MARKETING PLAN

MAGAZINES

TRAVEL MAGAZINE

“SPIRIT OF LIVING”

Term Paper of Marketing Management

Paper Code: MGT 514

Submitted To: Submitted By

Mr. Rajan Girdhar Varun Puri
Lecturer Marketing Management R 322 A 09
LSB 10800464

Lovely School of Business

Lovely Professional University
INDEX

Acknowledgement
Motive of Term Paper
Introduction to New Product
Development
Is NPD the same as innovation?
Introduction Magazines
STEPS IN NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

SWOT Aanalysis of Spirit of Living Magazine

NPD Is Difficult to Manage

Acknowledgment
Through my gratitude towards my supporters yet I like to add a few hearts full for the people
who were part of this project in numerous ways. People who gave understanding support
right the project ideas were conceived.

First I want to thank to Mr. Rajan Girdhar, Lecturer Marketing Management, Lovely
Professional University, Phagwara for assigning this term paper & I also want to give hands
full gratitude to her for her help & guidance. I would like to thank all the faculty of Lovely
Business School for having faith in me & for their kind inspirations & helping mw whenever
asked.

Last but not least, I expand my heartiest gratefulness all people who have been directly or
indirectly involved in this project & have given me their best wishes & all help that I needed
for the completion of the term paper.

Varun Puri
PREFACE

This project is undertaken to fulfill the project work component of the M.B.A program in 1st
Semester. My project guide from L.P.U is Prof. Rajan Girdhar. This project reveals the
activities undertaken by a new firm in introducing a product Jeans into the market with
special references to the activities like Product Development, Launching of Campaign,
Product Pricing, Promotion and Advertisement of the product and finally its evaluation and
control
NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
New product development is one of the most important processes for many companies, but
also one of the least understood (and, perhaps, executed). Important because, as we will see,
NPD is responsible for the revenues and margins that a company can achieve and its ultimate
value. It is the least well understood process because few companies assign a single
individual to be responsible for the whole process. Instead, it is usually driven through a
series of functional “silos,” causing delays to build up and, often, the original market
requirements to get lost.

But let’s start with a definition. Our definition of NPD starts with the identification of an
opportunity in the market (“somebody needs a product to do this”) and ends with the
successful launch of the product. In between are many activities to define the requirements,
develop and test a product concept, fully define and develop the product, source for suppliers
involved, plan the manufacturing and supply chain, and prepare marketing programs. On top
of that, it’s about defining the product strategy, managing the overall product program, and
monitoring all the projects and activities needed to drive the NPD process.

Is NPD the same as innovation?

Innovation is clearly part of the NPD process, without it there would be no new products or
no new ways to make, market, and sell them. But innovation would be useless without the
ability to change how the company operates, to successfully introduce the new product. The
job of NPD is not done until the product is in the market, shipped at the right time, delivered
to the right customers, and in the right volumes.
Top CEOs Recognize the Importance of NPD, the CEOs of top companies have long
recognized the importance of NPD. Here are two recent examples:
“The companies that know how to develop things are ultimately going to create the
most shareholder value. It’s as simple as that.”
Jeffrey Immelt, Chairman and CEO, General Electric
MIT Technology Review, October 2003
“You only get a position in the future by investing,creating something new, and staying
ahead of the competition. So it’s simple: invest or die.”
Craig Barrett, CEO, Intel
Business 2.0, January/February 2004

In order for a product launch to be successful, many different factors have to come together
in just the right way. If one is wrong, it’s likely the whole launch will fail. For example:

 The product has to meet the customer’s requirements –it has to do the job.
 Increasingly, it has to meet the customer’s aspirations – it has to feel right.
 The manufacturer’s reputation for quality, reliability, and service may also be
important.
 And, of course, it has to be available at the right time and the right price. The
challenge of NPD is to make sure that all of these things are achieved all of the time.
Introduction
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a

regular schedule, containing a variety of articles, generally financed by advertising, by a

purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three.

The various elements that contribute to the production of magazines vary wildly. Core
elements such as publishing schedules, formats and target audiences are seemingly infinitely
variable. Typically, magazines which focus primarily on current events, such as Newsweek or
Entertainment Weekly, are published weekly or biweekly.
STEPS IN NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

IDEA GENERATION

SCREEENING

BUSINESS ANALYSIS

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

LAUNCHING A CAMPAIGN IN THE MARKET

PRODUCT PRICING

PROMOTION AND ADVERTISEMENT OF PRODUCT

CONTROL AND EVALUATION

Step 1
Idea Generation

The first vital step is to generate ideas for new products are from new ideas. Product ideas
generation means fusion of perceived need with the recognition of a technical opportunity.
That is the perceived need may be new or old –apparent or latent-currently partly fulfilled or
unfulfilled. Though the basic input for the development new products are ideas, all ideas do
not become products. The real difficulty is not in gathering these ideas but in identifying the
“GOOD”ones. Unfortunately, good ideas are generally as plentiful as is often.

Sources of Idea Generation

A.Internal Sources:

These are in company sources of product idea generation.There are four such possible
sources.These are.

1. Basic Research:

Almost all large companies engage in some kind of basic or fundamental

research.Research and development often are divided between the development of
product ideas that have already passed the initial screening stages and research into
areas of technology that give promising of producing totally new product concepts.

2. Sales People:

Company sales representatives can be helpful source of new product ideas.These

people are on the competetivee firing line.They know what customers want and what
they are not getting.They are the firt one to learn about competitors new product.They
are in everyday contact with customers and are thus in a good position to note
customer needs and the extent of satisfaction.

3. Top Management:

Top executives can play an important part in the generation of new product ideas.thier ideas
are ought to be good as they know precisely about the company needs and
resources.moreover, they are keen observers of technological trends and of competitive
activity.
B.External Sources:

External sources are those sources of product generating ideas that signify outside sources

1.Competitors:

We must establish a formal procedure for monitoring the new product activites of its
competitors.By the time a competitor has a new product, it is pretty late to be trying
to do anything about it.Good inferences about competitive product development can
be made on the basis of indirect evidence gained from salesmen, suppliers, resellers
and even customers.Hiring away competitors employees, disassembly and analysis of
competitors product are quite common though legally challenged.

3.Customers: we have to pay more and more attention to customers who constitute
the focal point of mew products.consumers frequently generate new product ideas, or
at least relly information regarding problems that new and improved products would
help to solve.

4.Resellers: Resellers are component part of firms marketing system.they to have a

stake in the manufacturers new product development activity.
Step 2

Screening New Product Ideas

The new product idea generation stage aims at increasing the number of good new product
ideas; it encourages every one and every sources to build a stock of such good many ideas.
THE FIRST IDEA RUNING STAGE IS SCREENING. Screening is the stage of product
development that eliminates the greatest number of ideas from further consideration. It is the
critical part of the development activity. If a poor product idea is allowed to pass through, the
screening stage, it wastes efforts, money and time in subsequent stages until it is later
abandoned. New product screening is the development and use of criteria to evaluate the
potential of new product ideas.

The Screening Procedure:

1. The first task is to determine whether a given product idea is compatible with the
company’s objectives. Four major objectives may be taken for rating purpose say
profit, sales ability, sales growth and the company image.
2. The second task is to determine whether the new product idea is compatible with the
company resources. These resources may be capital, technical, supply of materials,
labors and other production facilities used.

During the ideas generation stage we may get a numerous ides from the internal & internal
sources, but it is not possible to implement the all ideas. Like some may say we need
business magazine, some will ask for the current affair magazine, some say there is need of
magazine related to the employment, some will say people like travel magazines & so on .

In this stage we will screen these ides & select one of them for implementation.

Now we are launching magazine based on travel & living named “Spirit of Living” many
other magazines are available in market related to the same sector. In order to launch the new
magazine we have to screen our idea that relies much heavily on managerial judgment and
experience. They make the sound ideas that promise commercial and technology opportunity.
So keeping in mind the company objectives as well as resources I have chosen travel &
living magazine which will be named Spirit of Living.

The magazine Spirit Level will specialize in leisure travel & in addition it will include
regular articles on Yoga exercises & its benefits and will als often features articles written by
novelists, poets, artists, designers and non-travel journalists. It will be known for its travel
photography. Other features include the SPIRIT OF LIVING 500, a list of the world's top
500 hotels, and Favorite Cities of India’s & other Countries. The magazine's website,
SpiritofLiving.com will publishes original, web-only content and destination guides.
Step 3

Business or Market Analysis

The third step in the process of new product development is that of business analysis. It is
an in depth study of the estimated economic feasibility of a new product i.e. Spirit of Living
Magazine. It is an attempt to predict the economic consequences of the product for the
company as a whole. It is accessing the profitability of travel & living based magazine idea
that helps us in deciding whether to introduce the product, continue the development and
evaluation further or to drop idea. It is evaluation of the idea in depth to determine its
financial, competitive, manufacturing and marketing viability in an accepted business
environment. It is more rigid, critical and expensive exercise.

Steps in business analysis

 Demand analysis-
The first step will be to estimate the demand for the travel magazines. Demand for
these types of magazines is moreover balanced in men & women.
 Cost analysis-
A complete cost appraisal is necessary as a part of business analysis. It is rather
difficult to anticipate all the cost that will be involved in a product since the idea of
new magazine had not entered the development stage. However it’s generally
possible to estimate a range of cost that will be incurred. Both manufacturing and
marketing cost are to be included. Market cost includes all the advertisement
expenses, distribution cost, and concession to consumers on subscription.
Competitive and industry analysis:

Porter has given a five force model for industry analysis and its components are:

Rivalry
The intensity of rivalry is influenced by the following industry characteristics:

1. A larger number of firms increase rivalry because more firms must compete for the
same customers and resources. The rivalry intensifies if the firms have similar market
share, leading to a struggle for market leadership. So many travel magazines are there
in the market which can give a tough competition to the Spirit of Living Magazine.
Like there is travel plus of India today, travel & leisure etc.
2. Low switching costs increases rivalry. When a customer can freely switch from one
product to another there is a greater struggle to capture customers. If other magazine
decrease the cost of its product then it became difficult to fetch the customers again.

Threat of Substitutes
In Porter's model, substitute products refer to products in other industries. To the economist,
a threat of substitutes exists when a product's demand is affected by the price change of a
substitute product. A close substitute product constrains the ability of firms in an industry to
raise prices. If any other business magazine low down the prices of its products then it will
affect the demand for business today magazine.

Buyer Power
The power of buyers is the impact that customers have on a producing industry. Buyers are
powerful if they purchase a significant proportion of output i.e. business today magazine.
Supplier Power
A producing industry requires raw materials - labor, components, and other supplies. This
requirement leads to buyer-supplier relationships between the industry and the firms that
provide it the raw materials used to create products. Suppliers, if powerful, can exert an
influence on the producing industry, such as selling raw materials at a high price to capture
some of the industry's profits. If the suppliers of information tend to charge high price from
the producing industry it will affect the production and ultimately affect the customers.

Barriers to Entry / Threat of Entry

It is not only incumbent rivals that pose a threat to firms in an industry; the possibility that
new firms may enter the industry also affects competition. If any firm enters in competition
with business today company there raises some threats to the company e.g. low down sales.
Step 4

Product Development

Until the product development stage, the existence of the product is entirely theoretical.
During the development stage, the product idea is converted into tangible physical product.
So now we come to process of how to print the magazine & publish it.

The first step is selecting the paper on which it will be printed. Most magazines produced on
a commercial scale are printed using a web offset process. The magazine is printed in
sections, typically of 16 pages, which may be black-and-white, be in full colour, or use spot
colour. These sections are then bound, either by stapling them within a soft cover in a process
sometimes referred to as 'saddle-stitching', or by gluing them together to form a spine, a
process often called 'perfect-binding'

Material to Be Included
In this stage various type of material is selected, that we want to publish in our magazine.
Our magazine will include following features

 Travel & Lisure Articles

 Yoga exercises & its benefits
 Articles written by Novelists, Poets, Artists, Designers and Non-Travel journalists.
 Travel photography.
 SPIRIT OF LIVING 500, a list of the world's top 500 hotels, and Favorite Cities of
India’s & other Countries.
 The magazine's website, SpiritofLiving.com will publishes original, web-only content
and destination guides.
Step 5

Launching Campaign in Market

The next step will be launching a campaign in the market to encourage people to buy Spirit
of Living Magazine.

After the product development the next step is to launch our new product i.e. Magazine
SPIRIT of LIVING in the market. And to make the general public aware of that magazine.
We can launch various advertisements in printed media, on radio stations, telivision channels
& etc.

We can also partipate in trade fares in various cities by which we can make people aware the
about the Magazine.

We can also offer special low introductory prices or special discounts on subscriptions & we
can offer more discount on subscribing for more than one year.
Step 6

Product Pricing
Product pricing

The next step in new product development is product pricing. Now we have to decide the
price of our product i.e. Spirit of Living. The price we charge our customers or clients will
have a direct effect on the success of our business. All prices must cover costs and profits.
The most effective way to lower prices is to lower costs. Review prices frequently to assure
that they reflect the dynamics of cost, market demand, response to the competition, and profit
objectives. Prices must be established to assure sales. Before setting a price for our product,
we have to know the costs of running your business. If the price for our product or service
doesn't cover costs, your cash flow will be cumulatively negative, you'll exhaust your
financial resources, and your business will ultimately fail .In pricing the other factor that is
also important is price of the competitors in the market.So we have to set the price for the
handloom garments after having look at the price of the competitors who are producing the
same product.

Here in our case we will have to charge a very competitive price because there are large no. of giant
groupslike India Today, the Hindu Group, Express Group etc. these groups are one of the oldest
magazine publishers & they can fall their price tto weaken us
Step 7
Promotion and Advertisements of The
Product
Promotion is the business of communicating with customers. It will provide information that
will assist them in making a decision to purchase a product or service. Though we can
communicate with our present and potential customers in wide variety of ways, the most
distinguishable categories are personnel and impersonal. Personnel communications relate to
face to face meeting between the sales force of the company and the customers .On the other
hand impersonal communication include-advertising, sales promotion, public relations we
have to make a proper plan for promoting the handloom garments. Advertising is a very
popular method for promoting a product. Advertisements in different medias like television,
newspapers can be given for the handloom garments. Big hoardings in the city will help to
promote the product. As we have launch the product for the first time special discounts can
be given on the garments to encourage the customers to buy the product.

 Above the line promotion: Promotion in the media (e.g. TV, radio, newspapers,
Internet and Mobile Phones) in which the advertisement pays an advertising agency
to place the ad.
 Below the line promotion: All other promotion. Much of this is intended to be subtle
enough for the consumer to be unaware that promotion is taking place. E.g.
sponsorship, product placement, endorsements, sales promotion, merchandising,
direct mail, personal selling, public relations, trade shows

LOGISTIC AND SUPPLY CHAIN

 A supply chain or logistics network is the system of organizations, people,
technology, activities, information and resources involved in moving a product or service
from supplier to customer. Supply chain activities transform natural resources, raw materials
and components into a finished product that is delivered to the end customer. In sophisticated
supply chain systems, used products may re-enter the supply chain at any point where
residual value is recyclable. Supply chains link value chains.

A typical supply chain begins with ecological and biological regulation of natural
resources, followed by the human extraction of raw material and includes several production
links, for instance; component construction, assembly and merging before moving onto
several layers of storage facilities of ever decreasing size and ever more remote geographical
locations, and finally reaching the consumer.
 CONTROL AND EVALUATION

Control is a foreseeing action whereas earlier concept of control was used only
when errors were detected. Control in management means setting standards, measuring
actual performance and taking corrective action. Thus, control comprises these three main
activities.

1. Measuring the actual performance with the standard performance: The producer must
compare there actual performance with the standard performance and if he found any
deviation he must take the corrective actions or to use the various techniques in order to
popularize the product in the market. In this we can see that whether the customer need have
been satisfied after buying our product or not.

2. Taking corrective actions-This involves taking up of correct action. It means is

customers are not satisfied with our product than they will not buy it again. So steps have to
be taken to remove the grievances of customers. Moreover services like after sale services
can be provided to the customers. Proper feedback must be taken from the customers.

As we are to print articles & essays of various writers & journalits, we should be carefull
about their conditions of printing, we should copywrite our design & trademarks so that
no one can think of imitate us.

SWOT Aanalysis of Spirit of Living Magazine

STRENGTHS

The company has an established name and reputation, it has something unique that people
need and use. Its new prices are what really set it apart from the competition, its distribution
methods are its strengths like one can get the magazine from book stalls in college, in schools
even at bus stops, and even at internet.

WEAKNESSES
Some people find it tough to understand what is exactly mentioned in the magazine , as it is
not easy for a layman to understand at first instance , language and words used in it &
sometimes it’s the information that to which one layman is not interested.

OPPORTUNITIES

Spirit of Living Magazine is now getting into a good stuff. They can have a better
opportunity to get the news first and publish it in the magazine as early as possible to
increase the sales. Further the company has to consider about introducing more relevant
contents which other magazines are not providing. Other opportunities can be there if the
company starts issuing the magazine in other languages too.

THREATS

The nastier part of the analysis- the company is likely to have more competitions from other
magazine groups. The way of other company to popularize the product can be a threat for
business today group. It results in reducing popularity of the magazine. Maybe new
technology is going to pull out the carpet from under the business today’s feet, or for those
matter new developments.

NPD Is Difficult to Manage

One of the often heard comments is that the NPD process is difficult to manage and this is
certainly true for two reasons:

 At the beginning of a project, the outcome and the work that will have to be
undertaken are often uncertain.
 For many groups in the company, such as supply chain management and
manufacturing, NPDI is disruptive, causing them to interfere with processes that
have been painstakingly optimized.

So NPDI is not “business as usual.” As a result, the NPDI process is out of control in many
companies. A recent study by AMR Research asked companies if their NPDI process was
under strategic control (are we developing the right products?) and financial control (are we
on time and within budget?) and found that less than one third could claim to be both ( Figure
3).

Figure 3: Is the NPDI Process Under Strategic and Financial C

The SWOT analysis won't produce or create anything for the company, it's merely a tool. For
many of us, its main purpose will be to prop open our eyes and force us to lift our heads and
see the bigger picture. Focusing on what the company good at and what needs improving is
vital and the importance of seeing the opportunities and threats that are out there can't be
overstated.

Refrences

www.wikipedia.com/magazines

www.wikipedia.com/tra_magazines

www.indiatoday.com/t+l

ontrol?
Source: AMR Research