A

SUMMER TRAINING REPORT

AT
MARKETING STRATEGIE OF
NOKIA
SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT
OF BACHELOR OF BUSINESS
ADMINISTRATION PROGRAMME
2010-11

SUBMITTED TO
Mr. Abhishek Saxena

SUBMITTED BY
Mohd. Fahad Khan
(BBA.. IV t h Sem.)
Roll No.

No portion of the work referred to in the

dissertation has been submitted in support of an
application of another degree or qualification of
this or any other university or other institution of
learning.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Writing a dissertation is always the most challenging part of
a students life. It was definitely the most important academic
contribution by me. This however would not have been possible
without the encouragement and of a few people. Here I take this
opportunity to display my gratitude towards them,
First and foremost, I would like to thank my professor, Mr.
DEVENDRA SINGH (Project guide) for being a source of support
and encouragement, guidance and persistent help. Thank you
maam for your time, support and patience. My Sincere thanks to
both academic and non-academic staff of the Nottingham
University Business School, for all their assistance.
I would like to thank my parents for love and support
bestowed on me. Thank you for your blessings. Also I would like
to thank my friends for staying by me during the difficult parts of
life. Thanks for help and love irrespective of the situations. I
would also like to thank all my respondents for taking out time
from their busy lives to help me with my research.
Last but not the least, I would like to thank God for all.
Thank You!!
ASHISH KUMAR DIXIT

ABSTRACT
This research studies the marketing strategies of Nokia, a
high technology company in a developing country India. The
study attempts to check the role of marketing activities in
success of Nokia in India. After studying the past of the company
and the history of Indian mobile industry, Nokias marketing
strategies are examined through secondary resources.
Then to check the effect on the consumers, semi-structured
interviews of a few mobile phone dealers in India are taken. Here,
interviews as a tool of qualitative research is adopted to create a
deep understanding of the customers perceptions. To get a
generalized view, mobile phone dealers are interviewed as they
deal with many consumers and can give the opinion of the
market as a whole.
The findings advised that consumers preferred Nokia over all
other brands due to features of the phone. Features such as user
friendliness, rough and tough body, long life etc were believed to
be the reasons of success. Though the marketing strategies have
been aggressive, they were not the reasons for high market share
of the company.

INDEX
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
ABSTRACT
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Introduction and Objectives of Research
1.2 Outline of Chapters
5. MARKETING STRATEGY
5.1 Introduction
5.2 Product
2. LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Country of Origin effect
2.3 Culture
2.4 Internationalization and Globalization theories
2.4.1 Uppsala Model
2.4.2 Eclectic Paradigm and TCA
2.4.3 Interactive Network Approach
2.4.4 Business Strategy Approach
2.5 Pricing and Distribution

2.5.1 Pricing
2.5.2 Distribution
3. PROMOTORS
3.1 Mobile phone industry in India
3.2 About Nokia
3.3 Nokia in India
3.4 SWOT Analysis
4. METHODOLOGY
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Qualitative Research Methods
4.3 Quantitative Research Methods
4.4 A Qualitative approach
4.5 Data Collection
4.6 Interviews
4.7 Summary

1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Introduction and Objectives
Day by day, mobile phones are turning into more of
necessity then a luxury. The benefits of the mobile phone are far
too many. Ease of communication, the anywhere, anytime
contact - with friends, relations, colleagues and in theory at least
the efficiency brought to busy lives (Web 21). Nokias growth in
India has been substantial. They have led the market with 70%
share for long time now. What is interesting is that there is further
scope of improvement in sales. It is a high technology market and
India being developing

country, will see more and more

subscribers to this technology in the future. As noted by, OlliPekka Kallasvuo, the president and chief executive of Finnish
telecom giant Nokia India is now Nokia's second-largest market,
displacing the U.S. and behind only China (Web 22).
This research aims at studying the strategies applied by
Nokia in India, and analyzing the effects of these strategies on
the sales of the company. For this purpose, secondary data in
form of case studies and news articles have been used to gather
the information about the marketing strategies that were applied
by Nokia in India. Then dealers on Nokia in different parts of India
were interviewed with semi-structured interviews to check the
impact of these strategies. The objective was to study the main
reasons of success of the market leader Nokia, and also to study

the drawbacks of the company. It was intended to study the areas

where there was scope of improvement and note down some
recommendations.

1.2 Outline of the Chapters

Here, a very brief synopsis of the chapters that follow in the
study is given.
Chapter two Literature Review, summarizes all the past
researches that have been conducted in the field of international
marketing. The main topics discussed here are Country of origin
effect,

impact

of

culture

in

international

marketing,

Internationalization and Globalization theories and Pricing and

Distribution in international markets.
Chapter three Industry analysis, to begin with this
chapters deals with the analysis of mobile phone industry in India.
Then, history of Nokia is studies. When did the company start,
how changes occurred resulting Nokia venturing into mobile
phone business. Finally history of Nokia in India is conferred.
Chapter

four

Methodology,

talks

about

the

methodology used in the research to collect data. First all the

available methodologies are discussed and then the best suited
one is selected. The important terms used in this chapter are
Primary data, Secondary data, Quantitative research methods,
Qualitative research methods and semi structured interviews.
Chapter five Marketing strategy, points out the
marketing strategies applied by Nokia in India since the time of
foundation in the country. The data here is secondary and thus is

collected with the help of case studies and news articles. Here the
strategies are discussed on the basis simple concept of 4 Ps.

Chapter

six

Analysis,

deals

with

discussing

and

analyzing the research results to conclude the objectives of the

study. Here, the interviews taken are scrutinized and conclusive
lines are drawn.
Chapter seven Conclusion, concludes the study with
fulfilling of the objective. It further offer recommendations to the
company for future planning. Last but not the least, it discussed
the drawbacks of the study and offers suggestions for further
researches.

2. LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Introduction
Reviewing the literature on a topic can provide an
academically enriching experience but only if it is done properly.
Hart (1998)
According to Hart, Literature review is of prime importance
to the research. To achieve this, review should be regarded as a
process

of

fundamental

to

any

worthwhile

research

or

development work in any subject irrespective of discipline. It is

the responsibility of the research student to find out what already
exists in the area in which research is intended to be done before
doing the research itself. The researcher will define framework of
his work with the help of ideas and work of others.
As Burger says, A literature review summarizes the major
findings of scholars and researchers who have conducted
research in the area you are interested in investigating. The
literature review for this research will have its prime stress on
theories of globalization, effects of culture on marketing of a
product internationally, COO effect, comparison of Global and
Glocal

strategies,

pricing

and

distribution

strategies

for

international firms strategy for International brands. Here the

attempt is to make a note of what has been written in context of
international marketing strategies of brands.

Instead of being specific, the review here is of more of

international marketing as whole instead of specifically on Nokia.
What is noteworthy is Nokia forms a part of the upcoming
electronics industry and has an important role to play in the
developing markets of countries such as India.
2.2 Country of Origin (COO) Effect
As Piron says, in developing a corporate imagery of a
product, the importance of various marketing mix variables (e.g.
product appearance, brand name, price) is firmly established, as
well as that of the imagery elicited by a products COO. Hence
now we need to define the COO effect. In words of Mort & Duncan
(2000), COO effects can be summarized as the effects generated
by a products perceived geographic origin on the part of the
customer and how it affects the latters purchasing patterns.
Its a tendency of consumers to generalize their attitudes
and opinions across products from a given country, The basis of
this generalization is products familiarity and background with the
country, and their own personal experiences of product attributes
such as technological superiority, product quality, design,
value for money, status and esteem, and credibility of
country-of-origin of a brand (Kinra, 2006).
Systematic research for COO effect began in 1965 with
Schoolers article Product bias in central American common
market. It was considered to communicated by the phrase,

Made in (name of country) in 1980s, as noted by Bilkey and Nes

(1982). Influence of COO on the product quality perception was
indicated by both empirical observations and experiments in their
research. As the research continued in the field, new perspective
developed new concepts. As Johansson et. al.(1985) believed,
COO has been defined as the country where the corporate
headquarters of the company marketing the product or brand is
situated.

Chao

(1998),

stressed

on

examining

the

multidimensional constructs of the country concept and how they

impact consumer evaluations of product and design qualities.
Specifically, country-of-assembly, country-of-design, and partssource country are incorporated into the research design. The
reason for division of country of origin into country-of-assembly,
country-of-design, and parts-source country is basically the trends
country-of-assembly and country-of-parts only affect the product
quality perception and country-of-design only affects the design
quality

perception.

The

result

was

noteworthy

for

the

manufacturers and marketers of hybrid products. This was of

particular importance when outsourcing of different aspects the
production process were to be considered.
Thakor and Lavack (2003), believed that perceived origin
associations are a powerful source of brand appeal. This can be
noted as marketers have focused on origin associations in many
product categories in the advertisements of their products. The
examples for this are, Porsche ads often show a German test
track, this is to reinforce its German origin; Christian Dior uses the

French word, Parfum, in its advertising to reinforce its French

origin association. Brand has been considered as a

purely extrinsic variable in COO effects and consumer

perceptions of origin have been manipulated almost through
made in label information (Mohamad et. al., 2000) (Sankar,
2006).
According to research works, COO image plays an important
role in consumers evaluation of foreign products and brands. It is
also noted that product attributes such as product quality have
favorable perception, if country perceptions are favorable. This
indicates that consumer evaluations are governed by influences
other than the quality of the product (Peterson and Jolibert, 1995)
Noticeable increase has been seen in outsourcing as a result
of firms continued pursue for global market expansion strategies.
This does not remain limited to taking advantage of lower labor
wage rates prevailing in many developing countries, but major
design and engineering tasks have also been outsourced to
manufacture component parts, they have also increasingly
outsourced by either enlisting the services of professional talents
in collaborating foreign partner firms or establishing design
centers overseas. Multinational production operations got very
complex due to these activities and it has also led to tension in
domestic workplace. Most of the products available today are of
hybrid variety, and hence no one firm in a single country can
claim

to

be

the

sole

manufacturer

of

these

products.

Consequently, the traditional notion in COO literature, that

assumes that product can be associated with one country, seems

to be lost (Chao 1998).
Common sense has it that the stronger a countrys national
image, the more useful is it likely to be as a marketing tool in that
it may then be used more extensively in the export promotion of
products originating from that country (Niss, 1996). In his
research, Niss noticed that most of the industrial

Exporters represented in the survey choose either to play

down their nationality or disguise themselves behind a local or
global image. This did not come as a surprise, as in general
Denmarks image was considered very weak and one-sided, and
hence was not considered to use it as a prominent marketing tool
for Danish products abroad.
It has also been noted that the consumer tends to
sometimes substitute other informational cues such as products
brand

name

as

substitute

to

country

information

not

considering where the product, in reality, is made. Here we can

look at the example of a Sony walkman being perceived to be
Japanese whereas it may have been assembled in Malaysia.
However, it is noticeable that a heightened consumer global
awareness and sensitivity to the mounting prevalence of hybrid
products in the marketplace may help to diminish this perception
(Chao 1998).
However, as Anime et. al.(2005) noted, on the basis of a
meta-analysis of COO research, Verlegh and Steenkamp (1999, p.
521) conclude rather pessimistically that [d]espite a large body
of research, [COO] effects are still poorly understood.
2.3 Culture
It is a universally accepted fact that, Management is the art
of getting things done through (other) people. Here the stress is
on work to be done and effort of others. Hence, the pre-requisite

for it to happen is that one knows both work to be done and the
people through which it has to be done. To understand people it is
very important to understand their back ground, so that, present
and future

behavior can be predicted. Their background can be

determined by having knowledge of the culture they belong to.
(Hofstede, 1994)
According to Usunier (2000), the abstract sense of culture
probably originated from Germany where the word Kultur was
used to refer to civilization in the eighteenth century. However, as
Kale

(1991)

noted,

defining

culture

concisely

presents

unanticipated difficulties as the literature contains a multitude of

definitions.

Kroeber

and

Kluckhohn

(1952)

gathered

164

definitions of culture. Even then they added one definition of their

own. Conceivably, the most popular definition is the one
suggested by Linton (1945). He says, A culture is a configuration
of learned behaviors and results of behavior whose component
parts are shared and transmitted by the members of a particular
society.
Operating marketing communications is one of the greatest
challenges for an international marketer. And according to a large
body of literature, significant cultural differences across countries
are believed to be root of most problems in international
marketing communications or promotions. It is in the area of
cross-cultural communications that most blunders in international
marketing occur (Kale, 1991). Hence, the study of culture is
considered

very

internationally.

important

for

marketing

product

Culture consists of a series of response to recurring

situations. These responses are a consequence of collective
mental programming and all aspects of marketing transactions
are affected by it. As Kale (1991) noted, Duesenberry in 1949
observed that all of the activities people engage in are

culturally determined. Also that almost all purchases made

were either to satisfy some physical need or to apply the actions
that make up the life of a culture. He also notes that culture has a
multi-faceted and ubiquitous effect on marketing. Culture has a
strong impact on peoples tastes, color preference, attitude
towards product classes. However, cultures impact is the
maximum in how the information is received, stored, retrieved
and employed for decision making. This clearly indicates to the
importance

of

culture

while

making

decisions

regarding

marketing activities.
Culture

may

be

reflected

in

general

tendencies

of

persistent preference for particular states of affairs over others,

persistent preferences for specific social processes over others,
and general rules for selective attention, interpretation of
environmental cues, and responses. It is generally known that
culture may provide detailed prescriptions (norms) for specific
classes of situations while leaving other domains relatively
unregulated. (Tse et al 1998)
Hofstede (1994) identified five dimensions of national
culture, namely Appendix 1);
1. Power Distance This is defined by the degree to which
the less powerful people of the organization or institution accept
and expect the power to be distributed unequally. The more the
power distance, the more is inequality. However it is defined from

below (less powerful members) and not from above (more

powerful members). It is a sign that inequality in the society has
been approved by the leaders as well as followers. This is
important as power and inequality are particularly fundamental.
2. Individualism versus Collectivism This is the degree
to which individuals are integrated into groups. The individualist
societies are the ones where ties between individuals are loose. It
is expected that everyone will look after himself/herself and their
immediate family. Whereas in the collectivist societies, people are
integrated into strong, unified in-groups, usually extended
families (with uncles, aunts and grandparents) from birth. These
groups continue

protecting

these people in

exchange for

unquestioning loyalty. This difference by noted to be high

amongst the countries and hence is of extreme significance.
3. Masculinity versus Feminity This is determined by
the degree of distribution of roles between the sexes in the
society. It has been noted that mens value across countries are
from very assertive and competitive as well as very different from
women to modest and caring and very similar to women. Also
mens values differ more among societies in comparison to
womens. Name given to assertive pole is masculine and the
modest and caring one is called feminine. Though the women
are not as caring and modest in masculine countries as they are
in feminine but the degree of difference is less than men.

4. Uncertainty Avoidance It refers to societys tolerance

for uncertainty and ambiguity. This tells us how much the
members of society feel either uncomfortable or comfortable in
unstructured situations. These situations are novel, unknown,
surprising and different from usual. In cultures that avoid
uncertainty, there is an attempt to minimize the possibility of
such situations by strict laws and rules, safety and security
measures. These people tend to be more emotional and
motivated by inner nervous energy. It is exactly the opposite in
uncertainty accepting countries.
5. Long term versus Short term Orientation Thrift and
perseverance are the values of long term orientation, whereas
values associated with short term orientation are respect for
tradition, fulfilling social obligations, and protecting ones face. It
was

originally

called

Confucian

dynamism;

however,

the

dimension also applies to countries without a Confucian heritage.

Due to similarities, mostly the comparison is of Eastern
countries versus the Western countries. As cited by Hofstede
(1994),

the

basic

difference

between

Eastern

thinking

(represented by, for example Confucianism, Buddhism, and

Hinduism) and Western thinking (dominant in the JudaeoChristian-Muslim intellectual tradition) is that in the East, a
qualification does not exclude its opposite, which is an essential
element of Western logic (Kapp, 1983). However, Tse et al (1998),
noted that studies using Singaporean subjects found that

traditional Chinese values were fading slowly because of Western

influences. This means that slowly the cultural differences are
reducing as less importance is being given to it. This thought,
however, is not supported by most.
2.4 Internationalisation and Globalisation theories
Even though the concept of globalization has been around
for long, it was only in early 1980s that it became a topic of
serious discussion among academics. Since then, the term has
become a ubiquitous and potent symbol of the age. Nevertheless,
the exact meaning and significance of globalization has been and
remains an intensely debatable topic across the academic
community, and beyond. In fact in Jessops (1999) view, the
definitions of globalization in literature remains chaotic. It is
believed, that the reason for this probably is that globalization is
studied

Independently from a number of disciplinary perspectives,

each with its own disciplinary filter (Clark & Knowles, 2003).
Vignali (2001), defined Globalization the best, Globalisation
involves developing marketing strategies as though the world is a
single entity, marketing standardized products in the same way
everywhere.
The internationalization theories concentrate on decision to
internationalize or deciding on which market to enter and how to
enter. Different approaches have been taken by different authors
to solve this problem of internationalization. Though all the
theories, to some extent depend on existence of market
information to inform internationalization decisions. As Whitelock
(2002)

documented,

there

are

four

major

theories

of

internationalization, namely;
The Uppsala Model of internationalization
The eclectic paradigm and transaction cost analysis
The interactive network approach of international marketing
and purchasing group
The business strategy approach
2.4.1
Johanson

The
and

Uppsala
Vahlne

in

Model
1977

of

Internationalization:

developed

model

of

internationalization process of the firm on the basis of empirical

research.

The

model

focused

on

the

gradual

acquisition,

integration and use of knowledge about foreign markets and

operations, and on the incrementally increasing commitments to
foreign markets. The focus of the model is particularly on the
increasing involvement in the individual foreign country. Here the
concept of psychic difference was considered important, as it was
believed that firms expand first

into market which are psychically close, and in to more

distant markets as they gain more experiential knowledge. This
was considered critical as it can be gained only through personal
experience and not taught as other objective knowledge in
international marketing. The model gained particular support in
the early stages of international involvement. However in 1990,
Johanson and Vahlne suggested three exceptions to their model
as a response to increased market knowledge. These exceptions
were when firms have large resources they may be expected to
make larger internationalization steps; when market conditions
are stable and homogeneous market knowledge can be gained in
ways other than through experience; when the firm has
considerable experience from markets with similar conditions it
may be possible to generalize this experience to the specific
market.
2.4.2 The eclectic paradigm and transaction cost
analysis: The concept of the eclectic paradigm of international
production was first put forward by the Dunning in 1976 at a
presentation to a Nobel Symposium in Stockholm on The
International Allocation of Economic Activity (Dunning, 1998). As
Whitelock cited in Dunning (1998), the eclectic paradigm is set
out to explain the extent, form and pattern of international
production and is founded on the juxtaposition of ownershipspecific advantages of firms contemplating foreign production
the propensity to internalize the cross-border markets for these,

and attractions of a foreign market for the production. The entry

decisions hence are made in rational way, through transaction
cost analysis (TCA). TCA is considered particularly useful for
evaluating the vertical integration decisions. TCA approach is
based on the assumption that the markets are competitive hence
the performance of supplier is efficient. When the range of
suppliers is restricted, there is little threat of replacement and the
transaction costs are high.

These benefits of integration should however be compared

to the costs of integration (i.e cost of resource commitment).
According to Johanson and Vahlne (1990), eclectic paradigm has
high descriptive power for firms having experience from many
regions of the world.
2.4.3

The

interactive

network

approach

of

international marketing and purchasing group: In 1986,

Johanson and Mattsson noticed that both Uppsala model and
eclectic paradigm concentrate on firm or individual perspective of
market entry. The firm decides the entry method for specific
market abroad. They believed that both models ignore the
characteristics of the firm and market, which appear to be
important in industrial systems. In words of Turnbull (1986), the
chief limitation is the one-sided focus upon the activities of
manufacturer together with the intermediary in the flow of goods
and

services

to

the

customer.

Whereas,

definitions

of

industrialization system stress on developing and maintaining

lasting relationships. The four variable of integration defined are:
the element and process of interaction, characteristics of parties
involved, the atmosphere surrounding the interaction, and the
environment within which the interaction takes place (Whitelock,
2002). The interpretation of these variables helps the firm decide
on the market to enter and which customers to deliver. Hence,
there is a need to assess its own position in relation to the

customers and also the environment of market which is affected

by the other actors or competitors.
2.4.4 The business strategy approach: As Whitelock
(2002) cited in Welford and Prescott (1994) The business
strategy approach is based on the idea of pragmatism. Ried
(1983) believed that nature of market opportunity, firms
resources and managerial philosophy are the basis of deciding
expansion strategies which may in turn result in foreign
expansion. The factors which need to be

assessed in this approach for market selection are market

attractiveness, psychic distance and accessibility and informal
barriers. Whilst choice of organizational structure will depend on
these market characteristics in addition to company specific
factors as international trading history, size export orientation
and commitment. Also number of competitors is considered
important factor (Whitelock, 2002).
Global V Glocal
Levitt (1983) defines global brands as brands that use the
same marketing strategy and mix in all target markets. Johansson
and Ronkainen (2004) assert that global brands benefit from the
scale and scope of having presence in multiple markets. The
researchers define global brand as a brand that is marketed
under the same name in multiple countries with similar and
centrally coordinated marketing strategies. However there are
some selected global brands that dont have the same name but
share some marketing program elements. For example, Mr.
Clean also sells under the Mr. Proper and Maestro Limpio
names, among others. Although global brands play a dominant
role in todays world, the advantages of the local brands are still
stronger and this is reviewed in the following part.
Such strategies are implemented by man Multinationals.
These

are

known

as

the

Glocal

Strategies.

Whereas

Globalization monolithic sameness as a result of convergent

worldwide economic, financial and cultural flows, the coined word

Glocalization

at

the

very

least,

suggests

some

sort

of

accommodation. Globalization challenges notions of cultural

imperialism because the term suggests a negotiation process that
appears to start from inside out, i.e., a process that begins with
high regard

for the local. The term glocalization connotes a successive

development, as well as a challenge, to the top-down hegemony
implicit in term globalization (Maynard, 2003).
2.5 Pricing and Distribution
2.5.1 Pricing
According to Solberg et. al. (2006), until their research, the
literary topic of international pricing had not been completely
ignored by the scholars. However the studies published till then
stressed chiefly on the normative dimension of international
pricing. Hence, the emphasis had been laid on how pricing
decisions ought to be made (Cavusgil 1988, 1996; Walters 1989;
Weekly 1992). They say that though a few of these studies have
been based empirical evidence, the major drawback amongst
most of them had been that they have been less generalized.
Either

too

broad

and

examined

only

general

nature

of

international pricing; too specific, focusing on a specific countrys

exporter or focused on issues such as the impact of technology
on international pricing, pricing in emerging markets, the
development of gray markets, and the control of the pricing
mechanism under different environmental conditions.
International pricing decisions are inclined to be a function
of

the

relationship

between

the

external,

market-related

complexities that shape firm operations and the capabilities of

the firm to respond effectively to these contingencies.

The importance of international pricing is going to improve.

One of the reasons being dynamics that govern international
marketing activities are likely to accelerate rather than slow down
as a function

of faster technological progress, the proliferation of new

products and services, intensifying global competition, rapid
changes in the global legal environment, and the economic
uncertainty that these will generate. To maintain the firms
financial

prosperity

under

these

conditions,

better

understanding of the economic and competitive environment, the

development of more sophisticated pricing strategies, and the
effective execution of these will become more important (e.g.,
Monroe 2003; Myers, Cavusgil, and Diamantopoulos 2002).
Another reason being complexity, even though acts such as
internet,

regionalization

and

attempt

made

towards

price

harmonization should make international pricing easier, but

decision making in international pricing will remain complex
enterprise (Samiee and Anckar 1998).
Pricing acts as an essential function in the internationalizing
firms effort to be globally integrative yet locally responsive.
However the international pricing as a research topic as been
underdeveloped. The importance of role played by information in
international pricing decision is critical in nature. The vital reason
behind this is, when the business is conducted at international
level, it is utmost important to monitors wide array of influences
that can affect the pricing decision and vary across markets.
According to Nagle & Holden (1995), the degree of
importance attached to price of the product by the management
depends on the extent to which the firm seeks competitive

advantage by offering its customers a less-expensive product for

the value being delivered as compared to the rivals.

As noted by Solberg et. Al. (2006), Solbergs (1997)

framework includes two dimensions: industry globality and the
degree of the firms preparedness for internationalization. He
defines industry globality as a condition in which the actions of
the players that operate in world markets are affected by one
another to the extent that a relatively stable price level is created
across the markets in which they operate. Thus, prices vary as a
function

of

only

tariffs,

transport,

and

distribution

costs,

expenditures that are outside the control of the exporter for the
most part. In Solbergs framework, a global industry is epitomized
by a few, large, major competitors that rule their categories in
world markets within their product category. Thus, the degree of
globality along this dimension is considered to vary between two
extremes, a monopoly at one end and atomistic competition at
the other (Appendix 2).
The effectiveness of strategic pricing by the exporter is
dependent on his control over the decision making and the actual
outcome of pricing activities in its markets. The literature stresses
two facets that need to be considered in this context: the issue of
centralized versus decentralized pricing and the issue of control
within the distribution channel.
Solberg et. Al. (2006), also categorized firms into four
categories on the basis of low and high preparedness for
internationalization on the Y axis and Multilocal and Global
markets in which they operate in X axis. The categories were:

Prototype 1: The Local Price Follower Firm

Prototype 2: The Global Price Follower Firm

Prototype 3: The Multilocal Price Setter Firm

Prototype 4: The Global Price Leader Firm
2.5.2 Distribution
Once a corporation is well established in its market, it starts
looking for new international markets. In such cases chances are
that it forays into an emerging market and to limit its exposure
appoints a local distributor. In the beginning, sales take off,
revenues grow, and the entry is praised as a smart move. But
after a while, stagnation sets in and sales plateau. These
partnerships nearly always blow up in the end.
Much of the blame lies with the multinationals themselves.
What remains missing is the need to understand how their new
partners (local distributors) are different from the ones at home.
The other reason that can be noted is fault from the local
distributors. The managers of the corporation observe that the
major hindrance in the path of growth is that the local distributor
that got the company to a flying start has run out of ideas. Mostly
it is the management which finds faults in the work of distributor.
Some examples quoted by Arnold (2000) are:
"The distributor didn't know how to grow the market
"The distributors didn't invest in business growth
"The distributor just wasn't ambitious enough."

In both the cases the actual problem is difference in thinking

of the company and the distributor. Neither the multinational nor
the distributor invests sufficiently in strategic marketing or in

aggressive business development in these less developed

markets. To work together it is important to be unidirectional and
go hand in hand.
Arnold

(2000)

discusses

what

goes

wrong

and

why.

According to him, most multinationals stumble onto a stepwise

strategy for penetrating markets in emerging countries through a
series of unplanned actions to reinvigorate sales. As the pattern
recurs with entries into subsequent markets, this approach,
dubbed the "beachhead strategy," becomes official policy in
many organizations. Hence he laid seven rules of international
distribution.
1. Select distributors. Don't let them select you
Objective market assessment should lead to strategic decision of
entry into a new international market. However, Arnold (2000)
noted that it was not the case usually. His studies revealed that
companies moved into new market as reaction to proposals from
prospective distributors. In fact, the most eager potential
distributors may be precisely the wrong people to partner with.
So there is a need to find distributors, one should the market led
approach rather than distributor led.
2.

Look

for

distributors

capable

of

developing

markets, rather than those with a few obvious customer

contacts Multinationals long term goals should be kept in mind
and given prime importance while choosing the distributor and

deicing the terms of relationship. As Arnold (2000) noted, "The

most obvious distributor is not necessarily the best partner for
the long term". Hence

3. Treat the local distributors as long-term partners,

not temporary market-entry vehicles There is a need to
structure the relationships in such a way that the distributors
become marketing partners. Thus, will be willing to invest in longterm market development.
4.

Support

market

entry

by

committing

money,

managers, and proven marketing ideas It is very important

for the multinational to maintain strategic control. For this
purpose,

multinationals

must

commit

adequate

corporate

resources. It holds particular importance at the time of market

entry, as the multinational are least certain about their prospects
in new countries.
5. From the start, maintain control over marketing
strategy

Distributors

multinational's

strategy

should
to

be

local

allowed

to

conditions.

adapt

However

multinationals should pilot the planning sessions about the

decision making. This helps the multinational to exploit the full
potential of a global marketing network.
6. Make sure distributors provide you with detailed
market and financial performance data The quality of
information

that

the

multinational

has

about

the

market,

determines its ability to take advantage of its competitive

advantages. Since the corporation is new to the country, it has to

rely on distribution channel for such information. Also in a few

countries they may be the only source of such information.
7. Build links among national distributors at the
earliest opportunity The key objective for the multinational
establish a customer base in the new country. However it is
important to create links

among its national distributors as soon as possible. This will

lead to transfer of ideas and hence provide a better and
consistent performance in the implementation of international
strategies.

293. INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

3.1 Mobile phone industry in India
Mobile telephony was introduced in India in 1995. The first
call was made by Nokia 2110 on its own network. The start to this
industry in India, however, was very slow. The Indian government
was not supportive to the new companies of the industry. As a
result of unfriendly telecom policies, high licensing fees and
absence of a proper telecom regulatory body lead to exit of these
private players in the next few years.
The industry got a new life in 1999, when the Government of
India announced a new telecom policy. The plan was to provide
telephones on demand by 2002. A major point of the policy was
to allow unrestricted private entry into almost all mobile service
sectors. The mobile service providers were allowed to share their
infrastructures with other operators. It also helped the private
operators to break even faster by allowing them to migrate from
fixed license to one-time entry fee with revenue sharing.
However, by 2001, there was steady increase in the demand
for mobile services. The private companies concentrated on
providing basic telephonic services to consumers. By 2002, the
industry was on a high, and with the popularity of mobile phones
the customers started demanding better services and lower
prices. This led to new innovations and come out with better
products and

services. In 2002, the industrys growth got fueled as

incoming calls on mobile phones were made free. The sudden
increase in growth on mobile phone subscriber can be seen in the
following table:
Growth of mobile phone subscribers
No of mobile subscribers

Time
taken

0 1 Million

19951998

1 5 Million

19982001

5 10 Million

20012002

Even before a research is started, the researcher needs to

evaluate and select the type of method they will to be used for
collecting the data for the research. The Quantitative research
methods and the Qualitative research methods are two options of
approaches available for the researcher. As noted by Creswell
(2003), The situation today is less quantitative versus qualitative
and more how research practices lie somewhere in continuum

between the two (eg Newman & Benz, 1998). In most

researches, in some way or the other both form of data collection
are used.
In this research, since, the study was conducted to
understand the perspective of consumers and their brand image,
more stress was laid on qualitative research rather than
quantitative. According to Cassel and Symon (2005), Qualitative
methods is what people recognize and which is widely used, it is
actually very problematic. They could only talk about the
characteristics of qualitative research,

without an overarching definition, because there were such

a variety of methods that might claim this title and little
consensus over a core meaning. The simplest definition is to say
it involves methods of data collection and analysis that are nonquantitative (Lofland & Lofland 1984).
This traditional view is that quantitative enquiry examines
data which are numbers, while qualitative enquiry examines data
which are narrative (Easterby-Smith et al., 1991). Inherent in this
dichotomy is the view that quantitative enquiry generally adopts
a deductive process, while qualitative enquiry generally adopts
an inductive process (Hyde, 2000).
There was a need to get the researched open up so that it
can give more information. Also, there may be a need to modify
the questions to get the right data. Thus, qualitative approach
was adopted with an in-depth and semi- structured interview
process. As it was rightly said by Bate (1997) that qualitative
research is about digging into the everyday life of people. It has
also been noted that qualitative research gives more quality in
data and also results in very specific and in-depth information.
The relationship between theory and methodology is
important. Researchers need to use methodologies that are
consistent with the assumptions and aims of the theoretical view
being expressed (From the Editors, p.456). It can be noted from

above quote, how important it is to choose proper methodology

of collecting the data.

4.2 Qualitative Research

any kind of research that produces findings not arrived at
by

means

of

statistical

procedures

or

other

means

of

quantification (Golafshani, 2003).

It is believed that qualitative research originated in recent
times. However, as noted by Milliken (2001) noted, Hamilton
(1994), believed that the real roots of qualitative research could
be traced back to an eighteenth century disruption that
occurred in the fortunes of quantitative research.
Here, in order to explore the selected topic of the study,
qualitative research is selected as the means for research.
Gephart has defined three methodologies of qualitative research.
Positivism and postpositivism are based on realism and involves
comparisons of results and findings with preliminary propositions.
Interpretive research aims at understanding the actual production
of meanings and concepts used by social actors in real settings.
Whereas, critical postmodernism is a combination of critical
theory and postmodern thought, which assumes that realities are
value laden and contain contradictions. Gephart(2004).
A qualitative study is defined as an inquiry process of
understanding a social or human problem, based on building a
complex, holistic picture, formed with words, reporting detailed
views of informants, and conducted in a natural setting
(Cresswell, 1994). Another way of defining it is to say it focuses

on "quality", a term referring to the essence or ambience of

something (Berg 1989). Others would say it involves a subjective
methodology and your self as the research instrument (Adler &
Adler 1987). A variety of empirical material is needed to be
collected and studied for the

purpose of qualitative research. These include, case study,

personal

experience,

introspective,

life

story

interview,

observational, historical, interactional, and visual texts that

describe routine and problematic moments and meaning in
individuals' lives.
As cited by Golafshani N. 2003, Glesne & Peshkin, 1992, say
enjoying the rewards of both numbers and words i.e. the
knowledge obtained through detailed interviewing process with
focus on compatibility or a qualitative analysis is different a
quantitative analysis. Researchers have argued that that unlike
quantitative research where the tool is the most important in
qualitative research the researcher himself poses as a tool and is
the most important part of the research. So it is very important
role of the researcher in qualitative research.
As

Sankar

(2006)

noted,

Qualitative

research

is

unstructured, exploratory in nature, based on small samples, and

may utilize popular qualitative techniques such as focus groups
(group interviews), word association (asking respondents to
indicate their first responses to stimulus words), and in-depth
interviews (one-on-one interviews that probe the respondents
thoughts in detail) (Malhotra, 2005). The qualitative research
interviews differ in practical features such as length, style of
questioning, and participant numbers (group or individual).
Though most of them are face-to-face, it can also be carried out
via internet or on the telephone (Cassell and Symon, 2004). This

study uses the mode of telephonic interviews as a qualitative

research tool.

4.3 Quantitative Research

Quantitative research methods are the orthodox way of
researching. In very technical terms, Quantitative data is data
expressing a certain quantity, amount or range. Usually, there are
measurement units associated with the data, e.g. meters, in the
case of the height of a person. It makes sense to set boundary
limits to such data, and it is also meaningful to apply arithmetic
operations to the data (UNECE).
Quantitative Research methods are important and the
traditional form of data collection and analysis. We need to
develop some understanding of this them. Quantitative research
provides a more general outcome rather than more specific.
Since the answer is made exactly to what the question is, there is
no scope extra input from the interviewee. Also there is no
personal touch to encourage the interviewee to give concentrate
and give answer. Another problem being one can not check the
genuineness of data very easily. However when the sample is
large or more generalized views are needed than quantitative
research method is a better option.
4.4 A Qualitative Approach
Quantitative research gives measurable quantities as the
outcome.

However,

here

the

human

nature

is

under

consideration. The objective is to comprehend and assess

perceptions of different consumers towards the mobile phone.

More stress may be given to feature, looks, cost, software or any

other feature of the mobile phone. Since the study kind of tests
out the effect of marketing activities by checking the brand
loyalty of the interviewee, it is important to understand the
emotion associated

with the answer given by him. People have different

perspective for different concepts, it is amazing how some may
react in a positive way, some in negative way and some may
have no reaction at all to it. In words of Hancock (2002), the
human behavior is very complicated and unique to every
individual. Thus there is a need to have a deeper understanding
than an ordinary survey. Human behavior is strange, and cannot
be measured in quantitative terms. Kaplan (1964) suggested that
there is only one thing that distinguishes human from natural
world; it is our ability to talk, interact. This interactive nature of
qualitative research makes it possible to measure the reactions of
a great many people to a limited set of questions thus facilitating
comparison and statistical aggregation of data. Hence, a flexible
qualitative approach is followed.
4.5 Data Collection
Since the objective of this research is to measure degree of
success of marketing strategies implemented by Nokia, it is very
important to first identify the marketing strategies applied by
Nokia in India. For this purpose, the best available sources are
case studies, news articles and personal knowledge of the
marketing strategies. After getting a complete picture of the
existing

scenario,

there

was

need

to

get

the

public

interpretation of the brand and its value. For the purpose of

getting more generalized view, the dealers of mobile phones were
interviewed. Since they deal with buyers and prospective buyers

on a regular basis, they can give an overview of the market. Also

it was thought that their personal choice will be considered for
the same. Hence for a new research a primary research was
conducted. A secondary research was also carried out to
understand the marketing activities and future in general.

4.6 Interviews
A qualitative research interview is an interview whose
purpose is to gather descriptions of the life-world of the
interviewee with respect to interpretation of the meaning of the
described phenomena (Kvale, 1983)
As King (2004) says, The interview remains the most
common method of data collection in qualitative research,
employed in various forms by every main theoretical and
methodological approach within qualitative applied psychology. It
is therefore important for the researcher to look at the problem
from the perspective of the interviewee. Hence, there is a need to
not completely structure the interview.
The

study

also

involves

semi-structured

interview

as

qualitative research tool. Drever (1995) defines semi-structured

interviews as the interviewer sets up a general structure by
deciding in advance what ground is to be covered and what
questions are to be asked. This leaves the detailed structure to be
worked out during the interview. The person interviewed can
answer at some length in his or her own words, and the
interviewer responds using prompts, probes, and follow-up
questions to get the interviewee to clarify or expand on the
answers.
According to King (2004), qualitative research interviews a
variously referred to as depth, exploratory, semi structured or

unstructured. In the research, in-depth interviews were carried

out as a qualitative research tool. In-depth interviews are taken
with a small number of people on a particular topic. The
researchers job here is to find out detailed information about the
interviewees

actions,

behaviors

and

perceptions

through

intense

interviews. The questions of what, how and why can be answered

using interviews (Boyce et. al., 2006).
A

major

benefit

that

interviewing

gives

is

that

the

interviewer can modify the questions according to the need.

Question such as could you throw more light on that?, What
reason do you think for this?, Any other reason you think? and
many more can help the interviewer get more information from
the interviewee. He can also judge by the expressions of the
interviewee, and may need to understand the question which
interviewee is not comfortable answering in. In such a case the
interviewer needs to develop a sense of confidence with the
interviewee to make him comfortable. Actually this can be done
in the beginning of the interview so that rapport develops and
interviewee answers all question with interest. The technique of
stimulating respondents to answer more fully and relevantly is
termed probing (Cooper and Schindler, 2000). This is another
benefit of conducting an interview, as usually people do not like
to spend their time and try to finish of the process as soon as
possible. In case of survey via form, this can lead to improper
answers filled in a hurry rather than with concentration.
For the purpose of this dissertation 8 semi structured
interviews of Nokias dealers were taken. Here, one of the
interviews was considered as not useful, due to uninterested
attitude of the interviewee and extremely short answers. The

number of interviews was restricted to such a small number as it

was felt that the information was more or less repetitive and no
new information was there for taking. Three out of these were
taken on telephone due to large distances. Despite being
expensive, telephonic interviews did help the researcher to
converse with the respondents who are far beyond

the reach. All the interviewees were explained why the

interview was being conducted and what the main theme of the
interview was. The interviews were open-ended and gave
interviewee the option to answer the way they wanted. As a
result, some interviews were longer than the other was.
4.7 Summary
This chapter was used to explain the methods available for
conducting the study. Case studies and news articles were used
for secondary data. After discussing the pros and cons of each
method, the right method for this research, i.e. qualitative
analysis was selected, where in-depth, semi-structured interviews
were adopted as a source of primary data. The personal effect of
interview was used to develop rapport with the interviewee and
modify the questions according to the need. Also due to some
distant interviewees telephonic interviews were used.
Next chapter will involve deep discussion of the analysis and
findings of the gathered data.

5. MARKETING STRATEGY
5.1 Introduction
Marketing strategy of a company in a new country plays a
vital role in determining its future in that country. Knowing that
Indian market is very different from other markets it was already
operating in, Nokia came up with an Indiaspecific strategy or a
glocal strategy. It adapted the to Indian conditions by launching
new products and enhancing the products with features designed
specifically for local customers, as well as promotional campaigns
targeted at Indian audience to gain a foothold in the market. To
capture the widespread Indian market, it developed an extensive
distribution network which also helped it take its products to rural
markets in India. Here, to discuss the strategy, we consider the
simple concept of 4 Ps, namely; product (customization), price,
place (distribution) and production.

5.2 Product
1998 was 51st year of Indian independence, hence
Nokia provided the ring tone of National son Saare Jahan
se Achha ye Hindustan Hamara in 5110 model. The
introductory

offer

for

this

model

also

had

inter-

changeable covers. The success of 5110 initiated Nokia to

focus

on

feature-specific

localization.

In1999,

Hindi

(national language, and mother tongue of 43% Indians)

user interface was provided in Nokia 3210. Also, Nokia
also tied up with Sony music for top 20 hit songs as ring
52

tones. Nokia 3210, became an instant hit. The model

3610

was

launched

with

an

enhancing

Hindi

text

messaging facility in 2001.

The most successful customization came in 2003 when
Nokia came with 1100 and 1108 specifically designed for Indian
market. It had features of anti-slip grip, dust resistance and
torchlight. Since, in India people dont know English in villages,
Nokia came up with Saral Mobile Sandesh (SMS in Hindi). Nokia
sales increased from 58.2% in July 2003 to 59.6% in July 2004.
Nokia was also the first handset manufacturer to launch
games download in India in 2003. It had spearheaded the
industry in online distribution of tones, graphics and game
downloads. These services did not just increase their sale of
mobile phones but were also fruitful as they made huge profits by
selling the games. In 2005, Nokia also launched games based on
Indian mythology namely Makhan chor and Swayamvar. Both
were arcade games involving two most of the famous characters
namely, Lord Krishna and Arjun.
Another feature that Nokia came up with attract youth was
one which enabled the customer to slide in his or her photograph
or for that matter the loved ones,' in the picture frame behind the
phone. This was a part of Nokia 2112 model (CDMA), wherein the
message is clear-personalize your phone. Earlier they had a
similar feature in GSM handset Nokia 2100. "We have made a

personality statement through the campaign. The feel of the

campaign is such that it would evoke a 'sense of being,'" said
Sanjay Behl, Head of Marketing, Nokia India. Menon, M. (2005)

Nokia also tied up with Bharti cellular in 2005 to customize

its handsets through which its users could access multimedia
services by using an additional key on the mobile phone. Also
since many FM channels were introduced in India in early 2000s,
Nokia banked on the opportunity by coming with FM phones
attracting a lot of youth. Later on in 2005, Nokia came with SMS
services in other Indian languages including Marathi, Tamil,
Bengali and Kannada.
In November 2007, Nokia came with Bollywood classic movie
Sholay preloaded in N95 8GBand N81. This gave opportunity to
cinema buffs to now watch the movie Sholay on the go. The N
series is a multimedia sub-brand of Nokia. "It is one of the biggest
blockbusters that the Hindi film industry has churned out. There
could have been no better option than this flick, which is liked by
every age group equally," said Vineet Taneja, business director of
multimedia, Nokia India. (Web 11)
As part of its strategy to connect with the young population
in India, Nokia has been associating with youth passions like Cool
Sports, Music, and Fashion. In the genre of Cool Sports, Nokia
hosted the Ngage QD Gaming Championship, Defend Your Turf,
the first ever futsal Championship. Over the last few years, in
music Nokia has brought several world class music artists
including, Shakira, Shaggy, Mark Knopfler, Sting and Enrique
Iglesias to India. In Fashion, Nokia has a strong association with

Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week and Nseries lifestyle led

campaigns amongst others. (Web 12)

In another attempt to give India handsets which will enable

them to use more features, Nokia is in process of making cheap
GPRS enabled handset. In this handset, the users can surf the net
at a very reasonable price. Again targeting the low and middle
income class, who are interested in using the new facilities
available. "We are planning to bring internet access to all the
masses in India through our low-cost handsets... the company is
working diligently towards it," said Nokia's Senior Vice President Entry Business Unit (Mobile Phones Business Group) Soren
Peterson in an interview. (Web 13)
5.3 Pricing
Pricing of the phones was of prime importance for success in
India. Being a developing country, the purchasing power of the
people was not high as compared to other developed countries.
Research unveiled that phones of lower price range (below
Rs8000 or $200 approx.) amounted for 65% of the total sales in
India. Nokia depended majorly on rural market, therefore, pricing
was a major success factor for the company. Nokia did achieve
success in India, in spite of the fact, that its handsets were not
the cheapest in the market.
Nokia 1100, which was specially launched for India, was
priced at Rs. 4000. This price, although was at a premium as
compared to entry level phones, but was enhanced with several
special features which were not available in other phones of the

same price. The head of marketing at Nokia India, Sanjay Behl

said, The phone is a combination of product benefits and
pricing (Web 14). This model further became the best selling
model ever in India. It also increased the brand preference of
Nokia from 66% to 77% within 9 months of its launch. This show
how nature of Indian consumer is

value sensitive. The major strategical move by Nokia in this

regard was that it charged a lower price in India than most of
other countries for the same model.
5.4 Place (Distribution)
Mobile phones in India are considered as to be consumer
durable, hence they are not just sold through exclusive telecom
retailers but also through general retailers. Nokia designed
modeled its distribution strategy on lines of FMCG business.
An important reason for the success of mobile phones in
India was limited reach of the landline phones in several parts of
the country. By mid 2005 the mobile phone sales in smaller towns
and cities was higher than those of the metropolitans. The sales
in these urban markets were beginning to saturate. The
distribution in these small towns called for non traditional
channels. Nokia strengthened their distribution network, and
selected distributors from FMCG line or experience holders for
durables or automobiles. In fact, about a fifth of the mobile phone
sales in India were consumer durables or service providers
shops.
In 1995, Nokia tied up with HCL Infinet for sales and
distribution of its phones and appointed them as Nokia distributor
for GSM handsets in India. HCL Infinet provided a complete range
of Nokias GSM mobile phones, data products and mobile
services. The retail network they developed was very strong and

dedicated. They came up with Nokia Professional Centers (NPCs),

Nokia Priority Dealers (NPDs) and redistribution stockiest all over
India. NPCs were one stop shops for the complete range of Nokia
mobile phones, batteries, chargers, accessories, covers, hands
free kits and car kits amongst others. It also provided the after
sales services for Nokias handsets. NPCs were multibrand retails

outlets with 60% of their area dedicated to Nokia. While

redistribution stockists were for supplying handsets across India.
HCL also came with Nokia Care Centers (NCCs) for providing
solutions to mobile related problems. These were spread all over
the country and provided phone repairing software up-gradation
services. They also displayed complete range mobile phones,
data products and complete mobile phones accessories. Another
effective concept that Nokia up with in 2005, was that of Nokia
Concept Store in Bangalore in south India. It was located in the
city centre, MG Road. This concept store is being set up with an
objective to provide Indian consumer with a truly enhanced
mobility experience through its cast and exciting range of Nokia
products and mobile accessories. We are keen to lead a unique
mobile retailing experience for consumers through these thouch
points Sanjay Behl, Head Marketing, Nokia India (Web 15).
Details as per Nokia website are given below.
Nokia Concept Store in Bangalore was the country's first
concept

store

experiential

in

India

mobile

to

provide

experience.

customers
The

store

complete
measures

approximately 2,000 square feet and is designed to reflect the

design ethic of the Nokia brand. The layout and design of the
store follows the same pattern as Nokia Concept Stores around
the world to guarantee an easy and informative shopping
experience. With a simple-to-navigate setup, open doorways and
low-glare lighting, the store provides a relaxed and satisfying

customer

experience.

The high-tech

display

terminals and

dedicated areas for Imaging, Smart, Multimedia, Business and

Entry phones make it easy for the public to keep up to date on
the latest technologies and trends in the mobile industry.

Nokia today has eight Nokia 'Concept stores' in Bangalore,

Delhi, Jaipur, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Ludhiana, Chennai and
Indore (Web 12).
Nokia kept its promise of enhancing the mobile experience
of its customers. In October 2007, they launched the first 'global
format' Nokia Concept Store in Western India at Indore. Located
at MG road and spread over 3500 sq. feet, square feet, the stateof-the-art Nokia

Concept

Store will provide mobile

phone

consumers in Indore a world class interactive and informative

shopping

experience,

allowing

them

to

get

first-hand

experience before making a purchase decision. (Web16). Nokias

vast distribution network covered almost every city or town
where mobile network was available.
5.5 Promotion
Nokia entered India with one for mobile services to start,
and had to establish its non-popular brand. To build credentials
the company used both print and television campaigns. In the
early days, print media concentrated on Nokias status, global
R&D and international awards won to establish brand awareness.
Even after the market grew, Nokias advertisements concentrated
on product attributes.
Gaining acceptance of Indian consumer is not as simple as
other countries. India is a multicultural country, where people
have strong believe in their mythology, nationality and cultures

and to add to it, their purchasing power was not as high as other
countries where Nokia was operating. Hence, to achieve approval
of the mobile consumers in India, Nokia decided to localize its
products heavily. For the purpose of developing the products
specifically for markets with high population and low penetration,
Nokia developed a team called Mobile Entry Business Unit.

Until 2003, Nokia used all their international advertisements

with slight modifications in India. For instance, the advertisement
for NGAGE showed two young persons getting bored stuck in
traffic jam and then they show them combat with super natural
powers. It showed how NGAGE could help them pass their time.
But it did not have a very good affect on the Indian audience as
they could not relate themselves to the people over there. There
was needed to make special advertisements for India.
Nokia India marked its special presence in advertisement
world with Made for India ad campaign on the launch of Nokia
1100 (Appendix 3). This was the fourth advertisement created in
India

but

created

maximum

stir

in

the

industry.

The

advertisement showed that the Nokia 1100 was launched first in

India and addressed all the concerns of Indian consumers. The
advertisement made a clear deviation from hitherto hip urbanfocused advertisements that Nokia are known for. It aimed at
highlighting the broad appeal of mobile phones across all socioeconomic segments of India. The aim was to highlight Nokias
Indian image.
Analysts believed that Nokia would lose the top end
consumers who attached lot of importance to mobile phones as a
style statement. Sanjeev Sharma, Managing Director, Nokia
Mobile Phones India, said No, not in the least does the latest
piece o communication create dissonance in the minds of
consumers with regard to Nokias brand image. The technology

driven ads have created a rub-off on the entire Nokia range. And
fashion and lifestyle products create a desire at all levels, be it
the

first-time

urban

or

rural

user.

(Dixit,

2004).

The

advertisement was a success, and Nokia 1100 went on to become

best seller not just in India but also worldwide.
The major reason for handset was, Nokia was expecting
exponential growth in small towns and rural areas. The company
planned to build brand loyalty amongst this segment. They
conducted research to get to know the needs and concerns of the
users of this segment. As Sanjeev Sharma said, One of the
things we found out was that the torch is of high value. Besides
that a major concern was dust People feared that dust might
penetrate through the gaps of their keypad, and that explains the
extensive use of handset covers in India. Another major concern
was the grip of the phone, because of the climatic conditions in
this country people usually have sweaty palms, and therefore the,
what if the handset slips?
One advertisement that Nokia made in 2000 was a public
interest advertisement, urging users to switch off their cell
phones while watching movies. It showed a clip where hero picks
up an argument with person sitting in front row in a movie
theatre. One of the advertisements was for Nokia 2280 which was
offered in bundle with reliance mobile connection. This was a
simple one which educated the audience of availability of cheap
handset with bundled airtime.

Cricket is considered a religion in India. Nokia has had a

strong association with the sport through its advertisements. In
an advertisement released during cricketing season of 2003, a
cricket fan was watching cricket with his daughter and a
prospective groom walks in, the father throws the ball to him,
which he is unable to catch. The dejected young lad starts to walk
away, just then the television

gets blank. The enthusiast fan is frantically trying to find the

score. The boy gets a message of latest score update on his Nokia
mobile phone, impressing the father. The advertisement targeted
the middle class youth of India. Recently, Nokia sponsored the ICC
World Twenty20 2007 in South Africa. To its luck, India won the
world cup and this format of the game was an instant hit in India.
In 2007 itself, Nokia was the 'on air' sponsor for the West Indies
World Cup and for the Champions Trophy held in India, 2006 (Web
17).
In 2004, network provider Hutch came up with television on
mobile phone. Clips from these 13 television channels can be
accessed by Hutch and Orange users through their EDGE-enabled
mobile phones, said Mr Harit Nagpal, Chief Marketing Officer,
Hutch (Web 18). Hutch then came with an advertisement
showing people watching television on Nokia 6630 which was
EDGE enabled. This helped Nokia to increase its sales.
Another successful, India-specific campaign was the one
where phones with Saral Mobile Sandesh (Hindi SMS) were
promoted. It targeted the rural India, where mobile penetration is
low. The advertisement showed a postman giving a mobile to a
girl which was sent to her by her brother so that she can
exchange Hindi SMSes with her brother. It was a audience specific
advertisement and encouraged the use of Hindi SMS amongst the
rural population

Nokia was not the market leader in colored handsets. To

regain its share, it came up with advertisement Har Jeb mei
Rang (color in every pocket) for Nokia 2600. It was a very colorful

advertisement, showing colors spreading out of Nokia

phone. It showed the idea of color spreading happiness in every
life.
Nokia came up with some good advertisements around the
end of 2007. One of them starring the superstar of Hindi cinema,
Shah Rukh Khan calling Nokia as his friend and companion for 10
years. He expresses how it brings and spreads happiness and
how it has been with him through the ups and downs of his life.
Other advertisements have been model specific as Nokias
advertisements have always been. Other advertisements include
Nokia 7900 Prism, The new edge in fashion and Nokia E series,
Success is the name of the game. Another advertisement
shows Nokia 1650 with features of cricket game, alarm amongst
others at a very reasonable price.
As a part of its strategy to enrich mobile user experience,
Nokia announced its association with Bollywood's most awaited
multi star blockbuster, Om Shanti Om (OSO). As a part of this tieup, Nokia users can exclusively watch OSO movie clips, behind
the scenes videos, ring tones and wallpapers on their mobile
phones. Nokia has created a special 'OSO Crazy mobisode',
animated characters of 'OM' (played by Indian superstar Shah
Rukh Khan) that can be downloaded exclusively on all Nokia GPRS
enabled handsets by dialing 55555 or from www.nokia.co.in/oso,
a special website created for Nokia and OSO association (Web
19).

Nokia followed model-specific advertising for most part.

Different advertisements were made for each model of Nokia,
making it easy to target the specific audience, which will demand
that model. Even different media was used according to the
audience. Nokia even faced the problem of brand

identification in the early stages as there were no specific

signs suggesting that it was an advertisement from Nokia. Since
2005, Nokia has embarked a new advertising plan to consolidate
its ad campaigns and strengthen its brand identity.

6. ANALYSIS
6.1 Introduction
Analysis of the data is very important part of any research.
The quality of data collected matters, but what matters more is
the interpretation of that data. This chapter deals with Analysis
and

Discussions

of

the

findings.

Firstly,

data

of

all

the

respondents to the interview was compared to give better

understanding of the situation. Then, this comparison was used to
achieve the objectives of the research by evaluating them on the
basis

of

secondary

data.

Unique

personal

quotes

from

respondents were taken as a basis of comparison of the different

views to consolidate it into finding of the research.
To get a more generalized view of the thoughts, mobile
dealers were interviewed. These dealers deal in many brands and
have the first hand knowledge of market and consumer
perceptions. However, the thoughts still vary due to personal
choices and the type of customers they deal in, which in turn
depends

on

location.

To

begin

with

we

will

discuss

the

background of the respondents.

6.2 Background of the Respondents
For the purpose of collection of primary data, 8 dealers of
mobile phones in India within the age of 20-40 were interviewed.
Out of this one was considered not valid for the research. The

number of interviewee was restricted to such a small number

because of uniformity of the responses from the

responses. It was believed that information was getting

repetitive and no new information was being achieved.
Out of the 7 respondents, 5 owned Nokia phones. The
youngest respondent was 23 years of age and the eldest 39.
Being the dealers of mobile handsets, these respondents had
more than decent knowledge of the phones, making it easier for
the researcher to conduct the interview. The background details
of these respondents are given below:

Name

ge

Pradeep

City

New
Delhi

9
Srikant

Samsung

Nokia
(Distributor
and Dealer),
Samsung, Sony
Ericsson

Nokia
E50

Gurg
aon

Nokia, All
major
companies

Nokia
NGAGE

New
Delhi

Nokia, All
major
companies

Sony
Ericsson

New
Delhi

Nokia, All
major
companies,
Chinese brands

Nokia
6230i

3
Akshay

Nokia, All
major
companies

hip

Chaib
asa

7
Sumit

Handse
t owned

2
9

Rishi

Dealers

Sourav

2
5

Kolka
ta

Nokia, All
major

Nokia
N73

6.3 Analysis and Discussion

To

start

the

conversation

and

make

the

interviewee

comfortable, more general questions were asked. First of all they

asked to comment on the cellular phone market of India. They
were asked about the way the market has grown and about the
future of the market. As we know, the Indian cellular phone
industry has witnessed exceptional growth in the past few years.
The future also seems to be bright as mobile phone is considered
as consumer durable in the country. The respondents reply was
as follows:
Launched about 10-12 years ago, cellular phone was
considered a luxury and very costly affair Establishment costs
for the network providers was very high But now scenario has
changed prepaid connections and lifetime connections are the
major factors for the boom in the market Sourav
There has been tremendous growth in the past few
years Akshay
The market has seen a growth in terms of both quantity as
well as quality Probably the most booming market at the point
of time Rishi

Everybody believed that market had shown dramatic growth

in past few years. Few reasons were mentioned too. 25 years old
Sourav, who has a vast experience of 8 years, believed reasons
such as prepaid connections and lifetime connections played
important roles in getting the industry where it is now.
Mobile phone has become a part of everybodys life It is
almost impossible to imagine a life without it This by itself tells
about the future of the market Pradeep
The above statement by Pradeep marks the importance of
mobile phone in the life of a middle class man today. When asked
for the future of this business, the opinion was general of the
respondents that the industry has a very bright future. However,
different reasons were given to comprehend their beliefs.
This business has a very good and bright future The
margins are getting lower but the turnovers are increasing by the
day Srikant
I have a strong feeling that it will keep on growing for some
time before it reaches a saturation level Since the average life
of a handset is 1-2 years, scope of sales will always be there
Akshay

In the current situation, due to competition customer is

enjoying the position of a king with margins as low as 1-2% its
not easy for the retailers the increasing demand is attracting
more and more retailers, so the future is bright for the
prospective buyers Sumit
Will definitely continue to grow in similar fashion for next 23 years, resulting in a lot of scope Future will see more stylish
and feature specific phones demanded Rishi
The call rates in the future were believed to have more
uniformity. Probably the purpose to say so was that this will lead
to more usage of the mobile phones, further increasing the sales
and talking about better future for the market.
Future will see universal rate for any call made, irrespective
of the distance Sourav
6.4 Success and the Brand
Not surprisingly, when asked about the market leader, every
respondent had no doubts that it was Nokia all the way. In a way,
reconfirming Nokias status in the market with almost 70% share
in GSM handsets. However, they believed that companies like
Samsung, Motorola and Sony Ericsson are giving Nokia good
competition and have seen major increase in sales. When asked
about reasons of Nokias success, the respondents believed that
features of the phone were main driving force for the sales of

handsets. Other important reasons included, brand image due to

past experience, long battery life, user friendliness, sturdiness,
number of models offered

Nokia has always satisfies the customer, now they believe

that

this

company

is

reliable

there

is

strong

brand

preference Yuvraj
People purchasing Nokia also had problem, but that was
really rare in comparison users of other handsets faced
problems on a more regular basis Akshay
Easy

to

operate,

excellent

resale

value,

universal

charger Sourav
Long life and user friendliness People have faith in Nokia
due to its good history Pradeep
However, one of the respondents, Sourav, believed there a
few reasons for success in Indian conditions. He believed battery
was a major driver of the sales and Nokia had the best. To better
that they had a universal charger for all handsets helping people
to charge phone almost everywhere. He also believed that, high
ringing volumes and rough and tough features were special
advantages in Indian conditions.
In India working class people prefer high ring volumes due
to noise pollution, Nokia solved this purpose Nokia is also
associated with a rough n tough image, people are confident
that it can take more dust and shock, which unfortunately is in
abundance in India Sourav

As noted above, the Nokia brand image was that of the best.
They incorporated the meaning of a mobile phone as Nokia. This
can be noted in Akshays answer when asked about the market
response of Nokia, where he compares Nokia to pioneers in other
industries. He said,

Excellent its like what Maruti is for cars what Bisleri is

for mineral water.. the Pioneer
Importantly, the reasons for Nokias success were believed
to be the features of the phone, as every respondent had only
Nokia on mind when asked for the market leader. The marketing
strategies implemented by them were not mentioned by most of
the respondents. Srikant however believed that Nokia had better
distribution strategies than its competitors. He believed that
Nokia was the first to enter a new market and create a brand
name amongst the new users. Though, according to him it
worked like a circle, as this increased Nokias sale, higher sales
helped them evade new markets. He was quoted as saying,
Though has a superb brand image, I believe the key to their
success lies in deeper penetration They are the first to each
every new market this increases their sales and in turn increase
their ability to invade more markets
The respondents being dealers of Nokia had fair amount of
knowledge of the company. When asked about the origin, they all
knew that Nokia is a Finnish brand. Nokias case is similar to that
of Tiger beer - people do not associate Finland with high-tech
products. So the name Nokia (which sounds Japanese), helps
them disguise their origin (Web 20). The buyers according to
them, however, earlier felt it was an Japanese company. Also,

people were more interested in the manufacturing of the

handsets rather the origin of the companies.
Though the company is Finnish, handsets these days are
manufactured in Asian countries such as China Sourav

Earlier any new brand was considered as Japanese or

Western, probably because of the name now they realize the
difference but the brand already has its status by the past
Pradeep
My customers are not literate enough to understand the
country of origin they believe in my words and the company
that has done well in the past Sumit
To check how brand loyal people are to Nokia, the following
question was asked, Given the phone is homogeneously same,
which company would you for? Would you still go for Nokia?
Interestingly, leaving 2 of the correspondents, no one was sure
which brand to go for. Nokia only. When everything is the same,
why take the risk? Akshay said. The others were flexible, saying
that they would make the decision based on the added features
such as looks, warranty, battery life and after sales service. This
shows how the population of India is flexible to changes. This
however, is not very good for the future of Nokia. This means that
people will not feel very uncomfortable while changing the brand.
They are brand conscious but not brand loyal.
6.5 The 4 Ps
Not very strangely, there was no mention of the marketing
strategies in success of Nokia. The indication here is on
promotions.

Nokias

promotion

strategies

have

been

very

aggressive in India, also they have had special strategies to

attract Indian audiences. However, what drive their sales are the
product features and not its marketing strategies. To extract
some information, the respondents were asked to comment on
their advertisements, they believed that Nokias advertisements
were not

extra ordinarily great, but were simple. Also the reach of

their advertisements to target audience was appraised.
Nokias ads touch you in very simple ways they convey
the message Pradeep
What is special with Nokias ads is their reach to the
audience with model specific ads its very important to reach
the target audience for that model Nokia has done that more
than any other brand Srikant
When asked about Nokias advertisements, the respondents
believed

that

the

advertisement

for

Nokia

1100

was

phenomenon by itself. The phone was made especially for Indian

conditions and advertisement showing a truck driver using the
phone was perfect for the campaign. According to respondents,
the advertisement changed the way Indian audience felt for
Nokia. The advertisement made the audience feel a bond
between them. People almost forgot that Nokia was a foreign
company.
Made for India ad campaign was revolutionary it
changed the way people thought about Nokia it became more
of a home company than other people could relate to it Rishi
The Nokia 1100 ad increased my sale by a fortune I cater
to the lower level customers, and the phone was made for them
the ad highlighted its features the impact was such that

customers new to mobile phone believed that it was an Indian

company Sumit

Nokia was seldom referred to as the price leader of the

market. It was very clear in the market that Nokia charged a
premium for their brand, though it was not very large. Chinese
handsets were sold because to cheap price, but were not reliable.
Amongst the branded phones, prices of Motorola and Samsung
were believed to very competitive in low range segments.
The cheapest handset in the market is not Nokias It has
been so since last few years Motorola leads on this front
Motorola along with Samsung provide more feature a reasonable
rate Sourav
The features of the phone were believed to be the main
driving force for the sales of handsets. As can be seen in the
comments above, features such as rough and tough body, long
life of the handsets, user friendliness, extended battery life,
universal charger and high ringing volume have had pivotal
contributions in the sales of the company. The major shift came
with the launch of Made for India Nokia 1100. This phone was
specially made for India, keeping in mind the dusty and greasy
conditions. It went on to become the best-seller amongst all
mobile phones in India.
As noted above, Srikant credits Nokias distribution channels
for the success for the company. Though has a superb brand
image, I believe the key to their success lies in deeper
penetration They are the first to each every new market this

increase their sales and in turn increase their ability to invade

more markets It is a fact that Nokia has its dealers and
distributors not just in the cities but also in small town and now in
villages. This helps them not just increase their sale but also
create a better brand image, as when their phones are available
everywhere, then it gives customer the confidence to purchase
the phone.

6.6 Future and Scope of Improvement

Any market with high technological environment goes
through rapid changes. There are many changes taking place in
mobile phone market in India. The demands of consumer are
changing. They prefer purchasing phones with most features. The
idea was to carry a gadget with everything in it, from camera to
mp3 player to internet surfing to office support.
Many phones such as Blackberry, iPhone, O2 etc have
changed masss thinking they act like a mini laptop Sourav
Features like camera and radio attract people more
nowadays its particularly helpful for those who can afford these
devices otherwise Sumit
The sales are also brand driven according to Brand Equity
2007, Nokia is the second most popular brand in India Srikant
Everybody is running after particularly feature packed
phonemusic, gaming, executive, camera, multimedia Rishi
The recent threat has been that of cheaply priced local
Chinese handsets. The respondents are however not very
convinced with them. The futures of these handsets are not really
great. Here too is the customer is the beneficiary. As Akshay says,
they will keep the prices of branded handsets under check.
Yuvraj though does not seem amused with them, they are
having high sales they

are meant for those who dont value their money useful for
some as features like dual sim are not present in the brands.
The respondents were happy with Nokia overall, specially in
comparison to other companies. Even then, they had a few
complaints

to

make

regarding

their

after

sales

services,

limitations of the handsets, similarity of the handsets and price.

They are not the cheapest in the market there is a need
to develop a phone especially for low price section amongst the
enviable range, the place for a PDA is still empty Pradeep
Customer services needs a major makeover the staff
there are not very well trained software problems exist they
keep on modifying the same model to just increase the number of
handsets on offer no real change can be noticed as example
we can see N95 is available in 3 different models Sourav
As respondent Akshay notes, A major problem for Nokia is
its good image they have set high standards for themselves
the trick lies in maintaining their image a small fault by other
companies may not be as a big a issue as it will be with Nokia
they have a set platform and need to bank on it. This is a very
interesting point of view, indicating towards the drawbacks of a
company with high expectations. Rishi made and interesting
comment, Nokia are taking its brand image for granted.

This shows that in such a fast moving market, there

marketing can not be put to rest at all.

The respondents believe that Nokias future is bright as they

expect the company keep coming up with the kind of handsets
that give them technological edge as they have done in the past.
This is what differentiates Nokia from the others. However, they
feel Nokia needs to overcome the above mentioned limitations to
continue the percentage of sales they have. There was specific
stress on improving the after sales service. The market is
moving fast competitors are getting better if you dont
improve all your services you are bound to loose on the sales
Srikant.

7. CONCLUSION
7.1 Conclusion and Recommendations
This chapter concludes the study by highlighting the key
findings of the study and then some recommendations for Nokia
for future. Then the chapter discusses to the limitations of the
study and endows the suggestions for future research.
The aim of the study is to critically analyze Nokias
marketing strategy in India and to examine the effect on its sales.
For this purpose secondary sources were used to collect the
information

of

marketing

strategies

and

semi-structured

interviews of mobile phone dealers in India were conducted to

check the market response of Nokia.
The conclusions that could be drawn were, the main drivers
of sales of Nokia are the product features. The marketing strategy
though aggressive and very customer specific was not the prime
force towards the sales. The prices of Nokia phones are
competitive but they are not the price leaders. However, much
information on the distribution network could not be gathered.
There is need for Nokia to differentiate itself from the past.
This should be done by becoming more customer-friendly to the
Asian markets. Nokia should project itself more aggressively to
the low end, mass market with its low range (but hi-quality)
products. There is also a need to develop a PDA phone for its high

range customers. Over the time, quality has been Nokias success
factor. They

have developed a brand name, and the consumers have a

high brand preference. There is need to in-cash on this by
continuing to launch the good quality products. The major
drawback was not up to the mark after sales customer services.
The key strategy that can be suggested is to maintain its
leadership with reasonably quality driven, low end products for
the mass market. Considering the future, this will be wise
investment. With this they can bank upon the brand preference
and increase the margin instead of sales.
7.2 Limitations of the research and Suggestions
The biggest limitation of this research was time. Due to time
constraints, the interviews were restricted to a very small
number. Cost was also disadvantage in the process of the
research. The dealers were chosen for interviews as it was
believed that they would give a more generalized view of the
whole market. However, their answer replicated their specific
customer base and personal choice. If time is no limitation, the
consumers should be directly contacted for their views.
Another aspect that can be considered in the analysis is the
balancing act between market share and profit margin. Right
now, Nokia is in position to take advantage of their brand name
and may change their strategies to increase the profit margins.
As the other companies are gaining on market share, this could

be the solution to Nokias problem. This view can also be

considered by the researcher.

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APPENDICES

Appendix 1 (Hofstede, 1994)

92 93
Appendix 2 (Solberg et al., 2006)