CRM-1

A

PROJECT REPORT

ON

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

A report submitted to GGDSD College Chandigarh as a part fulfilment of the requirements of full time Bachelors in Business Administration -programme (Final Year)

2010-2011

Submitted To: Submitted By:

Department of Commerce and Mgt. Sukant Jain

G.G.D.S.D. College Roll No.:1836

Chandigarh. P.U. PIN:18008000510

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STUDENT DECLARATION

I hereby declare that the project entitled

“HOW CAN CRM AFFECT THE

TRADITIONAL JEWELLERS IN INDIA

IN IMPROVING THEIR SALES”

Submitted in fulfillment of the requirement of the degree of

Bachelor of Business Administration

from

Goswami Ganesh Dutta

Sanatam Dharma College

Chandigarh

is my original piece of work and not submitted for the reward or any other Degree, Diploma, Fellowship or other similar title or prizes.

SUKANT JAIN

Signature of Mentor CLASS : BBA 3

( MANI PARTI BHARARA ) PUP NO : 18008000510

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CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the project work done on “Customer Relationship Management”,

Submitted to GGDSD College, Chandigarh by Sukant Jain in partial fulfillment of the

requirement for the award of degree of Bachelors in Business Management is a bonafide

work carried out by him under my supervision and guidance. The original work was carried

during Summer Vacations in Jain Jewellers chandigarh .

Date: MANI PARTI BHARARA

(Project Guide)

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Project Title:

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

Reasons for the project

To give a broader view of CRM on the jewellery sector industry, which can lead to an

increase in the turnover of the industry. The reason the topic is chosen is because

jewellery is my family business and would do me a world of favour if the research is

successful.

Identify and describe the project issues involved

To know about the trends and the market values, customer preferences, overview of

the market. Customer and company relationship management which can lead to

positive sales .

Project objectives

To come up with the CRM techniques which will lead to growth of traditional

jewellery sector in India.

Effect of CRM on a sound running company

What CRM strategy should the company look in case of a prolonged relationships

What should be done in order to maintain relationships of the company with the

customers in the near future

Disadvantages for companies operating without a CRM strategy

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o AIM OF THE RESEARCH

The aim of the research is to evaluate the way through which CRM (Customer

Relationship Management) can help the traditional jewellers to improve sales in

India.

This research is an attempt to find answers for the following research questions:

What are the benefits of CRM techniques that are applicable to SME’s as written by

previous authors and researcher?

What are the benefits, as perceived by Indian jewellers, of using CRM techniques?

What are the barriers, as perceived by the Indian jewellers, to use the CRM

techniques?

Do we observe, within an Indian context, a shift towards a greater emphasis towards

the acceptability and usage of CRM technologies among the jewellers?

DISCUSSION:

CRM is an important technique used in backing existing customers and also helps in

retention of those customers. It helps a company to track and organize its contacts

with its customers. Big names in the Indian jewellery have been the hereditary

jewellers carrying their businesses with old name and fame.

With the entrance of new and branded jewellers in the market and the services

provided by them to their customers is thus enhancing Customer Relationship and

hitting the traditional jewellery houses big. CRM strategy has become important for

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such jewellers to implement into their business in order to survive in this modern

fast moving techno world.

THE EFFECT:

In this recession and great financial and economic crisis hit badly in the jewellery

sector in India. Companies operating without CRM strategy are losing customers

hence leading to a downfall in the business. At this time of recession, the customers

have become quite observant and selective about high end products like jewellery.

They need support from the seller in form of building customer relationships, hence

ensuring the customer’s trust in the company.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) will thus ensure customers trust into the

companies and will help in gratifying customers and ensure a strong reliable

relationship with the customer which is vitally important before selling such

luxurious items.

Project Output

Will be in full depth knowledge about the industry with respect to the traditional

jewellers in the industry and will be able to give fruitful output to my company with

confidence.

An attempt has been made to present the report in a very general fashion, but in a

very precise manner as not to loose out its core focus on customer preference. The

data was collected by getting the questionnaire filled from 4 cities in Northern India.

Data tables and graphs have been used for better understanding

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I am very proud to finally have finished my summer training project Researching this area has provided me with new and interesting knowledge about the uses of CRM as me being a jeweller myself would surely go for it. I hope that my project will be useful for further research and that it might be useful as reading material for the students, researchers and other interested in this area.

I am immensely thankful to Mr Surya Kant Jain, Partner, Jain Jewellers for giving me the opportunity to carry out my project work and research in his showroom and also for guiding me during the entire course of investigation.

It is my proud privilege to express my deep sense of gratitude to my faculty guide Mrs Mani Parti Bharara lecturer in GGDSD College and Mrs Monica Sachdeva co ordinator BBA for their support, guidance, stimulating discussions and critical evaluation of work and untiring efforts while carrying out my project work.

I am deeply grateful to all the Jewellers in Chandigarh, Ambala, Ludhiana & Delhi for their co-operation help and guidance in completing this project. I also thank my dear friends, I shall ever remain under debt for their encouragement, love, moral support and every possible help without which it would have not been possible to accomplish this work.

In the end, I sincerely acknowledge all those who directly or indirectly helped me.

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SUKANT JAIN

INDEX OF CONTENTS

CERTIFICATE

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

DECLARATION

CHAPTER TITLE PAGE NO.

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

CHAPTER 2 COMPANY PROFILE

INDIAN JEWELLERY SECTOR

JAIN JEWELLERS

CHAPTER 3 OBJECTIVES AND PURPOSE OF RESEARCH

CHAPTER 4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

RESEARCH DESIGN

SOURCES OF DATA

SAMPLING PLAN

SCOPE OF STUDY

DATA ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES

LIMITATIONS OF STUDY

CHAPTER 5 DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

CHAPTER 6 FINDINGS AND SUGGESTIONS

CHAPTER 7 CONCLUSION

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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ANNEXURE

QUESTIONNAIRE

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INTRODUCTION TO CRM

Business organizations world over are aware that customers form the mainstay of any

business and so are recognizing the importance of maintaining effective relationships with

their customers. Consequently, the proverbial statements like “the customers are always

right,” “do whatever it takes to deliver your promise” are increasingly finding their way in

the charter given to the employees for maintaining relationships with customers. It is the

ultimate goal of the management to ensure the satisfaction and happiness of their customers

since they are the reason for the continued existence of the business. It was not far back that

companies did not focus significantly on this factor and suffered the consequences of losing

out their customers to the competitors. Nevertheless, it is not easy to focus on these goals

without establishing appropriate tools, methodology and procedures for achieving these

goals. Technology has played a vital role for businesses to regularize a system of

maintaining a track of customer’s interactions with the organization, thereby allowing the

employees to retrieve relevant information regarding the customers. This concept of

customer relationship management or CRM makes it possible for the organization to achieve

its goal of retaining and maintaining customers so as to gain an upper hand over its

competitors.

CRM, therefore, refers to a system of maintaining the information about the customers in a

digital format so that the customer relations staff can keep records of the clients’

requirements, behaviours, preferences, tastes, etc. In other words, CRM involves establishing

long term, steady relationships with customers which will help to add value for both

company and customers in the long run.

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A CRM system becomes vital for the continued success of a business and is incorporated in

the overall support systems across all functional areas of the organization along with others

systems like enterprise recourse planning system, executive information systems, supply

chain management system, and product life-cycle management systems. The organizations

can utilize the vital information about its customers at the time of planning, acquiring and

controlling various channels across the organization in order to bring out superior products

and services which will help in generation of greater revenues and profits. Organizations can

also use the CRM systems to hold meaningful interactions for their customers, leading to an

enhancement of the overall quality along with promptness in responding to the requirements

of the customers.

Various advantages of CRM provide the leverage to the organization to create a distinct

image of the organization, different from its competitors by using information received

through CRM systems for developing innovative products and improving the capability of

determining and solving the problems of the customers. Thus, the close contact established

between the customers and the organizations with the help of CRM systems contributes to

improving customer loyalty, providing superior information, acquiring vital customer

information, improving the overall organizational learning – all the factors significant for the

success of the organization. There is widespread belief about customer satisfaction and

loyalty being considered a science.

It is significant to note that most CRM applications and tools use wireless technology, with

significant automation being integrated in the mobile sales force. In fact, these services can

be accessed from the customer’s site with the use of wireless devices by mobile service

employees. Furthermore, organizations can use enhanced communication systems like short

message services or SMS and e-mail from mobile phones to improve CRM. Bulk SMS

advertising is becoming an efficient way to communicate and can be an effective tool for the

jewellers to target its customers.

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The idea of CRM brings about the image of how technology can be used to improve

marketing, sales, customer services and customer relations, etc. Nevertheless, CRM is part of

an overall strategy and cannot be concluded to mean a bunch of technologies. It is a system

for clearer understanding of the customer’s needs so that the organization can improve the

overall processes of the organization to serve these needs promptly (The ABCs of CRM

2005). There is widespread acceptance of CRM concepts and technologies in all types of

industries, since organizations are aware of the fact that their overall profitability depends on

how strong their customer relationships are. New customers are not easy to locate, but it is

even more difficult to retain the existing customers. This makes it imperative for the

organizations to adopt an appropriate mix of effective business processes, new information

technology, appropriate procedures of data management and innovative employee programs.

2.2 NEED AND OBJECTIVES OF CRM

CRM is a system which enables the organization to keep track of the customers’ interactions

with the organization so that it is possible for the employees to retrieve relevant information

about the past and current transactions of the customers, service records and records of

pending problems.

A CRM involves maintaining a database wherein all the information about the customer is

stored. This information includes customer name, products purchased and problems they

might have encountered in context of their purchases. This allows the organization to

generate simple reports along with producing vital information required for coordinating the

activities of the various departments like sales, marketing and customer service so as to

respond quickly and efficiently to the requirements of the customers.

Mr jain recommends that companies must outline the purpose of implementing CRM in their

organizations. In this context he recommends that the goals must be ‘guiding principles’ and

‘components for success’. He suggested ‘guiding principles’ to involve three principles

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which are imperative for guiding the focus of the CRM programs. First, the experiences of

the customers add up to create brand value for the customers. For this purpose, he

recommends the organizations to adopt stylish logos and catchphrases along with distinctive

commercials which would motivate the customer to associate himself with a product.

Second, the information received from the customers must be used strategically during future

interactions. It is important to understand that each interaction has economic significance for

the organization since a satisfied customer is likely to come back for further interactions.

Thirdly, the implementation of CRM procedures must not endanger financial or delivery

functions of the organization. There is no reason to adopt technology or capabilities for

serving the customer at any cost. It is important for the CRM system to be financially viable

with minimum risk to the functioning of the organization. This implies that the CRM system

has to be pragmatic, realistic and viable for the users.

The second objective for adopting CRM systems in an organization is to determine the

components for success.It is recommended that the CRM procedures must take into

consideration four major components. Setting the strategy has to be the first component,

since it is important to identify the customers that the company would like to retain, basing

their decisions on the organization’s existing business policies and objectives. The second

component entails gathering valuable insights about customers. This is important to

understand the needs of the customers and predict their behaviour. He recommended third

component to generate value from customer contact activities. In other words, it is important

to keep the cost of service low even as it is important to improve the quality of customer

interactions. Lastly, he recommended the fourth component to transform the system of

marketing. This means that the organizations must work to eliminate wastage of money on

the market i.e. it must establish a system of evaluating and utilizing resources optimally and

innovatively .

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The organizations can adopt these principles and components to enlarge the scope of CRM in

the organization by synchronizing the activities of marketing, sales and services to achieve

the objective of serving the customers effectively and efficiently.

CONTEXT AND FRAME

Effective and sound management of customer relation is one of the crucial aspects for the

success of a business. The practice of customer relationship management (CRM) has long

been prevalent in large firms, though its function among small and medium enterprise

(SMEs) has not gained a similar footing. The probable reason for a dissimilar treatment

accorded to CRM by SMEs can be related to their size, structure and characteristics which

make them quite distinct entities from large organizations. Therefore, it is but natural that

their approach to CRM and its pattern differ from that of bigger companies Small and

medium enterprises play key roles in contributing to the economic growth of a country.

Moreover, because of their inherent flexibility in size, they are not only structurally pliable

but are quite responsive to the emerging complexion of the markets They also are

instrumental in promoting balanced and equitable growth and as such constitute an organic

limb in a country`s economy This analysis thus focuses on SMEs.

Generally SMEs, because of their distinct traits vis-à-vis large organizations, their business

models and developmental approaches and practices, are invariably different from those of

bigger organizations They have the tendency of being informal and vested with a focus on

short term gains. They rarely adopt conventional means of marketing. This creates a vast

competitive gap between them and large companies. Studies have advocated use of strategic

techniques such as CRM, e-business, as fundamental to the success of SMEs. Therefore, this

study tries to investigate and explore the use of information technology and the benefits that

can accrue to SMEs and from the integration of CRM though SMEs are still involved in

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finding answers to apprehensions like why, what and how to exploit internet technology and

amalgamate it with the obtaining traditional business practices.

LIMITATIONS TO IMPLEMENT CRM

It definitely helps to be aware that CRM can be effectively used to achieve the organizational

goals; however, their application in a business operation needs strategic planning. The extent

of CRM applications in an organization depends on the nature of the business and the kind of

problems management is likely to encounter prior to or during the execution of these

applications.

SME’s like jewellery units hesitate in implementing CRM because it reduces their

opportunity to hold direct interactions with customers. A balance between virtual and

personal interaction has to be maintained and both present different and complementary

opportunities for collecting vital information about the customers. It emphasize that customer

relationships can be ruined by the use of Internet technology in wrong situations. Internet

technology offers greater support for maintaining relationships in one-to-one interactions,

particularly where trust and security already exist. It is important to understand that

customers are not comfortable in the absence of personal contact and jewellery is a product

where the existence of personal contact and interaction is critically necessary and important.

There have been various researchers pertaining to the element of trust in case of online

transactions and it is largely believed the element of trust is more likely to be enhanced in

personal interactions than over the Internet

As said by Shri Kant Jain, Partner, Mangat Ram Niranjan Dass Jewellers: There are various

hidden costs in jewellery and therefore the customer prefers going to his regular old

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traditional jeweler who have already gained the customers’ trust. Therefore this factor can be

come a hindrance in the implementation of the CRM technique.

We observed that development of trust over Internet is a matter of serious concern. It is not

as if CRM cannot be made responsive and personal with development of processes relevant

for building trust over internet, although it would be time-consuming experiential learning

process. It is clear though that the process of CRM can be severely impeded in the absence of

trust. Therefore, it is amply clear that if trust is such a major issue in online context, the

customers must be fearful of divulging information over the internet. In other words,

security of information over internet is cause for concern . As a result, fear of misuse of

information over internet has overshadowed the immense potential of Internet technologies

to manage information. Therefore, security has become a major impediment for

implementation of the CRM.

Ultimately, it would be advisable to understand the limitations of SMEs in e-CRM

implementation, and appreciate the fact that each SME has a unique process of decision-

making relevant for adopting Internet technologies to address the CRM issues .SMEs need to

be very careful about the factors that impede the implementation of CRM, since these

barriers are serious detriment to successful relationship management systems.

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CONCLUSION

It can be safely concluded that CRM systems does not have to be used only as a tool for

collecting information. Its judicious application can bring extraordinary economic

advantages to the jewellery organisations as well as enable it to maintain its competitive

advantage in the market. It has been recognized that implementing CRM systems can enable

the jewellers to improve its customer service and enhance generation of revenues.

Nevertheless, implementing CRM systems does not automatically make the organization

successful. The CRM system needs to be clearly evaluated to ensure that it can be

successfully incorporated into the overall business strategy, assess the capabilities of such

system in current circumstances and be clear about the reason for the implementation of such

programs. A careful plan for its execution is essential and its applicability in m-commerce

and m-business must be carefully examined. The concept of CRM is becoming increasingly

relevant for B2B and B2C, so it requires to be thoroughly researched before massive

investments can be made in adopting such system. Nevertheless, there is no doubt about

plenty of opportunities for using CRM m-commerce for both businesses and consumers.

Though the “touch and feel” factor in jewellery can make the CRM software systems a little

ineffective for the jewelers, but still it can thus play a rigorous role in the development and

success of the traditional jewellers in India.

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THE INDIAN JEWELLERY SECTOR

The Indian Jewellery Sector which includes a vast number of traditional jewelers can be

termed as the small and medium scale industries in the country which has a vital effect on the

growth of a country. The traditional jewelers have been the major players in the jewellery

industry in India which have been ever growing in name and fame. Entering into the 21 st

century with various introduction of the various multinational jewellery brand coming into

the Indian market has become a thought of worry for the traditional jewelers. The branded

players with the introduction of latest CRM techniques are trying to get rid of these strong

traditional jewelers.

Therefore, with the Global Recession hitting the world markets including the Indian market

and the entrance of these multinational players have caused problems for the traditional

jewelers in India. Floating on their traditional reputation, name and fame is not going to be

enough for these traditional jewelers, and thus CRM is a tool which can help in solving this

problem and thus help them to increase their sales.

India now occupies a leading position among countries engaged in processing diamonds, its

share being 57 percent. Since China is also now coming up as strong contender in the gems

and jewellery segment, India`s share is likely to decline to 49 percent by 2015. However, in

the event of rapidly rising purchasing power and disposable income of Indian populace over

the last few years, accompanied by expansion of retailing outlets in India, the domestic

demand has also shown an increasing trend. It will not be out of place to mention that at

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present, India enjoys the status of being the biggest gems and jewellery retail market in the

world supporting a figure of 20 percent of the global total .

There are of course a few large players in India operating in this field, yet traditional jewelers

still dominate this sector. In fact these big operators are mostly dependent on such jewellers

as the large companies do not have the requisite capacities to fulfill their market demands.

They thus adopt the route of outsourcing the processing jobs to these small and medium scale

enterprises.

The contemporary system of relationship marketing entails looking at customers and other

stakeholders as partners relevant for successful functioning of the organization. This implies

that now the traditional jewelers must seek to form enduring relationships with their

customers and other stakeholders in order to enjoy the benefits of trust, loyalty and overall

profitability Various authors, like Gronroos and Gummesson approve the system of

relationship marketing, although its applicability to small and medium sized enterprises has

not been very clearly defined. It is relevant to note that the thrust of SMEs like the

traditional jewellers is to maintain personal relationships with their customers, vendors,

employees and other stakeholders Therefore, the few researchers in this area are

overwhelmed to see how relationship marketing and entrepreneurship is strongly

interconnected but concerned about the manner in which most researchers had neglected to

study this area .

Keeping in view the lack of extensive studies on this specific area, it is hoped that the current

study will provide a new perspective into the strategic role of CRM and the benefits and

limitations of such systems in context of SMEs, particularly the traditional jewellers in India.

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CRM AND SME’S LIKE JEWELLERS

This research is dedicated to evaluating the CRM practices adopted by the traditional

jewellers in India and to study the effect of CRM on SME’s in India since majority of the

jewellers belong to this category. Till date the research was focused on e-CRM practices

adopted by larger firms, and this research is different as it is focused on the SME sector.

According to the research, there is a need of considering SME as a unit of analysis, since

these are vital constituents of a country’s economy and have features which are distinctively

apart from those of the large . Furthermore, SMEs form the largest growth sector in any

economy. Apart from that, the flexibility and pliability of their structure enables them to

respond to various situations more promptly and speedily as compared to the larger

organizations . In fact, it has been observed that since SME sector does not form the core of

the economy, they are more than willing to experiment with newer Internet-based

technologies, particularly CRM systems .

CRM techniques used by jewelers in India:

As said by Surya Kant Jain, Partner, Jain Jewellers, Chandigarh: Majority of jewellers in

India are traditional jewellers which have their existence from the past 5 to 10 decades and

are mainly running on their old name and reputation. Almost all the Jewellers in Chandigarh

are traditional jewellers and none of them have ever concentrated on the term CRM. But

from the past one year since recession has hit the world including India, there has been a

decline in sales in the trade of jewellery and therefore the jewellers are concerned. With the

increase in competition, CRM can be an helpful measure in solving the problems and

retaining and making new customers, thus resulting in an increase in sales.

As observed by Ishu Datwani, Partner, Anmol Jewellers: The internet is a powerful tool to

keep up with the competition. “While we have a website, the “touch and feel” of the product

is critical. Building relationships is done better face to face. So, technology has only a

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supportive role in selling jewellery. Computerization and effective software systems have

been implemented to handle the heavy, daily transactions

At Danabhai and Sons, Mumbai, the company has a privilege cards (platinum, gold & silver)

for its esteemed clients who get regular updates on novelties, promotion and seasonal offers

via various CRM techniques like SMS, email and mailers.

As said by Rakesh Talwar, Partner, Talwar Jewellers: CRM software systems can be

considered an effective measure but it lacks the face to face interaction with the customers

which is necessary in the expensive products of jewellery. CRM can be helpful for retaining

and making new customers.

In this growing competition, jewellers should generally attempt to establish enduring

relationships with their customers so that they can maintain their competitive edge in the

marketplace. The jewellers in India should use these relationships to improve the quality of

their customer service, customer loyalty and generate added value for the business.

Technology helps to improve the performance benefits. The fact is that it is not possible to

establish effective relationship marketing without adopting IBTs or Internet based

technologies. It has been observed that CRM forms the core of marketing strategy and

customer orientation in case of SMEs . Jewellery is a product where the customers find it

necessary to touch and feel it before spending huge amounts of money on it, but nevertheless

adoption of simple, general CRM software systems thus can be supportive for such

organizations

It is obvious that companies, big or small, can afford to ignore the importance of customer

only at the risk of their own survival. It is also known that acquiring a new customer can

cost the organization five times more than encouraging an existing customer to make newer

purchases It is, therefore, evident that limited resources of SMEs play an important part in

their effort to retain their customers. Furthermore, CRM enables the organization to have a

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clearer insight into the problems faced by the customers and this information can be

strategically used to attract new customers and encourage cross-selling. Therefore, the

important question is how to maintain a good customer relationship? Personal interaction

with complete information about the preferences and problems of the customers is already

done by the jewellers in India but with the entrance of larger jewellery units like D’Damas

and Tanishq who are using powerful CRM techniques, reliance on software support has thus

become necessary for the traditional jewellers in India.

Developing and managing effective customer relationship is a matter of strategic importance

for an organization. It is not enough to merely install CRM software; rather it requires

modification of general business processes and culture of the organization for that it is

customer oriented. CRM software can just be used as a support for such endeavour.

There are two broad categories of CRM software The first set of software pertains to the

management of customer interactions with applications for customer service and support,

sales force and marketing automation, all of which are relevant for developing close

relationships with the customers. On the other hand, the second set of software uses reporting

and data mining tools for analyzing the behaviour of the customers, in order to evaluate

customer satisfaction and improve the understanding of the problems and preferences of the

customer. This helps the organization to generate vital information relevant for developing

appropriate marketing and sales strategies.

It is important for the traditional jewellers to adapt the CRM systems which would suit their

business needs and their business structure rather than having to change the already

established systems according to the CRM software. Furthermore, the current business

should not be disrupted due to the incorporation of the CRM software. This implies that it

needs to be introduced in smaller steps so then they can be modified as per future

requirements.

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COMPANY PROFILE

JAIN JEWELLERS

Jain Jewellers was established in 1969. It is one of the oldest and most

reputed showroom in Chandigarh.

With stunning designs that would leave you spellbound, Jain Jewellers

offers an exquisite collection of jewellery that reflects modern design with

a touch of tradition. We have a glittering presence of over ten decades

and are spread all over Punjab including the beautiful city of India,

Chandigarh.

With the application of top-of-the line techniques, designing intricacies

and superb craftsmanship, we ensure the quality of our product. Our

jewellery range so rare and pure, so unique and complete, we are

renowned for an uncompromised class and are one of the leading firms

engaged in the business of diamond and gold jewellery.

Traditional hospitality, great styles, competitive pricing and quality sales

support have all become synonymous with Jain Jewellers. We extend a

warm invitation for you to visit us at our showroom.

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Today the firm is one of the leading jewellers in gold and diamond

jewellery having speciality in diamonds. All the jewellery is 916 or 22 ct

and the diamond jewellery is certified. It deals in retailing and

manufacturing of Gold, Kundan and Diamond jewellery. It is also the

specialist in manufacturing of “saru” and “jadau” gold jewellery which is

made in gold and embedded in real stones like ruby, panna and moti.

Therefore with its magnificent and glorifying history as a manufacturer of

these precious ornaments, Jain Jewellers is known for its class since 1969.

The jewellery designed by Jain Jewellers is not only exceptional but also

a rare example of excellent craftsmanship

Today, Jain Jewellers is part of the family tradition in most North Indian

homes. When you enter our showroom, you enter into a partnership with

the tradition of mrnd. When you place your trust in us, we promise to

deliver. We stand behind every piece of jewellery we offer.

OUR VISION

To become the most preferred jewellery retailer by offering a wide range

of premium quality masterpieces at most reasonable and competitive

rates

OUR MISSION

To offer innovatively crafted classic and contemporary jewellery pieces

with a simple aim of setting up high quality standards by following the

stringent quality norms and to do business with ethics

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We have tried to redefine the term " After Sales Services ". We take

special care in manufacturing by using quality materials and providing

strong binding; so that once it is sold we do not expect any complaint for

years

MANAGING PARTNERS

SALIL JAIN SURYA KANT JAIN SANJALI JAIN+91-98889-79000            +919872800065 +91-98764-00044          [email protected] [email protected]

ADDRESS

SCF – 8, Sector - 22 D, Chandigarh – 160022

Tel/Fax : 0172 – 2702216, 2707187, 2708993, 5089099

Email : [email protected], [email protected]

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Project objectives

To come up with the CRM techniques which will lead to growth of traditional jewellery

sector in India.

Effect of CRM on a sound running company

What CRM strategy should the company look in case of a prolonged relationships

What should be done in order to maintain relationships of the company with the customers

in the near future

Disadvantages for companies operating without a CRM strategy

PURPOSE OF THE RESEARCH

A researcher may undertake research for any number of purposes, depending upon factors

like the choice and requirements of the researcher and the extent of information available

with him. In any case, there are three broad categories based on the purpose of the research

and they are exploratory, descriptive or explanatory Exploratory research is essentially

conducted to gather basic information about the problem subject. The researcher gets the

basic idea of the most appropriate research design, methods of data collection, selection of

subjects and also to determine whether the problem actually exists or not. On the other hand,

explanatory research is conducted primarily to provide a correct and factual description of a

phenomenon. It explains the frequency of its occurrence so that it is possible to calculate the

average number of its occurrences using statistical measures.

The aim of the research is to evaluate the impact of CRM to improve sales of the traditional

jewellers in India. The present study uses the exploratory research for achievement of its

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objectives since this is a new concept and moreover there was a need to enhance my

understanding of the research topic.

This research was an attempt to find qualitative answers for the following research questions:

• What are the benefits of CRM techniques that are applicable to SME’s as written by

previous authors and researcher?

• What are the benefits, as perceived by Indian jewellers, of using CRM techniques?

• What are the barriers, as perceived by the Indian jewellers, to use the CRM techniques?

• Do we observe, within an Indian context, a shift towards a greater emphasis towards the

acceptability and usage of CRM technologies among the jewellers?

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CHAPTER-3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1 INTRODUCTION

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Research is a systematic investigation in search of knowledge and involves scientific and

methods for collecting, interpreting and presenting information. Proctor believes research to

entail scientific methods for deriving conclusions based on empirical observations of the

researcher. The aim of the research is to evaluate the way through which CRM (Customer

Relationship Management) can help the traditional jewellers to improve sales in India. In this

portion of the study, details of the methodology adopted in this dissertation and the rationale

behind the choice of methodology are given.

3.3 RESEARCH PHILOSOPHY

As far as research philosophy is concerned, there are two approaches from among which a

choice had to be made depending on how the knowledge base to be developed. These are

Positivistic and phenomenological approaches, although they are known by various other

alternatives terms at different times. A quantitative research method is most often used for

Positivistic philosophy and qualitative research method for phenomenological philosophy

The main objectives of the study involved understanding how Indian jewellers could benefit

from CRM practices. Accordingly, this required the use of phenomenological approach to

research.

3.4 RESEARCH DESIGN

As per Saunders, any marketing research project must involve an appropriate research design

which would provide the basic framework for the research. This design must involve

detailing the necessary procedures which would help in obtaining the information relevant

for achieving the purpose of marketing research. MR Malhotra believes research design

should be mainly exploratory or descriptive. A researcher undertakes exploratory research

primarily to get a better understanding of the problem facing the researcher. Exploratory

research methods are most appropriate where the researcher has to collect primary data

which is qualitative in nature and has to be analyzed thus. In this case, exploratory research

32

methods were employed since this research required collecting and analyzing qualitative

data.

3.5 COLLECTION OF DATA

In gathering information, various tools and sources were adopted to ensure the success of this

project. For the purpose of collection of data, primary sources and secondary sources were

used.

Primary Sources

Its opined that there could be several method of collecting primary data, the choice of which

depends upon the nature of the study, the availability of the resources with a researcher and

the ability and proficiency of the researcher. Quite often the most appropriate method cannot

be used keeping in view the constraint of resources and skills. Therefore, it would be

imperative to be sensitive about the impact of such limitations on the quality of the data. In

this study, the questionnaire survey for collecting primary data was used.

The main objective of this research is to collect data from jewelers in India. For the

achievement of this objective, personal surveys were conducted to generate the wealth of

appropriate information.

Once the questionnaire was drafted it was pilot tested with two jewelers and their suggestions

were incorporated so as to enhance the standard of the questionnaire. It was found out after

pilot testing that the personal administration of the questionnaire among the respondents

(jewelers) would be advisable since some of the technical terms used were not clearly

understood by the respondents. Very few technical terms were used to avoid the

misunderstanding of the survey. Out of around 70 jewellers contacted, only 38 jewelers

agreed to participate in this survey which was done in and around Chandigarh, Punjab,

Haryana and Delhi. Among the reasons put forth by the respondents included non availability

33

of time or the reluctance to part with official information. Collection of information

forcefully was not appreciated; therefore only willing respondents were surveyed.

Secondary Sources

Among the secondary sources, the information in vast collection of journals, books, online

resources specialized software’s, newspapers, magazines were used. The biggest advantage

of using secondary data is its cost-effectiveness. Apart from that, it is much faster to collect

secondary data than primary data. Nevertheless, there are certain drawbacks of using

secondary data. Very often, it is not convenient to find the data which would match the

requirements of the current research problem or to be assured of its accuracy and reliability.

There was not enough secondary data particularly on CRM used by jewellers in India but as

jewellers falling in the SME’s category, enough information was gathered.

3.6 DATA ANALYSIS

Both primary and secondary data were used in order to achieve the most valid answers for

meeting the research objectives. The data generated for each question was reduced and

simplified during the process of analysis.

3.7 RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY OF THE RESEARCH

The validity of the research was tried to be maintained by managing the entire process of

research in order to keep track of the objectives of the research. Respondents who were

unwilling to participate were excluded from the purview of the research, while personal

interviews were conducted with the other respondents so that the most reliable and valid

information for the research was possibly collected.

Sample Size:

The sample size for the survey was 38 jewellers

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Sampling Technique:

CONVENIENCE SAMPLING TECHNIQUE

Data Analysis:

The data was collected and analyzed through various statistical tools like

percentages

graphs

data tables

Interpretation was done to achieve the object of the study.

Limitations:

To carry out this project was in itself a cumbersome job, which needed a proper and systematic

method. The project was completed well in time, but a couple of limitations were also encountered.

They are as follows:-

The main and most important difficulty faced during this exercise was related to the questionnaire,

as respondents do not always give out true and reliable information.

Some of the respondents were quite hostile so I had to face some problem in getting the

questionnaire filled

The sample area was confined to 4 cities which was in itself a big problem as it took time to collect

data and information

Being a jeweller my self was a limitation as other jewellers don’t prefer to tell their shop plans to

other jewellers

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CHATER-4: DATA ANALYSIS FEEDBACK AND DATA FINDINGS

4.1 DATA ANALYSIS

36

In this section the various observations that have been made during the data analysis part of

the research will be discussed. For the purpose of the research, more than 60 jewellers in

Chandigarh, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi region were approached out of which 38 agreed to

participate in the survey. They were interviewed using structured questionnaire.

The survey showed that most of the jewellers were quite old into the business. They were

mostly into this industry as a family business. Most of the establishments had been since

many years. There were only two jewellers who had branches. Most of the jewellers had no

branches probably because they had established customer base on which they wanted to cater

to.

In response to the second question 21 respondents said that they had more than nearly 20

customers every day. There were 11 jewellers who had even more than 21 customers each

day. There were also six small jewellers who expected less than 10 customers each day.

The third question asked the respondents to state the extent of repeat customers they get on

an average at their shop. Since the customer relationship management primarily deals with

promoting repeat buying behaviour among existing customers, it was necessary to find out

the repeat buyers at the responding outlets. 28 jewellers said that more than one third of their

daily customers are repeat customers. Five respondents said that it was less than one third

whereas there were three jewellers who said that they had more than one third of their daily

customers as repeat customers.

The fourth question asked the respondents about the awareness of the general CRM practices

that are prevalent in the Jewellery market. Most of the jewellers (26) said that they were

aware of some or the other of the CRM schemes that are offered by different jewellers in the

market. There were many (12) respondents who claimed that they were not aware of any

such schemes or offers in the market.

37

In the fifth question of the questionnaire the researcher attempted to ask the respondents the

general outlook of the jewellers as regards the CRM to be practiced from business

prospective. The responses showed that 21 jewellers have not been practicing the customer

relationship management program at all. There were however 17 respondents who claimed

that they had been using some or the other kind of customer relationship management.

Almost all the respondent jewellers told the researcher on response to the sixth question that

they had been maintaining data bases of their existing customers. More than 30 jewellers

said that they have proper systems in places to keep track of the customers who walk in to

their shop.

The seventh questions asked the respondents about whether they used any customer

relationship management technique to attract and reward customers to their establishment.

This would tell the researcher the general acceptability of CRM practices among jewellers in

Indian market. Eighteen respondents told the researcher that they have been using some kind

of customer relationship software at their establishments but mostly such software at the

moment had limited applicability. There were 20 jewellers who still did not believe in using

such software. Their opinion was that their customer base is not so large or frequent that such

software is needed to reward the customers. They recognized their customer base by face and

therefore, relied mostly on memory to reward such customers. Moreover, they did not have

any formal schemes to reward customers or encourage them to buy more from them.

The eighth question in the questionnaire asked the respondent jewellers about their perceived

utility of maintaining customer relationship. It is expected that the jewellers would put in

efforts to promote customer relationship directly or indirectly if they perceive some benefits

coming out of it. There were 24 jewellers who said that they find maintaining customer

relationship beneficial for business. There were however 14 jewellers who said that they did

not find maintaining customer relationship as important for jewellery business.

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The next question asked the respondents about the effectiveness of customer relationship

marketing in creating positive word of mouth in the market. Customer relationship is not

known to only increase the repeat buying behaviour of the customer but with the help of

loyal customers attracts new business for the organisations too. In response to the question 23

respondents said that they were in favour of maintaining good customer relationships with

customers because that helps them spread a good and positive word of mouth in the market.

There were 15 respondents who did not agree with the statement.

The eleventh question in the row asked the respondents to tell the relative degree of

importance that the customer attaches with different jewellery attributes like price, design,

brand trust etc. it was seen in the responses that trust in the brand attached with the

establishment and the jewellery and the design of the product were very important

consideration for the customer. The references from friends and acquaintances were also

important consideration for the customer. Price of the product and the brand name of the

jewellery item were not as important for the end customers.

In the last three questions it emerged that although CRM was expected to be more beneficial

for the business and profitability aspect, direct customer contact and one to one interaction

with them was easier and preferable to most of the jewellers.

4.2 FEEDBACK

39

This section of the research report shall discuss the collective data as compiled from the field

survey conducted. While interviewing the respondents some unstructured views were also

taken from the respondents which were noted down by the researcher and were made a part

of data interpretation just to make the interpretation more understanding and relevant for the

reader. Such informal feedbacks shall also give a deeper insight into the way jewellers in

Indian market think and perceived the topic of research i.e. the customer relationship

management.

The first part of the survey dealt with finding out the general profile of the sample

respondents. There were in all 38 jewellers who responded to the survey. It was interesting to

see that most of the respondents were into this business as family business with years of

presence and experience in the area. Strangely, there were hardly any jewellers who had

branches. This could probably be attributed to the fact that most of the jewellers had a close

net set of customers who have been buying gold and jewellery from them since many years.

The trust factor involved in buying and selling of gold was also one of the reasons why

jewellers did not want to open many branches of their establishments. Customers would like

to buy from establishment that is old and has a good name in the market rather than trying

new establishments in search of better deals.

Most of the establishments have been busy catering to many customers on daily basis as

majority of respondents said that they dealt with at least 10 to 20 customers on daily basis.

But what was more interesting to note was the fact that most of the jewellers had at least one

third customers who visited their establishment time and again for purchasing or other

requirements. This showed that customers would like to visit one establishment time and

again for their jewellery requirements rather than exploring new establishments. This again

points out towards the importance of trust factor in influencing customers towards or away

from any organisation.

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As far as awareness of customer relationship management practices were concerned majority

of jewellers told the researcher that they were aware of some common practices in the Indian

market. Some among them were mailers, loyalty point schemes, offers and benefits, emails.

There were many jewellers who were aware of at least two of such schemes, whereas the

awareness of the all the practiced methods was limited among the jewellers the reasons for

which were investigated in the following questions of the interview questionnaire.

As said by Vinod Gupta, Partner, Jain Art Jewellers, Ludhiana: We are using various

schemes and offers to retain and attract new customers and to maintain a good relationship

with them which thus helps in increasing the sales of the firm. A coin of 10 gm is given free

on an purchase of above 10k is one of our offers.

Clear majority of jewellers were also practicing customer relationship management in one

way or the other. The method used by them to promote their product or services among

existing customers were different but each one of them was using the same in their

establishment. This showed that not only was there awareness among the jewellers but even

such customer relationship management was also practiced in different forms by the

jewellers in India. Some respondent jewellers also told the researcher that they feel that

customer relationship is more becoming a necessity to retain a customer with the

establishment.

As said by Sunil Jain, Partner, Kapurthala Jewellers, Delhi: Customer Relationship

Management has become one of the most necessary parts of business today. With immense

cut throat competition, retaining our current customers is the prior necessity and then making

new customers is always beneficial.

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ANNEXURE-1

Sample size = 38 Jewellers

About the study :

Establishments participated = 38

Establishment since: 36 of them were many years old running as family businesses

Branches if any: Only 2 jewellers had branches. Most of the jewellers concentrated on one locality

by only one shop in an area. Not many jewellers had branches.

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Customers dealing on daily basis:

The following results were depicted after the survey:

Big Jewellery Shops had on a daily average over 20 customers a day

Small jewellers were between 10 – 20

Rising gold prices was a big concern to all the jewellers that made the usual no. of customers less as compared to the older times when gold prices were low

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Options Less than 10 10 – 20 More than 20

Ans 6 21 11

Old customers visiting your establishments

Percentage Less than 10% 11% - 30% 31% - 50% 51% and above

Ans 2 5 28 3

The following results were depicted after the survey:

Jewellery is such a business where trust and goodwill count on the most

Trust lays the foundation of any business

Most of the customers prefer keeping the same jeweller on trust

Only 3 jewellers had over 50 % old customers

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Are you aware of some customer relationship building and management practices prevalent in

jeweller industry today.

Awareness Yes No

Ans 26 12

The following results were depicted after the survey:

Customer retention programmes were generally known to most of the jewellers

While questioning the new jewellers seemed quite interested in crm as they were not aware of it but had heard of it

Jewellers who were practicing crm before were quite happy with it as it helped them to retain old customers

Are you practicing customer relationship building and management with your existing customers

45

Awareness Yes No

Ans 21 17

The following results were depicted after the survey:

Jewellers prefer practicing crm and they keep a database of their customers

They keep informing their customers about their new designs via emails cards and sms’s

Some jewellers don’t consider it neccecary and feel it a mere time waste

Are you maintaining any kind of database of your existing customers

46

Awareness Yes No

Ans 31 7

The following results were depicted after the survey:

Maximum jewellers do maintain their customer database with their addresses and phone no

They keep informing them and wishing them on festivals and keep in touch

Are you using any particular software for maintaining customer relationship management

47

Awareness Yes No

Ans 18 20

The following results were depicted after the survey:

No was the answer from many jewellers

Messaging them through the internet is the best option

Customer relationship building helps jewellers in their business.

48

Awareness Yes No

Ans 24 14

49

Customer relationship management is crucial and key to building trust among the customers.

Awareness Yes No

Ans 16 22

50

Effective customer relationship management helps in creating a positive word of mouth in

the market among existing and prospective customers.

Awareness Yes No

Ans 23 15

There are many factors that affect behaviour of the customers towards a jeweller. State on a scale

of 1 to 5

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Attributes/ Scale 1 2 3 4 5 Total Rank

Price 9 6 14 8 1 100 4

Design 3 5 9 12 9 133 2

Trust 3 6 8 10 11 134 1

Brand Name 12 9 8 7 2 92 5

Word of Mouth 5 7 9 9 8 122 3

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The following results were depicted after the survey:

Trust is the base of any business and in case of jewellery it is the prime most factor

People see the shop name and for them that shop name is their brand

High society people prefer brands

People are willing to pay more for better designs and quality

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Your preference (direct contact with customer/ CRM)

Preference Direct Contact CRM

Ans 29 9

54

Which is easier for you to practice (direct contact with customer/ CRM)

55

Preference Direct Contact CRM

Ans 27 11

Effectiveness from business and profitability aspect(direct contact with customer/ CRM)

Preference Direct Contact CRM

ANS 16 22

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CHAPTER-5: DISCUSSION, FINDINGS AND SUGGESTIONS

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DISCUSSION

This section of the research report shall discuss the major observations of the literature

review and the field analysis. In the beginning of the research, certain objectives which

included detailed analysis of the literature on the subject matter of research and to conduct a

field survey to draw similarities or contrast between the findings of the literature review and

the field survey results were taken.

has professed that customers are often at the centre of every business activity be it big or

small because customers are the ones who decide the fate of the organisation’s success and

profitability. Organisations need to continuously understand the expectations and

requirements of their target customer segment and then design the business process in such a

way that it appeals the target customer segment. Customer relationship management helps

the organisation in understanding the customers better and also catering to the expectations

and requirements of the customers. The customer relationship management practice can

make the interactions between the organisation and the customers even more meaningful and

fruitful for both the organisation and the customers. Considering the present days scenario,

the customer relationship management systems are considered very important for the

organizational survival and success.

Even the field survey indicated towards the perceived degree of importance that jewellers

attached to customer relationship management in their business and customer satisfaction.

There were direct indications in the field survey also wherein it was admitted by the jewellers

that they considered customer relationship management as an important part of their daily

business activity. Although different jewellers had different ways to maintain relationships

with their customers, one thing that was common among most of them was that they were

practicing customer relationship management in different ways within their establishments to

enhance the customer’s buying experience.. Customers in India believed in buying jewellery

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from selective outlets only that are known to them and are trusted by them and their family

members. This was the reason why nearly one third of the daily customers were repeat

customers to the establishment.

Some suggested that small and medium sector enterprises (SME’s) have some distinct

features. They pointed out that, SME’s by virtue of their smaller size and limited growth

have selective customer segment to cater to like jewellers. This can facilitate one to one

interaction between the organisation and the customer which is necessary in selling a product

like jewellery. This enables the organisation to make better and stronger relationship bonding

with their customers and also allow the organisations to be closer and more understanding

towards customer needs and requirements so that they are catered the best and enhances their

buying experiences.

In the field survey it was seen that almost all the jewellers were keen on knowing their

customer segment and catering to their unique tastes, needs and requirements. Jewellers

claimed to have known their customers with their faces and therefore, found customer

relationship software little irrelevant to them. Jewellers claimed to have been maintaining

proper records of their frequent customers and their buying behaviour while deciding the

customer reward policies. Most of the jeweller respondents claimed to have been practicing

customer relationship management in one form or the other. They believed that customer

relationship management is effective way to affect the overall customer satisfaction and thus

motivating the customers to make more purchases from the establishments. Jewellers pointed

out that effective use of customer relationship management helps the organisation better

understand the buying behaviour of the customers and hence serves as an effective tools to

generate competitive advantage in the market for the practicing organisation. This was in

confirmation to the observations and views of many scholars and researchers who proposed

that small and medium scale organisations are using customer relationship management as a

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tool to gain competitive advantage in the market and also to improve understanding of the

target customers, their needs and requirements from the establishment.

Very interestingly it was seen in the survey responses that customer relationship management

is not expected to increase the trust among the customers towards the establishment.

Jewellers felt that trust is built among the customers based on the kind of dealing and

transparency in the transactions with the customers over repeated purchasing. Customers

come to a jeweller for satisfactory and reliable services and when the customers find a

consistency in the quality and reliability of the services and the products, they develop a

feeling of trust and faith for the jeweller. According to them customer relationship

management may enhance the trust that customers have in the establishment and its brand

but it does not help in building trust in the first place. This was an interesting finding of the

research. This was obviously was a similar to the views who suggested that organisations

practice customer relationship management primarily for the reason that it helps the

organisation in encouraging the customers to deal more frequently with it and make repeat

purchases. It has also been seen in the literature review that retaining the existing customer

and promoting them to make repeat purchase is much less costlier than attracting a new

customer to visit and try the product. This could probably be attributed to the fact that most

of the jewellers to the survey also believed that practicing customer relationship management

helped them promoting trust among the customer and also spread a positive word of mouth in

the market.

Customer relationship management can help the customers in better understanding the needs

and expectations of the customers and provide for not only the trust factor but also the kind

of designs and ornaments customers prefer to wear. It is therefore important for jewellers in

Indian market to practice customer relationship management. It was also seen in the field

survey that according to the jewellers, the price of the product or the brand name attached to

it, if any, did not matter much to the customers. This indirectly meant that customers were

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willing to pay any reasonable price for the right kind of product and services from the

reliable and known jewellers. The established jewellers were able to fetch good price from

their jewellery products and had a good command over the market. Since customer

relationship management helps the jewellers in better understanding the needs and

requirements of the clientele and hence better caters to them. This gives them an added

advantage over the other players in the market.

IT pointed out that small and medium scale organisations have some unique and typical

barriers while practicing and implementing customer relationship management within their

business and organizational structure. According to him and many other scholars, small and

medium sector enterprises have more close and direct interactions with their customers.

Small and medium enterprises have comparatively smaller number of customers and

therefore it is possible for them to have direct interactions with them. Larger organisations

with large customer base have limitations of not able to hold direct interactions with the

customers. The difference between the kind of interaction between the establishment and the

customers makes the implementation of customer relationship management difficult for the

smaller organisations. It was also pointed out that the customer relationship management

process should run throughout all the aspects of business and should revolve around the

customer. They cautioned that any failure in the process may lead to failure in the customer

relationship management.

It was seen that out the smaller organisations often have limited access to resources and

expertise. This makes the task of practicing and administering customer relationship

management difficult for them. Organisations as a result are not able to pay much attention to

the minute details of the customer transactions and concentrate more upon the daily

operational details. This makes the task of customer orientation and customer relationship

management difficult for the smaller organisations.

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The survey findings also revealed some such barriers to customer relationship management

efforts by jewellers in India. Most of the jewellers told the researcher that they find direct

contact and interaction with the end customer more satisfying and fruitful than scientifically

practiced customer relationship with them. They preferred interacting with the end customer

rather than implementing customer relationship management efforts. Jewellers also indicated

to the researcher that they find one to one interaction with customers very easy as compared

to customer relationship management. They were interacting with the customers since many

years and knew them by face. This prompts them to think that interacting with the customers

is more effective and reliable way to not even understand the customer but also change

according to market and customer trends.

4.3 DATA FINDINGS :

The survey results showed that most of the respondents maintained data of their existing

customers. In most of the case the receipt book details carried the details of the customer

placing the order. This also helped the establishment in keeping track of the customer’s

buying behaviour, choices, and also the frequency of buying. Some of the jewellers also

compiled and studied such data and used it to design customer relationship and reward

schemes. Interestingly, there were no clear majority in terms of the usage of any formal

computer software to maintain or analyze the data of the customers at the establishment.

As said by Ravi Kant Jain, Partner, Mangat Ram Niranjan Dass Jewellers: We have never

used any computer software for maintaining customer relations. “Kitty Schemes” are one

way of CRM technique which we have been using from past one year to maintain our

customers. This is an effective way to retain our customers whereby the customer put in

“Kitty” with us and get into an obligatory relationship for the next 20 months, which thus in

turn benefit the customer and the firm too.

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Jewellers still relied upon the traditional ways of identifying the customers by their names

using manual methods to compile and analyse the data if needed. Many respondent jewellers

told that they recognised the existing customers and their family members by name or face

since most of them have been transacting at their establishment since years. Moreover, they

pointed out, the number of customers is not so large. Thus, they relied more upon manual

means or self calculations to understand and interpret their customer’s buying behaviour and

preferences.

As said by Mr. Windlas, Partner, Banu Mal Inder Jal Jewellers: Jewellery is an expensive

product where the customers are willing to have a direct contact with the seller and also

experience the touch and feel of the jewellery. Moreover remembering the customers by their

face helps to gain us loyalty and hence helps in retaining the customer.

Thus, it will not be inappropriate to say that although Indian jewellers relied equally upon the

modern technology as well as the traditional ways of analysing and interpreting their

customers. This could also be interpreted as the software or the modern technology is gaining

popularity among jewellers although it is not completely accepted among them. Jewellers

seemed divided on their opinion about the acceptability of the software in customer

relationship management. The probable reason behind this could be the limited number of

customers that the jewellers were getting on daily basis.

Interestingly it was seen in the responses to the survey that most of the jewellers were not

convinced about the effectiveness of customer relationship management in promoting trust

among the customers. According to them customer relationship management could enhance

the buying experience of the customer and hence motivate them to buy from the

establishment but mostly trust is formed over years of repeated satisfactory dealings with the

same establishment. This way customer gains confidence in the quality of the product and

services of the establishment.

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It was shown from the responses to the field survey that most of the jewellers felt that

effective customer relationship management can influence the overall satisfaction level of the

customer and hence can promote a positive word of mouth in the market.

As said by Surya Kant Jain, Partner, Jain Jewellers, Chandigarh: Promotion of positive word

of mouth among the society is critically important for a jeweller because jewellery is largely

purchased on trust and positive word of mouth enhances the trust of the customer for the

jeweller.

This meant that customer relationship management is known to enhance the overall brand

image of the establishment in the market as more and more customers gain satisfaction

dealing with the jeweller establishment. As many jewellers pointed out, effective customer

relationship handling is one way to ensure that the customer leaves the establishment

satisfied. A satisfied customer is also expected to spread a positive word in the market and

hence, effective customer relationship management can help create positive word of mouth in

the market. This means that jeweller’s incentive to practice customer relationship

management is to promote positive word of mouth in the market other than providing greater

satisfaction and enhanced shopping experience to the existing buyers.

There were hints that customers often rely upon a positive word of mouth from friends,

relatives or acquaintances while deciding upon the establishment to buy jewellery from.

Thus, whereas a positive word of mouth can increase the sales of the establishment, a

negative word of mouth in the market can decrease it substantially too. This could probably

due to the reason that word of mouth directly or indirectly affects the trust of the customer in

the establishment which is one of the most important factors deciding customer’s choice of

preferred jewellers.

As said by Rakesh Talwar, Partner, Talwar Jewellers: “Jewellery is all about trust. Once you

can win the trust of the customer, he is yours”

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Interestingly the brand name of the jeweller dealing with or the price of the jewellery was not

a deciding factor for the customer. Customers were willing to pay good price for the desired

product which is trustworthy and appealing in design. In other words, jewellers who can

create trust in the minds of the customers and can offer them jewellery with appealing

designs are expected to lead the market in long run as more and more customers would prefer

buying from that establishment.

5.2 SUGGESTIONS

CRM is a must and should be practiced on regular basis. Following are some suggestions

which can help jewellers grow:

Keeping record of customers should be practiced by all.

Customers should be sent cards on occasions and should be kept informed about the

new variety and things on a regular basis

Jewellery kitty schemes is a very good option that should be started by all in order to

keep the customer intact and fix the shop sales. This makes the customer in touch

with the shop as he has to come in every month for the payment of the kitty.

Gifts & vouchers should be given to customers on a daily and regular basis.

Discounts are also a good way to keep your customer loyal to you.

SMS, emails, letters all should be used to tell to the customers about the coming of

new designs varieties, important dates, gold rates etc.

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66

CONCLUSION

Traditional jewellers in India are practicing CRM in their own traditional ways and

are not using advanced software that could help them in understanding and catering to

the needs of their customers.

Since most of the customers were repeat customers, jewellers relied upon personal

discretions while rewarding or promoting their customers.

They maintained data bases but were not using it effectively but field survey also

revealed that jewellers recognized the importance of customer relationship

management but were not able to practice due to lack of skill and expertise required

for its effective implementation.

Instead, they relied upon personal interaction with the customers for the same.

It was also found out that CRM software could certainly help make new customers,

increase sales for these traditional jewellers, but to win trust of the customers in

selling expensive product like jewellery, personal interactions hence becomes

essential.

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ANNEXURE -B

SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE

Name of the respondent: ________________________________________________

Contact Number: ______________________________________________________

Q 1. About yourself:

Name of the establishment: _________________________________________________

Establishment since: _______________________________________________________

Branches if any: __________________________________________________________

Q 2. How many customers do you deal on daily basis?

Options Less than 10 10 – 20 More than 20

□ □ □

Q 3. Approximately what percentage of customers visiting your establishment are old

customers

Percentage Less than 10% 11% - 30% 31% - 50% 51% and above

□ □ □ □

Q 4. Are you aware of some customer relationship building and management practices

prevalent in jeweller industry?

Awareness Yes No

□ □

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Q 5. Do you practice customer relationship building and management with your existing

customers?

Awareness Yes No

□ □

Q 6. Do you maintain any kind of database of your existing customers?

Awareness Yes No

□ □

Q 7. Do you use any particular software for maintaining customer relationship management?

Awareness Yes No

□ □

Q 8. Customer relationship building helps jewellers in their business. Do you agree with the

statement?

Awareness Yes No

□ □

Q 9. Customer relationship management is crucial for and key to building trust among the

customers. Do you agree with the statement?

Awareness Yes No

□ □

Q 10. Effective customer relationship management help is creating a positive word of mouth in

the market among existing and prospective customers. Do you agree with the statement?

Awareness Yes No

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Q 11. There are many factors that affect behaviour of the customers towards a jeweller. State

on a scale of 1 to 5, the relative degree of importance you attach to each of the following

attributes in affecting the customer’s buying behaviour:

Attributes/ Scale 1 2 3 4 5

Price □ □ □ □ □

Design □ □ □ □ □

Trust □ □ □ □ □

Brand Name □ □ □ □ □

Word of Mouth □ □ □ □ □

Q 12. Which of the following do you prefer most (direct contact with customer/ CRM)

Preference Direct Contact CRM

□ □

Q 13. Which of the following is easier for you to practice ? (direct contact with customer/ CRM)

Preference Direct Contact CRM

□ □

Q 14. Which of the two is more effective from business and profitability aspect (direct contact

with customer/ CRM)

Preference Direct Contact CRM

□ □

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