Approved by AICTE, Govt. of India

THE IMPACT OF THE SALES PROMOTION OFFERS ON THE
BUYING BEHAVIOR OF CONSUMER OF IT PRODUCT

IN HCL INFOSYSTEM
SUMMER TRAINING PROJECT REPORT

SUBMITTED TOWARDS PARTIAL
FULFILLMENT
OF
POST GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN
MANAGEMENT
(Approved by AICTE, Govt. of India)
ACADEMIC SESSTION
2009 – 2010
Submitted By:
SONU Kr .TIWARI
ROLL NO.DM200937
UNDER GUIDANCE OF:

EXTERNAL SUPERVISOR INTERNAL SUPERVISOR
MR.SHOBHIT DHAKA MS.PALLAVI MISHRA
SALES MANAGER Sr. LECTURER
HCL INFO SYSTEM SDCMT GHAZIABAD
1
Sunder Deep College Of Management Technology,Ghaziabad
STUDENT DECLARATION
I, Sonu Kumar Tiwari , student of PGDM, batch 20009-11 at Sunder deep College of
Management Technology, Ghaziabad, do hereby declare that the summer training report
titled, “THE IMPACT OF THE SALES PROMOTION OFFERS ON THE BUYING
BEHAVIOR OF CONSUMER OF IT PRODUCT ” is completed and submitted by me
towards the partial fulfillment of the award of Post Graduate Diploma Management
Studies Ghaziabad
I also declare that this is my original work and no part of this project has been submitted for
any other degree, diploma, fellowship or any other academic course.
Place Ghaziabad Sonu Kr Tiwari

PGDM II Year
Roll
No.DM200937
SDCMT
Ghaziabad Date…………………
2
SUNDER DEEP COLLEGE OF MANAGEMENT TECHNOLOGY
GHAZIABAD
CERTIFICATE BY THE FACULTY GUIDE
This is to certify that Sonu Kr. Tiwari S/O Shri Rajesh Kr.Tiwari
Roll No. DM – 200937 is a bonafide student of PGDM 2nd
Year of this college (SDCMT). He has completed the
Research Project titled “The impact of sales promotion offers
on the buying behavior of consumer of IT product’’ The
research report has been completed under my guidance.
Faculty Guide
MS.PALLAVI MISHRA
Sr. LECTURER
Management Department
3
SUNDER DEEP COLLEGE OF MANAGEMENT TECHNOLOGY
GHAZIABAD
CERTIFICATE BY CO-ORDINATOR
This is to certify that SONU KR. TIWAR S/O SHRI RAJESH KR. TIWARI is
a bonafide student of PGDM 2nd Year under the Roll NO. DM - 200937 in
Sunder Deep College of Management Technology. The topic of his Research
Project is “THE IMPACT OF THE SALES PROMOTION OFFERS ON
THE BUYING BEHAVIOR OF CONSUMER OF IT PRODUCT”
Co-ordinator-PGDM
4
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Every accomplishment requires a lot of efforts, hard work, support and blessings. This project
is no exception. This project would not have been possible without the support and
cooperation of a lot of people.
We are grateful to our project guide (internal supervisor) Ms. Pallavi Mishra who provided us
with his constructive ideas and advice at every step of this project. His expertise helped us a
lot in accomplishing the objectives of the project.
Our experience of project has been successfully, thanks to the support staff of many friends &
colleagues with gratitude. We wish to acknowledge all of them. However, we wish to make
special mention of the following.
We are also very thankful to respective Sales Manager Mr.Shobhit Dhaka who gave us an
opportunity to do this project.
Last but not the least I would like to thank my family and friends for their support and
blessings without which I would not have succeeded.
Above all thank you God for your blessings and love.
5
Contents
Chapter -1 Page No.
Executive summary……………………………………………………8-10
Chapter -2
Industry profile and company profile…………………………………11
2.1
Industry profile………………………………………………12
2.2
Current market trends………………………………………..13
2.3
Company profile……………………………………………..14-16
2.4
History of hcl………………………………………………17-25
2.5
Alliance and partnership…………………………………….26-28
Chapter -3
Theoretical back ground of study………………………………….29-37
Chapter-4
Research methodology………………………………………………38-42
Chapter-5
Analyze and interpretation ………………………………………….. 43-61
Chapter-6
6
Finding and conclusion……………………………………………62
6.1
Findings…………………………………………………….63
6.2
Conclusion…………………………………………………64
Chapter-7
Suggestions and recommendations………………………………….65-66
Chapter-8
Bibliography and annexure…………………………………………67
8.1
Bibliography………………………………………………..68
8.2
Annexure…………………………………………………...69-72
7
Chapter-1
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
8
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
HCL Info systems, India's premier information enabling and integration company, has
received the ISO 9001:2000 certification specifies requirements for a quality management
system where an organization needs to demonstrate its ability to consistently provide product
and services that meets customer and applicable regulatory requirements. ISO 9001:2000 also
aims to enhance customer satisfaction through the effective application of the system,
including processes for continual improvement of the system and the assurance of conformity
to customer and applicable regulatory requirements. The menu of HCL Insys global services
broadly covers IT consulting and professional services in the area of vertical applications,
technology integration, ERP implementation and software development. This also includes a
complete portfolio of systems and network services for development. This also includes a
complete portfolio of systems and network services for Facilities Management, Helpdesks,
Systems Supports and network and Internet Implementation.
HCL Insys‟global customers include Samsung, Government of Singapore, and AMAL
insurance Jurong Port in Singapore and Malaysian‟s BSN commercial bank, SIA, DBS bank,
May bank life assurance charted semiconductors.
HCL Insys‟ chosen platform of total technology integration lends itself to some very
significant alliances with the global leaders. Among its partner are HP for high end
AISCE/UNIX services and workstation and HP Open view network management solution;
Intel for PC and PC server building blocks; Microsoft,novell and SCO AG solutions; Red hat
;Linux; Samsung; Pivota for CRM solution and ORACLE Sybase and Informix for RDBMS
platform. Today the company has aligned its operations into five entities that offer seamless
linkages for the customers seeking entry into the wired world through total the. „Integration
solution ands services‟. HCL Info systems focus on the ever-growing segment in Imaging,
Telecom and Communication products solutions and services. Now it has an exclusive sale
and support partnership with Toshiba Corporation, Japan, for sales and servicing of its
imaging and photocopier products. HCL Info systems product portfolio covers a range of
other office automation and communication products through alliances with world leaders.
Doing training was really an opportunity before me when we could convert our theoretical
knowledge into practical and of real world type. Fortunately, the company we got is a true
follower of the various principles of management and also one of the leading companies in its
segment of the industry. The working environment that we were being provided was
extraordinary and helped us a lot in delivering our work properly. HCL Infosystems Ltd is one
9
of the renowned names in the Software and Hardware sector of computer industry.
The graph of sales of these respective product lines is the best in the industry as compared to
their competitors.
HCL Infosystems Ltd is one of the pioneers in the Indian IT market, with its origins in 1976.
For over quarter of a century, the company have developed an implemented solutions for
multiple market segments, across a range o technologies in India. With sound macro
economic condition and buoyant buying sentiment in the market, the desktop PC market
grossed 23.4lc units, registering a growth of 36% over the same period last year. The notebook
PC segment was the star performer, showing massive growth, 60% sequentially and 138%
year-on-year and crossing the one lakh barrier. This can be attributed to strong domestic
growth in requirements and aggressive sales promotion offers by the players like HP,
Lenovo, and HCL among others. Again brand recognition and image play a very important role
in purchase decisions. Brand managers of IT products, to increase the short-term gains
and keep the cash registers ticking have started using aggressive sales promotion
offers.
The objective of the project was to find out whether people actually buy because of the
sales offers incentives and whether they actually feel that sales promotions are an
effective brand-building tool also. Also some of the insights on how to best place an effective
Sales promotion program have been unleashed.
The research brings out the fact that people do buy because of the sales promotion offers,
but the impact promotional offers have on the Brand Image of the company offering such
promotions is negligible. Thus sales promotion offers are a definite incentive to buy for a
customer but they do not guarantee a long-term relationship with the customer and hence a
Brand Manager must use such offers with a pinch of salt.
I did our summer training project at HCL Infosystem Ltd., Noida, where we found all the
professionals are very much committed to their work as well as they were all professionals
enough. This helped us a lot in getting a good deal of exposure. As we have to done survey in
the IT Sector, we felt our self, in the beginning, in a bit problem. But the cooperation of our
superior at the work induced confidence in us to deal with our problems whenever they came.
10
CHAPTER- 2
INDUSTRY PROFILE
&
COMPANY PROFILE
11
2.1 INDUSTRY PROFILE:
The PC industry has been a leading driver of economic growth in the past three decades. The
explosion in the use of computers in businesses has been driven by the need to modernize
work processes and boost productivity, while the Internet, entertainment and other digital
applications were among the primary drivers of PC adoption in the consumer market.In India,
the home PC market segment is supplied by three distinct kinds of manufacturers. One; you
have global companies like HP and Compaq along with many players. Two; there are the
Indian brands like Wipro and HCL. And three; is the sea of kitchen tabletop PC assemblers
who sell their unbranded machines at super-low prices. This last category of unbranded
machines is often referred to as the 'gray market' and it has the majority share of the home PC
market. It is followed by Indian brands and lastly by the multinational brands.
The Indian personal computer industry witnessed a year-on-year growth of 32 per cent to 12-
lakh units in the July-September quarter of 2010, an 11-per cent increase over the previous
quarter AMJ (17th November 2010).
In the consumer desktop category HCL led over HP, with LG following the market leaders at
the third slot. In the overall client PC (notebooks and desktops) market, HP retained its top
slot with a sequential increase of 19% and a year-onyear 45% growth. HCL continued to stay
at second position, with a 40% year-onyear growth, while Lenovo occupied the third position.
12
2.2Current Market Trends:
With sound macro economic condition and buoyant buying sentiment in the market, PC sales
in India are expected to touch 31 lakh units in Fiscal 2010 The desktop PC market grossed
32.4lc units, registering a growth of 46% over the same period last year. The MAIT-IMRB
review reveals that PC sales to the business segment improved by 55% accounting for 78% of
the total PC consumption. In the households, while the sales were 5.10 lac units, the sector
witnessed a decrease 05% over the same period last year. Assembled PCs witnessed decline in
market share, accounting for 34% of the PC sales in H1/2009 2010. The share of the Indian
brands grew to account for 31% of the market while the MNC brands accounted for the rest at
35%. The notebook PC segment was the star performer, showing massive growth, 60%
sequentially and 138% year-on-year and crossing the one lakh barrier. Centrino-based
notebooks constituted two-thirds of the total shipments. In terms of market rankings, HP
stayed at the top, followed by Lenovo and Acer (IDC report). In H1/2009-2010, about 16,000
notebooks were sold to the households segment accounting for 13% of the total market
(MAIT report). The server market registered a growth of 56% over the first half of the fiscal
riding on high consumption in the medium establishments where sales increased by 258%.
Overall Printer sales grew by 43% over that in H1 2009-2010 on Yoyo basis. The UPS market
grew by 16% over H1 of 2009-2010.The market was fueled by a strong demand from the
notebook and consumer desktop markets. Consistent fall in notebook prices led to a growth in
this market. In this situation Brand Image/brand perception plays a major role in purchase
of the products. There were massive investments in the private educational sector that
provided the momentum for growth in this market. Notable among these were various
management institutes and technical institutions.
13
2.3 COMPANY PROFILE
The Imaging, Voice & video solutions segment has strategic alliances with industry leaders
HCL Infosystems Limited is an India-based company. The Company operates in three

segments: computer systems and related products & services, which comprises the sale of
computer hardware, providing system integration, roll out and infrastructure management
solutions in different industry verticals and providing information technology (IT) services,
including maintenance and facilities management; telecommunication & office automation,
which includes telecommunication and other digital lifestyle products, office automation
products, and related maintenance and allied services, and Internet & related services, which
provides virtual private network, Internet access services and other connectivity services. In
July 2009, the Company announced the Hon'ble High Court of Delhi and Rajasthan have vide
their respective orders dated August 11, 2008 and May 29, 2009, sanctioned the scheme of
amalgamation of Natural Technologies Pvt Ltd, the wholly owned subsidiary, with HCL
Infosystems Ltd. HCL Infosystems is India‟s premier information enabling company.
Leveraging its 3 decades of expertise in total technology solutions, HCL Infosystems offers
value-added services in key areas such as system integration, networking consultancy and a
wide range of support services. HCL‟s computer hardware manufacturing plants include 4
facilities, 2 at Puducherry, 1 at Chennai & 1 at Uttranchal. Started in 1996 – with only Unit 1
– it now has 4 Units with a built up area of 4,19,000 sq. ft The infrastructure is state of the art,
one of the best & largest in India. All 3 factories are ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001, ISO
13485:2003, TS 16949-2002 TUV-Accredited certified. PMO has been awarded MAIT Level
2 – by European Foundation for Quality Management in the year 2001. HCL was also
awarded ELCINA‟s (Electronic Component Industries Association) Quality Award for the
year 2002- 2003.
HCL Infosystems is among the leading players in all the segments comprising the domestic
IT products, solutions and related services, which include PCs, Servers, Imaging, Voice &
video solutions, Networking Products, TV and FM Broadcasting solutions, Communication
solutions, System Integration, ICT education & training, Digital lifestyle Solutions and
Peripherals.
HCL has a direct sales, channel sales and retail sales network pan India. Continuously
meeting the ever increasing customer expectations and applications, its focus on integrated
14
enterprise solutions has strengthened the HCL Infosystems‟ capabilities in supporting
installation types ranging from single to large, multi-location, multi-vendor & multi-
platform spread across India. HCL Infosystems, today has a direct support force of over
3000+ employees, is operational at 360+ locations across the country. HCL Infosystems has
pan India presence across metros and non-metros.
HCL Infosystems‟ manufacturing facilities are ISO 9001 & ISO 14001 certified and adhere
to stringent quality standards and global processes. The company has the largest installed
PC base in the country, with four indigenously developed and manufactured PC brands –
„Infiniti‟, „Busybee‟, „Beanstalk‟ and „Ezeebee‟. It has been consistently rated as Top player
in PC industry by IDC.
The „Infiniti‟ line of business computing products is incorporated with leading edge
products from world leaders such as Intel. Constant innovation to meet the customized
requirements of its customers has enabled HCL to create the trusted ICT infrastructure
platforms, powerful value adds like HCL Embedded Control & Continuity (HCL EC2)
technology and the future generation of digital lifestyle enablers.
The Imaging, Voice & video solutions segment has strategic alliances with industry leaders
to provide services in various domains which include Audio Video system integration
solutions, broadcasting solutions, imaging products and solutions. The company has
strategic alliances with world leaders for voice and video conferencing solutions, TV and
FM Broadcasting solutions and for Imaging products and solutions to provide
documentation products like copiers, MFDs, Duprinters, laser printers and large format
printers.
to provide services in various domains which include Audio Video system integration
solutions, broadcasting solutions, imaging products and solutions. The company has strategic
alliances with world leaders for voice and video conferencing solutions, TV and FM
Broadcasting solutions and for Imaging products and solutions to provide documentation
products like copiers, MFDs, Duprinters, laser printers and large format printers.
The Channel Business of HCL Infosystems has an extensive network of over 3000+ resellers
across 900 locations. It has actively promoted the penetration of PCs in the home and the
small office/home office (SOHO) segments.
15
HCL Infinet Ltd, 100% owned subsidiary of HCL Infosystems Ltd. is a class A ISP focusing
on providing the corporate networking services like Virtual Private Network, Broadband
Internet Access, Internet Telephony Hosting & Co-location services, designing & deploying
Disaster Recovery Solutions & Business Continuity solution, Application Services, Managed
Security Services & NOC.
16
2.4 HISTORY OF HCL
Born in 1976, HCL has a 3 decade rich history of inventions and innovations. In 1978, HCL
developed the first indigenous micro-computer at the same time as Apple and 3 years before
IBM's PC. During this period, India was a black box to the world and the world was a black
box to India. This micro-computer virtually gave birth to the Indian computer industry. The
80's saw HCL developing know-how in many other technologies. HCL's in-depth
knowledge of Unix led to the development of a fine grained multi-processor Unix in 1988,
three years ahead of Sun and HP.
HCL's R&D was spun off as HCL Technologies in 1997 to mark their advent into the
software services arena. During the last eight years, HCL has strengthened its processes and
applied its know-how, developed over 28 years into multiple practices - semi-conductor,
operating systems, automobile, avionics, bio-medical engineering, wireless, telecom
technologies, and many more.
Today, HCL sells more PCs in India than any other brand, runs Northern Ireland's largest
BPO operation, and manages the network for Asia's largest stock exchange network apart
from designing zero visibility landing systems to land the world's most popular airplane.
In the early 70‟s a group of young and enthusiastic and ambitious technocrats embarked upon
a venture that would make their vision of IT revolution in India a reality. Shivnadir and five of
his colleagues got together and 1975 set up a new company MICROCOMP to start with; they
started to capitalize on their marketing skills. Micro comp marketed calculators and with in a
few month of starting operation, the company was out selling its major competitors.
17
The highlights of the HCL saga are summarized below :
HIGHLIGHT
IN 1976
- Foundation of com. Laid
- Introduces microcomputer-based programmable calculator with wide acceptance in the

scientific / education community.
In 1977
-Launch of the first microcomputer-based commercial computer with a ROM
-Based basic interpreter.
- Unavailability of programming skills with customer results in developing bespoke

applications for their customers
In1978
Initiation of application development in diverse segments such as textiles, sugar, paper,

cement, transport
In 1980
Formation of Far East computers ltd.a pioneer in the Singapore it market, foe SI (system
integration) solution
In 1981
- Software export division formed at Chennai to support the bespoke application development
needs for Singapore
18
In 1983
-. Hcl launches an aggressive advertisement campaign with the theme `even a typist can
operate „to make the usage of computer popular in the SME (small & medium enterprises)
segment. The response of the advertisement was phenomenal
- HCL developer special program generators to speed up the development of application
In1985
Bank trade unions allow computerization in banks. However, a computer can run a one
application such as savings bank, current accounts, loans etc.
HCL sets up core team to develop the require software-ALPM (advanced ledger posting
machines). The team uses reusable code to reduced development efforts
1986
- The company was established on 17th April. The object of the Company is manufacturing of
and leading in complete range of Mini Computers Micro processor based systems, Electronics
Instruments, Micrographic and reprographic equipment and manufacturing and marketing of
Electronic EPABX systems and electronics Teleprinters.
1989
- The company entered into an agreement with Hewlett Packard of US For the sale and
leaving of the Super Mini and Mainframe computers to be manufactured by Hewlett in India.
The technical collaborator of the Company Hewlett-Packard is the second largest computer
company in the world. It has some of the finest laboratories and manufacturing
Facilities in the world. In 1991, these two companies, each a leader in its own field, decided to
join hands. And soon after HCL Hewlett-Packard was launched. HCL Finance & Investments
Ltd is the subsidiary of the company.
19
1996
- The performance was adversely affected due to rise in dollar exchange rate, tight liquidity
position in the market, political uncertainty coupled with deferment of capital expenditure by
the Government Departments.
- The Company set new industry standards with the launch of D and K class HP 9000
Business Servers complemented by J class HP 9000 Workstations, simultaneously with the
world wide launch of these products by Hewlett-Packard Co.
- The Company also recently announced the introduction of the most powerful Workstations
in the world based on the latest 64-bit processors from Hewlett-Packard the PA-8000.
- The Department of Electronics (DoE), the nodal department of the Government of India for
development of electronics industry awarded the First Prize to the Company in the area of
computer systems, as a part of the prestigious DoE award of Excellence.
1997
- The Company commissioned its second state-of-the-art manufacturing facility at Sedarpet
near Pondicherry.
- The Company has the largest network of spare-stocking locations, supported by Test and
Repair Centres which reduces the inventory level and increases the spares availability at any
time. To meet critical requirements within 4-5 hours, the company has tied-up with Indian
Airlines to deliver spares in major metro cities.
- The Company has the best skilled manpower created through years of Campus recruitment
and training at In-house Training Centres and by providing Management Training in the best
Management Institutes.
- The Company set new industry standards by launching the most powerful Workstations and
Servers in the world based on the latest 64-bit microprocessors from Hewlett-Packard - the
PA-8000.
- The Company further extended its indigenous Infiniti range of business computing products
as it introduced the Enterprise Class Infiniti Super Server and the Infiniti ELS range of
workgroup servers.
- Mr. Suresh Rajpal, Director, Mr. Manuel F. Diaz, Director and Mr. Bob Robertson,
Alternate Director, resigned from the Board of Directors of the Company w.e.f. 25th
September.
20
1998
- The Company tied-up with Intel Corporation for Server technology,resulting in the
introduction of the Infiniti Global Line range of PC Servers which incorporate building blocks
from Intel and are Integrated and tested extensively for Indian condition.
1999
- The Board of Directors unanimously appointed Mr. Ajai Chowdhry as Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer with effect from 5th November.
- The Company launched its WWW.OW! initiative targeted at the Internet market with a
range of services from providing complete Infrastructure to ISPs, to corporate Intranets,
Cybercafes, Infokiosks and E-Commerce.
- The Office Automation division has recently launched digital Copiers and multifunctional
products from Toshiba and opened service centres to cater to the increasing number of walk-
in customers for service of Nokia cellular phones.
- The Company tied up with Lucent Technologies as an integration partner for its
SYSTIMAX range of structured connectivity solutions.
- The Office Automation Division has entered into a relationship With Samsung, Korea to
market and support their range of Key Telephone Systems.
- The Office Automation Division tied up with InFocus, USA, for marketing and supporting
their range of LCD projectors.
- The Frontline Division has tied up with Novell to become the Largest Novell Authorised
Support Centre. The tie-up has been successfully implemented across five locations in the
country.
- The Company tied-up with Microsoft Corp. for lates version of operating systems, resulting
in launch of preloaded systems and beta testing for future technology and product like
Windows 2000.
2000
- HCL has launched a new range of PCs (Ultima and Elite models) Under its BeanStalk range
of PC's at its Pondicherry plant.
- The Company entered into an agreement with US-based Infocus for distribution and
technological support of the latter's data and video projection products in the country.
21
- HCL Infosystems Ltd. has launched the Nokia professional Centre (NPC) in Chennai as part
of the expansion programme to open Nokia centres In India which will enable customers to
choose the right model and accessories suiting their life style.
- HCL Infinet, the Internet start-up of HCL Infosystems, and media group, Asian Age, have
set up a joint venture
called Asian Age Infinet.
- HCL Infosystems Ltd has launched in India the Swedish major Ericsson's Generation X
Business communication too, Next Call Centre.
- The Office Automation Division of the company has been recognisedfor level 1 in business
excellence.
- HCL Infosystems has launched HCL BenaStalk personal computerspowered by Intel
Pentium III 700 Mhz processor for the home segment.
- HCL Infinet Ltd., the Internet services subsidiary of HCL Infosystems, has tied up with UBS
Publishers' Distributors Ltd., one of the largest distributors of books in the country, to sell
books online through its soon-to-be-launched portal.
- HCL Infosystems has entered into a tie-up with BroadVision for providing personalised e-
business applications to is clients.
- HCL Infinet, the Internet subsidiary of HCL Infosystems, launched its business-to-consumer
(B2C) horizontal portal, www.hclinfinet.com.
- The preferential allotment of equity shares/Warrants upto 2% of the issued equity share
capital of the company.
- HCL Infosystems Ltd,. and Unisys, a US-based provider of
e-business solutions, services, platforms and network infrastructure, have entered into an
alliance for use of ES7000 range of servers and associated hardware and middleware storage
solutions.
- HCL Infinet, the new internet services subsidiary of HCL Infosystems, launched its value
added internet services in Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Bhopal, Coimbatore, Faridabad, Gurgaon,
Jaipur, Noida, Pune and Thiruvananthapuram.
- HCL Infosystems Ltd. has implemented BroadVision B2B Technology for East Lifestyle
Corporation Pvt. Ltd., Singapore, a media and e-commerce corporation with interests in print,
Internet, television within the timeframe of 50 days.
- FEC Infosystems Pte. Ltd., a subsidiary of HCL Infosystems Ltd., Has implemented
BroadVision B2B technology for East Lifestyle Corporation Pte. Ltd. Singapore, a media and
e-commerce corporation.
22
- The Company has launched digital mail inserting systems – 3 Series desktop, 5 series
tabletop and 8 series -- in collaboration with the US-based Pitney Bowes.
- HCL Infosystems, a technology integration company, has bagged the award for the Top PC
Vendor by at the Dataquest award ceremony.
- The Company Introduced Channel Support Certification program. This ensures uniform
quality of support across the country. HCL is the
first indian IT company to introduce this kind of certification program in India.
- The Company has introduced new products under Infiniti 2000,Infinite Global Line Servers,
Busybee and Beanstalk.
2001
- ICRA has assigned an `A1+' rating to the Rs 50-crore enhanced commercial paper
programme of HCL Infosystems Ltd., indicating highest safety.
- 1,45,00,000 No. of equity shares of Rs 10/- have been allotted at par, by the subsidiary HCL
InfiNet Ltd. against Rs 1450 lacs subscribed in the previous quarter.
- HCL Infosystems and Intel have jointly launched an e-business solutions programme,
targeting new market opportunities in segments such as Internet service providers, application
service providers, banking and finance.
- HCL InfiNet Ld., the Internet services subsidiary of HCL Infosystems, has launched an
authenticated payment gateway for its portal, www.hclinfinet.com, in association with
Citibank to enable customers to carry out secure transactions online including buying Internet
access.
- HCL Infosystems is setting up a managed off-shore development Centre at its Noida
software development facility for Stratech Systems the Singapore-based IT systems and
technology developer.
- HCL Info systems Ltd. launched a consumer friendly Internet appliance (IA) -- Ezeebee.
- HCL-Infosystems is entering the call centre business. The company has tied up with US-
based Strata soft to offer consultancy services to clients entering the call centre business.
- Financial institutions hiked their stake in HCL Infosystems Ltd to 7.51 per cent representing
23.9 lakh shares as on June 2001, from 4.64 per cent stake amounting to 14.7 lakh shares in
the previous year.
23
2002
-HCL Insys joins hands with Sun Microsystems India to provide end-to-end solutions to
business.
-HCL Insys says it is the No.1 PC Co in India in 2001.
-HCL Tech restructures its treasury Investment portfolio.
-HCL Info systems launches its 'Bean stalk CD surprise' to promote PC sales.
-HCL Info systems introduces mailing system of Pitney Bowes, OfficeRight, the Digital
mail finisher and post perfect, and digital franking systems.
-HCL bags Toshiba gold Award for the second time for the overall copier sales and marketing
performances.
-HCL Insys launches the Toshiba Portege 3500 series Tablet PC in the nation.
2003
-HCL Info launches Dragon Naturally speaking, the latest speech recognition software.
-HCL Infsys receives the project to completely automate the Value Added Services(VAT)
of Andhra Pradesh.
-HCL Info registers 245% growth in their net profit for Q4.
-The company has launched HCL Beanstalk Media Center PC The new product will offer user
a single remote control device controlling music system, live television (including recording
of TV programmes), DVD player, radio and TV games on a personal computer with a
keyboard.
-HCL provides technology for new police command centre
2004
-HCL Info forays into digital entertainment sector
-HCL Infosystems has launched a new computer that will have multi-functional capability of
a television, DVD, MP3 player, radio, gaming tool, Web browser and video recorder
-HCL touches one lakh milestone in desktop sales
-HCL Infosystems announced the launch of its new range of Infiniti Global Line 2700 series
with Dual Intel Xeon processors promising to deliver faster speeds for enterprise applications
-HCL Info launches new MP3 player
-HCL Info ties up with Union Bank
24
-Unveils 'RP2 System' a new technology which will ensure uninterrupted power supply to
computers .
2005
-Launches Micro Balanced Technology Extended (BTX) Form Factor for desktops in India on
February 10,2005
-HCL Info unveils PC for Rs 12,990
-HCL Infosystems launches Toshiba's notebook PCs
2006
-HCL inks 5 year pact with Dish TV
-HCL Info sets up Enterprise Response Centre in Mumbai
2008
- HCL Infosystems Ltd has announced that the Company has been awarded one of the most
prestigious contracts for establishing the Punjab State wide Area Network (PAWAN). HCL's
specialized expertise in the e-governance vertical made it the primary choice for setting up
this backbone infrastructure by Government of Punjab (GOP).
- HCL Infosystems has bagged a 23-million dollar deal to implement IT infrastructure for the
Pan-African e-Network Project, which provides tele-education and tele-medicine. The project
would connect 53 African countries into one network.
2009
- HCL Infosystems Ltd has informed that Mr. Nikhil Sinha has been appointed as an
additional Director of the Board of the Company.
- HCL Infosystems announced its venture into partnership with BSNL for offering low-cost
broadband-enabled computers in rural areas.
2010
- PC maker HCL Infosystems on March 26 unveiled its new 'ME Series 40‟ notebook, priced
at Rs. 41,500, on the occasion of Earth Hour 2010. The notebook has BFR concentrations of
less Than 0.1 per cent, which makes the product 100 per cent recyclable and environment-
friendly?
25
2.5 ALLIANCES & PARTNERSHIPS
To provide world-class solutions and services to all the customers, HCL has formed Alliances
and Partnerships with leading IT companies worldwide. HCL Infosystems has alliances with
global technology leaders like Intel, AMD, Toshiba, Ericsson, Microsoft, Nokia and Sun
Microsystems, SAP, Scansoft, SCO, EMC, Veritas, Citrix, CISCO, Oracle, Computer
Associates, RedHat, Infocus, Duplo, Samsung, Novell.
These alliances on one hand give HCL access to best technology & products as well
enhancing its understanding of the latest in technology. On the other hand they enhance
HCL‟s product portfolio, and enable it to be one stop shop for its customers.
Recent Updates
HCL & Nokia decide on longer term strategy to further penetrate Indian Market Gist of Q&A
with callers/ investors/ shareholders on the announcement relating to the long term Agreement
with Nokia
Toshiba in partnership with HCL Infosystems expands its retail presence in India by unveiling
'shop Toshiba'
HCL forms a strategic alliance with Bull to launch a new range of Scalable Enterprise Class
Servers on Open Architecture AMD & IT Ministry unveil affordable computer to promote
50x15 vision in India .
26
Core Values:
The company shall uphold the dignity of the individual,
It shall honor all commitments,
It shall be committed to Quality, Innovation and Growth in every endeavor,
It shall be responsible corporate citizens.
Products and solutions

HCL Info systems' portfolio of products covers the entire spectrum of the information
technology needs of its customers. By virtue of the immense diversity of markets and
customers that it addresses, HCL Infosystems' products offerings include everything from
high-end enterprise level servers for mission critical applications to multimedia home
computers.The product portfolio consists of:
 Business
 PCs Home PCs
 Infiniti Powerlite Notebooks
HCLI has 6 manufacturing facilities with an annual capacity of over 300,000 PCs, plus
production of Servers, Color monitors, Terminals, Keyboards, racks and cabinets. Some of
these facilities enjoy tax benefits for another 2-3 years. The company augments this backward
integration with India‟s largest network of sales and service locations – more than 5 times its
nearest MNC competition. With basic customs duty down to zero on microprocessors, hard
disks etc., the price gap between organized and unorganized segments has shrunk, benefiting
HCLI. 59% of the commercial market is still gray, and hence there remains immense potential
for growth.
PC Manufacturing:
21 PC manufacturing plants are located at Pondicherry, which gives following strategic
advantages:
• Proximity to Chennai port and proximity to vendors
• Tax benefits
• Established outward transport network
• Economical & skilled labour
Having an annual capacity of over 300,000 units, it is more than geared up to meet the
company‟s current & future demand for Desktop PCs & Servers. Its manufacturing facilities
27
are versatile & adaptable, and can very quickly scale up the production or shift the emphasis
from one model to another. The manufacturing facilities were first in India to get ISO 9001-
2000 certification, validating the excellent quality processes that go in the design &
manufacturing of its Desktop PCs & Servers. Relationships & Base of Executed projects
Strong relationships with customers, principals and associates have helped HCLI attain the
leadership status that it enjoys today. The company gets access to global best practices and a
head start in technology due to strong relationships with its principals. They use this strategic
edge to launch new technology ahead of competition in India. Some recent examples are –
Pentium 4 based Desktop PC at sub Rs.40, 000 price, Media Center PC in partnership with
Microsoft and currently Rs.10000 Pc. HCLI enjoy considerable market share in segments like
Government, Banking & Finance and Education & Research. It has created credibility with its
customers that have consistently resulted in repeat business. It has rate contracts with– NIC,
Punjab National Bank, DGS & D, NICSI, ONGC, Punjab & Sind Bank. Some recent large
orders bagged by us on the enterprise front are from Canara Bank, Asian Paints, Andhra
Bank, South Central Railways, BSNL, ITC and Assam Electronics Development Corporation
LTD (AMTRON), Dept. of Posts - DGS & D, SBI, Corporation Bank, Syndicate Bank, State
Bank of Maharashtra, Indian Overseas bank, High Court (Madras), Sahara India Parivar,
Asian Paints, Hindustan Aeronautics LTD, Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and
Andhra Bank.
Distribution Network:
HCLI recognized early the advantages of having a distribution network.
Their channel is a balanced mix of retail outlets, resellers & distributors.
28
CHAPTER-3
THEORETHICAL
BACKGROUND
OF
STUDY
29
Sales Promotion
Sales promotion, a key ingredient in marketing campaigns, consists of a diverse collection of
incentive tools, mostly short term, designed to stimulate quicker or greater purchase of
particular products or services by consumers or the trade.Whereas advertising offers a reason
to buy, sales promotion offers an incentive to buy. Sales promotion includes tools for
consumer promotion (samples, coupons, cash refund offers, process off, premiums, prizes,
patronage rewards, free trials, warranties, tie-in promotions, cross-promotions, point-of
purchase displays, and demonstrations); trade promotion (prices off, advertising and display
allowances, and free goods); and sales force promotions (trade shows and conventions,
contest for sales reps, and specialty advertising). These tools are used by most organizations,
including non-profit organizations. Churches, for example, often sponsor bingo games, theatre
parties, testimonial dinners and raffles. A decade ago, the advertising to sales-promotion ratio
was about 60:40. Today, in many consumer packaged-good companies, sales promotion
accounts for 65 to 75 percent of the combined budged. Sales promotion expenditures have
been increasing as a percentage of combined budget expenditure annually for the last two
decades. Several factors contribute to this rapid growth, particularly in the consumer markets.
2 Promotion is now more accepted by the top management as an effective sales tool; more
product managers are qualified to use sales-promotion tools; and product managers are under
pressure to increase current sales. In addition, the number of brands has increased;
competitors use promotions frequently; many brands are seen as similar; consumers are more
price-oriented; the trade has demanded more deals from the manufacturers; and the
advertising efficiency has declined because of rising costs, media clutter, and legal restraints.
The rapid growth of sales-promotion media has created clutter similar to the advertising
clutter. Manufacturers have to find ways to rise above the clutter-for instance, by offering
larger coupon-redemption values or using more dramatic point-of purchase displays and
demonstrations.
Purposes of Sales promotion

Sales-promotion tools vary in their specific objectives. A free sample stimulates consumer
trial, whereas a free management-advisory service aims at cementing long-term relationship
with a retailer. Sellers use incentive-type promotion to attract new triers, to reward loyal
customers, and to increase the repurchase rates of the occasional users. Sales promotion often
attracts brand switchers, who are primarily looking for low price,good value, or premiums.
30
Sales promotions are unlikely to turn them into loyal users. Sales promotions used in markets
of high brand similarity produce a high sales response in the short term but little permanent
gain in the market share. In markets of high dissimilarity, sales promotion can alter market
shares permanently. Farris and Quelch cite a number of sales promotion benefits flowing to
manufacturers and consumers.
3 Sales promotion enable manufacturers to adjust to short-term variations in supply and
demand. They enable manufacturers to test how high a list price they can charge, because they
can always discount it. They induce the customers to try new products instead of never
straying from current ones. They lead to more varied retail formats, such as every-day-low-
price store and the promotional-pricing store. They promote greater consumer awareness of
prices. They permit manufacturers to sell more than they would sell at list price.They help the
manufacturer adapt programs to different consumer segments.Consumer themselves enjoy
some satisfaction from being smart shoppers when they take advantage of price
specials.Today many marketing managers first estimate what they need to spend in trade
promotion, then what they need to spend in consumer promotion. Whatever is left they will
budget for advertising. There is danger, however, in letting advertising take a back seat,
because advertising typically acts to build brand for loyalty. The question of whether or not
sales promotion weakens brand loyalty is subject to different interpretations. Sales promotion,
with its incessant prices off, coupons, deals and premiums, may devalue the product offering
in the buyers‟minds. Buyers learn that the list price is largely a fiction. However,
beforejumping to any conclusion, we need to distinguish between price promotions and
added-value promotions However, usually, when a brand is price promoted too often, the
consumer begins to devalue it and buy it mainly when it goes on sale. So there is risk in
putting a well-known brand leader on promotion over 30 percent of time. Dominant brands
offer deals frequently, because most deals only subsidize current users. Brown‟s study of
2,500 instant-coffee buyers concluded that:
 Sales promotions yield faster and more measurable responses in sales than advertising
does.
 Sales promotions do not tend to yield new, long term buyers in mature markets
because they attract mainly deal-prone consumers who switch among brands as deals
become available.
 Loyal brand buyers tend not to change their buying patterns as a result of competitive
promotion.
31
 Advertising appears to be capable of deepening brand loyalty.
There is also evidence that price promotions do not build permanent total category volume.
Small share competitors find it advantageous to use sales promotion, because they cannot
afford to match the market leaders‟ large advertising budgets; nor can they obtain shelf-space
without offering trade allowances or stimulate consumer trials without offering incentives.
Price competition is used by small brand seeking to enlarge its share, but it is less effective for
category leader whose growth lies in expanding the entire category.
The upshot is that many consumer packaged goods companies feels that they are forced to use
more sales promotions than they wish. They blame the heavy use of sales promotion for
decreasing brand loyalty; increasing consumer pricesensitivity; brand quality image dilution,
and a focus on short-run-marketing planning.
Major decisions in Sales Promotions

In using sales promotion, a company must establish its objectives, select the tools, develop the
program, pretest the program, implement and control it, and evaluate the results.
Establishing the objectives

Sales promotion objectives are derived from broader promotion objectives, which are derived
from more basic marketing objectives developed for the product. For consumers, objectives
include encouraging purchase of larger-sized units, building trial among non-users, and
attracting switchers away from competitors‟ brands. For retailers, objectives include
persuading retailers to carry new items and higher levels of inventory, encouraging stocking
of related items, offsetting competitive promotions, building brand loyalty, and gaining entry
into new retail outlets. For the sales force, objectives include encouraging support of a new
product or model, encouraging more prospecting, and stimulating off-season sales. See
“Marketing Memo: Sales Promotions as brand builders.”)
32
Marketing Memo: Sales Promotions as brand and builder s
Building brand awareness is a long-term process. What a brand does today predicts what it
will do tomorrow. Sales promotions are short term and temporary. Here are some of the tips
on how to make a sale promotion an effective brand-building tool.
 Make sure the promotion is justified: A new store opening, a company anniversary,
and other kinds of celebrations are all good reasons for running a promotion
 Tie the promotion to brand’s image: Birth dates and anniversaries are good
 Look at every both for the sales job it can do and as a communication tool: A
promotion is one of a brand‟s many voices; it can help build brand awareness if it says
the right things
Source: Adapted from Jacques Chevron, “Branding and Promotion: Uneasy
combination.” Brand week, September 14, 1998, p.24
Selecting Consumer-promotion tools

The promotion planner should take into account the type of the market, sales promotion
objectives, competitive conditions, and each tool‟s cost effectiveness.
The main consumer promotion tools are summarized in the following table.We can
distinguish between manufacturer promotions and retailer promotions.
Sales promotions are most effective when used together with advertising. In one study, a price
promotion alone produced 15 percent increase in sales volume. When combined with feature
advertising, sales volume increased 19 percent;when combined with feature advertising and a
point-of-purchase display, sales volume increased 24 percent.
Major Consumer promotion tools:

Samples: Offer of a free amount of a product or service delivered door to door, sent in the
mail, picked up in a store, attached to another product, or featured in an advertising offer.
Coupons: Certificates entitling the bearer to a stated saving on the purchase of a specific
product; mailed, enclosed in other products or attached to them, or inserted in the magazine
and newspaper ads.
33
Cash Refund Offers (rebates): Provide a price reduction after purchase rather than at
retail shop;consumer sends a specified “proof of purchase” to the manufacturer who
“refunds”part of the purchase price by mail.
Price Packs (cents-off deals): Offers to consumer savings off the regular price of a
product, flagged on the label or package. A reduce price pack is a single package sold at the
reduce price (such as two for the price of one). A banded pack is two related products banded
together (such as a toothbrush and toothpaste)
Premiums (gifts): Merchandise offered at a relatively low cost or free as an incentive to

purchase a particular product. A with-pack premium accompanies the product inside or on the
package. A free in-the-mail premium is mailed to the consumers who send a proof of
purchase. A self-liquidating premium is sold below its normal retail price to consumers who
request it.
Frequency Programs: Programs rewarding the consumers whose frequency and intensity
in purchasing the company‟s products and services is higher.
Prizes (Contests, sweepstakes, games): Prizes are offers of the chance to win cash,
trips, or merchandise as a result of purchasing something. A contest calls consumers to submit
an entry to be examined by panel of judges who will select the best entries. A sweepstake
asks consumers to submit their names in a drawing. A game presents the consumers with
something every time they buy to help them win prizes.
Patronage awards: Values in cash or in other forms that are proportional to patronage of a
certain vendor or group of vendors.
Free Trials: Inviting prospective purchasers to try the product without cost in the hope that
they will buy.
34
Product Warranties: Explicit or implicit promises by sellers that the product will perform
as specified or that the seller will fix it or refund the customer‟s money during a specified
period.
Tie-in promotions: Two or more brands or companies team up on coupons, refunds, and
contests to increase the pulling power
Cross-promotions: Using one brand to advertise another noncompeting brand.
Point-of-purchase (POP) Displays and Demonstrations: POP displays and

demonstration take place at the point-of-purchase or sale .
Selecting trade-promotion tools

Manufacturers use a number of trade promotion tools. Surprisingly a highe percentage of
promotion pie is devoted to trade promotion tools (46.9 percent) than to consumer promotion
(27.9 percent), with media advertising capturing remaining 25.2 percent. Manufacturers use
award money to the trade
1. To persuade the wholesaler or retailer to carry the brand;
2. Persuade the retailer or wholesaler to carry more units than the normal amount;
3. To induce the retailers to promote the brand by featuring, display, and price reductions and;
4. To stimulate retailers and their sales clerks to push the product.The growing power of large
retailers has increased their ability to demand trade promotion at the cost of consumer
promotion and advertising.
The different trade promotions are:-
Price off (off-invoice or off list): A straight discount off the list price on each
case purchased during a stated time period.
Allowance: An amount offered in return for the retailer‟s agreeing to feature the
manufacturer‟s products in some way. An advertising allowance compensates the retailers for
advertising the manufacturer‟s product. A display allowance compensates them for carrying a
special product display.
35
Free Goods: Offers of extra cases of merchandise to intermediaries who buy a certain
quantity or who feature a certain flavor or size
Source: For more information, see Betsy Spethman, Trade Promotion Redefined,
Brandweek, March 13, 1995, pp. 25-32
Selecting Business- and sales-force-promotion tools

Companies spend billions of dollars on business-and sales-force-promotion tools as shown in
the table. These tools are used to gather business leads, impress and reward customers, and
motivate the sales force to greater effort. Companies typically develop budgets for each
business-promotion tool that remain fairly constant from year to year.
Trade Shows and Conventions: Industry associations organize annual trade

sows and conventions. Business marketers may spend as much as 35 percent of
their annual promotion budget on trade shows
Sales Contests: A sales contest aims at including the sales force or dealers to increase their
sales over a stated period, with prizes (money, trips, gifts or points) going to those who
succeed
Specialty Advertising: Specialty advertising consists of useful, low cost items

bearing the company‟s name and address, and sometimes an advertising message that
salespeople give to prospects and customers. Common items are ballpoint pens, key chains,
flashlights, tote bags, and memo pads.
36
SCOPE OF STUDY
Vision Statement
“To create industry ready professionals
Mission Statement
“We shall increase the revenue of the company through the study of buying behavior of the
customer .to improving various types of policy and To provide world-class information
technology and services in order to enable our customer to serve their customer better.
Quality Policy Statement
“We will deliver defect-free products, services and solutions to meet the requirements of our
external and internal customers the first time, every time.”
37
CHAPTER -4
RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY
38
OBJECTIVE OF STUDY
The main objective of the survey was to determine the impact of the sales promotion offers
on the buying behavior of consumers of IT products on the following factors:
 The effect on their purchase decision (whether or not the consumers are buying on the
basis of promotional offers)
 The brand image of the brand offering the sales promotion (does it increase or
decrease)
 To Provides all the crucial information on HCL Infosystems Ltd. required for business
and competitor intelligence needs .
There were also a few secondary objectives of the survey, which included
 What are the sales promotion tools that are most likely to spur a purchase decision
 Whether enlarging the existing customer segments is possible through sales
promotions
 What is the media that is most suitable to communicate the sales promotion offers to
the consumers
The hypotheses for the survey were:

 People who have bought the computers/notebooks have done so mainly during sales
promotion offers
 Majority of the buyers who bought during sales offers got the information regarding
the same from either a newspaper or a magazine
39
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research Methodology-
The system of collecting data for research projects is known as research methodology. The
data may be collected for either theoretical or practical research for example management
research may be strategically conceptualized along with operational planning methods and
change management.
Research Design:
The study used an exploratory research design & was conducted for the period of 1st June
2010 to 31july2010
Data Collection
a) Primary Data: Through survey using structured questionnaire.
b) Secondary Data: Is being search sites like magazines, newspapers, journals, websites
and the data has been collected through other approaches.
Area of the study: Ghaziabad city in the state of Uttar Pradesh .

Period of time : 60 days
Sampling Plan
Sample Design
The sample was selected on the basis of pre-qualifying question as to whether the respondent
is an existing PC/notebook user or whether he is planning to buy one in future so that the
respondents can be grouped into two
categories (whose opinion was vital for the survey):
 User : (76 percent )
 Perspective buyer : (24percent)
40
80
70
60
50
40
30 User
20 Pers.buyer
10
0
User 71
Pers.buyer 29
Sampling Technique
The formulae used for calculating sample size was:
Π (1- Π) x Z 2
n= __________________
D2
Where,
n = the sample size selected for the study
Π = the proportion of the total population that is expected to have the required
characteristics (i.e. The proportion of the total population that either uses a
computer/notebook or is planning to buy one soon)
Z = the amount of accuracy that is allowable (95 percent accuracy)
D = the amount of deviation from standard that can be allowed (1.96 standard deviations)
On the basis of the demographic data available for Ghaziabad city the value of “Π” was
ascertained at 0.010 that is 10 percent of the total population of Ghaziabad has either bought
or is planning to buy computers/notebooks.
41
The values of “Z” and “D” are ascertained by statisticians and are a standard. The value of
“n” was ascertained as 150 (approximately) for the study. In order to have a representative
sample for the survey, using techniques
such as mall intercepts random sampling was done.
42
CHAPTER -5
ANALYSIS
AND
INTERPRETATION
43
DATA ANALYSIS INTERPRETATION
Data Analysis:
The data analysis was done using SPSS software; the data was analyzed using the following
statistical methods:
1) Factor Analysis
2) Discriminant Analysis
3) Regression Analysis
Limitations of the study:

There are a few limitations to the study that may arise due to the following reasons:
1) Sampling plan: The sampling is done through random sampling; generally through
mall intercept interviews, which might distort the results but not to a very great extent.
2) The Area of study: Ghaziabad city might not hold good as a representative for the
whole of India and hence the survey is location specific.
44
Profile of the Respondents:
The pie charts and bar graphs below indicates the profile of the 150 respondents that
were surveyed:
Age wise profile of the respondents:-
20.
0%
40-60year
18-25year
25-40year
46.7%
45
Gender wise profile of the customers
Female Male
40.1% 59.9%
46
Income profile of the respondents
60
50 6
0
40
30 40
3 East
20
0
10 20
0
7k-10k 10k-20k 20k-30k 30k-
above
47
Occupation profile of the respondents
60
50
40
30
East
20
10
0
Government own
job Business
Occupation
48
Total market share of different PC/Laptop brands
9.80%
45
.8
HCL
15.90%
H.P
ACER
OTHER
28.50%
Market share of PC
21.2%
9.8%
HCL
H.P
LENOVO
31.4% DELL
OTHER
22.1
15.5%
Market share of laptop
49
Satisfaction level of the customers of different brands:
120
100
80
NO
60
YES
40
20
0
HCL HP IBM DELL OTHER
As is evident from the graph HP and IBM top the charts in terms of customer
satisfaction. IBM leads the market in terms of customer satisfaction with 90 percent,
followed by HP, which had 80 percent satisfied customers.& Dell is also had a 80%
satisfied customers .
50
Major reason of dissatisfaction
70
60 65
50
40
35
30
20
10
0
poor service poor performance
Reason for Dissatisfaction
The major reason for dissatisfaction is as shown in the graph above. The major reason for
dissatisfaction is poor service (65percent) and poor performance (35 percent).
51
Company offering best sales promotion offer
100% 10 7
13 11
80% 11
25
OTHER
60% 15 ACER
LENOVO
40% 27 32 DELL
4 HP
20% HCL
24 20
0%
User Non User
From the bar chart it can be ascertained that majority of the users believe that HCL gives best
offers (24 percent) whereas majority of non-users believe that dell offers best sales offers.
This can be attributed to the aggressive sales promotion strategies adopted by HCL in the
laptop segment and in pc and server segment by dell
52
Sales promotion offers best communicated through
100
80
45
65
60 News Paper
Magazine
40 35
Television
25
20
20
0 10
User Non User
User/Non User
As is evident from the graph majority of users (100 percent) and non-users seek Magazines
and Newspapers for getting information about latest sales promotion offers. This gives an
insight that the media that can be effective in conveying sales promotion offers is print media
(magazines and newspapers). If we look at another feature that has been brought out by the
survey is the fact that majority of people buy by looking at a feature in newspaper. This can be
concluded from the fact that 65 percent of the buyers are those who seek information from
Newspaper while purchasing a PC/Laptop.
53
Test of hypotheses
For the first hypothesis it is very evident from the graph that majority of those who bought did
so during a sales promotion offer
80
70
73%
60
50
40
30
20 27%
10
0
YES NO
Prompted By Offer
54
120 Awareness
gained thr
100
80 63 33
News Papper
60 Magazine
Television
40 67
37
20
0
YES NO
Prompted By Offer
Majority of those who were prompted by the sales offers did were either prompted by a
Newspaper ad (63 percent) or an ad in the magazine (38 percent).
This is also the hypothesis of the study, which can be proved through the following chi-square
statistics.
Z0: Null Hypothesis: Majority of buyers, do not get information regarding the sales promotion
offers through newspapers or magazines.
Za: Alternate Hypothesis: Majority of buyers, do get information regarding the sales
promotion offers through newspapers or magazines.
After testing of hypothesis is clear that the null hypothesis can be rejected and the alternate
hypothesis can be selected. This proves the hypothesis that majority of buyers; do get
information regarding the sales promotion offers through newspapers or magazines. This is a
true occurrence and not a chance occurrence.
55
The most successful offer
60
50
55
40
45
30
20
10
0
Price discount freebies
Offers availed
From the bar chart we can ascertain that majority (55 percent) of those who bought a
computer/laptop when there was a sales promotion offer did so by getting attracted to “Price
Discounts”. Freebies or free gift offers were also quite successful in raking in customers to
buy. Thus it can be said that price discounts are a hot favourite amongst buyers of IT products
and services as an incentive to buy.
56
The most effective sales promotion tool for potential customers
50
40
47
30
20 27
10
13 13
0
Always Sometime Can't say Never
Price Discounts
74 percent of the respondents were positive about buying when there was a price discount
offer, whereas 72 percent were positive about buying when there was a freebie attached to the
offer
40
35
30
36
25 36
20
15
10 18
5 10
0
Always sometimes can'tsay Never
freebies
57
Dealer Influence while buying computer/IT products
80
70
60
50
67
40
30
20
10 20
13
0
Always Sometimes Never
Dealer Influence
From the graph we can interpret that 67 percent of the total respondents feel that the dealer
always influences them when they buy a computer or IT product. Again from the next graph
we can say that majority of those who bought during sales offer (63 percent) believe that their
purchase decision was influenced by the dealer .
100
80 37
100
60 Sometime
Always
40
63
20
0
Yes No
Prompted By Offer
58
Reason why computer/laptop/IT product is bought/upgraded Change in
Technology
100%
28 Change in technology
80% 50
Strongly agree
60% 36 Agree
40% can't say

2
Disagree
20% 5
36
25
0%
Yes NO
User/Non User
From the graph we can say that IT product users are divided over whether Change in
technology is a reason for them to upgrade their computers. On the contrary, for the first time
buyers, change in technology is a definite reason to buy (50 percent strongly agree). This
shows that change in technology is a factor highly considered by non-users who are planning
to buy soon.
59
On Requirement Basis
100% On Requirement basis

18 25
80% 10 Strongly Agree
60% 27 50
Agree
Cant'say
40%
45 Disagree
20% Strongly Disagree
25
0%
Yes No
User/Non User
Majority of users and non-users (45 percent and 50 percent) disagree to the fact that
mandatory requirement is a reason to by or upgrade the PC/laptop. This ascertains that
mandatory requirements at workplace for upgrading or buying are not a strong reason to
buy/upgrading a PC/laptop at home.
60
Promotional offers an incentive to buy
100
promotional offers
80 25
64
60 Strongly Agree
50 Agree
40 Can’tSay
20 36
25
0
Yes No
User/Non User
As evident from the graph both users and non-users find “Promotional Offers” a strong reason
to buy a computer/laptop. Thus it is quite clear that promotional offers are a definite incentive
to buy for the customers.
61
CHAPTER -6
FINDINGS
AND
CONCLUSION
62
FINDINGS 6.1
From the Analysis of the results and based on the objectives of the study the following
findings can be ascertained:
Major Findings Impact on purchase decision
Majority of those who have bought a PC/laptop and are planning to buy consider
“Promotional offer” as a definite incentive to buy.
People who have already bought a PC/laptop have done so during a “Promotional Offer
Non-users consider sales and promotion offer as the most important attribute for buying a
computer/laptop
Impact on Brand Image
Majority of users believe that the only impact Promotional Offer has on the Brand is
“Increase its sales”
Majority of the non-users believe that Promotional Offers increase the“Awareness about
the product offering” of the brand.
The Brand Image is not enhanced by using “Promotional Offers” and they only serve as a
tool for increasing the awareness or sales of a brand as ascertained from the survey
Minor Findings
The market share of the Hewlett Packard (HP) brand of computers/laptops is the highest in
Ghaziabad, followed closely by HCL Infosytems in retail segment.
IBM (International Business Machines) leads the pack in terms of customer satisfaction
followed by Hewlett-Packard (HP).
Major reason for dissatisfaction among existing customers is “Poor Service”.
Majority believes that HCL Infosystems has the best “Promotional Offers”among all the
players existing in the market.
The most successful offers are “Price discounts” and “Freebies”, thus people look for
monetary incentives are most sought after deals while buying an IT product.
Majority of those who buy in a sales promotion offer do so by looking at a featured
advertisement in a magazine or a newspaper.
People look for information on what to buy (IT Products) from newspapers and magazines
the most
63
Conclusion6.2
From these findings it can be ascertained that Sales promotion offers provide a definite
incentive to buy, but their impact on the Brand Image of an IT product is still debatable. These
findings give an indication that “Promotional Offers” can be used for increasing the short-
term gain but their application in building brand image over a long term is limited.
Promotional tools that are most successful are hence those which
incentivise the customer immediately like price discounts. Again from the minor findings we
can ascertain that Print Media the best media for communicating promotional offers, as this is
the medium in which people seek information while they are in the “Information Search”
mode of the consumer buying process. For the companies who seek to increase customer
satisfaction can do so by improving their “After Sales Service” or else there might be some
amount of dissonance in the mind of the customer.
64
CHAPTER -7
SUGGESTIONS
AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
65
SUGGESTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
From the survey many vital points were bought out in the forefront which if implemented can
help companies to improve their brand image. Many companies have used promotional offers
over the last decade and the proportion of promotional offer budget as a percentage of the total
combined budget has been ever rising.
This can be attributed to the short-term performance pressure on the product managers. But
this tool should be used with caution as Promotional Offers do little to build the brand image
of the product or the company in the long term.Thus, more long-term approach to marketing is
Advertising and not Promotional Offers.
Again as can be ascertained from the survey, most sought after promotional offers are those
in which the customer gets instant incentives like Price discounts or Freebies. This can have
its positives and negatives. This gives the manufacturerthe ability to experiment with different
price bands to ascertain price flexibility of the customers and also to deal with demand supply
fluctuations effectively on the positive side. But on the negative side of it the customer will
start discounting the product as inferior in quality, and also this increases the dissonance of
the customers who have already bought from the manufacturer.
Thus, price discounts can be effective tool for raking in the moolah but it has to be used with a
word of caution and not excessively as it has many a flip sides attached to it. Information
search stage for a customer buying an IT product is very extensive and serious search takes
place before buying.
The information regarding such products should hence are better placed in media which has
higher amount of involvement. Thus print media is best suited for placing advertisements or
features for the products of this nature.
66
Chapter8
BIBLIOGRAPHY
AND
ANNEXURE
67
BIBLOLGRAPHY 8.1
BOOK
1. Marketing rearch by Beri G. C
2. From Robert C Blattberg and Scott A. Neslin, Sales Promotion Concepts and Methods, and
Strategies, (Prentice Hall, 1990).
3. Roger A. Strang, Sales Promotion: Fast Growth: Faulty Management, Harvard Business
Review (July-August 1976)
4. Robert George Brown, Sales Response to Promotions and Advertising, Journal of
Advertising Research (August 1974) 36-37.Also see Carl F. Mela, Sunil Gupta, and Donald R
Lehmann, The Long-Term Impact of Advertising and Consumer Brand Choice, Journal Of
Marketing Research (May 1997):248-61; Purushottam Papatla and Lakshman Krishnamurti,
Measuring the Dynamic effects of Promotions on Brand Choice, Journal of Marketing
Research (February 1996); 20-35; Kandel Jedidi, Carl F. Mela, and Sunil Gupta,
5. F. Kent Mitchel, Advertising/Promotion Budgets: How did We get Here, and What do We
Do Now, Journal of Consumer Marketing (Fall 1985.
6. David B. Jones, Setting Promotional Goals: A Communication Relationship Model
7.Marketing Management by Kotler,Keller,Koshy & jha-12E
MAGAZINES / JOURNALS / NEWSPAPERS
1.Business Today
2.Company Annual Magazine
3.Business World
4.The Times of India

WEBSITES:
www.hp.com
www.acer.com
www.dell.com
www.ibm.com
www.hclinfosystem.in
68
ANNEXURE 8.2
QUESTIONNAIRE
1) Do you own a computer/notebook?

Yes [ ] No [ ]
2) Are you planning to buy one?
Yes [ ] No [ ]
3) Which brand of computer/notebook do you own?
HP [ ] Zenith [ ] IBM/Lenovo [ ]Acer [ ] HCL [ ]
Others [ ]
4) Was there any offer which prompted you to buy a computer?
Yes [ ] No [ ]
5) How did you know about the type of computer you are using right now?
Newspaper [ ] Magazine [ ]Television [ ] Radio [ ]
Friends and Family [ ] Others [ ]
6) What was the offer that you got when you bought your computer?
Price discounts [ ] Extended Warranty [ ]Freebies [ ] Others [ ]
7) Do you think that you get influenced by sales offers while buying
computers?
Always [ ] Sometimes [ ]Never [ ] Can‟t Say [ ]
8) Are you satisfied with the computer you are using right now?
Yes [ ] No [ ]
9) if not satisfied what is the cause of your dissatisfaction?
Poor service [ ]
High maintenance costs [ ]
Poor performance [ ]
Unwanted features [ ]
Other reasons [ ]
10) What according to you is most important attribute for a computer?
69
10.1 Low entry price
Not Important [ ] Less important [ ] Important [ ] Very Important [ ]
10.2 Good and timely service
10.3 Upgradation
10.4 Configuration
10.5 Ease of operation
10.6 Sales offers and discounts

11) What sort of sales offers would you generally go for?
11.1 Price Discounts
Always [ ] Sometimes [ ] Never [ ] Can‟t Say [ ]
11.2 Freebies
11. 3 Extended Warranty
11.4 Unrelated Offers
12) The basis of buying or upgrading your computer is
12.1 Change in Technology
Strongly agree [ ] Agree [ ] Can‟t say [ ] Disagree [ ] Strongly disagree [ ]
12.2 On requirement basis
12.3 Sales and promotional offers
70
12.4 Predefined timeframes
13) Does this increase while there are offers?
14) Where do you get the information about the latest offers?
Newspaper [ ] Magazine [ ]
Television [ ] Radio [ ]
Friends and Family [ ] Others [ ]
15) Does the dealer have influence while buying any type of computer or IT
products?
16) Do you think that sales promotion offers has following impact on the
brand you use?
16.1 Increases awareness about the product
16.2 Increases its sales
16.3 Increases the visibility of the brand
16.4 Makes it easier to choose one brand from the other
16.5 Makes you more confident about selecting the brand
16.6 Makes you buy more than what you want
17) Which company do you think has the best sales offers?
HCL [ ] HP [ ] IBM/Lenovo [ ]Acer [ ] Zenith [ ] Others [ ]
18) Personal Details
71
18.1 Age
18-25 [ ] 25-40 [ ]
40-60 [ ] 60 and above [ ]
18.2 Gender
Male [ ] Female [ ]
18.3 Family Income
8 K - 10 K [ ] 10K - 20 K[ ]
20K - 40K [ ] 40K and above [ ]
18.4 Occupation
Government Job [ ] Working in private sector [ ]
Own Business [ ] Retired [ ] Student [ ]
72

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THE IMPACT OF THE SALES PROMOTION OFFERS ON THE

BUYING BEHAVIOR OF CONSUMER OF IT PRODUCT

SUMMER TRAINING PROJECT REPORT

(Approved by AICTE, Govt. of India)

UNDER GUIDANCE OF:

HCL INFO SYSTEM SDCMT GHAZIABAD

Place Ghaziabad Sonu Kr Tiwari

CERTIFICATE BY THE FACULTY GUIDE

Project is “THE IMPACT OF THE SALES PROMOTION OFFERS ON

THE BUYING BEHAVIOR OF CONSUMER OF IT PRODUCT”

Chapter -1 Page No.

Industry profile and company profile…………………………………11

Current market trends………………………………………..13

Alliance and partnership…………………………………….26-28

Theoretical back ground of study………………………………….29-37

Analyze and interpretation ………………………………………….. 43-61

Suggestions and recommendations………………………………….65-66

Bibliography and annexure…………………………………………67

HCL Infosystems Limited is an India-based company. The Company operates in three

- Foundation of com. Laid

- Introduces microcomputer-based programmable calculator with wide acceptance in the

-Launch of the first microcomputer-based commercial computer with a ROM

-Based basic interpreter.

- Unavailability of programming skills with customer results in developing bespoke

Initiation of application development in diverse segments such as textiles, sugar, paper,

- HCL developer special program generators to speed up the development of application

Products and solutions

Purposes of Sales promotion

Major decisions in Sales Promotions

Establishing the objectives

Selecting Consumer-promotion tools

Major Consumer promotion tools:

Premiums (gifts): Merchandise offered at a relatively low cost or free as an incentive to

Cross-promotions: Using one brand to advertise another noncompeting brand.

Point-of-purchase (POP) Displays and Demonstrations: POP displays and

Selecting trade-promotion tools

Selecting Business- and sales-force-promotion tools

Trade Shows and Conventions: Industry associations organize annual trade

Specialty Advertising: Specialty advertising consists of useful, low cost items

“To create industry ready professionals

Quality Policy Statement

The hypotheses for the survey were:

Area of the study: Ghaziabad city in the state of Uttar Pradesh .

 Perspective buyer : (24percent)

The formulae used for calculating sample size was:

Limitations of the study:

Age wise profile of the respondents:-

Market share of laptop

Reason for Dissatisfaction

40% can't say

100% On Requirement basis

MAGAZINES / JOURNALS / NEWSPAPERS

2.Company Annual Magazine

4.The Times of India

1) Do you own a computer/notebook?

10.6 Sales offers and discounts

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