Business Std Manoj

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SUMMER INTERNSHIP PROJECT

On

Consumer perception on Financial Dailies

AT

Submitted to

NARMADA COLLEGE OF MANAGEMENT

Affiliated to

GUJARAT TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY, AHMEDABAD

In partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISRTRATION

Under the guidance of

MR. SUBHASH YADAV, MR. KUNAL PANCHAL

Lecture, MBA Program PROJECT GUIDE

NCM

SUBMITTED BY:

MANOJ CHAUHAN

ROLL NO: 906

Narmada College of Management

Zadeshwar


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DECLARATION

I, Manoj H Chauhan, here by declare that report on summer training entitledconsumer perception on financial dailies is a result of my own work and

indebtedness to work publications, if any have been duly acknowledged.

Place: Bharuch SIGN: Manoj Chauhan

Date :


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PREFACE

Summer project is part of academic requirement incorporated in the curriculum of

MBA Program. This exercise enables to get practical exposure to realities ofcorporate world I action and practice. A great knowledge comes from better book

education and a good experience. Keeping this in mind, the Narmada College of

Mgmt has introduced a summer training program, and thus I got a truly rewarding

chance to get best feel and experience of the real world economic environment I

the best possible manner.

For this practical training , I had undergone a research project on CONSUMER

PERCEPTION ON FINANCIAL DAILIES. During the training period I had

studied how attitude of consumer perception regarding financial newspaper and

how they feel and what they want in daily financial newspaper. I have also get to

know how it can be measured. During my project I came to know different aspect

of people perception on financial newspaper and their awareness


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Acknowledgements

Conducting the project can never be the work of any one person and thus included thecooperation of each and every individual who was directly or indirectly involved with the

project, so here I would like to thank each and every one of them

I would first and foremost like to thank Mr. KUNAL PANCHAL(project guide) for all

this support throughout the training period. Without his cooperation the project could nothave been possible . along with him I would like to give forward my thanks to

Mr.Panchal who always has been a source of inspiration . along with them I would like to

express my thanks to all the members of the business standard family.

Beside the office , I would like to thank my faculty member and guide Mr. SUBHASHYADAY-for his encouragement . The other faculty members were also a helping hand in

the course of training. I would like all the staff members for their support and care in theirefforts towards the summer training and the project.


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Table of content

1

Sr. No Title Pg. No

I Title page

II Certificate of organization

III Declaration

IV Preface

V Acknowledgement

I EXECUTIVE SUMMERY 1

1 PART A: ORGANIZSATIONAL PROFILE

1.1 Organization History 31.2 Way of BS(how it reaches to customer) 6

1.3 Size of the organization 101.4 Vision and Mission 19

2 Part B: REPORT ON PROJECT WORK

2.1 Introduction 20Literature review 21Nature of problem 24

Expected benefit 25

2.2 Methodology 26

2.3 Exploration of Alternative 38

2.4 Conclusion 393 PART C : LEARNING FROM THE SUMMER

TRAINNING

3.1 Application of concept 403.2 New skills acquired 423.3 Augmentation of soft skills 443.4 Bibliography 473.5 References 483.6 Annexure 49


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Executive summary:

Business Standard is the countrys most respected business daily, being the first

serious business reader. The newspaper has a print-run of over 1,32,000 copies

published form 12 prime location namely Ahmadabad, Bangalore, Bhubaneswar,Chandigarh, Hyderabad, kolkakta, kochi, lucknow, Mumbai, new Delhi, and pune.

The newspaper believes in free, fair and independent journalism and strives to include

values in its editorial staff. The journalism practiced by business standard lays onquality, credibility and accuracy. The financial times of London has taken as best in

consideration

Business Standard has the countrys best economic journalism and columnists . it isedited by T.N Ninan, perhaps Indias best known business journalist, undertaken a

complete and highly successful revamp of the economic time .

business standards stable of specialist contributors includes some of the economicsand business.

As a summer trainee I have worked in the market development department. My

project was Consumer Perception on financial Dailies. I had a favor of many

practicalities of marketing form personal selling to institutional selling. I have learntmany strategies of the field. We at Business Standard adopted gorilla war strategy for

personal selling.

I could achieve the given monthly target in the first half of every month. Howeverthis performance increased the higher authorities expectation from me, which

motivated me to work harder, I learnt many soft skills like the team work, sharing andcaring, personal relations etc.


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OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:-

1. To learn different marketing techniques.

We have learnt different marketing techniques in our study of the subject but now those

are applied in the practical scenario.

2. To learn the scratch work of hard core personal selling

This is indeed a necessary task to be done. What we read and what we get is somethingvery different . reading the subject and applying the same are completely different aspect.

When you meet the actual customer the process of communication becomes totally

different

3. strategy making in actual competitive market

To strategize, you need to know your external environment and for this purpose the

practical experience in such a renowned firm will be helpful. Thus we will be able to

strategize the cases then later on the real life situation more creatively.

4. To apply the theoretical knowledge in to the practice

Giving a practical approach to any problem has been a difficult task. We as student quietoften neglect the basic realities of the real world. This training will provide us with the

best knowledge to overcome these shortcomings.


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1. Organizational History:-

THE PRINT MEDIA;

The modern advertising techniques make use of many ways to convey messages to the

consumers. Print media however, is one of the oldest forms of advertising method. Print

media also remains to be one of the most popular forms of advertising because it canreach a wider target audience. There are various different types of print media, which

help advertisers to target a particular segment of people. Heres a quick look at some of

the various types of print media.

Types of Print Media:

Newspapers:

Newspapers are the most popular forms of print media. The advertiser in this case can

choose from a daily newspaper to a weekly tabloid. Different types of newspaper cater tovarious audiences and one can select the particular category accordingly. Advertisers then

design press advertisements where in the size is decided as per the budget of the client.

Magazines:

Magazines also offer advertisers an opportunity to incorporate various new techniquesand ideas. Magazines are one such form of print media that give a more specific target

group to the client. The client can make a choice of the particular magazine as per the

product.

Newsletters:


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Newsletters also form an important part of print media. These target a specific group ofaudience and give information on the product.

Brochures:

Brochures give detailed information about the product. These are mainly distributed at

events or even at the main outlet when a consumer needs to read in detail about the

product.

Posters:

Posters are forms of outdoor advertising. The message in a poster has to be brief and eyecatching as it targets a person on the move.

Apart from these media, direct mail marketing, flyers, handbills/leaflets, banner

advertising, billboard advertising, press releases etc are all the various types of print

media.

The Business Standard:-

Businessstandard.com is the online property of Business Standard Ltd (BSL), publisher

of Indias leading business daily, Business Standard. The website attracts 1.5 millionunique visitors every month, the highest such number for any stand-alone business

newspaper website in India.

The daily newspaper Business Standard (also available as an e-paper) is the preferredchoice of serious business readers. It is published from 12 centers - Mumbai, New Delhi,

Kolkata, Bangalore, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Luck now, Pune,

Kochi and Bhubaneswar.

A Hindi Business Standard is published from seven centers across northern India:Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Patna, Lucknow, Bhopal and Chandigarh. Its content can be

accessed at bshindi.com.

Business Standard stands for reporting that stresses accuracy and credibility, comment

that is informed, independent and fair, and journalism that is rooted in ethical conductand defined by a sacrosanct bond with the reader. All Business Standard journalists sign

on to a code of conduct that is available on this website.


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Business Standard has a 200-person editorial team that is led by Sanjaya Baru, and

includes well-known journalists like AK Bhattacharya, Sunil Jain and ShyamalMajumdar.

Business Standards stable of specialist contributors includes some of the sharpest minds

writing on economics and business. Among them: Bimal Jalan, former governor of the

Reserve Bank of India; Shankar Acharya, former chief economic advisor, Government ofIndia; Deepak Lal, professor of economics, UCLA; Suman Bery, director-general,

National Council of Applied Economic Research; Abheek Barua, chief economist of

HDFC Bank; Nitin Desai, former chief economic advisor and former under-secretary

general at the United Nations; Surjit Bhalla, chairman of Oxus; Arvind Subramanian,professor at the Peterson Institute of International Economics; M. Govinda Rao, director

of National Institute of Public Finance and Policy; AV Rajwade, well-known foreign

exchange consultant; and Arvind Singhal, chairman, Technopak.

It offers syndicated columns from Martin Feldstein and Dani Rodrick, and content from

Breakingviews.com--with exclusivity in the Indian market.

In addition to two newspapers, BSL publishes two monthly magazines (Indian

Management and Business Standard Motoring), as well as a quarterly (AsianManagement Review). The company also has a books division, which publishes books

under the BS Books imprint.

BSLs website properties include bshindi.com, bsmotoring.com, and smartinvestor.in.

This last is a dedicated information-cum-trading site for investors.

BSL is majority-owned by the Kotak Mahindra Group, but is run independently through aboard of directors, with TN Ninan (a former editor of the newspaper and perhaps Indias

best known business journalist) as chairman and editorial director.


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2.Way of BS(how it reaches to customers)

Raw Material

Printing

Press

AhmedabadBharuchVadodraAnandNadiad

Vendors

Agent inEach city

Bookstall

Hawker

Customer


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: Analysis of the competitors:

The Economic Times

Day Main

newspaper

Supplement Other

supplements

Price

Monday 26 Investor guide 6 pages

international

3.5

Tuesday 20 - High flyer 3

Wednesday 28 Brand equity International 3.5

Thursday 20 Zig wheel International 3

Friday 26 - International 3

Saturday 16 - International 3.5

Sunday 12 - - 10

Edition:10

Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai , Hyderabad, kochi, kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, new

Delhi, Pune.

Key strengths

It is by strong support of Bennett Coleman group

It is leader of the market since decades.

The new issue of ET Gujarati at a very low price

Lacking attributes

Guidelines for reading stock news is unclear

The BSE codes are missing which makes it difficult to read company details


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Financial Express

Day Main newspaper Supplement Price

Monday 12 - 4

Tuesday 16 - 4Wednesday 10-16 4

Thursday 12 4

Friday 12-14 4

Saturday 10 - 6

Sunday 14-32 - 8

Edition -10(paper published form 10 cities)

Banglore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Hyderabad, kodchi ,kolkata, lucknow, Mumbai, New

Delhi , Pune

Key strength

It is backed by the Indian express Group

The news provided is very sequentially arranged

The number of advertisements is les in number and they are subject related ads.

The newspaper provides with the maximum number of supplements

The better part of the newspaper is that they provide a special supplementary for

the advertisement.

Negative shades

The price of the newspaper is very high

The first page covers the general news through the newspaper being a finical one.


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Business line

Day Main newspaper Supplement Price

Monday 18 e-world 4

Tuesday 20 4Wednesday 20 4

Thursday 18 Brand line 4

Friday 24 life 4

Saturday 20 4

Sunday 14 4

No of edition-14

Bangle, Chennai, Coimbatore, Delhi, Hyderabad, cochin, kolkata, Madurai, Mangalore,

Mumbai, Thirvanthpuram, Tiruchpalli, vijayvada,Vishakhapatnam.

Key strengths

It is backed by the Hindu group

It is published from 14 prime location

The advertisement is not general and relevant to financial institutions.

The price of the new newspaper is cheapest on Sunday as compared to otherEnglish financial dailies.

Negative shades

The newspaper is being delivered late in the morning i.e. after 12

The language of the newspaper is tough which makes people hesitant to subscribe

to it.

The presentation of the newspaper is not very attractive and the color of the paperis white as compared to other financial newspaper which are pink in color.

The newspaper of the newspaper is limited to a few areas nationwide.


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3. Size of the organization

Department Details

Editorial

Scheduling

Market

Developmen

t

Dispatc

h

Productio

n

Department

s

Syste

m

SPACE

MKTG


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The company covers the complete length and breadths of the nation. With the help of

over 250 full time journalist, analyst and writers the newspaper tries to cover the

nation. The Ahmadabad office has at present 23 employees spread across 7department named;

1)Space marketing department:

it is the oxygen of the publication as this is the only revenue generating , all the

expenses are covered from this department only. The actual cost of the newspaper is

15/- but the company charges rs3- on weekdays and Rs. 6/- on weekend because therevenue generated from this department. The department collects and markets the

advertisement from the corporate clients which indirectly add value to businessstandard. The pages predefined for various types of advertisement .the commission

of these agencies is 15%

Live edition: this means that the edition printed in the city from where it is published

New edition: this mean that edition is not printed in the same city


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Types of advertisement.

Display: these ads are also called supportive ads as they provide support to thefinancial ads. It consist of launching of new products and services which are

displayed in the ads they are basically cooperate ads. It consist of B2B, B2C

and classified

Tender: it is the offer made by the government private and public sector

companies

Feature: this is generally a special edition printed especially for the clients as a

supplement to the newspaper. Generally sponsored section is written on thetop right corner of the page as the material is given by the client . it is a

specialized and well focused category. Sometimes advertorial section whichmean that along with the advertisement an editorial article such article are also

paid article

Compulsion advertisements: this advertisement are compulsory to give for the

corporate by the government. They have to give these ads without any

options.

Financial advertisement: the financial ads of the company like balance sheet,

financial declared result, audited and un audited data etc. has to be published

in the newspaper. they provide with more than 50% of the revenue of the

business standard and also published different kind of IPOs.


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EDITORIAL DEPARTMENT:

The proverb attached with the company is that it is an editorial driven paper, so the role

of this department is very vital. The decision o publishing any news is taken by the

editorial department.

The department collects news from various sources and then sends it to Mumbai or Delhi

for the adjustment in the different pages. After allocating space for the advertisement, thedepartment adjusts the space for the articles.

SCHEDULING DEPATMENT:

This department is responsible for the layout of the newspaper. The main function of the

department is scheduling of the page. i.e. to adjust the advertisement and the editorials.

The newspaper tries to limit the advertisement to the minimum of 40% and rest of 60% is

the edit part. The department books the ads and then intimates to the concerned locationas soon as the booking is done so that the same space is not booked for the two ads. Once

the ad position is made it goes to Delhi, Bombay, and Bangalore. These each centrereceive tentative ad dummy from Delhi.

Before printing any news or advertisement the department takes a printout of the layout

of the actual paper on A-4 size paper which is called tentative ad dummy. Once thedummy is ready no edit matter can be filled in that. The page is then forwarded to

production department. In case the advertisement gets cancelled then the filler ads are

printed for which the permission in taken form the head. In such cases the organizationutilizes the space but the revenue are lost. Space marketing department tries to minimize

this loss by getting some other advertisements.

The software used by the department for this purpose is Quark Express and FlightCheck. The data is taken as PDF file and ESP format. If any format goes out of this

range, the software shows the error. While formatting they have to leave a space of 0.5

above and below in the newspaper which is called data line and print line respectively.


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SYSTEM DEPARTMENT

along with his team of members. This department is responsible for the

communication networks as well as all technical problems. All the twelve branchesare linked with V-SAT and with the dedicated lease line along with the head office.

The cost of V-SAT is about 1lakh per annum. The department is also responsible for

connecting all the telephone line with EPBAX system. It also connects all thebranches with the head office which is called Hot line . this all helps in reducing the

cost of the company.

The Ahmedabad branch receives a Facsimile copy of newspaper everyday and takes

the printout on a butter paper. This is further forward to the production department.

MARKET DEVELOPMENT DEPART MENT

This department is responsible for the circulation of the newspaper in the wholeregion and is thus known as the circulation department. This department covers over

40 routes for its is regular supply. The department also looks after the daily back

room operations which include giving the print orders for the regular supply ofsubscription, complementary and sponsored copies. They also check the regularity of

dispatch and payment received for the month.

The other function of the newspaper also include the promotion of the newspaper to

the readers. They identify the need of the customer. i.e the quality and price

demanded by the customers. In this industry this strategy is very important as theselling price of the newspaper is always less than its cost of production. The main

reason for this type of pricing is to create awareness and generate reading behavior

amongst the audience of the newspaper.


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PRODUCTION DEPARTMENT

The butter copy received from the system department is framed on the aluminumplate. This plate is then fixed to the printing machine and as per the orders the

printing starts. The machine used for printing is known Film Processor which is

costing 2.5 Lakh. The machine is divided into four different units which are:-

1. Developer Unit2. Fixed Unit

3. Wash Unit

4. Dryer Unit

The department usually uses four color for the hard copy which are Black, Yellow ,Cyan

and Magenta. Some colors are used at the time of printing of the newspaper in the press.The raw material for this department is aluminum plate and paper. The print comes in the

form of a reel which cost Rs. 10000 per reel.

DISPATCH DEPARTMENT

This department is responsible for the regular dispatch of the right number of copies

at the right time to the right people. The department has to generate rush mail and put

it on the parcel. Rush mail shows the number of copies in the parcel and itsdestination address. Along with the rush mail, route control statement is also three for

Taxi drivers which shows the number of parcels for each and every destination that

comes under his route. The company is in annual contract with the taxi drivers for thepurpose of delivery at the up country.

RUSH MAIL:It is a label which is stuck on the newspaper packets for identification of thedestination of the packets. It performs the same function as the address does on a

letter.


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ROUTE CONTROL

It is the summary of the dispatch control statement and it represents the total dispatch

scenario. It provides route wise totals with the name of the routes and its furtherbifurcation into indent,(paid copies), complementary, Ad hoc and total copies on that

route. There is grand total with a bifurcation on the same basis as mentioned. The route

control statement total is in effect the print order for the next day.

DISPATCH AT NIGHT

As per the requirement stated on the print order, the instruction are given to the press andrequired copies are printed. The upcountry edition is printed first as the set of labels

arranged according to the order of dispatch . based on the timing of each of the challengedispatch supervisor prepared a report which is called the night report. This report

mention the e timing against each route. The report also mentions along with the reason

in the case of delay, any printing breaks, any short or extra copies and how the same haveaccounted for, shortages in supplements etc.

UNSOLD COPIES

Unsold copies are the copies which are supplied to the agents but not sold and returnedby the agent. The different publication follow different guidelines on unsold copies. Even

the acceptance and passing of credits differ form company to

company.


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BUSINESS PUBLICATION ALSONG WITH THE NEWS PAPER:

BS 1000

It is a detailed guide to Indias top 1000 companies which includes its industry wiseperformance and ranking. The issue of BS 1000 chronicles those depressing times,

providing a wealth of data on the impact of the slowdown on corporate, the deterioration

in their financials and how they coped with the crises. At he same time they also record

success stories through these were few and far between.

The magazine also contains the details of BS award . it also takes a peak in to the future

where new industries such a biotechnology , reaitilng and business process outsourcing

may change the face of India. In short BS provides the reader not only with a snapshot ofIndian corporate as it exists today. With all its strengths and liabilities, but also charts a

road map to its future.

FUND MANAGER

The magazine focuses of facts and figures on mutual fund. The business standard fund

manager magazine seeks to rank mutual fund schemes and also rate the best fundmanager for the year. It gives the risk and return rating of over 600 mutual funds. Along

with this provide information on new and fund offering and also the best fund pick.

BILLIONAIRE CLUB

It is the only magazine listing the Indian billionaires . it updates on who has climed up the

pole of success, who is sliding down and who have made it through the portal of this

super exclusive club and other essentials for determine where these people stand in the

economic packing order. It also brief us about the new members of the club, the ones whoare in queue and will be added in the club next month. It also lists the most t salaried

persons . the magazine give a snapshot of the changing trends of the economy.

BANKING ANNULY

It contain all the data related to the banks of the public and private sector. This

magazine talks about the bank valuation both undervalued and overvalued . it also

contain the list of the top bankers of the year and the innovations being brought thesedays.


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AUDIT BUREAU OF CIRCUALTIONS (ABC)Regulatory body of the industry

An investor while investing his money likes to know various facts and the peopleassociated with\ the company. The different facts and figured checked and certified by

any recognized body is very important in print media. The facts if certified by nay

recognized organization sets the standard of the company. Moreover the companies giveads in those newspaper only where in which their audience lies. For this purpose the ABC

certification plants an improvement role.

ABC is a non profit , self discipline voluntary organization consisting of publishers,advertisers and advertising agencies. It has done pioneering work in developing system to

verify the circulation data published by newspaper and periodicals.

ABC was founded In 1948 not as profit organist\action but to lay down a standard anduniform procedure by which a member publisher shall compute it s net paid circulation

figure. A charted accountant firm checks the circulation figure given by the ABC. Thesecharted accountant works in accordance with the rules and procedures set by the bureau.

The bureau issue the certificate every six months to those publisher whose circulationfigure which fulfill all the rules and regulation set by the ABC and duly certified by the

charted accounts

From a modest beginning it has grown to remarkable proportions. ABC's membership

today includes 411 Publishers of national and regional importance, 151 AdvertisingAgencies, 51 Advertisers & 20 New Agencies and Associations connected with print

media and advertising. It covers most of the major towns in India.

Facts and figures which are checked and certified by an independent body is a very

important tool in the hands of the advertising business community. The details of ABC

certified circulation figures are available online to all Members of the Bureauhttp://www.auditbureau.org) at no extra cost.

An Advertiser would like to know the facts and figures before investing his money in

advertising. An Advertiser ought to know how many people buy a publication and inwhich area. The ABC gives all these vital facts every six months. The ABC figures are

not the outcome of opinions, claims or guesswork, but they are the result of rigid, in

depth and impartial audits of paid circulations of member publications by independentand leading firms of Chartered Accountants working in accordance with the rules /

procedures prescribed by the Bureau.


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VISION AND MISSION

VISION

The company believes in providing information that creates wealth and thus enriches life.

MISSION

The company would become leader of the business daily in India by the distribution and

providing quality and service to our reader.


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Part B


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INTRODUCTION:-

My summer project with business standard ltd was of problem solving king in nature.Today the newspaper industry is in the boom however with that it has become very

competitive too. Today the whole industry scenario has faced revolutionary change.

Today not just routine dailies but also the business (Financial) newspaper also face thesame level of competition .

It was not easy to do survey and research about the organization and business standardnews paper, because the news paper market already have the good competitor specially in

financial newspaper, but we have to do field work and we have to understand consumer

perception about financial news paper , it gives you experience how to talk with people ,

how to handle situation and how to sell your product in the market where already

competitor has captured the market.


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Literature review

Improving Customer Perceived Value at the Liberty Program, Naples Italy : MBA-thesis

in marketing

University essay from Hgskolan i Gvle/Institutionen fr ekonomi

Author : Elinor Johnson [2008]

Keywords : segmentation;

Abstract : Aim: This study is based upon the premise that creating value is the

basis for all businesses (Grant, 2002; Day, 1990; Porter, 1996; Woodruff, 1997).

The research problem and ultimate purpose of the study is to determine how

customer perceived value can be improved at the Liberty Program, Naples Italy.

Aim: This study is based upon the premise that creating value is the basis for all

businesses (Grant, 2002; Day, 1990; Porter, 1996; Woodruff, 1997). The research

problem and ultimate purpose of the study is to determine how customer perceived valuecan be improved at the Liberty Program, Naples Italy. The objective is thus to identify

specific value and non-value contributing factors, identify commonalities within the

target audience and thereby make suggestions for short, medium and long-term

improvements. The long term goals of this study are to find and implement ways to boostprogram participation as well as satisfaction levels.

Method: The literature review examines the concepts of customer perceived value and

satisfaction, communication, relationship marketing and segmentation, thus laying thegrounds for a basic understanding of the subject matter. The empirical study is based onan extensive data collection process with data collected from over 200 customers in both

qualitative and quantitative form, achieved by a survey and customer interviews. The

goals and objectives of the study are accomplished by analyzing collected data andthereby identifying key customer characteristics and key drivers of value perception. A

service improvement plan is thereby constructed consisting of suggestions for

implementing a continuous improvement plan with short, medium and long term goals.

Result & Conclusions: The literature review concludes that customer value perceptionsare based upon a variety of factors and takes place both pre, during and post the

transaction. Including the customer in the integrated value-creating process is found to be

a critical element to success and in maintaining customer satisfaction and should thus bethe basis for marketing communication. Empirical research establishes that product

related issues have the highest impact on customer satisfaction at the Liberty Program,

Naples Italy, arguably because they are the core and thus expected service. A number ofshort term (quick) fixes are suggested to quickly respond to customer comments and thus


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increase trust and establish a sense of co-creation of value with the customers. Having

established the main demographics of the target audience, steps to develop more effectivecommunications are also presented.

Suggestions for future research: Future research should focus on exploring new channels

of communication to reach a young and increasingly technologically savvy target

audience. Cross-examination of other Liberty Programs could also present some usefulprogramming as well as marketing communications ideas.

Contribution of the thesis: Other military installations could benefit from this study as

various locations share the same (constantly rotating) customer base.

Buying Behavior: A Brief Literature Review

Introduction (all): Psychologists have long been interested in the topics of buying and

shopping behavior. Some major perspectives in psychology such as behaviorism and

cognitive have formulated different theories to explain buying motivation and behavior.The behaviorists stress the process of operant conditioning and individuals history of

reinforcement, while the cognitive approach puts its accent on individuals free will and

intentional, voluntary action. The views of these two perspectives can be examined interms of the nature of buying behavior and the process of choice.

Para. 2 With regard to the nature of buying behavior, the behaviorists consider it as aresponse to a reinforce. One of the famous behaviorist, Alhadeff (1982) represents buying

behavior as the outcome of the relative strengths of conflicting approach and escapebehaviors, each of which is determined by its own reinforces. Etc. On the other hand, the

cognitive perspective views buying behavior as more voluntary, rational and intentional

in nature rather than mere response to the environment. People buy what they want to buy

and their reasons for buying embrace "whatever consideration induced, inclined, weighedwith or decided them to buy" (Beck, 1975).

.

Para. 3: Based on their different conception about the nature of buying behavior, the

behaviorist and the cognitive theorists have different views on the process of choice whenbuying. The behaviorists propose that consumer choice begins with an external stimulus

such as an advertising message or word-of-mouth communication.Etc. However, the

cognitive psychologists adopt a different approach to explain the process of choice. Theyconsider the choice of buying as a rule-following behavior

Para. 4 (all): To the behaviorists, therefore, choice of buying is simply a behavior, the


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only way of acting in a given set of circumstances defined in terms of controlling

contingencies. On the other hand, the cognitive theorists present choice of buying as anoutcome of internal, mental deliberation and psychological decision. Actually, although

the behaviorists and the cognitive theorists have different ideas of the content of choice,they do share similar view on the unconscious feature of choice (rather involuntary

response to discriminative stimulus and the following of rules).

Conclusion (all) : To conclude, the behaviorist and cognitive perspectives may have

certain strengths as well as weaknesses in their arguments. The behavioral perspective

gives a clear and concrete picture of consumer behavior, with the manifest account of

reinforcement contingencies and the effects of environmental factors. However, itattributes buying behavior solely to environmental stimuli and finds no explanation of

consumers perceptions, curiosity, attitudes and intentions which we do observe to exist

in real life. The cognitive approach, on the contrary, places a strong emphasis on

individuals free will, intention and purpose. However, the explanation of the choice ofpurchase is criticized to be too mechanistic since the decision to buy is described to

undergo consideration of many reasons and social factors and the actual decision may notbe so complex every time. On the whole, the two perspectives can be studied in

complement (relation?) to each other and their different claims have contributed much to

our understanding of buying behavior.


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NATURE OF PROLBLEM:-

Business standard is a renowned financial daily standing 2nd after Economic Times in

Gujarat. Business standard is targeting towards the at least 25% growth in the existing

circulation base in Gujarat in the next financial year.

But now when the Financial Express(Gujarati) has targeted the economy class audience ,

the position of Business standard is very critical. Because on one side they have to fightwith a high brand valued Economic Times , serving to the premium business class

segment and on other side Financial Express(Gujarati) is giving a tight price war. Thus if

they want to survive in the market they need to pull up their socks.

I as a summer trainee was given the task to increase the subscribers base. The target per

month was to get 25 new subscription in a month , in the period of eight weeks. Not justthis I was given chance to do brain storming to increase the brand awareness. After the

half of the training period, I was given the opportunity to work on institutional marketing

to get the mass subscriptions.

Thus I would define the problem in to 4 parts:-

1. lack of brand awareness

2. not easy to increase the customer subscription base3. hard to increase the mass subscription from the institutions and the virgin

market.

4. understand the customer perception regarding financial news paper, like

different feature, price, language,


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Expected Benefit

Here, I would like to segregate the expected benefits in to two perspectives:

1. from the Business standards perspective.2. from my perspective.

From the business standards perspective.

1. this will increase the overall subscription of business standard in Gujarat

2. this will help the company to get the good number of advertisement due to highercirculation of the Gujarat edition. Which are actual bread earners for the

company.

3. this will increase the brand awareness in the targeted audience.

4. reduction in the distance between the market leader and company.

5. the enthusiastic, young and dynamic future managers are easy to train andmotivated and can come up with new innovative ideas.

From my perspective:

1. opportunity to learn different marketing techniques prevailing in actual market

2. opportunity to learn the scratch work of hard core personal selling.

3. opportunity to learn strategic management in actual competitive market4. to apply the theoretical (Class room) knowledge in to the practice.

5. training to cope up with the several kind of pressures faced in the corporate.

(E.g. Pressure of achieving the target on time, time management , mail topersonal relationship with the client , handling the critical situation strategy )

6. opportunity to develop and apply out of box thinking and get maximum ideas

From the industrial experts.(My superiors and competitors)

7. Develop ability to understand competitors strategy beforehand.


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1) Methodology / Approach adopted

In any marketing program the importance of sales force is not debatable. We were firstselected through an interview , then trained for 6 days, then worked under the

supervision of our immediate guide Mr. KUNAL PANCHAL. We were continuously

motivated and appreciated for the work done. We were acting as the demand creator in

the company. We have to do hard core selling but along with that we used other creativemethods to sell the subscription of the newspaper. The company has designed a

subscription offer according to which a customer can subscribe the news paper for one

year and for this advance payment of the newspaper they avail some benefits. These

benefits include the 40% discount on the normal cover price. Along with these customerwill get free 4 magazine namely BS 1000, Banking annual, Fund manager and Billionaire

club. Then the customer does not have to pay for the newspaper to the vendor and hiscopy will be recorded as the subscription copy in our records.

We were evaluated on the basis of time and duty analysis. We have to submit a dailyreport a proper format sheet given by the company. We have to specify the number of

calls made in a day mentioned the details of the calls which include the name of the firm

and its contact details. We have to mention the person whom we met in the company and

what was the final result of the call. In case of follow up we mention the same on thereport. At the end of the report we have total the number of calls and write the number of

calls which were converted.

Research Design

Considering the objectives of the study, sample survey was conducted and accordingly

analysis of information was made. Descriptive research design is used in present study.

Type of Data

Primary data had been used in present study.

Data Collection Method

Survey is used as data collection method


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Data Collection Tool

In this project Structured questionnaire is used as data collection tool.

Target population

Target population of this project is- financial newspaper reader.

Sampling Frame

Not used.

Sampling Units

Sampling units of this project are-Financial newspaper reader, city of Bharuch and

Ankleshwar. And customers like, stock broker, investor, banker and individual

Sampling Technique

Non Probability, Convenience sampling technique was used to select respondents from

different departments.

Sample Size

Sample size refers to the total number of respondents targeted for collecting the data for

the researcher. The sampling size of my study is 70 respondents and this sample size was

selected on the basis of time constraint and employees availability..


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ANSWERS TO QUESTIONAIRE

Q.1)In our project we have taken all 70 sample size as financial newspaper reader.

Due limited size of the sample we have given consideration to financial newspaper

reader so selected only the sample of people who read financial daily?

Q.2) Designation : Manager, Branch manager or Other

manager

12%

branch

manager

62%

other

26%


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Q3) Sex of Reader of financial daily?

64

4

0 20 40 60 80

male

female

Series1

Q.4) Do You read financial daily?

yes

read daily no

S1

67

30

10

20

30

40

50

6070

Series1


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Q.5) how frequent you read financial daily?

Q.6)which financial newspaper do you read?

1 2 3 45

S1

S2

56

9

2 20 0 0 00

10

20

30

40

50

60

Series1

Series2

48

1

2

3

5

1

010 20 30 40 50 60

ET

BS

FE

ET & BS

ET BS FE

Series1


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Q.7)Are you satisfied with your purchase decision of a particular financial

newspaper?

Q.8)which factor you will consider before buying financial newspaper?

43

56

1 2 1 1

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

PRICE NEWS PRICE

AND

NEWS

PRICE,

NEWS

AND

DISCOUNT

Series1

51

17

1

SATISFIED

MODE

RATED

ISSATISFIED

Series1


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Q.9)which language will you prefer of your financial newspaper?

ENGLISH

63%

GUJARATI

28%

BOTH

9%

Q.10)what is the purpose to read financial newspaper?

20

13

17

6

7

0 5 10 15 20 25

ECO NEWS

GEN NEWS

MONEY MARKET NEWS

ECO AND GEN NEWS

ECO AND MONEY MKT NEWS

Series1


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Q.11)Do you purchase financial daily on regular price or under scheme?

UNDER

SCHME

9%

UNDER

REGULAR

PRICE

91%

Q.12)if you are given discount on annual subscription of financial daily. Which

newspaper will you buy.?

BSET

FEBL

ET BSBS FE

BL

S1

30 31

11 4

1

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Series1


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Q.13) what you think about the content of financial newspaper which you read?

7

52

10

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

VGOOD

GOOD

NEUTRAL

Series1

Q.14)are you investor?

YES

52%

NO

48%


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Q.15) did you get any benefit from financial daily in investing decision?

YES

26%

NO

35%

AVG

39%


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SWOT analysis of Business Standard:-

SWOT is good tool for a sales man, like a thermometer and stethoscope is for adoctor . the needs and objective mind a good genuine friend/ colleague that can help

you to do SWOT analysis quarterly, and we know that the key to success is in

knowing yourself.

Building Strengths:

Enable you to put your best foot forward

The newspaper is second largest financial newspaper after the Economic

Times.

The analysis provided by the newspaper is the most detailed than any other

newspaper i.e. it provides 8 stock pages which no other newspaper provides.

The guidelines provided by the newspaper for the stock news is more detailedand can be easily understood by a layman

The newspaper provides with BS 200 which compares the top 200 traded

share in NSE and BSE along with 22 parameters.

The newspaper detailed analysis on quarterly result of the companies and

holds the top position in providing the best quarterly result

It dominates its presence on its reader through the loyalty it has built amongthe English leaders.

The supplements of the newspaper like, The Strategist and weekend which has

captivating power to adhere its readers.

Overcoming Weakness:

Who does not have them? Only when you recognize them you can do something tocorrect them

The high price of Saturday edition i.e. Rs.6/-

The quality of paper used for printing the newspaper is poor. The font size of the

stock is very small.

The newspaper contains a lost so advertisement

Except for the new pages there is no fixed pattern of news.


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The news like stock and declaring of bonus and companies annual report

information are not printed, where newspaper like Economic Times gives.

The vendors are not paid much commission , so they are not willing to sell

newspaper Specially in Gujarat, Gujarati Language newspaper should be published

Exploring Opportunities:

We can entice young readers who can adapt to Business Standard early.

The newspaper can come up with an edition on Sunday also

The newspaper can plan for Gujarati newspaper also.

We can also provide higher incentives to vendor

Minimizing Threats:

They are like ticking time bombs: defuse them by anticipating and taking preventive

actions.

BS is facing threat from business magazines

The increasing number of other media like television, internet etc.

The media is facing indirect competition from the supplements of othervernaculars newspaper.

The newspaper is facing threats from Economic Times and other competitors like

financial express(Gujarati)

The newspaper of Economic Times Gujarati has captured a major market


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Exploration of alternation:-

There are many ways to increase brand awareness and develop markets. Here I have

compared attractive alternative for the same. And to evaluate those I have taken

following factors in to consideration:

1. budget

2. companys target3. strengths and weakness of the alternative

4. expected outcomes

5. risk of failure of the alternative .

Alternative 1:

the company should come out nation wide with a bang. They should come up with a

mega even which can give business standard nationwide mileage in brand building. like a

nationwide seminar on some business issues inviting few renowned speakers or anyfinance or industry minister as speaker and marketing their product will help them a lot in

building their brand.

Alternative 2:-

The other alternative for the same would be printing their offer in the news paper itself,promoting the annual subscription offer in all the prominent location via different

medium like hoardings, road shows etc.

Evaluation criteria and alternative:

This option will indeed reach to the mass but here the competitor will also understand the

strategy and will react according , compare to the guerilla marketing being used by the

company, where competitor doesnt have chance to react, the market is captured before

that. The other disadvantage in this method is the existing reader will come to know abutthe offer and they will surely opt for the same and this offer will harm the business

instead of helping as existing clients will be paying less amount and this will result in to a

decline in the existing revenue generating. So this alternative doesnt set in to thecompanys target .thus the company has no other option but to keep differential pricing

for the existing and new customers. And according to the strategy have opted is the best

suiting according to the target.


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Conclusion

If you prefer to make just the same dish every day. You cannot be successful inmarketing, it can be the best dish one can ever have but in long term that will also now

work.

Marketing is a continuous learning process . one has to be in touch with the market tokeep own selves updated. We had long discussion with senior along with the other team

member regarding the different aspect being discussed above. It was the team which

worked towards the objective set by the company. With proper discipline, hard work andcommitment we started toward s our objectives and by the end we were more than

successful in achieving our targets.

It was the mixture of the experience and innovative ideas which helped us in achieving

out targets. The company did employed some different strategies and innovative conceptsto come up with some substantial outcomes in their association with the summer

trainees. We made a complete blueprint of the approach to be followed and then followedthe steps like stairs. Since we tried to leap alone stair at each step fumbling was not

possible. This kind of pre planning of the schedule brings I no confusion and makes the

journey smooth.

The methodology varied from customer to customer as this was real life personalized

marketing projects. We planned different methods like mass distribution , tie ups,

subscription offer etc. according to the target market and most important follow up is themost important thing not just in marketing but in the any field of the world, if you are

keen on following up your life will become smoother , not just that will make a goodimpression.


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PART C


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Application of concepts, tools, techniques and skills learnt at the

institute of management.:-

When I started my training I was very excited by getting the chance to apply myknowledge in media(newspaper) industry of Gujarat. This industry in Gujarat is facing

sudden change in scenario specifically after the entry of the Economic Times specifically

targeting the middle class by giving good features in both Gujarati and Englishnewspaper. During these two months I understood the learnings which I had from my

MBA course and most importantly their actual implication in real practical life.

Following are the learning outcomes:-

1. SWOT analysis-

We did the swot analysis of the company and the competitor like EconomicTimes, Business Line, financial Express.

2. Undifferentiated marketing:-

The product and the price offering to the entire customer base is the same.There was no differentiation in any segment of the market. The company

follows a consistent strategy.

3. Telemarketing:-

Business Standard uses the technology in the customer care department. Theytake a regular follow up of all their customer regarding the delivery of thenewspaper. sometimes there are problem in starting the delivery of the

newspaper , hawkers are sometimes inconsistent or unaware of the scheme

and etc. the company is very prompt in follow up, the follow up ends onlywhen the issue is resolved. the company uses telemarketing for the purpose of

the subscription renewal of their existing clients whose previous years annual

subscription is getting over. this is a very convenient and fast method whichsaves time, money and man power.

4. Relationship marketing:-

this is commonly knows as referral marketing. It is a marketing and sales

technique used by business that encourages people to pass on a sales message

to other potential customers.

5. Personal selling:-


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we were persuaded to go for personal selling for a little time frame tounderstand the scratch work. The basic field work makes you understand the

strengths and weakness perceived by your actual customer.

6. Potential market:-

we identified the potential market in the corporate who could understand andbenefit from the newspaper and then mover further.

7. Customer relationship management:-

Maintaining good customer relationship is very important as the world these

days have become a GLOCAL market and a small bad experience with one

customer may lead to be trouble in the future ahead. Along with that we, while

going to make any professional call are representing Business Standard, sowhatever happens effects the company directly.

8. Grass root marketing:-

the term is basically used for the local marketing and here we were focusing

on the city of Bharuch ,Ankleshwar and nearby cities.

9. Transactional selling:-

they want value through the lowest price. While dealing with the institution

what we went through was this kind of selling. we as seller are able to offer

them cheaper prices as there is one point selling associated with it. Thisreduces our distribution cost and thus we can also manage to offer them lower

prices. This kind of selling is beneficial to both the parties.

10. Experiential marketing:-

the idea is not to sell something but to demonstrate how a brand can enrich a

customers life. Whenever we were going out to make calls we werehighlighted on one concept that dont try and forcefully sell your product.

Make the customer feel and need for your product and then he will surely buy.

forcing customer will never help rather you should try and explain thecustomer why this particular product can be very beneficial for him. Try to

convey him what is there in your product which will satisfy his need and he

will be your customer forever.


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New knowledge , tools, techniques or skills . I have picked up:

1. consistency in quality

if your product is having the actual quality then you dont have to worry much. Oncea customer purchases the products he will realize the worth and wont feel that he was

persuaded to buy the product and cheated. The quality speaks for itself and for the

company.

2. competitive pricing

this is very much price sensitive so this part is very important . their need to be

constant watch on the pricing strategy of the competitors and then we very it

accordingly, though price is considering as the most flexible of marketing but in this

industry we are not allowed to make any changes in the prices to be notified to ABCbefore going any changes.

3. marketing is the core of the business.

We are aware that these days however good the product maybe but we need to marketthe goods properly to survive. Marketing has become the core of any business. HereBusiness Standard being a media industry has to be on their toes to continuously

promote their product marketing. Thus altogether becomes very important.

4. proper follow-up of all your pending clients.

Follow ups forms a very important part of the marketing. Follow ups tent to domiracle work in the trade. Regular follow ups helped us in the way that you dont

have to search up the new client or new potential areas. If you concentrate properly

on these clients only. Then a major of your business can be achieved from here. this

process of follow up saves the time of the staff as he is already familiar with yourproduct and company. The telephone is remarkably effective effective follow up

weapon. Use the phone to follow up all your customers, but research has proved that

it will always boost your sales and profits. Sure , telephone follow up is tough task.But it work.

5. competition is unavoidable evil so be competitive


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the newspaper is facing completion from the two ends of the market and is stuck up inthe middle. One is from the premium end who subscribe to the Economic Times and

the Financial Express.

6. know your competitors well

the knowledge of your competitors will help in making your own strategy. When youknow the industry trends then you tend to mend yourself accordingly. The sooner you

know the faster you will be able to react. In this competitive world you need to move

with the double pace than your competitors to beat them.

7. viral marketing:-

the definition of viral marketing or viral ad is promoting information or product that

other customer are compelled to give to other friends, colleagues and family but the

definition viral marketing is a way to promote a service or product exponentially.


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Learning from the summer training

Augmentation of soft skills

Soft skills like the soft S form the silent part of yourself. You dont realize it butwhen you communicate they are always reflected. Till now we were talking in terms

of the organization but when we come to the field then soft skills form a major part of

your learnings. it takes a lot of experience and soft skills to stay calm and reply whenthe customer is constantly banging on your head . there is no doubt that we can

acquire these skills, though we have already acquire a few of them.

Handling the pressure of target and performance

We have given the monthly targets to be achieved. We have to work hard to achievethe targets and that creates the pressure. there was a kind of competition with the team

members and the better part of that competition was that it was healthy. We have to

perform and that too in that gives time frame. This all used to create a lot ofapprehension within us.

Team work

In Business Standard we were a team of about number of persons working towardsthe same goal of increasing the circulation of the newspaper. The students belongedto mixture of institutes and diverse cities. Due to there culture differences everyone

was very distinguished in their personalized. We have to work together as a team and

come out with the result. We learned the art of moving together under differentcircumstances.

Skills to understand the potential from the mass:-

This skill has been fairly understood when we were almost half done in our training

period. The skill enables you to save your time and manpower. This ability of

distinguish your target client will prove very beneficial in the long run.

Conceptual thinking :-

During the training period we were always given the freedom of thinking. We were

motivated to come up with something innovative and creative. We were told by Mr.

Kunal Panchal to think out of the box and try to cross the roads now as later when we


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join the corporate world after our course we have to show result. This was the onlytime when we can experiment

Customized Communication:-

it is the delivery of the same product in different packing according to your targetcustomer. This is again a very important skill learnt by me during training. The

product and price remain the same but according to the place we have to do the

promotion . we have observed the time and mood of the client when we are in

conversation with them. As we know the right time and right place are veryimportant, this very well fits into the practical scenario.


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Recommendation:-

From the study out and analysis of the result obtain from the survey, the following

suggestion can help the firm

add new stock market news and information of bonus of different companies

increase the number of centre from where the newspaper is available

increase the font size

provide higher incentives to hawkers

increase the circulation service


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BIBLOGRAPHY

Websites:

www.businessstandard.com

http://www.business-standard.com/india/common/aboutus.phphttp://www.buzzle.com/articles/types-of-print-

media.htmlhttp://www.auditbureau.org/about.htm

http://147.8.224.21/acadgrammar/litrev/examples/litex4.htm

Text book:

Kotler Philip, (2010) Marketing Management A South Asian Perspective,Fourteenth Edition, New Delhi, Pearson Education
http://www.businessstandard.com/http://www.business-standard.com/india/common/aboutus.phphttp://www.buzzle.com/articles/types-of-print-media.htmlhttp://www.auditbureau.org/about.htmhttp://www.buzzle.com/articles/types-of-print-media.htmlhttp://www.auditbureau.org/about.htmhttp://147.8.224.21/acadgrammar/litrev/examples/litex4.htmhttp://www.businessstandard.com/http://www.business-standard.com/india/common/aboutus.phphttp://www.buzzle.com/articles/types-of-print-media.htmlhttp://www.auditbureau.org/about.htmhttp://www.buzzle.com/articles/types-of-print-media.htmlhttp://www.auditbureau.org/about.htmhttp://147.8.224.21/acadgrammar/litrev/examples/litex4.htm


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References

University essay from Hgskolan i Gvle/Institutionen fr ekonomi

Author : Elinor Johnson [2008]

Keywords : segmentation; Grant, 2002; Day, 1990; Porter, 1996; Woodruff, 1997)


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Annexure

QUESTIONNAIRE

Research questionnaire on BUSINESS STANDARD ENGLISH to find

Consumer Perception of Financial dailies.

Q.1) Name: __________________________________

Q.2)Designation: 1) Manager 2) Branch Manager Other

Q.3) Sex 1) Male 2) Female

Q.4)Do you read financial daily/

1) Yes 2) No

Q.5) How frequent you read financial daily?

1)Every day 2)Twice a week 3)Once a week 4 Once in a Monthly

Q.6)Which Financial newspaper you read?

1) Economic Times________ 2)Business Standard________

4)Business Line___________ 3)Financial Express_________

Q.7)Are you satisfied with your purchase decision of a particular financial

newspaper?

1)Satisfied 2) Moderate 3)Dissatisfied

Q.8)which factor you will consider before buying Financial Newspaper?

1) Price 2)Discount

3)News coverage 4)Free gift Other_________


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Q9) what is the purpose to read Financial Newspaper(s)?

1) Economic News 2) General News3) Money Market news

Q.10)do you purchase financial daily on regular price or under scheme?

Under scheme under regular price

Q.11) Do you purchase financial daily on regular price or under scheme?

1) Under Scheme 2) Under Regular

Q.12)If you are given discount on annual subscription of financial daily , whichnewspaper will you buy.?(Tick the option)

1)Economic Times 2) Business standard

3) Financial Express 4) Business Line

Q.13)What you think about the content of financial newspaper which you read?

(please rate them on following scale?)

1 2 3 4 5

Very good Good Neutral Poor Very poor

Newspaper Score

ET

FE

BS

BL

Q.14) are you an Investor?

1) yes 2) no

Q.15)Did you get any benefit from financial daily in investing decision/

1) Yes 2) No 3) Average


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Business Std Manoj

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