Product and Brand Management Project- Stage 1

8/9/2019 Product and Brand Management Project- Stage 1

1/34

Brand Image Measurement of

AIRTEL

A report

Submitted to

Prof. S. Govindrajan

In partial fulfillment of the requirements of the course

Brand Management

On 1.08.08

By

Ankita Ghosh

Pratik Gupta

Raj Kumar Pari

Yatharth Bhuwalka

Page | 1


2/34

TABLE OF CONTENT

Executive Summary

Airtel

Models to measure brand image of Airtel

o Brand Asset Valuator Model

What is BAV model?

Four Pillars of BAV

Research Methodology

Implications of the BAV Model

o Laddering Technique

Rationale


Some Excerpts

Laddering Flow

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Page | 2


3/34

Airtel comes from Bharti Airtel Limited, Indias largest integrated and the first

private telecom services provider, headed by Sunil Mittal with a footprint in all the

23 telecom circles. They offer fixed line services and broadband services. Airtel has

a total of 67,425,935 or 32.81% of the total 205,460,762 GSM mobile connections in

India till May 2008.

Airtel in its course of time had a particular kind of positioning and they repositioned

themselves to change their brand image and increase the customer base. Our

project would study Airtels brand Image amongst its user. To study this we took 2

methods of evaluating.

Brand Asset Valuator model, a quantitative technique and,

Laddering Technique, a qualitative technique

The Brand Asset Valuator (BAV) is a database ofconsumer perception of brands

created and managed by BrandAsset Consulting, a division ofYoung & Rubicam

Brands to provide information to enable firms to improve the marketing decision-

making process and to manage brands better. Brand Asset Valuator and BAV also

describe the Y&R group managing the database. The group tested the brand on the

four aspects of Knowledge, Esteem, Relevance and Differentiation.

The aspect of Knowledge was judged by 3 questions and in this segment Airtel had

the second rank. Among the consumers Airtel had the second rank when they were

questioned about the brand knowledge. Vodafone scored the highest in this range.

The aspect of Esteem was judged by 2 questions and in this segment Airtel had the

first rank. Among the consumers Airtel had the highest scores when they were

questioned about the brands esteem. Vodafone was the second highest.

The aspect of Relevance was judged by 2 questions and in this segment Airtel had

the first rank. Among the consumers Airtel scores the highest when they were asked

about the relevance of the brand or product. Vodafone had the second highest score

and the other brands did not have any significant score in this category.

Page | 3
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consumerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_%26_Rubicamhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consumerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_%26_Rubicam


4/34

The aspect of Differentiation was judged by 3 questions and in this segment Airtel

had the second rank and Vodafone was the highest scorer. Airtel was the second

highest.

Thus, from the BAV model we could derive the brand image of Airtel which has a

very close competition with Vodafone.

Then, the group studied the brand image of Airtel by using the qualitative technique

of Laddering. Laddering is highly recommended in research that elicits hierarchical

constructs and can become especially popular in investigating personal values.

The group selected laddering so that we could study interlink between the

Attributes, Consequences and Values that a consumer derives when he is using the

product. We could conclude as to what are the values the consumer perceives about

the product. The group pin pointed Sense of Belonging, Value for Money, Self

Esteem and Emotional Connect by using this product.

These two techniques helped us identify the consumers perception of the brand

Airtel.

Page | 4


5/34

AIRTEL

Bharti Airtel Limited formerly Bharti Tele-Ventures Limited - BTVL was incorporated

on July 7, 1995 under the laws of India for promoting investments in

telecommunication services. With effect from April 24, 2006, the name of the

Company has been changed from Bharti Tele-Ventures Limited (BTVL) to Bharti

Airtel.

Airtel comes from Bharti Airtel Limited, Indias largest integrated and the first

private telecom services provider, headed by Sunil Mittal with a footprint in all the

23 telecom circles. They offer fixed line services and broadband services. Airtel has

a total of 67,425,935 or 32.81% of the total 205,460,762 GSM mobile connections in

India till May 2008. The company provides telephone services and Internet access

over DSL in 14 circles. They complement mobile, broadband & telephone services

with national and international long distance services. The company also has a

submarine cable landing station at Chennai, which connects the submarine cable

connecting Chennai and Singapore. The company provides end-to-end data and

enterprise services to the corporate customers through its nationwide fiber optic

backbone, last mile connectivity in fixed-line and mobile circles, VSATs, ISP and

international bandwidth access through the gateways and landing station.

Bharti Airtel since its inception has been at the forefront of technology and has

steered the course of the telecom sector in the country with its world class products

and services. The businesses at Bharti Airtel have been structured into three

individual strategic business units (SBUs) - Mobile Services, Airtel Tele media

Services & Enterprise Services. The mobile business provides mobile & fixed

wireless services using GSM technology across 23 telecom circles while the Airtel

Tele media Services business offers broadband & telephone services in 94 cities.

The Enterprise services provide end-to-end telecom solutions to corporate

customers and national & international long distance services to carriers. All these

services are provided under the Airtel brand.

The shares of the Company are listed on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and

the Mumbai Stock Exchange (BSE), India.

Page | 5


6/34

In the early 2000s, Bharti invested heavily in the acquisitions and alliances to

expand its cellular market in India. Bharti launched Airtel as a post paid cellular

service in Delhi in November 1995. Over the next few years, the company redefined

the way cellular services were being marketed in the country. This was made

possible due to its innovative marketing strategies, continuous technological

upgradation, new value added service offerings and efficient customer service.

Initially confined only to the Delhi circle, Airtel's services were soon extended to

many other places.

It also provided them with information regarding cellular services and the features

of handsets manufactured by various companies, along with their price. On accountof such initiatives, during the late-1990s, Airtel was named the 'Best Cellular

Service' in the country, and won the 'Techies' award for four consecutive years

(1997-2000). However, it was not very easy for the company to build Airtel brand.

In late-2002, Bharti Cellular Ltd. (Bharti), India's largest cellular telephone company

released a television commercial (TVC), which despite using the 'oft-repeated'

celebrity endorsement route was unusual in terms of its celebrity selection. Instead

of using the usual movie stars/sports celebrities, it chose one of the country's mostsuccessful music composers, A.R.Rahman (Rahman) to promote its brand. The

company also decided to undertake a comprehensive brand building program for

the company and chose the slogan 'Unlimited Freedom' for the same. Commenting

on these changes, company sources said, "Airtel's brand identity and campaign will

now have a new younger and international look and feel that builds on the earlier

positioning."

Bharti's massive media expenditure plans were no surprise, considering the factthat it was the largest cellular telecom company in the country reaching over 600

million people in 16 (out of 29) states of India. The company posted revenues of Rs

8.48 billion and a net loss of Rs 1 billion in the financial year 2000-01.

Page | 6


7/34

They entered the telecommunication (telecom) industry during the early-1990s.

Bharti Tele-Ventures, a part of Bharti group, offered various telecom services such

as fixed line, cellular, V-SAT and Internet services. In 1992, Bharti entered the

cellular market by launching services in Delhi. Over the next few years, it also

entered other telecom circles.

During the late-1990s, many international players such as 'Orange' announced

plans to enter the Indian market. India being one of the fast developing nations with

a vast population base was being seen as a high potential market. Apart from

international players, many domestic players also entered the segment. This

increased the competition in the sector. Bharti realized the need for repositioning

Airtel to increase its market share. Thus they launched 'Leadership Series'

campaign, which featured successful men and women with their deluxe cars,

carrying laptops and using cell phones. This campaign was aiming at positioning

Airtel as an inspirational brand, which was meant for leaders and celebrities.

In early-2000s, Bharti unveiled a three-tier Airtel brand architecture that was aimed

at defining every service with a special brand name and place them under a mother

brand.

Airtel targeted youth in the age-group 14-19 years, they planned to expand the

customer base, which was presently limited to the older age groups. Youtopia was a

clear deviation from Airtel's earlier positioning as a brand for older people

symbolizing dignity and power. Youtopia offered lower tariff rates (at Re 0.25 for 30

seconds) at night. Special merchandising exercises were also undertaken. For

instance, a special portal was created, where young people could buy or bid for

goods. The company also announced plans for providing customers with various

other services such as music download facilities, and SMS (Short Messaging Service)

rates at affordable prices. According to the analysts, the company's repositioning

strategies paid back well as Bharti became the leading player in most of the circles

(it operated in) across the country in early-2002.

Due to consistent marketing efforts, the Airtel campaign became very popular. The

campaign was accompanied by a change in the logo as well. The idea behind the

new logo was to give Airtel a younger look. The logo (with new design and colour

Page | 7


8/34

pattern) symbolized innovation, energy and friendliness. As part of its restructuring

and repositioning exercise, Bharti unveiled a new brand architecture.

Currently, In May 2008, it emerged that Bharti Airtel was exploring the possibility of

buying the MTN Group, a South Africa-based telecommunications company with

coverage in 21 countries in Africa and the Middle East.

With all its achievements Airtel is in a continuous process of expanding their

customer base by penetrating into the Indian telecom users mind.

MODELS TO MEASURE AIRTELS BRAND IMAGE

The Brand Asset Valuator (BAV) is a database ofconsumer perception ofbrands

created and managed by BrandAsset Consulting, a division ofYoung & Rubicam

Brands to provide information to enable firms to improve the marketing decision-

making process and to manage brands better. Brand Asset Valuator and BAV also

describe the Y&R group managing the database.

Brand Asset Valuator enhances the marketing decision-making process by:

Evaluating a brand within the entire world of brands, not just in its category.

Providing a deeper understanding of consumer behavior.

Helping identify marketplace opportunities and types of risk.

Predicting outcomes based on leading indicators, rather than lagging.

Anticipating future earnings and operating margins

The Four Pillars of the BAV Model:

BAV measures the value of a brand along four dimensions: "Differentiation,""Relevance," "Esteem," and "Knowledge." Differentiation and Relevance build up to

"Brand Strength." Esteem and Knowledge are used to calculate "Brand Stature."

BAV defines these terms as follows.

Page | 8
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTN_Grouphttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Africahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Easthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consumerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_%26_Rubicamhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTN_Grouphttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Africahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Easthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consumerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_%26_Rubicam


9/34

Differentiation -It quantifies the brand's point of difference. It shows how different

the brand is from its competitors with respect to its offerings or image, whether or

not consumers perceive any difference in the image of the brand vis-a-vis

competitors.

Relevance -It measures how appropriate the brand is to the consumers. It tells us

whether the need to be satisfied has been identified correctly and whether the need

is being satisfied appropriately.

Esteem -It tells how well the regarded the brand is. We come to know what is the

image of the brand to the consumers and also what does the brand man to them.

Brand Esteem is a function of the past brand building exercise undertaken by the

brand. Also, CSR activities, rewards, recognition and accolades won by the brand

add to its esteem.

Knowledge - This parameter tells us whether the consumers are aware of the

brand. It also tells us the level of intimacy of awareness of the brand vis-a-vis

competition.

The Brand Asset Valuator Model measures the performance of a brand on two

aspects viz. Brand Strength and Brand Stature. The two aspects are dealt with

below:

Brand Strength - describes the brand's growth potential. It is a function of two

aspects- Differentiation and Relevance. It projects the brands future value. It also

measures the current strength of a brand.

Brand Stature describes how well the brand is known and respected. It is a result

of the past performance of the brand. It also largely depends on the brand building

exercise undertaken in the past. Brand Stature is a function of time. The longer a

brand has been in existence, the higher its stature is likely to be. It is a function of

two aspects- Knowledge and Esteem. Brand Stature describes the brand's current

power.

The 4 pillars of the BAV Model are shown below:

Page | 9


10/34

The Power Grid:

As discussed earlier the BAV model measures the brands performance on two

major parameters- Brand Strength and Brand Stature. For that it uses a power grid

that measures these parameters on two axes.

BAV groups the leading indicators - Differentiation and Relevance - and the lagging

indicators - Esteem and Knowledge. These pairs of Pillars are essential to map the

life of a brand on a power grid.

A brand's strength - its Differentiation and Relevance- is plotted on the vertical axis.

A brand's stature - its Esteem and Knowledge - is plotted on the horizontal axis.

The grid is shown below:

Page | 10

The brands

point ofdifference

How

appropriate

the brand is

to you

Howwell

regarded

thebrand

is

An intimate

understand

ing of the

brand


11/34


The group decided to go for a survey of the mobile users. The research was

conducted with the help of a questionnaire. The sample size was 40. The

respondents were the students of the PGP course of Praxis Business School, Kolkata.

The population was a representative sample of Airtel Users and Non Airtel Users.

The brands that were identified for the purpose of research were:

AIRTEL, VODAFONE, RELIANCE, TATA INDICOM, BSNL.

Page | 11


12/34

Rationale: The above 4 brands were chosen because these are the 4 most

prominent players in Kolkata. The research also was done primarily in Kolkata.

The questions that were asked to the respondents are given below along with the

rationale behind asking the individual questions.

Questions pertaining to Brand Knowledge:

Q1) What is the first brand that comes to your mind when you hear of

mobile service operators?

Rationale: This question would help the group know which brand has the Top-of-

Mind Recall for the consumers. The brand having Top of Mind Recall among most of

the respondents would be the brand that most consumers are aware of.

Q2) Tell us the taglines of the following brands:

a) Airtel:

b) Vodafone:

c) Reliance:

d) BSNL:

e) Tata Indicom:

Rationale: This question would help the group identify the brand that most

consumers could recall. The tagline of a brand is a part of its brand building exercise

and the consumers familiarity with the taglines would help the group judge the

extent of awareness of a particular brand.

Q3) Associate a brand with the logo colors mentioned

a) Red, Black and White

b) Red and White

c) Blue

d) Red and Blue

e) Red, Blue and Black

Page | 12


13/34

Rationale: This question would help the group identify the level of awareness that

the consumers have of the symbol of the brands. The brand logo which most

number of respondents could recognize would be the brand that scores the highest

on awareness and knowledge.

Questions pertaining to Brand Relevance:

Q1) If you have to suggest a mobile brand to a new mobile phone user, which brand

will you suggest?

Rationale: This question would help the group to identify which brand the

consumers think is the mist relevant to the users. Relevance could be on any need

viz. call, SMS etc. The most relevant brand is often the most recommended brand.

Q2) Which brand do you associate with the following mobile needs?

a) Call

b) SMS

c) GPRS

d) E mail Access

e) Other Value Added Services

Rationale: Some of the major needs for using a mobile connection were identified by

the group. On the above needs the relevance of the various brands chosen were

tested. The brand having the highest relevance across most of the above

mentioned categories would be the brand that has identified its needs the best and

is best satisfying them.

Questions pertaining to Brand Esteem:

Q1) Which do you think is the respected brand of mobile service providers?

Rationale: This question would help the group know the consumers perception of

the most respected brand of mobile service operators. This question would point at

the esteem level of the brands in the consumers mind.

Page | 13


14/34

Q2) Associate a brand of mobile service providers to the following words:

a) Stylish

b) Reliable

c) Socially Responsible

d) Intelligent

e) Prestigious

Rationale: The above mentioned words would help the group gauge the perception

of the consumers and their feeling towards a certain brand.

Questions pertaining to Brand Differentiation:

Q1) If number portability is allowed, will you change your mobile service provider? If

yes, then which brand would you like to change to?

Rationale: This question would help the group identify which brand the consumers

perceive to be the most different from others. It would also help the group establish

the consumers brand loyalty. Consumers who wish to change to a different brand

do so because they perceive that brand to be different from the one that they are

using now.

Q2) Associate a brand of mobile service providers to the following words:

a) Innovative

b) Cares for customers

c) Value

d) Quality

Rationale: The above words were as the group identified them to be the

representatives of the differentiating factors that the brands of mobile service

providers can have. It would help the group know the consumers oerception of how

much differentiated one brand is from another.

Q3) When buying a new mobile phone connection, what do you consider most?

a) Brand name

Page | 14


15/34

b) Friends brand

c) Call rates

d) Value added services

e) Connectivity

f) Others

Rationale: This question would help the group identify the factors that the

consumers differentiate a brand of mobile service provider on. It would also shed

light on the most differentiated brand in the consumers mind basis the above

mentioned factors. Linking this question to the service provider a respondent is

using now, would bring out the USP of that particular brand.

Implications of the Brand Asset Valuator Model used by the Group

Brand Knowledge:

The absolute and the percentile scores of each brand for this category is shown

below:

BRAND KNOWLEDGE

BrandsAirtel

Vodafone

BSNL

Reliance

TataIndicom

TotalScore 1890 1980 620 650 540

Rank 2 1 4 3 5

Percentile 80 100 40 60 20

A comparison of the four brands on the parameter of Brand Knowledge is shown

below:

Airtel:

Airtel has a percentile score of 75 in this category. This category is lead by

Vodafone having the highest score.

The respondents were asked to identify the brand that comes first to their mind for

mobile service providers. Out of a sample size of 40, 45% people said Airtel. This is

almost half the size of the population interviewed. This shows a high Top of Mind

Page | 15


16/34

Recall for Airtel. Vodafone also had a similar count of 45%.The score of Airtel (both

absolute and percentile) on this front is given below:

The respondents were then asked the tagline of Airtel. Out of 40 respondents 35%

could identify its tagline, viz. Express Yourself. This means that though there is

very high TOM Recall for Airtel, it needs to work harder on clearing the clutter

among its competitors. For the same question Vodafone had a slightly better figure

of 37.5%.The score of Airtel (both absolute and percentile) on this front is givenbelow:

Weightage 30

Response Yes

Count 14

Score 420

The respondents were then asked to identify the logo colors of the brands. On this

front, 62.5% of the respondents could identify Airtel with the colors used on the

logo. On this front too, Vodafone had the lead with 67.5%. Vodafone and Airtel use

similar colors on their logo (both use red and white, Airtel has an extra black on its

Page | 16


17/34

logo). The respondents got confused between these two players. The score of Airtel

(both absolute and percentile) on this front is given below:

Weightage 30

Response Airtel

Count 25

Score 750

Vodafone emerged as the winner in this category. Although Airtel is close by, it

needs to put in some efforts on differentiating its look and feel so that the

consumers can easily differentiate it from other brands. Although Airtel has a good

width (comparatively high TOM and unaided recall), it needs to work uponincreasing its width also. Airtel needs to advertise itself differently so as to break

the clutter.

Vodafone leads this category (Brand Knowledge). It has the highest absolute and

the percentile scores (100 percentile) followed closely by Airtel.

For TOM Recall Vodafone had an equal number with Airtel, with 45% respondents

saying that Vodafone is the first brand that comes to their mind. However,interestingly not all the respondents said the name Vodafone. Many of them still

referred the brand as Hutch. The absolute and percentile score of Vodafone for this

question is given above:

For tagline identification 37.5% of the respondents could identify Vodafones tagline

Happy to Help. Also most respondents could identify Vodafone with its brand

ambassador (the dog used in its ads). The absolute and percentile score of

Vodafone for this question is given below:

Weightage 30

Page | 17

Weightage 40

Response Count Scores

Vodafone 18 720


18/34

Response Yes

Count 15

Score 450

For logo color identification 67.5% of the respondents could identify with the logocolor of Vodafone. However most of the respondents got confused as Airtel uses

similar colors in its logo. Also the respondents could identify Vodafones logo easily.

The absolute and percentile score of Vodafone for this question is given below:

Weightage 30

Response Vodafone

Count 27

Score 810

Brand Esteem:

The absolute and the percentile scores of each brand in this category are given

below:

BRAND ESTEEM

BrandsAirtel

Vodafone

BSNL

Reliance

TataIndicom

TotalScore

1897 1414 226 300 163

Rank 1 2 4 3 5Percentile 100 80 40 60 20

A comparison of the four brands on this parameter is shown below:

Page | 18


19/34

Airtel leads this category. It is followed closely by Vodafone which is second with a

percentile score of 75.

On being asked which brand do the consumers perceive to be the most respected

among the mobile service providers, 52.5% of the respondents said Airtel. Of the

people who identified Airtel as the most preferred brand, 25% were non users. This

is also the highest. This implies that Airtel is an equally respected brand among non-

users also. Many respondents said that the reason they perceived Airtel to be the

most respected brand was that it was an established player and that they are aware

of its existence. Also some of them mentioned the CSR activities undertaken by

Bharti, the parent company of Airtel as a reason for their perception of Airtel. The

score of Airtel with respect to this question is given below:

Weightage 65

Response Count ScoresAirtel 21 1365

Page | 19


20/34

On being asked to relate Airtel to 5 words given Airtel emerged as the brand having

the maximum tally on 4 words. Airtel was perceived to be a more reliable, socially

responsible, honest and a prestigious brand. 37.5% of the respondents perceived

Airtel to be the most reliable brand.40% perceived Airtel to be the socially most

responsible brand. 35% and 45% perceived Airtel to be the most Honest and

Prestigious brand respectively. 47% of the people who perceived Airtel to be the

most reliable, socially most responsible, most honest and the most prestigious

brand were non Airtel users. This proves that Airtel scores high on esteem evenamong non users. Thus Airtel is the overall most respected brand. The respondents

perceived Airtel to be high on esteem as they identified Airtel as a matured brand

which has been there and done that. Also Bhartis recent announcement of

investing in setting up a B School in Mohali found flavor with the respondents who

perceived it as a CSR activity by Bharti. This also added to the esteem of the brand.

The score of Airtel with respect to this question is given below:

Response Stylis

h

Reliable Socially

Responsible

Honest Prestigio

us

Weightag

e

7 7 7 7 7 Score

sAirtel 13 15 16 14 18 532

Page | 20


21/34

Vodafone ranks second in this category with 80 percentile score. 35% respondents

identified Vodafone as the most respected brand among mobile service providers.

Some of the respondents said that Vodafone ads were very clean and hence added

to the repute of Vodafone. Some respondents also appreciated the fact that

Vodafone did not use any celebrity to endorse the brand but could still manage to

break the clutter. However of all the respondents who identified Airtel as the most

respected brand, 20% were non users, which is close to Airtels figure. Thus

Vodafone is also a well respected brand even among non users. The scores of

Vodafone with respect to this aspect are given below:

Weightage 65


Vodafone 14 910

Page | 21


22/34

On being asked to relate 5 words to a brand, Vodafone ranked second on all the

words except one. Vodafone was identified as the most stylish brand. 65%

respondents identified Vodafone as the most stylish brand. 32.5% respondents

perceived it to be reliable. 20% respondents perceived Vodafone to be sociallyresponsible. 22.5% and 40% perceived it to be honest and prestigious respectively.

Of all the people who identified Vodafone with the above mentioned words 42%

were non users. Thus Vodafone is also quite high on esteem among non users, but

not as much as Airtel. Vodafones score with respect to this question is given below:

Response Stylis

h

Reliable Socially

Responsible

Honest Prestigio

us

Weightag

e

7 7 7 7 7 Score

sVodafone 26 13 8 9 16 504

Page | 22


23/34

Brand Relevance:

The absolute and percentile score each brand in this category is given below:

BRAND RELEVANCE

BrandsAirtel

Vodafone

BSNL

Reliance

TataIndicom

TotalScore 1830 1530 40 420 60

Rank 1 2 5 3 4Percentile 100 80 20 60 40

Airtel is again Numero Uno in this category. There is a healthy difference between

itself and its nearest competitor viz. Vodafone. A high relevance score implies that

the need identification has been good and that the brand is satisfying that need/s

better than competition. Value Added Services is the need that most respondents

identified Airtel with apart from the standard need of calling and messaging. Also

most number of respondents identified Airtel as the brand that they would suggest

to a new user. This implies that the present users/ non users find Airtel relevant to

their needs and hence they would recommend it. This sector is more or less

commoditized where all the players offer similar host of services that a mobile user

Page | 23


24/34

can have. Hence it becomes very necessary to identify the appropriate need/s. At

the end of the day, a brand cannot be everything to everybody.

The respondents were asked to identify the brand that they would suggest to new

users. This was on the basis that the existing users would recommend the brand

only if they were satisfied with it.

50% of the respondents identified Airtel as the brand that they would suggest to a

new user. Of all the people who thus identified Airtel, 20% were non Airtel users.

This figure is slightly low as compared to Vodafones 22%. This can be an

opportunity for Airtel to attract more non users to itself. For that Airtel will need to

further differentiate its offerings is-a-vis competition. Again the sector being one

which is fiercely competitive, competitive advantage might not be sustainable for

long. For this very reason, Airtel should differentiate. Repositioning at this moment

is not advisable as it enjoys high relevance among its users. The scores of Airtel

with respect to this question is given below:

Weightage 50


Airtel 20 1000

The group identified five most common needs of a mobile phone user viz. Call, SMS,

GPRS, E Mail Access, and other VAS. The respondents were asked to identify the

Page | 24


25/34

brand that they relate most with the above needs. Again Airtel emerged the clear

winner with the highest tally across all the needs. 47.5% of the respondents

identified Airtel with the need to Call, 42.5% each for SMS and GPRS, 27.5% for E

Mail Access and 47.5% for other Value Added Services.

45% of the respondents identified Vodafone as the brand that they would

recommend to new users. The group identified Value Added Services as one area

where Vodafones relevance was high. Of the people who would recommend

Vodafone to new users, 22% were non Vodafone users. Much like Airtel this is an

opportunity for Vodafone to attract non users towards itself. The scores of Vodafone

with respect to this question are given below:

Response Call SMS GPRS Email VAS

Weightag

e

10 10 10 10 10 Score

sVodafone 10 12 14 13 14 630

Brand Differentiation:

The absolute and percentile score for each brand in this category is given below:

BRAND DIFFERENTIATION

BrandsAirtel

Vodafone

BSNL

Reliance

TataIndicom

TotalScore 1315 1350 85 400 85

Rank 1 2 5 3 4

Percentile 100 80 20 60 40

Page | 25


26/34

This tells us how different a brand is from its competitors. The mobile service sector

is very competitive and hence not very highly differentiated. All the service

providers provide almost similar offerings. In such a situation it becomes imperative

for a brand to constantly come up with new offerings so that it clears the clutter and

can stand out.

In this category also Airtel ranks first. This implies that consumers clearly see a

difference between Airtels and its competitors offerings. However, it is a very

competitive sector and that is reflected by the margins. Airtel just manages to steer

clear from its nearest competitor, viz. Vodafone.

The respondents were asked whether they would change their brand if number

portability was allowed. Of the Airtel Users 25% wanted to shift to other brands. Of

the people who anted to shift to other brands, 40% wanted to shift to Airtels

nearest competitor viz Vodafone. On the other hand, 28% of Vodafone users wanted

to shift brands. Of all the people who wanted to shift brands, 60% wanted to shift to

Airtel. This shows that people perceive a difference between the two brands.

However, to stay ahead in the rat race, Airtel constantly needs to keep innovating

and come up with new offerings so that it can increase the margin of its lead. The

margin of difference between the two brands is not much.

Page | 26


27/34

The respondents asked to identify a brand with 4 words, i.e. Innovation, Cares for

customers, Value and Quality. The group identified these words as a representative

of the differentiating factor between various brands. In this question Vodafone

emerges as the winner. 42.5% respondents identified Vodafone as the most

innovative brand, 55% as the brand that cares for customers, and 25% as the brand

which offers the best value 45% as the brand with high QoS. This is against Airtels

22%, 37.5%, 34% and 34% respectively. This again reinstates the point that

differentiation is low in this sector and perceptions change very quickly as against

knowledge and esteem which are a function of time and the brand width. Hence

Page | 27


28/34

Airtel should be on the alert and make constant efforts at differentiating. However

the relevance is high, so the positioning platform should not be tinkered with. The

clarity of communication of the differentiating factor needs to be stressed on.

Finally the group tried to identify the USP of brand Airtel. The respondents were

asked to identify a brand to the 5 attributes, identified by the group, when buying a

mobile connection. The 5 attributes were: Plans, Customer Service, Value Added

Service, Promo offers and Ease of Recharge or Payment. 45% of the respondents

identified Airtel with Ease of Recharge or Payment followed closely by Customer

Care and Value Added Service with 40% a piece. However, it lags behind Vodafone,

its nearest competitor in the areas of Customer Care and Promo Offers. Airtel should

be careful not to leave this gap open for too long. This is because the sector being

highly competitive and hence less differentiated, its competitors could take

advantage of this lag.

Page | 28


29/34

The BAV Sore of Airtel is shown below:

Brand Strength: Airtel scores high on both differentiation and relevance. This

implies that the need identification process for Airtel has been good and that the

consumers perceive a difference between Airtels and its competitors offerings.

However there is not much of a gap between Airtel and its nearest competitor viz

Vodafone. The telecom industry per se is highly competitive and there is not much

scope of differentiation. In spite of this Airtel has to keep making efforts to innovate

and come up with new offerings to stay ahead in the rat race. It should not tinker

with the positioning platform as it score high on relevance. It just needs to

communicate its point of differences better to the consumers. The communication

should be more focused on the various attribute that differentiates Airtel from its

competitors.

Brand Stature: Brand Stature takes into account Knowledge and Esteem. Airtel

scores the highest on esteem with Vodafone finishing a close second. However

Airtel stands second to Vodafone on Knowledge. Airtel and Vodafone have almost

equal TOM Recall figures. This implies that the brand building process of Airtel has

been good. However again the industry being very competitive in itself, Airtel

should keep up its brand building exercise. Also Airtel needs to communicate itself

more innovatively but contextually to the consumers so as to break the clutter and

emerge as the No.1 brand in the consumers mind.

Page | 29


30/34

Laddering Method

Rationale

The group chose Laddering technique for this research to build an interlink between

the Attributes, Consequences and Values that a consumer derives when he is using

the brand. Laddering method helps in reflecting the consumers mind when he/she

is using the product. This qualitative method helps us to study what are the

attributes of the product which attracts a consumer, what he/ or she perceives of

the brand and then conclude about his values behind using that brand.

Thus we as researchers can get an in-depth knowledge about the image perceived

by the consumer.

Sample Size 7 students and 2 professors of Praxis Business School


The groups sample size was of 9 respondents. The respondents were of the age

group of 20-40 years and were mobile phone users.

To start with, the group did not have a fixed set of questions. The interview was

more responsive than leading, initially. The questions were being on the basis of the

responses obtained from the respondents.

During the course of the interview the group diverted the questions more towards

mobile service providers. However the brand for the purpose of the groups

research was not disclosed to the respondents.

The respondents and their Attributes (A), Consequences(C) and Values (V) are as

follows.

Respondent 1, Ms Jyoti Sinha

Background She has been using a mobile phone for 6 yrs now. She started with

Airtel and still has Airtel even after coming from Mumbai to Kolkata.

A Good connectivity

C Stay in touch

Page | 30


31/34

V Security

Respondent 2, Mr Manoj Mani Iyer

Background Bought his mobile phone only after earning his first salary.

A Cheap call rates

C Responsible spending

V Value for money

Respondent 3, Ms Uma Balkrishnan

Background Is using a mobile phone for 3 years, bought a Sony Ericson recently to

upgrade from her old mobile phone.

A Quality of Service

C Clarity in Communication

V Value for money

Respondent 4, Mr Tarun Daga

Background Bought his first mobile phone, in hostel to keep in touch with family,

has been using a cell phone for 3 years now.

A Awareness

C Brand Recall

V Self Esteem

Respondent 5, Mr Buddhaditya

Background When he came to Kolkata he got Airtel connection as he felt it was

easily available.

A Good connectivity

A Cheap call rates

C Stay in touch

V Acceptability

Respondent 6, Ms. Apoorva

Background She is using a mobile phone for quite some time now around 5-6

years. Started of with Hutch in Mumbai and is using the same service provider in

Kolkata too.

Page | 31


32/34

A Good connectivity A - Same service provider

A Cheap call rates C Comfort with service provider (familiarity)

C Stay in touch V Emotional Connect

V Security

Respondent 7, Prof CP Singh

Background He is one the first mobile users in our sample, got his first mobile

phone in the year 1997 and it is a purely functional device for him.

A Same service provider

C Convenience

C Familiarity

V - Emotional connect

V Corporate & social connect

Respondent 8, Prof Manaswi

Background Uses the mobile phone as functional device. He is not happy with

service provider.

A Good connectivity

C Less time to complete a call (Good communication)

V Value for money

Respondent 9, Mr Anathmani

Background Uses the mobile phone more to make calls, looks for promotional

offers.

A Cheap call rates

C Talk more (stay in touch)

V Belonging

Table 1

Summary Content Codes for Hypothetical mobile service provider.

Values

(12) Belonging

(13) Value for money

Page | 32


33/34

(14) Self Esteem

(15) Emotional Connect

Consequences

(6) Stay in touch

(7) Responsible spending

(8) Good/clear communication

(9) Recall

(10) Familiarity

(11) Convenience

Attributes

(1) Good connectivity/coverage

(2) Cheap Call Rates

(3) Awareness

(4) Same service provider

(5) Quality of service

Page | 33


34/34

The most prominent values that came out of the Laddering Exercise were a sense

of belonging and value for money. Respondents perceived cheap call rates and

good connectivity to be the most important attribute. This would result in clear andcheap communication. This would result in decreasing the call time required to

communicate and hence will provide good value for money to the subscribers. Also

the fact that cheap call rates are perceived to be an important attribute, would

mean that the respondents can speak for longer hours with friends and family, and

hence the feeling of attachment and belonging.

Documents

Product and Brand Management Project- Stage 1