C-8

COMMONWEALTH EXECUTIVECT) MBA/MPA PROGRAMME

CDcai

CD Term-End Examination

December, 2009

C-8 : MARKETING FOR MANAGERS

Time : 3 hours Maximum Marks : 100

(VVeightage 70%)

Note : This paper consists of two Sections A and B. Attempt

any three questions from Section-A. Section-B is

compulsory. All questions carry equal marks.

SECTION-A

(a) How do marketing functions vary acrossdifferent levels of development of theeconomy ? Use examples to illustrate.

(b) Briefly outline the social marketing planningprocess.

What is Market Segmentation ? What are thevarious bases for Market Segmentation ? Illustrateby taking suitable examples.

C-8 1 P.T.O.

Discuss the influence of perception in consumerbehaviour. How are the concepts of selectiveexposure, selective distortion and selectiveretention relevant to marketers ?

How would you evaluate the effectiveness of :

An advertising campaign promotingpollution check for vehicles.

A sales promotion campaign forintroducing a new brand of•coffee.

Justify your response in each case.

5. How do companies motivate their sales persons ?Describe the commonly used techniques.

C-8 2

After that, it was a question of sampling andmore sampling. "We dreamt of every single urbanhousewife having at least one chance to use it",says Behl. The brand was cross - promoted withhighly penetrated brands like Rin Supreme. Otherpromotions included distributing instructionleaflets and nylon scrubbers.

This aggressive market activation pushedthe brand across the 100,000 tonne mark. It morethan kept pace with market growth : "Whateverthe market has gained, Vim bar has got", saysBehl. With penetration between 15 to 25 percent,he expects the growth to continue. And this inthe face of stiff competition. Since the bar'slaunch, Nirma has had two offerings in thesegment and Henkel - Spic has launched as well.

Questions :

Critically evaluate the steps taken by thecompany to ensure success of Vim bar.

If the company was to create a liquid homedetergent as a dish washing product, whatpromotional strategies would you suggestand why ?

- o 0 o -

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SECTION - B

6. Read the case given below and answer the questions

given at the end of the case :

Case Study :The new challenge for Vim bar of

Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) is to take itsimposed variation further to smaller towns.

Consumer needs :

The Indian housewife is hard working andfamily oriented. If you ask any Indian housewifeto name the most distasteful chores, washingdishes is always among the top three. It's onlynatural. It's a task that involves sitting downamidst utensils and scrubbing them - most oftenwith soda ash, sometimes with laundry powders,occasionally with scouring powders. And thenhaving to clean the area that's been used and ithas to be done after every meal - else what wouldthe family eat out of ?

A situation ripe for a song-and-dance

solution, the problem could be defined in anotherway: to get the consumer to switch from whatshe considered a no-cost solution to a productspecifically aimed at that market. Traditionalwash materials like ash cost nothing and withlaundry detergents, the cost was already factoredinto her budget. The solution wasn't to sell theproduct; but what HUL defined as 'process relief'.

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Earlier Efforts :

HUL realised that the most cost effective way ofselling a synthetic detergent-based product is abar, scouring powders in the market were bulky;had low active content, high packaging cost dueto expensive polyfil and high transportation costs.

In spite of the bar being an ideal solutionfor both the company and the consumer, therewere problems. Chief among them being theIndian housewife's aversion to an obviouslyconvenient solution. Explains Sanjay Behl,Marketing Manager, "The Indian woman is allabout guilt". Research revealed she'd rather spendon her family than be seen taking shortcuts in herduties. HUL was, however, convinced that aneffective demonstration would convert her. A taskmade difficult by the fact that the targeted usersspent little or no money on dishwashing agents.HUL kept the formulation cost low - the endconsumer price being Rs. 6 for a 40 gm bar, "next

to nothing", according to Behl. Buoyed by theprocess relief and an effective launch campaign,Vim bar gained volumes over the first four years.

However, the aura began to wash away fora variety of reasons. Consumer complaints beganto filter in about the product being hard to use incolder parts of the country, especially in winter.

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While keeping things cheap was crucial for trial,HUL's "on the brink formulation", was difficultto maintain. Especially since local players hadbegun offering cheaper options. Since pricing wasa weak point for HUL, it decided to go in forproduct improvement.

New Exercise :

A large part of the upgrade involvedmaking it different from a laundry bar. Changesincluded making the top softer, to allow for easyapplication of scrubbers and address the mostcommon consumer complaint. The finalformulation was one that lasted longer, performedbetter and had better sensorial. The secondsignificant change was in the brand'scommunication : restricting product experienceto a commercial wasn't good enough.

Enter the Vim Bar Challenge : a promotionalscheme that offered consumers the chance tosample the product. If they weren't satisfied, HULpromised them a year's supply of their favouritewashing powder. These encounters were filmedand converted into the brand's signaturead campaign. It was supported by the heaviestmedia spend ever on the brand. Money wasdiverted from the powder to increase ad spendson Vim bar by 50 percent. HUL lowered costs byregionalising production, drastically reducing thecost of transporting ingredients.

C-8 5 P.T.O.