Pulkit Agrawal 63.docx

7/29/2019 Pulkit Agrawal 63.docx

1/22

REPORT

On

Bajaj Pulsar

Submitted By Pulkit Agrawal


2/22

Roll No 63 (Section - B)

IntroductionPulsar is one of favourite brands both as a biker and a marketer. This bike has virtually

redefined biking in this country. Pulsar launched in 2001 is the market leader in the 150 cc +

performance bike segment. More than that, this brand changed the fortune of Bajaj Auto Ltd.

Brand owned by Bajaj Auto IndiaDeveloped by-

Product engineering division of Bajaj Auto

Japanese design house Tokyo R&D

Before the introduction of thePulsar, Indianmotorcycle market trend was-

Fuel efficient

Small capacity motorcycles

80-125 cc classexcept forEnfield Bullet,bigger motorcycles withhigher capacity did not

exist.

Bajaj was known for Bajaj Scooters Hamara Bajaj Kawasaki Bajaj failed to make a mark. No

success in the motorcycle segment whereHero-Hondawas the undisputed leader


3/22

In 1999 Hero Honda launched CBZ in 150cc. The launch & success of CBZ created a new

segment for 150cc Bikes. Bajaj took the cue from there on & launched the Pulsar twins in

India on November 24, 2001. Hero Honda created a new segment of 150 cc performance

segment with its CBZ. But Pulsar came and gave a new life into the Performance segment.

Although not a pioneer, Pulsar made the performance segment one of the fastest growingsegment in the two wheeler market

It was not only the bike's performance that triggered the brand becoming an icon -

[USP]

A major part of the success was due to the classic advertising campaign by O&M -

[UCP]

The new product from Bajaj was distinctly different

Bajajs first bike without Kawasaki label.

R&D and design marvel O&M stuck upon the Big Idea of India's He-Bike

Although lot of bike take the persona of Macho bikes it was more oriented towards

being "sexy"

The Big Idea was to position the bike as World's first bike endowed with a Sex

(Gender)

It was not only the bike's performance that triggered the brand becoming an icon, a major

part of the success was due to the classic advertising campaign by O&M. According to

agencyfaqs, the birth of the "Definitely Male" campaign is interesting. The creative honchos

found the new product from Bajaj distinctly different. It was Bajaj's first bike without

Kawasaki label. The new bike was an R&D and design marvel.Pulsar was designed by the


4/22

renowned design house Tokyo R&D. O&M knew that the communication of this brand

should also be different.Starting with lot of ideas, O&M stuck upon the Big Idea of India's

He-Bike. Although lot of bike take the persona of Macho bikes it was more oriented towards

being "sexy".

Product Timeline-2001 The original Pulsar came with-

150 cc / 180 ccAir-CooledSingle-Cylinder1,235 mm wheelbaseSingle Spark Plug4-

Stroke EngineDisc Brake

2003 The second generation Pulsars featured-

DTSi technology Increased power Increased fuel economyNew headlamp

assembly1,320 mm wheelbaseStandard twin-tone hornTrip meter


5/22

2005 Bajaj launched another upgrade of the Pulsar featuring-

DTSi technology17 inch alloy wheelsStance lowered by 12 mmGas-filled Nitrox

absorbers1,320 mm wheelbasePower output increased15 litres fuel tank

2006 Bajaj introduced another version of Pulsar featuring-

Pilot lampsFlush LCD screenTwin-stripe LED tail-light assemblyBacklit switchesNon-

contact speed sensorIncreased torqueImproved gear box


6/22

2009 Bajaj began selling-

Pulsar220 DTS-Fi

Pulsar200 DTS-i


7/22

Pulsar 135 DTS-i

Fuel injectionOil cooled enginesDigital Speedometers Modern styling Pilot lamps

Twin-stripe LED tail-light assembly Backlit switches Non-contact speed sensor

Increased torque Improved gear box

2012 Bajaj launched Pulsar 200 NS featuring-

Bajajtargeted the 18-24 withPulsarbut laterfound that the brand appealed to a mucholderaudience


8/22

Segmentation-

Product Tagline Positioning Target Segment

Pulsar 135 DTSi Light Sports Rural+Urban Big-looking bike,

mileage as well and

hence will be

content with a less

powerful engine.

Pulsar 150 DTSi Definitely Male Rural+Urban Pro-bikers

Pulsar 180 DTSi Distinctly Ahead Urban Masculine&

performance

Pulsar 200 NS Digital Biking Urban Masculine, Thrill

loving

Pulsar 220 DTS-

Fi

Fastest Indian Urban Speed, Stunt, Sport

Lovers

This helped Bajaj to change its target audience to 16yrs& above. Unlike its old ways of

doing things, Bajaj did not rest with the laurels.

It knew that Pulsar is the golden key to control the entire bike market.

Hence Pulsar got undivided attention from the company,

2001: 150cc & 180cc

2003 :DTSi

2004 & 2005 : Cosmetic changes

2009 : 200cc & 220ccDTS-Fi

2012 : 200 NS

Product Life Cycle-


9/22

Pulsar was introduced in 2001. From the beginning it grabbed the market and got

tremendous growth. It almost ended the decade long reign of Hero Honda splendour within

1 year and opened the premium bike segment wide open. Its 180 cc version was for youth

loving power & speed. The option available at that time CBZ (150) or Bullet (350cc. It gave

youth new genre to explore.

In 2003 Bajaj launched its DTSI version which was a technological marvel. Its performance &

average both were increased. As a result sales increased. In the mean time Bajaj seeing the

positive response launched its new version with alloy wheel in 2005.The slowdown in

pulsars market now again turned to growth. Then in 2005 pulsar came up with cosmetic

changes they also launched pulsar 220 which was targeted to high end customers. Since

then it is in maturity phase. In 2009 pulsar came up with 135 cc version with entry level

market. This was not a great success but was not a failure either.


10/22

BCG Matrix-

Stars- Stars represent business units having large market share in a fast growing industry.

They may generate cash but because of fast growing market, stars require huge investments

to maintain their lead. Pulsar 220Fi is a star product because demand of sports bikes is

increasing day by day. Pulsar 220Fi is among prominent players. Pulsar 180 is also a star

product because there is no other competitor in this CC segment.

Cash Cows- Cash Cows represents business units having a large market share in a mature,

slow growing industry. Cash cows require little investment and generate cash that can be

utilized for investment in other business units. Pulsar 150 is one of the most selling bikes in

India. It is far more than TVS Apache, HERO HONDA CBZ, Hunk, HONDA Unicorn.


11/22

Question Marks- Question marks represent business units having low relative market share

and located in a high growth industry. They require huge amount of cash to maintain or gain

market share. They require attention to determine if the venture can be viable. Question

marks are generally new goods and services which have a good commercial prospective.

Pulsar 135 has not got good response till now. Pulsar 200NS is a new launch in the market.We cannot predict it now.

Dogs- Dogs represent businesses having weak market shares in low-growth markets. They

neither generate cash nor require huge amount of cash. Due to low market share, these

business units face cost disadvantages. Pulsar 200 was a failure by SBU Pulsar. It was a

technology failure also.

PHASE 2

Setting the price:Step I: Selecting the price objective

The objectives are survival, maximum market share and product-quality leadership. For

these purposes the features were set as that of CBZ, Unicorn, Apache, FZ but the prices

were kept a bit lower, which helped Pulsar to enter the market and gain maximum market

share.

Maximum Market Skimming: Skimming is referred to as selling a product at a high price;

basically companies sacrificing sales to gain high profits. This is employed by companies in

order to reimburse their cost of investment put into the original research of the product.

This strategy is often used to target early users of a product/service because they are

relatively less price sensitive than others. Early users are targeted either because their need

for the product is more than others or they understand the value of the product better than

others. In any case, this strategy is employed only for a limited period of time as a way to

recover most of the investment of a product. This is the reason why the prices of Pulsar

were dropped within two years and consumer surplus of early adopters were captured.

Step II: Determining the demand Price sensitivity:


12/22

Due to the presence of many bikes in the same price range the elasticity of demand was

very high. Hence with the decrease of prices, the amount of sales increased in volume. The

amount of sales in 2010 was 165049 units. Along with other market conditions, with the

introduction of a lower version at a cheaper cost sales increased to 269488 units in 2011.

Step III: Estimating Cost

In the short run companys pricing strategy was to earn more profit and in the long run to

invest that money for the technological advancement such as DTS-i technology.

Step IV: Analyzing competitors cost, prices and offers

From the mistakes of Hero Honda CBZ, Honda Unicorn, TVS Apache, Yamaha Fazer, FZ, Bajaj

Pulsar was able to take share away from the market pioneer of power bikes in India, andcommand the price premium in the process because of its performances advantages-

smoother driving experience.

Step V: Selecting a pricing method

Bajaj did a mix of pricing methodology of Going Rate Pricing and Value Pricing. It set its price

slightly lower than its competitor following going rate pricing without compromising on any

of the features provided by its competitor to attract value-conscious customers.

Step VI: Selecting the Final Price

While selecting the final price, Bajaj did set its price lower than its competitor to share the

risk of launching a new product in the market.

Promotional Pricing: Special event prices were offered during festival seasons.

Zero interest financing was offered for some speculated period to attract customer.

Longer payment terms were provided to the customer so that the EMI would be less.

Three free service contracts were offered at the time of purchase.


13/22

Hero Hondas Hunk, CBZ X-Treme and Hondas unicorn share the same engine. Unicorns

149.2cc was the least power producer yet it scores full points for its refinement. Unicorns

engine develops 13.3bhp at 8000rpm and 12.75Nm of 6500rpm.

Hero Honda offers the same engine with little more power (0.8bhp) for both the Hunk and

the CBZ X-treme. Pulsar 150cc engine is one of the best engines made by the bajaj. The twin

spark 149cc engine produces 14bhp at8500rpm. Suzuki GS 150R is an air-cooled 4 stroke,

SOHC with a displacement of 150cc with max power of 13.8 bhp @ 8500 rpm and max

torque of 13.8Nm @6000 rpm. The transmission is 6 speeds with front disc brake and rear

swing arm type coil spring which is oil and gas dumped. The fuel tank capacity is 15.5 liters

with a ground clearance of 160mm weighing and 149 kgs (curb mass) The Suzuki GS 150R

comes with the features like digital speedometer with dual modes , rear suspension with

separate reservoir Tank, sporty headlight , LED tail Lamp and integrated Rear turn Signal and

new engine design with SJCS (Suzuki Jet cooling system) I took a TD of the Suzuki GS 150R

the pros that i noted was:-The engine was refined thereby giving a smooth ride the pick up

was good Gear shifting was smooth Front disc brake had a good grip Stylish Sporty Design 6

Gears On road mileage of 45-50 kmpl Engine Balancer technology to reduce the vibration

caused by the engine. TVS Apache RTR is powered by a 160cc engine which

produces15.2bhp at 8500 rpm and 13.1Nm at 6000 rpm. Clearly, Apache RTR is the best

among the traits in terms of performance. Apache RTR has higher power to weight ratio

111.7bhp/ton. Apache can push the red line even up to 12000rpm. The extra 10cc plays a

main role for the RTR and it is the only bike in the segment capable of breaching the


14/22

110kmph mark with appreciable control. All the bikes in the 150cc segment breathes

through CV carburetor, in India. All the bikes Pulsar, Unicorn, CBZ Xtreme, apache RTR and

Hunk features 5-speed (1-down 4-up pattern) gearbox. Their way of functioning and design

varies. Apache RTR, Hero Honda Hunk and CBZ Xtreme targets young customers and hence

gear shifting is through toe levers. In Unicorn and Pulsar 150cc it is through heel and toelevers. The Indian market and the marketing strategy have become the latest marketing

buzz word for most of the bike majors. They added the strategies of different bike

companies for capturing Hubli city market like Bajaj, Hero Honda, TVS, Honda, Yamaha,

Suzuki.

Factors such as strong distribution network and market awareness are few prerequisites for

making an impression in the bikes market. The characteristics of the market in terms of low

and spread out population and limited purchasing power make it a difficult market to

capture. The Bottom of the pyramid marketing strategies and the 4 A's model of Availability,Affordability, Acceptability and Awareness provide us with a means of developing

appropriate strategies to tackle the market.

Bajaj Pulsar- Promotion

Pulsar was the bike that was launched by Bajaj Auto without the collaboration of the

Kawasaki Company. Also, this bike was a technological and a designing marvel. The creative

promotion campaign for Bajaj Pulsar was handled by the renowned advertising agency

Ogilvy and Mather. The creative team decided to endow the bike with a gender. Taking this

idea into consideration, the campaign with a tagline called Definitely Male was launched.

The promotion campaign, coupled with the design and the performance of the bike, helped

the company in achieving excellent sales numbers for the Pulsar bike.

Bajaj Pulsar- Promotion Transitions

When Bajaj Auto launched the new DTSi technology for the Pulsar bike in the year 2003, the

creative promotion responsibility was assigned to another agency called Leo Burnett. Leo

Burnett changed the positioning of the brand from Definitely Male to Digital Biking.

When Bajaj Auto launched the Pulsar 200 version, the promotion campaign was focused onthe concept of Free Biking. According to the definition of brand Pulsar, free biking is all

about tackling obstacles. The expensive ad for this campaign was shot in Havana, Cuba. The

underlying theme of the ad is to how two Pulsar riders discover a new route when the main

road is blocked by a traffic jam. Bajaj Pulsar is also associated with a reality show called

Stunt Mania that is aired on MTV channel. This show targets the audience in the age group

of 18 and above. This show also mentions about bike maintenance and rider safety.


15/22

STP and SWOT Analysis:

Brand Name Bajaj Pulsar

Parent Company Bajaj Auto

Category Motorcycles

Sector Two-wheeler

Tagline/ Slogan Definitely Male, The Fastest Indian

USP Powerful engine and good pickup

STP

Segment Young boys looking for fast sporty bikes for Indian roads

Target Group Young boys in the age 18-30 middle class

Positioning The No.1 Sports bike in India

SWOT

Strength

1. Excellent brand name

2.High product quality

3.High performance, speed and pickup

Weakness

1. Mileage on a lower side due to focus on Power

2. High cost in various variants

Opportunity

1. Expansion in rural and tier-2 cities

2. Cost management thus reducing the price of the bike

3. Developmental changes thus reducing bike's weight

Threats

1. New entrants

2. Competitors


16/22

3. Low cost bikes from china

Competition

Competitors

1.Karizma

2.CBZ

3.FZ

Marketing ChannelsKey markets :

Bajaj auto is Dominant player in Indian market .The best selling market being Punjab, Delhi

& NCR, UP, Bangalore and Maharashtra. The company exports its products to Sri Lanka,

Bangladesh, Philippines, Latin America, Colombia, Peru, Mexico, Africa and the Middle East.

Manufacturing locations

Akurdi, Pune 411035
http://www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/automobiles/357-hero-honda-cbz.htmlhttp://www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/automobiles/375-yamaha-fz.htmlhttp://www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/automobiles/375-yamaha-fz.htmlhttp://www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/automobiles/375-yamaha-fz.htmlhttp://www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/automobiles/357-hero-honda-cbz.html


17/22

Bajaj Nagar, Waluj Aurangabad 431136

Chakan Industrial Area, Chakan , Pune 411501

Pantnagar , Uttarakhand

Distribution network

For distribution bajaj auto uses mix of depots and Cnf agents. This is completely dependent

on the distance of manufacturing location from dealer point .For example due to extensive

distance from manufacturing plant from west Bengal to north-east India, there exist a depot

in Khadagpur with capacity of housing 800vehicles. There are similar depots in Punjab,

Rajasthan and southern India.

Dealers

Bajaj has total of approx 498 dealers 1500 authorized service stations and 1400 rural outlets

for population of below 25000

Transport and Logistics

This function is not owned by bajaj auto in any form. This is outsourced to third party

vendor. The third party here is TCI along with some others like OSL, Jamuna trasport and

Sumit transport-Logistics to the vendor is decided by the company-A Transit insurance

compliance is signed between the two parties-Freight charges are included in product price

IT linkage

Bajaj rides the SAP advantage. In year 2000 Project 110 percent was launched to

spearhead Bajajs growth in the future. Bajaj auto has linked 386 dealers out of 498 and 165


18/22

suppliers out of 198.Business information is available to company external community in

real time. The dealers can get real time information, unstructured information like news

items, new product releases, dealer discussion group and internal market place. On

operational activities and also the company can monitor the external members. The

suppliers gets up-to date information on purchase order, contracts and material schedule.

Here we take a look at the Marketing Mix or the 4 Ps of Bajaj Pulsar which made it the most

popular bike among the Indian consumer.

PHASE 3Marketing Mix :Product

A combination of technology and engineering, Bajaj Pulsar offers a great combination of

technology, style, comfort and safety. Along with smashing looks the bike has great

technology working inside. It provides for a true digital experience. With the Digital Twin

Spark Ignition Technology (DTS-i) patented by Bajaj Auto the bike provides a consistent

output any time any place. The Digital CDI making up the DTSi allows the rider to reach pole

position whenever he desires. The engine allows carrying heavy loads and ensures

improved engine torque which optimizes engine performance. TRICS III and Constant

Velocity Carburettor are some other features that provide high performance and less

hassless.

It is a great bike for people looking for power and efficiency for a comfortable ride on the

Indian roads. It provides for easy top gear driving with less gear changes and instant pickup

in any gear. NitroX-Nitrogen assisted rear gas shockers give a cushion feel and ExhausTEC

technology allows easy drivability in Indian city traffic conditions. The bikes low speed &

high gear combination offers phenomenal ride. The bike provides rip roaring power without

compromise on mileage with an average of 50-55 Kmpl in city conditions and 62 Kmpl on

Highways. In sync with its Definitely Male look the bike is a robust one with stronger alloy


19/22

steel wheel base and smaller wheel radius (17"). Moreover, it has a famed line-up of various

products-

PULSAR 135

PULSAR 150

PULSAR 180

PULSAR 200NS

PULSAR 220F

Place

For Bajaj Auto, the supply chain encompasses the process from vendors to the final

customers via manufacturing. Therefore, the Companys supply chain involves as much the

vendors and the procurement-to-payment logistics, as it does the manufacturing to selling

process, or the order to cash system. Bajaj has developed/created distribution channels

which ensure the availability of Pulsar to buy wherever and whenever the consumers wishes

to purchase it. Sales of bike depends heavily upon its availability, with market research


20/22

showing that well over 60% of all purchases are made on impulse. Consequently, Bajaj tries

to supply as many outlets as possible for the dealers.

Point of sale merchandising is also important when consumers are making instant,

snap decisions from a wide range of products on view. Instantly, recognisable product alsohelps to tempt the market customers. Internationally, pulsar has now dominant presence in

Africa, Latin America and South Asia with increasing market share every year. Market leader

in motorcycles in Colombia, Central America, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Philippines, Nigeria,

Uganda and Kenya.

Promotion

It was not only the bike's performance that triggered the brand becoming an icon, a

major part of the success was due to the classic advertising campaign by O&M. O&M used

the Big Idea of India's He-Bike for the promotional campaign. The Big Idea was to position

the bike as World's first bike endowed with a Gender. The classic campaign of all times

Definitely Male" together with the design and performance catapulted the brand into

stratospheric sales level.


21/22

The above image depicts some of the efforts made by pulsar for promotions. Bajaj

targeted the 18-24 age group with Pulsar but later found that the brand appealed to a much

older audience. This led Bajaj to change its target audience to 21-35 years. With the launch

of DTSi model the company went on to promote the product as a technologically superior

one using the Digital Biking concept.

The latest promotions of Bajaj have been more about brand building with good

videography stunts and choreography and concepts matching upto the international

standards.

Pricing

The price of Bajaj pulsar depends on the city and various models. Bajaj Pulsar is one

of the premium segment bikes which is reflected by its pricing. In the near future the price of

Pulsar is bound to increase because of the pressure on profit margin of the company. The

above Marketing Mix has helped Bajaj register increasing sales each year and capture a

major market share in the Performance segment.

CONCLUSIONLeader in its segment of performance bikes above and 150 cc. Pulsar has been able

to capture the heart and the mind share of its consumers along with the market share for a

long time. It is one of the best products available in the market in terms of the balance of

economy, performance and looks. As per the understanding from the consumer behaviour

survey it is the top choice for basic benefits as conveyance and also status needs

associated with stylish looks. Because of these features it is currently the cash cow for the

Bajaj Group.

Pulsar however needs to continuously innovate in terms of technology and design to

maintain its market share against competitors as Hero, Honda, Yamaha, TVS etc. Hero and

Honda has been continuously launching new products in premium segments and Yamaha is

launching cost effective versions of its world renowned bikes, which is hitting the market

share of Bajaj Pulsar. Bajaj hence needs to develop marketing strategies to fight the external

environment in terms of competitors and macroeconomic factors such as oil prices and


22/22

inflation. From the understanding of the SWOT analysis the group can leverage upon its

entrenched brand loyalty coupled with improvements in products to maintain its position.

Bibliography

1. http://www.managementstudyguide.com

2. http://www.bajajauto.com/

3. http://www.wikipedia.org/

4. www.bikanerrockers.blogspot.com/2007/11/bajaj-pulsar-story-of-indias-most.html

5. www.consumerpsychologist.com

6. www.openlearningworld.com
http://www.managementstudyguide.com/http://www.managementstudyguide.com/http://www.bajajauto.com/http://www.bajajauto.com/http://www.wikipedia.org/http://www.wikipedia.org/http://www.bikanerrockers.blogspot.com/2007/11/bajaj-pulsar-story-of-indias-most.htmlhttp://www.bikanerrockers.blogspot.com/2007/11/bajaj-pulsar-story-of-indias-most.htmlhttp://www.consumerpsychologist.com/http://www.consumerpsychologist.com/http://www.openlearningworld.com/http://www.openlearningworld.com/http://www.openlearningworld.com/http://www.consumerpsychologist.com/http://www.bikanerrockers.blogspot.com/2007/11/bajaj-pulsar-story-of-indias-most.htmlhttp://www.wikipedia.org/http://www.bajajauto.com/http://www.managementstudyguide.com/

Pulkit Agrawal 63.docx

Documents

Transcript of Pulkit Agrawal 63.docx