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The date during which questionnaires were filled. Some dealers were also interviewed to know their prospective. Interviews with the managers of GSM service providers were also conducted. Finally the collected data and information was analyzed and compiled to arrive at the conclusion and recommendations given. INTRODUCTION OF THE TOPIC The project is an extensive report on how the Airtime Company markets its strategies and how the company has been able in tackling the present tough competition and owe it is scooping up by the allegations of the quality of its products.
The report begins with the history of the pr ducts and the introduction of the Airtime Company. This report also contains the basic marketing strategies that are used by the Airtime Company of manufacturing process, technology, production policy, advertising, collaboration, export scenario, future prospect and government policies. The report includes some of the key salient features of marketer end issues. In today s world of cutthroat fierce competition, it is very essential to not only exist UT also to excel in the market.
Today’s market is enormously more complex. Hence forth to s our vive in the market, the company not only needs to maximize its profit but also needs to satisfy its customers and should try to build upon from there AIRTIME Company profile AIRTIME is a brand of telecommunication services in India operated by Birth Airtime. Airtime is the largest cellular service provider in India in terms of number subscribers. Birth Airtime owns the Airtime brand and provides the following civvies under the brand name Airtime: Mobile Services (using GSM Technology), Broadband& Telephone
Services (Fixed line, Internet Connectivity(DSL) and Leased Line), Long Distance Services and Enterprise Services (Telecommunications Consulting for corporate). It has presence in all 23 circles of the country and covers 71% of current population (as of IFFY. Leading international telecommunication companies such as Avoidance and Singlet held partial stakes in Birth Airtime. Vision “As we spread wings to expand our capabilities and explore new horizons, the fundamental focus remains unchanged: seek out the best technology in the world and put it at the service of our ultimate user: our customer.
The Company has developed the following strategies to achieve its strategic objective Focus on maximizing revenues and margins; Capture maximum telecommunications revenue potential with minimum geographical coverage; Offer multiple telecommunications services to provide customers with a “one- stop shop” solution; Position itself to tap data transmission opportunities and offer advanced mobile data services; Focus on satisfying and retaining customers by ensuring high level of customer; satisfaction; Leverage strengths of its strategic and financial partners; and….
Emphasize on human source development to achieve operational efficiencies. Businesses Birth Tell-ventures current businesses include Mobile services Fixed-line National and international long distance services VAST, Internet services and network solutions Broadband services with DSL and Wi-If network Competitive Strengths Birth Tell-ventures believes that the following elements will contribute to the Company’s success as an integrated telecommunication services provider in India and will provide the Company with a solid foundation to execute its business strategy a solid foundation to execute its business strategy
Nationwide Footprint – approximately 92% of Indian’s total mobile subscribers resided in the Company’s fifteen mobile circles. These 15 circles collectively accounted for approximately 56% of Indian’s land mass. Focus on telecommunications to enable the Company to better anticipate industry trends and capitalize on new telecommunications- related business opportunities.
The strong brand name recognition and a reputation for offering high quality service to its customers; Quality management team with vision and proven execution skills; and The Company’s strong relationships with international strategic and financial investors such as Singlet, Warbler Pinups, International Finance Corporation, Asian Infrastructure Fund Group and New York Life Insurance. Brand Strategy To understand the brand strategy, let’s first look at the brand building exercise associated with Airtime -?? a brand that had to be repositioned recently to address new needs in the market.
When the brand was launched seven years ago, cellular telephony wasn’t a mass market by any means. For the average consumer, owning a cellular phone was expensive as tariff rates (at RSI 8 a minute) as well as instrument prices were steep -?? sometimes as much as buying a second-hand car. Birth could have addressed the customer by rationally explaining to him the economic advantage of using a mobile phone. But Saccade says that such a strategy would not have worked for the simple reason that the value from using the phone at the time was not commensurate with the cost.
That is precisely what the brand tried to achieve through its new positioning under the Airtime”Touch Tomorrow” brand campaign. This set of campaigns portrayed mobile users surrounded by caring family members. Says Saccade: “The new campaign and positioning was designed to highlight the relationship angle ND make the brand softer and more sensitive. ” If Airtime is becoming more humane and more sensitive as a brand, Birth has also understood that one common brand for all cellular operations might not always work in urban markets that are now getting increasingly saturated.
To bring in new customers, the company decided that it needed to segment the market. One such experiment, launched last year, is Youth, a brand aimed at the youth in the 14 to 19 age bracket and for those who are “young at heart”. With its earlier positioning, Airtime was perceived as a brand for the well-heeled older customer; there was nothing for younger people. With Youth Airtime hoped to reverse that In order to deliver the concept, Airtime offered rock bottom tariff rates (25 paisa for 30 seconds) at night to Youth customers -?? a time when they make the maximum number of calls.
It also set up merchandising exercises around the scheme -?? like a special portal for young people to buy things or bid for goods. Brand Building Initiatives The main idea is to stay ahead of competition for at least six months. Working on the above game plan Birth is constantly coming up with newer product offerings for the customers. The focus, of course, is to offer better quality of service. To make the service simpler for customers using roaming facilities, Airtime has devised common numbers for subscribers across the country for services like customer care, food services and cinema amongst others.
It will also launch a unified billing system across circles so, customers moving from one place to another do not have to close and then again open new accounts at another place. To assist customer care personnel to deal with subscriber queries, a storehouse of 40,000 frequently asked questions and their answers have been stored on the amputees. Birth expects that most of its new customers (one estimate is that it would be 60 to 70 per cent of the total new subscriber base) would come from the pre-paid card segment. So, they must be given value-added products and services which competitors don’t provide.
The loyalty program will not be only for a ‘badge value’, it will provide real benefits to customers. The idea is to create an Airtime community. Another key area which Birth is concentrating its attention upon is a new roaming service launched in Delhi under which calls off roaming subscriber who is visiting he city will be routed directly to his mobile instead of traveling via his home network. The company also offers multi-media messaging systems under which customers having a specialized phone with a in-built camera can take pictures and e-mail it to friends or store it in the phone.
Distribution channel is not accurately categorized. Premium priced products, hence can’t compete in low price segment. No separate strategy for rural market. Opportunities The company’s financial performance can receive a major boost from There is a lot of scope of product and market diversification. Exports of products will also have huge chances in the coming years Ar??te’s business has ample scope for gaining market share from the unrealized sector . Rural integration too holds Vass t potential to bring about growth.
Threats The slowdown in the economy has restricted top line growth of most FMC major s and for Airtime also it will be difficult to maintain historical growth rates in such a depressed scenario. Company’s major raw materials are influenced by government policies / controls as well as vagaries of the monsoons. Fluctuations in the prices of raw materials would have significant impact on costs and mar gins of the company. Moreover , inordinate hike in Broad Band Internet products would also increases company’s production and distribution cost