Professional Documents
Culture Documents
ON
Submitted By:
Ankit Sandal
PGPM (2016 2018)
Enrollment No. 16BSP3342
1
A SUMMER TRAINING REPORT
ON
Submitted By:
Ankit Sandal
PGPM (2016 2018)
Enrollment No. 16BSP3343
Distribution List:
Ms. Sonia Choudhary (Company Guide)
Prof. Deepa Diddi (College Guide)
2
AUTHORIZATION
I hereby declare that the Interim report titled Marketing, sales and Operations of HINDUSTAN
TIMES LEARNING CENTERS LTD (STUDYMATE) which I have submitted in partial fulfillment of the
requirement of PGPM Program of IBS Gurgaon (Semester II), is an original piece of work, the data
and statistics used have been duly acknowledged. This submission has never been a basis for any
previously awarded degree to any individual to any institution.
Signature
(Ankit Sandal)
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I express my heartiest thanks, deep sense of gratitude and indebtedness to Mr. Saurabh
Gupta,(CEO), for providing me the opportunity to have the training session here in the
branch and for his judicious guidance, constant and vital encouragement, unstilted interest
and determined efforts even in his demanding schedule and also inspired me to work
seriously and gain practical knowledge through this project.
I would also thank Mr. Debojit Sen (Sales and Operations Head), Ms. Sonia Choudhry
(Zonal Manager), who all help me out in providing information about the working of the
branch not mentioned in it.
My gratitude also goes to Prof. Deepa Diddi IBS Gurgaon who as my Faculty Guide has
always motivated me to put my best foot forward by setting high standards.
Last but not the least I feel highly indebted to my parents who always supported me and
are continuously guiding me to work on the path of success.
Ankit Sandal
Enrollment no: 16BSP3343
4
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
So far, the Tuition Industry has been largely un-organized and none of the players in the
industry have had a very huge presence. Hindustan Times Learning Center, Studymate was
started in 2010 to provide best in industry supplementary education to the students of
classes VllI-XII studying in the CBSE Board schools. Studymate chose CBSE Board as 98% of
the schools in Delhi/NCR region follow CBSE curriculum. It was started with 4 centers and
the number now has gone to 29 centers across Delhi/NCR region. With the increase in
number of centers across the region, Studymate through its supplementary Education is
now looking forward to make true the dreams of several 8th -12th class students across
Delhi/NCR region.
This report would tell us about the offerings of the company along with its USP, the
marketing activities of the company and the role played by me in carrying out the
marketing activities. Also, my role in the various operational activities that take place at
tuition center have been described.
For this an initial analysis of the market was required, so I went for ghost shopping and came to
know the difference between Studymate and its competitors. I also analysed the past methods
used by Studymate, which helped me in developing new strategies. After that different strategies
were adopted like:
Canopy activities
Walk through
No parkings
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Banners
Umberallas
Inbound activities
Attending walkins
Operational work
Incenter activities
Aftersales services
The major challenge in front of me was to bring early enrolments. As my centre was the new
centre in vasundhara enclave there was no awareness about studymate so inorder to create
awareness I did lot of BTL activities and lead generation. The basic aim of this project was
generate walkins in the center.
Also while settling at the centre I was there as a student advisor used to do the counselling of
parents and students. It was my responsibility to generate sales as well as manage that centre. I
also took care of the aftersales services so that the word of mouth is good for the new center,At
the same time I also participated in Below the Line Activity, Mentoring, Branding , operations
(leadsquared and buzzyears)and Effort maximization which is the biggest marketing tool of
Studymate.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
S. No Topic Page no
1 Cover Page 1
2 Title page 2
3 Authorization 3
4 Acknowledgement 4
5 Executive Summary 5-6
6 Introduction 8-9
7 Company structure 10-11
8 Target segmenting of SM 12
9 SWAT 13
10 Name of project 14
11 Literature review 15-16
12 Objective 17
13 Purpose and scope 18-19
14 Competition Analysis 20
15 Target and achievement 21
16 BTL 22
17 Research methodology 23
18 Analysis and Finding 24-34
10 Learnings 35
20 Limitation of study 36
21 Annexure 37-38
22 Bibliography 40
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INTRODUCTION
Hindustan Times started Studymate learning centres for Classes VIII-XII in the year 2010 to help
its student score more.
The development of Studymate learning centres is the culmination of many years of experience
in the field of education, garnered through our educational supplement HT Education, and
through partnership initiatives with numerous schools for our Newspapers in Education initiative
through HT PACE and HT NEXT. With Studymate, our aim of equipping and empowering
young minds to pursue their dreams has been furthered.
We started with four state-of-the art centres in Delhi/NCR (Patel Nagar, Lajpat Nagar, Janakpuri
and Mayur Vihar) and based on the tremendous response we received in the first year, we added
another two centres (Malviya Nagar and Gurgaon) in the year 2011. We added six more centres
(Dwarka, Vaishali, Preet Vihar, Paschim Vihar, Mayur Vihar and Noida) in the year 2014 and
have now spread to 23 centers in 2015 with a strong presence in North (Model Town, Ashok
Vihar, Shalimar Bagh,Rohini, Pitampura) & South Delhi( GK2, Vasant Kunj & GreenPark Ext)
in addition to additional centres in Janakpuri, Indirapuram and Gurgaon (South City II). In 2017,
we will have more than 6000 students enrolled with us. Studymate now caters to students for
classes VIII to XII. We are today proudly, Delhi NCRs N0. 1 tuition centre .
At a Studymate learning centre, the child benefits from a curriculum that has been synchronized
with the CBSE Boards System and is updated to include the latest continuous and
comprehensive evaluation. From enrolment to exams and student personality development, our
students are mentored by teachers with a proven track record, who have been hired by our
educational board after an exhaustive screening and selection process.
Studymate prides itself in having faculty of the highest calibre, as we believe they form the
backbone of our learning centre. We ensure that our faculty inherently displays values, which are
synonymous with Studymate, namely patience, approachability, confidence, result orientation
and an unbiased attitude. Our centres are equipped with best in class infrastructure with clean
and well lit classrooms running on optimum batch size to ensure attention to the needs of each
child. Within the classroom, learning is simplified by Technology-Aided Teaching as well as
having study material and study notes collated by teachers whove demonstrated years of subject
expertise.
Apart from support for pure academic excellence, we go the extra mile by providing a 24 hour
board exam helpline. This interface addresses a students counselling and emotional needs, helps
the student manage stress and clear last minute doubts as well. Our Hum Hai Naa 24 hour
board exam helpline (7533006833) initiative, in 2012, received tremendous response and was
applauded by the school principals as well as the CBSE chairman Mr. Vineet Joshi.
Apart from academic support, we focus on overall development of the child through periodic
sessions that are adequately sensitized and imbibe naturally the components of life skills,
attitudes and values. As part of our offering we have partnered with Admissions Campus to
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provide our students career guidance and college admission assistance. Through this initiative
our endeavour is, to equip the child in staying ahead in life. The recent CBSE board exams are
strong endorsement for Studymate. Our students did extremely well across classes. Not only did
a large proportion achieve above 90%, but a significant number of students registered a
substantial improvement in their results.
The encouraging feedback received from both parents and students have further strengthened our
belief that it was a step taken in the right direction. In the coming years we further plan to build
on our learning from the initial years and grow exponentially with a single minded vision to
impart high quality coaching to our students.
The recent CBSE board exams are strong endorsement for Studymate. Studymates students did
extremely well across classes. Not only did a large proportion achieve above 90%, but a
significant number of students registered a substantial improvement in their results.
The encouraging feedback received from both parents and students have further strengthened our
belief that it was a step taken in the right direction.
9
STRUCTURE OF THE COMPANY
East Zone ZM
Advisors of Zone
Finance Team
Finance Head
( Sr. Exec. & Exec. )
Fig.
1) The seasonal nature of its business: the company though works on a full year
scale the peak time of its operations is in the months of February, March and April;
since the
Company hires Summer Interns every year to work with the formal structuring is
difficult to do.
2) The company itself is in the initial stages of its growth due to which the roles are
majorly undefined.
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Though the employees and the interns have to play multiple roles the company can be
divided into six functional areas.
1. Marketing team
2. Counseling (sales) team
3. Product team
4. Human resources
5. Operations Team
6. IT based R&D
The Marketing team is responsible for planning and execution of marketing strategies
mainly the Below the Line Activity (explained in the later part of report). After the execution
of the marketing plan the marketing team is dissolved barring a few people and merged
with the sales team.
The sales team or the counseling team is responsible for converting theleads generated by
the marketing activity. This involves doing the proper counseling of the student on phone
in face- t o - f a c e meeting and also to convince him/her for joining Studymate.
The product team is like the corner stone barely visible but of utmost importance. They are
responsible for creating the study material of excellent quality. This work requires a lot of
research and analysis of the product being offered by the competitors as well.
This company is a labor intensive company; more than 50 MBA students are working. So
the role of HR becomes very important and also the HR works in sync with the Product
team for hiring the quality faculties for the product delivery in the classroom.
Apart from the above, the operations team is responsible for the Smooth running and
R&D work for the everyday running of the company.
As will be seen later, the company has been a flexible one and has adapted frequently and
accurately to a lot of market stimulus, hence enhancing its success.
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Target Segment of Studymate
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SWOT Analysis of Studymate
STRENGTH OF STUDYMATE
Studymate comes from the house of HT which creates trust among the customers as
it is a 90 year old brand.
Best faculty with good experience.
High quality Infrastructure
In house built study material for their smart classes
Most organised coaching centre all across Delhi/NCR
WEAKNESS OF STUDYMATE
New in the market so customers are not able to trust.
As new with the software so there are problems in updation in that and sometimes
create a bad impact on the customer.
OPPORTUNITIES OF STUDYMATE
Since there is no other organised coaching centre so it can take the first mover
advantage in the market as a well organised coaching centre.
As stating in promotion that is has all main subjects they can have all the subjects
under one roof and at all the centres all the subjects so that it can be made more
standardised.
They should also have their own cab facilities so that it becomes easier for students
to travel and students from little distance could also enrol.
THREATS OF STUDYMATE
Since education is becoming highly competitive more players are entering into this
segment because of its lucrativeness.
Also the fee structure is higher as comparative to its competitors so it is also a threat
to it.
Also other competitors are focusing on CBSE as well as competitive preparations but
studymate is only focusing on CBSE
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NAME OF THE PROJECT
c) TARGET VS ACHIEVEMENT
d) LEARNINGS IN STUDYMATE
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LITERATURE REVIEW
Product - The Product should fit the task consumers want it for, it should work and
it should be what the consumers are expecting to get.
Place The product should be available from where your target consumer finds it
easiest to shop. This may be High Street, Mail Order or the more current option via
e-commerce or an online shop.
Price The Product should always be seen as representing good value for money.
This does not necessarily mean it should be the cheapest available; one of the main
tenets of the marketing concept is that customers are usually happy to pay a little
more for something that works really well for them.
Promotion Advertising, PR, Sales Promotion, Personal Selling and, in more recent
times, Social Media are all key communication tools for an organization. These tools
should be used to put across the organizations message to the correct audiences in
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the manner they would most like to hear, whether it be informative or appealing to
their emotions.
People All companies are reliant on the people who run them from front line Sales
staff to the Managing Director. Having the right people is essential because they are
as much a part of your business offering as the products/services you are offering.
Processes The delivery of your service is usually done with the customer present
so how the service is delivered is once again part of what the consumer is paying for.
Physical Evidence Almost all services include some physical elements even if the
bulk of what the consumer is paying for is intangible. For example a hair salon
would provide their client with a completed hairdo and an insurance company
would give their customers some form
of printed material. Even if the material is not physically printed (in the case of PDFs) they
are still receiving a physical product by this definition.
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OBJECTIVES
Converting lead into customer- Collect the lead from near market place and school
and then make them walk-in and then convert them into customer
Lead Nurturing- is the process of developing relationships with buyers at every stage of
the sales funnel, and through every step of the buyer's journey. It focuses marketing and
communication efforts on listening to the needs of prospects, and providing the information
and answers they need
Learning various Marketing activies- Learn BTL marketing activities, to collect lead
and make them walk-in.
Achieving targets- Achieve the AOP every month which is assign to us every month
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Purpose and scope of report:-
7Ps of Marketing:-
Product Anything that can be offered to a market to satisfy a want or need, in-
cluding physical goods, services, experiences, events, person, places, properties,
organizations, information and ideas.
Price Price that is set for the product not only determines the amount of profit
the business will able to make from it, but also affects the value of the product as
perceived by the consumer. Many consumers will use the products price as a
means of judging its quality, most will compare the price with that of similar
products before deciding which to purchase.
Place - Place is a platform or market place where goods and services are offered
and sold by the producers and retailers.
Promotion- This is an umbrella term, covering all the media by which business in-
forms and aware customer about its product including advertising, public relations
and sales promotion.
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7 Ps in Studymate:
7 Ps
Product Coaching from class VIII to XII.
Price- eg. Class VIII-18000 per subject for the whole year
Place 29 centres all over delhi /ncr
Promotion- Newspaper Inserts, Ht newspaper advertisements , Study mate website
, NO PARKING sign boards of Studymate , Posters and Hoardings , BTL activities ,
Etc.
People Interns , Student Advisors , Centre Heads , Zonal Managers , Sales &
Operations Head And The Business Head.
Process Communication with Interested parents and convincing them to make
their Children join Ht Studymate .
Physical Evidence Learning Centres , Own Study Material , Worksheets , Leaflets ,
Brochures , Etc
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COMPETITION ANALYSIS
1. AAKASH Competition in fees and tuitions hours and the most important this is
that it is an older company than us.
2. PMT CLASSES- More established and us and is charging monthly fees and has a
good word of mouth than us
5. FIT-JEE- Is a lot more established and older than us and attracts students
towards competitive classes by doing various workshops in schools.4
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TARGET VS ACHIEVEMENT
As a Centre Team we was given a Target of 30Lakhs for the month of April 2017 out of
which we could achieve 32 lakhs i.e103% from the Out Centre Activities which I used
to do on a regular basis outside Schools, Counseling, calling also through Data Calling
on the School Data of class 9th data, class 10th data, etc.
On an average I used to do calling on per section basis of one class like for example for
class 9th- section A-40 students are there.
I got a great help from my center head Ms. Kirti Arora as he motivated me all the times
also when the things were not going right.
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BTL Marketing:
Below the line, sales promotion are short term incentives, it majorly focus on
customers. With the increasing pressure on the marketing team to achieve
communication objectives more efficiently in a limited budget, there has been a need
to find out more effective and cost efficient ways to communicate with the target
markets. This has led to a shift from the regular media based advertising. In other
words, below-the-line sales promotion is an immediate or delayed incentive to
purchase, expressed in cash or in kind, and having only a short term or temporary
duration. BTL Sales Promotion is an incentive immediate or delayed, to buy, expressed
in money or in kind, and has short duration. It is efficient and profitable to direct a
limited and specific group. Uses less conventional methods than traditional
advertising ATL channels usually focuses on the means of direct communication, more
direct mail and e-mail, often using highly targeted lists of names to maximize response
rates. BTL techniques ensure removal of the brand while simultaneously highlighting
the characteristics of the product.
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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
For our research study, the target population was the students from class VIII-XII which
belongs from a CBSE school:-
Population Under study- 150-200
With the help of this methodology, we can know the exact result and output which is
coming from the Studymate.
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ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS
0, 0%
1.2, 12%
YES
NO
8.8, 88%
As per the above analysis it has been found that 88% of the students goes for coachings
and 12% of the students does not go for coachings as they are satisfied with what they
are studying at school and dont want any extra guidance.
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Q2. IF YES, from which coaching centre are you taking tuitions?
10%
11%
2% 42%
20%
15%
As per the analysis of name of the coaching centre the students are going is maximum is
42% which is preferred as fitjee because it makes them prepare for CBSE as well as
competitive prepration and next preferred is home tuitions because parents feel that
their child should get the individual attention and next preferred is akash institute as is
also prepare for entrance as well as CBSE and mostly preferred by all medical students
as its result is always high and then is career launcher as upcoming competitor in the
market and preferred because if its low fees as compared to others . Then also there are
small small coaching centres near by the homes which are available they are also being
preferred because of low fees and closer location and least is the studymate till now as
per my research and as per Gurgaon market if I talk about because it is new in the
market and there are just two centres and fees also high as compared to other
competitors.
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Q3. What kind of coaching do you prefer?
5%
35%
60%
As per the above analysis 60% of the students prefer group tuitions as it is cheaper and
more fruitful and 35% of the students prefer home tuitions as this has become a trend
and parents perception that it helps score more and gives individual attention and easy
to clear all doubts and rest 5% who dont feel the of going to tuitions.
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Q4. For which subjects is child taking tuitions?
Table: Subjects
Frequency Percent
Accounts 2 2.0
Accounts, Economics 5 5.0
Accounts, Economics, Maths 8 8.0
Business Studies, Accounts 1 1.0
Maths 15 15.0
Maths, Accounts 2 2.0
Maths, English 1 1.0
Maths, Science 29 29.0
Maths, Science, English 3 3.0
Maths, Science, SST 1 1.0
Maths, Science, SST, English 3 3.0
Physics, Chemistry 5 5.0
Physics, Chemistry, Biology 1 1.0
Physics, Chemistry, Maths 15 15.0
Physics, Maths 1 1.0
Science 8 8.0
Total 100 100.0
This table reflects the subjects for which students generally take up tuitions, Maths and
Science (as a combination) being the front runners. Besides that Physics, Chemistry and
Maths are also popular subjects for which students generally take up coaching.
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Q5. How much is the location of the centre important?
10%
40%
50%
As per the above chart for 40% of the people it is most important that where is the
coaching centre as for students it is not possible for the students to travel far away as
students also dont have much time to spend on travel and rest 50% of the people says
important because it is not possible for parents also to pick up and drop out the
students every day so the location matters a lot as it should be convenient for the
students to approach.
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Q6. How much is faculty important for a coaching centre?
0 0
20
80
As faculties are the asset of every coaching centre so it is important for every student
and parent also to make the student teach from the best faculty so 80% of the people
said that it is most important and rest 20 % that it is more important.
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Q7. How much is Infrastructure important for you in a coaching centre?
2%
6%
35%
57%
As per the above analysis 57% says more important to have a good infrastructure as
infrastructure matters to customers somehow because parents want to see their
students at a comfortable place as compared to faculty and studies infrastructure is less
important to many parents.
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Q8. Who takes decision regarding the coachings at your home?
Decision maker
5%
15%
20%
60%
As per the above analysis father takes the decision in most of the cases and then around
20% cases it is mutually decided by mother and father both and in 15% cases it is
decided by mother and in very less cases especially class 11 and 12 class who can take
decisions decide for the same.
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Q9. What influences your decision to send your child to a coaching institute?
5%
20% 30%
45%
As per the analysis 30% cases where people get convinced with word of mouth and
45% of people get attracted through advertisement as in case of lot if BTL is done
through that only it worked for many cases. Rest through 20% was there through brand
name also in case Studymate as it was from the house of HT customers were able to
trust the brand.
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Q10. How important is fees as a factor for choosing an institute?
5%
10%
85%
As per the above analysis 85% of the people for whom the fee structure makes
difference and 10% people to whom other things and fee structure both are important
and in very less cases where fee structure is less important.
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Q11. Would you recommend this institute to family and friends?
Sales
0 0
30%
70%
yes no
As per the experience and analyses it was found that 70% of the people do refer but in
rest 30% cases they dont refer because they dont want their friends should disturb
them while studying.
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LEARNINGS
35
LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
This study was primarily limited by its small sample size of just 100
respondents. Another major limitation was the short time duration
associated with the Summer Internship Project. The time allotted for the
internship project was only ten weeks which was too less to understand
such a complex topic involving consumer buying behavior.
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ANNEXURE
QUESTIONNAIRE
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Congruence Model
Congruence Model - Strategy Skills Training from MindTools.com. 2014.
Congruence Model Skills Training from MindTools.com. [ONLINE] Available
at:
http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newSTR_95.htm. [Accessed 06
July 2014].
3. Studymates Website
Studymate | helps sharpen minds. 2014. Studymate | helps sharpen minds.
[ONLINE] Available at: http://www.studymateonline.com. [Accessed 06
July 2014].
4. HT Medias Website
HT Media. 2014. HT Media. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.htmedia.in.
[Accessed 06 July 2014].
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