SOUTH ASIAN JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT

Case Study
Indraprastha Gas Limited:
Formulating and Implementing
a Go-to-Market Strategy
Amandeep Singh Narang*, Vivek Pani Gumparthi** and Somnath Chakrabarti***

This case study is about a scale-up challenge faced by a widely-held company, Indraprastha
Gas Ltd (IGL). IGL is a City Gas Distribution (CGD) company headquartered in New
Delhi, India. The company provided clean fuels, CNG and PNG to the public at large. One
fine day, the Managing Director (MD) of IGL, was asked by the Ministry of Petroleum and
Natural Gas to onboard at least 300,000 domestic PNG connections by the end of the
financial year (FY – 17). Other CGDs in the country were given similar targets. The MD of
IGL was rightfully concerned about this arduous task, as the company since its inception
could onboard 742,205 PNG connections. Though it was a huge task, IGL made multi-
pronged efforts and over a period of one year could add a sizeable number, the most that any
CGD could do in the country. The company was appreciated by the Ministry for working in
line with its vision and was also lauded for being a guiding light for other CGD companies of
the country.
Key Words: Clean Energy Fuel, Domestic Cooking Fuel, Go-to-marketing Strategy, Market
Penetration, Policy Implementation, Scaling-up

I
t was a sunny afternoon of April, 2017 when Mr. E S Ranganathan, Managing
Director of Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) was on his way back to office after
finishing a meeting convened by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas
(MoPNG), Government of India. The officials of the Ministry gave IGL a stiff target
of adding 300,000 domestic Piped Natural Gas (PNG) connections by the end of
Financial Year (FY) 2017-18. Mr. Ranganathan was in a deep thought, concerned
about the ways to achieve the ambitious targets planned by the Ministry for increasing
penetration of PNG connections in the country. IGL since its inception in the year
1998 could garner 742,205 domestic PNG connections until then. This meant that
IGL had to add close to half of the existing PNG connections in a single year. While
* Research Scholar, Indian Institute of Management Kashipur, Kundeswari, Kashipur 244713, Udham Singh
Nagar District, Uttarakhand, India. E-mail: amandeep.efpm2016@iimkashipur.ac.in
* * Research Scholar, Indian Institute of Management Kashipur, Kundeswari, Kashipur 244713, Udham Singh
Nagar District, Uttarakhand, India. E-mail: gumparthi.fpm1704@iimkashipur.ac.in
*** Associate Professor, Indian Institute of Management Kashipur, Kundeswari, Kashipur 244713, Udham Singh
Nagar District, Uttarakhand, India. E-mail: somnath.chakrabarti@iimkashipur.ac.in

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it was not just about getting more customers on board and its reputation being at
stake, it was also about IGL being in line with the vision of the government to undertake
expansion of PNG network across the country in a mission mode.

BACKGROUND
IGL was setup in 1998 City Gas Distribution (CGD) company, as a joint venture of
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL)
and the Government of the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi. IGL was started
to implement the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) program as per the directions of
Honorable Supreme Court of India (SCI). In 1999, IGL took over the Delhi City Gas
Distribution Project (DCGDP) that was started by GAIL. DCGDP had earlier been
started as a pilot project covering the areas of Bapa Nagar, Kaka Nagar, Pandara Park,
Pandara Road, Sujan Singh Park and Sunder Nagar in Delhi, with around 1500
customers.
By the late 1990s, vehicular pollution levels in Delhi, the capital of India, had
reached toxic levels, posing a serious threat to the health of the residents of the city.
Keeping the health concerns in view, the Honorable Supreme Court of India issued a
directive calling for all buses, taxis and three-wheelers in Delhi to be converted to
CNG in response to the Writ Petition (Civil) No. 13029/1985, M. C. Mehta versus
Union of India (India Environment Portal, 1998; Transport Department, Government
of N. C. T. of Delhi, 2018). Since then, keeping in view the enormous business
opportunity, IGL had started to significantly invest in setting up of the infrastructure
and was successful in reducing and controlling the city’s pollution levels (Kathuria,
2004). Over a period of time, IGL could position itself as a clean energy solution
provider through innovative ways. After comprehensively establishing CNG ecosystem
in Delhi, IGL expanded its reach by serving the nearby geographies of Delhi (NCT of
Delhi) such as Noida, Ghaziabad, Greater Noida and Rewari.
Exhibit 1: Indraprastha Gas Ltd. (IGL)’s Performance
Sales Volume Units FY 2016-17 FY 2015-16
CNG Million KGs 921 834
Industrial / Commercial PNG Million SCM 174 160
Domestic Volumes PNG Million SCM 94 86
Natural Gas Million SCM 138 96
Sales Value
CNG (in crore) 3287 3079
PNG (in crore) 919 973
Total (in crore) 4206 4052
Note: (1) ‘ ’ symbol: Indian Rupees (INR); (2) SCM: Standard Cubic Meter; (3) 1 crore = 10 million.
Source: IGL (2019)

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In addition to the supply of its flagship value offering – CNG, IGL was also supplying
PNG to the residents of Delhi. Though IGL had been spending a significant amount
of money and effort on PNG, the company was receiving majority of its sales volume
from CNG (refer Exhibit 1).

IGL’s BUSINESS
CGD business was a highly regulated business and entering any new geographical
area required authorization by Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB).
IGL supplied natural gas to the residents of Delhi, through its two primary value
propositions—CNG and PNG. Of the two value propositions, CNG was its flagship
product which helped IGL in garnering a lot of brand visibility and recall. Natural gas
was the cleanest burning fossil fuel and its sustainable fuel attributes made it more
popular than other hydrocarbon fuels.
COMPRESSED NATURAL GAS BUSINESS
CNG was a gaseous fuel known for its green characteristics because of the absence of
Sulphur and Lead. IGL started its CNG operations with 9 CNG stations catering to a
meagre 1500 vehicles. Over a period of time IGL could successfully build its brand
and could establish itself in the city of Delhi, with a steady increase in sales volume.
By the end of FY 2017 (March 31, 2017), CNG was used by over 975,000 vehicles
which included 578,000 private vehicles (refer Exhibit 2).
Exhibit 2: Number of CNG-run Vehicles Fuelled by IGL
March 2014 March 2015 March 2016 March 2017
Buses 19,566 19,421 19,272 22,900
Auto / LGV/RTV 2,20,391 2,41,540 2,59,500 2,77,972
Cars/Taxi 5,14,801 5,56,156 5,89,801 7,09,900
Total 7,54,758 8,17,117 8,68,573 10,10,772
Source: IGL (2019)

This steady growth was possible only because of the emphasis that IGL gave to
augmenting CNG refueling infrastructure in line with the ever increasing demand of
CNG across all vehicle segments. After 2009, IGL expanded its footprint beyond
geographical boundaries of Delhi to adjoining cities of Noida, Ghaziabad and Greater
Noida to provide CNG to the vehicles across the segments.
In addition to strengthening its capabilities, IGL was also successful in leveraging
its equations with various stakeholders. During the year 2010, in view of Common
Wealth Games 2010 held in New Delhi, IGL was successful in getting more plots of
land for CNG stations and other infrastructure purposes. This support from the
government provided a major boost for IGL in scaling up its infrastructural capabilities
thereby providing better services to the consumers. In another instance, the marketing
team of IGL had tactfully dealt a road-rationing policy (Odd-Even scheme) decision
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of the government, by getting an exemption for all the CNG run vehicles, in NCT of
Delhi, which helped the company in not losing revenues during that period.
As of March 31, 2017, the number of CNG stations grew to 421 (refer Exhibit 3),
with an average CNG sale of 2.5 million kilograms per day. In addition to this, daily
average gas sales grew by nearly 15% from 4 Million Metric Standard Cubic Meter per
Day (MMSCMD) in FY 2015-16 to 4.59 MMSCMD in FY 2016-17.

Exhibit 3: Annual Growth Trend in Number

of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Statons

Source: IGL (2019)

PIPED NATURAL GAS BUSINESS

PNG, another major value-offering of IGL was supplied to domestic, commercial and
industrial customers. By the end of FY 2016-17, PNG was supplied to over 742,205
domestic PNG customers of Delhi NCT region (refer Exhibit 4). On the domestic
front, PNG was used primarily for cooking applications, apart from powering domestic
water heaters and gas generators. PNG was not only supplied to domestic households
but also for other industrial and commercial users.
Exhibit 4: Number of PNG Users
March 2014 March 2015 March 2016 March 2017
Domestic 459,467 560,752 636,618 742,205
Commercial/Industrial 1876 2292 2580 2870
Total 461,343 563,044 638,898 745,075
Source: IGL (2019)

In the commercial sector, IGL had positioned PNG as a new age fuel and was being
supplied to hotels and restaurants of Delhi and National Capital Region (NCR) area.

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Over a period of time, all the leading hotels, restaurants, commercial kitchens and
hospitals of Delhi and NCR area used PNG fuel, owing to the several advantages.
Industrial segment was another major revenue contributor to PNG business. PNG
in this segment was majorly used for power generation, to run Vapor Absorption
Machines (VAM), boilers, furnaces, ovens, hot water generators, thermo-fluidic heaters
etc. By the end of FY 2016-17, IGL had made deep inroads into this segment by
supplying PNG to established private players like Honda, LG, Dabur, Moser Baer,
U- Flex etc.
In addition to the green characteristics of the fuel, PNG was also acknowledged as
a safe fuel, considering its physical characteristics. It was proven to be lighter than air
and was found to disperse in case of a leak as opposed to the widespread kitchen
application, LPG, which settled down. On the pricing front, PNG pricing was
comparable to the alternate fuel of LPG (subsidized).
In addition to the characteristic advantages, PNG was supplied online unlike LPG
which was stored in cylinders, requiring adequate space.
SALE TO OTHER CGDS
In addition to selling CNG and PNG to consumers, IGL also sold natural gas to other
City Gas Distributors (CGDs) in Faridabad and Gurugram, which yielded regular
flow of revenue for the company (refer Exhibit 5).
Exhibit 5: Sales Volume Mix of IGL as on March 31, 2017

Source: IGL (2019)

CHALLENGES FACED BY IGL IN SCALING – UP PNG

In the early May of 2017, the Managing Director of IGL called on his PNG team to
formulate a strategy to achieve the ambitious target set by the ministry. During the

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course of the meeting, he inferred that there were diverse opinions pertaining to the
bottlenecks in scaling-up the number of PNG connections. As Chief Executive of the
company, he felt that the team had to work in a structured manner to execute this
formidable task and these diverse opinions could be a hindrance in achieving the
targets. In order to bolster his team’s efforts, he wanted to have some actionable insights
from the ground. He felt that these insights would give him a cogent understanding of
the market, people’s belief systems, opportunities and barriers. So, the team decided
that a leading market research agency should be commissioned to give an inside-out
analysis for the domestic households not subscribing for PNG connections despite
having network at their doorstep.
ABOUT THE SURVEY
The survey was administered by a reputed market research company based out of New
Delhi. The vendor was entrusted with the responsibility of finding reasons for target
audience not switching over to PNG connections in spite of having PNG network in
their neighborhoods. The first step of the survey was a qualitative research module,
which involved home immersion with couples and mini focus group discussions with
four to six couples in each session. The objective of the qualitative module was to
understand the barriers to adoption of PNG and motivations for staying put with LPG.
The second step was the quantitative module, conducted after a thorough
understanding of consumers’ thoughts about PNG fuel. The study was conducted
more for validating the results of qualitative module. The total sample size of the
study was 785 households. Three criteria were used for selection of their respondents.
They were, households not having PNG connections currently, households having
LPG connections and respondents who were aware of IGL providing PNG facility in
their locality or society. For a respondent to be qualified for the sample, the respondent
had to meet all the three criteria. The respondents were spread across all income
group segments of Higher Income Groups (HIGs), Middle Income Groups (MIGs)
and Low-Income Groups (LIGs). Within every income group, both house owners and
tenants were chosen as respondents.
RESULTS OF THE SURVEY
At the outset, it was understood that Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) was a serious
competition to PNG. LPG was distributed by national players (Government of India
undertakings), who boasted of having strong distribution networks. The market research
team also understood that LPG was considered as an asset of inheritance that was
passed on from one generation to another. Over a period of time, LPG connection was
regarded as a bare necessity for any household. Though there had been many
innovations, with the introduction of gadgets like induction stoves, microwave ovens,
cooktops etc., no kitchen was considered complete without a LPG connection.

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The survey threw up interesting insights into the psychological barriers among the
public towards adopting PNG as the cooking fuel in their kitchens. The primary reasons
for the inertia were grouped into five broad categories of safety, price, product-related,
aesthetics and perceptual.
SAFETY
The survey brought out that the respondents were afraid of their safety with regard to
a PNG installation primarily due to partial knowledge of the PNG concept highlighting
that the respondents had no clue about the in-built safeguards in PNG pipelines going
inside the houses. On the other hand, the study also revealed that respondents felt
that LPG was safer when compared to PNG. It also highlighted that, since laying
PNG network was an infrastructure intensive work, incidents of pipeline leak or
breakage on the roads in the past added to the apprehensions in the respondent minds.
PRICE
It was observed that, initial investment of INR 6000 was the major bottleneck in
adoption of PNG, by customers who were satisfied users of LPG. Further, their own
past experiences and experiences of their acquaintances with regard to meter-based
billing for other utilities had dampened their trust in the PNG billing system. The
study also exhibited that though there was a marginal difference in terms of prices,
the respondents felt that in the long run due to the heavy initial investment and
enigma in PNG billing, there was a perception that PNG was more expensive in the
respondent minds.
PRODUCT – RELATED
The survey revealed that people perceived that the time and energy in the process of
acquiring a PNG connection was high and therefore they avoided the same, being
satisfied with LPG. It showed that customers also had a perception that the flame
strength of PNG was less when compared to LPG and therefore would lead to more
cooking time resulting in higher costs.
AESTHETICS
The survey also threw up that respondents were concerned about the aesthetics of
their kitchens due to visibility of PNG installation (as gas pipeline cannot be concealed
due to safety guidelines) and seemed like an eye-sore in the kitchen. It was also
observed that PNG connections would hamper the effective utilization of space within
the kitchen.
PERCEPTUAL
The study revealed that the landlords were hesitant in getting PNG connections for
their tenants as it required one-time financial outgo as a security deposit. Additionally,
the tenants also exhibited resistance in acquiring a PNG connection, as it required
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surrendering of existing LPG connection (the conventional form of fuel). Therefore,

those in transferable jobs were reluctant in surrendering their LPG connections, as
PNG was not available in all the cities. This point also revealed that people were
unaware of the fact that all the Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) offered the facility
of keeping gas connections in safe custody on a temporary basis.
The key takeaway of the study was that 58% of the interviewed households which
did not have PNG connections were mulling the option of switching to PNG in the
near future.
DILEMMA
It was definitely an arduous task for the company given the kind of volumes that
company had seen with PNG till then. The objective of the government was to cut
down the use of subsidized LPG. When freed from subsidy, LPG could be used as a
substitute for kerosene and forest wood for cooking purposes in rural and remote areas
(PTI, 2015). As a part of this plan, IGL was given the target of increasing at least
300,000 domestic PNG connections for the financial year 2017-18.
The company had to do something extraordinary to achieve this feat of adding
300,000 PNG connections in a single year. Being one of the largest CGD companies in
the country, and operating in the national capital, it was imperative for IGL to take up
this directive seriously and draw up a strategy to achieve this ambitious target. Meeting
the target would also augur well for the growth of the company and will continue to
add to the sales volumes in the years to come.
On the other end, OMCs were improving their service quality levels for their LPG
consumers by leveraging technology, to offer better customer experience. This could
eventually be a deterrent for the loyal LPG customers to switch to PNG.
The results of the survey were tabled for a discussion between the management
and the PNG team. The team felt that it had to work on all the action points (revealed
by the survey) to achieve this formidable target set by the Government of India. The
in-house specialists looking after various functions, were asked to diligently implement
the strategies that were being formulated. The teams were given extra budgets for
handling this special and crucial project. The team wanted to leave no stone unturned
in achieving this target as IGL being the leader in CGD sector, wanted to show the
way to all the other players.

TEACHING NOTE
CASE SYNOPSIS
Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) is a City Gas Distribution company headquartered in
New Delhi, India. IGL is a clean energy solution provider and enjoys a great reputation
among its addressable audience. On one fine day in April 2017, Mr. E. S. Ranganathan,
the Managing Director of IGL is called for a meeting by the Ministry of Petroleum and
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Natural Gas (MoPNG). During the course of the meeting, Mr. Ranganathan is asked
to onboard at least 300,000 domestic PNG connections for FY 2017-18. IGL since its
inception could garner 742,205 domestic PNG connections. This meant that the
company had to onboard at least 50% of its existing domestic PNG connections.
The PNG division started working on various marketing strategies to achieve the
targets set by the ministry. One of the first things that the team did was to understand
the potential consumers of PNG. In this regard, they engaged a leading market research
agency to understand the psychological barriers that consumers have for obtaining a
PNG connection. The survey revealed interesting facts about perceptions of consumers
with respect to PNG. Using the survey results as a base, the company wanted to devise
a go-to market strategy for onboarding its consumers. PNG (domestic) accounted to
6% of the total revenue volumes of the company, while its flagship product CNG
amounted to 74% of the total revenue volumes.
It was definitely an arduous task for IGL as a company, considering the stiff
competition that it faced from Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) providers. Though it
was an uphill task for the company, it looked at this challenge as an opportunity to
scale-up revenues of PNG, thereby contribute significantly to the topline of the company.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
The case illustrates a challenge that IGL as a company faces. IGL is given an arduous
task of adding 300,000 domestic PNG connections in one year (FY 2017-18). The
specific teaching objectives include the following:
• To understand the addressable audience of a market that has been skimmed.
• To understand go-to market strategies of a utility company.
• To understand how to formulate strategies in markets that have high threat
of substitutes.
• To consider the various business options available when confronted with a
business challenge.
• To find a solution for a given problem and convert the problem into a business
opportunity.

POSITION IN COURSES
This case is suitable for graduate and executive students for the following courses:
• Marketing Management – for understanding consumers.
• Strategic Management – for understanding product/market expansion
strategies.
• Communication Strategies – for communicating the right message to the
addressable audience.
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• Integrated Marketing Communications – for understanding the significance

of promotional activities.

SUGGESTED PRE-READINGS
1. Andzulis, J. M., Panagopoulos, N. G., & Rapp, A. (2012). A review of social
media and implications for the sales process. Journal of Personal Selling &
Sales Management, 32(3), 305-316.
2. Belch, G. E., & Belch, M. A. (2004). Advertising and promotion: An integrated
marketing communications perspective, (6th ed.) New York: NY: McGraw-Hill.
3. Hochstein, B. W. (2016). B2C sales interactions: Empowered consumers, sales
influence tactics, and salespeople as knowledge brokers (Doctoral dissertation,
Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL). Retrieved from http://purl.flvc.org/
fsu/fd/FSU_2016SP_Hochstein_fsu_0071E_13116
4. Percy, L. (2008). Strategic integrated marketing communications. New York, NY:
Routledge.

SUGGESTED ASSIGNMENT QUESTIONS

1. Explain the product portfolio of IGL. What is the importance of each product
in the company’s portfolio?
2. Describe IGL’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
3. Explain the importance of promotional activities for a company like IGL.
What are the various promotional activities that IGL can undertake with
respect to domestic PNG?
4. Analyze the PNG market that IGL is operating in.
5. Explain the challenge faced by IGL in the context of the case. Based on the
information provided (with respect to psychological barriers among the public
towards adopting PNG as a cooking fuel in their kitchens), what actions
could IGL take for overcoming its challenges and achieving its target?

ANALYSIS
1. Explain the product portfolio of IGL. What is the importance of each product
in the company’s portfolio?
Expected answer to include the following points or more: IGL is a clean energy
solution provider based out of New Delhi, India. IGL has four value offerings:
(a) Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) for vehicles; (b) Piped Natural Gas (PNG) for
residential use; (c) PNG for industrial and commercial purposes and; (d) sale of
natural gas to other City Gas Distribution (CGD) companies.
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Of the four value - offerings of IGL, CNG contributed to 74% of revenues, PNG
(commercial/industrial purposes) amounted to 12%, sale of natural gas to CGDs
8% and PNG for domestic contributed to a meagre 6% (See Case Exhibit 5).
However, it is noted that only two value-offerings were available for general public
(vehicular CNG and domestic PNG).
COMPRESSED NATURAL GAS
Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) is a gaseous fuel and is a mixture of hydrocarbons
mainly methane (IGL, 2019). CNG is the flagship product of IGL and was first supplied
in 1999 by IGL to the people of Delhi. The benefits of using CNG as a fuel are (IGL,
2019):
• Green Fuel: Due to the absence of lead and sulphur, CNG is referred to as a
green fuel. This green character of CNG facilitates reduction of harmful
emissions, thus leading to reduction of pollution.
• Safety: With a high auto-ignition temperature and an arrow range of
inflammability, CNG is one of the safest fuels.
• Low Operational Costs: CNG is economical to use when compared to usage
in petrol and diesel vehicles.
• Increased Life of Lubricants: CNG as a fuel does not contaminate lubricants,
thereby increasing the life of lubricants.
PIPED NATURAL GAS (DOMESTIC)
PNG as a fuel mainly consists of methane and small portions of other hydrocarbons.
Because of low carbon to hydrogen ratio, PNG burns completely making it a clean fuel
(IGL, 2019). IGL offered PNG to both domestic and commercial/industrial purposes.
Domestic purposes meant household usages like gas stoves, geysers and other appliances.
On the other hand, industrial or commercial purposes included supply to restaurants
and other companies. The benefits of using PNG are (IGL, 2019):
• Uninterrupted Supply: PNG was supplied without any interruption to the
households because of the infrastructure setup of IGL. The infrastructure
setup of IGL also makes it very convenient for the consumers.
• Safety: PNG has low inflammability range, which means that the fuel does
not catch fire easily. PNG being lighter than air, disperses easily in case of
leakage.
PIPED NATURAL GAS (COMMERCIAL/INDUSTRIAL)
Re-gasified liquefied natural gas (R-LNG), also called R-LNG is supplied to industrial
and commercial purposes. In industries, it is used to run hot water boilers, furnaces,
ovens and generators. IGL also supplies PNG to hotels, restaurants and malls thereby
reducing the usage space and air pollution.
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SALE OF NATURAL GAS TO OTHER CGDS

In addition to business to consumer business (B2C), IGL sold natural gas to other
business entities (other CGDs) that supplied natural gas to end consumers of Faridabad
and Gurugram.
2. Describe IGL’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
Expected answer to include the following points or more:
SWOT ANALYSIS
STRENGTHS
• Good infrastructure support to meet the growing needs of consumers of CNG
and PNG.
• Strong organizational capabilities because of the joint focus of BPCL and
GAIL, parent companies of IGL.
• Diversified risk in revenue flows, as the value offerings do not focus on one
sector. That is, CNG is for transportation, PNG is for both residential and
commercial purposes (with diversified applications) and sale of natural gas
to other CGD companies.
• Innovative marketing plans.
WEAKNESSES
• High geographical concentration, that is majority of its business operations
are in Delhi region.
• Heavy reliance on CNG for revenues (see Case Exhibit 5). That is, CNG
occupies 74% of revenues for the company.
OPPORTUNITIES
• High brand recall because of strong presence of CNG.
• Rapid geographical expansion of the company may throw up opportunities
for IGL to expand its customer base.
• An opportunity to utilize economies of scope. IGL has good presence with
respect to CNG customer base. From the case, it can be understood that
CNG was being used by close to a million vehicles in Delhi (it included
5,78,000 private vehicles). IGL has an opportunity to target these customers
by devising innovative marketing schemes and can try to sell a PNG
connection.
• IGL has positioned all its value – offerings as clean energy solutions, giving
an opportunity to attract all the potential customers interested in clean energy
solutions.
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• Increase in price of conventional cooktops can throw up an opportunity for

IGL, to facilitate a switch to PNG (Verma, 2017).
THREATS
• Strong presence of LPG. From the case, it can be understood that LPG has
been the conventional source of energy for all the households. It can also be
understood that LPG was considered as an inherited asset by the households
as the connection was passed on from one generation to another, indicating
that there is a high resistance to switch to PNG.
• Surge in induction cooktops owing to increase in working population, increase
in their purchasing power, and better infrastructural benefits (Verma, 2017).
3. Explain promotional mix. What are the various promotional activities that IGL
can undertake with respect to domestic PNG?
Expected answer to include the following points or more: Promotional mix is a
set of marketing activities that are intended to interact with target audience in
order to achieve the institutional promotional objectives (Kotler and Keller, 2006).
The different types of promotional activities that IGL as a company can consider
are:
ADVERTISING
Advertising can be understood as a non-personal mode of communication run through
mass-communication media such as newspapers, magazines, movie theatres, radio and
television (Kotler and Keller, 2006). Advertising is generally measured by: advertising
medium, advertising size, content of advertising, drafting of advertising, duration of
the advertisement, technical output of advertising, and repetition of advertising (Nour
and Almahirah, 2014).
IGL in the present context to promote its PNG, a relatively less-penetrated market
can advertise using the following media: radio (specific channels of Delhi and NCR
geography), local dailies (both local vernacular and English), out of home advertising
(hoardings, danglers, bunters, etc.), short videos for movie theatres and local magazines
(both local vernacular and English). These media should communicate that IGL as a
brand also offers convenience of PNG, which will help in building top of mind recall of
PNG as a value-offering. In addition to introducing PNG as a value-offering, IGL can
also explicate the benefits of PNG which is a crucial aspect for consumers who seek
utilitarian value.
Further, the advertisements should communicate a clear brand personality (Aaker’s
brand personality dimensions), which will help in building relationships with consumers
(Aaker, 1999).
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PERSONAL SELLING
Personal selling can be understood as a face-to-face interaction and verbal
communication of company (or its representatives) with potential buyers (McCarthy
and Perreault, 2004). In the context of this case, personal selling can be either door-to
door campaigning or cold-calling in IGL's areas of operation. Further, sales persons
can be deployed at various touch-points (like shopping malls, metro stations etc.) in
the Delhi NCR geography. These sales representatives in addition to introducing the
product to the potential buyers, can also distribute handouts which can help in building
recall.
SALES PROMOTION
Sales promotion can be understood as any marketing or non-marketing activity which
is leveraged to stimulate the demand for products (Obdyat, 2004). The sales promotion
activities in the context of the case can be offering bundling value (by combining
CNG and PNG), by giving discounts on PNG for the first few months of use for consumers
and also by giving complimentary products (like utensils, lighters, key chains etc.).
PUBLICITY
Publicity can be broadly understood in two ways - publication of positive or negative
news of the company (including its activities and products) using mass media or any
publication or broadcasting of the same in an unpaid manner. Publicity includes all
the activities carried out by an organization with an intention to strengthen its image
in the community by involving in various activities such as supporting and participating
positively in environmental, health public and social issues (Lovelock and Wirtz, 2004).
In addition to that, IGL can also conduct safety drills and workshops to further the
effectiveness.
INTERNET MARKETING
Internet marketing or social media promotions can be another effective tool for
promoting products at a large scale. Through this media, IGL can promote various
product attributes and schemes to consumers and potential consumers at large. The
promotional posts can also communicate the company’s various CSR initiatives and
sales promotions.
4. Analyze the domestic PNG market that IGL is operating in
Expected answer to include the following points or more: Porter’s (1989) Five
Forces framework organizes many complex managerial economics issues into five
categories or forces that affect the sustainability of businesses in a given industry.
The below description explains the scenario of PNG industry setting.
ENTRY
A low-entry barrier scenario in any industry heightens competition there by reducing the
overall industry profits. As per the case, CGD business is a regulated business in India,
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which requires authorization from PNGRB to set up infrastructure in a specific geography.

In addition to that, setting up of PNG infrastructure entails a lot of investment expenditure,
which reduces the risk of new entrants into the market. Hence, going by this it can be
concluded that PNG industry setting has high entry barriers.
POWER OF INPUT SUPPLIERS
In the case of domestic PNG, for IGL it can be understood that the input gas price is
fixed by the government every six months. This indicates that there is no bargaining
power vested with IGL with respect to domestic PNG. Hence, the power of input
supplier is high and industry profits is said to be low.
POWER OF BUYERS
The price of domestic PNG for consumers is non-negotiable indicating that the power
of buyers is low. Hence, IGL is independent to fix the price for its domestic consumers.
INDUSTRY RIVALRY
From the case study, it can be understood, that IGL has no direct competition from
any of the players with respect to PNG in its areas of operations, as of now. This zero
competition from the industry with respect to PNG facilitates higher profits there by
increasing the sustainability of IGL’s PNG business.
SUBSTITUTES
Though there is no competition on the PNG front, IGL faces stiff competition from
other factors such as domestic LPG, microwave ovens, induction cooktops etc. High
switching resistance from LPG to PNG can be regarded as one of the major threats to
PNG business of IGL. Hence, threat of substitutes for PNG is significantly high.
5. Explain the challenge faced by IGL in the context of the case. Based on the
information provided (with respect to psychological barriers among the public
towards adopting PNG as a cooking fuel in their kitchens), what actions could
IGL take for overcoming its challenges and achieving its target?
Expected answer to include the following points or more: IGL is a CGD company
with two major (B2C) value offerings – CNG and domestic PNG. CNG is a gaseous
fuel used predominantly for vehicles. On the other hand, domestic PNG is primarily
used for cooking in the kitchens.
Over a period of time, IGL became synonymous with CNG and became the major
revenue contributor (74% of the total sales) for IGL. Domestic PNG contributed to
only 6% of the total revenues, making it third highest contributor of sales volume,
with 742, 205 domestic connections.
As per the case, the challenge that IGL faced was to scale-up the number of PNG
connections by almost half of its existing connections in one year, in accordance with

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the directive of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG). To get a
comprehensive picture of the market, the team decided to hire a third party market
research agency to get crucial actionable insights of the people’s belief systems,
opportunities and barriers.
From the survey, the following were inferred:
• Stiff competition from LPG
• Safety
• Price
• Product-related
• Aesthetics and
• Perceptual
STIFF COMPETITION FROM LPG
Over a period of time, LPG created a strong consumer base and became a formidable
competition for other fuels to make an entry into the market. Hence it is essential for
IGL to craft communication in such a way that PNG is well differentiated when
compared to LPG (in terms of experiential benefits, symbolic benefits and functional
benefits).
POSSIBLE SOLUTION
From the case, it can be understood that LPG was a widely accepted cooking fuel and
was considered as an inheritance asset by people across the geographies. Keeping this
strong resistance and sentiment in view, IGL can position PNG as a new-age fuel,
which is efficient, environmental friendly and convenient. By positioning PNG as a
new-age fuel, IGL is effectively differentiating PNG from the conventional LPG fuel.
Furthering this thought process, IGL can effectively showcase the convenience of
using PNG, by highlighting the space constraint that LPG cylinders pose. This
positioning can be communicated to potential consumers of PNG across the geographies
using various media. The communication should highlight the functional attributes
(effectiveness, environmental friendliness, cost-effectiveness, convenience etc.) of
PNG and how it is a smarter option when compared to LPG.
As IGL operates in an urban locality, it is imperative to target the working and
educated class by highlighting the convenience that PNG offers. This highlighting of
convenience can show that PNG is a smarter option when compared to conventional
LPG fuel. In order to further this positioning, IGL can also implement various payment
options like prepaid, postpaid, monthly billing and quarterly billing. IGL can also add
to the convenience by opening up various payment methods like credit card, debit
card, direct cash transfer, cash payment at designated offices etc. To this end, IGL
can consider implanting a mobile application which will add to the convenience of
the consumers. All these measures can successfully establish the positioning of
convenience.
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IGL can use newspapers, radio spots, social media platforms, TV commercials,
BTL activities, ATL activities and direct selling in successfully reaching out to the
potential consumers with the convenience positioning.
In addition to the stiff competition that PNG is facing from LPG, PNG also suffers
from some perceptual issues. They are:
• Safety
• Price
• Product-related
• Aesthetics; and
• Perceptual
To counter all these perceptual issues, IGL in addition to communicating its value
proposition to its potential customers, can also consider experiential marketing as an
option. Keeping in view the limited geography that IGL caters to, IGL can open
“Experience Centers” at various touch points across Delhi and NCR region. The
location of each and every touch point should be based on the density of population or
number of potential customers. These centers should enable reaching out to various
types of potential customers at different times to promote the products of IGL, in this
context PNG and its domestic applications.
The experience centers should have in-built models that replicate domestic
households using PNG for various applications like cooking, water heating and power
back-up. These centers should activate potential customers periodically and
communicate the value proposition of PNG on various occasions as per a few pre-
decided parameters at the central level. All the experience centers should report to
the central team, so that the effectiveness of various communications or promotional
exercises can be tracked without any spillovers.
In addition to handling experience zones, these centers can also handle billing,
service support, grievance handling and also in administering ATL and BTL activities.
The ATL and BTL activities can also be tailor-made for each micro geography based
on certain parameters. The parameters can be the following:
• Gender domination
• Religion skew
• Language skew
• Predominant income group; and
• Presence of tourist spot etc.
SAFETY
According to survey conducted by the market research agency, the concept of PNG
raised concerns of safety in the minds of potential consumers due to the partial
understanding of PNG. The major concerns expressed by the respondents were:

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• Respondents being incognizant of in-built safeguards in PNG pipelines going

inside the houses.
• Perception that LPG was safer when compared to PNG.
• Incidents of pipeline leak or breakage on the roads added to the apprehensions
of the consumers.
POSSIBLE SOLUTION
From the case it can be understood that PNG is a safe fuel and is lighter than air,
which causes the gas to disperse in case of a leakage. IGL can exhibit this feature in
a short video and publish it on various media like – social networking sites, TV
commercials, workshops (BTL campaigns) etc. In this regard, workshops can be of
great use as potential consumers can really experience the safety feature of PNG.
In addition to exhibiting the safety feature of PNG, IGL can also demonstrate the
safety features of the pipeline network of PNG by running a door-to-door campaign or
by showcasing the safety attributes in its experience centers. This exercise that provides
hands-on experience of safety parameters will also help IGL in generating leads of
potential consumers which can be pursued for sales - conversions.
PRICE
The following were the major concerns that the study exhibited:
• Heavy initial investment of INR 6000 posed a serious threat of switching to
PNG.
• Consumers’ past experiences with meter based billing dampening their trust
in the PNG billing system.
• Perception that PNG was costlier when compared to LPG.
POSSIBLE SOLUTION
As it can be understood from the given case study that the initial investment posed a
serious threat in facilitating a switch. Keeping this in view, IGL can possibly look at
deferred payment option. That is, the initial investment can be added as a component
to the regular consumption bills. With this option the burden of initial amount is
obviated. IGL can leverage this and communicate this message across the media.
As mentioned above, IGL can launch a mobile application which can show live
meter details (PNG billing system). This option can bring in transparency and can
also be used as a platform for communication with the consumers, which will add to
the customer experience component there by garnering the goodwill.
IGL through its communication can show that the cost incurred by PNG is of
comparable standards to LPG. This can be well explained by furnishing relevant details
in terms of cost that would be incurred by an average household. The details should
be communicated across media so that the preconceived notion is extirpated.

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PRODUCT-RELATED
The following were the major concerns of the potential consumers with respect to
product-related concerns:
• Concern regarding the amount of time and energy in acquiring a PNG
connection.
• Perception that the flame strength of PNG was less when compared to LPG
creating a notion that it would lead to more cooking time and finally leading
to more costs.
POSSIBLE SOLUTION
Keeping in view that IGL operates in a particular geography, IGL can demonstrate the
effectiveness of PNG in its experience centers. The experience centers can administer
effectiveness campaigns, where the centers can show that it takes the same amount of
time for cooking any given dish as it takes for the conventional LPG fuel.
As mentioned above, the experience centers in addition to handling marketing
activities can also handle the activation and billing activities of PNG connections. In
fact, IGL can differentiate itself from all the other OMCs by expediting the PNG
activation processes. IGL should formulate strict Turn Around Times (TATs) for
installation of new PNG connections.
AESTHETICS
The study revealed that potential consumers were concerned about the eyesore that
is caused by not concealing the pipelines and effective utilization of kitchen space is
hampered because of the pipelines.
POSSIBLE SOLUTION
In addition to showcasing that most of the pipelines are outside the kitchen area in
videos, brochures and articles, IGL can also replicate a kitchen in the experience
centers, which can show effectively that the pipelines can be managed so that it
doesn’t turn out to be an eyesore.
PERCEPTUAL
The following were the preconceived notions with respect to perceptual aspects:
• Landlords being hesitant in getting PNG connections for their tenants as it
required a big amount for the security deposit.
• Tenants exhibit resistance as acquiring PNG connection required
surrendering of LPG connection. Therefore, those in transferable jobs were
reluctant in surrendering LPG connection as PNG was not available in all
the cities.
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• Potential customers not being aware of the fact that they could surrender
LPG connection on temporary basis.
POSSIBLE SOLUTION
Keeping in view the initial resistance from the owners, IGL can consider offering
incremental discount for every additional PNG connection. For example, if an owner
acquires a PNG connection for a first tenant, a 10% discount on acquiring PNG
connection can be considered. The same owner can be given 15% or so for the second
PNG connection. With respect to tenants too, IGL can consider offering initial discount
of 10% (on the initial security deposit) on submission of temporary suspension of LPG
voucher.
In addition to the above, to make people aware of the temporary surrendering of
LPG option, IGL can consider communicating this to the potential customers using
all the media options.
WHAT HAPPENED NEXT
After a series of brainstorming sessions, the PNG team took up the task of increasing
the number of PNG connections. IGL kicked off its plan to break through the mental
barrier of the consumers and establish the various advantages of the product PNG and
elevate the awareness of PNG and encourage its usage in domestic, industrial and
commercial sector through community outreach, social media engagement, advertising,
and other promotions.
Starting with awareness measures and bursting myths around it, IGL ran an online
campaign through social media platforms on PNG with animated contents, with a
goal to help users learn about various advantages, safety initiatives, various modes of
payments etc. of PNG.
Further to this IGL positioned PNG as a smart fuel. In this regard, IGL launched a
short film on PNG in leading theaters targeting the urban and younger generation to
switch to PNG. The digital advertisements were complemented by spots on radio
regularly throughout the year, as part of a concerted effort to build product recognition.
Apart from this, various promotional schemes to encourage more number of
conversions were also initiated. The company launched some of the first of its kind
schemes like discount schemes and Diwali bumper prizes to attract potential customers.
This call to action led to more number of conversions of PNG customers and help
company achieve benchmark figures in terms of PNG connections in the industry.
In order to support the Government’s priority to providing gas supply to domestic
sector, IGL undertook door to door campaign by putting up kiosks at various public
places and events like Durga Puja pandals, Dussehra, Diwali celebrations etc.to reach
out at grass root level.
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The multi-pronged efforts of IGL started to show results very soon. By the end of
FY 18, IGL could add close to 1.52 lakhs of domestic PNG. The results of these
campaigns continued and IGL could successfully have 1 million domestic PNG
connections by the end of FY19.
In addition to the numbers, IGL also won accolades and special mention from the
government for their sustained efforts in onboarding domestic PNG consumers. Though
IGL could not meet the target of 300,000 PNG connections in a single fiscal, it has
been able to scale-up the number of PNG registrations exponentially and the effect
has been continuing in every subsequent fiscal.

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