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Marketing Management Project “WRITE

IN TIME”

AMITY UNIVERSITY ACADEMIC YEAR

2009-2012 BBA (General) SUBMITTED BY: MANAAL PARVAIZ –A01 ROHAN MEHTA – A21 RAJ NAVEEN – A13 SIDDHARTH JAIN – A30 SONAL ANAND – A10 ANKIT NEGI – A50 PRASHANT SABLANI – A48 SUBMITTED TO: MRS. DEEPALI CHOPRA

Product: 1

WRITE IN TIME Tagline: “Write quick and smart”

CONTENTS 1. Introduction

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2. Pen Industry 3. Paper Notebook Industry 4. Value Chain Analysis 5. Write In Time - Vision - Target Market - Market Definition and Segmentation - Differentiators - Promotion 6. Segmentation - How to segment? - Basis of segmentation A. Geographic B. Demographic C. Psychographic D. Behavioralistic 7. STP of “Write In Time” - USP - Conclusion 8. Appendix 9. Bibliography 3

PEN AND REGISTER VENDING MACHINE

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Introduction The term ‘vending machine’ refers to a machine that accepts payments, and dispenses a product or service. The item dispensed by the machine may be a beverage, a snack, a ticket, a receipt for a payment, or simply change for a larger denomination of currency. Such machines are common in Western countries and Japan; however, they are yet to gain a major presence in India. Why are vending machines so uncommon in India? Vending machines are used all over the world for dispensing a variety of products; however, in India, vending machines are few and far between. We believe that the reason vending machines are not popular in India stems mainly from the lack of these machines that have been designed exclusively for an Indian environment; because of the uniqueness of India, machines designed for use abroad do not necessarily find a place in India. Existing vending machines in the world are not suitable in India because of the following reasons:1. Currency recognition technology is more difficult. India has a much greater diversity of currency, both coins and notes, compared to most Western countries. As a result, the same coin and note recognition techniques that are used for currencies such as the dollar and the yen do not extend themselves to Indian currency. For this reason, vending machines deployed in India are unable to accept more than one particular kind of coin (such as a five rupee coin or a 1 rupee coin). This is a major hassle both for the customer, who must have the right kind of change, as 5

well as for the vendor whose products are being sold, because he is forever locked to one particular price for his product. This is one of the main reasons that vending machines have not picked up in India.

2. Labor is a cheaper alternative. India has one of the cheapest labor forces in the world for unspecialized jobs such as vending of products or selling of tickets, which are functionalities typically performed by a vending machine. In countries abroad, vending machines that dispense beverages like coffee are ubiquitous because it is expensive to employ a person to fulfill such a role; in India, however, it would be naïve to expect people to start using vending machines when they can get cheap coffee, tea, cigarettes from roadside vendors. For a vending machine to displace an equivalent human vendor, it must not only be capable of performing all the duties that a vendor would perform, but must also be substantially cheaper to install and maintain than employing labor. 3. Environment is more rugged.

In countries abroad, vending machines are typically present in environments where the temperature and humidity are controlled, and where security and vandalism are not particular issues. In India, the operating environment for such machines is substantially more demanding, and the machine must be well protected from would-be vandals. 4. Security needs are more stringent. A related concern in any vending machine is security, which takes on three aspects. First, the currency that is stored within a vending machine must be 6

secured, and the machine itself must be resistant to theft. This aspect of security is important to the vendor who has invested in the machine. Second, the contents of the machine must be tamper-proof – for example, no one must be able to contaminate the beverage that a softdrink vending machine may dispense. This aspect of security is important both to the vendor and the customer of the product. Thirdly, the machine must guarantee that a product will be dispensed when a customer puts money into it, and must not ‘steal’ customers’ money through malfunction in any circumstances. This refers to a customer’s feeling of security when dealing with a machine instead of a shopkeeper. All of these concerns are very inadequately addressed in vending machines in India today. 5. Current vending solutions do not offer the same convenience as from a shopkeeper. Indians are accustomed to personalized service in shops in India, and expect the same level of convenience from a vending machine also. For example, a vending machine must be able to make change and offer a variety of purchasing choices, just as a shopkeeper would. A vending machine must also require minimum maintenance, and guarantee maximum uptime, in order to gain widespread public use. Vending machines in India are technologically far from satisfying these conditions today. 6. Culture is more conducive to human relationships. For several products in India, such as coffee, vegetables, beverages etc., there exists a relationship between the customer and the shop-keeper today. It is unlikely that a customer will switch over to purchasing from a machine 7

when such a relationship exists. The fundamental issues of trust, redressal of grievances, assurance of quality etc. are social issues that impede the adoption of vending machines in India. From these reasons, two conclusions are evident: a) that vending machines may be deployed widely in India only for certain products and services and not others; and b) that the main stumbling block for vending machines in India appears to be the immaturity of available technology.

PEN INDUSTRY

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As early as 4,000 B.C., ancient peoples used crude pens consisting of hollow straws or reeds that supported a short column of liquid. During the 500’s B.C., people began to make pens from the wing feathers of such birds as geese and swans. The shaft of the feathers was hardened, and the writing tip was shaped and slit to make writing easy. These feather pens were known as quill pens, and they were widely used until the development of steel-nib pens in the 1800’s. By the late 1800’s, inventors had perfected an early version of the fountain pen. This pen represented a major improvement over previous pens, because it featured an ink reservoir and a capillary feed. Earlier pens held only a small amount of ink at a time and had to be repeatedly dipped in ink. The First Fountain Pen In 1883, L. E. Waterman, an insurance salesman, purchased a writing contraption with its own ink reservoir. But when it leaked, ruining a sale, he got an idea for a better one and decided to make it himself. In those days a salesman often wore a vest chain with a small metal container holding a vial of ink in one pocket and a collapsible penholder in the other. Waterman examined several so-called pocket pens and saw that none of them had a mechanism for the sure control of ink flow. He determined to invent one. Applying the principle of capillary attraction, he designed a feed with a groove for air intake and three narrow slits in the bottom of the groove. As air bubbles interred, they pressed against the ink in the barrel and the ink descended through the slits in a uniform flow to the pen point.

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This device was so novel the Patent Office granted a patent in 1884, only a few months after the filing. Waterman claimed that his new mechanism would "prevent the excessive discharge of the ink when the pen is in use." It was the first practical fountain pen and its three-fissure feed became the standard principle for all other makes produced thereafter. Waterman started assembling his pens on a kitchen table in the rear of a cigar store. In September of 1885 he started to advertise. After that Waterman’s Ideal rode the road to fortune. The first pens were long tubes with a cap fitted on a projection at the top of the barrel. The cone cap, sliding over the end, did not come until 1899. Color was first used in 1898 with the hexagon holder. A self-filling piston replaced the reloading eye dropper in 1903. In a 1908 model the barrel was made with a movable sleeve which exposed a metal bar; by finger pressure the bar squeezed a soft rubber sac. Up to this time there had been no sacs in fountain pens. The Waterman Company (L. E. Waterman died in 1901) introduced a slot big enough to admit the edge of a coin to compress the sac in 1913. Later the same year the lever appeared, set in a metal housing attached to the barrel; the lever emptied or filled the sac completely in one stroke. Changes since that time have been mainly in styling. The first Ball Point Pen The first patent for a ball point pen was No. 392,046, granted October 30, 1888, to John J. Loud of Weymouth, Mass. Loud used the pen to mark leather fabrics. Another ball point pen device was

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patented by Van Vechten Riesburg in 1916. Both patents lapsed without improvement renewal. Ballpoint pens received little notice until World War 11(1939-1945). Many pilots began using ballpoint pens during this conflict, because such pens did not leak at high altitudes. After the war, ballpoint pens became increasingly popular. Soft-tip pens and rolling-ball pens both were introduced during the 1960’s. The first ball point pen to replace the then common "fountain pen" was introduced by Milton Reynolds in 1945. It used a tiny ball bearing which rolled heavy gelatin ink onto the paper. The Reynolds Pen was a crude writing instrument, but it sold like "hot cakes" when first introduced at a price of $10, using the slogan "It writes under water." Competition finally forced prices down to less than 10 cents for ball point pens by 1960. By then the Reynolds pen had disappeared from the market place. Before others invaded Reynold's ball point pen market, one of his flamboyant escapades to attract attention was to purchase a B26 Douglas transport airplane. He loaded it with Reynolds Pens and hired Pilot Bill Odom to fly him around the world in 1947, handing out Reynolds pens to people wherever he went. The publicity from this escapade was tremendous. Milton Reynolds was born in Albert Lea, Minn. in 1892 and died in Mexico City in 1976 at age 84. Pens of one type or another have been used for thousands of years. Today, pens rank among the most widely used writing instruments. More than 2 11

billion pens are manufactured in the United States annually. There are five main kinds of pens. They are: (1) ballpoint pens, (2) fountain pens, (3) soft-tip pens, (4) rolling-ball pens, and (5) specialty pens. (1) Ballpoint pens Have tiny ball made of brass, steel, or tungsten carbide as their writing tip. A compartment called the ink reservoir holds the ink, and a narrow tube links the reservoir to the ball. The ball, which is fitted into a socket, turns as it rolls across the paper, carrying ink from inside the pen onto the paper. Many ballpoint pens have a plastic cap that helps prevent ink from drying out on the ball. On others, a push-button mechanism draws the pen point into the body of the pen. Most ballpoint pens depend on gravity to pull the ink to the ball. For this reason, ballpoint pens generally do not write well when held sideways. However, some ballpoints are designed so that slight pressure is always applied behind the ink column. This design enables the ink to move constantly forward and the pen to write even when its point is higher than its back end. Ballpoint pens use a thick, sticky ink because a thinner ink would leak out around the ball. But the use of such ink makes ballpoint pens write less smoothly than most other pens.

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(2) Fountain pens Have a somewhat triangular writing point, called a nib, which is made of gold or stainless steel. A system of narrow tubes known as the feed carries the ink from the pen’s reservoir to the nib. Fountain pens use a highly fluid ink. They rely on a property called capillarity to draw the ink into and through the feed. Capillarity causes the inner surface of the tubes to attract molecules of ink. These ink molecules, in turn, attract other ink molecules, and the feed fills with ink from the pen’s reservoir. The feed in a fountain pen also includes a number of air passages that lead to the reservoir. These passages allow air to fill the top of the reservoir as ink is drawn from the bottom. Thus the air pressure inside the pet remains equal to the air pressure outside the pen, and the ink flows easily. If the air pressure inside the ink reservoir is lower than the atmospheric pressure outside, the ink will not reach the point and the pen will fail to write. However, if the air pressure over the ink column becomes greater than the air pressure outside the pen, ink will flood out from the front of the pen. To avoid such flooding, fountain pens are designed with a collector. The collector, which is located near the nib, consists of a series of fins and spaces that provide enough additional room to accommodate forward moving ink. (3) Soft-tip pens Also called porous-pointed pens, have a relatively soft writing tip. Some soft-tip pens, called felt-tip pens, have a felt-like writing tip. The tip of 13

others is made of absorbent plastic. Soft-tip pens use fluid, brilliantly colored inks. The reservoir in a soft-tip pen consists of a special synthetic material made up of many fibers. This type of reservoir, called a capillary reservoir, holds ink in much the same way that a sponge holds water. During writing, the absorbent tip of a soft-tip pen continually draws ink from the reservoir onto the paper. (3) Roller ball Pens combine certain features of ball point, fountain, and soft-tip pens. Like ballpoint pens, roller ball pens have a tiny ball that turns in a socket at their tip. But unlike ballpoints, roller ball pens use highly fluid inks, which allow them to write as smoothly as soft-tip and fountain pens. Roller ball pens may have either a capillary reservoir similar to that used in soft-tip pens or a reservoir like that of ballpoints. A wick made of an absorbent material draws ink from the reservoir and carries it to the ball. The wick can carry only a limited amount of ink at any onetime. In this way, the wick regulates the flow of ink and prevents it from leaking out. (5) Specialty pens Are designed for specific purposes for example, artists and mechanical drafters use a pen called a technical pen. This pen comes with a set of interchangeable pen points of varying widths. Another special pen, called a lettering pen, is used to create an elegant style of handwriting called calligraphy.

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PAPER NOTEBOOK INDUSTRY The Indian Paper Industry is among the top 15 global players today, with an output of more than 6 millions tones annually with an estimated turnover of Rs. 150,000 millions. (approx. USD 3400 million). Paper Industry in India is riding on a strong demand and on an expanding mood to meet the projected demand of 8 million tones by 2010 & 13 million tones by 2020. A large number of expansion programme & expansion of capacities with an outlay of Rs. 10,000 crores have been announced covering the various sectors like paper, paperboard, newsprint etc. The Indian Economy is progressing well and targeting 8%+ growth. The economic reforms coupled with the liberalized Government Policies, India today offers excellent business opportunity for investments. One of the first FDI Projects may come through the proposed Finnish proposal to set up a 400000 tpa capacity plant with an investment of US$240 million. The expanding Industrial Scenario calls for efforts to tackle related problems: •

Industry needs capital and technology.

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Since energy cost accounts nearly 25 per cent of cost of production there is an urgency to improve energy management and energy consumption.

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Quantum jump in production, called for by the demand projection is possible only by expansion of existing capacity and creation of additional capability. Up gradation of technology and new capacities also involve massive investment.

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Use of agro residues for preparation of pulp also throws up challenges like pollution control, recycling, use of cost effective technology for utilization of agro residues, etc.

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VALUE CHAIN ANALYSIS

Primary activities Inbound logistics: Refers to goods being obtained from the organizations suppliers ready to be used for producing the end product. Operations: The raw materials and goods obtained are manufactured into the final product. Value is added to the product at this stage as it moves through the production line. Outbound logistics: Once the products have been manufactured they are ready to be distributed to distribution centers, wholesalers, retailers or customers. Marketing and Sales: Marketing must make sure that the product is targeted towards the correct customer group. The marketing mix is used to

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establish an effective strategy; any competitive advantage is clearly communicated to the target group by the use of the promotional mix. Services: After the product/service has been sold what support services does the organization have to offer. This may come in the form of after sales training, guarantees and warranties. With the above activities, any or a combination of them, maybe essential for the firm to develop the competitive advantage. Support Activities The support activities assist the primary activities in helping the organization achieve its competitive advantage. They include: Procurement: This department must source raw materials for the organization and obtain the best price for doing so. For the price they must obtain the best possible quality Technology development: The use of technology to obtain a competitive advantage within the organization. This is very important in today’s technological driven environment. Technology can be used in production to reduce cost thus add value, or in research and development to develop new products, or via the use of the internet so customers have access to online facilities. Human resource management: The organization will have to recruit, train and develop the correct people for the organization if they are to succeed in their objectives. Staff will have to be motivated and paid the ‘market rate’ if they are to stay with the organization and add value to it over their duration 18

of employment. Within the service sector eg airlines it is the ‘staff’ who may offer the competitive advantage that is needed within the field. Firm infrastructure: Every organization needs to ensure that their finances, legal structure and management structure works efficiently and helps drive the organization forward. As you can see the value chain encompasses the whole organization and looks at how primary and support activities can work together effectively and efficiently to help gain the organization a superior competitive advantage.

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WRITE IN TIME WRITE IN TIME provides Pens and Registers at the click of a Button. This marketing plan illustrates our market segments and the strategies we will be employing to get customers and create a good revenue stream. We are not just any pen-paper provider. Our unique focus of creating Pen – Register Vending Machines gives us an advantage over our competitors by giving customers a new outlet to avail their desired product anywhere and in seconds. We shall fulfill the needs of not just traditional pen paper buyers but expand our reach to people who would normally not go out and shop for such items. We shall purchase and put to use readymade Vending Machines. Then we shall establish relationships with companies who are interested in embedding their brand and offers inside our machines.

VISION “Be a leader in providing best quality writing instruments in time.” Our marketing challenge is to attract visibility quickly and we intend to accomplish this by leveraging a multi-pronged approach that involves social media, email marketing and search engine optimization strategies to gain market share. As we gain traction in the marketplace, word of mouth will lift our product sales.

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TARGET MARKET Our ideal customer is the ages of 13 and 25. They often a need pen at the last moment, maybe before the start of classes, lectures, or even exams. Our Vending Machines will provide a creative promotional method to different brands, their products and services. MARKET DEFINITION AND SEGMENTATION We target two segments: students and institutions. 1. Students There are two types of customers that define the demographic of Write in time users: teens (including pre-teens) and young adults, which for the purposes of this marketing plan will include teenagers age 18 and above as they are considered young adults by the general population as well as by the law. Our strategy focuses upon launching the first set of “Write in Time” machines we will stay in regular contact with our customers via numerous online methods, including social media and email marketing; and later allowing the brands to promote their brand via our Machines. DIFFERENTIATORS 1. Cater to specific needs 2. Consistent Supply

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PROMOTION We will leverage social media and word of mouth for the vast majority of our marketing using platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Orkut and MySpace. We will make announcements via regular tweets and updates to our fan page on Facebook.

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SEGMENTATION Segmentation is the process of grouping people or organizations within a market according to similar needs, characteristics, or behaviors . Segmentation is the process of placing together consumers into groups such that consumer heterogeneity on specified characteristics is minimized within groups and maximized across groups e.g. value for money buyers as distinct from economy buyers. Segmentation can also be thought of as taking a market and dividing them into groups based on some common characteristic e.g. diet-colas, regular colas. Dividing the market into groups • an entire market rarely has the same tastes and preferences • it is difficult to handle all preferences too • Mercedes Benz, for example (only high-end) Targeting: Is the actual selection of the segment you want to serve the target market is the group of people or organizations whose needs a product is specifically designed to satisfy. Positioning: Is the use of marketing to enable people to form a mental image of your product in their minds (relative to other products). STP Marketing is the name of the game • The days of “one size fits all” are over • No longer can one say “You can have any colour as long as it is black”

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• Need to follow the “horses for courses” policy - no more mass marketing • Moving towards mass customization in fact • Levi’s Personal Pants • National Bicycle Company - HOW TO SEGMENT A MARKET? • On what basis/bases? • What are some criteria/variables? - BASES OF SEGMENTATION 1. Geographic- by location (same area share some similar needs &

wants)-region, city size, density, climate. 2. Demographic-age, gender, marital status, income, education .

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Phsycographic- activities (how consumer spends time), interest (preferences & priorities),opinion(feels about events) .

4. Buying behavior

A. Geographic Segmentation The following are some examples of geographic variables often used in segmentation. • • •

Region: by continent, country, state, or even neighborhood Size of metropolitan area: segmented according to size of population Population density: often classified as urban, suburban, or rural

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Climate: according to weather patterns common to certain geographic regions

B. Demographic Segmentation Some demographic segmentation variables include: • • • • • • • •

Age Gender Family size Family lifecycle Generation: baby-boomers, Generation X, etc. Income Occupation Education 25

• • • •

Ethnicity Nationality Religion Social class

Many of these variables have standard categories for their values. For example, family lifecycle often is expressed as bachelor, married with no children (DINKS: Double Income, No Kids), full-nest, empty-nest, or solitary survivor. Some of these categories have several stages, for example, full-nest I, II, or III depending on the age of the children.

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C. Psychographic Segmentation Psychographic segmentation groups customers according to their lifestyle. Activities, interests, and opinions (AIO) surveys are one tool for measuring lifestyle. Some psychographic variables include: • • • • •

Activities Interests Opinions Attitudes Values

D. Behavioralistic Segmentation Behavioral segmentation is based on actual customer behavior toward products. Some behavioralistic variables include: • • • • • •

Benefits sought Usage rate Brand loyalty User status: potential, first-time, regular, etc. Readiness to buy Occasions: holidays and events that stimulate purchases

Behavioral segmentation has the advantage of using variables that are closely related to the product itself. It is a fairly direct starting point for market segmentation.

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STP OF WRITE IN TIME

SEGMENTATION

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Age: 13-25

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Gender: Male and female, both.

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Income: All sections of society. Both middle and higher income groups, the availability relies on their respective colleges and universities whether they go for this or not.

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Location: All private and government colleges of NCR.

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TARGETING OF WRITE IN TIME

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“Write in time” will be using differentiated product segmentation …………..

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In this the whole market, the students, will be provided the same service, i.e., stationary on time.

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POSITIONING

The key elements of positioning of Write in Time will be: 1. Save of time and distance (being installed on campus). 2. Good quality at reasonable prices. Target Market: Organizations Who Want to Reach Youth and Young Adults Stationery users are everywhere. Since the youth and young adult demographic is so large, it is also very lucrative. There are countless products targeting this demographic, from soda manufacturers to clothing 31

designers to hair product companies. This segment can also consist of recruiters, which can be for military service or other jobs. Companies who already spend millions of dollars on marketing to this group are regularly looking for newer, more creative ways to reach this market to reinforce their brand and sell products. Emphasize Creativity, Service and Speed to Market We will emphasize our focus on creativity along with spectacular service and speed of development to our clients. It is important for us to get to market quickly. Expense Budget Summary Marketing expenses are mostly for staff required to do the marketing activities listed. The vast majority of the software tools needed to implement the activities, such as analytics and landing page creation, are available for free. The exceptions to this are for specific tools like email marketing and forums. USP Quality product within seconds.

CONCLUSION  Huge amount of investment in advertising required to grab hold of a greater market share.  Technological innovation is the future.  Distribution is the Crux.

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ANALYSIS OF QUESTIONNAIRES Q1. Which of the following attributes would you like to associate with a Pen and Notebook Vending Machine?

QUICK EASY TO USE DEPENDABLE MODERN

Figure 1: RATING OF ATTRIBUTES

Q2. Where would you prefer the machines to be available?

SCHOOLS UNIVERSITIES OFFICES BANKS MALLS

Figure 2: AVAILABILTY OF VENDING MACHINES

Q3. Age

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10 - 15 yrs 16 - 20 yrs 21 - 25 yrs

Figure 3: DEMOGRAPHICS – AGE (YEARS)

Q4. Gender:

MALES FEMALES

Figure 4: DEMOGRAPHICS: GENDER

Q5. Rate the Write in Time attributes:

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ACCESSIBILITY COMFORT USEFULNESS QUALITY

Figure 5: ATTRIBUTES OF WRITE IN TIME Q6. Feedback to the proposed idea of “WRITE IN TIME” vending machine received a GOOD response. Q7. Value of the product as compared to the price was rated as above average.

APPENDIX:

Sample size: 20

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PRODUCT FEASIBILTY SURVEY Q1. Which of the following attributes would you like to associate with a Pen and Notebook Vending Machine?  Dependable  Easy to use  Quick  Modern Q2. Where would you prefer the machines to be available?  Schools  Universities  Offices  Banks  Malls Q3. Demographic information: Age:  10 – 15 years  16 – 20 years  21 – 25 years Q4. Gender:  Male  Female

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Q5. Rate the WRITE IN TIME’s attributes: Poor 1

Average 2 3

Excellent 4 5

Quality Usefulness Comfort Accessibility

Q6. Overall, what is your reaction to the described vending machine – WRITE IN TIME?  Poor  Fair  Good  Very good  Excellent Q7. Would you say that the value of the product as compared to the price, is:  Excellent  Good  Average  Poor  Very poor Q8. Considering customer service, features, benefits and cost, how satisfied are you with the idea?  Very 37

 Somewhat  Neutral  Dissatisfied  Very dissatisfied

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

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a.

Kotler, Philip (2000, Tenth Edition); Marketing Management Millennium Edition

b.

Brace, Ian (2005, First Edition); Questionnaire Design; Pg No. 23-24; 43-49; 113-139; 141.

c.

Mackay, Adrian & Wilmshurst, John (2002, Second Edition); The Fundamentals of Advertising; Pg No. 3; 14; 23; 24.

d.

Nargundkar, Rajendra (2008, First Edition); International Marketing; Pg No. 51 – 69.

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