1

SPECIALISATION PROJECT REPORT ON

“To study the Marketing Strategy of real estate industry with
respect to Hiranandani developer’’

Submitted in Partial Fulfilment for the Award of the Degree of

Master of Management Studies (MMS)

(Under University of Mumbai)

BATCH 2021-23

SUBMITTED BY
SANDEEP RAMESH BANDAL
ROLL NO: 211064

SPECIALISATION
MARKETING

UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF

Prof. Balashankar Sir.

PILLAI INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES AND RESEARCH,

NEW PANVEL - 410206
 2

SPECIALISATION PROJECT REPORT ON

“To study the Marketing Strategy of real estate industry with
respect to Hiranandani developer’’

Submitted in Partial Fulfilment for the Award of the Degree of

Master of Management Studies (MMS)

(Under University of Mumbai)

BATCH 2021-23

SUBMITTED BY
SANDEEP RAMESH BANDAL
ROLL NO: 211064

SPECIALISATION
MARKETING

UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF

Prof. Balashankar Sir.

PILLAI INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES AND RESEARCH,

NEW PANVEL - 410206
 3

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that this Project Report titled “To study the Marketing strategy of Real Estate
Industry with respect to Hiranandani Developers,” submitted by me to PILLAI INSTITUTE
OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES AND RESEARCH, NEW PANVEL – 410206 is a
Bonafede work undertaken by me and it is not submitted to any other University or
Institution for the award of any degree diploma or certificate or published any time before.

Name: SANDEEP RAMESH BANDAL

Roll No.: 211064

Signature of the Student

 4

PILLAI INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES AND RESEARCH,

NEW PANVEL - 410206

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that project titled “To Study the Marketing Strategy of Real Estate Industry
with respect to Hiranandani Developers” is successfully completed by Mr. Sandeep Ramesh
Bandal during the IV Semester, in partial fulfilment of the Master's Degree in Management
Studies recognized by the University of Mumbai for the academic year 2021 –
23 through PILLAI INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES AND
RESEARCH, NEW PANVEL – 410206. This project work is original and not
submitted earlier for the award of any degree / diploma or associate ship of any other University
/ Institution.

Name of Guide: Prof, Balashankar Sir.

Date: ___________________ (Signature of the Guide)

 5

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The satisfaction that accompanies the completion of any task would be incomplete without
mentioning the people who made it possible, whose consistent guidance and encouragement
crowded my efforts with success.

Firstly, I would like to thank my immense gratitude towards my institution PILLAI

INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES AND REASEARCH, which created a great
platform to attain profound management skills, thereby fulfilling most cherished goals.

I am also thankful to my guides, Prof Balashankar Sir. Whose timely guidance and persistent
encouragement helped me in completing the project successfully and making it a wonderful
learning experience.

Finally, I give immeasurable thanks to my parents and to all those who extended their support
and co-operation in bringing out this project work successfully.
 6

EXECUTIVE SUMMRY
In a generation led by millennials, technologies are becoming redundant each year. The
organisations are competing on a global scale and newer and innovative strategies are
introduced in the field of marketing to reach out to the potential buyers. Real Estate, being
one of the biggest business sectors, needs more efficiently targeted marketing campaigns as
this is a very niche and unexplored field in the Indian scenario. Real Estate projects are
highly priced products which cannot be sold efficiently without a well strategized marketing
campaign so as to reach out to the exact targeted market. Through this study, efforts have
been made to pin point the existing supply-demand problems in the cities of Chainani and
Mumbai in the affordable and HIG housing sector specifically. Also, suitable solutions for
marketing campaigns have been proposed considering the current market realities for both
cities.

Keywords: Real estate marketing, marketing strategies, Chennai real estate market, Mumbai
real estate market, real estate unsold inventories, developer branding.
 7

Index

Sr. No. Topic Page no.

1. Introduction 9-16

2. Literature Review 17-18

3. Research Methodology 19

4. Data Analysis 26-36

5. Findings 37

6. Suggestions & Recommendations 38

7. Conclusion 39

8. References 40

9. Bibliography 41
 8

ABBREVIATIONS

GDP: GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT

RERA: REAL ESTATE REGULATORY AUTHORITY
HIG: HIGH INCOME GROUP
HNI: HIGH NET WORTH INDIVIDUAL
LIG: LOW INCOME GROUP
MIG: MIDDLE INCOME GROUP
EWS: ECONOMICALLY WEAKER SECTIONS
FDI: FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENTS
MMR: MUMBAI METROPOLITAN REGION
MBT: MUMBAI BEYOND THANE
ABL: ABOVE POVERTY LINE
ROI: RETURN ON INVESTMENT
BPL: BELOW POVERTY LINE
GST: GOODS AND SERVICES TAX
VR: VIRTUAL REALTIY
MHUPA: MINISTRY OF HOUSING AND URBAN POVERTY ALLEVIATION
PI RATIO: PRICE INCOME RATIO
 9

Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION

India is the world’s sixth largest economy by nominal GDP, of which 53.77% is contributed
by the service sector alone. The biggest chunk of the service sector stays occupied by the real
estate industry including housing, retail, hospitality and commercial. The housing sector
alone contributes to 5-6% of the GDP while real estate sector cumulatively contributes to
roughly 9%. Initiatives and policies like ‘Housing for all by 2022’, ‘100 Smart cities project’,
‘Sardar Patel urban housing mission’, demonetization, RERA, etc. have significantly
influenced the growth of this sector – both positively and negatively. However, the buying
tendencies shown by the consumers did not go hand in hand with the stipulated growth of the
sector. Most of the developers are introducing new projects whilst sitting on pile of unsold
inventories. Thus, marketing and sales have a significant effect on the real estate industry
indirectly and the strategies adopted by the developers would play a major role in
determining the country’s macroeconomic health.

For companies across industries, consumer marketing, and brand management play a crucial
role in creating affinity-based brands. With well-planned, market-focused & consumer-
centric marketing strategies, brands can develop a sustainable competitive advantage.

In the real estate industry today, developers cannot hope to create the perfect product without
detailed market research and analysis to track market trends or without identifying their target
audience. They will only reach users in the right location and income segment for their
projects, with an efficient marketing and branding strategy.

Most marketers fail when they believe that the customer is already aware of their desire to
own a home. That journey truly begins when this need of owning a home is first triggered
through an undeniable proposition. Once this trigger is created, and the customer is
convinced they need a home, other impulses, such as exploring competitive offerings and
creating a consideration set, follow. At this stage, it becomes important to create a brand
salience and come across as better than the rest.

Let us look at some marketing strategies that are being used and can be built upon by realty
players in the country:

Branded property portfolio

For real estate players, having a recognizable and reputable brand plays a crucial role in
building customer confidence. If it reflects trust and creates aspiration, the brand can
influence a customer’s buying decision and their homeownership experience.

Indian developers are just beginning to realize the importance of branded realty and have
begun marketing real estate projects as ‘branded products’ and not just commodities. To do
 10

so, they need cohesive branding strategies that account for nomenclature, brand identity, and
the value proposition of a property.

With realty in India set to reach a market size of $1 trillion by 2030, developers can benefit
from creating clear brand architecture, defined along the lines of property and consumer
segments. For example, developers need residential property brands that can separately cater
to properties in the premium luxury segment and the mid-income and affordable segment.
Similarly, commercial property developers should have distinct brands that cater to the high-
end corporate office segment, high-quality IT segment, and the boutique office segment.

With such initiatives, real estate players can create brands that have loyal customer-base and
command sustainable premiums.

Consumer feedback and engagement

Maintaining direct customer contact is a powerful tool in a developer’s arsenal as it generates

a high proportion of direct sales. But the story of customer engagement should not end at the
point-of-sale. After-sale services play an equally important role for a developer’s brand. In
recent years, developers with a comprehensive customer engagement strategy have
successfully built positive word-of-mouth and a strong referral system.

An important facet of this exercise is the development of a dedicated and experienced

customer service team that can assist customers through the entire sales and after-sales
process. With it, developers provide their customers with a reliable point-of-contact for their
requirements and grievances.

Product Development

Keeping up with the pulse of the consumer during product development precedes all other
factors. New trends are emerging in architecture and design to optimize indoor space
utilization through fluid designing principles in the structural framework. Similarly, interior
fit-outs will allow the easy transformation of a space for multiple needs and functions. Co-
living and student housing — buzz words in the sector before the pandemic — now must
repurpose their offering as the recovery of the shared economy will take longer. With Work
from Home taking a semi-permanent turn, additional work-space in the house will also
become an influencing factor.

Protect is also playing a critical role in this area to empower realty players to optimally suit
their customers’ needs. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, some developers tied
up with online grocery stores and payment apps to provide customers with a platform to order
essentials from the comfort of their homes and make payments in a cashless manner.

Similarly, to cater to customers looking for various end-to-end services at one place, Protect
platforms are helping to provide multi-faceted platforms. For home-owners, these translate to
comprehensive property management platforms that can track maintenance and repair needs
of a property and also carry out once-in-a-while tasks like finding new tenants and preparing
rent agreements. Similarly, for new home buyers and renters, platforms are available to
provide a whole range of services from packers & movers and home cleaning, to even credit
financing. Such holistic services could generate significant goodwill for any real estate
developer.
 11

Digital marketing

Digital marketing is a proven strategic tool and has proven to be extremely useful for the real
estate industry. With customers spending greater time online and on their mobiles,
millennials increasingly becoming home-buyers, and COVID-19 creating social distancing
challenges, the limelight is on all things digital. As a result, realty players with efficient
online infrastructures, like an SEO-optimized website and engaging social media channels on
Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, have successfully reaped the benefits of digital
marketing.

Ideally, developers should optimize their websites for all platforms like mobiles and tablets,
and internet connectivity challenges. Advertised properties should be accompanied by high-
quality pictures and videos. Contact information and property details, including prices, should
also be easily accessible.

Most importantly, marketers should look at digital platforms as an integrated part of their
marketing communication and not as an afterthought. Adapting traditional media
communication to translate well on digital should be an integral part of the mark-com plan.

Employing new-age tech tools

The uncertainties related to the COVID-19 pandemic have propelled digitization in the real
estate industry. Potential buyers and tenants were earlier unlikely to finalize properties
without physical visits, but are now making decisions based on video-walkthroughs and
virtual meets with property owners and developers.

By offering more new-age technology like, Virtual Reality and Drone tours, and 3D images,
realty players can attract many more consumers. At the same time, using artificial
intelligence and machine learning, and by becoming data literate, the industry can highly
optimize its marketing strategy and targeting.

Personalized and customized offerings

The digitally attuned user is accustomed to a great degree of personalization in the

information they consume and the purchasing decisions they make. Realty developers should
offer a similar experience to their potential consumers by offering AI-powered search-listings
that can be customized with multiple filters and services.

Human-tech also plays a key role here. A sharp sales and customer service team will be able
to gauge and profile a customer into segments based on characteristics, using available data
on age, occupation, family details etc. This profiling helps in highlighting property benefits
more in tune with the respective customer, thereby enhancing the customer experience.

As developers in India look to amplify their brand and solidify their position in the rapidly
growing realty sector, a well-defined and customer-centric marketing strategy can make all
the difference. And as the market grows and customer behaviour change, these developers will
benefit from adapting their strategies and enhancing them with technological innovations.

The real estate industry in India is growing rapidly, thanks to the country’s booming
economy. In addition to the traditional residential and commercial segments, the industry
 12

now includes special economic zones (SEZs), integrated townships, retail malls and industrial
parks.
The residential segment is growing especially fast, as more and more people are moving to
cities in search of jobs. The demand for housing is high, and developers are responding by
building new projects and offering a variety of housing options.
The commercial segment is also expanding rapidly. Office space is in high demand, as
companies are expanding their operations in India. Retail malls are also becoming popular, as
Indian consumers are starting to enjoy the convenience of shopping in one place.
 13

NEED OF STUDY

✓ The unsold inventories in various metro cities range from 15-60%.

✓ The stipulated growth trends do not go hand in hand with the on-ground realities of the
piled-up inventories.

✓ The marketing strategies have not evolved with the digitization boom, and still the real
estate marketing techniques are conventional and financially heavy.

✓ Hence there is a need to establish the gap between the need of the consumers and the
supply from the real estate developers, and overcome it using efficient marketing strategies.

✓ Also, understand how and till what extent will the digital marketing affect the lead
generation and sales of real estate projects.
 14

Objective:

1. To study the real estate industry in Mumbai.

2. To study and analysis the Hiranandani Developers.
3. To investigate the impact of branding on the marketing strategies of real estate companies
and its effect on consumer behaviour.
4. Analysing the various demographics and understanding their effects on the real estate
market of the city.
 15

3 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

✓ The scope of the work will be limited to city Mumbai.

✓ Case studies will be studied and compared for two different sectors viz, High end
residential building projects, and affordable housing sector.

✓ The scope will be limited to planning marketing strategies and its implementation .
 16

Limitations

• Study is based on secondary data.

• The total time period available was very limited for purpose of study
• No direct measurement
• Limited time to do research
• The scope of study is narrow as respondents belonging to Navi Mumbai are only
considered for the purpose of study.
 17

Chapter 2

Literature Review

(Bakri, 2021)
In the era of Industrial Revolution 4.0, we see strong growth in real estate development due to
high demand for different types of real estate. Property developers are major players in the
economic cycle of the real estate industry. Our views on the real estate business are for future
investment purposes. However, there is also the problem of unsold goods due to the lack of
effective marketing strategies. Researchers have identified two main targets. 1) Identify
success factors for marketing strategies in the real estate business. 2) develop a conceptual
framework of marketing strategy success factors in the real estate industry; This research
paper reveals the factors that influence a successful real estate marketing strategy by
conducting a thorough literature review to identify the success factors to consider when
developing the best quality marketing strategies. (Bakri, 2021)

(allen, 2020)
The existence of real estate brokerage is generally attributed to the high transaction
costs in the real estate market. Agents are typically expected to market the seller's
property, assist in contract negotiations, and coordinate post-contract tasks
necessary to complete the transaction. Brokers can probably perform these tasks at
a lower cost than sellers. In addition to cost efficiency, brokers can also influence
market outcomes. Many researchers have wondered how broker use and how
different broker behaviours, broker characteristics, and broker/seller legal
relationships affect market outcomes in terms of price and/or time-in-market
effects. I investigated what We extend this body of research by considering the
impact of price, time-to-market, and likelihood of sale in relation to four specific
broker strategies: public open house, broker open day, MLS Virtual Tour, and
MLS Photos. The results show that there is a positive relationship between these
strategies and house prices, and variable relationships between these strategies and
probability of sale and time to market.
 18

(Ali, 2020)
This white paper provides an overview of the key issues that have arisen in
corporate real estate development (CRE) over the last two decades, specifically
how property ownership and activities support business objectives. I'm paying
attention. Topics considered included the definition of the CRE. CRE Roles,
Contributions, and Functions. A paradigm shifts in real estate from space providers
to strategic resources. Strategic management context and strategy development.

(Gao, 2018)
Since 2013, the Chinese central government has launched a series of real estate and monetary
policies aimed at fundamentally adjusting the real estate market, changing the housing
structure, curbing real estate investment and stabilizing housing prices. bottom. As a result,
negative attitudes towards the housing market appear to be prevalent and home sales are
slowing. Using both contrastive and systematic analyses, the current study focuses on the
marketing strategies adopted in the Park I commercial real estate project (hereafter referred to
as the project) in Kaila Economic Development Zone, Guizhou Province. increase. SWOT
was also used as a tool to analyse project strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

(Roulac, 2020)
An organization's real estate decisions are effective if those decisions support the company's
overall business goals. This result explicitly considers how real estate strategies support
corporate strategies and corporate component sub-strategies, and then how specific real estate
operational decisions support real estate strategies. This can only be achieved by explicitly
considering This approach provides context for negotiating competing interests and increases
the likelihood that decisions regarding specific real estate will align with the company's
overall real estate strategy, thereby supporting the achievement of the company's objectives.
 19

Chapter 3

RESERCH METHODOLOGY

Secondary Data
✓ Reports on Indian real estate by market research JLL, Knight Frank, CBRE, etc.

✓ Census data from government websites.

✓ Other related websites for theories.

✓ Previous thesis works from library.

 20

Chapter 4

COMPANY PROFILE

ABOUT HIRANADANI
Creating Better Communities

Hiranandani Group has been one of the most premium real estate developers in India with
more than 40 years of experience in this business.

Since its inception in 1978, trust of the people in Hiranandani Group has been the foundation
for our success and their unwavering faith motivates us to serve even more. Thousands of
families who have created a future with us, will testify for the value that we have added in
their lives.

We acknowledge the possibilities that the technology offers, that’s why we incorporate
technological innovations in our real estate projects and give people excellence and precision
in everything. Ultimately, providing an amazing experience to the people is our endeavour.

M I S S I O N & V I S I O N
Creating superior value for Customers, Business Associates, Society and Stake Holders
on a continuous basis.
That’s the vision that the Hiranandani Group was born with. To create integrated townships
and lifestyle patterns that provides more than just spaces to live and operate out of. Keeping
this vision very close to our heart, we have become the physical face of a new generation. We
have become the collective psyche of a vibrant India’s energy, drive and vitality. We have
become the language of new passion, of affluence, of happiness that begins with an
individual, and culminates into the wellbeing of an entire society.

With this vision minutely embedded in everything we do, we at Hiranandani take the honour
to raise a complete world that brings fulfilment to life. Be it through our flagship business of
 21

construction, or our diversity into education, healthcare, hospitality, retail and entertainment,
Hiranandani will continue creating a better experience in every aspect of life. We will
continue to be a brand that people trust, the brand of commitment, care and faith. The brand
of healing, of good health and the best of education. The brand Hiranandani.

OUR VISIONARIES

Dr. Niranjan Hiranandani

Co-founder & MD

Dr. Niranjan Hiranandani is a Co-Founder and Managing Director, Hiranandani Group of

Companies. He also heads a distinct Business Unit Hiranandani Communities
Dr. Hiranandani, is the son of the Padma Bhushan honoured ENT specialist Dr. L H
Hiranandani. He completed his schooling from Campion School, Mumbai and graduated with
a Bachelor of Commerce Degree (Hons.) with a distinction of standing Second in Mumbai
University. Adding to his professional qualification, he completed his C.A. and his Doctorate
in Philosophy – “Housing Revolution in India Challenges and Prospects”.
He is known as “Builder Extraordinaire‟ and as the Man responsible for changing the skyline
of Mumbai with the delivery of landmark project “Hiranandani Gardens” Powai. The
Hiranandani Group pioneered the concept of developing mixed-used integrated townships
model with vibrant community living its reason of existence.
 22

Surendra Hiranandani
Co-founder & MD

Mr. Surendra Hiranandani is the Founder & Director of the Hiranandani Group of Companies,
a leader in quality constructions and real estate development. He has more than 35 years of
work experience in the constructions industry and is the technical and architectural genius
behind the Company’s outstanding reputation for quality and innovation. His projects display
and ability to transform barren land into some of India’s most vibrant property developments.
His team has pioneered developments in India’s housing industry that bring it at par with
international standards. His constructions are benchmarked with the best international codes
and have brought the level of housing and commercial industry in India up to an international
paradigm not only at the building level, but also at the community and infrastructure level.

• Challenge
The Hiranandani Group has been providing the best-in-class amenities in their project.
Being concerned with growing numbers of fires attributed to electrical accidents the
group was looking for solutions that can give their residence the highest level of
protection from electrical fires

• Results
POWER easy has assisted the Hiranandani Group to avoid asset loss and prevent
electrical fires. In three separate diagnoses starting from the time of commissioning
where it assisted the installation team to identify an open neutral wire within 3 month
of operation it also helped identify a damaged wire and an overheated wire
 23

• The Benefits
POWER easy assisted the electrical team to identify loose neutral wire condition early
enough to avoid asset loss, Arc fault condition, due to cable insulation peeled off,
early enough to avoid electrical fire and high voltage early enough to avoid electrical
fire.
POWER easy pre diagnosis the highest in class fire prevention.
Being a reputed name in the real estate builders, POWER easy has helped resolve
electrical problems and make living spaces safe and sound than ever before.

Hiranandani Developers’ strategy for social media marketing

The company collaborated with Amura Marketing Technologies and built a massive
campaign in the real estate sector. The campaign utilized Facebook and Instagram by
hyperlocal targeting within the geographical area and paid all attention to the brand updates
and interactive posts apart from the contest updates for ensuring maximum engagement. The
campaign was based on two hashtags #CarnivalOfLights and #DiwaliHiranandani for driving
the target audience participation. The team merged both the hashtags keeping the brand and
festivity in mind. Hiranandani Developers had invited all their residents to come together
under one roof for celebrating Diwali and insisted them on sharing their moments on social
media. The real estate brand conducted a digital photography competition luring them with
Starbucks voucher. A video was released by the brand briefly outlining the entire campaign.
The video presented the entire property of Hiranandani Developers and the varied amenities
its offers residents.

The Success: 7,46,282 users with 81,297 actions o Facebook and 51,277 users
with 3799 actions on Instagram

#CarnivalofLights and #DiwaliatHiranandani hashtags proved to be quite engaging and lead

to overall increase in number of participants on social media pages of Hiranandani. On
Facebook, the campaign reached 7,46,282 users with 81,297 actions while on Instagram is
managed to reach 51,277 users with 3799 actions. Precisely, the brand received a massive
total engagement with 4.5k number of likes increased 41.36k users were talking about it.
 24

House Of Hiranandani drives experiential marketing

campaign to connect with consumers

(HOH), a luxury real estate brand recently staged “Photo walk", a photography contest at its
OMR, Chennai property, which spans across 120 acres and houses over 2000 families. This
campaign was an effort to connect and encourage Millennials and Gen Z photographers to
capture the township's beauty, aiming to provide them a platform to showcase their abilities
and creativity by drawing inspiration from a varied mix of objects within the township. - The
#PhotowalkatOMR campaign was timed to coincide with the opening of the new
#HomesOfInspiration projects Octavius & Verona at OMR, Chennai.

Over 100+ photography enthusiasts visited the township to draw inspiration from the brand's
neo-classical architecture, greenery, landscapes and open spaces and capture it through their
lenses. Social platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp were used to share the
content captured by the photographers. On the platform, the brand received a massive reach of
15,74,000+ impressions and 9,00,000 + views on the videos. Photo walk was a huge success,
with over 250 pieces of rich media content, including pictures, reels, and films, displaying
concept photography.

Winners of the photo walk campaign received a GoPro Hero 9 camera, a DJI Oso action
camera, and surprise coupons. Ramya Sriram, who was awarded the first prize, said “I am
grateful to the House of Hiranandani group for allowing us to exhibit our skills by participating
in the contest. It helped us connect with the brand and offered us a glimpse into its history and
architectural style. I look forward to engaging with the brand for more fruitful experiences.”

The push marketing method, in which content was extensively promoted through traditional
advertising media, is on its ways out. Brands are now using a pull strategy which includes the
User Generated Content (UGC), in which users are encouraged to narrate their experiences
with the product in an engaging way, thus indirectly and positively impacting the minds of
potential customers. Real experiences from genuine customers also help in building trust and
helps customers make sound buying decisions.

Despite its broad use in other industries, user generated content is currently less popular in the
real estate industry. However, its significance is the most in this sector as property buying
involves huge capital and is a time-consuming process. The time between a customer is
introduced to the brand to the final buying decision may range between one month to three
months. A user-generated content in real estate not only helps buyers make a uniformed
property buying decision, but also develops trust towards the brand and the product.

As a brand that leads in innovation, we've been pushing our campaigns with user-generated
content. Photo walk is the most recent in a long line of user-generated content campaigns that
have not only allowed us to communicate with current and potential customers, but have also
helped us strategically establish a positive brand image.
 25

Commenting on the success of the campaign, Prashin Jhobalia, Vice President, Marketing
Strategy at House of Hiranandani, said, “Today, brands are evolving with the changing
generational shift and are focused on creating unique and experiential campaigns to
communicate with the end consumers. With the rise of user-generated content, we are
constantly adapting to the new-age marketing strategies and focusing on millennials as they
can offer long-term value to the brand. We, at the House of Hiranandani, are known for our
picturesque architectural designs and are synonymous with photography. We are happy to see
that the ‘Photo walk’ contest received such a positive and encouraging response.”

Among the past campaigns includes the Christmas tree campaign in which a Christmas tree
was created out of plastic bottles crowd-sourced from residents. Kite flying festival, lighting
festival are some other examples of user-generated content campaigns that have helped us
bridge the gap between us and the potential customers.
 26

Chapter 5

Data Analysis

Real Estate Market of India

Real Estate industry is one of the most prominent service sector industries in India. Along
with accredited as being fast growing, it is also the 4th largest sector in terms of Foreign
Direct Investment (FDI) inflows. The FDI sector stood at US$ 24.66 billion from April 2000
to September 2017. India has witnessed rapid urbanisation in the last decade, as a result of
which, it is projected that about 600 million people will be living in urban areas by 2031. By
2028, India’s real estate market size is expected to increase by 7 times. The Indian real estate
market is expected to touch US$ 180 billion by 2020. The housing sector alone contributes 5-
6 per cent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In India, real estate is the second
largest employer after agriculture and is slated to grow at 30 per cent over the next decade.
Also, India’s rank in the Global House Price Index has jumped 13* spots to reach the ninth
position among 55 international markets, on the back of increasing prices in mainstream
residential sector. Also, the real estate is a $150 Bn industry, which has a significant effect on
the nation’s GDP. Marketing and sales have a significant effect on the real estate industry and
the strategies adopted by the developers play a vital role in deciding the country’s economic
health.
 27

The unsold inventory in various metro cities range anywhere between 15-60%. The current
realities don’t go hand in hand with the stipulated growth of the industry, hence marketing the
product would play a very significant role in the near future. Also, marketing has been a
niche and unexplored field when it comes to real estate. This calls for a need to dwell deeper
into the marketing aspects of the industry.

Marketing – Real Estate’s Perspective

Marketing, as defined by the American Marketing Association, is “the activity, set of
institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings
that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large”. In simpler words, it is
anything and everything that introduces a product in a market.
In general, the marketing process includes correlation of 4 basic elements, also known as the
4 P’s of marketing: I. Identification, selection, and development of a PRODUCT. II.
Determination of its PRICE. III. Selection of a distribution channel to reach the customer’s
PLACE, & IV. Development and implementation of a PROMOTIONAL STRATEGY.
 28

The Real Estate Market System

Parameters THE GENERAL ECONOMY

Objectives, Criteria REAL ESTATE MARKET

THE COMPANY
Constraint

Decision Variable

The above figure explains the real estate system very aptly. The general economy of the
country defines its real estate market realities. The economic parameters coupled with the real
estate market lay the foundation for the objectives and project criteria of the developer. The
economic factors along with the market serve as constraints, which further define the
decisions made by the company. The approach to marketing starts with quantifying and
understanding the need of consumers considering the constraints and economic parameters.

What is a Marketing Strategy?

It’s often said in the world of marketing that to sell a product, one must cater to a need or
create one. However, this does not stand true for real estate product. Here, the need defines
the supply and not vice versa and hence it is very important to study the micro and macro
factors affecting the needs of the consumers and catering to the on-going trend instead of
developing residential units that are not demanded by the consumers. Failing to do this leads
to increasing levels of unsold inventories which are a threat to most of the developers in
metropolitan cities as of today.
 29

NEED SUPPLY

CUSTOMER MARKETING STRATEGY DEVLOPER

Case: Mumbai
Mumbai is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in
India with an estimated city proper population of 12.4 million as of 2011. Along with the
neighbouring regions of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, it is second most populous
metropolitan area in India, with a population of 21.3 million as of 2016. Mumbai is the
financial, commercial and entertainment capital of India. It is also one of the world's top ten
centres of commerce in terms of global financial flow, generating 6.16% of India's GDP and
accounting for 25% of industrial output, 70% of maritime trade in, and 70% of capital
transactions to India's economy. For the research purpose, the Mumbai area under
consideration is MMR (Mumbai Metropolitan Region) which includes Mumbai district,
suburban district, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Palghar, Raighar, and other towns and
municipalities.

YEAR POPULATION

1871 644,605

1911 1,018,388

1941 1,686,127

1961 4,152,056

2011 18,410,000

2021 28,600,000

TOTAL no. of House Holds: 20,94,171

Total Population: 2,13,00,000

 30

population

1871 1911 1941 1961 2011 2021

Mumbai, in all aspects of business and migration has surpassed any other city of India.
Hence, the reality here is very much similar to that of Chennai, but the only difference being
that the magnitude of the spread is large because of the multi-fold increment in the population
as compared to that of Chennai.
This statistic represents the distribution of annual household income across the city of
Mumbai in India in 2015. Eight percent of Mumbai households had an annual income of less
than 75,000 rupees during the measured time period. As per the statistics, nearly 30% falls
under LIG category and about 27% earn more than 10 lac rupees a year.

3 Establishing the target market A target market is defined as a group of consumers at which
a product or service is aimed. Target Marketing involves breaking a market into segments
and then concentrating your marketing efforts on one or a few key segments consisting of the
customers whose needs and desires most closely match your product or service offerings. The
market segmentation can be done in the following ways:
• Demographic Segmentation: Gender, age, income, education, race, etc.
• Geographic Segmentation: Area, city, province, country, etc.
• Psychographic Segmentation: Socio-economic classes. Here, we will establish our target
market in terms of income group, using the data and charts from section 2.4.1 and section
2.4.2.
The marked areas in the charts define our target market. The population increase, coupled
with increase in real poverty will increase the spread of the area in the first chart. This will
create a bigger market over the next 5-7 years.
 31

70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
HIG MIG 30

demand supply Column1

It can be clearly seen that the demand in HIG and MIG segment is 52% of the total demand
for housing in the market while supply is 98% thus adding to the inventory level. The total
demand for LIG housing is 48% of the total demand across segments, but new inventory
added in this segment constitutes only 2% of the total new inventory added. Therefore,
despite shortage and large pent up demand in LIG segment, the inventory levels may would
remain stagnant and increase as more LIG houses are added to meet the demand in the
segment.

Customers v/s Influencers

In simple words, customers are defined as those people who buy the product. On the other
hand, influencers are those who do not themselves buy the product however, influence the
decision making of the customers and play an indirect role in the whole process. Given below
are the population pyramids for both- Ahmedabad and Mumbai.
The customers of real estate products, i.e., residential units are always the earning members
of the family. This makes them the customers. Now, the average age of a person buying a
house falls in the range of 35-60 years. However, the influencers are the younger members of
the family (indirectly). Hence, it is much more important to attract the needs of this age group
and target them specifically in order to generate more leads and sales. As per the data,
majority of the chunk is formed by the younger age groups, which creates the need to place
and promote the product on channels where this group can be targeted.

Methodology of Data Collection

In order to understand the process in a chronological order, the methodology is adopted by
studying the need first, and then dwelling into the supply for each of the markets under the
scope of research. The following schematic diagram represents the methodology of the data
collection.
 32

NEED SUPPLY

CUSTOMER MARKETING STRATEGY DEVLOPER

DATA SET 1 COMPARISON DATA SET2

Using the established comparison, the analysis is used to propose an efficient marketing
campaign including proposition of locations for new developments and pricing of the units.

DATA SET 1 COMPARISON DATA SET2

What are the current

demand -supply
realities

What the company

should do?

How can the

government intervene ?

Further innovation In
the sector
 33

Case Studies
The scope of the research includes two cities:
Ahmedabad and Mumbai under which affordable housing and HIG/HNI housing sector are
studied. Following were the attributes for selection of case studies:
• Experience in the sector
• Brand establishment in the city
• Having on-going projects

Analysis of marketing strategies adopted in Ahmedabad and Mumbai:

✓ The promotions are widely done through newspaper ads and bill board advertisings in both
cities. The focus has been to reach out to common crowd in vernacular languages.

✓ Majority of the leads are generated only through walk-ins at the site office in both cities.

✓ Second main marketing channel is observed to be radio advertisings.

✓ Digital marketing hasn’t been explored to its full extent in Ahmedabad as compared to
Mumbai where the ratio of Offline to Digital marketing expenditure is around 70-30. In case
of Ahmedabad, the developers still believe in offline modes and tend to capitalise on this
channel.

✓ On an average, the marketing cost for this sector in case of Ahmedabad is found out to be
2%. However, in Mumbai, the same goes up to 4-5%.

HIG/HNI Housing Sector – Analysis

According to real estate articles, the average age of a home buyer in 2007, was 39. However,
changing demographics in income levels and stable real estate prices, have brought down the
average age of first time home buyers to 27 in 2012-13.
Currently, it is estimated that the age bracket of 25-30 is the new average in this area.
Considering that a real estate project, if proposed today and implement hereafter, will take at
least 3- 4 years for completion.
Therefore, the target market would currently be in the age bracket of 22-27.
 34

Consumer profiling and preferences – Chennai

✓ 71% of the respondents belong to the consumer category. (Median Age = 23, and Avg
Age of respondents = 24.10).

✓ 85% of the respondents have a family size between 3-5. And only 1 or at the most 2
earning members are there in the family.

✓ Majority of respondents have gross total household income b/w Rs 5-10 lacs per annum
(37%) and Rs 10-20 lacs per annum (33%).

✓ Most respondents 48% want a 3 BHK unit that is recently completed or under construction.

✓ Maximum preference given to reasonable price, and a developing/developed locality and

on connecting roads over main roads (83%).

Amenities needed:
• 24x7 security
• Parking for 1 car
 35

• Elevators
• Power Backup
• Common area
• Children’s Park

Comparison with the Supply

The developers selected for case studies have mainly floated projects in developed and posh
areas mainly to cater to the HIG/HNI sector.
The standard amenities are provided and maintained.
These units are less in supply and demand is already existing in HNI sector; hence they get
absorbed very easily (3/4 BHK).

Consumer profiling and preferences - Mumbai

Majority of the respondents belong to the consumer category. (Median Age = 28, and Ang
Age of respondents = 33.2). 66% of the respondents have a family size between 3-5. And
only 1 or at the most 2 earning members are there in the family. Majority of respondents have
gross total household income b/w Rs 10-30 lacs per annum (50%). Most respondents 80%
want a 2/3 BHK unit that is recently completed or under construction. Maximum preference
given to reasonable price, and distance from work with project constructed on connecting
roads over main roads (50%).

Amenities needed:
• 24x7 security
• Elevators
• Power Backup
• Children’s Park

Comparison with the Supply

All the areas under consideration are very close to major business districts. Hence, the main
criteria of distance to work is satisfied in case of all these areas. There are unsold inventories
in this sector even if the configuration of units are as per the demand, but, the exorbitant
prices in these areas have led to an average 20-25% unsold inventories.
 36

Proposition of Marketing Campaign

The marketing campaign proposed considers the marketing funnel attributes, namely:

✓ Awareness – Reaching out to consumer

✓ Consideration – Passing out relevant information to facilitate decision making

✓ Conversion – Converting the lead into a customer

AWARENESS:
Looking at current realities, the major marketing shift needed is in the HIG sector. This is
because the EWS/LIG sector has enough demand which makes them readily absorbed in the
market.
However, in case of HIG sector there is high competition due to more supply and less
demand.
The users are more active on digital platforms.
Hence for advertising, a 60-40 ratio to be maintained for Offline and Digital advertising. Out
of the 60%, 40% will go towards newspaper and radio advertising and 20% for billboards.
Digital platforms to be utilised:

✓ Search Engine Optimization

✓ Google Ads

✓ Social media advertising

✓ Real estate blogs for brand building in the city (community value branding)
 37

Chapter 6

Finding:
Mumbai is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in
India with an estimated city proper population of 12.4 million as of 2011. Along with the
neighbouring regions of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, it is second most populous
metropolitan area in India, with a population of 21.3 million as of 2016. Mumbai is the
financial, commercial and entertainment capital of India. It is also one of the world's top ten
centres of commerce in terms of global financial flow, generating 6.16% of India's GDP and
accounting for 25% of industrial output, 70% of maritime trade in, and 70% of capital
transactions to India's economy. For the research purpose, the Mumbai area under
consideration is MMR (Mumbai Metropolitan Region) which includes Mumbai district,
suburban district, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Palghar, Raigad, and other towns and municipalities.
Hiranandani Group was born with to create integrated townships and lifestyle patterns that
provides more than just spaces to live and operate out of. Keeping this vision very close to
our heart, we have become the physical face of a new generation. We have become the
collective psyche of a vibrant India’s energy, drive and vitality. We have become the
language of new passion, of affluence, of happiness that begins with an individual, and
culminates into the wellbeing of an entire society.
 38

Recommendations:
This is the most important step in the marketing funnel, as the decision making happens
during this part. Hence, one needs to make proper use of technology to deliver the relevant
and useful information. The traditional practices include site visit, and meetings with the
company personnel and then understanding the cost structure and procedure. However, with
proper and well planned technological aids, we can make sure that the consumer gets the
same information at his desk including the needed views beforehand.

✓ Making a VR/360 view friendly website.

✓ Online scheduling of meeting, and site visits.

✓ Financial details (sell quotes and breakup) to be made available online.

✓ Ensuring proper transparency in terms of area details.

This significantly increases the chances of conversion when the person comes for the meeting
with company personnel.
 39

Conclusion:
As per the analysis, in the HIG sector, the developers are targeting the right people however
the realities differ in terms of inventory holdings. Developers do not have any major piled up
inventories. The problem lies in the apparent bubble created because of lack of end users in
market and bulk holdings by investors. In case of affordable housing segment, government in
Ahmedabad needs to rethink its policy not in terms of incentives to buyers and developers but
in terms of development of commercial hubs so that the affordable zones can really become
affordable. This brings in not only the economical and financial aspects of affordability but
also social aspects. The marketing strategies are apt for the local realities, however more
technological inputs can multiply the results multi-fold. The campaigns now need to be
designed for the upcoming generation of consumers. Developers in Mumbai have stated
opting digital marketing, however Ahmedabad still is in its budding stage.
 40

REFERENCES
✓ Government census data.

✓ ‘More but Different Government for Slum Free and Livable Cities’ policy research paper
by The World Bank Sustainable Development Network Finance Economics and Urban
Department

✓ Marketing strategy for real estate developers in Ahmedabad [B TH-0681 MIS]

✓ Factors affecting real estate development in certain pockets of Ahmedabad [B TH-0707

SHA]

✓ Real estate reports by JLL, Cushman and Wakefield, Knight Frank.

✓ American Marketing Association website.

✓ Investopedia.

✓ [Link]
[Link]

✓ [Link]
average-age-of-home-buyers-in-India/DNBAN74622
 41

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