Professional Documents
Culture Documents
INTRODUCTION
The buyers satisfaction after purchases depends on the offers performance in relation to the
buyers expectations. According to Philip Kotler, satisfaction is a persons feelings of
pressure or disappointment resulting from products perceived performance (outcome)
in relation to his or her expectations. Customer satisfaction is the level of a persons felt
state resulting from comparing a products perceived performance (outcome) in relation
to the persons expectations.1 This satisfaction level is a function of difference between
perceived performance and expectations. If the products performance, exceed expectation
the customer highly satisfied or delighted. If the performance matches the expectations the
customer is satisfied. If the products performance fall shorts of expectations the customer is
dissatisfied.
Many companies are aiming for high satisfaction because customers who are just
satisfied still find it easy to switch when a better offer comes along. High satisfaction or
delight creates an emotional affinity with brand.
Variety of factors that affect customer satisfaction includes product quality,
product availability and after sales support such as warranties and services. Customer
satisfaction is seen as a proof of delivering a quality product or service. It is believed that
customer satisfaction brings sales growth, and market share. A company can always increase
customer satisfaction by lowering its price or increasing its services but this may result in
lower profits. Thus the purpose of marketing is to generate customer value profitability.
India is on the threshold of a new millennium. India chose for global economy,
exposing her to winds of change in the market place, which has expanded vastly and become
fiercely competitive. In the changed environment, decision makers view the marketing
concept as the key to success. Marketing in practice has to manage products, pricing,
promotion and distribution.
A successful product can be developed by exploding these opportunities. While
delivering the value of the consumer we make use of marketing support. This support is
1
based on the knowledge of consumers and distribution. Marketing support both at the
introduction of products and maturing is considered
Marketing, as suggested by the American Marketing Association is "an organizational
function and a set of processes for creating, communicating and delivering value to customers
and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its
stakeholders".
The two major factors of marketing are the recruitment of new customers
(acquisition) and the retention and expansion of relationships with existing customers (base
management). Marketing methods are informed by many of the social, particularly
psychology, sociology, and economics. Anthropology is also a small, but growing, influence.
Market research underpins these activities. Through advertising, it is also related to many of
the creative arts.
For a marketing plan to be successful, the mix of the four "Ps" 2 i.e. product, price,
place, promotion must reflect the wants and desires of the consumers in the target market.
Trying to convince a market segment to buy something they don't want is extremely
expensive and seldom successful. Marketers depend on marketing research, both formal and
informal, to determine what consumers want and what they are willing to pay for. Marketers
hope that this process will give them a sustainable competitive advantage. Marketing
management is the practical application of this process. The offer is also an important
addition to the 4P's theory.
make money there must be opportunities for money to be made and it's marketing's job to
define what those opportunities are. Marketers analyze markets, market gaps, trends,
products, competition, and distribution channels to come up with opportunities to make
money.
2.2.4 Sales
The ultimate goal of marketing is to make money for a business. In most companys
sales is a different discipline and department from marketing. But in order for salespeople to
have any long term success in a company they must be led by marketing. The better job a
company does of identifying opportunities, creating a differential sustainable competitive
advantage, and generating demand for their products the easier it will be for salespeople to
make sales.
feel about various aspects of the companys performance and also solicit views on their
competitors performance. It is useful to measure the customers willingness to recommend
the company and brand to other persons.
OPERATIONAL DEFINITON
There are two key players involved in any purchase/buying or subscribing process. They are
people and the competitive products. Within the scope of our work they can be classified as
television viewers and competing TV channels like Manorama, Asianet and Kairali. The
above figure lists out the main factors that influence the viewers to subscribe (purchase
decision) to a particular TV channel. They are socio-cultural, economic/ business interests
and family backgrounds etc. Let it be news, food or fashion, people from different regions
has diverse idea about this. Even people from the same region may have different tastes based
on their economic status and family traditions. Apart from these influences that every buyer
has, there are certain other elements that decide the final purchase decision. They are real
need for the commodity, proper motivation to purchase, attitude, learning style and
perception of the individual. In short the central process of subscribing to a news channel by
an individual is decided by various external influence factors shown figure plus intrinsic
personal traits of the individual.
2.1) OBJECTIVES
To assess the needs, requirements and expectations of the customers
in order to
assess their current satisfaction levels.
Gauge the drivers behind their choice of products.
Learn to complete time bound multi-disciplinary and goal-oriented
assignment
involving team work.
Learn to deal with insufficient data parameters and uncertain
situations.
To know the attitude, enthusiasm regarding the service provided to
customers.
To understand the performance of different brands in the market on
various
parameters like product quality, performance of the customer relationship
officer
(CRO), service quality, range and selection of products available.
To know and understand the performance of the competitors brand in
the market
1) Brand selection
The research study tiltled factors affecting the brand decision in the
mobile service provider industry in Asia by Liu 2002.This study
found that the choice of a cellular phone is characterized by two
attitudes to brands : attitude towards the mobile phone brand on
one hand and attitude towards the network on the other. While price
and regularity of service were found to dominate choice between
network providers, choices between mobile phone brands were
affected by new technology features such as memory capacity and
SMS options, more than size. The brand will actually be not
towards smaller phones but towards phones with better capability
and larger screen.
2) Consumer satisfaction
This study is conducted by TRAI. It assesses the satisfaction level of
consumers encompassing quality of technical service, quality and
operational aspects of gadgets and social /psychological costs due
6) Consumer perception
The article titled consumer perception and its choice mobile
telecom service provider in Malaysia,Journal of International
Business and Economics, May, 2007 by Ahasanul Haque, Ali Khatibi,
Abdur Raquib, Shameem Al Mahmud. The study aims to find out
what are critical factors those are playing an important role to select
the telecommunication service provider. Result provides a
comprehensive analysis of the important factors for playing an
important role for the customer to select the telecommunication
service provider. The analysis confirms the significant positive
relationship of price, service quality, product quality and availability,
and promotional offer for consumer perception. These factors are
expected to have a great role during the time to choose
telecommunication service provider. In conclusion, practitioners can
be deriving a better understanding of the activities that are being
played a vital role for the consumer perception.
3.2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
Consumer
An individual who buys products or services for personal use and not
for manufacture or resale. A consumer is someone who can make
the decision whether or not to purchase an item at the store, and
someone who can be influenced by marketing and advertisements
Customer
A person, company, or other entity which buys goods and services
produced by another person, company, or other entity
Customer service
According to Turban et al customer service is a series of activities
designed to enhance the level of customer satisfaction that is, the
feeling that aproduct or service has met the customer expectation.
The needs, wants and preconceived ideas of a customer about a
product or service. Customer expectation will be influenced by a
customers perception of the product or service and can be created
by previous experience, advertising , hearsay, awareness of
competitors and brand image. The level of customer service is also a
factor and a customer might expect to encounter efficiency,
helpfulness, reliability, confidence in the staff and a personal
interest in his / her patronage.
The main objectives of customer services are : Learn to identify and analyze customer needs and problems
Recognize the most common reasons for customer complaints
Discover techniques to cultivate and maintain special customer
relationships
Assess your communication style and use two way communication
skills to level with people, to accept feedback from them, and to
discuss problems
Identify specific problems in your customer service program and
apply treatment.
Customer satisfaction
Customer satisfaction is a measure of how products and services
supplied by the company meet or surpass customer expectation.
Satisfaction is a persons feelings of pleasure or disappointment
resulting from comparing a products perceived performance in
relation to his or her expectation.
The market transaction (sale) often is not the key point of customer
pain and lost revenue.
DOING THE JOB RIGHT THE FIRST TIME + EFFECTIVE CUSTOMER
SERVICE = MAXIMUM CUSTOMER SATISFACTION/LOYALTY
Customer oriented organization chart
Cutomers
Problem
recognitio
n
1.
2.
o
o
Informati
on search
Evaluatio
n of
alternetiv
es
Purchase
decision
Purchase
Post
purchase
evaluatio
n
3.
4.
5.
includes
6.
Post-Purchase
Evaluation--outcome:
Satisfaction
or
This
can
be
communication etc.
Buying behavior model
reduced
by
warranties,
after
sales
Self
Actua
lisatio
n
(self
devel
opme
nt,frui
tion
of
one's
Esteem
Needs
capab status)
(recognition,
ilities
Social Needs
(sense of belonging, love)
Safety needs
(security, protection)
Physiological Needs
(like hunger and thirst)
Awareness
Reasons for buying
How often do they buy
Current usage
Reasons for usage
What do they buy?
Where do they like to buy?
Where do they gather their buying information
Are they an exclusive customer?
Customer loyalty
The term customer loyalty is used to describe the behavior of repeat
customers, as well as those that offer good ratings, reviews, or
testimonials. Some customers do a particular company a great
service by offering favorable word of mouth publicity regarding a
product, telling friends and family, thus adding them to the number
of loyal customers.
Ten ways to build customer loyalty:
Communicate: - Whether it is an email newsletter, monthly
flier, a reminder card for a tune up, or a holiday greeting card,
reach out to the customers.
Customer perception
Perception is the process of selecting, organizing and
interpreting information inputs to produce meaning. IE we
chose what info we pay attention to, organize it and interpret it.
Information inputs are the sensations received through sight,
taste, hearing, smell and touch.
Selective Exposure-select inputs to be exposed to our
awareness. More likely if it is linked to an event, satisfies
current needs, intensity of input changes (sharp price drop).
Factors
Factors
Factors
in the
inperceiver
the situation
Attitudes Novelty
Motives Motions
Time
Interest Sounds
Work setting
Social setting
Size
Experience
ConsumerBehavior
Definition:
Factors in the
target
For example,
if fresher student joins a college /university, he/she will meet
different people and form a group, in that group there can be
behaviorpatterns of values, for example style of clothing,
handsets which most of group member prefer or
evendestructive behavior such as excessive consumption of
alcohol, use of harmful and addictive drugs etc.
So, according to how an individual references him / herself to
that particular reference group, this willinfluence and change
his/her buying behavior.
Psychological Factors
These are internal to an individual and generate forces within
that influence her/his purchase behavior.The major forces
include motives, perception, learning, attitude and personality.
Example: Attitude is an enduring organization of motivational,
emotional, perceptual and cognitiveprocesses with respect to
some aspect of our environment. Consumers form attitude
towards a brandon the basis of their beliefs about the brand.
Forexample,
consumers of Sony products might have theb elief that the
products offered by Sony are durable; this will influence those
customers to buy Sony
products due to this attitude towards the brand.
Personal Factors
These include those aspects that are unique to a person and
influence purchase behavior. These factors
include demographic factors, lifestyle, and situational factors.
Example: Lifestyle is an indicator of how people live and
express themselves on the basis of their
activities, interests, and opinions. Lifestyle dimension provide a
broader view of people about how
they spend their time the importance of things in their
surroundings and their beliefs on broad issues
associated with life and living and themselves. This is
influenced by demographic factors and
personality. e.g. A CEO or Manager is likely to buy more formal
clothes, ties and shoes or PDAs and
First operational land lines were laid by the government near Calcutta
(seat
of British power)
1881
1883
1923
1932
Merger of ETC and IRT into the Indian Radio and Cable
Communication
Company (IRCC)
1947
1985
1986
Limited
(VSNL)
for
international
1997
1999
2000
A large population, low telephony penetration levels, and a rise in consumers' income
and spending owing to strong economic growth have helped make India the fastestgrowing telecom market in the world. The first and largest operator is the state-owned
incumbent BSNL, which is also the 7th largest telecom company in the world in terms
of its number of subscribers. BSNL was created by corporatization of the erstwhile
DTS (Department of Telecommunication Services), a government unit responsible for
provision of telephony services. Subsequently, after the telecommunication policies
were revised to allow private operators, companies such as Bharti Telecom, TATA
Indicom, Vodafone, MTNL, Idea,Vodafone and BPL have entered the space. major
operators in India. However, rural India still lacks strong infrastructure.
In 2007, an article by Businessweek magazine reported that India's mobile phone
market is the fastest growing in the world, with companies adding some 6 million new
customers a month.
The total number of telephones in the country crossed the 300 million mark on June
18 2008The overall tele-density has increased to 36.98% in March 2009 In the
wireless segment, 15.87 million subscribers have been added in March 2009. The total
wireless subscribers (GSM, CDMA & WLL (F)) base is more than 391.76 million
now. The wireline segment subscriber base stood at 38.22 million with a decline of
0.13 million in October 2008.
Market shares of public and Private Players
Both fixed line and mobile segments serve the basic needs of local calls, long distance
calls and the international calls, with the provision of broadband services in the fixed
line segment and
GPRS in the mobile arena. Traditional telephones have been replaced by the codeless
and the wireless instruments. Mobile phone providers have also come up with GPRSenabled multimedia messaging, Internet surfing, and mobile-commerce. The muchawaited 3G mobile technology is soon going to enter the Indian telecom market. The
GSM, CDMA, WLL service providers are all upgrading them to provide 3G mobile
services.
Along with improvement in telecom services, there is also an improvement in
manufacturing. In the beginning, there were only the Siemens handsets in India but
now a whole series of new handsets, such as Nokia's latest N-series, Sony Ericsson's
W-series, Motorola's PDA phones, etc. have come up. Touch screen and advanced
technological handsets are gaining popularity. Radio services have also been
incorporated in the mobile handsets, along with other applications like high storage
memory, multimedia applications, multimedia games, MP3 Players, video generators,
Camera's, etc. The value added services provided by the mobile service operators
contribute more than 10% of the total revenue.
Global telecom sector
Earnings visibility
Earnings growth is being driven by improving pricing conditions, stabilizing operating
trends, aggressive cost cutting initiatives, a positive regulatory environment, strong
wireless growth, and new market opportunities. This has translated into greater
visibility of forward earnings as evidenced by recent increased analyst upgrades
within the sector.
Merger synergies
Given the substantial amount of excess capital available in the sector and in private
equity we expect to see additional merger and acquisition activity, albeit at a slower
pace than recently witnessed. Global telecom M&A deals over the past two years have
reflected market expansion but have also had a positive effect on the buyers balance
sheets. Partnering companies have begun realizing their synergies through cost
reductions and economies of scale. In the US, the largest three companies now
account for over 70% of the sector market cap; this compares to 34% in 1990. Trends
in bundled services are also paving the way for additional M&A activity. Sector
consolidation will further increase the importance of stock selection.
Growth
While cost-cutting has been a major source of earnings growth, we have seen top-line
pressures decreasing which will help revenues become a larger driver of earnings
growth again. We see growth within the sector coming from a number of areas
including: broadband, 3G (third generation) technology, expansion in emerging
markets. Broadband penetration has been accelerating as internet customers are
seeking faster downloads for audio and video files. 3G services, which facilitate the
simultaneous transfer of both voice and non-voice (i.e. video, downloads, SMS, etc.)
data are providing mobile users with a much more robust communication platform and
should finally begin to realize their growth potential in 2007. Emerging market
companies benefit from low penetration rates and also tend to have lower leverage,
higher margins and higher growth than most developed markets telecom companies.
Global opportunities
It has become less difficult to find attractive telecom investment opportunities globally
than it was a year ago. As the fog has lifted from the sector, there are increased
opportunities within both the growth and value spaces. In the US, improved clarity in
the regulatory environment has opened the door for a number of players. Within
Europe the risk of negative news flow remains a potential detractor but there is
valuation support from attractively priced stocks. There is little difference between the
European and US integrated carriers making it more of a stock call than a regional
call. Within Asia we see high revenue growth and return on assets. Overall, emerging
markets continue to be the fastest growing region within the sector and offer the
largest valuation discount. Additionally, the healthy macro environment in emerging
markets coupled with increasing domestic wealth is creating a positive consumer
environment in the local markets.
Fortis Investments: Telecom sector strategy
Our strategy is to create a more focused portfolio of diversified high conviction ideas.
In the current environment we continue to be sensitive to relative valuations and
positive earnings momentum. Our portfolio is largely levered to growth. We have
positioned ourselves in companies that will provide synergies as well as margin
expansion through wireless exposure. We recognize the sensitivity of the regulatory
environment in some markets and have minimized our exposure to those markets. We
also continue to overweight our exposure toniche players within developed markets as
well as to emerging markets which have low penetration rates and more growth
opportunities.
MMS for sending and receivingphotos and video. Most current mobile phones
connect to a cellular network of base stations (cellsites), which is in turn
interconnected to the public switched telephone network (PSTN) (the exception
is satellite phones. Cellular telephone is also defined as a type of short-wave
analog or digitaltelecommunication in which asubscriberhasawirelessconnection
from a mobile telephone to arelatively nearby transmitter. The transmitter's span
of coverage is called a cell. Generally, cellulartelephone service is available in
urban areas and along major highways. As the cellular telephone usermoves
from one cell or area of coverage to another, the telephone is effectively passed
on to the localcell transmitter. A cellular telephone is not to be confused with a
cordless telephone (which is simply aphone with a very short wireless
connection to a local phone outlet). A newer service similar tocellular is
personal communications services (PCS).
account for less than 5 per cent of subscriptions. However, private services
focus on thebusiness/corporate sector, and offer reliable, high- end services,
such as leased lines, ISDN, closed usergroup and videoconferencing. Cellular
services can be further divided into two categories: GlobalSystem for Mobile
Communications (GSM) and Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA). The
GSMsector is dominated by Airtel, Vodfone-Essar, and Idea Cellular, while the
CDMA sector is dominatedby Reliance and Tata Indicom. Opening up of
international and domestic long distance telephonyservices are the major growth
drivers for cellular industry. Cellular operators get substantial revenuefrom
these services, and compensate them for reduction in tariffs on airtime, which
along with rental was the main source of revenue. The reduction in tariffs for
airtime, national long distance,international long distance, and handset prices
has driven demand.
Classification of Telecommunication services
1. Basic services
2. Cellular services
3. Internet Service Provider (ISP)
CHAPTER -2
LITERATURE REVIEW
Chris (2003) has analyzed Telecom advertising in print media. This research attempted to
investigate why Telecom theme are used in advertisement, and the motives that lead
companies and advertisers to use sport celebrities and sport concept in advertisements. From
study it has been revealed that the appearance of sport celebrities in advertising endorsement
occurred more often in Telecom magazines than in other magazines, because their target
group is more acquainted with athletes. The sport celebrities that dominated each printed
media are related with their target group characteristics.Robins (2008) This paper is about
marketing the next generation of mobile telephones. The study is about third generation of
cell phone technology, what is usually known as 3G for short. There are various issues
about that new innovative. One is how to price 3G handsets and services at a level which will
enable telephone operating companies to recoup the high prices they have already paid to
governments for operating licenses. Second the technology is not yet complete, there are no
agreed international standards and companies do not yet know what new services the
technology will prove capable of delivering effectively. All variants of 3G remain dependent
on largely unproven technology. Marketing 3G is going to be about services which are new
and in many cases, yet to be designed. At the same time, it will involve services which can
also be obtained by computer and other means. It follows that the marketing task will be high
risk. First, 3G has no obviously unique selling proposition to build on except, perhaps, the
combination of live video and easy portability. Second, the potential customers have not yet
had adequate opportunity to signal their service likes and dislikes. Third, the cost and
complexity of service provision leave doubt about the markets reaction to price.Debnath
(2008) This study explain that the prime focus of the service providers is to create a loyal
customer base by benchmarking their performances and retaining existing customers in order
to benefit from their loyalty. With the commencement of the economic liberalization in 1991,
and with a view to expand and improve telecom infrastructure through the participation of the
private sector, the Government of India permitted foreign companies holding 51 percent
equity stake in joint ventures to manufacture telecom equipment in India. The Indian
Government has announced a new policy, which allows private firms to provide basic
telephone services. There had been a monopoly of the state-owned department of
telecommunications. However, several companies are expected to benefit from the policy
change.
Bhatt (2008), in his study titled A Study of Mobile Phone Usage Among the Post Graduate
Students analyzed that it is important for mobile carriers, service providers, content
developers, equipment manufacturers, as well as for parents and young people alike that the
key characteristics of mobile technology is well understood so that the risks associated with
its potentially damaging or disruptive aspects can be mitigated. This paper has tried to
compare the usage difference by gender with respect to the difference manufacturing and
service provider companies.
Jha (2008), in his study analyzed that it is the youth which is the real growth driver of the
telecom industry in India. Considering this fact, the paper is an attempt to give a snapshot of
how frequently young people use their mobile phones for several embodied functions of the
cell phones. Data was collected from a sample of 208 mobile phone owners, aged between 20
and 29. The study sheds light on how gender, monthly voucher amount and years of owning
mobile phones influence the usage pattern of this device. Findings of the study would be
helpful for the telecom service providers and handset manufacturers to formulate a marketing
strategy for different market segments.
Kalavani (2006) in their study analyzed that majority of the respondents have given
favourable opinion towards the services but some problems exist that deserve the attention of
the service providers. They need to bridge the gap between the services promised and
services offered. The overall customers attitude towards cell phone services is that they are
satisfied with the existing services but still they want more services to be provided.
Kumar (2008), in their study titled Customer Satisfaction and Discontentment vis-a-vis
BSNL Landline Service: A Study analyzed that at present, services marketing plays a major
role in the national economy. In the service sector, telecom industry is the most active and
attractive. Though the telecom industry is growing rapidly, India's telecom density is less than
the world's average telecom density as most of India's market is yet to be covered. This
attracts private operators to enter into the Indian telecom industry, which makes the Bharat
Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) more alert to run its business and survive in the market.
Seth et al (2008), in their study titled Managing the Customer Perceived Service Quality
for Cellular Mobile Telephone: an Empirical Investigation analyzed that there is relative
importance of service quality attributes and showed that responsiveness is the most
importance dimension followed by reliability, customer perceived network quality,
assurance, convenience, empathy and tangibles. This would enable the service providers to
focus their resources in the areas of importance. The research resulted in the development of
a reliable and valid instrument for assessing customer perceived service quality for cellular
mobile services.Fernandez (2007) in their study titled Understanding Dynamics in an
Evolving Industry: Case of Mobile VAS in India analyzed that Mobile Value Added Services
(VAS) is a rising star in the fast growing wireless business. In the paper, attempt is made at
understanding the strategic dynamics of the evolving environment within which the Indian
players are operating, the challenges and structure of the same. Our literature and industry
review indicates that - while the value chain of industry is complicated yet one can observe
the bipolar nature of bargaining powers between mobile network operators and content
aggregators.
Bismut (2006) in his study titled Competition in European Telecom Markets analyzed that
in recent years the European telecommunications market has witnessed major developments,
with rapid expansion in access to telecommunications networks and a surge in the number of
available services and applications. While many factors have contributed to the
transformation of the telecommunications industry, competition has played a key role in
driving telecom players to invest in new technologies, to innovate and to offer new services.
Kalpana and Chinnadurai (2006) in their study titled Promotional Strategies of Cellular
Services: A Customer Perspective analyzed that the increasing competition and changing
taste and preferences of the customers all over the world are forcing companies to change
their targeting strategies. The study revealed the customer attitude and their satisfaction
towards the cellular services in Coimbatore city. It was found that advertisement play a
dominant role in influencing the customers but most of the customers are of opinion that
promotional strategies of cellular companies are more sale oriented rather than customer
oriented.Fredric (2008) analyzed the importance of yield management and discrimination
pricing in telecommunication sector. Yield management is the process of allocating the right
type of capacity or inventory unit to the right kind of customer at the right price so as to
maximize revenue or yield. Yield management and dynamic pricing strategies could be
usefully applied to preserve and increase profitability. Yield management techniques can help
telecom operators and similar companies to optimize the benefits they can derive from a
subtle management of information networks and partnerships. However, such an approach is
more difficult to implement in the telecommunications industry than in the airlines sector
because of the difficulty to control (and sometimes to refuse) network access to customers