
solidly based in both short- run and long-run and during their lifetime.
The success of organization is based on the effort of each individual in
organization, each business unit and the whole organization as well.
There are many different departments in an organization like marketing,
research and development, finance, accounting, purchasing and
manufacturing etc… and each department performs its own function.
However, each department does not carry its task alone, it co-operates
with other departments within the organization so that it not only
accomplishes its objective but also contributes to achieve the objective of
the whole organization. Profit is a numerical data showing the success of
the organization and it is stated that the profit of the organization is the
difference between sales revenue and all incurred expenses. Thus, among
these departments, marketing department seems to be the most important
one contributing to the success of the organization. In this paper, a
gathering of relevant market information that influence the development
of the marketing plan will be provided in the circumstances of Honda
Vietnam Company, particularly in the context of Honda Lead.

4
 PROFILE OF THE STUDY
In this era of cut throat competition, no company can survive in the
market place without knowing its product’s strengths and weaknesses. It
has to fortify (Strengthen) itself against threats from the environment and
exploit its strengths for increasing profits. In order to do so, the company
has to conduct regular surveys to know the customer’s opinions, needs,
and preferences. This helps the company to manufacture the product
according to customer’s expectations. It has now become more important
for the customer confidence and higher positioning of buyer perception.
Thus, Surveys becomes genuine key to success.
The Bike segment is Dominated by 4 major players viz. HERO
HONDA , BAJAJ, TVS, ROYAL ENFIELD .Besides these, there are
players like – HONDA(Alone) , LML, KINETIC, SUZUKI.
The expanding Indian market, the growing size of the middle
class and the rise in aspirations of the youth along with opening up of the
Indian economy have collectively influenced the steady growth of the two
wheeler market in India. With leading foreign brands in collaborations
with Indian manufacturers entering the Indian market, the customer could
not have asked for more. In fact, the Indian bike market has grown
immensely and the preference for variety looks, design has brought in a
number of models in the market. In the last 3 to 4 years, the craze for
motorcycle over the scooters has picked up and one can find today even
girls crazy for a motorbike not only in the Metros but in small towns and
cities also.
Trying to catch up with these, manufacturers are busy working out
on customer profiles. With the increase in competition one can find a
think of discounts including: cash rebates and free accessories to push
sales of the commuter bikes. Certain changes are also visible as far as

5
customer preferences are concerned. The basic 100cc bike market is
suddenly experiencing a slowdown in the growth. This Commuter bike
was a favorite till the other day, commanding up to 90% of the total bike
sales. The shift towards 150 cc bikes is suddenly discernable and the
segment is expected to grow in near future. Manufacturers are now
rushing in to introduce bikes in this segment. Bajaj has launched Pulsar-
Dtsi 150cc higher on the power ladder, Honda has come up with Unicorn
and TVS has recently launched Apache.
The customer is the basic ingredient of marketing. The
development of marketing strategy is based on understanding of
consumer and there behavior. The present study attempts to understand
the behavior of consumer for their choice in purchasing two-wheeler with
special reference to bikes like Honda(Unicorn), TVS (Apache), and
Bajaj(Pulsar 150cc). But consumer behavior and the derived consumer
satisfaction cannot be intact. Now days the two wheeler industry is
growing at its fast speed. The competition is very hard and so many
choices are available to customers. Here I have tried to find out the level
of customer satisfaction regarding (Unicorn, Apache, and Pulsar) two
wheelers and also what modification they want in their products. So the
study is all about the customer’s preference and their satisfaction with
regard to bikes coming under 150cc segment.

6
 BIG PLAYERS IN THE BIKE SEGMENT

Bajaj Auto Limited is one of the pioneering companies in the two wheeler
industry. Bajaj Auto has a vast network of about 1500 service centers and
500 dealers all over India. It has 3 manufacturing plants located at
Akurdi, Waluj and Chakan in Maharashtra. The company's technology
partner is Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Japan. The company exports to
ASEAN region, South America and Africa.
MILESTONES

1945 - Bajaj Auto comes into existence as M/s Bachraj Trading

Corporation Private Limited.
1948 - Sales in India commence by importing two- and three-
wheelers.
1959 - Bajaj Auto obtains license from the Government of India to
manufacture two- and three-wheelers.
1960 - Bajaj Auto becomes a public limited company. Bhoomi
Poojan of Akurdi Plant.
1970 - Bajaj Auto rolls out its 100,000th vehicle.
1971- The three-wheeler goods carrier is introduced.
1972 - The Bajaj Chetak is introduced.
1975 - BAL & Maharashtra Scooters Ltd. joint venture.
1976 - The Bajaj Super is introduced.
1977 - The Rear Engine Autorickshaw is introduced. Bajaj Auto
achieves production and sales of 100,000 vehicles in a
single financial year.

7
1981 - The Bajaj M-50 is introduced
1984 - Foundation stone laid for the new Plant at Waluj,
Aurangabad.
1986 - The Bajaj M-80 and the Kawasaki Bajaj KB100
motorcycles are introduced. 500,000 vehicles produced and
sold in a single financial year.
1990 - The Bajaj Sunny is introduced
1991 - The Kawasaki Bajaj 4S Champion is introduced.
1998 - Kawasaki Bajaj Caliber rolls out of Waluj.
2001- Bajaj Auto launches its latest offering in the premium bike
segment ‘Pulsar’. The Eliminator is launched.
2003- Pulsar DTS-i is launched.
2004 - Bajaj unveils new brand identity, new symbol, logo
and brand line
2007 - 200 cc Pulsar DTS-i launched

Bajaj Pulsar DTSi 150cc

Generation next technology included in the package of the equipments of
this high flying bike is the revolutionary digital biking. Digital biking is
the combination of various advanced systems like Digital Twin Spark
ignition (DTSi). Its highly masculine outlook with sporty, dashing
structure gives the complete satisfaction of dare riding. Bajaj Pulsar
enables its rider to tackle the situation of overcrowded street due to the
presence of 17" alloy wheels with 1330 mm wheelbase. Its comfort
8
statement includes front telescopic suspension, Nitro X - Nitrogen
assisted rear gas shockers with triple rated spring. Due to these comfort
features, this bike is highly accommodative in any terrain.
Feeling of proper riding is provided by different high
end features like improved clutch, cylinder head with Roller Rocker
Arms, optimized intake and exhaust systems & new valve timings. Its
advanced Exhaust TEC (Torque Expansion Chamber) technology ensures
the higher performance at lower rpm.

TVS Motor Company is part of Sundaram Clayton group in TVS group

of companies. TVS Motor Company is the main flag ship company of
Sundaram Clayton group. TVS Motors is the third largest two-wheeler
manufacturer in Indian and ranks among the top ten globally. It is the first
company in the world to be honored with the Deming Prize for Total
Quality Management. The Company was the first in India to launch 2-
seater 50cc moped and 100 cc Indo-Japanese Motorcycles. At Present
TVS Apache, TVS Victor, TVS Scooty, TVS Centra and TVS Fiero are
the popular bikes in Indian Market.

9
MILESTONES
 India’s first 2 seater 50cc Moped TVS 50, launched in Aug 1980.
 In 1982 SCL established Joint Venture with Suzuki Motor
Corporation.
 In 1994 the company entered the market segment of scooters with
introduction of Scooty 2S, which was totally an indigenous design.
 Introduced India's first catalytic converter enabled motorcycle, the
110cc Shogun in Dec 1996.
 Launched India's first 5-speed motorcycle, the Shaolin in Oct
1997.
 Launched TVS Victor, 4-stroke 110 cc motorcycles, in August
2001; India’s first fully indigenously designed and manufactured
motorcycle.
 In 2000 the first 4 stroke motorcycle was launched called Fiero
 Launched TVS Star in Sept 2004, a 100 cc motorcycle which is
ideal for rough terrain
 Launched TVS Apache in Nov 2005. It finally went on to be the
Bike of the Year for 2006, winning 6 prestigious awards

TVS Apache
TVS Apache with its shapely streamlined tank and engine design is
really an eye -stopper. Its smooth and flawless finish makes this bike
desirable to the market. Its tough but light 6 spoke black alloy wheels are
really supportive for better control and excellent riding of this two

10
wheeler. Its uniquely designed head lamp has become one of the best
head turner in the market of two wheelers.
Its 240 mm disc brake is helpful in stopping one in any
sudden situation to avoid accident. Its all gear start and low friction
engine with RCF technology are the key factor of better efficiency of
this bike. It is further equipped with various upgraded technology like
monotube inverted gas filled shocks, IDI lean burn, iE surge (intake and
exhaust resonator), synchro stiff chassis etc. for the proper safety and
security of the persons seating on the bike.

Its symbol, the Wings, represents the company's unwavering

dedication in achieving goals that are unique and above all, conforming to
international norms. These wings are now in India as Honda Motorcycle
& Scooter India Pvt. Ltd. (HMSI), a wholly owned subsidiary of Honda
Motor Company Ltd., Japan. In September 2004, Honda Motorcycle and
Scooters India Limited (HMSI), the wholly owned subsidiary of the
Japan-based Honda Motor Company Limited (HMCL), launched its first
150cc motorcycle named 'Unicorn.' Priced at Rs. 50,043 (ex-showroom
price, Delhi), Unicorn had a four stroke 13.3 bhp engine with five gears.
The new bike was available in five colours and was designed to achieve a
speed of 0 to 60 kmph in five seconds. Unicorn was promoted with the
caption "Be a wing rider." (Refer Exhibit I for a visual of Unicorn).
Targeted at youth, Unicorn looked sportier than all the existing

11
motorcycles in the premium segment and was pitted against Bajaj Pulsar,
the leader with 75 percent market share in that segment.

Honda Unicorn

This bike with powerful 4 stroke 150 cc engine delivering output of

13.3 bhp engine clubbed with many other high end equipments like
Constant Volume (CV) Carburetor, pulse exhaust system, offset crank
and 2 way air jacket. Its multi mapping CDI, roller rocker arm, 5 speed
gears, tumble free combustion etc. determine the performance as well as
its aesthetic value. Its aerodynamic body lining, sporty and sleek
design, appealing tail lamp and excellent body graphics etc are
enhancing its style statement day by day. Unique shock absorbing mono
suspension prevents discomfort due to the sudden jerk caused by uneven
road. Its flexible seating arrangement, ample foot space gives the total
comfort of journey. Fully equipped with various cutting edge
technologies, this bike comes with hole plugging mechanism, tuff up
tube, easy primary kick etc.

12
 CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Before getting into details of Consumer Behavior, one must go through
certain basic terminologies. In general terms both ‘Consumer’ and
‘Customer’ are considered the same but they are quite different.
The term ‘Customer’ is some what different from the term ‘consumer’.
The term customer is used to refer to someone who purchases goods and
services from a particular store or company. Thus a customer is defined
in terms of a specific term while a consumer is not
‘Consumer’ may be referred to any one engaged in evaluating,
acquiring, using or disposing of goods and services which he
expects will satisfy his needs.
So ultimately Consumers are that individual who consumes or
uses a product, which may or may not be purchased by him.
So after getting into these terms we need to get into the details of
“Consumer Behaviour”.
Consumer Behaviour – Consumer behaviour refers to how a consumer
behaves or acts or reacts in making a purchase of goods and services of
his choice in different situations

The term consumer Behaviour can be defined as, “The behaviour that
consumers display in searching for purchasing, using, evaluating and
disposing of products, services and ideas which they expect will satisfy
their needs.”
- Leon G. Schiffman and Leslie Lazar Kanuk.
The study of consumer behaviour not only focuses on how and why
consumers make buying decisions, but also focuses on the uses which

13
consumers make of the goods they buy and their evaluation of these
goods after use. If the goods after use don’t satisfy the consumers, they
my feel dissatisfied perhaps because post- purchase services are not up to
their satisfaction, and thus, this may influence their purchase of the goods
and it may also influence the buying decision of many others who might
come in contact with them.
The detailed study of Consumer Behavior or Consumer
Preferences focuses on-
 Who Buys products or services?
 How do they buy products or services?
 Where do they buy them?
 How often do they buy them?
 When do they buy them?
 Why do they buy them?
 How often do they use them?
These questions will help in understanding the factors that influence the
decision making process of the consumers. The buyer’s decision making
process includes the following:-
1. Problem recognition
2. Information search
3. Evaluation of alternatives
4. Purchase decision
5. Post purchase behavior

1. Problem recognition: - First and the foremost step is to identify

the problem i.e. what actually one wants with regard to the
product.
2. Information Search: - Second step is to search the relevant
information regarding the Product which one wants.

14
 3. Evaluation of alternatives: - Third step is to evaluate the
collected information i.e. analyze the information.
4. Purchase decision: - In forth step the product is actually
purchased.
5. Post purchase behavior: - In fifth step the consumer actually
reacts against the quality, quantity etc. received after the
purchasing the product i.e. in this stage he reacts on the basis of his
getting satisfied after the purchase of the product.
The buyer’s decisions include the following:-
 Product choice
 Brand choice
 Dealer choice
 Purchase timing
 Purchase amount.
Consumer perception
How do Buyers form their preference? Their preferences are
influenced by their past buying experience, friend’s and associate’s
advice, and the marketer’s and competitor’s information and promises.
Though customer preference is a very qualitative term and it is very
difficult to measure. In this study an effort has been made to measure the
customer preference level.

Customer Satisfaction
“Satisfaction is a person’s feelings of pleasure or disappointment
resulting from comparing a product’s perceived performance in relation
to his or her expectation”
As the definition makes it clear, satisfaction is a function of
perceived performance and expectations. If the performance falls short of
the expectations of the customer, the customer is dissatisfied. If the

15
performance exceeds the expectations, the customer is highly satisfied or
delighted.
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. Those who are highly satisfied are much less ready to
switch. High satisfaction or delight creates an emotional affinity with the
brain, not just a rational preference. The result is high customer loyalty.

In this highly competitive world customers plays a very important

role. Thus, if a company wants to survive then it should look forward to
the determinants of customer satisfaction. Though it is a very subjective
issue that differs from individual to individual yet, identifying some basic
parameters of customer satisfaction is important.

Satisfaction is a person’s feeling of pleasure and disappointment

resulting from comparing a product’s perceived performance in relation
to his or her expectations. It is only the customer delight that marketer
aims for.

16
 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

 To know about the customer preference and decision process with

regard to 150cc bike.
 To know the Basic consumer buying behavior and the reasons
because of which they switch from one company to another.
 To know about the company’s details (profile, Products)
 This study would help in revealing the type and specific qualities
of the bikes offered by the company to their consumers.
 To study the satisfaction level of consumers who uses bikes.
 To study the factors influencing consumers to buy 150cc bikes.
 To study effect of advertisement on the purchasing decision of the
consumers

17
 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The clear purpose or objective of the research enables the researcher to
collect – necessary relevant information. The objective of the research is
to know the Customer preferences and customer satisfaction with
regard to specific brands of bikes (TVS, HONDA and BAJAJ) under
150cc category between the age group of 18-25 College going student
on the basis of Price, Fuel efficiency, Brand, Style and comfort name.
.
 Knowledge about two-wheelers (Bikes).
 Knowledge about the market share of two- wheeler.
 To know about the leaders of the market in two wheelers (Bikes).
 Find out the quantum of customer satisfaction with respect to
150cc bikes especially the college going students within the age
group of 18-25.
 Determine the influence of reference group in the purchase
decision of college going students.
 Find out the ways for improving of the services to attain level of
customer satisfaction

18
 LITERATURE REVIEW
Once the problem is formulated, the researcher has to undertake an
extensive literature survey related to problem. The literature survey
undertaken here includes books and different websites from the internet.
The research project was to know the Customer preferences and
customer satisfaction with regard to specific brands of bikes (TVS,
HONDA and BAJAJ) under 150cc category between the age group of
18-25 College going student on the basis of Price, Fuel efficiency,
Brand, Style and comfort name
.
 Schiffman. G. Leon and kanuk lazare Leslie 1
- Study of the
customer behavior is the study of how individuals make decisions
to spend their available resources (Time, Money and Efforts) on
consumption related items. It includes the study what they buy,
whey they buy it, when they buy it, where they buy it, how often
they buy it and how often they use it. The primary purpose for the
study consumer behavior as a part of marketing curriculum is to
understand how and how customers make their purchase decisions.
There insights enable marketers to design more effective marketing
strategies.
 Gupta.C .B and Dr. Nair. N.Rajan 2
- A business is based on
understanding the customer and providing the kind of products that
the customer wants.
 Mamoria C.B. and Mamoria Satish 3 - Consumer behavior is the
process where by individuals decide what, when, where, how and
from whom to purchase goods and services. Buying behavior may
be viewed as an orderly process here by individual interacts with

19
 his environment for the purpose of making market decision on
products and services.
 Nair Suja. R.4 - The success of the firm will be determined by how
effective it has been in meeting the diverse customer needs and
wants by treating each customer as unique and offering products
and services to suit his/her needs.
 Bennett Peter.D. And Kassarjian Haroldh 5
- A great deal of
research activity in marketing is design to shed light on the
customer decision process.
 Kothari C.R.6 For data analysis different statistical techniques are
being used such as scaling techniques, correlation, hypothesis
testing.
 http://www.tvsapache.com/home.aspx
 http://www.bajajauto.com/pulsar/
 http://www.honda2wheelersindia.com/unicorn/ride_n_fly/be_a_wi
ng_rider.asp
 http://auto.indiamart.com/motorcycles/

20
 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research Methodology is a way to systematically solve the
research problem, which is a science of study how research is done
scientifically. Thus research methodology encompasses the research
methods or techniques; the research is capable of being evaluated either
by the researcher himself or by others.

 SAMPLING
Sampling may be defined as the selection of some parts of an
agreement or totality for the purpose of study. All the items in any field
of inquiry constitute a universe or population, a complete enumeration of
all the items in the population is known as Census inquiry. But when the
field of inquiry is large this method becomes difficult to adopt because of
the limited no. of resources involved in the case sample survey method is
chosen under which units are selected in such a way that they represent
the entire universe.

SAMPLING DESIGN
CENSUS METHOD: - All the items in any field of inquiry constitute a
‘Universe’ or ‘Population’. A complete enumeration of all the items in
the ‘Population’ is known as a Census inquiry. It can be presumed that in
such an inquiry, when all items are covered, no element of chance is left
and highest accuracy is obtained. But in practical it is not true in all cases.
This type of inquiry involves a great deal of time, money and energy.
Therefore, when the field of inquiry is large, this method becomes
difficult to adopt because of the resources involved.

21
  SAMPLING METHOD:- When field studies are undertaken in
practical life, consideration of time and cost almost invariably lead
to a selection of respondents i.e. selection of only few items. The
respondent selected should be as representative of total population.
These respondents constitute what is technically called a ‘Sample’
and the selection process is called ‘Sampling Technique’. The
survey so conducted is known as ‘Sample Survey’.

Implementation of Sample Design: - A sample design is a definite

plan for obtaining a sample from a given population. It refers to the
technique or the procedure the researcher would adopt in selecting items
for the sample. Sampling design may as well lay down the number of
items to be included in the sample i.e. the size of sample. Sample design
is determined before the data are collated.

 Steps In Sampling Design :- While developing a research design

following items are taken into consideration:-
I. Type of universe: - First and the foremost step is to clearly define the
universe to be studied. As I have taken the area of Yamuna Nagar City
(Haryana), so for me here the universe is Yamuna Nagar area. No doubt
it is a finite universe but the area is very big and can’t be covered easily
due to shortage of time.

II. Sampling unit: - A decision has to be taken concerning a sampling unit

before selecting sample. Here my sample unit includes college going
students who own bikes.

22
III. Size of sample: - This refers to the number of items to be selected from
the universe to constitute a sample. Here I have taken the sample of 200
College going students who have bikes.

IV. Parameters of interest: - In determining the sample design, one must

consider the question of the specific population parameters which are of
interest. Here I had taken only college going students who own their
bike.
V. Sampling procedure: - Finally the technique of selecting the sample is
to be dealt with. That means through which method the sample has been
collected. There are various types of selecting the sample. This includes
probability sampling, random sampling, stratified sampling, cluster
sampling, convenience sampling. Here I have used the cluster sampling
method for data collection, as Yamuna Nagar area is very big and there
are many colleges as well as the hostels.

23
 MULTI DIMENSIONAL SCALING
Multidimensional scaling (MDS) is a method for analyzing a
(similarity or dissimilarity) proximity matrix based on a set of
observations. The purpose of MDS is to model the proximity of
observations in order to represent them as accurately as possible in a
limited number of dimensions (usually 2). There are different MDS
algorithms: XLSTAT uses the SMACOF (Scaling by Majoring a Convex
Function) algorithm that minimizes the "normalized stress" function.
Furthermore, there are several MDS models (or representation functions),
i.e. several ways to transform the dissimilarities into disparities. The
disparities are the distances that describe the optimal representation for
the observations. The difference between the disparities and the distances
measured on the representation resulting from the MDS is called the
stress: the lower the stress, the better the representation of the
observations.
When the representation function simply respects the relative order of the
observations, one speaks about ordinal MDS or non-metric MDS. When
the dissimilarities are transformed into disparities using a specific
parametric function, one speaks about metric MDS. The following
models are available in the current version of XLSTAT:
Metric MDS
· Absolute MDS: each dissimilarity dij must exactly match the
distance between points i and j in the representation space.
· Ratio MDS: the ratio of all distance pairs in the representation
space must correspond to the ratio of the corresponding dissimilarities.

24
 Interval MDS: the ratio of all differences between distances in the
representation space must correspond to the ratio of the differences of the
corresponding dissimilarities.
Note: the current version of XLSTAT does not support negative
disparities that may occur if you use the "interval" model. If an error
message is displayed on this subject, you must use another model to
process your data.
Nonmetric MDS
· ordinal (1): the order of the distances in the representation space
must correspond to the order of the corresponding dissimilarities. If there
are two dissimilarities of the same rank, then there are no restrictions on
the corresponding distances.
· ordinal (2): identical to the previous model, but if dissimilarities
exist in the same rank, the corresponding distances must be equal.
The stress measures the quality of the representation for a given number
of dimensions. The lower it is, the better the representation. Various
formulas have been proposed by different authors. Although the
minimization is always based on the normalized stress, XLSTAT allows
to show the results using the four formulas defined below:
· Raw stress: it gives the quality of the representation based on the
squared errors of the representation compared with the disparities. The
formula gives:
Where Dij is the disparity between individuals i and j, and dij is the
Euclidean distance on the representation for the same individuals. wij is
the weight of the ij proximity (value is 1 by default).
· Normalized Stress: it gives the quality of the representation based
on the squared errors of the representation compared with the disparities,
divided by the sum of the squared disparities. The formula gives:

25
· Kruskal's stress 1: it gives the quality of the representation based
on the square root of the squared errors of the representation compared
with the disparities, divided by the sum of the squared distances on the
representation. The formula gives:

· Kruskal's stress 2: it gives the quality of the representation based

on the square root of the squared errors of the representation compared
with the disparities, divided by the sum of the squared centered distances
on the representation. The formula gives:

where is the average of the distances on the representation. This formula

usually results in a stress value that is approximately twice the value
obtained for Kruskal's stress 1.

In order to know if the representation quality is good enough, some rules

exist, mostly based on the Kruskal's stress 1. However, the Shepard
diagram that allows to compare the dissimilarities with the distances and
to observe some ruptures in the ordination of the values is a empirical but
reliable method. The more the chart looks linear, the better the
representation. The way the stress evolves when the number of
dimensions decreases is also interesting to detect if a significant amount
of information is being lost in the selected representation.

26
 MDS Interpretation
The factors shown below in the table are selected are the basis of the
study and are used to apply MDS (Multi Dimensional scaling) and the
analyses are as follows (See Annexure 1). MDS (Multi Dimensional
scaling) has been used because there are multiple factors and no other
scaling technique could be used to show the analyses authenticated.
Rank
Rank 1 Rank 2 Rank 3 4 Rank 5
Safety
11 13 6 8 6

Comfort 7 11 11 7 5
Fuel
efficiency
10 11 6 5 7
Style
8 5 9 8 11
Performance
5 1 7 10 12

Correlation

27
One of the Statistical tool which I am going to apply in my project is
correlation. Correlation is their when change in the value of one variable
influences the change in the value of other variable.
“The statistical tool with the help of which relationship between two
or more than two variables are studied is called correlation”
It refers to the techniques used in measuring the closeness of the
relationship between the variables.
“Correlation analysis deals with the association between two or more
variables.”

28
Correlation
Let us take the hypothesis as:-
H0 = Let there is no correlation between various factors like
Price, Brand name, Fuel Efficiency, style & comfort and the
Purchase of bike(HONDA,BAJAJ and TVS)
X
Dx HONDA BAJAJ TV
S
Y -1 0 1 F fdy fdy2 fdxdy

Dy
Price -2 23 4 5 32 - 128 36
64
Brand -1 14 24 4 42 - 42 10
42
Fuel Efficiency 0 18 10 6 34 0 0 0
Style 1 32 6 12 50 50 50 -20
Comfort 2 20 17 5 42 42 168 -30
f 107 61 32 200 28 388 -4
fdx -107 0 32 -75
2
fdx 107 0 32 139
fdxdy -12 0 8 -4
H1 = Let there is correlation between various factors like Price,
Brand name, Fuel Efficiency, style & comfort and the Purchase
of bike(HONDA,BAJAJ and TVS)

29
Coefficient of Correlation =
r = Nfdxdy - fdxfdy
 Nfdx2-(fdx)2 Nfdy2-(fdy)2

r = 200x-4 – (-75)(28)__________
 27800-5625  77600-784

r = +0.0314
Hence it has been proved that there is a correlation between various
factors and purchase of bikes.

 Data Collection
The task of data collection begins after the research program has been
defined and research design plan has been checked out. The data
collected is important part of research.

30
 DATA COLLECTION METHOD
In the data collection method different methods are adopted for primary
data collection and secondary data collection.
 PRIMARY DATA COLLECTION
Primary data is the data which is collected through observation
or direct communication with the respondent in one form or
another. These are several methods for primary data collection like
Observation method, Interview method, through schedule, through
questionnaires and so on.
But as time was limited so, the relevant data was collected from
the selected units by adopting and arranging personal interview
with the shopkeeper and dealer along with a pre structured
questionnaire. In this method I thank the views of shopkeepers and
dealer through the use of questionnaire and general interview.

 SECONDARY DATA COLLECTION

The company’s past database is taken into reference along With
company brochures.
DATA COLLECTION INSTRUMENTS
The data collection instruments used in the study is mentioned below:-

o QUESTIONNAIRE
The method of data collection is quite popular. I prepared a
questionnaire after knowing the different objectives of the study
and considering all the things that are required for studying the
dissertation topic.

31
 Hypothesis Testing(By applying Chi-Square)

Chi-square test is used when the set of observed frequencies obtained

after experimentation have to be supported by hypothesis or theory. The
test is known as X2- test of goodness of fit and is used to test if the
deviation between observation (experiment) and theory may be attributed
to chance (fluctuations of sampling).
Here we have the assumption of H 0 and H1. If the values come in
accordance to the depicted values then the hypothesis is accepted else it’s
rejected.
S(O-E) 2
x2 = ——— where,
E

O = observed frequency
E = Expected frequency

32
 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

Various hindrances occurred while carrying out the research. They

have acted as limitation of the study and a few of them are:-

1. Short time period: The time period for carrying out the research was
short as a result of which many facts have been left unexplored.
2. Small area for research: The area for study was Yamuna Nagar
which is quite a small area to judge out the consumer preferences for
the various brands of television.
3. Lack of resources: Lack of time and other resources as it was not
possible to conduct survey at large level.
4. Small no. of respondents: Only 200 respondents have been chosen
which is a small number, to represent whole of the population of
college going students of Yamuna Nagar.
5. Unwillingness of respondents: While collection of the data many
consumers were unwilling to fill the questionnaire. Respondents were
having a feeling of wastage of time for them.
6. Confinement of Price: - Price of the bikes is confined only to a
particular period. So the respondents were not able to fill in proper
price of their bikes.

33
 COMPANY PROFILE
Honda Vietnam Company which was established in March 1996
with charter capital of 62,900,000 million US dollars is a joint-venture of
Honda Motor Co., Ltd (Japan), Asian Honda Motor Co., Ltd (Thailand)
and Vietnam Engine & Agricultural Machinery Corporation. At early
days, the company specialized in manufacturing and assembling
motorcycles. By 2005, Honda Vietnam received the adjustment
investment license in which automobile assembling was added to its
business, it also provides warranty services, repairs motorcycle and
automobile. Honda motorcycles and automobiles always take up the
leading market shares for the high-class motorcycle range in Vietnam
making Honda to be the leading company in motorbike industry.

Mission statement
With the mission statement "to become a company that the society
wants to exist", Honda Vietnam's activities have been oriented toward the
community since establishment. HVN has strived for both the happiness
and safety of the Vietnamese people, as well as the development of the
country. The company has always made great efforts to apply modern and
advanced equipment and technology in production, to develop its
domestic supplier network to increase the localization ratio, to transfer
technology, to research and develop new models, to recruit local
employees, to train and improve the skills of our labor force, and to
actively contribute to the national budget. Although Honda Vietnam has
provided a variety of range of motorcycles like SH 125cc, Air Blade F1,
Lead, Click play, Click, Future NEO F1, Future NEO, Wave 110RSX ,
Wave 110 RS, Wave 110S, Super Dream, Wave alpha, it was unable to
scale up production as its factory in Vinh Phuc was running at full

34
capacity. So, in order to meet the increasing demand, Honda Vietnam
Company formally held an Opening ceremony for its second motorcycle
plant in Vinh Phuc province in August 29, 2008 with the key features of
"Environmental and human friendliness" to fulfill the customers’ orders,
especially for the Lead scooter. This is the proof for Honda Vietnam's
effort to satisfy more increasing and diversified demand of Vietnamese
customers.
Besides, Honda Vietnam has been always taking part in social
activities with the wish of becoming a Company that the society wants to
exist. The Company has paid special attention to traffic propaganda &
safety driving instructions, education development support, culture, arts
& charity… Especially, the campaign “I love Vietnam” with the message:
safety, environment and Social Activities prove Honda Vietnam’s effort
to contribute actively to the development of Vietnam.
Company objective
In accordance with the mission statement, company sets up its
corporate objectives guiding the present and future development of the
company over the next 12 months as follows:
Expansion of market share in existing and new markets;

Development of new product lines to satisfy different consumer

preferences; especially, providing high quality scooter like SH for high
class in the society

Building closer relationship with young consumers in Vietnam

based on appreciating life styles and thinking of the young generation
who always pursue the continuous development for a better life and for
the development of Vietnam.
Maintaining the best quality with a suitable price

35
Overview about LEAD scooter
Currently, Honda Vietnam has twelve kinds of motorbikes which are
being offered in the market. SH 125cc is the newest one entering Vietnam
market from the beginning of November in 2009. Among various types of
Honda Vietnam motorcycles, we intended to choose Honda Lead to
deeply analyze specific situation because of some reasons. Firstly, Lead is
similar in design to the Honda SCR scooter that has been imported from
China for sales on the local market over a year now. Secondly, from the
first day appearing in Vietnam market at the beginning of year 2009, the
model of the vehicle 110 Lead Honda Vietnam has caused "shock" to all
customers due to the much higher price that it was listed. It is derived
from the high demand and scarcity supply for Honda Lead. Actually,
when we searched information about Honda, we saw a lot of negative and
bad news about Lead as well as Honda reputation. It is the reason why we
want to concentrate more about this scooter to understand thoroughly
marketing strategy of Honda Lead.
Lead was firstly introduced to market on December 24, 2008 and sold on
January 2, 2009 at all HEAD ( Honda Exclusive Authorized Dealers).
Honda LEAD is the third type of scooters manufactured by Honda
Vietnam; the others are Air Blade and Click scooters. Lead is high –
class and luxury scooter for those who have high living standard and
modern lifestyle. The slogan for this scooter is “Lead to the next stage”,
which shows pioneer stuff of the users. Like other products of Honda,
Lead is also a saving energy and user – friendly scooter and it follows the
long – term objective of Honda toward Vietnam market that “Honda is
always trying to bring Vietnam customers more joy with high quality,
safe products and reasonable price”

36
Honda LEAD is featured with a four-stroke, 108cc engine, built-in liquid
cooled radiator and computerized fuel injection system to be more fuel
efficient and environmental friendly meeting the Euro 3 emission
standard. Additionally, many safety features are installed into the LEAD,
such as Combi Brake; and the bright Halogen Light. Beside that LEAD is
perfectly designed to deliver the most additional valuable benefits to
customers such as: The super large U-Box; Conveniently Fuel Center
Lid; comfortable seat; Tubeless tire. Also, customers have many choices
when coming to LEAD Honda Vietnam because of various colors of
black, white, red or silver.  Especially, the very first time appearance of 2
newly EZ Flip colors: Gold and Pink that offers color transformation in
changing brightness conditions is expected to bring about a fresh and
active style for riders. Furthermore, the suggested retail price of the
LEAD will be at VND 30,990,000 VND for standard colors and
31,490,000 VND for special colors (VAT included). 

37
 ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS
Natural
Environmental pollution is a serious problem in Vietnam nowadays.
There are many types of environmental pollution like water pollution,
land pollution, noise pollution…among them, air pollution is a hot issue
for not only Vietnam but also other countries all over the world because
air environment has many changes affecting badly to people and creature.
Air pollution is caused by many factors such as exploring and using
natural resources: coal, oil..., emission from factory, vehicles…it is said
that air pollution, especially in big cities, is mainly caused by vehicles.
Environmental experts say that vehicles, especially motorcycles, cause 70
per cent of all air pollution. Therefore, producing friendly- environment
motorcycles is encouraged and is concerned a lot, especially; a standard
on motorbike exhaust fumes was set up in 2007. In the absence of a
control standard for motorbike fumes, the best solution at present is to
find a way to minimize fumes from all engines to save the environment.
Seeing this, Honda Vietnam has tried to apply new technology in
producing motorcycles which is friendly to environment. With all
features above, Honda Lead saves energy and environmental friendly
meeting the Euro 3 emission standard.
Social/ cultural
When traffic jams situation happens more and more frequently, in
addition to government legislation requires every one on motorcycles to
wear helmet, scooters become favorite means of transportation nowadays
because scooters express some advantages compared to motorbikes as
follows: Firstly, scooter is more convenient for driving in small roads or
rush hours, traffic jams than motorbikes because scooter does not need
much adjustment for gear as motorbike. Secondly, scooter has a large box

38
for bags and helmets. Most of all, the line Scooter is currently circulating
in the market are designed relatively consistent with the appearance of
Vietnamese people as relatively low saddle. Moreover, many people
perceived that scooter will take more petrol than motorbike, so average
income class will have tendency to buy motorbike but now, which is
improved so much. In addition, with the development of economy, people
have higher income; they have more demand for scooter which is better
fit with modern life style and fashion. In short, scooter is more and more
popular with Vietnamese consumers, so Honda decided to launch Honda
Lead scooter to satisfy customers’ demand.

Competitor analysis

Currently, motorbike market is quite attractive. There are a large

number of the companies focusing on this field. So, since Honda launched
LEAD into the market, it has met both internal competitors like Air-Blade,
Click… and many external direct opponents such as Smash, Mio classical,
Nouvo, Suzuki amity 125, Attila Victoria, Honda SCR China, ….Besides, a
lot of the companies producing cars: Toyota, Ford, Huyndai, BMW…are
considered as indirect competitors of Lead. Among direct competitors
above, Attila Victoria and Honda SCR imported from China will be selected
to assess their strengths and weaknesses relative to Honda Lead.

As we can see that SYM is the first adversary which competes with
Honda. SYM is associated with reliability and genuineness. SYM, with line
of diverse motorbike products such as Attila, VS Exel, Magio 110 RS,
Bonus 110…created a new wave on the Vietnam market and has competed
strongly with Honda. Specially, SYM introduced original Attila to the
Vietnam market in 1998, Attila Victoria, a new version to the market in
August 2008 before introduction of Honda Lead at the end of 2008, which

39
made Attila Victoria coming to customers earlier. It has not only new shape
but also cheaper price than Lead (28 million VND- Attila Victoria, and 31
million VND – Honda Lead). In addition, SYM has provided services more
attractively for users as they buy this product than Honda. For example,
guarantee period of Attila Victoria is 2 -year warranty like Lead and one
more option is 30000km comparing with 20000km of Honda. In general,
Attila is one of the competitive and powerful motors which Honda needs
pay attention to make Lead more perfect.

Secondly, SCR which has been produced by Honda China is also a

strong competitor of Lead. In general, Lead and SCR are nearly similar
about the shape, engine, but the price of Lead (31000000 VND) is cheaper
than SCR (33000000 VND) and the color of Lead is younger and more
various. SCR has only two colors for customers to choose: yellow and pink
but there are four colors for Lead. When Honda launched Lead to the
market, SCR is very popular to users and receives much more attention
from customers because of good features such as big box, fuel injection
engine PGM-FI…. These features are also included in Lead. The difference
between them is that Lead is equipped without the sub-foot drum motor,
which creates difficulty for users especially female. At this point, SCR can
be evaluated more highly than lead. However, the operation of Lead is quite
humid and smooth, which makes customers more comfortable and the
guarantee period of Lead is longer than SCR (six months to one year). To
sum up, with appearance of Lead in 2008, it attracted more attention of
many people and has reduced a large number of SCR bought.

With evaluation above, it is clear that Lead stands the second position
comparing with Attila Victoria and SCR. Up till now, with the reasonable
price Lead is a good choice for those having average or high income. The

40
positioning of Lead and its two direct competitors can be defined at the
following map:

Quality

Lead

Attila

SCR

Low price

A positioning map

41
 CUSTOMER ANALYSIS
In the Vietnam motorcycles market, there are four customer segments
divided for those who use Honda Lead.

Customer Characteristics
segments
Geographical  Currently, Honda has about 400 retail stores
in all the country. Like other kind of
motorcycles, Honda Lead has been
distributed to HEAD (Honda Exclusive
Authorized Dealers) from the North to the
South, however it has still been consumed
mostly in big cities in which have dense
populations and high living standards such
as Hanoi, HoChiMinh city, Hai Phong, Da
Nang, Hue, Can Tho, etc.

 Because Lead is a high – class and luxurious

scooter product, it is not much sold in rural
areas.

Demographic  With opulent and superior design as well as

various colors, Lead can be used by both
male and female
 Its price is acceptable for workers who have
at least above the average income as well as
students having good economic ability.
 It is also suitable for the whole families with

42
 parents and children who are students
needing motorbike to go to school.
 It is also always available for everyone with
needs in any occupation

Psychographi  Actually, Honda Vietnam designed Lead for

c specific socioeconomic classes in term of
economic ability. It focuses on those who
have high living standards, in other words,
who can afford for this luxurious product.
 Lead is a preferable motorcycle to those who
are keen on scooter because of its style
which makes drivers feel proud of them as
well as brings luxury and modernity to its
owner.

Behavioral  Lead is firstly launched in Vietnam market

at the beginning of year 2009. It is a time
near Tet holiday, therefore consumers want
to have a new motorbike at this time in order
to make ready for Tet. This leads to the
increase demand for this scooter.
 Nowadays, a motorbike is not simple as a
means of transportation. It also shows the
socioeconomic status of its owner, so
consumers want to choose motorbike which
represents their high rank because of its

43
 luxury.
 Consumers also choose Lead because of its
advantages compared with the other scooters
such as: saving energy; light, simple and
user – friendly design; advanced, powerful
and mild engine; cheap stated price and
brand familiarity.
 Honda Vietnam is the leading company in
motorbike industry, therefore the products of
Honda like Lead is often the priority choice
come to the customers’ mind.
 The buyers using Lead – a product of Honda
are somewhat loyal. They are loyal to the
motorbikes manufactured by Honda
Vietnam. They believed that Honda will
create value and satisfaction for them.
 Most customers in big cities and urban areas
are aware of the Lead brand because of its
repetitive advertisings on television as well
as monumental show for the first appearance
of this scooter. However, many potential
users in the rural areas are unaware or not
informed about this kind of motorcycle
because Honda has not focused on this
market segment.

DECISION TYPE FOR THE HONDA LEAD

44
 Actually, scooter like Honda Lead is still an expensive and
infrequently purchased product for Vietnam customers; therefore before
making decision to buy a new one, they highly involved in a purchase by
searching a lot of necessary information about its price, quality and
characteristics. Moreover, there are significant differences among brands
such as Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and SYM as well as other motorcycles
products coming from China. For example, Honda products are saving –
energy and user – friendly, while Yamaha products normally look so
sporty and powerful. It is the reason why consumers always compare
among brands to choose the best one. These features show us that it is
complex buying behavior.

Brand analysis
Product life circle (PLC) stage
Up to now, Honda Lead has been appearing in Vietnam market for
about one year. Like other new products, it also progresses through a
range of stages from introduction to growth, maturity, and decline. This
sequence is known as the product life cycle and is associated with
changes in the marketing situation, thus impacting the marketing strategy
and the marketing mix. As can be seen from “price storm” of Honda
Lead, this product came over the introduction stage and begins with the
growth rate showed through the high demand and quick sale. However, it
can be predicted that it may enter the maturity stage and whether it can
back into the growth stage or not depends on the way the company
changes one of the marketing mix of the product - price. In this report, we
will focus on the introduction and growth stage as well as maturity stage.

Introduction and growth stage:

45
 Actually, Honda Lead has very quick introduction stage, so it
moves to the growth stage immediately. Firstly, as the product is
introduced into the market, the demand for it was so high that sale goes
up rapidly instead of slow sales growth as predicted for this stage.
Moreover, according to Mr Shinichi Shimada, Senior Manager of
Customer Service Department, Honda Vietnam affirmed that this
company is suffering loss of prestige when Head himself push price up
and benefit from the difference between the listed and selling price,
meanwhile the company do not benefit from the price increase.

Maturity stages
Currently, the “price storm” of Honda Lead has not been solved
appropriately by Honda Vietnam Company and it’s HEAD. Consumers
have been disagreeing with what Honda managers explained for their
irresponsible action in term of controlling price. In addition, they no
longer believe Honda reputation and they may boycott Honda products
including Lead. In recent time, the sales of Honda Lead slow down,
which make profits drop. This report forecasts that Honda Lead may have
chance to return the growth stage if the company changes the marketing
strategy in term of price to make customer trust the company reputation
again. In contrast, if Honda Company do not act correspondently with the
customers’ opinion, they are likely to loose the motorcycles market to
other competitors.

46
Honda
Lead

Current marketing strategy using 4Ps framework

It is very important to the Honda Company to determine 4Ps which
stand for Product, Place, Promotion and Price with the purpose of
changing customers’ negative mind about Honda Lead.

47
Product
Honda Company is trying to increase Lead output to meet the
customers’ demand and avoid the increase price due to the scarcity of this
scooter. Moreover, the company also improves the product quality to
make customers feel satisfaction

Place
Honda Lead has been distributed through HEAD in all the country.
Honda Company has still used HEAD as their main channel of product
distribution.

Promotion
Honda continues their promotion campaigns through two main
communication elements namely advertising and public relation. Because
of the large market share of motorcycles lines, Honda is utilizing both
PUSH and PULL strategies. In term of public relations, Honda is always
trying to build good relationships with the Vietnamese customers by
involving in the community as well as investing in social portfolio with
the purpose of proving their efforts toward Vietnam society.

Price
Recently, Honda often makes customers dissatisfied with the
pricing decision because of the much higher difference between the listed
and selling price. Honda Company clearly knows about this issue from
the “price storm” of Lead and Air Blade, but they have not solved this
affair appropriately yet. This brings HEAD chance to push price up
whatever they like to make profits.

48
 SWOT ANALYSIS

Strengths

Honda has been a well-known brand in the world before entering to

Vietnam in 1996. People know about Honda Japan, Honda Thailand and
now Honda Vietnam. Over 10 years of long existence and development,
Honda Vietnam now becomes a part in the Vietnamese people’s life.
Moreover, taking part into social activities, especially makes Honda
become the friendly motor brand with people. Thus, Honda Vietnam is
one of the most prioritized brands for choosing motorcycles of domestic
customers. LEAD, firstly launched in Vietnam market on 24 December
2008, is one product of Honda Vietnam after 12 years since company’s
establishment, so it will also have full fame and take advantages of its
brand. It makes one of the strongest points of this scooter.

Another strength of LEAD Honda which plays a part in the firm’s

way to become popular is the excellent characteristics of products- a
scooter designed with concept of “Premium and Modern” and takes in the
international trend of big scooters. LEAD is the perfect match with
modern and premium lifestyle and is the “new standard scooter” to the
people living in the cities. Beside the features of a modern scooter’s
engine, such as, 4 stroke, 108cc radiator built-in liquid cooled engine,
LEAD is also computerized Honda PGM-FI( electronic fuel injection )
system that providing LEAD as the best fuel efficiency in its class and
offers environmental friendliness meeting the strictly Euro 3 emission
standard. This advanced point is not applied for lots of scooters in
Vietnam, for example, Click Play (Honda), Nouvo( Yamaha)…
Additionally, many safety features are installed into the LEAD, such as
Combi Brake. Beside that LEAD is perfectly designed to deliver the most
49
additional valuable benefits to customers ,namely, LEAD has a super
larger U-Box than other scooters’, for instance, Nouvo or Air Blade… so
it is very convenient for driver to store a lot of things. Also, customers
have many choices when coming to LEAD Honda Vietnam because of
various colors of black, white, red, silver, gold and pink that offers color
transformation in changing brightness conditions is expected to bring
about a fresh and active style for riders. While Air Blade has black, white,
red; or Nouvo has more dark blue. Furthermore, the suggested retail price
of the LEAD will be at VND 30,990,000 VND for standard colors and
31,490,000 VND for special colors (VAT included). It is the suitable
price for a modern and high graded scooter. .  

Weaknesses

Everything has two faces: strengths and weaknesses; and LEAD

Honda Vietnam is not an exception. Besides its strengths, LEAD has a
number of weak points.

First of all, that is the weakness concerning with HEAD

management. During the last period of the economic recession, Honda
Vietnam has offered customers many promotion programs such as gift
vouchers, discount prices in order to stimulate the motor demand.
However, HEAD does not inform customers about those prices. In
addition, HEAD pushes the prices up because of the escalation in scooter
demand due to higher average income of consumers. This brings HEAD
lots of money from the discount prices and from the difference between
the original prices and the increasing prices. The motor prices at HEAD
are obviously higher than those at others small motor shops. Partly, the
listed retail price of the LEAD is at 30,990,000 VND for standard colors
and 31,490,000 VND for special colors (VAT included), but in fact that

50
the customers must buy LEAD higher three- four millions and even when
its price goes up 39,000,000 VND. But Honda Vietnam did not have any
effort to solve this problem. They just told via the media that HEAD
could sell motors at any price that they wanted. This means Honda
Vietnam denies being responsible for this affair. Another result from the
“prices storm” is that the motor prices being pushed up would let
consumers down. On the Internet, there are some forums calling the
consumers to boycott LEAD Honda Vietnam. Moreover, the “prices
storm” helped HEAD to be tax dodgers because they sell motor to the
customers at high prices but pay tax at listed prices, meaning the low
prices. Therefore, they can have more money from the difference between
the two prices.

The last weakness is about Honda Vietnam services such as sales

service, maintenance service. At HEAD, when customers complain about
the highly increasing prices of Lead, no one gives them suitable
explanation or intends to convince them to buy. Generally, attitude of
sales persons are not helpful and that makes a lot of buyers dissatisfied.
Another example is concerned with the guarantee’s maintenance of Lead.
When the customers go to HEAD to have warranty, they often wait for
long time or receive unfriendliness of staff. 

51
Opportunities

It cannot be denied that some factors and forces of the external

environment bring the Honda Lead great opportunities.

The first important one is from Vietnamese customers.

Organization exists to meet the needs of customers. If it creates great
customer values and satisfaction, it is successful. As stated in the website
www.state.gov, Vietnamese per capita income (2008) is 1,024 dollar per
year. That level of income explains why customers in Vietnam prefer a
motor with a reasonable price. However, nowadays, a lot of people have
higher average income, so they want their vehicles not only to travel but
also to represent for their socioeconomic status. Thus, the tendency to
buy scooter instead of motorbike gradually increases. LEAD helps its
customers have both requirements in a scooter- convenience and style. In
addition, there is a significant rise in the customers’ demand for motors,
especially motorcycles (scooters and motorbikes) at 90% in big cities
(www.honda.com.vn). These characteristics of Vietnamese customer
market give products of Honda Vietnam Company, including LEAD, a
chance to enhance the performance remarkably. In reality, being aware of
this opportunity, the company has expanded the scale of production of
LEAD to satisfy customers’ needs. 

The second opportunity which the external environment offers is

socio - cultural conditions. It is evident that air pollution is one of the
country’s most alarming issues caused mainly by motor vehicles as
Vietnam expects to have 31 million motorbikes and 3 million cars by
2015 (http://english.thesaigontimes.vn). This problem causes serious
harm to people and nature. Therefore, the whole society becomes more

52
aware of the importance of protecting the environment. They intend to
use emission-limiting and fuel-saving vehicles. Taking advantage of this
opportunity, the Honda Vietnam Company has issued a mass of hi-tech
and eco-friendly products, accompanied by environmental protection
activities. Honda Vietnam has obtained many advanced achievements in
the motor industry and LEAD is one of the best ones.

The last but not least is the opportunity due to globalization. Like
many other companies, in Vietnam in Post-WTO time, LEAD has great
opportunities from this important event. When our economy integrates
completely to the world market, the company is in front of the chance to
have much wider customer market without any trade barriers. Also, it can
adopt modern technology, foreign investment and effective management
methods more easily.

Threats 

Beside opportunities, LEAD Honda Vietnam faces some threats as

follows:

Firstly, threat is set up by the bargaining power of customers. It is

the fact that the more the society has developed the more trends towards
modernization and diversification has been popular. It makes the number
of industries appeared, including motorcycles industry. Among
Vietnamese scooters market, there are lots of different brands with
various and innovative products such as Mio, Nouvo (YAMAHA), Zip,
LX, Fly 125 (PIAGGIO), Attila, Joyride (SYM), Bella, and Amity
(SUZUKI) … Therefore, the customers have more choice to select the
best one that suits with their preferences. To meet the demand of
customers, LEAD Honda Vietnam continues to make sustained efforts to

53
improve their product in terms of price, style and function as well as
services day by day. They are trying their best to launch scooter that fits
well with Vietnamese people’s needs and at the same time reduce
negative effects on environment.

Secondly, the bargaining power of suppliers is mentioned. It is

clear that Honda has established a close relationship with its suppliers
mainly in Japan. They are trying to persuade their suppliers to reduce the
price of some components. Because of the limitation of domestic market
in manufacturing car’s component, Honda has to import the component
from foreign country like Japan, China and assemble in Vietnam. Those
causes manufacturing Lead depend on foreign suppliers in terms of price
and quantity.

Next, threat is caused by new entrant. Since Viet Nam is a member

of WTO, Vietnamese customers have more choices to own suitable
scooter. There are more famous foreign brand names than ever before in
domestic market such as Piaggio, CPI … with good quality and appealing
appearance. They attract a large amount of customers especially ones
who have high income and desire to show off their status. Additionally,
Vietnam permit motorcycles importing business not only new but also
old ones with efficient quality standard and expiry date rules. Moreover,
according to Mr Do Huu Hao, vice prime minister of Ministry of
Industry, the import tax of motor is reduced considerably in the next 3
years at the rate of at least 15 % in comparison with the current price.
Thus, Honda now is in the edge of losing market share in Vietnamese
market.

54
 Finally, it comes from rivalries. Yamaha, Suzuki, two strong
competitors of Honda Vietnam, now keep innovating their products,
including scooters, and having long-term goal to become the leading
producers. Evidently, Yamaha has scooters, such as, Mio, Exciter, Nouvo
with various prices from 20,000,000 to 32,700,000 VND; while Suzuki
also has Suzuki Hayate with lower price, good quality, fashion. In
addition, Lead now has to struggle against the scooters flood from China
which cheap price is a competitive advantage of these products to
compete with Lead.

From SWOT analysis, some suggestions are mentioned to help

Lead scooter continue to be the best option for Vietnamese customers.

55
 RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
Table 1

Are your aware about 150 cc bike brands available in the market?

Are your aware about 150 cc No. of respondents

bike brands available in the
market?

Fully Aware 93
Aware 76
Less aware 31

Table 1 shows that 93 of respondents are fully aware about 150 cc bikes
in market, 76 of respondents just aware about 150 cc bikes and only 31 of
respondents are have little bit knowledge about 150cc.

Are your aware about 150 cc bike brands

available in the market ?

93
100
76
No. of respondents

80

60

40 31

20

0
Fully Aware Aware Less aware

Fig. 1

56
 Table 2
How do you come to know about this brand/model of
150 cc bike?
How do you come to know about No. of respondents
this brand/model of 150cc bike?

Friends 45
Advertisement 87
Publicity 10
Family members 47
Any other 11

Table 2 shows that 45 of respondents came to know about brand of bikes

from friends, 87 of respondents came to know about brand of bikes from
advertisement, 10 of respondents came to know about brand of bikes
from publicity, 47 of respondents came to know about brand of bikes
from family members and 11 of respondents came to know about brand
of bikes from other sources.

How do you come to know about this brand/model of 150 CC bike

?

87
90
80
No. of respondents

70
60
45 47
50
40
30
20 10 11
10
0
Friends Advertisement Publicity Family Any other
members

Fig. 2

57
 Table 3
Which factor influence you more to purchase a bike?

Which factor influence you No. of respondents

more to purchase a bike?

Brand image 53
Fuel efficiency 81
Price 27
Comfort 17
Syle 25

Table 3 shows that 53 respondents are influenced to purchase a bike from

its brand image, 81 respondents are influenced to purchase a bike from its
Fuel efficiency, 27 respondents are influenced to purchase a bike from its
lesser Price, 17 respondents are influenced to purchase a bike from its
Comfort, 25 respondents are influenced to purchase a bike from its Style.

Which factor influence you more to purchase a bike ?

100
81
80
No. of respondents

60 53

40 27 25
17
20

0
Brand image Fuel efficiency Price Comfort Syle

Fig. 3
Table 4
Are you satisfied with its overall performance?

58
 Are you satisfied with its No. of respondents
overall performance?

Fully Satisfied 41
Satisfied 104
Moderate 42
Less satisfied 10
Poor 3

Table 4 shows that 41 of respondents are fully satisfied with the

performance of their bikes, 104 of respondents are satisfied with the
performance of their bike, 42 of respondents are moderate in satisfaction
with the performance of their bikes and 3 of respondents are poorly
satisfied with the performance of their bike.

Are you satisfied with its overall performance?

120
104
100
No. of respondents

80

60
41 42
40

20 10
3
0
Fully Satisfied Moderate Less satisfied Poor
Satisfied

Fig. 4
Table 5
According to you which company gives the most benefit to
customers?

59
 According to you which No. of respondents
company gives the most benefit
to customers?

Honda 63
Bajaj 109
TVS 28

Table 5 shows that 63 of respondents are saying that the Honda is

providing more benefits of the services to the customers, 109 of
respondents are saying that the Bajaj is providing more benefits of the
services to the customers and 28 of respondents are saying that the TVS
is providing more benefits of the services to the customers.

According to you which company gives the most

benefit to customers ?

28
63
Honda
Bajaj
TVS

109

Fig. 5

60
 Table 6
Which type of media influence your purchase behaviour?

Which type of media influence your No. of respondents

purchase behaviour?

T.V. 114
Newspaper 33
Wall painting 5
Hording 12
Magazine 36

Table 6 shows that 114 of respondents and influence to purchase their

bike through T.V., 33 of respondents and influence to purchase their bike
through Newspaper, 5 of respondents and influence to purchase their bike
through Wall painting, 12 of respondents and influence to purchase their
bike through Hording and 36 of respondents and influence to purchase
their bike through Magazine.

Which type of media influence your purchase

behaviour ?
120 114

100
No. of respondents

80

60
33 36
40
20 12
5
0
T.V. New spaper Wall painting Hording Magazine

Fig. 6
Table 7
Who influenced you more in your buying decision of bike?

61
 Who influenced you more in your No. of respondents
buying decision of bike?

Self 30
Family Member 54
Friends/Relative 98
Mechanics 18

Table 7 shows that 30 of respondents have influence their buying

decision from their self decision, 54 of respondents have influence their
buying decision from their family members, 98 of respondents have
influence their buying decision from their friends/relative and 18 of
respondents have influence their buying decision from their Mechanics,

Who influenced you more in your buying decision of

bike ?

98
100
No. of respondents

80
54
60

40 30
18
20

0
Self Family Member Friends/Relative Mechanics

Fig. 7

62
 Table 8
In your opinion, what role advertisement plays?

In your opinion, what role No. of respondents

advertisement plays?

Provides important details 65

Creates awareness 125
Misleading 10

Table 8 shows that 65 of respondents are in favor that advertisement

provides important details, 125 of respondents are in favor that
advertisement creates awareness and 10 of respondents are in favor that
advertisement Misleading.

In your opinion, what role advertisement plays ?

140 125
120
No. of respondents

100
80 65
60
40
20 10
0
Provides Creates Misleading
important details awareness

Fig. 8

RECOMMENDATIONS
63
Recommendation refers to the outcome of the research work done and the
suggestions for implementation i.e. findings.
1. It is suggested that manufacturer should make all efforts to control
cost.
2. New technology should be applied according to the requirement of
the customer.
3. Provide various schemes which attract the customers.
4. Spare parts of the bikes should be easily available in the market.
5. Bike should be fuel efficient.
6. Bike should be available in different colours so as to attract college
going students.
7. Bike should be given sportier look.

64
 BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Schiffman Leon G. and Kanuk Leslie Lazar
Consumer Behaviour 6th edition Published by: Prentice-hall of
India Private Limited. ( page no. 2&6)
2. Gupta C.B. and Dr. Nair N. Rajan
Marketing Management 5th edition Published by: Sultan chand &
sons (page no. 1.69)
3. Mamoria C.B. and Mamoria Satish
Marketing Management 4th edition Published by: Kitab Mahal (page
no. 161)
4. Nair Suja R.
Consumer Behaviour Indian prospective Ist edition Published by:
Himalaya Publicating Home ( page no. 3)
5. Bennett Peter D. and Kassarjian Harold
Consumer Behaviour 8th edition Published by: Prentice-hall of India
Private Limited.(page no. 5)
6. Kothari C.R
Research Methodology Methods & Techniques 2nd edition
Published by: Wishwa Publication (page no. 151, 94-95)
7. http://www.tvsapache.com/home.aspx
8. http://www.bajajauto.com/pulsar/
9. http://www.honda2wheelersindia.com/unicorn/ride_n_fly/be_
a_wing_rider.asp
10. http://auto.indiamart.com/motorcycles/
11. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/iw/2004/11/28/stories/2
004112800421500.htm
12. http://www.indiabike.com/infobank/unicorn/index.htm
13. http://www.icmr.icfai.org/casestudies/catalogue/Marketing/M
KTG098.htm

65
 Questionnaire

1. Which Brand of bike you own?

2. What is the price of your bike?
3. How long do you own this Bike?
 Less than six month
 Six month
 One year
 Two year
 More than 2 years
4. How fuel efficient your bike is?
5. What is the top speed (km/hs) of your bike?
6. Are you aware about the 150cc bike brands available in the market?
 Fully aware
 Aware
 Less aware
7. Which of the following model/brand of 150cc motorcycle you like the
most –
1 2 3
 HONDA (Unicorn) -- -- --
 BAJAJ (Pulsar 150cc) -- -- --
 TVS (Apache) -- -- --
How did you came to know about this brand /model of 150cc bike –
 Through friends
 Advertisement
 Publicity
 Family members
 Any other

66
8. Which factor influence you more to purchase the bike –
 Brand image
 Fuel efficiency
 Price
 Comfort
 Style
9. How do you grade the following qualities-
 Safety
 Comfort
 Fuel efficiency
 Style
 performance

10.Why did you prefer this model /bike?

1 2 3 4
 Price -- -- -- --
 Mileage -- -- -- --
 After sales -- -- -- --
Service
 Power -- -- -- --

11.Are you satisfied with its overall performance?

 Fully satisfied
 Satisfied
 Average
 Less satisfied
 Poor

67
 13. According to you which company gives the most benefits to
customers?
 HONDA
 BAJAJ
 TVS
14.Which type of media influences your purchase behavior?
 T.V
 Newspaper
 Wall painting
 Hording
 Magazine
15. Who influenced you more in your buying decision of bike?
 Self
 Family member
 Friends/relatives
 Mechanics
16. In your opinion, what role advertisement plays?
 Provides Important details
 Creates awareness
 Misleading

Name : ____________________________
Place : ____________________________
Age : ____________________________

68