Dainik Bhaskar – Jaipur

Dainik Bhaskar, a Hindi newspaper, after achieving leadership in Madhya Pradesh, a central Indian State, is looking for growth opportunities. It is looking at the Hindi Belt and has identified Jaipur as the market to enter. Rajasthan Patrika dominates Jaipur with about 80% readership share. Dainik Bhaskar uses market research to understand and reach the readers and starts with a confirmed circulation. Within a very short time it has overhauled Rajasthan Patrika.The case addresses the issue of identifying opportunities for growth by a language newspaper. It is unique because never before had a Hindi newspaper, and for that matter any language newspaper, gone beyond its stronghold. The case is also valuable because it indicates the detail that a company needs to bring into its marketing plan when fighting a long established competitor in a "habit" based product.The case describes the process that Dainik Bhaskar adopted for analysing the potential in the identified markets and then choosing Jaipur as its target market. The innovative use of research to not only understand the readers but also lock them in for a long enough period to keep competition at bay is another aspect of the case. It is an instance where for the first time in India, a newspaper was launched with a confirmed circulation. The case is also unique in the sense that the launch was carried out without the support of the main daily, Rajasthan Patrika, as it was the main competitor. The case brings out the importance of following up a launch for sustaining leadership.The case is useful in discussing the development of marketing strategies when tackling a monopolistic situation. The case can be used in marketing classes for bringing out the issues of growth, competition, product design, research, and market identification.