Placement

Preparatory
Session
PGP 2014-16
IPM 2011 Batch
Placements

 What are the types of marketing specific GDs

conducted during placements?
Refer to the summer experiences database we
shall be sharing with you after this session

Group Discussion
Placements

Group Discussion

Types of Group Discussions

Case based

Abstract
New age
marketing is all
about
relationships
rather than the
medium

Scenario based
Survival GD
Who
should be
the king?

IPL: Another
reality show

General
Knowledge
Generation Y
is a myth

Should CSR be viewed as

tax burden by companies?

How to reduce scams in

India
Placements

Performance based
incentives for government
employees

Patented Drugs v/s generics

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 What are the important marketing concepts

you should be aware of?
Theory versus real world application of jargons,
terms and concepts?

Marketing Concepts
Placements

Marketing-I

Say YES to KOTLER!

Be thorough with that portion of Kotler which has been
covered in the first term
Jargons are not to be (ab)used. Use jargons only when
warranted and can be backed by suitable examples
Tip: Read those boxes in Kotler where concepts are
illustrated through examples to understand application

Cases! Cases! Cases!

Recruiters are often aware of the Harvard and Ivy cases
taught in Marketing- I
Pick 2 cases you liked and make a note of key learnings and
takeaways
Last year, Parle asked questions on cases taught

Decent preparation for end terms should

do the trick
Placements

Product Life Cycle

PLC

INTRODUCTION

GROWTH

MATURITY

DECLINE

Marketing
objective

Gain awareness

Stress
differentiation

Maintain brand
loyalty

Harvesting,
deletion

Competition

Few

More

Fierce

Fading

Product

One

More variants

Full product line

Best sellers

Price

Skimming or
penetration

Gain market share

Defend market
share, profit

Stay profitable

Promotion

Inform, educate

Stress competitive
differences

Reminder
oriented

Minimal
promotion

Place

Limited

More outlets

Maximum
outlets

Fewer outlets

Placements

PLC Example

Product Life Cycle for Airtel

SMS, 2G data
services

Hello tunes,
MMS

Airtel Money,
3G data
services
4G data
services

Placements

STP (Segmentation-Targeting-Positioning)

STP Analysis

Many companies ask STP to be performed for their products or

other well known products

Segmentation
Demographic
(Eg :age, sex,
education)

Psychographic
(Eg : Lifestyle)

Behavioural

Geographic

(Eg

(Eg : City,
State,Country)

: Purchase
pattern, usage)

Demographic and Geographic are the most common ways to

seg e t the a ket Do t e el sti k to these
Psychographic segmentation consists of VALS framework, Religion,
Lifestyle AIO (Attitude, Interests and Opinions)
Behavioral segmentation deals with need based, usage related
variables etc.

Placements

STP Analysis

Targeting

Positioning
Positioning refers to the consumer's perception of a product or
service in relation to its competitors. For each chosen target market,
the firm develops a market offering.

Perceptual map is used to map

competing products to analyse
their positioning
Placements

STP Example

Fairness cream for Men in India

Garnier Men Power Light

BASIS

SEGMENTATION

TARGETING

POSITIONING

Geographic

Skin complexion

East and South

India

Demographic

Age, Gender

Young male(1830)

John Abraham
endorses it

Psychographic

Lifestyle

Outdoor
oriented

For well groomed men

who care about their
skin
Self expression

VALS

Experiencers

Usage rate and

pattern

Heavy users of
unisex creams

Behavioral

Placements

Because male skin has

different skincare
needs- rough texture,
more exposure to dust

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STP Example

Mountain Dew

BASIS

SEGMENTATION

TARGETING

POSITIONING

Geographic

Development

Urban

Demographic

Age, Gender

Young male (1825)

Action heroes and

youth oriented

Psychographic

Lifestyle

Adventurous

For those who dare to

face the danger and
Win
Successful and Goal
Oriented

Achievers
VALS
Behavioral

Benefit based
segmentation

Regular User of
Softdrinks

Placements

To quench thirst before

undertaking a
dangerous task
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STP Example

i-Ball Aasaan

BASIS

SEGMENTATION

TARGETING

POSITIONING

Geographic

Development

Urban

Demographic

Age

Senior Citizens
(60+)

A phone designed for

the aged

Behavioral

Benefit based
segmentation

Regular/Heavy
User of
communication

A mobile phone with

easy user-interface for
the elderly

Placements

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Distribution Channel

FMCG Distribution
Finished Goods
Logistics
(Company owned)
Warehouse(C&F)

Distributor/Stockist
Sales
(Semi)Wholesaler

Retailer

Consumer

Placements

Marketing

13

Frameworks

BCG Matrix

Ansoff Matrix

Placements

14

Frameworks

Po te s Fi e Fo es

Placements

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Sales Pitch

Sell us this object !

Clarify whether they want the product to be sold for the same/
similar usage
Be C eati e. Thi k Diffe e t Do t go o pletel out of the o
Identify the buyer and pitch the product to that person
Mention price and product-name in a sales pitch
Enlist the product attributes and how the consumer needs will get
satisfied by the usage of the product

Placements

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 A Roadmap for preparing for the major

companies that visit
How to prepare when shortlisted for a specific
company?

Preparing for
Companies

Company Prep.

What and How to Prepare?

Right now
Make a list of the marketing companies that are likely to come for
Summers (PPTs and Placement portal)
Fo us o gai i g a i d s e e ie of the e pe ted o pa ies.
Develop an overview of their major brands (Power Brands),
categories they are involved in etc.

Once Shortlisted
In depth understanding of the businesses the company is involved in
Including but not limited to:
Categories present
Brand Portfolio
Key Competitors
Industry Dynamics
Notable Campaigns
Recent Developments (Launches/Acquisitions)

Company Prep.

Categories
Conglomerates and highly diversified companies
Eg. The HULs, PnGs etc
ITC has a presence in FMCG, Hotels, Paperboards & Specialty
Papers, Packaging, Agri-Business, and Information Technology,
Packaged Foods & Confectionery, Branded Apparel, Personal Care
and Stationery
Be able to name a good number of them until the interviewer
seems convinced you know enough.

Smaller companies
Competing in unexpected categories
Pidilite while primarily known for Adhesives and Sealants
(Fevicol/Fevikwik/mSeal) also is into Art material & Stationery
(Rangeela) and Fabric care (Ranipal)

Company Prep.

Brand Portfolio
For MNCs be aware of Global brands, Global brands available in
India, and those found only in India. Eg. Pepsi: India Only (Kurkure,
Nimbooz, Slice) Global (Sierra Mist, Toritos) Both (Mountain Dew,
Quaker, 7 Up)
Helps to classify brands based on company defined segments. Eg.
L O eal s eaut p odu ts fall i to Lu u , P ofessio al, Co su e
(Mass), Active cosmetics (health care)
Be careful not to name a competitor brand. When in doubt play it
safe

Key Competitors

L O eal os eti s Revlon, Estee Lauder etc

Relative market position.
Category Leaders
Avoid mix ups

Company Prep.

Industry Dynamics
Companies from niche industries
Eg. Pharmaceutical companies: Patent laws, Generics, evergreening, legal issues, Clinical trials etc
Industry reality such as Alcoholic beverages marketing: No
advertising allowed
Compare and contrast with more familiar marketing fields: FMCG,
consumer durables etc

Notable Campaigns
Any recent social initiative/ marketing campaign that made news
Famous/Favorite ad campaigns of the past

Recent Developments
Product Launches: Ponds for Men
A uisitio s: L O eal u s B azilia Niely cosmeticos
New categories entered : PnG entering Adult incontinence

 Answers to some obvious questions you are

expected to know
o e t i k
to sa

uestio s a d a guide o

hat ot

Frequently Asked
Questions

Why Marketing?

FAQs

Freshers: Wh a e ou i te ested i
a keti g?
Wo k e pe ie e: Wh do ou a t to shift f o XY) to
a keti g?
Tip: Use positive reinforcement, link marketing to your
personality, give examples

What is the difference between sales and

marketing?
Marketing

One to many
Long term horizon
Broad range of objectivesneed gap identification,
market share analysis,
branding, promotion
strategy, pricing, customer
relationship etc.
Bu e s Pe spe ti e
Placements
Pull strategy

Sales

One to one
Short term horizon
Narrow range of
objectives- selling the
product/ service to the
customer, meeting sales
volume targets
elle s Pe spe ti e
Push strategy
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What is the difference between B2B and B2C?

FAQs

B2C- product driven, larger target market, single step buying process,
merchandising and POS activities, emotional purchase decision
B2B- relationship driven, focused target market, multi step buying
process, educational and awareness building activities, rational
purchase decision

How is marketing in Telecom/ Pharma/Alcoholic

Beverages different from FMCG?
Telecom
-India 2nd largest telecom
market, yet huge
untapped potential
-Fiercly competitive rates
and services
-Brand switchers due to
MNP

Pharma
-Growth in pharma13.5%
-Challenges due to
regulations- inability to
influence the end user
-Satisfaction of
working in healthcare
Placements

Alcoholic
Beverages
-Illegal to advertise
-Seen as a taboo
-Different states have
different legal age,
margins and licensing
policies
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Your dream company?

Do t ake the istake of a i g a di e t o petito !

A company from another industry or a widely respected global
giant known for their marketing prowess or work culture

FAQs

Your favorite campaign?

Be ready to delve deep into details- how you think the
campaign benefitted the company, how it changed consumer
behavior, raised awareness etc.
Contrary to others,
portrays stains as
being nice, not
something to be
battled against

Detergent: Low
involvement
category
Deviation from the
t aditio al hite
tha a othe
proposition

Be yourself!
Explore without any
worry in the world!

Emotional connect,
resonance, brand
recall

Target market:
mothers who are the
decision makers
Placements

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What is the difference between product and

service marketing?

FAQs

Product Tangible (4 P Marketing Mix)

Service Intangible (7P for Services Marketing i.e. 4P + Process,
People and Physical Evidence

What are your expectations from the internship?

Show willingness to do both- sales and marketing
Mention interest in travelling, market research, interacting with
stakeholders in the S&M chain (consumers, retailers, wholesalers,
suppliers, research agencies etc.)

Othe

uestio s

Tell us about yourself

Name a product of our company that you like/dislike and why?
Why should we take you?
Why us?
A
uestio ou d like to ask us?
Placements

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New in Marketing

Basic idea of new trends and concepts of

Marketing
Relationship marketing: Focus is on a long-term relationships that
benefits both the company and the customer, emphasizing
customer retention and satisfaction, rather than a dominant focus
on sales
Social marketing seeks to develop and integrate marketing concepts
with other approaches to influence behaviors that benefit
individuals and communities for the greater social good.
Digital marketing is marketing that makes use of electronic devices
such as personal computers, smartphones, tablets and game
consoles to engage with stakeholders.
Viral marketing refers to techniques that use pre-existing social
networking services to try to produce increases in brand
awareness or other marketing objectives through selfreplicating viral processes

 What are the commonly asked HR

questions?
Objective is to find out whether you are a
culture fit for the organization

HR Questions
Placements

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HR Questions

Common HR questions

Take us th ough ou esu e

Highlight two important achievements in your resume
Family background
Education
Location of residence
Culture fit
Willingness to travel
Give examples where you led a team, resolved conflict between coworkers, handled a panic situation, ensured your voice was heard,
fa ed a ethi al dile
a

Placements

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 As seniors who have gone through the same

phase as you, here is our advice for the coming
placement season

Our Advice
Placements

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Our Advice

Be Mentally , Emotionally and physically strong

Summer placement season is taxing; physically, mentally and
especially emotionally
Be strong and positive, Summers is not the end of your career
rather just a small step
You need to accept that luck plays a major role in your selection

If..

If you do land your dream company, be humble

If you get placed early, help others in every way possible
If you are facing difficulty in cracking the GDs/interviews, reach
out to your friends/seniors
You e ot getti g sho t-lists, keep calm and hope for the best !

Be Patient
Summers is a challenging and drawn out process, be patient and
you shall be rewarded
Whate e happe s, do t pa i
Always remember, it is not the end !
Placements

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Our Advice

Stay Positive
Stay cheerful, calm, positive and confident in your interview.
At the end of the day, no matter how good you are at your
i te ie , if ou do t see a fit to thei o pa
ultu e, the
will not take you
E e if ou ha e t e a tl a ed ou i te ie , ou ould sta d
a better chance simply by being a positive presence around.

Placements

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Our Best Wishes

All the Best !

Placements

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