AN INTERIM REPORT

A REPORT ONRole of E-commerce at Customer Relationship Management

Survey Of Customer Perception And Visibility Of E-magazine .

BY

MADHVI SHARMA

13BSP0381

AT

OUTLOOK PUBLISHING INDIA PVT. LTD.

A report submitted in partial fullfillment of the requirements of PGPM Program of IBS GURGAON

Distribution List:

i) IBS GURGAON ii) OUTLOOK GROUP

Date of Submission: April 14th , 2014

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“Role of E-commerce at Customer Relationship Management Survey Of Customer Perception And Visibility

Of E-magazines”

By

Madhvi sharma

13BSP0381

At

Outlook Publishing India Private Limited, New Delhi

A report submitted in partial fulfillment of

The requirements of

PGPM Program of

IBS GURGAON

Under The Guidance Of

Mr Sandeep Kumar Sona

College Mentor

Prof. A.K. MITRA

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LETTER OF AUTHORIZATION

This is to certify that “Ms. Madhvi Sharma”, Enrolment number 13BSP0381 student of IBS GURGAON will be doing her Summer Internship Program Project with “OUTLOOK PUBLISHING (India) PVT. LTD.” from 25th February, 2014 to 31st May ,2014.

The project work entitled “Role of E-commerce at Customer Relationship Management Survey Of Customer Perception And Visibility Of E-magazines” embodies the original work done by Madhvi Sharma during the above full training period.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to express my gratitude and indebtedness to the management and staffs of IBS GURGAON for providing me this wonderful opportunity to gain practical industrial exposure by including this summer internship as part of my curriculum of the two year PGPM program.

I would also like to thank Prof. A.K. MITRA (Faculty Guide) of IBS GURGAON for his valuable suggestion in making the project report and for his continuous support and unconditional help, which guided me through this report.

Nevertheless, I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to Mr. Sandeep Kumar Sona (Deputy Manager, OUTLOOK PUBLISHING INDIA Private Limited) for allowing me to complete my summer internship in the company. It was his guidance and support that made this project possible.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

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Topics

Cover Page.

Title Page.

Authorization.

Acknowledgments.

Table of Contents.

Synopsis/ Abstract/ Summary.

Introduction.

Main text.

References.

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SYNOPSIS OF THE PROJECT

This project will deal with the parameters and factors that contribute to the customer satisfaction. Satisfaction is consumer’s fulfillment response. It is a judgment that a product or a service feature or the product or service itself provides pleasurable level of consumption related fulfillment. Customer satisfaction is the act of just doing enough to be acceptable to a customer. The company must operate on the philosophy that it is trying to deliver a high level of satisfaction to the other stake-holder within the constraints of its resources.

The present report is prepared for the partial fulfillment of PGPM Program (IBS Gurgaon) and as a part of curriculum. The survey is an attempt to determine the perception of the customers of Outlook group towards the magazine.” To pursue research, the respondents are chosen randomly from the customer’s database of the Outlook group and the questionnaire is filled by telephonic as well as face to face interaction.

The project work deals with generating more revenues for the Outlook group through getting more and more subscriptions. The subscription process has been online since 3 years, so it was an easy and less time consuming process. For getting more sales, different kinds of promotional strategies were adopted by the executives like:

Tele-calling Generating Leads through clients Getting permissions from the Organizations for stalls and canopies Doing offline subscriptions when needed Collecting more data through different sources etc.

Awareness, brand promotion & sales, - these three aspects is very important for an organization. Proper promotion of brand is very essential along with effective sales strategy. Being a part of a magazine publishing company (Outlook India Pvt. Ltd.) as a management trainee, I learned a lot which will be helping me in the future. Basically my role as a “Relationship Executive” was to push the sales of the magazines online. Getting more and more subscriptions increased the circulation of

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the magazines all over India. For getting more and more renewals as well as new subscribers there are different-different types of strategies used by Outlook group.

At the end of the report limitations, SWOT analysis, conclusion of the research and Appendix which includes questionnaire, Bibliography, FAQ, and Glossary that has the technical terms of the report.

Objectives of study:

To find out consumers’ perception towards Outlook Publishing company.

To find out the parameters affecting customer satisfaction.

To recognize the expectations and experiences that customers have with the products of a publishing house.

To find out the factors on the basis of which a customer purchases a product

To find out the quality of service rendered by a company

About the Company: OUTLOOK Publishing India Pvt. Ltd

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Mr. Rajan Raheja is the Owner of THE OUTLOOK GROUP.

The OUTLOOK Group is one of the biggest magazine publishing groups in India. It is a well-known brand and appreciated all over the world.

IT was established in October 1995.Its branches are established in New Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore, GURGAON, Chennai and Hyderabad. The head office of the outlook group is situated in New Delhi. In 1995, Mr. Vinod Mehta was the editor-in chief when the first issue of the magazine was published.

In October 1995, group company Hathaway Investments private Limited entered the print media. Outlook a weekly News magazine galvanized a sluggish market reeling under the impact of satellite TV. Outlook quickly placed itself as a need for readers who value it in depth.

Today Outlook is the preferred magazine of about 2 million readers in India, and sells more than 12 million copies over the year. There are 9 magazines of outlook group. One of those magazines (OUTLOOK) is in Hindi and other eight are available in English.

VISION OF THE COMPANY

Leadership through empowering individual thought.

MISSION OF THE COMPANY

To be the largest and the most profitable Magazine Publisher in India

The Magazines under the Outlook group comprises of both National as well as International issues.

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About the Products:

Outlook is Publishing Nine Magazines:

OUTLOOK ENGLISH (Weekly News Magazine)

OUTLOOK HINDI(Weekly News Magazine)

OUTLOOK MONEY(Personal Finance and Banking)

OUTLOOK BUSINESS (Business)

OUTLOOK TRAVELER(Best of Travel)

OUTLOOK TRAVELER LUXE(Luxurious Edition)

OUTLOOK MAGAZINES

National:

1. Outlook Weekly2. Outlook Business3. Outlook Money4. Traveler5. Outlook Hindi6. Traveler Luxe

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OUTLOOK WEEKLY It is an independent weekly general interest English News magazine published in India. It features contents from politics, sports, cinema, and stories of broad interests .

OUTLOOK BUSINESS It covers all about the company and industry,

provident fund, advertising, enterprise, technology etc. This magazine is one

of the most selling magazines in India. Most business class people prefer to

get this magazine. This magazine is published fortnightly i.e. 1 issue in

every 15 days. Its cover price is 40 rupees per copy.

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OUTLOOK MONEY It covers bank sector, banking, insurance general,

insurance decoder, mutual funds. How to invest money in the market &

mistakes when investing? How to invest? Basically it’s a personal financing

magazine and preferred by youngsters. It is also a fortnightly Magazine. Its

cover price is Rs. 30/- per copy.

OUTLOOK TRAVELER It includes all the details like address of the

tourism spot in hills, wildlife, adventure, beach, resorts, heritage, and weekend.

This magazine is preferred he people who love to travel to new destinations. It

is a monthly magazine. Its cover price is 100 rupees per copy.

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OUTLOOK HINDI It is for the Hindi reading audience. Hindi

reader keeping their interests, realities & aspirations in mind, it is not a translation

of outlook English. As per the management decisions, it is only sold at the stalls or

book-stores. Subscribing this magazine online is not yet possible. It is a weekly news

magazine and its cover price is Rs. 35.

Outlook Traveller Luxe provides privileged access to a world of luxury travel for well-heeled travellers who like to savour the finest globe-trotting experiences. it is the ultimate luxury companion you’ll need to make your holidays exceptionally extravagant – whether you’re looking for spa getaways, exotic beaches, wildlife sanctuaries, desert safaris or mountain hideways

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Outlook’s Web Media

Outlookindia.com: Before 1998, Outlook was not available online. But after 1998, Outlook went online as outlookindia.com. Outlookindia.com is both outlooks Magazine’s home on the internet and an online publication. Going online was a valuable deal for outlook group because people who were technology oriented came closer to the outlook group’s magazines. Apart from Outlook’s printed edition in it’s entirely supplemented with links to related articles on its own site and elsewhere on the web. Outlookindia.com also offers an array of Original columns that is only meant for web and news updates every day with a very lively interaction with the readers.

Outlooktraveller.com:  Inaugurated as a web resource in 2000, this travel Website has since come a long way. Outlook traveler began by opening up new vistas in web-driven vacation planning, with its highly focused editorial features on an array of destinations. Still a highlight of the website, these are supported by tools and resources that make putting together your holiday a breeze — from selecting your destination, to choosing your mode of transport, finding your way around the map, selecting a place to stay to catching the local festivities, plus ferreting out the nearest ATM, fuel stop or cybercafé. Here there is something for everyone; themed vacation ideas from 'A for adventure' to 'W for wildlife', honeymooners dream destinations, foodies delights, first-person travelogues, a message room where you can exchange notes or ask us for more info that you want… And don't forget to book your copies of our international award-winning bestsellers from Outlook Traveler Getaways, available at a special price when you order on the website. If you want a sneak preview, there're excerpts from the guide books by renowned authors, including the likes of Prabhu Ghate, Ruskin Bond and Jug Suraiya.

Outlookmoney.com: outlookmoney.com takes forward the philosophy and beliefs ushered in by Intelligent Investor (the personal finance magazine that was launched in mid-1998, now known as Outlook Money). The site has six

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channels -- Stocks, Mutual Funds, Loans, Retirement Planning, Taxation and Insurance -- that address broad areas of the personal finance spectrum. Outlookmoney.com comes with many interactive tools. The Loans channel alone sports calculators that do all the number crunching a visitor may want on home, car, personal or equity loans. Outlookmoney.com seeks to provide total solutions to personal finance issues -- from disseminating information to providing avenues for e-commerce transactions.

Guides of Outlook Group

Apart from publishing magazines, there are some guides also which is published by Outlook group. OUTLOOK Traveler Travel Guides published from outlook group is today a well-recognized, established and acknowledged premier travel reference guide book in India. In just a span of 15 years, 14 successful titles have been published-Some of them are:-

Weekend Breaks (from Delhi/ GURGAON/ Bangalore/ Chennai) State Travel Guides (Rajasthan, Goa, Kerala, Uttarakhand, Himachal)

Trekking Holidays

Wildlife Holidays

101 pilgrimage Destinations

Heritage Holidays

OUTLOOK Traveler Guides are not only useful for reliable information about the destination to be visited; it is also useful for knowing the culture and workings of that destination. These guides are generally preferred by the people who like to travel a lot and who are keen to know about new destinations.

OUTLOOK & Its Competitors

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OUTLOOK GROUP COMPETITORS

OUTLOOK(ENGLISH) INDIA TODAY

OUTLOOK MONEY MONEY TODAY

OUTLOOK TRAVELLER TRAVEL TODAY

OUTLOOK BUSINESS BUSINESS TODAY, BUSINESS ECONOMY

CURRENT PROMOTIONAL STRATEGIES

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CURRENT OFFERS FROM OUTLOOK

MAGAZINE GROUP

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Indian magazine print media Market overview

Print media in India is more than a century old and well established industry. The print industry mainly comprises of newspaper and magazine publishing. Book publishing is smaller but significant in terms of revenue. Even though it's a mature industry, new magazines are being launched every year. India has been one of the fastest growing world economies since the past three years. Robust consumption and rising income levels have helped the growth of print media. New titles that focus on niche topics continue to launch in the market. The revenue sources for a magazine are subscription, single copy sales and advertisement. Approximately 73 per cent of revenue comes from advertising and 27 per cent from circulation.

The magazine industry is going through a tough phase in India just like in other countries. Newspapers have added supplements to their main issue and infringed on the content covered by magazines earlier. Television channels have launched in different genres that didn't exist a few years back. And with the increased penetration and adoption of the Internet in the country, more people are now consuming news and stories on different topics on the web and mobile. There is still a demand for high quality print content and magazines need to deliver on that need to avoid losing market share to other mediums. In addition, they also need to

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explore and distribute their content on the web and mobile platforms to give choice to their subscribers to consume content from anywhere and at any time.

India has 49,000 publications, but annual revenues total just $1.1 billion. Most lack technology, marketing, and capital to grow which has resulted in a handful of publications dominating the market with the Times of India Group being the market leader. Distribution is critical for a magazine since it has to be readily available and marketed to consumers. Big publications have strong distribution network set up.

Retail: magazines are available in retail outlets for sale. The retailer gets a commission on the sale price.

Subscription: publisher signs up subscribers directly or through partners and delivers the issues in mail.

Selective Distribution: Special sponsored copies are distributed in airplanes and hotels.

The print industry in India is highly fragmented due to the large number of local languages. Regional language publications own 46 per cent of the market share, Hindi language publications cover 44 per cent and the remaining 10 per cent is served by English publications. The primary penetration of English language magazines currently is in metros and urban centres though the growth is widening to smaller cities as the education and income levels increase among the middle class.

With the opening up of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy, several international publishers are aggressively entering the market and this trend is expected to continue.

Leadership Team of Outlook Group:

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Editors in chief Vinod Palekar

Editors Sandeepan Deb(1995-2005) Vinod Mehta(2005-2008) Vinod Palekar(at present)

Managing Directors Tarun Tejpal (1995-2000) Nandini Mehta (2000-present)

Notable Contributors Vinod Mehta Shobha de Arundhati Roy Namrata Joshi

Publisher Maheshwar peri

Executive Editor Bishwadeep Moitra

Managing Director Nandini Mehta

Foreign editor Ajaz ashraf

Business Editor Sunit Arora

Political Editor Smita Gupta

Books Editor Sheela Reddy

Photo Editor T. Narayan

Business Office :

President Suresh selvaraj

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Vice-president (features) Alok Mathur

General Managers Anand Dutt

National Head: Himanshu Pandey (Business Development)

Alex Joseph (Retail)

Awards and accolades of the company

Department of tourism, Government of India Award, National Tourism Award 2001-2002 awarded to Outlook Traveler for excellence in Publication.

OUTLOOK Traveler “75 Holidays in the Hills" won the 2004, PATA Gold Award.

In 2002-2003 the Government of India recognized "Outlook Traveler Getaways" as the “Best Travel Publication".

Weekend breaks from Delhi was in the BESTSELLERS top three, non-fiction category for 14 consecutive weeks in North India

Weekend breaks from GURGAON was in the BESTSELLERS list top three for 8 consecutive weeks in West India

DETAILED PROGRESS

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As a management trainee I joined “OUTLOOK MAGAZINES” New Delhi and I have been given the profile of a “SALES EXECUTIVE”.

I work in the company as a Sales Executive and my primary work in the company is to face individual to facilitate and participate in the planning and execution of field of marketing activities. I work with my team, I meet many customers and receive their feedback and I am involved in business development activity.

My profile is to approach the customer over phone and to promote the magazines

so that the number of readership will increase.

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This research is an attempt to describe the satisfaction level of Outlook subscribers.

So, here I have adopted Descriptive Research Design in order to come to a

conclusion, by survey and observation with help of a Structured Questionnaire.

Key Learning

Learned about the strategies that are made and implemented.

Studying the consumer buying behavior of magazine users

Learned How work is done in teams?

Learned How performance is evaluated?

Will be learning about What is the role of print media and what are the

difference between E-media Vs Print media?

Learned What strategies should be adopted against the competitor.

REFERENCES

Referred Books:

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1. Solomon, Michael R., “Consumer Behavior-Buying, Having and Being”, 2009

Pearson Education Inc.,

2. Malhotra, Naresh K., Dash, Satyabhusan., “Marketing Reseach, An applied

orientation” 2010, Pearson Education Inc.,

3. Cooper & Schindler, “Business Research”

4. Belch George, Belch Michael, “Advertising and promotion”

5. Kotler Phillip, “Marketing Management”

Websites:

www.outlookgroup.com

www.outlookindia.com

www.outlook magazines.com

www.Delhioutlook magazines.com

www.outlooktraveler.com

www.outlookbussiness.com

www.outlookmoney.com