Microsoft SilverlightCustomer Solution Case Study

Rural Marketing Software Helps Marketers Tap Potential Markets and Manage Efficient Campaigns

OverviewCountry or Region: IndiaIndustry: Advertising and Marketing

Customer ProfileLowe Lintas & Partners is one of India’s largest and most storied communication groups. Incorporated in 1939, the company is headquartered in Mumbai, India. It has a brilliant talent pool of over 650 people across seven divisions and nine cities all over India to manage its 250+ clients.

Business SituationLowe Lintas & Partners wanted to launch a new tool that would help marketers tap the potential of rural India for its customers.

SolutionLinterland, the rural marketing and communication division of Lowe Lintas & Partners used Microsoft Silverlight 4.0 to develop Linscan, a strategic software, designed to exploit rural markets.

Benefits Delivers accountability to rural

marketing campaigns Secures proprietary information Offers scalability to accommodate

growth Improves market prioritization Facilitates effective execution Reduces transportation time and

costs

“Our goal was to tap markets that cover the length and breadth of rural India. We were able to achieve it with Linscan, the world’s first rural marketing software present on both Internet and mobile platforms, thereby enabling marketers to effectively plan in real time.”

Kevin D’Souza, Executive Director, Lowe Lintas & Partners

Linterland is the specialist rural communication and marketing arm of Lowe Lintas & Partners. Aiming to help marketers gain a thorough understanding of rural markets, Linterland felt the need to update and upgrade to a tool that could span its network across rural India. Working with Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, Prosares Solutions, the company chose to build its new offering, Linscan, on Microsoft Silverlight 4.0. Linterland believes this to be the world's first rural marketing software. It revolutionizes planning and execution. Compatible across all widely accepted mobile platforms, it offers field force management, and, enables surveys, in real time. Additionally, it continuously updates feedback from the rural sales force to create a more robust, relevant, and up-to-date information pool. Also, it provides information security and offers scalability to accommodate growth.

SituationLowe Lintas & Partners is one of India’s largest and well-known communication groups. Headquartered in Mumbai, India, the group has seven divisions and is spread across nine cities all over India to manage its 250+ clients. Linterland is the specialist rural marketing and communication division of Lowe Lintas & Partners. Its main objective is to help marketers gain a thorough understanding of rural markets, thereby enabling optimal and effective marketing, communication, and activation strategies for brands to connect with their target audiences.

Linterland houses a workforce of over 40 members and through its partnerships, it extends to hundreds of trained personnel on the ground, who execute its various programs.

The rural markets have stepped up on the priority list of marketers in India and abroad too. While the quest to dominate these markets has been strong, the dynamics and size make it difficult for companies to take full advantage. The sector poses a variety of challenges. Physical distribution is difficult due to

high costs involved, non-availability of retail outlets, and the widespread nature of rural geography. “Distant markets have low audience density,” says Sharad Varshney, Senior Vice President, Lowe Lintas & Partners. “Plus, rural market places like haats (weekly markets where people from surrounding villages conduct trade on fixed days) and melas (fairs where both entertainment and sale and purchase of goods and services take place) do not have a far-flung reach.”

Disposable income is not comparable to urban centers, and agricultural income is cyclic, erratic and unpredictable. As a result, the purchasing decision process is very different from that in urban markets.

Vernacular and cultural heterogeneity: Today, marketers invest in rural programs without specific knowledge on where to find consumers who are more inclined to buy their offerings. Marketers are also unsure of the most effective way to communicate with the rural audience. Most follow a trial and error approach.

Owing to the above complexities, it becomes difficult to ensure adequate returns on marketing investments. However, the Indian rural market is vast, with roughly 790 million consumers and represents the largest potential market in the country. As a result, no consumer company can afford to ignore the rural markets while crafting its overall marketing strategy.

In the current scenario where the market is becoming more varied and complex, Linterland felt the need to revolutionize the face of rural marketing in ways never thought possible before.

SolutionLinterland decided to create Linscan, a strategic rural marketing software that would help marketers tap the most potential markets across rural India. A revolutionary knowledge-based intelligence system, Linscan is used as a tool for effective rural marketing― planning, logistics management, information gathering, and implementation. “Our goal was to tap markets that cover the length and

“Linscan ensures effective protection of Lintas' intellectual property and data. Since this is a system with robust control on data, the information cannot be syphoned out of the system for use elsewhere.”

Pravin Savant, Chief Technology Officer , Lowe Lintas & Partners

breadth of rural India,” says Kevin D’Souza, Executive Director of Lowe Lintas & Partners. “We were able to achieve it with Linscan, the world’s first rural marketing software present on both Internet and mobile platforms, thereby enabling marketers to effectively plan in real time.” Developed over a period of 12–14 months, the tool went live in March 2012.

Linterland chose to work with Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, Prosares Solutions, because of its expertise in creating innovative solutions. The decision was made to build the solution using the Microsoft Silverlight 4.0 web development platform for rich and interactive presentation and also because it protects on-screen content. The solution architecture was designed with a Silverlight based presentation layer. This allows users either a browser or a desktop-based ‘client’ layer that would not expose the URL of the solution. “Microsoft Silverlight offered a powerful, straightforward set of tools for creating fully interactive business applications,” says Arun Mathew, Vice President Technology, Systems Technology, Lowe Lintas & Partners. “Also, we have predominantly remained on Microsoft technologies from a user interface perspective. So we realized it was the best choice.”

Linscan was architected as a centralized server-based solution with all the data and intelligence residing in a single secure location. Overall, Linscan uses a contemporary architecture comprising Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 (for Geospatial, Analytics and Reporting capabilities), Microsoft Bing Maps and APIs (for presentation of geographical shapes and information), and ASP.NET Framework 3.5.

Silverlight brings a high degree of usability and rich interaction of geographic and analytic functionality to Linscan. Bing maps and APIs allow the solution architecture to remain lean and performance efficient, as opposed to traditional GIS architectures based on proprietary map servers.

Linscan is compatible across all widely accepted mobile platforms such as Windows Phone 7.5+, Blackberry OS 5+, and Android 2.2+. Using the mobile platform, it offers real time field force management, accessed by the geo co-ordinates of the field staff. This ensures that planned activities are actually carried out in the right areas and according to schedule. In addition, with live surveys it offers real time feedback of consumers across rural India.

The newly launched software enables Linterland to prioritize markets at a micro level based on quantitative and qualitative analysis. It also helps to plan distribution points across geographies, and identify the right media options that will lead to cost-effective marketing initiatives.

The tool also allows users to overlay location specific considerations, for example, dates when congregations (mela, haat, mundi, a vegetable and fruit market etc) are held in these locations, and their proximity to logistical points (stocks and storage, highways, available accommodation for campaign staff, etc).

Pravin Savant, Chief Technology Officer, Lowe Lintas & Partners sums up, “Linscan is a web-based GIS plus analytical solution that can be replicated across international geographies and is highly secure and compatible across all widely accepted mobile platforms. It is versatile

and can operate from low bandwidth locations.”

BenefitsThe company has created a competitive, specialist solution that compiles information on rural markets by studying market potential and trend indicators, audience profiles at town or village level, and their consumption patterns. These help clients prioritize their markets and understand what kind of communication works with rural audiences. Sharad says, “Linterland's extensive expertise and reach in rural areas enable its clients to tap this market for product promotion and sampling. In addition, its exhaustive knowledge on rural India helps it to track and exploit more opportunities in these markets. We’re confident that we’ll continue to grow and support our customers with a competitive and intelligent solution.”

Delivers Accountability for Rural Marketing CampaignsLack of planning and accountability tools have inhibited marketers from targeting rural populations, unlike the urban, which is easier to reach. “The top management in any company seeks accountability of marketing and media bucks. Linscan convinces the management that accountability can be delivered even for distant, culturally and linguistically diverse rural parts of the country.”

The launch of Linscan has already attracted enquiries from other geographies like Pakistan that have similar challenges in rural marketing. Kevin explains, “Linscan will find an appeal in Asia Pacific, African, and Latin American geographies, where rural populations outweigh the urban.”

Secures Proprietary Information Linscan serves as an extensive repository of information insights on every state, district, tehsil (sub district), town, and village in India. This information is drawn from a variety of sources, for example, census, other surveys, and Linterland's own knowledge base collated over the years. “Linscan ensures effective protection of Lintas' intellectual property and data,” explains Pravin. “Since there is robust control on data, the information cannot be siphoned out of the system for use elsewhere.”

Offers Scalability to Accommodate GrowthLinscan is able to increasingly absorb new data and insights without impacting its performance. Though designed specifically to cater to Indian markets, the solution architecture is capable of scaling across countries. Kevin D’Souza says, “The tool has geo-coded census information that can be updated as and when newer data is available. It is a first of its kind proprietary tool in India, which is adaptable to any country in the world.” Improves Market PrioritizationWith Linscan, multiple planners in various cities can now plan and work on the same project without hassles and iterations. They are able to identify fairs, festivals, and other high spending windows in which to launch targeted campaigns. With data from multiple sources, Linscan can collate and create a holistic picture of any selected rural belt. From cropping patterns to water availability, bank savings, and local fairs, hundreds of other parameters coupled with demographic data give planners a true depiction and potential of the area.

Facilitates Effective Execution Prior to Linscan, updates and feedback were done depending on access to an Internet café. These are few and distant in rural India and this resulted in poor reporting systems and client apprehension.

Linscan now helps manage the execution of all projects with real time on the ground updates and feedback. In the short period, the solution has been in use, Linterland has been receiving daily reports from the field, thus ensuring better control and, productivity, and thereby adding to overall client satisfaction. For example, fairs that have fixed dates, can sometimes change due to unforeseen local causes. This information is immediately entered into Linscan, a mobile device, and updated for future planning. In addition, the twin barriers of access to an Internet café and availability of an Internet point have been overcome through mobility, as reports and feedback can now be done at any convenient place and at a preferred time. All this has made costs of commuting to an Internet café and then waiting to find a free terminal, a thing of the past.

Reduces Transportation Time and CostsDistribution and logistical issues plague rural marketing with high costs and transportation expenses. Optimizing route planning to deliver products quickly and at lower costs is now possible with Linscan.

Microsoft SilverlightFor more information about Microsoft Silverlight please visit: www.microsoft.com/silverlight

About Prosares Solutions Pvt. Ltd.Prosares Solutions Pvt. Ltd. (Prosares) is a niche company, offering software development and implementation services. It has stayed rigorously focused on its chosen service offerings. Based at Mumbai, India, Prosares has a team of trained and certified consultants, business analysts, solution architects, developers, testers, and support professionals.

This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.

Document published October 2009

Software and Services Microsoft Silverlight 4.0 Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Microsoft Bing Maps Microsoft ASP.NET Framework 3.5

Partner Prosares Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

For More InformationFor more information about Microsoft products and services, call the Microsoft Sales Information Center at (800) 426-9400. In Canada, call the Microsoft Canada Information Centre at (877) 568-2495. Customers who are deaf or hard-of-hearing can reach Microsoft text telephone (TTY/TDD) services at (800) 892-5234 in the United States or (905) 568-9641 in Canada. Outside the 50 United States and Canada, please contact your local Microsoft subsidiary. To access information using the World Wide Web, go to:www.microsoft.com

For more information about Lowe Lintas & Partners products and services, visit the website at: www.lowelintas.in or www.linterland.com/. Or contact Mr. Kevin D’Souza, Executive Director, Linterland Rural Communication at (91) (22) 3025 3667, Kevin.Dsouza@loweandpartners.com

This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.

Document published May 2012