PROJECT REPORT ON

A RESEARCH STUDY ON THE

EFFECTIVENESS OF ADVERTISEMENT STRATEGIES OF AIRTEL CELLULAR SERVICE ON ITS CUSTOMERS
A CASE STUDY OF M/s OMM TELESERVICES Private Limited, BHUBANESWAR, ORISSA SUBMITTED TO

ALL INDIA MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION

CENTRE FOR MANGEMENT EDUCATION
MANAGEMENT HOUSE, 14 INSTITUTIONAL AREA, LODHI ROAD, NEWDELHI-110003

26 JUNE 2011 BY MANISH KUMAR SINGH

(REGISTRATION NUMBER. 420921105)

GUIDED BY Mr. PRABHURAM TRIPATHY FACULTY MARKETING REGIONAL COLLEGE OF MANAGEMENT (AUTONOMOUS)
FOR THE PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF PROGRAMME POST GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN MANAGEMENT

TO, The Manager Evaluation, AIMA - CME, Lodhi Road,

1. 2. NAME REGISTRATION NO : MANISH KUMAR SINGH : 420921105 : MANISH KUMAR SINGH S/O Mr. JAI NARAYAN SINGH PLOT NO 72 KHARVELA NAGAR BHUBANESWAR-751001 ODISHA

3. PERMANENT ADDRESS

4. DESIGNATION AND OFFICE ADDRESS:

TRAINEE M/s OMM TELESERVICES SAHIDNAGAR BHUBANESWAR, ODISHA.

5. NAME, DESIGNATION AND MANAGER OF ORGANISATION:

Mr. ADHIRENDRA GHADEI TERITTORY SALES MANAGER, AIRTEL, BHUBANESWAR ODISHA.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SERIAL NO
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

PARTICULARS
Acknowledgement Preface Declaration Executive summary Industry overview (Introduction) Company profile Research objective Research methodology Research instrument Data collection Data interpretation and analysis Conclusion Recommendations and suggestion Bibliography Questionnaire

PAGE NO

1-3 4 - 16 17 - 32 33 - 35 36 40 41 - 42 43 - 44 45 - 61 62 - 64 65 - 67 68 - 69 70 - 74

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I wish to acknowledge my specific indebtness to Mr. ADHIRENDRA GHADEI, Area Sales Manager, AIRTEL Bhubaneswar, for his valuable guidance and support in completing my dissertation on the project topic for the partial fulfilment of my PGDM course. I am extremely grateful to my guide Mr.PRABHURAM TRIPATHY, faculty MARKETING, for his valuable guidance and best possible help during my project work. I would like to thank the employees of OMM TELE SERVICES Pvt ltd for providing me the necessary data. I deeply thank my parents and friends for their moral support and advice which enabled me to achieve success in the project work.

PREFACE
I MANISH KUMAR SINGH have made this project in order to show the various medium and strategies of advertisements adopted by the company and to find out the

effectiveness of the same on its customers while choosing the cellular operator. This report contains all the necessary information regarding the history & evolution of the cellular Company, focus of its brand image, methodology adopted for advertisements selection. There is stiff competition in the present telecom sector and advertisements are being used as an efficient and effective tool in communicating with the customers. Influencing the customers behaviour and perception towards the products through advertisements has been a tuff challenge in present scenario.

This project contains all the relevant information of AIRTEL CELLULAR SERVICES.

DECLARATION

MANISH KUMAR SINGH STUDENT OF REGIONAL COLLEGE OF PROJECT

MANAGEMENT, BHUBANESWAR HEREBY DECLARE THAT THIS

REPORT ON A RESEARCH STUDY ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF ADVERTISEMENT STRATEGIES OF AIRTEL CELLULAR SERVICE ON ITS CUSTOMERS, IS SUBMITTED FORTHE PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF POST GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN MANAGEMENT DEGREE. IT IS OF MY OWN EFFORTS & NOT FOR THE AWARD OF ANY OTHER TITLE OR PRIZE.

SUBMITTED BY
MANISH KUMAR SINGH REGD NO: 420921105. 42, POST GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN MANAGEMENT, 81, REGIONAL COLLEGE OF MANAGEMENT, BHUBANESWAR, ODISHA.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF THE PROJECT

Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience (viewers, readers or listeners) to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behaviour with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common. Advertising messages are usually paid for by sponsors and viewed via various traditional media; including mass media such as newspaper, magazines, television commercial, radio advertisement, outdoor advertising or direct mail; or new media such as websites and text messages Sales promotions are another way to advertise. Sales promotions are double purposed because they are used to gather information about what type of customers you draw in and where they are, and to jumpstart sales. Sales promotions include things like contests and games, sweepstakes, product giveaways, samples coupons, loyalty programs, and discounts. The ultimate goal of sales promotions is to stimulate potential customers to action. Increasingly, other media are overtaking many of the "traditional" media such as television, radio and newspaper because of a shift toward consumer's usage of the Internet for news and music as well as devices like digital video recorders The marketing mix has been the key concept to advertising. The marketing mix was suggested by Professor E. Jerome McCarthy in the 1960s. The marketing mix consists of four basic elements called the four Ps. Product is the first P representing the actual product. Price represents the process of determining the value of a product. Place represents the variables of getting the product to the consumer like distribution channels, market coverage and movement organization. The last P stands for Promotion which is the process of reaching the target market and convincing them to go out and buy the product. In this present scenario the success of a product mainly depends upon the successful implementation of 4 Ps of marketing i.e. product, price, place and promotions. A major portion of capital expenditure is spent on the advertisement aspect of the product.

Promotion of a product has been a vital function of a company and advertising being a exponential tool in achieving it. Advertisements is the medium through which companies communicates with the consumers. So the ads are precisely done to make a reach in the market effectively. Advertising has emerged as an effective tool in successful marketing of a product. Today companies are heavily relying on advertisements to make their products successfully launched or placed and accepted in the market. An advertisement is a means of awareness among the customers about a product and its value propositions. Hence my research work is based on the effectiveness of advertisements strategies of Airtel cellular services on its customers. This study emphasizes on the degree of responsiveness of the customers in purchasing Airtel cellular services product based on the advertisement strategies of the company. The project work has also emphasized on the history of the company about its inception, historical background, board of directors, organisational structure, mission & vision. It has also showcased the various kinds of products and services the company offers. The achievements and awards of the company, the advertisement strategies and its value proposition. There are recommendations and suggestions also referred by me on the basis of the analysis of the data collected through the survey conducted. It further makes a comparative study of the mediums of advertisements used by Airtel to create customer awareness. It deals with market research done with the sample survey of 250 respondents answering the questionnaire based on the different parameters of advertisements. Some recommendations and suggestions is based on the response of the customers survey to enhance their advertisements strategies.

INT

TION

10

INDUSTRY OVERVIEW

1.1 Background The Indian Telecommunications network is the third largest in the world and the second largest among the emerging economies of Asia. Today, it is the fastest growing market in the world. The telecommunication sector continued to register significant success during the year and has emerged as one of the key sectors responsible for Indias resurgent Indias economic growth.

1.1.1 Growth This rapid growth has been possible due to various proactive and Positive decisions of the Government and contribution of both by the Public and the private sector. The rapid strides in the telecom sector have been facilitated by liberal policies of the Government that provide easy market access for telecom equipment and a fair regulatory framework for Offering telecom services to the Indian consumers at affordable prices.

1.1.2 Wire line Vs Wireless It has also undergone a substantial change in terms of mobile versus fixed phones and public versus private participation. The preference for use of wireless phones has also been predominant in the sector. Participation of the private entities in the telecom sector is rapidly increasing rate there by presenting the enormous growth opportunities. There is a clear distinction between the Global Satellite Mobile Communication (GSM) and Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) technologies used and the graph below shows the divide between the two.

11

1.2 Segment wise Status 1.2.1 Wire line Services

With increasing penetration of the wireless services, the wire line services in the country are becoming stagnant. On the other hand, Broadband demand has picked up and promises to stabilise fixed line growth. 1.2.2 GSM Sector In terms of the Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) subscriber base this now places India third after China and Russia. China had 401.7 million GSM subscribers

Fig.1

12

1.2.3 CDMA Services CDMA technology was introduced in India as a limited mobility solution. The introduction of CDMA services has created competition, lowered tariffs and offered many citizens access to communication services for the first time.

1.2.4 Internet Services Internet services were launched in India on August 15, 1995. In November 1998 the government opened up the sector to private operators. A liberal licensing regime was put in place to increase Internet penetration across the country. The growth of IP telephony or grey market is also a serious concern. Government loses revenue, while unlicensed operation by certain operators violates the law and depletes licensed operators market share. New services like IP-TV and IP-Telephony are becoming popular with the demand likely to increase in coming years. The scope of services under existing ISP license conditions is unclear.

Fig.2

13

Manufacture of Telecom Equipment

Rising demand for a wide range of telecom equipment, particularly in the area of mobile telecommunication, has provided excellent opportunities to domestic and foreign investors in the manufacturing sector. The last two years saw many renowned telecom companies setting up their manufacturing base in India. Ericsson has set up GSM Radio Base Station Manufacturing facility in Jaipur. Elcoteq has set up handset manufacturing facilities in Bangalore. Nokia set up its manufacturing plant in Chennai. LG Electronics set up plant of manufacturing GSM mobile phones near Pune. The Government has already set up Telecom Equipment and Services Export Promotion Forum and Telecom Testing and Security Certification Centre (TETC). A large number of companies like Alcatel, Cisco have also shown interest in setting up their R&D centers in India. With above initiatives India is expected to be a manufacturing hub for the telecom equipments.

14

POLICY AND INITIATIVES Regulatory Framework The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) was set up in March 1997 as a regulator for Telecom sector. The TRAIs functions are recommendatory, regulatory and tariff setting in telecom sector. Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) came into existence in May, 2000. TDSAT has been empowered to adjudicate any dispute
y y y y

between a licensor and a licensee between two or more service providers between a service provider and a group of consumers hear and dispose of appeal against any direction, decision or order of TRAI

Tariffs for telecommunication services have evolved from a regime where tariffs were determined by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India to a regime where tariffs are largely under forbearance. TRAI intervenes by regulating the tariffs for only those services, the markets of which are not competitive. Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) exclusively for meeting the Universal Service Obligation was established in April, 2002. The Universal Service Levy is presently 5 per cent of the Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) of all telecom service providers except the pure value added service providers like Internet, Voice Mail, E-Mail service providers etc. Indian Telegraph Act has been amended in October2006 to provide support for all telegraph services including mobile and broadband to bridge the digital divide. With the introduction of the Unified Access Licensing Regime, operators can offer telecom access services to consumers in a technology neutral manner, subject to fulfilling certain conditions. Introduction of this regime has also broken the legal/regulatory impasse between the cellular and basic service providers. Issuance of Intra-Circle Merger and Acquisition Guidelines provide investors an opportunity to take stakes in existing telecom operations.

Government Initiatives
The Government has taken the following main initiatives for the growth of the Telecom Sector:
y

All telecom services have been opened up for free competition for unprecedented

15

growth.
y

217 (Information Technology Agreement) ITA-I items are at zero Customs Duty. Specified capital goods and all inputs required to manufacture ITA-I, items are at zero Customs Duty

y y

Availability of low cost mobile handsets The international Long Distance Services (ILDS) opened with effect from April 2002.Calling Party Pays (CPP) regime was implemented with effect from 1st May.

Guidelines for Unified Access Service License regime were issued in November 2003,27 licenses out of 31 Basic Service Licenses were converted to Unified Access Service Licenses.

In April 2004, license fee for Unified Access Service Providers (UAS) was reduced by 2per cent

License fee for infrastructure Provider-II reduced from 15 per cent to 6 per cent of the Adjusted Gross Revenue and spectrum charges between 2 to 4 per cent in June 2004.

Entry fee for NLD licenses was reduced to Rs. 2.5 Crore from Rs. 100 Crore. Entry fee for ILD reduced to Rs. 2.5Crore from Rs. 25 Crore

Lease line charges have been reduced to make the bandwidth available at competitive prices to facilitate growth in IT enabled services

One India plan i.e. single tariff of Re. 1/-per minute to anywhere in India was introduced from 1st March 2006 by the Public Sector Undertakings. This tariff was emulated by most of the private service providers also. This scheme has led to death of distance in telecommunication and is going to be instrumental in promoting National Integration further

The robust telecom network has also facilitated the expansion of BPO industry that is having 500,000 employees now and adding 400 employees per day.

Annual license fee for National Long Distance (NLD), International Long Distance (ILD), Infrastructure Provider-II, VSAT commercial and Internet Service Provider (ISP) with internet telephony (restricted) licenses was reduced to 6 per cent of Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) with effort from Jan 2006.

The Governments policy is neutral on use of technology by telecom service providers subject to availability of scarce resources such as spectrum etc.

16

Foreign Direct Investment Policy

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) was permitted in the telecom sector beginning with the telecom manufacturing segment in 1991 - when India embarked on economic liberalisation.FDI is defined as investment made by non-residents in the equity capital of a company. For the telecom sector, FDI includes investment made by Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), Overseas Corporate Bodies (OCBs), foreign entities, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs), American Depository Receipts (ADRs)/Global Depository Receipts (GDRs) etc.

Present FDI Policy for the Telecom sector:

y

In Basic, Cellular Mobile, National Long Distance, International Long Distance, Value Added Services and Global Mobile Personal Communications by Satellite, FDI is limited to 49 per cent (under automatic route) subject to grant of licence from the Department of Telecommunications and adherence by the companies (who are investing and the companies in which investment is being made) to the licence conditions for foreign equity cap and lock-in period for transfer and addition of equity and other license provisions.

Foreign Direct Investment up to 74 per cent permitted, subject to licensing and security requirements for the following:  Internet Service (with gateways)  Infrastructure Providers (Category II)  Radio Paging Service

y FDI up to 100 per cent permitted in respect to the following telecom services:
 ISPs not providing gateways (Both for satellite and submarine cables)  Infrastructure Providers providing dark fibre (IP Category I) The above is subject to the following conditions:

FDI up to 100 per cent is allowed subject to the condition that such companies would divest 26 per cent of their equity in favour of Indian public within 5 years, if these companies are listed in other parts of the world.

17

The above services would be subject to licensing and security requirements, wherever required.

y Proposals for FDI beyond 49 per cent shall be considered by Foreign Investment

Promotion Board (FIPB) on a case-to-case basis.

y

In the manufacturing sector 100 per cent FDI is permitted under the automatic route.

In Basic, Cellular Mobile, paging and Value Added service, and Global Mobile Personal Communications by Satellite, FDI is permitted up to 49 per cent (under automatic route) subject to grant of license from Department of Telecommunications.

Foreign direct investment up to 74 per cent permitted, subject to licensing and security requirements for the Internet Service (with gateways), Infrastructure Providers (category-II), Radio Paging Service.

FDI up to 100 per cent permitted in respect of ISPs not providing gateways (both for satellite and submarine cables),  Infrastructure Providers providing dark fibre (IP Category I); y Electronic Mail; and y Voice Mail

FDI up to 49 per cent is also permitted in an investment company, set up for making investment in the telecom companies licensed to operate telecom services. Investment by these investment companies in a telecom service company is treated as part of domestic equity and is not set of against the foreign equity cap.

y y y

Manufacturing - 100 per cent FDI is permitted under automatic route. FDI is subject to the following conditions FDI up to 100 per cent is allowed subject to the conditions that such companies would divest 26 per cent of their equity in favour of Indian public in 5 years, if these companies are listed in other parts of the world.

The above services would be subject to licensing and security requirements, Wherever required.

Proposals for FDI beyond 49 per cent shall be considered by FIPB on case to case basis

COMPETITION OVERVIEW
18

Major Players
There are three types of players in telecom services:
y y y

State owned companies (BSNL and MTNL Private Indian owned companies (Reliance Info comm, Tata Teleservices,) Foreign invested companies (Hutchison-Essar, Bharti Tele-Ventures, Idea Cellular, BPL Mobile, Spice Communications)

CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

Opportunities
The telecom sector has been one of the fastest growing sectors in the Indian economy in the past 4 years. This has been witnessed due to strong competition that has brought down tariffs as well as simplification of policy environment that has promoted healthy competition among various players. The mobile sector alone has been growing rapidly and has emerged as the fastest growing market in the whole worlds. Currently of a size nearing 70 million (GSM and CDMA), this sector is expected to reach a size of nearly 200 million subscribers by financial year 2008. The government has eased the rules regarding inter circle and intra circle mergers. This has led to a slew of mergers and acquisitions in the recent past. Also as the sector is moving closer to maturity, further consolidation is a reality and this will lead to the survival of more profitable players in this segment. In order to further promote the use of Internet in the country the government is taking proactive steps to develop this sector with the help of the various players in this segment. For this purpose, the use of broadband technology is being mooted and this will go a long way in improving the productivity of the Indian economy as well as turn out to be the next big opportunity for telecom companies after the mobile communications segment Nonvoice services and VAS are the gold mines. The big takeoff is expected with the rollout of 3G services in early 2007, once the spectrum issues are sorted out.

19

Internet users base fast reaching near the English speaking population base. Local language and content required for further growth infrastructure equipment cost is down to a fraction of what prevailed just a few years ago. Operators can plan better expansion plan now increased viability for the operators to expand to semi-urban and rural markets, hence, accelerate growth further .Its not without reason that India is tipped to be the worlds third-largest economy by 2050! No wonder if it happens much earlier investors can look to capture the gains of the Indian telecom boom and diversify their operations outside developed economies that are marked by saturated telecom markets and lower GDP growth rates. At a time when global telecom majors are struggling to cope with their losses and the rollout of 3G networks, which has been a non-starter for close to a year now; India, with its telecom success story, represents an attractive and lucrative destination for investment.

20

Vision& Mission

21

Bhartis Vision

BY 2010 AIRTEL WILL BE THE MOST ADMIRED BRAND IN INDIA:

 LOVED BY MORE CUSTOMERS.  TARGETED BY TOP TALENT.  BENCHMARKED BY MORE BUSINESS.

Bhartis Mission

To be globally admired for telecom services that delight customers.

We will meet global standards for telecom services that delight customers through:

 Customer Service Focus  Unified Messaging Solutions  Innovative products and services

 Error- free service delivery

 Empowered Employees  Cost Efficiency

22

Company profile

23

AIRTEL
Airtel comes to you from Bhartis Tele-Ventures Limited - a part of the biggest private integrated telecom conglomerate, Bharti Enterprises. A consortium of giants in the telecommunication business. In it's six years of pursuit of greater customer satisfaction, Airtel has redefined the business through marketing innovations, continuous technological up gradation of the network, introduction of new generation value added services and the highest standard of customer care. Bharti is the leading cellular service provider, with an all India footprint covering all 23 telecom circles of the country. It has over 12 million satisfied customers. Cellular telephony was introduced in India during the early 1990s. At that time, there were only two major private players, Bhartis (Airtel) and Essar (Essar) and both these companies offered only post-paid services. Initially, the cellular services market registered limited growth. Moreover, these services were mostly restricted to the metros. Other factors such as lack of awareness among people, lack of infrastructural facilities, low standard of living, and government regulations were also responsible for the slow growth of cellular phone services in INDIA. Although the cellular services market in India grew during the late 1990s (as the number of players increased and tariffs and handset prices came down significantly) the growth was rather marginal. This was because the cellular service providers offered only post paid cellular services,

24

ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF AIRTEL

Fig.3

Board of Directors
The Board of Directors of the Company has an optimum mix of Executive and NonExecutive Directors, which consists of three Executive and fifteen Non-Executive Directors. The Chairman and Managing Director, Mr. Sunil Bharti Mittal, is an Executive Director and the number of Independent Directors on the Board is 50% of the total Board strength. The independence of a Director is determined on the basis that such director does not have any material pecuniary relationship with the Company, its promoters or its management, which may affect the independence of the judgment of a Director. The Board members possess requisite skills, experience and expertise required to take decisions, which are in the best interest of the Company.

The composition of the Board is as under:

25

                

Sunil Bharti Mittal Rajan Bharti Mittal Akhil Gupta Rakesh Bharti Mittal Chua Sock Koong N. Kumar Kurt Hellstorm Donald Cameron Paul OSullivan Professor V.S. Raju Pulak Chandan Prasad Bashir Abdullah Currimjee Gavin Darby Syeda Imam Ajay Lal York Chye Chang Paul Donovan

ACHIEVEMENTS
 First to launch Cellular service on November 1995.  First operator to revolutionaries the concept of retailing with the inauguration of Airtel Connect (exclusive showrooms) in 1995.  First to introduce push button phone in India.  First to expand it's network with the installation for second mobile switching centre in April, 1997 and the first to introduce the Intelligent Network Platform First to provide Roaming to its subscribers by forming an association called World 1 Network.  First to provide roaming facility in USA. Enjoy the mobile roaming across 38 partner networks & above 700 cities Moreover roam across international destinations in 119 countries including USA, Canada, UK etc with 284 partner networks.  BHARTI announces agreement with VODAFONE marking the entry of the World's Largest Telecom Operator into India.  Bharti Enterprises and AXA Asia Pacific Holdings Limited announce Partnership for a life insurance joint venture in India.  Airtel Launches future factory - Centres of Innovation to Incubate Pioneering Mobile Applications.  16 states, 600 million people. Only India's leading mobile service offers you the truly 'freedom-packed' Prepaid!

26

 It is also the first company to export its products to the USA.

PROMOTIONAL STRATEGY
After the liberalization of the Indian Telecom Sector in 1994, the Indian cellular market witnessed a surge in cellular services. By 2005, there were a total of 12 players in the market with the five major players being Bharti Tele-Ventures Limited (Bharti), Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), Hutchinson-Essar limited (Hutch), Idea Cellular limited (Idea) and Reliance India Mobile (RIM) (Refer Exhibit I). All the players except RIM offered services based on the Global System for Mobile (GSM) technology. RIM provided services based on Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) technology as well as GSM. As competition in the telecom arena intensified, service providers took new initiatives to woo customers. Prominent among these were - celebrity endorsements, loyalty rewards, discount coupons, business solutions and talk time schemes. The most important consumer segments in the cellular industry were the youth segment and the business class segment. The youth segment was the largest and fastest growing segment and was therefore targeted most heavily by cellular service providers. Bharti Tele-Ventures adopted celebrity endorsement as its chief promotional strategy. By 2004 it emerged the unprecedented leader commanding the largest market share in the cellular service market. (Refer Exhibit II). Hutch implemented the celebrity endorsement strategy partially, relying primarily on its creative advertising for the promotion of its brand. BSNL, on the other hand, attracted the consumer through its low cost schemes. Being a state owned player, BSNL could cover rural areas, and this helped it increase its subscriber base. Reliance was another player that cashed on its innovative promotional strategies, which included celebrity endorsements and attractive talk time schemes. Idea, relied heavily on its creative media advertising sans celebrities.

27

BHARTI announces agreement with VODAFONE marking the entry of the World's Largest Telecom Operator into India

 Vodafone to invest approximately Rs. 6,700 crores (approx. USD 1.5 bn.) to acquire around 10% in Bharti Tele-Ventures Ltd.  Bharti Enterprises, SingTel and Vodafone to take Bharti Tele-Ventures Ltd. to unassailable leadership position in India  The largest single foreign investment ever in the history of India  The largest investment in the Indian telecom sector  Bharti establishes its supremacy in the Indian telecom market, having attracted Asias best SingTel, and now worlds best Vodafone.  Bharti set to gain global leadership in the telecom sector  Bharti Enterprises continues to hold shareholding and management control in Bharti Tele-Ventures.

Awards for the year 2008-2009

 BHARTI AIRTEL DRAWS TOP HONORS AT THE MIS ASIA IT EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2009.  BHARTI AIRTEL AMONG THE TOP 10 BEST PERFORMING COMPANIES IN THE WORLD ACCORDING TO BUSINESSWEEK IT 100 LISTS.  SUNIL BHARTI MITTAL IS THE CEO OF THE YEAR AT THE FROST AND SULLIVAN ASIA PACIFIC AWARDS 2008 AND BHARTI AIRTEL BAGS WIRELESS SERVICE PROVIDER OF THE YEAR AND COMPETITVE SERVICE PROVIDER OF THE YEAR.  BHARTI TELE-VENTURES IS THE BEST INDIAN CARRIER AT THE TELECOM ASIA AWARDS 2009.

28

Airtel: Appropriating the value of 'expression'

Over the last couple of years, the market has grown considerably, with deeper penetration and wider usage of voice and data services, accompanied by much higher competitive intensity," Mr. Atul Bindal, chief marketing officer, Bharti TeleVentures, expands on this. "In this context, differentiating merely on network, coverage and SMS is just not enough. You need to go beyond all the rational identifiers - which are prerequisites in any case - and connect at a deeper level. We needed a strong differentiator in an increasingly commoditized and crowded market. We found this differentiator in a core human truth that defines our category - which is that there are moments when you need to make your point, when you need to be heard. Expressing and communicating are perhaps two of the most basic emotions. Airtel enables you to make your point in the most expressive way, anytime, anywhere. The campaign is towards owning this through 'Express yourself. We believe For Airtel, the challenge also lay in presenting a unified 'face' to the consumer. This assumes significance when viewed in the light of the company's pre- and post-paid communication, which, in the past, had been treated very differently. Brand image, as a result, was being driven in two different dimensions. "Brand AirTel is a category leader straddling completely different market segments such as consumer, business and corporate, as well as different voice, data and payment platforms," says Bindal. "'Express yourself' enables the brand to unify and connect across the entire base of our existing and prospective customers." One of the most obvious benefits of owning a property such as 'candid expression' (and 'Express yourself') is the expansive nature of the thought. "The moment you have as broad a canvas as 'Express yourself', it becomes easy for anyone working on the brand to come up with new ideas and executions. That's what makes a good campaign idea," observes Rediff's Prashant Godbole,

AIRTEL BROADBAND
Bharti TeleVentures is the fixed line operator business of Airtel. In the recent branding exercise, all the services have been offered under the Airtel brand. Data is the next driver for growth. This is clear to the operators who have belatedly realized the implications for having a pie in all the segments of telecommunications. Hence Bharti ventured in the broadband market.

29

However, the main contention in the broadband market is the price offering which includes the bandwidth costs as well as the cost of laying down the copper wire. Typically, in the mentality of the profit making exercise, Airtel has so far focused only in those areas where it perceives that a huge market is present. However, I still hold that their thrust should be in smaller towns and cities where BSNL would ultimately usurp their potential customer base. It seems that their fancily paid MBAs havent really understood the success of BSNL who focused on the B and C class cities where it has drawn unparalleled support despite the lousy customer experiences. This is because of the absence of any other operator. The current offerings by Airtel does not really enthuse a potential customer who is looking at sustained data transfer. It is the classic case of having something better than nothing. Add to the lousy customer care that Airtel is slowly perfecting, it is staffed with people who usually land up in their jobs with little idea of their job profile. The so-called Tech engineers have often been unable to help a customer who is facing issues with the connectivity. I have read first person accounts for the same.

AIRTELs ENTERPRISE SERVICES

The company is a part of Bharti Enterprises, and is India's leading provider of telecommunications services. The businesses at Bharti Airtel have been structured into three individual strategic business units (SBUs) - mobile services, broadband & telephone services (B&T) & enterprise services. The mobile services group provides GSM mobile services across India in 23 telecom circles, while the B&T business group provides broadband & telephone services in 90 cities. The Enterprise services group has two sub-units - carriers (long distance services) and services to corporate. All these services are provided under the Airtel brand. Our Services: Voice Services  Mobile Services  Satellite Services

30

 Managed Data and Internet Services  Managed e-Data Services

Airtel launches VQE (Voice Quality Enhancer) for the first time in Kolkata.
Introducing VQE (Voice Quality Enhancer) for the first time in Kolkata. VQE is a revolutionary new system that spectrally reduces background noise. It eliminates acoustic echo, adjusts speech levels in both directions and does away with low or distorted speech so that every word of yours can be heard clearly, wherever you may be speaking from.The VQE technology has been sourced from Tellabs of USA, world leaders in Voice Quality technology. Some of the prominent GSM operators using Tellabs solution in the world are SingTel, Bell South, Telstra, BT Cell etc. The Tellabs noise reduction technology removes high background noise from the wireless side of the call thus delivering near wire line clear call quality on mobile phones. The Tellabs 3000 series of voice-quality enhancement echo technology also eliminates the complexity of acoustic echo generated by digital mobiles and hands free kits.So go ahead. Express yourself and feel the difference on Kolkata's only Non-Stop 2.5G Network.

AIRTEL SERVICES AIRTEL NEWS

 Bharti Airtel inks USD 400 million network expansion contract with NOKIA  Bharti Airtel limited: Q2 cash profit exceeds Rs. 1,600 crores, PBT crosses Rs. 1,000 crores.  Bharti Airtel is amongst Indias Most Admired Knowledge enterprises in 2006.  Sunil Bharti Mittal receives The Honorary Fellowship from IETE.  Notice of postal ballot for seeking consent of the shareholders on scheme of amalgamation of Satcom Broadband Equipments Limited and Bharti.  Broadband Limited with Bharti Airtel Limited.  Bharti Airtel to Observe Silent period from October 1, 2006.

31

SERVICE NAME
Calling Line Identification Presentation (CLIP)

TYPE OF SERVICE

DESCRIPTION

PREPAID CHARGES (Rs.)

POSTPAID CHARGES (Rs.)

Automatic Displays the callers only for new number on your acquisitions mobile phone screen Users can call to get certain information and service. For Automatic instance, Dial 604 for only for new Infotel, Dial 131 for acquisitions Railway info. These call numbers are available in the phone book Automatic download exclusive only for new contents from Airtel's acquisitions WAP site

Rs. 25

Dial-a-service

Rs. 2.40 per minute

Rs. 2 per minute

WAP

Per content download

Per content download

GPRS & Masala

Access internet on the Automatic move and download GPRS Charges GPRS Charges only for new exclusive contents - Rs 600 per Rs 600 per month acquisitions from Airtel's WAP month site Users can call into this voice recognition Automatic service and listen to only for new jokes, movie gossips, acquisitions download ringtones etc Content offered by Automatic media companies like only for new Indiatimes, Rediff, acquisitions Yahoo fall into this category

646 Calling charges

Rs. 6 per minutes

Rs. 6 per minutes

VAS SMS Charges

Rs. 3 per

Table.1

32

AIRTEL 3G SERVICES
Bharti airtel, India's largest telecommunications company, on Monday announced the launch of its 3G service in India - bringing the airtel internet experience on 3G first to Karnataka - its largest circle by revenue market share. Airtel is targeting to launch in all 13 3G license circles by March. Announcing this, Sanjay Kapoor, CEO - Bharti airtel Ltd (India and South Asia) said, "airtel's focus would be to bring to its customers an enriched user experience on the back of a world class delivery network. I welcome all 745 million mobile customers of the country to be a part of this journey with airtel." The launch of its 3G services is a key milestone in Bharti airtel's vision to play a leading role in delivering the power of the mobile internet to an increasing number of people in India. With the mobile industry across the world expecting to connect 2.4 billion people to the internet over the next five years, most for the first time, it is incumbent upon service providers to bring all the ecosystem players together in a cohesive manner - handset manufacturers, equipment vendors, application developers and even consumers - to scale up the penetration for 3G services in the country. Keeping the focus on the user experience and relevant services, Aritels 3G plans are personalised and simple to understand. Time-based plans for light users of data - where usage and billing will be by hour. Flexishield plans for heavy users of data - where usage and billing will be capped. Airtel has finally launched its 3G mobile and data services in India starting off with Bangalore and Chennai. Airtel is expected to launch its 3G service in 13 licensed circles by March 2011. Airtel has also introduced a new family of 3G USB Data modes. Airtel has now become the second privately held mobile operator after Tata Do Co Mo to launch 3G mobile and data services in India. Airtel had promised to launch its 3G services and finally it's being available in select regions of the country. Spectrum License fee of Rs. 12,296 crores has been paid by Airtel and the company is said to have tied up with Ericsson, Nokia Siemens Network and Huawei for installation of high speed packet access (HSPA) network in its 3G circles for India.

33

The third generation cellular network technology promises you blazing fast data connection speeds, multimedia streaming and several other services bundled. But all of these come at a cost. Tata Do Co Mo has already announced Tariff Plans details but the 3G services are available only in select circles (regions). Airtel has promised that it will introduce two types of 3G data services plan: - Time-based plans: light users of data where usage and billing will be by hour - Flexi-shield plans: heavy users of data where usage and billing will be capped Airtel 3G Tariff Plans would be further classified for Occasional User, Medium User and Heavy User. As of now, we await details about the Airtel Tariff Plans. So stay tuned to this space.

3G DATA PLANS
Airtel launched its 3G mobile and data services in India earlier today starting off with Bangalore and Chennai. Following the formal announcement, everyone was looking forward to the 3G Tariff Plans from Airtel. Telecom Talk has posted the slides from Airtel 3G launch conference to give a fair idea of the 3G services tariffs. Unfortunately, there are no Unlimited 3G plans being offered by Airtel. As Airtel stated in the official statement, the 3G services plan would be broadly divided into Time-based and Flexi-shield plans. Let's take a look at these plans below:

Time-based Plans: Occasional Users Rs. 10, Rs. 45 and Rs. 60 recharge coupons. Medium Users Rs. 200, Rs. 450 and Rs. 750 recharge/plans with 30 day validity. Flexi-shield Plan: Usually meant for heavy users and most probably meant for Airtel Post-Paid mobile subscribers. With a rental of Rs. 650 per month, users get 1.25GB worth FREE data usage. Once the 1.25GB data usage limit is crossed, Airtel will charge 10paise per MB till 14GB data usage and Rs. 2,000 Bill Cap. If you cross even the 14GB data usage then your data connection speed drops to 128kbps. Suddenly, BSNL Tariff Plans start looking nice to you, don't they?

34

35

A.R REHMAN TUNE CROSSES AIRTELS EXCLUSIVITY BARRIER

Cellular service provider AirTel seems to have hit the right note with its new commercial starring musician A R Rehman. The commercial which is currently on air has a beat which also doubles up as a ringtone which is ostensibly available only to AirTel users. But the interesting part is that the ringtone is being flaunted not just by AirTel customers but by customers of rival service providers like BPL, Orange and Dolphin as well! We did expect the tune to catch up but this has really exceeded our expectations, admits Bharti Cellulars chief marketing officer (western region) Pratik Pota. Overall, he explains, it is a great advertising product for AirTel and works like a walking, talking brand ambassador. The ringtone which is also the jingle for Aritels TV commercial, is proving to be a potent advertising tool for the company. It is not very clear what this means for the other cellular operators. Cellular users have been forwarding the tune to one another, which according to Mr Pota, has given AirTel a chance to enter the mind of the user irrespective of which service he opts for. It gives the user a chance to go back to the AirTel product and acts as a strong reminder medium, he explains. Marketing professionals like Samsika Marketing Consultants managing director Jagdeep Kapoor point to the usage of an audio celebrity as something that is significant. The normal practice is to opt for film stars and sportsmen rather than an audio personality he says. Rivals, though seemingly unfazed by the phenomenon, seem to be doing their own homework on this brand of advertising. While none of them commented on AirTels strategy and its impact on their own subscriber base, one advertising professional working with a rival service provider opines that the tune is transient and not likely to have any long term impact as a brand building tool.

36

Being the latest entrant in the Mumbai circle, AirTel has had to find ways of cutting through the clutter. Says Mr Kapoor, AirTel will have try to find ways to attract new customers and convert the existing ones. Explaining that the usage of an audio celebrity was more strategic than tactical, he adds that non-AirTel users will have the AirTel brand experience inspite of not using the service. While Mr Pota highlights the fact that the usage of the tune by other operators means free advertising for AirTel and the users having a positive disposition towards the product, the nature of reaction from competition remains unclear. Competition will not do well to adopt a knee jerk reaction and will have to come out with advertising that is well thought out explains Mr Kapoor. He anticipates a situation where the new entrant (AirTel) will continue to be more aggressive.

37

TENDULKAR & SHAHRUKH.

Both Tendulkar and Shahrukh Khan already share the frame for soft drinks major PepsiCo India. Tendulkar is not the first cricketer to endorse Bhartis Airtel brand. Indian captain Saurav Ganguly had done so when Airtel launched its service in the eastern metropolis of Kolkata in 2001. Though company executives were mum on the value of the Tendulkar deal, those in the advertising fraternity peg the signing rate for the three-year deal anywhere between Rs 8 crore and Rs 10 crore. Both Sachin and Shah Rukh are two of the most sought after celeb endorsers in the country, with the former edging out the latter in the celeb endorsement race. The Master Blasters portfolio includes brands like Colgate Palmolive, ESPN-STAR Sports, Pepsi, MRF, Boost, TVS, Palio, Visa, Adiddas and Britannia. The leading brands endorsed by Khan include Hyundai, Pepsi, Airtel, Tag Huer, Clinic All Clear, Bagpiper and Videocon, among others. According to company executives, the idea of roping in Tendulkar is in line with the groups strategy to connect to the mass market through celeb endorsers from movies, cricket and music. For mass connect, Shah Rukh and Sachin are the best bet as brand endorsers, says a senior company executive. Bharti plans to launch a multimedia campaign targeting its service at the mass market.

38

RESEARCH OBJECTIVE

39

OBJECTIVES

Primary Objective Find Out effectiveness of the Advertisement Strategies adopted by AIRTEL cellular services, through TV commercials, print media, public promotional activities by sponsoring events and other advertisement mediums

Secondary Objective  To know the brand awareness of AIRTEL among the customers.  To find out the most effective promotional channel.  To make the customer aware of the benefits of the product and convince him to opt for AIRTEL telecom products.  Make a comparison on Aritels add campaigns with its competitors.

40

AIM

The main aim of the Project and the research work undertaken for the study was to FIND OUT THE EFFECTIVENESS OF ADVERTISEMENT ON ITS CUSTOMERS . The study was done to acquire the knowledge about the customer awareness towards the advertisements of products of AIRTEL and its EFFECTIVENESS on people.

41

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. What are the various promotional activities carried out by AIRTEL?

2. What are the consumers perception towards tariffs plans and quality of service provided by AIRTEL and other brands?

3. What are the market strategies of AIRTEL to target the upcoming market of Bhubaneswar, Odisha?

4. What is the product line available for the customers in the Odisha market & what else can be designed and provided according to their requirements?

42

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

43

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

TYPES OF REASERCH:
Basically research are categorized into four major category:     First is descriptive & Analytical Second Applied & Fundamental Third Quantitative & Qualitative Fourth Conceptual & Empirical

The project Presented is based on  Descriptive Research As it include Survey and fact finding enquiries of different kind.  Quantitative Research As quantative figure like market share is taken as the most important feature for the analysis.

44

SAMPLING TECHNIQUE Sampling technique available can be broadly classified as 1. Probability Sampling (here the every item in the universe have the equal chance of inclusion in the sample) 2. Non Probability Sampling (Here the item in the sample are deliberately selected by the researcher) Again both are classified as follows

Probability Sampling   Simple Random sampling Complex random Sampling       Cluster Sampling Systematic Sampling Stratified sampling Area Sampling Multi-stage Sampling Sampling with probability proportional to the size

Non-probability Sampling   Haphazard or convenience sampling Purposive sampling   Quota Sampling Judgment Sampling

My sampling technique is non probability via quota sampling As in the given project the sample considered is specific to predetermined areas of Bhubaneswar, Odisha.

45

METHOD OF DATA COLLECTION My Survey is conducted on two sources of data collection:a) b) a) Primary data Secondary data

Primary data Looking into the objectives and information needed, I have chosen the following two methods as per the response of the subject:i) ii) Schedules Personal Interview.

i)

Scheduler Method Schedules (Performa containing a set of questions) are being field in by the enumerators who are specially appointed for the purpose.

ii)

Personal Interview I have taken the opportunity to take personal interview wherever it was essential. The strategy was adopted to avoid the biased information and to spill out the required data from the respondent. This has supplemented the Schedules in a purposive manner.

b)

Secondary data The Secondary data were mainly collected from different magazines, Journals, companys Literature, Newspapers and from Internet.

46

HYPOTHESIS:

H1: Brand visibility is essential for increased customer patronage. H2: Brand promotions along with customer satisfaction are effective in giving AIRTEL edge in now a days retail market. H3: Effective advertisement channels and its promotional strategy is the major requirement for acquiring major market segment.

47

RESEARCH INSTRUMENTS

48

RESEARCH INSTRUMENTS USED

In my survey I used the following instruments, these are: 1. Interviewing 2. Aggregate Data Analysis 3. Human Factors Analysis 4. Organizational Analysis 5. Surveys 6. Survey Construction 7. Survey Sampling 8. Evaluation Research

These research instruments helped me a lot in completing the research work.

49

DATA COLLECTION

50

DATA COLLECTION
My Survey is conducted on two sources of data collection:a) b) a) Primary data Secondary data

Primary data Looking into the objectives and information needed, I have chosen the following two methods as per the response of the subject:i) ii) Schedules Personal Interview.

i)

Scheduler Method Schedules (Performa containing a set of questions) are being field in by the enumerators who are specially appointed for the purpose.

ii)

Personal Interview I have taken the opportunity to take personal interview wherever it was essential. The strategy was adopted to avoid the biased information and to spill out the required data from the respondent. This has supplemented the Schedules in a purposive manner.

b)

Secondary data The Secondary data were mainly collected from different magazines, Journals, companys Literature, Newspapers and from Internet. Near about 250 respondents are interviewed for getting answers and other valuable suggestions required for the completion of research work. For the purpose of collecting the data I moved to many places in BHUBANESWAR and to some outskirts of BHUBANESWAR as well.

51

DATA INTERPRETATION AND ANALYSIS

52

DATA INTERPRETATION AND ANALYSIS

This chapter is the core part of my dissertation because it includes the research findings expressed by text, figures, tables, charts and graphs. It is absolutely important to present the clearly for precise analysis. In order to get the 250 respondents are chosen as sample space thereby making them fill my questionnaires. To conduct the survey 25 respondents are interviewed each day. Total of 15 days being taken to complete the entire process and 1 more day for calculating the figures thus obtained.

53

Q1 How many hours do you watch TV?

PARAMETERS Less than 2 hours 2 hours to <4 hours >4 hours to <6 hours More than 6 hours total

No Of Respondents
20 30 140 60 250

Percentage
8 12 56 24 100

Table.2

how many hours do you watch tv

Less than 2 hours >4 hours to <6 hours 2 hours to <4 hours More than 6 hours

8%

24%

12%

56%

Fig.4

54

Q2 In your opinion, what makes up a good TV commercial? You may tick more than one option

Parameters Graphics usic/ringtones Celebrity Endorsement Storyline / Concept total

No Of Respondents 45 50 120 35 250

Percentage 18 20 48 14 100

In your opinion, what akes up a goo ercial TV co

Series1 Series2

18 45 Graphics

Table.3

48

20 50
usic/ringtones

120 14 35
Celebrity Endorsement Storyline / Concept

Fig.5

55

Q3 Name & briefly describe TWO product commercials on TV about Airtel [within the past 3 months] you can remember most clearly .

Parameters Airtel cellular service Airtel 3G service Airtel data card Airtel digital tv total

No Of Respondents 110 80 20 40 250

Percentage 44 32 8 16 100

Table.4

Airtel cellular service

Airtel 3g service

Airtel data card

Airtel digital tv

40

20

110

80

Fig.6

56

Q4 On a scale of 1 to 7, how would you rate the 2 commercials you mentioned in the previous question?

Parameters 1st TV Ad 1st TV Ad 1st TV Ad 1st TV Ad 2nd TV Ad 2nd TV Ad 2nd TV Ad 2nd TV Ad

Parameters Parameters 1 2 Dull Interesting Clich Original Unconvincing Convincing Pointless Informative Dull Interesting Clich Original Unconvincing Convincing Pointless Informative total

Answer 1 10 16 18 5 5 10 4 6 74

Answer Percentage Percentage No Of 2 1 2 Respondents 20 33.33 66.66 30 19 45 55 35 22 45 55 40 25 16 84 30 15 25 75 20 30 25 75 40 26 13 87 30 19 24 76 25 176 29 71 250

Table.5

On a scale of 1 to 7, how would you rate the 2 commercials you mentioned in the revious question

a s wer 1 a swer 2

22
19 30 25 15

20 26 19

16 10

18 10 5 5 5 6 4 7 6 8

Fig.7

57

Q5 .The following points affect my ability to remember a certain TV advertisement factors being
Likeability (whether or not I like the ad) Creativity (how creative I find the ad) Frequency (number of times I have seen the ad)

Likeability (Whether Or Not I Like The Ad) Parameters Strongly Agree Agree Disagree strongly disagree total

No Of Respondents 150 65 30 5 250

Percentage 60 26 12 2 100

Table.6

following points affect y ability to re e ber a certain TV a vertise ent factors being 1.likebility (whether or not I like the a )
Strongly Agree Agree 2%
12%

Disagree

stongly disagree

26% 60%

Fig.8

Contd...

58

Creativity (How Creative I Find The Ad) Parameters Strongly Agree Agree Disagree strongly disagree total

No Of Respondents 100 90 40 20 250

Percentage 40 36 16 8 100

Table.7

re e ber a certain TV a vertise ent factors being 2.Creativity (how creative I find the ad)
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree stongly disagree

36

Fig.9

59

Contd...

16

40

Frequency (number of times I have seen the ad) parameters Strongly Agree Agree Disagree strongly disagree total

No Of Respondents 110 90 45 5 250

Percentage 44 36 18 2 100

Table.8

re e ber a certain TV advertise ent factors being 3.Fre uency (nu ber of ti es I have seen the ad)
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree stongly disagree

18

36

Fig.10

60

44

Q6 The more times I wat h a certai TV commercial the hi her the chances of me recalling it .

Parame ers Strongly Agree Agree Disagree strongly disagree total

The more times I watch a certai TV commercial, the hi her the chances of me recalling it .
Series1 Series2

110 90

44

Fi

61

Str ngly Agree

No Of Respondents 110 90 45 5 250

Percentage 44 36 18 2 100

36 45 18 2

Agree

Disagree

st ngly disagree

Q 7 Which feature of AIRTEL attracted you to use AIRTEL cellular services?

Parameters Advertisements Connectivity Schemes Goodwill total

No Of Respondents 80 15 130 25 250

Percentage 32 6 52 10 100

Table.10

Which feature of AIRTEL attracted you to use AIRTEL cellular services

 
6%

Advertise e ts

Connectivity

Sc e es

oodwill

10%

32%

52%

Fig.12

62

Parameters NOKIA + AIRTE AIRTE MAGIC Post-paid services AIRTE Broadband total

No Of Respondents 120 35 45 50 250

Percentage 48 14 18 20 100

Which of the one you li e most in AIRTEL

Series1 Series2

120

48

35

14

45

18

50 20

Fi

63

NOKIA + AIRTE

AIRTE MAGIC

Postpaid services
AIRTE Broadband

Q8

hich of the one schemes/ offers you would like most with AIRTE ?

Parameters Sachin Tendulkar Shahrukh khan Kareena kapoor A R Rehman R Madhavan Sharman Joshi total

No Of Respondents 50 80 45 35 25 15 250

Percentage 20 32 18 14 10 6 100

Which celebrity you li e very much in AIRTEL

Series1 Series2

20

32

18

14

10

50

80

45

35

25

15

Sachin Tendulkar

Shahrukh khan

Kareena

A R Rehman

R Madhavan

Sharman Joshi

Fi

64

 

 

Q9

hich celebrity you like very much in AIRTE ?

Parameters

No Of Respondents 75 60 35 80 250

Percentage 30 24 14 32 100

Audio Visual Print Audio Promotion through internet total

Chart Title
Audio Visual Print Audio Promotion through internet

Fi

65

14

24

32

30

"

Q 10

hich type of advertisement you most like in AIRTE ?

Q 11. Do you consider AIRTE as No 1telecom Company in India?

Parameters yes no total

no of respondents 165 85 250

Do you consider AIRTEL as no 1 company

yes no

165

85 66 34

Fi

66

&

percentage 66 34 100

INTERPRETATIONS

The following conclusions are drawn from the above research work: 1. From the above study I found that near about 56% of respondents watch TV. from 4 to 6 hours per day and 24% of people watch T.V. for more than 6 hrs and remaining 12% of people watch TV more than 24 hrs and more than 4 hrs and 8% people watch TV less than 2 hrs per day. So I conclude that the frequency of advertisements should be more with a least time gap between them.

and ringtone, 8% for graphics and 14% for concept. So from this finding the celebrity endorsement factor is considered the most important factor while making advertisements and other factors also in equal proportion. 3. In this question I have put four Airtel TV commercial of cellular service, 3g service data card and digital TV service and I found that 44%OF respondents remember Airtel cellular service ad , 32% remember Airtel 3g service ad. 16% remember digital TV ad and 8% remember Airtel data card. So it is visible that 76% of people can remember the Airtel cellular service ad and it is successful in positioning the ads in consumers minds. 4. In this question I have asked people to rate the TV commercial based on previous questions on certain parameters namely Dull Interesting Clich Original Unconvincing convincing Pointless Informative and I found both the TV ads to be interesting , original, convincing and informative. 5. In this question I did a memory test of the respondents on certain advertisement scales i.e. Likeability Creativity Frequency and concluded with the following results

'

2.

ore than 48% people have opted for celebrity endorsement and 20% going for music

67

a. Likeability of the ad

60% of the respondents strongly agree that they like the ad ,

26% agree and remaining 14% disagree and strongly disagree. b. Creativity 40% of the respondent strongly agree and found the ad creative and 36% agree and rest 24% Disagree and strongly disagree. c. Frequency - 80% of the total respondent agree and Strongly agree that the frequency of the ad is highly visible and remaining 20% disagree that the frequency is low. 6. In this question the frequency level of the TV commercial is put to test and the result of the test are as follows 80% of the respondents agree and strongly agree that more times they watch the ads higher the chances of recalling it. Remaining 20% disagree and strongly disagree with the fact that higher the frequency more the chances of recalling it. 7. In this question I tried to find out the features related to Airtel cellular services. The results are 52% people opted for the schemes 32% opted for advertisements .10% for good will and 6% for connectivity. 8. In this question i tried to find out the schemes offered by Airtel is acceptable to what extent. I found that Nokia+ Airtel schemes are liked more and 48% people opted for it. 205 people liked the Airtel broadband schemes, 18% liked the post paid services, and 14% liked the Airtel magic schemes. 9. In this question I had tried to find out which celebrity is the most liked and effective in Airtel ads and I found that Shahrukh Khan leading the race with 32% votes followed by Sachin Tendulkar with 20% Kareena Kapoor with 18% votes, AR Rehman with 14% votes , R . adhavan with 10% and Shraman Joshi with 10% votes. 10. In this question I tried to find out the type of advertisements which is most liked by the people and I found out that promotion through internet is liked by 32% people and audio visual ads are liked by 30% people print ads is liked by 24% people and audio ads liked by 14% people 11. In this question I tried to find out the perception of people about Airtel being placed as No 1 Telecom Company in India and I found out that 66% people said Yes and 34% said No.

68

CONCLUSION

69

CONCLUSION

The main aim of the Project and the research work undertaken for the study was to FIND OUT THE EFFECTIVENESS OF ADVERTISEMENT ON ITS CUSTOMERS . The study was done to acquire the knowledge about the customer awareness towards the advertisements of products of AIRTEL and its EFFECTIVENESS on people.
(AIM OF THE DISSERTATION)

The conclusion of my study is that AIRTELs Advertising has a major impact its users. People like its schemes very much .AIRTEL had created a very good image on the mind of the new users of cellular service. AIRTEL has adopted a very good strategy by providing a new connection with NOKIA who is market leader in mobile set, many new users buy Nokia sets and they get a free connection of AIRTEL. AIRTEL is successful in capturing the highest market share by adopting Celebrity Endorsement Strategy. A.R. Rehmans tune for AIRTEL worked as free advertising for AIRTEL as another service user uses it too. Other celebrities like Shahrukh Khan (bollywood) and Sachin Tendulkar (Cricket) has also contributed very much in AIRTEL.

Strategic alliance The Company has a strategic alliance with SingTel. The investment made by SingTel is one of the largest investments made in the world outside Singapore in the company. The company also has a strategic alliance with Vodafone. The investment made by Vodafone in Bharti is one of the largest single foreign investments made in the Indian telecom sector. The companys mobile network equipment partners include Ericsson and Nokia. In the case of the broadband and telephone services and enterprise services (carriers), equipment suppliers include Siemens, Nortel, Corning, among others. The Company also has an information technology alliance with IBM for its group-wide information technology requirements and with Nortel for call center technology requirements.

70

Outsourcing The call center operations for the mobile services have been outsourced to IBM Daksh, Hinduja TMT, and Teletech & Mphasis.

Competition Airtel is facing strong completion from MTNL and BSNL inspite of the fact they are far away from Airtel technologically but these two have a inside ranch in rural and urban area and have low tariff rates.

Brand Ambassador Airtel has strong brand ambassador, Sachin Tendulkar, Shahrukh khan and A. R. Rehman, R Madhavan, to promote the product and services.

71

RECOMMENDATIONS
AND SUGGESTIONS

72

Recommendations and suggestion

Some recommendations suggested by me are as follows

y

Commercials often create an emotional ambience that draws you into the advertisement and makes you feel good. We are more attracted by products that make us feel good.

Music and other sound effects add to the excitement of commercials. Sound can make the product seem more life-like or less life-like, as in a music video. Either way, they help set the mood advertisers want.

A great example of affective advertising is found in the Geico commercials. By creating a friendly, honest, funny gecko as a spokesperson, consumers tend to trust what the gecko is saying and find humour in his actions. This creates a good feeling about the actual service Geico offers.

Advertising communications must take cognizance of the underlying patterns of buying behaviour in setting objectives so that strategies and messages may be accordingly devised. Needs and motivations of decision makers may be assessed through the use of various quantitative and qualitative marketing and advertising research methods.

Information about the brands benefits and the attributes on which the benefits are based can register with the consumer can also result from exposure to the ad.

Advertisements can also generate feelings in an audience that they begin to associate with the brand or its consumption.

Through the choice of the spokesperson and various executional devices, the advertisement can lead to the creation of an image for the brand, often called brand personality

73

The advertisement can create the impression that the consumers peers or expertsindividuals favour the brand and groups the consumer likes to emulate.

Advertisements can also generate feelings in an audience that they begin to associate with the brand or its consumption.

Through the choice of the spokesperson and various executional devices, the advertisement can lead to the creation of an image for the brand, often called brand personality

The advertisement can create the impression that the consumers peers or expertsindividuals favour the brand and groups the consumer likes to emulate.

74

BIBLIOGRAPHY

75

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Web based sources
 www.airtel.com  www.nokia.com  www.google.com  www.indiacellular.com

Book References

 Consumer Behaviour and Research (S Sumathi, Vikas Publications).  Advertising and Brand Management (By Tapan Panda, Oxford Publications).  Marketing Management (Dr. S.L.Varshney and Dr. R.L. Gupta, Third Revised Edition, Sultan Chand and Son).  Consumer Behaviour and Marketing Strategy, (Peter, Paul J. & Jerry C. Olson. 1990).\

NEWS PAPERS AND MAGAZINES

 Times Of India  Business World  Indian Management

76

QUESTIONNAIRE

77

Dear Sir/Madam, I would like to introduce myself as an PGDM (AIMA) student of REGIONAL COLLEGE OF MANAGEMENT, Bhubaneswar and doing a project on the topic. A RESEARCH STUDY ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF ADVERTISEMENT STRATEGIES OF AIRTEL CELLULAR SERVICE ON ITS CUSTOMERS. This project is to be submitted to the AIMA for the award of PGDM. Hence I, request you to kindly spend few minutes of your valuable time in answering this.

PERSONAL DATA

NAME: ADDRESS: OCCUPATION: CELLULAR SERVICE USING

QUESTIONNAIRE
Q1 How many hours of TV do you watch a day, on average ?
I. II. III. IV. Less than 2 hours 2 hours to <4 hours [2 hrs to less than 4 hrs] >4 hours to <6 hours [more than 4 hrs to less than 6 hrs] More than 6 hours

Q2 . In your opinion, what makes up a good TV commercial?

You may tick more than one option.

I. II. III. IV. Graphics Music Celebrity Endorsement Storyline / Concept

78

Q 3 Name & briefly describe TWO product commercials on TV [within the

past 3 months] you can remember most clearly.

I. II. III. IV. Airtel cellular service Airtel 3g service Airtel data card Airtel digital tv

Q4 On a scale of 1 to 7, how would you rate the 2 commercials you mentioned in the previous question? Example: 1 being Dull, 4 being So-so and 7 being Interesting, etc.

I. II. III. IV. V. VI. VII. VIII. IX.

1st TV Ad - Dull ... Interesting 1st TV Ad - Cliche ... Original 1st TV Ad - Unconvincing . Convincing 1st TV Ad - Cliche ... Original 1st TV Ad - Pointless ... Informative 2nd TV Ad - Dull ... Interesting 2nd TV Ad - Cliche ... Original 2nd TV Ad - Unconvincing ... Convincing 2nd TV Ad - Pointless ... Informative

Q5 Select the TOP THREE most important elements that go into a CREATIVE commercial from the list below.
I. II. III. IV. Music Storyline Graphic Elements Humour Originality

V.

79

Q6 The more times I watch a certain TV commercial, the higher the chances of me recalling it?
I. II. III. IV. Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree

Q7 The following points affect my ability to remember a certain TV advertisement factors being
Strongly Agree Disagree Strongly Agree Disagree

I.

Likeability (Whether or not I like the ad)

II.

Creativity (How creative I find the ad)

III.

Frequency (Number of times I have seen the ad)

Q8 Which feature of AIRTEL attracted you to use AIRTEL cellular services

I. II. III. IV. Advertisements Connectivity Schemes Goodwill

80

Q9 Which type of advertisement you most like in AIRTEL

I. II. III. IV.

Audio Visual Print Audio Promotion through internet

I. II. III. IV. V.

Sachin Tendulkar Shahrukh khan Kareena R. Rehman R .Madhavan Sharman Joshi

VI.

I. II. III. IV.

NOKIA + AIRTEL AIRTEL MAGIC AIRTEL Broadband Post-paid services

Q12 Do you consider AIRTEL as No.1telecom Company in India? I. II. Yes No

THANK YOU.

81

Q11 Which of the one schemes/ offers you would like most with AIRTEL

Q10 Which celebrity you like very much in AIRTEL

MANISH KUMAR SINGH ,BHUBANESWAR ,ORISSA , manishsingh28822gmail.com

82