Maruti 7th Most Trusted Brand Among 300 Brands

The automobile sector has made quite an impression on the nation as one of the most trusted sectors, according to a study released by The Trust Research Advisory (TRA). The report has ranked India’s first indigenous car brand Maruti, at seventh place, whilst leading two-wheeler brand Hero Honda came in at 13th place and international luxury brand BMW at 33rd place. Hyundai drove in at 43rd place, whilst TVS at 54th place. Toyota was ranked at 66th place, Ford at 74th place, Mercedes Benz at 81st position, Audi at 104th place and Suzuki at 118th place. Skoda was 126th on the list, whilst Tata was at 159th place. Ferrari was at 162nd position.

The revelations were a result of a study, published by Trust Research Advisory (TRA), a leading research organization dedicated to understanding and simplifying concepts related to Trust. The study, compiled into a 116-page report titled “The Brand Trust Report, India Study, 2011” was launched at a press meet, held recently, in New Delhi

The Brand Trust Report, India Study, 2011 is the result of years of detailed research to understand trust which included several hundred hours of discussions with communication experts and behavioural scientists. On this basis TRA created a proprietary Trust Matrix comprising 61 different components. Based on this proprietary Trust Matrix, TRA launched a syndicated primary research on Brand Trust across 9 cities in India covering 2310 respondents who were classified into the ‘influencer’ category. The most intensive study on Brand Trust undertaken in the country, the study generated nearly 10,00,000 data points and 16,000 brands. Indian Statistical Institute helped create a statistically robust Brand Trust.

Mr. N. Chandramouli, CEO, Trust Research Advisory (TRA) said, “The parameters under which this comprehensive study was carried out by TRA, is the first of its kind in the country. I believe that this detailed study on Brand Trust™, will benefit the automobile sector in the long run. I wish them all the best in all their future endeavors and hope they make their way higher in the coming years as one of India ‘most trusted brands’.”

Maruti’s Composite Brand Trust scores stay very close to the average line with the third lowest variance across the 10 composite parameters showing a strong consistency. Whilst there are no major shifts seen in these composite scores, the little extra edge is given to Maruti’s Brand Trust by its outward appearance, representative of the brand’s attractive appearance, appropriate expression, conformation to high standards.

Whilst the brand maintains a good balance in composite scores, its zonal pulls and variations are quite high. Maruti’s East and North zone trust indices are substantially higher than the other two zones. The East zone pull leads the lowest brand trust zone, the west by three times and the next lowest zone, south by almost two times.

Maruti’s highest score among primary attributes of Brand Trust is in the brand’s consistency over time, something that Indians will relate to closely.