Integrated Marketing Communication Plan Of Sparsh Organic Soaps. Fully detailed. Cover all aspects.

1. INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION
ASSIGNMENT
Department of Marketing, Xavier Institute of Social Service, Ranchi
SUBMITTED TO
PROF. PINAKI GHOSH
SUBMITTED BY
Akhilesh Mishra (Roll no. 6)
Anumita Dash (Roll no. 46)

2. INTRODUCTION
The soap industry in India is at the high growth rate and many new entrants are
planning to launch their product in this category. The overall soap industry is
worth 60,000 crores. Prakriti Organics is a startup and targets at entire family
with their various organic soaps.
Tactical marketing tools, 4Ps, will be extensively used by our company to market
the products. The products are produced in India. There are 4 varieties of soap
based on skin type – dry skin, normal skin, oily skin and for babies. Since the
demand for soap market is to a great extent oligopolistic, variations in price lead
to price war which can eventually break down the company‘s market share. Thus
Prakriti Organics cannot provide a better price than its competitors. But the price
is affordable by most of the people. Prakriti Organics will outsource its
distribution channel to third party distributors which allow them to distribute
product in massive bulks amounting to around Twelve thousand pieces. It
undertakes one of the largest promotional activities in the herbal soap industry.
The soap industry has a few major producers of which Hindustan Unilever holds
market share of 70%. Other competing brands like Godrej, P&G and Johnson &
Johnson have started to have a strong consumer base, but Prakriti Organics’
product features, distribution and promotional activities will create high brand
loyalty for which it will be a strong market share soon after developing its IMC
plan. Prakriti Organics, with the aid of its heavy promotional activities and
unique feature of being herbal, will be able to penetrate the market. But other
producers in the industry are posing a threat towards Prakriti Organics market
share as they have moved towards the rural masses of the population. Prakriti
Organics is adopting niche marketing as we aim to target a particular segment
and gain their loyalty.

3. OBJECTIVE OF THE COMPANY
To assess the current environment of organic industry and to determine the right
marketing schemes in order for the business project to be profitable and
successful.
VISION
Being the benchmark of excellence in producing high-quality organic soaps.
MISSION
 To produce organic soaps that are well-formulated, checked and tested.
The organic soaps must be really effective relative to what is being said on
its label.
 The main objective of our company is to produce soaps that are not only
used for cleansing the skin but also for absorbing all the impurities
embedded in it.
 Give the customers a perception of smoothness, calmness and relaxation,
which is what they will feel after they apply the product.
 To establish the image of a health and wellness and environment-friendly
company.
CURRENT SCENARIO OF MARKET
 Presently, Indian organic farming market is estimated at ₹ 2,500 crore.
With a steady annual growth of 40% on rising population, higher
disposable incomes and rising health consciousness, India's organic

4. farming industry is set to grow to ₹ 10,000 crore, according to Associated
Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India. (ASSOCHAM)
 It has been a part of human nature to prefer healthier products with lesser
preservatives and synthetic materials added.
 Organic farming can create millions of jobs in the agricultural sector as
it can spur over 30 per cent of employment per hectare as against non-
organic farming and this ratio can further increase if on-farm processing,
value addition, packaging and direct marketing are considered, says an
independent research of ASSOCHAM.
SIZE OF THE INDUSTRY
The Indian Soap Industry includes about 700 companies with combined annual
revenue of about $17 billion. Major companies in this industry include divisions
of P&G, Unilever, and Dial. The Indian Soap Industry is highly concentrated with
the top 50 companies holding almost 90% of the market. The market size of
global soap and detergent market size was estimated to be around 31M tonne in
2004, which is estimated to grow to 33M tonne in the coming years. Toilet soaps
account for more than 10% of the total market of soap and detergents. In Asia, the
countries like China and India are showing rapid growth in the toilet soap
section. Market share of body wash was estimated to be around 2% in 2004 and
is showing signs of healthy growth in these markets. India's soap market is ₹
41.75 billion.
Indian Soap Industry volume is ₹ 4,800-crore. For the purpose of gaining a
competitive edge, Indian companies are now re-launching their brands with
value-additions to attract the consumers to purchase their products across India.

5. MARKET TRENDS
 Worldwide compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in 2005-2008 was
observed as 2%.
 The forecast for 2010-2015, the soap production would increase especially
in the US (First Research, 2008).
 The growth will also happen in Asia with a total of 50% of the global
demand. South-East Asia has a huge potential to grow further.
 In South Asian countries, 4.2% CAGR was recorded between 2004 and
2009.
MARKET CAPITALIZATION
Today in the Indian economy the popular segments are 4/5ths of the entire soaps
market. The penetration level of toilet soaps is 88.6%. In India, available stores of
soaps are five million retail stores, out of which, 3.75 million retail stores are in
the rural areas. 70% of India's population resides in the rural areas and around
50% of the soaps are sold in the rural markets.
COMPETITORS
Major Competitors:
 HUL
 P&G
 Godrej India
 Johnson & Johnson
 Patanjali
 Fiama d wills

6. SWOT ANALYSIS
Strengths Weaknesses
Herbal so skin friendly The product is not widely known to
all consumers
Available for all skin types A lot of substitute products
No age restriction Limited penetration in rural market
Absence of harmful chemicals
like Triclosan
Resistance by those who fear using
organic products
Opportunities Threats
High CAGR of soap market New Entrants
Growing consumer markets for
improved and alluring soaps
Local competition
Top choice among organic soaps Competition from already existing
medication and organic soaps
PRODUCT CATEGORY, MARKET SEGMENTATION, TARGET MARKETING AND
POSITIONING
PRODUCT CATEGORY
SPARSH falls under the category of toiletry product as an organic soap.

7. MARKET SEGMENTATION
According to
• Age
• Gender
• Income levels
• Frequency of purchase
• Skin type
• Geographical location
TARGET MARKET & PLACEMENT
Urban and suburban upper and upper middle class who are conscious about
their skin are the major target of our products. Diverse products are provided for
all skin types. Soap products are specialized into cleansing, moisturizing,
scenting, antibacterial and whitening. The main target market would be
customers who value attributes like natural constituents, healthy lifestyle, better
skin texture, etc. Trying to access every geographical market simultaneously
would lead to unbearable logistics costs. Hence, business development will be
done in stages, targeting regions offering better connectivity with accessible
markets first, and then moving out into other territories in later stages.
It can be observed that there isn’t a huge bias in terms of gender based
preferences in usage pattern. However the major user group is in the age group
of 12-30 years, with substantial chunk aged 40 years or less. However, Organic
soaps have qualities which are not necessarily changed based on age, and hence

8. the market is consumer of varying ages, but as the major self-sufficient user, 20-
40 age group should be the prime target segment.
SPARSH is not a highly expensive but an affordable product. That is why the
company targets urban and sub urban upper middle and middle class people who
are the second highest population of segment of the country. From the
segmentation of customer according to SEC we will target category A, B and C,
because they are assumed to be financially well-off and can afford to buy
SPARSH. Socio-Economic Cluster (SEC) which takes into account the criteria of
education and profession which ultimately measures the financial ability of
consumers.
PRODUCT POSITIONING
SPARSH will try to obtain a good position in the buyer’s mind through better
product attributes, price and quality, offering the product in a different way than
the competitors do. The company offers improved quality of products in the
industry at an affordable price with high branding, which ultimately helps to
position the product in the buyer’s mind as the best quality organic soap.
Sparsh will try to make a distinguished image in the market through its
packaging, fragrances and product designing and its medicinal properties.
TACTICAL MARKETING TOOLS
 Product: SPARSH will be launched nationally as branded organic soap.
Though manufactured in India for its urban & suburban markets, the
quality of product will be at par with international standards. It will
maintain an international quality for the product. Formula given by
Research and Development departments in foreign countries, SPARSH will
be produced in India from national as well as imported raw materials like
Saponified Organic Oils of Palm, Coconut, Olive and Palm Kernel.

9. Common Elements are Saponified Organic Oils of Palm, Coconut, Olive and
Palm Kernel.
Differentiating Elements are-
 Aloe Baby Soap: Natural Lavender Essential Oil Blend, Organic
Lavender Oil, Organic Aloe Vera, Organic Rosemary Extract.
 Dry Skin Products: Unscented Cocoa Butter, Organic Cocoa Butter,
Organic Powdered Oatmeal, Organic Aloe Vera, Organic Rosemary
Extract.
 Oatmeal Lavender: Natural Lavender Essential Oil Blend, Organic
Lavender Oil, Organic Oatmeal, Organic Rosemary Extract.
 Oily Skin Products: Balsam Pine, Balsam Essential Oil Blend, Organic
Rosemary Extract, Mineral Pigment.
 Natural Skin Products: Woodspice Natural, Woodspice Essential Oil
Blend, Organic Cinnamon, Organic Rosemary Extract.
 Rosemary Herb: Natural Rosemary Essential Oil Blend, Organic
Rosemary Herb, Organic Rosemary Extract.
Taking into account the convenience of its customers, the company manufactures
all flavors of SPARSH in three different sizes, 40gm, 80gm and 120gm.
 Price: Though SPARSH gives its customers a lot in terms of the product
itself, it will provide a better pricing in terms of competition. This is due to
competition with the beauty soap industry. Beauty soap is a product with a
high demand. Its prices are almost equal to its competitor. Company will
carry out research on competitor’s price and brand loyalty when it will feel
extreme necessity of changing price.
Organic soaps will definitely have a comparatively higher cost than the
cosmetic and beauty soaps.

10.  Place: We will have intensive distribution of our product to be able to make
our products available at maximum number of shops and retail stores.
Prakriti Organics will tie up with logistics & distribution companies for
distribution of SPARSH all over the country. The company will start with
six warehouses, one in each regions of country, where the product goes
after they are manufactured centrally.
The company will not use its own fleet of transport for distributing its product.
However, it will outsourced its distribution process to various third party
distributors, exclusively dedicated to the industry. These distributors will supply
the product all over India to a huge number of retailers. Even though SPARSH
targets the urban and sub urban middle and upper middle class people we will be
distributing the products all over country’s major cities because of a recent
increase in demand of product category to all segments of the population.
 Promotion: Sparsh will undertake promotional activities to promote
SPARSH which is going to enter the Organic soap industry of India.
Celebrity endorsement portraying the medicinal and natural benefits of
product will be used as an effective tool for promotion.
Prakriti Organics will spend an amount of money for promoting SPARSH
through TV commercials, newspaper advertisements and billboards.
Moreover we will also undertake small promotional campaigns at different
schools, colleges, universities and recreational parks with winners of its
Beauty Contests. Promotional activities of SPARSH will be successful as it
has made it a household common name and helped consumers to connect
to it.

11. INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION
The main objective of our IMC plan shall be to create awareness about our range
of products through various media and will try to project the differentiation
between the cosmetic soaps and our organic soaps. The benefits will also be
highlighted.
 Celebrity Endorsement: The Indian consumers are highly influenced by the
promotional activities carried out by celebrities. Promotional activities will
be carried out by celebrities portraying the natural and medicinal values of
the organic soap. Since our product is not gender specific so we will run
advertisements having both an influential actor and an actress.
The differentiation between the organic soap and other soaps and its
benefits will be the main emphasis of the promotion.
 Sales Promotion: Sales promotion, a key ingredient in marketing
campaigns, consists of a collection of incentive tools, mostly short term,
designed to stimulate quicker or greater purchase of particular products or
services by consumers or the trade. Whereas advertising offers a reason to
buy, sales promotion offers an incentive to buy.
Prominent Sales Promotion Schemes to be used by SPARSH
 Sparsh will provide free medicinal Spa services to 10 lucky
customers every month. With every soap, a scratch coupon will be
provided which may let them to win the spa services.
 ‘Sparsh Star Bano, Aish Karo’ Contest: All one would need to do is
buy a special promotional pack of Sparsh soap. The pack comes with
a special scratch card. The 50 lucky winners will get an opportunity
where his/her picture may be displayed in next month’s pack of the
soap.

12.  All wrappers of Sparsh will have a star printed inside them. If the
consumer found written inside the star, any number from ―1 to
―5, he/she would get an equivalent discount (in rupees) on her
purchase from shopkeeper.
 Online contests: Example, Please enter your name and email to play
the game. Play the supercharged version of the hit puzzle game,
Bejeweled. Create rows of 3 or more identical stones and you could
win a trip for two to a five-star Resort in Goa.
 Public Relations: Not only must the company relate constructively to
customers, suppliers and dealers, it must also relate to a large number of
interested publics. A public is any group that has an actual or potential
interest in or impact on a company’s ability to achieve its objectives. PR
involves a variety of programs designed to promote or protect a company‘s
image. SPARSH PR Activities:
 Press relations: Sparsh will be maintaining constant communicating
with its customers and potential customers, of the various
developments taking place in the brand by using press relations.
 Events: Sparsh can also establish PR by sponsoring some of the
cultural activities and beauty contests in colleges of important cities
and towns.
 Limited edition: Coming up with limited edition of the brand is also a way
of attracting attention towards the brand. It creates a buzz and a feeling of
urgency to try out the product and helps in promotion of the brand. This
strategy can also be implemented by Sparsh by bringing out limited
editions in future. The limited edition will be decided after analyzing the
trend post Sparsh soaps are introduced in the market.
 Labelling: The SPARSH Trade Character or Logo is present prominently on
the package.

13.  Packaging: The colors are different for different variants such as saffron for
the saffron variant etc. Along with the color various images and labels
depicting the product ingredients are also shown in the package. The bars
come in package sizes of 100g, 120g and 150g.
 Point of Purchases: Usually the company goes for display in the stores
where it potential for its product. Different eye-catching decorations are
made inside the store and in the showcase for outside display. These
arrangements are made with the assistance of the sales people of the
company.
 Advertisements: The message that the product reflects in its advertisements
is the one that is usually narrated by the corporate itself. Advertising is any
paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods and
services by an identified sponsor. Ads can be a cost effective way to
disseminate messages, whether to build a brand preference or to educate
people.
Through print media (newspaper/Magazine), broadcast media
(Television/Movie Halls), Display media (Billboards)
 Direct marketing: Use of internet to directly contact customers through
mails and communicate about our products.
 Interactive Marketing: Online activities and programs designed to create
awareness among customers. The advertisements will be shared on youtube
and other such websites. Customer engagement strategies will be applied. A
portal will be created where the customers can share their experiences
after using the soap.

14. WHY THE ABOVE MENTIONED STRATEGY WILL SUCCEED
 The brand name SPARSH represents what we want to convey to our target
customers. Our range of organic products will enhance the skin nutrients
and will give it a natural glow. It symbolizes care and softness.
 It is a consumer product. The advertisements will have adequate impact on
sales. They will help in achieving the main objective of the company which
is to create awareness. A well-known celebrity will also enhance the
credibility of the brand.
 The sales promotional activities will induce the target customers to at least
try out the products.
 There will be online portal where the users of Sparsh soaps can share their
experiences. This will help the customers gain confidence that the
company is making efforts to pay heed to their suggestions and complaints,
if any.
 Beauty contests will help to promote the brand and the products will be
distributed among the contestants. If they like the products this will create
a positive word of mouth for the brand.
 Advertisements showing the benefits of using the organic soaps over the
other cosmetic soaps will help in changing the preferences of the target
customers.
 Magazine advertising has a longer life and hence it will also help give
detailed advertisement about the company and the product.