A

SUMMER TRAINING PROJECT REPORT

On
“Modern trade sales, outlet performance, competitior

Offerings and customer need analysis.”

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the course of

post graduate program, Pune.

Internal guide:
Prof. M.K. Gandhi

Submitted To: Submitted By:

INSTITUTE OF PRAVIN BHOSALE
BUSINESS
MANAGEMENT &
RESEARCH, CHAKAN,
PUNE.
 DECLARATION

I PRAVIN BHOSALEhereby declare that the project entitled “Modern trade sales, outlet

performance, competitior Offerings and customer need analysis.” is my original work, done

by me.

Now it is an asset of INSTITUTE OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT & RESEARCH,

CHAKAN, PUNE. All the Rights for using this project report lie with the institute.
Unauthorized copying, hiring, broadcasting, or rental of this project without permission from
the institute will be considered illegal.

DATE: 27-8-2009 PRAVIN BHOSALE

PLACE: Pune
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Presenting a Summer Training project of this type is an arduous task, demanding a lot of

time. I cannot in full measure reciprocate the kindness shown and contribution made by

various persons in this endeavour. I will remember all of them with gratitude.

My sincere thanks towards Mr. DHANANJAY LAD, Sr Manager-Modern Trade,

Pune.for giving me a chance to take this project and for her valuable guidance, which helped

me on all those points, which I needed to include in, with full intensity, for his significant

support extended for the successful completion of the project

I am extremely gratified to Mr. IMRAN SHAIKH (ASM, Airtel), who was extremely

helpful in offering his professional expertise and bestowing me practical knowledge in all

spheres related to the whole organization working.

I am very grateful to our Director Mr. P.K. Divakaran. And my project guide

Mr. M.K.Gandhi for their excellent guidance in the completion of my project work

I am always beholden to my God, for always being with me and showing me the right

ways, my family members, for always doing favours to me and my friends and colleagues

consistently helped with encouragement and criticism throughout the project work, for

always lifting my sights to higher vision, raising my personality beyond normal limitation

and for realizing me my strengths and potential, specially my brother, as I did not always

welcome her exhortation, “try again; you can do better.” But this project owes a great deal to

it – and so do I.

PRAVIN BHOSALE
 PREFACE
It’s a thing of massive gratification for me to present this Summer Training Project

Report on the topic “ Customer Acquisition & retention of airtel customer in PUNE ”

completed in an unrivaled organisation ‘AIRTEL, at PUNE’

Mobile telephony adoption is on the rise and recent technological innovations have

dramatically enhanced the capabilities of the wireless telephone. Leveraging the power of

these new capabilities, various business sectors are working together to offer a wide array of

services. Each sector is looking for the next "killer application," yet we are still learning

about people's information and communication needs while "on the go."

I myself have for a long time deeply interested in studying consumer trends &

behaviour towards mobile industry.

I know that even in the areas in which I have a little knowledge, I do not know

enough. There are new tasks in these areas for which I am not yet equipped with tested,

proven approaches and tools. New areas of challenge and new technology problems has

arisen, where I have done little work so far and where I have so far only ignorance rather

than even a modicum of knowledge.

This project attempts to identify and define areas related to consumer behavior

regarding new connection services. It also attempts to develop at least first approach to these

areas, to think through policies, principles, and practices to accomplish the new tasks and to

satisfy the customer needs. By this practical training I am able to equip the manager with the

understanding, the thinking, the knowledge, and the skills for today’s and also for tomorrow’s

market exigency.
 Initially I was just having the bookish knowledge about all Marketing policies,

practices and functions, but after joining this organization, I got most of the practical

knowledge. I have come to know, what actually happens in the organizations.

Though it is not possible to have the information of all the spheres in market, in such

a very short period, but I tried to get more and more about all functions and practices applied

in practical working, I have particularly stresses on.

This is the boom time for mobile industry. Youths are having keen flair for mobile

communication.

Now the mobile communications are the fastest growing industry. We can reach

to anyone, anywhere across world through mobile connectivity. Just look in the areas they’re

in; health, education, banking, insurance, travel, couriers, manufacturing, entertainment,

government, computer helpdesks- the list goes on market is going on global, & so the need of

communication is emerging day by day…

I saw that though the times are hard but if same thing innovative is done, people will get

more craze for that.

We are fast becoming a part of a new era of management. No longer does a manager

sit in an ivory tower and issue directives from a distance.

This study, complex as it is, has acquired new dimensions with the dynamic social

and technological changes of the past two decades. Changing technologies, cultural diversity,

more educated work force and awareness of rights and privileges have prompted a new look

at the entire organizational structures and systems.

PRAVIN BHOSALE
 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Airtel comes to us from Bharti Cellular Limited - a part of the biggest private

integrated telecom conglomerate, Bharti Enterprises.

Bharti provides a range of telecom services, which include Cellular, Basic, Internet

and recently introduced National Long Distance. Bharti also manufactures and exports

telephone terminals and cordless phones. Apart from being the largest manufacturer of

telephone instruments in India, it is also the first company to export its products to the USA.

Bharti is the leading cellular service provider, with a footprint in 23 states covering all four

metros and more than 70 million satisfied customers

Bharti Tele-Ventures believes that the demand for mobile services in India will continue to

grow rapidly as a result of the following factors:

⇏        Lower tariffs and handset prices over time;

⇏        Growth in pre-paid customer category;

⇏        Greater economic growth and continued development of India's economy;

⇏         Higher quality mobile networks and services; and

⇏         Greater variety and usage of value added services

The project is based on the study of modern trade, consumer trends, competitor

offerings and level of satisfaction in Airtel communication Ltd. The study was conducted in

Pune with sample size of 50 and sample units were suppliers and

Consumer of mobile connection.

 “TABLE OF CONTENTS”
 CHAPTER – I
 INTRODUCTION
 COMPANY PROFILE
 ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE
 CHAPTER – II
 BUSINESS & MARKETING STRATEGIES
 COMPANY PLANS.
 CHAPTER – III
 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
 RESEARCH DESIGN
 COLLECTION OF DATA
 PRIMARY DATA
 SECONDARY DATA
 CHAPTER – IV
 DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
 SWOT ANALYSIS
 FINDINGS
 SUGGESTIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS
 CONCLUSION
 CHAPTER –V
 APPENDIX
BIBLIOGRAPHY
CHAPTER 1
 INTRODUCTION

TELECOM HISTORY SINCE 1842 TILL NOW

With the dramatic changes in interpersonal communication over the past decade, Internet

messaging has emerged as the primary medium for transferring information quickly,

inexpensively, and reliably. However, the growing popularity of wireless telephones has

added another dimension to the communications equation—mobility. As more Indians rely

on cellular communication, this market is expected to see explosive growth over the forecast

period.

Let’s have a review of telecommunication History:-

TELECOM HISTORY

1842: Wireless by conduction

1843: Early electromagnetic research, wireless by induction

1865: Induction and Dr. Loomis

Early radio discoveries

1879: D.E. Hughes and the first radio-telephone reception

1880: The photo phone and the first voice radio-telephone call

1880 to 1900: Radio development begins in earnest

1910: The first car-telephone

1924: The first car-mounted radio-telephone

1937: Early conventional radio-telephone development

The modern era begins

1946: The first commercial American radio-telephone service

1947: Cellular systems first discussed

1948: The first automatic radio telephone service

1969: The first cellular radio system

1973: The Father of the cell phone

1978: First generation analog cellular systems begin

1980: Growth of Japanese cellular development

1981: NMT -- the first multinational cellular system

1982: The rise of GSM

1990: North America goes digital: IS

Wireless by conduction

On October 18, 1842, Morse laid wires between Governor's Island and Castle Garden, New

York, a distance of about a mile. Part of that circuit was under water. But before he could

complete this demonstration a passing ship pulled up his cable, ending it seemed, his

experiment. Undaunted, Morse proceeded without the cable, passing his telegraph signals

through the water itself. This is wireless by conduction.

Over the next thirty years most inventors and developers concentrated on wire line

telegraphy, that is, conventional telegraphy carried over wires suspended on poles. Few

tinkered exclusively with wireless since a basic radio theory had not yet been worked out.
Telegraphy, however, did produce a good understanding of wireless by induction since wires

ran parallel to each other and often induced rogue currents into other lines.

History of cellular mobile telephony: 1982 to 2001

1980 - First cellular phones began to appear

1982 - Nordic Mobile Telephony (NMT) standard

1983 - American Mobile Phone System (AMPS) standard

1986 - Nordic Mobile Telephony (NMT) 900 MHz

1991 - Commercial launch of the GSM service

1993 - Coverage of main roads GSM services start outside Europe

1994 - Japanese Digital Cellular (JDC)

1996 - USA Personal Communications Systems (PCS)

1982 - The beginning

During the early 1980s, analog cellular telephone systems experienced rapid growth

in Europe, particularly in Scandinavia and the United Kingdom, but also in France and

Germany. Each country developed its own system, which was incompatible with those of

others, in equipment and operation. This was an undesirable situation, because not only was

the mobile equipment limited to operation within national boundaries, but also limited to the

market for each type of equipment. This scenario in a unified Europe was undesirable.

The Europeans realized this early on, and in 1982, the Conference of European Posts

and Telegraphs (CEPT) form a study group called the Group Special Mobile (GSM) to study

and develop a pan-European public land mobile system. The proposed system had to meet

certain criteria, which included:

1. Good subjective speech quality.

2. Low terminal and service cost.

3. Support for international roaming.

4. Ability to support handheld terminals.

5. Support for a range of new services and facilities.

6. Spectral efficiency

7. ISDN compatibility.

Nordic Telecom and Netherlands PTT proposed to the CEPT the development of a

new digital cellular standard that would cope with the ever-burgeoning demands on European

mobile networks. The European Commission (EC) issued a directive which required member

states to reserve frequencies in the 900 MHz band for GSM to allow for roaming.

1986 Main GSM radio transmission techniques were chosen.

1987 September - 13 operators and administrators from 12 areas in the CEPT GSM advisory
group signed the charter GSM (Groupe Spéciale Mobile) MoU "Club" agreement, with a

launch date of 1 July 1991.

The original French name Groupe Spéciale Mobile was changed to Global System for Mobile

communications; but the original GSM acronym remains.

GSM SPECIFICATIONS WERE DRAFTED.

1989 – 1998

In 1989, GSM responsibility was transferred to the European Telecommunication

Standards Institute (ETSI), and phase I of the GSM specifications was published in 1990.

Commercial services started in mid 1991, and by 1993 there were 36 GSM networks in 22
countries, with 25 additional countries like South Africa, Australia and many Middle and Far

East countries opting for GSM. By the beginning of 1994, there were 1.3 million subscribers

worldwide.

The developers of GSM chose an unproven (at that time) digital system, as opposed to

the then standard analog cellular systems like AMPS in the United States and TACS in the

United Kingdom. They had faith in the advancements in compression algorithms and digital

signal processors to allow the fulfillment of the original criteria and the continual

improvement of the system in terms of quality and cost.

The European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) defined GSM as the

internationally accepted digital cellular telephony standard.

1990

Phase 1 GSM 900 specifications were frozen

DCS adaptation started.

Validation systems implemented.

First GSM World congress at Rome had 650 participants.

1991

First GSM specification was demonstrated.

DCS specifications were frozen.

GSM World Congress at Nice had 690 participants.

1992

January - The first GSM network operator was Oy Radiolinja Ab in Finland.

December 1992 - 13 networks were on air in 7 areas.

GSM World Congress at Berlin had 630 participants.

1993

GSM was demonstrated for the first time in Africa at Telkom '93 in Cape Town.

Roaming agreements between several operators were established.

By December 1993, 32 networks were on air in 18 areas.

GSM World Congress at Lisbon progressed with 760 participants.

Telkom '93 was held in Cape Town. First GSM systems were shown.

1994

First GSM networks in Africa were launched in South Africa.

Phase 2 data /fax bearer services were launched.

Vodacom became the first GSM network in the world to implement data/fax.

GSM World Congress at Athens drew 780 participants.

December 1994 -- 69 networks were on air in 43 areas.

1995

GSM MOU was formally registered as an association registered in Switzerland with 156

members from 86 areas.

GSM World Congress at Madrid attracted 1400 participants.

December 1995 - 117 networks were on air in 69 areas.

Fax, Data and SMS roaming started.

GSM phase 2 standardisation was completed, including adaptation for PCS 1900.

First PCS 1900 network was shown live 'on air' in the USA.

Telecom '95, Geneva -- Nokia shows 33.6 kbps multimedia data via GSM.

Namibia goes on-line.

1996

December 1996 - 120 networks were on air in 84 areas.

GSM World Congress was held in Cannes.

GSM MOU Plenary was held in Atlanta GA, USA.

8K SIM was launched.

Pre-paid GSM SIM cards were launched.

Libya goes on-line.

Option International launches the world's first GSM/Fixed-line modem.

2001 -2007

Feb -- GSM Conference held in Cannes.

By May 2001 there were 500m GSM 900/1800/1900 users worldwide.

16 billion SMS messages were sent in April 2001.

By April, 500 million people are GSM users.

India – key telecom parameters – 2008 - 2009

Category 2008 2009 (e)

Fixed-line services:
         Total subscribers 37.9 million 37.0 million
         Annual growth (e) -4% -2%
         Fixed-line penetration 3.1%
3.2%
(population)
         Fixed-line penetration 18%
19%
(household)
Broadband Internet:
         Total subscribers 5.4 million 7.5 million
         Annual growth 74% 40%
         Broadband penetration 0.6%
0.5%
(population)
         Broadband penetration 4%
3%
(household)
Mobile services:
         Total subscribers 347 million 510 million
         Annual growth 49% 46%
         Mobile penetration (population) 30% 43%
 COMPANY PROFILE
Airtel comes to you from Bharti Cellular Limited - a part of the biggest private

integrated telecom conglomerate, Bharti Enterprises.

Bharti provides a range of telecom services, which include Cellular, Basic, Internet

and recently introduced National Long Distance. Bharti also manufactures and exports

telephone terminals and cordless phones. Apart from being the largest manufacturer of

telephone instruments in India, it is also the first company to export its products to the USA.

Bharti is the leading cellular service provider, with a footprint in 15 states covering all four

metros and more than 7 million satisfied customers.

VISION:

To make mobile communications a way of life and be the customers' first choice.

MISSION:

We will meet the mobile communication needs of our customers through:

•Error-free service delivery

•Innovative products and services

• Cost efficiency

• Unified Messaging Solutions

CORE VALUE:

We will delight our customer with our simplicity, speed & innovation.

We will honour our commitment.

We will follow the highest standard of professional integrity & behaviour.

We will respect individual, build winning teams and lead by example.

We will create a fun filled and friendly workplace.

 AIRTEL MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS LIMITED

Bharti Tele-Ventures Limited was incorporated on July 7, 1995 for promoting

investments in telecommunications services. Its subsidiaries operate telecom services across

India. Bharti Tele-Ventures is India's leading private sector provider of telecommunications

services based on a strong customer base consisting of 7.42 million total customers, which

constitute, 6.76 million mobile and 757,000 fixed line customers, as of April 30, 2008.

Bharti Tele-Ventures vision for its mobile business is “To make mobile communications a

way of life and be the customers first choice”.

The mission is to meet the mobile communication needs of the customer through 1) error free

service 2) Innovative products and services and 3) cost efficiency. The Company’s strategic

objective is to consolidate its leadership position amongst the mobile service providers in

India.

The Indian mobile market, according to the COAI, has increased from approximately 1.2

million subscribers as of March 31, 1999 to approximately 100 million subscribers as of June

30, 2009

Bharti Tele-Ventures believes that the demand for mobile services in India will continue to

grow rapidly as a result of the following factors:

⇏        Lower tariffs and handset prices over time;

⇏        Growth in pre-paid customer category;

⇏        Greater economic growth and continued development of India's economy;

⇏         Higher quality mobile networks and services; and

⇏         Greater variety and usage of value added services.

Bharti Tele-Ventures, through its subsidiary has the licenses to provide GSM services in all

the twenty-two telecom circles in India. It proposes to consolidate all its subsidiaries

providing mobile services under Bharti Cellular Limited.  

As of June 30, 2008, approximately 92% of India's total mobile subscriber market resided in

the Company's 23 mobile circles, which collectively covered only 75% of India's land mass.
 AIRTEL DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM

DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM
A proper distribution system is very important for every company because now a day
the customer wants full service without any pain. Airtel has a deep penetration in the
market of prepaid cards, coupons, easy recharge and post-paid cards. I also seen in the
market the happy faces of customers and retailers of Airtel because of the easy
availability of Airtel cards and coupons.

BENEFITS OF GOOD DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM

1. Easy availability
2. Satisfied customers
3. Competitive advantage
4. Better market reputation
5. Saves time

DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM OF AIRTEL

1. Organisation (C&FA's)
2. Distributor
3. Retailer
4. Customer
5. Modern trade

Strategic Issues in Distribution

• Flow of Information in channel members.
• Availability of products on required time frame.
• Control over the channel.
• Availability of promotional items to the channel.
• Claim settlement should be solved within the committed time.
• Conflict between the channel members should be taking care by the company.
•
Retailer classification

A- Top 10% of total universe

B- Next 20% of total universe

C- Next 30% of total universe

D- Remained 40% of total universe

Modern Trade

This is a modern distribution channel for expansion of business.

Under it there are 4 channel partners like- TMS, Mobile Bazaar,

ARC & Airtel Exclusive Showrooms & This Trade Comes under

Retail own head which employee of airtel.

For all information & every activities there are some FOS who maintain gap between Retail

own head & channel partners

 Modern Trade Distribution channel

A
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e
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a
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.
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M.T. – Modern Trade, ARC – Airtel Relationship Centre
TMS – The Mobile Store, AE – Airtel Exclusive Office

Stock system in distribution

The complete stock maintenance procedure re is categorically divided in two parts.

1. Stock to be maintained by Distributor & The distributor has to keep the LAPU
Balance for minimum 7 days; Here 35% of the value must be in RCV

2. Stock to be Maintained by Retailer & The retailer has to keep LAPU balance for 3 days
(minimum amount Rs.1500) Here 33% of the value must be in RCV.
 O r g a n is a tio n
C & FA

D is tr ib u to r

S e v e ra l F O S

FO S FO S FO S

D iffe r e n t D iffe r e n t D iffe r e n t

R e ta ile r s R e ta ile r s R e ta ile r s

D is tr ib u to r
 ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE

Organisation of AIRTEL provides services through FSO (Full Service Outlets) and
DSA (Direct Sales Agent)

“MANAGEMENT HIERARCHY AT AIRTEL”

"M A N A G E M E N T H IE R A R C H Y "

C H IE F S A L E S A N D M A R K E T IN G O F F IC E R

V IC E P R E S ID E N T V IC E P R E S ID E N T C H IE F G E N E R A L M A N A G E R
M A R K E T IN G S T R A T E G Y S A L E S P L A N N IN G

C IR C L E S A L E S & M A R K E T IN G H E A D

D IS T R IC T O P E R A T IO N H E A D P R E P A ID H E A D C IR C L E M A R K E T IN G H E A D

C H A N N E L O P E R A T IO N M A N A G E R P R E P A ID M A N A G E R M A R K E T IN G S U P P O R T M A N A G E R -A M A R K E T IN G S U P P O R T M A N G E R -B
THREE TYPES OF SALES:

1. Primary Sales - Organisation to Distribution of Prepaid, Postpaid Cards,

Coupons, easy recharge etc.

2. Secondary Sales - Distributor to Retailers

3. Tertiary Sales - Retailer to Customer.

PROCEDURE OF ACTIVATION OF PREPAID CONNECTION:

Dealer (Confirms on 570)

FOS (Saw that the form is completed and has Accessory papers

Distributor (Activates the card)

PROCEDURE OF ACTIVATION OF POSTPAID CONNECTION:

Dealer (Collects of Cash and facilitates in Competition)

FOS (Collects the Form)

Distributor (Activates the card)

 MOBILE FOOTPRINT

The map below depicts the location of, and provides certain information for, Bharti Tele-

Ventures' existing mobile circles in India:

SOURCE:
CHAPTER 2
 BUSINESS & MARKETING STRATEGIES

Some Marketing And Business Tools Adopted By AIRTEL As To

Promote Its Activities:

Seminars: seminars are conducted at different places by the expert time by

time to make people aware.

Publicity: publicity is done through various media.

Stalls at famous places: they conduct their stall after a particular period of time

on the famous and public place to attract them towards themselves.

DSA (Direct Sales Agency)

Print media

Hoarding

Banners

Advertisement

Leaflets

Follow ups

By KNOP
 Mobile Strategy
Capture maximum telecommunications revenue potential with minimum geographical

coverage to maximise its revenues and margins. Build high quality mobile networks by

deploying state-of-the-art technology to offer superior services.

Use the experience it has gained from operating its existing mobile networks to develop and

operate other mobile networks in India and to share the expertise across all of its existing and

new Circles.

Attract and retain high revenue generating customers by providing competitive tariffs,

offering high quality customer support, proactive retention programs and roaming packages

across all of its mobile circles. 

Provide affordable tariff plans to suit each segment of the market with a view to expand the

reach, thereby increasing the mobile customer base rapidly.

Key highlights of Q3 FY 08-09 are as follows:

ROE 34.1%
ROCE 32.5%
Net Profit Margin 22.4%
EBITDA Margin 41.0%
Net Income $ 444 mn 25.37%
Cash Profit $ 773 mn 38.07%
EBITDA $ 812 mn 33.12%
Revenue $ 1,983 mn 38.3%
Customers 88.27 mn 54.0%

Wireless Customer market share leadership at

24.7%.
􀂃 Total minutes on network carried in Q3 – 143 billion
􀂃 Total employee strength – 25,553
􀂃 Balance sheet strength:
􀂃 Assets - $ 12 billion
􀂃 Net debt - $ 677 million*
􀂃 Net debt to EBITDA - 0.21 times*
·
highest growth in subscriber base on an individual basis this month.
At Airtel, we have always sought to enhance value for you as a customer by providing you

the most relevant and easy to use services through innovation and by harnessing the latest

developments in technology. In line with this strategy, we have constantly introduced

innovative products and services to suit your unique needs and wants.

Our services range from CLI to Music Messaging to Lost Call Alerts – all to serve you

better.

SMS

ASTROLOGY

RINGTONES

VOICE-MAIL

DAIL-A-RINGTONE

LOGOS

CALLER TUNES

MUSIC MESSAGING

FLASH MESSAGES

BLINKING MESSAGES

JOKES

LOVE JOKES

YAHOO! MESSAGING

YAHOO! MAIL

NEWS UPDATES

SPORTS

CALLER IDENTIFICATION

.
Consumer-driven technology development

These trends in the market and among consumers generate a demand for a more differentiated

and more rapidly changing product range and also call for a different approach to technology

development (dedicated production systems). In the future there will have to be product

development that takes the dynamic of the market and the divergent wishes of the consumers

as its starting point and uses the technologies of the future: biotechnology, separations

technology, sensor technology and modern information technology (IT). To achieve this,

product development will have to be tackled in a more structured way, and knowledge

deriving from different areas of research will have to be integrated more effectively. The

development of sensor technology in the agro sector, for instance, requires the integration of

materials technology, biotechnology and process technology. New scientific developments

also provide interfaces through which the sector may respond to wishes relating to health:

both the information about genetic aspects and the new insights into bioactive components -

substances that, in low concentrations, affect human health - offer interesting prospects of

made-to-measure food!

In the future, "made-to-measure food" will also mean "food produced in a way that the public

finds socially acceptable". Such aspects as the environment, animal welfare etc. will play a

major role. This will have to be specifically taken into account in the development of

technology.
From chains to flexible networks

As well as imposing requirements in terms of technology development, trends such as mass

individualization call for a responsive answer to a sharply fluctuating market demand. This

places considerable demands on the organization of agricultural production chains. The full

vertical integration of links in a chain can mean a loss of flexibility. It would appear to be

more efficient to opt for a continuation of the development of the chain concept; leading to

responsive networks that combine the advantage of co-ordination with the flexibility of more

loosely linked organizations. These independent organizations work closely together in the

flow of goods along the chain in order to achieve the desired "customer value" at the lowest

possible cost.
 ‘COMPANY’S PLANS’ PREPAID PLANS

So what exactly is this prepaid! It is simply a way of going cellular by paying for the talk

time in advance. For e.g. if you feel that you need Rs. 300 worth of talk time for a month, you

can buy a recharge coupon which gives you that much talk time on your cell phone. Once that

money gets exhausted you can buy another recharge coupon for the same or different

denomination depending on your future need.

Prepaid allows you to be in control of your cellular expenses even while you are

spending. You will be surprised that today In India, Prepaid connections account for almost

60 to 70 percent of the total new entrants into cellular telephony. That’s because almost every

one of us wants to be in control of our cellular expense.

Advantages of prepaid:

Some of the many advantages that you enjoy with Airtel Pre-Paid...

Total Cost Control

Enjoy the liberty of total cost control with your Airtel Pre-paid! Re-charge as much as

you feel the need to! Now that's what we call complete freedom!

No Rentals Buy an

Airtel prepaid card without having to pay any rentals!

No deposit

Your Airtel prepaid card comes without you having to pay hefty deposit
STD/ISD facility till the last rupee

Now experience complete freedom like never before with Airtel! Our STD/ISD facility

allows you to make long distance calls in India and Overseas from your cellular phone!

Instant Balance Inquiry

Check your talk-time instantly by calling our toll-free number!

60 second pulse

Airtel provides you with a 60-second pulse rate! Freedom for you to experience like never

before!

Instant Recharge

Avail of instant recharge on your Airtel prepaid card with just a few simple steps!

24-hour recharge facility

with our round-the-clock recharge facility, recharge you Airtel prepaid card anytime,

anywhere!

Caller Line Identification

Call Line Identification gives us the power to know the phone number of the calling party

even before our answer the call, thus giving us the choice to either reject or take the call.

It provides the added advantage of saving the incoming number directly in the Handset

Phone Book. So that the next time we want to call the same person, we don't need to

retype his number, simply use your phone book.

Call Divert, Call Hold and Call Wait

Avail of special services like call waiting, call hold and call divert – all with your
Airtel prepaid card!

Short Messaging Service (SMS)

With Airtel’s Short Messaging Service (SMS), send messages and jokes to your friends

and colleagues, anytime anywhere!

SMS based Information Services

With Airtel's SMS based information services; you can get up to-the-minute cricket

scores, order flowers as well as send couriers or check your daily horoscope!

Voice Mail service

Voice Mail lets you receive messages even when your handset is switched off or when

you are outside the coverage area. You can listen to your messages whenever you feel

like, from anywhere in the world. Voice Mail can store up to 75 messages, with each

message of two-minute duration.

Customer Care

Do you need any clarifications on your bills? Do you have any feedback or query on

our Products & services? You can call us, send us an E-mail or meet us in person. We shall

be glad to help you out in every possible way.

Contact us by phone

If you are on Airtel; just call us on 121 your Airtel Prepaid phone.

If you are on Airtel post-paid, just call us on 121 from your Airtel Post-paid phone

These toll free numbers however, cannot be dialled when you are roaming.

Airtel launches “Music Messaging” service

Customers can dedicate songs along with their voice messages;

Airtel, one of the leading cellular operators in Maharashtra, Goa, and Daman & Due and

today announced the launch of a new innovative service called “Music Messaging”. The

service will allow music lovers to listen to the various songs and then dedicate the same to

any other Airtel mobile subscriber along with a personalized voice message.

For using the service, the customer simply needs to dial 646 from his mobile and

follow the voice prompts. This will lead him to the options Hindi and English songs. There

are 10 songs under each option and the customer can either go on to listen to the song

clippings of 90 seconds each or move on to the next or previous song. While listening to the

song, the subscriber may choose to dedicate the song to some other Airtel Subscriber after
recording a 10 second long personalized voice message. The music message will then be

received by the person to whom it has been dedicated as a Voice Message with the CLI of the

sender. Once delivered, the message begins with the sender’s voice message followed by a 30

second clip of the song that has been dedicated. The charge for the service is just Rs 7/minute

for a 60 second pulse.

Announcing the launch of the service, Mr. N.F.Aibara, COO, Airtel-Maharashtra said

“The mobile phone today is no longer just a communication device. Rather it is a driver of

self-identity and creative pursuits especially for the youth segment which constitutes about 70

% of the new customers that we enroll every month. We have always sought to provide our

customers with new and exciting services that have been made possible through innovation

and use of latest technology. The launch of this new service is another step in the same

direction as it enables customers to add a musical edge to their messages-nothing can be more

powerful than a message in one’s own voice along with a song to suit the situation. I am sure

this service will be liked by all our customers and more specially the youth”
CHAPTER 3
 OBJECTIVE OF THE STYDY
 Primary objective:-To study the Modern trade sales, outlet performance,

competitior offerings and customer need analysis.

 Secondary objective:-

 To study the consumer trends in telecommunication sector

 To study consumer decision-making & preferences.

 To study marketing strategies adopted by Airtel.

 To study the level of customer satisfaction in Airtel.

 To study customer purchase decision behaviour.

 To understand the needs of different consumer segments.

 Comparative study of different mobile companies.

 To know why some retailers don’t sell new connections of Airtel.

 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:

Research problem:

To study consumer trends, behaviour, preferences and level of satisfaction in

Airtel communication Ltd. The study was conducted in Pune with sample size of 50 and

sample units were suppliers and

Consumer of mobile connection

Research Objectives:

o To study the Modern trade sales, outlet performance, competitor offerings and

customer need analysis.

o To study the consumer trends in telecommunication sector.

o To study consumer decision-making & preferences.

o To study marketing strategies adopted by Airtel.

o To study the level of customer satisfaction in Airtel.

o To study the market potential.

o To study customer purchase decision behaviour.

o To understand the needs of different consumer segments.

o Comparative study of different mobile companies.

Research Design

The following methodology was adopted for the study purpose:

Type of research:
Descriptive and qualitative research design was used while conducting the project.

Sampling Design was taken by the researcher as the Research design.

The major purpose of the study is to describe the state of affairs as it exists at present.

The study was based on the facts or information already available, & analysis of this

available information make a critical evaluation of the material.

Research Method/Technique:

In the project report the researcher used following techniques while conducting his study:

 Analysis of documents

 Survey Method: A market survey was done on customers

 Interview (Personal): Both open and closed ended (unstructured) questions were

asked while taking some information from the users of the cellular at PUNE

 Questionnaire (Structured): A structured designed comprehensive questionnaire was

framed and pretested for data collection from the customer of mobile

Research Data

Data is the key activity of marketing research. The design of the data

collecting method is backbone of research design.

Data constitute the foundation of statistical analysis and interpretation. Hence

the first step in statistical work is to obtain data.

Data can be obtained from two important sources, namely:

1. Primary Data

2. Secondary Data
Primary Data:

Primary data are gathered for the specific purpose or for a specific research project, consist of

original information for the fulfilment of project objective.

When the data are required for the particular study can be found neither in the internal record

of the enterprises nor in published sources. In some cases it may become necessary to collect

original data.

Primary data can be collected in four ways:-

1. Observation

2. Survey

Secondary Data:

Secondary data are the data, which already exists somewhere. Secondary data

provide starting point for research and after that the advantage of low cost and ready

availability. Secondary data can be divided into two types:

1. Internal data

2. External data

When researcher uses the data that has already been collected by other data are

called secondary data. Secondary data can be obtained from journals i.e. internal sources

report, government publication and books, professional bodies etc.

Internal data are reports and memos generated within an organisation to

facilitate its operations and annual report. External data are those specially produce for

outside consumption.
Sources from which we have taken the secondary data are as under:

1. Direct observation

2. Airtel website

3. Books for marketing management

4. Surveys and customer data & report

5. Airtel’s customers care office

6. Airtel’s Broachers’

SAMPLE DESIGN

Area of Sample:

 The areas covered up in this survey was PUNE

Selection of units under study

Sampling Units from PUNE were suppliers and

Consumer of mobile connection

Source list (Sampling Frame)

SUPPLIERS: 10

CUSTOMERS: 40

Sample size: 50

Sampling Procedure: Probability Sampling (Simple Random Sampling)

 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

While working on this project I have to face some difficulties while conducting the survey. People

were not interested in giving there actual information about their family income and airtime, as they

were extremely scared about the income tax some people have difficult to take them in confidence

so that they can give correct information.

Some of the limitations are:

Refusal to co-operate

Respondent bias
CHAPTER 4
 “DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRATION”
(1) Do you have own mobile connection?

A. Yes
B. No.
Chart Title

Having Mobile Not having mobile

The data shows that the total sample size of 50 people taken for research
out of which 86% of persons keep mobile with them.
Sample size - 50

Having mobile Respondent

Yes 43
No 7
 (2) Which kind of phone you would like use?

Chart Title
10%

45%

Land line Mobile WLL

45%

The data shows that the total sample size of 50 people taken for research
out of which 45% of persons like to use land line phone and 45% person like to
use mobile and rest 10% person like to use WLL.
Sample size - 50

CONNECTION Respondent
LANDLINE 23
MOBILE 22
WLL 5
(3) Which age group you belong to?
(a) 15-20
(b) 20-25
(c) 25-35
(d) 35- above

15-20
20-25
25-35
35-above

The analysis shows that 10% people from 15- 20 age group, 40% persons from
20-25 age group, 36% persons from 25-35 age group, and 14% of people from
35-above age group keep mobile with them.

Sample size - 50
Age Respondent
15-20 5
20-25 20
25-35 18
35-above 7
(4) What occupation do you have?
(a) Business
(b) Professional
(c) Government Employee
(d) Student

35%

30%

25%

20%
Occupation
15%

10%

5%

0%
a b c d

The data shows that 50 persons are from, 15 persons are professionals, 16 persons are Private
business and 7 persons are found students, 12 person are government employee to consume
mobiles.
Sample size - 50
Occupation Respondent
Professional 15
Private 16
Students 7
Government 12
(5) Which connection would you prefer?
(a) BSNL
(b) Airtel
(c) Vodafone
(d) IDEA

50

40

30
preferences
20

10

0
L L
N TE NE EA
BS R O ID
AI PH
A
VD

When the preferences for mobile phone connections were asked, results drawn
that 40% of persons prefer to take AIRTEL because they believe in AIRTEL’s
better coverage & cheaper rates after AIRTEL, 26% of people opt
BSNLservices because of its cheaper rate and flexible schemes, then
VODAPHONE is only 19%& IDEA 15% but there is very high
recommendation for its better connectivity. Airtel is rich in attractive schemes
and plans for business persons and persons related to corporate world.

Sample size: 50
Phone Connections Respondent
Airtel 40
Vodaphone 19
BSNL 26
IDEA 15
(6) You would like to take prepaid connection or Post paid connection?

a. Prepaid
b. Post paid

post paid
20%

pre paid
80%

The research study shows that almost people from the selected segment give
priority to Post Paid connection, because of the flexibility and attractive plans
for this market segment.

Sample size: 50
Connection Respondent
Pre paid 40
Post paid 10
 Sales analysis :

SALES OF DIFFERENT RETAILERS

S.No. Airtel
others
1. Planet m mg road 200/a month 100/ a month
2. Planet m viman nagar 170/a month 88/a month
3. Planet m Fatima nagar 165/a month 64/a month
4. Planet m paud road 155/a month 80/a month
5. Planet m chinch wad 120/a month 50/a month
6. Planet m singhgarh road 100/a month 45/a month
7. Planet m Pune central 110/a month 55/a month
8. Planet m suss road 90/a month 20/a month
9. Pune central band garden 220/a month 150/a month
10. The mobile store 250/a month 200/a month
 SWOT ANALYSIS OF AIRTEL

Strengths

INVESTOR’s FAITH:

Investor’s faith in Airtel that causes huge monetary support.

STRONG ADMINISTRATION:

Under the leadership of Bharti Cellular Ltd Airtel proved themselves as an well-organized &

administrative company.

BRAND NAME:

Airtel as a brand is the synonym of success. It is the largest private limited organization of

India.

Weakness

Lack of Co-Ordination Between Deptt.

Lack of Choice of Good Pre-paid numbers like XXYY numbers like others providing.

Opportunity

Favourable TARRIFS: Newly issued tariffs are suitable for Airtel so they can easily modify

their tariff plans according to it and gain customer attraction.

Threats

tough COMPETITION: Airtel has to face a tough competition with existing market leaders

like Reliance (Reliance is providing Free Outgoing also) Hutch, Idea, Dolphin and Trump.
 FINDINGS
Airtel FSO

FSO - Full Service Outlet

Basically for providing customer services in terms of their queries to build good relation with

customers to reach a point of customer satisfaction. Building good customer relation does not

only help in expanding sales but also helps in knowing the customer better and knowing the

customer further leads to acknowledgement of tastes & preferences of the customer.

One of the various ways to reach the customer is through franchisee. It helps the customer to

be in touch with a particular business. The franchisee should be at many places to build a

strong relation with all segments of customer. It must also have many customer executives so

that there are enough people to attend all customers and time can be saved. It leads to instant

help to the consumer to be happy and satisfied and the sole purpose of marketing "Customer

Satisfaction is achieved.

OUTLOOK OF THE FRANCHISEE:

The franchisee was having transparent glasses outside so that anybody can look in that its

open from outside from inside the franchisee was beautifully furnished with furniture. Most

of the things there was of Red, black and white colour which are colours of Airtel. The

franchisee was centrally air-conditioned and have all the necessary things which customer

needs like sufficient number of seats, drinking water etc.

INTERACTING WITH THE CUSTOMER'S

All the customer's were treated well, when they enters the franchisee the executives greets

them. All the executives there listens the customer query very patiently and try there level

best to solve it they send the customer to the floor manager.

For eg.:

For the new connection - The executives first listening to the customer patiently (his needs

and preferences) than tell them postpaid and prepaid connection plans which most suited to

the customer and helps them to choose the best for them, on the basis of their budget, for

what purpose they are buying, how often he will use it etc.

SERVICES PROVIDED BY Franchisee:

New Postpaid and prepaid connection

New SIM issue

Duplicate SIM issue.

Coupons and Easy recharge (Value)

Bill deposit (In cash and cheque)

Solving Customer queries

Migration of prepaid connection to postpaid connection and vice versa

Name and Address change of postpaid connection

Activation of Roaming and STD

Bill details

Changing of plans

Disconnection of plan

Mobile problems

Queries regarding broadband, GPRS

Queries regarding Land line phone

OBSERVATION:

The executives there were not fully aware of all plans. For eg. the executives was not aware

that Rs. 2,000 prepaid Connection in which the customer's get two years incoming validity

was still going on, he come to know about it when the customer said that he got a message

from Airtel today about this plan.

Customer's of new connection were very unhappy that there connection will be activated after

a weak.

Customer's were not satisfied with the Airtel services.

Customer care number doesn't connects easily, it takes a lot of time to connect some-times a

day to speak with executive.

Many fraud cases were coming.

Most of the people are opting for postpaid connection instead of prepaid connection postpaid

and prepaid connection plans which most suited to the customer and helps them to choose the

best for them, on the basis of their budget, for what purpose they are buying, how often he

will use it etc.

Most of the people were opting for Rs. 1399 advance rental plan of 2 years.

Many customers were demanding for corporate connection but the executives said that

individual connection of corporate is not possible; they should be atleast five connections.

People were very happy with add-on scheme of postpaid and also opting for it.

The franchisee sells 7 to 9 postpaid and 3 to 5 prepaid connection daily.

Many customer's were coming for making adjustment in their bill plan or amount.

Many customer's were coming with the problem that the plan they are assigned was not opted

by them.
Radio-connectivity of their system was getting very slow again and again by which the

customer's were getting irritated.

The customer's who need prepaid connection were getting less preference in comparison to

the customer's who need postpaid connection.

The customers were very happy with Airtel scheme in which the customer can make the

payment through bank automatically every month by filling ECR form.

SUGGESTIONS:
There should be more customer care numbers and executives so that the problems of the

customers can be solved quickly.

They should have more space for payment.

The executives there should be given training time to time about new schemes and plans.

No phone calls should be attended while entertaining the customer.

Every executives should know his responsibility and work.

RECOMMENDATION

The company should go ahead with aggressive marketing. They should light competition on

1. Awareness level.
2. Pricing strategy.

Thus, the recommendations fir these are as follows:

1. AWARENESS

(a) The company should sponsor local programs.

(b) The company should arrange briefing sessions at prominent clubs such as LIONS

CLUB and ROTARY CLUBS etc.

(c) The company should organize awareness quizzes through Newspapers, Magazines &

announce suitable rewards accordingly.

(d) The company should distribute, l eaflets of AIRTEL

Cellular in posh colonies of PUNE

2. PRICING STRATEGY

(a) The company should look the strategies of the competitive companies.

(b) The company should try its level best to keep the price low as compare to competitors.

(c) The schemes should be updated as per the needs and occasions

SUGGESSTIONS

(a) As the company have captured the western market they should retain the

customers

(b) Try to capture the nearest other markets nearby

 (c) Occasional offers

(d) Proper billings to the post paid users

(e) Proper response to the customers on the helpline no. Or toll free nos.

(f) Roaming deposits should be reduced

FURTHER SUGGESTIONS

 MATCH COMPETITORS SCHEMES.

 COMMUNICATE THE SCHEMES TO Fos. AND RETAILERS DAILY.

 BETTER NUMBERS IN PRE – PAID AS CUSTOMER REQUIRES CHOICE.

 ENHANCE THE SERVICE IN AREAS WITH WEAK NETWORK.

 COORDINATION BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS MUST BE IMPROVED.

 “CONCLUSION”

“Good services is the way to retain the clients”

 AIRTEL CONNECTIONS ARE SELLING BECAUSE OF BEST

NETWORK COVERAGE.

 GOOD RELATIONSHIP OF FOS. & REATILER IS BEING HELPFUL IN

SELLING.

 LARGE MARKET COVERAGE, EASY AVAILABILITY OF COUPONS.

 CUSTOMER CARE NUMBER DOES NOT CONNECTS EASILY AND

EXECUTIVES THERE WERE ALSO NOT AWARE OF THE SCHEMES.

CHAPTER5
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

BOOKS
Marketing Management by Philip Kotler 9th Edition

Research Methods for management by Dr. S. Shajahan 2nd Edition

Principal & Practice of Management by L.M. Prasad, 4th Edition.

REFRENCES
AIRTEL’s reports
Books & magazine on mobile communication

WEBSITES & SEARCH ENGINE

www.airtelworld.com

www.bhartiteleventures.com
www.researchandmarket.com

www.info-shop.com

www.smartmobs.com

www.yahoosearch.com