A Study on Consumer Behaviour Towards Soft Drinks

STUDY OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR TOWARDS SOFT DRINKS

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PROJECT REPORT ON STUDY OF CONSUMER BEHAVOIUR TOWARDS SOFT DRINKS

SUBMITTED BY PRADNYA SHETTY M.Com Part II- Semester IV 2014-15

PROJECT GUIDE Prof. PRASHANT SHINDE

SUBMITTED TO UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI

BUNTS SANGHA MUMBAI ANNA LEELA COLLEGE OF COMMERCE & ECONOMICS SHOBHA JAYARAM SHETTY COLLEGE FOR B.M.S Shashi Manmohan Shetty Higher Education Complex, Buntara Bhavana Marg, Kurla (East), Mumbai 400 070

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BUNTS SANGHA MUMBAI ANNA LEELA COLLEGE OF COMMERCE &ECONOMICS SHOBHA JAYARAM SHETTY COLLEGE FOR B.M.S SHASHI MANMOHAN SHETTY HIGHER EDUCATION COMPLEX,

This is to certify that Miss. PRADNYA SHETTY of M.Com Part II Semester IV, has undertaken & completed the project work titled A STUDY OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR TOWARDS SOFT DRINKS during the academic year 2014-15 under the guidance of Prof. Prashant Shinde submitted to this college in fulfilment of the curriculum of Master of Commerce, University of Mumbai.

This is a bonafide project work & the information presented is true & original to the best of our knowledge and belief.

PROJECT GUIDE

COURSE PRINCIPAL

EXTERNAL

CO-ORDINATOR

EXAMINER

DECLARATION I, Mrs.PRADNYA SHETTY of Anna Leela College Of Commerce & Economics, Shobha Jayaram Shetty College For B.M.S, M.Com Part II Semester IV, hereby

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declare that I have completed the project on Study of Consumer Behaviour towards Nestle and Cadbury Chocolate in academic year 2014-15. The information submitted is true and original to the best of my knowledge.

Signature of the Student

[PRADNYA SHETTY]

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

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I hereby acknowledge all those who directly or indirectly helped me to draft the project report. It would not have been possible for me to complete the task without their help and guidance

First of all I would like to thank the principal, Dr. K.S. Cheema and the coordinator Prof. Prashant Shinde, who gave me the opportunity to do this project work. They also conveyed the important instructions from the university from time to time.

Last but not the least; I am thankful to the University of Mumbai for offering the project in the syllabus. I must mention my hearty gratitude towards my family, other faculties and friends who supported me to go ahead with the project.

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CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY

1.1 NEED FOR THE STUDY 1.2 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY 1.3 MEYHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY 1.4 SCOPE OF THE STUDY 1.5 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

1.1 NEED FOR THE STUDY

With the economic liberalization in India a number of global companies have been coming forward to invest in India and tapping perhaps and world's biggest growing market. As the floodgates have been opened up for Multinational Companies, the global giant Coca-cola also decided to make an entry into the Indian market. In India, the per capita consumption of soft drinks is at rock bottom level even less than our neighbouring countries Pakistan and Bangladesh, where it is four times as much. The last summer was particularly sweltering one, with temperatures hitting the high 40's in some places yet; bottles were disappearing from shelves faster than they could be replaced. In the peak season, they found themselves short of capacity and having to turn around their trucks faster and faster to slake the greater Indian thirst. With growth rates zooming into the double digits, bottlers have been propelled into expanding capacities. With their big-time plans, the multinationals have changed the face of this business, long dominated by small-

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time businessmen. If demand continues to increase annually at an average of 20 percent, then volumes could reach one billion cases within ten years.

These arc ambitious targets and to reach them the cola makers will have to build capacity, infrastructure, make their bottlers more available and more affordable. There are 5. 00,000 retailers stocking soft drinks in India. Also, soft drinks which retail at anywhere between Rs.9.00 and Rs.12.00 are expensive when measured against purchasing power. As they concoct their strategies, keeping an eye on each other all the time, ultimately there's only one guy they have to watch out for, who will determine their fortunes: the consumer. The real race to quench his thirst has just begun.

1.2 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

This project is based on study consumer behaviour towards Soft drinks. Objectives of the study are:  The objective is to know about the customer satisfaction level associated with the product and the customer preference level.  To increase customer satisfaction and recapture the market share by fulfilling the customer needs.  To study the factors affecting the consumption pattern.  To study about the consumer preference with regard to soft drink

1.3 METHODOLOGY OF DATA COLLECTION 6


The data, which is collected for the purpose of study, is divided into two bases: Primary Source: The Primary data comprises information survey of “Study of Consumer Behaviour towards Nestle and Cadbury Chocolates”. The data has been collected directly from respondent with the help of structured questionnaires. Secondary Source: The Secondary data was collected from Internet References. Data Analysis: The data is analysed on the basis of suitable tables by using mathematical techniques. The technique that I have used is bar technique.

1.4 SCOPE OF THE STUDY 7


The new economic policies of the Govt. of India adopted in the mid eighties were given further impetus by the early nineties. The Indian market has undergone considerable changed as a direct consequence of many of these policies and soft drink industry is no exception to this. Keeping the above - mentioned perspective in the background, the researcher has selected soft drink market, since the marketing task his became more challenging and intensive competition has opened up new vistas. Companies are evolving marketing strategies by studying the demands of the market place increasingly penetrating into appropriate market segments introducing differentiated products to improve their market share. The soft drink market has achieved an accelerated growth in the past decade. Soft drinks include all types of non - alcohol carbonated flavoured or otherwise sweetened beverages. The entry of Pepsi and the re-entry of Coca - Cola in the India market arc inevitably facing stiff competition but the ultimate winner is customer/consumer. This has led the researcher to study me perception of consumers towards different brands of soft drinks and to gauge out the promotional strategic being adopted by the marketers to lure promiscuous buyers and win a larger share in the markets. The cola wars are intensifying and bringing manifold changes in the soft drink industry. The researcher has conducted a detailed survey, interpreting the responses to study the perception of the consumers. Now the people with changing life styles and increase in income levels have made the soft drink a common man drink. Liven through the existing system of marketing of soft drink has not tapped such a big market in the interiors of the country specially the rural areas, as marketing in the suburban and rural areas is developing slowly. Despite the soft drink industry is growing at a very healthy pace and stands at 18% per annum. The market for cool drinks comprises of adults in the 35 years age group who are largest consumers of the soft drink in the country followed by young adults in the age group of 15-25 years and children in the age group of 6- 14 years hence, companies must develop their product and marketing strategies to suit their needs.

1.5 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY 8


In attempt to make this project authentic and reliable, every possible aspect of the topic was kept in mind. Nevertheless, despite of fact constraints were at play during the formulation of this project. The main limitations are as follows:  Due to limitation of time only few people were selected for the study. So the sample of consumers was not enough to generalize the findings of the study.  The main source of data for the study was primary data with the help of self-administered questionnaires. Hence, the chances of unbiased information are less.  People were hesitant to disclose the true facts.  The chance of biased response can’t be eliminated though all necessary steps were taken to avoid the same.

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CHAPTER 2 INTRODUCTION TO COMPANY PROFILE AND COCA-COLA 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5

INDUSTRY PROFILE SOFT DRINK INDUSTRY IN INDIA HISTORY OF COCA-COLA COCA COLA IN INDIA MARKET MISSION ,VISSION AND OBJECTIVE OF COCA-COLA

2.1 INDUSTRY PROFILE

Soft drinks are typical and necessary consumer products, which are generally consumed by the individuals to quench the thirst and for a good flavour, and it is considered to be the symbol of social status. The two main reasons, which classify the soft drinks under consumer products, are their easy availability and their reasonable high degree standardization. Among the listed consumer goods (i.e., perishable items) soft drinks is considered non-essential and as a luxury item. Soft drinks can be classified into two broad categories- carbonated drinks and non-carbonated drinks. Both have enormous market. In case of carbonated beverages the effectiveness of carbon-dioxide is the main factor in determining the quality. Cola, lemon and orange are carbonated drinks while mango drinks come under non-carbonated category. A prolonged visible and sparking effervescence is sought after to produce soda taste in such drinks. The basic constituents of soft drinks are water, sweeteners, acidulates, flavourings, colourings, foaming agents and preservatives. The soft drink market is dominated by a few brands. Coca Cola and Pepsi products for example.

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Soft drink industry in India has witnessed phenomenal growth in the recent past, particularly after the exit of Coca-Cola. The exit of Coca-Cola from India during the late seventies gave a bolter scope to several Indian soft drink companies to grow. These were a rapid growth in this industry but each one aggressively competed with one another to capture a major share in the market. The competition was very high even in terms of advertising. The perishable items like soft drinks need a lot of advertisement, as they are not necessary for the consumer. Most of the consumer consume just for fun & refreshment purpose and not and for any other special reason. For that reason the soft drink marketers concentrate more on the advertisement part and they keep on designing new advertisements, which conquer the heart of the consumer. They take special care in casting the popular figures. These soft drink markets also include some offers like tours to someplace and so on. These soft drink companies will sponsor for many of the sport events in order to have good edge over the competitor as per as the publicity is considered.

2.2 SOFT DRINK INDUSTRY IN INDIA The entry of carbonated soil drink into the Indian soil is relatively new. The credit for introducing branded soil drink goes to pure drinks private Ltd, Delhi. Later this company became the franchised bottler of Coca - Cola export corporation. Accordingly, in 1950, Coca - Cola made its first debut in the Indian market. This is the story about the origin of soft drinks in India. After Coca — Cola, Pepsi entered into the market. The exit of Pepsi made coke the undisputed leader in the soft drinks market. This company too was forced to leave India due to its non compliance with the rules and regulations of the Government in 1977. The exit of coke becomes a boom to national manufactures and all the players started increasing their business. Among the many national players like pure drinks Me Dowels, Modem foods, Spencer's and parley, Parle emerged as the leader in the Indian soft drink market. It is believed that by the end of 1989. Parle captured more than 75% of the national soft drink market. In 1990. Pepsi re entered India and started making more noise in the market. All the same, it grabbed considerable market share from parley. Besides this. Coke also re entered India after 16 years of exile, fearing that, it cannot cling to its market leadership. Parle sold itself to Coca Cola for $40 Million November, 1993. By buying over local competition the two American Cola giant share cleared up the arena and are packing all their power behind building the Indian franchise of their global girdling brands. If Pepsi 11


invests Rs. 300 core, Coke will be investing more than that and vice versa. The total investment is of a size and scale that the Rs. 3048 cork soft drink businesses have never seen before. Both players see enormous potential in this country. Where swigging a carbonated beverage is still considered a treat virtually a luxury. Consequently by world standards India's per capita consumption of three servings is rock bottom less even than over neighbours Pakistan and Bangladesh. Where is four times as much so, the cola giants feel that per caps can only go up and up. As incomes improve so do life styles a pattern they have seen in many of the 195 countries they sell their universal products.

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HISTORY OF COCA-COLA

ATLANTA BEGINNINGS (1868 - 1892): It was 1886 in NEW YORK harbor, workers are constructing the statue of the liberty. 800 miles away another great symbol was about to be unveiled. Like many people who change the history, JOHAN PEMBHRTON, a civil war veteran & Atlanta pharmacist, was inspired by simple curiosity. He loved tinkering with medicinal formulas, and one afternoon, searching for a quick cure for headaches, his stipend up a fragrant Carmel coloured liquid in a three legged pot. When it was done, he carried it a few doors down to Jacob's pharmacy. I Icrc. the mixture was combined with carbonated water and sampled by customers who all agreed this new drink was something special. So Jacob's pharmacy put it on sale for five cents a glass. PEMBERTON'S book keeper FRANK ROBINSON named the mixture COCA - COLA and wrote it out in his distinct script. To this day, COCA - COLA is written in the, same way. In this first year the company sold about 9 glasses of coca

cola a day. A century later the coca-cola company

has produced over ten billion gallons of syrup. Unfortunately for Pemberton, he was more of an inventor than a businessman and had no idea that the had invented one of the greatest products of the world. Over the course of 3 years 1881 - 1891. Pemberton sold the company to Atlanta businessman Asa Griggs Candlcr for the total of about $ 2300. Candler would become the company's first president and the first to bring real vision to the business and the brand.

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BEYOND A TLANTA (1893 - 1904) : As a Candler, a natural born salesman transformed Coca

Cola from invention to a business. Lie knew there

were thirsty people out there and Candler found brilliant and innovative ways to introduce them to this exciting new refreshment. He gave away coupons for complimentary first tastes of Coca — Cola brand. People saw coca - Cola everywhere and the aggressive promotion worked. By 1895, Candler had built syrup plants in Chicago, Dallas and Los Angeles. Inevitably, the soda's popularity led to a demand for it to be enjoyed in new ways. In 1894. a Mississippi businessman named Joseph Bernhard became the first to put the drink in bottles. He sent of them to Candler, who responded without enthusiasm. Despite being a brilliant and innovative businessman, he didn't realize then that the heart of Coca- Cola would be with portable, bottled beverage customers could take anywhere. He still didn't realize it five years later when in 1899, two Chattanooga lawyers, Benjamin. Thomas and Joseph b. Whitehead secured exclusive rights from him to bottle and sell the beverage for the sum of one dollar. SAFEGAURD1NG THEBKANOfl905-1918) : Imitation may be the sincerest of flattery, but the Coca - Cola Company was none too pleased about the proliferation of copycat beverages taking the advantage of its success. This was great brand. Both needed to be protected. Advertising focused on the authenticity of Coca - Cola, urging can summers to "demand the genuine'' and "accept no substitute". The company also created a distinct bottle shape to assure people they were actually getting a real Coca -Cola. In 1916, the Root glass company of Treat, Indiana began manufacturing the famous contour bottle. The counter bottle for its attractive appearance, original design and the fact that, even in the drink, you could identify the genuine article. As the country roared into the new century, the Coca

Cola Company grew rapidly moving into Cuba. Puerto

Rico, France and other countries. In 1900 there were two bottles of Coca

Cola, by 1920, there would be

about 1000. THE WOODRUFF LEGACY: Perhaps no person has more impact on the Coca - Cola company the Robert Woodruff In 1923, five years after his father Ernest purchased the company from Asa Candler, Woodruff become the company president. While Candler had introduced the U.S. Coca - Cola, he would nearly spend 60 years as company leader introducing the beverage to the world beyond. Woodruff was marketing genius who saw opportunities for expansion every where the captivated foreign markets with his innovative campaigns. Coca Cola traveled with the U.S. team to the 1928 Amsterdam 13


Olympics to the logo was emblazed on racing dog sleds in Canada & the walls of bull fighting arenas in Spain. He pushed development & distribution of the six-pack, the open top cooler and all innovations that made it easier for people to drink Coca

Cola. When it became clear to the company that housewives would

be more inclined top buy six-packs they could open easily at home, women were sent door to door, installing branded Coca

Cola openers, this is exactly the kind of "out side the box'" thinking that thrived under

Woodruffs leadership and it made Coca Cola not just a huge success, but a big party of people's lives. THE WAR & ITS LEGACY: In 1941 America entered into World War II thousands of men & women were sent overseas. The country & Coca - Cola rallied behind them. Woodruff ordered that every man in uniform gets a bottle of Coca - Cola for 5 cents, wherever he is, whatever it cost the company 1943, General Dwight D.Eisenhower sent urgent cablegram to Coca - Cola requesting shipment of materials for 10 bottling plant. During the war many Europeans enjoyed their first taste of beverage and when peace finally came, Coca - Cola be placed within ''arm's reach desire'", was coming true from the rnidf-40's until 1960, the number of countries with bottling operations nearly doubled. Post war America alive with optimism & prosperity. Coca - Cola was a part of fun, carefree America lifestyle & the imagery of its advantage happy couples at the drive in, carefree moms driving are yellow convertibles

is a wonderful reflection of the spirit of the limes.

A WORLD Or CUSTOMERS (1960- 1981): After 75 years of amazing success with brand Coca - Cola, the company decided to expand with new flavors sprite in 1961, TAB in 1963 and Fresco in 1966. The company's presence worldwide was growing rapidly year after year, Coca

Cola found a home in more & more places. Cambodia, Montserrat, Puce,

Turkey &. more advertising for Coca - Cola always an important & exciting part of its business really came into its own in the 70's and reflects a brand totally in tune with fun, playfulness and freedom. The international appeal of Coca- Cola was embodied buy 1971 commercial, where a group of young people from all over the world gathered on a hill top in Italy to sing "I'd like to buy the world a coke". In 1978, the ('oca

Cola

Company was selected as the only company allowed selling packaged cold drinks in the peoples Republic of China. DIETCOKESA NEWCOKE (1982 - 1989): The 80's the era of legwarmers, head bands and the fitness craze and a time of much change and innovation at the Coca - Cola Company. In 1981. Roberto C. Goizucta became chairman of the board of directors & CEO of the Coca- Cola Company. He who fled Castro's Cuba in 1961. completely overhauled the company with a strategy he called "intelligent risk taking" among his bold moves was organizing the numerous U.S. bottling 14


operations into a new public company, Coca extension of the Coca

Cola enterprises, Inc. he also released diet coke, the very first

Cola trade mark within two years, it had become top low calorie drink in the world,

second in success only to Coca

Cola. One of Goi/ueta's other incentives in 1985, was the release of new

taste for Coca Cola, the first change in formulation in 99 years. In taste people loved the new formula. In the real world they had a deep emotional attachment to the original and they had a deep emotional attachment to the original and they bagged and pleaded to get it back. Critics called it the biggest marketing blunder ever. But Goizueta, as Warren Buffet once said, had a knack for turning " lemins into lemonade". The original formula was return to the market as Coca the competition

Cola classic, the product began to increase its lead over

a lead that continues to this day.

COCA - COLA NOW (1990 - NOW) : In 1886. Coca - Cola brought thrilling refreshment to patrons of a small Atlanta pharmacy. Now well at 2nt century, the company's goal is to provide that magic every time, in 200 countries, with each of it's 230+ and ever growing brands. Coca - Cola has customers from Boston to Bahrain, drinking brands like Ambassa, Veitabela and freseolita. In the remotest corners of the globe, you can still find Coca

Cola.In February 2000,

Doug Daft was named company chairman. Coca - Cola a huge international company, but Draft's vision is to have the company operate as a collection of smaller, locally run business. "No one", Daft points out, "decides to enjoy one of our products globally". T hat's why Coca-- Cola committed to local markets, to paying attention to what people from different cultures and backgrounds like to drink and where and how they want to drink, livery ten seconds. 1.26,00 people choose to reach for one of the Coca

Cola company brands & it is

the company's mission to make the choice exiling & satisfying every single time.

2.4 COCA-COLA IN INDIAN MARKET Coca - Cola has started its operation in Indian market in October 1993. This has been its re-entry in the India market after withdrawal of its operation in 1970s.The Indian market offers a strong consumer potential as majority of the population is in middle class category which is a strong consumer base for any FMCG company like Coca - Cola to float its range of products. Coca-- Cola has acquired the soft drink brands like Thumps Up, Gold spot, l.imca, Bisleri soda etc which were floated by parle as these products have achieved a strong consumer base and formed a brand image in

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Indian market during the re-entry of Coca Cola in 1993. Thus these products became a part of range of products of Coca Cola.

2.6 VISSION AND OBJECTIVE OF COCA-COLA MISSION OF COCA - COLA: Provide "clients" with appropriate "systems solutions" for "effective & profitable" business use adopting a " quality management approach" maintains a ''competitive edge" with the help of latest and user friendly information technology. VISION OF COCA - COLA: To be a proactive & service oriented business partner for influencing change & contributing to increase share owner value through a dedicated & creative team. OBJECTIVE OF COCA ~ COLA: To develop a business strategy for systems implementation which is "simple, effective & practiced'" to execute in a timely manner for bottling system.

CHAPTER 3

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THEORETICAL BACKGROUND ABOUT THE TOPIC The term consumer behaviour is defined as the behaviour that consumer display in searching for, purchasing using, evaluating and disposing of products and services that they expect will satisfy their needs. Consumer behaviour focuses on how individuals make decisions to spend their available resources (time, money, effort) on consumption-related items that includes what they buy, why they buy, when they buy it, where they buy it, how often they buy it, how often they use it, how they evaluate it after the purchase and the impact of such evaluations on future purchases, and how they dispose of it. Consumer Behaviour is the study of individuals, groups, or organizations and the processes they use to select, secure, and dispose of products, services, experiences, or ideas to satisfy needs and the impacts that these processes have on the consumer and society. It blends from psychology, sociology, social anthropology, marketing and economics. It attempts to understand the decision-making processes of buyers, both individually and in groups such as how emotions affect buying behaviour. It studies characteristics of individual consumers such as demographics and behavioural variables in an attempt to understand people's wants. It also tries to assess influences on the consumer from groups such as family, friends, reference groups, and society in general. Customer behaviour study is based on consumer buying behaviour, with the customer playing the three distinct roles of user, payer and buyer. Research has shown that consumer behaviour is difficult to predict, even for experts in the field. Relationship marketing is an influential asset for customer behaviour analysis as it has a keen interest in the re-discovery of the true meaning of marketing through the re-affirmation of the importance of the customer or buyer. A greater importance is also placed on consumer retention, customer relationship management, personalisation, customisation and one-to-one marketing. Social functions can be categorized into social choice and welfare functions. Each method for vote counting is assumed as social function but if Arrow’s possibility theorem is used for a social function, social welfare function is achieved. Some specifications of the social functions are decisiveness, neutrality, anonymity, monotonicity,unanimity, homogeneity and weak and strong Pareto optimality. No social choice function meets these requirements in an ordinal scale simultaneously. The most important characteristic of a social function is identification of the interactive effect of alternatives and creating a logical relation with the ranks. Marketing provides services in order to satisfy customers. With that in mind the productive system is considered from its beginning at the production level, to the end of the cycle, the consumer. 17


Two different kinds of consuming entities: the personal consumer and the organizational consumer.  Personal Consumer 

Buys goods and services for his or her own use, for the use of the household or as a gift for a friend. The products are bought for final use by individuals, who are referred to as end users or ultimate consumers.  Organizational Consumer 

Includes profit and non-profit businesses, government agencies (local, state, national) and institutional (e.g. schools, hospitals, and prisons), all of which buy products, equipment, and services in order to run their organizations. MARKETING CONCEPT, A BUSINESS ORIENTATION:  The field of consumer behaviour is rooted in the marketing concept, a business orientation that evolved in

the 1950s through several alternative approaches toward doing business referred to respectively: 1) The Production Concept. 2) The Product Concept. 3) The Selling Concept. 4) The Marketing Concept. 5) The Societal Marketing Concept.

1) THE PRODUCTION CONCEPT:

 The production concept assumes that consumers are mostly interested in product availability at low prices; its implicit marketing objectives are cheap, efficient product and intensive distribution.  It makes sense when consumer are more interested in buying what’s available rather than wait for what they really want.  The main objective is to expand the market.

2) THE PRODUCT CONCEPT:

 The product concept assumes that consumers will buy the product that offers them the highest quality, the best performance, and the most features. 18


 It ensures the company to improve the quality of its product and add new features.  The product concept often leads to “marketing myopia” that is focusing on the product rather than the customer needs.

3) THE SELLING CONCEPT:

 The assumption of the selling concept is that consumers are unlikely to buy the product unless they are aggressively persuaded to do so – mostly through “hard sell” approach.  The problem in this concept is that it fails to satisfy a customer.  Promotion can be done through advertisement, sales promotion and public relation.  Today the selling concept is utilize be marketers of unsought products – that is which people are not willing to buy it (such as life insurance).

4) THE MARKETING CONCEPT:

 It started in 1950’s when some marketers realized we can sell more products by determining what consumer would buy.  Consumer need and wants became the firm’s primary focus.  The marketers should made product what t can sell, instead of what it has made.

STARTING POINT FOCUS MEANS ENDS

SELLING CONCEPT

Factory  Product  Selling & Promotion  Profit through sale volume MARKETING CONCEPT

Market  Needs  Marketing  Profit via customer satisfaction

5) THE SOCIETAL MARKETING CONCEPT:

 Developing that product which benefits the society. Doing marketing in such a way that it helps you in increasing your production & also giving benefits to society.  The organization should determine the needs, wants and interest of target markets and deliver the desired satisfaction more effectively and efficiently then do competitors in a way that maintains or improves the customers and society’s well being 19


IMPLEMENTING THE MARKETING CONCEPT:

 To identify unsatisfied consumer need, companies had to engage in extensive marketing research. The marketing concept underscored the importance of consumer research.  The strategic tools that are used to implement the marketing concept include segmentation, targeting, positioning and the marketing mix.

THE ROLE OF CONSUMER RESEARCH:

 Consumer research describes the process and tools used to study consumer behaviour.  Two theoretical perspectives that guides the development of consumer research:  Positive Approach à it tend to be objective and empirical, to seek caused for behaviour, and to conduct research studies that can be generalized to larger population.  Interpretivists à the research done by Interpretivists, on the other hand tends to be qualitative and based on small samples.

SEGMENTATION, TARGETING, AND POSITIONING:

MARKET SEGMENTATION:  Dividing a market into distinct groups of buyers with different needs, characteristics or behaviour who might require separate products or marketing mixes.  Market consists of buyers and, buyers differ in one or more ways. They may differ in their wants, resources, locations, buying attitudes, and buying practices. MARKET POSITIONING: 

Formulating competitive positioning for a product and a detailed marketing mix. Developing a distinct image for the product or service in the mind of the consumer, that will differentiate with the competitors.

MARKET TARGETING:

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STUDY OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR TOWARDS SOFT DRINKS 

The process of evaluating each market segments attractiveness and selecting one or more segments to enter.

MARKETING MIX:  The marketing mix consists of a company’s service and/or product offerings to consumers and the methods and tools it selects to accomplish the exchange. The marketing mix consists of four elements: 1) The product or service that is the features, designs, brands, and packaging offered, along with post

purchase benefits such as warranties and return policies. 2) The price – the list price, including discounts, allowances, and payment methods. 3) The place – the distribution of the product or service through specific store and non store outlets. 4) Promotion – The advertising, sales promotion, public relations, ad sales efforts designed to build

awareness of and demand for the product or service. CUSTOMER VALUE, SATISFACTION, AND RETENTION:

 Savvy marketers today realize that in order to outperform competitors they must achieve the full profit potential from each and every customer. The three drivers of successful relationship between marketers and customers are customer value, high levels of customer satisfaction, and building a structure for customer retention. 1) PROVIDING CUSTOMER VALUE:

 Customer value is defined as the ratio between the customers’ perceived benefits (economic, functional and psychological) and the resources (monetary, time, effort, psychological) used to obtain those benefits. Perceived value is relative and subjective.  Example: McDonald’s Corporation to deliver the company’s four core standards; quality, service, cleanliness, and value.

2) CUSTOMER SATISFACTION:

 Customer satisfaction is the individual’s perception of the performance of the product or service in relation to his or her expectations.  The linked levels of customer satisfaction with customer behaviour identified several types of customers: 21


 Loyalists- Who keeps purchasing, they are satisfied completely.  Apostles-Whose experiences exceed their expectations and who provide very positive word of mouth about the company to others.  Defectors-Who feel neutral or merely satisfied and are likely to stop doing business with the company.  Terrorists-Who have had negative experiences with the company and who spread negative word of mouth.  Hostages-Who are unhappy customers who stay with the company because of a non plastic environment or low prices and who are difficult and costly to deal with because of their frequent complaints?  Mercenaries-Who are very satisfied customers but who have no real loyalty to the company and may defect because of a lower price elsewhere or on impulse, defying the satisfaction-loyalty rationale.  The researches purpose that companies should strive to create apostles, raise the satisfaction of defectors and turn them in to loyalist avoid having terrorists or hostages and reduce the number of mercenaries.

3) CUSTOMER RETENTION:

 Customer retention makes it in the best interest of customers to stay with the company rather than switch to another firm.  Loyal customers buy more products.  Loyal customers are less prices sensitive and pay less attention to competitor’s advertising.  Servicing existing customers, who are familiar with the firm’s offerings and processes, is cheaper.  Loyal customers spread positive word of mouth and refer other customer.

 Customer profitability-focused marketing tracks costs and revenues of individual customers’ ad then categorizes them into tiers based on consumption behaviours that are specific to the company’s offerings.  Recent Study advocates using “customer pyramid” where customers are grouped in 4 ties:

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1) The Platinum Ties  Includes heavy users who are not price sensitive and who are willing to try new

offerings. 2) The Gold Tier  It consists of customers who are heavy user but not as profitable because they are

more price sensitive than those in the higher ties. Ask for discount and buy from several providers. 3) The Iron Tier  It consists of customers whose spending volume ad profitability do no merit special

treatment from the company. 4) The Lead Tier  It includes customers who actually cost the company money because they claim

more attention than is merited by their spending. MARKETING ETHICS & SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY: 

The societal marketing concept – It is very important components of organizational effectiveness. It helps us to build good image and also increase in sales. The converse is also true – Perceptions of a company’s lack of social responsibility or unethical marketing strategies negatively effect consumer purchase decision.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR & DECISION MAKING ARE INTERDISCIPLINARY:

 Consumer Behaviour was a new field in the mid of late 1960, because the marketing theorists borrowed the concepts from other scientific disciplinary that is :Psychology -The study of the individual, Sociology-The study of groups, Social Psychology-The study of how an individual operates in groups, Anthropology- The influence of society on the individual, and Economics -To form the basis of the new marketing discipline.  Many Early theory based on economic theory on the notion that individuals are rationally to maximize their benefits. A SIMPLIFIED MODEL OF CONSUMER DECISION MAKING:

 The process of consumer decision making can be viewed as three distinct but interlocking stages: the input stage, the process stage, and the output stage. 

The Input Stage  Influences the consumer’s recognition of a product need and consists of two

major sources of information, the firm’s marketing efforts (the product itself, its price, its promotion and where it is sold) and the external sociological influences on the consumers. 23


 The Process Stage  It is the model focuses on how consumers make decisions. The psychological factors inherent in each individual.  The Output Stage  It is the consumer decision making model consists of two closely related post decision activities.

CHAPTER 4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY This chapter describes the methodology of the study. This project is based on information collected from primary sources. After the detailed study, an attempt has been made to pr es en t c o mpr e he ns iv e an a l ys is of c on s u mp t io n o f Ca db ur y a nd ne s t l e c ho co l a te s c o n s u m e d b y t h e p e o p l e . The data had been used to cover various aspects like consumption, consumer’s preference and customer’s satisfaction regarding Cadbury and Nestle chocolates. In collecting requisite data and information regarding the topicselected, I went to the residents of Chembur and collected the data. 24


 Survey design: The study is a cross sectional study because the data were collected at a single point of time. For the purpose of present study a related sample of population was selected on the basis of convenience.  Sample Size and Design: A sample of 100 people was taken on the basis of convenience. The actual consumers were contacted on the basis of random sampling.  Research Period: Research work is only carried for 2 or 3 weeks.  Research Instrument: This work is carried out through self-administered questionnaires. The questions included were open ended, dichotomous and offered multiple choices 

Data Collection: The data, which is collected for the purpose of study, is divided into 2 bases:

 Primary Source: The Primary data comprises information survey of “Study of Consumer Behaviour towards Nestle and Cadbury Chocolates”. The data has been collected directly from respondent with the help of structured questionnaires.

 Secondary Source: The Secondary data was collected from Internet References.  Data Analysis:

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The data is analysed on the basis of suitable tables by using mathematical techniques. The technique that I have used is bar technique.

CHAPTER 4 FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5

ANALYSIS OF DATA FINDINGS CONCLUSION SUGGESTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

4.1 ANALYSIS OF DATA 1) Consume of the Soft Drinks Ans Consumption of Soft Drinks

Yes

No

26


Number of Respondent

90

10

Consumption of Soft Drinks 10 Yes

No

90

The above table depicts that 90% of the consumers consume soft drinks.

2) Frequency of Consumption Frequency of Consumption

Number of Respondents

Daily

30

Twice in a week

42

Once in a week

12

Once in a month

06

27


Frequency of Consumption

6 12

Daily Twice in a week

30

Once in a week Once in a month

42

The above table depicts that 30% of the consumers consume soft drink Daily and the 42 % of consumers consume soft drink Twice a week.

3) Favourite Soft drinks Ans Attributes

Preference by Consumers

Coca- Cola

16

Tumps-Up

33

Sprite-Pepsi

32

7 up

2

Dew

2

28


Others

5

Favourite Soft Drinks 22 Coca-Cola

Tumps Up

5

16

Sprite-Pepsi

7 up

Dew

Others

32 33

The above table depicts that 33 Consumers consume Thumps Up, 32 Consumers consume Sprite, 16 Consumers consume Coca-Cola

4) Product Price is Affordable or not Attributes


Affordable

69

Costly

11

Lesser

5

Can’t Say

5

29


Affordable Price 80 70 60 50

Affordable Price

40 69

30 20 10

11

0 Affordable

Costly

5

5

Lesser

Cant Say

The above table depicts that 69 respondents can afford, 11respondents feel the product is costly, 5 respondents feel the product is less costly than it should be. 5 respondents cannot say about the product price.

5) Factors Affecting Purchase

Factors


Taste

43

Quenching Thirst

11

Strong

10

Gas Content

3

Brands Ambassadors

3

30


Others

20

Factors Affecting Purchase 50 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0

43

Factors Affecting Purchase 11

10

20 3

3

The above table depicts that 43 Consumers consume the product preferring the Taste, 11 consumers consume the product to quench the thirst and 3 consumers consume the product for its gas content.

6) Role of flavour in the Product Promotion

Attributes


Efficient

60

Very Efficient

14

Neither Efficient nor Inefficient

13

Inefficient

3

31


Flavour in the Product

13

Efficient

3

Very Efficient Neither Efficient nor Inefficient

14

Inefficient 60

The above table depicts that 60 consumers feel the flavour is efficient, 14consumers feel the flavour is very efficient, 13 consumers feel the flavour is neither efficient nor inefficient, 3 consumers feel the flavour is inefficient.

7). Opinion on packaging of the product

Attributes

No of Preference

Very Good

12

Good

69

Neither Good nor Bad

8

32


Packaging of the Product 8

Very Good

12

Good Neither good nor Bad

69

The above table depicts that 12 consumers feel that Packaging of the Product is very good, 69 consumers feel Packaging of the Product is good, 8 consumers feel the Packaging of the Product is neither good nor bad

8). Pack of Soft Drinks Preferred

Promotional Offers


Free Gifts

26

Price Offer

48

Any other

16

33


Series 1 60 50 40 Series 1 30 48

20 26

10

16

0 Free Gifts

Price Offer

Any Other

According to the above analysis it is concluded that out of sample of 90 people who like to consume Soft Drinks 26 are attracted by free gifts, 48 by prices offers while 16 were attracted by some other reasons.

9). Media of Advertisement

Media of Advertisement


Television

70

Newspaper

5

Brochures

5

Hoarding

5

Display

3

Ingredients

2

34


Media Of Advertisement 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0

Media Of Advertisement

70

5

5

5

3

2

According to the above analysis it is concluded that out of sample of 90 people who like to consume Soft Drinks 70 are attracted by Television, 5 by Newspaper while 5 were attracted by Brochures, 5 by Hoarding, 5 by Display and 2 by ingredients.

10) Consumers Brand Loyalty Brand Loyalty Actions


Postpone your Purchase

33

Switch Over to other Brands

15

Go to Other Shop for Search of 42 Preferred Brand

35


Brand Loyalty 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0

42

33 15

Brand Loyalty

According to the above analysis it is concluded that out of sample of 90 people who like to consume Soft Drinks 33 will postpone your purchase, 15 will switch over to other brands, 42 go to other shop

11) Reaction of Consumers if new Brands is Introduced Shift to New Brands of the Number of Respondents Preferred Product No, Not at all

27

May Consider

10

No, shall not

13

Can’t Say

40

36


50 45 40 35 30 25

40

20 15

27

10

10

13

5 0 No, Not at all

May Consider

No, shall not

Can’t Say

12) Reasons for Not Switching over to Other Brands Ans. All the consumers why they continue to buy the old Brand gave various reasons. The most important reasons give by the consumers were:  Taste/Flavour  Brand  Image  Quality  Packaging

37


4.2 FINDINGS

 Consumer Research: Consumer research deals with consumer and their problems and solution to the problems. In this I came to know about the consumers need and expectation levels regarding products and ascertainable levels of consumer satisfaction.  Product Research: Under Product research I came to know about the Modification which consumers want as to the quality, packing, shape, colour, and quantity etc of their favourite chocolate  Pricing Research:

38


This includes ability to consume, to pay for the product, how much a person can spend on his/her favourite Soft Drinks. In this i have tried to find out consumers price expectations and reactions.  Advertising Research: Under this I have concluded that whether the advertisement appeals the Consumers or not. This also includes evaluating and selecting the proper media-mix and measuring advertising effectiveness.

4.3 CONCLUSION

1. The important factors that influence the purchase decisions for a soft drink is the taste and flavour. 2. Besides the factors mentioned above the other important factors that Influence the purchase decisions were found to be advertising and Price 3. Sales promotion program taken up by the company is also popular. Among the respondents. The product is very much popular for its easy availability

39


4.4 SUGGESTIONS RECOMMENDATIONS

Suggestions have been made based on certain factors as highlighted by the study. 1. Efficient Promotional activities pertaining to consumers are to be taken up. 2.

Company should improve the quality of packaging.

3.

Introduction of a new flavour is suggested to make the product promotion more efficient.

4. It is suggested that the company should increase the usage of Internet for further Promotional activities.

CHAPTER 5 Bibliography

   

http://www.scribd.com http://www.coco-cola.com http://www.google.com http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/preference

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41

A Study on Consumer Behaviour Towards Soft Drinks

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