IBIT(PU)

Marketing of IBIT
Submitted to: Sir Mansoor Mahmood Ashiq
Submitted by: Abeeha Mahmood (F10BB038), Saira Nawaz (F10BB030), Saba Javed (F10BB008), Aqsa Humayun (F10BB059), Sara Saeed (F10BB005), Rabia Ashraf (F10BB033), Athar Islam (F10BB039), Mariam Asad (F10BB014)
4/11/2012

Marketing of IBIT
Introduction to IBIT:
The Institute of Business & Information Technology (IBIT) has been established to blend state of the art technological tools with modern business practices. The Institute of Business and Information Technology, originally established as Centre for Management Sciences was set up to provide the students a solid base in the fields of business management and information technology. The vision of the institute is to develop students who would work efficiently and survive in global markets. This Institute follows a strict merit based policy to induct top of the line students. Information Technology alone is not the answer for growth and development rather a sound management and usage of the tools of Information Technology will be the key to success. The BBIT (Hons.) and MBIT (Direct) programs are the modest start of the Institute. These programs are carefully designed to meet competitive international standards. The courses have an optimal blend of IT tools and management as a science.

Core Competencies:
The major core competence of IBIT is that it is economical as compared to other universities/institutes. You may think that IBIT charges are higher than other departments of Punjab University but after considering the significant combination of business and information technology in one degree, then the fees of this institute is considered very reasonable. Other than that the students of IBIT have the finest interpersonal and intrapersonal skills. These skills are one of the most important core competencies of our institute. Our students can communicate effectively, orally, in writing and graphically; can demonstrate self-confidence, time management and self-motivation. They have excellent marketing and negotiation skills while also being decisive, agile, and self-aware of their talents, abilities and strengths.

Competitive Advantage:
IBITs chief competitive advantage is the sophisticated mix of business subjects with information technology as currently no one is offering such a unique blend of business and IT. We offer greater benefits to students as they can study a wide variety of subjects that can help them to become the best professionals in the market.

Distinctive Advantage:
Our distinctive advantage is the credibility of The University of the Punjab. Our goodwill does not suffer due to the integrity of Punjab University.
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Another feature that can be considered as our distinctive advantage is our vast computer labs consisting of more than 340 computers; and it is also anticipated that they will expand even more soon enough. Furthermore our on-time scheduling system can also distinct our institute from others.

Competitors:
Its clear that no other institute is offering the BBIT degrees but still there is very strong competition out there for our institute. Universities like LUMS, NUST, GCU, LSE and UCP offer Business and Computer Sciences degrees. In order to compete with the many high standard universities our institute must improve its marketing strategies so that larger number of students can give priority to none other than IBIT.

Marketing Strategies:
Positioning Strategy:

As quality is the root cause for the excellence of any institute so therefore positioning strategy will be based on quality of education.
Market Segmentation: Geographic:

Students from all parts of Pakistan are eligible to take admission on the basis of merit, but we must focus on the youngsters in the province of Punjab. The students living in highly populated cities like Multan, Faisalabad, Sialkot, Gujranwala, Jhelum and Rawalpindi must be targeted.
Demographic:

Demographic segmentation is done on the basis of age limit which is 24 or under for BBIT and 26 or under for MBIT. Both male and female students can take admission.
Psychographic:

Students who have passed intermediate or equivalent examination in business oriented and computer sciences related subjects are preferred as the target customers of IBIT because they are more focused regarding these educational fields.
Behavioral:

Behavioral segmentation will be done on the basis of the benefits sought from the institution. Students seeking admission in IBIT require efficient business knowledge which is integrated with optimum information technology understanding.

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Marketing Mix:
Product:

Our institute is offering two degree programs i.e. BBIT (Hons.) and MBIT (Direct). It is providing specialization courses in the field of Marketing and Finance. In order to attract the students a variety of specialization courses must be provided. Apart from Marketing and Finance, specialization in Human Resources and Information Technology must be introduced. At present the institute is imposing restrictions that only those students can take admission in MBIT who have done graduation in BBIT. So this admission criterion must be changed and students graduated from programs such as BBA, B.Com, BS (CS), and B.Sc. in economics and statistics from other institutes may also get admission in MBIT.
Price:

As the degrees offered here are highly remunerated as compared to other business departments in Punjab University therefore we cannot raise this problem as we are aiming to provide better quality education, updated course curriculum, quality faculty members and infrastructure. On the other hand the institute must provide merit scholarships to all students who achieve a 3.6 CGPA in order to attract the students towards taking admission in our institution. The more we reward the students the better will be the results hence creating goodwill of the institution.
Placing:

The programs of BBIT and MBIT must be introduced at Gujranwala and Jhelum campuses of The University of the Punjab in order to grant the students living in those areas with high tech information and top notch business knowledge. Also there is a reachability issue such as submission of admission forms. Online form submission facility must be provided to students so that they can apply by sitting in their homes even if they are out of city.
Promotion: Seminars:

Seminars must be conducted at various colleges to create awareness among the students. For this purpose a marketing week must be held at the department in which the students of 5th and 7th semesters will be given the project of conducting seminars. Their teams will be lead by all those faculty members who have graduated from this department such as Maam Farheen Zaidi, Maam Hira Aftab, Maam Nazish Rizvi, Maam Amna Arif, and Maam Shamaila Gull as living examples of the successful individuals our institute creates. Other than that online seminars must be conducted to attract the foreigner students.

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Advertisement:

We must advertise our institute through various media, which we consider out target market is exposed to. We must consider promotion through educational journals, educational columns in newspapers, educational portals, and most importantly via the internet. By creating communities and fan pages of our institute in social networking sites like Facebook, Hi5, Twitter, the growing number of fans/followers/members will definitely boost the image of our institute.
Job Fairs:

We must arrange Job Fairs on a yearly basis to create goodwill and credibility within the market. In order to do this we must keep good track record of our successful students so that we can exhibit them in our communication. We must flaunt the success story of our ex-students, their work and awards to various national and multinational corporations in order to compel such companies to come forth and consider our students as a valuable asset for their business.
Competitions:

We must make our institute appear more enthusiast by sending good bunch of students to educational quizzes, talk shows, competitions and debates. Good name of our institute will attract many prospective youngsters.
Word of Mouth:

Word of mouth sells the most and especially when it comes from passed out students. We must treat ex-students with care and make sure they pass out with good experience, so that they spread good words about the institute.
People:

IBIT has no doubt the best fully qualified teachers in its academic faculty, but in the managerial department we need some improvements. The management faculty of IBIT must be given IT training so that they all can carry out regular management tasks via computers because that will immensely save their time and energy. All members of the managerial staff must be fully committed towards helping the students with their issues. They all must have proper know-how regarding all the institutional and student issues.
Physical Evidence:

The overall environment of IBIT is very peaceful and fun to be in but there are some minor issues which must be dealt with to create a better atmosphere for the students. The upper floor of the IBIT Caf is never used. Either a separate caf for girls or boys must be constructed there or it should be converted into a fully furnished recreational area for all students. Another issue which discomforts the students is the stinking smell the stream gives off which flows near the caf and bookshop area. Sanitation matters must be dealt with properly.
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The caf ground of IBIT is quite vast and in the summer time students need some fresh air, but due to extensive sunlight they avoid sitting in the grounds and all the corridors get crowded. Therefore lush green trees must be planted within the grounds so that all students can relax within the shades. Other than environmental issues, majority of the computers in our labs must be fixed and made fully functional for all students. And also issuing books from the IBIT Library must be allowed to the students.
Process:

Services must be delivered to the end customers without any loss in quality. The processes of handling student complaints, identifying their needs and requirements is very important. All employees of IBIT must be fully aware of customer relations practice. All processes of providing best possible service to the students must be fully proficient.

Conclusion:
IBIT can no doubt become the best institute of Punjab University regarding its quality and value. All that is required is some improvement towards its marketing tactics and solving some administrative issues. If the above given strategies are followed, out institute will soon enough stand tall among all educational institutes of Pakistan.

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