Brand Audit

Group 16, Sec A, Brand Management Abhishu Rakshit FT12182 Jayawardhan FT12328 Nishtha Dewani FT12143 Siddharth Goyal FT12360 Sushant Agarwal FT12266 Great Lakes Institute of Management [Pick the date]

Contents
Nokia s Vision and strategy..................................................................................................................................... 3 Objective of the Brand Audit .................................................................................................................................. 3 Scope ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 Approach ............................................................................................................................................................... 4 Origin of NOKIA and the Telecom Industry.............................................................................................................. 6 Rise of the Telecom Industry .................................................................................................................................. 6 Nokia goes Mobile.................................................................................................................................................. 7 Nokia- the mobile industry leader .......................................................................................................................... 7 Nokia s leadership is threatened............................................................................................................................. 8 Nokia changes direction ......................................................................................................................................... 9 Brand Inventory ................................................................................................................................................... 11 Brand Values ........................................................................................................................................................ 11 Product Related Attributes ................................................................................................................................... 11 Brand Elements .................................................................................................................................................... 11 Brand Strategy ..................................................................................................................................................... 13 POD ..................................................................................................................................................................... 19 POP...................................................................................................................................................................... 19 Brand and Product Portfolio ................................................................................................................................. 20 Nokia s Current Marketing Strategy ...................................................................................................................... 22 Survey Methodology ............................................................................................................................................ 25 Consumer Analysis- Product Category Purchase Drivers........................................................................................ 25 Brand Exploratory ................................................................................................................................................ 27 Consumer Brand Imagery Perception Personality Analysis ................................................................................. 28 Brand Reputation of NOKIA .................................................................................................................................. 29 Competitor Analysis ............................................................................................................................................. 32 Brand Equity ...................................................................................................................................................... 365 SWOT Analysis Respondent Profile .36 ..36

Conclusion and Recommendation ...................................................................................................................... 388 Questionnaire 40

NOKIA- AN OVERVIEW

Nokia s Vision and strategy

y y y

Nokia s mission is simple, Connecting People. Nokia s strategic intent is to build great mobile products. Nokia s job is to enable billions of people everywhere to get more of life s opportunities through mobile.

Objective of the Brand Audit

The objective of the brand audit is to conduct an in-depth examination of a major brand and suggest ways to improve and leverage that brand equity by providing recommendations to the brand concerning how the brand should be managed over the next 5 years by critically analyzing the brand inventory and brand exploratory.

Scope

The brand audit will be based entirely on information from public secondary sources, company web sites, as well as our own professional experiences and insights. If possible primary research will be conducted to some extent and results from that research will be studied in order to understand the brand positioning, awareness, planning, building and growth. This will also be considered in suggesting ways as to how the brand should be managed in coming years in order to enhance its positioning.

The final report profiles the positioning of the brand, its sources of brand equity and provides recommendations concerning how to build and manage equity for the brand chosen.

Approach As we examine our brand we will answer the following points concerning a brand:

NOKIA & INDUSTRY OVERVIEW

Origin of NOKIA and the Telecom Industry

Nokia Corporation as it is known today didn t actually start out as a mobile device manufacturer. The company s history can be traced back to the mid-19th century, when it was established as a groundwood pulp mill in 1865 in Finland. The company was formally founded in 1871, named after the town near which its operations were based. In 1902, Nokia entered into the business of electricity generation and one of its major clients was a company called Finnish Rubber Works which was also using Nokia as its product brand. Finnish Rubber Works went on to acquire the Nokia Company and a company called Finnish Cable Works which produced telephone, telegraph and electrical cables. By 1967, the three companies were merged into a conglomerate known as Nokia Corporation. This conglomerate was involved in the production of a wide variety of goods ranging from paper and plastics to tires and footwear, and from electric machinery and military equipment to consumer electronics and computers.

Rise of the Telecom Industry

Nokia has been instrumental in developing the mobile technologies that the world relies on. Right from the 70s through to the 90s, Nokia made major breakthroughs in the field of communication technology and was the company responsible for bringing out the world s first mobile phone. It started in 1981, known as the beginning of the mobile era, when Nordic Mobile Telephone was built. This was the first ever international mobile phone network. Nokia followed this up with the DX200, its first digital telephone switch in 1982. The Mobira Talkman portable phone was launched in 1984 and finally the mobile phone was born in the form of the Mobira Cityman, the first handheld phone using NMT. In fact, Nokia also happens to have
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manufactured the equipment that was used to make the first GSM call in 1991. All of this was done by a joint venture between Nokia and Salora known as Mobira Oy which was later bought by Nokia.

Nokia goes Mobile

Nokia was also instrumental in helping develop the GSM standard for mobile telephony. GSM was adopted as the new standard for digital mobile technology by Europe in 1987. Due to the great potential of the telecommunication business, Nokia decided to consolidate all its other operations and pursue the manufacturing of mobile phones as its core business in 1992. Soon after, they launched their first GSM handset known as the Nokia 1011. The following years made up for a long list of firsts for the iconic brand that Nokia has become. The Nokia Tune as it is known till today was launched in 1994 with a phone called the 2100, the world s first satellite call is made using a Nokia handset also. Snake, the iconic mobile phone game which is still as popular today, was launched in 1997 with a phone known as the 6110. When the Internet finally came to mobile phones in 1999, Nokia had already been declared the world leader in mobile phones, and they capped this glory with the world s first WAP-enabled phone known as the Nokia 7110.

Nokia- the mobile industry leader

Since 2000, Nokia has constantly innovated and maintained its position as the market leader. Right from the introduction of their first 3G phone to their N-Gage gaming platform, from the Eseries and communicator devices to the multimedia centric N-series. But Nokia s main

stronghold has been the low-budget and basic handsets. They sold their billionth phone, a Nokia 1100, in 2005 when the global mobile phone subscription base was a total of 2 billion. Nokia s leadership is threatened

In 2007, Nokia was declared as the fifth most valued brand in the world. Later that year, the iPhone was launched by Apple, and the face of the mobile handset industry was changed forever. Following Apple s move, Google launched the open-source Android operating system which was adopted by other leading manufacturers like Samsung, LG and HTC to name a few. Nokia refused to migrate to Android and put their faith in the Symbian platform, their long standing and the most popular mobile OS in the world. Unfortunately, they were not able to match up to the expectations of the market and have been steadily losing market share since. Even though the mobile phone market grew by 22% in 2009-10, Nokia s market share dropped from almost 64% to 52.2% in just a year. Its major competitors during this period have been Apple, Samsung, Sony, RIM, LG, HTC, Motorola and the likes. Apple has continued to surge upwards in terms of market share with a single phone, which is given new iterations every successive year, each improving on the features of the previous version. Samsung and LG have launched a slew of phones in all segments from low-cost to high-end. RIM has always been the main source of competition for their enterprise services segment and their BlackBerry brand has been synonymous with the category. Sony and HTC have been competing in the high-end segment mainly. Nokia had a market-leading presence in almost all the categories all around the world, but quickly lost that position with the emergence of the new era of smartphones.
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Nokia changes direction

As Nokia was outdone by Apple as the world s largest smartphone manufacturer in 2011, there was loss of faith and patience by the investors in the company s ability to come up with a respectable answer to Apple s domination of the industry with the iPhone. In order to bring about the much needed change to the company, Nokia announced a tie-up with Microsoft for using their latest mobile OS known as Windows Phone 7 and developing an entirely line of mobile phones as a result of this partnership. Nokia also said that they would abandon the MeeGo platform they were developing jointly with Intel and would keep working on Symbian for the low-end smartphones and the low-cost categories. The initial news about the tie-up was not received well by the investors and there was a further decline in the stock prices of the company as Microsoft s platform was in the nascent stages of its development and was not seen as a viable enough option to give a match to Apple or Google. Since then, both Microsoft and Nokia have made major changes and Nokia s future looks to be heading in the right direction right now.

BRAND INVENTORY

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Brand Inventory

Nokia mobile phones have contributed in redefining the mobile phone industry through its breakthrough technology, brilliance and efficiency

Brand Values

We Recycle , We Create , We Energize , We Support and We Evolve

Product Related Attributes

The attributes of the Nokia mobile phones are in sync with the core business practices of Nokia namely-style, usability, robustness, expediential and relevance.

Brand Elements

Logos

Nokia in Finnish means a dark, furry animal called the Pine Marten weasel. The origin of the company name, is attributed to the establishment of the wood pulp mill by Knut Fredrik Idestam, on the Nokianvirta river banks in the town of Nokia. It is not clear how this logo evolved and how its meaning has changed over the years due to Nokia s changing business over the years. However, this has little to do with the current business and brand image. (20
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Corporate Brand Logo Evolution, http://www.instantshift.com/2009/01/29/20-corporatebrand-logo-evolution/) Tag Line Connecting People

Urlwww.nokia.com, www.nokiasiemensnetworks.com/, http://maps.nokia.com , store.ovi.com Endorsements and Associations Dallas punk rock band -Greyskull was used as the face of Nokia Asia ad campaign in 20071 Social networks and media
http://nokianewsletter.wordpress.com - Net Talk is a property of Nokia India. This is a monthly

news bulletin on Nokia India s Social Media campaigns and trends in digital marketing
1

http://www.pegasusnews.com/news/2007/mar/26/greyskull-becomes-face-nokia-asia-ad-campaign/

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Brand Strategy

An analysis of Nokia s promotions shows that Nokia focuses on promoting its new technologies through big advertising campaigns rather than focusing on new handsets. Between 2004 and 2007, Nokia appointed 'Moving Bands' as the lead branding agency for global rebranding which involved brand strategy, identity and experience. Moving bands also redesigned Nokia's online presence (Nokia.com), digital strategy and designed the brand identity for Nokia's software and services offer (ovi.com). In 2006, Nokia realized the need to increase market share, brand preference and customer retention and approached moving bands with the aim of becoming "World's most loved and admired brand". To achieve this aim if Nokia had a two-pronged approach-

This task was undertaken in the following manner1. Moving brands and Nokia first developed the story at the heart of the brand-" very human technology" by focusing on the new values

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2. They then worked on injecting life, love and lust into the brand in order to create a stronger emotional connection with the customers. 3. They conducted an extensive global consumer research and define a new strategy across consumer segmentation, product segmentation and naming architecture. 4. A strategy based on current trends and future needs for customers was developed to prowhite clear strategy and creative direction for all Nokia's agencies globally. Output- this new identity was launched globally in 2007 and has resulted in an increase of 6% in the global market share. By 2009, Nokia was number five in global brand rankings2. Nokia also established a division called as Nokia Design which is group of diverse people worldwide such as psychologists, industrial designers, materials experts, and anthropologists. The division uses human-behavioral research to estimate the future requirements of upto 5 to 15 years, and works on spotting and predicting megatrends and coming up with ideas on how to align mobile design accordingly. The group uses large research groups to look at long-term, macro, and societal trends as well as more short-term trends around critical design factors such as - colors, fashions, and textures. They find out local and country-specific trends, and also look across countries to identify similarities in lifestyles and global trends 3. In 2007, Nokia established nine localized satellite design studios within target nations to create products reflecting the needs and aspirations of emerging markets. In India, a center was established in Bangalore.
2

http://www.movingbrands.com (Nokia's Design Research for Everyone, http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/mar2007/id20070314_689707.htm)

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By 2010 Nokia realized that brand name alone does not make a brand and that it would have to enhance its market leading capabilities. It was probably losing its competitive position in relation to brands such as Blackberry and iPhone which were gaining an edge on the basis of 'perceptual sophisticated' brand while Nokia was focusing on 'functional sophistication'. In other words, leadership position depends upon how market leadership is conceptualized and what measures are used. While Nokia adopted a functional approach and led in terms of reliability and functional usage, Apple moved ahead with its brand based perceptual sophistication model which enables it to engage with the market and develop in the long run. Unlike functional sophistication, perceptual sophistication is difficult to copy and/or acquire. It enables a brand to acquire mind space and appear 'cool' 'trendy' 'innovative' and 'desirable'4 In 2010 Nokia undertook a changeover of the Nokia Music Store to the Ovi Music Store. It also accordingly rebranded its Comes with Music name to Ovi Music Unlimited . 5 In February 2011, Nokia signed a deal with Microsoft for Microsoft's Windows Phone 7, in order to compete with Apple's IOS or Google's Android. "Nokia is the world leader in mobility, driving the transformation and growth of the converging Internet and communications industries"

4 5

(http://www.palgrave-journals.com/bm/journal/v18/n3/full/bm201048a.html). (Nokia Comes with Music rebranded Ovi Music Unlimited ; Launches in India, http://zomgitscj.com).

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The latest rebranding efforts by Nokia involve:. 1. Nokia budgeted 80m for advertising as a part of a major rebranding effort. Nokia will embark upon a multi-country six-month long campaign with the involvement of a lot of marketing agencies. The objective is to attempt to again make Nokia devices as appealing as they were some years ago6 2. Discontinue the use of 'Ovi' brand (used for the service offerings since 2007) and rebranding the services as "Nokia services" because of the following reasonsGoogle's Android and Apple's iPhone products have eclipsed the service despite the fact that in order to compete with Apple and Google, Nokia had been subsidizing developers to produce new apps on the Ovi store. Nokia's smartphone market share slumped to 24% its brand value declined by 28% over the past one year 7 The expected outcome from the exercise is that this move would allow the company to centralize its services identity under one brand instead of two and to reinforce the powerful master brand of Nokia and unify the band architecture. The transition began in July 2011 and is expected to be completed by end of 2012 worldwide. According to Nokia EVP and Chief Marketing Officer Jerri DeVard, Nokia's philosophy revolves around the fact that, Our mobile experiences are tightly integrated with our devices there is no longer a differentiation". Nokia's mission remains unchanged- "work to
6

Nokia will spend 80m on a rebranding effort, http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/2093188/nokia-spendgbp80m-rebranding-effort 7 (Nokia Services to replace Ovi brand, May 25, 2011, http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com).

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deliver compelling, unified mobile service offerings and next-generation, disruptive technologies 8. This re-branding is a result of the strategic alliance with Microsoft according to which the Ovi app store would be rolled into Microsoft's Windows marketplace offering and Microsoft will provide development tools for these applications. However, Nokia plans to retain a branded storefront to leverage the Windows marketplace infrastructure. 3. Said goodbye to its Nokia Sans font and introduced a new typeface and a new look for promotional materials called as Nokia pure. This font will be used for the new branding on billboards and devices in 2011. Thus the new font face is meant to express this new ambition9 It s a new brand image that s simpler, fresher and stronger than before the letters flow into each other somewhat, creating the impression of forward movement. - According to Nokia

Nokia Pure is now the primary tag line for the company. In the near future this will probably be followed by a new logo as well, with the eventual adoption of both into all future Nokia products and user interfaces 10

Nokia Discontinues Ovi Brand, Roadmaps Not Changed, By Sarah Perez / May 16, 2011, http://www.readwriteweb.com/mobile/2011/05/nokia-discontinues-ovi-brand-roadmaps-not-changed.php 9 (Nokia unveils new font and branding, http://conversations.nokia.com)

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Nokia used innovative campaigns to connect with consumers through social networking Nokia is making changes in its

approach to marketing, with more budget being devoted to social media and digital campaigns than above the line campaigns. For instance, it

sponsored Shah Rukh Khan-owned Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) IPL campaign on Facebook with the slogan 'KKR tension mat le yaar 11 In order to attract youth, Nokia has also launched the Epic Dramas and Direct the Drama campaigns in 2011. Both the campaigns have been well received as they draw a connection to real life situations and brand Nokia.

10

Nokia s rebrand, http://www.brandmatters.com.au/nokia-rebrand/ http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/sectors/telecoms-and-it/%E2%80%9Cstep-change%E2%80%9D-in-marketingwill-position-nokia-for-a-bright-future/3031369.article

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POD

The secret to Nokia's success as the world's leading mobile phone brand is the recognition of the fact that the when basic technology questions are solved, instead of voice quality, design becomes a more important factor. Nokia believes that design will always be as much a language as any spoken word with a conversation individually as well as socially. Thus, Nokia has typically maintained its global leadership position by using its product design as a differentiating competitive factor12. Nokia phone generally have a highly recognizable packaging style and the with the company name printed just above the screen and just below the earpiece. Nokia also distinguishes itself through its pricing strategy and segmentation. Its product range offers options across a continuum of price ranges and technology features. It is known to follow a price skimming approach - launch a product at a premium price and then gradually decrease it substantially within a year or so.

POP

Nokia being a leader in the mobile category has basically defined the category. Its presence across the entire price line has enabled it to connect with all the mobile segments.

12

(http://www.idemployee.id.tue.nl/g.w.m.rauterberg/conferences/cd_donotopen/ADC/final_paper/197.pdf)

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Brand and Product Portfolio Nokia includes ten different series of mobile phones, each with a subset of different models which basically define the whole product range: y y Nokia 1xxx (basic): These are the most basic mobile phones. Nokia 2xxx (basic): More or less like 1xxx series, the 2xxx series are entry-level phones. These however contain more advanced features than the 1xxx series including color screens, cameras and Bluetooth. y Nokia 3xxx (Expression): These constitute mid-range phones targeted at the youth market. Nokia 5xxx (Active): Features are similar to that of the 3xxx series, though some of the phones feature a rugged construction or contain extra features for music playback. y y Nokia 6xxx (Classic Business Series): This is Nokia's largest family of phones consisting mostly of mid-range to high-end phones containing a high amount of features. The series is characterised by conservative, unisex designs, making this series quite popular among business users. y Nokia 7xxx (Fashion and Experimental): These are targeted towards the fashion conscious user, primarily women. y Nokia 8xxx (Premium): This series stresses heavily on ergonomics and attractiveness. Internally, the phone is quite basic; from a functionality perspective however, the physical handset appeals to users who focus on ergonomics. y Nokia Eseries: This is an Enterprise series
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y y

Nokia Nseries: Mobile Computer series Nokia Xseries: Multimedia series which is targeted at the trendy youth.

Nokia s Product Portfolio (Last 4 years) in a chronological order

It can thus be seen that Nokia had been fairly consistent in developing and releasing new models every year. However, in the last 2 years there have been lesser developments and fewer releases as compared to previous years. This, by itself may not be a cause for concern
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but considering the growth in the industry over the last couple of years, it does reflect on the market leader s inability to foresee and adapt to recent changes in consumer preferences.

Nokia s Current Marketing Strategy

As Nokia looks to reclaim its position at the top of the smart-phone market, it has unveiled a new revitalized youthful marketing strategy, using the tagline the amazing

Consumers will be able to instantly recognize that Nokia s tone of voice has dramatically changed in its marketing. They will go wow, I can t believe that s Nokia , the new campaign will make people surprised and delighted that Nokia is doing something this cool - John Nichols, Nokia s UK marketing director

everyday for the launch of its debut windows phone. With more funds being allocated to

social media and digital marketing rather than above the line campaigns and less traditional marketing channels, Nokia looks forward to differentiate itself from the competitors. Nichols emphasizes that People - not consumers - is where uniquely Nokia stands as a brand. Only Nokia can globally own that brand essence. Nokia has planned an extensive marketing strategy set out for all of the countries that will receive its windows smart-phones. Nokia plans to install large arch installations in malls with interactive screens to provide information and demonstration of its new windows Smartphone line. The company has planned to supply stores with working phones that customers can play with instead of the dummy phones that irritate customers and doesn t give actual look and feel of

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the phone. Also in plans is to install in-store large touch screen display to showcase phone s features. The latest and innovative ad format that Nokia has come up with is the vortex type display that will be displayed on the window of the store with colored glass and web like design showcasing working Nokia Mobile Phone in the centre. This is surely going to add number of passersby noticing the phone. Giving free EA games is also one of the points of focus in the marketing plan which is expected to add excitement to the phone user. According to the company s CEO the launch of Nokia Lumia and 710 is carried on by 3 times the marketing budget available for the other launches at Nokia in the past. The new youthful in Nokia marketing is the use of blips which is first of its kind to be used in the telecom industry for promotion of a product preceding a launch. Also the communications around the new launches will focus on the practical uses of the phone and not on the technical specifications by using real people as the brand ambassadors. The company is partnering with many dailies in order to place cover wraps and other innovative advertisement formats to showcase the new models and their interface targeting to lure the customers.

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BRAND EXPLORATORY

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Survey Methodology

We conducted an online survey especially targeted towards the youth in the age group 23-30 years since it s the youth segment which seems to have got disconnected with NOKIA . We received 45 responses out of which 43 were either existing or current users of NOKIA. The responses were analyzed using statistical tools and significant factors driving consumer behavior were found out. We designed the questionnaire using mostly a 5 point Likert Scale in order to find out the category purchase drivers and motivation, consumers perception of NOKIA as a brand and also with respect to competition , NOKIA brand personality, consumer associations with NOKIA and if NOKIA enjoyed resonance with the consumers .

Consumer Analysis- Product Category Purchase Drivers

The product category drivers were identified on a 5 point Likert scale (1-Most Dissatisfied,2Dissatisfied, 3-Doesn t Matter, 4-Satisfied, 5- Strongly Satisfied ) and following attributes were explored. The result summary is attached below -

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Descriptive Statistics N Minimum Maximum Mean Std. Deviation Design Camera Video Music Software Connectivity Battery Availability Reliability After Sales Service Value for money Brand Reputation Adds prestige to image Software Updates Rugged Delicate 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 1 1 1 1 1 1 3 2 1 1 2 2 1 1 2 1 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 3.04 3.40 3.13 3.31 2.80 3.69 4.22 4.40 4.20 3.62 4.09 3.84 2.78 2.78 4.00 2.33 .976 1.031 .991 .949 .919 .874 .704 .688 .919 .936 .848 .796 1.020 1.020 .853 1.000

Interpretation of Descriptive Statistics for Category Drivers The above data from survey reveals that people are indifferent towards the Design and Video attributes for the Nokia Phones. The statistics result shows that people do not think that Software and its updates, Prestige Image and Delicate can be satisfactorily associated with
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Nokia. Drivers for which people are a bit satisfied are Camera, Music, Connectivity, After Sales and Brand Reputation. Battery, Availability, Reliability, Rugged and Value for money are the key differentiators for Nokia as per the result of the analysis.

Brand Exploratory

In brand exploratory we researched the brand positioning analysis, the consumer perception analysis of the NOKIA brand and the associations the users have about NOKIA . Below is the summary of the associations that users have about NOKIA .
Imagery Feelings Judgment

Performance

Performance Smart & Stylish Expensive

Imagery Reliable Properly Advertised Easily Available Appealing 3.444 0.161 4 4 1.077782984 1.161616162 -0.855149502 -0.305836972 4 1 5 155 45 2.766 Yes

Feelings Judgement Pleasant Popular Prestigious High Quality 2.711 0.144 3 2 0.96818063 0.93737374 -1.0862119 -0.004452 3 1 4 122 45 -2.002 No 3.889 0.136 4 4 0.91010045 0.828282828 1.599858987 -1.09768913 4 1 5 175 45 6.552 Yes

Mean 3.000 2.711 4.333 Standard Error 0.168 0.133 0.101 Median 3 2 4 Mode 3 2 5 Standard Deviation 1.12815215 0.894991677 0.674199862 Sample Variance 1.272727273 0.801010101 0.454545455 Kurtosis -0.578564648 0.049619368 -0.694352159 Skewness 0.099389294 1.016209241 -0.517409197 Range 4 3 2 Minimum 1 2 3 Maximum 5 5 5 Sum 135 122 195 Count 45 45 45 T value 0.000 -2.165 13.266 Significantly perceived No No Yes

4.667 3.222 3.556 3.956 0.071 0.145 0.133 0.131 5 3 4 4 5 4 4 4 0.476731295 0.974420315 0.893297 0.877899 0.227272727 0.949494949 0.79798 0.770707 -1.534883721 -1.063725638 -0.6254 0.674605 -0.731727103 0.145355963 -0.17466 -0.9658 1 3 3 3 4 2 2 2 5 5 5 5 210 145 160 178 45 45 45 45 23.452 1.530 4.172 7.302 Yes No Yes Yes

Based on our survey and data obtained on a 5-point Likert Scale , we found out the T-statistics of the parameters in the above table. These parameters captured the consumer perception as regards NOKIA Performance, Imagery and also their feelings and Judgement about NOKIA. With a level of significance of 5 % and T-critical = 1.645,we found that consumers didn t perceive NOKIA as being Smart & Stylish, Appealing and Prestigious though they didn t think it
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to be expensive also and rated it high on Reliability, Imagery, Pleasantness , Popularity and High Quality .

Consumer Brand Imagery Perception Personality Analysis

The survey revealed that people perceive NOKIA as a sincere brand since they rated it as being Down-to-Earth, Honest but rated it low on being cheerful signifying that NOKIA is not perceived as a vibrant and lively brand. Also NOKIA was ranked very low on Excitement since the repsondents didn t think NOKIA to be associated with Upper Class and Charming . Apple IPhone scored the highest on characteristics such as Cheerfulness , Upper-Class and Charm signifying its popularity with the survey group . Also NOKIA was rated the highest on reliability and ruggednes but was rated the lowest on characteristics such as Upper-Class, Intelligence, Imagination and being Up-to-Date . While Apple scored the highest on all the personality elements like Excitement, Sophistication, Intelligence and Successful .

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Brand Reputation of NOKIA

The respondents were also asked what they felt about NOKIA s reputation on a 5-point Likert Scale (1-Strongly Disagree- 5-Strongly Agree) and and the survey revealed the following -

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I consider NOKIA as the most publicly recognized I consider NOKIA as brand in the most terms of reputed brand brand. reputation.

I consider NOKIA as the most reliable brand.

Mean Standard Error Median Mode Standard Deviation Sample Variance Kurtosis Skewness Range Minimum Maximum Sum Count T- Value Significantly Perceived

3.533 0.167 4 4 1.120 1.255 -0.483 -0.595 4 1 5 159 45 3.194 Yes

3.267 0.175 4 2 1.176 1.382 -1.368 -0.022 4 1 5 147 45 1.522 No

3.933 0.150 4 4 1.009 1.018 -0.507 -0.695 3 2 5 177 45 6.205 Yes

With a significance level of 5 %, the responses were analyzed using T-test with T-Critical = 1.645. The findings show that people consider NOKIA to be the most publicly recognized brand in terms of brand reputation but don t perceive NOKIA to be the most reputed brand however they perceive it to be a reliable brand which is consistent with NOKIA s traditional image . Further we asked the respondents about their perception of NOKIA with respect to competition on factors such performance, Imagery, Judgement and Resonance . The analysis of the responses are given in the graphs below

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Judgement - Quality, Superiority

Resonance Attachment

Though NOKIA has been traditionally known to been good on quality front and has been perceived as superior to competition but it s the second both these attributes with Apple leading by a very wide margin. Though as regards attachment 28.89% respondents said that they preferred NOKIA and 62.22 % said that they were loyal users of the brand . Hence there is scope for NOKIA to build again on this loyalty since Apple is though highly popular amongst the youth but still majority of the youth are loyal to the NOKIA brand and expect it to come up with a superior performance as always .

Resonance Engagement
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Performance Worth its Price

Regarding engagement 31.11 % of respondents said they would

recommend NOKIA phone to others but here the spread is not as wide as in other measures and other brands like Samsung and Blackberry are also highly

Feelings- Self Respect recommended by consumers. As regards price worth NOKIA is definitely in lead (44.44%) as it is considered a fairly good product at a low price. However NOKIA scored abysmally low (8.89%) as regards consumer feelings of pride of possessing a NOKIA phone whereas Apple clearly led at 80.00 % hence it is clear that consumers don t identify NOKIA with pride but are proud of aspirational brands like Apple .

Competitor Analysis

We have focused on three major players in the world markets as the main competitors to the Nokia brand. These are Apple, Samsung and RIM s BlackBerry. 1. Apple With the introduction of the iPhone, Apple has broken all sales records set by any player in any industry. In fact, they create new records with every new product launch surpassing even their own expectations. From the Mac to the iPad, Apple s product portfolio consists of premium products at premium prices, and they still sell like hot cakes. This brand is clearly the apple of every consumer s eye. Apart from being a revolutionary product, Apple has been able to deliver industry-leading

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devices in terms of specifications and design. It has created a very large aspirational value for itself. This is clearly evident from its scores in the Competence, Sophistication and Excitement sections. The majority of the respondents consider it to be the most imaginative (91%) and the most up-todate (60%). They also rank it the highest in terms of an upper-class (69%) and successful brand (60%). The one major area where it lags behind is in terms of sincerity and reliability/durability (ruggedness). Both these spaces are dominated by Nokia which is perceived to be the most reliable, tough and down-to-earth phone, thought Apple is the most cheerful (53%) of the lot, adding further to the aspirational value quotient.

2. Samsung They are one of the largest consumer electronics manufacturers in the world. They not only make mobile phones, but an entire range of consumer durable devices from refrigerators and washing machines to televisions and computers. Samsung is well known for the variety it is able to offer in all of these categories. Samsung had been making a wide range of phones before the launch of the iPhone, but after the launch they have focused mainly on bringing both low-cost and class-leading smartphones to the market at lower prices. They had their sights firmly fixed at the top spot which was held by Apple not too long ago, and have successfully reached the top in terms of sheer volume. In terms of the brand, it is a mostly distant second to Apple, but constantly ahead of Nokia on many counts. Leading Nokia by a fair margin on the excitement front, Samsung is more daring (22%) and up-to-date (27%). It does fairly well on the competence and sophistication counts, being rated as more intelligent and more charming (15% each) than Nokia and marginally more upper-class. But Nokia is perceived to be a more successful brand, probably owing to the history and presence of the brand.

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3. BlackBerry Research In Motion, a Canadian telecommunications firm, can be considered to be a major success in terms of building the BlackBerry brand because the name is synonymous with its category and is much more well known than RIM itself. BlackBerry is known for making mobile phones which are focused on providing enterprise services to their customers. They have a distinctive design which has become synonymous with the form-factor. Recently, RIM has made the foray into making devices for everyone instead of just focusing on enterprise customers. Unlike Apple and Samsung, BlackBerry does much better on the sincerity front, coming a distant second to Nokia on the basis of down-to-earth (9%) and honesty (15%). It is also considered to an upper-class brand (20%) ahead of Nokia and Samsung due to the premium and features and prices and the image of being a product used by serious professionals. It also fairs well on ruggedness and reliability (9% each) compared to Apple and Samsung. Overall, Nokia rules the roost in terms of reliability, ruggedness and sincerity. This can be attributed to the wide range of Nokia devices in the low-cost segments, which were the first ever phones that many people had owned. In particular, devices like the Nokia 1100, which was a global phenomenon and still holds the title of being the single largest selling mobile phone model in the world (250 million units), have cemented Nokia s brand image as a highly durable and rugged device. The areas where it lags behind are Excitement, Competence and Sophistication, all of which play an important role in the purchase decision of the consumer. Hence, the Nokia brand has suffered immensely in the past few years as it has not been able to innovate in the right direction so as to keep up with the competition.

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Nokia s Brand Equity Rankings 2011

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Nokia s brand image has indeed suffered a setback in 2011 which is evident from its rankings in the current year. It managed to garner the top rank in only the All India Brand Trust Ranking. This lays stress on the fact that Nokia is still a formidable force in India and that it is high time for it reconsider its branding strategies in order to regain the trust and faith of customers worldwide.

Respondent Profile

The respondents were mostly present NOKIA users (51.11%) though around 95 % of the users were previous or existing ones hence had a fairly good idea of NOKIA phone

performance.

Nokia SWOT Analysis

SWOT analysis as a tool helps an organization understand where it stands. Conducting a SWOT analysis of Nokia makes us understand where Nokia stands in the market: Strengths Brand Name: Nokia has a strong brand name which works in its favour especially in the event of launching new products as the brand has high recall value in the minds of the customers enabling strong brand association. y Global Distribution Network: Enables easy availability of products across different markets.
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Financial Strength: It serves as the backbone for the company enabling it to concentrate on innovations.

Ease of Use: Nokia is known for its user friendly products which make it popular among users irrespective of how savvy they are with gadgets.

Varied Range: Nokia has a wide range of products which makes it an attractive brand. Also the products have a relatively decent resale value which increases its popularity especially in markets like India.

Weaknesses Price: Nokia products are priced higher as compared to other substitutes like Micromax, Samsung and Spice, though this gets covered by the quality and reliability of its products. y Unable to keep up with the times: Nokia has been unable to keep up with the times and has been a follower so far as innovativeness is concerned for the better part of the last decade. y Size: Nokia suffers from being the behemoth market leader susceptible to attacks from emerging and established competitors. y Difficulty of use in recent products: Nokia s newer models are somewhat difficult to use which has caused an erosion of trust in the brand. Opportunities Identifying New Markets: Nokia can leverage its position as Market leader by expanding to newer markets.
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Changing Price Structure: Price change can help it position itself as a more economical option thereby enabling it to capture greater market share.

New Product Range: A more attractive product range can bring it in sync with changing tastes and preferences and introduce it to a new target market.

Riding the crest of the telecommunication boom: Nokia is well suited to exploit the global telecommunications boom to seal its position as the market leader and expand its reach and market share.

Reputation building: Through aggressive advertisements and effective market communication thus building the brand image further.

Threats Competition: Entry of more competitors as a result of excessive growth of the industry. Price War: Nokia is facing a price war from the competitors threatening its market share. y Growth of WLL: Nokia s forte lies with CDMA technology, while WLL phones are going from strength to strength. y Innovation: Innovation on the part of the competitors threatens Nokia s hold over the market.

y y

Conclusion and Recommendation

NOKIA has been a top performing brand and a market leader by market share all along . It enjoys strong loyalty and is perceived as a reliable, value for money brand however with the
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advent of Apple and other high end phones using newest technologies to woo the customers especially the youth , the market share for NOKIA has been declining . As can be seen clearly from the results of the survey, Nokia has established itself as a reliable and rugged mobile phone brand. But these aren t the only factors that determine the purchase decision of the customer. With the increase in the use of mobile internet and rapid advances in mobile technology, the customers are moving towards smarter and faster mobile phones. Smartphones, which used to be a core area of strength for Nokia in the past, have changed drastically after the introduction of the iPhone in 2007 and Nokia has not kept pace with this development. Its market share in this segment has been completely obliterated by the iPhone and devices manufactured by Samsung and other leading brands running on Android. These brands have made the smartphones more exciting, competent and sophisticated and Nokia has fallen behind. To regain its lost market share, Nokia needs to reinvent itself and introduce an entirely new range of smartphones which capitalize on Nokia s strengths of reliability, which none of the other brands have, and combines it with new elements which create excitement. Hence NOKIA needs to be innovative and should update the features of its phone to delight the customers and regain its market share . The brand needs to been seen as cool and happening by the youth which are the major segment driving Apple s sales in India .

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Questionnaire- Is Nokia Connecting with the People?

This survey is aimed at collecting information about the consumer perception of the NOKIA brand. Thank you for helping us.

Are you an existing or previous user of a NOKIA phone? *

y y y

( ) Existing ( ) Previous ( ) Never Used

Which brand do you recall first when thinking of a mobile phone? *

y y y y y

( ) NOKIA ( ) APPLE ( ) BLACKBERRY ( ) SAMSUNG ( ) Other:

If you have an intention to buy a mobile phone, which brand will you prefer the most? *
y y y y y

( ) NOKIA ( ) APPLE ( ) BLACKBERRY ( ) SAMSUNG ( ) Other:

Strongly Agree

Agree

Neither Agree nor Disagree

Disagree

Strongly Disagree

Pl indicate your preference

()

()

()

()

()

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Strongly Agree

Agree

Neither Agree nor Disagree

Disagree

Strongly Disagree

Pl indicate your preference

()

()

()

()

()

Strongly Agree

Agree

Neither Agree nor Disagree

Disagree

Strongly Disagree

Pl indicate your preference

()

()

()

()

()

Strongly Agree

Agree

Neither Agree nor Disagree ()

Disagree

Strongly Disagree

Appealing

()

()

()

()

High Quality

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()

Pleasant

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()

Popular

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Prestigious

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()

Smart & Stylish

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Expensive

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()

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Strongly Agree

Agree

Neither Agree nor Disagree ()

Disagree

Strongly Disagree

Reliable

()

()

()

()

Properly Advertised

()

()

()

()

()

Easily Available

()

()

()

()

()

NOKIA Down to Earth ()

APPLE ()

BLACKBERRY ()

SAMSUNG ()

Honest

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()

()

()

Cheerful

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()

()

()

Daring

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()

()

()

Imaginative

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()

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()

Up-to-Date

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()

()

()

Reliable

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()

()

()

Intelligent

()

()

()

()

Successful

()

()

()

()

Upper Class

()

()

()

()

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NOKIA Charming ()

APPLE ()

BLACKBERRY ()

SAMSUNG ()

Tough

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()

()

()

1 Design ()

2 ()

3 ()

4 ()

5 ()

Camera

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Video

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Music

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Software

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Connectivity

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Battery

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Availability

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Reliability

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After-sales Service

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Value for money

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()

Brand Reputation

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1 Adds prestige to your image

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Software updates

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Rugged

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Delicate

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()

Nokia Always maintains high level of quality

Apple

Samsung

Blackberry

()

()

()

()

Worth its price

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()

()

()

I prefer this brand

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()

()

()

I will recommend this to others

()

()

()

()

It has something that other brands don't have

()

()

()

()

It gives a feeling of sense and pride to others

()

()

()

()

I am a loyal user of this brand

()

()

()

()

It is a very special brand

()

()

()

()

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Nokia and I have unique feelings about it

Apple

Samsung

Blackberry

Please enter your name. *

Please specify your gender. *

y y

( ) Male ( ) Female

Please select the age group you belong to. *

y y y y

( ) 21-25 years ( ) 25-30 years ( ) 30-40 years ( ) > 40 years

Which brand of mobile phone are you currently using? *

y y y y y

( ) Nokia ( ) Apple ( ) Samsung ( ) Blackberry ( ) Other:

[Submit]

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