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CONTENTS

Declaration

Certificate from Faculty guide

Acknowledgement

S.No. Chapter Name Page No.

1 Introduction 6

2 Literature Review 24

3 Problem Statement 30

4 Methodology 32

5 Results & Discussions 37

6 Suggestions & Conclusion 47

References 50

Annexure 51

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CHAPTER-I
INTRODUCTION

Integrated Marketing Communication

In the beginning of the 1990’s, when mass advertising had slowly being replaced by target
market advertising, the ways of being more effective in order to reach and persuade the target
audience had also being rethought. As more and more companies applied the lessons of market
segmentation and product differentiation, they target smaller parts of the overall market. As
companies speak to consumers with an increasing number of sources, a company’s
communication could be more efficient. Companies felt that simply placing a message in a
specific media was not enough to give the desired result by the customers. There should be some
form of strategic synergy that could put together the message spread out in different media and
used by the different communications tools. During the 1980s, many companies came to see the
need for more of a strategic integration of the promotional tools. Many agencies responded to
that call for integration among the various promotional tools by acquiring PR, sales promotion,
and direct marketing companies and touting themselves as IMC agencies that offer one-stop
shopping for all their clients. Their main idea was to develop marketing and communication
program that the activities defined strategically in the plan would work direct and synergic to
achieve the company’s marketing objective using the same message. As the result of this new
think appeared the Integrated Marketing and Communication plan (IMC) that has been discussed
and used by various authors, researchers and marketing and advertising people.

According to Schultz professor at Northwestern University (1993) “Integrated Marketing


Communication –IMC, is the process of developing and implementing various forms of
persuasive communication programs with customers and prospects over time”. He, also, states,
“the goal of IMC is to influence or directly affect the behavior of the selected communication
audience. IMC considers all sources of brand or company contacts which a company or
prospect has with the product or service as potential delivery channels for the future messages.

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IMC, makes use of all forms of communication which are relevant to the customer and
prospects, and to which they might be receptive.”

The American Association of Advertising Agencies defines Integrated Marketing


Communications as “the concept of marketing communication planning that recognizes the
added value of a comprehensive plan that evaluates the strategic roles of a variety of
communication disciplines (general advertising, direct response, sales promotion, and public
relations) and combines these disciplines to provide clarity, consistency, and maximum
communication impact.”

The two definitions mentioned above deals with the IMC in the way that the marketing
communication plan must work synergically in order to reach efficiently the target public.
However, the Schultz definition, once deals with the entire company’s audience (retailers,
suppliers, personal selling, etc.), requires more knowledge by the company about all audience,
while the 4A’s concentrates more in the impact that the message in the final consumer.

As the IMC suggests, the marketing and communication plan must work in a synchronized way.
Internet which has been growing tremendously and has been used largely by the companies to do
business, to sell and advertising its products, to maintain relationship with its target public, etc.
has come up as a important part of the IMC.

If we analyze the IMC Schultz approach (broad picture), the Internet is extremely useful for all
marketing and communication activities because throughout the Internet, as mentioned above, a
company can do business, advertise its products, maintain contacts with the customer, do PR and
so on. So, if a company wants to do efficient IMC program, the Internet is an essential media for
the success of it today.

One cannot use the Internet as main point of strategy but use advertising on the Internet as part of
the IMC.

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REASONS FOR ACCEPTING IMC
In the days gone by, the marketing world belonged to advertising. Advertising had a big effect,
because it was easy to generate high reach by advertising in popular media vehicles.
In recent years, this picture considerably changed. Media has fragmented, making it
very difficult to achieve high reach. The basic trends that are challenging the ways many
companies conduct business today are:
Technology and the Internet
Technology embraces every part of our lives making our world faster, smarter and more
mobile than ever. Amidst the explosion of online businesses, the Internet has made
online business models and offerings transparent. Such transparency has two key results.
First, competitive advantages historically enjoyed by companies have diminished. Products and
technologies that were once unique can be now duplicated within months, while services can be
copied within days or even hours. Second, because of a Web site, there is a single source of
company's information for all, message inconsistencies are more easily discovered. If outgoing
messages do not align with product or service offerings, a company's brand is jeopardized.
Just as Internet technology has leveled the competitive playing field by providing a
window into the competition's strategy, technology has also placed the power of information in
the customer's hands. Today, customers are more knowledgeable and demanding than ever of
marketplace conditions. They are able to research product attributes, investigate competitors'
offerings and compare prices. While technology gives increased power to competitors and
consumers, the same technology also enables the principles of IMC to operate on new levels.
Mechanisms for two-way communication are more efficient and fluid than ever. By using
technology to support IMC concepts, companies have ability to exceed customer expectations
and outsmart the competition.
Globalization
As transaction capabilities are advanced by technology, the geographic boundaries of
trade are beginning to disappear. Additionally, global trade agreements between countries
have created a windfall of economic opportunity. Global mergers and acquisitions are
developing every day. Global networks, both technological and organizational, are connecting
organizations in all parts of the world. Driven by the first truly global companies and supported
by trade agreements, globalization is here to stay. This high degree of consolidation and global

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connectivity creates a need for global communication strategies. As different cultures, ideas,
currencies and economic ideals converge, it is necessary that the strategies behind global
organizations are consistent around the world and across the board. But companies cannot ignore
unique attributes of different cultures. Analysts suggest that in order to globalize, companies
must attempt to localize globally. In these conditions, the task of marketing communications is to
carry understandable and harmonic messages. The usage of different communication tools has to
be planned as an integrated campaign.
Importance of brand's image
In contrast to business in the past, today's marketplace puts a much higher value on
intangible assets. Companies such as Microsoft, Coca-Cola, and McDonald's have capitalized
market values that correspond with their intangible capital, rather than hard goods produced or
manufactured. The significance of brand equity is rising because a high level of brand equity
means a high level of loyal customers. That's why the value of the brand name is a key factor for
marketing success. The leading managers know that, and they try to reach two "conflicting"
goals: first, to achieve considerable sales' volume (usually by sales promotion) and second, to
build a strong brand's image. The way of reaching these goals is called integrated marketing
communications.

IMC tools:

A company’s total marketing communications programme is called the "promotional mix" and
consists of a blend of advertising, personal selling, sales promotion and public relations tools.

The four main elements of the promotional mix are:

Advertising

It’s a paid form of non-personal communication of ideas or products in the "prime media": i.e.
television, newspapers, magazines, billboard posters, radio, cinema etc. Advertising is intended
to persuade and to inform.

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Personal Selling

It is the oral communication with potential buyers of a product with the intention of making a
sale. The personal selling may focus initially on developing a relationship initially with the
potential buyer, but will always ultimately end with an attempt to "close the sale".

Sales Promotion

It is the means of providing incentives to customers or to the distribution channel to stimulate


demand for a product.

Publicity

It is the communication of a product, brand or business by placing information about it in the


media without paying for the time or media space directly. It is also known as "public relations"
or PR.

Advertising:
Stage 1: Set Advertising Objectives

An advertising objective is a specific communication task to be achieved with a specific target


audience during a specified period of time. Advertising objectives fall into three main categories:

(a) To inform - e.g. tell customers about a new product

(b) To persuade - e.g. encourage customers to switch to a different brand

(c) To remind - e.g. remind buyers where to find a product

Stage 2: Set the Advertising Budget

Marketers should remember that the role of advertising is to create demand for a product. The
amount spent on advertising should be relevant to the potential sales impact of the campaign.

For example, new products tend to need a larger advertising budget to help build awareness and
to encourage consumers to trial the product. A product that is highly differentiated may also need
more advertising to help set it apart from the competition - emphasizing the points of difference.

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Stage 3: Determine the key Advertising Messages

Spending a lot on advertising does not guarantee success.Research suggests that the clarity of the
advertising message is often more important than the amount spent. The advertising message
must be carefully targeted to impact the target customer audience. A successful advertising
message should have the following characteristics:

(a) Meaningful - customers should find the message relevant

(b) Distinctive - capture the customer's attention

(c) Believable - a difficult task, since research suggests most consumers doubt the truth of
advertising in general

Stage 4: Decide which Advertising Media to Use

There are a variety of advertising media from which to choose. A campaign may use one or more
of the media alternatives. The key factors in choosing the right media include:

(a) Reach - what proportion of the target customers will be exposed to the advertising?

(b) Frequency - how many times will the target customer be exposed to the advertising
message?

(c) Media Impact - where, if the target customer sees the message - will it have most impact?
For example does an advert promoting holidays for elderly people have more impact on
Television (if so, when and which channels) or in a national newspaper or perhaps a magazine
focused on this segment of the population?

Stage 5: Evaluate the results of the Advertising Campaign

The evaluation of an advertising campaign should focus on two key areas:

(a) The Communication Effects - is the intended message being communicated effectively and
to the intended audience?

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(b) The Sales Effects - has the campaign generated the intended sales growth. This second area
is much more difficult to measure

Public Relations

The Institute of Public Relations defines public relations as follows:

“The planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding
between an organization and its publics”

What is meant by the term “publics” in the above definition?

A business may have many “publics” with which it needs to maintain good relations and build
goodwill. For example, consider the relevant “publics” for a publicly quoted business engaged in
medical research:

• Employees
• Shareholders
• Trade unions
• Members of the “general public”
• Customers (past and present)
• Pressure groups
• The medical profession
• Charities funding medical research
• Professional research bodies and policy-forming organizations
• The media
• Government and politicians

The role of public relations is to:

• Identify the relevant publics


• Influence the opinions of those publics by:
o Reinforcing favorable opinions

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o Transforming perhaps neutral opinions into positive ones
o Changing or neutralizing hostile opinions

Public relations techniques

There are many techniques available to influence public opinion, some of which are more
appropriate in certain circumstances than others:

Consumer communication

Customer press releases


Promotional videos
Consumer exhibitions
Competitions and prizes
Product launch events
Celebrity endorsements

Business communication

Corporate identity design


Company and product videos
Direct mailings
Web site
Trade exhibitions

Financial communication

Financial media relations


Annual report and accounts
Meetings with stock market analysts, fund managers etc
Shareholder meetings (including the annual general meeting

The main measures of effectiveness concentrate on the process of public relations, and include:

• Monitoring the amount of media coverage obtained (press cuttings agencies play a role in
keeping businesses informed of this)

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• Measuring attendance at meetings, conferences

• Measuring the number of enquiries or orders received in response to specific public relations
efforts

Promotion - Sales Promotion

A good definition of sales promotion would be as follows:

“An activity designed to boost the sales of a product or service. It may include an advertising
campaign, increased PR activity, a free-sample campaign, offering free gifts or trading stamps,
arranging demonstrations or exhibitions, setting up competitions with attractive prizes,
temporary price reductions, door-to-door calling, telemarketing, personal letters on other
methods”.

More than any other element of the promotional mix, sales promotion is about “action”. It is
about stimulating customers to buy a product. It is not designed to be informative – a role which
advertising is much better suited to.

Sales promotion is commonly referred to as “Below the Line” promotion.

Sales promotion can be directed at:

• The ultimate consumer (a “pull strategy” encouraging purchase)

• The distribution channel (a “push strategy” encouraging the channels to stock the product).
This is usually known as “selling into the trade”

Methods of sales promotion

There are many consumer sales promotional techniques available, summarized in the table
below:

Price promotions

Price promotions are also commonly known as” price discounting”

These offer either (1) a discount to the normal selling price of a product, or (2) more of the
product at the normal price.

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Increased sales gained from price promotions are at the expense of a loss in profit – so these
promotions must be used with care.

Coupons

Coupons are another, very versatile, way of offering a discount. Consider the following examples
of the use of coupons:

- On a pack to encourage repeat purchase .The key objective with a coupon promotion is to
maximize the redemption rate – this is the proportion of customers actually using the coupon.

Gift with purchase

The “gift with purchase” is a very common promotional technique. It is also known as a
“premium promotion” in that the customer gets something in addition to the main purchase.

Competitions and prizes

It is another popular promotion tool with many variants. Most competition and prize promotions
are subject to legal restrictions.

Frequent user / loyalty incentives

Repeat purchases may be stimulated by frequent user incentives. Perhaps the best examples of
this are the many frequent flyer or user schemes used by airlines, train companies, car hire
companies etc.

Point-of-sale displays

Research into customer buying behavior in retail stores suggests that a significant proportion of
purchases results from promotions that customers see in the store. Attractive, informative and
well-positioned point-of-sale displays are, therefore, very important part of the sales promotional
activity in retail outlets.

Promotion - Direct Marketing

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Direct marketing is concerned with establishing an individual relationship between the business
offering a product or service and the final customer.

Direct marketing has been defined by the Institute of Direct Marketing as:

The planned recording, analysis and tracking of customer behavior to develop a relational
marketing strategies

The process of direct marketing covers a wide range of promotional activities you may be
familiar with. These include:

• Direct-response adverts on television and radio


• Mail order catalogues
• E-commerce
• Magazine inserts
• Direct mail

• Telemarketing

Direct mail

Of the above direct marketing techniques, the one in most widespread use is direct mail.

Direct mail is widely thought of as the most effective medium to achieve a customer sales
response.

• The advertiser can target a promotional message down to an individual level, and where
possible personalize the message. There are a large number of mailing databases available that
allow businesses to send direct mailing to potential customers based on household income,
interests, occupation and other variables

Personal selling is one of the oldest forms of promotion. It involves the use of a sales force to
support a push strategy (encouraging intermediaries to buy the product) or a pull strategy
(where the role of the sales force may be limited to supporting retailers and providing after-sales
service).

What are the main roles of the sales force?

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Kotler describes six main activities of a sales force:
(a) Prospecting - trying to find new customers

(b) Communicating - with existing and potential customers about the product range

(c) Selling - contact with the customer, answering questions and trying to close the sale

(d) Servicing - providing support and service to the customer in the period up to delivery and
also post-sale.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Each Element of the Promotional Mix


Mix Element Advantages Disadvantages
Advertising Good for building awareness Impersonal - cannot answer all a
customer's questions
Effective at reaching a wide audience
Not good at getting customers to
Repetition of main brand and product
make a final purchasing decision
positioning helps build customer trust

Personal Selling Highly interactive - lots of Costly - employing a sales force has
communication between the buyer and many hidden costs in addition to
seller wages

Excellent for communicating complex / Not suitable if there are thousands of


detailed product information and important buyers
features

Relationships can be built up -


important if closing the sale make take
a long time

Sales Promotion Can stimulate quick increases in sales If used over the long-term, customers
by targeting promotional incentives on may get used to the effect
particular products
Too much promotion may damage
Good short term tactical tool the brand image

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Public Relations Often seen as more "credible" - since Risk of losing control - cannot always

the message seems to be coming from a control what other people write or say
third party (e.g. magazine, newspaper) about your product

Cheap way of reaching many customers


- if the publicity is achieved through the
right media

Importance Of IMC in Washing machine industry


The PROMOTIONAL MIX forms the foundation for any marketing strategy. It forms the
brand's strategy in a systematic and structured manner. It facilitates the marketer to establish
linkages with a focused target segment. Decades ago, companies may have attempted third
degree marketing - which is `placing' the brand in the market and later fine-tuning the marketing
mix elements to suit the needs of the target segment. In the Indian market context, during the
pre-liberalized era there was practically no competition and a few brands dominated the market
in several product categories. This, in fact, encouraged marketers to practice third degree
marketing (even without the need to either clearly define the market or to fine-tune marketing
mix elements).

In today's context, even the brands which have been in the market for several decades make a
planned attempt to construct a strategy based on marketing mix, carefully identifying the scope
for providing a competitive Promotional mix. Samsung has used a number of marketing mix
elements to become competitive in recent times with several product variants for different
segments of the market. Though Videocon has been around in the Indian market only from the
early 90’s , it has been forced to attempt a number of strategies to maintain its leadership -
launching new models, sub-brands, providing several services which include trading used cars
and expanding its distribution, sales promotion.

Prioritization of promotional mix elements starts from the clarity associated with the definition
of target segment. If a brand of cereal aspires to be a niche brand it should have a marketing mix
very different from that for middle-class consumers (to make them substitute their regular

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breakfast with cereals, which is not easy as eating is a part of the culture in any part of the
world). A niche brand could prioritize premium pricing and a high visibility advertising
campaign emphasizing its global associations. A mass-market brand (however global it is) has to
prioritize low unit price in a country like India. Perhaps there could be some logic for a global
brand to even be the loss leader (with a low price) in India until the time a strong loyalty is
established. Having an approach like this would enable the brand to increase the share of the
customer besides expanding the market. This could be a workable strategy, especially for a brand
entering the food category as experience all over the world shows that such brands take decades
to become a part of the ‘consumer's habit’.

Value-Based Promotional Plans


Washing machines as consumer durables fall in the need-based category and value may be
strongly associated with the quality and benefits given by the way of sales promotion. There is a
clutter of communication from a number of brands that compete in the category. Some of the
brands such as Samsung washing machines may also be amenable to symbolic promotional
campaigns. There may be a large number of consumers who are price-sensitive and who are
interested in the brand only as long as sales promotion is continued. One approach in this context
is to have continuous advertising that features user imagery — focusing on the consumer who
may use the category. Generally for washing machines the imagery has the housewife as its core
element (Samsung, LG, Whirlpool). Whirlpool a few years ago created a `character' - MUMMY,
the stereotype of a typical middle class housewife. The TV ad showed the typical housewife
choosing the brand, as it was oriented towards high value. On the other hand, LG is an
interesting example that illustrates the power of promotional linkages. Initially, the brand
advertised a very focused proposition — whiter clean. It also used effective imagery of having
children in its TV commercials. There were also promotional efforts to create awareness about
the brand (like merchandising and so on). The advertisements highlighted the need for an
offering of this kind among a well-defined target segment. At a later point, the marketers brought
in the buyer of the brand (the mother) and the concept of Fabricare especially for those
customers who care a lot for their clothes. Essentially, the advertising campaign has laid the
foundation for sales promotional campaigns preserving the USP of the brand.

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Overview of Washing Machine Industry

The washing machine industry in India Rs 2,650-crore industry is about decade-and-a-half old.
From being a 0.55 million units industry in 1993-94, it has grown to 4.21 million units in the FY
2008. Videocon and BPL were the first player to enter the washing machine industry in India.

It started with the single tub washers and subsequently the twin- tub category came into the scene
and therefore the share of washers became insignificant. In today’s scenario, a consumer has a
choice of more than 10 brands and more than 80 models. The arrival of multinationals has also
widened the available product range. Most of the new machines are incorporated with latest
technology such as Fuzzy logic, Fabricare etc.

Structure

The washing machine industry can be segment and categorized into:

• Semi Automatic

• Fully automatic

The Semi Automatic was the first to be introduced in India and comprises 76.4 per cent of the
market with fully automatic category comprising the rest.

The reason for the Semi Automatic being preferred over fully automatic is that the former is in
the range of Rs 5000-8000, whereas the latter comes in the range of Rs 12,000-26,000.

The twin-tub semi-automatic washing machine constitutes about 80 per cent of total sales and the
trend is expected to continue. The fully automatic has about 15 percent share. The market has
lately seen the entry of single-tub semi automatic machine by Samsung.

The market can be segmented into top load and front load as well with top load comprising 16
per cent of the industry while front load constituting just five per cent.
On the base of capacities, it can categorized be into less than 4 kg comprising five per cent of
the market, 4-5 kg constituting 50 per cent and greater than 5 kg 15 per cent of the market. In the

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semi-automatic segment, the consumer preference is shifting from the smaller size segments
(3.5-5 kg) to the larger size segments (6 kg). Region wise, west and south is a major market for
fully automatic while north is for semi-automatic. About 40% of the sales are from the metros.

Market Performance

The washing machine industry had a clear growth run till 2002. Between the year 2000 to 2002,
it grew at a CAGR of 20 per cent. However, it has been declining since the year 2002 and is
showed the same trend from 2003 to 2006.

The washing machine production for the FY05 increased by 2.5 per cent and it also indicated a
rise in sales by 2%. Whereas in FY 2006 the production decreased by 3.5 per cent and sales also
went down by 3.2 per cent.
The performance of this industry has been quite dismal in the current fiscal too. However the
price levels of washing machines have remained static during the last three years.

LG Electronics, the Korean consumer durables major, got the top slot in the washing machines
segment in the year 2007, growing by 38.9 per cent to garner a market share of 24.3 per cent
(value-wise). It was closely followed by Whirlpool with a market share of 18.2% and Videocon
with 14.4 % market share.

30 MKT. SHARE
24.3
25
%ge MKT SHARE

20 18.2
14.4
15
10
5
0
LG WHIRLPOOL VIDEOCON
MAJOR PLAYERS
Figure 1

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In the front-loading category, IFB has the highest market share with 70-75 per cent market share
and LG comes second with seven per cent.

Performance In Current Fiscal (2008-09)


The washing machines industry grew by a marginal 0.9 per cent in the period January-June 2008
in value terms. The growth, however, was 6.5 per cent in volume terms for the same period.

The fully automatic segment, which accounts for a lesser share in the washing machine segment,
saw double-digit growth both in value and volume terms. The segment grew by 11 per cent value
wise, and 15.8 per cent volume wise in the first half of the year.

Demand Drivers
The mass penetration level of washing machines in India is just 4.8 per cent with urban being 13
per cent and rural 0.7 per cent. This translates into immense opportunities if we compare it to the
penetration levels in China of 48%.
Another factor to be noted is that whereas in India a little over 4 million machines were sold in
FY 2007-08, China sold 14 million machines.

This clearly explains the difference in terms of market growth. The washing machine is still not
popular in India because of scarcity of water (in some cities, water pressure is less than adequate)
as free flow of tap water is needed for smooth operation of a washing machine. Also, availability
of cheap labour has restricted growth.

Recent Trends In Washing Machine Industry

The festival season opens new doors to the consumer durables market and it witness a barrage of
promos and discounts. It makes companies spend hugely into the promotional activities.

The October-December period tends to account for more than one third of annual sales for the
durables industry. While even seasonal products like refrigerators and washing machine get a
sales boost due to the marriage season and bonus time for salaried employees, it is the largest
constituent of the durables industry — washing machine which witnesses the real brand wars.

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Most of the major players bunch their product launches for this season as well as a lot of
attractive schemes and offers.

Some promotional campaigns of major brands are:

LG’s two promotional campaigns during the period — Patakha Ghumao Inam Pao and LG
Healthy Home Jackpot — which would not only give the consumer assured gifts but also a shot
at the 80 jackpot prizes, which include a basket of all LG products. Samsung also with its ‘Phir
Se Phod ke Dekho’ campaign is making a strong foray into the washing machine segment.

Samsung India also has launched a Rub ka Kamaal promotion in which it is giving away gifts
worth Rs 15 crore as prizes. Like LG, Samsung India is sparing no effort in advertising to
support its promotions, and has earmarked a whopping Rs 10 crore for print and television
advertising.

Videocon also has an extensive product showcase with all product features listed on its site. Its
main rival, BPL also offers a host of sites that provide only product feature details, and, in some
cases, price information. www.lgindia.com is a platform for interacting with consumers,
www.lgezbuy.com is an online mall. LG estimates that online business will account for 20% of
its turnover this year and further rise to 30% in the next two years.

Price-offs and freebies seem to be the most popular promotions during the festive season, the
once-highly popular exchange schemes is not to be counted out yet.

CHAPTER-II

LITERATURE REVIEW

In the United States market, top-loading machines are the most commonly used. However, in
Europe the front-loading style is preferred. A factor in the preference for front-loaders in Europe
is the preference for integrated appliances that sit under countertops in kitchens and utility rooms
or that can be fully integrated and concealed in kitchen cabinetry. Also, because the first mass
marketed automatic washing machines sold from the 1950s onwards in Europe were almost

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exclusively front loaders European consumers tended to associate top loaders with labour
intensive obsolete technology. European households also tend to pay more attention to water and
energy conservation as heavy environmental taxes are levied on both water and energy use. Front
loading machines also offer much higher spin drying speeds of up to 2000 RPM. This makes it
possible to dry clothes very quickly by hanging them on washing lines or airing racks or can
substantially reduce the length of time required in a tumble dryer. The EU also has a
comprehensive energy efficiency, wash performance and spin dry performance labeling system
which rates major appliance performance from A to G. This has driven consumers away from
inefficient machines as they will generally try to buy A rated appliances. For example a "Triple
A" (AAA) rated machine = Lowest Energy Consumption, Best Wash and Best Water Extraction
(Spin) performance.

It should also be noted that while 10% of European washing machines may be top loading
they are not of the same design as North American machines. Rather than washing the clothes
with an agitator, they also use a horizontally mounted drum. The clothes are loaded through a
hatch in the drum wall. Their design is mechanically identical to that of a front loader. These
machines are particularly popular for small apartments as they take up less floor space than a
conventional front loader and for historical marketing reasons are more popular in certain EU
countries. For example they are quite commonly found in French houses while they're practically
unheard of in the UK and Republic of Ireland.

Coming on to the Indian context, it is seen that still today people prefer the Semi Automatic vis-
à-vis the fully automatic. The semi automatic comprises 76.4 per cent of the market with fully
automatic category comprising the rest. The main reason for the Semi Automatic being preferred
over fully automatic is the price sensitive Indian consumer as the former is in the range of Rs
5000-8000, whereas the latter comes in the range of Rs 12,000-26,000.

Another reason for the lack of popularity of the washing machine in India is the lack of
infrastructure in terms of scarcity of water (in some cities, water pressure is less than adequate)
as free flow of tap water is needed for smooth operation of a washing machine. Also, availability
of cheap labor has restricted growth.

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Dr. S.Ramesh Kumar is a professor at the Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore, India.
He had studied about the Adapting IMC to Emerging Markets: Importance of Cultural
Values in the Indian Context, in which he talks about “the mental programming of people in an
environment.” He expressed culture as a combination of symbols, heroes, rituals and values. This
combination of factors is useful in evaluating cross-cultural messaging. As an emerging
economy, with per capita incomes only seven percent of those in emerged economies, India’s
complex cultural and geographic factors challenge the integrated marketing communications
(IMC) framework. India reflects its cultural diversity in its twenty-seven states and emerging
subcultures. Young, upwardly-mobile Indians, those under 21 years -old, comprise 40 percent of
India’s consumer base. The explosion of mass media and the aspirations of young consumers
operate against the backdrop of strong traditional cultures.

Advertisements have shown great innovation in communicating brand messaging within


traditional and contemporary cultural dimensions. In addition to cultural overtones finding a
place in advertising, some product categories are culturally oriented. Advertising messages
within such product categories require cultural and customer-centric considerations. As the
following analysis of mainstream advertising campaigns will demonstrate, IMC messaging must
carefully negotiate the role of tradition and modernity in brand messages.

Promotional Strategy Of Different Companies

Samsung

Samsung launches road shows

Samsung India Electronics Ltd. has launched "Samsung Dream Home" road shows. Aimed at
increasing the awareness and penetration of its brand especially in smaller cities, the road show
will cover 8-10 cities across India. The company has earmarked Rs. 60 lakh for the promotion.

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The road show was launched as test cases in Mangalore. The company claims that a pre and post
Mangalore road show survey showed that Samsung's unaided brand awareness increased to 40
per cent from 9 per cent in mid 2003. In addition, the total awareness of the brand increased to
82 per cent, up from 47 per cent in awareness level in mid 2003. The road shows, held at hotels,
are supported by local level advertising. In addition to the Samsung Dream Home exhibitions,
the company will continue with its mobile vans in the rural areas, which carry all Samsung
products.

Samsung India Electronics Ltd., launched a mega promotion for the forthcoming Soccer event,
called ‘Samsung Dabaake Jeeto Offer.

During its duration, every Samsung washing machine product purchased by a customer entitles
him/her to a gift from Samsung. This Promotion has gifts worth Rs.10 Crores for the customer
and the Dream Prizes for customers include Samsung Digital Flat TVs, Frost-free refrigerators,
Microwave Ovens, Mobile Phones, Cameras.

Apart from this the company also has gone on line but has not limited its activities to the mere
creation of a website, but has instead used it a business facilitator. At a time when most
companies in India are still skeptical about using the internet, and those that have, Samsung India
Electronics Limited (SIEL), the consumer electronics major, has been one of the trendsetters in
this space. Within a short time span of three years since commencement of operations in 1995,
the company established its presence on the Web and has gone from strength to strength to
establish itself as an e-enterprise.

LG

LG has started a campaign named bash to celebrate the achievement of being a leader in the
Indian market for the last 10 years. The company has also used this campaign as an opportunity
to express its appreciation towards the Indian consumer for making the LG brand an
overwhelming success in the country.

22
With the coming of the festive season it brings a lot of offers into the market and LG is always a
brand giving many value added offers to the customers. The main objective is to encourage
customers to switch to new generation products to enhance the sales of the company.

During this time the consumers can win various attractive gifts ranging from a Flatron
Television, Semi Automatic Washing Machine, Frost Free Refrigerator, Window AC with
remote, Microwave Oven, Home Theatre Audio System, PC, Branded T Shirts, Bags and
Emergency Lights. Over and above this, there are some bumper prizes worth Rs 1 lakh, each
which would include a basket of all LG products called "LG Healthy Home Jackpot".

The promotion involves a mega budget of over Rs 60 crore, which includes spends on the print
and electronic media, below the line activities and the gifts.

www.lgindia.com is a platform for interacting with consumers, www.lgezbuy.com is an online


mall. LG’s online business has accounted for 20% of turnover last year and expected to rise to
30% in the next two years. The LG mall has tied up with Citibank to create the secure payment
mechanism where the customer can key in his credit card details. Payment can be 100% in
advance or 10% in advance and the rest on delivery. Once verified, LG gives the go-ahead to its
dealer while sending a confirmatory e-mail to the customer. The customer can also check the
status of his order through the site. Financing options are also available through an online tie-up
with GE Countrywide.

Videocon

Videocon International Ltd., India’s largest consumer durables company has launched several
promotional strategies like “Diwali Phataka- Ek Mein Char Ka Dhamaka”. A offer that gives its
customers assured gifts, exchange offer, extended warranty and 0% finance.

The first offer entitles the customer to two scratches. On the first scratch the customer stands to
win attractive prizes- from upto 5 Kgs of gold, 0.8 ton AC, a projection TV and other exciting

23
prizes. The second scratch gives to 50% off on the next purchase. The promotion gives the best
of offers and ushers in the festive season in its fullest glory. There is an extensive marketing and
advertising campaign supporting the same.

During the last festival season, the company had targeted sales of Rs 325 crores. Videocon has
upped its advertisement budget from 80 crores to 140 crores last financial year. From the Khel
Ke Dekho to the recently conducted Bada Hai Toh Behtar Hai campaign, the company has
carried out some very unique promotions throughout the year.

Videocon presents Diwali Bonanza in summers


The season witnessed a flurry of activity in the form of a lot of attractive consumer promotion
schemes. Videocon’s Khel Ke Dekho was a lucrative customer offer that entitled the buyer to
loads of freebies. However, as the excitement in a match never dies down, so is never dull, the
enthusiasm in the market place, be it blazing summers.

Videocon presents Garmi Mein Diwali Offer. The summer throws up a range of surprises for that
avid buyer who is looking towards attractive exchange prices, finance options and free gifts.

• Special Exchange price

• Free gifts

• 0% Interest

• 3 years warranty
Garmi mein Diwali scheme has been supported by an extensive advertising campaign and the
scheme has received a good response from the customers. One of its kinds, the scheme, makes
available to them even in the hot summers the boons of celebrating Diwali with Videocon.

IFB
For IFB it is always “Customer First”- from producing the finest Washing Machine in the
country, building the most reliable color TV to extending the most comprehensive
nationwide customer service support. They have a passion for believing in the best for its
customers.

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In line with this commitment of “Customer First”, IFB have ‘Flash Service’ - A special customer
support programme that will ensure 1 hour/100* minutes service to its customers in the major
cities to provide IBF customers uninterrupted usage with their washing machines.

CHAPTER III

PROBLEM STATEMENT

The study is on “Integrated Marketing Communication- “The effect on Consumer Behavior

w.r.t Washing Machine Industry”. It covers aspects like market share of the competitors,

25
buying attributes of customers, preference of the customers etc. The study is an effort at

understanding the consumer’s attitude about washing machines and their manufacturers.

The most intriguing and interesting aspect behind the selection of this research proposal is that

washing machine by its very nature is a product which is useful but has little differentiation

between different brands. Apart from this it generally lies in the bathroom of a household and

does not have that aspirational factor as associated with a music system or a TV. Therefore it is

even more difficult for companies to chalk out strategies to connect with the customers. Thus I

found this characteristic of washing machines very intriguing and therefore I decided to take up

this research proposal.

Research simply means a search for facts-answers to questions and solution to problems. It is a

purposive investigation. It is an organized enquiry. In other words research means search for

knowledge and research methodology is a way systematically solve the research problems. It is a

science of studying how the search is actually done. It presents the source of data collection, the

sampling procedures and tools of investigation and limitation of the study.

My research project has a specified framework for collecting the data in an effective manner.

Such framework is called “research design”.

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CHAPTER IV

METHODOLOGY

It includes following steps-

Defining the research problem & research objective:

The definition of the research problem includes the study of the topic “Integrated Marketing
Communication- The effect on Consumer Behavior w.r.t Washing Machine Industry.”

The research design:

In order to accomplish my objectives,

• To study and analyze the effect of the IMC tools on consumer behavior

• To study the consumer’s understanding of the different IMC tools used by the companies.

• To analyze the different strategies of IMC used by companies in the washing machine

industry.

It was necessary to do a Descriptive Research study as it is typically concerned with

determining the frequency with which something occurs or the relationship between two

variables.

The descriptive study is typically guided by an initial hypothesis. It is used when in order to

estimate the proportion of people who behaved in a certain way. As the project deals with the

effect of IMC on consumer behavior this research design was taken.

27
Data collection methods:

The researcher can gather primary data, secondary data or both. Primary data are data freshly

gathered for specific purpose or for a specific research project. Secondary are data that were

collected for another purpose and already exist somewhere.

In this research project, the results are based on both the secondary as well as the primary data. The tool used

for collecting the data is Questionnaire. The questionnaire used for the research has both, the open ended as well as

the close ended questions. Both the questions were included in the questionnaire so as to get more precise and up to

date response of the respondents. The questionnaire was administered in person. The main reason for going by

personal is that one get quality as well as up to an extent, unbiased answers. Another reason for going by personal is

to get good interaction with the respondent as well as to know the respective market.

The Secondary data was collected in order to utilize the already collected information which could be very useful

for the preparation of the report. It was collected through various magazines, publications, news papers and internet.

Sampling design for data collection:

After deciding the research plan and research instrument, the marketing researcher must design a

sampling plan. This calls for three decisions:

Sampling unit:

Who is to be surveyed? The market researcher must define the target population that will be sampled. As the project

deals in IMC’s effect it consumer behavior, the target population is the washing machine consumers.

28
Sampling procedure:

How should the respondents be chosen?

To obtain a representative sample, a sample plan of the population should be drawn. The plan

taken for this project is Nonprobability Sample plan. All nonprobability samples rely on

personal judgment somewhere in the process, and although these judgment samples may indeed

yield good estimates of population characteristics, they do not permit an evaluation of the

adequacy of the sample. It is only when the elements have been selected with known

probabilities that one can evaluate the precision of a sample result. From various nonprobability

sampling methods, the method used here is Judgmental Sampling. It is because the sample

elements are handpicked and it is expected that they can serve the research purpose. Typically, it

is believed that they are representative of the population of interest.

Under judgment sampling, the Snowball Sampling is used as one respondent identified the other

with the similar characteristics.

Samples can also be distinguished by whether they are fixed or sequential. In my research, the

sample size is dependent on the amount of the information required. Hence Sequential Sample

was chosen because it aims at answering the research question on the basis of accumulated

evidence. If the evidence is not conclusive after a small sample is taken, more observations are

made; if still inconclusive, a larger sample is drawn.

29
Sampling size:

How many people to be surveyed?

In a market research, large samples give more reliable results than small samples. But due to the

geographical and time limitations, the sample size of the survey is 200.

The respondents were mostly chosen from South Delhi and Noida.

Data collection and analysis:

The data collection phase is most important and most prone to errors. Data collection and

analysis involves editing, coding and tabulation. Due to a small sample size, editing and coding

is not required. The tabulation may take the form of simple tabulation or a cross-tabulation. In

the preparation of this report, simple tabulation is used.

The next to last step in the marketing research process is to extract findings from the collected

data. In order to analyze the data, different types of statistical techniques are used:

Statistical tools used:

♦ Tabulation of data & develops frequency distribution.

♦ Simple and complex tables are used.

♦ One dimensional diagrams are used e.g. bar diagrams.

♦ Two dimensional diagrams are used e.g. pie diagrams.

♦ Graphs are used.

♦ Sampling methods are used.

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Limitations of the study:

Every person tries to do the work in the best possible way, but yet he/she faces certain

difficulties. Although proper care was taken to present the report in the best possible way, but

still the difficulties which was faced are as follows—

a) Area of survey was conducted in specific regions of DELHI and NCR only.

b) Time and other factors, which are beyond human limitation, have also a bearing on the study.

c) Sample size taken for the study is not adequate to represent the whole population.

d) No past information was available on impact of sales promotion activities on things such as

brand building and sales increase so no comparison could be made or any significant change

determined.

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CHAPTER V
RESULTS & DISCUSSIONS

AGE

20 14

43 15 -25 yrs
26-35 yrs
36-45 yrs
Above 45 yrs

123

Most of the respondents interviewed were between the age group of 26-35 years as these were
the people most likely to have bought a new washing machine in the recent past.

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1) Which is the brand that comes to your mind if someone says Washing Machine?

70
63
60

50 49
Whirlpool
40 LG
32 33 Samsung
30
Videocon
20 BPL

10 12 11 IFB

0
1
Whirlpool LG Samsung Videocon BPL IFB

FINDINGS
LG enjoys the highest awareness in the mind of the customers followed by Samsung and
Whirlpool. Spontaneously, the highest response was for LG again as a brand, respondents were
aware of. The highest Top of the Mind share is again enjoyed by LG in the minds of all the
respondents interviewed.

33
2) Which Brand of washing machine you have?

76
80
70
60 Whirlpool
LG
50
37 Samsung
40 33
27 Videocon
30 BPL
18
20 9 IFB
10

0
1

Findings

As seen here out of the 200 respondents 76 of them have LG washing machines closely followed
by whirlpool and Samsung.

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3) What were the reasons which made you to buy washing machine?

33% 31% Comfort of Family members


Can afford one now
Good discounts/schemes
Good cleaning
3% Save time and cost
6%
27%

Findings

On being asked the most important reason for buying the washing machine, most of the
respondents said that comfort and convenience, time and cost savings and good cleaning as the
primary reasons behind buying the washing machine. Apart from this buying decision depends
upon the disposable income level of the customer.

35
4) Which of the promotional activities you have encountered or you know the companies
have employed?

5%
7%
2% Adv. by Electronic media
7% 38% Adv. By Print media
Sales Promotion
Direct Marketing
16% Internet Marketing
Publicity and Public relation
Personal selling

25%

Findings

It was found that the electronic media consisting of TV, radio etc is the most known and seen
media of communication as almost 38% people have seen advertisements of washing machine in
these media. Other forms such as newspaper ads or different sales promotion schemes like
discounts and exchange offers are also known to the respondents but in lesser amounts.

36
5) Does any of the promotional activity done by the company influence your buying
decision?

17%

Yes
No

83%

Findings

On being asked whether the promotional activity done by the company influence the buying
decision as many as 83% of the respondents answered in the affirmative. This shows that the
people are getting influenced by the ads and promotional activities of the companies and that the
IMC of the companies is indeed affecting the consumer behavior.

37
6) Which tool of Advertisement influenced you the most?

7% 4%
TV
7%
34% Radio
Internet
Newspaper
Magazines
29% Window Display
15% Billboards
4%

Findings

The respondents stated that TV, newspapers and Magazines were the most influential tool of
advertisement. As many as 34% of the customers were influenced by TV and radio commercials.
The ads in news paper and magazines got the second and third highest responses. Therefore one
can safely assume that these three are the most effective medium of advertising to reach the
customers and therefore influence the consumer behavior.

38
7) Which is the most influential tool of Sales Promotion?

10%
3%
6%
37% Discounts
Free Gifts
Exchange offers
POP materials
Schemes(Scratch card)

44%

Free gifts and discounts were the most influential tools of sales promotion as most of the
respondents have stated. As many as 44% of the respondents have voted for free gifts for the
reason for their purchase and 37% have voted for discounts. These two tools of sales promotion
are the main source of influencing the consumers.

39
8) Which of these promotional elements influenced you the most?

Findings

It is found that advertising is the most effective means of reaching the masse and sales promotion
and personal selling come close second and third in the survey. This shows that traditional media
still plays a very important part in the spread of a message in the washing machine industry.

40
9) What information is asked most frequently by the customers?

When customers go to the dealers the most important consideration of them before purchasing a
product is the brand then comes features and so on. Therefore the brand image is the most
important attribute and the companies must give proper attention to building good brand image.

41
CHAPTER VI
SUGGESTIONS & CONCLUSION

• A better media planning is required for telecasting advertisements of washing machine as


most of the intending buyers do hardly recognize the branded press ad still and the TV ad
still.
• Respondents are also found to register contents regarding clean and healthy in the
advertisements. Hence, some focus on this regard is also necessary to boost the ad saliency.
• Also the communication strategy needs to be revised. Whatever respondents register while
visualizing the ads should be analyzed and the future communication strategy should be
formulated on those lines.
• Taking the example of Whirlpool which rates first both in TOM and spont recall of brand and
ads seen can be attributed to the fact that they have used only one model over the years,
making both the model and the brand synonym with each other. No other brand in the
washing machine industry has done the same and that’s why they lag way behind.
• Price being the first thing asked, should be told proactively along with all the
features/functions available so as to present the whole thing in a cost benefit analysis in Case
of washing machine.
• In this era where customer is the king Whirlpool’s After sales service if found to be lacking
Though in some geographical areas depending upon the service agency the service provided
is good but still there is no uniformity and this has resulted in dissatisfaction in customers
mind
• So Strict monitoring of the service agencies and setting and implementing of new standards
has to take place.
• Proper technical training has to be provided to service people.
• The marketing strategy should be formulated in such a manner that fully automatic machine
is projected no more the luxury product but the necessity.
• Company should come up with some innovative financing scheme to attract the potential
customers.

42
• Though all the major players have set up sites for information, after sales service and selling
of washing machines hardly 2-3% of respondents were aware of this fact.
• So the companies need to adopt strategies like sending personalised mails and promoting
their web sites through various events they are sponsoring.
• Most of the present owners are not happy with the availability of POP material. Even during
the course of survey on visiting the retailers, it was found that POP material like brouchers
etc are not easily available .This is one point of concern for all the leading companies as they
provide all the POP material but the customers are not able to get it just because of the
retailers/dealers .

• As we have seen that today more and more people are looking out for good financing
opportunities when they are going out tot buy washing machine, This area is provides a big
opportunity for the different players in the fray to attract customers with easy and affordable
finance as people are also on lookout for the loans and if they get it under one roof this would
make it very convenient for the people..
• As getting a financing through bank or agency can be a bit cumbersome companies like
Whirlpool have taken a lead in provided zero % interest rate, option.
• Thus if customer get all the things under one roof, they might prefer the brand and this would
surely boost the sales of the particular brand.
• A good margin and motivation should be provided to the dealers for pushing the washing
machine to the customers.
• Free gifts and discounts were the most influential tools of sales promotion as most of the
respondents have stated. As many as 44% of the respondents have voted for free gifts for the
reason for their purchase and 37% have voted for discounts. These two tools of sales
promotion are the main source of influencing the consumers.
• The respondents stated that TV, newspapers and Magazines were the most influential tool of
advertisement. Therefore one can safely assume that these three are the most effective
medium of advertising to reach the customers and therefore influence the consumer behavior.

43
Scope For Further Research

The project couldn’t cover the buying decision of customers properly in terms of the people
consulted before purchasing the washing machine. Also if the respondent had anything on his/her
mind before he/she visited the shop floor and if the final brand purchased was different from
his/her consideration set. Now if there was a change in the brand purchased with respect to
consideration set was it due to sales promotion activities, dealer’s recommendation or something
else. This could be further researched.

The owners of washing machine interviewed were not segregated into category such as owners
of washing machine bought in the year 19xx,this way the difference in importance given to sales
promotional activities and satisfaction level with after sales service could have been
determined .the satisfaction level with after sales service level would have given a platform to
determine the importance companies have given to this department to attract customers over the
last few years particularly with increase in competition and saturation of the market.

44
REFRENCES

Books

• Belch, George , Belch,Michael,advertising and promotion-An IMC Perspective, fourth


edition,1998,Irwin McGraw Hill
• Kotler Philip,” Marketing Management”,Millinieum edition, Prentice Hall of India
Pvt.Ltd.
• Neelamegham (1987),”Marketing In India”,1999 edition,Vikas Publishing House.
• Rosesiter John, Percy Larry,” advertising and promotion management”,1999,McGraw
Hill Book Company
• Shimp Terence,” Advertising ,Promotion and supplemental Aspects of Marketing
Communication”, fourth edition,1999,The Dryden Press
• Stanton William, “fundamental of Mraketing”1997,McGraw Hill
Articles
• Bhandari Bupesh,”LG pumps up the volume”, Business world,6 march 2000,pp 30-33
• Depressing times for washing machines' ,Richa Mishra , May 20 ,Business line

• Erosion in price washes sheen off washing machines Neha Kaushik, august
28,2003,business line

• Krishanmurthy Narayan,” M enjoying it”, &M, 15 march 2000,pp 144-146

• Suresh K.,”Millinieum Push”, A&M, 31 January 2000,pp122

• Will washing machines spin magic this monsoon? Richa Mishra, Business line

Web Sites
1. www.hindu.com
2. www.lgindia.com
3. www.whirlpoolindia.com
4. www.agencyfaqs.com
5. www.marketingtutor.com
6. www.samsung.com

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