The New Indian Express Report 1

THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS
A STUDY OF BRAND PERCEPTION OF THE NEW INDIAN

EXPRESS (TNIE) IN BANGALORE
A Project Done For
BANGALORE
From 25th April, 2010 to 28th June, 2010
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the two year
full time Masters of Business Administration
By
Jeeweshwar Kumar (MBA 09044)
Under the guidance of
Ms. Laxmi Menon Mr. Ramanath GP Maiya Dr. Deepak Gupta

Vice-President Sales Regional Sales Manager Professor Marketing
The New Indian Express (Bangalore) Amrita School of Business
Group, Chennai
Amrita School of Business

Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham (Deemed University)
Ettimadai P.O., Coimbatore- 641 105
I
DECLARATION
I, Jeeweshwar Kumar, students of Amrita School of Business, Coimbatore

hereby declare that this project namely “A study of Brand perception of The
New Indian Express in Bangalore” was done by me under the guidance of
Ms. Laxmi Menon Vice-President Sales, Mr. Ramanath GP Maiya, Regional
Sales Manager, Express Publications (Madurai) Ltd, Bangalore and Dr.
Deepak Gupta, Professor for marketing, Amrita School of Business.
I also declare that, this project has not been submitted fully or partially for
the award of any degree, diploma, title or recognition earlier.
Place: Coimbatore
Date: …………….. (Jeeweshwar Kumar)
I
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like express our sincere gratitude to Express Publications (Madurai)

Ltd, Bangalore for giving us the opportunity to do our summer internship
with them and thereby gain immense knowledge about the work culture in
an organization of this size.
I wish to thank Ms. Laxmi Menon, Vice-President Sales and Mr. Ramanath
GP Maiya, Regional Sales Manager, The New Indian Express, Bangalore for
guiding me throughout the project with her/his valuable suggestions. I would
also like to extend my heartfelt appreciation for the support and help
provided by all the staff (especially Mr. Spurthi Baragur, Asst. Circulation
Manager & Mr. S. J. Harish Babu, Territory Sales Manager) of The New
Indian Express Group, Bangalore towards maximizing our learning from the
project.
This project would not have been possible without the guidance and support
of our faculty guide Dr. Deepak Gupta, Professor (Marketing), Amrita
School of Business, who took a keen interest in the project to make it a
beneficial exercise.
I would like to thank all the respondents who have helped me to complete
the survey, without which completion of this report would not have been
possible.
(JEEWESHWAR KUMAR)
II
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The New Indian Express Group started its operations in 1931 with its
Headquarters in Chennai. The company was streamed out of The Indian
Express Group, which came into existence in 1878.The work area includes
daily newspapers and other fortnightlies.
The newspaper stands for Courageous journalism, as the tagline mentions;

100% Steel, 0% Gas. The New Indian Express group speaks different
languages which include The New Indian Express in English, Kannada
Prabha in Kannada and Dinamani in Tamil, serving as the major names. It
underwent a Rebranding in 2008.
The projects were divided into three different parts. The first was to study
the Distribution and Circulation of The New Indian Express Newspaper. The
second was to do Marketing Research on “The study of brand perception of
“The new Indian Express” in Bangalore”. The third one was to do Frontline
Promotion of the Annual Offer and Sales for the same.
The aim of the first project was to study the supply chain management of the
newspaper industry as a whole including understanding of the logistics,
routing, dropdown points, and the functions of dealers, agents, sub agents,
hawkers and carriers.
The second project was to do the market research to study the brand
perception of The New Indian Express. Relevant information regarding the
MR problem was gathered and a questionnaire was formulated. The survey
was initiated and the data were collected from the target sample size
III
(N=200). Analysis was done and based on the findings, the
recommendations were given.
The final project aimed at doing frontline promotion and sales for The New
Indian Express Annual Offer. The sales process was initiated by adopting an
organized structure which included Prospecting and Evaluation, Pre
approach, Approach, Handling Objection and Closing. The above process
was differentiated based on the target audience, since this project aimed at
three different segments viz; colleges, corporate and households.
From the light of going through the distribution methods, sales, promotions
and the Marketing Research done, a conclusion as changed that the channels
through which the product reaches the customers should be boosted up and
more awareness should be created on the product, among the public.
IV
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Sl. No. Title Page No.

CHAPTER 1 10
1.1 Purpose of Project 11
1.2 Limitations 11
1.3 Methodology 11
1.4 Structure of Report 12
CHAPTER 2 13
2.1 Introduction 13
2.1.1 Indian Newspaper Industry 13
2.1.2 The New Indian Express Group 14
2.1.3 The New Indian Express Newspaper 16
CHAPTER 3 18
3.1 Project 1 : Circulation & Distribution Problem 18
3.1.1 Introduction of Newspaper Circulation 18
3.1.2 Problem Definition Process 18
3.1.3 Study of Distribution Process 18
3.1.4 Distribution Process Chart 19
CHAPTER 4 21
4.1 Project 2 : Market Research Project 21
4.1.1 Management Decision and Market Research Problem 21
4.1.2 Market Research Problem and Research Components 21
4.1.3 Information Required 22
4.1.4 Research Methodology 24
4.1.4.1 Sampling Technique 24
4.1.4.2 Data Collection 24
4.1.4.3 Questionnaire Development & Pre-Testing 25
CHAPTER 5 27
5.1 Project 3 : Frontline Sales & Promotion 27
5.1.1 The Selling Process 27
5.1.2 Problem Definition Process 29
5.1.3 Scope and Objective 30
5.1.4 Frontline Sales Process Strategy 30
CHAPTER 6 32
6.1 Conceptual approach towards Brand Perception. 32
6.1.1 Introduction 32
6.1.2 Brand and its Importance. 32
6.1.3 Brand Equity and its Model. 33
6.2.1 Brand Perception. 35
6.2.2 Measuring Brand Perception. 36
CHAPTER 7 42
7.1 Data Analysis & Results 42
7.1.1 Project 2 : Market Research Project 42
A
7.1.1.1 Descriptive Research 42
7.1.1.2 Qualitative Research 67
CHAPTER 8 92
8.1 Discussions and Conclusion 92
8.1.1 Suggestions & Recommendations 92
8.1.1.1 Project 1 : Circulation & Distribution Study 92
8.1.1.2 Project 2 : Market Research Project 93
8.1.1.3 Project 3 : Frontline Sales & Promotion 96
8.1.2 Learning’s 97
CHAPTER 9 99
9.1 References 99
TABLE OF FIGURES
Fig. No. Title Page No.

Fig(i) Newspaper Distribution Process Chart 19
Fig(ii) Customer based Brand Equity Model 32
Fig(iii) MR Data Analysis : Age of the Respondent 42
Fig(iv) MR Data Analysis : Sex of the Respondent 43
Fig(v) MR Data Analysis : Qualification of the Respondent 44
Fig(vi) MR Data Analysis : Occupation of Respondent 45
Fig(vii) MR Data Analysis : Place of buying newspaper 45
Fig(viii) MR Data Analysis : Newspaper read by the Respondent 46
Fig(ix) MR Data Analysis : Age Wise Readership 47
Fig(x) MR Data Analysis : Section Preferred in newspaper 48
Fig(xi) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Content 49
Fig(xii) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Images 50
Fig(xiii) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Color 51
Fig(xiv) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Layout 51
Fig(xv) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Design 52
Fig(xvi) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Length of the Articles 53
Fig(xvii) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Coverage of the News 54
Fig(xviii) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Analysis of the News 55
Fig(xix) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Price of the Newspaper 56
Fig(xx) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Design Timeliness 57
Fig(xxi) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Current Affairs 58
B
Fig(xxii) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Political News 59
Fig(xxiii) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Business & Finance 60
Fig(xxiv) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Entertainment News 61
Fig(xxv) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Sports News 62
Fig(xxvi) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Health Articles 63
Fig(xxvii) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Editorials 64
Fig(xxviii) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Educational Articles 64
Fig(xxix) MR Data Analysis : Satisfaction Rating Advertisements 65
Fig(xxx) MR Data Analysis : Awareness of TNIE e-newspaper 66
Fig(xxxi) MR Data Analysis : Overall Satisfaction Rating 66
Fig(xxxii) MR Data Analysis : The Hindu as a Cricketer 67
Fig(xxxiii) MR Data Analysis : Times of India as a Cricketer 68
Fig(xxxiv) MR Data Analysis : TNIE as a Cricketer 69
Fig(xxxv) MR Data Analysis : Deccan Chronicle as a Cricketer 70
Fig(xxxvi) MR Data Analysis : The Hindu as a Film Star 71
Fig(xxxvii) MR Data Analysis : Times of India as a Film Star 72
Fig(xxxviii) MR Data Analysis : TNIE as a Film Star 73
Fig(xxxix) MR Data Analysis : Deccan Chronicle as a Film Star 74
C
CHAPTER 1
Introduction to Project
1.1 Purpose of Project

1
The Readership survey can help the organization optimize the relationship
with its customers. In the highly competitive world with competitors waiting
eagerly for a company to make the smallest mistake, it is extremely
important for the company to ascertain the satisfaction of their customers.
After all, with no customers, the company has no revenues.
The survey helps to:
 Measure customer satisfaction levels.
 Figure out different brand enhancing factors.

 Improve customer retention.
 Gauge interest in new products and service offerings.
 Pinpoint areas for improvement.
The project so was conducted in three phases with the following aims:
Phase 1: Study the Distribution & Circulation of “The New Indian

Express” newspaper.
Phase 2: Management Decision & Market Research Problem

DM Problem: To figure out the brand enhancing factor of the
brand “The New Indian Express”.
MR Problem: To examine the brand perception of “The Indian
Express” in Bangalore.
Phase 3: Sales & Promotion for The New Indian Express Newspaper.
1.2 Limitations
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1. The list of customers given as sample of the market may not be
correctly representative of the market considering the huge size

and diversity of the market.
2. False response and biased answers given by the respondents may
affect the quality of the results obtained.

3. The study is conducted considering the prevailing conditions
which are subject to change in the future.

4. The Research is confined to the geographical boundary of
Bangalore.
5. Sampling has its own limitations; it may or may represent the
intended Population.
1.3 Methodology
The Market Research project was carried out in two phases. In the first
phase primary data was collected from the customers through questionnaires
(direct, telephonic and mailed) prepared for the purpose. The second phase
consisted of analyzing the Primary data with SPSS tool and does the
findings and Analysis.
1.4 Structure of Report
The project report starts with an introduction which contains the background
to the management decision problem. The management decision problem is
defined after this. Following this the research problem, components and
research questions are stated. The methodology followed for research in the
project is then explained. Next the analysis of the data collected and the
results of the same are given. This is followed by discussions and conclusion
of the project. This includes suggestions and recommendations for solving
the management decision problem based on the results of the analysis as
3
well as the learning from the project. The report ends with an overall
conclusion after which the references and appendix are given.
4
CHAPTER 2
Introduction of Company & Industry
2.1 Introduction
A newspaper is a publication containing news, information, and advertising.

General interest newspapers often feature articles on political events, crime,
business, art/entertainment, society and sports. Most traditional papers also
5
feature an editorial page containing columns that express the personal
opinions of writers. Supplementary sections may contain advertising,
comics, and coupons.
Newspapers are most often published on a daily or weekly basis, and they
usually focus on one particular geographic area where most of their readers
live. Despite recent setbacks in circulation and profits, newspapers are still
the most iconic outlet for news and other types of written journalism.
2.1.1 Indian Newspaper Industry
Researchers have discovered a place where the newspaper, a threatened

species in parts of the world, is thriving. In most parts of the world the age
old newspaper industry is fighting a losing battle to the online news sources
and in most parts surrendering to it.
However, in India, home to 1.1 billion people, not only is the press in robust
health, but it’s growing at an astonishing rate. From 2005 to 2006, nearly
2,100 newspapers debuted in India, joining 60,000 circulating.
India is a country with an expanding middle class and a booming economy,

which have fuelled an explosion in consumer spending and advertising.
The illiteracy rate – though stubbornly high at an estimated 35 percent –
gradually is coming down. In New Delhi and Mumbai, about 80 percent of
residents age 7 and older can read and write.
Meanwhile, Internet penetration remains marginal, despite India’s reputation

as an information-technology powerhouse. Only a sliver of the population,
mostly well-heeled urbanites, can afford home computers and high-speed
Internet access.
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Helping newspaper circulation are newsstand prices that rarely exceed 3

rupees a copy, the equivalent of about 7 cents. A vicious price war several
years ago suppressed prices. But thanks in part to the surge in advertising,
only four newspapers out of more than 60,000 ceased publication between
2005 and 2006, according to the official Registrar for Newspapers in India.
With blogging coming in vogue, it has to be seen whether the Indian

newspaper industry will reach a saturation point remains to be seen.
2.1.2 The New Indian Express Group
The Indian Express is an Indian newspaper owned by Ramnath Goenka

started in 1931 by Chennai based Veradharajulu Naidu. After his death the
group was split in 1999 among his family members into two with the
southern editions taking the name The New Indian Express, while the old
Indian Express name was retained in the northern editions based in Mumbai
with a prefix "The". It is published in all major Indian cities. It is a major
and respected Indian newspaper with a worldwide circulation.
The Indian Express is owned by the Indian Express Group with Vivek
Goenka as the Chairman and Managing Director. The group also owns other
Newspapers in India such as the Financial Express, a newspaper focused on
the Indian economy, stock markets, and fiscal policies. The group has other
publications such as Screen weekly focused on entertainment news, the
Marathi-language daily Loksatta, and the Hindi daily Jansatta.
The group also runs the Business Publication Division. This division
publishes and prints out of its headquarters at Nariman Point in Mumbai a
series of B2B magazines such as Express Computer, Express Travel World
(formerly called Travel and Tourism), Express Pharma (formerly Express
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Pharma Pulse), Express Hospitality (formerly Express Hotelier & Caterer),
the IT-focused Network Magazine, CIO Decisions, Express Healthcare
Management and the newly launched business magazine Express Channel
Business.
The Business Publications Division (BPD) has also ventured into organizing
events and exhibitions such as Express World. The event is a mix of
hospitality, travel and healthcare. BPD also conducts events on IT and
organizes exhibitions for other parties. In September 2006, BPD's Express
Travel World organized the exhibition for Travel Agents Association of
India (TAAI) 55th annual convention in Hyderabad. The Screen Awards,
initiated by Ananya Goenka, is focused on films in India.
The awards attempt to position themselves as India's first awards that are
given by the film fraternity to the film fraternity by way of a jury, as
opposed to the other "popular" awards such as Film fare and Zee Cine
Awards.
2.1.3 The New Indian Express Newspaper
The New Indian Express is a newspaper with its head office based in
Chennai in south India. It was started in 1932 as the Indian Express, under
the ownership of Chennai-based Veradharajulu Naidu.
Following the death of the then owner Ramnath Goenka in 1991, the
Goenka's family split the group into two separate companies. The northern
editions, headquartered in Mumbai, retained and renamed Indian Express
into The Indian Express title, while the southern editions became The New
Indian Express. The two newspapers used to share articles till early 2008,
8
but they are now very much different corporate entities. The newspaper is
known for its intrepid and anti-establishment tone.
Editions:
The New Indian Express is now published from all major cities in Andhra
Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala besides Orissa, including
Chennai, Coimbatore, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Kochi and Bhubaneswar. In
total, it publishes from 22 centres in the south. It also publishes city
supplement known as Expresso which covers the local news of each city.
Supplements:
Its various supplements, which appear on a weekly or fortnightly basis,

include pullouts on career and education called Edex. Also a special
supplement for Saturday edition by name Zeitgeist is being published after
its relaunch in 2008. The Sunday magazines are i.witness and i.witness 2.
Pricing & Circulation:
The New Indian Express Newspaper is priced at 2 Rs/copy in weekdays and

3 Rs/copy in weekends. It has a daily circulation of 6 lacs copies in different
states of India.
Major Competitors & Market Share:
The New Indian Express faces a competition from the other daily
newspapers in the region in which the major players are The Times of India,
The Hindu, Deccan Herald and Deccan Chronicle. The marketing strategies
9
of The Times of India, Deccan Herald and Deccan Chronicle and the brand
loyalty for The Hindu adds, and these were the serious issues to be
considered.
Considering the market share, The Times of India is the leader in the market
followed by Hindu and Deccan Herald, The New Indian Express having the
third position.
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CHAPTER 3
Project 1: Circulation & Distribution
3.1 Project 1: Circulation & Distribution Problem
3.1.1 Introduction of Newspaper Circulation
A newspaper's circulation is the number of copies it distributes on an

average day. Newspaper circulation rates are currently experiencing a
downward trend. Circulation is one of the principal factors used to set
advertising rates.
Circulation is not always the same as copies sold, often called paid
circulation, since some newspapers are distributed without cost to the reader.
Readership figures are usually higher than circulation figures because of the
assumption that a typical copy of the newspaper is read by more than one
person.
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3.1.2 Problem Definition Process
To study the Distribution system of The New Indian Express newspaper and
the process concerned before it reaches the customer
3.1.3 Study of Distribution Process
Distribution Process of “The New Indian Express” newspaper
1) The newspaper sales involve distributing highly perishable products
under severe time constraints.

2) The printed newspapers have to be dispatched to various distributors
across the region. Transportation is normally through private

contract
carriers within local area, public transport in case of longer distances and
through couriers in other cases.
3) The newspaper distributor has the rights to distribute the newspaper in
his area. The revenue of the newspaper distributor is based on a

commission on the sale of every newspaper. The circulation is
normally through salesmen appointed and salaried by the
distributors, who in turn pass it on to hawkers.
4) Hawkers, vendors and book stall owners are the last link of the supply
chain before newspaper reaches readers. The hawkers'

remuneration is also normally based on the commission system and
is generally the highest in the entire supply chain.
5) Responsiveness and efficiency play an important role in newspaper
distribution channel. Responsiveness includes supply chain's

ability to respond to wide a range of quantity demanded (due
to demand fluctuations) and meet short lead times. On the other
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hand efficiency is the cost of making and delivering the newspaper to
the reader.
3.1.4 Distribution Process Chart
Fig (1)
1) Distribution of newspapers is based on number of drop points that
area serves. In Bangalore “The new Indian Express” operates at 140

Drop points with each drop point being administrated and managed
by respective Distributive Executives.
2) Number of Circulations differs for each Distribution drop point based
on demand.
3) Distribution Process:
∗ Logistics: The newspapers were supplied to various points of
sale were through delivery vans.
∗ Distribution point Segregation: The paper supplied in the vans are
then collected and segregated in the distribution points.
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∗ Distributor, Agents and Sub Agents Handling: The distributor
supplies the segregated paper to the agents and then the agents to the
sub agents.
∗ Hawkers: The hawker i.e.; the middle men take these papers
and distribute to the houses with the help of newspaper boys.
∗ Household and Newspaper Mart: Newspaper supplied to the
households is thorough hawkers and the newspaper mart gets paper
straight from the agents or sub agents.
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CHAPTER 4
Conceptual Approach towards Brand

Perception
4.1 Conceptual approach towards Brand Perception.
4.1.1 Introduction.
A successful brand is the most valuable resource a company has. It is being

said that, in the coming years companies will include a “statement of value”
(a separate addendum) to their balance sheets to include the intangibles such
as Brand.
‘A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person. You earn
reputation by trying to do hard things well.’ Said Jeff Bezos, founder,
Amazon.com.
Consumers associate the value of a product with the brand. For example, the
brand name of Tata Motors, Maruti-Suzuki, HUL etc, are indisputable in
15
India. It is customers’ perception that makes the value of the brand and
ultimately contributes to competitive advantage.
4.1.2 Brand and its Importance.

The American Marketing Association defines a brand as "a name, term,
sign, symbol, or design, or a combination of them, intended to identify the
goods or services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them
from those of competitors". (Marketing Management, Kotler).
Ancient history provides evidence of the importance of brands. Earlier it
used to be like, maker of certain product like wine, put their name on the
barrels of the wine. That name made all differentiation to their counterparts.
It still exists in our on Indian locality as some Kirana store bears the name as
their Brand. People buy from that particular Kirana store in the trust that,
they will get quality product at affordable price.
Importance to consumers
• Can evaluate his/her brand among identical product of all competitors.
• Simplify decision making.
• Reduce risk is invaluable.
Importance to firm
• Simplify product handling or tracing.
• Help to organize inventory and accounting.
• Provides legal protection for unique features or aspects of product.
4.1.3 Brand Equity & its Model.

Brands represent enormously valuable pieces of legal property, capable of
influencing consumer behavior, being bought and sold, and providing the
security of sustained future revenues to their owner. The value directly or
16
indirectly accrued by these various benefits is often called brand equity
(Kapferer, 2005; Keller, 2003).
Brand equity has been studied by marketer and researcher with different
perspective. Customer-based approach view brand equity from the
perspective of both consumer and organization. It was first developed by
“Kevin Lane Keller” which depicts the process that goes into building strong
brand. It basically describes six dimensions of brand equity: Brand salience,
brand performance, brand imagery, consumer judgments, consumer feeling
and brand resonance.
Fig (2): Customer based brand equity model; by Kevin Lane Keller.
These are the six dimensions:

• Brand salience relates to how often and easily the brand is evoked
under various purchase or consumption situations.
• Brand performance relates to how the product or service meets
customers' functional needs.
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• Brand imagery deals with the extrinsic properties of the product or
service, including the ways in which the brand attempts to meet
customers' psychological or social needs.
• Brand judgments focus on customers' own personal opinions and
evaluations.
• Brand feelings are customers' emotional responses and reactions with
respect to the brand.
• Brand resonance refers to the nature of the relationship that
customers have with the brand and the extent to which customers feel
that they are "in sync" with the brand.
4.2.1. Brand Perception.

Though brand is the most important thing to any company, its value is
derived from the words and perception of the consumers. Consumers decide
with their purchases, based on their brand knowledge, which brands have
more equity than other brands. Brand knowledge is nothing but status of
brand in the mind consumer based on thoughts, feeling, images, beliefs,
attitudes, experiences and so on. This brand knowledge affects how
consumers respond to products, prices, communications, channels and other
marketing activity – increasing or decreasing brand value in the process.
This ultimately helps in formation association with any particular brand.
Two particularly important components of brand knowledge are brand
awareness and brand image. Brand awareness is ability of the consumer’s
brain to recall or recognize under different conditions. Brand awareness can
be characterized by depth and breadth. The depth of brand awareness relates
to the likelihood that the brand can be recognized or recalled. The breadth of
brand awareness relates to the variety of purchase and consumption
situations in which the brand comes to mind. Brand image is defined as
consumer perceptions of and preferences for a brand, as reflected by the
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various types of brand associations held in consumers' memory. These
associations range along a number of different dimensions, such as their
strength, positivity, uniqueness, and abstractness. Strong, favorable and
unique brand associations are essential as sources of brand equity to drive
consumer behavior.
4.2.2. Measuring Brand Perception.
Why
1. Customer perceptions drive business.

It is consumer’s perception that indirectly values to the company. One
consumer’s perception perpetuate to other through word of mouth. This
ultimately leads to increasing or degrading consumer base based on the
positive or negative word of mouth, respectively.
2. Companies don’t get around to listening.
Most organizations would agree with the importance of understanding
market perceptions, but they never seem to find the time or dollars to engage
directly with their customers and other key stakeholders to find out what
they’re thinking, or what’s important to them. Instead, they continue on in
the hope that what they hear from their sales and customer service reps
offers a complete and accurate picture of what their customers are thinking
—and saying to others.
What
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1. Brand perception study (BPS) simplifies the process of getting to
the customer.
BPS helps in figuring out perception of consumers on any particular brand
through qualitative & quantitative research. The study focuses on three key
areas of brand perception:
1. Overall impression
2. Willingness to recommend
3. Performance, based on standard and client-specific product/service
criteria a) Best alternative (competitor) and how do they compare
b) Level of importance of each criterion
2. Net Champion Score (NCS) offers a quick indicator of the brand’s
health.
NCS is the total score that is calculated (for the above key area of the brand
perception) by some company over a period of time in order to find the
health of the brand.
When
The entire process—from MR proposal and survey and to final report—
takes about six weeks. Full results are made available to the client hard copy
and online (in tables, charts and full text).
Who
There are some agencies existing in both Indian and global marketplace
which do this work. These agencies constantly observe the different market
scenario in order to find out its implication on different existing brands and
brand perception.
How
1. Qualitative Research
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Before starting to identify the kind of brand perception, it is equally
important to figure out the kind of brand association a consumer have
with the brand. Qualitative research techniques are often employed to
identify possible brand associations and sources of brand equity.
Qualitative research techniques are relatively unstructured
measurement approaches whereby a range of possible consumer
responses are permitted. Because of the freedom afforded both
researchers in their probes and consumers in their responses,
qualitative research can often be a useful "first step" in exploring
consumer brand and product perceptions. Following the few
qualitative research techniques can be useful in this regard:
Free Association
This is the technique to identify the kind of brand association a
consumer have with the brand and later perception about the brand. It
involves the free association task where question is asked what comes
to mind when they think of brand. Answers to these questions helps to
clarify the range of possible associations and assemble a brand profile.
To better understand the positivity of brand associations, consumers
can be asked follow up questions as to the favorability of associations
they listed or, more generally, what they like best about the brand.
Similarly, consumers can also be asked direct follow-up questions as
to the uniqueness of associations they listed or, more generally, what
they find unique about the brand. Thus, additionally useful questions
include:
1) What do you like best about the brand? What are its positive
aspects? What do you dislike? What are its disadvantages?
2) What do you find unique about the brand? How is it different from
other brands? In what ways is it the same?
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These simple, direct measures can be extremely valuable at
determining core aspects of a brand image. To provide more structure
and guidance, consumers can be asked further follow up questions to
describe what the brand means to them in terms of "who, what, when,
where, why, and how" type of questions such as:
1) Who uses the brand? What kind of person?
2) When and where do they use the brand? What types of situations?
3) Why do people use the brand? What do they get out of using it?
4) How do they use the brand? What do they use it for?
This technique can be the part of the In-depth Interview, which
basically involves the one on one interview. It may have structured
and unstructured form of questionnaire based on the experience of the
interviewer.
Projective Techniques
It may seems simple to carry out a survey with a structured researched
questionnaires, but when it comes to actual results there may be find
some deviation from what had been found in the survey. Consumers
may or may not figure out their own perception and association with
the brand in true form. So, in that case projective technique is the best
and simplest method to figure out their true perception.
The idea behind projective techniques is that consumers are presented
with an incomplete stimulus and asked to complete it or given an
ambiguous stimulus that may not make sense in and of itself and are
asked to make sense of it. In doing so, the argument is that consumers
will reveal some of their true beliefs and feelings. Thus, projective
techniques can be especially useful when deeply rooted personal
motivations or personally or socially sensitive subject matters may be
operating. Projective techniques often provide useful insights that help
to assemble a more complete picture of the perception and their
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relationship with the brand. These are the few way of projective
technique: word association, sentence Completion, and storytelling.
Brand Personality
Another way to figure out the perception and the kind of relationship
with the brand is brand personality.”Brand personality is the human
characteristics or traits that can attributed to a brand (Aaker, 1997)”.
Brand personality can be measured in different ways. Perhaps the
simplest and most direct way is to solicit open-ended responses to a
probe such as:
“If the brand were to come alive as a person, what it would be like,
what would it do, where would it live, what would it wear, who would
it talk to if it went to a party (and what would it talk about)."
Observational Approaches
This may not be an effective way study the brand perception of
consumer, but it may give some insight on the impact of their
perception on buying pattern. In this, consumers can be observed
without being noticed as they shop or as they consume products to
capture every nuance of their behavior.
2. Quantitative Research
Although qualitative measures are useful to identify and characterize

the range of possible associations to a brand, a more quantitative
portrait of the brand often is also desirable to permit more confident
and defensible strategic and tactical recommendations. Whereas
qualitative research typically elicits some type of verbal responses
from consumers, quantitative research typically employs various types
23
of scale questions so that numerical representations and summaries
can be made. Quantitative measures are often the primary ingredient
in tracking studies that monitor brand knowledge structures of
consumers over time.
CHAPTER 5
Project 2: Market Research Project
24
5.1 Project 2: Market Research Project
With the recent Herculean growth in the field of technology and science, the
news paper readers have considerably reduced and people have now started
using internet as their innovative medium to get them informed about the
latest happenings around the globe, as a result of which selling newspapers
has become more challenging for the news paper companies. Each and every
reader has different tastes and to fulfill the flavors of a mass audience is a
phenomenal challenge
5.1.1 Management Decision and Market Research Problem
• Management Decision Problem

What could be the brand enhancing factor for brand “The New
Indian Express” in Bangalore?
• Market Research Problem
What sort of perceptions people of Bangalore have about the brand

The New Indian Express.
5.1.2 Market Research Problem & Market Research Components
Now that I have identified what is to be learned and what information I want
to obtain i.e. what questions to ask, what variables to study in the previous
25
step. To get the answers to the issues raised in the previous step I have to lay
out a research design for obtaining the information.
In this project my objective is to analyze the perception about the brand
“The New Indian Express” among the general news paper readers. So I have
identified what is to be learned and I have designed a questionnaire based on
the information that I want to obtain.
The first part of the research design is to decide on the type of research that
will work best for the purpose and information that is sought.
I have decided to use the descriptive and qualitative (In-depth) type of
research for my project.
Market Research Component:
What Factors affect the Purchasing Decision of the Newspaper?
Sub Components:
• Criteria influencing a Reader to buy an English Newspaper

(Price, Content or Both)
• Customers perception on Annual Offer Schemes of TNIE
Newspaper
• Relative Comparison of the New Indian Express Newspaper with
other Major Players
5.1.3 Information Required

∗ Readers basic understanding of different brand of newspaper:
This can be done by asking them simple correlation with any film star
or cricketer.
26
∗ Which section do the customers read or start with and how they
feel about that on comparative basis with different newspaper:
This question will give us the taste or interest of the customer
This will tell us whether the customer is interested in:
• Current affairs
• Political news
• Business & Finance
• Entertainment
• Sports
• Health articles
• Educational articles
• Editorials
• Others
∗ Content and photographs :
This question will tell us about the ability of the customer to

understand the details from the paper and will tell us whether the
customers like to have pictorial representation of the news, which will
further make it easily understandable.
∗ Annual Subscription Scheme :

This is the most important part of the survey as this will tell us
whether the customer is aware of our annual subscription scheme
(Rs 475 per year) or not and will also tell us whether the scheme is an
attractive deal or not i.e. whether the customer is interested in the
scheme or not.
27
5.1.4 Research Methodology
The Market research project was carried out in two phases. In the first phase
primary data was collected from the customers through questionnaires
(direct, telephonic and mailed) prepared for the purpose. The second phase
consisted of analyzing the Primary data with SPSS tool and does the
findings and Analysis.
5.1.4.1 Sampling Technique
Target Population : English Daily readers in Bangalore.

Sampling Technique : Non-Probability-Convenience & random sampling
Sample Size : 200 (including 20 vendor interviews)
5.1.4.2 Data Collection
The second part of the research design involves laying out a plan to collect
the information within the research method selected. To gather research
marketers have three choices:
∗ Acquire Pre-existing research.
∗ Undertake new research themselves.
∗ Out-source the task of new research to a third-party, such as
a market research company.
The first option is associated with Secondary research and the last two
options are associated with the Primary research. The data’s that I collected
28
for the research are mentioned in the questionnaire. Further, I used the
Quantitative & Qualitative data collection type of Primary research.
5.1.4.3 Questionnaire Development & Pre - Testing
The final questionnaire was developed. I first decided the objectives of the
questionnaire and then went step by step in designing the questionnaire.
The objective of the questionnaire was to translate the information needed
regarding the newspapers into a set of specific questions that the respondents
can and will answer. While designing the questionnaire I also concentrated
in minimizing the respondent fatigue, boredom, incompleteness and no
response. The process followed for preparing the questionnaire was as
follows:
∗ First, I specified the information needed.
∗ Then, I decided on the content of personal information

∗ Then the question was designed keeping in mind the
respondent’s inability and unwillingness to answer
∗ Then the question structure was decided, i.e. to have open-

ended questions or close ended questions or both.
∗ After the questions were framed, these questions were arranged

in proper order under each heading.
Then the questionnaire was reproduced to the Project guide, Mr. Ramanath
GP Maiya, Regional Sales Manager, The New Indian Express for inspection
and pre-test.
After the pretesting was done, the final questionnaire was prepared which
had to be passed to the respondents.
29
CHAPTER 6
Project 3: Frontline Sales &

Promotion
30
6.1 Project 3: Frontline Sales & Promotion
6.1.1 The selling process
The selling process of newspapers in India involves various steps like:
1. Prospecting and Evaluation:
This is the stage where potential customers are found and evaluated. It is
first necessary to identify that the potential customer has the willingness,
ability and authority to buy the product. This would involve first generating
sales leads. In the case of newspapers customers could be Financial
Institutions, IT employees, students preparing for their CAT examination
MBA students and other institutions like Hotels, Airlines etc.
Most of the times when a company or offices are approached with

subscription offer the gatekeepers are encountered who are actually the
receptionists and security guards and they don't have the authority to buy the
paper but pose a challenge to the final sale from happening.
2. Pre approach:
In this stage the process of approaching the client is decided. This involves
deciding on the approach establishing objectives of the sales call and
preparing for a presentation. We need to analyze what are the product
features in which the customer will be interested and focus on those during
presentation.
31
This stage involves deciding whether it will be enough to do a simple cold
call or to set up an appointment which is needed in case we want to set up a
Stall. Like in the case of setting up stalls in academic institutions where a
larger section of our targeted population can be met, it becomes essential
that we first fix up an appointment with the facilities manager asking his
permission to do promotional activities.
3. Approach:
This stage involves getting in initial contact with the customer by meeting
him and generating interest in the product. Once the salesmen (we) are with
the customer they would make a presentation making him aware of the
characteristics of the paper, the discount and the magazines that are on offer.
While selling to Financial Institutions sales representatives focus on

presenting the various Business magazines that the customer will get if he
subscribes. While pitching to younger customer salesmen focuses on the
weekly magazines (like EDEX) which are more enticing to them.
While making presentations to corporate the focus is on the operational

efficiency and convince the Facilities Manager that the implementation will
be starting in 2 weeks time from when the employees start signing up for the
subscription.
4. Handling Objection:
The most common objection which is encountered during the selling is the
fact that most customers who are regular readers of others newspapers are
very loyal and are unwilling to change. This is the time when distinguishing
32
features of the products need to be highlighted for example Business
Standard highlights the fact that it has has various sections like the BS
200 which gives the complete analysis of the 200 companies that were
traded the most on the stock exchange the previous week. This section on
the paper is something unique only to Business Standard. Also 'The
Compass' which is a small segment in the Business Standard Newspaper
assists people in making their investment decisions as to which sector they
should invest their money in was also of interest to people who were more
investment focused.
Some of the customers are worried about the implementation time this is
where sales person had to tell the customers about how we will be ensuring
that they get a regular supply of their business standard by interacting with
their vendors and start the delivery of their newspaper to their home in 2
weeks.
5. Closing:
At this stage the customer is more or less aware of the product and has made
up his mind to either go ahead with the sale or not. If the subscription are
attractively priced most customers prefer to go for the plan offered and want
to first get a look at the service being provided. Thus most people will either
back out at the middle of the presentation, while others stick around to try
and see what they are getting for their money. By the time salesman pops the
final question whether the customer wants to pay by cash or cheque the
customer usually has made up his mind.
6.1.2 Problem Definition Process
The circulation and sales of The New Indian Express was to be increased
33
and when compared with the competitors the readership was comparatively
down among adults in the city of Bangalore.
6.1.3 Scope & Objective:
Creation of Awareness on the readership is what every newspaper concern is

looking forward at knowing the tastes of different customers and the buying
habits of them. The objective of the project was to Create Awareness of the
Annual Offer prevailing and to do Promotion (Annual Offer) and Sales of
the same to Young Adults in Bangalore.
6.1.4 Frontline Sales Process Strategy
The project was divided into parts which include Colleges and Wards. So
the strategies followed were also differently adopted for each category
1. Strategy for College

∗ The strategies adopted for colleges were different from Ward
Campaign. The head of the institution was met personally and the
need was communicated.
∗ After getting the permission letter from the head of the
institution, we give order for extra copies of newspapers to be printed
for the free sampling programme.
∗ The printing press should be informed well in a day of advance
if in need of extra copies. We normally targeted the college hostels for
our sampling. For a couple of days, we made arrangements for the
sample to be put in each door step, and then a kiosk was put in the
college campus where students and the faculties could actually
subscribe to The New Indian Express.
34
∗ Awareness was created among the teachers and the actually
acted as gate keepers for us by informing the students about the stall
put and about the offer. And the orders were taken.
2. Strategy for Wards

∗ This starts with the approach of deciding first the location of
campaigning. Teams were divided for doing the campaign in different
part of the city.
∗ After deciding the location, number of copies decided for free
distribution.
∗ Free distribution was done with explaining the product to the
prospective customer.
∗ As the people might have experienced the paper by then, it
was easy for them to take decisions. The follow up was done and
order was taken.
35
CHAPTER 7
Data Analysis & Results of Project 2
7.1 Data Analysis & Results
7.1.1 Project 2 – Market Research Problem

36
7.1.1.1 Descriptive Research
1) Age of the Respondent ( N = 82)
Fig (3)
The age wise ratio response that the most number of responses came from
the age group of 18 to 25(50 People), which is in the range of our target age
group.
2) Sex of the Respondent ( N = 82)
37
Fig (4)
The sex wise ratio of 70 males and 10 females among the target size of 82
says that more males were interested in responding to the questionnaire.
3) Qualification of the Respondent
38
Fig.(5)
4) Occupation of the Respondent
39
Fig (6)
5) Place of Buying newspaper
Fig (7)
Out of 82 respondents, 42 were subscribing newspaper at home. This
suggests that door to door campaigning could be more useful in
enhancing the brand awareness or to increase the circulation also.
40
6) Which English newspaper do you read?
Which English newspaper do you read?
Cumulative
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Percent
Valid Deccan Chronicle 7 8.5 8.5 8.5
The New Indian Express 10 12.2 12.2 20.7
The Hindu 13 15.9 15.9 36.6
Times of India 37 45.1 45.1 81.7
Others 15 18.3 18.3 100.0
Total 82 100.0 100.0
Fig (8)
Out of 82 general readers, 10 are readers of “The New Indian Express”.
Followed by “The Hindu”, it is third most readable newspaper in Bangalore.
Here others include Deccan Herald, DNA, and Bangalore Mirror. “Times of
India” is the most readable newspaper in Bangalore which constitutes 45%
in total target of 82 people.
41
7) Age wise Readership
Fig (9)
8) What do you prefer reading most in your newspaper?
42
Fig (10)
Current affairs most preferred section for reading among readers of “The
New Indian Express”. Compare to “The Hindu” readers are more satisfied
reading current affairs in “The New Indian Express”. But, Compare to
“Times of India”, it lags behind in preference.
9) Satisfaction Rating
43
a) Content
Fig (11)
Out of 10 express readers 5 (50%) said content of the newspaper is “very

good” and “good”, respectively. Whereas, Times reader 14 (32%) out of
37(100%) said times have “very good” content and 22(59%) said it has only
“Good” content. So, here Express readers are more satisfied with content of
the newspaper and hence better perception compared to “Times of India”.
b) Images
44
Fig (12)
In terms of “Images” Times has better satisfaction compare to any other

newspaper. 20 people out of 82 said Time of India provide better image
quality. Whereas, Only 1 person has said it has “very good” images.
c) Color
Out of 10(100%) express reader, 1(10%) said it has color of the newspaper
is “very good”, 4(40%) said it has “Good” color, and 5(50%) said “Fair”.
Whereas, out of 37(100%) Times reader 21(57%) said “Very good”,
14(38%) said “good” and rest said “fair”. This clearly shows that people
want “The New Indian Express” to be more colorful.
45
Fig (13)
d) Layout
Fig (14)
Compare to 11(30%) Times reader, only 1(10%) Express readers said it has
“very good” layout.
46
e) Design
Fig (15)
Compare to 14(38%) Times reader, 9(90%) Express reader said it has

“Good” design. Whereas, no one (0%) said it has “very good” design.
Altogether, readers have good perception of ‘layout’ of “The New Indian
Express”
f) Length of the Articles
47
Fig (16)
Out of 10 express reader, 8(80%) said “The New Indian Express” has
“good” length of article which is better than any other newspaper reader
response. We can say, people are satisfied and must have better perception
about the length of the article than any other newspaper here in Bangalore.
g) Coverage of the News
48
Fig (17)
60% of the express reader said it has “very good” news coverage, compare
to 41% of times reader.
h) Analysis of the News
49
Fig (18)
When asked about analysis of the news, “The New Indian Express” fared
better than any other newspaper. Out of 10 express reader, 4(40%) said it
“Very Good” compared to 8(22%) of Times Reader and any other reader.
i) Price of the newspaper
50
Fig (19)
60% of the express readers expressed their satisfaction with the price of the
newspaper. Whereas, 43% of Times reader and 53% of The Hindu readers
are satisfied with the price of their newspaper.
j) Timeliness
51
Fig (20)
When asked about the timeliness of the news being served to them. Out of
10 express reader 7(70%), Out of 13 Hindu reader 9(69%), and out of 37
Times reader 19(51%) said “Good”.
k) Current Affairs
52
Fig (21)
In terms of current affairs, 5(50%) out of 10 express reader replied positively

by saying it “very good”. Whereas, 8(62%) out of 13 Hindu reader & only
7(19%) out of 37 times reader said “very good”. So, people who are reading
“The New Indian Express” believe that current affair is better in “The New
Indian Express”.
l) Political News
53
Fig (22)
When asked about the “Current affairs” in the newspaper they have been
reading. 9(69%) out of 13 Hindu reader said it “very good”, compare to
4(40%) out of 10 express reader and 8(21%) out of 37 Times reader.
m) Business & Finance
54
Fig (23)
5 (50%) out of 10 express reader said “business & finance” is “Good” in

“The New Indian Express” which is greater than any other newspaper, in
terms of percentages.
n) Entertainment news
55
Fig (24)
Times has fared better than any other newspaper in the category. 21(58%)
out of 37 times reader said it “very good”.
o) Sports News
56
Fig (25)
Again, Times is peoples first choice when comes to ‘Sports news”. 22(59%)
out of 37 Times reader said it “very good”. Whereas, only 2(20%) out of 10
express reader & 3(23%) out of 13 Hindu reader said it “very good”.
p) Health articles
57
Fig (26)
In peoples view “The Hindu” & “The New Indian Express” give better
health article compared to any other newspaper in the category. 5(50%) out
of 10 express reader & 7(54%) out of 13 Hindu reader said it “good”,
compared to 9(24%) out of 37 times reader.
q) Editorials
58
Fig (27)
For “Editorial”, The Hindu is first choice of the people. As, 10(77%) out of
13 Hindu reader said it “very good”, compared to 5(50%) out of 10 express
reader & 8(22%) out of 37 Times reader.
r) Educational articles
Fig (28)
Express readers are more satisfied than any other newspaper in the category
when it comes to “Educational articles”. 5(50%) out of 10 express readers
59
said it “good”, compared to 5(38%) out of 13 Hindu readers & 12(32%) out
of 37 Times readers.
s) Advertisements
Fig (29)
“Times of India” is first and for most choice for advertisement.
10) Are you aware of the “The New Indian Express” e-

newspaper on internet?
60
Fig (30)
11) How satisfied (overall) you are with the newspaper you are
reading?
Fig (31)
7.1.1.2 Qualitative Research (N=100)
61
1) If the following newspaper were cricketer which cricketer would
they be?
Fig (32)
24% of the people who have responded to this question associated “The
Hindu” with “Sachin Tendulkar”. Sachin Tendulkar is the most recognized
and successful name in cricket world. Through this, it can be figured out that
The Hindu is a recognized & successful name in newspaper industry and
readers mind.
62
Fig(33)
“Times of India” has been also associated with “Sachin Tendulkar” (34%). It
has been a successful player in newspaper industry like Sachin in Cricket
world.
63
Fig(34)
“The New Indian Express” has been associated with “Rahul Dravid”. People
may have been associated it with Rahul because of many reason, but the
most obvious reason could be his second name “The Wall”. “The New
Indian Express” have seen all sorts of up and down trough working all these
year, but still been regarded as respectable newspaper because of its anti-
establishment & critical tone.
64
Fig (35)
Respondents could not associate “Deccan Chronicle” with any particular

cricketer, as others contribute 26% with majority of responses.
2) If the following newspapers were film stars which film star would
they be?
65
Fig (36)
“The Hindu” has been associated with “Amitabh Bacchan”. As, majority of
respondents could not associate with any particular star, but with Amitabh
Bacchan having 20% contribution out of whole weight. Amitabh has been a
respectable & established named in Hindi film world. Likewise, The Hindu
can be said established name in newspaper industry.
66
Fig (37)
When asked to think of “Times of India” as a film star, 27% respondent

associated it with “Sharukh Khan”. Times of India has been a flashy
newspaper full of glamour and color, because of that respondent may have
been associated TOI with Sharukh Khan.
67
Fig (38)
33% of the respondent couldn’t associate “The New Indian Express” with
any particular star, but 10% of them said it as ‘Amitabh Bacchan”. It may be
because of its multifaceted position among its reader. It has an old
established named but at the same time it is stylish also.
68
Fig (39)
Deccan Chronicle has not been associated well, because 50% of the
respondent did give their responses and few who did, couldn’t come up with
any particular name. Only, 8% of the respondent associated it with
“Chiranjibi”, a telgu superstar, may be because of its Hyderabad based
perception of the people here in Bangalore.
3) What is the first word that comes to your mind when you think of
following newspaper
69
Fig (40)
The Hindu has been said newspaper with standard language, 27% of the
respondent believe, it has Standard English language. 15% said, it has good
articles, especially editorials. 13% said it knowledgeable.
70
Fig (41)
Times of India has been regarded as more glamour oriented, as 26% of the
respondent said when they think about TOI Ads & photographs is the first
word that comes to their mind. It is worth noticing, only 1% said it
knowledgeable newspaper.
71
Fig (42)
23% of the respondents responded positively, by saying when they think of

“The New Indian Express” Articles is the first word that comes to their
mind. 15% of them also believe that it is knowledgeable newspaper. This
suggests article especially editorials are widely acceptable among its reader.
But, only 5% of respondents said it interesting.
72
Fig (43)
Here, “Other” which constitute 20% of the total response is a collection of

different word that respondent came up when asked. It’s not been regarded
as knowledgeable newspaper as only 3% said when they think about
“Deccan Chronicle” article is the first word that come to their mind.
73
4) Which of the following word would you think best describe “The
New Indian Express”?
Fig (44)
20.62% respondents said “The New Indian Express” is “Reliable” and

12.37% respondents said it is “open”. This shows newspaper has so far have
been able to justify its stand and its critical view.
5) In your opinion, “The New Indian Express” best represent:

74
Fig (45)
In the opinion of respondents 42.27% believe “The New Indian Express”

represent “voice of the society”. Whereas, 20.62% said it represent anti-
establishment view. Organization itself believes “The New Indian Express”
represent its ant-establishment stand. The contradiction between
organization view and readers view may be because most of the readers are
new subscriber and they have not noticed properly the rebellious tone of the
newspaper (as clear from the previous question, where only 6.19%
respondent see it “Rebel”).
6) What do you think of “The New Indian Express” newspaper?
75
Fig (46)
General thinking about the newspaper is as simple and Informative

newspaper, as 24.19% respondent said. Whereas, 14.52% respondent feels
it’s a newspaper of different taste and also been simple & effective in raising
public issues.
7) What do you like about “The New Indian Express”?
76
Fig (47)
Though, “general news & coverage” are the most accepted section of the
“The New Indian Express” (which have got 20.22% & 17.98% response,
respectively), “Editorial & Edex” has also got good percentage of response.
Here, respondents believe “Edex” better supplements than any other
supplements provided by the “The New Indian Express” (3.37% said they
like “Expresso” and “Sunday magazine”, respectively)
8) What are its positive aspects in your view?
77
Respondent’s perception builds on continuous interaction with the product.

Regular readers of the “The New Indian Express” perceive coverage is the
most positive aspect of the “The New Indian Express”, as 20% feel like that.
14% and 12% respondents feel “general news” and “Editorial” are its
positive aspects, respectively. But, here it would be worth to notice that
“Edex” has got 9% of the total response which seems getting popular, as it is
newly launched supplements.
Fig (48)
9) What do you dislike most in “The New Indian Express”?
78
Fig (49)
Paper & print quality have been most disliking factor of “The New Indian
Express” newspaper along with less local coverage and low picture quality.
36.47% of the respondents said they do not like the paper & print quality of
the newspaper being provided. 12.94% respondent said it has less local
coverage, here perception differs as “Expresso” is being provide to serve
local news to people still people believe local news coverage in “The New
Indian Express” is not good enough. People see it as national newspaper
which serves more of national and international news. Here, other comprises
sports news, technology & research, and section for children whom people
perceive is not good enough in “The New Indian Express”.
10) What do you find unique about “The New Indian Express”?
79
Fig (50)
Edex is unique in “The New Indian Express”, as people perceive it. 10%
said it is unique in this newspaper, While 9% said Editorial & 8% said
analysis of news in “The New Indian Express” is unique.
11) Are you aware of the Sales scheme (Subscription offer) of

“The New Indian Express”?
80
Fig (51)
12) If yes, did you buy any of the schemes?
81
Fig (52)
Out of those 30% people who said they were aware of Sales Scheme of “The
New Indian Express”, only 20% said they had bought the scheme. This
shows the conversion ration which is 5:1.
13) Have you ever noticed advertisement of “The New Indian

Express”?
82
Fig (53)
14) If yes, do you remember anything special about that

Advertisement?
Fig (54)
Out of 39% who did notice advertisement or promotion of “The New Indian
Express”, only 27% were able to remember something about that promotion
83
or advertisement. This shows promotional activities have been successful at
some extent.
15) Have you ever recommended “The New Indian Express” to

any other person?
Fig (55)
This clearly shows that positive perception about the brand “The New
Indian Express”. Out of total 100 respondent 40% said they did
recommend “The New Indian Express” to others in their locality or
close friends.
16) Do you know about the relaunch of “The New Indian

Express” in 2008?
84
Fig (56)
17) If yes, do you remember anything about that relaunch?
Fig (57)
Out of 39.80% respondents who were aware of the relaunch of “The New
Indian Express”, 34% said they remember something about that relaunch,
like change in the layout of the newspaper or the mast head itself.
85
18) Any suggestions on how we can improve your “The New

Indian Express”?
Fig (58)
Paper & print quality is the single major drawback of “The New
Indian Express”, as 25% respondent said. 14.77% said Picture quality
of the newspaper needs improvement. While, 13.64% said it needs
improvements in local and entertainment news coverage. Other which
comprises 20.45% of the total response suggest more refined coverage
of sports news (especially Cricket), Technology and research based
news and last but not the least, Child section should be given as per
people believe.
86
87
CHAPTER 8
Discussions and Conclusion
8.1 Discussions and Conclusion
8.1.1 Suggestions & Recommendations
8.1.1.1 Project 1 - Circulation & Distribution Problem
1. Fixed Salary System Practiced with Sales Executives.
The salary system followed is of the fixed rate which does not seem to be
much effective, as most of them switch to the competitors for their living.
88
One better way to be suggested is that the follow up of an addition with the
fixed salary based on the sale they make as this can be a motivation for the
executives.
What I suggest is a Fixed salary + variable salary (Based on Sales).
2. Hawkers Role.
Hawkers have a highly influential role in promoting or depromoting the

brand name to customers. They are the ones who have direct contact with
the end customers. If not dealt carefully, there is a chance of the business to
be converted to the competitor.
A suggestion for improving their commitment is to hold Periodic meeting

with Hawkers and give Incentives like some useful gifts and awards for
Motivation.
8.1.1.2 Project 2 – Market Research Problem
As Brand is a psychological relationship and dependency between a

customer and a company, so we would do better to see following factor that
(I suppose) can help us enhancing the brand “The New Indian Express”.
1. Edex
Based on my interaction with readers and earlier analysis of the data
collected, I can say: - it is most acceptable supplements among all the
89
supplements provided by the “The New Indian Express”. The only thing it
need in my view is aggressive marketing to increase the visibility of this
special product.
“….Edex – weekly supplement – very informative for youth to decide their

future”
Dr. Mamatha. S (Chickkabanavara, Bangalore)
“…still Edex can be improved publishing more competitive exam and quiz
based articles”
Sandeep Kumar (9482170498)
2. Content
Single sentence from one of the reader..
“….Best one comparing to other newspaper. This is to improve knowledge”

Branch Manager, Corporation Bank, Chickkabanavara
3. Paper & Printing (Picture) Quality

Here quality means brightness. This has been the major complain so far.
Most of the people with whom I have interacted said about this. People are
satisfied with the content part of the newspaper, but expressed
disappointment in terms of paper and printing quality. If this issue is
addressed, it will certainly help in increasing circulation.
4. Sports Coverage
It’s been said first impression is the last impression, so by making their
sports experience good circulation and brand name can be increased among
younger generation. Some of the students said in my interaction with them
that sports news need a little improvement in terms of coverage specially
“Cricket”.
“Please give…………e deep observation on the Indian Cricket”.

Shivaprasad. Arava (llnd Year Student, saptagiri college hostel)
5. Technology & Research based news

90
Interaction with readers has also revealed that people like to read scientific
research based news which they say less in content in The New Indian
Express. They also said, in “The Hindu” there is separate sheet for only
Technology and Scientific research on weekly basis.
“…..news related to new research should be more”

Mayank, (llnd year Student, saptagiri college hostel)
6. Entertainment news coverage
In people (youth) view, The New Indian Express (TNIE) covers less news
related to entertainment (film review, star coverage, Sudoku, funny cartoons
etc). Some people suggested, “Expresso” Should contain entertainment news
apart from local news.
7. Local news coverage

Some reader complaint, local news coverage in the third page contains more
advertisement less news.
“………local coverage should be improved”
Dr. M. B. Patil, (T. Dasarahalli)
8. Color factor
Compare to other major newspaper operating in Bangalore, “The New
Indian Express (TNIE)” is not very colorful. Because of that, according to
the readers makes it less appealing.
“…………..it should be more colorful & bright”

Anand. C.
9. Service factor.
The kind if service a company provides to the customer could contribute to
the good or bad word of mouth. It may enhance the reputation of the
company substantially or may degrade it in the same manner. Though only
91
4% of express reader said service is not up to the mark, but this can certainly
affects company’s reputation. I suggest these things need to be addressed in
more customer friendly way.
8.1.1.3 Project 3 – Frontline Sales & Promotion
1. Free book of customer choice:

To encourage potential customer to subscribe annually or any other scheme,
free book of choice could be provided. This book will be worth of the weight
of the scheme. Like for half yearly subscription any book of RS 50 and on
yearly subscription book worth of Rs75 could be provided. This book will
be of customer choice.
2. Conduct Events in Housing Flats:
92
In housing colonies, a more personal approach is to be followed. What we
suggest is to find Housing Colonies with min of 100 Houses and do free
sampling of newspaper for a Week, and then take the feedback which can
boost up the orders received. As far as events are concerned, certain events
which are informative like “ Fun Day ” on every Sunday evenings and
events including conducting small games (Kids Quiz) concentrating on kids
which can create a goodwill among the residents, that can add to the profit.
3. Exhibitions or book fairs should be conducted or sponsored
Media industry, particularly newspaper industry must focus on area where

people gather. Taking up sponsorships and being part in exhibitions or book
fairs can help in focusing the target customers. Awareness will be created in
doing so as what we sell is information.
4. Promotions should be geared up during important functions of the

Companies like annual functions.
As corporate are on the list of target customers, what I suggest is to make a

note of the important occasions of some targeted corporate and sponsor
those events like annual gatherings. Promotions are to be boosted up in these
occasions. This can build up a good relationship with the corporate that can
help in flourishing the business.
8.1.2 Learning’s
1. Opportunity to learn how a Newspaper Industry works in a whole.
93
Newspapers had been read for years but there were much to learn when we
were a part of the industry, on the pricings, competition, and the bleeding
balance sheets.
2. Learned the fundamental concepts of Sales and how to persuade the

customers.
It is quite easy to keep in mind the theoretical knowledge gained from the
school but the experience in the real corporate world taught me how
professional one should be for him to sell his product. Customer persuasion
is an art and I tried our best in selling the product given to me.
3. Learned on how to deal & differentiate the customers.
People are of different kind and each one should be dealt in different ways
for a product to finally sell. Dealing with a particular customer and convert
him to a prospect involves difficulty. The approaches to be selected were to
be different, and it was experienced in many situations where I learned from
my failures.
4. Learned how to work with different staff members.

In an organization different sort of people work together. It may happen your
way of thinking may not match with everybody there. But, with proper
communication and regular interaction may help here to mitigate the
difference that ultimately helps in creating friendly environment in the
organization. And, this personal harmony helps to get best out of the all
employee of the organization.
94
REFERENCES
Websites
http://www.brandfaqs.com (Backgrounder BrandFAQs, Brand Perception
Study, October 2008)
http://www.fiuc.org/esap/NAIR09/General/brandassociations.pdf
http://www.scribd.com/doc/984105/Ad-and-Brand-Perception
http://www.indianexpress.com
http://www.expressbuzz.com
http://www.indianmba.com
http://www.allyoucanread.com
http://hansaresearch.com
http://www.business.com/directory/media_and_entertainment
http://chennai.metblogs.com/2008/04/16/the-media-war
95
Books
Kotler & Keller (2006). Creating Brand Equity. Marketing Management,
Chapter-9, 273-307.
Churchill, Lacobucci, & Israel. Exploratory & Descriptive Research.
Marketing Research, Chapter 4, 5&6, 69-161.
Keller, K. L. (2003). Strategic brand management: Building, measuring, and
managing brand equity, 2d Ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
96
APPENDIX 1
Descriptive Research
Dear Respondent,
As a part of our academic evaluation, we are required to undertake a detailed
research study on a topic of our own choice. I have chosen my topic as “A
study of Brand perceptions of THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS in
Bangalore, India”. I will be grateful if you would fill out this questionnaire
and assist me in completing this study appropriately.
Thank You
Descriptive Research
1. Name: ______________________________
2. Age: 18 – 25 26 – 35
36 -- 45 46 – 55
55 and above
3. Gender: Male Female
4. Educational Qualification:
PUC
Graduate
Post Graduate
Professional Degree
5. Occupation:
Government Employee
Private Employee Self Employed
Retired Student
6. You prefer buying newspaper at
97
Newspaper Mart
Subscribe at Home
Others
If others, specify…………………………………………………
7. Which English Newspaper do you read?
Deccan Chronicle
The New Indian Express (NIE)
The Hindu
Times of India
If Others, specify…………………………………………………
8. What do you prefer reading most in your preferred newspaper?
Current affairs
Political news
Business & Finance
Entertainment
Sports
Health articles
Educational articles
Editorials
Others
If others, please specify……………………………………………
9. Rate your satisfaction with the following features of your preferred

newspaper.
Very Good Good Fair Poor Very Poor Can’t Say
Content
Images
Color
Layout
98
Design
Length (Article)
Coverage
Analysis
Price
Timeliness
Comments……………………………………………………
10. Rate your satisfaction with the following features of your preferred
newspaper.
Very Good Good Fair Poor Very Poor Can’t Say
Current affairs
Political news
Business & Finance
Entertainment
Sports
Health articles
Editorials
Educational articles
Advertisements
Comments……………………………………
11. If you read NIE, how often do you read it?
Daily
Few times a week
Weekend Only
Seldom
Other
Comments………………………………………………………
99
12. How do you find supplements provided by NIE?

Very Good
Good
Fair
Poor
Very Poor
13. Which supplements are you aware of? Which ones do you read?
14. If you indicated Poor or Very Poor, please could you tell us what is that
you do not like?
15. Are you aware of the “The New Indian Express” e-newspaper on
internet?
Yes
No
If Yes, comment ………………………………………
16. If you had cause to complain, how was the situation resolved?
Extremely unsatisfactory
Unsatisfactory
Average
Very satisfactory
First class
APPENDIX 2
Qualitative Research
100
Dear Respondent,
As a part of our academic evaluation, we are required to undertake a detailed
research study on a topic of our own choice. I have chosen my topic as “A
study of Brand perceptions of THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS in
Bangalore, India”. I will be grateful if you would fill out this questionnaire
and assist me in completing this study appropriately.
Thank You
Exhibit-1 (Projective Technique)
1. If the following newspapers were cricketers which cricketer would they
be?
Hindu……………………………………………………………
Times of India……………………………………………………
The New Indian Express………………………………………
Deccan Chronicle……………………………………………….
2. If the following newspapers were film stars which film stars would they
be?
Hindu……………………………………………………………
Times of India…………………………………………………..
The New Indian Express……………………………………….
Deccan Chronicle………………………………………………
3. What is the first word that comes to your mind when you think of the
following newspapers?
Hindu……………………………………………………………
Times of India…………………………………………………..
The New Indian Express………………………………………
Deccan Chronicle ………………………………………………
4. Which of the following words (one or more) would you think best
describe “The New Indian Express”? (Tick your options.)
101
Sincere Competent
Sophisticated Open
Conscientious Agreeable
Reliable Innovative
Successful Intelligent
Co-operative Organized
Systematic Practical
Creative Effective
Efficient Punctual
Friendly Polite
Rebel
5. In your opinion, “The New Indian Express” newspaper best represent:

Youth
Voice of society
Anti- establishment
Unbiased Reporting
Others
If Others, specify…………………………………………………
Exhibit-2 (In-Depth Interview)
1. What do you think of “The New Indian Express, (NIE)” (in a sentence
or two, please)?
102
2. What do you like about “The New Indian Express”?
3. What are its positive aspects in your view?
4. What do you dislike about “The New Indian Express”?
5. What do you find unique about “The New Indian Express”?
6. In what ways, is it similar to other brands of newspaper in Bangalore?
7. In your opinion, who read “The New Indian Express” most? (What
kind of person?)
8. How it is useful to reader?
9. Do you like to have pictorial representation of the news?
10.If yes, then why? Or if No, then why?
11. Are you aware of the various sales scheme of “The New Indian
Express”?
12. If yes, did you buy any of them?
103
14. Have you ever noticed advertisement of “The New Indian Express”?
Do you remember anything Special about that advertisement? (in a

sentence or two, please)
15.If No, then could you suggest some ways to promote the brand name
of “The New Indian Express”?
16.Have you ever recommended “The New Indian Express” to your close
friends or relatives?
18.Do you know about the relaunch of “The New Indian Express” in
2008?
19.If yes, what is the most important think you remember about that?
20. Any suggestions on how we can improve your NIE experience?
104

The New Indian Express Report 1

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THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS

A STUDY OF BRAND PERCEPTION OF THE NEW INDIAN

Jeeweshwar Kumar (MBA 09044)

Under the guidance of

Ms. Laxmi Menon Mr. Ramanath GP Maiya Dr. Deepak Gupta

Amrita School of Business

I, Jeeweshwar Kumar, students of Amrita School of Business, Coimbatore

I would like express our sincere gratitude to Express Publications (Madurai)

The newspaper stands for Courageous journalism, as the tagline mentions;

Sl. No. Title Page No.

Fig. No. Title Page No.

1.1 Purpose of Project

The survey helps to:

 Measure customer satisfaction levels.

 Figure out different brand enhancing factors.

 Gauge interest in new products and service offerings.

 Pinpoint areas for improvement.

Phase 1: Study the Distribution & Circulation of “The New Indian

Phase 2: Management Decision & Market Research Problem

correctly representative of the market considering the huge size

affect the quality of the results obtained.

which are subject to change in the future.

1.4 Structure of Report

Introduction of Company & Industry

A newspaper is a publication containing news, information, and advertising.

2.1.1 Indian Newspaper Industry

Researchers have discovered a place where the newspaper, a threatened

India is a country with an expanding middle class and a booming economy,

Meanwhile, Internet penetration remains marginal, despite India’s reputation

Helping newspaper circulation are newsstand prices that rarely exceed 3

With blogging coming in vogue, it has to be seen whether the Indian

2.1.2 The New Indian Express Group

The Indian Express is an Indian newspaper owned by Ramnath Goenka

2.1.3 The New Indian Express Newspaper

Its various supplements, which appear on a weekly or fortnightly basis,

Pricing & Circulation:

The New Indian Express Newspaper is priced at 2 Rs/copy in weekdays and

Major Competitors & Market Share:

Project 1: Circulation & Distribution

3.1 Project 1: Circulation & Distribution Problem

3.1.1 Introduction of Newspaper Circulation

A newspaper's circulation is the number of copies it distributes on an

3.1.2 Problem Definition Process

3.1.3 Study of Distribution Process

Distribution Process of “The New Indian Express” newspaper

1) The newspaper sales involve distributing highly perishable products

under severe time constraints.

across the region. Transportation is normally through private

his area. The revenue of the newspaper distributor is based on a

chain before newspaper reaches readers. The hawkers'

distribution channel. Responsiveness includes supply chain's

3.1.4 Distribution Process Chart

1) Distribution of newspapers is based on number of drop points that

area serves. In Bangalore “The new Indian Express” operates at 140

Conceptual Approach towards Brand

4.1 Conceptual approach towards Brand Perception.

A successful brand is the most valuable resource a company has. It is being

4.1.2 Brand and its Importance.

4.1.3 Brand Equity & its Model.

These are the six dimensions:

4.2.1. Brand Perception.

4.2.2. Measuring Brand Perception.