A STUDY ON

Brand Awareness
With reference to
“AIRTEL”
VISAKHAPATNAM

Project report submitted to Andhra University,

Visakhapatnam in partial
Fulfillment for the Award of the Degree in

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

By

Regd.No.
Under the esteemed guidance of

Project Guide

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE AND

MANAGEMENT STUDIES
ANDHRA UNIVERSITY CAMPUS
VIZIANAGARAM

(2007-2009)
 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that project report entitled “BRAND

AWARENESS” with reference to AIRTEL, VISHAKAPATNAM is a
bonafide work done by with Regd.No: under my guidance and supervision
during May to June 2008. This project is submitted to ANDHRA
UNIVERSITY in partial fulfillment of the award of degree of MASTER
OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION.

Date: ()
Place: Vizianagaram Project Guide
 DECLARATION

I here by declare that this project report entitled “BRAND

AWARENESS” with reference to “AIRTEL, VISHAKAPATNAM” has

been prepared by me during the year 2008 in the month of June and July is

partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of Degree of MASTER

OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION of ANDHRA UNIVERSITY.

I also declare that this project is a result of my own effort and that it

has not been submitted to any other university for the award of any Degree

or Diploma.
 CONTENTS

CHAPTER-I
 Introduction
 Need for the Study
 Objectives of the Study
 Methodology
 Limitations of the Study

CHAPTER-II
 Industrial profile
 Company profile

CHAPTER-III
 Theoretical framework

CHAPTER-IV
 Analysis of study

CHAPTER-V
 Summary
 Findings
 Suggestions

 Questionnaire
 Bibliography

Glossary
CHAPTER-I
• Introduction
• Need for the
Study
• Objectives of the
Study
• Methodology
• Limitations of
the Study
 INTRODUCTION
Marketing

Marketing is the process of planning and executing the

conception, pricing, promotion and distribution of ideas, goods

and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and

organizational objectives.

In a most simple and non-technical language, marketing

may be explained as a business function entrusted with the

criterion and satisfaction of customers to achieve the aims of

business itself in popular usage, the term "marketing" refers to

the promotion of products, especially advertising and branding.

However, in professional usage the term has a wider meaning. It

can be divided into four sections. Often called the "four Ps'".

They are:

Product - The product management aspect of marketing deals

with the specifications of the actual good or service, and how it

relates to the end-user's needs and wants.

Pricing – This refers to the process of setting a price for a

product, including discounts.

Promotion -- This includes advertising, sales promotion,

publicity, and persona! Selling. And refers to the various methods

of promoting the product, brand or company.

 NEED FOR THE STUDY

The study was conducted to know the brand awareness

regarding Airtel cellular providers from the customers of different

cellular service providers. He study totally revolves around the

opinions and feed back from the users. An opinion survey with

the help of questionnaire was conducted to know the users' view

on the services provided by Airtel with special emphasis on the

other cellular users.

The study was also done to estimate the performance of

the Airtel mobiles with the other cellular service providers, and

to whether the customers know about different services provided

by the Airtel mobiles.

Understanding the level of customer satisfaction with :

Reference to Airtel

• Coverage

• Call centers

• Billing
 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

1. To understand the concept of Brand Awareness of Airtel

Cellular.

2. To find the awareness strategies of the Airtel brand.

3. To know how many cellular users know about the services

provided by Airtel.

4. To find out the reasons for the retention of the Airtel

customers.

5. To collect the suggestions and complaints of customers of

other cellular service providers.

6. To know the customer preferences.

7. To understand the problems of mobile customers.

8. To study the basic need of the customer for switching from

one Cell Company to another.

9. To compare the service of “Airtel” with that of the other

market players.
 METHODOLOGY

This study is done using the following primary and

secondary data:

Primary Data: The primary data was collected by a market

survey in Visakhapatnam. Questionnaire was prepared and

administrated by taking a sample of 100 consumers, which

contains different categories of consumers like students,

businessmen and employees.

Secondary Data: The secondary data comprises of various

Books, Journals, Periodicals and other published magazines are

included in the study. Data was also collected from the

company's records and from the websites "www.Airtel.co.in"'.

Sampling

Deliberate sampling:

Deliberate sampling is known as purposive or non-

probability sampling. This sampling method involves purposive or

deliberate selection of particular units of the universe for

constituting a sample, which represents a universe. When

population elements are selected for inclusion in the sample on

the basis of access it can be called convenience sample.

Simple random sampling:

This type of sampling also known as chance sampling or

probability sampling. Where each and every item in population

has an equal chance of inclusion in this sample and each one of

the possible sample, in case of finite universe, has the sample

probability of being selected.

Systematic sampling:

In some instances the most practical way of sampling is to

select every 15th name of list, every 10th house on one side of

house of street and so on. Sampling of this type is known as

systematic sampling.

Stratified sampling:

If the population from which a sample is to be drawn does

not constitute a homogeneous group than a stratified sampling

techniques applied so as to obtain representative sample.

Quota sampling:

In stratified sampling the cost of talking random samples

from individual strata is often so expensive that interviewers are

simply given quota to be filled from different strata, the actual

selection of items for sample being left to the interviewer’s

judgment.
Cluster and area wise sampling:

Cluster sampling involves grouping the population and

then selecting the groups or the clusters rather than individual

elements inclusion in the sample.

Multi-stage sampling:

This is the further development of the idea of cluster

sampling. This technique is meant for big enquires extending

today considerably large geographical area like entire country.

Sequential sampling:

This is somewhat a complex sample design where the

ultimate size of the sample is not fixed in advance but it is

determined accordingly to the mathematical decisions on the

basis of information yielded as study progress.

 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

 The sample size was comparatively very small compared to

the population and there are chances that it may not

represent the whole population.

 The time and cost factors affected the size of the sample.

 A few of the questions asked were ranking based and hence

there was every possibility of biased user opinion.

 There were only three open ended questions, which were

comparatively low when compared to the number of the

number of closed ended questions in the questionnaire

keeping in the respondent's precious time.

 Most of the samples were collected during the office time. So

there is a chance of receiving some wrong responses due

workload from the respondents.

 Many of the respondents gave oral complaints, but hesitated

to write those complaints in the complaints column.

CHAPTER-II
• Industrial
profile
• Company profile
 INDUSTRY PROFILE

MARKETING

Marketing deals with identifying and meeting human and

social needs. One of the shortest definitions of Marketing is

“Meeting needs profitably. When eBay recognized that people

were unable to locate some of the items they desired most and

created an online auction clearing house as when IDEA noticed

that people wanted good furniture of a substantially lower price

and created knock-down furniture.

Marketing is an organizational function and a set of

processes for creating, communicating, and delivering value to

customers and for managing customer relations in ways that

benefit the organization and its stoke holders.

Four Basic Features of Modern Marketing

 Modern marketing is consumer oriented.

 Modern marketing starts and ends with the consumer.

 Modern marketing precedes and succeeds production.

 Modem marketing is the guiding element of business.

Importance of marketing:

A high level of marketing activity is a prerequisite for a high

level economic activity. It has been aptly remarked. "Nothing

happens until somebody sells something. At present the urgency

is for increased marketing and not merely for increase in

production. This alone shows the importance of marketing as a

potential force that commands high significance for society as a

whole.
What Is a Brand?

Perhaps the most distinctive skill of professional marketers

is their ability to create, maintain, protect and enhance brands.

Marketers say that "branding is the art and cornerstone of

marketing.

The American Marketing Association defines a brand as

follows:

A brand is a name, term, sign, symbol, or design, or a

combination of them, intended to identify the goods or services

of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from

those of competitors.

In essence, a brand identifies the seller or maker. It can be

a name, trademark, logo, or other symbol. Under trademark law,

the seller is granted exclusive rights to the use of the brand

name in perpetuinity. Brands differ from other assets such as

patents and copyrights, which have expiration dates.

A brand is essentially seller's promise to deliver a specific

set of features, benefits, and services consistently to the buyers.

The brands convey a warranty of quality. But a brand is an even

more complex symbol.

 It can convey up to six levels of meaning:

1. Attributes: A brand brings to mind certain attributes.

Mercedes suggests expensive, well-built, well-engineered,

durable, high-prestige automobiles.

2. Benefits: Attributes must be translated into functional and

emotional benefits. The attribute "durable" could translate into

functional benefit "I won't have to buy another car for several

years". The attribute "expensive" translates into the

emotional benefit “the car makes me feel important and

admires.'

3. Values: The brand also says something about the producer's

values Mercedes stands for high performance, safety and

prestige.

4. Culture: The brand may represent a certain culture.

The Mercedes represents German culture: organized, efficient,

high quality.

5. Personality: The brand can project a certain personality.

Mercedes may suggest a no-nonsense boss (person), a reigning

lion (animal), or an austere place (object).

6. User: The brand suggests the kind of consumer who buys or

uses the product. We would expect to see a 55-year-old top

executive behind the wheel of a Mercedes, not a 20-year-old

secretary.
 If a company treats a brand only as a name, it misses the

point. The branding challenge is to develop a deep set of positive

associations for the brand. Marketers must decide at which

level(s) to anchor the brand's identity. One mistake would be to

promote only attributes. First, the buyer is not as interested in

attributes as in benefits. Second, competitors can easily copy

attributes. Third, the current attributes may be come less

desirable later.

Promoting the brand only on one benefit can also be risky.

Suppose Mercedes touts its main benefit as "high performance".

Then several competitive brands emerge with high performance

as compared to other benefits. Mercedes needs the freedom to

maneuver into a new benefit positioning.

The most enduring meanings of a brand are its values,

culture, and personality. They define the brand's essence, The

Mercedes stands for high technology, performance and success.

Mercedes must project this in. its brand strategy. Mercedes must

resist marketing an inexpensive car bearing the name; doing so

would dilute the value and personality. Mercedes has built up

over the years.

 BRAND AWARENESS

Brand, the hip, catches all word of the New Economy. It

suggested all a company needed succeed was awareness.

Image, as they say, was everything. Pat Harpell saw it up close

as the CEO of Harpell Inc., an integrated marketing firm in

Maynard, Massachusetts. Over the past few years, many

entrepreneurs have called on her to create branding programs,

and she could see that old-fashioned branding strategies had

gone astray. “That’s not a branding program; that's a logo." she

says. "Basic business principles fell apart."'

Branding turned into a game of being seen for the sake of

being seen, without giving consumers a reason to buy.

What ultimately fell apart was the connection between

companies and consumers. Branding turned into a game of being

seen for the sake of being seen, without giving consumers

reason to buy. "There's been a tremendous abuse of branding,"

says Jeff Dufresne, managing director of Brand Storm, a brand-

consulting group in Cincinnati. "I think people got confused and

thought branding was just throwing some ill-conceived

advertising out there to gain awareness."

With the dotcom fallout, companies are relearning the basic

lessons of what makes a successful brand-mainly that you can't

live on image only. Eyeballs don't equal sales, and logos don't

create loyalty. Consumers want to know what you arc all about
and why they should trust you enough to purchase your product.

This will never change, no matter how much technology alters

our lives.

Branding has become a monologue instead of

a dialogue. Entrepreneurs need to leave their ivory

office towers and talk to people.

It’s that dialogue that's beer, missing lately, Koehn says,

and it's essential to any branding strategy. Branding has become

a monologue instead of a dialogue. Entrepreneurs need to leave

their ivory office towers and talk to people. They need to be

responsive to their customers. They have to make sure their

branding messages are understood by everyone inside the

company. “Over the last few years. People didn't realize how

hard branding really is.” Koehn says. But its rewards are equal to

is-s difficulty.

Harpell recently studied a group of new companies to see

how ingrained their branding messages were inside those

companies. She found that many employees weren't aware of

their companies' branding messages at all. “There were no

brand connection, no teaching of employees and no

communicating with consumers,” Harpell says.

The web's problems, too. When management and

technology consulting firm Accenture and technology research

company Online Insight surveyed 2000 online consumers last

year, they found that a lot of the givens about the web that

marketers operate under are false. While most of the marketing

is aimed at youth, the average online shopper is 35 to 44.

Entrepreneurs also assumed that advertisements drew

consumers to their sites while customer’s survey veiled on

search engines. And the low prices companies touted weren't

what customers were looking for; they wanted satisfying

customer encounter that was Fast and convenient.

"Branding is about more than the sock puppet. It's about

the total customer experience," says Kelly Dixon, co-author of

the study and director of e-branding at Accenture in Chicago.

"Companies haven't focused on the entire package."

Consumers developed a love-hate relationship with late-'90s

branding strategies. Observes David Schumann, consumer

psychologist and associate dean at the University of Tennessee

in Knoxville. On one hand, seeing logos invade every inch of

public space has left U.S consumers over-exposed to branding.

On the other hand, consumers are paying attention, if only

briefly, to discover whether you'll reveal that one clear benefit

your product or service offers that'll make them try it. The

problem is this "one clear benefit" has been missing in plenty of

branding campaigns, and Schumann sees companies facing the

fallout: consumers sticking with the products they've trusted for

a long time instead of taking a chance on products they don't

really understand. When the value proposition is missing,

Schumann says, risk-averse consumers will go with what they

know.

Brand Awareness:

In developing brand, it is important to design

communication messages that reflect the brand's unique value

for specific audiences. Med stat helps healthcare providers

strengthen their brand awareness efforts with those customers

likely to use their service as well as determine the most effective

media for communicating their brand value to the target

audience based on lifestyle and media preference.

DEFINITION:

u
The act of creating public awareness of a specific brand in

order to maximize its recognition, successful brand awareness

strategies should define a company's uniqueness and set it apart

from competitors". Quite simply, if potential customers do not

know about a company, they will not purchase from it. Therefore,

one of the preeminent goals of any business should be to build

brand awareness, albeit, in cost-effective manner as possible.

Consumers tend to make purchasing decisions based on

peer recommendations and direct experience, as well as

traditional advertising methods. This is why it is necessary to

build brand awareness strategies out by instilling trust among

consumers. Thus trust must be achieved through credibility,

rather than just a catchy advertising campaign. Promotional

marketing involving a one-to-one component is proving

increasingly effective at building trust and acquiring new

customers.

Online brand awareness strategies are used frequently,

albeit with differing levels of success. These online brand

awareness strategies can include the use of advertising including

banners, sponsorships, and email/newsletter advertising, online

PR, affiliate marketing, etc.

WIRELESS MEDIA

Cellular Telephony:

The technology that gives a person the power to

communicate anytime anywhere has spawned an entire industry

in mobile telecommunications. Mobile telephones have become a

business/economy,

The most prevalent wireless standard in the world today is

GSM. The GSM association (Global System for Mobile

Communication) was instituted in 1987 to promote and expedite

the adoption, development, deployment and evolution of the

GSM standards for digital wireless communications. The GSM

association was formed as a result of a European community

agreement on the need to adopt common standards suitable for

cross border European mobile communications. Starting of

primarily as a European standard, the group special mobile as it

was then called, soon came to represent the global system for
mobile communication as it achieved the status of a world wide

standard. GRM is today, the world’s leading digital standard

accounting for 68.5% of the global digital wireless market. The

Indian government when considering the introduction of cellular

services into the country, made a landmark decision to introduce

the GSM standard, leap fogging obsolescent

technologies/standards. Although cellular licenses were made

technology neutral in September 1999, all the private operators

are presently offering only GSM based mobile services. The new

licenses for the 4'1 cellular licenses that were awarded in July

2001 too, have opted for GSM technology to offer their mobile

services.

Cellular Industry in India:

The government of India recognizes that the provision of a

world class telecommunication infrastructure and information is

the key to rapid economic and social development of the

country. It is critical not only for the development of the

information technology industry, but also has widespread

ramifications on the entire economy of the country. It is also

anticipated that going forward, a major part of the GDP of the

country would be contributed by this sector. Accordingly, it is of

vital importance to the country that there be a comprehensive

and forward looking telecommunications policy which creates an

enabling framework for the development of this industry.

India today is emerging as one of the most

important and exciting wireless markets in the world.

History of telephony in India: The first telegraph line in India

was commissioned in October 1851 for the East India Company.

That was the beginning of India's electronic contact with the

world. A hundred years later, the first automatic telephone

exchange opened in Calcutta. From then to 1995, (when the first

cellular phone call was made at the princely cost of Rs 16.80 per

minute) for the average Indian, getting a telephone connection

meant having contacts at the right places.

Of course, what is playing out in India is just one exciting

chapter in the global wireless revolution - a revolution that has

ensured that mobile phones are the most widespread

communication devices on earth. There are more than 50 million

subscriptions as 1st October 2007; the company is one of the

world’s fastest growing telecom companies. It offers its mobile

services under the Airtel brand and is headed by “Sunil Mittal”,

India’s 6th richest man with a total worth of US$27 billion.

Some analysis advises taking slightly more conservative

figure. They point out that there is some degree of over-counting

by cellular service operators in the mad rush to report higher

subscriber’s numbers, it is often hard to tell just how many active

subscribers each operator has. While post-paid customers need

to surrender their number to recover their deposits, there is no

such compulsion for prepaid customers, who account for well

over 80% of the subscriber base. And most operators allow a

pre-paid subscriber to exist in the system for anything ranging

from 45days to 6 months, even after they have stopped buying

talk-time. So, many of those subscribers simply do not exist.

Even the specter of -double counting cannot take away

from the fact that India's mobile party is in full swing. And that it

is likely to continue at least for the next couple of years.

Everyone - the Government, Vendors, Handset manufacturers,

and operators -is pulling out all the stops to make sure that the

party doesn't end prematurely. The introduction of the unified

license has sorted out the key regulatory concerns. Sure there

are still a few direct investment limits to 74%.

The equipment and handset vendors are keeping the

growth story going. If two years ago, capacity enhancement cost

over $100 per subscriber, it is under $40 now. Nokia is now

getting increasingly aggressive in the Indian telecom equipment

market. Recent data suggests that its equipment rates have

come down to S25 per subscriber- once again, among the lowest

in the world.

In just a decade, the Indian telecom sector has transformed

itself from a musty tome of arcane into a growth story on

steroids.
 CELLULAR WORLD

Cellular telephones have revolutionized the

communications arena, redefining how we perceive voice

communications. Traditionally cellular phones remained out of

hands of most consumers due to their high cost.

As a result, cell phone carriers have invested time and

resources into finding ways to give the systems higher capacity

and thus lower cost. Cell systems are benefiting from this

research and starting to develop into large-scale consumer

products.

Today, cellular phones are truly consumer electronics

devices with over 75 million subscribers. Since cell phones have

ceased to be an exclusive status symbol of high-powered lawyers

and are now in the hands of million of consumers. They are now

incredibly cost sensitive. Specifically it is not the cost of the

device that counts, but the cost of using the device. Today, more

than ever, cellular companies are looking for ways to bring down

the call cost to attain even higher market penetration, especially

in metropolitan areas.

In this report, we will begin by examining how eel! Phone

systems work, paying close attention to details in system design

that reduce cost and increase quality. After knowing about how

an eel! Phone system works, we will examine the various cell

phone systems in existence, examining the details of their

operation and how that impacts the cost of using the system and

call quality on the system.

CELL PHONES

An Overview

It is common knowledge that cellular phone? (Referred to

as "cell'' phones from here on) are wireless phones; however,

many of us have confusion about how a cell phone works.

 Essentially, cell phones use high-frequency radio signals to

communicate with "cell towers" located throughout the calling

area.

 Cell phones communicate in the frequency range of 806-890

MHz and 1850-1990 MHz for the newly allocated "PCS"

frequency range.

 When the user wants to make a call, the cell Phone sends a

message to the tower, asking to be connected to a given

telephone number.

 If to the tower has sufficient resources to grant the request, a

device called a "switch" patches the cell phone's signal

throughout to a channel on (he "Public Switched Telephone

Network"(other\vise known as P S T N).

 This call now takes a wireless channel as well as PSTN channel

that will be held open until the call is completed.

 This channel cannot be used for anyone else's call until the

cell phone call is discontinued. The above simple description

of how ceil phones work, we will add technical details about

various facets of cell phone systems throughout the remainder

of this section.

CELLULAR PHONES

As the name implies, cell phone systems are made up of

many small "cells". Each cell in a cell phone system represents

the area served by one cell phone tower, The concept of cells is

key behind the success of cell phones because by spacing many

cells fairly close to each other, the cell phones may broadcast at

very low power levels (typically 200m\V 1W, depending on

system). Since the cell phones may broadcast at low power

levels, they use small transmitters and small batteries, and thus

are able to tit in a shirt pocket, unlike amateur radios can occupy

a tabletop.

Cells are typically spaced around 1-2 miles apart but can be

spaced up to 20 miles apart in rural areas. In loaded areas with

many obstacles (such as tall buildings), the cell sites may be

spaced closer together, some technologies, like PCS, require

closer cell spacing due to their higher frequency and lower power

operation. Additionally, buildings interfere with cell signals

coming from outside so many buildings have their own "micro

cell1'. The Kingdome and New York subway are two examples of

where micro cells are used. Micro cells may also be used to
increase overall capacity within a heavily populated area such as

city's core downtown area. In fact, homes may have "Pico cells''

connected to the home's PSTN connection to allow the eel]

phone to be used as a cordless phone.

 ENCODING AND MULTIPLEXING

Overview

With thousands of cellular phone calls going on at any

given time within a city , it certainly would not work for everyone

to talk on the came channel at once(as in CB and short-wave

radios). Therefore, several different techniques were developed

by cell phone manufacturers to split up the available bandwidth

into many channels each capable of supporting one

conversation. The following sections will discuss each technology

and how it works.

Analog vs. Digital

While the distinctions between analog and digital encoding

is probably obvious to most readers, a short discussion is

included for those who are not. Essentially, analog broadcasts

audio as a series of continuously changing, voltage levels

representing the amplitude of the voice conversation.

When sent on the cell phone network using the standard

frequency modulation (meaning voltage levels translate into

frequency shifts) into channel separated by 30 KHz, we find that

the amplitude can be effectively transmitted at 15 KHz due to

Nyquist limitations.
 Instead of sending data as various voltage levels, a digital

signal quantizes the voltage levels into a number of bits

(typically 2 or 25(5 representing an S-bit encoding). These bins

are encoded as a binary number and sent as a series of Is and

Os. This allows for digital compression in the encoding stage

enabling voice to be sent at as little as 8000 bits per second.

FDMA

FDMA stands for "frequency division multiple access1' and

though it could be used for digital systems, is exclusively used on

all analog cellular systems. Essentially, FDMA splits the allocated

spectrum, in many channels. In current analog cell systems, each

channel is 30 KHz. When a FDMA cell phone establishes a call, it

reserves the frequency channel for the entire duration of the call.

The voice data is modulated into this channel frequency

band (using frequency modulation) and sent over the airwaves.

At the receiver, the information is recovered using a Band Pass

Piker. The phone uses a common digital control channel to

acquire channels.

FDMA systems arc least efficient cellular system since each

wasted analog channel can only used by one user at a time, not

only are those channels larger than necessary given modern

digital voice compression, but they are also whenever there is

silence during the cell phone conversation. Analog signals are

also especially susceptible to

 noise and there is no way to filter it out. Given the nature of

the signal, analog cell phones must use higher po\ver(between 0

and 3 watts) to get acceptable call quality. Given these

shortcomings , it is easy to see why FDMA is being replaced by

newer digital techniques.

TDMA

TDMA stands for "time division multiple access". TDMA

builds on FDMA by dividing conversations by frequency and time.

Since Digital compression allows voice to be sent at well under

10 kilobits per second(equivalent to 10 KHz). TDMA fits three

digital conversations into FDMA channel(which is 30 KHz) by

sampling a persons voice for say 30 million seconds, then

transmitting it in 10 milliseconds; the system is able to offer 3

timeslots per channel in a round-robin fashion. This technique

allows compatibility with FDMA while enabling digital services

and easily boosting system capacity by three times.

While TDMA is good digital system, it is still somewhat

inefficient since it has no flexibility for varying digital rates( high

quality voice, low quality voice, pager traffic) and has no

accommodations for silence in a telephone conversation. In other

words , once a call is initiated, the channel/timeslot pair belongs

to the phone tor the duration of the call. TDMA also requires

strict signaling and timeslot by synchronization. A digital control

channel provides synchronization functionally as well as adding

voice mail and message notification. Due to the digital signal ,

TDMA phones need only broadcast at 600 milliwatts.

CDMA

CDMA stands for "Coded Division Multiplexed Access11 and

is both the most interesting and the harden ro implement

multiplexing method. CDMA has been likened to a party; when

everyone talks at once, no one can understand, however, if

everyone speaks a different language, then they can be

understood. A CDMA system hay no channels, but instead

encodes each call as a coded sequence across the entire

frequency spectrum. Each conversation is modulated, in the

digital domain, with a unique code(called a pseudo-noise code)

that makes it distinguishable from the other calls in the

frequency spectrum. Using a correlation calculation and the code

the call was encoded with, the digital audio signal can be

extracted from the other signals being broadcast by other

phones on the network. From the perspective of one call, upon

extracting the signal, everything else appears to be low-level

noise. As long as there is sufficient separation between the codes

(said to be mutually orthogonal), the noise level will be low

enough to recover the digital signal. Each signal is not, in fact,

spreads across the whole spectrum (12.5MHz for traditional

cellular or 60MHz in PCS cellular), but is spread across 1.25MHz

"pass-bands."

CDMA systems are the latest technology on the market and

are already equipping TDMA in terms of cost and call quality,

since CDMA offers far greater capacity and variable data rated
depending on the audio activity, many more users can be hi into

a given frequency spectrum and higher audio quality can be

provided. The current CDMA systems boast at

 least three times the capacity of TDMA and GSM systems.

The fact that CDMA shares frequencies with neighboring cell

towers allows for easier installation of extra capacity. So extra

capacity can be achieved by simply adding extra cell sites and

shrinking power levels of nearby sites. CDMA technology also

allows lower cell phones power levels(200 milliwatts) since the

modulation techniques expect to deal with noise and are well

suited to weaker signals. The downside to CDMA is the

complexity of deciphering and extracting the received signals,

especially if there are multiple signal path (reflections) between

the phone and the cell tower (called Multi-path interference). As

a result, CDMA phones are twice as expensive as TDMA phones

and CDMA cell site equipment is 3-4 times the price of TDMA

equivalents.

GSM:

GSM stands for "Global System for Mobile Communication."

GSM is mostly a European system and \is largely unused in the

US. GSM is interesting in that is uses a modified -and far more

efficient version of TDMA. GSM keeps the idea of timeslots and

frequency channels, but corrects several major shortcomings.

Since the GSM timeslots are smaller than TDMA, they hold less

date but allow for data rates starting at 300 bits per second.

Thus, a call can use many timeslots as necessary up to a limit of

13 kilobits per second. When a call is inactive (silence) or may be

compressed more, fewer timeslots are used. To facilitate filling in

gaps left by unused timeslots, calls do "frequency hopping" in

GSM. This means that calls will jump between channels is used to

communicate the frequency hopping and other information

between the cell tower and the phone. To compare with the

other systems, is should be noted that GSM requires 1 Watt of

output power from the phone.

CALL HANDOFF

It is apparent that cells must somehow overlap, and when a

user travels between cells, one cell must hand the eel! off to the

other cell. The cells must also not interfere with each oilier. Tins

is accomplished by giving each cell a slightly different chunk of

the frequency spectrum(note that CDMA does do not do this) and

by measuring power levels. When the power level of the user

begins to fade, the cell tower determines which cell is the closest

cell. Upon finding this information, the current cell tower sends

an over-the-air message to the new ceil tower and to the cell

phone. At this point, the new cell tower picks up the call and the

old drops the call as the cell phone switches frequencies. This

type of handoff is called a 'hard handoff' since the audio feed is

lost for between 10 milliseconds and l00 milliseconds while the

new tower picks up the signal. Often these "hard" handoffs fail

when the new tower tries to pick the call up, leading to frequent

dropped calls.

In most systems, each cell tower typically receives a

1.8MHz frequency spectrum. In normal cellular systems that

have a 12.5MHz spectrum (not the high-band PCS systems that

have more bandwidth), this allows for 7 ceils before ceils have to

reuse frequencies. Generally, there are 0-2 cells and 10-20 miles

separating cells using the same frequency in order minimize

interference.

A discussion of call handoff s not complete without CDMA

technology. Since CDMA uses the entire spectrum available,

there is no real distinction between cells in terms of frequency

use. Since each cell is scattered across a whole 1.25MHz pass

band in CDMA, every cell tower can access the whole 12.5 MHz

spectrum(60 MHz in a PCS system), this means that there is no

necessity to change frequencies during a handoff since everyone

is using the same frequencies. Therefore, two cell towers

intercept the signal where the cells overlap. This means no

sudden switch, since this handoff (called a "soft handoff) is

actually handled in the switch, changing from one weaker audio

feed to a stronger audio feed. This technique removes the loud

"pop" associated with normal "hard" handoffs and greatly

reduces problems with dropped calls.

SECURITY

One of the largest problems in wireless communication is

security. There are two worries: other people listening into phone

calls and other people illegally billing time to a users

account(called "phone cloning'').

 Unfortunately, analog phones transmit in plain FM, and

provide no security. For instance, a few years ago, Newt Gingrich

had a cell phone conversation taped by someone using a simple

police scanner, which is designed to receive police activity on the

CB frequencies. Since analog phones have such weak security,

the architects of digital technology designed digital phones with

much more robust security.

Digital phones employ encryption to secure the phone and the

conversation. Encryption is used in TDMA and COM A to make

sure that works by picking a key that is used in an equation that

compresses the audio. The encrypted key is sent to the cell

tower so the cell tower knows how to decode the conversation.

Therefore, even if the person with the scanner finds the channel

and time slice you are using, they would need to find the

encryption code to make sense of the signal. It is also important

to mention that CDMA also uses its modulation code to provide

increased security, resulting in over four billion possible

encryption codes. Cell phones also must be protected from

cloning by encrypting the eel! phone number and related

information. When sending the information to the switch, cloning

is prevented.

Wireless Data

In the modern times, we depend on e-mail and on the

World Wide Web. We have access to these resources at home

and at the offices, and we would like to use these resources while
traveling. This is the goal that "wireless data" hopes to

accomplish.

Analog Modems

Analog modems are the simplest type of wireless data. Analog

modems work on any cellular system by simply encoding the

digital data as audio signals. Analog cellular moderns make the

same squealing sounds as the ordinary desktop computers

analog modem, but operate al far slower speeds. On an analog

modem, these modems typically average between 4800 to 9600

bits per second. This is slower than the maximum possible rate

because of the inefficiency of converting digital to analog. It

should also be noted that digital systems do not support analog

modems since their data compression would damage the analog

modem signal, preventing it from being decoded by the receiving

modem.

Packet Data (CDPD Over Is-136 And Amps

Networks)

By using some of the channels of TDMA and FDMA(is-1367

and amps standards) network as large aggregated digital data

lines, packetized digital data may be sent over this line. CDPD

describes how every cell phone on the network may insert

packets on this shared data channel without causing collisions,

which would happen if two packets were sent at the same time

by two different phones. CDPD is useful since it runs on top of

FDMA systems as well as newer TDMA systems and offers 19.2

kilobits per second data rate. Using a teemed system, the CDPD

protocol can be scaled by adding more frequency channels.

GSM: GSM uses an antiquing method to send data by sampling

sending computer data as it would send voice data. GSM allows

every phone to be "data enabled". Since the GSM network is

already a packet network of sorts because of its frequency

hopping. It requires no additional hardware to support data. GSM

allows data rates in multiples of 300 bits per second, up to 64

kilobits per second.

 THE PLAYERS OF WIRELESS MARKET

a) Bharti Tele - Ventures:

Bharti Tele-Ventures is the most aggressive acquirer of

wireless connections and it is mainly focusing on penetrating in

the circles of India. It has got wireless subscribers of 10 million

and 19.48% of the total market share.

b) Hutchinson Telecom:

Hutchinson telecom has got profitable operations. It is now

mainly focusing on consumer prepaid market. It is launching

different easy recharges for the prepaid customers. It has got

subscribers of 7 million and 15,41% of the total market share.

c) Tata Tele Services:

Tata Tele Services is a later starter but banking of new

subscriptions. It is poised to be one of the Pan- Indian operators.

It has got 1.3 million subscribers and a market share of 1.87%

d) BSNL:

BSNL focused on consumer wireless and voice. It has a

strong last-mile edge that could be leveraged for data services

and broadband. It has got 5.2 million subscribers and 15.66% of

the total market share.

 COMPANY PROFILE

AIRTEL

All of us communicate all the time. And AIRTEL believes

that's the way it should be. All of us communicate whether it's

mid day or mid night: Whether it's someone at the other end of

the world, or the other end of the room . Technology shouldn't

control when and with whom you can communicate.

About Airtel

Airtel, of course is a new product in Andhra Pradesh which

was a product of the Bharti Tele-ventures LIMITED. It provides

mobile. broadband & telephone (fixed line), long

distance(international& national) and enterprise service. It was

established as Public Limited company on July 07 in the year

1995. The proportionate revenue as per the Indian GAAP

Accounts are RS 81,558 million(year ended March 31.2005-

Audited); Rs 50,369 million(year ended march 31, 2004-Audited).

The Proportionate EBITDA is Rs 30,658 million(year ended March

31,2005-Audited) and RS 17,055 million (year ended March 31,

2004-Audited) as per the Indian GAAP Accounts,

The shares in issue as at December 31,2005 are

1,890,061,154. The listings of the Bharti tele-ventures limited are

The Stock Exchange, Mumbai(BSE), and The National Stock

Exchange Limited of India Limited(NSE).

 Market Capitalization as on March 20,2006 is Approximately

Rs.727 billion and the closing BSE share price = Rs 384.65.

The customer base of the Bharti Tele-Ventures Limited is

there are 18,450,074 GSM mobile customers and 1,290,246

broadband & telephone(fixed line) customers as at the month

ended February 28,2006.

Operational network of Bharti Tele-Ventures Limited

is that it provides GSM mobile services in all the 23 telecom

circles in India, thus being the only telecom operator having an

all India presence. It provides broad band(DSL) and telephone

services(fixed line) in 15 telecom circles in India.

About our Mobile:

It's the instrument that will change your life making

communication simple and effective, besides keeping you within

a phone call away from any one on the planet, always. However

it is to be made sure that your handset is GSM 1800 compatible

handset.

Battery

This is the heart of your phone. Before using your battery

for the first time, charge it up to 6-8 hours depending on the

phone you are using.

Adapter/Charger
 This is the food for your battery. Connect it to your phone

and plug it to an electric point to make sure your batter," never

lets you down.

SIM card: Subscriber identification Module

This little card needs to be inserted into your phone . It will

instantly connect you to, the AIRTEL network, and put you in

touch with the world. Your SIM card will already have the

numbers of all the Dial-in-Services and SMS based services,

which you can access directly from the phone book built into

your AIRTEL phone .

Getting Connected

Before you say "HELLO" for the first time on your AIRTEL

phone, make sure you check two things :

• Your battery is full charged.

• Your SIM card is properly inserted.

Saying 'Hello'

These keys vary depending upon the model of your cell

phone or the button you use to make a call of the button you use

to end a call.

The button bearing the instruction "call" key(generally in

green color) or "Yes" or "Semi" or “Ok" is used to make a call and

the button bearing the instruction "cancel" key(generally in red

color) or "No" or "C" is used to end the call.

 Making calls from your AIRTEL mobile

To make a local call

If you are calling n landline in your city/town, dial 0891

followed by the landline number in case of Visakhapatnam i.e..

you have to dial the local code followed by the landline number

to be called. Eg: 0891-2538791.

To call a local cellular number

Directly dial the 10 digit cellular number you want. Eg:

98490XXXXX, 98660XXXXX.

To call a three digit landline number

Dial the three digit landline number you want. E<;; 108.

To call an STD number

Dial the STD code followed by the landline number you

want same as that of you have called a local number in

Visakhapatnam. Eg: 040XXXXXXXX if called to a landline in

Hyderabad.

To call a cellular number outside Andhra Pradesh

 Dial "0" (zero) followed by the 10 digital cellular number

you want. Eg:098100XXXXX.

To make a call out of the country

Dial 00 or + followed by the country code, then the area

code and finally the landline number you want. Eg:

00449743XXXX.

To make a call to a cellular number in another country.

Dial 00 or -t- then the country code and the cellular number

you want. Eg; 001225389XXXX.

To leave a message on a pager

Dial the local city/town code followed by the pager number.

Eg;0891XXXX.

For Customer’s Security:

A1RTEL phone is built with in built safety features. Getting

familiar with them will prevent misuse of your phone.

Personal Identification Number(PJ.N)

This 4 digit password helps ensure that not just anyone can

use your AIRTEL phone. To activate it we have to fellow the

instructions given in the ceil phone user guide. Once activated

you are given a default password 0000. You can change this

through the menu setting on your AIRTEL mobile. If the incorrect

PIN is entered thrice in succession, your SIM card will be blocked.

Personal Unblocked Key (PUK)

This 8 digit number used to unblock your SIM card. If the

PUK is incorrectly entered 10 times, your SIM card will be

permanently damaged. It will (hen have to be replaced by a new

one. If your card does not get blocked you can call 24 hour

AIRTEL CUSTOMER CARE at 98490 98490 or 121. toll free

number from your AIRTEL phone. Our personnel will help you

unblock it.

Be Careful

The SIM card can get completely damaged if:

 It is inserted or removed often, or handled in a rough manner.

 Something is stuck onto to it, scratched or written upon, or

cut.

 It is exposed to a very high/low temperature or to a magnetic

field.

 An incorrect PUK is entered 10 times.

Replacements

A SIM card can be conveniently replaced at The AIRTEL

Shop in the city, at an additional charge. Your AIRTEL phone

number will not be changed when you replace the SIM card.
 To prevent misuse of the AIRTEL phone in the case the

owner loses it. he can call 24 hour AIRTEL Care at 98490-98490

or 121 toll free number from any AIRTEL phone. The AIRTEL SIM

will be disconnected till you collect your new one.

 AIRTEL VALUE ADDED SERVICES

Preactivated STD/ISD

The STD and ISD facility comes preactivated on your

AIRTEL prepaid, so you do not have to bother about paying

deposits or having minimum balance in your account to make

STD/ISD call.

Caller Line Identification Presentation

This feature on your AIRTEL Prepaid facilitates the display

of the calling party's number. This facility comes at no extra

charge and allows you to recognize the caller.

Calling facility till the last rupee

Fun till the end! You don’t have to bother about a minimum

balance required to make any calls.

Prepaid National Roaming

Airtel Prepaid is the first prepaid mobile card in the

country to provide "All India Roaming", that comes preactivated

with your connection. So that you can make outgoing calls in

Delhi, UP(west), Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Ultaranchal,

Mumbai, Maharashtra, Goa, Guiarat. Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka,

Tamil Nadu, Chennai, Kerala, Kolkata. While roaming in the rest

of India like West Bengal and Bihar, where Airtel is not present,

you get the facility of receiving calls and sending SMS. You can
also now make and receive calls, send and receive SMS while

roaming on.

Hutch/Orange, Idea, BPL networks in India. You can also

send SMS while roaming in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, UP (west) and

Utlaranchal(northern region only).

International Roaming

Airtel prepaid makes sure you to stay connected while you

trot across the globe, letting you receive incoming calls and send

SMS while roaming in more than 100 countries with 150 plus

networks.

SMS(Short Messaging Service)

Share those interesting one-liners, important reminders and

rib-tickling jokes, with anyone, anytime, anywhere in the world.

ROAMING :

 With the Airtel roaming we will be able to whoever we want or

whenever we want irrespective of which part of India or the

world you are in, on our existing Airtel number.

 Now one can always stay connected, no matter where they

are, with the Airtel Roaming facility, one can use their Airtel

phone in over 100 countries worldwide and over 530 cities

across India. Airtel Roaming makes life easy and convenient

for its subscribers.

 So whenever you are always just a local phone call away from

those who need you because you pay for the long distance

part of any incoming call.

 And to make life much simple.-:, you will get only one bill that

will include all your expenses.

Roaming is the best way to say in touch, wherever you go in

India or around the world. Airte! brings roaming along with its

roaming partners. With roaming you will have just one phone

number wherever you travel across the world.

Payment Options

Now the Airtel customers can pay their bills easily through

the wide range of payment options.

 Cash.

 Cheque.

 Credit Card.

 Pay Online.

 ATM Networks
Reference Interconnect Offer

The Reference Interconnect Offer from Bharti Cellular

Limited covers the technical and commercial arrangement for

interconnection between the network of Bharti Cellular Limited

and the network of the interconnection seeker.

This offer covers the following:

1. Physical interconnection between the networks.

2. Charges for Other Services wherever applicable.

3. Charges for Sharing of Infrastructure Elements, wherever

applicable.

4. Applicable Technical standards.

5. Interconnect Unbundled Network Elements.

6. Interconnect usage Charges for Origination, Termination,

Transit Traffic.
CHAPTER-III
• Theoretical framework

THEORITICAL FRAME WORK

What Is Brand Equity?

The American Marketing Association defines a brand as “a name,

term, sign, symbol, or design, or a combination of them, intended

to identify the goods or services of one seller or group of sellers

and to differentiate them from those of competitors.” A brand is

thus product or service that adds dimensions that differentiate

may be functional, rational or tangible – related to product

performance of the brand. They may also be more symbolic,

emotional or intangible – related to what the brand represents.

Branding has been around for centuries as a means to

distinguish the goods of one producer from those of another. 2

The earliest signs of branding in Europe were the medieval

guilds’ requirement that craftspeople put trademarks on their

products to protect them-selves and consumers against inferior

quality. In the fine arts, branding began with artists signing their

works. Brands today play a number of important roles that

improve consumers’ lives and enhance the financial value of

firms.

The Role of Brands

Brands identify the source or maker of a product and allow

consumers – either individuals or organizations – to assign

responsibility to a particular manufacturer or distributor.

Consumers may evaluate the identical product differently

depending on how it is branded. Consumers learn about brands

through past experiences with the product and its marketing

program. They find out which brands satisfy their needs and

which ones do not. As consumers’ lives become more

complicated, rushed, and time-starved, the ability of a brand to

simplify decision-making and reduce risk is invaluable.3

Brands also perform valuable functions for firms. First, they

simplify product handling or tracing Brands help to organize

inventory and accounting records. A brand also offers the firm

legal protection for unique features or aspects of the product.

The brand name can be protected through registered

trademarks; manufacturing processes can be protected through

parents; and packaging can be protected through copyrights and

designs. These intellectual property rights ensure that the firm

can safely invest in the brand and reap the benefits of a valuable

asset.

Brands can signal a certain level of quality so that satisfied

buyers can easily choose the product again. Brand loyalty

provides predictability and security of demand for the firm and

creates barriers to entry that make it difficult for other firms to

enter the market. Loyalty also can translate into willingness to ay

a higher price – often 20 to 25 percent more. Although

competitors may easily duplicate manufacturing processes and

product designs, they cannot easily match lasting impressions in

he minds of individuals and organizations from years of

marketing activity and product experience. In this sense,

branding can be seen as a powerful means to secure a

competitive advantage.

To firms, brands thus represent enormously valuable pieces

of legal property that can influence consumer behavior, be

brought and sold, and provide the security of sustained future

revenues to their owner. Large earning multiples have been paid

for brands in mergers or acquisitions, starting with the boom

years of the mid-1980s. The price premium is often justified on

the basis of assumptions of the extra profits that could be

extracted and sustained from the brands, as well as the

tremendous difficulty and expense of creating similar brands

from scratch. Wall Street believes that strong brands result in

better earnings and profit performance for firms, which, in turn,

creates greater value for shareholders. Much of the recent

interest in brands by senior management has been a result of

these bottom-line financial considerations. “Marketing Memo:

The Brand Report Card” lists 10 key characteristics based on a

review of the world’s strongest brands.

The Scope of Branding

How then do you “brand” a product? Although firms

provide the impetus to brand creation through marketing

programs and other activities, ultimately a brand is something

that resides in the minds of consumers. A brand is a perceptual

entity that is rooted in reality but reflects the perceptions and

perhaps even the idiosyncrasies of consumers.

Branding is endowing products and services with the power

of a brand. Branding is all about creating differences. To brand a

product, it is necessary to teach consumers “who” the product is

– by giving it a name nd using other brand elements to help

identify it – as well as “what” the product does and “why”

consumers should care. Branding involves creating mental

structures and helping consumers organize their knowledge

about products and services in a way that clarifies their decision

making and, in the process, provides value to the firm.

For branding strategies to be successful and brand value to

be created, consumers must be convinced that there are

meaningful differences among brands in the product or service

category. The key to branding is that consumers must not think

that all brands in the category are the same.

Brand differences often are related to attributes or benefits

of the product itself. Gillette, Merck, Sony, 3M, and others have

been leaders in their product categories for decades due, in part,

to continual innovation. Other brands create competitive

advantages through non-product-related means. Coca-Cola,

Calvin Klein, Gucci, Tommy Hilfiger, Marlboro, and others have

become leaders in their product categories by understanding

consumer motivations and desires and creating relevant and

appealing images around their products.

Branding can be applied virtually anywhere a consumer has

a choice. It is possible to brand a physical good (Camphell’s

soup, Pantene shampoo, or Ford Mustang automobiles), a service

(Singapore Airlines, Bank of America, or BlueCross/BlueShield

medical insurance), a store (Nordstrom department store, Foot

Locker specialty store, or Safeway supermarket), a person (Tom

Clancy, Britney Spears, or Andre Agassi), a place (the city of

Sydney, state of Texas, or country of Spain), an organization

(UNICEF, American Automobile Association, or The Rolling

Stones), or an idea (abortion rights, free trade, or freedom of

speech).
Defining Brand Equity

Brand equity is the added value endowed to products and

services. This value may be reflected in how consumers think

feel, and act with respect to the brand, as well as the prices,

market share, and profitability that the brand commands for the

firm. Brand equity is an important intangible asset that has

psychological and financial value to the firm.

Marketers and researchers use various perspectives to

study brand equity.Customer-based approaches view brand

equity from the perspective of the consumer – either an

individual or an organization.12 The premise of customer-based

equity models is that the power o a brand lies in what customers

have seen, read, heard, learned, thought, and felt about the

brand over time. In other words, the power of a brand lies in the

minds of existing or potential customers and what they have

experienced directly and indirectly about the brand.

Customer-based brand equity can be defined as the

differential effect that brand knowledge has on consumer

response to the marketing of that brand. A brand is said to have

positive customer-based brand equity when consumers react

more favorably to a product and the way it is marketed when the

brand is identified as compared to when it is not. A brand is said

to have negative customer-based brand equity if consumers

react less favorably to marketing activity for the brand under the

same circumstances.

There are three key ingredients to this definition. First,

brand equity arises from differences in consume response. If no

differences occur, then the brand name product can essentially

be classified as a commodity or generic version of the product.

Competition would then probably be based on price.

Second, these differences in response are a result of

consumer’s knowledge about the brand. Brand knowledge

consists of all the thoughts, feelings, images, experiences,

beliefs, and so on that become associated with the brand. In

particular, brands must create strong, favorable, and unique

brand associations with customers, as has been the case with

Volvo (safety), Hallmark (caring), and Harley-Davidson

(adventure). Third, the differential response by consumers that

makes up the brand equity is reflected in perceptions,

preferences, and behavior related to all aspects o the marketing

of a brand. Table 9.1 summarizes some o these key benefits of

brand equity.

The challenge for marketers in building a strong brand is

therefore ensuring that customers have the right type of

experience with products and services and their marketing

programs to create the desired brand knowledge structures for

the brand.

Brand Equity as a Bridge

From the perspective of brand equity, all the marketing

dollars spent each year on products and services should be

thought of as investments in consumer brand knowledge. The

quality of the investment in brand building is the critical factor,

not necessarily the quantity, beyond some minimal threshold

amount.

It is actually possible to “overspend” on brand building if

money is not spent wisely. In the beverage category, brands

such as Michelob, Miller Lite, and 7Up saw sales decline in the

1990s despite sizable marketing support, arguably because of

poorly targeted and delivered marketing campaigns. And there

are numerous examples of brands that amass a great deal of

brand equity by spending on marketing activities that create

valuable, enduring memory traces in the consumers’ minds.

Despite being outspent by such beverage brand glants as Coca-

Cola, Pepsi, and Budweiser, the California Milk Processor Board

was able to reverse a decades-long decline in consumption of

milk in California partly through its well-designed and executed

“Got Milk?” campaign.

 At the same time, the brand knowledge created by these

marketing investments dictates appropriate future directions for

the brand. Consumers will decide, based on what they think and

feel about the brand, where (and how) they believe the brand

should go and grnat permission (or not) to any marketing action

or program. New products such as Crystal Pepsi, Levi’s Tailored

Classic suits, Fruit of the Loom laundry detergent, and Cracker

Jack cereal failed because consumers found them inappropriate.

A brand is essentially a marketer’s promise to deliver

predictable product or service performance. A brand promise is

the marketer’s vision of what the brand must be and do for

consumers. At the end of the day, the true value and future

prospects of a brand rest with consumers, their knowledge about

the brand, and their likely response to marketing activity as a

result of this knowledge. Understanding consumer brand

knowledge – all the different things that become linked to the

brand in the minds of consumers – is thus of paramount

importance because it is the foundation of brand equity.

Virgin, the brainchild of England’s flamboyant Richard

Branson, vividly illustrates the power enjoyed and responsibility

assumed by a strong brand.16.

Building Brand Equity

Marketers building brand equity by creating the right brand

knowledge structures with the right consumes. This process

depends on all brand-related contacts – whether marketer-

initiated or not. From a marketing management perspective,

however, there are three main sets of brand equity drivers:

1. The initial choices for the brand elements or identities

making up the brand (e.g., brand names, URLs, logos, symbols,

characters, spokespeople, slogans, jingles, packages, and

signage), Old Spice uses bright-red packaging and its familiar

ocean schooner to reinforce its nautical theme while also

launching deodorant and antiperspirant extensions adding the

High Endurance and Red Zone brand names20.

2. The product and service and all accompanying marketing

activities and supporting marketing programs. Joe Boxer made its

name selling colorful underwear with its signature yellow smiley

face. Mr.Lickyy, in a hip, fun way. The company spent almost

zero on advertising clever stunts and events garnered publicity

and word of mouth. An exclusive deal with Kmart has generated

strong retail support.21

3. Other association indirectly transferred to the brand by

linking it to some other entity (e.g. a person, place, or thing).

Subaru used the rugged Australian Outback and actor Paul

Hogan of Crocodile Dundee movie fame in ads to help crafts the

brand image of the Subaru Outback line of sports utility wagons.

Choosing Brand Elements

Brand elements are those trade markable devices that serve to

identify and differentiate the brand. Most strong brands employ

multiple brand elements. Nike hs the distinctive “swoosh” logo,

the empowering “Just Do It” slogan, and the mythological “Nike”

name based on the winged goddess of victory.

Brand elements can be chosen to build as much brand

equity as possible. The test of the brand-building ability of these

elements is what consumers would think or feel about the

product if they only knew about the brand element. A brand

element that provides a positive contribution to brand equity for

example, would be one where consumers assumed or inferred

certain valued associations or responses. Based on its name

alone, a consumer might expect ColorStay lipsticks to be long-

lasting and SnackWell to be healthful snack foods.

BRAND ELEMENT CHOICE CRITERIA. There are six criteria in

choosing brand elements (as well as more specific choice

consideration in each case). The first three (memorable,

meaningful, and likable) can be characterized as “brand building”

in terms of how brand equity can be built through the judicious

choice of a brand element. The latter three (protectable,

adaptable, and transferable) are more “defensive” and are

concerned with how the brand equity contained in a brand

element can be leveraged and preserved in the face of different

opportunities and constraints.

1. Memorable. How easily is the brand element recalled? How

easily recognized? Is this true at both purchase and

consumption? Short brand names such as Tide, Crest, and

Puffs an help.

2. Meaningful. To what extent is the brand element credible

and suggestive of the corresponding category? Does it

suggest something about a product ingredient or the type

of person who might use the brand? Consider the inherent

meaning in names such as DieHard auto batteries, Mop &

Glo floor wax, and Lean Cuisine low-calorie frozen entrees.

3. Likeability. How aesthetically appealing do consumers find

the brand element? Is it inherently likable visually, verbally,

 and in other ways? Concrete brand names such as Sunkist,

Spic and Span and Firebird evoke much imagery.

4. Transferable. Can the brand element be used to introduce

new products in the same or different categories? To what

extent does the brand element add to brand equity across

geographic boundaries and market segments? Volkswagen

chose to name its new SUV, Touareg, ater a tribe of colorful

Saharan nomads. Unfortunately, historically they were also

notorious slave owners, which created a negative press

backlash in the United States. 22

5. Adaptable. How adaptable and updatable is the brand

element Betty Crocker has received over eight makeovers

through the years – although she is over 75 years old, she

doesn’t look a day over 35!

6. Protectible. How legally protectible is the brand element ?

How competitively protectible? Can it be easily copied? It is

important that names that become synonymous with

product categories – such as Kleenex, Kitty Litter, Jell-I,

Scotch Tape, Xerox, and Fiberglass – retain their trademark

rights and not become generic.

Designing Holistic Marketing Activities

Although the judicious choice of brand elements and secondary

associations can make important contributions to building brand

equity, the primary input comes from the product or service and

supporting marketing activities.

Brands are not built by advertising alone. Customers

come to know a brand through a range of contracts and touch

points: personal observation and use, word of mouth,

interactions with company personnel, online or telephone

experiences, and payment transactions. A brand contact can be

defined as any information-bearing experience a customer or

prospect has with the brand, the product category, or the market

that relates to the marketer’s product or service. Any of these

experiences can be positive or negative. The company must put

as much effort into managing these experiences as it does in

producting its ads.

The strategy and tactics behind marketing programs

have changed dramatically in recent years. Marketers are

creating brand contacts and building brand equity though many

avenues, such as clubs and consumer communities, trade shows,

event marketing, sponsorship, factory visits, public relations and

press releases, and social cause marketing..

CHAPTER-IV

Analysis of Study
ANALYSIS OF BRAND AWARENESS OF AIRTEL SERVICES TO

THE CUSTOMERS OF OTHER SERVICE PROVIDERS

Number of samples collected: 100:

 Out of the samples chosen, maximum respondents were male

and minimum respondents were female.

 All the respondents were in the age group of 20-55 years.

Sex Number of Respondents

Male 90

Female 10

 From the tale it is incident that the number of male

respondents who are considered for the survey are 90%.

 It is incident that 10% of the respondents were female.

 Kind of Service

 Out of the 100 samples chosen, maximum people were using

the Prepaid Service.

 Out of the chosen samples the minimum number of

respondents are using the post-paid services.

Kind of Service Number of Respondents

90
Prepaid 70
90
Postpaid 30
80

70

60

50

40

30
10
20

10

0
M ale Fem ale

 70% of respondents have chosen prepaid service since they

want to be economical and can have an idea on the amount

being spent.
 30% of the respondents have chosen postpaid service since

they had confidence of controlling their bill amount. And of

them used Postpaid because their respective offices mostly

provides them.
 C on nection Type

70

70

60

50
30
40

30

20

10

0
P repaid P ostpaid
 Occupations of the Respondents

 Maximum number of respondents were students.

 They were mostly satisfied by the services offered by Airtel to

its customers, mainly its SMS and its value added services.

Occupation Number of
Respondents
Public Sector Employee 5
Private Sector Employee 30
Business Men 20
Students 40
Others 5

 From the table, the survey regarding the occupations of the

employees it is incident that:

a) 5% of the total Airtel customers belongs to “Public Sector”.

b) 30% of the customers belongs to the “Private Sector”.

c) 20% of the customers are “Business Men”.

d) 40% of the customers belongs to “Student Community”.

e) 5% of the customers are comprised with the other type of

category.
 According to the survey the student community

comprises other maximum customer proportion i.e.,

40%.
 40
40

35
30
30

25
20
20

15

10
5 5
5

0
Public Sector Private Sector Business Men Students Others
Employee Employee
 Factors Considered while taking cell connection

 Out of 100 respondents, maximum respondents will look in for

the services and the call charges the service provider is

providing to them.

 Some of the respondents looked in for all the factors like

Brand image, services, call charges and availability.

 Only very few respondents looked in for the availability and

the Brand Image individually.

Factors Number of Respondents

Considered
Brand Image 05
Services 25
Call charges 30
Availability 10
All the above 30

 From the table the following factors are observed regarding

the “Factors that are considered while taking a cellular

connection”.

i. 5% of the respondents will consider “Brand Image” as

the main criterion while taking a cellular connection.

ii. 25% of the respondents will consider “Services” Provided

by the service provider.

iii. 30% of the respondents considers “Call Charges as the

main criterion while taking a cellular connection.

iv. 105 of the respondents considers the “Availability” factor

as the main criterion while taking a cellular connection.

v. And finally 30% of the respondents considers all the

above stated factors while taking the cellular connection.

30 30
30
25

25

20

15
10

10
5
5

0
Brand Im age Services C all charges Availability All the above
 Services Provided by the Current Service Provider

 Maximum number of respondents said that the services

provided by their current service provider is satisfactory.

 Some of the respondents said that the services are good.

 Many of the respondents were unsatisfied with the services

provided by their current service provider.

Rate of Number of Respondents

Satisfaction
Excellent 11
Good 20
Satisfied 44
Not Satisfied 25

 The above table determines the rate of satisfactions of

customers who are using other than Airtel.

 11% of the respondents have said that the services provided

by their current service provider are “Good”.

 44% of the total respondents have said that the services

provided by the current service provider were “Satisfactory”.

 And 25% of the respondents have said that the services

provided by the current service provider are “Not Good”. And

that they were not satisfied at all with the services.

 44
45

40

35

30 25

25 20

20
11
15

10

0
E xc elle n t Good S atisfied N o t S a tisfie d
 How they are aware of various service providers

 Many of the respondents have answered that they have to

came to know about various service providers through

advertisements.

 Some of them have aid that they came to know about

different service providers through friends and News Papers.

 Very less amount of people have got aware of various cell

service providers through Hoardings.

 Only two customers have aid that they have cam to know

about the cell service providers through all the above stated

means.

Means of Number of Respondents

Awareness
Hoardings 4
News Papers 20
Friends 40
Advertisements 36

 The following are the observations that are made from the

study regarding the “Means of Awareness”.

a) Only 4% of the total respondents are aware of the cell

service providers through “Hoardings”.

b) 20% o the respondents are aware of the product through

“News Papers”.
c) 40% of the total respondents are aware of the product

through “Friends”.

d) And 36% of the respondents are aware of the product

through “Advertisements”.

 The maximum number of respondents got aware of

the product through “Friends” and only 4% of the

respondents are aware of the product through

“Hoardings”.

40

40 36

35

30

25 20

20

15

10
4
5

0
Hoardings News Papers Friends Advertisements
 Are you aware of Airtel Services

 Many of the customers are aware of the Airtel Services and

offers. These respondents know about Airtel through various

means and mainly through friends.

 Very few of the respondents do not know about the Airtel

services and offers.

Awareness Number of Respondents

about Airtel
Yes 60
No 40

 From the survey it is incident that only 60% of the total

respondents are aware of the Airtel product and its services.

 40% of the respondents are not aware of the Airtel product

and the services being provided them.

 60

60

50 40

40

30

20

10

0
Yes No
 Have you used Airtel Connection Before

 Many of the respondents said that they haven’t used the Airtel

connection before.

 And only few of them have used Airtel before and have shifted

from Airtel to other service provider.

Usage of Airtel Number of Respondents

Yes 28
No 72

 From the survey it is incident that only 28% of the total

respondents have used Airtel connection in the past.

 72% of the respondents have not used the Airtel connection

before

72
80

70

60

50
28
40

30

20

10

0
Yes No
 Reasons for shift to other service provider

 The respondents who have used Airtel and shifted to other cell

service provider have answered to this question.

 Many of them said that they have shifted to other cell service

provider due to high call charges in Airtel.

Shifting Number of Respondents

Reasons
High Call Charges 15
Improper Signal 0
Want to try new 10
operator
Others 3

 From the above table it is incident that the customers who

have used Airtel before have shifted due to the following

reasons.

a. 15 respondents out of 28 respondents have

shifted from Airtel due to “High Call Charges”.

b. None of them have shifted due to the improper

signal coverage.

c. 10 respondents out of the total respondents

have shifted from Airtel for the reason that

they want to try a new cellular service

operator.
 d. 3 respondents have shifted from Airtel due to

other reasons like; they family influences etc.

15
16

14

12 10

10

6
3
4

0
2

0
High Call Charges Im proper Signal W ant to try new Others
operator
 Interested in using Airtel In future

 Many of the respondents want to use Airtel in the future if any

customer related benefits are provided.

 They also said that if the call charges have been reduced they

will be definitely using Airtel.

 The Post-Paid customers who have shifted from Airtel said that

it is the wrong billing in Airtel which made them toshift from

Airtel.

 Some of them don’t want to shift from their current cell

service provider.

Usage of Number of Respondents

Product
Yes 64
No 36

 From the survey conducted regarding the usage of the Airtel

cellular in the future the respondents have responded in the

following way:

a) 64% of the total respondents have said that they are

interested in using Airtel in the future.

b) 36% of the total respondents have said that they are not

interested in using Airtel connection in the future.

 64

70

60

50 36

40

30

20

10

0
Yes No
 Rating about the services provided by Airtel

 Out of 100 respondents only 60 respondents know about the

Airtel services an offers.

 Many of the customers have accepted that the services

provided by Airtel are excellent regarding the Network

coverage and signal quality.

 Some of them have stated that the customer care and the call

charges are satisfied and.

 They have stated that the value added services provided by

Airtel are good.

 On an average the customers rating for the services provided

by Airtel are good when compared other cell service providers.

1. Rating for Network coverage:

Network Number of Respondents

Coverage
Excellent 30
Good 15
Satisfied 05
Un Satisfied 0

From the above table the following interpretation is made

regarding the network coverage of Airtel.

 Out of the 60 respondents who are aware of Airtel product 40

respondents have said that the network coverage of Airtel is

“Excellent”.

 15 respondents of the total respondents have stated that the

network coverage of Airtel is “Good”.

 05 of the respondents have stated that the network coverage

is “Satisfactory”.

 There were no “Unsatisfied” customers regarding the Airtel

network coverage.

30

30

25

20
15

15

10
5

5 0

0
Excellent Good Satisfied Un Satisfied
II. Rating for the Customer Care:

Out of the 60 respondents many of the respondents have

said that the customer regarding Airtel is not so good as other

cell service providers do.

Customer Care Number of Respondents

Excellent 10
Good 35
Satisfied 10
Un Satisfied 5

From the above table the following interpretation is made

regarding the Customer Care of Airtel:

a. 10 respondents out of 60 respondents have

stated that the customer care regarding Airtel

is “Excellent”.

b. 35 respondents have stated that the customer

care regarding customer care is “Good”.

c. 10 respondents have stated that the customer

care is “Satisfied”.

d. 5 respondents have stated that the customer

care of Airtelis “unsatisfied”.

 35

35

30

25

20

15
10 10

10
5

0
E xcelle n t G oo d S atis fie d U n S a tisfied
III) Rating for the Call Charges:

Out of the 60 respondents many of them have said that the

call charges in Airtel are somewhat high when compared to the

other cell service providers. Only one responded that the call

charges are excellent in Airtel.

Call Charges Number of Respondents

Excellent 1
Good 24
Satisfied 30
Un Satisfied 5

From the survey regarding the rating of the customers

towards the call charges the following points are noted:

 Only one respondent have stated that the call charges of

Airtel have been “Excellent”.

 24 respondents of the 60 respondents have stated that the

call charges of Airtel are “Good”.

 30 respondents have stated that the call charges of Airtel are

“Satisfied”.

 And 5 respondents have stated that the call charges of Airtel

are “Unsatisfied”.
 30

30
24
25

20

15

10
5

5
1

0
E xce lle nt G o od S a tisfie d U n S atisfied
IV) Rating for the value added services in Airtel:

Out of the 60 respondents many of the respondents have

said that the value added services provided in Airtel are good but

the SMS offers are satisfactory when compared to the other cell

service providers.

Value added Number of Respondents

services
Excellent 4
Good 30
Satisfied 16
Un Satisfied 10

From the above table the survey revealed the following

factors regarding the Value Added Services provided by Airtel.

a. 4 respondents of 60 respondents who are aware of Airtel

have stated that the value added services provided by

Airtel are “Excellent”.

b. 30 of the respondents have stated that the value added

services of Airtel are “Good”.

c. 16 respondents have stated that the value added services

are “satisfied”.

d. And 10 respondents have stated that the value added

services of Airtel are “Un satisfied”.

 30

30

25

20
16

15
10

10

4
5

0
E x c e lle n t G ood S a tis fie d U n S a tis fie d
 Customer Rating for Various Cell Services Providers

 54% of the respondents have rated Airtel the First place

among various cell service providers.

 30% of the respondents have rated Hutch the First place.

 8% of the respondents have ranked idea Cellular First place.

 5% of the respondents have ranked BSNL with the first place.

 3% of the respondents have ranked Reliance with the first

place.

 None of the respondents have given first place TATA Indicom.

CHAPTER- V
• Summary
• Findings
• Suggestions
 SUMMARY

 Total number of samples collected are 100.

 Out of the 100 samples chosen, maximum number of

respondents were male (90) and minimum respondents were

female (10).

 Out of the 100 samples chosen, maximum people were using

Pre~ Paid service and minimum number of people were using

the Post-Paid service.

 Out of the 100 respondents 70% were using Pre-Paid Service

and 30% of them were using the Post-Paid service.

 Out of the 100 respondents 5 are public Sector Employees, 30

are Private Sector Employees, 20 respondents are

Businessmen. 40 respondents are students and 5 respondents

are others like un employees, Auto drivers.

 Out of the 100 respondents, 30 respondents considers the

Brand image, services, call charges, availability while choosing

a cell connection. 30 respondents consider only call charges,

25 respondents consider only the services, ID respondents

considers the availability of the services and only 5

respondents considered the Brand image of the cell service

provider.

 Out of the 100 respondents, 44 are satisfied with their current

cell service provider. 25 respondents are not satisfied with

 their current service provider. 20 respondents have said that

the services of the current service provider are good. Only 11

respondents have responded that the services provided by

their current cell service provider are excellent.

 Out of the 100 respondents, 40 of them have said that they

are aware of various cell service providers through friends. 36

respondents are aware of the services through the

advertisements. 20 of the respondents are aware through the

newspapers. Only 4 respondents are aware through hoardings.

 Out of the 100 respondents, 60% of the respondents are

aware of the Airtel services, only 40% of the respondents are

not aware of the Airtel services.

 Out of the 100 respondents only 28 respondents have used

Airtel before, and 12 of the respondents have not used Airtel

connection before.

 Out of the 28 respondents who used Airtel have

shifted. 15 respondents have shifted due to the high call

charges. 10 of them wanted to shift in order that they want to

try a new operator. 3 of them have shifted due to other

reasons.

 Out of the 100 respondents 64 of them are interested in using

Airtel in the future, 36 respondents are not interested in using

Airtel in the future.

 Out of the 60 respondents who are aware of the Airtel

services, 40 people have stated that the network coverage is

excellent, 15 of them have said that the coverage is good, 5 of

them have said that the network coverage is satisfied.

 Out of 60 respondents who are aware of the Airtel services,

10 of them have said that the customer care in Airtel is

excellent, 35 of them have said that the customer care is

good,. 10 were satisfied and 5 of them were dissatisfied with

the customer care in Airtel.

 Out of the 60 respondents who are aware of Airtel, only one

have said that the call charges in Airtel are excellent, 24 of

them have said that they are good, 30 of them were satisfied

and 5 of them were dissatisfied with the call charges in Airtel.

 Out of the 100 respondents 54% have given first place for

Airtel, 30% for Hutch, 8% (or Idea, 5% for BSNL, 3% for

reliance and none of them gave first place for Tata indicom.
 FINDINGS

 Many of the respondents who are using cell phones of various

service providers other than Airtel arc aware of Airtel Brand;

it's features and the various other services of Airtel.

 Some of the respondents who are dissatisfied with their

current cell service provider wanted to shift to Airtel if they

provide low call charges and better customer care.

 Some of the Hutch Post-Paid customers have complained

about the wrong billing which is less in Airtel when compared

to the other service providers.

 Airtel brand has attained a good awareness mainly due to its

advertisements, which clearly explains about the offers they

are providing.

 In many rural areas also Airtel has its network coverage and

due to this aspect it gained lot of importance as well.

 It is also found that the areas of Rishikonda and

Seethamadhara have less coverage.

 The company has many parts in the same city or in the same

region having low frequency of signals due to which the

customer are facing problem.

 SUGGESTIONS

From the Survey reports the suggestions that can be

made are:

Awareness programs: Still more awareness programs have

to be implemented in order to attract more customers like: -

1. Increase advertisement campaigns.

2. Increase Electronic media usage for the awareness

programs.

3. Establishment of Hoardings in rural areas also.

4. Bringing awareness through issue of pamphlets in the

newspapers.

Consumer Retention: Airtel has to implement some more

retention programs like: -

1. Extra talktimes should be given to the potential customers

who are there for more than 2 years in the subscriptions.

2. Some festival offers should be given in order to retain the

customers.

3. If more messages and extra talk time benefits are given then

it can help for the retain for the potential customers.

Airtel has to increase the customer care centers in order to

concentrate more on the customer’s queries and their problems.

 The reduction in the call charges can still attract more
number of customers who are willing to shift to Airtel from other
service providers.
 QUESTIONNAIRE
Name :
Age : Sex: Male/Female
Address :

Occupation:
a) Public Sector Employee b) Private Sector Employee
c) Business d) Student
e) Others (please specify)

Mobile No._______________________

1) Which ceil service are you using currently

a)Airtel b) Hutch c)idea
d) BSNL e) Reliance f) Tata Indicom

2) flow long are you using this connection ? .....................

3) What factors do you consider while taking a cell

connection ?
a) Brand image b) Services c) Call Charges
d)Availability e) All the above

4) How are the services provided by your current cell

service provider
a) Excellent b) Good c) Satisfied d)
Not Satisfied

6) Are you aware of Airtel services and offers.

a) Yes b)No

7) Have you used Airtel connection before

a) Yes b)No

8) If yes which type of Airtel connection have you used

before ?
a) Pre-paid b) Post-paid

9) What is the reason for your change to other cell service

provider
a) High call charges
b) Improper signal
 c) Want to try new operator
d) Others

10) Are you interested in using Airtel in future ?

a) Yes b)No

11) How do you feel about different services provided by

Airtel

S.n Description Excelle Goo Satisfi Un

o nt d ed Satisfied

1. Network Coverage

2. Customer Care

3. Call Charges

4. Other Benefits
(Value Added
services)

12) How do you rank different cell service providers?

Airtel ( )
Hutch ( )
Idea ( )
BSNL ( )
Reliance ( )
Tata indicom ( )

13) Complaints if any:

………………………………………………………………………….
………………………………………………………………………….

14) Suggestions:

………………………………………………………………………….
………………………………………………………………………….
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1) MARKETING MANAGEMENT

- by Philip Kotler

2) RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

- by C.R. Kothari

3) STATISTICS FOR MANAGEMENT

- by G.C Beri

4) LESSONS ON SERVICES MARKETING

- by Ram mohan rao

5) GLOBAL MARKETING MANAGEMENT

- by Keesan warren J

Web Sites:

http://www.Airtel.co.in
http://www.Baniboovvcb.com
http://www.netmba.com
http://www.coai.com
 Glossary

Brand

A unique and identifiable symbol, association, name or

trademark, which serves to differentiate competing products or

services. Both a physical and emotional trigger to create a

relationship between consumers and the product/service.

Brand Attributes
Functional or emotional association that are assigned to a brand

by its customers and prospects. Brand attributes can be either

negative or positive and can have varying degrees of relevance

and importance to different customer segments.

Brand Audit
A comprehensive and systematic examination of all collateral

(both tangible and intangible) which relates to a brand.

Brand Awareness
The proportion of target customers that recall a brand.

Realization by a consumer of the existence and availability of a

particular product. Brand awareness is a common measure of

marketing communications effectiveness. Unaided awareness is

spontaneous; added or prompted awareness is when the name is

recognized among others that are listed or identified.

Brand Equity
The value – both tangible and intangible that a brand adds to a

product/service.

Brand Essence
The core characteristic that defines a brand.

Brand Expansion
The exposure of a brand to a broader target customer market,

geographic market, or distribution channel.

Brand Extension
The application of a brand beyond its initial range of products, or

outside of its category. This becomes possible when the brand

image and attributes have contributed to a perception with the

consumer/user where the brand and not the product is the

decision driver.

Brand Identify
A unique set of association that the brand strategist aspires to

create or maintain. These associations represent what the brand

should stand for and imply a potential promise to customers. It is

important to note that a brand identity refers to the strategic

goal for a brand, while brand image is what currently resides in

the minds of consumers.

Brand Image
A unique set of associations within the minds of target customers

which represent what the brand currently stands for and implies

the current promise to customers. (Note that brand image is

what is currently in the minds of consumers, whereas brand

identify is inspirational).