360 CLIENT SERVICING OF AN ADVERTISEMENT AGENCY

submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements

for the award of degree in

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

By
(SAHAYA ARUN JOSE.A)
(REG. NO.2741498)

DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

SATHYABAMA UNIVERSITY
(Established under Section 3 of UGC Act 1956)
JEPPIAAR NAGAR, RAJIV GANDHI ROAD
CHENNAI 600119
MARCH 2009

DECLARATION

I SAHAYA ARUN JOSE.A hereby declare that the Project Report entitled
360 Client Servicing of an Advertisement Agency is done by me under the
guidance of Ms. Joys (Internal) and Mr.Thomas Prakash (External) at Corporate
Media men advertising Pvt. Ltd, Chennai. is submitted in partial fulfilment of the
requirements

for

the

award

of

the

degree

in

MASTER

OF

BUSINESS

ADMINISTRATION.

DATE:
PLACE: Chennai

SIGNATURE OF THE CANDIDATE

SATHYABAMA UNIVERSITY
(Established Under section 3 of the UGC Act, 1956)

Accredited with B++ Grade by NAAC

JEPPIAAR NAGAR, CHENNAI - 600 119

DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

BONAFIDE CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that this Project Report is the bonafide work of Mr.SAHAYA ARUN
JOSE.A Reg. No: 2741498 who carried out the project entitled 360 Client Service
under our supervision from December 2007 to March 2008.

Internal Guide
(Ms.JOYS)

External Guide
(Mr.THOMAS PRAKASH)

Head of the Department

(Ms.VAISHALI MAHAJAN)

Submitted for Viva Voce Examination held on_________________

Internal Examiner
(Name in Capital letters

External Examiner
(Name in Capital
letters
with signature)

with Signature)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I express my gratitude to our Chancellor Thiru.Dr JEPPIAAR, M.A.B.L.,Ph.D

for providing such an opportunity and also their cooperation, encourage all through
this programme.
I express my gratitude to our Directors Thiru.Marie Johnson, B.E., M.B.A.,
Tmt. Mariazeena Johnson, B.E., M.B.A. and Vice Chancellor Dr.V.S.R.K. Mouly,
Ph.D.for having given us spontaneous and whole hearted encouragement for
completing this project.
I am indebted to Ms.Vaishali Mahagan Head of the Department, Department
of Management Studies, Sathyabama University, Chennai, for her support during the
entire course of this project work.
I wish to express my sincere thanks to Mr.Thomas Prakash, Branch Manager,
Corporate Media Men Advertising Pvt. Ltd, Chennai, for his constant encouragement
and support at all stages of project work.
I express my gratitude and sincere thanks to my project coordinator and guide
Ms.Joys, Asst. Professor, Department of Management Studies, Sathyabama
University, Chennai, for his valuable Suggestions and constant encouragement for
successful completion of this project.
Finally, I wish to thank all the faculty members of the department of
management studies and members of Corporate Media Men Advertising Pvt. Ltd,
Chennai, for their continuous help to complete this project successfully on time.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER NO.

TITLE

PAGE NO.

Introduction

Scope for the study

Objectives

Review of Literature

4-11

Industry Profile

12-32

Company Profile

33-40

Request for Marketing

proposal to Agency

41-46

submission of Marketing
proposal to Clients

47-52

360 Market Analysis

53-116

10

Limitations of the Study

117

11

Conclusion

118

Addendum
Bibliography

LIST OF REPORTS
SL.NO.

TITLE

PAGE NO.

Indian Automobiles customer satisfaction study

53-65

Home appliances dipstick study

66-90

Joy Alukkas customer dipstick study

91-94

Idea cellular services pre -launching test

95-97

Sabols retailers dipstick study

98-102

Reynolds retailers Dipstick study

103-105

Meera coconut oil retailers dipstick study

106-110

Market visit report-Adyar

111

Market visit report-Anna nagar

112

10

Market visit report-Purasaivakkam

113

11

Market visit report-T.nagar

114

12

Market visit report with reference to sony

115-116

ADDENDUM

Questionnaires

Sl.No

Title of the study

Sample
size

Type of the
study

Client/ Brand

Customer
satisfaction study

70

Consumer
Research

Indian
Automobiles
[Hero Honda
Authorized
dealer]

Home Appliances
Dipstick study
[Chennai, Madurai
& Trinelveli]

300

Consumer
research

All Home
Appliances
Manufacturers

Market position
analyzing Study

100

Consumer
research

Joy Alukkas

Pre testing survey

100

Consumer
research

Idea cellular
services

Retailers Dipstick
study

50

Retailers
research

Meera coconut oil

INTRODUCTION

Any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods or

services through mass media such as newspapers, magazines, television or radio by
an identified sponsor.
-Kotler, Armstrong, Saunders and Wong
Advertising is the activity of attracting public attention to a product or business,
as by paid announcements in the print, broadcast, or electronic media. Advertising
has not only come to reflect pop culture but has also become an important element of
economic growth. Today, every person connected with the Indian economy or public
should be fully aware what advertising really is and why effective advertising
campaigns can be performed by full-service advertising agencies.
Advertising is a process of communication to target audience. Target audience
comprises of human beings and human behaviour. Preparation of ads demands a lot
of research on the psyche of the target group and their behaviour. This helps the
agency in preparing advertisements that the consumers can relate to and therefore
become successful.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

1) To withdraw a complete knowledge regarding Ad Agencies.

2) To have a clear cut picture on variety of services offered by the Ad Agencies.
3) To improvise the services and the relationship of the Ad Agency with their
existing and new clients.
4) To broaden the creativity of the Ad Agencies.
5) It paves way for further researches.
6) To increase the interests in this field.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

KEY OBJECTIVES:
1) To analyse the involvement of the Ad agency in promoting the brand for the
clients.
2) To find out how far the Ad agency is successful in their 360 Client Service.
3) To analyse the liaison between the Ad Agency and Clients.

SUPPORTIVE OBJECTIVES:
1)
2)
3)
4)

To understand the various researches made by the Ad Agency for their Clients.
To measure the success of the researches for New Business Development.
To sketch out the marketing proposal dealings from the new clients.
To know the various services offered by the Ad Agency for their clients.

REVIEW- I
THE CREATIVE BRIEF
The Creative Brief is a planning tool widely used by advertising agencies and
marketing personnel when designing or implementing a marketing program. It can be
used when creating communications directed at clients, employees, shareholders,

potential investors, the media, or any other target group. Many organizations and
agencies have a very refined, occasionally bizarre, possibly even copyrighted
Creative Brief tool that is specific to how they do business.
IMPORTANT ELEMENTS OF CREATIVE BRIEF:
Objective:
What is to be accomplished by this program? Is the goal to create awareness,
knowledge, preference, or purchase? One traditional tool used for this purpose is the
definition of SMART objectives: Specific, Measurable, Agreed Upon, Realistic, and
Time-based.
Primary audience:
Who is this campaign meant to reach? The more specific and detailed the
better. When possible, list details like title(s) of audience members, industry, size of
company, revenue, number of employees, geographic details, affiliations, key
behavior attributes (i.e., do they make the buying decision or influence it?).
Demographics and psychographics go here.
Attitudes/Beliefs/Objections of audience:
Another way to state this element is, Why hasnt the audience already
done/thought what you want them to? If you were hired to argue against the purpose
of this campaign, what would your points be? What is the status quo?
Current/Proposed behaviour:
What is the audience doing now? How are they thinking/dealing with the
situation about which you are addressing them? What do you want them to do
differently?

Call-to-action:
What do you want the audience to do/think? Again, the more specific the
better. One of the Ten Commandments of good advertising is: tell the audience what
you want them to do. If you dont know, dont advertise until you do. Examples of
good calls-to-action include: Call today, Visit our website for more information,
Complete and return this form.
Tone:
Should this be a friendly, relaxed message, or a hard-sell with a sense of
urgency? Should the audience feel like a confidant, pal, victim (in need of rescuing),
partner, controller, etc? Should the ad convey a rich, textured impression or
something more Spartan and utilitarian?
Key message:
What is the one thought that the audience should be left with? The initial level
of regard given to most print advertisements has been measured at between one and
two seconds. If you absolutely had to, how would you state your message in seven
words or less?

Secondary message(s):
If they advertisement does draw in a reader, what are the other one or two
points that should be conveyed? Another advertising commandment: people never
remember more than three things.

REVIEW-II

AD AGENCY STRATEGIC PLANNING TOOL

[A] The Category
1.What business is the brand in?
2.What is the brand's product category?
3.What stage of its life cycle is the product category in?
4.What is the current size and growth rate in this category?
[a]Volume in units:
[b] Value in Rupees:
[c] Growing per annum @:
5.Indicate seasonally skews giving weightages.
6.Mention any unique environmental factors or constraints that exert a strong
influence in this category.
7.Rank the most important benefits/ attributes (in order of importance) that consumers
by and large seek from this category.

[a] 1st --------------[b] 2nd-------------[c] 3rd -------------[d] 4th---------------[B] The Competition

8. Compare all the brands in terms of delivering against each benefit/ attribute sought
by consumers.
1st brand

2nd brand

3rd brand

4th brand

5th brand

Most
important
2nd most
important
3rd most
important
4th most
important
5th most
important
9.What is the unique product attribute or any other unique strength your brand has(if
any) against any of the important

benefits?

10.State your brand's major weakness vis-a-vis others.

11.List all the claims and positions of all the brands operating in your category. Please
differentiate between the two.

Claims

Brand

Positions

Claim

Brand

Position

12.List all the brands/players in this category and their market shares in volume and
value terms.

Brand/

Year before

Last

This year
MS(%)

Expect for next

Player
1

last MS(%)

year
MS(%)

year MS(%)

Volu
me

Volu
me

Volu
me

Volu
me

Volu
me

13.Calculate total advertising spend in the category.

14.Indicate share of voice.

Brand

SOV(%)
Year before last

SOV(%)
Last year

SOV(%)
This year

15.Mention any special or relevant non advertising communication/related activities in

this category.

[C] The Consumer:

16.How is the market conventionally segmented?
17.Calculate the number of consumers in your segment.
18.How do you wish to segment the market using non-demographic parameters?
19.How many consumers are now there in your segment?
20.Name the competitor from whom you are likely to gain the most.
21.Where are your consumers located?
22.Describe your consumers by age, sex and income and any significant tangible,
physiognomic or other specific characteristics.
23.Describe your consumers by attitudes, beliefs, habits and lifestyles.
24.Define who proposes, who recommends, who chooses, who uses and who
purchases the product.
25.Define who among these is the most important target for advertising to address
and why.
26.Define the consumer's degree of familiarity with your brand.
27.What is the category norm for the average frequency of purchase?
28.Define consumers loyalty towards your brand.
29.On the matrix of high-involvement/low involvement and emotional/rational where is
the category?
30.How knowledgeable are consumers about the category?
31.How is the product commonly used?

32.Are there any other or secondary use of the product?

[D] The Communication:
33.What need of the consumer is the brand going to satisfy?
34.What is the consumer's currently relevant motivation for purchasing the category
and for your brand? Remember it could be different for both.
35.What appeal should the brand use?
36.Brand positioning

Why?

For whom?

When?

Against whom?

37.Brand identity

Physique:

Personality:

Relationship:

Culture:

Reflection:

Self-image:

38.What problem is the communication expected to solve?

39.What is the current required communication effect and its measurability criterion?

a) Why do we need this communication?

b) Who is this communication aimed at?
c) What are others saying?
d) What are the elements that the person does not like / have objections
about this category/ brand?
e) Is the brand able to overcome these objections? Should it be
communicated?
f) What is the brand USP?
g) What is the support?
h) What aspect of brand personality should the communication respect?
i) Mandatories: How does the media help to make this idea come alive?

EVOLUTION OF ADVERTISEMENTS IN INDIA

In the beginning, in the 70s and 80s, Doordarshan was the only TV channel in
India. Being the only carrier, it had a mix of programmes for both the urban and rural
audiences and agencies had to live with the fact. Though Doordarshan promised
exceptional reach, in the coming years it fell woefully inadequate to the needs and
wants of the advertisers.
THE SECOND WAVE:
The advent of Satellite Television saw the advertising industry undergo a sea
change in the early 90s. While the satellite channels had limited reach they could
target very niche audiences at half the cost. It also opened a whole new world in
terms of quality of production, content and tonality - something that advertising
professional watched with keen interest.
A decade and a half later, the kind of work that Indian agencies are producing
is at par and some even better than their foreign counterparts. Success after success
of Indian Agencies at International Awards like Cannes, AdFest and the New York
Festivals have made Advertising a sought after profession in India today with a high
demand for talented individuals.
ADVERTISING IN INDIA TODAY:
Advertising in India today has evolved into a highly evocative and arresting
medium of portraying society. It has value-added tremendously to the quality of
television programming in the country and has brought with it a new generation of
ideas that can only contribute towards the progress of the nation.

ADVERTISING AGENCY:
An advertising agency is a firm that specialises in the creation, design and
placement of advertisements, and in the planning and execution of promotional
campaigns for products and services of their clients.
Advertising is required because, it explains complex issues in ways that are
interesting, easy to understand and meaningful.

THE VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS OF AN AGENCY:

[1] Account Management:
Account Management is the face of the agency. These are the people who
meet the client on a day to day basis. It is their responsibility to ensure that the work
goes out on time and the bills are paid.
[2]Media Planning:
It is their job to ensure that the client's money is spent efficiently to get
maximum efficiency from a campaign.
Media planning is the process of identifying, analyzing and selecting the media
for the brand communication. Good media planning would result into the right
message being placed in the right media for the right group of consumers.
'Recency Model' In Media Planning
Recency model works on the logic that the advertising needs to be released
when the consumer is closer to purchase decision. The decorative paints
advertisements that are seen more before Diwali is an example of recency model in
media planning exercise. All big format stores like Big Bazaar and Star India Bazaar

give full page ads in local newspapers towards month end as most grocery purchases
happen in the first week of the month.
[3]Account Planning:
The planners come up with insights and are the 'futurologists' of the agency.
They analyse markets and consumer behaviour and are the ones who write the
briefs. Account planning is a strategic tool for consumer insight mining. Account
planners act as the voice of the consumer and gradually it has become one of the
most important activity that an ad agency does. Planning institutionalizes knowledge
within an agency.
Tracking market trends and consumer insights, and understanding the target
audiences create a pool of data that is available continuously. For instance, when
Ammirati Puris Lintas (1996-97 billings: Rs 451.38 crore) was creating the advertising
for the Rs 424-crore Johnson & Johnson's brand, Stayfree, it was its accountplanning model.
[4]Creative:
Probably the most important set of people. They are the guys who write the
ads and it is their work that the world gets to see.
[5]Digital Studio:
Often called the DTP section, this set of people work on the final artworks that
are sent to the various publications for release.
AD AGENCY
Getting the best out of advertising is a highly skilled job. It requires the inputs
of experts in many different fields like writers, artists, photographers, designers,
television, production crews and many others. Even the biggest advertisers cannot
afford to employ all these experts. Almost all advertising is therefore arranged through
an advertising agency which provides the necessary skill to turn the message into a
memorable and effective advertisement.

THE FUNCTIONS OF AN ADVERTISING AGENCY:

To accelerate economic growth and create public awareness.

To provide a total, professional, experienced service which is very personal

in its nature.

To take the advertiser's message and convert it into an effective and

memorable communication.

THE PARTS OF AN AGENCY:

Advertising agencies need to have a wide expertise in the area of

marketing and communications, which is why they employ specialists who
can easily understand economic, demographic and psychographic data

given to them.
They add significant insights to this from their own experience and data
banks.

ROLES IN AN ADVERTISING AGENCY:

[1]Data Analyst:
The planner is charged with ensuring that all data relevant to the brands
communication decisions be properly analysed. It should be complemented with new
research where appropriate, and then brought to bear on judgements of the creative
strategy and evaluation of the communication.
[2]Qualitative Focus Group Moderator:
Qualitative Research (and the ubiquitous Focus Group) has taken on an
increasingly significant role in everyones lives. It gives the planner a confidence and
an authority he/she wouldnt otherwise be entitled to. It means you are both a
psychologist and an interpreter.

[3]Information Centre:
Knowing where to go to find stuff out is the key. Planners should always make
time to feed their heads.
[4]Bad Cop/Good Cop:
Planners tend to work in pairs. Very often, it makes sense to adopt the bad
cop/good cop routine with some clients and some creative in order to deliver some
bad/ challenging /alternative/ unexpected news without ruining the relationship.
[5]Brainstorming Facilitator:
More challenging, more exhausting and rewarding than the average group
discussion because well (hopefully) be dealing with the Chairman, the Brand
Manager and the Creative Director in the same session.
[6]Soothsayer/Futurologist:
This aspect of the planners craft is to have a genuine interest in and capacity
to generate knowledge about trends and anticipate social movements that their
colleagues can actually use to grow their brands.
[7]Media/Communications Planner:
It is increasingly more important for the planner to understand the strategic role
and effectiveness of different media, by target and by category, and know when and
how it is relevant to use them to achieve the brands objectives.
[8]Strategic Thinker/Strategy Developer:
The planner identifies the key issue and determines the role for communication
against a specific target.

[9]Writer of the Creative Brief:

The brief is widely considered to be the planners main product. Theres

considerably more to it than baby talk; clarity, brevity and fertility being the hygiene
factors of a good creative brief.
[10]Insight Miner:
"At the heart of an effective creative philosophy is the belief that nothing is so
powerful as an insight into human nature, what compulsions drive a man, what
instincts dominate his action, even though his language so often can camouflage
what really motivates him".
These insights about the clients business come from many areas:

the consumer

the client companys culture

the marketplace/category

the competition

the brand (past, present, future) values

the product qualities

the advertising and communication conventions of the category

[11]Market Researcher:
Planners need to be able to ignore, challenge or exploit the data from a
perspective built on understanding.
The role of market research in developing Brand communication:
All campaigns are backed by market research. Research plays a vital role in
determining the ingredients of a campaign in terms of the creative strategy and media
mix decisions. Research gives a fair idea of who the target audience is and how
he/she behaves as a consumer and what kind of media they consume and what

factors influence his/her purchase decision. Research helps in establishing

"relevance" in planning and developing a campaign.
Relevance of market research in Advertising:
Market research is very important in advertising as it is important for any other
discipline. Research helps in scientific decision-making and therefore is important to
all marketing activities. Research helps at three levels. It helps in developing the
communication strategy, evaluating the effectiveness of advertising and keeping a
constant check on whats new in the market place.
B2B market research & B2C market research:
B2B is business to business and B2C is business to consumers. The
marketing process, product category and type of consumer is very different in both
types and therefore research process also has to be different. The research process,
method of data collection would be different as the target base of consumers is not
similar.
[12]Social Anthropologist:
Monitoring cultural and social trends is a specialist task. The findings need to
be fed in early to brand and creative development. Differentiating between mere
fashion and genuine cultural trends is not something for the inexperienced. Many
people can tell you what's in and what's out, but planners should be able to tell you
why.
[13]Creative:
Ad man Tom Monahan once remarked Advertising is the rock-n-roll of the
business world. The creative department of an ad agency thinks, acts and even
smells like a Rock Band. They are often perceived to be brash, arrogant, erratic and
almost every other offensive adjective in the English dictionary. Truth be told, its only
because they are visibly obsessed with their work.
Creative Burnout:

Working in competitive creative fields, which are fueled by business demands

and the fiery desires to do better all the time, carries with it a smoldering threat of
failure. One little hiccup and boom! Youre toasted. That is creative burnout.
[14]The Copy Team:
Their job is to simply and interestingly convey the brand with words, an image
or maybe even a blank page. Lets suppose the client wants to say that his product
smells the best. The copywriter would put it as, It smells like the earth after the first
rain or a can of glue or whatever that might tickle his fancy. The headline, baseline
and body copy of an ad is their area of expertise.
[15]The Art Team:
Popular opinion is that they form the support staff to the copy team. But the
fact is that they are both equally indispensable. They give the creative idea a definite
form. If copy is about the words, art is the pictures. Simply put, if the copywriter is the
singer who carries a song on his voice, the art team is the music; without which the
song can often be quite empty.

HOW ADVERTISING WORKS:

The following chart shows that how an Advertising Agency works.

Client

Account
Executive

Account
Planner

Research

Insight

Creative
Brief

Creative
Director

Campaign

HOW A CREATIVE DEPARTMENT WORKS:

Once the creative guys are handed over the creative brief and the deadline,
they spend most of their time bothering about neither. Their disregard for the brief is

abundant, yet they do consider it sacrosanct. Keeping the brief in mind, the team then
decides the best way in which the client should say what he wants to know about his
brand. They provide the product/service with a face, a feeling, an emotion, and bring it
to life. Probable creative routes are explored and then discussed with the planning
team for feasibility. Following that, the best routes are short-listed. The work is then
broken down between the copy and art teams.
ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN:
Advertising campaign starts when the client (company) feels the need to
advertise and ends when the ad is ready. Client shares the advertising objective with
the agency and then agency starts thinking on the objective and develops creative
ideas based on consumer research, experience and brand history. After approval of
ideas, the campaign is developed further. Media planners start doing up the media
plan for the campaign. Finally when pre-testing of the ad is done, release orders are
given and the ad is released in the selected media at the scheduled time.

ROLE OF MARKET RESEARCH IN DEVELOPING CAMPAIGN:

All campaigns are backed by market research. Research plays a vital role in
determining the ingredients of a campaign in terms of the creative strategy and media
mix decisions. Research gives a fair idea of who the target audience is and how
he/she behaves as a consumer and what kind of media they consume and what
factors influence his/her purchase decision. Research helps in establishing
"relevance" in planning and developing a campaign.

ROLE OF AN AD AGENCY IN EVALUATION OF A CAMPAIGN:

Advertising agencies are involved in the planning to the post campaign work
for a client. The role of ad agencies in terms of evaluation of a campaign starts when

the creative idea is conceived. They evaluate the campaign by pre-testing it with a
group of consumers. Once the campaign is released in media, post advertising
effectiveness is measured to find out how it has performed in terms of the desired
goals.
DOUBLE HELIX MODEL IN ADVERTISING:
The double helix model in advertising challenges models like AIDA
Awareness, Interest, Desire and Action which show the hierarchy of effects. Due to
many factors like clutter, competition, noise, media explosion, the attention and
retention of advertising messages may not progress in a hierarchical fashion. The
double helix model proposes that advertising gradually connects with the target
audience and not necessarily in a hierarchy.
The model proposed is in the shape of a double helix, with parallel strands
representing Message and Media arranged like a spiral staircase and a temporal
factor, called "Time," running up the middle like a steel pole. In short this model
proposes that the ad effects can be measured only if advertisers and brand managers
understand that consumers process information from various sources the
progression in behavior may not be in a hierarchical fashion.

CORPORATE ADVERTISING:
Corporate advertising is advertising efforts of a company directed towards the
corporation and not the brand. It aims at building corporate image and not brand
image. It talks of company policies, ethics, values, different businesses and brands of
a company.

ADVERTISING IS PRIMARILY USED AS A TOOL BY COMPANIES TO:

Inform people about new products and services

Brand building

To remind customers about their brand at the right time and place

To reinforce customer confidence in purchase

To build Corporate Identity

To help their sales force become more effective

To give their brand and company a personality that makes it unique

GOVERNMENT AND AUTONOMOUS BODIES USE ADVERTISING TO:

Inform people about their policies

Promote birth control

Educate the masses on health care

Prevent panic during natural disasters

Dispel harmful rumours

Attract foreign investment

FEATURES THAT MAKES A PROFESSIONAL ADVERTISING AGENCY UNIQUE:

With professional talent and loads of communications experience under their
belts, agencies are perfectly suited to take over their clients marketing
communications problems and help them with specialised services. But like
everything it too has its limitations. Effective advertising can contribute immensely to
the success of a product. Similarly, if the product is bad or something that the people
cannot accept, then no amount of advertising can save it.
IMPORTANCE OF INNOVATIONS IN ADVERTISING:
Advertising is a creative process. Innovative thoughts result in creative
advertising. Innovation can be in ideation process or the creative execution or the

media selection process and so on. For e.g. HSBC came up with the innovative idea
of launching a website for home loan disorders and caught attention of people
through hoardings that talked about disorders due to home loan. It was an innovation
in terms of media as well as the creative idea that supported the campaign.
IF THE ADVERTISING NEEDS TO BE SUCCESSFUL, THE PRODUCT NEEDS TO:

Solve a purpose

Fulfil a need

Be satisfactory

Have a credible proposition

Myth: An agency always helps to sell a product

Fact: Advertising can never succeed in selling something which the public will not
accept.
BRAND:
Simply put, a brand is a set of associations:

That is related to a brand or company name

That has a special place in consumers memory

That helps the consumer understand the following:

o What the brand or company is
o Why it is potentially relevant to them
o How it is different or similar to other products made by the firm
o How it is similar or different from competitor's products

BRAND CANNIBALIZATION:

Brand cannibalization takes place when A product of a company impacts B

product from the same company negatively. This happens because the brands belong
to the same product category. For e.g. if Balaji Telefilms have two soap operas on
Star and Zee in the 9 pm slot and if the viewership is higher on Zee, then one can say
that this is a case of brand cannibalization.
LOGO & BRAND:
A brand is not just a logo. By creating a logo one cannot create a brand. A logo
is merely an aspect of a brand. A brand as a whole encompasses the physical
attributes of a logo and encompasses the life of the company, its employees and its
audience. A Brand is an experience. An experience gained from a company and its
services or products. Brands have personality. It has a specific group of people it
wants to get to know and befriend, but is open to all. Brands are powerful. It can
influence someone to buy into its personality rather than the product. Brands are
consistent. They need to talk the same language across all communication.
BRAND BUILDING:
Brand building is about product identification and trust. To start building a brand
one has to start by defining the target customer group and its needs and expectations
and go on to realistically assess how well the brand currently meets them. Efforts
need to be taken to fashion an image around the brand that is not only consistent with
its core benefits but one that also credibly promises to bring about excitement and
satisfaction to the consumer.

Step 1: Defining the message.

Why should consumers care? What is different about the product?
e.g.

It is about high performance outdoor apparel (Woodland);

It is about strength and durability (Ambuja Cement);

Step 2: Building the image.

How does your difference translate into the image? Both visually and verbally it needs
to consistently communicate the companys message and value.
Step 3: Marketing the image.
How aggressively can the word be spread? The advertising campaign needs to
establish the image.
Step 4: Living the message.
Is the message real? Can the consumer identify with it? Is the promise being
delivered? Does the consumer expectation meet satisfaction on usage or association
with the brand?
TOUCH POINTS:
Consumer touch points are the possible points wherein a marketer can interact
with the consumer. Consumer touch points are decided on the basis of the media
exposure that the target audience has in his daily life. For e.g. for a person travelling
some 20 days in a month, the in-flight magazine can be a strong touch point.
CONSUMERS AND TARGET AUDIENCE:
Consumers are people who buy or are interested in buying your product or
service. Group of such people is called as the target audience. Usually, consumer and
target audience are terms that are used interchangeably. For e.g. college going girls
and boys looking for economy in mobile bills are consumers as well the target
audience for Virgin Mobile. So the marketing strategy would be framed keeping in
mind these boys and girls and advertising would be aimed at the target audience.
'CONSUMER' AND 'CUSTOMER':
Consumer' and 'customer' are terms used interchangeably most of the time.
However, if one wants to differentiate, consumer is the one who consumes the
product and customer is the one who buys the product for further processes. In other
words, consumer is the end user and customer is someone who buys the product to
re-sell or use it as a raw material i.e. an industrial buyer.

TYPES OF ADVERTISING:
[1] ATL (Above the line) Advertising:
Any form of advertising for which a commission or fee is payable to a
recognised advertising agency operating on behalf of its client(s). Usually done
through long-term above-the-line advertising and appropriate packaging and
graphics.

These

traits

inform

brand

behavior

through

both

prepared

communication/packaging, etc., and through the people who represent the brand - its
employees. press, television, radio, cinema and outdoors.
[2] BTL (Below the line) Advertising:
Below-the-line advertising employs a variety of methods - direct mail,
sponsorship,

merchandising,

trade

shows,

exhibitions,

sales

literature

and

catalogues, and so on. It is communicating without using mass media like television,
print, hoardings etc. BTL uses less conventional channels of communication.
In India, brands have mostly played safe with only conventional forms of BTL,
like events and road shows, exhibitions, conferences and sampling. However, BTL
opportunities extend to many other forms, such as word of mouth, viral marketing,
podcasting, consumer generated media, field marketing, contests, as well as
innovations within the conventional media."
"BTL provides immediate returns on the money that has been spent on
activations. The data that is collated post activations help in closures through
telecalling." There is a rising awareness among clients as well as agencies that so
called 360-degree or BTL platforms are not just for the placement of the same
message, but for taking forward the core brand thought and executing it in synergy
with other media, to create an overall brand involvement."
"Below-the-line initiatives are gaining success because of their customer
centric communication, low spillover and, above all, the ability to deliver the brand
experience as against pure messaging." As far as budgets go, the average ratio of

television versus other media, including BTL, is 70:30. This ratio will inch towards the
midpoint.
[3]Others
[3.a] Point Of Sale & Point Of Purchase Advertising:
POP or point of purchase advertising is very important. This is the point where
in the consumer is nearest to the point of making a purchase decision and therefore,
if the brand is present in the retail atmosphere and communicates to the consumer, it
influences his/her decision making process. For e.g. in case of a new product launch,
huge display banners inside a retail store helps people in noticing this new product
and may generate inquiries.
Point of sale advertising is said when one is talking from the retailers' point of
view and point of purchase advertising is from the consumers' point of view.
[3.b] Viral Advertising:
Viral marketing and viral advertising refer to marketers using pre-established
network of people to spread word of mouth. The Word Of Mouth helps in the
message reaching to multiple people like a computer virus. For e.g. when people start
discussing a movie on orkut and spread the word voluntarily, its a case of viral
marketing. Companies now use these networks to spread word about their brand or
new product features or information.
[3.c] Surrogate advertising:
Surrogate advertising is done when the original product is not allowed to
advertise itself on mass media. In India, alcohol brands are not allowed to give
advertisements on television, so alcohol marketing firms use surrogate products like
mineral water, soda, juice to hit consumers with the brand name. The brand name of
the alcohol product is the same as the surrogate product. For e.g. Kingfisher soda.
ADVERTISING AND SOCIETY:

The Government of India has for a long time relied considerably on the talents
of the Advertising Agency and the Advertising Agencies Association of India for social
causes. One of the biggest success stories has been the story of the simple birth
control pill. A poor country like India faces a major problem with overpopulation. The
Mala D commercials and the family planning campaign popularised in the 80s by
advertising agencies to educate the masses were extremely successful.
One of the biggest problems facing India today, is the rising number of HIV and
AIDS related cases. Again illiteracy was the core of the problem. That unsafe sex is
one of the most potent ways for it to spread was a fact unknown amongst the
masses. The Balbir Pasha campaign did wonders to spread awareness about the
problem. Since the inception of the the advertising agencies they have donated
crores of rupees worth of time and services to make the crusade a success.
ADVERTISING AND PR:
Advertising and PR both belong to communication mix of a company. They are
two different weapons of communication. Advertising is something that is a paid form
of communication and is usually used on a continuous basis to talk to the masses
whereas PR is something that can be a paid or an unpaid form of communication and
is used more to build and strengthen relations with various stakeholders like press,
government groups, consumers, shareholders etc. It is used more in times of crisis.
But with increasing money being spent on both the types of communication, the
difference is becoming insignificant as today companies draw out Integrated
Marketing Communications plans rather than an ad or a PR strategy.
MEASURING THE PERFORMANCE OF A BRAND VIA ADS ON SEVERAL MEDIA:
A brand is promoted through multiple mediums like television, radio, outdoors,
print etc. There are chances that advertising objective for each medium is different
and therefore the effectiveness would be accordingly measured. Based on the goals
of advertising like awareness, information, education, preference and creation,
measurement will be done.
DAGMAR Approach:

DAGMAR stands for Defining Advertising Goals for Measuring Advertising

Results. It is a model developed by Colley in 1961 to measure the effectiveness of an
ad. It measures the impact of an ad through the various stages of unawareness to
purchase action.
THE AMOUNT ADVERTISERS SPEND ANNUALLY IN ADVERTISING:
Marketers spend money as per the budget decided for a particular
communication activity. The amount of money spent on advertising depends on a lot
of factors like stage of the product life cycle, degree of competition, consumer
awareness levels, product category and many more. FMCG is the highest spender as
a category. Since the degree of competition is extremely high, consumer involvement
is low and retail promotions make it essential for this category to frequently advertise
in order to be on top of the mind.
MEASURING ADVERTISING RESULT:
Advertising result is usually measured keeping in mind the objective of the
advertisement. If the goal of advertising is to create awareness, the level of
awareness among target consumers would be checked post release of an ad. Some
other ways of measuring ad results are checking the brand recall, number of inquiries
generated, sales volume etc. For e.g. for a new-to-the-world product like 'I-pill' which
is an emergency contraceptive pill, ads focus on consumer education. In all their print
ads, a toll free number is given for any doubts on the product. So, here the
effectiveness of the ad can be measured by taking into account the number of calls
received in response to the advertisement.
POST ADVERTISING RESEARCH:
Advertising research plays an important role in making sure that ads are pretested before releasing it in mass media. Even after release, post advertising
research is undertaken to understand the reaction of consumers to the ad. If an ad is
not understood by consumers, the ad agency needs to understand the root cause of
the gap. They need to find out as to why the ad was not understood or interpreted
properly by the audience. Reasons can be improper language, improper metaphors,

improper media planning and scheduling and so on and so forth. The agency needs
to take this feedback seriously and work backwards and try and solve the problem.
EFFECTIVE MEDIA VEHICLES:
Effective medium depends on a lot of factors like the product category,
consumer awareness, competition, industry practice and so on and so forth. Radio
may be the most effective medium for a brand targeted to rural folks while in flight,
magazines may be the most effective medium for high flying executives. But today
most brands try to develop a branding idea which can be used across mediums and
can then be used as a strong idea to make word of mouth able for the consumers so
that it spreads on its own.
Firms would use vernacular newspapers, local radio, community radio,
outdoors in order to establish a strong regional presence. Moreover, the language
used will be local to the concerned region.

INNOVATIVE MEDIAS:
Innovative media today exists in the form of new media and also in the form of
innovative use of traditional media. Television is a traditional media for marketers but
when used in an innovative fashion it can be considered as innovative use of
conventional media. For e.g. using television shows to promote your product through
in-script placement of the product. Internet and mobile telephony are today becoming
a very strong media because of its potential to customize the message for the target
audience. Blogs, social networking sites are new media which are slowly getting
attention from marketers.

CMM PROFILE
ABOUT CMM:
CMM has started in 1991 as a Proprietary Firm and Incorporated in 1996, with
Rs 10 Lakhs authorized capital.It head quarted at Chennai, CMM is a fully accredited
advertising agency with the Indian Newspaper Society (INS) and successfully running
with a 150 members, highly talented team. To make a mark as a National Agency by
opening offices in Mumbai and Delhi. To tap the Global opportunities, CMM will be
opening offices in Dubai, Kuala Lampur and Singapore by 2009 2010.
We have a determined team with the right approach and talent. State-of-the-art
infrastructure to meet our client's marketing and advertising needs. With experienced
Media and Production groups to work in tandem, we act as perfect communication
partners for our clients.

BRANCHES:
Established full fledged branches across India
Chennai
Bangalore
Kochi
Hyderabad
Coimbatore
Thiruvananthapuram
Delhi
Mumbai

SERVICES
Consumer Advertising
B to B Advertising
Brand Building and Management
Corporate Advertising
Media Planning and Buying
BTL Activities
Films/Multimedia
PR
Events
Visual Merchandising
Exhibition Design and Execution
INFRASTRUCTURE:

 Top of the line software and hardware facilities across branches, with efficient
communication systems.
Online connectivity- Centralised Accounting System MIS reporting from all
branches.
Technically advanced Digital Creative Studios and Pre-press Operations
across branches.
Media software with access to constant upgradation of Media Information.
Membership with ABC and having access to IRS, NRS, TAM and RAM.
THE CENTRALIZED TEAM:
Account Director
Creative Director
Director - Strategy & Planning
Media Manager
Production Team
Research Team
VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS IN CMM:

ONLINE SECTION:

Design & Development of Websites & Web Portals

Web Hosting

Web Analytics

Site Maintenance

E-commerce Sites

SEO & SEM (Search Engine Optimization & Marketing)

Third Party Advertising

Intranet (Site Development and Maintenance)

Flash Demos

E-Mailers, E-cards, E-invites

News Letters

Microsites

Interactive CD / DVD etc.

Corporate Screen Savers

Development of Games

EVENTS SECTION:
A]Corporate Events:

Conference & Seminars

Product Launches

B2B & B2C Events

VIP Visits

Facility Inauguration

Employee Motivation Programs

Residential Conferences

Awards Functions

Media / Press Meets

Customer / Dealer Interaction Programs

Brand Extension Exercises

B]Promotions:

Retail Visibility

Product Awareness

Product Sampling

Consumer Insights

Lead Generation

Services for Special Events

Technical Consulting

Exercised Resource Proof

Event Production & Direction

Integrated Communication / Event Styling & Evolving Themes

Planning Logistics / Production / Stage Management

Artists Management

Multimedia Production

Exhibitions & Visual Merchandising

Kiosks

Installation Art

Major E&M Events:

Entertainment

Sports

Weddings

International Events

Television Events

International / Indian artists Conference

Hindi Film (Bollywood) Star Nights

Film Awards

High Profile Events & Parties

MEDIA SKY:

Media Sky, a conscious progression of advertising through entertainment, is

a Strategic Business Unit of CMM.

Headquartered at Chennai and networked to Mumbai, Bangalore and

Hyderabad, Media Sky has cutting edge access to all spectra of the media
and entertainment industry.

This unit will also be functioning as a Media Research Centre for all the
Group Companies.

Will be hands on with the market intelligence/information of all television

channels and programmes.

Teams will constantly be monitoring the TRPs, TAM of all programmes

across channels, which will help accurate and effective media plan.

CMM WILL BE THE EXCLUSIVE MARKETING AGENCY FOR:

Teja tv

Gemini music

Gemini news

CMMS PR DIVISION:
It operates in the Image Management and Public Relations space
Media Relations
Media Management
Media Engagement
Media Interaction
Media Intelligence
Media Monitoring
AWARDS:
Chennai Ad Club Award 2003 - 04
Ascent PINKSLIP CHOICE Awards, Hyderabad 2008
Ascent PINKSLIP CHOICE Awards, Bangalore 2007
FUNCTIONS OF CMM-PR :

Define and prioritize key issues and objectives while developing effective
lobbying /issue management strategies.

Effectively interact with key policy makers on a clients behalf in Delhi and
State Capitals.

Interact for clients before regulatory agencies.

Identify key non-partisan policy makers and enlist their participation in a

clients objectives.

Help raise visibility of positions and disseminate strategic materials

regarding sector specific issues.

Coordinate closely with our media relations team to strategically accentuate

in the media the need for required policy in the desired areas.

ONLINE PR:
The web is ideally suited to build brandboth brand by belief and brand by
experience. The enormous potential of the Web is best realized when it is used to
build brand by experience. The goal of online PR is to engage consumers and create
an emotional bond.

REQUEST FOR MARKETING PROPOSAL

Usually these kind of proposals are conveyed from the clients to Ad Agencies
to elaborate clear cut idea about their needs & wants. One of the proposals received
from the Department of Tourism, Government of Karnataka is shortened & given
below for the reference.
SELECTION OF TOURISM PROMOTION ADVISOR AND COORDINATOR
DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM, GOVERNMENT OF KARNATAKA
Introduction
Background
Department of Tourism, Government of Karnataka (hereinafter referred to as
"DoT") invites detailed proposals (Qualification Submissions, Technical Submissions,
Financial Proposal and a Presentation1 together referred to as Proposal) from
reputed advertising agencies for promotion of tourism in Karnataka.The Successful
Bidder would then have to enter into an Agreement with DoT for a period of 3 (three)
years and perform his obligations as stipulated therein, in respect of the Assignment.
The submission of proposal
The submission of proposal in response to the downloaded RFP shall be
accompanied with a non-refundable Demand Draft (DD) for Rs. 5000/- from any
scheduled Bank drawn in favour of the Director, Department of Tourism, GoK payable
at Bangalore and a copy of the DD shall be enclosed as a part of the Qualification
Submission. www.karnatakatourism.org.

Bidding procedure

Number of Proposals
Each Bidder shall submit only one (1) Proposal, in response to this RFP. Any
Bidder who submits or participates in more than one Proposal shall be disqualified.
Proposal Preparation Cost
The Bidder shall be responsible for all costs associated with the preparation of
its Proposal and its participation in the bidding process. DoT will not be responsible or
in any way liable for such costs, regardless of the conduct or outcome of the bidding
process.
Rights:
DoT has all rights to Accept any Proposal and to Reject any or all Proposals.
Preparation and Submission of Proposal
Language and Currency
The Proposal and all related correspondence and documents shall be written
in English language. Supporting documents and printed literature furnished by the
Bidder with the Proposal may be in any other language provided that they are
accompanied by an appropriate translation in English language. Supporting materials
that are not translated into English may not be considered. For the purpose of
interpretation and evaluation of the Proposal, the English language translation shall
prevail.
Bid Security
Proposals would need to be accompanied by a Bid Security for an amount of
Rs. 10,000/- (Rupees Ten Thousand Only). The Bid Security shall be kept valid
throughout the Proposal. Validity Period and would be required to be extended if so
required by DoT.

The Bid Security shall be forfeited in the following cases:

a) if the Bidder withdraws its Proposal except as provided in Clause 2.20.1;
b) if the Bidder withdraws its Proposal during the interval between the Proposal
Due Date and expiration of the Proposal Validity Period; and
c) if any information or document furnished by the Bidder turns out to be
misleading or untrue in any material respect.
Pre-Proposal Meeting
To clarify and discuss issues with respect to the Assignment and the RFP, DoT
may hold Pre-Proposal meeting(s).
DoT will endeavour to hold the Pre-Proposal meeting as per RFP Time
Schedule. The details of the meeting shall be posted on the website:
Signing of Proposal
Qualification Submissions
This should include the following:
a) Covering Letter-cum- Assignment Undertaking
b) Power of Attorney as per Appendix 2, authorising the signatory of the
Proposal to commit the Bidder.
c) Anti-Collusion Certificate
d) Details of Bidder.
e) Experience of Bidder as per.
f) Financial Capability of Bidder.
g) Technical Submissions.
h) Financial Proposal.
Sealing and Marking of Proposals
The Bidder shall submit each of the submission in three separate envelopes.
Confidentiality

Information relating to the examination, clarification, evaluation and

recommendation for the Qualified Bidders would not be disclosed to any person not
officially concerned with the process.
Clarifications
To assist in the process of evaluation of Proposals, DoT may, at its sole
discretion, ask any Bidder for clarification on its Proposal or substantiation of any of
the submission made by the Bidder.
Consultant(s) or Advisor(s)
To assist in the examination, evaluation, and comparison of Proposals, DoT
may utilise the services of consultant(s) or advisor(s).
Modifications/ Substitution/ Withdrawal of Proposals
The Bidder may modify, substitute or withdraw its Proposal after submission,
provided that a written notice of the modification, substitution or withdrawal is
received by DoT before the Proposal Due Date. No Proposal shall be modified,
substituted or withdrawn by the Bidder after the Proposal Due Date.
Letter of Acceptance
Acknowledgement of Letter of Acceptance (LoA) and Execution of Agreement
Within 1 (one) week from the date of issue of the LoA, the Successful Bidder shall
accept the LoA and return the same to DoT. The Successful Bidder shall execute the
Agreement, within 2 (two) weeks of the issue of LoA or within such further time as
DoT may agree to in its sole discretion.
Evaluation of Technical and Financial submissions
The Technical Submission and the Financial Proposal of the Qualified Bidders
would be evaluated as follows:
Technical Submission - maximum score 70 marks
The Scope of Services to be provided by the Agency is set out in the Draft
Agreement.
The Bidders Proposal to undertake the same over a 36 month period would need to
be presented to the Project Committee, constituted by DoT.
The Presentation made by the Bidders should cover the following:
a) Strategy for the assignment with special reference to VISION 2012
b) Promotion Plan (both national and international)

c) Creatives
d) Client Servicing Plan
The Presentation would be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria for which
scores would be assigned.
Evaluation Parameters
Eligible Bidders competence and capability is proposed to be established by
the following parameters:
a) Agency Network
b) Experience
c) Financial capability
Strategy for the assignment with special reference to VISION 2012

Understanding of the assignment

Theme and Positioning for Karnataka

Tourism

Target markets to be covered

Conceptual plan and strategy

Evaluation Mechanism of

implementation of proposed strategy

Integrated Promotion Plan

Public relations plan

Road shows, trade fairs and conferences

Media strategy, plan and scheduling

Indicative budget spend on various activities

Computation of Composite Score

The Composite Score would be the arithmetic sum of the scores assigned to
Bidders under each of the parameters listed above and the aggregate marks secured
under each of the Evaluation Parameters would be tabulated as under:

Evaluation Parameter Maximum Marks Marks Secured

Presentation

Strategy for the assignment 25

Promotion Plan 25

Creatives 10

Client Servicing plan 10

Financial

Financial Offer 30

Composite Score 100

The Bidder obtaining the highest Composite Score would be declared as the
Preferred Bidder.
Promotion Budget
DoTs budget for promotion of tourism (Promotion Budget) is as follows:

Year BUDGETED AMOUNT (indicative)

April 2009 to March 2010 Rs. 15 Crores

April 2010 to March 2011 Rs. 15 Crores or more

April 2011 to March 2012 Rs. 15 Crores or more

SUBMISSION OF MARKETING PROPOSAL TO CLIENTS

Request for marketing proposal will be analysed by the team through

continuous brain storming sessions. Then the finalized plan for ATL & BTL activities
will be made. One of the marketing proposals made by our team is given below for
the reference.
LEAD GENERATION PROPOSAL
Client

Whirlpool

Brand

Purafresh Water Purifier

Market

Chennai

Date

24.01.2009

Background

Most households are concerned about the safety of their drinking water

But their knowledge about water purification technology [Filtration vs UV vs

RO] is relatively poor

Experts in this field maintain that UV based Water Purifiers are better than
Filtration and that Reverse Osmosis is the best technology around

Aqua Guard has been the market leader in water purification products because
they were early entrants and they adopted a Direct Sales strategy

The low cost [Filtration based] Unilever brand Pureit, a recent entrant has
been a runaway success because the consumer is attracted by the pricing of
Rs.1500/-. They dont realize that there is an additional recurring cost of
Rs.300 for the change of Filter, approximately every 3 months.

Since the Cost vs Benefit equation of RO Units is not clear for the average
consumer, Filtration & UV based products are still popular.

RO Units started off expensive and were perceived as a rich mans product.
Now their cost has come down to approximately Rs.10,000/- This is how much
a sovereign of Gold Jewelry costs today and the middle income groups are
catching on to it.

In a recent dipstick survey done by CMM, it was found that Whirlpools

Purafresh brand did not have any recall in Chennai, Madurai and Tirunelvely. It
was also observed that a local brand called Misty Aqua had scored over the
market leader in Madurai due to its DM efforts

The CMM report also reveals that in Washing Machines & Refrigerators,
Whirlpool brand has a substantial mind-share.

This leads us to the conclusion that ATL alone will not help Substantial
investments have to be made in BTL activity to establish the brand in the
minds of the potential users

The problem turned around on its head is usually the solution here too the
lack of awareness of RO technology & its cost vs benefits equation have to be
translated as the prime driver to engage & attract the consumer

Insights we have about the Consumer and how it can be translated to

a BTL activity

Everybody knows
[or at least
believe that they
know] many facts
about Water
[because water is
a very basic
subject]
People are
concerned about
the safety of
drinking water and
are willing to take
positive steps
towards securing
safe water for their
familys wellbeing

Kaun Banega
Crorepati or
Slumdog Millionaire
connect well with
people because
everybodys excited
about hitting a
Jackpot

Whirlpools
hi5H20
OFFER
Answer 5 common questions on water & win a Whirlpool Purafresh RO Water
Purifier worth Rs.11,500/- absolutely FREE
Book any Whirlpool Purafresh RO Water Purifier and win an assured GIFT

Execution details
A Kiosk Stall announcing the offer will be put up in Spencer Daily outlets

Customers will be asked to answer 5 common questions about water and if

they get all 5, right they will win a Purafresh basic model absolutely FREE
If they book an order in the stall they will get an assured gift
The 3 models of Purafresh will be displayed in a Stand with name / price tags
and there will be 6 panels giving out key information
Panel 1

Water, a source of life, can be a killer too! Beware of these water

borne diseases

Panel 2

Comparison chart of Filtration vs UV vs RO Technology. We know you

love your family, so go for the best technology!

Panel 3

For the cost of a bubble top, now buy a world class RO Purifier
Explanation of simple EMI scheme of Rs.500/- p.m.

Panel 4

How Whirlpool products score over competition. Chart showing ethical

comparison between Whirlpools RO and competitors

Panel 5

Sales Offer: Buy model 1 & win gift 1, Buy model 2 & win gift 2, Buy
model 3 & win gift 3

Panel 6

Help the environment by discouraging the use of plastic Say NO to

Bubble tops! Invest in an RO water purifier instead

The 5 questions will be printed on a handbill. The visitors to the stall can fill up
the answers and return it to the promoter who will correct it instantly.

While the answer sheet is being corrected, promoter # 2 will explain the sales
offer. If the customer pays Rs.100 and books the product, a redemption card
will be provided which acknowledges that the specified gift will be delivered
along with the product when it is sent for installation

If the visitor fails to get 5 out of 5 and is not interested in the sale, he / she will
be given a memorabilia [eg: keychain bearing whirlpool logo] and a leaflet
which has product details.

Reach & Costs involved:

Reach

Spencers Daily has 22 outlets in Chennai

On an average SD outlets claim a footfall of 1000 during weekends [sat &
sun]

Variable Cost

Cost per outlet per day is Rs.2000/- That means cost per weekend [2days]
per outlet is Rs.4000/Cost of 2 promoters per day is Rs.1000/- That means cost per weekend
[2days] per outlet for manpower is Rs.2000/Cost of Gifts, Marketing collateral like leaflets, etc is in addition to this
Coordination charges would be 17.65% on the overall Gross value of the
invoice
Total cost per outlet would hence be approximately Rs.7059*

One time Cost

Space of 6x 6 is provided to us by SD. Our Stall should hence be of size

4x 4 to accommodate visitors
Stall creation would cost Rs.6000/TShirts, caps for promoters [2 sets per stall] would cost Rs.400
The Stand inside the Stall & the display boards would cost approximately
Rs.5000
The layout & concept charges would be approximately Rs.10,000
Total one time cost would hence be approximately Rs.21,400*

* All coordination & artwork charges would be billed from CMM @ the regular Service
Tax of 12.36%
Projection of RoI

Assuming a footfall of 2000 per weekend

At 10% footfall to our Stall the number of unique customers touched would
be 200 [read that as 200 households]

At 10% conversion of this segment, the number of bookings expected per

weekend per outlet could be as high as 20

Cost of acquiring one customer hence would be in the area of Rs.400 to

Rs.500** [approx]. This is a good RoI considering that many more would
have been sensitized to the brand communication and would be the
brands future buyers

Database of Leads recorded during this activity could be used for TeleSales / DM on a later date

Note:
** Such calculations could be erroneous because most of it relies on assumptions.
But if there is a strategic understanding that this medium should be seen as a
Communication exercise more than a Sales exercise then it would be helpful.

360 MARKET ANALYSIS

Advertising agency conducts various kinds of researches to analyse the
minds of consumers, retailers and the whole market. This report contains few of the
researches conducted by me. They are,
Consumer researches
Retailers researches
Market visits
CONSUMER RESEARCH REPORTS:
[1] Customer satisfaction study:

Brand :
Locality:
Date :

Indian Automobiles (Hero Honda dealer)

Vanuvampet,
Alanthur, Chennai.
10/10/08.

Marketing Objectives:
To increase footfalls in sales/service offering.
Research Objectives:
1. To investigate the reasons why / (why not) customers patronize Indian
Automobiles and identify sales triggers.
2. To identify best practices from the customers point of view and suggest
the brand owner for implementation.
Service offering:
Hypothesis:
After free service is over, customers go back to their personal mechanic possibly
because of the following reasons.
1.a. The cost is high
1.b. There is a perception that cost is high.
1.c. There is a perception that unnecessary expenses may be booked on the
customer
2.a. Authorized dealer requires more time.
2.b. There is a perception that a dealer requires more time.
3. The customer has set-habit to go to his personal mechanic.
4. Customers would like more control over the service transaction / experience
(which he gets from personal mechanic).
5. Customers believe that personal mechanic is more transparent.
6. The service outlet is not in the customers proximity.
7. Only new parts available with authorized service centre, whereas personal
mechanic can supply used parts.
8. There is a perception that personal interaction with mechanic is not possible.
Information targeted by this research activity:
The research has to deliver answers to the following questions.
1. How many free service customers convert to paid service? (Dipstick).
2. Why they convert?
3. Why they dont convert? (Check hypothesis, statements as true or false).
Sales offering:

Hypothesis:
It is assumed that the sales performance is good because of the following reasons.
1. It is located in a highly populated area.
2. Behaviour of sales person is satisfactory.
3. The ambience of the outlet is good.
4. All models & colours are available at any time.
5. It is well known to everyone.
6. Hero Hondas equity rubs off on Indian Automobiles.
Hence the task is to check the above & identify gaps.
Information targeted by this research activity:
The research has to deliver answers to the following questions.
1. Steps to be taken to improve sales
2. Is there a need of further publicity or promotion?
3. How many customers are satisfied with outlet?
4. How many customers would like to come for further purchase/ refer others?
Research methodology:
After the formulation of hypothesis .Sample size of eighty customers were
selected. Among them fifty were service customers and thirty were buyers. There was
direct interview as well as questionnaire were used draw the information to check the
hypothesis.

Customer retention level in service:

Particulars
Sample size
Percentage

Retained customers
25
78.13%

Shifting customers
7
21.87%

Reasons for retention:

Particulars

Favoured

Unfavoured

Quality of service

20

Accessibility

22

Spares availability

17

Warranty

16

Free b/d service

20

Reasons for shifting:

Particulars

Valid
reasons

Invalid
reason

High cost

High elasped time

Longterm relation with personal

mechanic

Control over personal mechanic

Non transperancy

Far from home & office

Non availability of used parts

Lack of interaction

Booking unnecessary expenses

Reasons for patronizing:

Particulars

Favoured

Unfavoured

Caring for vehicle

18

Reliability

16

Reasonable cost

13

Cordial relation

13

Timely service

12

Spares availability

14

Warranty claiming

15

Customer satisfaction level:

Customer mode of entry:

Particulars
Source of awareness
Percentage

By friends

By

Direct contact

12
40%

advertisements
2
7%

16
53%

Quality of sales person:

Particulars
Friendly
Informative

Yes
29
28

No
1
2

Availability of model & color:

Particulars

Available

Not available

Color & model

Percentage

27
90%

3
10%

Recommending friends:

Particulars
Favouring friends to join
Percentage

Yes

No

26

87%

13%

Findings on service:
1. There is no concern to rectify the customers specific complaints while
servicing.
2. The customer is not given the promised delivery. The customers are informed
before the service completion.
3. The customers are compelled to change the lubricant even though they dont
wish.
4. The customer at- times feel that they are not treated fairly.
5. The customers are not given enough detail about the service carried out.
6. Customers are crowded around the counter because of hurry and the
customer lounge is not used by them.
7. Customer feels that there is no thorough check of their service before delivery.

8. Customers are ignorant about the existing passport programme.

9. The employees are not seen with the uniforms.
10. Fuel checking is not done after servicing.
11. There is a huge bulk of outdated magazines rather than updated ones.
12. There are no special allowances given for the loyal customers.
13. Customers are not aware of the warranty benefit.
14. Value added services are not encouraged.
15. The unsatisfied customer prefers another service station instead going for a
local mechanic.
16. In order to get timely service the customer may shift the service stations.
17. Quality and reasonable cost retains the customers with Indian Automobiles.
18. The customers feel that there is little control over the services in service
station.
19. The brand name brings many customers to the customers.
20. Indian Automobile is easily accessible to the customers.
Findings on sales:
1. The customers are not informed beforehand about the credit payment charges.
2. Registration consumes longer time.
3. The sales persons are informative and friendly.
4. There are less promotional activities to increase the sales.
5. Word of mouth plays a very little role in bringing in new customers.
6. There is a sufficient space for showroom facilities.
7. The much sought after colour and models are always available.
8. Sales activities fares well in comparison to the service stations.
Suggestions received to improve employees quality life:
1. There should be one day leave for all the employees.
2. There should be enough breaks for the employees to refresh.
3. There should be a stipulated time for servicing vehicle according to the need.
4. The owner should be friendly with the employees.
5. The employees benefit schemes should be introduced including ESI, PF, etc.
6. There should be periodical meeting with the employees.
7. Government holidays and other reasonable leaves should be given to prevent
the absenteeism.

8. Salary reduction must be communicated to the employees with the detailed

voucher (or salary slip).
9. Reasonable target should be set.

[2] Home Appliances Dipstick study

Product

: Home Appliances

Date

: 19/01/09

Objectives:
To find out which brand is most salient in the consumers mind when it comes to
Home Appliances
Methodology:

Sample size 300 households [100 in each city].

Questionnaire method was used

The respondents were given a sheet which listed the various product
categories and were asked to fill up which brand they would prefer in
each of these categories. They were also quizzed as to the reasons why
they preferred that particular brand which helped in recording some
qualitative observations

Target group: Middle Income Group

Average Income level taken for consideration to qualify for Middle
Income Group is as follows [Since income levels vary in each
geographic location]
o Trinelveli
o Madurai
o Chennai

Markets surveyed:

between Rs.10,000 to 15,000

between Rs.15,000 to 20,000
--between Rs.20,000 to 25,000

Trinelveli
Madurai
Chennai

DESIRED TELEVISION BRANDS

Comments gained:

LG Quality, Pricing and

attractive models.
Onida Effective
Advertising, Brand-Loyalty.
Sony - Imbalance between
Cost and Features of the
models and Delay in
Service.

Comments gained:

Onida- Low
maintenance, good
quality, durable
Samsung- Reasonable
cost & quality
Sony - Outdated designs
[designs are not that
much attractive]. It is
mostly preferred by
upper middle class
people.

Comments gained:

SonyBrand Image, Sound

Quality
SamsungReasonable cost
but it is not popular
because it produces more
heat.

DESIRED REFRIGERATOR BRANDS

Comments gained:

Whirlpool Quick Freezing

and Attractive Designs.
Godrej Long association
with the Brand.
Videocon Well-known
brand.
Samsung Advertisements
could be better

Comments gained:

Godrej Long association

with the Brand.
Samsung High quality &
durability.
Whirlpool- Admired for its
modern designs; but
maintenance cost is high

Comments gained:

Whirlpool Easy to clean, it

has excellent ice-maker,
good after sales service &
more storage options.

DESIRED BRAND FOR AUDIO SYSTEM

Comments gained:

Sony Brand-Image,
Sound-Clarity and Less
Space Occupancy.
Philips - Brand-Loyalty.
Panasonic and Onida
Outdated Models.

Comments gained:

Philips Fabulous designs &

high configured features.
Sony Brand Image

Comments gained:

Sony-- Excellent Quality,

Awesome sound & Brand
image
SamsungReasonable
price
Panasonic Long
Association with brand

DESIRED MIXIE BRANDS

Comments gained:

Preethi Effective
Advertisements and Variety
of Models.
Butterfly Brand-Image.
Prestige Long association
with the Brand.

Comments gained:

Preethi Well known brand;

effective advertisements.
Butterfly Quality

Comments gained:

Preethi Good Quality;

Effective Advertisements.
Durable; Excellent Quality.
Butterfly Brand image
Sumeet loyalists feel that
brand needs to do more
promotional activities to
widen their market.

DESIRED WET-GRINDER BRANDS

Comments gained:

Butterfly -- Easy to clean,

less weight & Saves time.
Sowbaghya Available in
various Models; Effective
Advertisements.
Lakshmi Durable

Comments gained:

Butterfly & Sowbaghya

brands - modern grinders.
Lakshmi- Outdated models
& designs

Comments gained:

Butterfly & Sowbaghya

Easy to handle, Brand
image.
UltraQuality product

DESIRED STABILIZER BRANDS

Comments gained:

V-Guard Effective
Advertisements, Brandimage and Reliability.

Comments gained:

V-Guard Brand-image,
Quality, Durability & it is
the only known brand.

Comments gained:

V-guard - Market leader,

Long time existing brand &
Quality product.

DESIRED BRAND FOR FANS

Comments gained:

Usha Durability and Long

Association with the Brand.
Khaitan Brand-Image and
Variety of Designs.
Crompton and Bajaj Outdated models; lack of
Advertisements.

Comments gained:

Khaitan High Quality,

Durability & Low
maintenance.
Usha Effective
Advertisements.

Comments gained:

Khaitan- Durable & Long

time existing brand
Usha- Eye catching
decorations, Big warranty
[up to 7 years] & High
sweeping area.

Desired Washing Machine

Comments gained:

Whirlpool Convenience
and lots of Models.
Godrej Brand-Image.
Samsung, Videocon and
Others - Out-dated models
and lack of proper service.

Comments gained:

Whirlpool & Samsung were

recalled for their fully
automated features

Comments gained:

Whirlpool - Less water

consumption & Energy
efficient

DESIRED IRON BOX BRAND

Comments gained:

Panasonic Durability and

Long Association with the
Brand.

Comments gained:

Philips & Panasonic Brand

loyalty & Quality

Comments gained:

PhilipsQuality product
with more value added
features.
LGReasonable cost.

DESIRED WATER HEATER BRANDS

Comments gained:

VenusQuality; well known

brand.

Comments gained:

People go for their known

brand rather than any
specific reasons.

Comments gained:

Venus - Long standing

brand.
Racold & Sphere-hot need
to concentrate more on
advertisements

DESIRED WATER-PURIFIER BRANDS

Comments gained:

Aqua-Guard Service at the

Door-Step and Effective
Advertisements.

Note:

Many people are not aware

of any specific brands.

Note:

Misty Aqua reached

maximum households
through its Marketing
strategy [Direct marketing
to home].

Comments gained:

Aqua guardBrand image

& less space occupancy.
PureBrand name stands
for performance

DESIRED AIR-CONDITIONER BRANDS

Comments gained:

Voltas Durability.
Blue-Star Effective
Features.
LG Less-Space Occupancy.

Comments gained:

Voltas Durability & Long

association with brand.
Blue-Star Brand loyalty &
Quality

Comments gained:

They did not mention any

reasons.

DESIRED MOBILE BRANDS

Comments gained:

Nokia Variety of models,

Features and most-efficient
service.
Sony Imbalance between
Cost and Features and Lack
of proper advertisements.
Reliance and LG are
considered as Lower-End
Models.

Comments gained:

Nokia Quality, Battery life,

More service centres,
Reasonable price, Easy to
handle, Availability of
different models, Brand
image
Sony Ericsson Effective
sound system
Reliance is low because of
its CDMA technology.

Comments gained:

NokiaAvailable in more
models, Reliable brand &
Long battery life
MotorolaBrand image

DESIRED PRESSURE COOKER BRANDS

Comments gained:

Prestige Product Designs

and Quality.
Hawkins Long association
with the Brand.

Comments gained:

Prestige, Premier & Ideal

are familiar brands.

Comments gained:

Hawkins-- Long lasting

brand

DESIRED CAMERA BRANDS

Comments gained:

Canon-- Unique features &

Reasonable cost.
Sony Brand image but,
quiet expensive.

Comments gained:

SonyBrand image
Canon-- High quality & long
time existing brand.

Comments gained:

Samsung Reasonable
cost & Quality
Sony - Clarity, Brand image
& long battery life.

FURNITURE, VACUUM CLEANERS & MICROWAVE-OVENS

Trinelveli & Madurai: In certain product categories the respondents were not aware
of any brands as consumption of such products was lean.
Comments gained:
Godrej Reliable brand.

Comments gained:
Samsung
- High
quality
Eureka
- Light
weight, Easy
to repair & durable.
Whirlpool - Good looking, easy to
clean

DESIRED BRAND FOR INVERTERS

Trinelveli & Madurai: Maximum respondents were not aware of any brands of
Inverters. Remaining inverter users are satisfied with their assembled UPS.

Youngster's Favourite channels

FAVOURITE TV CHANNEL FOR MIDDLE AGE

Youngster's Favourite TV Program

Favourite Program for Middle Age

Favourite Newspaper

Favourite Magazine

FAVOURITE FILM STAR

[3]Joy Alukkas Dipstick Survey Report

Brand Joy Alukkas

Date 23/12/08
Objective

To take a peek into the buying behavior of consumers with reference to

Jewelry

To find out popular perceptions about Joy Alukkas

To gain insights into the construct of consumers Ideal jewelry shop

Methodology

Sample size 50 [both sexes]

Direct interview method used.

Target group: Upper middle class.

Markets surveyed

T.nagar

Velachery

Anna nagar

Nungambakkam

Alwarpet

Findings

[1] Out of 50 respondents 11 have been buying Jewelry from Joy Alukkas

[Others include Lalitha Jewellery, Prince Jewellery, Arya Diamonds, Ambhiga pearls &
Jewellery, Saravana Gold palace & imported jewels]

[2] 20% respondents named Joy Alukkas as the best Jewelry Shop

[3] Out of 50 sample size, 24 have visited Joy Alukkas; Most of them say they are
highly satisfied
[4] Many people felt that Joy Alukkass Advertisements does not have much impact in
their mind.
[5] Apart from Joy Alukkas, most other Shops do not have enough parking facility in
their regular outlet.
[6] Unique design, Reasonable cost, Good customer service, Exchange facility &
Purity are the major expectations of buyers from their ideal Jewelry shop.

[7] Female buyers are very much loyal towards their regular shops due to long
association.
[8] Joy Alukkas, Tanishq & GRT are preferred more by Teenagers, while Kumaran
Gold Palace; Saravana Gold Palace & Khazhana are preferred by middle aged as
well as Senior Citizens.

[4] Idea Cellular Services Dipstick Study:

Research methodology
The research had been taken in two methods; they are Questionnaire & Voxpop method. 100 samples were taken for research. The research mainly focuses on
youth as well as adults. To make the report lively we have attached voice recordings
with this report.
Findings
[1] Current service providers satisfy the customers by the following ways.

Network coverage

Affordable tariff for STD & local calls

Often introducing offers

GPRS & mobile office

*M-check

Huge availability of booster packs & rate cutter cards

Free SMS service

Multi-collection of caller tunes

Low charges for landline

The facilities of an ADD-ON(friends & family plan)

M-check: Through GPRS we can recharge our account, the amount will be taken
from our bank account. This service is available only on Airtel.

[2] Current service providers dissatisfy the customers by the following ways.

Irritate by cross-talking

Less concentration on customers problems

No proper coverage in coastal areas

Charging for SMS

Increased rates for ADD-ON (friends & family plan)

GPRS service is not up to the customers expectations.

Low speed internet facilities

High charges for internet facilities

[3] According to survey out of 100 sample size 36 were willing to shift their network &
64 were not eager to shift their network.

The expectations of customers

More concentration on GPRS & internet services (especially providing high

speed internet).
Introduce new value added services.
Provide free SMS service.
Come up with new market strategy.
Charge minimum amount for caller tunes.

[5] SABOLS MARKET SURVEY REPORT

Brand

Sabols packaged water.

Objective
To gain understanding on brand recall and consumer reaction to the brand.
Methodology
Unstructured vox pop method used. Sample size of 70 people was selected. It
includes both sex with the age group of 25-45. Apart from this 30 shops was
surveyed.
Market surveyed

Egmore

Central railway station

Thambaram

Velachery

Adyar

Guindy.

Findings
[1] Out of 70 people, interviewed 40 people were not aware of the brand name
Sabols.

Particulars
Brand awareness
Percentage

Aware

Not aware

30

40

43%

57%

[2] Out of 30 outlets, checked 16 had Sabols.

Particulars
Sabols Availability
Percentage

Available

Not Available

14

16

47%

53%

[3] Out of 70 people interviewed, 48 people felt that there is no difference in Sabols
while comparing with other existing brands.
Particulars

Yes

No

Felt difference in Sabols

Percentage

22

48

31%

69%

[4] Out of 70 people interviewed, 33 people felt that the pack is not attractive.
Particulars

Attractive

Not Attractive

Pack design

37

33

Percentage

53%

47%

[5] Out of 30 outlets surveyed, all are felt that customers either ask for mineral water
or if they ask for branded one only following brands are in their mind.

Aquafina

Bislery

[6]Reynolds Dip Stick Market Survey Report:

Brand

: Reynolds

Date

: 31/10/08

Objective:
The purpose of the study was to gain an understanding about retailers reaction
towards the brand.

Research Methodology:
Unstructured vox-pop method used; Selected sample - 30 retailers
The question asked was If you could stock only one brand; which brand would it be?
Why?

Market surveyed:
1) Adyar
2) Royapuram
3) T.Nagar
4) Thamparam
5) Guindy
6) Velachery
7) Mylapore

Findings:

Given the imaginary simulation that the retailer could stock only one brand, only 11
out of 30 retailers preferred Reynolds. Amongst the other brands they preferred, the
choice was predominantly Cello

Particulars

Preferred

Do not prefer

Preference level

11

19

Percentage

37%

63%

1. Reasons why retailers would stock Reynolds

It has more loyal customers.

Brand equity leads to higher preference.
2. Reasons why retailers would not stock Reynolds
Low margin to retailers.
Pricing strategy does not cover all the customers.
3. Suggestions from retailers to the brand owners of Reynolds
1) Increase retailers Margin
2) More attractive designs needed
3) Refills must be designed in such a way that it would fit all products
4) Employ more promotional activities to increase sales

[7]Meera coconut oil Dipstick Survey Report

Brand

Meera Coconut Oil

Date

17/11/08

Objective
The purpose of the study was to gain the Retailers reaction towards the brand.

Methodology

Sample size of the Retailers was Fifty.

Sample was a mix of Super Markets & Provision shops.

Direct interview method was used.

Market surveyed
1. Adyar
2. Ambathur
3. Anna nagar
4. Ashok nagar
5. Besant nagar
6. Porur
7. Triplicane
8. Vadapalani
9. Velachery
10. Vysarpadi

Findings

[1] Out of 50 retail shops surveyed, Meera coconut oil was available in 36 shops; it
was not available in the remaining 14 shops

[2] Out of the 14 shops (where Meera coconut oil is not available) 6 shops said that
the company had not approached them with the product [supply not made] and 8
shops said that customers do not prefer this brand over their current brand.

[3] Among those who stocked the brand, 31 said that Meera brand loyalists are
buying the coconut oil, 4 said that customers buy because of quality and 1 person
felt that brand sales was because it was a new entrant [curiosity factor]

[4] When asked which brand was the most preferred, 2 retailers named Meera; 6
named VVD & 42 named Parachute

[5] On probing, retailers opined that Parachute is the highly preferred brand because
of the following reasons Early market entry [37], Brand Loyalty [8], Quality [3] &
Effective Advertising [2]

[6] Out of 50 retailers, 44 preferred Parachute, 4 preferred VVD and others preferred
Meera, while we gave them an imaginary situation, what if only a single brand could
be stored in your shop?

Suggestions from retailers to the brand owners of Meera

1. Sales can be improved by doing in-shop promotional activities.

2. Increased awareness of customers (especially homemakers) will lead to better
sales
3. Creative advertisements can boost sales.
4. Brand Meera is popular among the people only as Shikakai powder. Even
loyal customers are not aware of Meera coconut oil. So there is a need for
more Advertising
5. Maintaining a good relationship with Distributors / Dealers will help increase
sales

Market Visit Report-I

Date

13.12.08

Market / Location

Chennai, Adyar

Segment

Consumer Durables Outlets

Purpose of Market Visit

To gather information on the schemes that various Outlets / Brands have planned for
New Year / Pongal Festive Season
Sl.no

Outlet

Info gathered

comments

Next action

Fomra & co

They have planned to

offer price discount &
warranty extension

They did not

announce any
offer for this year
Diwali festival

Plan to visit
on 26/12/08

Shahs

They have planned to

offer free gifts from
20/12/08

---

Plan to visit
on 22/12/08

Jainsons

Offers will be announced

on 25/12/08

---

Plan to visit
on 28/12/08

Viveks

They offered December

Dhamaka on 13th &
14th. It includes 1 year
extended warranty,
Exchange offer & free
gifts.

Ad has been
released on Dec
13th but Sales men
are not aware of
the December
Dhamaka offer
details
---

---

Vasanth &
co,

Offers will be announced

on 22/12/08

Samsung
exclusive
outlet,

Offers will be announced

on 24/12/08

They have lots of

stocks in their
Outlet

Plan to visit
on 26/12/08

Alankar
Electronics,

They have planned to

offer gifts from 25/12/08

---

Plan to visit
on 26/12/08

MARKET VISIT REPORT-II

Date:

17.12.08

Plan to visit
on 24/12/08

Market / Location

Chennai, Annanagar

Segment

Consumer Durables Outlets

Purpose of Market Visit

To gather information on the schemes that various Outlets / Brands have planned for
New Year / Pongal Festive Season
Sl.no

Outlet

Info gathered

Comments

Viveks

Special offers will be

announced on
28/12/08

They achieved higher sales

during December
Dhamaka [13& 14th of Dec]

No special offers for

festive season

I observed excellent
customer service. They are
planning to give Travel
bags, Containers & Kitchen
Bowls

They are offering

price discounts for
all products.

I came across Philips PoP

material announcing
discounts in the outlet.

Chandrika
[Sony &
Canon
Authorized
Dealers]

Canon is offering
2Gb memory card
for festive season.

Canon was suggested by

sales man. I observed the
sales team informing
customers that Canon has
better features than Sony.
Only Canon leaflets were
issued to the customers.

Jayam & Co

Offers will be
announced after
25/12/08

They are focusing more on

Samsung than any other
brands.

Shahs

Price discounts
offered

Very good customer

response

Next

Jainsons

MARKET VISIT REPORT- III

Date:

19.12.08

Market / Location

Chennai, Purasaivaakam

Segment

Consumer Durables Outlets

Next action

---

---

---

---

Plan to visit on
27/12/08
---

Purpose of Market Visit

To gather information on the schemes that various Outlets / Brands have planned for
New Year / Pongal Festive Season
Sl.no outlet

Info gathered

Comments on
outlet

Comments on
salesmen

Vasanth&Co

Godrej provides
free insulation offer
for all models of Air
conditioners

I observed that the

showroom was not
clean & products
were not displayed
properly.

I observed that Sales

men were performing
well. They were
friendly & informative

Jainsons

They are offering

free Stabilizer
along with split
type Airconditioner

Despite being a
temporary outlet
the Products were
displayed neatly

I observed that Sales

men are informative
but not friendly to the
customers.

Viveks

Offers will be
announced on
28/12/08

About 70% of the

outlet was
occupied by
Televisions.

I observed
Performance of sales
men were not up to
the level.

Fomra & Co

Price was lower

than other outlets

Sathya

Free DTH with

selected models of
LCD televisions. All
products are
available at Lower
price.

--More products
were stuffed in the
Showroom

Sales men were not

responsive to
customers.
Extraordinary
performance by
salesmen. They were
Friendly, Hospitable &
Informative

MARKET VISIT REPORT- IV

Date:

12.12.08

Market / Location

Chennai, T.Nagar

Segment

Consumer Durables Outlets

Purpose of Market Visit

To gather intelligence on the schemes that various Outlets / Brands have planned for
New Year / Pongal Festive Season

Outlet

Info gathered

Comments

LG Exclusive
Showroom

Warranty extension
of 3 years& 5-10 %
price discount.

I got the feeling that

we need to bargain
hard to get a good
deal

NEXT

Offering special
gifts & price
discounts

Salesmen are not

hospitable.

Next Action

--

--

Vasanth & Co

Offers will be
announced on
22/12/08

Friendly salesmen.

Plan to visit
again on
23/12/08

Viveks

New year offer

starts from 25/12/08

Sales men were not

informative.

Plan to visit on
26/12/08

Shahs

New year offer

starts from 25/12/08

There were no
customers.

Plan to visit on
26/12/08

Saravana
stores

Offers will be
announced next
week.

Godrej offered non

stick Tawa with
Refrigerator,
Samsung offered
price discount &
warranty extension
for Diwali festival

Plan to visit on
26/12/08

MARKET VISIT REPORT- V

Date

07/01/09

Brand

SONY

Market / Location

Chennai, T.Nagar

Segment

Consumer Durable Outlets

Objective:

To gauge salesmens opinion on brand Sony.

To check how salesmen handle the brand while selling.

Visited outlets

Vasanth & co

Viveks

Shahs

Next

Rathna stores (Firm)

Findings:

Salesmens opinions as follows,

Sony has high picture clarity & high tech digital audio features.

Its a reliable brand.

Its positioned as an aspirational brand in customers mind because of its

quality.

It has unique features like Bluetooth in selected models.

Quality wise it has no competitors.

Sony products are usually preferred by upper middle class & high class.

Sony is a fast moving brand.

Customers expect attractive offers during festive season.

Sony is a durable product.

Other findings:

Few Sales men are insisting that price of Sony products are higher than its
quality.

Very few sales men are suggesting people that better you go for Samsung or
LG with the same features but with lower price.

Sony is a highly recommended brand by salesmen in most outlets.

There is a remarkable price variation among the outlets in the same location.

Rathna Stores firm offers Tata sky as freebie with all LCD TVs including Sony.

We couldnt able to find any standees represent Sony in Shahs.

Sales men in Viveks were not aware of features of Sony.

Suggestions from sales men & customers :

Attractive designs sell more, so create more attractive designs

Special gifts can be offered to attract customers.

Sony should concentrate more on its after sales service.

LIMITATONS OF THE STUDY

1) Time and Finance were major constraints.

2) It was difficult to get the appointment of the clients, to know more of the
services offered by the Ad Agency.
3) Many of their proposals and techniques used by the Ad Agency were kept
confidential.

CONCLUSION

The results and findings of this research studies clearly exemplifies the fact that
an in depth research study has been conducted and all the objectives set for each
research work has been fully accomplished.
360 analysis has been conducted in order to brand lead generations of various
clients. This report shows that how far the given market studies are informative and
leads to direct implication. Various suggestions and recommendations given in each

market study

have also been put forth in marketing strategy framing of our Ad

Agency as well as various clients.

Thus all the major objectives of this research study had been well analysed
and accomplished in detail in this research report.

ADDENDUM-1
INDIAN AUTOMOBILES CUSTOMER SATISFACTION STUDYQUESTIONNAIRE
SERVICE SECTOR
Have you come for free service or Paid service?

free service

paid

service
(Note: if you tick free service go to Q.1, if not go to Q.2)
Q.1. After Free service is over, will you prefer service station for further
service?
Yes

No

if yes, I would return for the paid

service because

if No, I will not return for the paid

service because

True

True

False

False

a. Quality of service is good.

a. High cost

b. It is close to my Resident &

Office.

b. Authorized dealers requires

more time
for the after
service

c. Any other
reasons__________________
c. I prefer my personal mechanic
___________________________________ because I know him for many
years
d. I can have a better control over
my local mechanic
e. Transparency of service
f. This service station is far from
my home & resident
g. I cant go for used parts in my
service station
h. Interaction is not possible
with your service station mechanic
i. I feel Service station may book
unnecessary expenses
j. Any other
reasons__________________
___________________________________
Q.2
I have been patronizing this service station because

True
False
a. They take good care of my vehicle
b. They are reliable
c. The cost is reasonable
d. I enjoy cordial relationship with service station
e. I get timely service
f. Any other
reasons_______________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

INDIAN AUTOMOBILES CUSTOMER SATISFACTION STUDYQUESTIONNAIRE

SALES
Are you an existing customer or new customer?
If Existing customer please fill this

If New customer please fill this

1. Why do you prefer Indian

Automobile than other outlets?
Close to my resident & office
Quality of service
Good behavior
High customer satisfaction
Others
(if others please
specify)_______________

1. How did you get to know about

Indian Automobiles?
by friends
by Advertisements
by other sources
(if others please
specify)_______________

2. Have you serviced your vehicle

in Indian Automobiles?
Yes
No

No
a. Friendly
b. Informative

3. Kindly rate Indian Automobiles

approach
in sales
in service
a. Excellent
b. Good
c. Have to improve
d. Poor

3. Is your desired two wheeler

model & color available here?
Yes
No

4. Have you recommended your

friends to Indian Automobiles?
Yes
No

2. Quality of sales person is

Yes

4. Will you recommend your

friends to Indian Automobiles?
Yes
No
Kindly suggest an idea to improve
our service to
you_______________________
_____________________________

5. Will you prefer Indian

Automobiles for further purchase?
Yes
No
Kindly suggest an idea to improve
our service to
you_______________________

ADDENDUM-2

Home Appliances Dipstick study-Questionnaire

Please imagine that you have just started your life in a new city. You are
building a new home & have planned to fill it up with home appliances. For
each of the requirement printed below, please state which brand you would
choose & why. You may fill up the entries on the assumption that money is
not a constraint. [So, you may mention your ideal choice]
Home Appliance Your ideal Brand
Why?
TV
Audio System
Fridge
Washing
Machine
Vacuum Cleaner
Iron Box
Water Heater
Air Conditioner
Mixer
Grinder
Water Purifier
Mobile Phone
Furniture
Inverter
Camera
Microwave Oven
Cooker
Ceiling / Table
Fan

Personal Details
Name__________________________________ Age_______
Female

Sex: Male

Qualification __________________
Occupation____________________________________
Monthly Household Income
15,000 to 20,000

Below Rs.10,000 10,000 to 15,000

20,000 to 25,000 25,000 to 30,000 Above 30,000

Favorite TV Channel / Favorite TV Program
_______________________________________
Favorite Newspaper___________________ Favorite Magazine
________________________
Favorite Film Star
____________________Hobby________________________________

ADDENDUM-4
Customer Dipstick Survey-Questionnaire
[1] Where do you buy your Jewels from? __________________________

Why?

Quality/Purity of Gold Due to Long association near my house Best rate/bargain

Good Service Good Chits scheme Good Exchange offers Special offers Brand
Any other ________________________________________________________
[2] According to you which is the best Jewellery shop in Chennai? _____________________ Why?
Quality/Purity of Gold Trusted Source Well known Brand Best deals
Any other _________________________________________________________________
[3] Have you visited Joy Alukkas?

Yes No

If yes kindly rate your satisfaction level in a scale of 5

1Excellent

2Very Good

3Good

4Okay

5Poor

[4] Have you seen any advertisements of Joy Alukkas? Yes No

4a. Did you understand the Ad? Yes No

4b. Did you like the Ad? Yes No

[5] Does your favourite Jewellery Shop have enough parking facility?

Yes No

[6] What are the three main expectations from your ideal Jewellery shop?
[a] _____________________________________________________________
[b] ______________________________________________________________
[c] _____________________________________________________________
Name of Respondent _____________________ Male Female Age ________
Qualification __________ Occupation ___________________ Residential Locality ______________
Monthly Household Income: Less than 25,000 pm 25,000 50,000 pm Above 50,000 pm

ADDENDUM-6
QUESTIONNAIRE

!dea cellular is coming to Chennai next month

[1] Will you shift from your present service provider to idea?
Yes

No

[1.a] if yes, why?

__________________________________________________________________________
[1.b] if no, why?
__________________________________________________________________________
[2] Tell us 2 things that you are happy about with your current service
provider
(a)
_____________________________________________________________________
(b)
_____________________________________________________________________
[3] Tell us 2 things that you are unhappy about with your current service
provider
(a)
______________________________________________________________________
(b)
______________________________________________________________________

ADDENDUM-7
Questionnaire Retailers

[1] Do you stock Meera Coconut oil?

Yes

No

[1a] If no, why not? ________________________________________________

[1b] If yes, Why do you think customers prefer Meera coconut oil?
Brand loyalty
Quality

Any other reasons (please specify) _______________________________________

[2] Which is the most preferred brand among the customers in coconut oil
segment? _______________________________________
Why is it preferred most? _____________________________________________
[3] If you can stock only one brand of coconut oil, which one would it be?
______________________________
Why? ___________________________________________________________________
[4] Please give 3 suggestions to improve sales of Meera Coconut oil
1) _____________________________________________________________________
2) _____________________________________________________________________
3) _____________________________________________________________________

Bibliography

Websites

www.afaqs.com

www.livemint.com

www.cmmindia.com

www.karnatakatourism.org.

www.mouthshut.com

Journals

AdAge Article 'Why Digital Marketing Needs a Reboot' by David Armano

Wall Street Journal - Creativity in tradigital times

Magazines

Brand reporter

4Ps Business & Marketing

Campaign India

Pitch

Impact

Newspapers

Business line

Economic Times

Books

Philip kotler , Market Research, New York , Wellington Press, 1999.

Kothari, C.R., Research Methodology, New Delhi, New Age International

Publishers, 2005