MARKETING STRATEGY

Introduction Marketing strategy of a company in a new country plays a vital role in determining its future in that country. Knowing that Indian market is very different from other markets it was already operating in, Nokia came up with an Indiaspecific strategy or a global strategy. It adapted the to Indian conditions by launching new products and enhancing the products with features designed specifically for local customers, as well as promotional campaigns targeted at Indian audience to gain a foothold in the market. To capture the widespread Indian market, it developed an extensive distribution network which also helped it take its products to rural markets in India. Here, to discuss the strategy, we consider the simple concept of 4 Ps, namely; product (customization), price, place (distribution) and production. Product 1998 was 51st year of Indian independence, hence Nokia provided the ring tone of National son Saare Jahan se Achha ye Hindustan Hamara in 5110 model. The introductory offer for this model also had inter-changeable covers. The success of 5110 initiated Nokia to focus on feature-specific localization. In1999, Hindi (national language, and mother tongue of 43% Indians) user interface was provided in Nokia 3210. Also, Nokia also tied up with Sony music for top 20 hit songs as ring 52

tones. Nokia 3210, became an instant hit. The model 3610 was launched with an enhancing Hindi text messaging facility in 2001. The most successful customization came in 2003 when Nokia came with 1100 and 1108 specifically designed for Indian market. It had features of anti-slip grip, dust resistance and torchlight. Since, in India people dont know English in villages, Nokia came up with Saral Mobile Sandesh (SMS in Hindi). Nokia sales increased from 58.2% in July 2003 to 59.6% in July 2004. Nokia was also the first handset manufacturer to launch games download in India in 2003. It had spearheaded the industry in online distribution of tones, graphics and game downloads. These services did not just increase their sale of mobile phones but were also fruitful as they made huge profits by selling the games. In 2005, Nokia also launched games based on Indian mythology namely Makhan chor and Swayamvar. Both were arcade games involving two most of the famous characters namely, Lord Krishna and Arjun. Another feature that Nokia came up with attract youth was one which enabled the customer to slide in his or her photograph or for that matter the loved ones,' in the picture frame behind the phone. This was a part of Nokia 2112 model (CDMA), wherein the message is clear-personalize your phone. Earlier they had a similar feature in GSM handset Nokia 2100. "We have made a personality statement through the campaign. The feel of the campaign is such that it would evoke a 'sense of being,'" said Sanjay Behl, Head of Marketing, Nokia India. Menon, M. (2005) 53

Nokia also tied up with Bharti cellular in 2005 to customize its handsets through which its users could access multimedia services by using an additional key on the mobile phone. Also since many FM channels were introduced in India in early 2000s, Nokia banked on the opportunity by coming with FM phones attracting a lot of youth. Later on in 2005, Nokia came with SMS services in other Indian languages including Marathi, Tamil, Bengali and Kannada. In November 2007, Nokia came with Bollywood classic movie Sholay preloaded in N95 8GBand N81. This gave opportunity to cinema buffs to now watch the movie Sholay on the go. The N series is a multimedia sub-brand of Nokia. "It is one of the biggest blockbusters that the Hindi film industry has churned out. There could have been no better option than this flick, which is liked by every age group equally," said Vineet Taneja, business director of multimedia, Nokia India. (Web 11) As part of its strategy to connect with the young population in India, Nokia has been associating with youth passions like Cool Sports, Music, and Fashion. In the genre of Cool Sports, Nokia hosted the Ngage QD Gaming Championship, Defend Your Turf, the first ever futsal Championship. Over the last few years, in music Nokia has brought several world class music artists including, Shakira, Shaggy, Mark Knopfler, Sting and Enrique Iglesias to India. In Fashion, Nokia has a strong association with Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week and Nseries lifestyle led campaigns amongst others. (Web 12) 54

In another attempt to give India handsets which will enable them to use more features, Nokia is in process of making cheap GPRS enabled handset. In this handset, the users can surf the net at a very reasonable price. Again targeting the low and middle income class, who are interested in using the new facilities available. "We are planning to bring internet access to all the masses in India through our low-cost handsets... the company is working diligently towards it," said Nokia's Senior Vice President - Entry Business Unit (Mobile Phones Business Group) Soren Peterson in an interview. (Web 13) Pricing Pricing of the phones was of prime importance for success in India. Being a developing country, the purchasing power of the people was not high as compared to other developed countries. Research unveiled that phones of lower price range (below Rs8000 or $200 approx.) amounted for 65% of the total sales in India. Nokia depended majorly on rural market, therefore, pricing was a major success factor for the company. Nokia did achieve success in India, in spite of the fact, that its handsets were not the cheapest in the market. Nokia 1100, which was specially launched for India, was priced at Rs. 4000. This price, although was at a premium as compared to entry level phones, but was enhanced with several special features which were not available in other phones of the same price. The head of marketing at Nokia India, Sanjay Behl said, The phone is a combination of product benefits and pricing (Web 14). This model further became the best selling model ever in India. It also increased the brand preference of Nokia from 66% to 77% within 9 months of its launch. This show how nature of Indian consumer is 55

value sensitive. The major strategical move by Nokia in this regard was that it charged a lower price in India than most of other countries for the same model. Place (Distribution) Mobile phones in India are considered as to be consumer durable, hence they are not just sold through exclusive telecom retailers but also through general retailers. Nokia designed modeled its distribution strategy on lines of FMCG business. An important reason for the success of mobile phones in India was limited reach of the landline phones in several parts of the country. By mid 2005 the mobile phone sales in smaller towns and cities was higher than those of the metropolitans. The sales in these urban markets were beginning to saturate. The distribution in these small towns called for non traditional channels. Nokia strengthened their distribution network, and selected distributors from FMCG line or experience holders for durables or automobiles. In fact, about a fifth of the mobile phone sales in India were consumer durables or service providers shops. In 1995, Nokia tied up with HCL Infinet for sales and distribution of its phones and appointed them as Nokia distributor for GSM handsets in India. HCL Infinet provided a complete range of Nokias GSM mobile phones, data products and mobile services. The retail network they developed was very strong and dedicated. They came up with Nokia Professional Centers (NPCs), Nokia Priority Dealers (NPDs) and redistribution stockiest all over India. NPCs were one stop shops for the complete range of Nokia mobile phones, batteries, chargers, accessories, covers, hands free kits and car kits amongst others. It also provided the after sales services for Nokias handsets. NPCs were multibrand retails 56

outlets with 60% of their area dedicated to Nokia. While redistribution stockists were for supplying handsets across India. HCL also came with Nokia Care Centers (NCCs) for providing solutions to mobile related problems. These were spread all over the country and provided phone repairing software up-gradation services. They also displayed complete range mobile phones, data products and complete mobile phones accessories. Another effective concept that Nokia up with in 2005, was that of Nokia Concept Store in Bangalore in south India. It was located in the city centre, MG Road. This concept store is being set up with an objective to provide Indian consumer with a truly enhanced mobility experience through its cast and exciting range of Nokia products and mobile accessories. We are keen to lead a unique mobile retailing experience for consumers through these thouch points Sanjay Behl, Head Marketing, Nokia India (Web 15). Details as per Nokia website are given below. Nokia Concept Store in Bangalore was the country's first concept store in India to provide customers a complete experiential mobile experience. The store measures approximately 2,000 square feet and is designed to reflect the design ethic of the Nokia brand. The layout and design of the store follows the same pattern as Nokia Concept Stores around the world to guarantee an easy and informative shopping experience. With a simple-to-navigate setup, open doorways and low-glare lighting, the store provides a relaxed and satisfying customer experience. The high-tech display terminals and dedicated areas for Imaging, Smart, Multimedia, Business and Entry phones make it easy for the public to keep up to date on the latest technologies and trends in the mobile industry. 57

Nokia today has eight Nokia 'Concept stores' in Bangalore, Delhi, Jaipur, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Ludhiana, Chennai and Indore (Web 12). Nokia kept its promise of enhancing the mobile experience of its customers. In October 2007, they launched the first 'global format' Nokia Concept Store in Western India at Indore. Located at MG road and spread over 3500 sq. feet, square feet, the state-of-the-art Nokia Concept Store will provide mobile phone consumers in Indore a world class interactive and informative shopping experience, allowing them to get a first-hand experience before making a purchase decision. (Web16). Nokias vast distribution network covered almost every city or town where mobile network was available Promotion Nokia entered India with one for mobile services to start, and had to establish its non-popular brand. To build credentials the company used both print and television campaigns. In the early days, print media concentrated on Nokias status, global R&D and international awards won to establish brand awareness. Even after the market grew, Nokias advertisements concentrated on product attributes. Gaining acceptance of Indian consumer is not as simple as other countries. India is a multicultural country, where people have strong believe in their mythology, nationality and cultures and to add to it, their purchasing power was not as high as other countries where Nokia was operating. Hence, to achieve approval of the mobile consumers in India, Nokia decided to localize its products heavily. For the purpose of developing the products specifically for markets with high population and low penetration, Nokia developed a team called Mobile Entry Business Unit. 58

Until 2003, Nokia used all their international advertisements with slight modifications in India. For instance, the advertisement for NGAGE showed two young persons getting bored stuck in traffic jam and then they show them combat with super natural powers. It showed how NGAGE could help them pass their time. But it did not have a very good affect on the Indian audience as they could not relate themselves to the people over there. There was needed to make special advertisements for India. Nokia India marked its special presence in advertisement world with Made for India ad campaign on the launch of Nokia 1100 (Appendix 3). This was the fourth advertisement created in India but created maximum stir in the industry. The advertisement showed that the Nokia 1100 was launched first in India and addressed all the concerns of Indian consumers. The advertisement made a clear deviation from hitherto hip urban-focused advertisements that Nokia are known for. It aimed at highlighting the broad appeal of mobile phones across all socio-economic segments of India. The aim was to highlight Nokias Indian image. Analysts believed that Nokia would lose the top end consumers who attached lot of importance to mobile phones as a style statement. Sanjeev Sharma, Managing Director, Nokia Mobile Phones India, said No, not in the least does the latest piece o communication create dissonance in the minds of consumers with regard to Nokias brand image. The technology driven ads have created a rub-off on the entire Nokia range. And fashion and lifestyle products create a desire at all levels, be it the 59

first-time urban or rural user. (Dixit, 2004). The advertisement was a success, and Nokia 1100 went on to become best seller not just in India but also worldwide. The major reason for handset was, Nokia was expecting exponential growth in small towns and rural areas. The company planned to build brand loyalty amongst this segment. They conducted research to get to know the needs and concerns of the users of this segment. As Sanjeev Sharma said, One of the things we found out was that the torch is of high value. Besides that a major concern was dust People feared that dust might penetrate through the gaps of their keypad, and that explains the extensive use of handset covers in India. Another major concern was the grip of the phone, because of the climatic conditions in this country people usually have sweaty palms, and therefore the, what if the handset slips? One advertisement that Nokia made in 2000 was a public interest advertisement, urging users to switch off their cell phones while watching movies. It showed a clip where hero picks up an argument with person sitting in front row in a movie theatre. One of the advertisements was for Nokia 2280 which was offered in bundle with reliance mobile connection. This was a simple one which educated the audience of availability of cheap handset with bundled airtime. Cricket is considered a religion in India. Nokia has had a strong association with the sport through its advertisements. In an advertisement released during cricketing season of 2003, a cricket fan was watching cricket with his daughter and a prospective groom walks in, the father throws the ball to him, which he is unable to catch. The dejected young lad starts to walk away, just then the television 60

gets blank. The enthusiast fan is frantically trying to find the score. The boy gets a message of latest score update on his Nokia mobile phone, impressing the father. The advertisement targeted the middle class youth of India. Recently, Nokia sponsored the ICC World Twenty20 2007 in South Africa. To its luck, India won the world cup and this format of the game was an instant hit in India. In 2007 itself, Nokia was the 'on air' sponsor for the West Indies World Cup and for the Champions Trophy held in India, 2006 (Web 17). In 2004, network provider Hutch came up with television on mobile phone. Clips from these 13 television channels can be accessed by Hutch and Orange users through their EDGE-enabled mobile phones, said Mr Harit Nagpal, Chief Marketing Officer, Hutch (Web 18). Hutch then came with an advertisement showing people watching television on Nokia 6630 which was EDGE enabled. This helped Nokia to increase its sales. Another successful, India-specific campaign was the one where phones with Saral Mobile Sandesh (Hindi SMS) were promoted. It targeted the rural India, where mobile penetration is low. The advertisement showed a postman giving a mobile to a girl which was sent to her by her brother so that she can exchange Hindi SMSes with her brother. It was a audience specific advertisement and encouraged the use of Hindi SMS amongst the rural population Nokia was not the market leader in colored handsets. To regain its share, it came up with advertisement Har Jeb mei Rang (color in every pocket) for Nokia 2600. It was a very colorful 61

advertisement, showing colors spreading out of Nokia phone. It showed the idea of color spreading happiness in every life. Nokia came up with some good advertisements around the end of 2007. One of them starring the superstar of Hindi cinema, Shah Rukh Khan calling Nokia as his friend and companion for 10 years. He expresses how it brings and spreads happiness and how it has been with him through the ups and downs of his life. Other advertisements have been model specific as Nokias advertisements have always been. Other advertisements include Nokia 7900 Prism, The new edge in fashion and Nokia E series, Success is the name of the game. Another advertisement shows Nokia 1650 with features of cricket game, alarm amongst others at a very reasonable price. As a part of its strategy to enrich mobile user experience, Nokia announced its association with Bollywood's most awaited multi star blockbuster, Om Shanti Om (OSO). As a part of this tie-up, Nokia users can exclusively watch OSO movie clips, behind the scenes videos, ring tones and wallpapers on their mobile phones. Nokia has created a special 'OSO Crazy mobisode animated characters of 'OM' (played by Indian superstar Shah Rukh Khan) that can be downloaded exclusively on all Nokia GPRS enabled handsets by dialing 55555 or from www.nokia.co.in/oso, a special website created for Nokia and OSO association (Web 19). Nokia followed model-specific advertising for most part. Different advertisements were made for each model of Nokia, making it easy to target the specific audience, which will demand that model.