A PROJECT REPORT ON

RETAILERS PERCEPTION TOWARDS MICROMAX MOBILE SETS.

Project Submitted by: Manish Kumar Singh Regd. No.-420921105 42, Post Graduate Diploma in Management. Regional College of Management Autonomous.

REGIONAL COLLEGE OF MANAGEMENT CHAKADOLAVIHAR, CHANDRASEKHARPUR BHUBANESWAR-751023

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF THE PROJECT

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
A motivated person will be ready to act. How he actually acts is influenced by his perception of the situation. PERCEPTION is a complex process by which people select, organise, and interpret their sensory stimulation into a meaningful picture of the world. Telecom industry is one of the fastest growing and the next best revolutionary concept in todays communication. As we know that cellular phone are now used as one popular tool in communicating with each other. People are getting benefited in numerous ways. Increase in the teledensity and the net mobile phone addition which is around 50% every year has made cell phones business go swift. This industry is not only restricted to urban areas. Its growing popularity has been flagged in rural areas as well. Availability of high end features with affordable price tag has made this industry to penetrate into rural areas. These radical changes marks out that telecom industry has brought a boom to our economic development creating a high perceptional value in between the makers of the cell phone companies, the retailers selling these phones and the consumers using these phones. If we take a look at the demographics of INDIAN consumers with respect to cell phone markets then it is predominantly huge the reason being rise in need of communication in day to day life. MICROMAXX a popular cell phone maker in INDIA has tapped the market by adopting the strategy of making low cost mobile phones and adding high end features to these models. The major reason being consumers in India has unique preferences with respect to the selection of mobile handsets. Therefore, the company is focusing on innovation, design and use of latest technologies to develop products at affordable prices. In addition to that

Micromax also focuses on developing higher value premium products targeted at urban populations. Contd.... Thus my project is made to analyze the present scenario of micromax business and its scope of development to tap the market potentiality and to maximise the productivity. It is not only intended to focus on the sales concept but also a guide to deliver effective expertise in being familiar with the mindset of the retailers. During the course of the survey, statistics have been collected from various outlets of Sambalpur & its peripheral areas. Steps have also been taken in the project to analyze the solutions for Micromax with special attention being driven to consumer demand. Although all my research study is based on primary data that is collected through questionnaire but few information is collected through secondary data like company profile. The sample size is 150 and the research design chosen is exploratory research design. A number of personal, psychological, demographic and other factors influence customers buying behaviour. Most of the customers get information from their friends and their evaluations are based on that informations. Advertising and Word of mouth

communication play important role to create brand awareness and lead high sales figures for mobile handsets.

INTRODUCTION

1. TELECOM INDUSTRY IN INDIA

The Indian telecommunication industry is the world's fastest growing industry with 826.93 million mobile phone subscribers as of April 2011. It is also the second largest telecommunication network in the world in terms of number of wireless connections after China. As the fastest growing telecommunications industry in the world, it is projected that India will have 1.159 billion mobile subscribers by 2015. Besides that, projections by several leading global consultancies indicate the total number of subscribers in India will exceed the total subscriber count in the China by 2013.The industry is expected to reach a size of 344,921 crore (US$76.92 billion) by 2012 at a growth rate of over 26 per cent, and generate employment opportunities for about 10 million people during the same period.

(Figure1.1)
According to analysts, the sector would create direct employment for 2.8 million people and for 7 million indirectly. In 2008-09 the overall telecom

equipments

revenue

in

India

stood

at 136,833 crore (US$30.51

billion) during the fiscal, as against 115,382 crore (US$25.73 billion) a year before.

1.1 HISTORY
Telecom in the real sense means the transfer of information between two distant points in space. The popular meaning of telecom always involves electrical signals and as a result, people often exclude postal or any other raw telecommunication methods from its meaning. Therefore, the history of Indian telecom can be started with the introduction of telegraph In 1880, two telephone companies namely The Oriental Telephone Company Ltd. and The Anglo-Indian Telephone Company Ltd. approached the Government of India to establish exchanges in India. The permission was refused on the grounds that the establishment of telephones was a Government monopoly and that the Government itself would undertake the work. In 1881, the Government later reversed its earlier decision and a licence was granted to the Oriental Telephone telephone Company Limited exchanges

of England for

opening

at Calcutta, Bombay, Madras and Ahmadabad and the first formal telephone service was established in the country. On the 28th January 1882, Major E. Baring, Member of the Governor General of India's Council declared open the Telephone Exchanges in Calcutta, Bombay and Madras. The exchange in Calcutta named the "Central Exchange was opened at third floor of the building at 7, Council House Street, with a total of 93 subscribers. Later that year, Bombay also witnessed the opening of a telephone exchange. While all the major cities and towns in the country were linked with telephones during the British period, the total number of telephones in 1948 numbered only around 80,000. Post independence, growth remained slow

because the telephone was seen more as a status symbol rather than being an instrument of utility. The number of telephones grew leisurely to 980,000 in 1971, 2.15 million in 1981 and 5.07 million in 1991, the year economic reforms were initiated in the country.

1.2 PRIVATIZATION OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS IN INDIA

The Indian government was composed of many factions (parties) which has different ideologies. Some of them were willing to throw open the market to foreign players (the centrists) and others wanted the government to regulate infrastructure and restrict the involvement of foreign players. Due to this political background it was very difficult to bring about liberalization in telecommunications. When a bill was in parliament a majority vote had to be passed, and such a majority was difficult to obtain, given to the number of parties having different ideologies. Liberalization started in 1981 when Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi signed contracts with Alcatel CIT of France to merge with the state owned Telecom Company (ITI), in an effort to set up 5,000,000 lines per year. But soon the policy was let down because of political opposition. She invited Sam Pitroda a US based Non-resident Indian NRI to set up a Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT); however the plan failed due to political reasons. During this period, after the assassination of Indira Gandhi, under the leadership of Rajiv Gandhi, many public sector organizations were set up like the DepartmentofTelecommunications (DoT) VSNL and MTNL. Many technological developments took place in this regime but still foreign players were not allowed to participate in the telecommunications business. The demand for telephones was ever increasing. It was during this period that the Narsimha Rao-led government introduced the national

telecommunications policy [NTP] in 1994 which brought changes in the following areas: ownership, service and regulation of telecommunications infrastructure. Contd.... They were also successful in establishing joint ventures between state owned telecom companies and international players. But still complete ownership of facilities was restricted only to the government owned organizations. Foreign firms were eligible to 49% of the total stake. The multi-nationals were just involved in technology transfer, and not policy making. After 1995 the government set up TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) which reduced the interference of Government in deciding tariffs and policy making. The DoT opposed this. The political powers changed in 1999 and the new government under the leadership of Atal Bihari Vajpayee was more Pro-reforms and introduced better liberalization policies. They split DoT in two- one policy maker and the other service provider (DTS) which was later renamed as BSNL. This was a gateway to many foreign investors to get entry into the Indian Telecom Markets. After March 2000, the government became more liberal in making policies and issuing licenses to private operators. The government further reduced license fees for cellular service providers and increased the allowable stake to 74% for foreign companies. Because of all these factors, the service fees finally reduced and the call costs were cut greatly enabling every common middle class family in India to afford a cell phone. Nearly 32 million handsets were sold in India. The data reveals the real potential for growth of the Indian mobile market. In March 2008 the total GSM and CDMA mobile subscriber base in the country was 375 million, which represented a nearly 50% growth when compared with previous year. As the unbranded Chinese cell phones which do not have

Contd.... International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) numbers pose a serious security risk to the country, Mobile network operators therefore planned to suspend the usage of around 30 million mobile phones (about 8 % of all mobiles in the country) by 30 April. 56 years the average monthly subscribers additions were around 0.05 to 0.1 million only and the total mobile subscribers base in December 2002 stood at 10.5 millions. However, after a number of proactive initiatives were taken by regulators and licensors, the total number of mobile subscribers has increased greatly to 811.59 million subscribers as of Mar 31st 2011. India has opted for the use of both the GSM (global system for mobile communications) and CDMA (code-division multiple access) technologies in the mobile sector. In addition to landline and mobile phones, some of the companies also provide the WLL service.

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1.3 THE INDIAN MOBILE HANDSET MARKET

The Indian cellular market is very dynamic. New carriers and many new local mobile device manufacturers have entered this already crowded mobile device market. The intense competition results in very low call rates and low-cost devices from multiple manufacturers in the market. This market was previously dominated by just a few vendors such as Nokia, Motorola, Reliance and Vodafone. Mobile device sales in India are forecast to reach 138.6 million in 2011, an increase of 18.5 percent over 2010 sales of 117 million units, The mobile handset market is expected to show steady growth through 2014 when end user sales surpass 206 million units. Established global device manufacturers are losing ground due to fierce competition from local and Chinese manufacturers in the low-cost segment, Price remains the main criteria when buying any consumer electronic device in India, including a mobile device. Carrier strategies, lower tariffs and/or third-generation (3G) data plans will continue to shape the mobile device market in India. India, contributing approximately 10 percent of worldwide sales, is an important market for manufacturers with aspirations to grow their global market share. Due to its sheer size and open market (mobile devices being sold independently of cellular connection); it has attracted many global mobile device manufacturers. The market is also supported by many local manufacturers. This has led to more than 50 brands vying for consumer attention in India, besides the many brands in the black markets (selling without invoices).

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Contd....

(Figure 1.2)
The entry of Indian mobile handset players focusing on low-end, value conscious consumers has intensified competition in the Indian mobile device market. A large volume of mobile device sales in India come from the low-end device segment. The average selling price (ASP) of a mobile device is approximately $52, with 85 percent of devices sold costing below $100. With the growing influence of local handset players in the low-end segment, the traditionally stronger, big global players have had their positions weakened. At the same time, the midrange to high-end market is getting increasingly competitive too, with a greater focus from global players on the Indian market and the launch of competitively priced midrange and highend mobile devices. The Indian cellular market is highly voice-centric with just 10 percent of carriers' revenue coming from data services. Within that, 85 percent of revenue comes from Short Message Service, leaving less than 2 percent of overall carriers' revenue coming from data access on mobile devices.

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Contd... Another fact which separates India, though not the only one, from other markets is that it is a prepaid market, with approximately 95 percent of existing subscribers on prepay schemes, and 98 percent of new subscribers choosing the prepaid option. This all corroborates the fact that the Indian mobile device market is driven by the lowest call rates in the world and dominated by low-cost devices, which account for 80 percent of overall sales in India in 2010. Although 3G technology has not been introduced in India yet, 3G device sales are expected to account for 16.7 percent of total sales in 2011, up from 9.2 percent in 2010. By 2014, 3G devices sales are expected to account for 69 percent of total sales. Smartphone sales in India made up 5.2 percent of total device sales in the first quarter of 2011, and are expected to increase18percentin2014. With so many players in fray , mobile handset marketers are banking on innovation and differentiated positioning for getting heard. The brands which are able to come out with some innovative functionality in the mobile handset get noticed and see spurt in sale.

Cellular phone penetration in India stood at 45 percent in 2011, and the market is entering into a second phase of growth, with replacement sales increasing from 45 percent in 2010 to 50 percent of total sales in 2011. Moves to high-speed 3G networks is bringing in more challenges in terms of innovation and keeping up with fast changing consumer demand. Shortening product life cycle times and declining sales of voice-centric devices will bring changes to the market during the next five years.

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So the lessons to be learnt by other new entrants is that either you innovate for introducing new unheard of features or go for niche marketing and then go for high decibel advertising. In absence of differentiating positioning statement its difficult to get heard by customer

1.4 MICROMAXX COMPANY BACKGROUND

Micromax Informatics Ltd is a New Delhi, India based Telecom manufacturer and distribution partner to Nokia, Samsung, LG etc for their IT / Telecom products in India. It has an annual turnover raising to $5000 million and revenue worth $36.17 million. With this it has got 23 domestic offices across the country and international offices in Hong Kong, USA, Dubai and now in Nepal. Micromax has been making supplies to the Indian GSM operators for their different telecom requirements and is now expanding their product range to the global markets. Micromax's products come with a quality seal meaning product satisfaction, high reliability resulting in repeated business. Micromax has 24 hrs operational customer service centres just in case you need that small bit of information albeit at the wrong hour. Micromax Inc. has recently seen a rise in market share. Micromax succeeded with innovation as the guiding force. Most of the successful handsets of Micromax had something unique to offer either in terms of features or customization for a segment. Micromax has a lot of firsts to its credit on their versatile product portfolio. It was the first to introduce: Handsets with 30 days battery backup, Handsets with Dual SIM / Dual Standby, Handsets Switching Networks (GSM - CDMA), Aspirational Qwerty Keypad Handsets, Operator Branded 3G Handsets, OMH CDMA Handsets, etc. With a 360 degree advertising and marketing strategy sketched out, the company has an optimistic outlook for the telecom consumer space.

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Currently present in more than 40,000 stores across the country, the company plans to have an aggressive market incursion to reach out to its customers through 70,000 operational stores in the coming year.

One of the major aspects that contribute towards the substantial monthly growth of Micromax is its 80% sales in the rural areas. After building a strong presence in the rural market, where the prominence of both subscribers and operators is rapidly increasing, Micromax is now progressively moving towards establishing its foothold in the competitive urban towns as well. With young enthusiasts as its anchor, Micromax Informatics Limited created a niche for itself in the telecommunication industry. Micromax ventured into the telecommunication industry with an end-to-end solution of Fixed Wireless Devices and Wireless Data Cards. In the year 2008, after delivering upon the technology of fixed wirelesspowering desired products, the company forayed into one of the most predominant genres of telecommunication Mobile handsets. Since then Micromax has received commendable response for its unique and interesting handsets. Innovation, Cost-Effective, Credible and an Insightful R&D, have now become synonymous to Micromax in the telecom vertical. Today Micromax has become a brand which people relate and look up to for realizing their individual device preferences and other out-of-the-box solutions. Micromax is currently the third-largest GSM vendor in the Indian market, A share of 8.1%, perhaps just a few marks behind Samsung. Samsung at the second position has 10.4% control, as per market reports. Nokia with 52.7% share is the number 1 vendor.

(Source: Forbes India, 27 Feb. 2010)

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HISTORY
Micromax made its debut in 1991 but it presence has been felt majorly in few previous years. Serious developments and rise was seen in the year of 2008 when the company entered Indian Cell phone handsets market. Company entered market in March 2008 in which it had a market share of meagre 0.59% average. Micromax Inc. has recently seen a rise in market share. Micromax is the largest Indian domestic mobile handsets company in terms of units shipped during the quarter ended March 31, 2010 and the third largest mobile handset seller in India as at March 31, 2010 On March 31, 2010 the company registered the market share of 6.24% for that quarter which grew from 0.59% in September, 2008. Micromax became the fastest growing mobile brand in India for the fiscal year 2009-10. Handset sales have grown by 123.48% from 1.15 million units in the quarter ended June 30,2009 to 2.57 million units in the quarter ended March 31, 2010. Micromax also sells data cards to service providers in India Micromax mobile needs no introduction today. Just two years back people were not aware of the brand at all but today it is .Indias third largest mobile selling company by volume after NOKIA and Samsung (IDC report).brands success can be attributed to its ability to understand the need of the market, aggressive marketing with a budget of 100crore and smart distribution and channel management. It is one of the leading INDIAN telecom companies with a futuristic vision and an exhaustive R&D at its helm, Micromax has successfully generated

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innovative technologies that have revolutionised the telecom consumer space

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1.5 CURRENT PERORMANCE

Micromax is the largest Indian domestic mobile handsets company in terms of units shipped during the quarter ended March 31, 2011 and the third largest mobile handset seller in India as at March 31, 2011. On March 31, 2011 the company registered the market share of 6.24% for that quarter, which grew from 0.59% in September, 2008. Micromax became the fastest growing mobile brand in India for the fiscal year 2010-11. Handset sales have grown by 123.48% from 1.15 million units in the quarter ended June 30, 2010 to 2.57 million units in the quarter ended March 31, 2010. Micromax also sells data cards to service providers in India. As per IDC report micromax has displaced LG to become third largest selling mobile handset company in INDIA with a market share of 6%. The company today sells more than a million handsets a month and is a RS 1600 crore worth brand .The company has presence i more than 500 districts and 90,000 retail outlets, The company started its mobile handset business in 2008 and the challenge was to establish an identity in a market dominated by bid MNC s like NOKIA and SAMSUNG companies. Today Micromax has become brand which people relate and look up to for realizing their individual device preferences and other out of the box solutions. Micromax is now churning out 1 million phones a month.

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1.6 MAJOR MILESTONES

Being the makers of software and embedded technology Micromax started its entry into mobile hardware business by making a cell phone which has long battery life. This product became a huge success after its launch because people required there mobile to have a long standby time required for their long usage.

(Table1.1)

From its inception into makers of cell phone it has now become a renowned cell phone maker which has over a market share of (6.9) percent after Nokia (39 per cent) and Samsung (17 per cent). Micromax is the only company whose design lab to marketing time is 3 months whereas most of the cell phone makers take more than 1 year to design and bring a new phone loaded with hi-tech features. Contd....

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 In 2008, when the Indian handset market was dominated by multinational companies such as Nokia, Samsung, LG, Sony Ericsson and Motorola, Micromax joined the party with an aim to provide mobile users entry-level and mid-level handsets priced between Rs 1,800 and Rs 2,400. In the initial phase of their journey, Micromax had confined itself to small towns and rural areas, but now, after three years of operations, it has a distribution network of around 75,000 retailers across the country. "Micromax has sold 7.05 million mobile handsets in the last fiscal. The company's handset sales have grown by 132.43 per cent from 1.11 million units in the quarter ended June 30, 2010 to 2.58 million units in the quarter ended March 31, 2011," figured out by Mr. Rahul Sharma, executive director of Micromax. Erratic power supply is a major problem in rural as well as urban India, and to address this problem Micromax increased the size of the battery to 1800 mAh, as a result of which its X1i phone lasts for 30 days on standby and that too at an affordable price of Rs 2,150. The phone was a big success in rural India and gave the company an initial boost.

Micromax knew that if it wants to maintain momentum and

challenge well established players such as Nokia it needs to strengthen its distribution network because even after the success of initial launches its brand recall value among customers wasn't great. So the company came up with another innovation, this time pertaining to distribution. Micromax knew that commissions given by phone manufacturers to their channel partners are often very low, leading to a lot of dissatisfaction. The company decided to give around five per cent commission to each of its distribution chain partners, which rapidly led to increase in sales. Contd....

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 After this, Micromax expanded its range of handsets in keeping with new market demands. In 2010, it even tied up with MTV for cobranded phones to connect with potential customers in metros. Another way in which Micromax innovated was by launching dual SIM and dual reception (GSM and CDMA) handsets before Nokia did. In its latest innovation, to suit the requirements and preferences of different consumer groups, Micromax has released Android and touch screen handsets for less than Rs 7,000 each. The most important thing that increases customer loyalty is its after sales service, and to achieve this Micromax has more than 370 strategically located sales service centres in India, and also one each in Nepal and Sri Lanka. In addition to the service centres, Micromax also has tie ups with five third party owned, modular (component) service centres which are exclusive to Micromax and provide a full suite of after sales services excluding chipset and printed circuit board (PCB) replacement. Micromax will continue to offer a variety of commercially appealing mobile handsets with attractive aesthetics, designs and a

combination of innovative features that are easy to use, and are suited for local requirements and preferences of different consumer groups. The company plans to target segments in which it is currently not present and will grow its portfolio of CDMA and 3G products. In the coming months Micromax plans to launch more handsets in the Android and touch screen categories.

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1.7 VISION AND MISSION

Micromax India's Vision entails helping people improve the quality of their lives by providing them with superior quality, state-of-theart technology products at the right time and the right price. But beyond its role as a purveyor of quality products in India, Micromax seeks to contribute to the economic growth of the country though its export commitments and large scale production facilities generating secured employment for hundreds of INDIAN people. At Micromax, we strive to contribute to the development of the electronics and components industry in India by enhancing the knowledge levels of our workforce through the introduction of our advanced management systems and production we want and to be seen as the 'Most Respected' Indian Company. know-how in our manufacturing facilities by introducing our Indian vendors to our world class quality systems and helping them in improving them in their own quality systems and production processes and setting benchmarks for the industry both in terms of after sales service for our products, quality systems and management techniques at our facilities or our products themselves. At Micromax, we believe in returning to the community some of the profits we earn from it, through the social causes we espouse. We view ourselves not as an MNC operating in India, but as an 'Indian Company' operating here, conforming to the laws of the country and committed to working for the Indian community. We believe that consumers in India have unique preferences with respect to mobile handsets such as long battery life, dual GSM capability, low-cost QWERTY phones, universal remote control and gaming phones. In addition, we also focus on developing higher value premium products targeted at urban populations. We believe that our product development capabilities have enabled us to establish ourselves as an innovative Indian mobile handset company.

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1.8 CORE VALUES

Accessibility
Life is a challenge. We know that. But communicating doesn't have to be. At Motorola, we recognize that customers have different needs and capabilities. We are committed to creating products that meet the needs of everyone possible regardless of abilities. We provide a wide range of products for people with diverse communications needs with hearing, speech, vision, dexterity, mobility or cognitive needs at varying levels.

Business Conduct
The Micromax Code of Business Conduct reaffirms what each Micromax employee stands for: Doing the right thing. Every day. No excuses. Micromax's "Key Beliefs" have been in existence for decades, and Micromax continues to have a strong culture of corporate ethics and citizenship.

Our Key Beliefs: The Way We Will Always Act

Uncompromising Constant

Integrity

Respect for People

The Micromax Code of Business Conduct sets the standards for Micromax commitment to uncompromising integrity. Since its original establishment Contd....

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in the 1991s, the Code has provided Micromax employees guidance for their business activities, placing a priority on establishing trust with our stakeholders. However, it is not enough to declare our good values. Micromax is committed to acting on them through the potential of our technology and the way we conduct our business.

Environment, Health & Safety

Recycling
Micromax is a strong proponent and supporter of global environmental sustainability and recycling programs. In partnership with our carriers, customers, retailers and recyclers and on our own, we operate take back programs across the globe.

Our Management Philosophy

"We will devote our human resources and technology to create superior products and services, thereby contributing to a better global society." Our management philosophy represents our strong determination to contribute directly to the prosperity of people all over the world - a single human society. Key to our efforts is our own people, whose talent and creativity are dedicated to doing their best at all times.

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1.9 BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Mr.VikasJain Director of the Board, Micromax Informatics Ltd.

Mr. Vikas Jain, Business Director Micromax, said, Delivering best of the technology and path breaking innovation has always been our priority. We work towards bringing exclusive technology in the hands of the masses. A 3G Mobile is still considered an expensive piece of technology, but H360 is here to break all the rules. The journey of 3G in India has just begun and there is a need for mass awareness of 3G. We are thankful to MTNL for having worked with us to enable us to bring forth a revolutionary product for the Indian 3G subscribers. We are confident that this handset will redefine the 3G experience in India and with increasing awareness and availability, 3G mobiles will gain mass popularity.

Mr. Rajesh Agarwal

Mr.Rajesh Agarwal is the Managing Director and one of the Promoters of our Company and has been involved with our Company since its inception. He holds a bachelors degree in electrical engineering from Institute of Engineering, Calcutta. He has over 22 years experience in business restructuring, channel management and information technology. He has previously worked with Partech Computers Limited as customer support engineer and Universal Computers as customer support engineer.

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1.10 ORGANISATION STRUCTURE

(Figure 1.3)

We can see the figure which depicts the organisation structure of micromax. The design is well structured and thus each and every department is coordinated and interlinked with each other. The managing director has an interconnection with the other managers which are actively involved in the business process. The decisions taken are centralized and the top management is well conversant with all the team members of the organisation. Any issue pertaining to organizational matters is thus reported to the managing director of the organizational body by the forces deployed below and hence is resolved by the managing director of the company.

Contd....

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This kind of organisation structure makes the managing director to oversee all the areas of the organisation and take necessary action if required. Information flow is smooth and precise therefore avoiding communicational interruptions. There is single set of standards for operational, financial, human resource management. A rapid decision making is possible because of availability of required data from each corner of the organization. This is the only reason why MICROMAX has adopted this structure Discipline in work is associated with this kind of organisational structure thus avoiding staff conflicts which are hectic and cant be easily resolved. One more issues to be talked off is the managing of vital resources and crucial information which is relevant for the company in times.. For example the necessity of acquiring or raising funds for any sort of project is the sole responsibility of the chief financial officer. He will directly report to the managing director for aid and hence seek permission directly to go ahead for complying with the requirement. Thus making a consensus about MICROMAX it has typically tried to strike a balance between theory and experience. Managers have applied various management and leadership theories in varying degrees thus combining their graphs with varying levels of success.

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OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

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1.11Objectives

It is necessary to specify the objectives of the study. This is because of specification of objectives will enable us to study various areas and aspects with clarity. To know retailers opinion about the Micromax products. To know the sales performance of micromax product in Sambalpur market. To identify retailers perception about competitors products. To know existing promotional strategy for micromax handsets.

1.12 Aim
Aim of the study is to analyze the gap and suggest strategy to retailers, for marketing Micromax mobile handsets.

1.13 Key Questions

1. H1 What is retailers opinion regarding Micromax mobile handsets? 2. H2 What are retailers expectation form micromax handsets? 3. H3 Identifying the existing strategy of Micromax? 4. H4 Finding the gap in existing strategy of Micromax?

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LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

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1.15 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

While conducting a Marketing Research, the researcher faces with a lot of limitations. The present study is not an exception. A few errors have been expected despite of best efforts to avoid them but this is expected that still the study is much relevant, in spite of following; As the study is based mainly on primary data and some of secondary data are used in this study, the possibilities of personal bias cant be ruled out. The researcher intention to reach to a large sample size could not be accomplished due to lack of time and financial resources the intention could not be accomplished upon the desired level. Some respondents were reluctant to reveal the informations on the pretext that they didnt have sufficient time. There was information bias occurred at the time of data collection. Motivating the people for the survey was a challenging part of the survey. Despite all of the limitations efforts are being made to overcome the errors in the survey.

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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

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2Research Methodology

Research design is needed because it facilitates the smooth sailing of the various research operations, thereby making research as efficient as possible yielding maximal information with minimal expenditure of effort, time and money. Just as for better, economical and attractive construction of a house, we need a blueprint well thought out and prepared by an expert architect; similarly we need a research design or plan in advance of data collection and analysis for our project. Research design stands for advance planning of the methods to be adopted for collecting the relevant data and the techniques to be used in their analysis, keeping in view the objective of the research and the availability of the staff, time and money. Preparation of the research design should be done with great care as any error in it upset the entire project. Research design, in fact, has a great bearing on the reliability of the results arrived at the end as such constitutes the firm foundation of the entire edifice of the research work.

Aim Of The Research

Aim of the study is to analyze the gap and suggest strategy to retailers, for marketing of Micromax mobile handsets.

2.1 SAMPLE DESIGN

Sample Unit: Retailers of mobile handsets Sample Size: 150 retailers by covering parts of SAMBALPUR (ORISSA). Sampling Type: Non probability judgment sampling

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2.2APPROACHES OF DATA COLLECTION RESEARCH DESIGN:

DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH The research is primarily descriptive in nature. The sources of information are both primary and secondary. Approach constitutes of both I.Primary data. II.Secondary data.

Primary sources: Questionnaire Analysis (ENCL.)

SECONDARY DATA: It refers to those data that was already being corrected by and analyzed by someone else. This data is collected from Reports Magazines. Newspapers and books Internet

2.3SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The study was aimed at understanding and analyzing the retailer perception towards Micromax handsets. The research was conducted in the geographical area of SAMBALPUR(ORISSA),

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SCOPE FOR FURTHER RESEARCH SALES ANALYSIS: The study will help in analyzing the sales of territories where the respondent retailers are located in terms of sales volume, their sales calls closing ability. MOTIVATION-MIX ANALYSIS: This study will definitely help in ganging the adequacy of current motivators on sales performance of retailers. RETAILERS ANALYSIS: The study also focused on evaluating retailers in terms of sales performance and mention expectations by keeping in view other performance of last 2 to 3 years. This will help them ranking in terms of sales turnover and their consistency in sales performance and additional sales generation. MARKET ANALYSIS: This study will help in knowing that the numbers of retailers are energies to capture this particular market. This study will help in knowing the companys share and total market demand through market argument competition density etc. ANALYSIS BETWEEN COMPANY & RETAILERS: The studies are also focused on the expectations of retailers from company and extend of their fulfilment though communication effectiveness, complaints, handling etc.

2.4Hypothesis
H1: Micromax provides the best service. H2: Expectation is met by the micromax Solutions. H3: Response of retailers towards micromaxis positive. H4: Micromax sales process is better.

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2.5 RATIONALE OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE:

A questionnaire may fulfill all the requirements as discussed earlier like it should be short, precise, unbiased etc. However if the questionnaire is not properly constructed, it will fail to fulfill the objectives of the survey. In my research I have set up 16 questions required to collect the data which is necessary to complete my research work. Most of the questions asked are closed response and multiple choice based questions. The importance of each question thus described below; 1. The first question is to check the density of the retailers selling the handsets on an average which will determine the attrition rate of handset selling. 2. The second question resembles about customer response. Response for a product tells us about the awareness level of customers related to the companys product. 3. The third question is about the retailers opinion on micromax products which will reflect the perceptional values of retailers towards the company. This question relates to my research topic as well. 4. My fourth question asks about the availability of the product because it determines the products reach to its customer in its area of operation. 5. Respondents age is the fifth question which is to know which age group influenced to purchase the company products. 6. The sixth question is to find out the promptness of distribution system of the company. Physical distribution manages the flow of products from producers to customers in a cost effective way. 7. Creation of superior customer value and delivering high levels of customer satisfaction are the core areas in marketing the seventh question thus highlights to know the performance of marketing efforts adopted by the company to increase the sales figure.
Contd...

36

8. Eighth question is to know about the sales promotion schemes

provided by the company. Sales promotions are to stimulate the customer interest in products hence is a crucial part of my research topic.

9. Relevance of the ninth question is to judge the overall opinion of

micromax mobiles assumed by the retailers and the numbers obtained would help me to ascertain the retailers quotient.

10.The tenth question ask about the attributes of micromax mobiles

which are important to know because presence of the attributes makes the product a special one and lets consumer to choose the products on behalf of these attributes.

11.It is crucial to make the comparison of micromax products related to

its competitor because the results are essential and any discrepancies will take the product to further development. So eleventh question is based on this.

12.Twelfth question is related to make a comparison on pricing of the

product with competitors. Pricing is essential for both the retailers and the consumers.

13.Discounts are a part of sales promotion. Hence the schemes designed

by the company in appropriate schedules is very important because consumer purchase the products when there is discount scheme available and retailers also sell the products more in number with available discount schmes.

14.After sales service provided by the company are a part of value

addition to company and its product.

15.The fifteenth question asks about any element that is missed in the
product. It is because market is dynamic and hence to do the business the product must correlate with the market change.

16.Since retailers are associated with the selling of products to the end
users they can only depict the future of the micromax business.

37

ANALYSIS OF DATA

38

DATA ANALYSIS ANDCOMMENTS

This chapter is the core part of my dissertation because it includes the research findings expressed by text, figures, tables, charts and graphs. It is absolutely important to present them clearly for precise analysis. In order to get the 150 respondents are chosen as sample space thereby making them fill my questionnaires. To conduct the survey 10 respondents are interviewed each day. Total of 15 days being taken to complete the entire process and 1 more day for calculating the figures thus obtained. My areas of survey includes main areas of Sambalpur town shops closer to market areas, residential area, city malls, station square, bus stands and the like . My visits included outskirts of Sambalpur town like Burla, Durgapalli, Ainthapalli, Chaurpur and the like. The charts and graphs used are pie chart, column and bar graphs. Therefore I present my findings of the survey report conducted in this chapter.

39

Q.1. How many Micromax handsets you sell in a month on an average?

RESULTS

parameters
0 - 10 Nov-20 21 - 30 31 & above TOTAL

NO OF RESPONDENTS 0 65 85 0 150

PERCENTAGE RATINGS 0 43.33 56.67 0 100

(Table1.2)

no of handsets sold in a month on an average

0 - 10 Nov-20 21 - 30 0% 0% 31 & above

43% 57%

(Figure1.4)

40

Q.2. Consumers response towards Micromax products?

RESULTS

PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE RATINGS

EXCELLENT GOOD AVERAGE BELOW AVERAGE TOTAL

30 70 30 20 150

20 46.67 20 13.33 100

(Table 1.3)

CONSUMER RESPONSE
EXCELLENT GOOD AVERAGE BELOW AVERAGE

13%

20%

20%

47%

(Figure 1.5)

41

Q.3 Retailers opinion about products offer?

RESULTS

PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE RATINGS

Excellent Good Average Below Average Total

75 35 25 15 150

50 23.33 16.67 10 100

(Table 1.4)

RETAILERS OPINION
Excellent Good Average Below Average

10%

17% 50%

23%

(Figure1.6)

42

Q.4 Product availability of Micromax in the territory?

RESULTS

PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE RATINGS

excellent good average below average TOTAL

15 65 45 25 150

10 43.33 30 16.67 100

(Table 1.5)

PRODUCT AVAILABILITY
excellent good average 10% 17% below average

30%

43%

(Figure 1.7)

43

Q.5 What age of people do you think purchase micromax mobiles?

RESULTS

Parameters

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE RATINGS

less than 20 20 - 30 30 - 40 40 & above TOTAL

5 85 35 25 150 (Table 1.6)

3.33 56.67 23.33 16.67 100

Age Group Of Buyers

less than 20 20 - 30 3% 17% 30 - 40 40 & above

23% 57%

(Figure 1.8)

44

Q.6 Opinion on delivery of Micromax products as per order made distributors?

RESULTS

PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE RATINGS

excellent good average below average TOTAL

5 25 85 35 150

3.33 16.67 56.67 23.33 100

(Table 1.7)

PRODUCT DELIVERY
excellent good average 3% 23% 17% below average

57%

(Figure 1.9)

45

Q7. Marketing efforts of Micromax company as compared to its competitors?

RESULTS
PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE RATINGS

excellent good average below average TOTAL

10 45 95 1 150

6.67 30 63.33 0.6 100

(Table 1.8)

MARKETING EFFORTS
excellent good average 1% 6% 30% below average

63%

(Figure 2.0)

46

Q.8 Promotional support that has been provided by company?

RESULTS

PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE RATINGS

excellent good average below average TOTAL

10 45 95 1 150

6.67 30 63.33 0.6 100

(Table 1.9)

PROMOTIONAL SUPPORT
excellent good average 1% 6% below average

30%

63%

(Figure 2.1)

47

Q.9 Overall opinion about Micromax by the retailers?

RESULTS
PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE RATINGS

excellent good average below average TOTAL

45 85 15 5 150

30 56.67 10 3.33 100

(Table1.10)

overall opinion of retailer's

excellent good average 3% 10% 30% below average

57%

(Figure 2.2)

48

Q.10 Attributes you consider most important in mobile handsets?

RESULTS
NO OF RESPONDENTS

ATTRIBUTES

PERCENTAGE

PRICE QUALITY DEMAND BRAND IMAGE TOTAL

65 45 25 15 150

43.33 30 16.67 10 100

(Table 1.11)

IMPORTANT ATTRIBUTES
PRICE QUALITY DEMAND BRAND IMAGE

10% 17%

43%

30%

(Figure 2.3)

49

Q 11. Comparing to other company products, you rank Micromax products as?

RESULTS

PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE

excellent good average below average TOTAL

14 130 5 1 150

9.33 86.67 3.33 0.67 100

(Table 1.12)

Comparing to other company products, you rank Micromax products as

3% 1% 9% excellent good average below average 87%

(Figure 2.4)

50

Q .12 Comparing to other company products the price of products of Micromax is?

RESULTS

PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE

very high high reasonable low TOTAL

0 0 140 10 150

0 0 93.33 0.67 100

(Table 1.13)

comparing the price of micromax products with competittor's

very high high 0% 0% 7% reasonable low

93%

(Figure2.5)

51

Q .13 Opinion about the discounts offer of Micromax products is?

RESULTS

PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS 120 25 5 0 150

PERCENTAGE

Very attractive Fairly attractive Not attractive No offer TOTAL

80 16.67 3.33 0 100

(Table 1.14)

opinion on discount offered by the company

Very attractive Fairly attractive 3% 0% 17% Not attractive No offer

80%

(Figure2.6)

52

Q14

After sales service that has been provided by company is?

RESULTS

PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE

Excellent Good Average Below Average TOTAL

20 95 30 5 150 (Table1.15)

13.33 63.33 20 3.34 100

AFTER SALES SERVICEOF MICROMAX MOBILES

Excellent Good Average 0% 13% 20% 67% Below Average

Figure 2.7)

53

Q 15 What are the elements you miss in micromax mobile sets?

RESULTS

PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE

Durability Availability Design Any other TOTAL

10 110 27 3 150 (TABLE1.16)

6.67 73.33 18 2 100

elements you miss in micromax handsets

Durability Availability 2% 7% 18% Design Any other

73%

(Figure 2.8)

54

Q16. In your opinion what is the future of Micromax mobile handsets?

RESULTS

PARAMETERS

NO OF RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE

Excellent Good Average Below Average TOTAL

100 30 20 0 150

66.67 20 13.33 0 100

(TABLE1.17)

future of Micromax mobile handsets by predicted by the retailers

Excellent Good Average 0% 13% Below Average

20% 67%

(Figure 2.9)

55

RESULTS

56

Following results has been interpreted from the research work.

1. COMMENTS

While conducting my survey in Sambalpur area I found that there is a good progress in selling of micromax handsets. 21-30 number of handsets of micromax recorded highest selling in one month on an average in those shops which are strategically located in the central parts of Sambalpur city area. Then 11-20 nos of handset are sold in outskirts of Sambalpur area mainly due to available feature in an affordable price. So location and price are the two crucial factors which made to sell the handsets more in numbers. Due to stiff competition the handsets figures have not yet reached to 31 and above in the city areas because city dwellers are a bit brand consciousness.

2. COMMENTS:
Consumers opinion is taken to use them while figuring out of sales performance. In their opinion they rated micromax products as good one because they believe that it is the only product available in the market with good quality and affordable price. They also replied that the products have an innovative design with embedded technology which makes it a product for middle class and to some extent higher middle class. They replied that the main reason to rate it good because of its battery life which gives them long standby time to gossip and use it for other purpose as well. The reason for not saying Micromax as an excellent product is not having proven technology like Nokia, Sonyericcson & Samsung brands of cell phones.

57

3. COMMENTS

Near about 50% retailers marked that micromax product offer as excellent. The reason is Micromax products comes with low cost which itself is a good offer made so far as comparison to other leading brands in this segment are concerned. Apart from good price range, accessories like Bluetooth headset, USB cable comes with every purchase of micromax products which is the main theme for increase in its customer base. They also added that handsets with dual sim / dual stand by handsets switching networks (GSM - CDMA) aspirational QWERTY keypad handsets are also the some key features that exerts pull on customers. A reasonable sales volume generated by the retailer thus adds profit margins to his account. Retailers also replied most of their target customers are the college students and they the micromax handsets because of its sleek design and reasonable pricing.

4. COMMENTS

Sambalpur area is far away from the capital city and also has less population as compared to the capital city of Odisha. This is the reason why the city is not upgraded with the latest models available in the Micromax range. If we take a look at the graph we can see that the numbers are high in the options of good and average. The reason being consumers are not updated to the latest product availability in the market. Creating awareness by retailers is a way to make people updated which is not given a due importance in these areas. The only awareness quotient being the TV ads and paper ad published by the company.

58

5 COMMENTS
The highest number of purchase is made by the age group 20-30 which is 85 out of 150, as compared to other options. The reason of more purchase made by this age group is due to likeness in design, technology and pricing. A long durability battery promise has also made the youth to switch over. Micromax handsets provide a long battery standby which can last long hrs even if it is used roughly. In other segments i.e. 40 and above age are less aware about micromax products availability, features and its usage hence dont prefer to buy these products. They firmly believe on proven technology and prefer to take branded items at affordable rates and prefer to take low segment mobile phone available in branded items category.

6 COMMENTS

The finding states that the product delivery is average. Due to unavailability of proper shipping facilities in the town or else poor distribution channel management i.e. arranged by the company is bringing out such consequences. Distribution channels are probably the most visible aspects of any companys marketing efforts. In this case, there might be spatial discrepancy caused in the exchange process because of the geographical distance. Or else it could be temporal discrepancy caused in the exchange process because of the time gap the time the product consumed or time the product is produced.

59

7 COMMENTS
Marketing efforts of the company is considerable one. Adoption of new methods of marketing is less seen in Sambalpur, which is affecting the increase in handset sales. Marketing increases awareness level in consumers and priority should be given to these matters. Priority on change in product addition, introducing new price and models, advertising, sales promotion and publicity, sales force, customer service and the like are not upgraded with time. As a result the no of outlets didnt increase subsequently with the changing times. This concludes to say that marketing efforts are not properly planned which results in rating average.

8 COMMENTS
Unlike marketing efforts retailers pointed out the same views for promotional efforts given by the company. Retailers said that promoting the products through product placements, internet, radio, contest , sponsorships are not being done by the company to promote the product, which is hampering the growth in that area. Attractive sales promotion schemes can pull more customers to purchase the company products.

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9 COMMENTS

Most of the retailers are in opinion to rate micromax products as good. The reason to mark good is mainly due to the portfolio that has been created by introducing low cost handsets for middle class people. So both areas retailers i.e. the central parts and the outskirts of Sambalpur area, are with same view point that the products of micromax are good. In addition to that few retailers in the central part of Sambalpur area marked the product excellent. The reason being the increase in sales figure. They added that if company will give more priority on the issues like sales promotions and marketing efforts then the sales figure could grow even higher and company can make a reach to more inhabitants in that area

10 COMMENTS
The retailers considered price and quality of the products are essentially important which got high scores. Price is preferred as an important factor because consumers gives due preference to pricing factors and select products accordingly. When the customers come for purchase they look to the price tag and make selection for purchasing. So sticking to strategic pricing can result in achieving high sales. Also it will give rise to strong competition against the competitors and will let to a fierce full entry into the market thus making a cut throat competition. They also replied that quality is next important factor after pricing because a customer having purchasing power will not seek to price rather, will check the quality of the product , the technology it has is upgraded one or not.
Contd...

61

Demand is the next important factor that is chosen by the retailers. Rise in demand is can be a good sign for the business as well as it is important for retailers because it will help in creating a gimmick effectively giving enormous revenue generation. Demand base will increase if there is equilibrium in between Quality and Pricing of the product. It helps in expansion of business to a large extent. Moreover some retailers had also rated that brand image is also an important factor. It is true in case of cities. But in the outskirts i.e. in rural areas people often pretend to look brand image rather they look for getting products which are suitable to their pocket.

11 COMMENTS
Remarkably a huge percentage of retailers have marked Micromax products as good its due to the products pricing and other important accessories that it is offering for the consumers. One more thing that they added is that the product is largely accepted by the middle class consumers which are high in numbers in the market and these categories of consumers look the thing which is value for money. They said that only with the offer that comes with the handsets they are able to do excellent business. Only 9% of retailers are in view to rate the products of Micromax as excellent because of its new version of phones being launched i.e. is comparable with Nokia, Sony range of phones because of the technology micromax has induced with these range of new launch. Their perception is with the availability of these products in the market they can get huge sales volume.

62

12 COMMENTS
Micromax mobiles have been launched in the INDIAN market by strategic pricing which has been positioned as low cost mobile phones in INDIAN market. Thus the choice of option was bit easy for the retailers to say the phone to be reasonably priced. In addition to that they said that low cost price is generating revenues for them as sales volume are rising and demand base for low cost cell phones are up rolling in the markets. To somewhat branded cell companies are posing a serious threat from these cell phone makers.

13 COMMENTS
80 percent of the retailers voted that micromax mobiles discount offer is fairly attractive. The reason for this reply is mainly due to the sales target they achieve in month is quite high as compared to other mobile products. And most of the consumers in Sambalpur area are showing a keen interest towards the purchase of low cost mobile phones for their usage.

63

14 COMMENTS
Retailers said that the after sales service has not set up in full fledged by the company particularly in Sambalpur. Customers are facing problems in getting support assistance from the company. People those who stay in the outskirts of Sambalpur area are finding difficulties to come and show there problems in the city based service centres. This is taking a reasonable amount of time. Also they said that company after analysing a problem in the telephone is taking much of time to resolve them which is a big matter of concern for those customers who mainly depend on their phone. Looking at the reasons overall reply is good when it comes to after sales service support provided by the company.

15 COMMENTS
Retailers said that the new launch version are not made available in Sambalpur market by the company which is why customers are not able to know the latest versions of the models available in the market. There is still technological faux pas. They said that with rapid industrialisation in Sambalpur income of the people are rising and they are slowly changing their minds to make themselves upgraded with latest features of cell phones. So company needs to think about the growing income in demographics and take strategic actions as necessary. Design and durability got less numbers because Micromax has made its debut in the handset market by making innovative design and also promising a long lasting durability. The only problem is with the availability of the handsets which is big matter of concern. So retailers should try to pull the attention the distribution managers who have the task of establishing the channel.

64

16 COMMENTS
Retailers are in a view that micromax has an excellent future in mobile handset business, mainly because of its value for money promise to the customers. The key drivers for its success are its innovating design, look, technology, dual sim features, long battery life support, Qwerty keypads for easy sms, strategic pricing, providing other necessary accessories like Bluetooth headset, USB cable, travel charger, internet facility, memory card and the like. They also added that growing income and demographics of consumer in Sambalpur area is of main concern so there must be plentily available option in the market so that selection would not be a constraint for consumers to make selection as per their choice.

65

SWOT ANALYSIS ON THE PERFORMANCE RESULTS OBTAINED

STRENGTHS

WEAKENESS

Technological skills Leading brands Distribution channels Consumer preference to the brand Quality of production Strong management Large scale production

Technological faux pass Poor access to distribution channels Weak after sales service Sluggishness in sales Stiff competition

OPPURTUNITIES

THREATS

Changing customer taste. Liberalization of geographical markets. Technological advancement. New distribution channels Change structure. in population age

Dynamic markets. Closing of geographic markets. Advance technology. Pricing of competitors. Quality products available in the market. Innovative design available in the competitors product.

(Table1.18)

66

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

67

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

TO ANALYZE THE GAP AND SUGGEST STRATEGY TO

RETAILERS, FOR MARKETING MICROMAX MOBILE HANDSETS. (Aim Of The Dissertation)

COMMENTS MADE ON RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

About 57% retailers overall opinion for Micromax handsets is good, because since its launch in Sambalpur it has got attention build up among consumers.

Analysing the sales performance is the important part of the study as it helps to identify where its sales performance has been good or mediocre. Sales analysis is done by product and consumer,

Sales analysis by product: breaks out the sales data by product and by year and shows maximum sales, average sales, minimum sales, annual sale, average unit price per product, best selling year of each product and contribution of each product sales to the total. Thus past 3 years graphs have been taken to show the sales performance by product.

Contd...

68

products product1 product2 product3 product4 product5 product6 product7 product8 product9 product10 TOTAL average max min

2008 12000 16000 9000 10000 12000 0 0 0 0 0 59000 5900 16000 0

2009 9900 19150 10350 11500 13550 0 0 0 0 0 64450 6445 19150 0

2010 10700 21393 11903 13225 15308 0 0 0 0 0 72529 7252 21393 0

percentage TOTAL to total 32600 16.63 56543 28.85 31253 15.94 34725 17.71 40858 20.87 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 195979 100 19597 56543 0

average price per unit 10.76 10.87 10.87 10.87 10.86 0 0 0 0 0 10.84 10.87 0

best selling year 2008 2010 2010 2010 2010

2010 2010

Table 1.19

sales analysis
products1 products6 products2 products7 0% products3 products8 0% 0% 0% 0% 20% 17% 15% 21% 27% products4 products9 products5 products10

Figure 3.0
Contd...

year

sales

% change

sales units

% change

average unit

69

in sales 2008 2009 2010 total 59000 64450 72528 195978 8.45 11.13 5900 5859 6307 18066

in units 0.69 7.1

price 10 11 11.49

Table 1.20

percentage change in units

8 6 4 2 0 1 2 percentage change in units

Figure3.1

12 percentage change in sales 10 8 6 4 2 0 1 percentage change in sales 2

Figure 3.2
Contd...

70

Percentage sales is calculated by

percentage sales for 2009 59000/64450*100 = 91.54 Therefore percentage change: 100-91.54 = 8.45

Other calculations on percentage change in (in units and sales) are same. Therefore the results for sales by product shows that year 2010 has got highest sales nos. Sales analysis by consumer: consumers preferred micromax handsets as good for its pricing and battery backup.

Retailers think that micromax needs more up gradation in order to compete with branded items. The reason to mention this is that Indian consumers now comprehend that quality comes with price and better quality means a super brand. So there rating is good when it comes to micromax. Micromax has ventured into Sambalpur market by showcasing the feature of low cost and long standby time handsets. Thus the existing strategies used are......

In 2008 Micromax ventured into the mobile handset market The brand wanted to create a base before taking on the large players GO-TO- MARKET STRATEGY Micromax launched its first phone in the market with a very unique USP- 30 days battery standby time The first product was a big success -- Micromax X1i priced at Rs 2150 was lapped by the consumers.

71

Micromax has a lot of interesting and thoughtful products to its credit on their versatile product portfolio. It was the first to introduce: 1. Handsets with 30 days battery backup 2. Handsets with Dual SIM / Dual Standby 3. Handsets Switching Networks (GSM - CDMA) 4. Aspirational Qwerty Keypad Handsets 5. Operator Branded 3G Handsets 6. OMH CDMA Handsets, etc.

BRAND'S PROMOTION STRATEGIES USED sales campaigns in various parts of Sambalpur Micromax Face book ad Gravity, MTV, (Co-Branded phones) EEZPad are some of its initiatives taken for using them as strategies.

72

RECOMMENDATIONS

73

RECOMMENDATIONS

The retailers should plan for expansion in the product length. Company should open more customer care & repair centres in Sambalpur because consumers find difficulties in getting their mobile handsets repaired. This will increase the sales figure as well because repair centres will provide authentic service and consumer will rely on this service. Company should more emphasize on the state-or-art. (New
Technology/Advanced Technology) and better quality solutions

and try to make people feel the experience of technology through the retailers of micromax. Company should focus on humorous & Emotional appeals in its advertisement because sentiments play important role in Indian market-culture and makes easy to draw attention. For e.g. - ADVERTISEMENT OF X500 handset. The retailers should be provided with the prevailage partners from the company. The retail shop will get around two thirds of its revenues from the handsets sold. With every purchase of micromax handsets trendy and attractive carry bags should be given to the consumers designed by the company. Retailers should also donate money for local sponsorships like quiz or sports like cricket or other local sports to embark the popularity of the product. Following a Frontal and Flanking attack strategy should be adopted by the retailers Company should provide attractive racks or carrying case to keep the handsets to retailers to draw attention of customers. Any schemes available in the market should be sent to customers mobile phone by using sms softwares.

74

 Company should provide attractive sign/glow boards to retailers for advertising the new launch of models. Now a days social media is most liked by people and are more common to young mass. This has not only restricted to young mass but also driving an influence in the professionals as well. So application oriented handsets should be brought by the retailers into the market in large as the population of young mass and professionals is growing in Sambalpur rapidly. 3g handsets also needs and introduction in Sambalpur area because technology of mobile handsets has got a drastic change in INDIA and other branded companies are focusing more on these issues. Every year there should be a MOBILE MELA conducted by the company in Sambalpur so that people will come to know the effectiveness of mobile phone in their daily life. These MELA are to be organised by the retailers as well. There should be mobile displays and tips to be provided to the visitors to take care their handsets..... Location in a pertinent issue which needs substantial planning before starting of the business. Strategically locating the store will boost up the sales figure and increase in footfall also. Business leads and clients are a crucial for the business. Making and creating contacts and networking is very important therefore building the potential clients base before the launch of business. Start marketing of business by giving away some products and services. By creating a relationship with your potential customers, a trust should be built with them, and at launch, it will be easy for them to buy from you.

75

BIBLIOGRAPHY

76

Web based sources

www.micromaxinfo.com www.nokia.com www.google.com www.indiacellular.com

Book References

consumer behaviour and research (S Sumathi, vikas publications) sales and distribution management ( by Tapan Panda, oxford publications)

Video tape
NDTV Profit Money mantra: can mobiles push up the economy

77

QUESTIONNAIRE

78

QUESTIONNAIRE:

Dear Sir/Madam,

I would like to introduce myself as an PGDM (AIMA) student of REGIONAL COLLEGE OF MANAGEMENT, Bhubaneswar and doing a project on the topic. RETAILER PERCEPTION TOWARDS MICROMAX MOBILE SETS.

This project is to be submitted to the AIMA for the award of PGDM. Hence I, request you to kindly spend few minutes of your valuable time in answering this.

Name of the retailer Gender Name of the retail outlet Address

Products offered by you

(a) Nokia (d) Motorola

(b) Sony Ericsson

(c) Samsung

(e) HTC (h) Micromax

(f) Blackberry

(g) LG

If you are not providing Micromax then specify reason-

79

1. Number of handsets sold by you in one month on an averagea) 0-10 c) 21-30 [] [] b) 11-20 []

d) 31 and above [ ]

2. Customers response towards Micromax products. a) Excellent [ ] c) Average [ ] b) Good [ ] d) Below Average [ ]

3. Your opinion for product offer to you by Micromax. a) Excellent [ ] c) Average [ ] b) Good [ ] d) Below Average [ ]

4. Product availability of Micromax in this territory. a) Excellent [ ] c) Average [ ] b) Good [ ] d) Below Average [ ]

What ages of people do you think purchase Micromax mobile most. a) Less than 20 [ ] c) 30-40 [ ] b) 20-30 [ ] d) 40 and above [ ]

Your opinion about deliver of products as per your order by Micromax distributor. a) Excellent [ ] c) Average [ ] b) Good [ ] d) Below Average [ ]

Marketing efforts of Micromax compared to its competitors is

80

a) Excellent [ ] c) Average [ ]

b) Good [ ] d) Below Average [ ]

Promotional support that has been provided by company is a) Excellent [ ] c) Average [ ] b) Good [ ] d) Below Average [ ]

Your overall opinion about Micromax with regard to their relationship with you

a) Excellent [ ] c) Average [ ]

b) Good [ ] d) Below Average [ ]

10 Which attributes you consider most important in mobile handsets. a) Price [ ] c) Demand [ ] b) Quality [ ] d) Brand Image [ ]

81

THANK YOU

Aum Sri Amma Bhagwan

82