the times of india.docx

7/27/2019 the times of india.docx

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PREFACE

True learning is born out of experience and

observation practical experience is one of thebest types of leanings that one can remember

throughout the life. After II semesters in

learning theoretical aspects of administration

and management, the day come to apply these

incorporate world in content of modern

industrial enterprise that has to go through its

different terminal to achieve that corporate

goals. The main object of practical training is

to develop practical knowledge and

experience and awareness about industrial

environment and business practices in the

student as a supplement to theoretical studies

of administration and management in specific

area like HRM. It increases the skill, ability

and attitude of a student to perform specific

job in industrial environment. Fortunately, I got

golden opportunity to visit and complete my

six week training at THE TIMES OF INDIA.

Here, I got chance to see the functioning HRD

departments and imbibe alot learning of thesubjects THE TIMES OF INDIA is a wide

Organization producing newspapers, the main

productsincludeTimes of India, Economic

Times, Radio Mirchi etc. It has developed in

many fields.Today guess is a legend in the

world of business and organisation at a home

and abroad.


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2

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Through this acknowledgement, I express

my sincere gratitude towards all those

people who have helped me in the

preparation of this project, which has been

learning experience. I appreciate the co-

operation by the management and staff of

THETIMES OF INDIA for having given me -

the opportunity to training in their office.

I would like to thanks the Head Of the

Department Dr. A.Kumar , the faculty , the

librarian and the administrative staff of

Department of Business Administration,

Bhavnagar University, Bhavnagar, for their

support.Finally, I express my sincere thanks

to Mr.Ashok Solanki and Mr.Hemant Patel

who guided me throughout the project and

gave me Valuable suggestion and

encouragement.


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3

INTRODUCTION OF THE TIMES OF INDIA

The first edition appears on November 3, 1838

known as "The Bombay Times and Journal of

Commerce. Later to be known as The Times of

India .The first edition appears on November3,

1838 known as "The Bombay Times and Journal of

Commerce". The issue is published twice a week.

Dr. J.E. Brennan the first editor also Secretary of

the Chamber of Commerce. Rs 30/- is the annual

subscription.1846 The newspaper experiences

proprietary changes and Dr. George Brit appointed

editor.1850 Shareholders decide to increase the

share capital and the paper converted into a daily

1855 Telegraph Services opens up in India shortlyafterwards, the paper signs an agreement with

Reuters for raising news coverage and lowering

subscription rates. That old tie was renewed in

2006 with the pact between TIMESNOW & Reuters

1861 Editor Robert Knight amalgamates The

Bombay Times, Bombay Standard and Bombay

Telegraph & Courier to form 'The Times of India'

and gives it a national character.1880 The Times ofIndia Weekly edition launched .The Times of India

weekly edition launched, to meet the need for a

weekend paper. This later came to be known as

the Illustrated Weekly of India in 1923.TheTimes of

India Weekly edition launched.1890 Editor Henry

Curwen buys TOI in partnership with Charles Kane.

1892 Following the death of Henry Curwen, T.

Bennett becomes the editor and enters into a

partnership with F.M. Coleman to form a joint stock

company - Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd.(BCCL).

1902 The paper moves in to its current office

opposite CST. It started out at the Paris Bazar and

then moved on to Church gate where things got so

bad that editor Bennett had to complete his

editorial elsewhere after the ceiling fan collapsed


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in his room. 1907 Editor Stanley Reed

revolutionises news production by extending the

deadline to midnight. Until then any news that

came in after 5pm was held over for the next day.

TOI's first price war under editor Stanley Reed:

price cut from 4 Annas to 1 Anna; circulation rises

5 times.1923 Evening News of India launched 1929

The Times Of India Illustrated Weekly renamed The

Illustrated Weekly Of India 1930The Column "Bombay

100 Years ago" published 1930 The Column "Bombay100 Years ago" published First movie review

published 1940 First time news items appeared on

the front page 1946 For the first time the paper

transfers to Indian ownership. Seth Ramakrishna

Dalmia buys out Bennett, Coleman & Co.Ltd. For Rs. 2

crores.1948 Sahu Jain Group become the owners of

the company. Shanti Prasad Jain is the first Chairman

of the group 1950

lions to elephants

launched

rank Moraes succeeded Ivor Jehu to become the

first Indian editor (1950-57)R K Laxmans common

man cartoon starts.

1952 Filmfare- first film magazine in Englishlaunched

1959 Femina- first womens magazine in Englishlaunched

1961 The Economic Times launched 1962 Maharashtra Times launched 1965 Femina Miss India contest started.


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1987 Printing of The Times of India fromKandivili Press in Mumbai.

1988 Times of India completes 150 years.Specialstamp released by P &

1991 BBC features Times of India amongworld'ssix great newspapers

1994 Bombay Times, the sassy coloursupplement that chronicles the changing

lifestyle mores of a globalising city is launched.

1996 Times of India carry its first colourphotograph. Times of India crosses 1 million

mark in circulation.

1998 BCCL enters into music market with TimesMusic.

1999 Indiatimes.com launched 1999 BCCL enters music retailing business with

Planet M and radio broadcasting business with

Radio Mirchi 2000 TOI crosses the 2 million mark in

circulation.

2001 TOI goes all colour and storms Delhi bybeing"Number One"

2003 President APJ Abdul Kalam visits TOI toinaugurate Times Foundation

2004 Television business launched with thelaunch of a lifestyle and entertainment channel

called ZOOME Paper launched Times cape- the

Times Group Intranet launched. Launch of the

jobs portal Times Jobs

http://www.timesjobs.com. Times Jobs.

compioneered the concept of job fairs in

India,branded asBig Leap

2005 MT Largest read Marathi Newspaper inMumbaiIRSsurvey

TOIGoes daily full colour Mumbai Mirror launched TimesMatri.com -

Launched in August - re-launched as

SimplyMarry.com in December 2006. 2006 TIMES NOW TV News Channel launched

ET first newspaper available on cell phone

Mumbai Mirror Afternoon edition launched
http://www.timesjobs.com/http://www.timesjobs.com/http://www.timesjobs.com/


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Offers Mumbai Mirror or Maharashtra Times as

complimentary copy with TOI at a price of Rs.4/-

TOIThe only English language daily to feature

among the top 10 with a readership of

131.4lakhs- IRS Survey by Hansa Research

Times Group MD, Mr Vineet Jain awarded the

scroll of honour for being the new age media

guru - Hero Honda Indian TV Academy Awards

Times cape the Times Group Intranet portal re-

launched - now powered by SAP Net weaver

BCCL goes live on SAP systemMagicBricks.com

launched in October 2006 targets the OnlineReal Estate Space Smart Hire launched

April2006, is witnessing stupendous growth with

its focus on providing organisations with end-to-

end recruitment solutions. Ads2Book.com The

Worlds Only Global Ad Booking Engine -

Relaunched in August 2006With intensive R&D,

the Net-2-Print classifieds booking

systemAds2Book.com was created and imbuedwith AI (artificial intelligence) that assisted

users through the entire process of Creating,

Booking & Paying for their Print Classified Ads,

all from the comfort of their desktop.


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KEY MANAGEMENT & EDITORIAL HEADS

KEY MANAGEMENT HEADS

BCCL PROMOTERS & DIRECTORS

Chairperson : Indu Jain

Vice-Chairman & MD : Samir Jain

Managing Director : Vineet Jain

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Executive Director : Trishla Jain

Executive Director & CEO : Ravindra Dhariwal

Executive Director & COO : Shrijeet Mishra

Executive Director & President: Arunabh Das Sharma

Non-Executive Director: A.P. Parigi

Non-Executive Director: Kalpana J. Morparia

Non Executive Director: M. Damodaran

Non Executive Director: Leo Puri

Times Television Network (comprising TGBCL

and ZEN)

Group CEO (TV business): Sunil Lulla

ZEN CEO: Avinash Kaul

Times Internet Limited CEO : Satyan Gajwani

Times of Money President: Avijit Nanda

Times Business Solutions Ltd CEO : Satyan Gajwani


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Times VPL CEO : Sunil Rajshekhar

Worldwide Media CEO: Tarun Rai

Entertainment Network (India) Ltd CEO :

Prashant Panday

Alternate Brand Solutions (I) Ltd CEO :

Prashant Panday

Times Innovative Media Limited CEO :

Sunder Hemrajani

Absolute Radio CEO: Donnach O' Driscoll

Times Foundation Head: Shailendra Nautiyal

EDITORIAL HEADS

The Times of India Editorial Director: Jaideep Bose

Executive Editor : Arindam Sengupta

Economic Times

Editorial Director : Rahul Joshi

Maharashtra Times

Executive Editor : Ashok Panwalkar

Navbharat Times

Executive Editor : Ramkripal Singh

Mumbai Mirror

Executive Editor : Meenal Baghel

Speaking TreeExecutive Editor : Narayani Ganesh

Vijaya Karnataka

Executive Editor : E. Raghavan

Times Now

Executive Editor : Arnab Goswami


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ET Now

Executive Editor : R. Sridharan

ZoomExecutive Editor : Omar Qureshi

Code of Conduct for Employees

You shall not borrow or lend money within the

Company.

You shall disclose all your interests including

investments in other companies and your relatives

in politics to ensure that you are unbiased in your

work.

You or your immediate relative(s) shall refuse any gift

offered by any person(s) who has or may seek to

have dealings with the Company. The Companys

reputation and the respect of those with whom it

deals with are among its most vital assets. These

must not be jeopardized by acceptance of any

gifts. However, gifts given as prizes at exhibitions,

conferences, seminars, etc. or as part of a free

raffle or draw may be accepted but in principlethey belong to the company.

Any Hospitality/ Entertainment which is of substantial

monetary value should be refused. It would

however be too rigid to say that no hospitality

should be accepted. Some examples of hospitality /

entertainment which may be acceptable (subject

to a nominal limit of Rs. 500/-) depends on who is

providing the hospitality, why the employee isthere and the nature of the dealings between the

Company, the employee and the provider of the

hospitality: e.g. a working meal provided to allow

parties to discuss or to continue to discuss

business, invitation to attend a dinner or function

of a Society, Institute or other non-commercial

body with whom the Company has contact,

invitations to attend functions where the employee


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represents the Company (opening ceremonies,

public speaking events and conferences).

The Company shows more appreciation for those who

keep away from smoking and drinking and

discourages all forms of substance abuse.

The protocols and culture of the Company should be

respected as being different from those in other

Institutions or Organizations. The Company does

not encourage practices, designations, courtesies,

etc. followed in other Institutions or Organizations

because the same delays the process. The

Companys courtesies and protocols are meant toexpedite the transactions. The Company believes

that people who perform over-courtesies tend to

cause divisiveness in the Company.

In the course of training and development as well as

your engagement with the Company you will be

privy to or possess proprietary and confidential

information/ knowledge including trade secrets and

the Companys confidential business, marketingand publishing strategies. The same shall not be

used by you except in the interest of the Company.

You will not part with any information that would

be detrimental to the Companys interests, nor

shall you make any statement to the press/ media

on any such issues on behalf of the Company or

otherwise, unless authorized specifically by the

competent authority.

In the event of any emergency where intellectual

property created, written, given or made by you is

sought by the Government, then the same will be

delivered with due written permission of the

Company. In such a case, an application for the

same is to be made to the competent authority of

the Company by the Government Agency desiring

the same, citing appropriate reason.

Other organs of the State including Government or

Public Institutions may proposition you to do

specialized writings on the plea that only you can

do such specialized writing on laudable subjects

such as military, national integration, etc. You are

aware that when you take up such assignments it

is in deviation and conflict with your employment


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relationship with the Company. If ever you are

permitted to make such a contribution for the

nation, it will then, obviously, be the contribution

of the Company and you will be duty bound to

project and represent so that the Company gets

due acknowledgement.

As you are in employment with a high visibility leader

media Company, you may be pampered,

mollycoddled and felicitated by the Government

and other organs of State or Sections of the Civil

Society for their Public Relation (PR) reason.

Senior members of the Government includingMinisters may visit you on various occasions such

as your anniversaries, birthdays, etc. for their PR

purpose. Since you would be involved in the

processing of news and handling of events of

importance to people belonging to public or special

celebrity group, you thus occupy a position of

importance to these groups, who will obviously

make reverential gestures to you for their PR need.You will not expect the same from the Company,

as your relationship with the Company strictly is

that of employer-employee and the Company has

no need to do any PR with you.

The Company has often welcomed former employees

back, and it is a matter of record that people have

left and returned. The Company has never felt the

need to hold farewell events which have no

rationale.

In the event you resign/ separate from the Company,

you will not recruit, select or influence in any way,

any employee of our Company or anyone working

with us on contract, to join your future

employment, as an employee or partner or any

other form of work association, after the

separation of your services with us.

Oral Promises/ Commitments: The Company believes

that mere casual conversations are not

commitments. Where such conversations have led

to commitments the onus is obviously on the

employee to submit proof of such commitments if

at all made. But the reality is that in the absence of

any written commitment, no individual and no


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Company can ever get to the truth of such claims.

And therefore any side talk or commitment unless

duly recorded are unfounded and untenable. While

such claims are generally without any substance

they end up causing needless stress and wastage

of time.

Oral promises do not constitute a contract between

the individual and the Company and are by no way

binding on the Company. Such oral talks even if so

held sans contract, do not constitute any

enforceable claims. Rewards are at best

contextual, linked to obligations or performance orresponsibility. A written contract therefore states

in black and white the obligations followed by the

reward and is therefore acknowledged and

enforced by the Company as opposed to unfounded

promises.

Code of Conduct for Journalists (applicable for all

Times Group brands)

As a brand, all Times Group Brands (hereinafter

referred to as Times) draws its power and

influence from two things:

Our ability to deliver the complete story: making sure

our facts are correct, citing our sources, and

providing analysis and context

The confidence of our readers that we are unbiased

in our reporting and have no agenda to further save

that of accurate reporting.

This Code of Conduct must be observed in spirit, not

just to the letter. The purpose is to avoid any

conflict of interests, any compromise of the

Company's reputation and any bias, whether real or

perceived, on the part of the Company staff, be it

journalists, sub-editors, editors, cameramen,

photographers or senior managers etc. Adherence

to these principles is an essential part of their

responsibilities in Times and shall form part of

their contractual obligations with the Company and

hence they should at all times conduct themselves

as per this code.

This code is necessarily not comprehensive - it may

not cover each and every ethical dilemma that a


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Times journalist might face. But we hope that it

will indicate the spirit in which you should react to

such dilemmas - and as always, when in doubt,

please consult with your supervisor or your senior

editor.

All Times staffers must conduct themselves by the

following rules:

Confidentiality: The Company will regularly receive

confidential information as part of normal news

gathering. All information which is not in the public

domain is confidential. This includes information

relating to the Company, its shareholders and toany company, for example information about

advertisers' credit and financial position. We will

abide by the terms of confidentiality and shall not

breach a confidence or use confidential

information improperly or carelessly.

"Church and State." Our reporting and analysis is

entirely independent of our advertising and

investment departments (Response / Sales andBrand Capital). We do not give preferential

treatment to advertisers / treaty partners nor do

we entertain requests from the business

departments of BCCL to do so. We observe the

"Chinese wall" between editorial and business.

Quality journalism a) To provide the best reportage

and analysis to our readers and viewers, we must

ensure we are:

Accurate: We must present information that is true,

and we must verify every fact and quote what we

print. Your editors have the mandate to demand to

see proof of any information that you base a story

on, and to know the source of information that is

potentially sensitive.

Unbiased: We must carry both sides of the story. If

we are doing a negative story, we HAVE to give the

subject time to respond - and carry their official

denial or statement that they declined to comment,

if that is what they choose to do. We should always

talk to an unbiased third party, which may or may

not feature prominently in the story before printing

it.


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Attributed: While we must sometimes use anonymous

sources, we should restrict them to the absolutely

essential cases. In all cases we should explain

why the source is anonymous, and we should

attempt to describe the source's relation to the

story - for example "a banker involved with the

negotiations" rather than "sources close to the

development"

Verified: We have missed stories because of our

conservative approach. We have often had stories

and not run them because of that elusive last bit of

confirmation; we have woken up the next morningor several mornings later to find the same news

with far fewer details in some other paper. In the

long run, missing a story here or there is better for

the brand and its credibility than running with a

story prematurely and being forced to retract it.

Honest:

We do not make up quotes or information to support

our story, nor do we appropriate the work of others- whether it's other media or any other written /

audio-visual work - and pass it off as our own.

Plagiarism is a firing offence at Times.

We must also be seen to be honest, which has

implications on our interactions with sources,

officials of the companies we cover, and

communications professionals or mediators in

these interactions.

We are also honest about our mistakes: if we get

something wrong, we will carry a correction, and

we must do so at the earliest available opportunity.

If we make corrections to our online copy, we will

include an update/ editor's note that states that a

correction has been made.

We will not use offensive language, obscenities and

racist / sexist / religious terms in any copy or

script, unless they are part of a direct quote and

their usage is critical to the story being reported.

We do not pay for information, nor do we promise

financial gain to our sources in exchange for

information.

We do not accept gifts or money from sources, PR

agencies or companies that we cover. A box of


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chocolates / sweets or a calendar or diary is

acceptable - anything else should be returned with

a note explaining that it is our company policy, and

reported to the Managing Editor.

An exception is sample products for review purposes:

You may use / retain the product for only as long as

it reasonably takes to review - a few days should

be the outer limit. You should restrict the usage to

what is required to write a well-researched review,

and not for personal use that does not contribute

to the review.

No Times staffer should solicit a junket,plant/corporate visits or trips abroad. If they

genuinely broaden horizons and add value to a

person's knowledge base, such a visit can be

considered, but there should not be the slightest

hint of solicitation.

At times, your sources might want to take you out to

lunch, dinner, drinks etc. Since these are times

when the source tends to relax and lower hisguard, use your judgement on when to accept. But

at all times make it clear that these are

professional interactions, not social ones.

The same applies to PRs -- we've made it a rule for

trainees that they do not have a drink/meal/coffee

with any PR for the first two years that they are

with Times. Apply the spirit of that rule to your

interactions with all PRs - you should never give

them the chance to act like you owe them

something.

If you feel you need to return a lunch or dinner

someplace a little more expensive than the Press

Club, please inform your editor, and we will see if

some reimbursement can be organized.

We do not do previews of stories or package or

shows - no source or company/person being

featured can see the story or the package before it

goes to print/air. We can, and should, however,

email quotes that will be used in stories to sources

for confirmation.

In addition, no staffer will reveal the contents of the

paper/channel to any outsider in advance of their

appearance in print/on-air. This includes the


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distribution/dissemination of advance copies/CDs

or digital files of any Times content.

Note: Times reserves the right to modify and expand

the code of conduct from time to time, as

appropriate.

Economic Times and ET Now Code of Financial

Conduct

ET/ET Now are India's most respected financial-news

brand because it stands squarely for certain

values: accuracy, reliability, fairness and integrity.

Our journalism, across media platforms, iscommitted to these values.

The changing industry and regulatory environments

require us to uphold even higher standards to

protect, defend and enhance the Company's

reputation for accurate, unbiased journalism.

Whatever it is you report on, you should ensure

that there is never a situation which could lead to

a suspicion that the Company, its publications andtelevision channels, or its editors and journalists

are biased. Hence you, whether in a managerial or

an editorial capacity, must conduct yourself in a

manner that reinforces the integrity of the

company's operations as well as perceptions of

such integrity.

No employee will take advantage of information that

is not in public domain but to which he/she has

gained access by virtue of his/her association with

ET/ET Now or its affiliates.

No employee will communicate such privileged

information to another person, either within or

outside the organization, who may be in a position

to take advantage of it.

To ensure that our integrity is not compromised,

especially in our coverage of markets, companies

and policy, all employees are required to adhere to

certain rules about financial investments made by

them or their close relations, including

spouse/companion.

You may invest in individual equities but are required

to hold each stock for a minimum of three months

in order to eliminate the possibility of short-term


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trades based on privileged access to corporate

information. Any exceptions must have prior

approval of the Executive Editor, in writing.

You will not buy or sell shares in a company that

competes with ET/ET Now or its affiliates. You are,

however, free to hold and/or sell any such shares

that you currently own by virtue of previous

employment.

. You must not engage in, or facilitate, inside dealing.

The fundamental principle of inside information is

that if you are in possession of non-public

(unpublished) information which could have animpact -- negative or positive -- on the value of a

financial investment or other investments, you

must keep it strictly confidential and not deal or

recommend to others to deal in those shares. This

restriction applies to your immediate family,

friends and associates or any family trusts or other

investment vehicle and lasts for as long as the

information is outside the public domain.Reporters, researchers and anchorpersons who cover

and comment on particular companies may not

hold stakes, in the companies they cover, to avoid

any conflict between their coverage and

investment interests. The principle behind this is

that if the story or comment that goes to print or

air is expected to have an impact in the price /

value of the asset class, it would be conflict of

interest for the ET/ET Now staffer to have a holding

in that asset class.

In general, you are encouraged not to participate in

the futures-and-options segment of the equity

market except to hedge your equity investments

against market risk through index futures and

options. You will not buy or sell single-stock

futures.

Investments in bonds issued by

companies/governments/state

agencies/municipalities are permitted as long as

these are held for a minimum of three months.

. There are no restrictions on investments in

instruments issued by banks, post offices and

small-savings institutions. Mutual fund investments


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are permitted in any asset class (equity, index,

commodity, real estate etc.).

You are required to make a disclosure of your

securities holdings as per the format prescribed by

the Company, at the end of every quarter. The

company undertakes to keep your declarations

confidential

In addition, designated managers and journalists are

required to disclose their current portfolio and

declare their specific investment transactions

during the reporting period in a format prescribed

by the company. The management is committed tokeeping this information confidential, but reserves

the right to share the records with a regulatory /

inquiry agency investigating securities fraud or

insider trading.

This Code of Conduct along with the Code of

Financial Conduct is meant to facilitate our

adherence to integrity, not to exhaust unfair ways

of information arbitrage. These are central to theCompany's mission; any failure to abide by them

could attract civil and criminal liability on yourself

and on the Company, its Directors and officers, and

therefore could be subject to review, and result in

disciplinary action, ranging from admonishment to

dismissal, depending on the gravity of the

infraction. Therefore at all times, employee

conduct should conform not only to the rules but

also to the principle of integrity.

Mission of TIMES OF INDIA:


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The Times of India Group is the aggregator of

content in any form in the infotainment Industry.

We collect & sell content to right target audience.

The Mantra YOU ARE EMPOWERED

STAGES OF GROWTH

To empower the reader to live the life of theirdreams.

To facilitate better decision. To provoke Thought

Global Experience Love for the community Adopt the Readers worldwide view. Liberate the mind Cheerfulness in the circus of life.We grow at this stage because: OUR CENTRAL

VALUE IS YOU!

The Times of India (English)

Operated by Bennett Coleman and Company Limited

With a lineage stretching back to more than 170years, Time of India sells more than 3.5 million

copies each day across 41 locations in India

making it not only the largest English daily in India,

but also the world. TOI, which was voted as the

among the worlds six greatest newspapers way

back in 1988 by BBC, has now moved ahead of

international stalwarts like The Sun, The Daily

Mail, USA Today, New York Times, Wall Street

Journal, Los Angeles Times and Washington Post

amongst others. Today TOI is Indias national

newspaper with editions spread across most

states, which is complemented by its robust

presence in on-line domain too through its e-paper

and dynamic online site timesofindia.com


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Apart from meeting the information and

entertainment needs of readers cutting across

communities, cultures and geographic locations,

The Times of India also uncovers many a India left

untouched. And in this exercise, brand extensions

of our existing English titles into regional

languages plays a pivotal role in transiting readers

to the English mainstream.

It would not be wrong to say that most English-

speaking Indians across all prominent metros and

state capitals, begin their day by reading a copy ofTOI. So be it the civil society or the ruling class,

businessman or student, executive or manager,

professional or amateur, clergy or judgethe day

is not complete without reading The Times of

India.

The Times of India has a pan-India presence in 41centres with 15 main editions, namely:

Ahmedabad

Bangalore

Chennai

Goa

Hyderabad

Jaipur

Kanpur

Kolkata

Lucknow

Mangalore

Mumbai

Mysore

Nagpur

New Delhi

Pune


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The Times of India Supplements:

Times of India Metro Supplements (TIMS)

In 1994 The Times of India took a bold step at

experimenting with not just news, but something

which was more. The resultant was a supplement

Bombay Timeswhich broke the mould when it

came to capturing the latest about whats

happening in and around the city in a package

captured the essence of the cityits people,

culture, fashion, art, theatre, sports, films andprivate and public social gatherings.

Times Pluses

Times Pluses are supplements with local news and

advertising which is customized for various

readers through geographic zones within aparticular market. The Pluses are a tool for readers

to address their civic and other local and topical

issues which are specific to their location. The

immense success of Pluses has sparked of various

Pluses across the length and breadth of India.

Needless to say, they have also bred me-too clones

published by our competitorsbut not with that

great degree of success as ours.

Times Ascent

A weekly supplement that has the best job postings

and career related news and views from doyens of

corporate world and academicians.

Education Times

The weekly supplement that has the best of content

related to education and career optionsright

from primary level to doctorate.

Whats Hot

A weekly tabloid on entertainment and lifestyle

published ahead of each weekend with the specific

focus on informing readers about the events and

activities that one can participate over the


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weekend like movies, TV shows, theatre, eating

out, shopping etc.

Life

Aimed at initiating a dialogue and provoking thought

and debate among its readers, Life is the glossy

lifestyle supplement published every Sunday with

The Sunday Times of India. Often the topics

touched upon are the ones which normal run-of-the

mill newspapers would like to avoid in fear of

generating extreme opinions. Life lays every

aspect of life bare for the reader to think anddecide.

Times Property

This is a weekly supplement that contains the best of

news, analysis and announcements on real estate

that is read by investors and buyers/sellers of real

estate.

The Times of India New Media:

The Times of India Online

The Times of India Online is Indias most popular

news site. With 13 million unique visitors and more

than 300 million page views per month, it

consistently ranks among the worlds Top 10

English-language newspaper sites. It offers

complete, in-depth and up-to-date coveragein

text and video formatsof national, international,

city, sports, entertainment, lifestyle, business,

health, science and technology topics.

The Times of India epaper

The Times of India is among the first newspaper in

Asia to launch the online replica version of the

physical edition.

The Times of India mobilepaper

The Times of India was also among the first

newspapers in India to launch the replica of the

physical edition exclusively for mobile users.


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DIGITAL

The Times of India Online

The Times of India Online is Indias most popular

news site. With 13 million unique visitors and more

than 300 million page views per month, it

consistently ranks among the worlds Top 10

English-language newspaper sites. It offers

complete, in-depth and up-to-date coverageintext and video formatsof national, international,

city, sports, entertainment, lifestyle, business,

health, science and technology topics.

The site is the first choice of NRIs for news about

Indiawith nearly 55% of visitors logging in from

outside Indiamainly USA. One of the unrivalled

features of the site is its exhaustive local coverage

of more than 30 Indian cities. Another uniquefeature that was unveiled few months back is

Speed Newsa first-of-its-kind service in the

world that provides real-time news updates by

more than 500 Times of India reporters from across

the country.

Today, toi.com is the only Indian newspaper site to

have apps for five major mobile platformsiPad,

iPhone, Android, BlackBerry and Nokiawith the

site being already popular on social media with

more than one million fans on Facebook alone

The Economic Times Online

The number one financial and business news website

in India, economictimes .com gets over 4 millionunique visitors every month. Having synergies in

key operational areas with The Economic Times

daily, the site is the prime mover in the business

news segmenthaving started operations way

back in 1999. Presently, about a third of ET's traffic

comes from outside India - both from the Indian

Diaspora and the international business community

keen on investing in India. The numerous features,


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analysis and stories relevant to the NRI and PIO

community not only do the job of keeping them

informed about various opportunities, but also help

them in reaching out to their potential partners and

customers.

Today et.com is probably the only Indian business

news site that provides 24X7 business news

coverage, cutting-edge stock market information

and real time data from leading Indian stock

exchanges like BSE, NSE and MCX in both the cash

and derivative segmentswhich is made possible

due to a dedicated team of over 50 onlineprofessionals who file 700-800 business and

market reports every day.

The spirit of innovation also drives the site forward.

Not only is it the first business news site in India to

have a mobile version, the subsequent launch of

business news channel ET Now and the resultant

integration has once again made the site the first

in India to offer live streaming of content from ETNow round the clock. Presently, the site is in the

process of launching specific mobile applications

for Blackberry, Iphone, Symbian, Android and other

popular mobile/tablet platformswhich will bring

many more users into the ET family.

Maharashtra Times Online

The online edition of the popular Marathi daily

Maharashtra Times, the news portal is very popular

with Marathis in India and abroad

Nav Bharat Times Online

The web-edition of the popular Hindi daily - The Nav

Bharat Times, the news portal is very popular with

Hindi-knowing business community

Mumbai Mirror Online


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The online edition of Indias largest city-centric

tabloidMumbai Mirror.

TIMES NOW TV Online

The online portal of TIMES NOW gives synergy to the

popular news channel by providing breaking news

and showcasing them through streaming videos

E-PAPER

The Times of India epaper

The Times of India is among the first newspaper in

Asia to launch the online replica version of the

physical edition.

The Economic Times epaper

The online replica of The Economic Times is also

available to internet users.

Ahmedabad Mirror epaper

Ahmedabad Mirror epaper: The online replica of

Ahmedabad Mirror

Bodhi Vruksha epaper

Bodhi Vruksha is among the first Kannada spiritual

newspaper in Asia to launch the online replica

version of the physical edition.

Pune Mirror epaper

Pune Mirror epaper: The digital replica of Pune Mirror.


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CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR


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The Management of PROCTER & GAMBLE once

stated : Our business is based on understanding

the consumer and providing the kind of products

that the consumer wants. We place enormous

emphasis on our product development area and our

marketing area, and on our people knowing the

consumer. The human mind is the most complex

entity in the whole universe as it is very

unpredictable how a person would behave in or

react in a particular situation.

A persons behavior changes from place to place and

situation to situation or, say it is very inconsistent.The person when has a need, is willing and able to

satisfy the need is called a CONSUMER. The

consumer would go different ways to satisfy its

needs depending on his social, cultural, family,

economic and educational background. Consumer

is the principle a priori of business. The efficiency

with which a free market system of enterprise

operates, depends upon the extent of consumerunderstanding possessed by the business

community. A business community that is ignorant

of consumer preferences cannot possibly fulfill its

obligations in a meaningful and responsive manner.

So here comes the need to prepare project report

onCONSUMER BEHAVIOUR. Consumer Behavior is

broadly defined as the behavior the consumer

displays in searching for, purchasing, using and

evaluating products, services, and ideas which

they expect will satisfy their needs. Consumer

Behavior is not only the study of what people

consume, but is also the study of who the

consumers are, why they consume, how often they

consume, and under what conditions they

consume.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR refers to the buying

behavior of ultimate consumers, those persons

who purchase products for personal or household

use, not for business purpose.


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There are Psychological Theories that help us to

understand and predict the effect of all external

and internal factors on a consumer. External

factors include Culture, Society, Reference group

and family etc. Internal factors comprise in a

consumer mind and how consumers learning,

memory, attitude, personality, lifestyle and

motivation levels effect consumer behavior. What

would initiate a buying process and how a buying

decision would end is all covered under the study

of consumer behavior. This all further helps relate

product / service, price and promotion etc. withconsumer behaviour. Thus organisation can place

marketing mix so as to propogate their

product/services.

The present study on SHAMPOO is also trying to find

Consumer Perception about different features of

Shampoos and how Price, Environment, Packaging,

Quantity, Easy Availability and Variety areaffecting the sale of Shampoos.

PSYCHOGRAPHIC

In psychographic segmentation buyers are divided

into different groups on the basis of lifestyle and \

or personality. People within the same

demographic group can exhibit very different

psychographic profiles. These psychographic

bases are often difficult to measure, but they offer

potential rewards in terms of providing

management with a more relevant basis for

differentiating between segments of a market.

LIFESTYLE

People exhibit many more lifestyles than are

suggested by the seven social classes. Peoples

product interests are influenced by their lifestyles.

In fact the goods they consume express their

lifestyles. Marketers are increasingly segmenting

their markets by consumer lifestyles. Companies

making cosmetics, alcoholic beverages, and


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furniture are always seeking opportunities in

lifestyle segmentation.

PERSONALITY

Personality affects the consumption of many goods,

particularly those consumed publicly. An

aggressive personality for example, may be

reflected in the choice of ostentatious clothing,

furniture, and automobiles. Preferences are

frequently so different that it is impossible to serve

all personality types with the same product orbrand. A recognition of important personality types

can help management position its towards a

profitable segment or segments.

Marketers have used personality variables to

segment markets. They endow their products with

brand personalities that correspond to consumer

personalities.

Objectives

After reading this chapter you should be able to:

Name the elements in the stimulusresponse model

of consumer behaviour.

Outline the major characteristics affecting consumer

behaviour, and list some of the specific

psychological, personal, cultural and social factors

that influence consumers.

Explain the buyer decision process and discuss need

recognition, information search, evaluation of

alternatives, the purchase decision and post-

purchase behaviour.

Identify and define the consumer buying roles of

initiator, influencer, decider, buyer and user.

Illustrate different types of buying decision

behaviour, including complex, dissonance-

reducing, habitual, and variety-seeking buying

behaviour.


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Express the basics of the buyer decision process for

new products and identify stages in the adoption

process, individual differences in the adoption of

innovation, and the influence of product

characteristics on the rate of diffusion of

innovation.

Consumer Behaviour: a Literature ReviewIn order to develop a framework for the study

consumer behaviour it is helpful

to begin by considering the evolution of the field of

consumer research and

the different paradigms of thought that have

influenced the discipline. As

described in this article, a set of dimensions can be

identified in the literature,

which can be used to characterize and differentiate,

the various perspectives

on consumer research. It is argued that consumer

behaviour itself emerged

as a distinct field of study during the 1960s; and is

characterized by two

broad paradigms, the positivist and the non-positivist.

The positivist

paradigm encompasses the economic, behavioural,

cognitive,

motivational/trait/attitudinal, and situational

perspectives; these perspectives

are referred to as the traditional perspectives as they

pre-date the

development of the non-positivist paradigm. Thepositivist paradigm, which

is still the dominant paradigm, emphasizes the

supremacy of human reason

and that there is a single, objective truth that can be

discovered by science.

This paradigm regards the world as a rational and

ordered place with a


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clearly defined past, present, and future. The

assumption of rationalism is

therefore fundamental to the traditional perspective.

The opposing, non-positivist paradigm, envelops the

interpretive and

postmodern perspectives, which have emerged more

recently during the

period post-1980 to date. The proponents of this

emerging perspective

argue that positivism overemphasizes the rational

view and the ideology of a

homogenous social culture and thereby denies thecomplex social and

cultural world in which consumers live. This

paradigm instead stresses, the

importance of symbolic and subjective experience

and the idea that

consumers construct meanings based on unique and

shared cultural

experiences, and thus there can be no single unifiedworld view.

Unsurprisingly, the two paradigms differ in their

views on the benefits derived

from consumption and the objectives that underscore

consumer research.

The traditional, positivist perspective takes a very

utilitarian approach to the

benefits from consumption. While the non-positivist

perspectives place much

greater emphasis on the symbolic dimensions of

choice. The objective of

non-positivist research endeavour is to achieve a

better understanding of

consumer behaviour with no specific intent to

influence consumer processes.

Conversely, outcomes of positivist research are

directed toward advancing

the goals of marketing practice. By identifying the

paradigmatic shifts within

the field, this article aims to identify different

streams of thought that could

guide future consumer research.


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Research that studies consumer behaviour as a

subdiscipline of marketing

with the aim to identify how consumer research can

be put to use in

marketing practice, regards the field of consumer

behaviour as an applied

social science. Accordingly, the value of the

knowledge generated should

be evaluated in terms of its ability to improve the

effectiveness of marketing

practice. According to this perspective, marketing

management inevitablyrests upon some conception of how consumers

behave and of the

consequences their reactions to product, price,

promotion, and distribution

strategies are likely to have for the attainment of

corporate goals. In affluent,

competitive economies, successful marketing

depends above all on matchingthe marketing mix, which results from the integration

of these strategies with

the willingness of consumers to buy and in doing so

more effectively than

ones rivals. The consumer-oriented management

which results from such

matching, is a response to the enormous discretion

exercised by purchasers

in these economies. Moreover, the choices made by

consumers have

consequences not merely for competing companies

within a given,

traditionally-defined industry; because of the high

levels at which

discretionary income is running, companies are

increasingly forced to

compete across the conventional boundaries of

markets and industries

(Foxall 1987).

Recently, though, some researchers have argued that

consumer

behaviour should not have a strategic focus at all. It

should instead focus onthe understanding of


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consumption for its own sake, rather than because

the

knowledge generated can be applied by marketers

(Holbrook 1985). While

this view has emerged relatively recently, it has

encouraged many to expand

the scope of their work beyond the fields traditional

focus, on the applied

benefits of undertaking consumer studies. This more

critical view of

consumer research has also led to the recognition

that not all consumerbehaviour and/or marketing activity is necessarily

beneficial to individuals or

society. As a result, current consumer research is

likely to include attention

to the dark side of consumer behaviour, such as

addiction, prostitution,

homelessness, shoplifting, or environmental waste

(OGuinn and Faber 1989;Barron 1989). This activity builds upon the earlier

work of researchers who

have studied consumer issues related to public

policy, ethics, and

consumerism. There is a growing movement in the

field to develop

knowledge about social marketing, which involves

the promotion of causes

and ideas, such as responsible drinking, energy

conservation, and population

control.

This article presents a review of the literature, in the

field of consumer

behaviour. The first section, describes the dominant,

positivistic consumer

perspectives. The second section, presents a

methodological and analytical

overview of the traditional perspectives, already

discussed in section one.

Further discussion on the paradigm shifts within

consumer research, is

supported by a diagrammatic representation of the

evolution of the field of


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consumer behaviour. The remainder of this section is

devoted to presenting

the highlightsof the debate between the recent non-positivist perspectives

and the traditional positivist-based approaches. This

discussion surrounds

the issues of fundamental assumptions and

techniques of analysis of various

alternative modes of enquiry. And finally, the last

section presents an

overview of the developments within the field of

consumer research.The Traditional Perspectives on Consumer Research

This first section outlines the perspectives that

emerged during the

traditional-positivist era in consumer research. Thus,

a brief discussion on

the early models of buyer behaviour, proposed by

economists is presented,followed by a discussionon each of the traditional perspectives inconsumer

research that emerged thereafter. These are the

behavioural, cognitive, trait,

motivational, attitudinal, and situational viewpoints.

Overall, the objective of

this section is to outline the features and the central

arguments of each of

these perspectives. While a detailed analytical

review of the paradigms is

presented in section two, at this stage it is worth

noting, that the traditional

perspectives while diverse with respect to the many

aspects of consumer

behaviour they investigate, are fundamentally similar

in terms of their

philosophical and methodological bases for

undertaking the examination of

consumer issues. That is, they are built on the

common foundations of

rationalism and share allegiance to the principles

of a single traditional,

positivist-based approach to consumer research.


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The Rational Perspective

The economists were the first to dominate model

building, in the area of

buying behaviour. The early economic view

considered consumer behaviour

in terms of a single act of purchase itself, and post-

purchase reactions.

Economic theory holds that purchasing decisions are

the result of largely

rational and conscious economic calculations.

Thus, the individual buyer

seeks to spend his income on those goods that willdeliver the most utility

(satisfaction) according to his tastes and relative

prices. The antecedents of

this view can be traced back to Adam Smith (1776).

Alfred Marshall (1890)

consolidated the classical and neoclassical

traditions in economics, into a

refined theoretical framework which came to beknown as the theory of

marginal utility. His theoretical work aimed to

simplify assumptions and

thereby examine the effects of changes in single

variables (e.g., price)

holding all other variables constant.

While economic models such as the Marshallian

theory of marginal-utility

are useful to the extent that they provide behavioural

hypotheses (e.g., the

lower the price of a product the higher the sales), the

validity of these

hypotheses does not rest on whether all individuals

act as calculating

machines in making their purchasing decisions. For

example, Eva Muller

(1954) reported a study where only one-fourth of the

consumers in her

sample bought with any substantial degree of

deliberation. The Marshallian

model ignores the fundamental question of how

product and brand

preferences are formed.


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While pure economics alone cannot explain all

variations in sales

(Westing and Albaum 1975), several sub-perspectives

within the discipline

set-out to provide rational explanations for

behavioural, psychological,

preferential, and aggregate demand variations in

behaviour, to name just a few3. For example, the

experimental treatment of economic choice

variables

has been useful in providing rational explanations for

changes in behaviour.Several studies have identified the impacts of price

differentials on

consumers brand preferences; changes in product

cues on demand

variations; changes in price on demand sensitivity;

and scarcity on consumer

choice behaviour amongst many others (Lewis et al.

1995). Moreover, whilea number of perspectives on consumer research such

as the learning

theories, as discussed below, emphasize the external

rather than internal

factors that influence behaviour, it is important to

note that it is the very basis

of rationalism, the fundamental justification of the

economic argument, on

which these traditional views rest.

The Behavioural Perspective

As mentioned above, in contrast to the economic

view which underscores

the importance of internal mental processes in

consumer decision making,

the behavioural perspective emphasizes the role of

external environmental

factors in the process of learning, which it is argued

causes behaviour. Thus,the behaviouristsapproach the consumer, as a black box and

thereby

assume that consumer behaviour is a conditioned

response to external


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events. The behavioural perspective therefore

focuses on external

environmental cues (such as advertising) that

stimulate consumer response

through learning. The strategic emphasis, of the

behavioural modification

theories, for example, are to devise a set of

expanded behaviour modification

techniques (e.g., respondent conditioning; operant

conditioning; vicarious

learning etc.) that can be used to influence, modify,

and control consumerbehaviour (Peter and Nord 1982). While a number of

researchers have

proposed models to study learning principles e.g.,

Thorndike (1911); Watson

and Rayner (1920), this view is represented by two

major approaches to

learning: classical conditioning and instrumental

learning.Classical conditioning occurs when a stimulus that

elicits a response is

paired with another stimulus that initially does not

elicit a response on its

own. Over time, this second stimulus causes a

similar response because it is

associated with the first stimulus. The theory of

classical conditioning is

rooted in Pavlovs research on digestion in animals.

Pavlov induced

classically conditioned learning by pairing a neutral

stimulus (a bell) with a

stimulus known to cause a salivation response in

dogs (dried meat powder).

The powder was an unconditioned stimulus (UCS)

because it was naturally

capable of causing the response. Over time, the bell

became a conditioned

stimulus (CS) resulting in a conditioned response

(CR). Thus, conditioned

effects are more likely to occur after the conditioned

and unconditioned


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stimuli have been paired a number of times. The

basic form of classical

conditioning demonstratedby Pavlov primarilyapplies to responses

controlled by the autonomic (e.g., salivation) and

nervous (e.g., eyeblink)

systems. That is, it focuses on visual and olfactory

cues that induce hunger

or thirst. When these cues are consistently paired

with conditioned stimuli,

such as brand names, consumers may learn to be

hungry or thirsty, whenlater exposed to brand cues. Classical conditioning

can have similar effects

for more complex reactions. Even a credit card

becomes a conditioned cue

that triggers greater spending, especially since it is a

stimulus that is

presented only in situations where consumers are

spending money. Peoplelearn that they can make larger purchases when

using credit cards, and they

also have been found to leave larger tips than they do

when using cash

(Feinberg 1986). While responses in classical

conditioning are involuntary

and fairly simple those in instrumental conditioning

are made deliberately to

obtain a goal and may be more complex.

The Cognitive Perspective

In contrast to behavioural theories of learning, the

cognitive perspective

stresses the role of information processing in

consumer decision making.

This perspective views people as problem solvers

who actively use

information from the world around them to master

their environment.

However, much debate surrounds the issue of

whether or when people are


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actually aware of these learning processes. On the

one hand, there is some

evidence for the existence of unconscious procedural

knowledge. That is,

people apparently do process at least some

information in an automatic,

passive way, which is a condition that has been

termed mindlessness

(Langer 1983). Nonetheless, many modern theorists

are beginning to regard

some instances of conditioning as cognitive

processes, especially whereexpectations are formed about the linkages between

stimuli and responses.

Studies using masking effects, wherein it is difficult

for subjects to learn

CS/UCS associations, show substantial reductions in

conditioning (Allen and

Madden 1985).

The information processing theory (or cognitivetheory) is central to the

variety of hierarchy of effect models which, as Barry

and Howard (1990, 121)

explain, posit that consumers go through a variety of

stages, namely

cognitive, affective, and conative, in responding to

advertising, and other

marketing messages. Accordingly, the dominant

pattern of relationship

between the three stages is that cognition (thought)

precedes both affect

(feeling) and conation (behaviour) (Marsden and

Littler 1998, 7). The most

widely accepted position that opposes behaviourism

is that thought and

feeling can produce change in action directly. This is

cognitivism; in its

strongest form it suggests that attitudes control

behaviour, and reinforcementonly acts by changingattitudes. Overall, the implication for marketing

strategy is that - Consumers must be exposed to

information [e.g.,


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advertising] if it is to influence their behaviourKiser1951; Barwise and Ehrenberg 1985; and Marxist

ideology - a

sociological equivalent for the primacy of behaviour

over attitude); as well as

for the cognitive perspective (e.g., Kahle and Berman

1979), evidence

suggests that precedence in the attitude-behaviour

relationship, when it can

be detected, varies depending upon the person,

action, and context (East

1990). In addition, the cognitive theories have beencriticized for assuming

that individuals are complex information processing

entities. Nevertheless,

the problem solving perspective has tended to

dominate the field of

consumer research. And as discussed next, decision

making models that

have governed consumer theory, are in fact based onthe fundamentals of

the cognitive principle.

Role of Research in

understanding consumerbehaviour

Consumer research paradigms

Here in this topic of consumer research they are

trying to identify reasons for purchasing a product,

usually customers hesitates to reveal their reasonsor motivational factor which made them to

purchase a product or service at that time the

consumer researchers use the two different types

of research methodology to study consumer

behavior: quantitative research and qualitative

research.

Quantitative research:


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It is descriptive in nature and this method is used to

predict the consumer behavior. This method

always consists of experiments, surveys

techniques, and observations. The findings are

empirical and if collected randomly this can be

generalized to large populations and the data are

quantitative, they lend to sophisticated statistical

analysis

Qualitative research:.

This includes depth interviews, focus groups,

metaphor analysis, and projective techniques. Here

sample sizes are necessarily small so we cannot

generalized to larger population they are used to

obtain new ideas for promotional campaigns.

Combining qualitative and quantitative research

findings:

By combining both research finding marketers can

design more effective marketing strategies and

always they use qualitative research findings to

discover new ideas and quantitative to predict

consumer reactions to various promotional inputs.

The consumer research process:

The important steps in the consumer research

process are

1. defining the objectives of the research

2. collecting and evaluating secondary data

3. designing a primary research study

4. collecting primary data

5. analyzing the data

6. preparing the report on findings

Developing the research objectives:

It is first and the most difficult step in research

process hare the questions like is it to segment the

market for plasma television sets? To find out


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consumer attitude about the experience with

online shopping?. And it is always important for the

marketing manager to agree at the out set on the

purposes and the objectives of the study to ensure

that

Collecting secondary data

Secondary data includes both internal and external

data it is collected or generated for some purpuss

other than the present research objectives

Internal secondary data such information

as data generated in house for earlier studies for

earlier studies as well as analisis of customer files,

such as past customer transactions etc.

Designing primary research:

IT IS basically designed on the basis of the purposesof the study. If the descriptive study is needed then

the quantitative study is likely to be under taken. If

the purpose is of the new ideas then we can go for

the qualitative research.

Quantitative research design


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A quantitative research study consists of research

design, the data collection methods and

instruments to be used, and the sample design.

Three basic designs are used in quantitative

research are : observation, experimentation, or

survey.

Observational research

Here in this method the people or customers

are observed when they are purchasing the

product or using the product

Mechanical observationuses a mechanical or electronic device to

record customer behavior or responses to a

particular marketing stimulus.

Experimentation

it is possible to test the relative sales appeal of many

types of variables, such as package designs, prices

promotional offers, or copy themes through

experiments designed to identify cause and effect.Surveys

There are various survey methods are there they are,

personal interview survey

telephone survey

mail surveys

online surveys

Quantitative research data collection instruments

The data collection instruments are developed to as

part of a studys total research design

systematizing the collection of data and to ensure

that all respondents are asked the same questions

in the same order.

Questionnaire

For quantitative research the primary data collection

instrument is questionnaire

Attitude scales

the instruments most frequently used to capture this

evaluative data is called attitude scales the most

frequently attitude scales are likert scales,

semantic differential scale, behavior intension

scale, and rank order scale.


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Qualitative research design and data collection

methods

the important methods of data collection in this

research design are depth interview, focus group,

discussion guides, projective techniques and

metaphor analysis. These techniques are regularly

used the early stages of attitude research to

pinpoint relevant product related beliefs and todevelop an initial picture of consumer attitude.

Depth interview:

This is a lengthy non structured interview between a

respondent and highly trained interviewer, who

minimizes his own participation in the discussion

after establishing the general subject to be

discussed

Focus group:

this consist of 8 to 8 to10 respondents who meet

with a moderator analyst for a group discussion

focused on a particular product or product

category.

Projective techniques:

This is designed to tap the underlying motives of

individuals despite their unconscious

rationalizations or efforts at conscious

concealment.

Metaphor analysis: in the 1990, a stream of consumer

research emerged suggesting the most

communication is non verbal and that people do

not think in words but in images.

Data analysis and reporting research findings

In qualitative research, the moderator usually

analyses the responses received. In quantitative

research, the research supervises the analysis

open ended questions are first coded and


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classified then all of the responses are tabulated

and analyzed. using sophisticated analytical

programs that correlate the data by selecting

variables and cluster the data by selected

demographic characteristics.

BCCL PUBLICATION

The Times Group is Indias largest media

conglomerate with its flagship Bennett, Coleman

and Company Limited (BCCL) being the largest

publishing company in India and South-Asia.

Starting off with The Times of Indiawhich is now

the largest English publication in the world, BCCL

and its subsidiaries (called The Times of India

Group), are present in every existing media

platformNewspapers, Magazines, Books, TV,

Radio, Internet, Event Management, Outdoor

Display, Music, Movies and more.With a turnover

exceeding a billion dollars, the group has the

support of over 25,000 advertisers, 11,000

employees and an audience spanning across all

continents.

Key Businesses:

Publishing

Largest publishing co in India: 13 newspapers, 18

magazines, 11 publishing centers, 26 printing

centers


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Largest English newspaper in India by circulation

(and the world)

Largest Business newspaper in India by circulation

(2nd largest English Business daily in the world,

behind WSJ)

Largest NonEnglish newspapers in Mumbai, Delhi,

Bangalore by circulation (Indias three largest

cities)

Television

Largest English News TV Channel, No. 2 English

Business News TV Channel

Largest Bollywood News and Lifestyle TV Channel,No. 2 English Movies TV Channel

Digital

Largest Indian network based on traffic and revenue

(behind Google, Facebook, Yahoo)

Operates 30+ digital businesses, most of which are

Top 3 in their competitive segment

Most popular B2C mobile shortcode in India, across

SMS, voice, WAP, and USSD RadioLargest radio network in India by revenue and

listenership, with 32 stations

Operates the largest rock radio station in the UK

Out-of-home

Largest Outofhome advertising business in India

with presence in all major metros

Owns advertising contracts in most major airports in

India.

Other Activities

Music

Movies

Syndication

Education

Financial Services

Event Management

Specialised publications - including books and

multimedia


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inShare

22

Hypothesis Testing and Consumer Behavior

We are all familiar with instances ofconsumer learning: learning about microwave

ovens by reading Consumer Reports; learning to

make a hazelnut torte from Paul Bocuse; learning

never to go shopping on the days immediately

following Thanksgiving and Christmas for fear of

suffocation; learning that Miracle Whip is not the

same as real mayonnaise. We know learning when

we see it, but a precise definition is moreproblematic (Hilgard & Bower 1966). With the

emergence of the information processing metaphor

in cognitive psychology, discussion of learning has

almost reached extinction (e.g., Lachman,

Lachman and Butterfield 1979) in favor of memory

processes and structure. However, everyone still

implicitly agrees that we do learn.

The Consumer is Given a Rule

How do people learn rules about consuming? The

most common and efficient way we learn is by

listening to and remembering what other people

tell us. Mothers, fathers, teachers, books, friends,

and TV provide us with most of our hypotheses.

From this perspective much of learning can best be

represented as the remembering of previously

derived (and tested) rules. One of the most

important rules we learn is that in most instances

a tried and true rule already exists even if we can't

remember it; and it is much easier to ask someone

else than to derive or rediscover the rule

ourselves. Young children very quickly learn this


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rule about learning. While the young infant has a

learning repertoire limited to exploratory trial and

error and possibly some limited imitation skills,

consider the two most common utterances of the

ever curious two year old: "me, me, me," and

slightly later, "why, Mommy, why?-- On the surface

this type of learning seems inherently less

interesting than cases requiring the consumer to

be a more active participant in the rule discovery

process. However, it is interesting to consider why

some rules are remembered and others forgotten,

some believed and others discarded.

The Consumer Induces a Rule

A second way we learn is by inducing a rule based

upon what we observe happening around us.

Scholars in virtually every field have speculated on

how people generate hypotheses, but there is little

actual research on the underlying psychologicalprocesses (Gettys & Fisher 1979). Clearly trial and

error is one frequent behavior. Though we typically

frown upon random responding in favor of

techniques based upon more systematic variation,

Campbell (1966) has argued that blind variation

coupled with selective retention is the basis for

creative thought. In a developmental sense, this

seems quite plausible--an infant will try a multitude

of small actions but retain only those actions that

work (aka the law of effect).

Why do people experience such difficulty in

generating hypotheses? At least part of the

problem seems to occur as a product of searching

memory for relevant information. Consider the

following task. You observe a particular pattern of

data and then are asked to generate multiple

hypotheses (or rules) the might account for the

data. In many cases, there will be many,

sometimes an infinite number of plausible

hypotheses, but most people will be hard pressed

to generate even a handful of alternatives. In

previous research on predictive judgement (Hoch


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1983), I found that the problems in hypothesis

generation are of ten due to retrieval interference

during the search of associative memory. I found

that the more hypotheses subjects had previously

generated, the harder it was to come up with new

hypotheses. The assumption is that subjects use

the "to be explained" data as a retrieval or

generation cue. As they think harder and harder

about how to ex?lain the data, what do they

naturally think about first? The hypotheses that

they have al ready generated.

These problems in hypothesis generation can be

accounted for by a model of retrieval in associative

memory proposed by Shiffrin (1970) and Rundus

(1973). As applied to the hypothesis generation

task, the model makes three assumptions: ( 1)

generation is probabilistic, based upon the

strength of the associations between the retrieval

cue and potential alternative hypotheses; ()) thegeneration process is analogous to sampling with

replacement, where previously generated

hypotheses can be retrieved again; and (3) the very

act of generation serves to strengthen the

association between the gene rated hypothesis

and the retrieval cue. Therefore the probability of

retrieving a previously generated hypothesis is

increased which in turn reduces the probability of

generating new hypotheses. It is easy to see how

such retrieval processes in associative memory

could lead to what we commonly refer to as

"thinking blocks." People spontaneously rehearse

the things they already know over and over again,

precluding the generation of new ideas. From this

perspective, the "Eureka" phenomenon and the

practice of putting aside the problem until another

day are more understandable--the strength of the

associations between previously generated

hypotheses and the retrieval stimulus decay in the

interim.

The Consumer Changes Previously Learned Rules


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The third way we learn is by adapting or changing

previously learned rules to be in accord with

existing information. While the initial generation of

hypotheses is a fascinating area, it probably

accounts For only a small fraction of adult

learning. Learning is a dynamic process. And

because adults typically have developed a large

repertoire of rules that would be applicable to most

frequently encountered situations, most of the

research has been concerned with the processes

underlying the maintenance and revision of these

rules over time.

Piaget (1954) addressed this issue in his work on the

development of perceptual and intellectual skills.

In the early stages of cognitive development,

infants accommodate stimulus objects and adjust

their mental representations to be consistent with

the incoming data. An appropriate metaphor is that

of the child as a sponge, absorbing all theinformation that the environment offers. As the

child continues to mature, however, incoming

information is increasingly assimilated to existing

cognitive schemes-(Bartlett's schemata). With

assimilation the child deals -with environmental

events in terms of current structures. Piaget

viewed adaption as the interplay between

accommodation and assimilation. Bobrow and

Norman (1975) discussed memory schemata in a

similar way by distinguishing between data-driven

(accommodation) and concept-driven (assimilation)

processing. .Adult learning is dominated by the

assimilation process because we are rarely at a

loss for a ready-made rule for most situations. The

advantages and liabilities associated with various

forms of schematic processing have been well

documented in recent years, especially in the

social cognition literature (see reviews by Hastie

1981; Taylor and Crocker 1981). Therefore I will

only discuss a few studies more directly relevant

to learning and hypothesis testing behavior before

moving to the question of the persistence of

erroneous rules.


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Research on multiple cue probability learning has

demonstrated that people have a very difficult time

learning probabilistic relationships between two or

more variables (see Castellan 1977 for a review).

Under certain conditions, however, people are able

to learn complex rules and relationships when the

variables are given realistic labels, such as price

and quality (Adelman 1981; Miller 1971; Muchinksy

and Dudycha 1975). The necessary condition is

that the observed data is congruent with a priori

theories that subjects have about how the worldworks. For example, in detecting a negative

correlation between x1 and x2, Learning would be

greatly facilitated if the variables were labeled

price and demand. Here the cue-criterion

relationship matches the pre-existing world

Knowledge of the subjects. Here we see the

adaptive advantages of assimilation --a priori

theories guiding the perception and understandingof a complex stimulus by providing a ready-mate

mental structure. Alternatively, if the relationship

between the labeled variables violates world

knowledge (e.g., price and quality in the case of a

negative correlation), learning becomes virtually

impossible (Camerer 1981).

It appears that existing hypotheses can be a mixed

blessing; they can both promote and hinder

perception and cognitive learning. When the

observable data are congruent with world

knowledge, then existing rules speed the

perception process by allowing people to

assimilate a large amount of data and interpret it

within the framework of -well-developed

knowledge structures. [A priori theories are similar

to the illuminating, often magical character of the

analogies and metaphors found in discussions of

memory in cognitive psychology (Roediger 1980).

We know that memory is not really a wax tablet,

cow's stomach, or digital computer, but somehow

these concrete prototypes make the abstract

theories much more understandable to experts and


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laymen alike.] However, when the data are

incongruent with a person's conception of how the

world works, the predominant finding is that

people have quite a difficult time accommodating

the environment by adjusting their rules

accordingly.

In terms of hypothesis testing, there are several lines

of research indicating that people search for

information that is congruent with their a priori

theories. Bruner, Goodnow, and Austin (1956)

found that subjects had a "thirst for confirmingredundancy" in concept identification tasks. One of

the most cited examples of the socalled

"verification or confirmation bias" is Wason's

(1960) 2-4-6 rule discovery task. Subjects were

shown the sequence of numbers 2-4-6 and told that

it obeyed a rule that the experimenter had in mind.

Subjects generated additional sequences and

received feedback as to whether their sequencesobeyed the rule. Using this feedback, their task

was to specify the correct rule. Wason found that

subjects continued to offer sequences that obeyed

the rule and confirmed their hypotheses, rather

than pursuing a logically superior falsification

strategy. Mynatt, Doherty, and Tweeney (1977)

also found a confirmation bias in a simulated

research environment. Snyder and Swann (1978)

and Darley and Gross (1983) extended these

findings to hypothesis testing in social interaction

and labeling. The concern is that if people have a

predisposition to always search for information

that only confirms their hypotheses and rules, how

can consumers possibly learn when their rules are

actually not right (Brehmer 1980)?

WHY DO RULES PERSIST?

There seem to be three general reasons why people

would maintain their rules about consuming. First,

the rules could be right. Now this is not a

particularly interesting possibility from a

researcher's point of view, but a majority of our


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rules are probably at least "mostly" right. As Toda

(1962) said, "Man and rat are both incredibly stupid

in an experimental room. On the other hand . . .

man drives a car, plays complicated games and

organizes society, and rat is troublesomely cunning

in the kitchen." (p. 165) The other two possibilities

concern rules that are wrong, either normatively or

pragmatically. In one case, the rule is wrong bu

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