Marque Magazine - March'23 Edition

MARQUE

THE MARKETING CLUB OF IIM ROHTAK

FROM THE EDITOR

Welcome to the very special edition of Marque magazine. I am delighted that the marketing club has been given the chance to use its monthly publication as a forum for all young marketing enthusiasts who want to express their opinions on a variety of themes. It brings me great pleasure to write this letter as Editor of this one-of-a-kind issue of the magazine.

The theme of February's edition revolves around product led growth, quick commerce, metaverse marketing and much more.

I extend my warmest gratitude to all the authors for their interest, enthusiasm, and well-documented submissions of excellent articles and participation in this magazine’s building. I firmly believe that no matter how your magazine is delivered; either at your doorstep or to your computer, printed on glossy stock or on cheap tabloid paper, appearing on your iPad or your cell phone screen, it is still the work of an editorial team for a discerning audience, a beautiful and meaningful package of ideas, words and images put together by a group of experts for its readers.

While technology efficiently delivers new stories to our desktops, lap- tops, and mobile devices, magazines are all about context –how ideas and images are presented in relation to one another and spanning a broader perspective. We, the editors, will always strive to keep you engaged.

Product-Led Growth: Unlocking Business Through Product Strategy

Author: Aishwarya Kejriwal

Great Lakes Institute of Management, Gurgaon

Product

In business and commerce, a product is a key component, as it is the primary means by which a company generates revenue and serves the needs and wants of its customers. In addition to physical goods, some companies also offer digital products or services, such as software, online courses, or digital media These products may be delivered electronically, downloaded, or accessed through a subscription model

Product Management

Product management is a business function that involves overseeing the development and marketing of a product or service It is the process of identifying, designing, developing, and launching a product that meets the needs and wants of customers, while also achieving the goals and objectives of the business The primary goal of product management is to ensure that the product meets the needs and expectations of the target market, while also aligning with the strategic goals of the company Product managers work closely with cross-functional teams, including engineering, design, marketing, sales, and customer support, to ensure that the product is developed and launched successfully.

Effective product management can lead to increased customer satisfaction, higher revenues, and a more competitive position in the market.

Product strategy

Product strategy is the process of defining the long-term vision, goals, and objectives for a product or service It involves making decisions about how to develop and market a product or service to meet the needs and expectations of the target market, while also achieving the goals and objectives of the business A product strategy typically includes several key components, including defining the company’s vision and performing a market analysis Preparing a product roadmap, defining pricing and positioning and last but most important preparing a go-to-market strategy A GTM is a plan for how the product will be marketed and sold, including the channels and tactics that will be used to reach the target market

Effective product strategy requires collaboration and input from cross-functional teams, including product management, engineering, design, marketing, and sales. It should be aligned with the overall goals and objectives of the business, and be flexible enough to adapt to changing market conditions or customer needs. A successful product strategy can help a company deliver products that meet the needs of its customers, create a competitive advantage, and drive business growth and profitability over the long term.

What is product-led growth?

Product management is a crucial function in any organization, as it helps ensure that the company is delivering products that meet the needs of its customers and align with its strategic goals

Product-led growth is a go-to-market strategy that puts the product at the centre of the customer acquisition and retention process. Instead of relying on sales and marketing to drive customer acquisition, PLG focuses on creating a product that is so valuable and easy to use that it drives customer adoption and retention on its own

The basic idea behind product-led growth is to create a product that is so compelling that users will naturally want to share it with others, leading to viral growth and increased adoption. PLG is often associated with software and SaaS companies, but it can be applied to any product or service that has a self-serve or low-touch sales model.

Shapes the messaging and positioning: A go-to-market strategy helps product managers define the messaging and positioning for the product, which is used to differentiate it from competitors and create a compelling value proposition for customers. This messaging and positioning is used in all marketing and sales activities and can help drive customer adoption and retention.

Identifies the marketing and sales channels: A go-to-market strategy helps product managers identify the marketing and sales channels that are most effective for reaching the target market, whether it's through social media, email marketing, search engine marketing, or other channels By focusing on the channels that are most effective for the target market, product managers can maximize the impact of their marketing and sales efforts

How does developing go-to-market strategies help in product management?

Developing go-to-market (GTM) strategies is an essential part of product management It helps ensure that a product is launched and marketed effectively to reach its intended audience and achieve its business goals A go-to-market strategy defines how a product or service will be marketed and sold, including the channels, tactics, and messaging that will be used to reach the target market.

Here are some of the ways in which developing go-to-market strategies can help in product management

Defines the target market: A go-to-market strategy helps product managers identify the target market for their product, including the specific customer segments that are most likely to benefit from the product. This information can help inform product development and ensure that the product meets the needs and expectations of the target market.

Guides product development: A go-tomarket strategy can help guide product development by identifying the features, functionality, and design elements that are most important to the target market This information can help ensure that the product is developed to meet the needs and expectations of the target market

Measures success: A go-to-market strategy helps product managers establish metrics and KPIs for measuring the success of their marketing and sales efforts By tracking these metrics, product managers can identify areas for improvement and optimize their GTM strategies over time

In summary, developing go-to-market strategies is a critical part of product management, as it helps ensure that a product is launched and marketed effectively to reach its intended audience and achieve its business goals. By understanding the target market, guiding product development, shaping messaging and positioning, identifying marketing and sales channels, and measuring success, product managers can maximize the impact of their product and drive long-term growth and profitability

Quick Commerce: The Now and the Next

Author: Shivani Khanna Great Lakes Institute of Management, Gurgaon

The last couple years have burgeoned the explosion of online commerce throughout the world. Customers locked inside the house unable to shop physically, demands pent up and failed supply chains led to the emergence of a new template of business called Quick Commerce. Quick Commerce can be attributed to a business model that delivers goods and services within a very short span of time. Short meaning 10-15 minutes per delivery! This model is currently being used majorly for restaurants deliveries, grocery & daily needs delivery and intra city just in time couriers

Quick commerce start-ups have been under the radar of investors and capitalists who are taking unusual interest in it because of the immense popularity and functionality of the services they provide In such a short span, the quick commerce industry in India is expected to hit $5 5 Billion by 2025 It isn’t just the no of orders that is causing the success of this model but the variety of the products that it supports and the increasing speed with which orders are being fulfilled is the talk of the hour Going from the previous delivery time of 1 5 hours to 10-15 mins today, seems shocking for a pre covid world However, the goal of quick commerce is to fulfil a delivery magically on the door the moment an order is made but 10 minutes is as close as it can get in reality as of now.

It is imperative to note that Tesco (the British grocery chain) came up with this idea in 1999 However, the pandemic accelerated this and integrated it as a way of doing business for many entities This has enabled a lot of platforms to just be distance based and operate solely via delivery where cost algorithms are also altered such that the reduction in the operational costs funds the delivery cost This is very evident in Dark/cloud kitchen models where ghost brands are popping up who are delivery only eateries which is a very future reflective model

An initial entrant in this industry has been the Turkish ultrafast delivery start-up Getir who ventured into this game as early as 2015 and is now operational in more than 9 countries including UK, US and Germany

The Getir secret is to have a G store as they call it, in every major neighbourhood and optimise the inventory, the service level and the costs according to the needs of that particular neighbourhood. This can be interpreted as a sort of a second generation of retail model. Massive warehouses, fulfilment centres in every locality/town are how these companies are expanding their operations and making it possible to deliver in such a short span of 10-15 minutes

Zepto, Blink It and even Zomato today are entering into the 10 minutes delivery space. Some of these companies received a massive spike in number of orders and downloads made during the pandemic but it is highly unlikely to get that kind of peak demand again. Plus, the economics of the business are the fundamental challenge here, consumers are extremely price sensitive when it comes to delivery charges.

Also, Grocery (where majorly this model operates) is an altogether a different industry as marked by low margins and large scale, adding a delivery fee on top of it only makes it more challenging to operate

Therefore, there is less wiggle room in this to chart out costs plus profit but in order to be a mainstream, as an industry it needs to reduce the charges even more by gaining operational efficiencies Being in control of everything, from sourcing to storing to delivery partners makes it easier to keep the costs in check As what the industry is competing originally, is personal supermarket experience Another point of importance is that people are a core to this business model With the advent of gig economy, it isn’t too difficult to find delivery service employees at convenient pay rate but the quality of service is highly dependent on them. Therefore, it becomes crucial that the companies become an executer of fair employment

Today end to end system is optimised by tech and data across quick commerce platforms. Customer buying behaviour is monitored and analysed into an accurate prediction that can be used to optimise services. Hence, businesses can thrive just by being good in tech and data optimisations and forecasting inaccuracies Of course, there has to be a good assortment of products and consumer reliability on a high frequency but technology does come in handy The industry still has many tricks in its sleeves left Drone delivery for example, looks like an accurate solution to high operating costs

There is not a given formula of what works for the quick commerce industry as it is at a very nascent stage, take that from the background of retail/grocery industry - a few years back, no one had the crack to an ideal model for egrocery as to how to ensure margins and customer quality Specially in Indian scenario, the kind of penetration of grocery stores that India boasts, the idea of e grocery doesn’t sound as compelling but the pandemic accelerated the ease and safety that it offered Today, Zepto – an Indian quick commerce brags an average delivery time of 9.5 minutes!

Governments around the globe are becoming more lenient and regularised for drone operations. In fact, in India as well private players will be allowed to use drones for delivery purposes backed by the Drone Rules,2021 It also solves the innate issue of rising pollution levels contributed by supply chain solutions Anticipatory shipping, a model currently being used by Amazon as a patent technology results in better customer service and fewer forecasting errors because to the growing integration of machine learning and AI technologies. Demand forecasting will be carried out to track customer behaviour and accurately predict demand and trends which will further power something called as geotargeting, a sort of advertising that makes use of location data to send messages to consumers that are relevant to their locality and behaviour. Several innovations are anticipated in the smart warehousing segment also like IOT based perishable product monitoring which will save inventory spoilage. The industry on the whole is picking up but there’s still a lot more scope for it as far as the hyperlocal market goes, connecting every last bit of it is a challenge but it is the only road to success

The world has finally realised the importance of strengthened supply chains and gearing up to create a future ready model for the same

Metaverse Marketing - The New Reality

Author:

Swapnil Sengupta

Symbiosis Insitute of International Business, Pune

Understanding the concept

“Metaverse isn’t a thing a company builds. It’s the next chapter of the internet overall.”

– Mark Zuckerberg

Metaverse is not something which is here to replace the ongoing Social Media setup. It has just added a new dimension to the existing infrastructure. The internet, which was 2D, is experiencing a new wing of 3D, with the help of Metaverse these days. In this new 3D world of Metaverse, there is huge amount of data related to business, communication and others which are interoperable. This 3D world allows people from anywhere in the world to get connected in a common virtual world, in the form of avatars, which bears a resemblance with them and imitates their movements.

Companies which are present in the real world, for them Metaverse is a huge opportunity to experiment as it targets a big chunk of younger population Metaverse has a very vivid application in the field of virtual gaming through the medium of virtual worlds like Decentralland, The Sandbox etc , but its not essentially true that application of metaverse end with the gaming industry only Its pretty much predictable that Metaverse will add value to other companies in future also, mainly which are in the sectors like Healthcare, Fashion, Entertainment and Media, Retail Industry etc

Growth of Metaverse

The market for the metaverse is expanding quickly every day, which is luring online gaming firms, social networking companies, the fashion sector, and others to invest in it The international metaverse market, which is presently valued at USD 68 49, is anticipated to grow to over USD 1 3 trillion by 2030, with a CAGR of 44 5% between 2022 and 2030 (Source – Precedence Research, https://www precedenceresearch com/metaversemarket)

Application on different sectors

Hospitality sector consists of restaurants, hotels, event planners and all which nowadays are trying to incorporate metaverse in their day to day actions to uphold the realtionship between their customer engagement. The metaverse presents both significant potential and challenges for the hospitality and tourism industries. Organizations in the hospitality and tourist industries strategically employs the metaverse to personalise and jointly develop hybrid virtual and physical experiences.

One of the best examples in the hospitality sector is the example of a region in Canada, known as Nova Scotia, which provides high quality 360° VR Videos, which lets people experience one of the best places in Nova Scotia in different languages

Marriot Hotels are also applying the concept of metaverse with the help of their “Teleportation” concept. They used their VR headset, which featured locations and hotel amenities using VR technology. We can also see in Fig, that in order to allow the 100 couples who are married there every day to virtually sample hospitality properties in Maui, Hawaii and London, UK and learn more about honeymoon options in their hotels, Marriott Hotels put up a "Get Teleported" booth outside of New York City Hall in 2014. [Buhalis, D., Lin, M. S., & Leung, D. (2022) https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-05-2022-0631]

The dining experience takes place in "capsules" that offer a fully immersive audio and visual metaverse-like environment with various virtual settings, such as the ocean's depths or space.

Restaurants are also using Metaverse as an efficient tool to enhance customer experience. Sublimotion restaurant, by Ibiza, which is in Spain is conceptualized by Michelin two-star chef named Paco Roncero. In this restaurant, the guests are told to wear Samsung VR headsets to experience various activities of the restaurant One of then is the chef cooking the ordered food for them

Where is Metaverse heading towards?

Though Metaverse is having a huge potential in every sector we can think of, still it has its own drawbacks Like for example, in real world the identity of everyone we meet is pretty clear But in any metaverse, its quite difficult to authenticate one’s identity And maybe most significantly, how can we even demonstrate our identity to prevent another person or even a robot from trying to imitate us? Quite difficult right?

Getting into the Metaverse will also raise a serious question about Law and Order Organizations working with Metaverse should be very clear and vivid about Virtual legal domains. Incorporation of no law may result in vulnerability of consumers. While using Metaverse, people get a vivid difference in time with the real world. One of the main reasons is that they often loose body awareness while in Metaverse. This may lead users to spend more and more time in the virtual world, rather spending in the real physical world.

Even if a virtual universe is still a way off, creating the Metaverse might be difficult and full of opportunities. Without a doubt, it is crucial to make sure that the Metaverse develops into a realm that complements rather than replaces the one in which we live. As much as one can anticipate the virtual world, it is crucial to stay vigilant, secure, and alert in this new, huge cosmos

Marriot Hotel booth for experiencing different parts of hotels for in VR for #GetTeleported campaign

Changing Trends in Marketing in the Era of 5G

Author: Kangana Saini Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore

Introduction

The fifth generation (5G) technology is set to bring about a significant change in the way businesses market their products and services With faster internet speeds, higher bandwidth, and greater connectivity, the era of 5G is expected to transform the marketing landscape, giving rise to new opportunities for businesses to connect with their customers in more personalized and engaging ways In this article, we will explore the changing trends in marketing in the era of 5G, and how businesses can adapt to these trends to stay ahead of the game

Personalized Marketing

With higher bandwidth and faster speeds, businesses can expect to have greater access to data and insights on their customers. This will allow for more personalized and targeted marketing, where businesses can create campaigns that are specifically tailored to individual customers based on their behaviors and preferences. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning algorithms will allow businesses to analyze large amounts of data to create personalized marketing campaigns that resonate with their customers. The use of data analytics will also enable businesses to measure the effectiveness of their campaigns, allowing them to make data-driven decisions that can improve their marketing strategies. The ability to measure the impact of marketing campaigns in real-time will be crucial in ensuring that businesses are able to stay ahead of their competition

The Internet of Things

The advent of 5G technology will also lead to the rise of the Internet of Things (IoT) With the increased connectivity provided by 5G, businesses will be able to incorporate IoT devices into their marketing strategies This will allow for a more seamless and integrated customer experience, where businesses can interact with customers in real-time and provide them with relevant and personalized information

For example, a retailer can use IoT devices to track customer behavior and preferences, which can help them to create personalized offers and recommendations. An airline can use IoT devices to monitor flight delays and provide customers with real-time updates on their flights. The use of IoT devices in marketing will help businesses to create more engaging and relevant experiences for their customers, thereby improving their customer satisfaction levels.

Augmented and Virtual Reality

The rise of 5G will also lead to the growth of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) in marketing With faster and more reliable internet speeds, businesses can create more immersive and engaging experiences for customers For example, a retailer can use AR to allow customers to virtually try on clothing or accessories before making a purchase A real estate agent can use VR to provide virtual tours of properties

The use of AR and VR in marketing will help businesses to create more engaging and memorable experiences for their customers. These experiences can be used to differentiate a business from its competitors and improve its brand image.

Mobile Commerce

The rise of 5G will lead to the growth of mobile commerce. With faster and more reliable internet speeds, customers will be able to make purchases on their mobile devices more quickly and easily This will require businesses to optimize their websites and apps for mobile devices, as well as to provide seamless and secure payment options

The use of mobile commerce will help businesses to reach customers who prefer to make purchases on their mobile devices It will also help businesses to provide a more convenient and seamless customer experience, which can help to improve customer satisfaction levels

Conclusion

The advent of 5G technology is set to transform the way we live, work, and interact with the world around us This includes the way businesses market their products and services With higher connectivity, the rise of IoT, AR, VR, and mobile commerce, businesses will need to adapt their marketing strategies to stay ahead of the game By investing in the right technology and infrastructure, businesses can leverage the power of 5G to create more personalized, engaging, and seamless customer experiences.

The use of data analytics and AI will help businesses to create personalized marketing campaigns.

marketingclub@iimrohtak.ac.in

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this magazine are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the stake holders of IIM Rohtak.

EDITOR : Tanya Pant, Jyotsna A

DESIGN : Jyotsna A

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