1.

1 Evolution of the strategic management Approaches:

Various strategic management Approaches:

Top down Approach: Strategic direction, strategy and
planning take place at or below the highest level of the
organization in a top-down approach. For example, the board of
directors of a company can establish and meet its objectives in
the form of strategic plans. From the strategic plans, the
management of the company establishes the strategies and
action plans necessary to meet the strategic objectives and
delegates them to line management and supervisors.

Bottom up Approach: In a bottom-up organizational

strategy, the company develops its strategies, objectives and
directions based on ideas, feedback and solutions provided by
all levels of the company, including promoting employee
involvement with decision-making, problem-solving and
strategic planning.

Various strategic Approaches by Indigo Airline which

makes them market leader today:
About the company:
Indigo, headquartered in Gurgon, India is the largest airline with
the market share of 47% as of august 2019. It was setup in early
2006 by Rahul Bhatia which operates in India’s domestic air
travel market as a low cost carrier with focus on offering low
fares, being on time and delivering a courteous and trouble free
expertise
Major Approaches by Indigo:
Indigo stuck to its low-cost and single class models:
Indigo stuck with its policy of offering one class of simple
service on a single type of plane. Indigo has chosen to stay with
the world's popular single-passage craft, the Airliner A320.

Selling and renting back its planes helps its balance

sheet:
Besides, it keeps selling and renting back its planes. Indigo uses
its six-year sale and leaseback agreements, in order that airline
is unceasingly ever changing its aircraft. This prevents the
necessity for overall checks and major repairs that
suggests Indigo understands the thanks to work the margin.

It's all about customer focus:

Indigo’s success model mostly depends on consistent low fares,
regular on-time performance and lowest flight cancellations.
However, the airline's biggest edge over others is
its target client focus.

Using technology smartly:

Unlike manual systems utilized by different airlines, Indigo
planes are equipped with a digital link system for transmission
of short, straightforward messages between craft and ground
stations via radio or satellite named craft Communications
Addressing and coverage System (ACARS). Before each Indigo
flight departs associate degree automatic message is triggered
from the craft to its operation's management centre - and in real
time an equivalent point in time gets recorded within the code.
Similarly, the instant the flight lands associate degree automatic
message is triggered from craft to manage centre. Hence, the on-
 time performance is diligently monitored for each flight in real
time.

1.2 Importance of strategic management in hospitality&

Tourism industry:
 It guides the business in a certain way. It describes the
objectives of the organization and sets realistic targets, in line
with the vision of the company.
 It helps the company to be proactive, not reactive, to get it to
analyze competitors ' behaviour and take the required action to
compete on the market, rather than to become spectators.
 It serves as the basis for all the company's main choices.
 It aims at preparing the organisation, playing a pioneering
role in exploring possibilities and also helps in finding
methods of reaching those possibilities.
 It guarantees the company's long-term survival and copes
with competition and the vibrant environment.
 It supports the creation of key skills and competitive benefits
that help to survive and grow businesses.
 The fundamental objective of strategic management is to
achieve the Company's sustainable strategy. The development
and implementation of such policies that generate value for
the business are feasible. It aims to assess possibilities and
threats, take account of the strengths and weaknesses of the
firm and develop survival, development and extension
policies.
1.3 Strategic management Analysis of Indigo
Airline:
 Internal Analysis:
Swot analysis of Indigo Airline:
Strength of Indigo Airline:
 Positive image: Indigo has created the image that it is
not just the domestic but also worldwide, the most
effective low cost operator. A low-cost carrier with high
quality facilities, this picture has led to many frequent
visitors having the chosen choice for transport.
 Services: Indigo provides a broad range of facilities,
including multichannel direct sales, online booking, 24-
hour client assistance via call centres and airport
numbers, internet status checks, an easy to use Indigo
application for android, etc.
 Social Corporate Responsibility: The CSR initiative of
the company called Indigo Reach has undertaken
several initiatives aimed at uplifting and improving
children, empowering women and environmental well-
being. They operate socially not only in towns but also
in distant places.
 Fleet policy: Indigo's carrier approach has always
concentrated on maintaining the average age of the fleet
in four years. The airline has also guaranteed that its
inventory is bought at far reduced rates than a vendor
would. This contributed to the airline's constantly small
cost
 Weakness of Indigo Airline:
 Sustainable profits: Indigo is positioned as a cheap
carrier and the airline prices must, therefore, be as low
as they can be managed. Simultaneously, expenses must
be kept as small as feasible. Indigo was however often
unable to continuously support its earnings and this
could be a deficiency for the business.
 Multiple dependence: To support the company's
earnings, the volume was always large and the firm
could not be influenced by changes in supply. So the
company must make sure that adequate measures are
made to guarantee coherent quantities and an extra
capital is needed.

Opportunities of Indigo Airline:

 Growing demand for foreign travel: The number of
persons who need both business and leisure to travel
abroad in India is on the rise. This means that the airline
has an enormous scope to expand into more foreign
destinations.
 Cargo services: Indigo has not entered the enormous
aerial freight industry, and a large proportion of the
income can be generated. A research by sky Asia aircraft
centre, an air transport consultancy company reports
shipping facilities at 3.4 million tons per year.
 Chartered flight services: Chartered air services
continue to be an area which the Indian air industry has
not explained, and indigo airlines can play a major role
in exploiting the potential within that specific market.
 Threats of Indigo Airline:
 Competition: the airline is facing a lot of competitive
competition from brands such as Jet Airways, India,
Singapore Airlines, etc.
 Costing: The oil that fluctuates greatly is the core
component of the price of an airline and is a danger
today and even in the future to handle price according to
the oil distribution dynamics.
 External Analysis:

PESTEL Analysis of Indigo Airline:

Political Factors Affecting Indigo Airline:
 Democracy and other democratic institutions: the
democratic institutions need to be further reinforced,
in order for businesses such as Indigo Aviation to
grow in a political environment that is open,
transparent and stable. Strengthening a democratic
body will promote higher transparency and decrease
the country's corruption rate.
 Political governance structure: On the basis of the
data given in the Indigo Airlines scenario research, it
appears that the nation has a secure political structure.
Indigo Aviation can use the stable political climate to
create approaches.
 Government Regulations and deregulations:
Government complies with all World Trade
Organization standards rules and regulations. The
policy-making and implementation of these policies
are consistent activities in the nation.
 Roles of a NGO, civil society and protest groups:
Indigo Aviation should establish bridge with the
country and look to areas of collaboration and have a
vibrant civil society. Civil society organizations
influence not only the creating of policies, but also
the construction of a broad-ranging community.

Economic Factors Affecting Indigo Airline:

 GDP Trend & Economic Growth Rate: The rising
growth rate in GDP signals increasing economic
demand. Indigo Aviation can use this trend by
expanding its range of products and focusing on new
customers. One way to get started is to closely map
changes-the behaviour of the consumer and the new
value proposal.
 Employment rate: if the employment rate is high,
Indigo's strategies will have double edged impact–
providing enough customer for Indigo Aviation
products, and Indigo Aviation is making it costly to
employ talented and skilled workers.
 Financial market structure and capital availability
at reasonable rates: The Federal Reserve has pushed
liquidity across global financial markets with a
political quantitative easing strategy. Under such
conditions, Indigo Aviation may purchase cheaply.
But when the interest rate rises, this approach entails
hazards.
 Price fluctuations in the Local and International
market: The rates of Indigo Aviation goods and
general goods stayed tight on the US economy
compared with the rate of monetary relaxation in the
last century. Indigo Aviation should consider that the
 United States ' deficit can lead to widespread inflation
and serious currency depreciation risks at an
emerging economy.

Social Factors Affecting Indigo Airline:

 Society Power Structure: Indigo Aviation should
closely study both— what is society's energy
building? How it affects economic supply. In the US
economy, for instance, the power structure gradually
moves towards the elderly class, because it has a
greater disposable income compared with the younger
generation.
 Immigration Policies and Immigration Level: What
are the country's immigration policies, what the
immigration level is, and where immigration sectors
are encouraged? This allows Indigo Aviation to
determine whether it can employ worldwide talents to
operate on this specific industry if necessary.
 Gender Composition in the Labour Market: Indigo
Aviation can use the gender structure of the labour
market to comprehend the extent of liberality of
culture, women's freedoms and women's participation
in social issues and consumer choices. The gender
structure of the labour market is a nice measure of
family disposable income, family objectives and
associated demands.
 Health & Safety approach: The wellness and
security approach is often expressed in the quality of
the goods and the price buildings of production
procedures. Indigo Aviation has strict safety and
hygiene standards, so that it can contend with
 competitors in developing markets that are not high-
cost than Indigo Aviation.

Technological Factors Affecting Indigo Airline:

 Intellectual Property Rights and Patent
Protection: Before joining a new market, Indigo
Aviation should concentrate on the environment for
intellectual property protection.
 Research and Development Investment Levels:
There are elevated prospects of constructing a self-
sustaining environment that leads entrepreneurship if
there is a strong amount of asset in the software
growth industry. Indigo Aviation can exploit such a
scenario to employ the finest individuals in company.
 Transparency & Digital Drive: Indigo Aviation can
use the digitization of different procedures to solve
local government bribery.
 Development of e-commerce and related
infrastructure: As e-commerce is critical for the
company structure of Indigo Aviation. Before joining
a fresh industry, it should assess the e-commerce
infrastructure, technology infrastructure, etc.

Environmental Factors Affecting Indigo

Airline:
 Environmental Agencies ' influence and
effectiveness: Environmental standard regulatory
organizations have an important part to play in
protecting standards. But these organizations often
stop the method for extracting bribes in emerging
 economies. Indigo Aviation should be aware of such
practices being present in a country.

 National and Local Environmental Standards and

Regulations: Environmental strategy at domestic and
local stage often may differ. This can assist Indigo
Aviation to make a number of choices, such as plant
place, product development and pricing strategy.
 Waste management: What is waste management
strategy on the future market and how Indigo
Aviation can meet the demands on this industry for
waste management?
 Level of Consumer Activism With respect to
Environmental Concerns: Indigo Aviation requires
understanding the quality of customer activists with
respect to economic issues. Indigo Aviation will assist
both to develop eco safe goods and to thwart PR
mistake lines.

Legal Factors Affecting Indigo Airline:

 Compliance with common law: the country is
uniform in common law, both domestic and
international, and Indigo Aviation cannot be
conscious of its decisions when the legal method is
arbitrary.
 Health & Safety Laws and regulations: What are
the health and safety laws in the country and what
Indigo Aviation needs to do to comply with them?
Different countries have different attitudes towards
health and safety, so Indigo Aviation should
 conduct thorough research before entering the
market.
 Monopolies and Trade Restriction Law: The law
of monopolies and unfair trading methods should
not worry Indigo Aviation as a fresh competitor.
 Protection of intellectual property rights: The
level of protection of intellectual property rights
under national legal rules should be evaluated by
Indigo Aviation.

2.1 Evolution of Strategic Marketing Approach:

 Product Approach: This approach relates in depth
to the analysis of a product the marketing situation of
each brand selected for analysis is examined from
sources and conditions of supply, supplier marketing
organisations, regulations, various intermediaries (6f
distributor wholesalers etc) that participate in the
product distribution.
 Organizational Approach: This approach applies
to various marketing business units, such as
institutions, wholesalers, retailers, etc., engaged in
marketing. An in-depth study of a particular
middleman is undertaken in the application of this
approach. For example, in the retail sector, the
essence and value of retailing in terms of the roles
and services performed and made by retail institutions
such as department stores, multiple shops, mail order
houses, etc.
  Activities based Functional Approach : As the
name implies, this method involves the study of the
different activities carried out in the marketing
process of goods and services. Each function is
evaluated in relation to its quality importance.
Through observing and researching each function in-
depth and the problems faced by the quality of each
function, it is possible to understand marketing
properly.
 The Decision Making Approach: From a
marketing management point of view, this approach
is of vital importance. Different decisions are taken at
all levels of management. Decision-making plays an
important role in successful marketing. The marketing
manager should be very experienced and
knowledgeable in his job so that he can make the
right decisions on the selling of goods and services.

2.2 (1) Importance of Strategic Marketing in

Tourism &Hospitality Industry:
 Marketing strategy provides a company with an
advantage over its rivals.
 Strategy helps to develop goods and services with the
best potential for benefit.
 Marketing strategy helps to identify areas affected by
corporate development and thus helps to establish a
strategic plan to meet the needs of the customer.
 This helps to set the right price for the goods and
services of the company on the basis of information
collected by market research.
 Strategy guarantees successful collaboration of
agencies.
  This allows a company to make maximum use of its
assets in order to send a message of sales to its target
market.
 The marketing strategy aims to set the advertising
budget in advance, and it also establishes a
mechanism that defines the reach of the campaign,
i.e. the revenue generated by the advertising plan.

(2) Marketing Strategy of Indigo Airline:

 Segmentation, targeting and positioning in Indigo
Airlines ' marketing strategy:
Indigo Airlines uses its benefit segmentation
approach to meet the changing needs have
developed and developing countries. It targets people
primarily by offering low rates, as air travel is
considered an expensive choice for travel.
Through targeting different markets judiciously
considering demand supply constraints, Indigo has
emerged as the best player in the industry within 10
years of its inception using a differentiated targeting
strategy.
As far as brand image is concerned, it has positioned
itself as a value-based carrier offering hassle-free
travel experience.
 Distribution strategy in Indigo Airlines '
marketing strategy:
Indigo flies to 40 destinations and, on a daily basis,
680 flights have helped the company to grow as a
market leader. Indigo outsources in-flight catering /
food products from an outside manufacturer. These
are provided to consumers on a payable basis.

 Brand equity in Indigo Airlines ' marketing

strategy:
Indigo is the number one airline brand in India. Since
its inception, Indigo has been successful in creating a
strong brand image, and even in its commercials, it
has become a low-cost carrier and "every time on
time" of arrival. Numerous awards were received for
being a low-cost carrier from 2007-2015 on a
continuous basis.

 Competitive analysis of Indigo Airlines '

marketing strategy:
The Indian aviation industry is crowded with a
number of companies and each company is struggling
with its profitability ratio and is redesigning its
strategies to survive in a -competitive market. Indigo,
on the other hand, was aligned with the "low cost,
wasted value" rule. Indigo has steadily increased its
fleet size, most recently by receiving the A320neo
delivery in Feb. ' 16.
  Market analysis of Indigo Airlines ' marketing
strategy:
India aims to become the world's third biggest
aviation industry by 2020, with a rapid growth fuelled
by various factors, such as LCC, advanced IT-enabled
and new airports. India is the first aviation industry in
the world. Through introducing certain of these,
companies such as Indigo are driving the growth of
the sector.

 Customer analysis in Indigo Airlines ' marketing

strategy:
Indigo Airlines ' customers include mainly employed
and middle-income professionals. The majority of
customers are between 20-45 years of age.

2.3 Marketing Analysis of Indigo Airline from the

Perspective of Strategic Marketing Theories:
 7p’s Marketing Mix of Indigo:
Product:
Core Product: The main product of indigo airlines
is that they provide low-cost passenger air
transport to middle-class and lower middle-class
consumers so that they can also experience plane
travel.
Supplementary Product: In addition to the core
product, complementary product is also offered.
These are like Check in, Food on board,
Connecting flight when travelling where the
service is not available, Complementary gifts along
with flying, In-flight entertainment such as music,
video games and Frequent Flyer programs.
Augmented Product: a service that has both the
primary physical attributes and the non-physical
attributes that are applied to increase the value of
the product. • Online booking • Range of meal
options • pick-up and drop-off service • Mobile
ticketing.
Price: Price is one of the industry's biggest
marketing mix. To be easy Indigo airlines
succeeded because of the cheap fares that opened
the doors to the middle-income group. In reality,
this happens to be its competitive advantage as
travellers compare prices. This makes it one of
India's most sought-after airline companies because
of its high-quality services as well. The control
department plays a key role in managing the
company's costs. With falling prices and an
increase in the number of passengers every day,
Indigo faces tough competition from Spice Jet and
Air India. There are also regular discounts to stop
customers coming back.
Place: Indigo airlines have online reservations 24
hours a day, so that they can keep customers from
going to a booking desk and waiting. They are also
linked to a variety of tour operators and tours.
Another interesting thing is that they are associated
in all of their travel plans with many businesses.
Yes, around 29 global Indigo destinations exist, but
there is continuing growth. In spite of this, the
airline ensures that it retains its key tactics. The
key tactics include retaining India's lowest-cost
airline and providing a pleasant experience. With
its 78 fleet and up to 508 daily flights, it serves 29
domestic and international destinations, while its
rival, Spice Jet, operates 56 of its 45 destination
aircraft. As a result, the plan is to provide more
flexibility on fewer routes than thinly spread across
many destinations.
Promotion: No airline has worked harder to win
the local market better than Indigo Airlines. The
airline relies on its cost and availability to promote
its product throughout the industry. Investments in
ads are small because they impact prices. Indigo,
however, has created a few TVCs of his own, as
well as good online publicity. The airline has
implemented a policy of connecting flights from
one destination to another so that passengers do not
need to book another airline until they reach their
destination. The aim is, for instance, to connect
Kolkata and Raipur to the four flights from Ranchi
to Delhi, Mumbai, Patna and Bangalore. Although
not a direct marketing tactic, this approach has
seen more customer base benefit, because
consumers would want to reduce costs by using
only one aircraft to reach their destination.
Certain marketing strategies used by Indigo aircraft
include publicity outlets such as posters, print
media ads and travel website advertising.
Process: The process applies to the delivery of
services to consumers with the best possible
approach. The management plan should be as
transparent as possible in order to achieve
customer loyalty. The operation mix of indigo
airlines includes the reservation system, how
efficiently the flight information is provided to
passengers, the services offered at the airport, the
baggage handling facility, the flight service and the
check-in process.
People: People who are directly and indirectly
involved in the business are very valuable to indigo
airlines, as they will provide a lot of information.
Travel agents will provide airlines with direct
business in order to provide a proper route to
determine the strength of travel agents in a
particular area. Employees of a business are their
best resource because human capital increases
production and optimal use of people with a high
level of customer service expertise should be
employed to satisfy the clientele as indigo offers
customer service. The customer should be given
first-hand information on the timetable of their
flights in the event of any delays or difficulties.
Physical Environment: The physical world of the
airline can be divided into two:
1. Ground: the ground setting can be considered as
a booking office, a luggage facility system, a
ground handling system can be considered a
physical area for indigo airlines.
2. In-flight: In-flight service is the most important
feature that can have a direct impact on customers.
 The actual in-flight atmosphere may be like the
facilities offered in the flight, the cleanness of the
plane, the ambience of the aircraft.

 Porter’s Five Force Model on Indigo

Airline:
1 Threat of New Entrants:
Product Differentiation:
There is not much variation in the basic service
given to consumers in low-cost carriers. The
distinction can only be accomplished by Value
Added Services. Indigo includes check-in kiosks,
stair-free ramps and Q-Busters. This argument is
therefore in favour of Indigo.
Switching Cost:
There are not big switching costs. Other low cost
carriers are easy for consumers to choose. The cost
of moving an airline to other companies is small,
because exit costs are high.
Setup Cost:
Nowadays, risk capital of $10 million or less is
enough to start an airline.
Airlines can use an ACMI lease agreement on
additional aircraft to address the shortage of
aircrafts during peak seasons. During low season
the airline can provide its surplus aircraft to
another airline which faces peak season if it has
several aircraft owned or rented.
 If an airline company decides to start and extend
its fleet, the costs of buying an aircraft will be met
by leasing. At the conclusion of the rental period,
the lease may be extended or aircraft replaced by
modern aircraft can be returned.
Resources:
The aviation industry in India suffers a shortfall of
pilots. Reasons are as follows: Applicants can
obtain a Commercial Pilot License (CPL) only if
they undergo training abroad.
The explanation is that there is a lack of qualified
flight instructors, ten-year-old aircraft and poor
quality education provided at a far higher price
than that offered by flying schools in the USA,
Canada and Australia.
2 Bargaining Power of Suppliers:
For general, every airline faces the duopoly of two
major aircraft suppliers, i.e. its Airbus and Boeing.
Other suppliers, such as Dauphin, Dornier, Bell,
ATR-42, do not meet the criteria to serve low-cost
commercial aircraft carriers, especially Indigo
airlines.
As a result, manufacturers are few and thus in a
good position to negotiate, as they always find
customers for their aircraft.
I-The Indigo fleet consists of Airbus-A320 and the
switching costs are high due to the limited number
of suppliers.
 II-Due to the shortage of commercial aircraft pilots
in India, the supply of pilots is concentrated, thus
increasing their strength.
III-There are only four suppliers for ATF (Aviation
Turbine Fuel); IOC, Hindustan Petroleum
Corporation, Bharat Petroleum and NGOC and, as
their number is small, they have more control.
3 Bargaining Power of Buyers:
I-Buyers in the airline industry are large in number
and highly fragmented, thereby reducing their
strength. With India's growing economy and the
low-cost carriers, buyers have increased and thus
opportunities for growth.
II- The switching cost is low as there are several
alternatives available. It is not difficult to move
from one carrier to another or to turn to an
alternative.
Therefore, the players in the specific tactical unit
have few points of distinction.
4 Competitive Rivalry:
The aviation industry is a highly competitive
industry because of which it is difficult to earn
high returns in this sector. Below are the main
reasons for high competition in low-cost carrier
airlines:
I-Very little room for differentiation between rivals
on products and services.
 II-Aviation is a mature industry with very little
customers from rivals, while aircraft manufacturers
are the same, i.e. Boeing and Airbus. The supplier's
bargaining power is therefore strong.
5 Availability of Substitutes:
Railways are the replacement for low-cost airline
companies. Nonetheless, this substitution is not
very powerful due to the following reasons:
Consumers use airline transport as comfortable and
save travel time. As a result, trains cannot act as a
replacement to save time.
Second, most consumers use airlines as a status
symbol. But, again, trains cannot replace
reputation. Therefore, when we find Indigo
airlines, direct alternatives are other low-cost
carriers such as Spice Jet and Go Air. Therefore, in
this situation, the risk of substitutes is high as the
cost of switching between low cost carriers is low.