A

Project Report

On

In partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the award of the degree of

the Masters in Business Administration

Submitted By: Submitted To:

BHUPENDER KAMRA
Asst. Professor
JCDIBM

(Session 2009-2011)
jcd Institute of Management, sirsa
 PREFACE

Marketing has become a specialized branch of study under management Earlier

marketers faced a number of tuff decisions. They had to determine product feature

and quality, established accompanying services, set the price, determined the

distribution channels, decided how much to spend on marketing and how to divide

resources among advertising, sales force and other promotion tools. Now in order to

keep pace with the competition, marketers have to look for effective communication

media as busy consumers a changing there ways. They are shopping with catalogues,

telephone and computers.

To sum up, this exercise has been made to review and learn about consumer

preference towards soft drinks and strategies applied by COCA COLA with the hope

that it will be useful for marketing Management and add to my knowledge

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I got a chance to work on Marketing Strategies of Coca-Cola Company

which helped me to gain practical experience and exposure. I thereby learnt from the
experts of their respective fields of expertise.

My Project could not have been fruitful without the help of

supervisors of the respective departments of Coca-Cola Company. I extend my
deepest gratitude to all the persons who gave me full support during the project.

The report is characterized by its straight forward, to the point

approach, with bare minimal reproduction of the theory of Marketing Research. A
deliberate effort has been made to introduce novelty in the report.

Sourish Kumar

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 CONTENTS

• PREFACE
• ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
• INTRODUCTION
• PROFILE OF THE COCA COLA COMPANY
• OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
• RE
SEARCH METHODOLOGY
• FINDINGS AND INTERPRETATION

• SWOT ANALYSIS
• SUGGESTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
• CONCLUSION
• GENERAL FACTS AND LIMITATIONS
• BIBLIOGRAPHY
• QUESTIONNAIRE

4
INDUSTRIAL PROFILE
Coca-Cola is a leading player in the Indian beverage market with a 60 per
cent share in the carbonated soft drinks segment, 36 per cent share in fruit
drinks segment and 33 per cent share in the packaged water segment.

In 2004, Coca-Cola sold 7 billion packs of its brands to more than 230
million consumers across 4,700 towns and 175,000 villages. The
company has doubled its volumes and trebled its profits between 2001
and 2004.

Coca-Cola continues to re-affirm its commitment to India through active

‘Citizenship Efforts.” All its plants in India partner with local NGOs to
alleviate local community issues in numerous small ways. It boasts of
impeccable credentials on quality.

Coca-Cola has succeeded in spite of an extremely price-sensitive

consumer with entrenched beverage consumption habits – tea, nimbu-
paani (lemonade) and a fragmented and geographically dispersed retail
market, and a high tax environment.

Coca-Cola Co. slightly increased its lead over rival Pepsi-Cola Co. in
2002, thanks to the successful launch of Vanilla Coke and the growth of
Diet Coke, according to U.S. soft drink industry rankings released last
week. Coke gained 0.6 percentage points in market share and increased
its case volume by 2.1 percent, according to Beverage Digest/Maxwell, a
New York-based industry newsletter and data service. The company
captured a larger share of the market even though its Coke Classic
brand fell 0.6 percentage points in market share.

Coca-Cola dominates 44.3 percent of the U.S. soft drink market, but saw
its market share drop between 1999 and 2001. With the latest gains, it's
only 0.2 percentage points away from where it stood in 1998 at 44.5.
Pepsi-Cola lost 0.2 percentage points in market share. The No. 2
company commands 31.4 percent of the U.S. soft drink market. The Dr.
Pepper/Seven Up unit of Cadbury Schweppes, the third-largest soft drink
group, fell 0.6 percentage points in market share to 15.0 percent.

Overall, the carbonated soft drink industry posted modest growth, with
case volume up 0.8 percent. Meanwhile, bottled water alone has grown
30 percent in the last year.

Revenue

The Coca-Cola Company's Minute Maid group North America

offices in Sugar Land Town Square, Sugar Land, Texas,
United States

According to the 2005 Annual Report,[12] the company sells beverage

products in more than 200 [13] countries. The report further states that of
the more than 50 billion beverage servings of all types consumed
worldwide every day, beverages bearing the trademarks owned by or
licensed to Coca-Cola account for approximately 1.5 billion. Of these,
beverages bearing the trademark "Coca-Cola" or "Coke" accounted for
approximately 78% of the Company's total gallon sales.

6
Also according to the 2007 Annual Report, Coca-Cola had gallon sales
distributed as follows:

• 37% in the United States

• 43% in Mexico,India, Brazil, Japan and the People's Republic of
China
• 20% spread throughout the rest of the world

In 2010 it was announced that Coca-Cola had become the first brand to
top £1 billion in annual UK grocery sales .[14]

Products and brands

Main article: Coca-Cola brands

The Coca-Cola Company offers nearly 400 brands in over 200 countries,
besides its namesake Coca-Cola beverage.

Tab was Coca-Cola's first attempt to develop a diet soft drink, using
saccharin as a sugar substitute. Introduced in 1963, the product is still
sold today, however its sales have dwindled since the introduction of Diet
Coke.

The Coca-Cola Company also produces a number of other soft drinks

including Fanta (introduced circa 1942 or 1943) and Sprite. Fanta's
origins date back to World War II when Max Keith, who managed Coca-
Cola's operations in Germany during the war, wanted to make money
from Nazi Germany but did not want the negative publicity. Keith
resorted to producing a different soft drink, Fanta, which proved to be a
hit, and when Coke took over again after the war, it adopted the Fanta
brand as well. The German Fanta Klare Zitrone ("Clear Lemon Fanta")
variety became Sprite, another of the company's bestsellers and its
response to 7 Up.

During the 1990s, the company responded to the growing consumer

interest in healthy beverages by introducing several new non-carbonated
beverage brands. These included Minute Maid Juices to Go, Powerade
sports beverage, flavored tea Nestea (in a joint venture with Nestle),
Fruitopia fruit drink and Dasani water, among others. In 2001, Minute

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Maid division launched the Simply Orange brand of juices including
orange juice.

In 2004, perhaps in response to the burgeoning popularity of low-

carbohydrate diets such as the Atkins Diet, Coca-Cola announced its
intention to develop and sell a low-carbohydrate alternative to Coke
Classic, dubbed C2 Cola. C2 contains a mix of high fructose corn syrup,
aspartame, sucralose, and Acesulfame potassium. C2 is designed to more
closely emulate the taste of Coca-Cola Classic. Even with less than half
of the food energy and carbohydrates of standard soft drinks, C2 is not a
replacement for zero-calorie soft drinks such as Diet Coke. C2 went on
sale in the U.S. on June 11, 2004, and in Canada in August 2004. C2's
future is uncertain due to disappointing sales.

Coca-Cola is the best-selling soft drink in most countries. While the

Middle East is one of the only regions in the world where Coca-Cola is
not the number one soda drink, Coca-Cola nonetheless holds almost 25%
marketshare (to Pepsi's 75%) and had double-digit growth in 2003.[33]
Similarly, in Scotland, where the locally produced Irn-Bru was once
more popular, 2005 figures show that both Coca-Cola and Diet Coke now
outsell Irn-Bru.[34] In Peru, the native Inca Kola has been more popular
than Coca-Cola, which prompted Coca-Cola to enter in negotiations with
the soft drink's company and buy 50% of its stakes. In Japan, the best
selling soft drink is not cola, as (canned) tea and coffee are more popular.
[35]
As such, the Coca-Cola Company's best selling brand there is not
Coca-Cola, but Georgia.[36]

Some claim Coke is less popular in India due to suspicions regarding the
health standards of the drink.[citation needed]

On July 6, 2006, a Coca-Cola employee and two other people were

arrested and charged with trying to sell trade secrets information to the
soft drink maker's competitor, PepsiCo for $1.5 million. The recipe for
Coca-Cola, perhaps the company's most closely guarded secret, was
never in jeopardy. Instead, the information was related to a new beverage
in development. Coca-Cola executives verified that the documents were
valid and proprietary. At least one glass vial containing a sample of a
new drink was offered for sale, court documents said. The conspiracy
was revealed by PepsiCo, which notified the authorities when they were
approached by the conspirators.[37]

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The company announced a new "negative calorie" green tea drink,
Enviga, in 2006, along with trying coffee retail concepts Far Coast and
Chaqwa.

On May 25, 2007, Coca-Cola announced it would purchase Glaceau, a

maker of flavored vitamin-enhanced drinks (vitamin water), flavored
waters, and energy drinks, for $4.1 billion in cash.[38]

On September 3, 2008, Coca-Cola announced its intention to make cash

offers to purchase China Huiyuan Juice Group Limited (which has a 42%
share of the Chinese pure fruit juice market[39]) for US$2.4bn (HK$12.20
per share).[40] China's ministry of commerce blocked the deal on March
18, 2009, arguing that the deal would hurt small local juice companies,
could have pushed up juice market prices and limited consumers’
choices.[41]

In October 2009, Coca-Cola revealed its new 90-calorie mini can that
holds 7.5 fluid ounces.[42] The first shipments are expected to reach the
New York City and Washington D.C. markets in December 2009 and
nationwide by March 2010.[42]

9
Cola Quarrels
The latest round has Pepsi dragging Coke to court, alleging a
conspiracy and saying that its arch-rival has gone beyond limits to grab
lost. advantage.

When Coca-Cola India CEO and President Donald W. Short headed for India
in March last year after heading Coke Japan, he got a terse sayonara from
his bosses at the megacorp's headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia: "Do the right
thing."

Maybe he did too much of it. Just over a year later, it's going to land his
company in court. On May 6, in the middle of the parched summer during
which the Rs 3,000 crore soft-drink business scores its biggest hit -- almost
50 per cent of all soft-drink sales takes place between April and June -- the
focus will shift from how many cases Coke sells to how it defends a case
slapped on it by arch-rival Pepsi a couple of weeks ago. So far, the two
companies had restricted themselves to pitched battles in the marketplace --
which was beginning to peak with the over-the-top advertising battle. "The
reason I went to court," Pepsico India Holdings Chairman P.M. Sinha says, "is
because I would like the fight in the marketplace".

Among other things, Pepsi's petition alleges that Coke had "entered into a
conspiracy" to disrupt its business operations. "Rattled by the huge success
of Pepsi in India," goes the petition, "it has become clear from the sequence
of events in the past six months that the defendants want to cause loss and
damage to Pepsi's business by adopting unfair and illegal means."

A sampler of the salvo reads like an all-out, take-no-prisoners shooting

match. And a lot of the firing is about hiring. Coke has been accused of luring
away three of Pepsi's key sales personnel from Kanpur, going as far as to
offer Rs 10 lakh a year in pay and perks to one of them, almost five times
what Pepsi pays him. Sales rookies who were earning Rs 48,000 per annum
were offered Rs 1.86 lakh a year. Many truck drivers in the Goa bottling plant
who were trundling along on Rs 2,500 a month shifted up with Coke's bait of
Rs 10,000 a month. In an industry where new hirings average a pay hike of

10
between 40 per cent and 60 per cent, Coke, alleges Pepsi, was offering
between 300 per cent and 400 per cent.

Other moves hurt too. Pepsi alleges that Coke's Marketing Director Sanjiv
Gupta -- the whizkid behind the marketing of superstar Amitabh Bachhan's
ABCL -- was to join Pepsi in '97. But within days of his getting the
appointment letter, Coke made a counter offer. Said Gupta in his note to
Pepsi: "Since our discussion, I have now received an alternative offer more in
tune with my career and financial aspirations and I am inclined to accept the
alternative offer."

Coke is playing cool and quiet even as Pepsi, drawing on an impressive

battery of legal eagles -- so far, eight top lawyers, among them former finance
minister P. Chidambaram, advocate K.K. Venugopal, former attorney-general
Ashok Desai and Arun Jaitley -- is spitting ire. Coke executives are keeping
mum, saying that the matter is sub-judice and insisting that the reply will be
made in the courts. Short will only say this: "Coca-Cola failed to connect with
consumers in India initially. But now we are delivering what is right for our
customers and consumers."

Delivering value for money, delivering advertising round-houses and

conducting market coups have been standard operating procedure in the
Coke vs Pepsi saga for decades. Those who switched loyalties from one
company to another have been branded as traitors. Market gossip has it that
one company has planted moles in the other. One routinely launches attacks
on the other's bottling and distribution network. It's just hotted up in India, say
market analysts, since Short's arrival.

Short does have a business mission, and he has no problems admitting to

that. Coke's short-sightedness was acute. In 1993, it began with a mammoth
69 per cent share of the market, according to data from the Indian Market
Research Bureau, after buying out Parle's popular brands, Thums Up, Limca
and Gold Spot. But then choosing to ignore these, says J.D. Singh, professor
of marketing at the International Management Institute, Delhi, it frittered away
enviable collective strength. It did not realise that Parle's brands had
enormous staying power, shown by their fightback with Pepsi. Market share
had dropped by more than 10 per cent by the end of last year, while Pepsi's
market share went up from 23 per cent to 43 per cent in the same period. Top
brass anger with the results was evident: Short is the third Coke CEO in four
years.

For its part, Pepsi didn't really push hard till Coke was about to re-enter the
Indian market, thereby frittering away its own lead-time advantage of close to
four years. "Both companies didn't really concentrate on the fundamentals of
marketing like building strong brand equity in the market, and are now
resorting to short-term strategies to garner a share of the market," says

11
Singh. "The strategies reflect a poverty of imagination." Singh points to the
sometimes clever, mostly callow ad wars that favour puns to scoring real
points -- spending as much as Rs 70 crore a year to do so. But there's a story
away from the glare of advertising and marketing, the truth that hurt Coke as
much as it does Pepsi.

INTRODUCTION
The advances in the world economy have permitted the corporate world to widen
substantially its markets, consumer base and also the supplier sources Companies in
different industries are developing their products using a global assembly line
The Sort Drink Industry commands a massive Rs. 3500 Crores market even in a
relatively poor country like India. And it is one of the few areas, which have
witnessed strong, almost perfect competition with players as diversified as the small
unbranded lemon" bottlers to the multibillion transnational corporations like COCA-
COLA, PEPSI Co INC., both of USA. Till 1976, Coca-Cola ruled the Indian soft
drink market and it was the market leader in Indian soft drink scene, as of the world It
was in 1977 that the then Janta Dal Government asked the multinationals, especially
those in the consumer products business, to pack up and leave - forcing the like of
Coke and IBM to bid adieu. This sudden vacuum was a lifetime chance for the Indian
firms and was suddenly filled up by Pure Drinks (Coca-Cola's erstwhile bottlers) and
Parle.
After Coca-Cola was asked to leave India, Pepsi began to lay plans to enter this huge
market. Pepsi worked with an Indian business group to seek government approval for
its entry over the objections of both the domestic soft drink companies and anti-
multinational legislators. Pepsi offered to help India to export some of its agricultural
products. It further offered to transfer food processing, packaging and water treatment
technology to India. Thus, in 1989, New York, based multinational company. Pepsi
entered the Indian market with 23 plants.

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The year 1992 saw India wooing the multinationals, as a result of which Coca-Cola is
back on the Indian scene. Government’s liberalization policy made Coca-Cola enter
the Indian soft drink market again in October, 1993 with 62 plants. It immediately
joined hand with Parle Drinks and Pure Drinks. Thus, firstly Coca-Cola found way to
expand total market demand and secondly it defended its market share through good
defensive and offensive actions. Thirdly, Coca-Cola has always tried to increase its
market share even if the market size remains constant, making it an indispensable
market leader
 At the most basic level, it is a two-way business. When a consumer buys
soap or a cassette, it ends the, marketing story. Bui in this business, the
empty soft drink bottles have to be collected back.

 It is a seasonal product and sells strongly just in six months.

 Value addition is not restricted to the manufacturers—even the retailer

adds to it by way of chilling.

 It is an impulse buy and consumer loyalty is uncertain. If on a warm day

a consumer asks for one brand and finds it unavailable, he is more likely
to ask for the next one. In other words, if a brand's distribution is week
on a particular day, the effect on sales shows within the next 24 hours.

 Another peculiar feature in the soft drink business is franchisee. The

person is a local entrepreneur who invests money in equipment,
distribution (trucks) and bottles.

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 PROFILE OF THE COCA COLA COMPANY

In over 200 countries around the world, Coke is today a household name. And the
Coca-Cola trademark in its familiar Spenserian script has become the best-known and
the most admired trademark in the history of commerce. Quite an achievement for a
brand that goes back a long way… to the days of John Pemberton, a pharmacist, who
first concocted the legendary beverage. In 1886, Mr. John Styth Pemberton, the
pharmacist, gave birth to the caramel-coloured syrup, which is now, the chief
ingredient of the world’s favorite drink. Equally oblivious to the historic value of his
actions, Frank M Robinson, his partner and bookkeeper, named it COCA-COLA,
penning those letters in a style that became the highest value trademark on the earth.
To begin with, Pemberton managed to sell average nine drinks per day, through shop
called Jacob's Pharmacy, upping volumes as sales grow. Asa G. Candler was the next
to follow. He was an Atlanta druggist, who bought Coca-Cola in 1891. A year later,
he formed Coca-Cola Co. along with four companies, with an initial stock of $
100,000 Coca-Cola was registered at the US patent office in 1893. First, it was sold as
soda fountains for five cents a glass and later in 1894, it got into bottles. Five years
later, the drink was bottled on regular basis, under the region wise franchising system.
During the same time, the biggest competitor, Pepsi came up Coca-Cola's first
bottling plant opened at Chattanooga Tennessee in 1899, followed by another in
Atlanta in 1950.
Initially sold only through fountains, it took Benjamin Thomas and Joseph

14
Whitehead's collective wisdom to envision the potential Coke held as a bottled
beverage. And the duo is reputed to have bought the rights to bottle the soft drink for
a mere dollar from Asa Candler, who did not believe that the venture would succeed.
Candler readily agreed to the 600-word contract, and the promise that the two would
set up a bottling plant the following year.
Thomas and Whitehead, however, had not quite reckoned with, the expenses involved
in setting up a bottling plant - which, in those days, added up to almost $ 5,000. They
barely managed setting up the bottling operation in Chattanooga, and their expansion
plans would not have come to naught had it not been for John Lupton, who agreed to
finance their project, The company broadened its horizons when Robert Woodruff,
the sun of a banker who had acquired the company for $ 24 million, assumed charge
in 1923. He began by upgrading bottling operations, brought in innovations like six-
bottle carrier home carton and then provided advertising support. It was under Robert
Woodruff that the brand associated itself with sports events and the company stalled
expanding into international markets.
By 1950's, Coca-Cola was a daily consumption item. Coke went international with
operations in Panama and Cuba. Interestingly. Cuba was one of Coke's first overseas
markets. As time went by, the company bought some aerated drinks. The first one,
FANTA, appeared on shelves in i960. It was born accidentally, when the company's
German arm. m an attempt to produce Coca-Cola without some key ingredient, turned
out an orange flavoured drink instead. Sprite, a clear lime drink, developed in late
1950's was formally launched in the US in 1961. Other brands include Diet Coke, one
of the world's most successful brand extension.
A worldwide web of local bottlers supplying Coke to over two million retail outlets
constitutes the company's backbone USA accounts for around 30% of company's
business and the rest 70% comes from 210 countries over which the company's
business activities are spread. It took 22 years for the company to sell the first billion
servings of Coca-Cola. And now, the company is selling a billion drinks a day, the
world over.

15
 PACKAGES AND PRODUCTS

PACKAGING: Bottling was a critically important packaging innovation for Coca-

Cola, making it available to consumers anytime and everywhere – not just in soda
fountain.

An early problem with Coca-Cola in bottles was imitation by the, competitors. A

variety of bottles were used for Coca-Cola initially, but they ail had straight sides and
were very much alike, making it easy for competitors to sell their products as Coca-
Cola. Even though bottles of Coca-Cola carried levers and the embossed trademark,
imitations were everywhere.

In 1915, the Root Glass Company created the contour Coca-Cola bottler-based on a
drawing of a Coca bean - a bottle so uniquely shaped that it was, and still is,
identifiable in the dark. In 1916, a convention of bottles approved as standard the
unique 6.5 oz. bottle. The shape was granted registration as a trademark by the United
States patent office in 1977, one of the few package designs to receive this
distinction.

Secondary packaging began to play a role m merchandising in 1923 when the six
bottle carton was introduced - Described as “a home package with a handle of
invitation”, the cardboard Carton was an easy way for consumers to carry Coca-Cola

16
home for their families, it became one of the soft drink industry's most powerful
merchandising tools.

In 1929, the Company adopted the bell-shaped fountain glass as standard. Like the
contour bottle, this distinctive glass remains associated with Coca-Cola today. Until
the mid-1950s. Coca-Cola was available only in the familiar contour-bottles or in
fountain glass, but changing consumer habits soon dictated wider choice of
packaging. Over the years, the company has responded by introducing many new
packages in various sizes.

The company introduced King - and family - size bottles in 1955, then 12 - ounce
cans in 1960. Later in the 60s, the company first marketed no-deposit / no- return
bottles and introduced the first lift - top cans in the sort drink market, In 1978, the
company made history again with the introduction of the plastic PET (Polyethylene
Terephthalate) bottle.

While consumer demand does play an important part in packaging decisions, other
important issues like source reduction and recycling, also influence the company
packaging developments. In 1991, the Coca-Cola Co. pioneered a plastic soft drink
container made with recycled content-the first of its kind in the world, Two years
later, the Company achieved another breakthrough with the introduction of a "multi-
layer" package that sandwiches recycled material between layers of virgin plastic.
That package is now available in a number of markets internationally.

Also in 1991, the Coca-Cola system introduced the ''fluted" can. a sleek, strong,
lightweight and easy- to- hold cm with vertical grooves. This unique 32-sided can is
stronger than the traditional smooth sided can, Then in 1991, the company, in
cooperation with NPO Eneraia, the Soviet Space agency, successfully tested the
"'Coca-Cola Space Can" aboard the Soviet Space Station Mir This marked the second
time that the can had journeyed into the space The "Coca-Cola Space Can" was also

17
aboard the U.S. Space Shuttle Challenger during a 1935 mission. Until this
development, no soft drink had been consumed in outer space because an adequate
way to dispense carbonated beverages in a micro-gravity environment had not vet
been found

PRODUCTS
The Coca-Cola Co. gloves to meet the changing desires of the consumers and
producing variety of products that includes the following powerful brands: -
COCA –COLA
[[

The world's favourite drink. The world's most valuable brand. The most recognizable
word across the world. Coca-Cola has a truly remarkable heritage. From a humble
beginning in 1886, it is now the flagship brand of the largest manufacturer, marketer
and distributor of non-alcoholic beverages in the world.

18
 Brand Ambassadors

Coca-Cola had signed on various celebrities including movie stars such as

Karishma Kapoor, cricketers such as Srinath, Sourav Ganguly, southern celebrities
like Vijay in the past and today, its brand ambassadors are Hrithik Roshan,
Aamir Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Vivek Oberoi and cricketer Virendra Sehwag.

Hrithik Roshan spreads joy with “Little drops of joy” to the latest campaign of
Coke. The ad involves a group of youngsters, seemingly “lost” in the dark of
night , coming across the messiah of fun. The coke bottle opens up and starts the
jubilations with food, drink and dance. The lighting effects are the hallmark of
the ad. As the coke in the bottle finishes, it marks the end of partying.
Aamir Khan Adds More "Tadka" To Coca-Cola’s Summer Campaign

‘Thande Ka Tadka’- the current summer campaign broke with the TVC that
features Aishwarya Rai turning a seemingly uncomfortable situation on
it’s head. In many ways it reflects the new found “bold” optimism
amongst the youth. Today, it’s not about accepting the way things are,
but taking things in my hands, taking charge because this is my life, my stage. It
is all about taking chances, and having the self confidence to take on any
situation

However, besides just being an extension of the current summer campaign this
TVC is a strategic initiative to own a key consumption occasion for soft drinks

19
especially Colas. The “with food” occasion is a huge opportunity especially in the
wake of the current retail revolution and changing food habits.

This piece of advertising leverages insights from an extensive consumer research

undertaken in terms of understanding the consumer attitudes and expectations
from the food experience. Clearly it will enhance a more definitive role for
Brand Coca-Cola
In the consumer’s life.

Directed by the talented Pradip Sarkar of “Parineeta” fame and known for his
’eye for detail’, it features Aamir Khan as a `Japanese tourist’ who is asking for
’thanda food’. The puzzled restaurant manager later on discovers that he’s
actually asking for thanda i.e. Coke and food. The denouement is what will leave
the audience
Pleasantly surprised.

In it’s yet another exciting & innovative scheme; Coca-Cola India rolled out “2
Cool Pack” offer on Coca-Cola, Thums Up & Sprite for the first time in the
country.

Announcing the launch Mr. John Ustas, President & CEO, Hindustan Coca-Cola
Beverages Pvt. Ltd said, “We at Coca-Cola have always been driven by the
passion to look beyond just quenching the thirst of soft drink consumers.
Through this innovative and unique pack offer consumer now can have the
delight of having the drink of their choice and watch a movie at IMAX screen
absolutely FREE!! This offer provides them a great quenching experience
amidst cool and exciting ambience.”

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 COCA COLA SLOGANS TIME TO TIME

 1886 "Drink Coca Cola"

 1904 "Delicious and Refreshing"
 1922 "Thirst Knows No Reason"
 1927 "Around the Comer from anywhere"
 1929 "The pause that refreshes"
 1936 "It's the refreshing thing to do"
 1938 "The best friend thirst ever had"
 1948 "Where there's coke there's hospitality"
 1952 "What you want is a coke"
 1956 "Coca cola - make good things taste better"
 1958 "The cold, crisp taste of coke"
 1963 "Things go better with coke"
 1970 "It's the real thing"
 1975 "Look up America"
 1979 "Have a coke and smile"
 1982 "Coke is it"
 1987 "You can't beat the real thing"
 1990 "Taste thunder - thumsup"
 1993 "Always Coca cola"
 1999 "Life ho to aisi" - INDIA
 2003 "Thanda matlab coca cola" – INDIA
 2006 “Thande Ka Tarka” Coca Cola –INDIA
 2008 “Little drops of joy” Coca Cola –INDIA

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 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The objective of the study is to analyze the marketing strategies of Coca cola, is
include the following -

1. To know the preference patterns of customers.

2. To judge the brand preference among customers.

3. To gauge the customers reaction to promotional efforts.

4. To analyze the strengths of the company as regards to its various products.

5. To know the strength and weakness of cola brands to stand in the market against
the competitors.

6. To analyze the strategies of the company as regard to its various products.

7. Suggestion to improve the market share of Coca cola.

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 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:-
Research methodology is a careful investigation or inquiry in a systematic method
and finding solution to me problem in a research. It comprises of defining and
redefining problems, formulating hypothesis or suggested solutions, collecting and
evaluating data, making deductions and reaching conclusions* and at last carefully
testing the conclusion to determine whether they fit me formulating hypothesis.

Research Problem:-
A research problem refers to some difficulty which a researcher experiences in me
context of theoretical or practical situation and wants to obtain me solution for me
same. In my project my work was to have a peep into the satisfaction level of the
customers (retailers) regarding cola drinks with special reference to COCA-COLA
and to analyse the marketing strategies of COCA COLA.

Research Sample Unit:-

Sample unit refers to the geographical area in which the
research is carried out. My research pertained to Chandigarh.

Research Sample Size:-

It refers to the number of respondents to be selected from the universe to
constitute a sample. An optimum sample is one, which fulfills me requirement of
efficiency, reliability, representative ness and flexibility.
Keeping the parameters of the research in mind my sample size is 50 which are
confined in Chandigarh.

23
Data Collection:-
The next step is data collection. There are two types of data, one is primary data and
the other is secondary data. Primary data is one that is collected afresh and for the
first time and thus is original in character. The secondary data is which is already
collected by someone else and has passed through statistical process. In my research I
proceeded through primary as well as secondary data. Primary data can be collected
through many methods like, observational method, personal interview method,
telephone interviews or questionnaires. I collected the data through questionnaire
method because of its advantages over other methods.

Processing Operations:-

1) Editing: - I examined me collected data to detect errors and omissions. A

complete and careful scrutiny of the completed questionnaires was carried out to
ensure that the data is accurate, consistent with the facts gathered.

2) Classification :- I reduced the data into homogenous descriptive attributes ( such

as name of the outlet, the area, no of crates, etc.) to get a meaningful
relationship. I considered only one attribute and divided the data into two
classes - one class consisting of items possessing the given attributes and other
class consisting of items which didn't possessed the given attributes.

3) Tabulation:- To summarize the raw data, I prepared statistical tables for further
analysis. It is an orderly arrangement of data in columns and rows.

24
 DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

Q-1 which of these has a greater sale?

COCA-COLA (YES/NO)…………….
PEPSI (YES/NO)…………………….

>Following are the observations recorded:

CATEGORY COCA-COLA PEPSI
(%) (%)

YES 60.2 25.5

38.77 67.3
80
67.3
70 This question
Aim: 60.2was asked from the retailers in order to know about the company
that60provides better Point of Purchase/ Point of Sale material.
50
Interpretation: Retailers generally are more satisfied Yes by the
38.77 with the POP/POS given
40
COCA-COLA
30
company 25.5 Nofact that
as compared to PEPSI. The table clearly shows this
60.2%
20 of retailers say yes and 38.77% say no but in case of PEPSI the %age is 25.5%
and10
67.3% respectively.
0
COCA-COLA PEPSI

Q2: What is the average number of crates of COCA COCLA sold per day?

a) Less than 2
b) 2 to 5
c) 5 to 10
d) More than 10

>Following are the facts that came to light after conducting the survey
No of crates No of retailers

25
 Less than 2 86%

2to5 10%

5to10 2%

2%2% 2%
10%

Less than 2
2to5
5to10
More than 10

86%
Aim: - The aim of this question was to know about the average sales of the COCA-
COLA’S biggest competitor i.e PEPSI.

Interpretation:-As it is shown in the table that 86% retailers who sell COKE have
sales less than 2 crates a day and 1% sell between 2-5 crates a day. Whereas Less
number of retailers sell 5-10 crates a day. And not even a single retailer sells more
than 10 crates a day.

26
Q3- What is the average sale of COCA COLA in Crates Per day?
a) Less than 2
b) 2-5
c) 5-10
d) More than10

>Following are the findings recorded by me:

NO. OF CRATES NO.

OF RETAILERS

45% (%)
Less than 2

2-5 52%

5-10 1%

More than 10 2%

27
 Aim:- The objective of this question was to know about the quantity of crates
that are sold by a retailer per day.

Interpretation:- The table clearly shows that 45.6% of retailers sell less than 2
crates a day. 52% retailers sell 2-5 crates a day and 1% sells 5-10 crates per day and
2% sell more than 10 crates a day. So we see that the percentage of retailers selling
5-10 crates a day is quite less i.e. 1%.

Q4 which parameters of COCA-COLA prompt you to sell coke products?

a) Better availability & supply system
b) Better SGA & Signage system
c) Quality & image of product
d) More profit & better margin
e) Due to variety of brands
f) Any other reason

Following are the facts that came to light after me survey:-

Attribute NO. of Retailers

Better availability and supply system 38%

Better SGA & Signage 8%
Quality of a product 25%
More profits and better margin 20%
Due to a variety of brands 4%
Any other reason 5%

28
Aim: -The aim of this question was to know about the most attractive attribute
that prompts the retailers to sell COCA-COLA.

Interpretation:- As seen in the table it is clear that 38% of the retailers said that
COCA-COLA supply system is excellent. 25% said that they sell it because its
quality is very good. 20% retailers said that its profit margins are tempting and 4%
said that they keep it so as to have different brands to sell and only 5% retailers are
who sell COCA –COLA because of other reason.

29
Q5 What is the age group that prefers to drink coke 300ml ?
a) 10 – 20
b) 20 – 30
c) 30 – 40
d) 40 & Above

>Following are the figures that have come to light after the survey:
Age Group Percentage
10 to 20 65%

20 to 30 25%

30 to 40 10%

40& above 0%

Aim: - The aim of this question was to know about the age group that prefers to buy
300ml.
Interpretation: As we can see in the table it is clear that this package is most favored
by the Youngsters and it is less consume by family members.

30
Q-6 Out of these, which scheme, would increase your sales more?

a) Crate Bharyo Inaam Pao

b) Display Scheme
c) Free Bottle Scheme
d) Crown Scheme

Name of scheme Percentage of crates

Crate Bharyo Inaam Pao 3%

Display Scheme 10.2%

Free Bottle Scheme 81.6%

Crown Scheme 5.1%

Aim: The question was asked from the retailers in order to know about the most

5.10% 3% Crate Bharyo Inaam

10.20%
Pao
Display Scheme

Free Bottle Scheme

Crown Scheme

81.60%

valuable scheme.
Interpretation: as table shows 3% of retailers said crate bharo inaam pao scheme as
best. 10.2% said display scheme as best and majority 81.6% said free bottle scheme
as best and 5.1% said crown scheme as best.

31
Q7 what is the impact of Schemes on the sale of Coca cola?

a) Good
b) Fair
c) Not Satisfactory

Good 40.8%
Fair 44.8%
Not Satisfy 13.2%

13.20%

40.80% Good
Fair
Not Satisfy
44.80%

Aim: The purpose of asking this question was to know about the impact of Schemes
on the sale of Coca cola.

Interpretation: it is observed that 40.8% retailer said that it’s good, 44.8% said it’s
fair and 13.25% were not satisfied from scheme.

32
Q8 which segment uses it?
a) Home Delivery
b) Party Orders
c) Shop Consumption

Observation:
Home Delivery 30%
Party orders 60%
Shop consumption 10%

10%
30%
Home Delivery
Party orders
Shop consumption

60%

Aim: the purpose of asking this question was to know about the segment in which use
coca cola.
Interpretation: it is clear that Coca Cola is used more for party orders and then for
home delivery and shop consumption.

33
Q9. Since how long have you been selling coke?
a) For one year.
b) For three years.
c) For Five years.

SELLING COKE PERCENTAGE

5 Years
20% 1 Year
35%

1 Year
3 Years
5 Years
3 Years
45%

Aim:- the purpose of asking this question was to know about the coke selling
percentage.

Interpretation :- It is clear that the percentage of the dealer who is selling

Coke for three years is relatively higher then the others. The percentage of third
dealer who is selling coke is 35% and the first dealer is 45%.

34
Q 10 which package do you prefer to sell?
a) 200 ml.
b) 300ml.
c) 1Ltr.
d) 1.5 Ltr

PREFER SELLING PACKAGE

1.5 Ltr 200 ml
15% 15%
200 ml
300 ml
1 Ltr
1.5 Ltr

1 Ltr 300 ml
25% 45%

Aim :- the purpose of asking this question was to know about the dealer that which
package they refer to sell.

Interpretation :- It is clear that the 300ml package bottle was sold very high in
response to other. 200ml package bottle only gather 15% and 1.5 Ltr gathers 15% and
1Ltr contains 25%.

35
Q 11 What is the impact of advertising on sale of coke?
a) satisfactory.
b) Good.
c) Excellent
d) No effect.

IMPACT OF ADVERTISING ON SALE

OF COKE

30% 15%

Satisfactory
Good
Execellent
No effect
20%
35%

Aim :- the purpose of asking this question was to know about the impact of
advertising on the sale of coke.

Interpretation :- It is clear that the 35% out of respondents said that the impact of
advertising is good and 30% says that there is no effect of advertising on the sale of
coke.

36
Q 12 Whose sales promotion scheme have been more effective?
a) Coke
b) Pepsi

SALES PROMOTION SCHEME MORE

EFFECTIVE

Pepsi
35%
Coke
Pepsi

Coke
65%

Aim: - the purpose of asking this question was to know about that whose sales
promotion scheme is more effective.

Interpretation: - It is clear that the coke captured the entire Indian market in field of
soft drink industry. As coke contain 65% sales promotion scheme are more effective
in comparison to Pepsi.

37
 QUESTIONNAIRE FOR CUSTOMER

Q 1 Which package is most consumed by you?

a) Canned product.
b) Bottle.

PACKAGE CONSUMED BY YOU

30%
canned
product

bottle

70%

Aim: - the purpose of asking this question was to know about the package which is
mostly used by customers.
Interpretation: - It is clear that from the diagram that bottle is most used by the
customers in comparison to canned product. Majority of the people used bottles for
drinking.

38
Q 2 Which size of coke is mostly used by you ?
a) 300ml.
b) 1 Ltr.
c) 1.5 Ltr.

SIZE OF COKE USED

1.5 Ltr 300 ml
35% 45%
300 ml

1 ltr

1.5 Ltr

1 ltr
20%

Aim: - the purpose of asking this question was to know about that which size is
mostly consumed by consumers.

Interpretation: - It is clear that from the 300ml bottle was most preferable by
consumer as 45% it indicates is relatively high then other.

39
Q 3 which brand do you prefer ?
a) Coke.
b) Pepsi.

PREFERABLE BRAND

35%
Coke

Pepsi

65%

Aim: - the purpose of asking this question was to know about that which brand is
more preferred by consumer .

Interpretation: - It is clear that Coke was more preferable in comparison to Pepsi as

coke is used 65% by the people

40
Q 4 Is this brand easily available everywhere?
a) Yes.
b) No.

BRAND EASILY AVAILABLE

YES NO

NO YES
45% 55%

Aim: - the purpose of asking this question was to know about that this brand is easily
available every where.

Interpretation: - It is clear that 55% of the respondents said that COCA COLA is
easily available to them and they have little bit problem regarding the availability of
the product.

41
Q 5 Does it give full satisfaction?
a) Yes.
b) No.

DOES IT GIVE FULL SATISFACTION

YES NO

NO YES
54% 46%

Aim: - the purpose of asking this question was to know about that it gives full
satisfaction to the consumer.

Interpretation: - It is clear that yes it satisfy the costumer thirst as it gives 54%
respondents favour this statement only 46% deny this statement.

42
Q 6 Whose sales promotion scheme influence for the purchase of soft drinks?
a) Coke.
b) Pepsi.

EFFECTIVE PROMOTIONAL SCHEME

40%
Coke

Pepsi

60%

Aim: - the purpose of asking this question was to know about that whose sales
promotion scheme influence the purchase of soft drinks.

Interpretation: - It is clear that 60% of the total respondents said that coke has much
better promotional scheme which influence for the purchase of soft drinks .

43
Q 7 Whose sales promotion scheme is more effective?
a) Coke.
b) Pepsi.

SALES PROMOTION SCHEME

45%
Coke

Pepsi

55%

Aim: - the purpose of asking this question was to know about that whose sales
promotion scheme is more effective.

Interpretation: - It is clear that coke has strong position in the market as its cover the
54% of the scheme is more effective then pepsi.

44
 FINDINGS

On the basis of above data analysis and interpretation following points been analyzed

1 Retailers are more satisfied with point of sale and point of purchase given by coca
cola Company as compared to Pepsi.
2 As shown in the graph most of the retailers who sells coke have sale less then 2
crates per day and not even a single retailer sells more then 10 crates per day.
3 Majority of the retailers sell 2 to 5cratesof coca cola per day which is higher then
the other soft drink companies.
4 As shown in the graph retailers find the coca cola has the better availability and
supply system and quality in its product that prompt retailers to sell coke.
5 Majority of the respondents who are at the age of 10 to 20 are more favors this
package of coca cola as comparison to elder and family members.
6 Retailers find that free bottle scheme as best then display scheme following which
the crown scheme.
7 Most of the retailers said that impact f schemes on the sale of coke are not so good
or not too less it’s fair.
8 As clear from the graph that most of the coke is used for party orders and then for
home delivery and shop consumption.
9 As shown in the graph majority of the retailers who sell coke for three years is
relatively higher then other brands.

10 Majority of the retailers said that 300ml package is most sold in comparison o
other packages.
11 Majority of the retailers said that the impact of advertising is good on the sale
of coke.

45
12 It is shown by the graph that coke dominates the Indian market in the field of
soft drink industry.

Findings of Customers

1 Bottles are most used by the customer in comparison to canned products.

2 Most of the consumers prefer 300ml bottle in size.

3 coca cola is most preferable brand then other brand.

4 Most of respondents said that coca cola is easily available to them.

5 It is clear from the analysis that coca cola satisfy majority of the customers
thirst

6 Coca Cola has much better promotional schemes which influence the customer
for the purchase of coke.

7 Coca Cola has strong position in the market as compared to other brands.
SWOT ANALYSIS

Well it is very essential for every company to know about die strengths and
weaknesses, opportunities and threats that it faces from its environment. Strengths
and weaknesses are internal in nature whereas opportunities and threats are external
in nature. A company needs to have full knowledge of these factors so as to sustain
itself in the dynamic corporate world.

46
STRENGTH:-

>The company enjoys the brand loyalty among its customers and
consumers.

> 96% of the surveyed retailers sell coca-cola whereas only 4% sell Pepsi only. This
is a creditable thing for me company.

> The supply system is excellent almost all the retailers are satisfied with the supply
system of the company.

> Most of the retailers felt that the quality of Coca-Cola is its greatest strength.

> The products are acceptable by the people of all the age groups.

> The home delivery system of the company is also successful and quite popular.

> Although Pepsi offers more margins/crate than Coca-Cola, still retailers are
willing to sell Coca-Cola.

> The company has team of able and efficient staff which strives hard to make
the company more successful.

WEAKNESS:-

> A little problem that the retailers have is about die grievance
handling. They feel that there problems and demands are not met properly.

OPPORTUNITY:-

>The villages are not yet exploited to the fullest. A great potential lies

47
in the rural area which needs to be harnessed.

> Some international flavors of the company can also be tried in India
and see if they have a market or not.

> A company needs to position its products in such way so that they
are in demand even in the winter or off seasons.

> The company can also start production of some other food product
taking into account the market demand.

THREAT:-

> The only threat that the company has is from its nearest rival Pepsi
which is more popular among the college canteens, cinema halls etc because it offers
more margins per crate than coca-cola.

GENERAL FACTS AND LIMITATIONS REGARDING THE

PROJECT

1. The sample size of the project is 150 retailers and the study was limited to
Chandigarh only.

2. The retailers are selected at random without any consideration.

3. The figures were calculated by doing tally marking and calculating the percentage

48
 after that.

4. The project has been based on the information provided to me by the dealers and all
the analysis and interpretation has been done on its basis. So if any wrong
information was provided to me by the dealers I do not owe any responsibility for
that,

5. Some biasness might have crept in due to the attitude of respondents.

6. The survey was done with the help of questionnaire method.

7. This method is also prone to the researcher's bias.

8. The findings of the survey may not be the representative of the market as it is
limited in its scope.

49
 SUGGESTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Some of these findings and recommendation are follows.

• The company introduces new schemes during festivals like it did during Holi to
give 1 pack of colour free with the purchase of a crate or any product of Coca-
Cola. Same way it can also start giving a pack of crackers during Diwali days.

• Coca-Cola so far has limited itself to sponsoring fashion shows, carnivals, etc but
it is yet to sponsor some literary event or something like that.

• The company should feel its responsibility towards the society and engage itself
in some social activities. This would enhance the image of the company in the
eyes of the general public and hence more sales.

• Most of the retailers seemed to be hostile towards the home delivery scheme
started by the company recently. They felt as if their snatch is being taken away
from their mouth. Such retailers only want to fill their homes and are not the well
wishers of the company. So, they should be reconciled.

• The company should make efforts to change its image from a MNC to an
Indianised company.

• The company should also promote its other products along with coke.

50
 CONCLUSION

The COCA-COLA brand is perhaps the most popular brand in the world today. The
present Coca-Cola Company has its headquarters at Atlanta. No one had ever dreamt
that a pharmacist named John-Pamberton would one day be known as the father of
COCA-COLA and a mere syrup would have the potential to drive the world crazy.
But that happened and that too in a big-big way, to the extent that COCA-COLA has
become a household name today.

Everybody, be it an old man or an infant, are obsessed by Coca-Cola.

Coca-Cola portrays a picture of freshness and quality. It is a Company that believes in
satisfying its customers with products and packages that fulfill their desire for
moments of excitement and their needs for convenience, quality and value.

In India, the company has neck to neck competition with Pepsi. But as
far as Punjab is concerned Coca-Cola has a marked edge over Pepsi. The company
enjoys brand loyalty among its customers and consumers. Retailers are more
interested in keeping Coca-Cola products although Pepsi products offer them more
margins of profit per crate. Most of the retailers are highly satisfied by the services
provided by the company.

In the end I would like to mention that I had an apprehension that

theoretical knowledge would be of no use to me once I go to an industry for job. But
after this finial project is over I am glad that all that I had studied in the class room
did not go waste but on the contrary it actually helped me understand and grasp my
finial project in a much more matured way.

I am sure that this experience and all the practical knowledge that I
have gained during this period would certainly help in my growth in the field of
management.

51
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. "MARKETING RESEARCH " by Hamper W.boyd Ralph Westfall and Stanley F .

Stasch.

2. "Marketing Research”: by G.C.Beri.

3. Research Methodology – “Methods and Techniques”

4. WEB SITE Of COCA-COLA :-

a. http//members.aol.com/daclassic/homel.htm
b. http//virtualhometown.com/attic/cocacola/
c. httii//www.thecocacolacompany.com/

52
 QUESTIONNAIRE FOR RETAILRES

Q-1 which of these has a greater sale?

a) COCA-COLA (YES/NO) …………….

b) PEPSI (YES/NO) …………………….

Q2: What is the average number of crates of COKE sold per day?

a) Less than 2
b) 2 to 5
c) 5 to 10
d) More than 10

Q3- What is the average sale of COCA COLA in Crates Per day?
a) Less than 2
b) 2-5
c) 5-10
d) More than10

Q4 which parameters of COCA-COLA prompt you to sell coke products?

a) Better availability & supply system

b) Better SGA & Signage system
c) Quality & image of product
d) More profit & better margin
e) Due to variety of brands
f) Any other reason

53
Q5 What is the age group that prefers to drink coke 300ml ?
a) 10 – 20
b) 20 – 30
c) 30 – 40
d) 40 & Above

Q-6 Out of these, which scheme, would increase your sales more?

a) Crate Bharyo Inaam Pao

b) Display Scheme
c) Free Bottle Scheme
d) Crown Scheme

Q7 What is the impact of Schemes on the sale of Coca cola?

a) Good
b) Fair
c) Not Satisfactory

Q8 Which segment uses it?

a) Home Delivery
b) Party Orders
c) Shop Consumption

Q9. Since how long have you been selling coke?

d) For one year.
e) For three years.
f) For Five years.

54
Q 10 which package do you prefer to sell?
a) 200 ml.
b) 300ml.
c) 1Ltr.
d) 1.5 Ltr.

Q 11 what is the impact of advertising on sale of coke?

a) Satisfactory.
b) Good.
c) Excellent
d No effect.

Q 12 whose sales promotion scheme have been more effective?

a) Coke
b) Pepsi

55
 QUESTIONNAIRE FOR CUSTOMER

Q 1 Which package is most consumed by you ?

a) Canned product.
b) Bottle.

Q 2 Which size of coke is mostly used by you ?

a) 300ml.
b) 1Ltr.
c) 1.5 Ltr.

Q 3 which brand do you prefer ?

a) Coke.
b) Pepsi.

Q 4 Is this brand easily available everywhere?

a) Yes.
b) No.

Q 5 Does it give full satisfaction?

a) Yes.
b) No.

56
Q 6 whose sales promotion scheme influence for the purchase of soft drinks?
a) Coke.
b) Pepsi.

Q 7 Whose sales promotion scheme are more effective?

a) Coke.
b) Pepsi.

Q8 What are your ideas regarding home delivery of coke?

……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………

DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE

Name-………………………………………….

Age-…………………………………………….

Occupation-……………………………………..

57