“A STUDY ON THE BRAND POSITIONING OF JOYALUKKAS ” With special reference to JOYALUKKAS INDIA Pvt Ltd., Kochi
PROJECT REPORT
In partial fulfillment of the requirement of the MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Submitted to the University of Calicut Submitted by ARUN.N.OUSEPH (Reg. No. EJALMBA010)
Under the Guidance of MS.ROSHNI P.R, M.Com, MBA. Asst. Prof
ELIJAH INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES
TRICHUR SEPTEMBER 2012
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1.1
INTRODUCTION
B r a n d p o s i t i o n i n g r e f e r s t o “ t a r g e t c o n s u m e r ‟ s ” ” r e a s o n t o b u y y o u r b r a n d i n preference to others. It i s en su re s th at al l br an d ac ti vi ty ha s a co mm on ai m; is gu id ed , directed and delivered by the brand‟s benefits/reasons to buy; and it focuses at all points of contact with the consumer. Brand Positioning is a very frequently used term in marketing, advertising and communications and means different things to different practitioners. It is often (incorrectly) used interchangeably with the term proposition (see below) leading to confusion. Positioning is a strategic process by which those commercially involved with a brand, business, product, new product or organisation set about abou t creating a perception (a set s et of meanings, image or identity) in the minds of consumers/customers about the brand (business etc.) that is distinctive and unique compared to its competitors. The choice of the word „position‟ reflects the idea that competitive players in a market can be located and mapped relative to each other across key dimensions. These dimensions vary widely, from easily measurable dimensions such as price, availability and demographic characteristics of customers, through to more qualitative perceptions such as value, quality, modernity, popularity etc. The most reliable way to start positioning or re-positioning a brand is to understand consumer or customer perceptions of its characteristics versus their perceptions of competitors. Positioning is something that happens in the minds of the target market - it is not an exercise that can take place around a meeting room table isolated from those who use/buy the brand.
Brand positioning is a medium through which an organization can portray its customers what it wants to achieve for them and what it wants to mean to them. Brand positioning forms customer‟s views and opinions opinions .Brand Positioning can be defined as an activity of creating a brand offer in such a manner ma nner that it occupies a distinctive place and value in the target customer‟s mind. For instance-Kotak instance-Kotak Mahindra positions itself in the customer‟s mind as one entityentity“Kotak ”” - whic wh ich h can provide customized customized and one-stop one-stop solution for all their financial financial services services needs.
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It has a n u n a i d e d t o p o f m i n d r e c a l l . I t i n t e n d s t o s t a y W i t h t h e p r o p o s i t i o n o f “ T h i n k Investments, Think Kotak”. The positioning you choose for your brand will be influenced by the competitive stance you want to adopt. Brand Positioning involves identifying and determining points of simila r i t y a n d differe difference nce to ascer ascertai tain n the right right brand brand identity identity and and to create create a proper proper brand brand image. image. A good brand positioning help guide marketing strategy by clarifying the brands essence but goals it help the consumer achieve and how it does so in a unique way. The result of the positioning is the successful creation of a customer focused value proposition
A starting point in defining a competitive frame of reference for a brand positioning is to determine Category Membership- the products with which a brand competes and which function as close substitute. No substitute. No matter how long you‟ve been in business, chances are ar e good that you you are engaged in developing and promoting your brand positioning strategy. You‟ll invest plenty of time in the process of evaluating your products or services in terms of market share, sales and an d customer customer base and comparing this information information to that of yourcompetitors. your competitors. You‟ll work to determine how your customers perceive your business and its major offerings and use the detailed findings to establish your business at the proper place within that all important target market. Your business position within the target market will determine your business‟s degree of success. success.
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1.2
RESEARCH PROBLEM
“A research is the arrangement of conditions for collection and analysis of data in a manner that aims to combine relevant to the research purpose with economy in procedure” Research design is needed because it facilitates the smooth sailing of the various research operations, thereby making research as efficient as possible yielding maximal information with minimal expenditure of effort, and money Brand positioning is a medium through which an organization can portray its customers what it wants to achieve for them and what it wants to mean to them. Brand positioning forms customer‟s views and opinions. opinions. This project deals with:
“
how how the JOYAL UK KA S br br and has pos positi iti oned oned ove over the compe competi ti tors brand i n th e mi nds of of ”
consumers ?
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1.3 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The study is relevant in terms of brand building recognition of the brand from the competitors brand which leads to the increase in sales and goodwill of the organisation. The marketability of the product can be found out through analysing its brand positioning. It includes evaluating quality, demand, reach of product, price margin, taste and preference and loyalty customers of joyalukkas. The study gives clear picture of the attitude of customers. It reveals the merits and demerits. It helps the organisation to concentrate on the weaker section and to make improvement or changes. So it helps to improve the efficiency and ensure the growth of the organisation
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1.4
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The primary objective of the study is to find out HOW THE BRAND JOYALUKKAS HAS POSITIONED IN THE MINDS OF CONSUMERS. The other specific objectives of the study are:
1. To assess the competitive marketing positions of various brands of jewellery items 2. To find out the most recommended brand of the company 3. To find out reach of product among the consumers 4. To analyze the opportunities and threats of jewelry market. 5. To identify the effectiveness of promotional activities by Joyalukkas. 6. To know the influence of brands among consumers. 7. To suggest measures to provide more satisfaction to existing customers and to attract new customers.
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1.5. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
To define any research problem and give a suitable solution for the problem, a sound research plan is inevitable. Research methodology is the back bone of the research work; it is the way to systematically solve the research problem. It may be understood as a science of studying how research systematically solves the research problem and how research done scientifically. The study is to find out the influence of brands in the minds of consumers and how it positioned over the competitors brand. Here the method is used to collect the data is by visiting the joy alukkas showroom for the period of 3 weeks and through interacting with the staffs and officials ,customers, general public with the help of questionnaire
Research methodology underlines the various steps involved by the researcher in systematically solving the problem with the objective of determining various facts.
1.5.1 Research Design
A research work will be successful, only with a sound research design .The research design for the purpose of the study is Analytical in nature. The major purpose of analytical research is to analyze the state affaires as it exists at present. Analytical research includes survey and in-depth analysis of variables. The research plan calls for gathering primary and secondary data. The Sampling Method adopted for the present study is Simple Random Sampling
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1.5.2 Methods of Data Collection
In this research, the collection of data is from various sources and the are two types. 1. Primary Data 2. Secondary Data
1.5.2.1 Primary Data
Primary data collection was mainly done through the mainly done through questionnaires, direct interview and telephone contacts. The respondents were approached personally and were requested to fill up the questionnaire.
1.5.2.2 Secondary Data
Secondary data was collected from Company records, Internet, and books. 1.5.3 Research instrument
The instruments adopted for the primary data collection is through “QUESTIONNAIRE”.
1.5.3.1 Nature of questions in a questionnaire
In an era of high competition and expectations, customer satisfaction surveys through the questionnaire are essential tools for identifying the customers about their satisfaction levels, and for developing strategies for improvement. The prime object of this survey knowing what customers think about the enterprise's products, services and assessing the customer ‟s satisfaction ‟s satisfaction is to maximize customer retention, and to gain and build customer loyalty. It is important to realize that customer satisfaction does not equate to customer loyalty.
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1.5.3.2 Pretesting of questionnaire
A pre-testing of questionnaire was conducted with 15 questionnaires, which were distributed and all of them were collected back as completed questionnaires. On the basis of the doubts raised by the respondents, the questionnaire was re-drafted to its present form.
1.5.4 Sampling Plan
Sampling plan includes sampling unit used in the survey. It also includes the sampling size and the sampling procedure used for the survey.
1.5.5 Sampling unit
The sampling unit is the Customers of Joyalukkas
1.5.6 Sampling size
The sample size was selected based upon simple random sampling. For the purpose of study 50 samples are taken from one district.
1.5.7 Sampling Frame
The study has been carried out in the Showroom of joyalukkas situated in the marine drive Cochin, Ernakulam 1.5.8
Period of the study
The research periods were from 2nd October to 4th November 2007.
1.5.9 Sampling Procedures Procedures
Simple Random sampling in the district of Ernakulam
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1.5.10 Contact Method:
The method used to contact the respondent was direct interview. The researcher selected direct contact method because there is no scope of contacting the dealers through telephone or direct mail. By telephone interview the respondent‟s characteristics and environment cannot be observed. The response rate for mail survey is low. Hence the resulting sample will not be representative one. 1.5.11 Analysis of Data
Datas are analysed through analytical statistics using correlation, the hypothesis are tested. 1.5.12 Presentation of data
Percentage method, tables and charts are used to present the data.
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2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE
2.1 Br and pos posi tioni ng
Brand positioning is a medium through which an organization can portray its customers what it wants to achieve for them and what it wants to mean to them. Brand positioning forms customer‟s views and opinions .Brand Positioning can be defined as an activity of creating a brand offer in such a manner ma nner that it occupies a distinctive place and value in the target customer‟s mind. For instance-Kotak Mahindra positions itself in the the customer‟s mind as one entityentity“Kotak ”” - whic wh ich h can provide customized customized and one-stop solution solution for all their financial financial services services needs. It has an u n a i d e d t o p o f m i n d r e c a l l . I t i n t e n d s t o s t a y w i t h t h e p r o p o s i t i o n o f “ T h i n k Investments, Think Kotak”. The positioning you choose for your brand will be influenced by the competitive stance you want to adopt.Brand Positioning involves identifying and determining points of s i m i l a r i t y a n d differe difference nce to ascertai ascertain n the the right right brand brand identity identity and to create create a prope properr bran brand d image.
Brand Positioning is the key of marketing strategy. A strong brand positioning directs marketing strategy by explaining the brand details, the uniqueness of brand andit‟s and it‟s similarity similarity with the competitive brands, as well as the reasons for buying and using that specific brand.P o s i t i o n i n g i s t h e b a s e f o r d e v e l o p i n g a n d i n c r e a s i n g t h e r e q ui r e d k n o wl e d g e a n d perce percepti ptions ons of the the cust custome omers. rs. It is the the sing single le fea featur turee that that set setss your your service apart from your competitors. For instance- Kingfisher stands for youth and excitement. It represents branding full flight.
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Defining Values and Principle
You already know how to do this – this – Your Y our values and principle are part of your Org and Brand drivers!!! – K – K e l l e r c a l l s p r i n c i p l e “ B r a n d M a n t r a ”
Your Values, Principle, and position all are related – related – N O T E : K e l l e r s a y s t h a t a s s o c i a t i o n s a r e v a l u e s , b u t w e h a v e a s t r i c t e r definition of associations from the IBM. 12
Brand Positioning Strategy Strategy
Brand positioning is an essential element of a winning branding strategy. Positioning simply refers to how your product or service is viewed in the minds of prospects and customers customers relative to other products products or services available available in your niche. niche. Th e term te rm positioning has t wo con notatio ns: a vert ical and a hor izont al on e. In terms of the the ver verti tica call con conno nota tati tion on,, the term refers to the order in which your product ranks relative to the products of your competitors in the minds of your customers in your industry niche.(For example, which product comes to mind first when I say the word cola ?) ?) In terms of the horizontal connotation, the term refers to the qualities and attributes your product represents in the mind of your customers, again relative to your competitors. While you cannot directly control the ranking that your product or service enjoys in the minds of your customers, you can influence how you position the product in terms of qualities and attributes. That is, by p roperl y po sition ing your p roduct relative to your comp compet etit itor orss in in the the mind mindss of of your customers, you will have much more control over how your brand is perceived in the marketplace. You will then effectively have a guide or map for how to execute your branding strategy.
Effective Brand Positioning
No matter how long you‟ve been been in business, chances are good that you are engaged in developing and promoting your brand positioning strategy. You‟ll invest plenty of time in the pr oc es s of ev al ua ti n g yo ur p ro du ct s or se rv ic es in te rm s of ma rk et sh ar e, sa l es an d customer base and comparing this information to that of your competitors. You‟ll work to determine how your customers perceive your business and its major offerings and use the detailed findings to establish your business at the proper place within that all important target market. Your business position within the target market will determine dete rmine your business‟s degree de gree of success. If you you think think you can can manoeuvr manoeuvree into a more more profit profitable able place place,, do so by adjus adjusting ting yo u r p r o d u c t s o r s e r v i c e s t o m o r e c l o s e l y m a t c h t h e d e s i r e d p o s i ti o n ( k n o w n a s r e positioning), or pursue strategies that chan ge customer perception of the products and services offered by your competitors (de-positioning).Here are some strategic tips that can help you to be as effective as possible during your brand positioning process:
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1. Understand brand positioning as fully as you can, especially in the way that it directly affects
your business. business. Businesses, Businesses, especially especially smaller ones, ones, are very diverse in their their needs a n d offerings, and it might take quite a bit of effort to even be sure that you a r e positioning yourself within the correct market. market. Look closely closely at the businesses sh arin ar in g your pool of regular customers, customers, their their purchasing patterns patterns and the roles that your your business plays in their everyday ev eryday lives.
2.Develop the most efficient method possible for gath ering customer informatio n. Remember that you‟re trying to get inside their heads and back out again with a n unvarnished unvarnished look at how they see your business business in terms of the benefit that it provides provides for for them. You might consi der questionnaires, phone surveys or online surve ys and offer a small bonus to compensate customers for their valuable time. 3. Determine which of your products and/or services are the most popular or powerful, so that you
can use them to build on or adjust your overall positioning strategy.
4. Rank all of your products and/or services in terms of positive customer review and in relation to
those of your competitors. 5. List the most popular group of attributes that describe your business and products from the
viewpoints of your customers and combine them to reach your ideal vector…the p vector…the p o s i t i o n i n y o u r t a r g e t m a r k e t f r o m w h e r e y o u r b u s i n e s s c a n o p e r a t e a t t h e hi gh e st pos possib sible le level level of streng strength. th. 6. P r o d u c t b a s e d b u s i n e s s e s c a n c o m p l e t e t h e p o s i t i o n i n g p r o c e s s m o r e
Easily thans e r v i c e b a s e d b u s i n e s s e s . A f t e r a l l , y o u r c u s t o m e r s c a n s e e , t o u c h a n d w a t c h demo demons nstr trat atio ions ns of your your prod produc ucts ts to see see how how they they work work and and visu visual aliz izee their benefits. Here are some hints for exploring how customers perceive your business and its services C r e a t e s i m u l a t i o n s , d e s c r i p t i o n s o r c a s e s t u d i e s s h o w i n g p r o v e n r e s u l t s . Find ind out out how how custo ustome mers rs view view your our serv servic ices es in term termss of valu value, e, resu result ltss and convenience. 7. Regardless of your business type, take the information about customer perception that you‟ve
gathered, determine your top benefits and attributes and use them todetermine y o u r c u r r e n t p o s i t i o n i n g a n d h o w f a r t h a t p o i n t i s f r o m y o u r i d ea l v ec to r i n th e marketplace. 14
8. Decide whether you are satisfied with the current positioning of your bus iness,
or whether you need to change your strategy. Consider your target market and decide if your business is positioned in such a manner that it maximizes every opportunity for visibility in that that mark market et.. Finall y, keep in mind that positi oning can be eith er an ac tive or passive pr oc es s. If you yo u c h o o s e n o t t o f u l l y e n g a g e i n i t – i t w i l l s t i l l t a k e p l a c e . D o n ‟ t give up the valuable opportunity to monitor and influence the process and increase profitability
Five Factors of Brand Positioning 1. Brand Attributes
What the brand delivers through features and benefits to consumers. 2. Consumer Expectations
What consumers expect to receive from the brand? 3. Competitor attributes
What the other brands in the market offer through features and benefits to consumers. 4. Price
An easily quantifiable factor – factor – Your prices Your prices vs. your competitors‟ compe titors‟ prices. 5. Consumer perceptions
The perceived quality and value of your brand in consumer‟s minds (i.e., does your yo ur brand offer the cheap cheap solution, solution, the good value value for the money solution, the high-end, high-end, highhigh price tag solution, etc.?). In order to Position a Brand…
– W – W h o t h e T a r g e t C o n s u m e r i s – W – W h o y o u r m a i n c o m p e t i t o r s a r e – H – H o w t h e B r a n d i s s i m i l a r t o y o u r c o m p e t i t o r s – H – H o w t h e Brand is different from your competitor s. Brand Positioning
A good brand positioning help guide marketing strategy by clarifying the brands essence but goals it help the consumer achieve and how it does so in a unique way. The result of the positioning is the successful creation of a customer focused value proposition
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A starting point in defining a competitive frame of reference for a brand positioning is to determine Category Membership- the products with which a brand competes and which function as close substitute. Points
of
Parity
and
Point
of
Difference
Once the competitive frame of reference for positioning has been fixed by defining the customer target market and nature of competition, marketers can define the appropriate points-of-difference and point-of-parity associations.
Point-Of-Difference
POD's are attributes or benefits consumer strongly associates associates with a brand, positively evaluated, and believe that they could not find the same extant with a competitive brand. Strong, favourable and unique brand associations that make up POD. Point-of-Parity
POP's on the other hand, are associations that are not necessarily unique to the brand butmay in fact be shared with other brands. These types of associations come in two basicforms:
1. Category
2. Competitive
Category POP's are associations consumers view as essential to be a legitimate and credible offering within a certain product or service category. Competitive POP's POP's are associations designed to negate competitors' points-of-difference.
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3.1 INDUSTRY PROFILE
The word jewellery is derived from the word “jewel” which was anglicized from the old French “joule”. Jewellery is one of the oldest forms of body adornment. The first piece of jewellery was made from natural n atural minerals, mineral s, such as bone, animal teeth, shell and wood and carved stone. Jewellery was often made to show their status and they were buried with the jewels. Jewellery has been an integral part of the Indian culture and civilization since ancient history. They were in demand and fashion since ancient civilizations as Harappa and MohenjoDaro. Traditional jewellery is the latest ones that are continuously increasing in demand. The past decade witnessed the global gem and jewellery industry undergoing undergoi ng some significant changes and registering strong growth, on account of increasing income as well as demand from the emerging economies across the world. Among the various types of jewellery, plain diamond jewellery accounts for the largest share of the global jewellery market, followed by plain gold jewellery. Diamond, gold and platinum platinu m are the three main product segments, which collectively account for approximately 95% of the global retail jewellery sales in value terms. A geographic segmentation shows the US as the largest consumer for gems and jewellery, followed by China/ India, the Middle East and Japan. In the European region, the UK and Italy are the largest consumers, with the former also being one of the world‟s largest largest jewellery fabrication centers. The emerging markets, like China, India that are traditional jewellery centers of consumption, are showing signs of becoming the largest consumption markets by 2015, for both traditional as well as branded jewellery. The growth in the demand for gems and jewellery is attributed to the rich-class as well as the improving living standards. The industry continues to face problems due to competition from other luxury goods, as well as socio-ethical issues.
India's gems and jewellery industry is one of the most competitive in the world due to its low cost of production and the wide availability of skilled labor. However, the economic slowdown has impacted the industry that has witnessed the export demand leading to many 17
hundreds of thousands becoming jobless. Worldwide, the gems and jewellery industry had been growing at a good pace and is currently estimated at $150 billion or more per year. In India, it accounts for nearly 20% of total national exports and employs nearly a million people directly and indirectly, according to an Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry report, despite the fact that significant job losses have taken place in the recent past. India‟s polishing industry has a worldwide distribution network, which has been established over a period of time. India has set up more than 3,000 offices worldwide for promotion and marketing of Indian diamonds. The Indian diamond industry has acquired leadership position in cutting and polishing of rough diamonds. India has the world's largest cutting and polishing industry, employing around 800,000 people with more than 500 hi-tech laser machines. The industry is well supported by government policies and the banking sector. Around 50 banks provide nearly $3 billion credit to Indian diamond industry. Traditionally, gold has held the leading position in most of the jewellery markets worldwide because of the value val ue and tradability factor fa ctor associated with it. Though the total consumption of plain gold jewellery decreased in volume terms, the overall sales of gold recorded gain in value terms. In the meantime, the demand for platinum jewellery has also als o increased in the recent past.
Gold:The word „GOLD‟ is often thought synonymous s ynonymous with wealth. So many wars have been fought f ought to make it their own. o wn. Long before, many did not consider co nsider platinum pl atinum to be valuable valua ble because of its ordinary looks, but gold has been highly valuable since prehistoric days for its great look. There is no civilization which has not mentioned about gold. Several mentions about gold have been made in all the holly books of Mahabharata to Old Testament. During the 19th century many discoveries of gold deposits were made and gold rushes occurred in California, Colorado, Otego, Australia, black Hills etc. from ancient times, gold has been connected with the religion and spirituality. It was always associated with the sun. There are so many temples and statues made from gold.
Kings and queens longed to wear the golden crown. The sincerity and sanctity of pure gold created a tradition for wedding rings since it is long lasting and unelected by the passage of time. Today great achievements are sometimes rewarded with gold in form of medals. Also, 18
decoration like Olympic medals, Noble prizes and various awards for excellence in different fields are awarded with medals or statutes. Gold is always associated with the best like the Golden Era, or Golden Wedding Anniversary, etc. so why is gold awarded for achievers? Why does the central bank accumulate gold? Why should the general public rush for gold? There are so many people behind gold and each one has got a reason. Yes, there are numerous reasons behind the gold rush. There Th ere is no other metal in the world, which possess posse ss so many man y benefits. To say a few;
It is the most malleable and ductile metal known and can be mane in to tread and used in the embroidery.
Gold performs critical functions in computers, spacecrafts, jet aircraft engines and so many other products
It is used in the field of medicine
In jewellery manufacturing.
Purity of gold:Increasingly, jewellery manufacturers and retailers are implementing quality assurance system to meet the need in the market. Sine proof of cartage conformance is of prime concern to the consumers, jewelers are now compelled to have carat checking machines at every store. Gold is a chemical element in the periodic with the symbol Au and atomic number is 79. Gold is a metallic element with a characteristic yellow colour. It is the most malleable and ductile metal. A single gram can be beaten into a sheet of 1 sq.mt. Gold readily forms alloys with many other metals. These alloys can be produced to increase the hardness or to create exotic colour. Pure gold is too soft for ordinary use and is hardened by alloying with silver, copper and other metal. When selling it in form of jewellery gold is measured in carats (k) with pure gold being 24k. But it is commonly sold in lower purity of 22k, 18kand 14k. The most commonly used alloys for jewellery in Europe are 18k and 14k, although 9k is popular in Britain, in the United States 14k predominates. In the Middle East India and South East Asia, jewellery is 22k; 22 k; sometimes even 23k in i n China, China , Hong Hon g Kong and some s ome parts pa rts of o f Asia pure gold jewellery of 990 finesse (almost ( almost 24k) is popular.
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Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS):In many countries the law requires that every item in gold jewellery be clearly stamped its cartages. This is often Hall in the 14th century. Today it is compulsory in many countries. But in India, it is not compulsory and many don‟t follow the standard. The government of India is planning to make BIS Hallmarking mandatory from January 2008. Since Hallmarking involves time, cost and lesser profits many are very apprehensive. Today the competition in retailing is so high that the jewelers are compelled to sell at low mark-up of only 8%-15% for the gold price of the day. So to many jewelers, small and big, Hallmarking is a cause of concern of bureau of Indian standards (BIS). Government of India has identified BIS as a sole agency in India to operate this scheme. BIS hallmarking scheme has been elegant with international criteria on hallmarking (Vienna Convention-1972). As per this scheme, the license is granted to the jewelers by BIS under product certification scheme. The BIS certified jewelers could get their jewellery hallmarked from any of the BIS recognized Assaying and Hallmarking centers. A sample is drawn from the retailer premises for independent testing. Based on the satisfactory preliminary inspection report and test report of the sample is drawn during the inspection, license is granted to the jeweler. BIS maintains surveillance on the certified jewelers at a defined periodicity. Deviations in the degree of purity of the fine metal and observance of operations not in conformance to the system may result in cancellation of BIS license and invoke legal proceedings.
Indian jewellery:The Indian sub-continent has the longest continuous legacy of jewellery making. By western traditions where heavily influenced by waxing and waning Empires. India enjoyed a continuous development of art forms for some 5000 years. One of the first to start jewellery making was the people of Indus valley civilization. By 1500 BC the people of Indus valley were creating gold earnings and necklaces, bed necklaces and metallic bangles. Before 2100 BC; prior beads were often painted with designs. This art form was often passed on trough family. Although women were jeweled the most, some men in the Indus valley wore beads. Interestingly, India was the first country to mine diamond with some mines dating back to 296 BC.
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Kerala jewellery:Though the state is fast changing its trend, and there is a vast difference in tastes displayed by jewellery buyers, traditional values will never be abounded in Kerala. Kerala is the first of all popular for the high quality of gold used in jewellery. The jewellery like much other Indian jewellery is inspired by various forms of nature- leaves, snakes, frits, birds, animals, flowers, seeds and various art and spiritual forms. Ornaments are usually very light, so very expensive also. Today newer methods, techniques, and machineries are used in production. Kerala is famous for its light weight Jhumkas, Manga maala, Palaka Thaali, Mullamottu Maala, Kassu Maala, chittu, Maekathu Mothiram and that goes on.
World Gold Council (WGC): The world gold council is a non profit association of the worlds leading gold producers, established to promote gold. With headquarters in Geneva, it achieves through the world to improved gold products and its distribution systems. They provide specialist gold information and economic services to large holders of the gold. Its primary focus in recent years has been on facilitating the removal of structural impediments to the free flow gold, thereby encouraging its more widespread and acquisitions and retention.
Overview of Gold industry in India:
India is the largest consumer of gold in the world followed by China and Japan
India dominates the world‟s cut and polished diamonds market.
India is emerging as world‟s largest trading center of gold with a target of US$18 bn US$18 bn set for 2011
Surat contributes 90% of India‟s total diamonds exports.
India domestic branded jewellery market is estimated at 600-700 cores.
India Gem and Jewellery Exports Promotion Council (GJEPC) is aiming at turning India into an international diamond trading center.
India‟s imports an average of 1800 bars a day, about 70%of the total demand and the balance is being sourced to indigenous output and metal recycled old jewellery.
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Current Trends in Jewelry Multi-Chain Necklaces: If you have worn necklaces for a while now and
like them, you can try a different style of sporting a necklace with multiple chains. Such oversized multi-chain necklaces are decorated with medallions, metal balls, and outsized colorful gemstones. Pendant Earrings: The fashion of these types of jewelry has stayed strong in all seasons, and
has never gone out of style. You can wear pendant earrings which have a blend of garnet, black diamond, diamond, topaz, gold stones, seed bead detailing, and similar accents. Read more on pearl jewellery. Fashionable Bib Necklaces: Bib necklaces are jewelry which consist of two or more layers of
gemstones or chains arranged in a stack against each other to form a 'bib' shape around the neck. Many personalities from the fashion world are flashing these necklaces which may also become a style statement and a fashion trend for some. You can find ones with different classification of colors, accents, and patterns.
Chains having Metal and Leaf Patterns: Mesh chains ornamented with metal discs, outsized
metal flowers, bronze leaf patterns, and feather motives are also becoming a latest fad in the fashion industry. If you want to be simple, yet in accordance with the current jewelry fashion, you can opt for wearing a chain with a gold leaf or flower cutout. These are few of the latest trends in jewelry, jewelry, however, the jewelry that people wear totally depend on the choices they make. You can certainly wear any jewelry, but simply make sure that it matches your attire and your personality. Jewelry Trends in 2012
Coming out of the recession that made us all a bit nervous and tightening our pocketbooks... we have pared down to a simple way of looking at things. Big and bold gives us two distinct feelings when it comes to our jewellery: Extravagant and safe. These are the feelings that played out during these tough economic times and now we have a different feeling ahead of us... a sense of relief, a sense of balance and beginning. Whenever we feel as consumers that the time is right for paring down, we focus on simple designs and simple, warm colours. Plain metals and eco friendly materials: wood, bone, simple and soft semi-precious stones with Earth colours and a simple palette will prevail for 2012. This is our breathing room. This is our nervousness winding down.
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Gone are the statement necklaces of the past two years and in with the thinner, yet charming and graceful strands. Creativity will over run our need for security and gentle pairings of blackened metals metal s and all natural materials: pearls, bamboo and recycled media will tone things down considerably.
Pearls will be the big player as we see them with different eyes than ever before. They will convey a sense of hope and simplicity with tones that will match anything in your wardrobe. If the recession keeps us as consumers from buying everything we want and making smarter choices, we will have to go with what we can get the most mileage from. I know one very positive thing: thin g: we needed this recession. r ecession. We needed to correct the overdone overdon e hype and over -thetop, crowded marketplace with designers that are not taking themselves too seriously! I welcome the very simple, yet creative work that will be here for us this year.
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3.2
ORGANIZATION PROFIL
Joyalukkas is a popular jewellery retail chain that has rapidly expanded its presence across India in the past few years. Today the jewellery retail chain has strongly marked its presence in the states of Tamil Nadu, Nadu , Kerala, Karnataka & Andhra Pradesh and is i s also present in the cities of Mumbai, Mumb ai, Puducherry, Guragon (Haryana). Joyalukkas employs emplo ys a highly committed and trained team of over 2,300 employees across its various locations in India. The success and growth of Joyalukkas has been driven by its unstinting commitment to quality, a fact that has been widely recognized by its growing customer base. Joyalukkas jewellery is an ISO certified jeweller which has won many awards and recognition for its excellent business practices and skilled jewellery retailing. The most recent being the Retail Chain of the Year and Best Single Store (Joyalukkas Chennai Showroom) at the the „National Jewellery Awards 2011” organized by the All India Gems and Jewellery Trade Federation (GJF), it has also been recognized for being The Highest VAT Paying Jewellery Group at the Kerala Gem and Jewellery Show organized by The Department of Industries and Commerce, Government of Kerala. Joyalukkas is renowned within its customer base for its commitment to choice, quality, service, value and convenience. It is one of the consistently growing jewellery retail chains in India. Joyalukkas is currently operating 23 jewellery showrooms across India. Plans to open an additional 14 new showrooms are already in place, and Joyalukkas to complete the expansion plans by September 2013. Joyalukkas showrooms offer a wide variety of jewellery in Gold, Diamonds, Pearl, Platinum & Precious Stones. Some of the Joyalukkas showrooms also feature silver jewellery and silver items. Joyalukkas Group has always believed that people and the community within which it operates are the cornerstones for its success and as such is actively involved in CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) activities across various states in India. Joyalukkas consistently undertakes various programs to help the needy and encourage causes that benefit the society. From building homes to helping flood victims when they require financial assistance, the Group has always believed in being there when needed the most.
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HISTORY Joyalukkas, Joyalukkas, followed in his visionary father‟s f ootsteps ootsteps and expanded the „Joyalukkas‟ name to a global level. His father Varghese Alukkas started his first jewellery showroom way back in 1956 and since then Joyalukkas Joyalukkas has made „Joyalukkas‟ an household household name in jewellery. Joyalukkas took his first step by setting the jewellery showroom Kerala in the year 2002, since then there has been no looking for joyalukkas. As a part of its expansion, Joyalukkas opened a number of outlets in states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Delhi. He has his ear to the ground, his finger on the pulse and his feet on the ground. The fact is Joyalukkas got to where he is because he never compromised with its corporate values and strongly believed that satisfied customers are the backbone of a company.
It was due to his vision again that, Joyalukkas CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) efforts were given shape through unique business models. Such an effort is the first of its kind taken up by any jewellery retail chain. For someone who has rarely – rarely – if if ever – ever – based his decisions on the more modern management tools such as graphs, scales and projections, Joyalukkas„s Joyalukkas„s meteoric rise is a role model of entrepreneurial entrepreneurial grit and intuitive enterprise. Joyalukkas revolutionized retail jewellery trade in India by introducing training programs for its employees and also brought the concept of “wedding centre” within the jewellery store. Many a feathers are attached to the success hat of Joy Alukkas, including the opening of the world‟s world‟s largest showroom and the first Diamond Cave in Chennai, India, considered the jewellery hub of India. The phenomenal success of this showroom and this unique concept has proved his foresight and business acumen.
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THE CORPORATE VISION To become a global brand by ornamenting the world.
THE CORPORATE MISSION To improve and enrich lives everywhere by offering extraordinary lifestyle solutions backed by incomparable value-additions, value-additio ns, adhering to globally approved processes and norms and creating a successful value- chain for our associates.
THE QUALITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT POLICY The management and staff of Joyalukkas here by commits to enrich the quality of life by offering innovative life-style solutions backed by incomparable value-addition, adhering to globally approved processes and norms. The very basic existence of the global conglomerate is to achieve total customer delight by ornamenting and attiring the world. Our every business activity reflects the commitment for sustainable growth, protection of environment, health and safety of employees. Joyalukkas relentlessly focus on continual improvement, by setting and reviewing quality and environmental objectives which is reviewed and is effectively communicated throughout the organization and is made available to public.
The core principles and values
A rentless focus on the need of our clients.
Team work and individual performance be at the heart of all we do.
Our reputation is nothing.
The core values that we practice includes „Trust‟, „Integrity‟, „Respect‟, „Service Excellence‟, „Team work‟ and „Compassion‟ during all our actions and deliverables.
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PRODUCT PROFILE
PRODUCT
TEXTILE/APPARELS
JEWELLERY
GOLD
DIAMOND
PEARL
PLATINUM & PERCIOUS STONES
WEDDING AND OTHER APPARELS
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ACCESSORIES
GOLD COLLECTION
DIAMOND COLLECTION
PEARL COLLECTION GEMS
PLATINUM & PRECIOUS
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1.4
DEPARTMENT PROFILE
1.4.1 MARKETING DEPARTMENT
Marketing is defined as all organized efforts, activities and expenditures designed to first, acquire a customer and, second, maintain a customer.1 The marketing department is a unit of organization, traditionally charged with carrying out specific task that are deemed to be marketing such as advertising, marketing research. As the definition would suggest the marketing department customer acquisition and customer maintenance efforts go beyond the organizational boundaries of the marketing mark eting department. When all al l departments know and understand u nderstand their role ro le and importance in the marketing process, the functions of marketing work better. The marketing department works better. Usually, the role of marketing is viewed from the inside of an enterprise looking out to the market place. In many instance, the marketing function should provide the perspective of the market place looking in.
Critical Marketing functions include:
1. Identifying the important constituencies with in the market place 2. Identifying and valuing specific target purchaser/ user groups for the product. (Also known as target audiences or market segments). 3. Communicating with the market place. 4. Conducting transactions with the market place. 5. Obtaining on-going feed back from the market place. obtaining feed back also means understanding the environmental conditions that the enterprise operates in, the product is marketed in. spending on research is essential to direct the development of a product or 1
http://www.tannedfeet.com/difference_marketing.htm
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service and the development of communications messages necessary to acquaint potential customers with the product or service, in still them positive feelings about the product or service and motivate them to purchase.
1.4.2 SALES DEPARTMENT The selling function is an important element of the overall marketing process. Many organizations establish a separate sales function, apart from other elements of the marketing process. This is often a sound business strategy but can lead to a chasm between Sales and the other marketing elements. Even when both are contained within a unified Marketing Department, separate sales and marketing groups often create the situation where they have competing views of the marketplace, competing objectives and competing priorities (e.g., budget, prestige). One area that often creates the opportunity for jurisdictional disputes and other serious problems is lead generation. In many instances, some component of the Marketing Department is responsible for developing leads and then turns them over to the Sales Department. "Discussions" over the timing and quality of leads are a top topic at almost all Sales-Marketing joint meetings. It makes sure that planning and executions of plans are always coordinated, and that all programs are integrated across both marketing and sales efforts.
1.4.3 HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT A company is incomplete without a human resource department so it is said. But, it‟s true as the very existence of a human resource department is vital to overall productivity and efficiency of the strong workforce in any thriving organization. In fact, good human resources can be one of the most valued and respected departments in an organization; their job is managing people, and people are the company‟s most important asset. asset .
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One of the major roles of a human resources department in a successful business involves a lot of observation and analysis from behind the scenes. Indeed, the intelligence of the human resources department often involves what can be equated to “crunching numbers.” Compiling complex data and metrics that follow the performance of individual employees, as the move through the workforce is an important task, which has helped human resources, work out crucial solutions to inefficiency, wilting profit margins and more. Due to the sensitive nature of human relations and the work that human resources departments must carry out, discretion is a crucial element to this field. That‟s because the management of performance can often involve tough decisions such as choosing who to let go, who to promote and who to hire. Keeping the decision making process behind closed doors is an ethical practice that breeds the least amount of contention possible.
1.4.4 FINANCE DEPARTMENT Finance Department largely performs the function of advising the Government on all financial matters. The formulation of the Budget is one of its most important functions. Finance department is also entrusted with the responsibility of framing rules regulating pay, emoluments and other service conditions of all Government employees. It has administrative control over the departments of Local Fund Audit, Audit, Directorates of National Savings, State Lotteries, State Insurance and Treasuries. Treasuries. The department is headed by the Principal Secretary and has two Secretaries in charge of expenditure and Finance Resources. The functions of Finance Department are Preparation of budget, appropriation of accounts, re-appropriations, surrender and savings.
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4. DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
4.1. Table showing the age wise classification of the respondents AGE WISE CLASSIFICATION Age Group 0- 25 25-40 40 above Total
4.1. figure showing the age
Column1 Column2 No of Respondents Percentage 24 48 25 50 1 2 50 100
wise classification of Respondents Respondents
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveal that majority of the gold buyers are young young people people 48% of people are are below 25 and and 50% are are between 25 and 40 and the rest are above 40
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4.2. Table showing gender wise GENDER WISE CLASSIFICATION Gender Male Female total
classification classification Column1
Column2
Frequency
Percentage 40 60 100
20 30 50
Interpretation : From the above above table and figures figures reveal that 60% of the gold buyers are female female and the remaining remaining 40% are males.
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4.3.Table showing the marital status of people table showing the marital status of people Marital status Single Married Total
Column1 frequency
50
Column2 Percentage 28 56 22 54 100
4.3)
Interpretation : From the above above table table and figures reveal that 56% of the the respondents are single and 54% are married
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4.4. Table showing the educational qualification of the people table showing the educational qualification of the people Response SSLC PLUS TWO DEGREE PG OTHER Total
Column1
Column2
frequency
percentage 2 9 26 12 1 50
4 18 52 24 2 100
4.4. Figure showing the educational qualification of people
Interpretation : From the above above table table and figures reveal that 52% of the the respondents are degree holders and 24% are PG holders and 18% people are plus two and 4% people are SSLC the remaining having other qualifications
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4.5. Table showing the occupation of the respondents Column1
Column2
Column3
frequency
percentage
table showing the occupation of the respondents Response public service Private self employed Agriculture NRI Business Others Total
2 41 4 2 0 1 0 50
4.5.
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveal that majority of the respondents are working in private sector and the next level of peoples is self employed. Remaining is in public service and doing business etc.
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4 82 8 4 0 2 0 100
4.6. Table showing the family income of the respondents (Monthly) table showing the family income of the respondents Response less than10000 10000-15000 15000-20000 more than 20000 Total
Column1
Column2
Frequency
Percentage 24 28 26 22 100
12 14 13 11 50
4.6.
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveal that 28% of the respondents having the income of10-15 thousand per month and 26% people having 15-20 thousand and 24%are below 10 thousand 22% people are earning above 20 thousand per month.
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4.7. Table showing most preferred brands of the respondents table showing most preferred brand of the respondents Response Joy alukkas Kalyan Josco Bhima Malabar gold Chemmannur Total
Column1
Column2
frequency
percentage 31 10 3 5 1 0 50
62 20 6 10 2 0 100
4.7.
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveal that 62% of the respondents prefer joyalukkas and 20% prefer pref er kalyan and 10% go with Bhima in remaining remain ing 8% Josco attracts 6% 6 % and remaining 2% are with Malabar gold
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4.8. Table showing the brand awareness of respondents through different Medias table showing the brand awareness through different medias
Column1
Response word of mouth T.V adv Newspaper Bill Boards company branches
frequency percentage 15 30 19 38 8 16 0 0 5 10
Journals Magazines Internet Total
2 0 1 50
Column2
4 0 2 100
4.8. Figure showing the brand awareness of respondents through different Medias
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveal that 38% of the respondents aware about joyalukkas through T.V Advertisement and 30% by word of mouth and through news paper 16% know Joyalukkas 10% people knows joyalukkas through company branches and 4% with the help of journals and 2% through internet
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4.9. Table showing the respondents preference to joyalukkas table showing the preferrence of joy alukkas
Column1
Column2
Response
Frequency
Percentage
Yes No Total
50 0 50
100 0 100
4.9. Figure showing the respondents preference to joyalukkas
Interpretation: From the above table and figures reveal that the respondents are mostly prefer joyalukkas for buying bu ying gold
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4.10. Table showing the different factors affects the consumers when buying gold table sowing the affected factors of buying gold
Column1
Column2
Response
Frequency
Percentage
Quality Reasonable price Better sales service Brand name Ambiance Total
24 2 10 13 1 50
48 4 20 26 2 100
4.10. Figure showing the different factors affects the consumers when buying gold
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveal that the 48% respondents Buy gold from joyalukkas because of the Quality provided by them and 26% because their brand name 20% looking for the customer service remaining 4% go for reasonable price and 2% buy gold because of the ambiance provided by joyalukkas
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4.11 Table showing the Response of customers on customised products table showing the customer openion of customised products from joy alukkas
Column1
Column2
Response
Frequency
percentage
Yes No Total
50 0 50
4.11. figure showing the Response of the customers on customised products
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveal that the respondents gets customised products from joyalukkas joyalukka s
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100 100
4.12. Table shows the response towards pricing of the products of Joyalukkas table showing the details of the analysis made on the pricing of joy alukkas
Column1
Column2
Response
Frequency
Percentage
Yes No total
41 9 50
82 18 100
4.12. Figure shows the response towards pricing of the products of Joyalukkas
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveal that the respondents are satisfied with the pricing of the products of joyalukkas
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4.13. Table showing The Response towards branding strategy of Joyalukkas
table showing branding strategy of joy alukkas
Column1
Column2
Response
Frequency
Percentage
highly effective
11
22
effective
37
74
2
4
50
100
not much effective total
4.13. Figure showing The Response towards branding strategy of Joyalukkas
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveal that the branding strategy of joyalukkas is effective effectiv e in the opinions of o f 74% people and 22% people impressed impr essed with the branding brandin g strategy as they are responding as it is highly effective
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4.14. Table showing the influence of promotional activities of different brands
table showing the acceptance of brands promotional activities
Column1
Column2
Response
Frequency
percentage
Joyalukkas
40
80
kalyan
5
10
josco
3
6
bhima
2
4
50
100
malabar gold chemmannur others total
4.14. Figure showing the influence of promotional activities of different brands
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveal that the promotional activities of joyalukkas is effective effectiv e among other jewellers with wit h 80% lead
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4.15. Table showing the brand recognition with product category table showing recognising of product category Response jewellery textiles air charter service money exchange total
Column1
Column2
Frequency
Percentage 25 16 6 3 50
50 32 12 6 100
4.15.Figure showing the brand recognition with product category
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveals the jewellery is the most recognised category of joyalukkas
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4.16. 4.16. Table showing the effectiveness of product differentiation table showing product diffrentiation effectiveness
Column1
Column2
Response
Frequency
Percentage
Strongly Agree Agree Moderately Agree
8
16
40
80
2
4
50
100
Disagree Strongly Disagree total
4.16. 4.16. Figure showing the effectiveness of product differentiation
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveals that 80% of peoples are agreeing that the product differentiation of Joyalukkas is effective
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4.17. Table showing the response towards the location of the Joyalukkas Location of the company is appropriate
Column1
Column2
Response
Frequency
percentage
Strongly Agree
13
26
Agree
36
72
1
2
50
100
Moderately Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree total
4.17. Figure showing the response towards the location of the Joyalukkas
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveals the location of the company is appropriate
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4.18. Table showing the response towards pricing of the product
table showing the pricing of the products is effective Response Strongly Agree Agree Moderatly Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree total
Column1
Column2
frequency
percentage 7 43
50
14 86 0 0 0 100
4.18. Figure showing the response towards pricing of the product
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveals that pricing of the products are effective by 86% of people‟s opinion
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4.19. Table showing the attracted branding techniques of Joyalukkas towards respondents Response press adv
Frequency
percentage
26
52
8
16
e- media adv better quality of products better customer service
2
4
14
28
total
50
100
4.19. Figure showing the attracted branding techniques of Joyalukkas towards respondents
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveals that press advertisement has attracted 52% of the customers to Joyalukkas and 28% attracted by better customer service
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4.20. Table showing important area to be concentrated to increase the brand image
of Joyalukkas Response
Frequency
percentage
Frequency Adv
18
36
Frequent sales promotion
12
24
focus on quality improvement
2
4
compititive pricing
7
14
improving customer service
11
22
Total
50
100
4.20. Figure showing important area to be concentrated to increase the brand
image of Joyalukkas
Interpretation : From the above table and figures reveals that36% of people go with frequent advertisement is the effective way to increase the brand image of Joyalukkas and 24% of people agree with other sales promotion activities improve the brand image .22% of people are looking for good customer service. Competitive pricing is matter for another 14% of people. 4% of people explain to have focus on quality improvement
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5. 1 SUMMARY
The research reveals that the customers are very much brand oriented in buying gold.
The survey reveals the importance of brand and how it helps to increase the sales.
The study also reached that the gold market is highly volatile.
Customers have selected their most preferred brand as Joyalukkas because of their customer relation and service offering to them and the brand endorsement etc.
Customers given more importance to the customized products and trendy designs of jewelries.
The study reached that the customers are interested in buying gold based on many factors such as Brand name, Services, Pricing, Advertisements etc
The survey reveals that most of the customers are brand loyal in purchasing jewelry items.
The study reveals that most of the customers prefer Joyalukkas as per their choices and most of them are agreeing on the global recognition of the brand has attracted them.
The marketing strategies of Joyalukkas are very much impressed the customers of Joyalukkas.
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5.2 FINDINGS
The study was conducted on on the topic “A “A STUDY ON THE BRAND POSITIONING OF JOYALUKKAS” JOYALUKKAS ”. Findings from study are listed below. As per the Objective
The brand positioning of Joyalukkas India Private Limited is effective. So it can be concluded that the Brand positioning of Joyalukkas India Private Limited is good.
As per analysis
Joyalukkas is one of the most accepted brand in the jewelry industry
The survey revealed that the Joyalukkas brand has positioned well in the minds of the consumers.
The customers are able to get customized products from Joyalukkas.
Most of the customers are attracted by the different promotional activities of Joyalukkas.
Peoples are interested in the services offered to them while purchasing jewelries.
The employees are very much satisfied in provided facilities to them.
Regarding the quality factors most of the customers have a good opinion of provided quality by Joyalukkas
Maintain good customer relations and keep informed about important changes through S M S, other medias etc to customers.
Numbers of traders are high in the gold commodity market compare with agricultural commodities.
Majority of respondents agree that Communication of advertisement is good.
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5.3 SUGGESTIONS
To give some more importance to the various promotional techniques through different medias
Attract the customers through new designs and variety of collections.
By introducing the trendy designs under different brands it creates a good brand image.
By giving importance to the consumers feedback
Make the customer delighted by having a good customer relationship.
The branding techniques should be changing according to the market trends.
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5.4 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
The scope of the study restricted to only few areas.
Subscribers may not give an accurate data.
Busy nature of the respondents.
Sample size limited to 50.
Lack of response from customers & resistance was yet another factor that damped the spirit of the researcher.
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5.5 CONCLUSION The survey reveals that the people are very much brand oriented when buying gold. The company‟s advertisement is directing to motivate people to buy products from it. The firm should concentrate more on new trends and designs of products. Brand positioning means creating an image of brand in the minds of consumers. Joyalukkas do the same with different branding techniques. Through this study, it can be identified that selected customers are agreed that the company treats them as the valuable customers and they are delighted while purchasing gold from joyalukkas.The customers also prefer more exhibits of new variety products through advertisement. The presence of brand ambassador and celebrities also greatly help in endorsing the product
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5.6 SCOPE FOR FURTHER RESEARCH
The present study aimed to study the brand positioning of joyalukkas is effective among the consumers and public. The branding is an important aspect in the development of any of the organisation it has a greater importance in each person‟s person‟s buying behaviour and lots of opportunities are there to study the branding and positioning of the brands among the consumers
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