A PROJECT REPORT ON MARKETING STRATEGY OF AIRTEL

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement of the degree of Masters of Business Administration Sikkim manipal university

UNDER THE GUIDENCE OF

Submitted to:

Submitted By:

SUMIT KUMAR YADAV

MBA IVth SEM 571016109

2011-2012

ACKNOWLEGEMENT

I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude towards all those people who have helped me in the completion of this project and without whose support I would have not been able to complete the project successfully. I would also like to express my sincere gratitude towards my teacher Mr Ashok sharma, for providing guidance and helping me in every step to complete this project. I also thank my parents for their direct and indirect support during the entire course of this project.

Sumit kumar yadav MBA VI th sem 571016109

CERTIFICATE

I have the pleasure in certifying that Sumit kumar yadav Is a bonafide student of MBA IVth Semester of Sikkim manipal university Roll No 571016109. He has completed his project work entitled AIRTEL under my supervision. I certify that this is his original effort & has not been copied from any other source. This project has also not been submitted in any other University for the purpose of award of any degree.

Signature: Name of the Guide: Date

DECLARTION

I, SUMIT KUAMR YADAV hereby to declare that this project is the record of authentic work carried out by me during my academic session year 2011-2012 and has not been submitted to any other university or institute towards the award of any degree.

Table of Contents

1.1.1. Bharti Airtel........................................................................................................19

1.1.1. Bharti Airtel........................................................................................19

1.1.2. The Brand..........................................................................................................20

1.1.2. The Brand..........................................................................................20

1.1.3. Airtels Vision & promise......................................................................................21

1.1.3. Airtels Vision & promise......................................................................21

Business Divisions.............................................................................22 Airtel Advantages.............................................................................24 2005....................................................................................................41 Sells 10% stake to Vodafone............................................................41 Inks insurance J-V with Axa...........................................................41 2006....................................................................................................41 Signs pact with Wal-Mart to explore retail opportunities in India41 2007....................................................................................................41 SUBSCRIBERS IN AIRTEL...........................................................42
a) The Airtel Colour Palette ...........................................................................46

Research Methodology.....................................................................47 Limitations........................................................................................62 BIBLOGRAPHY..............................................................................65 www.airtel.com.................................................................................65 www.google.com................................................................................65 Business India...................................................................................65 Economic times.................................................................................65 66

Executive Summary

The project undertaken by me at Bharti Airtel Limited as part of Summer Internship Program provided me an opportunity to understand the operations and to gain an insight into the various strategies employed to cater this segment of the industry.

Working from the office in AGRA from, I have learnt about the various aspects of Telecom sector. This project was a practical experience as I learned how to deal with the channels of distribution.

As a part of the project the following activities were done during the project at Bharti Airtel Limited: Worked with marketing team headed by Mr.GiteshTaneja (Zonal Manager Marketing), Dealers, Distributors, Retailers, Field Sales Executive (F.S.E) and F.C.E. etc.

Covered few regions in Dehradun(rural) like [rajpur, kandoli, raipur, nehrugram, doiwala, mahuwala, banjarawala, mothrawala, mohabewala,

banyawala, premnagar, tahakurwala, manduwala and many other rural areas .]

The following steps followed to conduct this research:

Primary data is collected by using the survey research. In the survey research personal contacts are made with retailers and the required information is collected by directive or structured interview.

Interviewed the targeted respondents in the predecided field area Agra (Urban).

Then the data was processed to give it a logical form. On the basis of this information, conclusion was made and recommendation was given.

This provided me an ample amount of learning and an opportunity to communicate with the professionals across the segment.

The project has been a great experience for me as an individual and provided me an opportunity to work in team on a practical project; thereby it acted as a platform for me to gather first hand experience for exploring the corridors of the corporate world.

Executive summary of Indian Telecom Market

Lowered call tariffs are a major industry growth driver Wireless Subscriber growth will continue around 10m users/year India is primarily a low priced handset market (100-150 Euros) Prepaid will continue to dominate in both GSM and CDMA Segments. Operators are experiencing low ARPU because of lowered call Tariffs, thus they are focusing upon content aspect Games and content should to be developed keeping local trends and tastes in mind GPRS and MMS are here, but fail to gain subscribers as Compatible handsets are expensive SMS based applications; services are most successful so far Internet penetration is low but the industry is growing at a rapid Pace Broadband & Wi-Fi are here, but too expensive for general Public Dial-in is the most preferred mode for internet access

Telecom service-A profile

The telecom services have been recognized the world-over as an important tool for socio-economic development for a nation and hence telecom infrastructure is treated as a crucial factor to realize the socio-economic objectives in India. The department is also responsible for grant of licenses for various telecom services like Unified Access Service ,Internet and VSAT service.

The power of Wireless

The rapid strides made by the telecom sector in India continue to amaze us. It gives us a great joy to see a young boy in Kashmir strike a spontaneous Conversation with someone in Kerala. To see fisherman bargain for the best Price on their catch while they are still on the water, or a farmer in Punjab Accessing commodity rates in various mandis at the push of a button, is Equally inspiring. India has very quickly transformed from an era of snail mail, scarcity in

Phones and occasional long distance phone calls to an era of having The sixth-largest telecom network in the world. A world without borders and boundariesa world restricted only by your Imaginationthis is the world of wireless technology.

Market Share
4.62% 2.27% 2.59% 2.52% 0.10% 21.54%

0.05% 20.47%

3.27%

9.76% 14.83%

18.98%

Mtnl Hutch

Spice Idea

Tata Reliance

Hfcl Shyam

Bharti Aircel

Bsnl Bpl

BHARTI CELLULAR LIMITED

An Introduction:

Airtel comes to you from Bharti Cellular Limited a part of the biggest private integrated telecom conglomerate, Bharti Enterprises. Bharti Enterprises has been at the forefront of technology and has revolutionized telecommunications with its world class products and services. Established in 1967, Bharti has been a pioneering force in the telecom sector with many firsts and innovations to its credit. Bharti has many joint venture with world leaders like singtel (Singapore telecom); Warburg pincus , USA; Telia , Sweden; Asian infrastructure find, Mauritus ; International Finance corporation, USA and New

York Life International, USA. It provides a range of telecom services , which include cellular , basic,internet and recently introduced national long Distance. Bharti also manufactures and exports telephone terminals and cordless phones. Apart from being the largest manufacturer of telephone instruments in India , it is also the first company to export its products to the USA. Bharti is the leading cellular service provider, with an all India footprint covering all 23telecom circles of country. Bharti has been a pioneering force in the telecom sector with many first and innovations to its credit, ranging from being the first mobile service in Delhi, first private basic telephone service in the country, first Indian company to provide comprehensive telecom services outside India in Seychelles and first private sector service provider to launch National & International Long Distance services in India. Bharti Enterprises has successfully focused its strategy on telecom while straddling diverse of business. From the creation of AIRTEL, one of the Indias finest brands, to becoming the largest manufacturer and exporter of world class telecom terminals under its Betel brand , Bharti has created a

significant position for itself in the global telecommunications sector. Bharti Tele- ventures is today acknowledged as one of Indias finest companies , and its flagship brand AIRTEL, has over 13.2 million customers across the length and breadth of India. Bharti tele ventures limited , a part of Bharti Enterprises is Indias leading provider of telecommunications services. The businesses at Bharti tele-venture have been structured into two main strategic business groups- the Mobility Leaders business group and the Infotel Leaders business group. The Mobility Leaders business group provides GSM mobile services across India in twenty-three telecom circles, while the Infotel Leaders business group provides broadband & telephone services, long distance services and enterprise services. All these services are provided under the AIRTEL brand.

AIRTEL VISION AND MISSION

To be globally admired for telecom services that delight customers. We will meet global standards for telecom services that delight customers through:

Customer service focus Empowered employees Innovative services Cost efficiency Delhi is where it all began. An acid test , which gave the motivation and inspiration to give service , that compares with the very best in the world. This is what has made Airtel one of the top 5 operators in the world in terms of population covered . The growth, to put it

modestly , has been phenomenal in terms of subscribers, coverage and the milestone.

BASIC & CELLULAR SERVICES OF AIRTEL

THE MILESTONE OF AIRTEL

First and only service to be adjusted the best mobile service In the country. Consecutively for four years 1997,1998,1999,and 2000 by Communications world and awarded the Techies Awards. First to launch intelligent Network services. First to launch pre-paid roaming service. First to launch full roaming services on pre-paid. First to launch 32kK sim cards. First to launch local direct dialing facility. First to reach the 1 million customer mark in a single circle.

First to successfully conduct EDGE trials.

 First to launch a dual band network on the country. First to deploy voice quality enhancers to improve voice quality and acoustics Bharti Cellular Limited is also the first telecom company in the World to receive the ISO 9001:2000 certification from British Standards institute

1.1.1.

Bharti Airtel

Telecom giant Bharti Airtel is the flagship company of Bharti Enterprises. The Bharti Group has a diverse business portfolio and has created global brands in the telecommunication sector. Bharti has recently forayed into retail business as Bharti Retail Pvt. Ltd. under a MoU with Wal-Mart for the cash & carry business. It has successfully launched an international venture with EL Rothschild Group to export fresh agri products exclusively to markets in Europe and USA and has launched Bharti AXA Life Insurance Company Ltd under a joint venture with AXA, world leader in financial protection and wealth management. Airtel comes to you from Bharti Airtel Limited, Indias largest integrated and the first private telecom services provider with a footprint in all the 23 telecom circles. Bharti Airtel since its inception has been at the forefront of technology and has steered the course of the telecom sector in the country with its world class products and services. The businesses at Bharti Airtel have been

structured into three individual strategic business units (SBUs) - mobile services, broadband & telephone services (B&T) & enterprise services. The mobile business provides mobile & fixed wireless services using GSM technology across 23 telecom circles while the B&T business offers broadband & telephone services in 94 cities. The Enterprise services provide end-to-end telecom solutions to corporate customers and national & international long distance services to carriers. All these services are provided under the Airtel brand.

1.1.2.

The Brand

Airtel was born free, a force unleashed into the market with a relentless and unwavering determination to succeed. A spirit charged with energy, creativity and a team driven to seize the day with an ambition to become the most globally admired telecom service. Airtel, after just ten years, has risen to the pinnacle of achievement.

As India's leading telecommunications company Airtel brand has played the role as a major catalyst in India's reforms, contributing to its economic resurgence.

Today we touch peoples lives with our Mobile services, Broadband services, to connecting India's leading 1000+ corporates. We also connect Indians living in USA with our callhome service.

1.1.3.

Airtels Vision & promise

By 2010 Airtel will be the most admired brand in India:

Loved by more customers Targeted by top talent Benchmarked by more businesses

We at Airtel always think in fresh and innovative ways about the needs of our customers and how we want them to feel. We deliver what we promise and go out of our way to delight the customer with a little bit more

Business Divisions

Bharti Airtel offers GSM mobile services in all the 23-telecom circles of India and is the largest mobile service provider in the country, based on the number of customers.

The group focuses on delivering telecommunications services as an integrated offering including mobile, broadband & telephone, national and international long distance and data connectivity services to corporate, small and medium scale enterprises.

The group offers high speed broadband internet with a best in class network. With Landline services in 94 cities we help you stay in touch with your friends & family and the world.

The Company compliments its mobile and broadband & telephone services with national and international long distance services. It has over 35,016 route kilometers of optic

fibre on its national long distance network. For international connectivity to east, it has a submarine cable landing station at. For international connectivity to the west, the Company is a member of the South East Asia-Middle East-Western Europe 4 (SEA-ME-WE4) consortiums along with 15 other global telecom operators.

Airtel Advantages
Here are some of the many advantages that New Airtel Prepaid brings you. Total Cost Control
You can control your Airtel Prepaid like never before. No more rentals or deposits simply recharge as much as you need to from as low as Rs. 10, to as high as Rs. 10,000/-.

Pre activated STD/ISD without deposits or rentals You can now enjoy a pre-activated STD/ISD on your Airtel Prepaid. No more paying deposits or having a minimum balance in your account to make an STD/ISD call. Hassle-free calls are here to stay! Strong Network Coverage

Enjoy complete clarity when calling with Airtels world-class technology and unbreakable network coverage that spans over 23 circles across the country.

Instant Balance and Validity Enquiry Your account balance is updated on the screen of your handset at the end of each chargeable call. You can also call 123 from your mobile phone and listen to the voice announcement or simply dial *123#, press 'OK' or 'YES' button and your account balance will be displayed on the screen of your handset. Recharge your Airtel Prepaid Recharging is Easy. The calling value on your card keeps reducing as you make calls or use any other chargeable service. Choose the Airtel Prepaid Recharge Coupon thats right for you, from a variety of tailor made recharge coupons with different denominations, which are available at a number of outlets across your city. Simply follow the procedure mentioned below, to recharge your phone.

More Recharge options:

Flexible recharge voucher This unique recharge voucher gives you the option to choose between validity or talktime, as per your need. Easy Recharge Recharge your Airtel Prepaid Card electronically with value that suits your needs, starting from Rs. 10 till Rs. 10,000. You can also recharge your Airtel Prepaid while roaming anywhere in the country. 24-hour Recharge via ATM Recharge your Airtel Prepaid round-the-clock at your nearest ATM. Just walk up to your nearest ATM, insert the ATM card and enter your ATM PIN number. Select 'Mobile Recharge / Bill Pay' from the main menu and follow the prompts to recharge your prepaid. This recharge option is available with all leading banks.

SMS Recharge You may also register your mobile number at any of the member bank's ATM to avail the SMS recharge facility. Upon registration you will receive a registration PIN number. To recharge your prepaid, type, RC <Recharge Amount> <Registration PIN> and SMS it to the 3 digit SMS code of your bank. All future transaction will require this PIN. The code to which this SMS needs to be sent for various banks is as follows: Bank of Punjab: 550, Centurion Bank: 565, Citibank: 530, Corporation Bank: 545, DCB: 585, HDFC Bank: 540, ICICI Bank: 575, IDBI Bank: 520, ING Vysya Bank: 552, SBI: 535, UTI Bank: 525. Internet Recharge You may log on to the Internet banking website of your bank and select the prepaid recharge option to recharge your Airtel prepaid. Many leading banks provide Internet based recharging.

Validity Extension service Trade your talk time to extend the validity of your prepaid. Dial *141*001# and then, press the call button. Your validity would be extended by 1 day for a charge of Rs.15. You can similarly extend your validity for 5, 10, 15 or 30 days. Transfer Talk time Transfer talk time to another prepaid, just dial *143* number# and then press the calling button. You can transfer Rs.50 per request for which Rs.55 would be deducted from your balance. For details call 121. Prepaid Roaming Airtel Prepaid comes pre-activated with 'National Roaming', so you stay connected no matter wherever you are. You can also send or receive MMS, check your email and access other GPRS services while roaming in India as you would in your own city. While traveling abroad you can receive calls & send or receive SMS.

More with Airtel Prepaid Airtel brings you, a wide range of Services that will change the way you communicate. Try them and discover a whole new world of fun and excitement. Call management Services Call waiting, call hold, call divert and Caller Line Identification Presentation all with your Airtel prepaid connection. Voice Mail When your handset is switched off, or youre too busy to answer the phone, Airtel Voicemail will answer your calls and record a message. The best part is that there's no extra monthly cost for setting up Voicemail - you just pay for the phone call when you use the service. SMS (Short Messaging Service) Send messages quickly and easily using text, if it's too noisy to talk or you don't have much time. It's the way to share those interesting one-liners, important reminders and rib-tickling jokes, with anyone, anytime, anywhere in the world.

Subscription Alerts Get regular alerts on news, jokes, business, health and films on your Airtel mobile phone with Subscription Services. SMS <SUB NEWS> to 3333 for News, <SUB JOKE> for Jokes, <SUB BIZ> for Business News, <SUB SPO> for Sports Alerts & <SUB VAASTU> for Vaastu tips. MMS (Multi-media Messaging Service): Jazz up your messages with pictures, images and video clippings, with MMS from Airtel! To activate MMS on your phone, SMS 'MMS' to 646 and save service settings.

Airtel Live! Make your mobile the most happening entertainment destination with Airtel Live! Airtel brings you the latest in entertainment and information services, right on your phone! Airtel Live! WAP Services: Download the latest ring tones, games, wallpapers, videos and much more. You can also get news clips, watch live TV and download full songs on you phone. To get Airtel Live! settings on your phone, SMS 'Live' to 646 and save the settings that you receive as your preferred connection. Airtel Live! Portal can be accessed from you GPRS enabled phone, by sending a SMS 'FUN' to 646. Airtel Live! Voice Services: Just Dial 646, and name the service. For e.g. say ring tones to download your favorite ring tones. You can also choose a variety of content options like Live Cricket Commentary, latest National / International News, Movie Reviews or Stock Market Updates. Airtel Live! SIM Services: Access loads of fun content and exciting services like cricket, stocks, on your phone at the touch of a few buttons with Airtel Live!

SIM based Services on your SIM card menu. To download new services on your Airtel SIM, choose the "What's new" option under the "Airtel services" menu. Airtel Live! SMS Services: You can enjoy a host of services by sending a keyword as an SMS to 646! Choose Astrology / Horoscope, Cricket, Bollywood / Hollywood / Indi Pop Ring tones. In case you need assistance SMS, Help to 646.

Hello Tunes Tired of that boring old tring tring on your phone? Well now when a friend calls, you can make them groove to the hottest new tracks burning up the music charts with Hello Tunes from Airtel! You get a wide choice of songs in the Popular & New Arrivals categories that are updated regularly. What's more you can directly call the number for your kind of music, e.g. call 678005 for English New and 678001 for Hindi New. This would directly take you to your favorite artist's Hello Tunes listing. Copy a Hello Tune Get the tune you want, all you have to do is call 678 and follow the simple voice instructions to copy your favorite Hello Tunes. Once inside the copy feature, just key in the 10-digit Airtel mobile number you want to copy the Hello Tune from and you get the same Hello Tune assigned to your number.

Gift a Hello Tune Forget gifting chocolates, flowers and greeting cards. Say it with a song instead! Gift a Hello Tune to that special someone. Just call 678 and choose the song that you want to gift. Follow the simple voice instructions and key in the 10-digit Airtel mobile number that you want to gift the Hello Tune to. You will get an SMS notification upon successful receipt of that gift. Buy Music - Airtel Music Shops Buying your favorite Hello Tune or Ring tone is as simple as recharging your phone with talk time. Simply walk into your nearest Airtel Shop and walk out with your favorite song. Choose from Bollywood Hits to Indipop Remixes, Hard Rock to Gujrati Garba, Bhajans to Jazz, Bhangra Beats to foot tapping Tamil Hits from a list of more than 18000 songs.

Partners The company has a strategic alliance with SingTel. The investment made by SingTel is one of the largest investments made in the world outside Singapore, in the company. The companys mobile network partners include Ericsson Nokia

Siemens

and

IT partners include: IBM

About The Brand

Airtel comes to you from Bharti Cellular Limited - a part of the biggest private integrated telecom conglomerate, Bharti Enterprises has been at the forefront of technology and has revolutionized telecommunications with its world class products and services. Bharti provides a range of telecom services, which include Cellular, Basic, Internet and recently introduced National Long Distance. The First and Only Telecom Operator to have an all India Presence: Bharti created history by becoming first and only telecom operator to have an all India mobile footprint across 23 circles. Airtel today connects India from the Indus to the Indian Ocean and from Sabarmati to the Brahmaputra on a network of more than 10,000 base stations with cumulative investments of more than Rs. 16,000 crores. Airtel today provides seamless roaming spanning 228 networks in 128 countries and more than 3000 towns across all the 23 telecom circles in India.The company today has an aggregate of 12.70 million customers as of end of May 05, consisting of approximately 11.8 million mobile customers.

1995 Bharti Tele-Ventures Limited incorporated on July 7, 1995

Bharti Cellular launched mobile services AirTel in Delhi.

1996 Bharti Telenet launched mobile services in Himachal Pradesh 1997 Bharti Telenet obtained a license for providing fixed-line Madhya Pradesh circle. Bharti Telecom formed a joint venture, Bharti BT , for providing VSAT services. 1998

services in

First Indian private fixed-line services launched in Indore in The Madhya Pradesh circle on June 4, 1998 by Bharti Telenet thereby ending fixed-line services monopoly of (now BSNL).

1999

Bharti Tele-Ventures acquired an effective equity interest in Bharti Mobile (formerly JT Mobiles), the mobile services provider in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh circles.

2000 Bharti Cellular entered into license agreements to provide mobile services in eight new circles following the fourth operator mobile license bidding process 2001

Bharti Telenet entered into license agreements to provide fixed-line services in the Haryana, Delhi, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka circles

Bharti Telesonic has entered into a license agreement with DoT to provide National Long Distance Services in India and has been the first service provider to start service in the country.

2002 Bharti launched mobile services in Gujarat, Haryana, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh circle, Maharashtra, Mumbai, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh (West) circle. Bharti listed on the National stock Exchange, Bombay Stock Exchange and the Delhi Stock Exchange on February 18, 2002. 2003

 Bharti entered into a license agreement with the DoT to provide international long distance services in India. Bharti launched fixed-line services in the Delhi, Haryana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu license areas. Bharti became the first private telecommunications services provider to launch international long distance services. 2004 Bharti decided to outsource both its IT system management and its networks. Bharti covered all the 23-telecom sectors present.

2005 Sells 10% stake to Vodafone. Inks insurance J-V with Axa 2006 Signs pact with Wal-Mart to explore retail opportunities in India 2007 Launches cellular services in channel

SUBSCRIBERS IN AIRTEL
Airtel is providing two types of services to their mobile subscribers.

(1)Pre paid-80% (2) Post paid-20%

20% Post paid-20% Pre paid-80% 80%

Bharti Tele-Ventures current businesses include Mobile services Fixed-line National and international long distance services

 VSAT, Internet services and network solutions

Services

Airtel Prepaid

Airtel Prepaid, the Ready Cellular Card from Airtel comes to us from Bharti Enterprises, Indias leading integrated telecom service provider. Going mobile with Airtel Prepaid is a new way of life. With a host of great features, also simple to use, Airtel Prepaid makes everything that you dreamt and believed, possible. Airtel Prepaid, the Ready Cellular Card from Airtel comes to you from

Bharti Enterprises, India's leading integrated telecom service provider.

Airtel & Visual Identity For a brand to be successful, it must build enduring relationships with its different audiences. Integral to this relationship is the visual image of the brand the consumer carries in his/her mind. The Airtel brand image is created through the consistent application of a carefully developed visual identity, which helps Airtel distinguish itself in a cluttered market. Airtel's visual identity helps create instant brand recall and strengthens the relationships that its audiences have with it. The Airtel visual identity has different elements that work together to create a strong and consistent identity for the brand. The most important of these are:

The Airtel Logo:

The Airtel logo is a strong, contemporary and confident symbol for a brand that is always ahead of the rest. It is a specially drawn wordmark.

The Airtel Image style

It incorporates two solid, red rectangular forms whose counter form creates an open doorway.

The Airtel Typographical style

The title case lettering with its capital 'A' was deliberately chosen to reinforce the brand's leadership position. The red dot on the letterform 'I' cues Airtel's focus on innovation.. The words 'Express Yourself' are very much part of the brand identity

a) The Airtel Colour Palette

The lettering is grey so that the pure black of Airtel is visually unharmed.

Research Methodology
Background to the problem Airtel a venture of Bharti tele services is today the number one company in private telecom providers in India. Airtel has its presence all over India in all 23 circles. It is proud of having more than 11 million customers being the largest service provider it believes in building good relation ships with its customers and retailers by providing better services to them. Today retailers play an important role for the success of an organization as they act as a bridge between company and the customer. Hence the growth and sales of the product also depends upon the retailers of the company. Apart from promoting the sales they act as a medium of communication, what the company wants to communicate to the customers it can do so easily with the help of retailers and what the customer wants to know about the schemes and services etc. can be communicated to them through retailers. Retailers are the one who makes the brand visible in the market so the contribution of retailers cant be ignored so the research is being conducted to know the visibility criteria of

Airtel and also the problem identification of retailers. The company needs market information, which will help them to know about this sector and about the real mindset of the retailers. So that the company can design a strategy which would help them to face the challenge posed by the competitors.

There are many problems which retailers face like delay in stock, late visit of FSE, FCE etc. from the distributors side. In many cases retailers are not interested or are unaware about the promotion of the brand and does not allocate proper permanent place for the promotional material like glow sign board, non-lit board, banners, etc. So our main concern is to get the proper data regarding the problems faced by the retailers and the next task is make sure that promotional material of Airtel should be visible and for that we also educate the retailers about the importance of promotional materials. For example we educate them that if they maintain proper place for promotional material it will attract customers and it will help them to increase their sale.

Statement of Research Objective.

Primary Objective

To know Market share of Airtel in terms of signage (glow sign board & non-lit board.)

Secondary Objective

To identify the competitors in the zone To know the satisfaction level of the retailers. To enhance the position of Airtel by identifying and solving the problems of the retailers. To find out the sales of the product. To educate the retailers for innovations.

Research Design
In exploratory Research the focus is on the discovery of ideas. The exploratory Research has been undertaken by me, it is being done in order to maintain the position of Airtel as a no. one brand in the telecom sector by finding a no. of factors that can influence its position; like increase competition, inadequate advertising, lack of efficient and trained personnel or use of wrong channels of distribution. An attempt was done to get additional information from distributors who have some particular knowledge of the subject. The relevant people from outside the organization like retailers were contacted who are much closer to the market and its problems than the manufacturer. The research is directed towards the solution of a problem, it is based upon empirical evidence.

Collection of Data
Primary Data The instances are recorded or itemized as encountered. The data is collected for the first time as original data. Retailers having first hand knowledge about the problem are interrogated and the desired data is collected. Generally a questionnaire was prepared and the replies are recorded by personally contacting them. The data is fairly accurate because the informants are contacted personally and a directive or structured interview was undertaken, by opting for this procedure we not only get a clear picture of the problem but also get various suggestions and recommendations. Under personal interview the additional data is also collected with the help of supplementary questions.

Secondary Data
Secondary data provided the knowledge about company in terms of facts and figures, it is being collected from: Website Books Magazines News

Sampling Plan
An integral component of a research designing is the sampling plan. Sample refers to a part taken from a population. If a sample is taken carefully then conclusion can be extrapolated to entire population and generalization could be made. In order to collect the sample we visited retailers and from there the information is gained.

Sampling Since the available time period was less i.e. two months hence the whole group cannot be surveyed because of large universe and difficulties in contacting people, therefore a limited no. of items representing the population was chosen.

Sampling Design The simple random sampling technique is adopted in which each item has the same chance of being selected. The size of sample in this survey is taken to be 100 (i.e. 100 retailers are being contacted in Agra region)

Problem Identification
Glow Sign Board Retailers needed glow sign board and non-lit board in order to make people aware of their existence in the market. During my survey I found only a few retailers possess the G.S.B. whereas others need it in order to promote their sales and to increase profit.
Percentage of GSB working

Total no of sample 100

GSB

33% YES NO 67%

P.O.S.
P.O.S. is known as point of sale material which is supplied to the retailer by the distributor. In my survey I found most of the P.O.S. material is properly supplied to the retailers and they placed it properly in their shops. Only few shops were found which have not devoted proper place for P.O.S material because the material was not supplied or delivered at time.

POS is in place or POS not in place

Total no of sample 100

POS

20% YES NO 80%

Claim
Airtel has a strong goodwill among its retailers and the retailers are satisfied with the services and facilities provided to them by Airtel. But sometimes because of some technical error or as it is not easy to give attention to all its retailers some problems related to claim is faced by the retailers. In my survey I found that a small no. of retailers has the problem of claim or their claim was delayed and very few have the problem of reversal and deactivation.

Retailers having no claim problem Total no of sample 100

CLAIM

10% YES NO 90%

Technical
Technically Airtel is at the top of all the telecom companies. During my survey I found a very few retailers have faced technical problems like sim blockage and reversal.
Technical problem

3% YES NO 97%

Network
Most of the network failure problem and server down etc were found in various regions especially during evening.
Network Problem

10% YES NO 90%

Lapu
Lapu is used when retailers recharge the customer ---------------------- with the help of his Lapu number. So sometimes transaction problem occurs.
LAPU PROBLEM

7% YES NO 93%

Miscellaneous Problems
There were a number of problems which I found were faced by the retailers are: Lack of knowledge about new schemes. Change in plan is not known to them. E.N.R. is not met., etc.
Miscellaneous problem

5% YES NO 95%

Recommendations
After conducting the whole survey and analyzing the interviews and questioners my recommendations to Airtel Lucknow are

MONTHLY MEETINGS WITH RETAILERS

There should be a monthly meeting marketing persons and retailers so that retailers can communicate their suggestions and problems freely. This practice can give them a sense of belongingness.

FREQUENT VISIT TO RETAILERS SHOP

Timely visit by the marketing persons should be done in order to check the current position of the retailers and also motivate them to increase their sales.

PROPER COMMUNICATION

Retailers in rural areas do not updated with the latest schemes, so proper and fast communication is required in order to make them updated.

TOWER SHARING

Tower sharing should be done where airtel lacks in connectivity because of non availability of tower.

TRAINING OF FSE & FCE

Time to time training programme for fse &fce should be organized so that they can develop their skills in order to deal with the retailers efficiently& effectively.

SPECIAL CONCENTRATION ON SMALL RETAILORS

Special concentration should be given to the retailers in rural areas in order to capture the rural market.

Limitations
LIMITATIONS OF THE PROJECT

The project under taken was subject to few limitations mentioned as The result of the analysis is mostly based on the responses of the retailers which if biased or untrue can alter the findings of the researcher. The reluctant of the respondent in disclosing some informations like address, lapu no., sales etc. and even their own name. The possibility of sample size considered not being representative of the entire population although the researcher tried to cover as much area as possible. If this was not there ,it would definitely affected the sample size in a positive way.

SWOT ANALYSIS

STRENGTH
Indias most famous and dynamic star communication group. Ability to think big. Latest technology. High level of customer satisfaction rate. A good team of brand ambassador. Goodwill.

WEAKNESS
Delay in claim. Transactions problem. Poor connectivity in some parts of rural areas.

OPPORTUNITY
As rural market is growing very. So future prospect for growth in rural market is an opportunity for Airtel. Attractive marketing strategy . 3AS strategy of Airtel is a big success in attracting a large number of customers. Availability Accessibility Affordability

THREATS
Rumors by competitors

BIBLOGRAPHY www.airtel.com www.google.com Business India Economic times

LEARNING
This internship programme gave me an opportunity to learn and utilize my skills in the real business situation. This internship is a good platform for me to develop or improve my marketing skills which will definitely pays me in future. I have learned a lot of things from the marketing department of Airtel Lucknow. From there I have got an indept knowledge about the telecom sector.