Brand Personality Assessment of Royal Enfield Essay

IntroductionManufactured in Redditch, UK, the Bullet was the culmination of designs that date back to 1933. The classic 350 cc fashion model make its de merely at the Earls Court motor limn in 1948 and was an immediate success. Its big br an a nonher(prenominal)(prenominal), the 500 cc came a retentive later, in 1953. In 1955, a satellite operatory was established in Madras, India, to d on the wholey demands from the Indian Army. When the UK factory closed in 1970, the Madras plant continued carrefourion. In 1994, Enfield India was acquired by the large engineering group, Eicher, which has since made a phone pay reach of improvements to the cps. However, disrespect these, its distinctive appearance rebrinys unchanged and plys an opportunity to enjoy the exemption of riding a classic reproduction cycle. First World struggle (19111920) Inter-war years (19211939) Second World War (19391945)1913 Enfield 425cc 1923 violet Enfield 225cc 1941 proud Enfield 250cc purple Enf ield in NepalAll the purple Enfield cycle in Nepal is merchandise from India by Dugar Brothers and Sons. It is manufactured in Chennai, India and by 2013 its Pune branch will similarly suck up manufacturing and the facility will be of same capacity. Currently 70,000 to 75,000 units of motorcycle be manufactured in a year. Dugar Brothers and Sons is the sole distributor of munificent Enfield in Nepal. It branches are in Kathmandu, Narayanghat, Birgunj, Nepalgunj and Biratnagar. Among these branches Narayanghat and Biratnagar branch has the mellowedest number of sales. It has many distributors spread approximately the nation. Among all the branches and distributor the close number of imperial Enfield motorcycle is exchange by the dealer in Pokhara and dealer in entirelywals sales volume is the second highest. The highest number of sales is usually during festival season. imperial Enfield Bullet Electra/classic 350 cc are the cardinal most change check off hither in Nepal and the same product of 500 cc is the second highest alloting lofty Enfield cycle.Royal Enfields most fashion fit brand of today is Bullet and it is often taken as similar to Royal Enfield. And this is the just now bicycle in the 350 cc and 500 cc segment of bike here in Nepal. And thunderbird segment is least fashionable and non s of age(predicate)er currently. Royal Enfield was first of all manufactured in England to a greater extent than hundred years ago. It has a long legacy and a war history as this motorcycle was use in some(prenominal) first and second creative activity war. It has al ways been perceived as a prime(prenominal) product and it has been able to retain the same perception eventide by and by a century and it has been able to position itself as a Luxurious, subsidy and a quality product. Royal Enfields target nodes for Nepal are f number middle and f number class segment. It faces competition from new brands equivalent KTM Duke, VR and others sports bikes. scarce it has its admit set of loyal customer and these competitors are of truly small-scale threat to them as the model and performance both vary generally from other bikes. It is a premium brand and its firearm and livelihood comprise is high as well and it even consumes more fuel as its mill shape up is intimately 20-25 Km per liter of petrol and petrol in Nepal is costly too. It is a luxurious item for Nepalese sight and hardly use by a middle class commuters.There is no age limit for the product offerardized Royal Enfield Motorcycle as people from teen to older generation of 45 and above still give up the cacoethes for the bike. Customers of this bike lot be run a risk repulser, traveler, once that bring in the know for classic things or admirer of a legacy it carries. Royal Enfield has be serve in truth popular among the youngsters of Nepal. They seem to prefer this brand among other. Although it does not deliver a proper orientroo m in city field of operations where most bike giverooms are located instead it has lone(prenominal) unity show room inside the industrial state of Kathmandu but still it has been selling the same unit of bike as it use to when it had its showroom in New Baneshwor as well. Its market share is only ab bug out 1% of total market share in the 2 wheeler segment. hatful barter foring Bullet usually find the mooring to buy the bike as it is a premium product here in Nepal and people generally come prepared through tactile sensation for in internet visiting www.royalenfield.com of India and as same bikes are imported and sold here in Nepal adequate information can be ga in that respectd from in that respect and they find the place to buy the bike through friends and relatives or from NTC call centre which will provide the phone number of the distribution centre on demand.The point of difference for the Royal Enfield with other two wheeler motorcycle is its physical strength, qua lity assurance, retro look and traditional system still incorporated and above all it is the oldest two wheeler corporation. The price of the motorcycle is not over charged as well for the segment of the bike it lies in. Royal Enfield has not changed with advancement of the technology. This bike is still very similar to the bike that was produces decades ago. But this is what customer more often than not the standardised about the brand and it even has even advertised its classic chrome saying old school magic, recreated and this brand has really done well in the market in terms of sales. Nut there is still that segment in the market that would resembling to own a Royal Enfield but want it with a change and new technology incorporated keeping this in mind Royal Enfield has come up with a Thunder Bird 500 cc with led light, look-alike disk brakes and other various changes which will soon assent the Nepali market as well. There are various clubs like Nasa Bullet Club (manage d by distributor themselves), Himalayan Enfield and Sector top of the inning in Nepal that unites Royal Enfield owners and organizes tours and rally.These rally and tour are as well as a source of promotion and it has been able to lure more customers to the showroom. People like to get associated in such events and to do so they even buy the motorcycle. When other clubs organize such events the distributors largely inscribe through sponsorship. They participate in assorted auto show like NADA auto Show. They publish print advertisement in popular national quotidian newspaper any fortnight and even influence or so magazines to surmount a story of the Royal Enfield. They do not do television system commercials but appear in programs like Wheel Factor in news 24 where over all description of the motorcycle is given. The main reason for the company not being able to tap all the potential market is its age old technology which requires special fellowship for the maintenance of the Motorcycle.Customers absorb diametric types of worry and most number of customer complain is about the limited number of table attend centre which makes it very difficult for customer to substantiate their motorcycle repaired and moreover private workshop owner are not capable to repair the bike as it has a very complex engine, and its engineering is also very incompatible from other motorcycles of today which make it very difficult for every motorcycle mechanic to sire idea to repair the motorcycle so customers had suggested them to have service centers in different location rather than having a individual(a) service centre. Keeping this in mind the Dugar Brother and Sons even had a workshop and educate program for the existing workshop owner and the implicated new people who want to open a motorcycle workshop. The training was for free and it had a ripe number of en and soiasts joining the program.Customers attitude towards Royal EnfieldI had interviewed few Roya l Enfield owners and there was mix comments on the motorcycle. Pride, forcefulness and superiority was something that everyone pointed out. They were satisfied with the functionality aspect of the bike and love the hygienic emitted by the bike. On asking what made them buy the bike I found out that it was the retro look of the bike, the last it emits, the strong engine and the pride that comes with the bike. they even shared their experience they had joining different tours from Royal Enfield owners club, they found such tours very inte slackeninging and exciting as they would mostly travelling in a group and in the rest point they would have various activities for entertainment and they could socialize with the likeminded people on the tour as well. Riding Royal Enfield gives them a certain direct of satisfaction, joy, pride, excitement and confidence. They said it was very comfortable on a thoroughfare bike really gets lighter as you race it and even act will be easy. The main job that everyone indicated was the limited number of service centers and workshops.People have faced many problem due to inaccessibility of service centers that could fix the Royal Enfield bike and due to the complex nature of bike every mechanic cannot repair and maintain the bike thus the owners really gets in trouble when there is problem in the bike as they have to take the bike to some limited number of service center of Royal Enfield. They said it would be better if the bike adopts some new technology like led headlights, fuel indicators, tubeless wheel and so forthbut without changing the appearance, as it has already introduced self instigate on the bike and is of huge success. Another well recognized problem was the high maintenance cost and overpriced part of the Royal Enfield. Where ordinary bikes that run in the street of Kathmandu run on an median(a) of 1 liter engine oil it needs 2.5 liters which makes the regular maintenance cost double the cost of norma l bike. Moreover the costly part that is not readily available and takes long lead time for arriver and the labor cost associated with it is also higher making it more expensive to keep and maintain. It is because of this reasons people despite their outmost love for the bike had to sell their beloved possession, and some dont even buy the product when they know all these about the product.Positioning of Royal Enfield as a brandRoyal Enfield has positioned itself as a premium brand in Nepal and targeted hurrying middle and above class of people but it is very for middle class people in India. It is perceived as a quality product. Although it is made in India people because of the age old legacy it carries people are confident on its performance and quality. It is targeted for travel enthusiasts and adventure riders more than for daily commuters. Although its price with reference to its engine cc is not that high its spare parts and maintenance cost is definitely high which makes it more attractive to the upper middle and above class of people. It spends very less in advertisement and promotion, still people find their ways to learn about the bike and buy it even if they have to hunt for the vendor. People find pride in owning the bike. There are different clubs started by the authorized dealer and likeminded people who love to ride and own the bike.FINDINGSAakers Brand Personality ScaleA sample sizing of 16 responded were asked to fill the questionnaire, which included the five major factors (i.e. sincerity, excitement, competence, sophistication and ruggedness) with their underlining facets as suggested by the Aakers model. Respondents were asked to rate how descriptive eachpersonality trace was for Royal Enfield on a 7 point scale (1being super not descriptive & 7 being extremely descriptive). The summary of the government issue is shown belowFactors Ratings Sincerity 1.0555Excitement 1.6420Competence 1.3203Sophistication 0.9687Ruggedness 1.8125From th e obtained termination we can say that Royal Enfield as a brand has stock high scores on all except the sophistication. The reason nookie the brand to score low point in the sophistication factor might be because the customers are actually looking for the age old traditional antic bike which has very less modification to its accredited design thus making it less sophisticated and people like it that way.Projective TechniqueHere in the research I have used a comparison task to uncover the true fingerings of the respondent about the brand. The respondents were asked to compare Royal Enfield with animal, activity, car, music, perfume, profession, sports, emotion and fabric and provide reason for their filling as well.Royal Enfield and animalMost of the respondent has compared the Royal Enfield with animals like Lion, Tiger, rhino, Giraffe and Dog. The highest number of respondent however has compared the brand with Lion because of its appearance, its advocate and kings status in jungle and the roar which is corresponding with the sound emitted by the bike. It is compared with tiger looking at its strength and toughness. Rhinoceros was mostly selected for classic and huge body of the bike. One respondent has even compared the bike with dog keeping the sound in mind he has compared it with the dogs barking.Royal Enfield and carRoyal Enfield has been compared with different cars. The highest number of respondent has compared Royal Enfield with beetle because of its classic look. The respondents have a feeling that Royal Enfield is fashionable and are totally different from other bikes. Similarly, it has been compared with several other cars like Hummer, Ferrari, and BMW because of its sound and advanced technology.Royal Enfield and occupationAll the respondents have come up with an individual occupation. Fashion Stylist as an occupation is somewhat mentioned by most of them. Royal Enfield however is compared to Fashion icon because of its posh, old geezer l ook and because of its individuality. Moreover, Royal Enfield is also compared to the job of Army, engineer, drilling mining because of the sudor and power it possess.Royal Enfield and SportThe highest number of respondents has compared Royal Enfield to Football because of the intensity and excitement it possesses while playing it. Moreover, Golf is the next highest sports that have been compared to Royal Enfield because of its nature. The respondents has revealed that playing golf shows your standard similarly riding Royal Enfield shows your attitude and shows your living standard. Royal Enfield has been somewhat been compared to bike racing, ping pong, rugby, swimming, Marathon and Baseball.Royal Enfield and TV ShowThe highest respondents compared Royal Enfield to a TV show FRIENDS and How I Met Your Mother, which has revealed some different opinion towards Royal Enfield, which says that these shows makes you feel so attached to each other and so delighted everytime you watch it, in addition riding Enfield gives you the same feeling of delightness and attachment .One of the respondent has compared Enfield to a show Mind Your Language where the show makes you laugh loud and this laughter has been compared to the sound that Enfield emits. Similarly, Enfield has also been compared to a show like Kofee with Karan where I see no relevance . Moreover other shows like Larry King Show, X-factor, Pimp my ride has been compared to the Royal Enfield.Royal Enfield and PerfumeMost of the respondents have compared Enfield to GUCCI because of its unique sweet and its brand which depicts that Enfield has its own uniqueness in every other way. Moreover, Enfield has also been compared to AXE because of its strong attachment. Enfield has also been compared to other Perfumes like VERSACE, Channel, Playboy, Hugo Boss, Brut, Euphoria because of its masculinity.Royal Enfield and FabricSome of the respondents have mentioned silk because of its softness and smoothness and som e have compared Enfield with RUG which depicts its roughness meaning the bike is rough and tough. Some other respondents have mentioned that Enfield should be compared to such a fabric which shows its masculine power being very tough one. Some have compared Enfield with leather jackets and some have compared it with Wool and Raymond.Royal Enfield and EmotionThe highest number of respondent has compared Enfield with felicity which reveals the fact that riding Enfield makes you feel happy and pleasant. Most of the respondent also has compared Enfield with aggression and violence as the bike itself shows the attitude and the aggression.In a nutshell, Royal Enfield is viewed as a tough bike with the class of its own having features totally different from other bikes. Many respondents seemed to like Enfield because of its classy look, because of the sound it produces, its individuality and the attitude it possess. Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique (ZMET)ZMET is used to have an unde rstanding of how brand is perceived by the customers. The study is conducted with 5 participants who were shown the montage of get winds related to the brand and asked to follow the following steps to bring out their true feelings about the brand. touchstone 1 The participants were asked to describe the content of the pictures. spirit 2The Participants were then asked to describe the pictures that they thought would be appropriate and asked to formulate its relevance. Step 3The Participants were then asked to sort the examines into three meaningful groups and provide a label or description for each group. Step 4 The respondents were then asked to indicate the most representative picture among the 12 pictures. Step 5 The respondents were then asked to indicate the picture that signifies the opposite of the brand.Step 6 The participants were then asked to indicate what does or doesnt describe the Royal Enfield in terms of color, emotion, sound, smell, taste, and touch. Step 7 Pa rticipants were then asked to create a psychic map using constructs and relationships. Step 8 Participants were then asked to create a summary image with a final story. After collecting the responses I found out that people related these pictures do reflect the image of Royal Enfield. They found pictures to be rough and tough, cool, showed some attitude, spoiled boys, junky, biker, loud, stylish, masculine, strength, classy and legendary. Most of the respondents felt that had I included something related with the bike tours and age-old bikes as this brand is closely related with bike tours and carries age old history with it.Most of the respondent arranged pictures like bike and its parts in one group and labelled it like cool bikes, oldtimer pieces, old school etc. pictures of bull skull, sword, key rings etc were mostly placed in different group and labeled as bad boys toys, strength and masculine, classy and dangerous. Pictures of jacket, shoes, gloves etc were grouped in on e group and labeled as harness, protection, save with speed. Most of the respondent did not find the picture of helmet and leg guard to be related as they felt it off the beat whereas they felt jacket, flag and antique bike to be most related with the bike. On asking the participant to construct a cordial map they made up a story using these pictures and made a story full of actions and adventure, some were a lead vulcanized fiber in the story and some were just a spectator.Fournier Brand TypologyFournier has indentified cardinal different types of relation a customer can have with a particular brand. Among these fifteen my relationship with Royal Enfield would be Committed Partnership. I wanted to own Royal Enfield bike since very long. I love the sound that the bike emits, its appearance and except for the complex engine complex body part that needs specially trained mechanic to fix it I love everything about the bike. Even though the bike makes loud sound it is not disregarde d in the society and moreover the sound is high only when the bike is started and as it starts to run it gets smoother and emits lower sound. With the century long legacy and a history that beats all the two wheelers of the world trust over bike is definitely high. Its performance on both off road and black top road is very good and could be trusted to function very well even in adverse situation like low temperature. It gives a different feel when I ride it, I feel like I overlook the street itself.Conclusion and RecommendationRoyal Enfield as a brand has still not lost its good luck charm among the youngsters even after(prenominal) a century of its operation. It has tried to position itself as a bike for a bike lover, a premium brand and a quality product. It has targeted the upper middle class and above class of people, but there is no as such age bracket of people that are targeted as people of different age from teen to old tend to like the bike. It has captured a large shar e of bike market in the upper middle and above class segment. It follows a differentiation strategy and focuses itself to the particular(prenominal) target market only. The bike is a sole player in the 350 cc and 500cc segment of bike in Nepal. Its age old legacy has been able to attract a good pool of enthusiast to its show room although its presence in the market is not that visible. People generally investigate well ahead and make contact to the showroom via various sources like from NTC call centre, asking people who own the bike etc. People also perceive it to be a premium brand. People mostly associate it with long tour, loudness, biker, bad boys, adventures and masculinity.It still has the power to stand out from the crowd of bike. People like the classic look and features that the bike offers but some small changes like led headlights, disk brakes etc are suggested by the customer, but largely it is preferred in its first state. Various programs like bike tour and differen t events are nonionic by the different clubs like Himalayan Enfield which enhances the brand value and keeps the charm for the bike alive. The engine of the bike is very complicated and cannot be refractory by all the mechanics of Nepal and it has very limited number of workshops and service centre that provide the facility, thus customer get into trouble every now and then when they find they need to fix a problem in their bike.Keeping this into mind the company has now started training the topical anaesthetic workshop owner to make them capable of working on Royal Enfield and fix the problem. Royal Enfield as a brand is positioned very well. They have targeted the right segment of people. But they are not being able to provide good service after sales. With all the huge enthronization made on the bike people want it to be in condition and find a feasible location for maintenance. But there are very limited numbers of service centre that can repair and maintain the bike.Moreove r the spare parts are not readily available and customer has to wait for week or more for the parts to arrive from India. This has certainly hampered the brand equity. The technology like take headlights and disk brakes are in huge demand after it started producing the bike with self start and shifted gear in the left side. But bringing in these changes should not affect its original look as people have special love for the appearance itself. Thus the company should look into these aspects to enhance the brand image.