UNIVERSITY EXAMINATIONS: 2021/2022
EXAMINATIONS FOR THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN
APPLIED COMPUTING
BAC 3205: MARKETING MANAGEMENT
FULL TIME/PART TIME
DATE: DECEMBER, 2021 TIME: 2 HOURS
INSTRUCTIONS: Answer QUESTION ONE AND ANY OTHER TWO questions.
QUESTION ONE (20 Marks) Compulsory
The case is about Bharti Airtel Limited (Airtel), India’s second-largest wired broadband service
provider (after state-owned operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL)), which saw the
demand for home broadband surge during the COVID-19-induced lockdown in the country. In
2020, Airtel significantly consolidated its position in the Indian telecom market, amid intense
competition from Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited for supremacy in the telecom market. One of
the biggest contributing factors for Airtel’s growth was its rising average revenue per user
(ARPU),which grew without impacting the number of subscribers. The ARPU of Airtel increased
to Rs.154 in the fourth quarter of 2020, up from Rs.135 in the previous quarter. The Indian telecom
industry saw a major shift from mobile broadband services to home broadband networks,
especially because of the pandemic. The lockdown boosted the demand for home broadband as
many people preferred to stay indoors and rely on the internet to carry out their day-to-day
activities. On the home broadband front, Airtel saw a surge in the number of users and the
consumption of data due to the culture of working and studying from home.
Airtel’s growth was attributed to the tariff hike during the end of 2019 and its focus on 4G and
post-paid subscribers. The company shifted its strategy to become an ecosystem of digital services
to stay relevant in the digitization era and win over quality customers across all the segments. An
increase in market share, along with the rising ARPU of Airtel was the result of its well thought
out strategy.
During the nation-wide lockdown across the country to contain the pandemic, more and more
people started working from home using their home broadband connections, creating a huge
demand for bandwidth. Airtel was determined to ensure a seamless network experience for its
users. Its networks operated in the Business Continuity Planning (BCP) mode. At this time, Airtel
increased its investments, upgraded the quality of its services, and accelerated network rollouts to
meet customers’ demand for uninterrupted broadband connectivity (retail and enterprise). Airtel
provided affordable broadband plans and leveraged its partner services to deliver an integrated
offer that covered unlimited data, connectivity, and entertainment. The impact of the pandemic
and cheaper data tariff plans from Airtel wereexpected to help the company witness faster adoption
of the broadband in India post pandemic.
But a few challenges remained. Airtel’s ARPU was still below the desired levels. At the same
time, Jio had made huge investments in the 5G network, which could pose severe competition to
Airtel. Further, Jio’s aggressive pricing strategy to attract customers could also be a challenge for
Airtel.
Required:
a) Discuss the reasons for the increase in the demand for broadband services in India during
the COVID-19 pandemic. (10Marks)
b) Evaluate the strategies adopted by Airtel to cater to the increasing demand for broadband
during the pandemic. (5 Marks)
c) Analyze the post-pandemic challenges Airtel could face. (5Marks)
QUESTION TWO (15 Marks)
a) Marketing management is a process that all marketing managers need to engage in for
continued market growth. Discuss five reasons why a marketing manager would take
interest in this process. (10 Marks)
b) Highlight any five cultural factors that would affect consumer behavior. (5Marks)
QUESTION THREE (15 Marks)
Explain the following marketing philosophies:
a) Product concept (5Marks)
b) Production concepts (5Marks)
c) Selling concept (5Marks)
QUESTION FOUR (15 Marks)
a) Discuss any FIVE ways that an organization can use to develop overseas markets
(10 Marks)
b) List any 4 components in the marketing Mix. (4Marks)
