INTRODUCTION

Type Daily newspaper

Format Broadsheet

Owner(s) HT Media Ltd

Editor-in-chief Sukumar Ranganathan

Launched 1924; 94 years ago HT Media found its beginning

Language English in 1924 when its flagship

newspaper, Hindustan Times
Headquarters 18–20 Kasturba Gandhi
was inaugurated by Mahatma
Marg, New Delhi 110001
Gandhi. HT Media (BSE, NSE)
India
has today grown to become one
Country  India of India’s largest media
companies Produced by an
Circulation 993,645 Daily[1] (as of Jan–
editorial team known for its
Jun 2017)
quality, innovation and
integrity, Hindustan Times
Sister Hindustan Dainik (English newspaper) and
newspapers Hindustan (Hindi newspaper
ISSN through a subsidiary Hindustan
Media Ventures
Limited),Hindustan Times is
the choice for nearly 3.7 million
OCLCnumber 231696742
readers across India, who turn
Website hindustantimes.com to it daily for news,
information, analysis and
entertainment. Hindustan, the
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group’s Hindi daily, continues to be the second-largest daily in the country with
a total readership of 36.6 million,(based 0n Indian Readership Survey (IRS) for
the first quarter (Q1) of 2011. Both dailies enjoy a strong brand recognition
among readers as well as advertisers.

In addition to Hindustan Times, HT Media also publishes a national business

newspaper, Mint. Mint is a one-of-its-kind newspaper in the sense that the
company has an exclusive agreement with the Wall Street Journal to publish
Journal-branded news and information in India. Mint is today the second-largest
business newspaper in India with presence in the key markets of Delhi,
Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Chandigarh, Pune, Kolkata and now Ahmedabad
too.

HT Media has also made its foray into electronic media. Diversifying its ambit
of operations, the company in a consulting partnership with Virgin Radio, has
launched the FM radio channel – Fever 104. Currently available in Delhi,
Mumbai, Bengaluru and Kolkata, Fever 104 has established a strong presence
as being one of the most vibrant channels on air. In a short span, the channel’s
rise has been meteoric considering its position in Mumbai and Bengaluru at No.
1 and in Delhi as the No. 2 station on the popularity charts.

Internet businesses of HT Media incorporated under Firefly e-ventures, operate

leading web portals Hindustantimes.com and livemint.com in the general and
business news categories respectively. The company’s job portal Shine.com
which has received high appreciation from consumers and industry for its
innovative design and usability crossed 7 million registrations. Desimartini.com

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-a platform to discover and express oneself on movies. The company also has an
education portal www.HTCampus.com aimed at students passing out of school
and college to help them take the right decision about their higher education.

While the overall economy continued to face constraints, our diversification

strategy kept us in good stead. On a consolidated basis, our Total Revenue
reached Rs 2,142 Crore in FY2013, driven Print Advertising Revenues at Rs
1,529 Crore, Circulation Revenues at Rs 223 Crore and Radio Revenues at Rs
78 Cr. Digital revenues also contributed to revenue growth and reached Rs 54
Cr in FY2013. EBITDA improved to Rs 376 Crore in FY2013 and EBITDA
margin improved to 18% from 17% in FY2012 mainly due to strict cost control
initiatives.

Business

HT Media Limited is a mammoth player in the Indian print media industry. The
extent of its presence is undisputed as it is leading the English newspaper
market in North India and occupies second place in the Hindi newspaper market
in North and East India. The group now intends to further consolidate its
already established position as a dynamic media powerhouse.

The group has diversified itself across different media to captivate a wider range
of consumers and businesses. Hindustan Times, the flagship publication of the
group, inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi in 1924, is a name to reckon with in
today’s times. It is ensconced in the minds of people as a newspaper of editorial
excellence and integrity. Hindustan Times, Delhi, is India ™s largest single-
edition daily. Riding on the phenomenal success of the newspaper in Delhi,

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Hindustan Times made a successful entry into the commercial capital of India –
Mumbai, in July 2005.

HT Media’s Hindi daily, Hindustan, has been growing phenomenally. In

addition to high-quality reportage, Hindustan aspires to become an ally to its
readers in their quest for success. The ambition for the brand is to become a
partner in the progress of the youth across the Hindi belt.

HT Media launched a national business newspaper Mint, in February 2007 with

an exclusive agreement with Wall Street Journal to publish Journal-branded
news and information in India.

As part of an aggressive growth strategy to build a robust Internet business,

Firefly e-ventures was launched as an HT Media company, recognizing the
importance of Internet as the most important media vehicle of the future. Firefly
portfolio consists of Desimartini.com, and runs Shine.com for jobseekers and
employers. The registrations on Shine.com have crossed 7 million.
Firefly also launched an education portal, HTCampus.com, the target audience
being students graduating from schools and colleges to help them with their
decisions regarding highere ducation.

The group’s news portal Hindustantimes.com, with over 10 million unique

visitors and 100 million page views per month, is one of the largest news portals
in the country. It has consistently been ranked amongst the top 10 news sites in
the world by Forbes and offers in-depth coverage and analysis to its users.

The business news website, livemint.com covers business and related news in
India as well as across the world. livemint.com is the integrated offering with
Mint. It combines the editorial strength of Mint with a best-in-class web
interface and a selection of online tools that aid the users to stay abreast with
the developments in the business world as well as help them with investments.

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As part of its expansion into electronic media, HT Media, in consulting
partnership with Virgin Radio, entered the FM radio market in key Indian cities
with its channel Fever 104, which has grown to become the No. 2 channel in
Delhi in a span of just two years.

The groups business – “Strategic Partnerships” – is dedicated to cater to the

advertising needs of growth companies by providing them a cashless form of
advertising and building up their brands thereby enhancing the value of the
business. This division identifies growth companies and enters into strategic
partnerships with them. The overall objective is to create a strategic platform
wherein different companies Ah Cairperson and Editorial Director,HT Media
Ltd and Hindustan Media Ventures Ltd (Commenting on the results and
performance)

Vision & Values

HT Media – A rich heritage to live up to The solid edifice on which HT Media

stands tall today was built on high ideals and values.

Values

HT Media - A rich heritage to live up to! Organizational values are the

foundation stones on which the organization's image is built. These help the
company realize its organizational goals and in turn transform lives. These
values are intended to infuse an infectious energy, professionalism and a sense
of true empowerment to the workplace.

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The solid edifice on which HT Media stands tall today was built on high ideals
and values. The company has its roots in the independence movement in the
first half of the twentieth century, a cause to empower the nation. We are
adaptive to the changing times, while remaining steadfast to the values rooted in
our culture.

Our values drive us towards our goals of expansion, diversification and

excellence. These values define our philosophy of operations, guide our
important decisions and determine our commitment and achievement.

The values personified by HT Media are:

Courage

To encourage the ability that meets opposition with skill, competence and
fortitude.

Responsibility

Be accountable for results in line with the company's objectives, strategies and
values.

Empowerment

Support our people and give them the freedom to perform and to provide our
readers with information to influence their environment.

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Continuous Self Renewal

Determination to constantly re-examine and re-invent ourselves for further

innovation and creativity.

People Centric

People are our greatest asset. We invest in them expect a lot and know that the
rest will follow

Vision

HT Media strives to be a visionary organization and not an organization with a

vision. In our endeavour to have a shared understanding, alignment and
commitment, we have derived our company's vision that sets the course and
empowers people to take action.

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Management

Management think-tank is our key strength

The Board of Directors and Management of HT Media comprises eminent

persons from diverse professional fields, who bring with them vast professional
experience to the company.

A rich mix of veterans in media and top leaders from non-media sectors, from
both India and abroad, HT Media's Management team reflects the company’s
desire to be the best by leveraging diverse strengths. The management team
comprises people from varied verticals such as media, FMCG, telecom,
automobiles, each of whom add fresh perspective to the rich experience of
media industry stalwarts. This rich talent pool is ably assisted by our Global
Think Tank.

Shobhana Bhartia

Chairperson & Editorial Director

Mrs. Shobhana Bhartia is the Chairperson and Editorial Director of HT Media,

one of India's largest publicly listed media companies. She is also currently
serving, as the Pro-Chancellor of the Birla Institute of Technology and
Sciences.

A former Member of Rajya Sabha, the Upper House of the Parliament of India,
Shobhana Bhartia also served as a member of the Committees in Parliament on
Energy, Women Empowerment, and Human Resource Development.

Conferred with numerous awards and recognition, including Global Leader of

Tomorrow from the World Economic Forum, Davos 1996, and Entrepreneur of
the Year, 2005, from Ernst and Young, she was decorated with the Padma Shri,

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Government of India's National Award for outstanding contribution in a
particular field, in the year 2006 and from The Economic Times,
Businesswomen of the Year, in the year 2007.

History of Journalism

The history of journalism, or the development of the gathering and transmitting

of news, spans the growth of technology and trade, marked by the advent of
specialized techniques for gathering and disseminating information on a regular
basis that has caused, as one history of journalism surmises, the steady increase
of “the scope of news available to us and the speed with which it is transmitted.
Before the printing press was invented, word of mouth was the primary source
of news. Returning merchants, sailors and travelers brought news back to the
mainland, and this was then picked up by peddlers and travelling players and
spread from town to town. This transmission of news was highly unreliable, and
died out with the invention of the printing press. Newspapers have always been
the primary medium of journalists since 1700, with magazines added in the 1
8th century, radio and television in the 20th century, and the Internet in the 21st
century’.

Early Journalism:

 World

Before the advent of the newspaper, there were two major kinds of periodical
news publications: the handwritten news sheet. and single item news
publications. These existed simultaneously. The Roman Empire published Acts
Diurna (Daily Acts’), or government announcement bulletins, around 59 BC’,
as ordered by Julius Caesar. They were carved in metal or stone and posted in
public places. In China, early government-produced news sheets, called tipao.
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were commonly used among court officials during the late Han dynasty (2nd
and 3rd centuries AD).

 Europe

In 1556. the government of Venice first published the monthly Notizie scritte
(“Written notices”) which cost one gazetta, a Venetian coin of the time, the
name of which eventually came to mean “newspaper”. These avvisi were
handwritten newsletters and used to convey political, military, and economic
news quickly and efficiently throughout Europe, more specifically Italy, during
the early modern era (1500-1800) — sharing some characteristics of
newspapers though usually not considered true newspapers.

However, none of these publications fully met the modern criteria for proper
newspapers, as they were typically not intended for the general public and
restricted to a certain range of topics.

Early publications played into the development of what would today be

recognized as the newspaper, which came about around 1601. Around the 15th
and 16th centuries, in England and France long news accounts called relations
were published in Spain the were called “relaciones’.

Single event news publications were printed in the broadsheet format, which
was often posted. These publications also appeared as pamphlets and small
booklets (for longer narratives, often written in a letter format), often containing
woodcut illustrations. Literacy rates were low in comparison to today, and these
news publications were often read aloud (literacy and oral culture were, in a
sense, existing side by side in this scenario).

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By 1400, businessmen in Italian and German cities were compiling hand written
chronicles of important news events, and circulating them to their business
connections. The idea of using a printing press for this material first appeared in
Germany around 1600. The first gazettes appeared in German cities, notably the
weekly Relation aller Fuernemmen und gedenckwürdigen Historien
(“Collection of all distinguished and memorable news”) in Strasbourg starting
in 1605. The A visa Relation oder Zeitung was published in Wolfenbuttel from
1609, and gazettes soon were established in Frankfurt (1615), Berlin (1617) and
Hamburg (1618). By 1650, 30 German cities had active gazettes. A semi-yearly
news chronicle, in Latin, the Mercurius Gallobelgicus. was published at
Cologne between 1594 and 1635, hut it was not the model for other
publications.

The news circulated het-ween newsletters through well-established channels in

17th century Europe. Antwerp was the hub of two networks, one linking France,
Britain, Germany, and the Netherlands: the other linking Italy Spain and
Portugal. Favourite topics included wars, military affairs, diplomacy, and court
business and gossip.

After 1600 the national governments in France and England began printing
official newsletters. In 1622 the first English—language weekly magazine. ‘A
current of General News” was published and distributed in England in an 8- to
24-page quarto format. The first newspaper in France, the Gazette de France,
was established in 1632 by the king’s physician Theophrastus Renaudot (1586-
1653), with the patronage of Louis XIII. All newspapers were subject to
prepublication censorship, and served as instruments of propaganda for the
monarchy. Jean Loret is considered to be one of France’s first journalists. He
disseminated the weekly news of music, dance and Parisian society from 1650
until 1665 in verse, in what he called a gazette burlesque, assembled in three
volumes of La Muse historique (1650, 1660, and 1665).

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  India

The first newspaper in India was circulated in 1780 under the editorship of
James Augustus Hickey. Named The Bengal Gazette. it mainly printed the latest
gossip on the British expatriate population in India. On May 30, 1826 Udant
Martand (The Rising Sun), the first Hindi-language newspaper published in
India, started from Calcutta (now Kolkata), published every Tuesday by Pt.
Jugal Kishore Shukla. Maulawi Muhammad Baqir in 1836 founded the first
Urdu-language newspaper the Delhi Urdu Akhbar. India’s press in the 1840s
was a motley collection of small-circulation day or weekly sheets printed on
rickety presses. Few extended beyond their small communities and seldom tried
to unite the many caste, tribes, and regional subcultures of India. The Anglo-
Indian papers promoted purely British interests. Englishman Robert Knight
(1825-1890) founded two important English-language newspapers that reached
a broad Indian audience, The Times of India and the Statesman. They promoted
nationalism in India, as Knight introduced the people to the power of the press
and made them familiar with political issues and the political process.

 Latin America

British influence extended globally through its colonies and its informal
business relationships with merchants in major cities. They needed up-to-date
market and political information. El Mercurio was founded in Valparaiso, Chile,
in 1827. The most influential newspaper in Peru, El Corneicio. first appeared in
1 839. The Journal do Commercial was established in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, ii
1827. Much later Argentina founded its newspapers in Buenos Aires: La Prensa
in 1 869 and La Nacion in 1870.

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 Radio and Television

The history of radio broadcasting begins in the 1920s, and reached its apogee in
the 1930s and 1940s. Experimental television as being studied before the 2nd
world war, became operational in the late 1940s, and became widespread in the
1950s and 1960s. largely but not entirely displacing radio.

 Internet Journalism

The rapidly growing impact of the Internet, especially after 2000, brought ‘free”
news and classified advertising to audiences that no longer cared for paid
subscriptions. The Internet undercut the business model of many daily
newspapers. Bankruptcy loomed across the U.S. and did hit such major papers
as the Rocky Mountain news (Denver), the Chicago Tribune and the Los
Angeles Times, among many others. Chapman and Nuttall find that proposed
solution, such as multiplatforms. paywalls. PR-dominated news gathering and
shrinking staffs have not resolved the challenge. The result, they argue, is that
journalism today is characterized by four themes: personalization. globalization,
localization, and pauperization.

 Historiography

Journalism historian David Nord has argued that in the 1960s and 1970s: “In
journalism history and media history, a new generation of scholars . . . criticized
traditional histories of the media for being too insular, too decontextualized. too
uncritical, too captive to the needs of professional training, and too enamoured
of the biographies of men and media organizations.”

In 1974. James W. Carey identified the ‘Problem of Journalism Histor’. The

field was dominated by a Whig interpretation of journalism history.

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“This views journalism history as the slow, steady expansion of freedom and
knowledge from the political press to the commercial press, the setbacks into
sensationalism and yellow journalism, the forward thrust into muck raking and
social responsibility the entire story is framed by those large impersonal forces
buffeting the press: industrialisation, urbanization and mass democracy.

O’ Malley says the criticism went too far because there was much of value in
the deep scholarship of the earlier period.

Newspapers in India

Indian print media is at a massive business in the media world and its
newspapers are said to offer majority of national and international news. The
history of newspaper in India began in 1780, with the publication of the Bengal
Gazette from Kolkata.

The Athens of the first newspaper in India occurred in the capital city of West
Bengal Calcutta (no Kolkata) James Augustus Hickey is considered the father
of Indian press” as he started the first Indian newspaper from Kolkata, the
‘Bengal Gazette’ or ‘Calcutta General Advertise’ in January, 1780. This first
printed newspaper was a weekly publication. In 1789, the first newspaper from
BoBBAy (now MuBBAi), the ‘BoBBAy Herald’ appeared, followed by the
BoBBAy Courier in the following year Later this newspaper merged with the
Times of India in 1861. These newspapers carried news of the areas under the
British rule. The first newspaper published in an Indian language was the
Samachar Darpan in Bengali. The first issue of this daily was published from
the Serampore Mission Press on May 23, 1818. Samachar Darpan, the first
vernacular paper was started during the period of Lord Hastings. In the same
year, Ganga Kishore Bhattacharva started publishing another newspaper in

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Bengali, the ‘Bengal Gazetti’. On July 1, 1822 the first Gujarati newspaper, the
BoBBAy Samachar, was published from BoBBAy, which is still in existence.
The first Hindi newspaper, the Samachar Sudha Varshan started its circulation
in 1854. Since then, the prominent Indian languages in which newspapers had
been published over the years are Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu,
Urdu and Bengali languages.

The Indian language newspapers eventually took over the English newspapers
according to the NRS survey of newspapers. The main reason as the marketing
strategy that was followed by the regional papers, commencing with Eenadu - a
Telugu daily started by Ramoji Rao. The second reason was the growing
literacy rate. Increase in the literacy rate had direct positive effect on the rise of
circulation of the regional papers. The people were first educated in their
mother tongue according to their state in which they live for and eventually, the
first thing a literate person would try to do is read the vernacular papers and
gain knowledge about his own locality. Moreover, localization of news has also
contributed to the growth of regional newspapers in India. Indian regional
papers have several editions for a particular state to offer a complete scenario of
local news for the reader to connect with the paper. Malayata Manorama
features about 10 editions in Kerala itself and six others outside Kerala. Thus
regional papers in India aim at providing localized news for their readers.

Eventually, the advertisers also realized the huge potential of the regional paper
market, partly due to their own research and more owing to the efforts of the
regional papers to make the advertisers aware of the huge market. These
advertisers paid revenues to the newspaper house and in return publicized their
products throughout the locality. Thus, newspapers in India not only acted as
news providers but also promoters of certain market products. Some of the
prominent newspapers in India in the recent times are The Times of India, The
Statesman, The Telegraph, The Economic Times. Indian Express and so on. The

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Economic Times is one of the India’s leading business newspapers; carrying
news about the Economy, Companies, Infrastructure. Trends in the Economy,
Finance, Stocks, Forex and Commodities. news from around the world and from
the world of politics besides editorial and various other features. The Malavala
Manorama releases daily, weekly, monthly and annual publications from
Kerala. Started in 1988 in Tamil and Telegu languages. it is now published in
other regional languages like Hindi. Bengali, as vell as in English. Among the
various publications, the Malayala Manorama daily has the largest circulation,
selling about 11 lakhs 50 thousand copies daily. The Times of India was
founded in 1838 as The BoBBAy Times and Journal of Commerce by Bennett,
Coleman and Company, a colonial enterprise now owned by an Indian
conglomerate. The Times Group publishes The Economic Times (launched in
1961), Navhharat Times (Hindi language), and the Maharashtra Times (Marathi
language).

The newspapers collected their news from the news agencies. India has four
news agencies namely, the Press Trust of India (PTI). United News of India
(UNI), Sarnachar Bharti and Hindustan Smachar. Newspapers and magazines in
India are independent and usually privately owned. About 5.000 newspapers.
150 of them major publications. are published daily in nearly 100 languages.
Over 40,000 periodicals are also published in India. The periodicals specialize
in various subjects hut the majority of them deal with subjects of general
interest. During the 1950s, 214 daily newspapers were published in the country.
Out of these. 44 were English language dailies while the rest were published in
various regional languages. This number rose to 1856 dailies in 1990 with 209
English dailies. The total number of newspapers published in the country
reached 35.595 newspapers by 1993 (3.805 dailies). Newspaper sale in the
country has increased by 11.22% in 2007. By 2007, 62 of the world’s best
selling newspaper dailies were published in countries like China, Japan and

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India. India consumed 99 million newspaper copies as of 2007, making it the
second largest market in the world for newspapers. Newspapers in India have
almost created a huge industry in the nation. It publishes the largest number of
paid-for titles’ in the world. In 1997, the total number of newspapers and
periodicals published in India was around 41705, which include 4720 dailies
and 14743 weeklies. However, in the last one decade the news media in India
has changed rapidly. All the major news media outlets have an accompanying
news website. A new class of newspapers in India is entirely internet based.

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 COMPANY PROFILE

HINDUSTAN TIMES

Hindustan Times is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded in

1924 with roots in the Indian independence movement of the period
("Hindustan" being a historical name for India).[2] Hindustan Times was
inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi and known for supporting the Congress party .
The newspaper is owned by Congress Rajya Sabha M.P. Shobhana Bhartia. It is
the flagship publication of HT Media, an entity controlled by the KK Birla
family.

Hindustan Times is one of the largest newspapers in India, by circulation.

According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, it has a circulation of 993,645
copies as of November 2017. The Indian Readership Survey 2014 revealed that
HT is the second most widely read English newspaper in India after The Times
of India] It is popular in North India, with simultaneous editions from New
Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Lucknow, Patna, Ranchi and Chandigarh.

The print location of Jaipur was discontinued from June 2006 and that of
Nagpur edition was discontinued from September 1997. HT launched a youth
daily, HT Next, in 2004. The Mumbai edition was launched on 14 July 2005
and the Kolkata edition was launched in early 2000. In The Brand Trust Report
2012, Hindustan Times was ranked 291st among India's most trusted brands and
subsequently, according to the Brand Trust Report 2013, Hindustan Times was
ranked 434th among India's most trusted brands. In 2014 however, Hindustan
Times was ranked 360th among India's most trusted brands according to the
Brand Trust Report 2014, a study conducted by Trust Research Advisory, a
brand analytics company.[12] Other sister publications of Hindustan Times are
Mint (English business daily), Hindustan (Hindi Daily), Nandan (monthly
children's magazine) and Kadabbani (monthly literary magazine). The media

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group owns a radio channel, Fever 104.0 FM, and organizes an annual Luxury
Conference which has featured speakers like designer Diane von Furstenberg,
shoemaker Christian Louboutin, Gucci CEO Robert Polet and Cartier MD
Patrick Normand. Hindustan Times is owned by the KK Birla branch of the
Birla family.

History

Hindustan Times was founded in 1924 by Sunder Singh Lyallpuri, founder-

father of the Akali movement and the Shiromani Akali Dal in Punjab Province.
S Mangal Singh Gill (Tesildar) and S. Chanchal Singh (Jandiala, Jalandhar)
were made in charge of the newspaper. Madan Mohan Malaviya and Tara Singh
were among the members of the Managing Committee. The Managing
Chairman and Chief Patron was Master Sunder Singh Lyallpuri.

K. M. Panikkar was the person of behaviour ; Devdas Gandhi (son of Mahatma

Gandhi) on the editor's panel, and later editor. The opening ceremony was
performed by Mahatma Gandhi on 26 September 1924. The first issue was
published from Naya Bazar, Delhi (now Swami Sharda Nand Marg). It
contained writings and articles from C. F. Andrews, St. Nihal Singh, Maulana
Mohammad Ali, Cattamanchi Ramalinga Reddy, T. L. Vaswani, Ruchi Ram
Sahni, Bernard Haton, Harinder Nath Chattopadhyaya, Dr Saifuddin Kichlu and
Rubi Waston etc.

K. M. Panikkar also known as Sadar Panikkar launched the Hindustan Times as

a serious nationalist newspaper. As an Oxonian, historian, and litterateur,
Panikkar must have hoped to make his paper eventually more than an Akali
sheet. He became the editor and funds flowed freely from activist Akali patrons.
He exerted himself strenuously, but the paper made very little headway. In two
years Panikkar could not take the print order any higher than 3,000. By then the
Akali movement appeared to lose steam and funds dried up. The paper was

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saved from an untimely demise when Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya stepped
in to realize his vision of a newspaper in Delhi.

Malaviya raised ₹50,000 rupees to acquire the Hindustan Times along with the
help of nationalist leaders Lajpat Rai and M. R. Jayakar and industrialist G. D.
Birla, who paid most of the cash. Birla took full control of the paper in 1933.
The paper continues to be owned by the Birla family.

It has its roots in the Indian independence movement of the first half of the
twentieth century and even faced the noted "Hindustan Times Contempt Case
(August–November, 1941)" at Allahabad High Court. It was edited at times by
many important people in India, including Devdas Gandhi, Sri Mulgaonkar,
B.G.Verghese and Khushwant Singh. Sanjoy Narayan was editor in chief of the
paper from August 2008 till July 2016.

The Delhi-based English daily Hindustan Times is part of the KK Birla group
and managed by Shobhana Bhartia, Rajya Sabha member of Congress party and
daughter of the industrialist Krishna Kumar Birla and granddaughter of
Ghanshyam Das Birla. HT Media Limited is a subsidiary of The Hindustan
Times Limited which is a subsidiary of Earthstone Holding (Two) Limited. The
KK Birla group owns a 69 percent stake in HT Media, currently valued at ₹834
crore. When Shobhana Bhartia joined Hindustan Times in 1986, she was the
first woman chief executive of a national newspaper. Shobhana has been
nominated as a Rajya Sabha MP from Congress Party.

Along with Hindustan Times, HT Media owns Desimartini, Fever 104 FM, and
the Mint newspaper.

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 CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT
Customer relationship management (CRM) is an approach to managing a
Company’s interaction with current and future customers. It often involves
using technology to organize, automate, and synchronize sales, marketing,
customer service, and technical support.
Characteristics CRM is a customer-oriented feature with service response
based on customer input, one-to-one solutions to customers’ requirements,
direct online communications with customer and customer service centers that
are intended to help customers solve their issues. It includes the following
functions:
 Sales force automation, which implements sales promotion analysis,
automates the tracking of a client’s account history for repeated sales or
future sales, and coordinates sales, marketing, call centers, and retail
outlets.
 Data warehouse technology, used to aggregate transaction information,
to merge the inhumation with CRM products, and to provide key
performance indicators.
 Opportunity management which helps the company to manage
unpredictable growth and demand, and implement a good forecasting
model to integrate sales history with sales projections.
 CRM systems that track and measure marketing campaigns over
multiple networks, tracking customer analysis by customer clicks and
sales.

NEED OF CRM
There are many many reasons for a CRM - I simply listed out a few that I
have found helpful or that I have personal experience with in the past. You may
think of other reasons. My goal is not to provide an exhaustive list, but merely

21
to get you thinking about the value of a CRM and hopefully help you come to
the realization that if you have a business, then you need a CRM.
1. Your memory is not perfect
Sure, you might be able to keep up with 10, I know you may think you’ve got it
all stored in that steel trap but I can attest from personal experience; it doesn’t
always work as expected. or 20 or even 50 clients in your head but there comes
a point when you just can’t track them all and their associated tasks and events.
Do you really want to limit your business by what information you can store in
your head? If you can only manage 20 clients successfully in your memory then
you have stopped your business from growing any larger. With a CRM you can
store and manage hundreds of clients and let a computer system
handle the task of memory and recall. Take advantage of technology and use it
or your business success. Then your business growth is never limited by the
brain that can’t remember where you put the car keys.
2. Emails are decentralized
I spent many years convinced that my inbox was the perfect solution. I mean, I
could filter, I could search, and I could read past emails - what more could I
ant. But I started to realize something. I was having to sync my email on all my
devices and store all my past email on all of them. This was fine at first but my
inbox was quickly growing in size and storage space and becoming
unmanageable. Finding sent mail is also a problem and makes things difficult in
tracking what has been said to various clients. And then comes that great day
when you hire employees. You’ll never remember to CC or BCC the team on
every email sent. Suddenly email is not a good solution. Your team may be
spread completely apart and communications will quickly get lost, and your
clients suffer. A customer relations management system put all the pertinent
client information in one central location that was easy to update and easy to see
when others updated. All communication can be kept in one spot, nothing gets
lost and you can now see and share with the rest of your team.

22
3. You need metrics
Do you know how many successful projects you’ve had in the past week,
month, or year? Can you quickly state your conversion ratio or explain the
best method you reach your customers with absolute certainty? Metrics are
critical to your business growth and success. You may deceive yourself into
thinking you can figure out things with common sense or with some Excel
spreadsheet formula - but is that what you want to spend your time doing?
My Guess is that your time is more valuable than that, and the odds arc high
you’ll make a mistake in your calculations anyway. I know I do. A CRM
will give you instant metrics on dozens of aspects of your business, and you
don’t have to do anything. Plus with a CRM like CRMery you can actually
create custom reports to better track metrics and reports specific to your
needs. Create it once and use it forever. Once you have these reports I
guarantee you’ll never look back. Who knows, maybe you’ll find out it’s
really not worth your time to do cold calls after all!
4. Statuses are important
Do you know which ‘clients are ready for a quick callback? If you knew exactly
which prospects and clients were on hold and who was slightly interested in
your services would that help your business and your sales strategies. I think it
would. A CRM at its most basic level lets you see those statuses. Every time
you make a call, send an email, or contact that customer or prospect you can
update your CRM with their current status. Then, because your memory’s not
perfect (as stated earlier) you will be able to review and see exactly where each
Client is in the sales process. No more wondering and no more following up on
cold leads instead of landing the hot ones.
5. History is important
If you’ve ever wanted to look back and see everything on a particular contact,
the stream of communication between you and them and other members of your

23
business then you need a CRM. Customer relations systems help keep all those
conversations in one place and make it easy for you to quickly look back in time
and see how things have progressed. Don’t be confused about why particular
customer is upset - see for yourself the progression of a client and their
communication as well as your company’s notes and responses. You’ll be
able to save more customers from leaving by catching something you would
have otherwise missed. And you can learn from your history.
6. Competition helps business
It’s never fun to feel like you’re going at it alone. It’s good to have
communication between your fellow employees and compare notes on things.
And competition helps a business. CRMery has leader boards and goals to help
with just such a thing. You can stage friendly inter-office competitions to see
who can close the most deals, sell the most dollars, or carry on the most
conversations. As those leader boards and competitions grow so does your
business. And everyone wins when that happens.
7. Never lose your data
If you use notepads, memo books, calendars, and other systems for tracking
your data then the odds are high that you are going to lose it at some point.
Store everything on your laptop? They can be stolen. A web-based CRM lets
you effectively protect your data from being lost. Sure, servers can crash and
hard drives fail but with the proper web host and data backups you’ll never lose
your data. That’s just one of the benefits of CRMery, as an Open Source CRM
you have the complete freedom to select the absolute best web host and service
provider. And you own your data. It’s not stored on some company’s server
leaving you at their security and their business infrastructure. CRMery lets you
install, manage and maintain your own data on the server of your choice.
8. Predict your future
Everyone wants to know the future. If only there was a way to know what to
expect. CRMery helps you with that. Now of course a CRM cannot predict the

24
future with 100°/b accuracy (it’s not a crystal ball), but a good CRM can give
you a reasonable expectation of the future based on past performances and past
events. If your history is stored correctly in your CRM (see History is
important) then a good CRM can extrapolate that information to give you a
good idea of what is to come. You can see your pipeline of your prospective
deals and have a pretty accurate feel for how much business you can expect to
see in the months to come. Once you realize how much information you have
access to you may start to feel like a bit like a psychic.
9. Track your tasks and events
Calendars are important, way more important than emails with dates in them.
You’ll never be able to keep track of every task you need to do and event you
need to attend without a good system. A CRM will help you not only keep track
of every task and every event but also relate them to the appropriate customer or
lead. CRM provides a calendar system that allows you to see all of your tasks
and events and also your team mates tasks. Plus, with CRM you have a
dashboard that gives you a quick overview of upcoming tasks and events across
all your contacts. Need access on the go? CRM provides an amazing mobile
interface to provide instant access to your immediate tasks and events as well as
allowing you to create new tasks or events immediately. Sure there are
dedicated calendar apps and task management software you can use, but the
goal is more than just managing tasks. The goal is relationships. A CRM will
relate those tasks and events to the appropriate lead, contact, deal, or company.
It all works together to form a cohesive whole - and that leads perfectly into the
final reason.
10.Be organized
You may claim that you can manage your business using email, task
management systems, and calendar systems but you’ll miss the big picture.
Organizing all our information into one system gives you that big picture. A
CRM integrates emails and tasks nd calendars and so much more in one easily

25
maintained and managed place. Access your information from anywhere in the
world and from any internet-accessible device. You’ll learn things about 17
your business you never knew before. By being organized and storing things in
a central location you’ll bring all the pieces together. The key is business
organization.
I’m obsessed with helping businesses grow and succeed. CRM provides an
amazing platform to help businesses do just that. By using a CRM your business
will become organized and as your business becomes organized you’ll start to
see success. I don’t claim to have the perfect solution; we’re constantly
improving things to make it better. I do claim that having a well-organized
business will never, ever be a detriment to your success. Get organized and let
CRM help you get there.
SURPLOUS NEEDS:-
1) The deeper the company understands of consumer’s needs and
perception, the earlier the product is introduced ahead of competition, the
greater the expected contribution margin. Hence the study is very
important.
2) Consumer markets and consumer buying behavior can be understood
before sound product and marketing plans are developed
3) This study will help companies to customize the service and product,
according to the consumer’s need.
4) This study will also help the companies to understand the experience and
expectations of the existing customers.
5) Apart from creating, manufacturing and distribution capabilities for life
insurance products, an in depth study of the consumers, their preferences
and demand for their product is very necessary for setting up an efficient
marketing network.
Impact on Customer Satisfaction
According to Bolton, customer satisfaction has significant implications for the

26
economic performance of firms{3} because it has been found to increase
customer loyalty and usage behavior and reduce customer complaints, and the
likelihood of customer defection.
The implementation of CRM is likely to have an effect on customer
satisfaction for at least three reasons:
Firstly, firms are able to customize their offerings for each customer. By
accumulating information across customer interactions and processing this
information to discover hidden patterns, CRM applications help firms customize
their offerings to suit the individual tastes of their customers. This
customization enhances the perceived quality of products and services from a
customer’s viewpoint, and because perceived quality is a determinant of
customer satisfaction, it follows that CRM applications indirectly affect
customer satisfaction.
Secondly, CRM applications enable firms to provide timely, accurate
processing of customer orders and requests and the ongoing management of
customer accounts. For example, Piccoli and Applegate (2003) discuss how
Wyndham uses IT tools to deliver a consistent service experience across its
various properties to a customer. Both an improved ability to customize and a
reduced variability of the consumption experience enhance perceived quality,
which in turn positively affects customer satisfaction. Thirdly, CRM
applications also help firms manage customer relationships more effectively
cross the stages of relationship initiation, maintenance, and termination.

27
APPLICATIONS:-
1. CALL CENTERS
As well as tracking, recording and storing customer information, CRM systems
in call centers codify the interactions between company and customers by using
analytics and key performance indicators to give the users information on where
to focus their marketing and customer service. The intention is to maximize
average revenue per user, decrease churn rate and decrease idle and
unproductive contact with the customers. CRM software can also be used to
identify and reward loyal customers over a period of time.
Growing in popularity is the idea of gamifying customer service
environments. The repetitive and tedious act of answering support calls all day
can be draining, even for the most enthusiastic customer service representative.
When agents are bored with their work, they become less engaged and less
motivated to do their jobs well. They are also prone to making mistakes.
Gamification tools can motivate agents by tapping into their visceral need for
reward, status, achievement, and competition.
2. BUISNESS- TO - BUISNESS
According to a Sweeney Group definition, CRM is “all the tools, technologies
and procedures to manage, improve, or facilitate sales, support and related
interactions with customers, prospects, and business partners throughout the
enterprise”.1 It assumes that CRM is involved in every B2B transaction.
Despite the general notion that CRM systems were created for the customer-
centric
Businesses, they can also be applied to B2B environments to streamline and
improve customer management conditions. For the best level of CRM operation
in a B2B environment, the software must be personalized and delivered at
individual levels. The main differences between B2C and B2B CRM systems
are as follows:
 B2B companies have smaller contact databases than B2C.
28
  The volume of sales in B2B is relatively small.
 In B2B there are less figure propositions, but in some cases they cost a
lot more than B2C items.
 Relationships in B2B environment are built over a longer period of time.
 B2B CRM must be easily integrated with products from other
companies. Such integration enables the creation of forecasts about
customer behavior based on their buying history, bills, business success,
etc.
 An application for a B2B company must have a function to connect all
the contacts. Processes and deals among the customers segment and then
prepare a paper.
 Automation of sales process is an important requirement for B2B
products. It should
 Effectively manage the deal and progress it through all the phases
towards signing.
 A crucial point is personalization. It helps the B2B company to create
and maintain strong and long-lasting relationship with the customer.
3. SOCIAL MEDIA
Balararn (2010) presented evidence of a significant increase in the use of social
Networking sites, especially among young people. This has caused companies
to use these sites to draw attention to their products, services and brands, with
the aim of building up customer relationships to increase demand.
Some CRM systems integrate social media sites like Twitter, Linkedln
and Facebook to track and communicate with customers sharing their opinions
and experiences with a company, products and services.
Enterprise Feedback Management software platforms such as Confirm it,
Medallia, and Satmetrix combine internal survey data with trends identified

29
through social media to allow businesses to make more accurate decisions on
which products to supply.
4. OTHER APPLICATIONS
Some CRM software is available as a software as a service (SaaS), delivered via
the internet and accessed via a web browser instead of being installed on a local
computer. Businesses using the software do not purchase it, but typically pay a
recurring subscription fee to the software vendor. For small businesses a CRM
system may consist of a contact manager system which integrates emails,
documents, jobs, faxes, and scheduling for individual accounts . CRM systems
available for specific markets (legal, finance) frequently focus on event
management and relationship tracking as opposed to financial return on
investment (ROT).
Customer-centric relationship management CCRM) is a nascent sub-discipline
that focuses on customer preferences instead of customer leverage. CCRM aims
to add value by engaging customers in individual, interactive relationships.
Systems for non-profit and membership-based organizations help track
constituents, fund-raising, Sponsors demographics, membership levels,
membership directories, volunteering and communication with individuals.
Adoption issues
In 2003, a Gartner report estimated that more than $2 billion had been
spent on software that was not being used. According to CSO Insights, less than
40 percent of 1,275 participating companies had end-user adoption rates above
90 percent. Many corporations only use CRM systems on a partial or
fragmented basis.
In a 2007 survey from the UK, four-fifths of senior executives reported
that their biggest challenge is getting their staff to use the systems they had
installed. 43 percent of respondents said they use less than half the functionality
of their existing system1ms. Recently, it was found in a study that market

30
research regarding consumers’ preferences may increase the adoption of CRM
among the developing countries’ consumers.

31
CRM PARADOX
The CRM Paradox, also referred to as the “Dark side of CRM”, entails
favoritism and differential treatment of some customers. This may cause
perceptions of unfairness among other customers’ buyers. They may opt out of
relationships, spread negative information, or engage in misbehavior that may
damage the firm. CRM fundamentally involves treating customers differently
based on the assumption that customers are different and have different needs.
Such perceived inequality may cause dissatisfaction, mistrust and result in
unfair practices. A customer shows trust when he bonds in a relationship with a
firm when he knows that the firm is acting fairly and adding value. However,
customers may not trust that firms will be fair in splitting the value creation pie
in the first place. For example, Amazon’s test use of dynamic pricing (different
prices for different customers) was a public relations nightmare for the
company.
Trends
In the Gartner CRM Summit 2010 challenges like “System tries to
capture data from social networking traffic like Twitter, handles Facebook page
addresses or other online social networking sites” were discussed and solutions
were provided that would help in bringing more clientele. Many CRM vendors
offer subscription-based web tools (cloud computing) and SaaS. Some CRM
systems are equipped with mobile capabilities, making information accessible to
remote sales staff. Salesforce.com was the first company to provide enterprise
Applications through a web browser, and has maintained its leadership position.
Sales force continues to be a market leader as the CRM with the most customers
and is rated-highly among their customers. Traditional providers have recently
moved into the cloud-based market via acquisitions of smaller providers: Oracle
purchased Right Now in October 2011 and SAP acquired Success Factors in
December 201 1.
The era of the “social customer”321 refers to the use of social media (Twitter,

32
Facebook, Linkedln, Google Plus, Pinterest, Instagram, Yelp. customer reviews
in Amazon, etc.) by customers. CR philosophy and strategy has shifted to
encompass social networks and user communities. Sales forces also play an
important role in CRM. as maximizing sales effectiveness and increasing sales
productivity is a driving force behind the adoption of CRM. Empowering sales
managers was listed as one of the top 5 CRM trends in 2013.
Another related development is Vendor Relationship Management (VRM),
which provide tools and services that allow customers to manage their
individual relationship with vendors. VRM development has grown out of
efforts by Project VRM at Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society
and Identity Commons’ Internet Identity Workshops, as well as by a growing
number of startups and established companies. VRM was the subject of a cover
story in the May 2010 issue of CRM Magazine.
In 2001, Doug Laney from Gartner developed the concept and coined the
term ‘Extended Relationship Management’ (XRM). Laney defines XRM as
extending CRM disciplines to secondary allies such as the government, press
and industry consortia.
Dennison DeGregor (2011) describes a shift from ‘push CRM’ toward a
‘customer transparency (CT) model, due to the increased proliferation of
channels, devices, and social media.
New Strategies for Customer Relationship Management
Customer relationship management (CRM) practices have traditionally included
sales activities, marketing, customer care and even technical support. However,
these same organizations handle collections the way they did 20 years ago —
with separate customer care and accounts receivable functions. This “reactive”
strategy stalls collection activity – and payment -- until the customer is well past
due. However, a new “preventive” collections approach that combines advanced
Technology and sophisticated billing analytics identifies revenue recovery
opportunities early in the payment cycle. This strategy, with proven success at

33
sites in 27 countries, secures payment before the customer ever reaches the
collections stage.
In many cases, customers that have receivables issues are still contacting the
company’s customer care representatives to conduct business. But one can route
these contacts to a new type of collection associate called ‘universal agents”
who handle customer service calls and then move the conversation to billing or
collection issues. In a single call or multi-channel engagement, costs are
reduced, payments are rendered, and customer relationship is preserved and
revenues increased.
Here are the seven key steps to establish and manage a preventive collections
strategy alongside your current customer relationship management practices:
1. Choose the right people
Screen agents for collections, with a customer care skill sets up-front. Identify
Individuals capable of serving as “universal” agents, able to handle virtually any
issue — from standard customer care issues to past-due collections. Then,
match top performers in each area to specific clients. Universal agents can
easily be identified by their customer service skills and a thick skin required for
past-due collections. Simply put, you can teach a collection agent how to handle
customer care, but customer care agents rarely have the skills needed to manage
collections calls.
2. Provide up-front and ongoing training
Once identified, universal agents should receive special training. They must
have the empathy, bridging and negotiation skills needed to open and close a
customer care issue and negotiate and resolve a past-due billing issue — often
during the same call.
A certain amount of ongoing training is required. Agents must be kept
abreast of the latest client offers. They must know how to change a customer’s
payment due date, offer credits, or waive a service fee.

34
 If the customer recently lost a job, the universal agent must be able to
show empathy and offer payment alternatives.
3. Control customer service quality and performance
With customer data and payment habits on their screen the moment the call
comes in, universal agents can deliver a quality customer experience by offering
empathy and sympathy — while remaining firm enough to meet the client’s
collection targets. Statistics prove that empathy and the ability to offer
alternative arrangements — as opposed to the traditional, bottom-line
collections call enhances customer satisfaction/loyalty and increases the
likelihood of receiving payment.
4. Leverage customer data to build prevention strategies
When a customer gets his or her paycheck, every company wants to be paid
first. By having the individual’s payment history on-screen at the outset, the
universal agent is better able to negotiate. They may offer suggestions like:
“Can we change the due date to better fit your needs?” After incorporating a
more conversational, sympathetic approach, our clients experienced a twelve
percent lift in payments. Though a friendly, caring approach increased the
handle time, it also delivered superior financial results.
5. Provide access to all customer contact channels
More and more consumers and business people are using non-traditional means
for communications. Communicate in the medium of their choice. Employing a
multi-channel approach, the preventive collections program can leverage or
combine voice communications with other direct contact channels. Including
direct mail, chat and email.

6. Deliver global consistency

Implement and enforce a set of operating standards for all customer care and
collection interactions throughout your operation. This will ensure equally
rained agents with reliable service to your clients around the world.

35
This program is derived from a set of highly defined standards developed from
global call center experience over the past 20-plus years. It delivers universal
agents with consistent skill levels, regardless of where they’re located.
7. Provide motivation and incentives
Every client has different needs. When it comes to motivating and incenting
universal agents, there are a variety of client-specific compensation models.
Earnings and incentives can be based on cure, liquidation and collection rate
measurements.
With this strategy, agents are able to engage late-paying customers and
gradually move them away from the collections process, in some cases
permanently. Identifying and resolving past-due issues before the customer
reaches the collections stage is a proven way to enhance the bottom line.

36
 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The term research refers to the scientific & systematic search for pertinent in
information on specific topic. Research is a systematic method consisting of
enunciating the problem, formulating a hypothesis, collecting the facts or data,
analyzing the facts& reaching certain conclusion towards the concerned
problem.

Research Methodology is a way to systematically solve the problems. It may be

understood as a science of studying how research is done scientifically in it we
study the various steps that are generally adopted by a researcher in studying his
research problem along with the logic behind them.

37
 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

1. To study the customer relationship management with regard to Hindustan

times.

2. To analyzes the customer buying behavior.

3. To find out the satisfaction level at the customers of Hindustan times.

4. To make various suggestion on the improvement of sales at the Hindustan

times.

5. To study the current practices of CRM at Hindustan times.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study is limited to the consumers with in the limit Chandigarh city. The
study will be able to reveal the preferences, needs, perception of the customer
regarding the newspaper. It also help the newspaper companies to know
whether the existing product are really satisfying the customer need . perception
is the process by which an individual selects, organize and interprets
information input to create meaning full picture of the world. For a marketer to
influence a motivated buyer to buy their product either than competitors they
must be careful to take the perception process into account while designing their
marketing, campaigns. Perception influence what product consumer buys.

38
RESEARCH DESIGN:

A research design is a basic plan which guides the researcher in the collection
and analysis of the data required for practicing the research. Infant design is the
conceptual structure which the research in conducted. It constitutes the ‘blue
print’ for the collection, measurement and analysis of the data.

In this study descriptive research design is used.

SAMPLE DESIGN:

The process of drawing a sample from a large population is called sampling.

Population refers to the total of items about which information is defined well
selected samples may reflect fairly and accurately the characteristics of the
population.

SAMPLE UNIT:

The sample area unit of Chandigarh, Mohali, Panchkula.

SAMPLE SIZE:

The sample size was150 customer of the company.

SAMPLE TACHNIQUE ADOPTED: converting sampling.

39
SOURCE OF DATA:

PRIMARY DATA:

Primary data are those which are collected for this time. Primary data is
collected by framing questionnaires.

SECONDARY DATA:

Secondary data means data that are already available i.e. They refer to the data
which have collected and analyzed by someone and can save both money and
time of the researcher secondary data may be available in the form of the
company records, trades, publications, libraries etc.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY:

Although the study was carried out with extreme enthusiasm and careful
planning there are several limitations which handicapped the research viz...

TIME CONSTRAINTS:

The time stipulated for the project to be completed is less and thus there are
chances that some information might have been left out, however due care is
taken to include all the relevant information needed.

SIMPLE SIZE:

40
Due to time constraints the sample size was relatively small and would defiantly
have been more representative if I had collected information from more
respondents.

41
ACCURACY:

It is difficult to know if all the respondent gave accurate information some

respondents tend to give misleading information

REVIEW:

To carry the research work the researcher has gone though a few reports, books,
journals and website. The details regarding HT Media Industry, history of origin
and growth of the industry is also taken from some books, magazines etc .the
source of this information is as follow.

Articles from magazine and newspaper.

Information from various websites.

42
1. What is your age group?

PARTICULER RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

18-25 50 33.3%
25-35 40 26.6%
35-50 30 20%
50&ABOVE 30 20%
TOTAL 150 100%

35

30

25

20

Series 1
15

10

0
18-25 25-35 35-50 50 ABOVE

INTERPRETATION:

The most respondents are the age group of 18-25.

2. Which newspaper do you prefer most?

PARTICU00LAR NO OF PERCENTAGE
RESPONDENTS
THE TRIBUNE 30 20%

43
HINDUSTAAN TIME 60 40%
THE HINDU 30 20%
THE TIMES OF INDIA 30 20%
TOTAL 150 100%

NO OF RESPONDENTS
45%

40%

35%

30%

25% NO OF RESPONDENTS

20%

15%

10%

5%

0%
THE TRIBUNE HINDUSTAN TIME THE HINDU THE TIMES OF INDIA

INTERPRETATION:

Hindustan Time is the most preferred newspaper with 40%.

44
3. How many minutes you spend to read newspaper daily?

PARTICULAR NO OF PERCENTAGE
RESPONDENTS
10-15min 10 16.7%
20-30min 20 33.3%
30-40min 15 25%
More than40min 15 25%
TOTAL 60 100%

RESPONDENTS
35.00%

30.00%

25.00%

20.00% RESPONDENCE

15.00%

10.00%

5.00%

0.00%
10-15min 20-30min 30-40min more than 40min

INTERPRETATION:

Mostly respondents take 20-30 mins to read the newspaper daily with 33.3%.

45
4. Which section do you like the most in newspaper?

PARTICULAR NO OF PERCENTAGE
RESPONDENTS
SPORTS 10 16.7%
SHARE MARKET 20 33.3%
NEWS
CLASSIFIED 10 16.6%
BUSINESS 10 16.7%
ENTERTAINMENT 10 16.7%
TOTAL 60 100%

Column2
35.00%

30.00%

25.00%

20.00%

15.00%

10.00%

5.00%

0.00%
SPORTS SHARE MARKET NEWS CLASSIFIED BUSINESS ENTERTAINMENT

Interpretation:
According to the survey respondents prefer sports section – 16.7% , share market news –
33.3% ,business – 16.6%,classified -16.7% and entertainment – 16.7%.

5. Which factor do you consider while purchasing a newspaper?

PARTICULAR NO OF PERCENTAGE

46
 RESPONDENTS
CONTENTS 40 26.7%
AVAILABILITY 50 33.3%
COST 30 20%
SERVICES 20 13.3%
OTHER 10 6.7%
TOTAL 150 100%

NO OF RESPONDENT
35.00%

30.00%

25.00%

20.00% NO OF RESPONDENTS

15.00%

10.00%

5.00%

0.00%
CONTENTS AVAILABILITY COST SERVICES OTHER

INTERPRETATION

Availability of the newspaper and the contents of the newspaper are the most
considered factors while purchasing the newspaper with the percentage of 33.3
and 26.7 respectively

6. Quality of Hindustan times?

PARTICULER NO OF RESPONDENTS PERCENTAGE

EXCELLENT 25 41.7%
GOOD 15 25%
AVERAGE 10 16.7%
POOR 5 8.3%

47
 VERY POOR 5 8.3%
TOTAL 60 100

NO OF RESPONDENTS
30%

25%

20%
NO OF RESPONDENTS
15%

10%

5%

0%
EXCELLENT GOOD AVERGE POOR VERY POOR

INTERPRETATION:

25% of the total respondents consider the quality of the Hindustan times to be
excellent .

48
7. What is your attitude towards of Hindustan times?

PARTICULAR NO OF PERCENTAGE
RESPONDENTS
GOOD 30 50%
BAD 20 33.3%
NEUTRAL 10 16.7%
TOTAL 60 100%

NO OF RESPONDENTS
60%

50%

40%
NO OF RESPONDENTS
30%

20%

10%

0%
GOOD BAD NEUTRAL

INTERPRETATION

According to the survey the attitude of the respondents is good 50% ,bad 33.3%
and neutral 16.7%.

49
8. Do you think that Hindustan times is going to add value to your life?

PARTICULAR NO OF PERCENTAGE
RESPONDENTS
STRONGLY AGREE 10 16.7%
AGREE 20 33.3%
UNCERTAIN 10 16.7%
DISAGREE 10 16.7%
STRONGLY 10 16.7%
DISSAGREE
TOTAL 60 100%

NO OF RESPONDENTS
35.00%
30.00%
25.00%
20.00%
15.00%
NO OF RESPONDENTS
10.00%
5.00%
0.00%
E E IN E E
GRE GRE TA GRE GRE
A A R A A
Y CE SS ISS
NGL UN DI D
RO LY
ST NG
RO
ST

INTERPRETATION

20 respondents agree that Hindustan times add value to the life whereas 10 totally disagree
with the fact.

9. Since how long you are reading this newspaper?

50
 PARTICULAR NO OF PERCENTAGE
RESPONDENTS
LESS THAN 6 MONTH 10 16.7%
6 TO 12 MONTH 20 33.3%
MORE THAN 12 30 50%
MONTH
TOTAL 60 100%

NO OF RESPONDENTS
60.00%
50.00%
40.00%
30.00%
20.00% NO OF RESPONDENTS
10.00%
0.00%
TH TH TH
ON ON ON
M M M
6 12 12
AN TO AN
TH 6 TH
SS E
LE OR
M

INTERPRETATION

50% of the respondents are reading the newspaper for more than 12 months.

10. How do you rate Hindustan time over editorial section?

PARTICULAR NO OF PERCENTAGE

51
 RESPONDENTS
VERY GOOD 10 16.7%
GOOD 15 25%
AVERAGE 20 33.3%
BAD 10 16.7%
VERY BAD 5 8.3%
60 100%

NO OF RESPONDENTS
35.00%

30.00%

25.00%

20.00% NO OF RESPONDENTS

15.00%

10.00%

5.00%

0.00%
VERY GOOD GOOD AVERAGE BAD VERY BAD

INTERPRETATION

People rate Hindustan time as good 25 %, average 33.3 % and bad 16.7%.

11. On what basis you select your prefer Hindustan times?

PARTICULAR NO OF PERCENTAGE
RESPONDENTS
INFLUENCE 15 25%
REFERENCE 25 41.7%
52
 BRAND IMAGE 20 33.3%
60 100%

NO OF RESPONDENTS
45%

40%

35%

30%

25% NO OF RESPONDENTS

20%

15%

10%

5%

0%
INFLUENCE REFERENCE BRAND IMAGE

INTERPRETATION

Respondents prefer HT through reference 41.7% , influence 25% and brand image 33.3%.

12. Do you find advertisement content relevant?

PARTICULAR NO OF PERCENTAGE
RESPONDENTS
HIGHLY RELEVANT 20 33.4%
RELEVANT 10 16.6%
AVERAGE 25 41.6%
IRRELEVANT 5 8.4%
TOTAL 60 100%
53
 NO OF RESPONDENTS
45.00%

40.00%

35.00%

30.00%

25.00% NO OF RESPONDENTS

20.00%

15.00%

10.00%

5.00%

0.00%
HIGHLY RELEVANT RELEVANT AVERAGE IRRELEVANT

INTERPRETATION

Respondents find the advertisement content of the newspaper average with 41.6%.

13. In overall how much you are satisfied with Hindustan time dailies?

PARTICULAR NO OF PERCENTAGE
RESPONDENTS
HIGHLY SATISFIED 10 16.6%
SATISFIED 15 25%
MODERATE 20 33.3%
DISSATISFIED 10 16.7%
HIGHLY 5 8.4%
54
 DISSATISFIED
TOTAL 60 100%

NO OFRESPONDENTS
35.00%
30.00%
25.00%
20.00%
15.00%
NO OFRESPONDENTS
10.00%
5.00%
0.00%
E
IED IED AT IED IED
IT SF IT SF ER IT SF IT SF
A SA OD A A
LYS M DI
SS
DISS
GH HL
Y
HI G
HI

INTERPRETATION

33.3 % consider the satisfaction of the HT to be moderate.

14. Do you read online newspaper?

PARTICULAR NO OF PERCENTAGE
RESPONDENTS
YES 40 66.6%
NO 20 33.4%
TOTAL 60 100%

55
 NO OF RESPONDENTS
70.00%

60.00%

50.00%

40.00% NO OF RESPONDENTS

30.00%

20.00%

10.00%

0.00%
YES NO

INTERPRETATION

66.6 % of the total read newspaper online

56
 FINDINGS

SUGGESTIONS

&
CONCLUSION

57
 FINDINGS

 People with the age group of 18-25 read the Hindustan times.

 Hindustan Time is the most preferred newspapers out of the total competitors in the
market.

 People choose Hindustan times as it cover the share market news completely.

 Hindustan times is easily available in the market.

 The Hindustan times newspaper is excellent in its quality.

 The customers have positive attitude towards the Hindustan times media.

 The overall rating of the company is satisfactory.

 People choose Hindustan times through reference.

 The advertisement content is the newspaper is founded to be average.

 Hindustan also offers the e- newspaper services.

58
 SUGGESTIONS

 HT should increase number of supplements on upcoming brands and

corporate strategies.
 The newspaper must promote its offerings during business functions ,
national conferences, trade fairs etc in order to achieve the targetas
early as possible in their life stage.
 Made collaborations with the B schools and provide daily copies to
students at their door steps.
 In order to develop the touch points with its readers and create a brand
association HT should participate and sponsor corporate events.
 Services check calls at regular intervals.
 The distribution system of newspaper should be facilitated

59
CONCLUSION:

This study titled ‘‘CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT ‘about Hindustan

times of newspaper companies to understand how customer’s view differs from person. How
a consumer selects, organizes and interprets the service quality and the product quality of
different newspaper offered by various news media companies.

Most of the HT MEDIA majors have represented in the form of joint venture in Indian
market.

The new products that have been introduced by the companies have certain innovative
features in terms of better customer services and also wider covers. This has given customer
ample choice to select products.

60
 QUESTIONNAIRE

1. What is your age group?

A. 18-25

B. 25-35

C. 35-50

D. 50 & ABOVE

2. Which newspaper do you prefer most?

A. The tribune

B. The Hindustan times.

C. The hindu

D. The times of india

61
3. How many minutes you spend to read newspaper daliy?

A. 10-15 MIN

B. 20-30 MIN

C.30-40 MIN

D. MORE THAN 40 MIN

4. Which section do you like the most in newspaper?

A. Sports

B. Share market news

C. Business

D. Classified

E. Entertaiment

5. Which factor do you consider while purchasing a newspaper?

A. Contents

B. Availability

C. Cost

D. Services

E. Other
62
6. Quality of Hindustan times?

A. Excellent

B. Good

C. Average

D. Poor

E. Very poor

7. How is your attiude towards of Hindustan times?

A. Good

B. Bad

C. Neutral

8. Do you think that Hindustan times is going to add value to your

life.

A. Strongly agree

B. Agree

C. Uncertain

D. Disagree

E. Strongly disagree

63
9. Since how long you are reading this newspaper?

A. Less than 6 months

B. 6 to 12 months

C. More than 12 months

10. How do you rate Hindustan times over editorial section?

A. Very ggod

B. Good

C. Average

D. Bad

E. Very bad

11. On what basis you select your preferred Hindustan times?

A. Infiuence

B. Reference

C. Brand image

12. Do you find advertisement content relevant?

A. Highly relevant
64
B. Relevant

C. Average

D. Irrelevant

13. Do you read online newspaper?

A. Yes

B. No

14. In overall how much you are satisfied with the Hindustan times
dailies?

A. Highly satisfied

B. Satisfied

C. Moderate

D. Dissatisfied

E. Highly dissatisfied

65