Traditional Vs Modern Marketing MBA Project

Abstract

Online marketing is one of the fastest growing phenomenal in the business world in every country, be it developed or developing country. Though this phenomenon in developed countries are deeply woven in the market it is slowly catching up with the developing market as well and at a very rapid speed. This study will focus on the growth of online marketing in India (Hyderabad). India is a developing country and Hyderabad is one major city in India. Cities are more open and business activities are higher in cities compared to towns and villages in India. Hyderabad is one such city where business is thriving and spreading. The study is a research work that will measure the growth of online marketing and if how much it has overtaken the market and the perception and attitudes that the people of this city has developed towards the online marketing and to measure the impacts that it has on the physical marketing process and on businesses as well. The physical marketing process has been dominating the Indian market for years. Companies would advertise excessively on television, radio, billboards, fairs and exhibitions all over India, but things are slowly changing in India as the internet is growing and people are getting educated and learning about the internet and its use. This study will focus on the factors that influence and impact a consumer’s perception and attitude towards the online market.

INTRODUCTION

Online marketing is the art and science of selling the products or services using the digital networks such as Internet (Ward 2012). Online world is a huge source of marketing, which was not much recognized when it was first introduced. Now it has become an integral part of everybody’s lives. Internet is very easily accessible and hence marketers feel there is huge potential for marketing their products on the Internet. In India the trend of online marketing is new and has started gaining importance from the year 2006-2007. Indian citizens are used to physical marketing since several decades, which include print media advertising, electronic media advertising, hoardings, pamphlets etc. (PRLog 2012). People used to know about any product only after it was published in the newspaper or if when it was advertised on the television. Almost all the products such as televisions, computers, furniture etc. were physically marketed. Even till today many customers buy airline tickets through an agent rather than knowing the offers and buying them online. Though physical marketing is expensive and it needs lot of human resources the marketers used to prefer it, as there was no other option available for them back then. Since the past few years there is a new trend arising in India, which is the online marketing. Online marketing, which includes the E-commerce, online advertising, search engine marketing, email marketing, social media marketing and article marketing etc. (Ward 2012) is slowly becoming a major source of marketing in India. The main reason for this is the development of Internet facilities in the country, which was very poor earlier. The target is to find out whether it is the online marketing or the physical marketing that is influencing people in India the most in the recent scenario. The level of impact, along with the advantages that the businesses would have due to its positive impact will also be studied. The city of Hyderabad is the preferred location in this context.

Why choose this topic?

Online marketing, as said earlier is a new phenomenon in India, previously there existed only physical marketing and people dint know what online marketing was. But now the trend is changing, Internet usage in the country is increasing. The literacy rate in India was very less and people earlier hardly knew how to use a computer, but in the recent times literacy rate is increasing and even children are taught how to use a computer in school. With this development children are educating their parents and others about the products marketed online.

The online marketing these days is personally influencing me. It has developed to a stage where earlier I used to purchase any useful product if I find its commercial attractive or by the word of mouth, but now before buying any particular product I tend to read the review of that particular product online. Earlier I used to purchase a product in the store for how much ever it was priced, but now since e commerce is developing in the country I tend to compare the price in store and online and will purchase the cheaper one. I realized this change and understood that online marketing up to some extent is influencing me. So I felt it would be interesting to know how online marketing is influencing other people along with me and what are its impacts and how would it be advantageous to various businesses in the city.

RESEARCH QUESTION

Is online marketing in India, in the recent times dominating to influence the customers more than the traditional marketing? And how?

Sub research questions:

• Is the impact of online marketing on the people high?
• What are the attitudes and perceptions of people towards online marketing and physical marketing?
• Which kind of marketing do people consider that they are influenced by the most?
• Do the high impact of online marketing show positive vibes to businesses?

Aim:

To develop an insight on people’s perception towards the online marketing and its impacts on people and the businesses with the help of literature and methodology, this would help the marketers to understand which way of marketing is better in the city.

Scope of the study

This study will focus on online and physical marketing, since online marketing spread is phenomenal and it is still growing everyday as more and more firms are going online and concentrating on their online marketing. This study will measure the difference between the online and traditional marketing styles. This study focus will be on the Hyderabad market a city in south of India. The focus is to find out whether it is the online marketing or the physical marketing that is influencing people in India the most in the recent scenario. The level of impact, along with the advantages that the businesses would have due to its positive impact will also be studied.

Rationale of the study

Online marketing is a widely spread, every organization small or big is somehow or the other connected to the internet, whereas physical marketing is sinking lower and lower every day. Before the internet physical marketing was very common, though physical marketing does still continue in some parts of the world. This study has been conducted on the Hyderabad market a city located in south India. There are much evidence that physical marketing is still prevalent in this part of the world, though it is losing much ground here as well. Online marketing is cheaper compared to physical market and that is another reason for online marketing to be more preferred above physical marketing.

Structure of the Dissertation

This dissertation consists of five chapters. Chapters are arranged so that readers can understand the objective of the research and how the research is developed. Chapter one is the introductory chapter, it provides the general information of TQM and TQM in the hospitality industry. It also explains why the author is interested in the research topic; therefore, it outlines the research questions as well as the aims and objectives of this dissertation.

Chapter two deals with the review of related literature; it is to study the published work that other researchers have done in order to find the knowledge related to the research questions. The purpose is to define the ‘gap’ of knowledge.

Chapter three describes the research method. This chapter presents the research design of this dissertation which includes the justification of the research methods, objective and the design for the data collection.

Chapter four is the result and analysis. This chapter analyzes the data and provides the summary of the research result. The main objective is to combine the existing knowledge with new findings to form new knowledge.

Chapter five is the conclusion and recommendations. This chapter concludes the new knowledge and its benefits. This chapter also recommends the benefits to hotel engineers and general managers. For the shortages in the research, recommendations are included for future investigations.