“Lend-a-book”: An eBook lending

App

MARKETING PLAN

Presented by:

Prathamesh Mahesh SaygaonkarPune Institute of Computer Technology, Pune

Lend-a-book in short:• Search and Browse through a large library of eBooks

and borrow eBooks for a fixed duration at a nominal charge.• Read on multiple devices including – mobiles,

laptops and tablets.• Substantial lower costs than purchasing an eBook or

a hard copy.• Synchronize reading across devices, books are

stored over cloud.• Renew leases on the go – Say Goodbye to Physical

Libraries.• No more Late fees – Auto lease expiry and return.• Environment Friendly.

Company Overview

• New Product Category – First to introduce lending of eBooks.• Partnerships with more than 125 book

publishers and distributors.• Currently hosts more than 90,000 books

for rent. (increasing day by day)• Free samples of more than 15,000 books

available.• Series A funding of 15 million rupees at

an evaluation of 50 million by Signature Venture Capitalists.

Market Overview• Although eBooks comprise only 12.3% of

the global book sales, it is one of the fastest rising sales category in the world.• Current eBook readers offer a huge library

of books to read on multiple devices without the need to buy dedicated hardware.• Some old classics are made available to

read for free, while other comparatively new books have to be bought. Although free samples are available for the same.• Magazines, Newspapers and Tabloids are

also made available.

Sales of Books vs eBooks

eBooks Hard Copies

Current Market Share:

• Currently Amazon’s Kindle occupies 74% of the US eBook share by volume and 71% of the same by revenue.

• Other major players in this field (by volume) are –

• Apple iBooks (11%)• B&N Nook (8%)• Kobo US (3%)• Google Play Books (2%)

• Amazon’s early adaptation and entry into this domain has enabled it to capture the maximum market share in the country.

• Its beginnings as a “online bookstore” also helped in proving its credentials.

Goals• To focus on increasing market pervasiveness and awareness

amongst frequent eBook readers about the concept of “eBook Lending” offered by Lend-a-Book. Focus on increasing awareness of the advantages offered over purchasing the eBook.

Goals for Quarter 1 SpecificsTotal Monthly Users 10,000Returning Active Monthly Users 7,500Number of Users opting for monthly subscriptionNumber of Users opting for half yearly subscriptionNumber of Users opting for yearly subscriptionNet Targeted Revenue for Q1.Number of Targeted Books in Inventory

Target Customers• One time readers of books : People who

don’t re-read books, don’t find value in purchasing of books at a substantially high cost.• Low Budget Audiences: Also, eBooks in

their current form are only marginally cheaper than their hardcopy counterparts, hence people may prefer to buy hard copies than read the eBooks. eBooks can be lent at a substantially lower cost.• Students: Students cant afford the high cost

of books , hence can borrow books at a nominal cost.• Library enthusiasts who don’t like the

inconveniences of Libraries: People on the go, lazy people etc.

Collaborators• Strategic Partnerships with Book

Distributors and Publishers.• Fixed Percentage royalty offered to

publishers on per book per unit time.• Publicity and Marketing to be managed by

AB Rockwell Publicity – the masterminds behind Barnes and Noble’s marketing campaign.

Stakeholder GoalsBook Distributors and Publishers To increase revenue from other

mediums to compensate for falling hard copy book revenues.

AB Rockwell Publicity To make the Lend-a-book publicity campaign as hit as the Barnes and Noble campaign. To be the driving force behind a new and upcoming product and market category.

Company• A specially anointed BDU, with Mr.

Rakesh Sharma ( Former Strategy Manager, Zinga Cabs) at the helm.• Mr. Rakesh Sharma is only answerable

to the CEO.• Board of directors : 1. Rohan Joshi – Managing Director, Pendant Publication.2.Manish Jain – Marketing Director,

Johnson & Co.3.Mamta Singh – Logistics Officer,

Mapdeal.com

Key Stakeholders

Working Customers

Students

Channel and distribution managersPublishers

Book Clubs

Libraries

Competitors• Amazon Kindle the largest eBook

seller in the world is soon launching a similar product offering through its kindle app. But that will be only available in the United States and in limited locations only.• Apple iBook Store and Google Play

Book apps are already preinstalled in 82% of worlds tablets and mobile phones.• Traditional Libraries due to their

cheap membership fees.• Amazon leads eBook sales over all

other platforms.

Socio-Techno-Economical Context.• eBooks are only marginally cheaper

than real books, hence “buying” eBooks doesn’t make a lot of economic sense.• Rising environmental awareness is

pushing people away from papers and books towards an electronics based platform. This promotes the use of eBooks.• Books are bulky, inconvenient to

carry. 78% of avid book readers now own either a Computer, Mobile or Tablet. Hence carrying multiple eBooks makes more sense.

Value Proposition

• Define the offering's value proposition for target customers, collaborators, and the company.

• - Customer value. Define the offering's value proposition, positioning strategy, and positioning statement for target customers.

• - Collaborator value. Define the offering's value proposition, positioning strategy, and positioning statement for collaborators.

• - Company value. Outline the offering's value proposition, positioning strategy, and positioning statement for company stakeholders and employees.

Customer Value• No need to buy costly eBooks, when

you can rent it for nominal cost.• No strict reissue/return timings.

Automatically returned after lease expires.• Under “LendUnlimited” scheme,

unlimited books can be borrowed from the library in a year and up to 20 books at a time.• Borrow books at your convenience, no

need to visit the library.• No more fixed library timings. • Seamless reading experience over

multiple devices.

Collaborator Value:

• Alternative source of income

Company Value:

Tactics• Outline the key aspects of the offering's marketing mix.• 5.1. Product. Define relevant product characteristics (attributes, benefits, and costs).•

5.2. Service. Identify relevant service characteristics (attributes, benefits, and costs).•

5.3. Brand. Determine the key elements (name, logo, symbol, slogan, jingle) and the meaning of the offering's brand.•

5.4. Price. Identify the price(s) at which the offering is provided to customers and channel members.•

5.5. Incentives. Define the incentives offered to customers (e.g., price reductions), collaborators (e.g., trade allowances), and company personnel (e.g., bonuses).

•5.6. Communication. Identify the manner in which the key aspects of the offering (i.e., product, service, brand, price, and incentives) are communicated to target customers, collaborators, and company personnel and stakeholders.

•5.7. Distribution. Describe the manner in which the key aspects of the offering (i.e. product, service, brand, price, and incentives) are delivered to target customers, collaborators, and company personnel and stakeholders.

Product Attributes

Product Benefits and Costs:

Brand Value:

Brand Equity:

Incentives

Sr. No Customers Collaborators Personnel

Advertisement Campaigns

Distribution

Pricing Strategy

Implementation

•Define the offering's implementation plan.

Infrastructure

• 6.1. Infrastructure. Outline the organizational structure of the business unit managing the offering and its relationship with collaborators.

Processes

• 6.2. Processes. Outline the business processes involved in implementing the comp. ny's strategy and tactics,

ScheduleSr. No

Milestone Deadline

1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.9.

This PowerPoint presentation has been created by Mr. Prathamesh Mahesh Saygaonkar, Pune Institute of Computer Technology, during an internship under Professor Sameer Mathur , IIM Lucknow.

Professor Sameer MathurIIM Lucknow

Prathamesh Mahesh SaygaonkarPICT, Puneprathamesh8296@gmail.com+91 9561961831

DISCLAIMER