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Paper on Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. By, Udit Joshi 2009 - 2010 Under the guidance of: Dr. Manish Agarwal Mr.Ashutosh Srivastava 1
91

Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Oct 19, 2014

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Business

My study is based on exploring the Link between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. The main purpose of this study is to gather and classify the varying factors used in marketing mix modeling, and to look at how public relations is represented therein. Only a few studies albeit have actually been published on the topic within industry literature lacking especially in the Indian context. I would also like to bring upon the issue of Online Media an emerging area for marketing mix modeling which is of particular interest to the practitioners for measuring public relations through websites and consumer-generated media.

Understanding how news and advertising interact is important, from two perspectives. From a business management perspective, this understanding would enable a company to develop optimally-effective integrated communications plans and to allocate resources appropriately. From a theoretical perspective, there is the promise of deepening our understanding of how people integrate messages received from different forms of mass
communication.

While this study focused on how the volume of media coverage relates to brand value, reputation in the media is often a greater predictor of brand value and business outcomes such as sales. In industries that involve more research before purchases are made, the editorial content that results from PR can account for nearly half of brand value.

In industries that exhibit a stronger link between media coverage and brand value, managers in these product categories need to pay special attention to the way the brand’s value is impacted by its communications activities.

‘Earned media’ that results from public relations efforts may be more important than advertising to brand value, especially for companies that sell feature-rich, high-involvement and complicated products such as consumer durables. Findings from the study reveal that industries that sell high involvement products - where a buyer invests time and effort in deciding what to buy than buying by impulse.

Public Relations could be used as a powerful tool to draw customer attention. A timely and topical issue can be news that drives media coverage, getting the company’s name or brand more visibility.

Objectives
As a researcher I delve into the following spheres:

1. Constituents of Brand identity and role of PR in Brand identity
2. Reaching your direct customer through PR with stress on online PR efforts.
3. Empowering customer to make an informed decision.
4. Helping customer research the product at the information seeking stage of the buying decision model.
5. Trust has become a major issue in the post-bubble business world. Relationship building protects a firm’s long-term competitiveness.
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Transcript
Page 1: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Paper on

Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes

By

Udit Joshi

2009 - 2010

Under the guidance of

Dr Manish Agarwal MrAshutosh Srivastava

Amity Business School Hanmer MSampL

1

INDEX

CONTENTS PAGE NO

Executive Summary 6

1 Introduction 9

11 Recession killing the marketing budgets13

12 LG Electronics India turnover15

2 Critical Review of Literature16

21 LG Electronics in India19

22 Press Releases of LG India21

23 Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables in India31

24 Public Relations for LG India34

25 Functioning of LGrsquos PR Agency37

3 Research Methodology40

31 Calculating Corelation40

32 Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour42

4 Data Analysis 44

41 Corelation 44

42 Findings from the Survey45

43 Innovative ways of PR by LGrsquos PR Agency56

5 Conclusion 58

6 Annexure

61 Case Studies60

611 LG Electronics India60

612 Diamler Chrysler62

613 CNBC TV 1864

614 Sony Pictures Casino Royale66

62 Model of Buyer Behaviour68

63 Information Search Sources69

64 Buying Decision Behaiouor70

65 Public Relations Variables and Marketing Mix73

66 Questionnaire74

2

7 References 77

Executive Summary

So far there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to brand value In

this study the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence and sales was assessed

While this study focused on how the volume of media coverage relates to brand value reputation in the

media is often a greater predictor of brand value and business outcomes such as sales In industries that

involve more research before purchases are made the editorial content that results from PR can account

for nearly half of brand value

In industries that exhibit a stronger link between media coverage and brand value managers in

these product categories need to pay special attention to the way the brandrsquos value is impacted by

its communications activities lsquoEarned mediarsquo that results from public relations efforts may be more

important than advertising to brand value especially for companies that sell feature-rich high-involvement

and complicated products such as consumer durables Findings from the study reveal that industries that

sell high involvement products - where a buyer invests time and effort in deciding what to buy - have

much higher correlations between media prominence and sales than industries selling low involvement

products which are more likely to be bought on impulse

The current economic crisis has once again thrust the marketing ROI issue into the spotlight I decided

that it is an extremely relevant time to take a close look at the role public relations played in brand

formation and sales It was my opinion that public relations would prove to play a crucial role in the

marketing mix A sizable amount of brand value particularly for high involvement industries is tied into

media coverage The study is exercised around the consumer durable company LG Electronics as it was

one of the clients I had worked for during the internship

John Grebe who established Dowrsquos Physical Research Lab once said ldquoIf you cannot measure it you

cannot control itrdquo The words ring especially true for marketers who often struggle to show the direct

value and impact of their programs on an organizationrsquos bottom line or their contribution to a brand The

question of getting a good return on marketing spend has been at the forefront of marketers minds since

clever people started coming up and spending money on creative ways to sell products Demonstrating a

good return has been easier for some forms of marketing than others Showing the financial impact of

online marketing for example is relatively easy Online marketing allows marketers to see direct

connections between ad placements and consumer behavior

3

It has however been significantly more difficult to measure the value of PR however since the effects of

media coverage (a composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media

coverage that is not paid for by the brand owner) on behavior has to be measured indirectly While more

difficult it is not impossible to draw connections between how much a company spends on PR and how

much value the company is creating

lsquoEarned mediarsquo that results from public relations efforts may be more important than advertising to brand

value especially for companies that sell feature-rich high-involvement and complicated products such as

consumer durables Findings from the study reveal that industries that sell high involvement products -

where a buyer invests time and effort in deciding what to buy - have much higher correlations between

media prominence and brand value than industries selling low involvement products which are more

likely to be bought on impulse

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some drivers most commonly cited and

studied One could interpret this study as showing that high brand value leads to more media coverage it

is still important for media coverage to be carefully managed since it is the window through which others

will see the brand

This paper argues the significance and identity as a profession as not just a service industry of influential

experts but it has a strong connection to issues of size and economic impact on society at large While

most public relations practitioners would instinctively agree to the existence of this prolific industry only a

few studies albeit have actually been published on the topic within industry literature This is lacking

especially in the Indian context

4

Chapter 1

Introduction

Today it seems that there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their

expenditure as low as they can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can

take that responsibility because in terms of MPR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure

Sometimes the business is able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if

it has good media relations As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including

governmental private and non-governmental organizations Although PR could offer many advantages

there is the limitation of media control Unlike the advertising PR is powered by the influence of the

media That is to say the satisfaction of time and space as well as news contents are confined by the

hand of media while in terms of advertising the company can control such issues by itself

Consequently it seems that PR is more advantageous than disadvantageous However in some cases

the company needs to realize the PR drawbacks before making decisions PR is not only managed by the

internal influence an organization but the marketing perspective and consumer-orientation also power

PR execution Many companies are employing marketing public relations (MPR) which can lead the

organization to outstanding achievement and effectiveness

Public Relations involves a variety of programs designed to maintain or enhance a companys image and

the products and services it offers Successful implementation of an effective public relations strategy can

be a critical component to a marketing plan

A public relations (PR) strategy may play a key role in an organizations promotional strategy A planned

approach to leveraging public relations opportunities can be just as important as advertising and sales

promotions Public Relations is one of the most effective methods to communicate and relate to the

market It is powerful and once things are in motion it is the most cost effective of all promotional

activities In some cases it is free

The success of well executed PR plans can be seen through several organizations that have made it a

central focus of their promotional strategy Paul Newmans Salad Dressing The Body Shop and Ben amp

Jerrys Ice Cream have positioned their organizations through effective PR strategies Intel Sprint and

Microsoft have leveraged public relations to introduce and promote new products and services

Similar to the foundational goals of marketing effective public relations seeks to communicate information

to

5

Launch new products and services

Reposition a product or service

Create or increase interest in a product service or brand

Influence specific target groups

Defend products or services that have suffered from negative press or perception

Enhance the firms overall image

The result of an effective public relations strategy is to generate additional

revenue through greater awareness and information for the products and services

an organization offers

Goals and Objectives

Good strategy begins with identifying your goals and stating your objectives What are the goals and

objectives behind your public relations strategy and can they be measured and quantified

Each of these areas may reflect the goals your public relations campaign may seek to accomplish

Press relations

Communicating news and information of interest about organizations in the most positive light

Product and service promotion

Sponsoring various efforts to publicize specific products or services

Firm communications

Promoting a better and more attractive understanding of the organization with internal and external

communications

Lobbying

Communicating with key individuals to positively influence legislation and regulation

Internal feedback

Advising decision makers within the organization regarding the publics perception and advising actions to

be taken to change negative opinions

Tasks - responsibility areas

Experts prescribers

Communication technicians

Communication facilitators

Problem solving process facilitators

Experts prescribers

Initiate and recommend PR projects

Develop long term strategic PR plans

6

Define PR problems and solutions

Serve as liaisons interpreters and mediators between the organisation and its publics

Evaluate public opinion program results and competitive intelligence

Plan a budget operating on it accounting for the outcome

Superve institutional advertising programs

Communication technicians

Arrange for production of printed matter slides films (News releases house publications

publicity of products amp services competitive intelligence shows exhibits amp special events)

Writing (preparation of speeches scripts)

Editing (preparation of graphics or films)

Preparing speeches for others and giving speeches

Training spokespersons being one

Communication facilitators

Industrial relations

represent employer at various events

contact other public officials

co-ordinate activities among various functional groups to achieve PR objectives

Prepare reports position papers public statements

Submit newsworthy material to appropriate outlets

Problem solving process facilitators

Collaborate with other managers to define and solve organisational problems

Prepare annual PR plans

Implement approved plans and programs

Regularly analyse and report PR research data to management

Monitor actual results against planned performance

Monitor environmental developments likely to have a significant impact on PR performance

7

8

Chapter 11

Recession killing the marketing budgets

Todayrsquos economic uncertainty is causing many companies to rethink and cut their marketing expenditures

for year 2009 Managers are working hard to determine where next yearrsquos smaller budget can be best

spent

What this means is that marketing budgets are among the first to be cut when managers are trying to find

ways to drive down costs in order to retain shareholder confidence and stay afloat Because marketing

expenditure is treated as an annual expense managers often justify the decimation of marketing budgets

on the basis that the effects will only be felt in the current year The view is that once the recession ends

we can return to our previous levels of marketing expenditure

The Nielsen Company has just released data that shows advertising expenditure in the US fell 154 in

the first half of 2009 A total of $569 billion was spent on advertising in the first six months of the year

$103 billion less than the same time period in 2008 All evidence that in times of recession marketing

budgets are amount the first to be cut

A new Association of National Advertisers (ANA) study this summer shows that 53 of ANA member

respondents believe their overall marketing budgets will be reduced up to 10 with almost a third saying

it will be in the 11-20 range What else is new Isnrsquot marketing seen as a luxury in some organizations

Are you battling the Big Cheese to maintain your marketing budget

Our own MarketingProfs guru and founder Roy Young says we need to make marketing matter to the

CEO I guess these ANA members are having a hard time doing that

The study indicates what respondents plan to cut

69 said ad campaign media budgets

63 said production budgets

63 are making their agencies cut internal expenses andor identify cost reductions

63 said travel and expenses

61 said eliminating or delaying new projects

When business is good these basics can be applied to all marketing media including publication ads

tradeshow exhibits and direct mail Today markets are down Sales are uncertain and budgets are being

reduced Magazine advertising and tradeshows are expensive and ROI is difficult to track As advertisers

trim their budgets publications will lose ad lineage and cut their editorial coverage and distribution This

means less people are reading a less interesting magazine that contains your ad Though print media is

9

ideal for creating top of mind awareness and reinforcing brand recognition it seems more expensive

during down markets

Tradeshows also suffer during economic downturns Attendees suspend costly travel and exhibitors

reduce floor space or cut the number of events they support Direct mail does not fare much better Even

with printers holding prices down short run full color projects still begin around $1000 and go up Add

postage and direct mail becomes an expensive proposition

10

Chapter 12

LG Electronics India turnover in 2008 and in 2009

LG India achieved Rs 10730 crore turnover in calender 2008 Unfazed by the slowdown LG Electronics

India has revised upwards its revenue targets for 2009 While the turnover in the year 2009 could have

gone down the Korean consumer electronic firmrsquos revenue grew by 20-25 against the original target of

15 LG India is the countryrsquos largest consumer electronics firm by way of revenue

In August - September lsquo09 the company saw a near 50 sales growth The company has undertaken a

spate of initiatives to ensure such a high growth rate mdash roll out India-centric products build its brand

motivate employees through rewards and complete decentralisation of branches across the nation

The company reported a 40 rise in sales in July-December 2009 from a year ago that helped total

revenue for 2009 grow 21 aided by robust sales of home appliances and LCD TVs LG whose total

sales hit Rs 13000 crore in 2009 has had a spectacular surge since entering India in 1997 though

growth slipped to 10-15 in the last five years as demand waned

LGs expansion plans come after it has set a 45 revenue growth target for 2010 the highest in six

years to generate Rs 19000 crore in sales The company sees sales to be largely driven by demand for

LCD TVs and GSM handsets

11

Chapter 2

Critical Review of Literature

Indian Public Relations Industry is expected to grow $ 6 billion by the year 2010 The Associated

Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has recognised that the present size of

Indian PR industry is worth $ 3 billion Attrition has seized PR industry with its rate exceeding 40 even if

its growing at an annual rate of 32 and likely to double its size to over US$ 6 billion by 2010 from over

US $3 billion presently since corporates are relying more on PR professional to hike their brand image to

take maximum benefits of current economic boom for increased sales amp turnover volumes

These findings are result of a random survey carried out by The Associated Chambers of Commerce

and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) on ldquoATTRITION VS PR amp ITS FUTURE PROSPECTSrdquo in which

over 400 PR professionals views were elicited however adds that a result of growing opportunities costs

in PR industry attrition has become a core concern

Releasing its findings the ASSOCHAM President Venugopal N Dhoot who himself is a lead consumer

durables players said that over 90 of PR professional at entry levels with enthusiasm and passions for

hard work are shifting for greener pastures with in the industry in a yearrsquos time

Venugopal Dhoot whose group spends roughly Rs 3000 crore in building its brand image annually

pointed out that the ASSOCHAM survey confirms the trends that a large number of Corporates are opting

to rope in PR professional for their increased sales turnover as one of finest marketing strategiesrdquo The

survey reveals that pressures apart in PR activities diversification of intellect is most attracting part which

avail them lot of opportunities A majority of PR professional said that in the economic boom a huge

competition has emerged for brand building as result of which PR agencies are in demand and quoting a

very market driven prices for their services for which takers are available

Since demand for PR professional are rising and so are opportunities galoring for relationship industries

and it is because of this reason it has shown a growth rate of about 22-25 in last couple of years which

has risen to 32 and the trend will continue in future and even grow for better said Mr Dhoot Quoting

finding of survey the ASSOCHAM Chief said that by 2010 the PR industry size would grow to more than

US $6 billion According to estimates by the ASSOCHAM the Indian PR industry comprises 1200-1500

agency with their manpower strength of between 30000 to 40000 Business is booming for the public-

relations (PR) industry

It is in this discipline that the industry has seen most growth and expects to see continuing growth in the

future In terms of vertical markets healthcare has been identified by several of the industry as the

fastest-growing sector however the public sector the environment and corporate social responsibility

12

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 2: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

INDEX

CONTENTS PAGE NO

Executive Summary 6

1 Introduction 9

11 Recession killing the marketing budgets13

12 LG Electronics India turnover15

2 Critical Review of Literature16

21 LG Electronics in India19

22 Press Releases of LG India21

23 Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables in India31

24 Public Relations for LG India34

25 Functioning of LGrsquos PR Agency37

3 Research Methodology40

31 Calculating Corelation40

32 Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour42

4 Data Analysis 44

41 Corelation 44

42 Findings from the Survey45

43 Innovative ways of PR by LGrsquos PR Agency56

5 Conclusion 58

6 Annexure

61 Case Studies60

611 LG Electronics India60

612 Diamler Chrysler62

613 CNBC TV 1864

614 Sony Pictures Casino Royale66

62 Model of Buyer Behaviour68

63 Information Search Sources69

64 Buying Decision Behaiouor70

65 Public Relations Variables and Marketing Mix73

66 Questionnaire74

2

7 References 77

Executive Summary

So far there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to brand value In

this study the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence and sales was assessed

While this study focused on how the volume of media coverage relates to brand value reputation in the

media is often a greater predictor of brand value and business outcomes such as sales In industries that

involve more research before purchases are made the editorial content that results from PR can account

for nearly half of brand value

In industries that exhibit a stronger link between media coverage and brand value managers in

these product categories need to pay special attention to the way the brandrsquos value is impacted by

its communications activities lsquoEarned mediarsquo that results from public relations efforts may be more

important than advertising to brand value especially for companies that sell feature-rich high-involvement

and complicated products such as consumer durables Findings from the study reveal that industries that

sell high involvement products - where a buyer invests time and effort in deciding what to buy - have

much higher correlations between media prominence and sales than industries selling low involvement

products which are more likely to be bought on impulse

The current economic crisis has once again thrust the marketing ROI issue into the spotlight I decided

that it is an extremely relevant time to take a close look at the role public relations played in brand

formation and sales It was my opinion that public relations would prove to play a crucial role in the

marketing mix A sizable amount of brand value particularly for high involvement industries is tied into

media coverage The study is exercised around the consumer durable company LG Electronics as it was

one of the clients I had worked for during the internship

John Grebe who established Dowrsquos Physical Research Lab once said ldquoIf you cannot measure it you

cannot control itrdquo The words ring especially true for marketers who often struggle to show the direct

value and impact of their programs on an organizationrsquos bottom line or their contribution to a brand The

question of getting a good return on marketing spend has been at the forefront of marketers minds since

clever people started coming up and spending money on creative ways to sell products Demonstrating a

good return has been easier for some forms of marketing than others Showing the financial impact of

online marketing for example is relatively easy Online marketing allows marketers to see direct

connections between ad placements and consumer behavior

3

It has however been significantly more difficult to measure the value of PR however since the effects of

media coverage (a composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media

coverage that is not paid for by the brand owner) on behavior has to be measured indirectly While more

difficult it is not impossible to draw connections between how much a company spends on PR and how

much value the company is creating

lsquoEarned mediarsquo that results from public relations efforts may be more important than advertising to brand

value especially for companies that sell feature-rich high-involvement and complicated products such as

consumer durables Findings from the study reveal that industries that sell high involvement products -

where a buyer invests time and effort in deciding what to buy - have much higher correlations between

media prominence and brand value than industries selling low involvement products which are more

likely to be bought on impulse

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some drivers most commonly cited and

studied One could interpret this study as showing that high brand value leads to more media coverage it

is still important for media coverage to be carefully managed since it is the window through which others

will see the brand

This paper argues the significance and identity as a profession as not just a service industry of influential

experts but it has a strong connection to issues of size and economic impact on society at large While

most public relations practitioners would instinctively agree to the existence of this prolific industry only a

few studies albeit have actually been published on the topic within industry literature This is lacking

especially in the Indian context

4

Chapter 1

Introduction

Today it seems that there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their

expenditure as low as they can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can

take that responsibility because in terms of MPR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure

Sometimes the business is able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if

it has good media relations As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including

governmental private and non-governmental organizations Although PR could offer many advantages

there is the limitation of media control Unlike the advertising PR is powered by the influence of the

media That is to say the satisfaction of time and space as well as news contents are confined by the

hand of media while in terms of advertising the company can control such issues by itself

Consequently it seems that PR is more advantageous than disadvantageous However in some cases

the company needs to realize the PR drawbacks before making decisions PR is not only managed by the

internal influence an organization but the marketing perspective and consumer-orientation also power

PR execution Many companies are employing marketing public relations (MPR) which can lead the

organization to outstanding achievement and effectiveness

Public Relations involves a variety of programs designed to maintain or enhance a companys image and

the products and services it offers Successful implementation of an effective public relations strategy can

be a critical component to a marketing plan

A public relations (PR) strategy may play a key role in an organizations promotional strategy A planned

approach to leveraging public relations opportunities can be just as important as advertising and sales

promotions Public Relations is one of the most effective methods to communicate and relate to the

market It is powerful and once things are in motion it is the most cost effective of all promotional

activities In some cases it is free

The success of well executed PR plans can be seen through several organizations that have made it a

central focus of their promotional strategy Paul Newmans Salad Dressing The Body Shop and Ben amp

Jerrys Ice Cream have positioned their organizations through effective PR strategies Intel Sprint and

Microsoft have leveraged public relations to introduce and promote new products and services

Similar to the foundational goals of marketing effective public relations seeks to communicate information

to

5

Launch new products and services

Reposition a product or service

Create or increase interest in a product service or brand

Influence specific target groups

Defend products or services that have suffered from negative press or perception

Enhance the firms overall image

The result of an effective public relations strategy is to generate additional

revenue through greater awareness and information for the products and services

an organization offers

Goals and Objectives

Good strategy begins with identifying your goals and stating your objectives What are the goals and

objectives behind your public relations strategy and can they be measured and quantified

Each of these areas may reflect the goals your public relations campaign may seek to accomplish

Press relations

Communicating news and information of interest about organizations in the most positive light

Product and service promotion

Sponsoring various efforts to publicize specific products or services

Firm communications

Promoting a better and more attractive understanding of the organization with internal and external

communications

Lobbying

Communicating with key individuals to positively influence legislation and regulation

Internal feedback

Advising decision makers within the organization regarding the publics perception and advising actions to

be taken to change negative opinions

Tasks - responsibility areas

Experts prescribers

Communication technicians

Communication facilitators

Problem solving process facilitators

Experts prescribers

Initiate and recommend PR projects

Develop long term strategic PR plans

6

Define PR problems and solutions

Serve as liaisons interpreters and mediators between the organisation and its publics

Evaluate public opinion program results and competitive intelligence

Plan a budget operating on it accounting for the outcome

Superve institutional advertising programs

Communication technicians

Arrange for production of printed matter slides films (News releases house publications

publicity of products amp services competitive intelligence shows exhibits amp special events)

Writing (preparation of speeches scripts)

Editing (preparation of graphics or films)

Preparing speeches for others and giving speeches

Training spokespersons being one

Communication facilitators

Industrial relations

represent employer at various events

contact other public officials

co-ordinate activities among various functional groups to achieve PR objectives

Prepare reports position papers public statements

Submit newsworthy material to appropriate outlets

Problem solving process facilitators

Collaborate with other managers to define and solve organisational problems

Prepare annual PR plans

Implement approved plans and programs

Regularly analyse and report PR research data to management

Monitor actual results against planned performance

Monitor environmental developments likely to have a significant impact on PR performance

7

8

Chapter 11

Recession killing the marketing budgets

Todayrsquos economic uncertainty is causing many companies to rethink and cut their marketing expenditures

for year 2009 Managers are working hard to determine where next yearrsquos smaller budget can be best

spent

What this means is that marketing budgets are among the first to be cut when managers are trying to find

ways to drive down costs in order to retain shareholder confidence and stay afloat Because marketing

expenditure is treated as an annual expense managers often justify the decimation of marketing budgets

on the basis that the effects will only be felt in the current year The view is that once the recession ends

we can return to our previous levels of marketing expenditure

The Nielsen Company has just released data that shows advertising expenditure in the US fell 154 in

the first half of 2009 A total of $569 billion was spent on advertising in the first six months of the year

$103 billion less than the same time period in 2008 All evidence that in times of recession marketing

budgets are amount the first to be cut

A new Association of National Advertisers (ANA) study this summer shows that 53 of ANA member

respondents believe their overall marketing budgets will be reduced up to 10 with almost a third saying

it will be in the 11-20 range What else is new Isnrsquot marketing seen as a luxury in some organizations

Are you battling the Big Cheese to maintain your marketing budget

Our own MarketingProfs guru and founder Roy Young says we need to make marketing matter to the

CEO I guess these ANA members are having a hard time doing that

The study indicates what respondents plan to cut

69 said ad campaign media budgets

63 said production budgets

63 are making their agencies cut internal expenses andor identify cost reductions

63 said travel and expenses

61 said eliminating or delaying new projects

When business is good these basics can be applied to all marketing media including publication ads

tradeshow exhibits and direct mail Today markets are down Sales are uncertain and budgets are being

reduced Magazine advertising and tradeshows are expensive and ROI is difficult to track As advertisers

trim their budgets publications will lose ad lineage and cut their editorial coverage and distribution This

means less people are reading a less interesting magazine that contains your ad Though print media is

9

ideal for creating top of mind awareness and reinforcing brand recognition it seems more expensive

during down markets

Tradeshows also suffer during economic downturns Attendees suspend costly travel and exhibitors

reduce floor space or cut the number of events they support Direct mail does not fare much better Even

with printers holding prices down short run full color projects still begin around $1000 and go up Add

postage and direct mail becomes an expensive proposition

10

Chapter 12

LG Electronics India turnover in 2008 and in 2009

LG India achieved Rs 10730 crore turnover in calender 2008 Unfazed by the slowdown LG Electronics

India has revised upwards its revenue targets for 2009 While the turnover in the year 2009 could have

gone down the Korean consumer electronic firmrsquos revenue grew by 20-25 against the original target of

15 LG India is the countryrsquos largest consumer electronics firm by way of revenue

In August - September lsquo09 the company saw a near 50 sales growth The company has undertaken a

spate of initiatives to ensure such a high growth rate mdash roll out India-centric products build its brand

motivate employees through rewards and complete decentralisation of branches across the nation

The company reported a 40 rise in sales in July-December 2009 from a year ago that helped total

revenue for 2009 grow 21 aided by robust sales of home appliances and LCD TVs LG whose total

sales hit Rs 13000 crore in 2009 has had a spectacular surge since entering India in 1997 though

growth slipped to 10-15 in the last five years as demand waned

LGs expansion plans come after it has set a 45 revenue growth target for 2010 the highest in six

years to generate Rs 19000 crore in sales The company sees sales to be largely driven by demand for

LCD TVs and GSM handsets

11

Chapter 2

Critical Review of Literature

Indian Public Relations Industry is expected to grow $ 6 billion by the year 2010 The Associated

Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has recognised that the present size of

Indian PR industry is worth $ 3 billion Attrition has seized PR industry with its rate exceeding 40 even if

its growing at an annual rate of 32 and likely to double its size to over US$ 6 billion by 2010 from over

US $3 billion presently since corporates are relying more on PR professional to hike their brand image to

take maximum benefits of current economic boom for increased sales amp turnover volumes

These findings are result of a random survey carried out by The Associated Chambers of Commerce

and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) on ldquoATTRITION VS PR amp ITS FUTURE PROSPECTSrdquo in which

over 400 PR professionals views were elicited however adds that a result of growing opportunities costs

in PR industry attrition has become a core concern

Releasing its findings the ASSOCHAM President Venugopal N Dhoot who himself is a lead consumer

durables players said that over 90 of PR professional at entry levels with enthusiasm and passions for

hard work are shifting for greener pastures with in the industry in a yearrsquos time

Venugopal Dhoot whose group spends roughly Rs 3000 crore in building its brand image annually

pointed out that the ASSOCHAM survey confirms the trends that a large number of Corporates are opting

to rope in PR professional for their increased sales turnover as one of finest marketing strategiesrdquo The

survey reveals that pressures apart in PR activities diversification of intellect is most attracting part which

avail them lot of opportunities A majority of PR professional said that in the economic boom a huge

competition has emerged for brand building as result of which PR agencies are in demand and quoting a

very market driven prices for their services for which takers are available

Since demand for PR professional are rising and so are opportunities galoring for relationship industries

and it is because of this reason it has shown a growth rate of about 22-25 in last couple of years which

has risen to 32 and the trend will continue in future and even grow for better said Mr Dhoot Quoting

finding of survey the ASSOCHAM Chief said that by 2010 the PR industry size would grow to more than

US $6 billion According to estimates by the ASSOCHAM the Indian PR industry comprises 1200-1500

agency with their manpower strength of between 30000 to 40000 Business is booming for the public-

relations (PR) industry

It is in this discipline that the industry has seen most growth and expects to see continuing growth in the

future In terms of vertical markets healthcare has been identified by several of the industry as the

fastest-growing sector however the public sector the environment and corporate social responsibility

12

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 3: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

7 References 77

Executive Summary

So far there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to brand value In

this study the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence and sales was assessed

While this study focused on how the volume of media coverage relates to brand value reputation in the

media is often a greater predictor of brand value and business outcomes such as sales In industries that

involve more research before purchases are made the editorial content that results from PR can account

for nearly half of brand value

In industries that exhibit a stronger link between media coverage and brand value managers in

these product categories need to pay special attention to the way the brandrsquos value is impacted by

its communications activities lsquoEarned mediarsquo that results from public relations efforts may be more

important than advertising to brand value especially for companies that sell feature-rich high-involvement

and complicated products such as consumer durables Findings from the study reveal that industries that

sell high involvement products - where a buyer invests time and effort in deciding what to buy - have

much higher correlations between media prominence and sales than industries selling low involvement

products which are more likely to be bought on impulse

The current economic crisis has once again thrust the marketing ROI issue into the spotlight I decided

that it is an extremely relevant time to take a close look at the role public relations played in brand

formation and sales It was my opinion that public relations would prove to play a crucial role in the

marketing mix A sizable amount of brand value particularly for high involvement industries is tied into

media coverage The study is exercised around the consumer durable company LG Electronics as it was

one of the clients I had worked for during the internship

John Grebe who established Dowrsquos Physical Research Lab once said ldquoIf you cannot measure it you

cannot control itrdquo The words ring especially true for marketers who often struggle to show the direct

value and impact of their programs on an organizationrsquos bottom line or their contribution to a brand The

question of getting a good return on marketing spend has been at the forefront of marketers minds since

clever people started coming up and spending money on creative ways to sell products Demonstrating a

good return has been easier for some forms of marketing than others Showing the financial impact of

online marketing for example is relatively easy Online marketing allows marketers to see direct

connections between ad placements and consumer behavior

3

It has however been significantly more difficult to measure the value of PR however since the effects of

media coverage (a composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media

coverage that is not paid for by the brand owner) on behavior has to be measured indirectly While more

difficult it is not impossible to draw connections between how much a company spends on PR and how

much value the company is creating

lsquoEarned mediarsquo that results from public relations efforts may be more important than advertising to brand

value especially for companies that sell feature-rich high-involvement and complicated products such as

consumer durables Findings from the study reveal that industries that sell high involvement products -

where a buyer invests time and effort in deciding what to buy - have much higher correlations between

media prominence and brand value than industries selling low involvement products which are more

likely to be bought on impulse

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some drivers most commonly cited and

studied One could interpret this study as showing that high brand value leads to more media coverage it

is still important for media coverage to be carefully managed since it is the window through which others

will see the brand

This paper argues the significance and identity as a profession as not just a service industry of influential

experts but it has a strong connection to issues of size and economic impact on society at large While

most public relations practitioners would instinctively agree to the existence of this prolific industry only a

few studies albeit have actually been published on the topic within industry literature This is lacking

especially in the Indian context

4

Chapter 1

Introduction

Today it seems that there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their

expenditure as low as they can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can

take that responsibility because in terms of MPR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure

Sometimes the business is able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if

it has good media relations As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including

governmental private and non-governmental organizations Although PR could offer many advantages

there is the limitation of media control Unlike the advertising PR is powered by the influence of the

media That is to say the satisfaction of time and space as well as news contents are confined by the

hand of media while in terms of advertising the company can control such issues by itself

Consequently it seems that PR is more advantageous than disadvantageous However in some cases

the company needs to realize the PR drawbacks before making decisions PR is not only managed by the

internal influence an organization but the marketing perspective and consumer-orientation also power

PR execution Many companies are employing marketing public relations (MPR) which can lead the

organization to outstanding achievement and effectiveness

Public Relations involves a variety of programs designed to maintain or enhance a companys image and

the products and services it offers Successful implementation of an effective public relations strategy can

be a critical component to a marketing plan

A public relations (PR) strategy may play a key role in an organizations promotional strategy A planned

approach to leveraging public relations opportunities can be just as important as advertising and sales

promotions Public Relations is one of the most effective methods to communicate and relate to the

market It is powerful and once things are in motion it is the most cost effective of all promotional

activities In some cases it is free

The success of well executed PR plans can be seen through several organizations that have made it a

central focus of their promotional strategy Paul Newmans Salad Dressing The Body Shop and Ben amp

Jerrys Ice Cream have positioned their organizations through effective PR strategies Intel Sprint and

Microsoft have leveraged public relations to introduce and promote new products and services

Similar to the foundational goals of marketing effective public relations seeks to communicate information

to

5

Launch new products and services

Reposition a product or service

Create or increase interest in a product service or brand

Influence specific target groups

Defend products or services that have suffered from negative press or perception

Enhance the firms overall image

The result of an effective public relations strategy is to generate additional

revenue through greater awareness and information for the products and services

an organization offers

Goals and Objectives

Good strategy begins with identifying your goals and stating your objectives What are the goals and

objectives behind your public relations strategy and can they be measured and quantified

Each of these areas may reflect the goals your public relations campaign may seek to accomplish

Press relations

Communicating news and information of interest about organizations in the most positive light

Product and service promotion

Sponsoring various efforts to publicize specific products or services

Firm communications

Promoting a better and more attractive understanding of the organization with internal and external

communications

Lobbying

Communicating with key individuals to positively influence legislation and regulation

Internal feedback

Advising decision makers within the organization regarding the publics perception and advising actions to

be taken to change negative opinions

Tasks - responsibility areas

Experts prescribers

Communication technicians

Communication facilitators

Problem solving process facilitators

Experts prescribers

Initiate and recommend PR projects

Develop long term strategic PR plans

6

Define PR problems and solutions

Serve as liaisons interpreters and mediators between the organisation and its publics

Evaluate public opinion program results and competitive intelligence

Plan a budget operating on it accounting for the outcome

Superve institutional advertising programs

Communication technicians

Arrange for production of printed matter slides films (News releases house publications

publicity of products amp services competitive intelligence shows exhibits amp special events)

Writing (preparation of speeches scripts)

Editing (preparation of graphics or films)

Preparing speeches for others and giving speeches

Training spokespersons being one

Communication facilitators

Industrial relations

represent employer at various events

contact other public officials

co-ordinate activities among various functional groups to achieve PR objectives

Prepare reports position papers public statements

Submit newsworthy material to appropriate outlets

Problem solving process facilitators

Collaborate with other managers to define and solve organisational problems

Prepare annual PR plans

Implement approved plans and programs

Regularly analyse and report PR research data to management

Monitor actual results against planned performance

Monitor environmental developments likely to have a significant impact on PR performance

7

8

Chapter 11

Recession killing the marketing budgets

Todayrsquos economic uncertainty is causing many companies to rethink and cut their marketing expenditures

for year 2009 Managers are working hard to determine where next yearrsquos smaller budget can be best

spent

What this means is that marketing budgets are among the first to be cut when managers are trying to find

ways to drive down costs in order to retain shareholder confidence and stay afloat Because marketing

expenditure is treated as an annual expense managers often justify the decimation of marketing budgets

on the basis that the effects will only be felt in the current year The view is that once the recession ends

we can return to our previous levels of marketing expenditure

The Nielsen Company has just released data that shows advertising expenditure in the US fell 154 in

the first half of 2009 A total of $569 billion was spent on advertising in the first six months of the year

$103 billion less than the same time period in 2008 All evidence that in times of recession marketing

budgets are amount the first to be cut

A new Association of National Advertisers (ANA) study this summer shows that 53 of ANA member

respondents believe their overall marketing budgets will be reduced up to 10 with almost a third saying

it will be in the 11-20 range What else is new Isnrsquot marketing seen as a luxury in some organizations

Are you battling the Big Cheese to maintain your marketing budget

Our own MarketingProfs guru and founder Roy Young says we need to make marketing matter to the

CEO I guess these ANA members are having a hard time doing that

The study indicates what respondents plan to cut

69 said ad campaign media budgets

63 said production budgets

63 are making their agencies cut internal expenses andor identify cost reductions

63 said travel and expenses

61 said eliminating or delaying new projects

When business is good these basics can be applied to all marketing media including publication ads

tradeshow exhibits and direct mail Today markets are down Sales are uncertain and budgets are being

reduced Magazine advertising and tradeshows are expensive and ROI is difficult to track As advertisers

trim their budgets publications will lose ad lineage and cut their editorial coverage and distribution This

means less people are reading a less interesting magazine that contains your ad Though print media is

9

ideal for creating top of mind awareness and reinforcing brand recognition it seems more expensive

during down markets

Tradeshows also suffer during economic downturns Attendees suspend costly travel and exhibitors

reduce floor space or cut the number of events they support Direct mail does not fare much better Even

with printers holding prices down short run full color projects still begin around $1000 and go up Add

postage and direct mail becomes an expensive proposition

10

Chapter 12

LG Electronics India turnover in 2008 and in 2009

LG India achieved Rs 10730 crore turnover in calender 2008 Unfazed by the slowdown LG Electronics

India has revised upwards its revenue targets for 2009 While the turnover in the year 2009 could have

gone down the Korean consumer electronic firmrsquos revenue grew by 20-25 against the original target of

15 LG India is the countryrsquos largest consumer electronics firm by way of revenue

In August - September lsquo09 the company saw a near 50 sales growth The company has undertaken a

spate of initiatives to ensure such a high growth rate mdash roll out India-centric products build its brand

motivate employees through rewards and complete decentralisation of branches across the nation

The company reported a 40 rise in sales in July-December 2009 from a year ago that helped total

revenue for 2009 grow 21 aided by robust sales of home appliances and LCD TVs LG whose total

sales hit Rs 13000 crore in 2009 has had a spectacular surge since entering India in 1997 though

growth slipped to 10-15 in the last five years as demand waned

LGs expansion plans come after it has set a 45 revenue growth target for 2010 the highest in six

years to generate Rs 19000 crore in sales The company sees sales to be largely driven by demand for

LCD TVs and GSM handsets

11

Chapter 2

Critical Review of Literature

Indian Public Relations Industry is expected to grow $ 6 billion by the year 2010 The Associated

Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has recognised that the present size of

Indian PR industry is worth $ 3 billion Attrition has seized PR industry with its rate exceeding 40 even if

its growing at an annual rate of 32 and likely to double its size to over US$ 6 billion by 2010 from over

US $3 billion presently since corporates are relying more on PR professional to hike their brand image to

take maximum benefits of current economic boom for increased sales amp turnover volumes

These findings are result of a random survey carried out by The Associated Chambers of Commerce

and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) on ldquoATTRITION VS PR amp ITS FUTURE PROSPECTSrdquo in which

over 400 PR professionals views were elicited however adds that a result of growing opportunities costs

in PR industry attrition has become a core concern

Releasing its findings the ASSOCHAM President Venugopal N Dhoot who himself is a lead consumer

durables players said that over 90 of PR professional at entry levels with enthusiasm and passions for

hard work are shifting for greener pastures with in the industry in a yearrsquos time

Venugopal Dhoot whose group spends roughly Rs 3000 crore in building its brand image annually

pointed out that the ASSOCHAM survey confirms the trends that a large number of Corporates are opting

to rope in PR professional for their increased sales turnover as one of finest marketing strategiesrdquo The

survey reveals that pressures apart in PR activities diversification of intellect is most attracting part which

avail them lot of opportunities A majority of PR professional said that in the economic boom a huge

competition has emerged for brand building as result of which PR agencies are in demand and quoting a

very market driven prices for their services for which takers are available

Since demand for PR professional are rising and so are opportunities galoring for relationship industries

and it is because of this reason it has shown a growth rate of about 22-25 in last couple of years which

has risen to 32 and the trend will continue in future and even grow for better said Mr Dhoot Quoting

finding of survey the ASSOCHAM Chief said that by 2010 the PR industry size would grow to more than

US $6 billion According to estimates by the ASSOCHAM the Indian PR industry comprises 1200-1500

agency with their manpower strength of between 30000 to 40000 Business is booming for the public-

relations (PR) industry

It is in this discipline that the industry has seen most growth and expects to see continuing growth in the

future In terms of vertical markets healthcare has been identified by several of the industry as the

fastest-growing sector however the public sector the environment and corporate social responsibility

12

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 4: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

It has however been significantly more difficult to measure the value of PR however since the effects of

media coverage (a composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media

coverage that is not paid for by the brand owner) on behavior has to be measured indirectly While more

difficult it is not impossible to draw connections between how much a company spends on PR and how

much value the company is creating

lsquoEarned mediarsquo that results from public relations efforts may be more important than advertising to brand

value especially for companies that sell feature-rich high-involvement and complicated products such as

consumer durables Findings from the study reveal that industries that sell high involvement products -

where a buyer invests time and effort in deciding what to buy - have much higher correlations between

media prominence and brand value than industries selling low involvement products which are more

likely to be bought on impulse

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some drivers most commonly cited and

studied One could interpret this study as showing that high brand value leads to more media coverage it

is still important for media coverage to be carefully managed since it is the window through which others

will see the brand

This paper argues the significance and identity as a profession as not just a service industry of influential

experts but it has a strong connection to issues of size and economic impact on society at large While

most public relations practitioners would instinctively agree to the existence of this prolific industry only a

few studies albeit have actually been published on the topic within industry literature This is lacking

especially in the Indian context

4

Chapter 1

Introduction

Today it seems that there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their

expenditure as low as they can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can

take that responsibility because in terms of MPR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure

Sometimes the business is able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if

it has good media relations As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including

governmental private and non-governmental organizations Although PR could offer many advantages

there is the limitation of media control Unlike the advertising PR is powered by the influence of the

media That is to say the satisfaction of time and space as well as news contents are confined by the

hand of media while in terms of advertising the company can control such issues by itself

Consequently it seems that PR is more advantageous than disadvantageous However in some cases

the company needs to realize the PR drawbacks before making decisions PR is not only managed by the

internal influence an organization but the marketing perspective and consumer-orientation also power

PR execution Many companies are employing marketing public relations (MPR) which can lead the

organization to outstanding achievement and effectiveness

Public Relations involves a variety of programs designed to maintain or enhance a companys image and

the products and services it offers Successful implementation of an effective public relations strategy can

be a critical component to a marketing plan

A public relations (PR) strategy may play a key role in an organizations promotional strategy A planned

approach to leveraging public relations opportunities can be just as important as advertising and sales

promotions Public Relations is one of the most effective methods to communicate and relate to the

market It is powerful and once things are in motion it is the most cost effective of all promotional

activities In some cases it is free

The success of well executed PR plans can be seen through several organizations that have made it a

central focus of their promotional strategy Paul Newmans Salad Dressing The Body Shop and Ben amp

Jerrys Ice Cream have positioned their organizations through effective PR strategies Intel Sprint and

Microsoft have leveraged public relations to introduce and promote new products and services

Similar to the foundational goals of marketing effective public relations seeks to communicate information

to

5

Launch new products and services

Reposition a product or service

Create or increase interest in a product service or brand

Influence specific target groups

Defend products or services that have suffered from negative press or perception

Enhance the firms overall image

The result of an effective public relations strategy is to generate additional

revenue through greater awareness and information for the products and services

an organization offers

Goals and Objectives

Good strategy begins with identifying your goals and stating your objectives What are the goals and

objectives behind your public relations strategy and can they be measured and quantified

Each of these areas may reflect the goals your public relations campaign may seek to accomplish

Press relations

Communicating news and information of interest about organizations in the most positive light

Product and service promotion

Sponsoring various efforts to publicize specific products or services

Firm communications

Promoting a better and more attractive understanding of the organization with internal and external

communications

Lobbying

Communicating with key individuals to positively influence legislation and regulation

Internal feedback

Advising decision makers within the organization regarding the publics perception and advising actions to

be taken to change negative opinions

Tasks - responsibility areas

Experts prescribers

Communication technicians

Communication facilitators

Problem solving process facilitators

Experts prescribers

Initiate and recommend PR projects

Develop long term strategic PR plans

6

Define PR problems and solutions

Serve as liaisons interpreters and mediators between the organisation and its publics

Evaluate public opinion program results and competitive intelligence

Plan a budget operating on it accounting for the outcome

Superve institutional advertising programs

Communication technicians

Arrange for production of printed matter slides films (News releases house publications

publicity of products amp services competitive intelligence shows exhibits amp special events)

Writing (preparation of speeches scripts)

Editing (preparation of graphics or films)

Preparing speeches for others and giving speeches

Training spokespersons being one

Communication facilitators

Industrial relations

represent employer at various events

contact other public officials

co-ordinate activities among various functional groups to achieve PR objectives

Prepare reports position papers public statements

Submit newsworthy material to appropriate outlets

Problem solving process facilitators

Collaborate with other managers to define and solve organisational problems

Prepare annual PR plans

Implement approved plans and programs

Regularly analyse and report PR research data to management

Monitor actual results against planned performance

Monitor environmental developments likely to have a significant impact on PR performance

7

8

Chapter 11

Recession killing the marketing budgets

Todayrsquos economic uncertainty is causing many companies to rethink and cut their marketing expenditures

for year 2009 Managers are working hard to determine where next yearrsquos smaller budget can be best

spent

What this means is that marketing budgets are among the first to be cut when managers are trying to find

ways to drive down costs in order to retain shareholder confidence and stay afloat Because marketing

expenditure is treated as an annual expense managers often justify the decimation of marketing budgets

on the basis that the effects will only be felt in the current year The view is that once the recession ends

we can return to our previous levels of marketing expenditure

The Nielsen Company has just released data that shows advertising expenditure in the US fell 154 in

the first half of 2009 A total of $569 billion was spent on advertising in the first six months of the year

$103 billion less than the same time period in 2008 All evidence that in times of recession marketing

budgets are amount the first to be cut

A new Association of National Advertisers (ANA) study this summer shows that 53 of ANA member

respondents believe their overall marketing budgets will be reduced up to 10 with almost a third saying

it will be in the 11-20 range What else is new Isnrsquot marketing seen as a luxury in some organizations

Are you battling the Big Cheese to maintain your marketing budget

Our own MarketingProfs guru and founder Roy Young says we need to make marketing matter to the

CEO I guess these ANA members are having a hard time doing that

The study indicates what respondents plan to cut

69 said ad campaign media budgets

63 said production budgets

63 are making their agencies cut internal expenses andor identify cost reductions

63 said travel and expenses

61 said eliminating or delaying new projects

When business is good these basics can be applied to all marketing media including publication ads

tradeshow exhibits and direct mail Today markets are down Sales are uncertain and budgets are being

reduced Magazine advertising and tradeshows are expensive and ROI is difficult to track As advertisers

trim their budgets publications will lose ad lineage and cut their editorial coverage and distribution This

means less people are reading a less interesting magazine that contains your ad Though print media is

9

ideal for creating top of mind awareness and reinforcing brand recognition it seems more expensive

during down markets

Tradeshows also suffer during economic downturns Attendees suspend costly travel and exhibitors

reduce floor space or cut the number of events they support Direct mail does not fare much better Even

with printers holding prices down short run full color projects still begin around $1000 and go up Add

postage and direct mail becomes an expensive proposition

10

Chapter 12

LG Electronics India turnover in 2008 and in 2009

LG India achieved Rs 10730 crore turnover in calender 2008 Unfazed by the slowdown LG Electronics

India has revised upwards its revenue targets for 2009 While the turnover in the year 2009 could have

gone down the Korean consumer electronic firmrsquos revenue grew by 20-25 against the original target of

15 LG India is the countryrsquos largest consumer electronics firm by way of revenue

In August - September lsquo09 the company saw a near 50 sales growth The company has undertaken a

spate of initiatives to ensure such a high growth rate mdash roll out India-centric products build its brand

motivate employees through rewards and complete decentralisation of branches across the nation

The company reported a 40 rise in sales in July-December 2009 from a year ago that helped total

revenue for 2009 grow 21 aided by robust sales of home appliances and LCD TVs LG whose total

sales hit Rs 13000 crore in 2009 has had a spectacular surge since entering India in 1997 though

growth slipped to 10-15 in the last five years as demand waned

LGs expansion plans come after it has set a 45 revenue growth target for 2010 the highest in six

years to generate Rs 19000 crore in sales The company sees sales to be largely driven by demand for

LCD TVs and GSM handsets

11

Chapter 2

Critical Review of Literature

Indian Public Relations Industry is expected to grow $ 6 billion by the year 2010 The Associated

Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has recognised that the present size of

Indian PR industry is worth $ 3 billion Attrition has seized PR industry with its rate exceeding 40 even if

its growing at an annual rate of 32 and likely to double its size to over US$ 6 billion by 2010 from over

US $3 billion presently since corporates are relying more on PR professional to hike their brand image to

take maximum benefits of current economic boom for increased sales amp turnover volumes

These findings are result of a random survey carried out by The Associated Chambers of Commerce

and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) on ldquoATTRITION VS PR amp ITS FUTURE PROSPECTSrdquo in which

over 400 PR professionals views were elicited however adds that a result of growing opportunities costs

in PR industry attrition has become a core concern

Releasing its findings the ASSOCHAM President Venugopal N Dhoot who himself is a lead consumer

durables players said that over 90 of PR professional at entry levels with enthusiasm and passions for

hard work are shifting for greener pastures with in the industry in a yearrsquos time

Venugopal Dhoot whose group spends roughly Rs 3000 crore in building its brand image annually

pointed out that the ASSOCHAM survey confirms the trends that a large number of Corporates are opting

to rope in PR professional for their increased sales turnover as one of finest marketing strategiesrdquo The

survey reveals that pressures apart in PR activities diversification of intellect is most attracting part which

avail them lot of opportunities A majority of PR professional said that in the economic boom a huge

competition has emerged for brand building as result of which PR agencies are in demand and quoting a

very market driven prices for their services for which takers are available

Since demand for PR professional are rising and so are opportunities galoring for relationship industries

and it is because of this reason it has shown a growth rate of about 22-25 in last couple of years which

has risen to 32 and the trend will continue in future and even grow for better said Mr Dhoot Quoting

finding of survey the ASSOCHAM Chief said that by 2010 the PR industry size would grow to more than

US $6 billion According to estimates by the ASSOCHAM the Indian PR industry comprises 1200-1500

agency with their manpower strength of between 30000 to 40000 Business is booming for the public-

relations (PR) industry

It is in this discipline that the industry has seen most growth and expects to see continuing growth in the

future In terms of vertical markets healthcare has been identified by several of the industry as the

fastest-growing sector however the public sector the environment and corporate social responsibility

12

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 5: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 1

Introduction

Today it seems that there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their

expenditure as low as they can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can

take that responsibility because in terms of MPR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure

Sometimes the business is able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if

it has good media relations As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including

governmental private and non-governmental organizations Although PR could offer many advantages

there is the limitation of media control Unlike the advertising PR is powered by the influence of the

media That is to say the satisfaction of time and space as well as news contents are confined by the

hand of media while in terms of advertising the company can control such issues by itself

Consequently it seems that PR is more advantageous than disadvantageous However in some cases

the company needs to realize the PR drawbacks before making decisions PR is not only managed by the

internal influence an organization but the marketing perspective and consumer-orientation also power

PR execution Many companies are employing marketing public relations (MPR) which can lead the

organization to outstanding achievement and effectiveness

Public Relations involves a variety of programs designed to maintain or enhance a companys image and

the products and services it offers Successful implementation of an effective public relations strategy can

be a critical component to a marketing plan

A public relations (PR) strategy may play a key role in an organizations promotional strategy A planned

approach to leveraging public relations opportunities can be just as important as advertising and sales

promotions Public Relations is one of the most effective methods to communicate and relate to the

market It is powerful and once things are in motion it is the most cost effective of all promotional

activities In some cases it is free

The success of well executed PR plans can be seen through several organizations that have made it a

central focus of their promotional strategy Paul Newmans Salad Dressing The Body Shop and Ben amp

Jerrys Ice Cream have positioned their organizations through effective PR strategies Intel Sprint and

Microsoft have leveraged public relations to introduce and promote new products and services

Similar to the foundational goals of marketing effective public relations seeks to communicate information

to

5

Launch new products and services

Reposition a product or service

Create or increase interest in a product service or brand

Influence specific target groups

Defend products or services that have suffered from negative press or perception

Enhance the firms overall image

The result of an effective public relations strategy is to generate additional

revenue through greater awareness and information for the products and services

an organization offers

Goals and Objectives

Good strategy begins with identifying your goals and stating your objectives What are the goals and

objectives behind your public relations strategy and can they be measured and quantified

Each of these areas may reflect the goals your public relations campaign may seek to accomplish

Press relations

Communicating news and information of interest about organizations in the most positive light

Product and service promotion

Sponsoring various efforts to publicize specific products or services

Firm communications

Promoting a better and more attractive understanding of the organization with internal and external

communications

Lobbying

Communicating with key individuals to positively influence legislation and regulation

Internal feedback

Advising decision makers within the organization regarding the publics perception and advising actions to

be taken to change negative opinions

Tasks - responsibility areas

Experts prescribers

Communication technicians

Communication facilitators

Problem solving process facilitators

Experts prescribers

Initiate and recommend PR projects

Develop long term strategic PR plans

6

Define PR problems and solutions

Serve as liaisons interpreters and mediators between the organisation and its publics

Evaluate public opinion program results and competitive intelligence

Plan a budget operating on it accounting for the outcome

Superve institutional advertising programs

Communication technicians

Arrange for production of printed matter slides films (News releases house publications

publicity of products amp services competitive intelligence shows exhibits amp special events)

Writing (preparation of speeches scripts)

Editing (preparation of graphics or films)

Preparing speeches for others and giving speeches

Training spokespersons being one

Communication facilitators

Industrial relations

represent employer at various events

contact other public officials

co-ordinate activities among various functional groups to achieve PR objectives

Prepare reports position papers public statements

Submit newsworthy material to appropriate outlets

Problem solving process facilitators

Collaborate with other managers to define and solve organisational problems

Prepare annual PR plans

Implement approved plans and programs

Regularly analyse and report PR research data to management

Monitor actual results against planned performance

Monitor environmental developments likely to have a significant impact on PR performance

7

8

Chapter 11

Recession killing the marketing budgets

Todayrsquos economic uncertainty is causing many companies to rethink and cut their marketing expenditures

for year 2009 Managers are working hard to determine where next yearrsquos smaller budget can be best

spent

What this means is that marketing budgets are among the first to be cut when managers are trying to find

ways to drive down costs in order to retain shareholder confidence and stay afloat Because marketing

expenditure is treated as an annual expense managers often justify the decimation of marketing budgets

on the basis that the effects will only be felt in the current year The view is that once the recession ends

we can return to our previous levels of marketing expenditure

The Nielsen Company has just released data that shows advertising expenditure in the US fell 154 in

the first half of 2009 A total of $569 billion was spent on advertising in the first six months of the year

$103 billion less than the same time period in 2008 All evidence that in times of recession marketing

budgets are amount the first to be cut

A new Association of National Advertisers (ANA) study this summer shows that 53 of ANA member

respondents believe their overall marketing budgets will be reduced up to 10 with almost a third saying

it will be in the 11-20 range What else is new Isnrsquot marketing seen as a luxury in some organizations

Are you battling the Big Cheese to maintain your marketing budget

Our own MarketingProfs guru and founder Roy Young says we need to make marketing matter to the

CEO I guess these ANA members are having a hard time doing that

The study indicates what respondents plan to cut

69 said ad campaign media budgets

63 said production budgets

63 are making their agencies cut internal expenses andor identify cost reductions

63 said travel and expenses

61 said eliminating or delaying new projects

When business is good these basics can be applied to all marketing media including publication ads

tradeshow exhibits and direct mail Today markets are down Sales are uncertain and budgets are being

reduced Magazine advertising and tradeshows are expensive and ROI is difficult to track As advertisers

trim their budgets publications will lose ad lineage and cut their editorial coverage and distribution This

means less people are reading a less interesting magazine that contains your ad Though print media is

9

ideal for creating top of mind awareness and reinforcing brand recognition it seems more expensive

during down markets

Tradeshows also suffer during economic downturns Attendees suspend costly travel and exhibitors

reduce floor space or cut the number of events they support Direct mail does not fare much better Even

with printers holding prices down short run full color projects still begin around $1000 and go up Add

postage and direct mail becomes an expensive proposition

10

Chapter 12

LG Electronics India turnover in 2008 and in 2009

LG India achieved Rs 10730 crore turnover in calender 2008 Unfazed by the slowdown LG Electronics

India has revised upwards its revenue targets for 2009 While the turnover in the year 2009 could have

gone down the Korean consumer electronic firmrsquos revenue grew by 20-25 against the original target of

15 LG India is the countryrsquos largest consumer electronics firm by way of revenue

In August - September lsquo09 the company saw a near 50 sales growth The company has undertaken a

spate of initiatives to ensure such a high growth rate mdash roll out India-centric products build its brand

motivate employees through rewards and complete decentralisation of branches across the nation

The company reported a 40 rise in sales in July-December 2009 from a year ago that helped total

revenue for 2009 grow 21 aided by robust sales of home appliances and LCD TVs LG whose total

sales hit Rs 13000 crore in 2009 has had a spectacular surge since entering India in 1997 though

growth slipped to 10-15 in the last five years as demand waned

LGs expansion plans come after it has set a 45 revenue growth target for 2010 the highest in six

years to generate Rs 19000 crore in sales The company sees sales to be largely driven by demand for

LCD TVs and GSM handsets

11

Chapter 2

Critical Review of Literature

Indian Public Relations Industry is expected to grow $ 6 billion by the year 2010 The Associated

Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has recognised that the present size of

Indian PR industry is worth $ 3 billion Attrition has seized PR industry with its rate exceeding 40 even if

its growing at an annual rate of 32 and likely to double its size to over US$ 6 billion by 2010 from over

US $3 billion presently since corporates are relying more on PR professional to hike their brand image to

take maximum benefits of current economic boom for increased sales amp turnover volumes

These findings are result of a random survey carried out by The Associated Chambers of Commerce

and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) on ldquoATTRITION VS PR amp ITS FUTURE PROSPECTSrdquo in which

over 400 PR professionals views were elicited however adds that a result of growing opportunities costs

in PR industry attrition has become a core concern

Releasing its findings the ASSOCHAM President Venugopal N Dhoot who himself is a lead consumer

durables players said that over 90 of PR professional at entry levels with enthusiasm and passions for

hard work are shifting for greener pastures with in the industry in a yearrsquos time

Venugopal Dhoot whose group spends roughly Rs 3000 crore in building its brand image annually

pointed out that the ASSOCHAM survey confirms the trends that a large number of Corporates are opting

to rope in PR professional for their increased sales turnover as one of finest marketing strategiesrdquo The

survey reveals that pressures apart in PR activities diversification of intellect is most attracting part which

avail them lot of opportunities A majority of PR professional said that in the economic boom a huge

competition has emerged for brand building as result of which PR agencies are in demand and quoting a

very market driven prices for their services for which takers are available

Since demand for PR professional are rising and so are opportunities galoring for relationship industries

and it is because of this reason it has shown a growth rate of about 22-25 in last couple of years which

has risen to 32 and the trend will continue in future and even grow for better said Mr Dhoot Quoting

finding of survey the ASSOCHAM Chief said that by 2010 the PR industry size would grow to more than

US $6 billion According to estimates by the ASSOCHAM the Indian PR industry comprises 1200-1500

agency with their manpower strength of between 30000 to 40000 Business is booming for the public-

relations (PR) industry

It is in this discipline that the industry has seen most growth and expects to see continuing growth in the

future In terms of vertical markets healthcare has been identified by several of the industry as the

fastest-growing sector however the public sector the environment and corporate social responsibility

12

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 6: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Launch new products and services

Reposition a product or service

Create or increase interest in a product service or brand

Influence specific target groups

Defend products or services that have suffered from negative press or perception

Enhance the firms overall image

The result of an effective public relations strategy is to generate additional

revenue through greater awareness and information for the products and services

an organization offers

Goals and Objectives

Good strategy begins with identifying your goals and stating your objectives What are the goals and

objectives behind your public relations strategy and can they be measured and quantified

Each of these areas may reflect the goals your public relations campaign may seek to accomplish

Press relations

Communicating news and information of interest about organizations in the most positive light

Product and service promotion

Sponsoring various efforts to publicize specific products or services

Firm communications

Promoting a better and more attractive understanding of the organization with internal and external

communications

Lobbying

Communicating with key individuals to positively influence legislation and regulation

Internal feedback

Advising decision makers within the organization regarding the publics perception and advising actions to

be taken to change negative opinions

Tasks - responsibility areas

Experts prescribers

Communication technicians

Communication facilitators

Problem solving process facilitators

Experts prescribers

Initiate and recommend PR projects

Develop long term strategic PR plans

6

Define PR problems and solutions

Serve as liaisons interpreters and mediators between the organisation and its publics

Evaluate public opinion program results and competitive intelligence

Plan a budget operating on it accounting for the outcome

Superve institutional advertising programs

Communication technicians

Arrange for production of printed matter slides films (News releases house publications

publicity of products amp services competitive intelligence shows exhibits amp special events)

Writing (preparation of speeches scripts)

Editing (preparation of graphics or films)

Preparing speeches for others and giving speeches

Training spokespersons being one

Communication facilitators

Industrial relations

represent employer at various events

contact other public officials

co-ordinate activities among various functional groups to achieve PR objectives

Prepare reports position papers public statements

Submit newsworthy material to appropriate outlets

Problem solving process facilitators

Collaborate with other managers to define and solve organisational problems

Prepare annual PR plans

Implement approved plans and programs

Regularly analyse and report PR research data to management

Monitor actual results against planned performance

Monitor environmental developments likely to have a significant impact on PR performance

7

8

Chapter 11

Recession killing the marketing budgets

Todayrsquos economic uncertainty is causing many companies to rethink and cut their marketing expenditures

for year 2009 Managers are working hard to determine where next yearrsquos smaller budget can be best

spent

What this means is that marketing budgets are among the first to be cut when managers are trying to find

ways to drive down costs in order to retain shareholder confidence and stay afloat Because marketing

expenditure is treated as an annual expense managers often justify the decimation of marketing budgets

on the basis that the effects will only be felt in the current year The view is that once the recession ends

we can return to our previous levels of marketing expenditure

The Nielsen Company has just released data that shows advertising expenditure in the US fell 154 in

the first half of 2009 A total of $569 billion was spent on advertising in the first six months of the year

$103 billion less than the same time period in 2008 All evidence that in times of recession marketing

budgets are amount the first to be cut

A new Association of National Advertisers (ANA) study this summer shows that 53 of ANA member

respondents believe their overall marketing budgets will be reduced up to 10 with almost a third saying

it will be in the 11-20 range What else is new Isnrsquot marketing seen as a luxury in some organizations

Are you battling the Big Cheese to maintain your marketing budget

Our own MarketingProfs guru and founder Roy Young says we need to make marketing matter to the

CEO I guess these ANA members are having a hard time doing that

The study indicates what respondents plan to cut

69 said ad campaign media budgets

63 said production budgets

63 are making their agencies cut internal expenses andor identify cost reductions

63 said travel and expenses

61 said eliminating or delaying new projects

When business is good these basics can be applied to all marketing media including publication ads

tradeshow exhibits and direct mail Today markets are down Sales are uncertain and budgets are being

reduced Magazine advertising and tradeshows are expensive and ROI is difficult to track As advertisers

trim their budgets publications will lose ad lineage and cut their editorial coverage and distribution This

means less people are reading a less interesting magazine that contains your ad Though print media is

9

ideal for creating top of mind awareness and reinforcing brand recognition it seems more expensive

during down markets

Tradeshows also suffer during economic downturns Attendees suspend costly travel and exhibitors

reduce floor space or cut the number of events they support Direct mail does not fare much better Even

with printers holding prices down short run full color projects still begin around $1000 and go up Add

postage and direct mail becomes an expensive proposition

10

Chapter 12

LG Electronics India turnover in 2008 and in 2009

LG India achieved Rs 10730 crore turnover in calender 2008 Unfazed by the slowdown LG Electronics

India has revised upwards its revenue targets for 2009 While the turnover in the year 2009 could have

gone down the Korean consumer electronic firmrsquos revenue grew by 20-25 against the original target of

15 LG India is the countryrsquos largest consumer electronics firm by way of revenue

In August - September lsquo09 the company saw a near 50 sales growth The company has undertaken a

spate of initiatives to ensure such a high growth rate mdash roll out India-centric products build its brand

motivate employees through rewards and complete decentralisation of branches across the nation

The company reported a 40 rise in sales in July-December 2009 from a year ago that helped total

revenue for 2009 grow 21 aided by robust sales of home appliances and LCD TVs LG whose total

sales hit Rs 13000 crore in 2009 has had a spectacular surge since entering India in 1997 though

growth slipped to 10-15 in the last five years as demand waned

LGs expansion plans come after it has set a 45 revenue growth target for 2010 the highest in six

years to generate Rs 19000 crore in sales The company sees sales to be largely driven by demand for

LCD TVs and GSM handsets

11

Chapter 2

Critical Review of Literature

Indian Public Relations Industry is expected to grow $ 6 billion by the year 2010 The Associated

Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has recognised that the present size of

Indian PR industry is worth $ 3 billion Attrition has seized PR industry with its rate exceeding 40 even if

its growing at an annual rate of 32 and likely to double its size to over US$ 6 billion by 2010 from over

US $3 billion presently since corporates are relying more on PR professional to hike their brand image to

take maximum benefits of current economic boom for increased sales amp turnover volumes

These findings are result of a random survey carried out by The Associated Chambers of Commerce

and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) on ldquoATTRITION VS PR amp ITS FUTURE PROSPECTSrdquo in which

over 400 PR professionals views were elicited however adds that a result of growing opportunities costs

in PR industry attrition has become a core concern

Releasing its findings the ASSOCHAM President Venugopal N Dhoot who himself is a lead consumer

durables players said that over 90 of PR professional at entry levels with enthusiasm and passions for

hard work are shifting for greener pastures with in the industry in a yearrsquos time

Venugopal Dhoot whose group spends roughly Rs 3000 crore in building its brand image annually

pointed out that the ASSOCHAM survey confirms the trends that a large number of Corporates are opting

to rope in PR professional for their increased sales turnover as one of finest marketing strategiesrdquo The

survey reveals that pressures apart in PR activities diversification of intellect is most attracting part which

avail them lot of opportunities A majority of PR professional said that in the economic boom a huge

competition has emerged for brand building as result of which PR agencies are in demand and quoting a

very market driven prices for their services for which takers are available

Since demand for PR professional are rising and so are opportunities galoring for relationship industries

and it is because of this reason it has shown a growth rate of about 22-25 in last couple of years which

has risen to 32 and the trend will continue in future and even grow for better said Mr Dhoot Quoting

finding of survey the ASSOCHAM Chief said that by 2010 the PR industry size would grow to more than

US $6 billion According to estimates by the ASSOCHAM the Indian PR industry comprises 1200-1500

agency with their manpower strength of between 30000 to 40000 Business is booming for the public-

relations (PR) industry

It is in this discipline that the industry has seen most growth and expects to see continuing growth in the

future In terms of vertical markets healthcare has been identified by several of the industry as the

fastest-growing sector however the public sector the environment and corporate social responsibility

12

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 7: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Define PR problems and solutions

Serve as liaisons interpreters and mediators between the organisation and its publics

Evaluate public opinion program results and competitive intelligence

Plan a budget operating on it accounting for the outcome

Superve institutional advertising programs

Communication technicians

Arrange for production of printed matter slides films (News releases house publications

publicity of products amp services competitive intelligence shows exhibits amp special events)

Writing (preparation of speeches scripts)

Editing (preparation of graphics or films)

Preparing speeches for others and giving speeches

Training spokespersons being one

Communication facilitators

Industrial relations

represent employer at various events

contact other public officials

co-ordinate activities among various functional groups to achieve PR objectives

Prepare reports position papers public statements

Submit newsworthy material to appropriate outlets

Problem solving process facilitators

Collaborate with other managers to define and solve organisational problems

Prepare annual PR plans

Implement approved plans and programs

Regularly analyse and report PR research data to management

Monitor actual results against planned performance

Monitor environmental developments likely to have a significant impact on PR performance

7

8

Chapter 11

Recession killing the marketing budgets

Todayrsquos economic uncertainty is causing many companies to rethink and cut their marketing expenditures

for year 2009 Managers are working hard to determine where next yearrsquos smaller budget can be best

spent

What this means is that marketing budgets are among the first to be cut when managers are trying to find

ways to drive down costs in order to retain shareholder confidence and stay afloat Because marketing

expenditure is treated as an annual expense managers often justify the decimation of marketing budgets

on the basis that the effects will only be felt in the current year The view is that once the recession ends

we can return to our previous levels of marketing expenditure

The Nielsen Company has just released data that shows advertising expenditure in the US fell 154 in

the first half of 2009 A total of $569 billion was spent on advertising in the first six months of the year

$103 billion less than the same time period in 2008 All evidence that in times of recession marketing

budgets are amount the first to be cut

A new Association of National Advertisers (ANA) study this summer shows that 53 of ANA member

respondents believe their overall marketing budgets will be reduced up to 10 with almost a third saying

it will be in the 11-20 range What else is new Isnrsquot marketing seen as a luxury in some organizations

Are you battling the Big Cheese to maintain your marketing budget

Our own MarketingProfs guru and founder Roy Young says we need to make marketing matter to the

CEO I guess these ANA members are having a hard time doing that

The study indicates what respondents plan to cut

69 said ad campaign media budgets

63 said production budgets

63 are making their agencies cut internal expenses andor identify cost reductions

63 said travel and expenses

61 said eliminating or delaying new projects

When business is good these basics can be applied to all marketing media including publication ads

tradeshow exhibits and direct mail Today markets are down Sales are uncertain and budgets are being

reduced Magazine advertising and tradeshows are expensive and ROI is difficult to track As advertisers

trim their budgets publications will lose ad lineage and cut their editorial coverage and distribution This

means less people are reading a less interesting magazine that contains your ad Though print media is

9

ideal for creating top of mind awareness and reinforcing brand recognition it seems more expensive

during down markets

Tradeshows also suffer during economic downturns Attendees suspend costly travel and exhibitors

reduce floor space or cut the number of events they support Direct mail does not fare much better Even

with printers holding prices down short run full color projects still begin around $1000 and go up Add

postage and direct mail becomes an expensive proposition

10

Chapter 12

LG Electronics India turnover in 2008 and in 2009

LG India achieved Rs 10730 crore turnover in calender 2008 Unfazed by the slowdown LG Electronics

India has revised upwards its revenue targets for 2009 While the turnover in the year 2009 could have

gone down the Korean consumer electronic firmrsquos revenue grew by 20-25 against the original target of

15 LG India is the countryrsquos largest consumer electronics firm by way of revenue

In August - September lsquo09 the company saw a near 50 sales growth The company has undertaken a

spate of initiatives to ensure such a high growth rate mdash roll out India-centric products build its brand

motivate employees through rewards and complete decentralisation of branches across the nation

The company reported a 40 rise in sales in July-December 2009 from a year ago that helped total

revenue for 2009 grow 21 aided by robust sales of home appliances and LCD TVs LG whose total

sales hit Rs 13000 crore in 2009 has had a spectacular surge since entering India in 1997 though

growth slipped to 10-15 in the last five years as demand waned

LGs expansion plans come after it has set a 45 revenue growth target for 2010 the highest in six

years to generate Rs 19000 crore in sales The company sees sales to be largely driven by demand for

LCD TVs and GSM handsets

11

Chapter 2

Critical Review of Literature

Indian Public Relations Industry is expected to grow $ 6 billion by the year 2010 The Associated

Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has recognised that the present size of

Indian PR industry is worth $ 3 billion Attrition has seized PR industry with its rate exceeding 40 even if

its growing at an annual rate of 32 and likely to double its size to over US$ 6 billion by 2010 from over

US $3 billion presently since corporates are relying more on PR professional to hike their brand image to

take maximum benefits of current economic boom for increased sales amp turnover volumes

These findings are result of a random survey carried out by The Associated Chambers of Commerce

and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) on ldquoATTRITION VS PR amp ITS FUTURE PROSPECTSrdquo in which

over 400 PR professionals views were elicited however adds that a result of growing opportunities costs

in PR industry attrition has become a core concern

Releasing its findings the ASSOCHAM President Venugopal N Dhoot who himself is a lead consumer

durables players said that over 90 of PR professional at entry levels with enthusiasm and passions for

hard work are shifting for greener pastures with in the industry in a yearrsquos time

Venugopal Dhoot whose group spends roughly Rs 3000 crore in building its brand image annually

pointed out that the ASSOCHAM survey confirms the trends that a large number of Corporates are opting

to rope in PR professional for their increased sales turnover as one of finest marketing strategiesrdquo The

survey reveals that pressures apart in PR activities diversification of intellect is most attracting part which

avail them lot of opportunities A majority of PR professional said that in the economic boom a huge

competition has emerged for brand building as result of which PR agencies are in demand and quoting a

very market driven prices for their services for which takers are available

Since demand for PR professional are rising and so are opportunities galoring for relationship industries

and it is because of this reason it has shown a growth rate of about 22-25 in last couple of years which

has risen to 32 and the trend will continue in future and even grow for better said Mr Dhoot Quoting

finding of survey the ASSOCHAM Chief said that by 2010 the PR industry size would grow to more than

US $6 billion According to estimates by the ASSOCHAM the Indian PR industry comprises 1200-1500

agency with their manpower strength of between 30000 to 40000 Business is booming for the public-

relations (PR) industry

It is in this discipline that the industry has seen most growth and expects to see continuing growth in the

future In terms of vertical markets healthcare has been identified by several of the industry as the

fastest-growing sector however the public sector the environment and corporate social responsibility

12

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 8: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

8

Chapter 11

Recession killing the marketing budgets

Todayrsquos economic uncertainty is causing many companies to rethink and cut their marketing expenditures

for year 2009 Managers are working hard to determine where next yearrsquos smaller budget can be best

spent

What this means is that marketing budgets are among the first to be cut when managers are trying to find

ways to drive down costs in order to retain shareholder confidence and stay afloat Because marketing

expenditure is treated as an annual expense managers often justify the decimation of marketing budgets

on the basis that the effects will only be felt in the current year The view is that once the recession ends

we can return to our previous levels of marketing expenditure

The Nielsen Company has just released data that shows advertising expenditure in the US fell 154 in

the first half of 2009 A total of $569 billion was spent on advertising in the first six months of the year

$103 billion less than the same time period in 2008 All evidence that in times of recession marketing

budgets are amount the first to be cut

A new Association of National Advertisers (ANA) study this summer shows that 53 of ANA member

respondents believe their overall marketing budgets will be reduced up to 10 with almost a third saying

it will be in the 11-20 range What else is new Isnrsquot marketing seen as a luxury in some organizations

Are you battling the Big Cheese to maintain your marketing budget

Our own MarketingProfs guru and founder Roy Young says we need to make marketing matter to the

CEO I guess these ANA members are having a hard time doing that

The study indicates what respondents plan to cut

69 said ad campaign media budgets

63 said production budgets

63 are making their agencies cut internal expenses andor identify cost reductions

63 said travel and expenses

61 said eliminating or delaying new projects

When business is good these basics can be applied to all marketing media including publication ads

tradeshow exhibits and direct mail Today markets are down Sales are uncertain and budgets are being

reduced Magazine advertising and tradeshows are expensive and ROI is difficult to track As advertisers

trim their budgets publications will lose ad lineage and cut their editorial coverage and distribution This

means less people are reading a less interesting magazine that contains your ad Though print media is

9

ideal for creating top of mind awareness and reinforcing brand recognition it seems more expensive

during down markets

Tradeshows also suffer during economic downturns Attendees suspend costly travel and exhibitors

reduce floor space or cut the number of events they support Direct mail does not fare much better Even

with printers holding prices down short run full color projects still begin around $1000 and go up Add

postage and direct mail becomes an expensive proposition

10

Chapter 12

LG Electronics India turnover in 2008 and in 2009

LG India achieved Rs 10730 crore turnover in calender 2008 Unfazed by the slowdown LG Electronics

India has revised upwards its revenue targets for 2009 While the turnover in the year 2009 could have

gone down the Korean consumer electronic firmrsquos revenue grew by 20-25 against the original target of

15 LG India is the countryrsquos largest consumer electronics firm by way of revenue

In August - September lsquo09 the company saw a near 50 sales growth The company has undertaken a

spate of initiatives to ensure such a high growth rate mdash roll out India-centric products build its brand

motivate employees through rewards and complete decentralisation of branches across the nation

The company reported a 40 rise in sales in July-December 2009 from a year ago that helped total

revenue for 2009 grow 21 aided by robust sales of home appliances and LCD TVs LG whose total

sales hit Rs 13000 crore in 2009 has had a spectacular surge since entering India in 1997 though

growth slipped to 10-15 in the last five years as demand waned

LGs expansion plans come after it has set a 45 revenue growth target for 2010 the highest in six

years to generate Rs 19000 crore in sales The company sees sales to be largely driven by demand for

LCD TVs and GSM handsets

11

Chapter 2

Critical Review of Literature

Indian Public Relations Industry is expected to grow $ 6 billion by the year 2010 The Associated

Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has recognised that the present size of

Indian PR industry is worth $ 3 billion Attrition has seized PR industry with its rate exceeding 40 even if

its growing at an annual rate of 32 and likely to double its size to over US$ 6 billion by 2010 from over

US $3 billion presently since corporates are relying more on PR professional to hike their brand image to

take maximum benefits of current economic boom for increased sales amp turnover volumes

These findings are result of a random survey carried out by The Associated Chambers of Commerce

and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) on ldquoATTRITION VS PR amp ITS FUTURE PROSPECTSrdquo in which

over 400 PR professionals views were elicited however adds that a result of growing opportunities costs

in PR industry attrition has become a core concern

Releasing its findings the ASSOCHAM President Venugopal N Dhoot who himself is a lead consumer

durables players said that over 90 of PR professional at entry levels with enthusiasm and passions for

hard work are shifting for greener pastures with in the industry in a yearrsquos time

Venugopal Dhoot whose group spends roughly Rs 3000 crore in building its brand image annually

pointed out that the ASSOCHAM survey confirms the trends that a large number of Corporates are opting

to rope in PR professional for their increased sales turnover as one of finest marketing strategiesrdquo The

survey reveals that pressures apart in PR activities diversification of intellect is most attracting part which

avail them lot of opportunities A majority of PR professional said that in the economic boom a huge

competition has emerged for brand building as result of which PR agencies are in demand and quoting a

very market driven prices for their services for which takers are available

Since demand for PR professional are rising and so are opportunities galoring for relationship industries

and it is because of this reason it has shown a growth rate of about 22-25 in last couple of years which

has risen to 32 and the trend will continue in future and even grow for better said Mr Dhoot Quoting

finding of survey the ASSOCHAM Chief said that by 2010 the PR industry size would grow to more than

US $6 billion According to estimates by the ASSOCHAM the Indian PR industry comprises 1200-1500

agency with their manpower strength of between 30000 to 40000 Business is booming for the public-

relations (PR) industry

It is in this discipline that the industry has seen most growth and expects to see continuing growth in the

future In terms of vertical markets healthcare has been identified by several of the industry as the

fastest-growing sector however the public sector the environment and corporate social responsibility

12

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 9: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 11

Recession killing the marketing budgets

Todayrsquos economic uncertainty is causing many companies to rethink and cut their marketing expenditures

for year 2009 Managers are working hard to determine where next yearrsquos smaller budget can be best

spent

What this means is that marketing budgets are among the first to be cut when managers are trying to find

ways to drive down costs in order to retain shareholder confidence and stay afloat Because marketing

expenditure is treated as an annual expense managers often justify the decimation of marketing budgets

on the basis that the effects will only be felt in the current year The view is that once the recession ends

we can return to our previous levels of marketing expenditure

The Nielsen Company has just released data that shows advertising expenditure in the US fell 154 in

the first half of 2009 A total of $569 billion was spent on advertising in the first six months of the year

$103 billion less than the same time period in 2008 All evidence that in times of recession marketing

budgets are amount the first to be cut

A new Association of National Advertisers (ANA) study this summer shows that 53 of ANA member

respondents believe their overall marketing budgets will be reduced up to 10 with almost a third saying

it will be in the 11-20 range What else is new Isnrsquot marketing seen as a luxury in some organizations

Are you battling the Big Cheese to maintain your marketing budget

Our own MarketingProfs guru and founder Roy Young says we need to make marketing matter to the

CEO I guess these ANA members are having a hard time doing that

The study indicates what respondents plan to cut

69 said ad campaign media budgets

63 said production budgets

63 are making their agencies cut internal expenses andor identify cost reductions

63 said travel and expenses

61 said eliminating or delaying new projects

When business is good these basics can be applied to all marketing media including publication ads

tradeshow exhibits and direct mail Today markets are down Sales are uncertain and budgets are being

reduced Magazine advertising and tradeshows are expensive and ROI is difficult to track As advertisers

trim their budgets publications will lose ad lineage and cut their editorial coverage and distribution This

means less people are reading a less interesting magazine that contains your ad Though print media is

9

ideal for creating top of mind awareness and reinforcing brand recognition it seems more expensive

during down markets

Tradeshows also suffer during economic downturns Attendees suspend costly travel and exhibitors

reduce floor space or cut the number of events they support Direct mail does not fare much better Even

with printers holding prices down short run full color projects still begin around $1000 and go up Add

postage and direct mail becomes an expensive proposition

10

Chapter 12

LG Electronics India turnover in 2008 and in 2009

LG India achieved Rs 10730 crore turnover in calender 2008 Unfazed by the slowdown LG Electronics

India has revised upwards its revenue targets for 2009 While the turnover in the year 2009 could have

gone down the Korean consumer electronic firmrsquos revenue grew by 20-25 against the original target of

15 LG India is the countryrsquos largest consumer electronics firm by way of revenue

In August - September lsquo09 the company saw a near 50 sales growth The company has undertaken a

spate of initiatives to ensure such a high growth rate mdash roll out India-centric products build its brand

motivate employees through rewards and complete decentralisation of branches across the nation

The company reported a 40 rise in sales in July-December 2009 from a year ago that helped total

revenue for 2009 grow 21 aided by robust sales of home appliances and LCD TVs LG whose total

sales hit Rs 13000 crore in 2009 has had a spectacular surge since entering India in 1997 though

growth slipped to 10-15 in the last five years as demand waned

LGs expansion plans come after it has set a 45 revenue growth target for 2010 the highest in six

years to generate Rs 19000 crore in sales The company sees sales to be largely driven by demand for

LCD TVs and GSM handsets

11

Chapter 2

Critical Review of Literature

Indian Public Relations Industry is expected to grow $ 6 billion by the year 2010 The Associated

Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has recognised that the present size of

Indian PR industry is worth $ 3 billion Attrition has seized PR industry with its rate exceeding 40 even if

its growing at an annual rate of 32 and likely to double its size to over US$ 6 billion by 2010 from over

US $3 billion presently since corporates are relying more on PR professional to hike their brand image to

take maximum benefits of current economic boom for increased sales amp turnover volumes

These findings are result of a random survey carried out by The Associated Chambers of Commerce

and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) on ldquoATTRITION VS PR amp ITS FUTURE PROSPECTSrdquo in which

over 400 PR professionals views were elicited however adds that a result of growing opportunities costs

in PR industry attrition has become a core concern

Releasing its findings the ASSOCHAM President Venugopal N Dhoot who himself is a lead consumer

durables players said that over 90 of PR professional at entry levels with enthusiasm and passions for

hard work are shifting for greener pastures with in the industry in a yearrsquos time

Venugopal Dhoot whose group spends roughly Rs 3000 crore in building its brand image annually

pointed out that the ASSOCHAM survey confirms the trends that a large number of Corporates are opting

to rope in PR professional for their increased sales turnover as one of finest marketing strategiesrdquo The

survey reveals that pressures apart in PR activities diversification of intellect is most attracting part which

avail them lot of opportunities A majority of PR professional said that in the economic boom a huge

competition has emerged for brand building as result of which PR agencies are in demand and quoting a

very market driven prices for their services for which takers are available

Since demand for PR professional are rising and so are opportunities galoring for relationship industries

and it is because of this reason it has shown a growth rate of about 22-25 in last couple of years which

has risen to 32 and the trend will continue in future and even grow for better said Mr Dhoot Quoting

finding of survey the ASSOCHAM Chief said that by 2010 the PR industry size would grow to more than

US $6 billion According to estimates by the ASSOCHAM the Indian PR industry comprises 1200-1500

agency with their manpower strength of between 30000 to 40000 Business is booming for the public-

relations (PR) industry

It is in this discipline that the industry has seen most growth and expects to see continuing growth in the

future In terms of vertical markets healthcare has been identified by several of the industry as the

fastest-growing sector however the public sector the environment and corporate social responsibility

12

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 10: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

ideal for creating top of mind awareness and reinforcing brand recognition it seems more expensive

during down markets

Tradeshows also suffer during economic downturns Attendees suspend costly travel and exhibitors

reduce floor space or cut the number of events they support Direct mail does not fare much better Even

with printers holding prices down short run full color projects still begin around $1000 and go up Add

postage and direct mail becomes an expensive proposition

10

Chapter 12

LG Electronics India turnover in 2008 and in 2009

LG India achieved Rs 10730 crore turnover in calender 2008 Unfazed by the slowdown LG Electronics

India has revised upwards its revenue targets for 2009 While the turnover in the year 2009 could have

gone down the Korean consumer electronic firmrsquos revenue grew by 20-25 against the original target of

15 LG India is the countryrsquos largest consumer electronics firm by way of revenue

In August - September lsquo09 the company saw a near 50 sales growth The company has undertaken a

spate of initiatives to ensure such a high growth rate mdash roll out India-centric products build its brand

motivate employees through rewards and complete decentralisation of branches across the nation

The company reported a 40 rise in sales in July-December 2009 from a year ago that helped total

revenue for 2009 grow 21 aided by robust sales of home appliances and LCD TVs LG whose total

sales hit Rs 13000 crore in 2009 has had a spectacular surge since entering India in 1997 though

growth slipped to 10-15 in the last five years as demand waned

LGs expansion plans come after it has set a 45 revenue growth target for 2010 the highest in six

years to generate Rs 19000 crore in sales The company sees sales to be largely driven by demand for

LCD TVs and GSM handsets

11

Chapter 2

Critical Review of Literature

Indian Public Relations Industry is expected to grow $ 6 billion by the year 2010 The Associated

Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has recognised that the present size of

Indian PR industry is worth $ 3 billion Attrition has seized PR industry with its rate exceeding 40 even if

its growing at an annual rate of 32 and likely to double its size to over US$ 6 billion by 2010 from over

US $3 billion presently since corporates are relying more on PR professional to hike their brand image to

take maximum benefits of current economic boom for increased sales amp turnover volumes

These findings are result of a random survey carried out by The Associated Chambers of Commerce

and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) on ldquoATTRITION VS PR amp ITS FUTURE PROSPECTSrdquo in which

over 400 PR professionals views were elicited however adds that a result of growing opportunities costs

in PR industry attrition has become a core concern

Releasing its findings the ASSOCHAM President Venugopal N Dhoot who himself is a lead consumer

durables players said that over 90 of PR professional at entry levels with enthusiasm and passions for

hard work are shifting for greener pastures with in the industry in a yearrsquos time

Venugopal Dhoot whose group spends roughly Rs 3000 crore in building its brand image annually

pointed out that the ASSOCHAM survey confirms the trends that a large number of Corporates are opting

to rope in PR professional for their increased sales turnover as one of finest marketing strategiesrdquo The

survey reveals that pressures apart in PR activities diversification of intellect is most attracting part which

avail them lot of opportunities A majority of PR professional said that in the economic boom a huge

competition has emerged for brand building as result of which PR agencies are in demand and quoting a

very market driven prices for their services for which takers are available

Since demand for PR professional are rising and so are opportunities galoring for relationship industries

and it is because of this reason it has shown a growth rate of about 22-25 in last couple of years which

has risen to 32 and the trend will continue in future and even grow for better said Mr Dhoot Quoting

finding of survey the ASSOCHAM Chief said that by 2010 the PR industry size would grow to more than

US $6 billion According to estimates by the ASSOCHAM the Indian PR industry comprises 1200-1500

agency with their manpower strength of between 30000 to 40000 Business is booming for the public-

relations (PR) industry

It is in this discipline that the industry has seen most growth and expects to see continuing growth in the

future In terms of vertical markets healthcare has been identified by several of the industry as the

fastest-growing sector however the public sector the environment and corporate social responsibility

12

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 11: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 12

LG Electronics India turnover in 2008 and in 2009

LG India achieved Rs 10730 crore turnover in calender 2008 Unfazed by the slowdown LG Electronics

India has revised upwards its revenue targets for 2009 While the turnover in the year 2009 could have

gone down the Korean consumer electronic firmrsquos revenue grew by 20-25 against the original target of

15 LG India is the countryrsquos largest consumer electronics firm by way of revenue

In August - September lsquo09 the company saw a near 50 sales growth The company has undertaken a

spate of initiatives to ensure such a high growth rate mdash roll out India-centric products build its brand

motivate employees through rewards and complete decentralisation of branches across the nation

The company reported a 40 rise in sales in July-December 2009 from a year ago that helped total

revenue for 2009 grow 21 aided by robust sales of home appliances and LCD TVs LG whose total

sales hit Rs 13000 crore in 2009 has had a spectacular surge since entering India in 1997 though

growth slipped to 10-15 in the last five years as demand waned

LGs expansion plans come after it has set a 45 revenue growth target for 2010 the highest in six

years to generate Rs 19000 crore in sales The company sees sales to be largely driven by demand for

LCD TVs and GSM handsets

11

Chapter 2

Critical Review of Literature

Indian Public Relations Industry is expected to grow $ 6 billion by the year 2010 The Associated

Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has recognised that the present size of

Indian PR industry is worth $ 3 billion Attrition has seized PR industry with its rate exceeding 40 even if

its growing at an annual rate of 32 and likely to double its size to over US$ 6 billion by 2010 from over

US $3 billion presently since corporates are relying more on PR professional to hike their brand image to

take maximum benefits of current economic boom for increased sales amp turnover volumes

These findings are result of a random survey carried out by The Associated Chambers of Commerce

and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) on ldquoATTRITION VS PR amp ITS FUTURE PROSPECTSrdquo in which

over 400 PR professionals views were elicited however adds that a result of growing opportunities costs

in PR industry attrition has become a core concern

Releasing its findings the ASSOCHAM President Venugopal N Dhoot who himself is a lead consumer

durables players said that over 90 of PR professional at entry levels with enthusiasm and passions for

hard work are shifting for greener pastures with in the industry in a yearrsquos time

Venugopal Dhoot whose group spends roughly Rs 3000 crore in building its brand image annually

pointed out that the ASSOCHAM survey confirms the trends that a large number of Corporates are opting

to rope in PR professional for their increased sales turnover as one of finest marketing strategiesrdquo The

survey reveals that pressures apart in PR activities diversification of intellect is most attracting part which

avail them lot of opportunities A majority of PR professional said that in the economic boom a huge

competition has emerged for brand building as result of which PR agencies are in demand and quoting a

very market driven prices for their services for which takers are available

Since demand for PR professional are rising and so are opportunities galoring for relationship industries

and it is because of this reason it has shown a growth rate of about 22-25 in last couple of years which

has risen to 32 and the trend will continue in future and even grow for better said Mr Dhoot Quoting

finding of survey the ASSOCHAM Chief said that by 2010 the PR industry size would grow to more than

US $6 billion According to estimates by the ASSOCHAM the Indian PR industry comprises 1200-1500

agency with their manpower strength of between 30000 to 40000 Business is booming for the public-

relations (PR) industry

It is in this discipline that the industry has seen most growth and expects to see continuing growth in the

future In terms of vertical markets healthcare has been identified by several of the industry as the

fastest-growing sector however the public sector the environment and corporate social responsibility

12

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 12: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 2

Critical Review of Literature

Indian Public Relations Industry is expected to grow $ 6 billion by the year 2010 The Associated

Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has recognised that the present size of

Indian PR industry is worth $ 3 billion Attrition has seized PR industry with its rate exceeding 40 even if

its growing at an annual rate of 32 and likely to double its size to over US$ 6 billion by 2010 from over

US $3 billion presently since corporates are relying more on PR professional to hike their brand image to

take maximum benefits of current economic boom for increased sales amp turnover volumes

These findings are result of a random survey carried out by The Associated Chambers of Commerce

and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) on ldquoATTRITION VS PR amp ITS FUTURE PROSPECTSrdquo in which

over 400 PR professionals views were elicited however adds that a result of growing opportunities costs

in PR industry attrition has become a core concern

Releasing its findings the ASSOCHAM President Venugopal N Dhoot who himself is a lead consumer

durables players said that over 90 of PR professional at entry levels with enthusiasm and passions for

hard work are shifting for greener pastures with in the industry in a yearrsquos time

Venugopal Dhoot whose group spends roughly Rs 3000 crore in building its brand image annually

pointed out that the ASSOCHAM survey confirms the trends that a large number of Corporates are opting

to rope in PR professional for their increased sales turnover as one of finest marketing strategiesrdquo The

survey reveals that pressures apart in PR activities diversification of intellect is most attracting part which

avail them lot of opportunities A majority of PR professional said that in the economic boom a huge

competition has emerged for brand building as result of which PR agencies are in demand and quoting a

very market driven prices for their services for which takers are available

Since demand for PR professional are rising and so are opportunities galoring for relationship industries

and it is because of this reason it has shown a growth rate of about 22-25 in last couple of years which

has risen to 32 and the trend will continue in future and even grow for better said Mr Dhoot Quoting

finding of survey the ASSOCHAM Chief said that by 2010 the PR industry size would grow to more than

US $6 billion According to estimates by the ASSOCHAM the Indian PR industry comprises 1200-1500

agency with their manpower strength of between 30000 to 40000 Business is booming for the public-

relations (PR) industry

It is in this discipline that the industry has seen most growth and expects to see continuing growth in the

future In terms of vertical markets healthcare has been identified by several of the industry as the

fastest-growing sector however the public sector the environment and corporate social responsibility

12

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 13: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

(CSR) are all emerging as growth areas for PR The overriding concern of the industry is the skills

shortage Almost all agencies are hiring a trend that is itself indicative of growth and some are looking

outside the PR industry to bring in new skills Although there are many thousands of small agencies and

individual consultants serving very local markets larger agencies are forging partnerships across the

globe to meet demand from clients that themselves are extending their global reach

There are more than 100 agencies-big ones with 10-15 branches across India like Perfect Relations

Genesis PR Hanmer MS amp L and Vaishnavi medium size ones with 4-5 branches and smaller city

specific PR agencies Many of these are affiliated or are Indian subsidiaries of global PR companies For

instance Weber Shandwick and OampM have their India offices Likewise Fleishman Hillard has affiliation

with Lexicon There are industry specific agencies like Text100 and 2020 for IT companies Imprimis for

health care companies and Adfactors majorly to financial companies

Public relation is being used as a supplement along with advertising to form an effective communication

strategy This is primarily because at times advertising does not suffice in communicating the exact

message Public relation services not only help in communicating their message but can also help in

generating a favorable response

A new study (pdf) from the US-based Institute for Public Relations has some interesting case studies that

in several instances illustrate corresponding trends between increased media coverage and a desired

business outcome occurring For example they speak of a campaign on the importance of mammograms

with the desired business outcome being an increase in the number of relevant medical procedures

undertaken Looking at the number of articles published on the issue and comparing it to the number of

medical procedures a correlation seems to exist This can be seen in the above graph which shows in

blue the number of press articles on the issues and in red the number of medical procedures undertaken

(over 2 years in the US)

The authors of the study readily admit that they are making a jump in assuming ldquocause and effectrdquo but

what they are looking for is a ldquopreponderance of evidencerdquo that supports a correlation between media

coverage and business outcomes

The 2008 PR Week MSampL Marketing Management Survey conducted by PR Week and Millward

Brown reveals that PR is not the discipline most at risk when it comes to possible budget cuts the

reasons among those who would cut PR reflect a nagging problem for the industry ndash measurement and

ROI 659 of the respondents cited difficulty to quantify ROI lack of effectiveness or inability to

measure PR efforts when asked why they would consider cutting PR budgets

Noted American author and Marketing Expert Sara Leersquos Schaillee holds the view that PR is never

going to be an exact science there is always a little bit of art and gut in it PR is a difficult one to measure

13

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 14: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

What makes the measurement of PR easier he says is having a clear target audience and focused

message For work on the Senseo brand which is geared toward ldquocoffee-loving explorersrdquo the company

has been able to measure the effectiveness of PR within the media mix yet still finds measurement of

PR to be difficult overall The more specific the message that yoursquore bringing and the more narrow the

target the more measurable PR will be To measure brandrsquos health on a consistent basis across all our

brands the impact of different media mix elements is measured

However in an economic climate where budgets are tight research and measurement are very often the

first portions of a PR budget to be cut Yet measurement is necessary to prove ROI which can help

increase budgets providing a Catch-22 situation for firms and in-house PR pros PR is vulnerable unless

it can convince its clients to invest in measurement says MSampLrsquos Hass despite those challenges several

companies have been able to put into place programs that measure the impact of their PR activities

According to the survey 406 of respondents believe PR agencies do an ldquoexcellentrdquo or ldquovery goodrdquo job

of measuring the effectiveness of their performance This is at par with direct marketing agencies

(548) internetnew media shops (532) advertising agencies (357) and media agencies (313)

Public relations would remain vulnerable and it has to device a way to establish its ROI and values If the

PR Industry is going to continue the inroads a way to demonstrate the value in an objective way instead

of a subjective way is to be figured out

Natalie Johnson manager of social media communications for General Motors an MSampL client

sees the companyrsquos use of social media and networking as ldquoa true grassroots approachrdquo to PR In his

article in the Impact Journal in California USA he writes ldquoFundamentally wersquore trying to go out and build

relationships with those users who are interested in connecting with other peoplerdquo

KRC RESEARCH in their report on lsquoMarket Research and Effective Public Relationsrsquo the most

common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely and topical survey

can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues more visibility The

best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are most likely to be

created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired outcome

(visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to drive the

headlines we want where we want them Context Analytics a strategic communications research and

consulting company provides customized actionable analysis to leverage public perceptions in order to

better manage corporate reputation

14

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 15: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 21

LG Electronics India

Established in 1997 LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South

Korea In India for a decade now LG is the market leader in consumer durables and recognised as a

leading technology innovator in the information technology and mobile communications business LG is

the acknowledged trendsetter for the consumer durable industry in India with the fastest ever nationwide

reach latest global technology and product innovation

One of the most formidable brands LGEIL has an impressive portfolio of Consumer Electronics Home

Appliances GSM mobile phones and IT products

LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Electronics South Korea was

established in January 1997 after clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)

The trend of beating industry norms started with the fastest ever-nationwide launch by LG in a period of 4

and 12 months with the commencement of operations in May 1997 LG set up a state-of-the art

manufacturing facility at Greater Noida near Delhi in 1998 with an investment of Rs 500 Crores This

facility manufactured Colour Televisions Washing Machines Air-Conditioners and Microwave Ovens

During the year 2001 LG also commenced the home production for its eco-friendly Refrigerators and

established its assembly line for its PC Monitors at its Greater Noida manufacturing unitThe beginning of

2003 saw the roll out of the first locally manufactured Direct Cool Refrigerator from the plant at Greater

Noida

In 2004 LGEIL also up its second Greenfield manufacturing unit in Pune Maharashtra that commences

operations in October 2004 Covering over 50 acres the facility manufactures LCD TV GSM Phones

Color Televisions Air Conditioners Refrigerators Microwave Ovens Color Monitors Both the Indian

manufacturing units has been designed with the latest technologies at par with international standards at

South Korea and are one of the most Eco-friendly units amongst all LG manufacturing plants in the world

LG has been able to craft out in ten years a premium brand positioning in the Indian market and is today

the most preferred brand in the segment LG Electronics is pursuing the vision of becoming a true global

digital leader attracting customers worldwide through its innovative products and design The companyrsquos

goal is to rank among the top 3 consumer electronics and telecommunications companies in the world by

2010 To achieve this we have embraced the idea of ldquoGreat Company Great Peoplerdquo recognizing that

only great people can create a great company

15

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 16: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

LG strives to enhance the customerrsquos life (and lifestyle) with intelligent features intuitive functionality and

exceptional performance Choosing LG is a form of self-expression and self-satisfaction Our customer

will take pride in owning the amazing and take comfort in knowing heshe made a smart informed

decision The LG brand comprises four basic elements Values Innovation People and Passion

16

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 17: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 22

Press Releases

1 LG begins the New Year with the launch of its full touch screen handset

Date 08-JAN-09

LG KP500 (Cookie) the latest full touch screen phone hits the Indian market at the most

attractive price ever

2 LG achieves record sales of 2 mn DVD writers in Y2008

Date 07-JAN-09

100 growth over Y2007

3 LG Electronics introduces First Time Ever in India -Global Home Chef Award 2008

Date 10-DEC-08

Winner to be announced for the LG Home Chef Awards in Dubai on 10th Dec 2008

4 LG Presents Tech-Imagination at its best

Date 14-OCT-08

Introduces Worlds best Feature-Filled Energy Efficient Monitors

5 Timeless memories this festive season with LG

Date 07-OCT-08

Launches two new 5 mega-pixel camera phones after the successful

launch of Viewty in India - the KC550 and the Secret (KF750)

Dazzles with innovation technology and style

6 LG Unveils New LCD TV for Festive Season - Jazz for Sound Lovers

Date 24-SEP-08

First time ever Auto sliding speakers 500w sound Built-in

31-channel virtual surround sound and in-built woofers

Full High Definition Models available in 32 inches and 42 inches

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

7 LG introduces ultra-slim ultra-light LED Notebook

Date 15-SEP-08

Launches the P300 notebook

LED Back-Light LCD perfect for high-definition images and easy on the eyes

17

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 18: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Targeted at the performance- and style-minded younger generation

8 Talk endlessly with LG KP199 GSM phone

Date 01-SEP-08

Launches the new LG Dynamite KP199

Boasts of the best battery in its class

9 LG Electronics unveils the Steam Tromm

Date 25-AUG-08

Steam Tromm machine forays into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by year end

10 Get 5 years warranty only on LG LCD monitors

Date 18-AUG-08

Special freedom offer starts on 16th August 2008

11 LG unveils new B2B monitor

Date 24-JUL-08

Launches 1942S LCD monitor

Target segment commercial amp business establishments

Designed to help people work more effectively

12 LG Electronics unveils its exceptional Top Loading Washing Machines

Date 22-JUL-08

International Top Loader machine models foray into the Indian market

State-of-the-art design with latest technology

Aims at a 30 market share in washing machine category in India by the year end

13 LG joins hands with Redington

Date 01-JUL-08

Strengthens distribution structure

Caters to the increasing consumer demand for LG Notebooks

14 LG launches worldrsquos first frameless Plasma TV

Date 30-JUN-08

Aesthetically designed PG61 launched for the Indian market

18

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 19: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Winner of 2008 CES Best of Innovations Award

Targets 30 market share in the FPD segment by 2008 year end

15 LG Electronics announces prike hike on IT Peripheral products

Date 02-JUN-08

Price hike announced on monitors and OSDs

Publication Financial Express

19

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 20: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Publication Business Standard

20

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 21: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Publication Mint

21

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 22: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Publication Living Digital

22

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 23: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Publication Hindu

23

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 24: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

24

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 25: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

PublicationDigital

25

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 26: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

26

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 27: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 23

Industry Coverage of Consumer Durables India

It is estimated that over next two decades the income level will almost triple and India will climb from 12th

position to become the 5th largest consumer market by 2025 As per an estimate over 290m people will

move from desperate poverty to a more sustainable life and Indiarsquos middle class will expand by over ten

times from its current size of 50m to 583m Beneficiaries of this big-bang growth will not only be urban

populace but rural India as well It is estimated that annual real rural income growth per household will

zoom from 28 over past two decades to 38 in next twoOne of the industries to wallet all the benefits

arising out of this growth among others is consumer durables

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media greater disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a good growth is projected in the future

too

Overview

Consumer durable products have life expectancy of at least three years These products are hard goods

which cannot be used at once The consumer durables market can be stratified into consumer electronics

comprising TV sets CONSUMER DURABLE players and others and appliances like washing machine

microwave ovens and air conditioners The consumer durable market in India has seen a proliferation of

brands and product categories in recent years The industry is dominated by CTVs Most major

multinational consumer durable brands especially Korean and Japanese are operating in the country

with varying degree of success One of the biggest bottlenecks for multinational companies entering

Indian market is a dilapidated distribution network

Penetration level of white goods

The penetration level of white goods in India vis-agrave-vis other countries is still in a very nascent stage In

CTVs India is having a very minuscule penetration level of 24 compared with 333 in the US 235 in

France and 98 in China Talking about an entire white goods portfolio the demand in India during

2006-07 was 319 per 1000 which is further expected to rise to 451 per 1000 by 2009-10 This increase

is going to be backed by

bull Booming economy

27

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 28: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

bull Changing lifestyle

bull Higher disposable income

bull Falling price

SWOT analysis for the sector

Strength

bull Presence of established distribution networks in both urban and rural areas

bull Presence of well-known brands

bull Increasing organised sector share vis-agrave-vis the unorganised sector

bull Appreciating rupee compared with dollar

Weakness

bull Seasonality of demand high during festive season

bull Poor government spending on infrastructure

bull Low purchasing power of consumers

Opportunities

1 Lower penetration level of white goods vis-agrave-vis other countries

2 Unexploited rural market

3 Rapid urbanisation

4 Increasing purchasing power of consumers

5 Easy availability of finance

Threats

1048766 Higher import duties on raw materials imposed in Budget 2007-08

1048766 Cheap imports from Singapore China and other Asian countries

OUTLOOK FOR THE SECTOR

Presence of many competitors in Consumer Durables and the influx of so many new media the PR

function of getting media coverage would be at a real high There is a perception that media efforts would

result in sales How much of it is true is a question not yet answered

With easy availability of finance emergence of double-income families fall in prices due to increasing

competition government support growth of media higher disposable incomes improvements in

technology reduction in customs duty and growth in consumer base of rural sector the consumer

durables industry is growing at a fast pace Given these factors a commendable growth is projected for

the future

28

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 29: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

The rural consumer durables market is growing faster at around 25 annually as against the urban

market which is growing at 7-10 only Consumer preference for high-end quality and high-value

products is driving the growth of the consumer durables industry across all segments and the trend will

propel growth in the future

29

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 30: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 24

Public Relations for LG Electronics India

LG electronic PR (LGePR) was first launched back in 2004 LG Electronics shared information through

PR Info It was a simple data base of press releases and marketing materials LGePR took it to another

level and strengthened its news monitoring and added an evaluation function In the beginning a total of

16 countries used the system and as the system went through upgrades and changes the number of

participating countries increased also

LG Electronics takes a two-pillared approach in its PR activities

The first pillar of Global PR strategy is to boost corporate and brand image on the global scene to better

position itself as a top notch brand in the world market To the end efforts are being made at the

headquarter level to strengthen global media relations

The second pillar is aimed at product PR in the local markets thereby boosting overall sales with its

respective target market strategy In this regard subsidiaries beef up PR activities with the local media

Against the backdrop LGePR assumes a bridging role linking the LG Electronics headquarters and its

subsidiaries overseas in pursuing PR activities by quantifying monitoring news coverage helping

information-sharing among local PR agencies and strengthening existing functions such as reporting and

databasing

30

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 31: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

LG in News

31

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 32: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Source Data received from Hanmer M S amp L Communications Pvt Ltd Data provided is old because of

companyrsquos policy on confidentiality about its database

32

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 33: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 25

Functioning of LG Indiarsquos PR Agency

The ldquoPR centerrdquo has been broken down into two categories HQ Center and PR Room

While HQ Center provides materials on corporate PR strategies PR Room provides success cases to be

shared among participating agencies The ldquoPress Releaserdquo provides HQ and local market released PR

sources and the ldquoCommunityrdquo menu works as a bulletin board among users to help information-sharing

The Agency lists and provides articles (news coverage) published through LGrsquos overseas PR agencies

along with related information such as update date publication date headline article (news) grade

media and country Among the posted articles ldquotop newsrdquo is sorted out

The Agency also issues PR Value Reports to evaluate PR performance based on a criteria which

includes the number of news releases and articles (news coverage) media grade and article (news)

grade among many others

LGePR is basically composed of 6 areas which are News Monitoring Press Release HQ Center PR

Room Community and My LGePR One can view all the latest uploaded news coverage press releases

from HQ and local regions latest notice from HQ and daily top news

33

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 34: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Workflow at the agency level is as follows submit and modify Target Media List assess PR value

upload coverage and press releases check the status of the files and check global performance report

issued monthly Meanwhile news approval top news selection and sharing of global performance report

is the order which the HQ operates

When local PR agencies (countries) upload their news articles in MY LGePR they are required to mark

the media which ran the articles in order to tally PR value Target Media List is a catalog showing all those

media covering LG Electronics and related information Overseas PR agencies beginning their operation

should fill out the template provided and submit it to the HQ

Information to be presented in Target Media List are publication media type media overview issue

frequency language industry circulation foundation date and standard Ad value First local PR

agencies (countries) are required to put name of listed medium

Second the agencies (countries) are required to mark the specific media type of the listed medium The

types are newspaper magazine TV radio and on-line

Third the agencies (countries) are required to present characteristics of the media deemed as significant

in Media Overview column All Grade A media must be given a media overview For example Wall Street

Journal a Grade A media should be given a brief introduction such as ldquoone of the worldrsquos top three

economics newspapersrdquo

Fourth the agencies (countries) are required to specify whether listed media are daily weekly bi-weekly

or monthly publication

Fifth the agencies (countries) are required to specify the language the media is published

The agencies (countries) are required to put official circulation figures and are required to specify the

foundation date of the listed media

The number of listed media is left to the local PR agencies discretion and their knowledge about the local

media Familiarity to local media are respected in this regard We however require the submitted list to

be reliable and request that agencies get their subsidiaries confirmation of the list before submitting to

HQ

As for the media grade listed media should be categorized into 3 groups A B and C

The categorization should reflect target readers audience circulation and industry trends

As a proper breakdown for grouping the share of media in Group A should be 20 out of the entire listed

media while those in Group B and Group C should approximately account for 70 and 10 respectively

34

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 35: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Calculating standard Ad Value

First broadcast coverage Ad Value for TV will break down into ldquoHighestrdquo class matching prime time

price and ldquoAveragerdquo class of B-Time non-prime Time level Second Ad Value for print based on using

the highest value Finally to calculate Online Media Ad value Ad value of the highest-priced banner Ad on

the main page of the website like other media or by multiplying CPM (Cost per thousand audience) by

UV (Unique Visitorone day)

PR Value assessment

PR value is an index we use to evaluate our local PR performance The Agency generates PR value

reflecting the inputs such as media grades and article (news) grades And here is how PR Value is

assessed The Ad value of an uploaded article by adopting standard Ad value unit of per square inch for

Print media and per second in case of Broadcast media Then we multiply the gained ad value by

weights of the covering media and the article What we get finally is PR value

All these activities are to pursue a goal-oriented PR

35

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 36: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

While the papers journals and articles read claim proof of causality between media coverage and

business results the case studies cited (in the annexure) offer very high correlations which indicate a

relationship between the two The research design used for this research is Exploratory research Design

This research was conducted in the DelhiNCR region

Chapter 31

Calculating a correlation

A measure of the strength of linear association between two variables Correlation will always between -

10 and +10 If the correlation is positive we have a positive relationship If it is negative the relationship

is negative

Our two variables X and Y are

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

36

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 37: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Formula

Correlation Co-efficient

Correlation(r) =[ NΣXY - (ΣX)(ΣY) Sqrt([NΣX2 - (ΣX)2][NΣY2 - (ΣY)2])] where N = Number of values or elements X = First Score Y = Second Score ΣXY = Sum of the product of first and Second Scores ΣX = Sum of First Scores ΣY = Sum of Second Scores ΣX2 = Sum of square First Scores ΣY2 = Sum of square Second Scores[Correlations use the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (r=X) which is a measure of association

describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables A perfect correlation

is an r=10]

Aggregate Score

Positive on-message media coverage seems to have an effect on outcomes But what happens when

competitive products services or concepts are a major factor To bring in quantity and quality of an

organizationrsquos non-paid media coverage compared with that of its competitors we device a system where

in calculate an organizationrsquos Aggregate Score We can attain the aggregate score by subtracting

negative coverage from positive and neutral media coverage

Steps

1 Capture media coverage of the organization and its competitors

2 Measure the tone of each story Then add together all neutral and positive media values or

impressions and subtract all negative to get net favorable results

37

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 38: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 32

Effect of PR on Consumer Behaviour

This chapter will link to the consumer trends that were sighted while undertaking the research

A questionnaire was developed and effect of PR on consumerrsquos mindset was noted The facts that come

out Prove the strength of the correlation that was established

Information Needed

The information needed can be classified into the following heads -

Primary -

Media watching behavioiur of the consumer

Media following habits of the consumers

Preffered media typesof consumers of different age groups gender and professions

Purchasing behavior of the consumer

Secondary -

Details about the Consumer Durables and Public Relations Industry

Concepts and theories on Brand Equity and Brand Value Positioning Consumer Behaviour and

Media Proliferation

Sample Design

a) Sample Unit The sample unit for conducting the survey consist of various people from different

38

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 39: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

age group gender occupation etc

b) Sample size The sample size for the survey was 200

c) Sampling Procedure - Simple random sampling method was used to choose the respondents

Sources of primary data

The primary data was collected through a questionnaire from various people These were the probable

owners of the consumer durables

Sources of secondary data

The secondary data was collected from research journals research and informative websites

Scaling techniques

Scaling techniques used in the questionnaire were Likert Scaling

Questionnaire design

Keeping in mind the information required for achieving the objectives of the research the questionnaire

was designed The questionnaire was a blend of following types of questions -

Questions generating classification and identification information (name phone number

profession address of the respondent)

Dichotomous and multiple choice questions

Codes were assigned to the responses of the classification questions and to the rating question

5- Very satisfactory

4- Satisfactory

3- Neither satisfactory nor dissatisfactory

2- Dissatisfactory

1- Very Dissatisfactory

Data Collection The data was collected from various sources as defined in the plan The data was

collected by both Face-to-Face interviews and telephonic interviews

Data Analysis and representation

The data collected was analyzed using simple statistical measures and frequency distribution The

average ratings of performances were arrived at by taking out the simple average of the sum of the

ratings given to a particular performance parameter

The representation is done by using graphs and charts

39

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 40: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 4

Data Analysis

While debates may rage over exactly how to assess the value of brands virtually everyone agrees that

brands represent real and significant financial value to their owners Managing a brand therefore requires

careful and strategic investment and stewardship But what are the drivers of brand value Product

quality customer services and in particular advertising are some of drivers most commonly cited and

studied

Until now however there has been relatively little research into the contribution of public relations to

brand value In this study we assessed the statistical correlation between a brandrsquos media prominence (a

weighted composite of headline lead paragraph and text mentions in independent media coverage that is

not paid for by the brand owner) and brand value

Chapter 41

Correlation

X = no of articles publishes or news covered about LG Electronics India in the newspapers TV

Channels Radio Online Magazines

Y = Volume of sales

40

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 41: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Variable Qty (Jan 2009 ndash Jun 2009)

X 1428

Y 650 Mil USD

Correlation- During both the periods Sales to Aggregate Score (Volume of articles mentioning LG as a

consumer durable company) were highly correlated During 2004-05 correlation was r=097 and during

2003-04 it was r=98

Chapter 42

Findings from the Questionnaire about consumer behavior and trends

1 Sources of Information

(For the consumer to know more about its consumer durable brand)

41

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 42: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

news papermagazines

familyfriendsnews channels

onlineothers

Sources of Information

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Co

un

t

The respondents placed the news derived from the newspaper and the magazines to be of much utility to

them than the other media These are chosen mostly for their credibility and convenience of reach and

readership While family and friends giving word of mouth publicity is a good approach but it is only a

chance that the topic of Consumer durables gets initiated Public Relations functions to maintain the

brand in news even when there is no occasion to

LG Electronics hit the right chord by becoming sponsors of World Cup and selecting 11 kids who would

represent India at the ceremony By this the LG India brand was in news since January - February even

when the sales are at the lowest Brand remembrance led to high sales of Air Conditioners and LCDs

soon after

2 Publications read

(Type of Publications the consumers tend to read)

42

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 43: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Financials Mainlines Regionals Magazines

Publications read

0

20

40

60

80

100

Co

un

t

The respondents from random backgrounds have been found to be reading mainlines the most As per

the records provided by LG Electronics the maximum number of coverage for consumer durables is in

the mainlines or the financials

3 Page read with higher emphasis

(This is based on the consumerrsquos interest)

43

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 44: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Front Page Political Editorial Business Sports Supplements

Page read with higher emphasis

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Per

cen

t

The respondents are found to be reading the Business Page with maximum emphasis than the other

pages which only have individual excitement for each individual Business Pages carry news based on

Corporate and the Company ie LG in our case It also provides information on the Industry ie

Consumer Durable and any new product launches or sponsorships Lastly it gives the quarterly Annual

performance of the company LG focuses on this page for its coverages The news clippings attached

have been published in The Economic Times The Business Standard etc

4 Current Consumer Durable

44

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 45: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

LG videocon Samsung Godrej Sony

Current Consumer Durable

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

Most of the homes have consumer durables from LG as the figure depicts

5 Satisfaction assessed with the current brand

45

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 46: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Highly Very Moderately not satisfied Not at all

Satisfied with the current brand

0

10

20

30

40

Per

cen

t

People have shown their satisfaction with the brand ie LG Shows high brand value and higher

Brand Equity a result of effective Public Relations

6 Preferred brand to buy

46

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 47: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Videocon Samsung LG Godrej Sony Whirlpool Others

Preferred brand to buy

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erc

en

t

The respondents have replied for LG to be their preferred brand among others This reflects their attitude

and the equity they hold with the brand Hence we see that How Effective Public Relations Contributes to

a Brand

7 Varied buying decisions

47

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 48: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

new brand accepted brand max recall Experience most read about

Varied buying decisions

0

5

10

15

20

25P

erce

nt

The consumers have shown that their decision to buy a consumer durable would depend on accepted

brand maximum recall and the brand they have been reading about Therefore the brand which is in

news and has maintained itself throughout the year has made it to the minds of the people

This brings to our understanding that for right Postioning we the Brand Managers of the Company are to

concentrate on better Media Proliferation This is where the domain of Public Relation comes in

8 Influence on mindset

48

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 49: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

yes no cant say

Influence on mindset

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Per

cen

t

The respondents have agreed that any news on brand that they hear makes them react to it as a

choice or not

9 Factors considered while buying

49

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 50: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Price Features Reputation Image Competitor

Factors considered while buying

0

10

20

30P

erce

nt

Image of the company and its reputation in the mind of the consumer are the factors considered while

taking a decision on whether to buy the consumer durable or not

The image reputation is a result of effective public relation With the news story on LG India coming out

with Star of India Range of consumer durables directed towards the Indian Homemakers LG has earned

the image of a respected middle income based and a brand that cares

10 Decision makers at home

50

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 51: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

collective choice

children centric mother father grand parents

Decision makers at home

0

10

20

30

40

50

Per

cen

t

Consumer Durables being good s of lsquohigh involvementrsquo are a sensitive choice to make The respondents

have chosen the decision of buying to be a collective choice When we see that it is a collective choice

we also see that it is the durable which is much researched on Effective Public relations give a platform

to begin the research from and undertake the reviews etc

11 Readiness to pay higher price

51

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 52: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

yes no cant say

Readiness to pay higher price

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Per

cen

t

Readiness to pay a higher price is the biggest Litmus Test for any product The respondents have chosen

their brand to be LG and have agreed to show no reluctance in paying a higher price for it

Chapter 43

52

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 53: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Innovative ways of PR implied by LG Indias PR agency

PR follows the marketing function ie it brings the concept of consumer-orientation Corporate

performance is up to the consumerrsquos thinking and attitude There are two types of PR consisting of pro-

active and reactive

They are regarded as a cycle ie the proactive strategy is required to act first and the reactive will be

performed later However they are explained in more detail as follows

1 Proactive The technique that influences the companyrsquos strengths through long-term marketing

objectives and policy ie the marketer tries to release the companyrsquos benefits and its products or services

in order to achieve its goal gain the highest sale and good image and the highest revenue

This type of this PR strategy is ldquooffensive rather than defensive opportunity-seeking rather than problem-

solving and proactive rather than reactiverdquo In other words for this PR form the marketer tries to seek the

opportunity that is influenced by internal factors such as its reputation reliability and life-long history

instead of dealing with problems At the same time the marketer pushes such opportunities to support

and publicize the matters that the company wants As a result the output of this type will be positive The

process of this PR form like PR process consists of decision making planning and programming The

company makes a decision which opportunity is offered then it is planned how to use that chance to

meet the required goal what medium media should be used to carry the message and what kind of

event should be created and eventually communicated to the consumers However all of them are

foreseeable if not entirely controllable To conclude the proactive technique provides the company with

how to do it but not what to do

2 Reactive Unlike the proactive the reactive seeks to find a solution to solve a problem that is regarded

as weaknesses of the company As a con- sequence the company want to defend itself and get rid of

all of the facets that threaten the company with the purpose of restoring the companyrsquos reputation

preventing market erosion and regaining lost sales For this method the company needs to concern itself

with both how to do and what to do That is to say in terms of how to do which channel and media as

well as event should be used on the other hand which performance to use and what is to be done

53

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 54: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

In general PR provides both benefits and drawbacks as follows In terms of advantages first of all PR

can effectively and efficiently create credibility by supporting other marketing communication tools

because information released is based on facts and rationality even though it is positively publicized

Unlike only a power of advertising for instance some advertisers use different techniques such as half-

truth telling and exaggeration only for the purpose of selling goods As a consequence the organization is

more reliable and gains more positive opinion and attitude as well as distributes correct knowledge

among the public Apart from giving a good point for its own organization its products are also granted at

the same time In a favour of visibility and reach it means there is a high ability of the consumerrsquos reach

and aware- ness There are several reasons to support such opinion Due to very expensive advertising

rates many companies invest a lot of money However PR can save such bulk budget and sometimes

advertising can also be replaced by the influence of PR

Also nowadays the company is encountered with the problem of advertising clutter Today it seems that

there is the limitation of cost expense Many corporation need to keep their expenditure as low as they

can and also think carefully about cost efficiency and effectiveness PR can take that responsibility

because in terms of PR there is low and sometimes no cost of expenditure Sometimes the business is

able to ask the media to release its news and to expand the time frequency if it has good media relations

As a result it can be modified to any kind of business including governmental private and non-

governmental organizations

Product Involvement Effectiveness of public relations

The relationship between media prominence and brand value depends on ldquoproduct involvementrdquo

It is the degree to which customers research a given product or solution prior to purchase Media

prominence was more associated with brand value for ldquohigh involvementrdquo products compared to ldquolow

involvementrdquo products Advertising expenditures however were a leading indicator only for ldquolow

involvementrdquo products and accounted for very little brand value among ldquohigh involvementrdquo products

Media prominence was a particularly important component of brand value for computer-related industries

such as software and hardware manufacturers as well as computer and Internet service companies

accounting for 48 percent of differences between companiesrsquo brand values

The results suggest that in general media prominence accounts for approximately one quarter of brand

value although this value is often higher for high-involvement brands and particularly so in technology

This underscores the importance of managing and growing brand value through public relations efforts

54

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 55: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Chapter 5

CONCLUSION(S) AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Public Relations has proved to be a very powerful tool for LG India It had employed its marketing budget

for an annual PR Plan besides Advertising at the peak periods (The months of March to August for India)

This gave them enough time to prepare the consumerrsquos mindset and build a high brand image and

reputation Over the period the consumers attached a higher Brand Equity to the brand LG as compared

to others

We see the influence of PR in the consumerrsquos buying behaviour The buyer decision process

comprises of the need recognition information search evaluation of alternatives purchase decision and

post purchase behaviour stagesThe Public Relations come to effect majorly at the information search

phase And this is where it is of help to the consumer making a correct collective choice for the high-

involvement good

How a company through PR can influence buyers in selecting alternatives

1 Real Repositioning

2 Psychological Repositioning

3 Competitive De-positioning

4 Influencing by promoting the major attributes

5 Influencing on the neglected attitude

6 Persuading the buyers to change their ideas for major attributes

Visit the web site of almost any global public relations firm and yoursquoll find a commitment to market

research Therersquos a reason Good market research is critical to building and measuring effective public

relations campaigns Most people know of course that opinion polls can be good ways of generating

visibility They provide news and interesting facts that can help draw media attention and get a brand or a

message into the news But market research plays a much bigger role It can be invaluable in uncovering

the insights and understanding needed to come up with that big idea on which to rest a program It can be

used to develop and test messages to make sure that theyrsquore as relevant and compelling as possible It

can be used to develop and test materialsmdashthat is the speeches brochures Web copy toolkits

advertisements and the other collateral that can bring a campaign to life And of critical importance it

can be used to measure effectiveness

Getting the Messages Right One of the first rules of communications is that you cannot say everything

to everybody You have to choose and effective communications are often about repetitionmdashrepeating

one key idea in as many places as possible Identifying that one key idea can be the difference between

success and failure and Public Relations can help identify it Surveys can be used to identify the

55

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 56: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

attributes of a product or program that are most appealing or interesting or the arguments that are most

persuasive Focus groups can be used in a similar way and they can also help us understand why people

respond more positively to some messages than others In addition even when the clients kalready what

messages they want emphasized research can help emphasize them in the right way

Getting the Materials Right A brochure or poster or Web site can look great at the office but

consumers do not always react to things the way we hope or intend Particularly when the clientrsquos

investment in materials is substantial Public Relations is a good way to make sure materials draw

attention communicate clearly and deliver the right messages

In addition new online technologies make using research to test materials faster and less expensive than

ever and in more and more places around the world Particularly in B2B campaigns where our target

audiences often have high speed Internet access at work taking the time to have a small sample look at

materials and react to themmdashdo they like them Would they read them What is their main point Are

they believable

What needs to be improved or changed mdash Can make an enormous difference not only in

the effectiveness of the materials but in building our clientsrsquo confidence that they get the job done right

Getting Attention

Of course the most common way market research is used in public relations is to draw attention A timely

and topical survey can be news that drives media coverage getting our clientrsquos name or brand or issues

more visibility The best surveys of this kind are short easy to understand and easy to explain and are

most likely to be created when the research firm and PR professionals work together to define the desired

outcome (visibility for the brand the category the client) then to develop a survey concept likely to

drive the headlines we want where we want them

When a PR campaign is intended to create awareness or influence perceptions research is a critical

piece of the ROI puzzle By designing carefully targeted research programs at the very beginning of a

campaign research can provide real data to measure whether awareness in fact increases or

perceptions in fact change

Of course as most public relations professionals know market research can be costly What they donrsquot

always kis how scalable it can be It may not make sense to invest in largescale quantitative surveys but

creative research agencies experienced in public relations and communications research can generally

find ways to provide insights testing and measurement that fit within a campaignrsquos budget Good ideas

effective implementation and measurement These are pillars of good public relations and research

enhances them all

56

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 57: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Annexure

Case Studies

1 LG Electronics

SITUATION

sect LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company (LG) (wwwlgecom) is a leading producer of UMTS

(WCONSUMER DURABLEMA) CONSUMER DURABLEMA and GSM handsets LG began as a late

entrant in the GSM segment in India therefore it was an uphill task to get consumers to embrace the

brand which was dominated by Nokia the current market leader besides draw their attention from newly

launched phones especially the iPhone which was making news worldwide

sect To position LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone as a state-of-the-art mobile device and further highlight it

as a lifestyle brand rather than just an innovative gizmo

STRATEGY

sect Position the LG Viewty as a top-of-the-line smart phone with style an iPhone alternative

sect USP was proposed - ldquoLG Viewty ndash the iPhone killerrdquo a state-of-art multi functional mobile

device which highlighted its innovative features

sect Create and leverage a brand ambassador that would influence target consumer audiences

sect Throughout the launch the goal was to incorporate LG Mobiles brand promise of lsquoLife is Goodrsquos an

underlying aspect to the new LG Viewty brand

PROGRAM

sect Pitched story ides to key reporters across media

sect Sent brochurepress kit to key technology publications and lifestyle magazines

sect Organised an Asia press tour to lsquoViewtyrsquo launch in Macau for media

sect Bollywood celebrity Deepika Padukone was chosen as Brand Ambassador

RESULTS

sect LG Viewty received an overwhelming response in excess of 200 stories and an equally positive

feedback across all media LG Viewty became a rage in the country and enquiries were pouring in for the

LG GSM team

sect Prominent coverage in NDTV Zee BusinessT3 Hindustan Times My Mobile Financial Express

Economic Times from Asia launch in Macau

sect Sales of phones significantly exceeded forecasted target of 500000 setting several internal records

57

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 58: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

58

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 59: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

2 DaimlerChrysler ndash A Green Evolution

SITUATION

sect Daimler AG is a leading producer of premium passenger cars and the largest manufacturer of

commercial vehicles in

the world and especially the Mercedes-Benz luxury car

sect Being a trendsetter they wanted to highlight the need for a clean and pollution free environmentand for

this they were

showcasing their new car range (C-class) running on Biofuel

STRATEGY

sect To highlight the fuel efficiency and the environmental concern - it was decided to run the car across the

country from

North to South and then measure the impact of the carbon footprint

sect This in turn would position DCILrsquos (DaimlerChrysler India Ltd) commitment to Ecology and Environment

ndash a CSR

initiative and at the same time be a role model to the entire automobile industry

sect Educating the target groups about Bio Fuelsalternative fuel options available

sect Highlight the role of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) and University of Hohenheim

Germany who would be conducting the experiment thereby adding genuineness to the entire campaign

PROGRAM

sect To highlight this mega development - the target was niche publications (National media regional and

local media)

concerned with environment corporate responsibility science and technology

sect Also through this initiative leverage DaimlerChryslerrsquos long-term commitment to Indian market

sect Plan Press Conferences even 1-1 Interviews with key DCIL members

sect Photo opportunities (cars on display) at various centers

sect Test ride to promote the car ndash ideally given to key senior auto journalist

RESULTS

sect The cars did the 5900 kms run without any hitch covering 9 cities over a period of 35 days

sect The emissions were negligible thereby maintaining the carrsquos high standards of engineering

sect People have acknowledged the role of hybrid modelsalternative fuels

sect 9 Press Conferences resulted in 400+ journalist interactions and generated over 250+ articles

highlighting the need

for Biofuels

59

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 60: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

60

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 61: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

CNBC-TV 18 ndash Leading The Pack

SITUATION

sect CNBC is Indiarsquos No1 Business news channel The channels benchmark coverage extends from

corporate news financial markets coverage expert perspective on investing and management to industry

verticals and beyond

sect There were other channels in the market in the same category and the challenge was to differentiate

CNBC-TV18 from the clutter of other news channels

sect To increase brand recall of CNBC-TV18 and to create awareness of its new consumer channel CNBC

AWAAZ and the other ventures such as - SAW moneycontrolcom etc

STRATEGY

sect Showcased Corporate amp Financials of CNBC-TV18

sect Profiling spokespersons and anchors of CNBC-TV18 and the unique non market based shows

sect Highlight major marketing events of CNBC-TV18

PROGRAM

sect Initiated coverage of their various shows such as Storyboard India business

hour Face of the nation etc in leading newspapers and magazines

sect Highlight the other channels in the bouquet of TV 18 thereby leveraging its

qualitative advantage in terms of reach and the cost effective ROI on advertisements

RESULTS

sect Established CNBC-TV18 as the leading business news channel in Indiandash the only credible source of

business information amongst the target audiences comprising of corporate investors analysts media

etc

sect CNBC-TV18 leading in TAM Ratings

61

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 62: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

62

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 63: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Sony Pictures (India) ndash Casino Royale

SITUATION

sect Sony Pictures India is one of the global divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment the world wide leader

in the television and film productiondistribution industry In India they were going to launch the Bond

movie lsquoCasino Royalersquo and they needed good publicity to justify the worldwide franchise of the Bond

lineage

sect Though Bond is known worldwide and has a mass appeal this time around the actor playing Bond was

new and there had been a lot of negative publicity around him The distributors did not want to take a

chance on this aspect and therefore were looking for a grand opening which is fit for any Bond movie

STRATEGY

sect Create curiosity about the movie to draw millions to the box office

sect To create hype around Casino Royale and the new Bond ndash Daniel Craig

sect Generate awareness about the legend that began with lsquoCasino Royalersquo - the novel in which James Bond

earned his 007 title The progression from a dutiful secret agent into an all round hero with the lsquoLicence to

Killrsquo

PROGRAM

sect Started a teaser campaign and later on placed stories and articles of Bond in various newspapers and

magazines which highlighted the various aspects of the Bond persona such as lsquoLook amp Stylersquo of Bond

Bondrsquos favourite drink-The Martini Hi-tech gadgets et al in short the Bond quotient which generated

enormous publicity for the Bond franchise

RESULTS

sect Sony Pictures India release for Casino Royaleldquo by far had the biggest opening for any Hollywood

movie

sect The movie grossed Rs 15 Cr over the 3 day weekend Besides the high profile campaign helped in

every possible way to counteract any negativityhate campaign the actor had for the lead role

63

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 64: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

64

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 65: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

2

Sources Philip Kotler

65

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 66: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

3

Sources Mass Communication and Us (Gandharv Walia)

66

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES

SELECTIVE

PERCEPTIONDISTORTION RETENTION

BRAND IMAGE

INFORMATION SEARCH (SOURCES)

PERSONAL COMMERCIAL PUBLIC EXPERIENTIAL

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 67: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

4

Sources Kotler

67

6 -

Types of Buying-Decision BehaviorDifferen

ce between brands

SignificantDifferences

Complex

buying behavio

r

Low

FewDifferences

Dissonance-

reducing

buying behavio

r

Habitual buying

behavior

Variety-seeking buying

behavior

HighInvolvement

Level

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 68: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

5

68

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 69: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Sources Shekhar and Premanshu (PR in India)

6

Sources Shobhit Bakshi ( The Buyersrsquo Mind)

69

The Buyer Decision Process

Need recognitionInformation searchEvaluation of alternativesPurchase decisionPostpurchase behavior

Consumers exhibit heightened attention or actively search for informationSources of informationPersonalCommercialPublicExperiential

Word-of-mouth

Process Stages

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 70: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

7

70

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 71: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Source A Study on Public Relations Variables in Marketing Mix Modeling by Brian G Smith

8 QUESTIONNAIRE

71

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 72: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

Dear Respondent

Good morning afternoon

I am student of MBA (G) doing Major Research Project

The research deals with gathering your view on consumer durables

I would request you to answer a small questionnaire so that we can know your valuable opinion

Name Contact Number

Age Marital Status

How do you get the product Consumer Durable related news

middot Newspaper and magazines

middot Friends and family

middot The impact of TV advertising

middot TV news

middot Online

middot Other

Which publication(s) do you read

middot Financials

middot Mainlines

middot Regionals

middot Magazines

What do you read majorly in the newspapaer

middot Main Page

middot Sports Page

middot Business Page

middot Editorials

middot Political

Does getting to kabout the brand influence your decision to buy the same

Yes No Cant Say

What factor do you consider before buying the CONSUMER DURABLE

middot Price

middot Features

72

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 73: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

middot Reputation

middot Image

middot Competitor

Which CONSUMER DURABLE brand do you like most

middot IFB

middot Videocon

middot Sony

middot LG

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

If you intend to buy (or replacement) your CONSUMER DURABLE what brand you

will eventually choose

middot LG

middot Videocon

middot Samsung

middot Godrej

middot Sony

middot IFB

Have you recently bought any of the following products If yes of which company

middot Frost-free refrigerators

middot CTVs (21 and above)

middot Fully automatic washing machines

middot Air-conditioners

middot Microwave ovens

How does your decision vary before buying consumer durables

middot Go for a new brand

middot Go for the poplar brand

middot Go for brand with maximum recall

middot Go on experience

Whorsquos the decision maker in the family

middot Collective choice

middot Children centric

73

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 74: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

middot Mother

middot Father

middot Grand Parents

What is the key element that leads you to buy a CONSUMER DURABLE product

middot Service

middot Experience

middot Access

middot Price

middot Product features

Would you be willing to give a higher price for the product of your choice of

company

Yes No Canrsquot Say

Chapter 6

References

74

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis
Page 75: Studying the Link Between Volume of Media Coverage and Business Outcomes. 

1 Background (personal) characteristics of the PR managers (Grunig 1984

Habermann et al 1988 Kitchen and White 1992 Panigyrakis and Veloutsou 1998 Panigyrakis

and Veloutsou 1999)

2 The public relations development and the practices employed by the companies

(Aho Ryan amp Lemmond 1989 Kitchen amp Proctor 1991 Kitchen 1993 Moss et al 1996)

3 The relationship of PR to the promotional mix (Kotler amp Mindak 1978 Kotler 1986

Kitchen amp Moss 1995 Kitchen 1997 Kitchen amp Papassolomou 1997)

4 ldquoImpact and sequence effectsrdquo Journal of Consumer Research

5 Gibson R and Zillmann D ldquoThe impact of quotation in news reports on Issue

perceptionrdquo Journalism Quarterly

6 Miller J and Krosnick J ldquoNews media impact on the ingredients of evaluations

Citizens are guided by a trusted sourcerdquo American Journal of Political Science

7 Valkenburg P Semetiko H and DeVreese C ldquoThe Effects of News Frames

on Readersrsquorsquo Thoughts and Recallrdquo Communication Research

8 Vaughn R ldquoHow PR works A planning modelrdquo Journal of Advertising Research

9 Vergeer M ldquoExposure to Newspapers and Attitudes toward Ethnic Minorities A

longitudinal analysisrdquo The Howard Journal of Communications

75

  • Data Analysis