Customer Relationship Management

Hindustan Unilever Limited

Contents

Customer Relationship Management (CRM).....................................................3

CRM at Hindustan Unilever Limited....................................................................3

Innovative Services for Customer Attraction and Retention............................4

Pioneering New Ways for Customer Relationship............................................4

Customer Relationship – Front- end...................................................................4

Customer Relationship – Plan.............................................................................5

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

Customer Relationship Management is a broadly recognized, widely-implemented

strategy for managing and nurturing a company’s interactions with customers, clients

and sales prospects. It involves using technology to organize, automate, and

synchronize business processes—principally sales activities, but also those

for marketing, customer service, and technical support.

The overall goals are to find, attract, and win new clients, nurture and retain those the

company already has, entice former clients back into the fold, and reduce the costs of

marketing and client service. CRM denotes a company-wide business strategy

embracing all client-facing departments and even beyond. When an implementation is

effective, people, processes, and technology work in synergy to increase profitability,

and reduce operational costs. It is important to emphasize that CRM is a specialty within

marketing, and to implement CRM in a company, you can use tools as CRM systems,

mailers, databases etc. CRM is commonly misunderstood, thinking it is an IT system.

CRM at Hindustan Unilever Limited

From sourcing raw materials to delivering the end product, the technologically advanced

supply chain underpins the growth of Hindustan Unilever Limited, providing service

excellence at competitive costs.

Hindustan Unilever has proactively developed new capabilities in customer relationship

management and supply chain for partnering the development. They now have a

business system in place that delivers excellence in customer service, while driving

growth for the company and the customers. In-store merchandising is a key enabler for

their brands to stand out prominently and attract the attention of consumers.

Customised activation to drive trial and preference for their brands is another key thrust.

They keep interacting with the customers thus providing them experience in a number

of innovative ways.

Innovative Services for Customer Attraction and Retention

Sunsilk mobile salons at stores providing consumers the opportunity to have a

great hair wash and try the new re-launched product.

Dove Litmus test in stores demonstrating the brand’s compelling benefit of

mildness compared to other soaps.

In-store sampling for their range of Beverages and Food products like tea, coffee

and soups.

They plan to come up with self-service stores and supermarkets.

Self-service Stores

As the country develops, the organised trade will develop rapidly, as experienced in

other countries. Self-service stores and supermarkets, though small as a channel today,

are fast emerging in metros and large towns. The self-service format is a great enabler

for such increased interaction with consumers and they are fully leveraging this

opportunity to drive trial and preference for their brands.

Pioneering New Ways for Customer Relationship

All these initiatives build convergence of product availability, brand communication and

brand experience in the current channels. But these current channels are somewhat

constrained by the existing formats and business models. They therefore need to go

further in creating touch points for the brands relevant to the scale and nature of the

Indian consumer opportunity. They are thus creating a whole set of new channels that

are designed on the principles of holistic contact with consumers. These are across all

consumer segments in both urban and rural India.

Customer Relationship – Front- end

Understanding customer needs

The main purpose of this area is to understand customer needs and work together to

solve joint logistical challenges such as on shelf availability. Roles include order

management, working at the interface between warehousing and transportation, and

ensuring the right products arrive in the right place at the right time.

Customer Relationship – Plan

Demand Planning

The Planners at HUL are unique individuals who use great analytical and interpersonal

skills to help bring innovations to market. Working with all business functions, they are

the key to the sales and operations planning process. Demand planning uses models as

well as market knowledge to determine potential sales. Using this data, supply planning

ensures factories are able to meet these sales on time in the most cost effective way.

The main objective of the project is to get the full knowledge of the products of HUL and

what are they doing to get the customer loyalty to maintain their market. This is also to

find the preferences of customer, their market knowledge, product information, and

information about the presence of the rivals of HUL and all the other options they have

in the market. There are various techniques they adopt to know the preferences and

changing needs of the customer.

HUL has always looked to tap the market in rural sector. They have at all times taken

into consideration the needs and wants of the people in the rural and semi-urban areas.

The main reason behind this has been the potentiality of the rural market. The rural

India amounts for the major population though not financially sound. The bottom of the

pyramid consisting of the mass is being focused upon more than the so-called potential

group. To meet the needs of the rural population, HUL are studying the consumption

habits of these people, which would in turn not only benefit the company but also the

inhabitants. Since most of them are daily wage earners or small peasants, so it is vital

to study their buying patterns. This would help in understanding them better.