A PROJECT REPORT

ON

“MARKETING STRATEGY OF COCA-COLA

COMPANY IN INDIA”

Submitted in partial fulfilment for the requirements of

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMIMISTRATION (MBA)

and

2 Year Full Time Post Graduate Program in Management (PGPM)

INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT

NEW DELHI
BATCH-26 (2009-2011)
 C-46, OKHALA INDUSTRIAL AREA PHASE-II
NEW DELHI-110020

BENGAL BEVERAGES PRIVATE LIMITED

DURGAPUR EXPRESSWAY, P.O. DANKUNI COAL COMPLEX
DIST- HOOGLY, PIN-712310
WEST BENGAL, INDIA

SUBMITTED BY
ANAGH GHOSH
BATCH – 26
ENROLMENT NO. – 261091102

UNDER GUIDANCE OF
ASHISH MUKHERJEE
AREA SALES MANAGER
BENGAL BEVERAGES PVT. LTD.

1
 CONTENTS

A. DECLARATION ----------------------------------------------------------------------------3
B. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT------------------------------------------------------------------4
C. CERTIFICATE OF PERFORMANCE -------------------------------------------------5

CHAPTER 1
1.1 INTRODUCTION ------------------------------------------------------------------------7
1.2 ABOUT COCA-COLA ------------------------------------------------------------------8
1.3 COCA-COLA IN INDIA --------------------------------------------------------------10
1.4 BENGAL BEVERAGES PVT. LTD. -----------------------------------------------11

CHAPTER 2
2.1 PRODUCTS OF COCA-COLA BRAND ------------------------------------------13
2.2 COMPETITORS OF COCA-COLA -----------------------------------------------16
2.3 PRODUCTION AND QUALITY CONTROL -------------------------------------17

CHAPTER 3
3.1 MARKETING STRATEGY OF COCA-COLA ----------------------------------20
3.2 COCA-COLA AND PEPSICO ------------------------------------------------------28

CHAPTER 4
4.1 RECOMENDATIONS ----------------------------------------------------------------30

D. CONCLUSSION ------------------------------------------------------------------------31
E. BIBLIOGRAPHY ------------------------------------------------------------------------32
F. REMARKS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------33

2
 DECLERATION

I here by declare that this Project Report entitled “MARKETING STRATEGY OF

COCA-COLA COMPANY IN INDIA” submitted in the partial fulfillment of the
requirement of Master of Business Administration (MBA) and 2 Year Full Time
Post Graduate Program in Management ( PGPM ) of Institute of Management
and Development, New Delhi is based on primary & secondary data found by me
through various surveys programmes, research programmes with various
departments, books, magazines and websites & collected by me in under guidance
of Mr. Ashish Mukherjee (Area Sales Manager, Bengal Beverages Pvt. Ltd.). Any
similarity is coincidental and unintentional.

______________
Anagh Ghosh
Batch: 26
Enrollment No: 261091102

DATE: 18TH August, 2010

3
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Exchange of ideas generates a new object to work in a better way. Whenever a person is helped
and cooperated by others, his heart is bound to pay gratitude and obligations to them.

In the way of the project report many times we have to face survival implication where we were in
between the horns of dilemma, but our well-wishers did leave us in such an ordeal situation for a
long time and sorted out the very problems by their valuable guidance and knowledge.

My cordial thanks would go to Mr. Ashish Mukherjee (Area Sales Manager, Bengal Beverages Pvt.
Ltd.), Mr. Sougata Guha (Sales Executive, Bengal Beverages Pvt. Ltd.) Mr. Chanchal Chakroborty
(Sales Department, Bengal Beverages Pvt. Ltd.), Mr. Jaideb Mukherjee (General Manger – H.R.
Department, Bengal Beverages Pvt. Ltd.), and Mr. Tapas Samanta (H.R. Department, Bengal
Beverages Pvt. Ltd.) to make the project successful. I am also thankful to Mr. Abhishek
Chaudhary (Vice-chairman, Institute of Management and Development, New Delhi) and Mr. K.K.
Mathur (Placement Officer, Institute of Management and Development, New Delhi). I am grateful
to be provided by all the necessary facilities and advices from them time to time.

4
 CERTIFICATE OF PERFORMANCE

This is to certify that ANAGH GHOSH, student of Institute of Management and Development,
New Delhi has attended and completed Summer Internship Program on Marketing
Management on New Dealer Activation Project for Bengal Beverages Pvt. Ltd. (Authorized
Bottling Plant of the Coca-Cola Company) under my guidance. His project is unique and
completed after thorough study of various magazines and websites and market survey
programmes through out the project.

___________________
Ashish Mukherjee
(Area Sales Manager)
Bengal Beverages Pvt. Ltd.
Durgapur Express Way, Dankuni
Hooghly, PIN: 712310
West Bengal, India

Date: 15TH August, 2010

5
CHAPTER - 1

6
 INTRODUCTION
It is clear that the Coca-Cola, as per as the soft drinks world is concern, is the numero uno brand.
And Bengal Beverages Private Limited is one of the authorized bottling plants of Coca-Cola in
India.
With multiple products and flavours Coca-Cola has been able to meet up people‟s thirst. And in
India their journey is also running successfully. Coca-Cola has a product range of Coca-Cola,
Thums Up, Fanta, Limca, Sprite, Maaza, Minute Maid or even packaged drinking water such as
Kinley. But, still now, Coca-Cola is one of the various choices of soft drinks. They have to compete
with other brands such as Pepsico, Parle Agro or Bisleri.
Coca-Cola has now set its target to every point of thirst... from drawing room to kitchen, from
opera to sports ground… every where always Coca-Cola. So, to succeed in their target, Coca-
Cola is trying to reach every corner of the country… from big restaurants to small paan shops,
even of the remote places. So that whenever there is thirst the first thing comes to people‟s mind
will be Coca-Cola. In such way Coca-Cola is going to become a compulsive product rather then an
impulsive product. What that means, is whenever one thinks to buy a soft drink, the only brand he
or she can avail to is Coca-Cola. At present Coca-Cola is having their outlets in an average
distance if 200 meters. What they are aiming to is to reduce the distance between the two outlets
in an average distance of 50 meters only. In other words it should be “Thanda matlab Coca-Cola”
or „The God of Thirst‟. So they have launched the programme named „New Dealer Activation
Scheme‟. In this programme they are looking for newer outlets to join the brand Coca-Cola. With
the exclusive marketing in point of view Coca-Cola is looking for outsmart its competitors. Keeping
this in mind Coca-Cola therefor is performing a survey on its sells ratio with the population per
area and planning for a well formatted outlet chain.
The history of Coca-Cola is a story of special moments - times with family and friends and special
occasions when Coke was naturally there. Every person who drinks a Coca-Cola enjoys a
moment of refreshment - and shares an experience that millions of others have savoured. And all
of those individual experiences combined have created a worldwide phenomenon - a truly global
brand that plays its own small part on the world stage.

7
 ABOUT COCA-COLA
The Early Days:

Coca-Cola was created in 1886 by John Pemberton, a pharmacist in Atlanta, Georgia, who sold
the syrup mixed with fountain water as a potion for mental and physical
disorders. The formula changed hands three more times before Asa D.
Candler added carbonation and by 2003, Coca-Cola was the world‟s largest
manufacturer, marketer, and distributor of non alcoholic beverage
concentrates and syrups, with more than 400 widely recognized beverage
brands in its portfolio. With the bubbles making the difference, Coca-Cola
was registered as a trademark in 1887 and by 1895, was being sold in every
state and territory in the United States. In 1899, it franchised its bottling
operations in the U.S., growing quickly to reach 370 franchisees by 1910.
Headquartered in Atlanta with divisions and local operations in over 200
countries worldwide, Coca-Cola generated more than 70% of its income outside the United States
by 2003. Until the 1960s, both small town and big city dwellers enjoyed carbonated beverages at
the local soda fountain or ice cream saloon. Often housed in the drug store, the soda fountain
counter served as a meeting place for people of all ages. Often combined with lunch counters, the
soda fountain declined in popularity as commercial ice cream, bottled soft drinks, and fast food
restaurants became popular. On April 23, 1985, the trade secret "New Coke" formula was
released. Today, products of the Coca Cola Company are consumed at the rate of more than one
billion drinks per day.

International expansion:
Coke‟s first international bottling plants opened in 1906 in Canada, Cuba, and Panama. By the
end of the 1920‟s Coca-Cola was bottled in twenty-seven countries throughout the world and
available in fifty-one more. In spite of this reach, volume was low, quality inconsistent, and
effective advertising a challenge with language, culture, and government regulation all serving as
barriers. Former CEO Robert Woodruff‟s insistence that Coca-Cola wouldn‟t “suffer the stigma of
being an intrusive American product,” and instead would use local bottles, caps, machinery,
trucks, and personnel contributed to Coke‟s challenges as well with a lack of standard processes
and training degrading quality. Coca-Cola continued working for over 80 years on Woodruff‟s goal:
to make Coke available wherever and whenever consumers wanted it, “in arm‟s reach of desire.”
The Second World War proved to be the stimulus Coca-Cola needed to build effective capabilities
around the world and achieve dominant global market share. Woodruff‟s patriotic commitment
“that every man in uniform gets a bottle of Coca-Cola for five cents, wherever he is and at
whatever cost to our company” was more than just great public relations. As a result of Coke‟s
status as a military supplier, Coca-Cola was exempt from sugar rationing and also received
government subsidies to build bottling plants around the world to serve WWII troops.

Turn of the Century Growth Imperative:

The 1990‟s brought a slowdown in sales growth for the Carbonated Soft Drink (CSD) industry in
the United States, achieving only 0.2% growth by 2000 (just under 10 billion cases) in contrast to
the 5-7% annual growth experienced during the 1980‟s. While per capita consumption throughout
the world was a fraction of the United States‟, major beverage companies clearly had to look
elsewhere for the growth their shareholders demanded. The Coca-Cola India is looming
opportunity for twenty-first century was in the world‟s developing markets with their rapidly growing
middle class populations.

8
The World’s Most Powerful Brand:

Interbrand‟s Global Brand Scorecard for 2003 ranked

Coca-Cola the #1 Brand in the World and estimated
its brand value at $70.45 billion. The ranking‟s
methodology determined a brand‟s valuation on the
basis of how much it was likely to earn in the future,
distilling the percentage of revenues that could be
credited to the brand, and assessing the brand‟s
strength to determine the risk of future earnings
forecasts. Considerations included market
leadership, stability, and global reach, incorporating
its ability to cross both geographical and cultural
borders.
From the beginning, Coke understood the importance of branding and the creation of a distinct
personality. Its catchy, well-liked slogans19 (“It‟s the real thing” (1942, 1969), “Things go better
with Coke” (1963), “Coke is it” (1982), “Can‟t beat the Feeling” (1987), and a 1992 return to “Can‟t
beat the real thing”) linked that personality to the core values of each generation and established
Coke as the authentic, relevant, and trusted refreshment of choice across the decades and around
the globe.

9
 COKE IN INDIA
Coca-Cola was the leading soft drink brand in India until 1977 when it left rather than revealing its
formula to the government and reduced its equity stake as required under the Foreign Exchange
Regulation Act (FERA) which governed the operations of foreign companies in India. After a 16-
year absence, Coca-Cola returned to India in 1993, cementing its presence with a deal that gave
Coca-Cola ownership of the nation's top soft-drink brands and bottling network. Coke‟s acquisition
of local popular Indian brands including Thums Up (the most trusted brand in India), Limca,
Maaza, Citra and Gold Spot provided not only physical manufacturing, bottling, and distribution
assets but also strong consumer preference. This combination of local and global brands enabled
Coca-Cola to exploit the benefits of global branding and global trends in tastes while also tapping
into traditional domestic markets. Leading Indian brands joined the Company's international family
of brands,
including
Coca-Cola,
diet Coke,
Sprite and
Fanta, plus
the
Schweppes
product range.
In 2000, the
company
launched the
Kinley water
brand and in
2001, Shock
energy drink
and the
powdered
concentrate
Sunfill hit the
market. From
1993 to 2003, Coca-Cola invested more than US$1 billion in India, making it one of the country‟s
top international investors. By 2003, Coca-Cola India had won the prestigious Woodruf Cup from
among 22 divisions of the Company based on three broad parameters of volume, profitability, and
quality. Coca-Cola India achieved 39% volume growth in 2002 while the industry grew 23%
nationally and the Company reached breakeven profitability in the region for the first time.
Encouraged by its 2002 performance, Coca-Cola India announced plans to double its capacity at
an investment of $125 million (Rs. 750 crore) between September 2002 and March 2003. Coca-
Cola India produced its beverages with 7,000 local employees at its twenty-seven wholly-owned
bottling operations supplemented by seventeen franchisee-owned bottling operations and a
network of twenty-nine contract-packers to manufacture a range of products for the company. The
complete manufacturing process had a documented quality control and assurance program
including over 400 tests performed throughout the process. The complexity of the consumer soft
drink market demanded a distribution process to support 700,000 retail outlets serviced by a fleet
that includes 10-ton trucks, open-bay three wheelers, and trademarked tricycles and pushcarts
that were used to navigate the narrow alleyways of the cities.25 In addition to its own employees,
Coke indirectly created employment for another 125,000 Indians through its procurement, supply,
and distribution networks. Sanjiv Gupta, President and CEO of Coca-Cola India, joined Coke in
1997 as Vice President, Marketing and was instrumental to the company‟s success in developing
a brand relevant to the Indian consumer and in tapping India‟s vast rural market potential.
10
Following his marketing responsibilities, Gupta served as Head of Operations for Company-owned
bottling operations and then as Deputy President. Seen as the driving force behind recent
successful forays into packaged drinking water, powdered drinks, and ready-to-serve tea and
coffee, Gupta and his marketing prowess were critical to the continued growth of the Company.

Bengal Beverages Private Limited:

Bengal Beverages Private Limited is the authorized bottling plant of Coca-Cola in West Bengal,
India. It is situated in Dankuni, Hooghly. It bottles the various beverage products of Coca-Cola. It
also looks after the marketing and sales division of Coca-Cola in and around Kolkata, West
Bengal.

11
CHAPTER - 2

12
 PRODUCTS OF COCA-COLA

The Coca-Cola Company, India produces Coca-Cola, Sprite, Limca (Lemon Flavour), Thums Up,
Fanta (Apple and Orange Flavour). This comes in size of 200ml and 300ml of glass bottles and
600ml, 1.25ltrs and 2ltrs. pet bottles. These are also available in 330 ml cans while Diet Coke is
only available in 330ml. cans. Maaza, made of pure mango pulps is available in pet bottels of
500ml and 1200ml. Recently launched Minute Maid is available in mainly Pulpy Orange and
Nimboo Fresh flavour in 600mi. bottles. Although Minute Maid is also made of various other
flavour. Georgia Coffee is another brand under Coca-Cola brand. Another product of Coca-Cola
Kinley is named for Packaged Drinking Water and Club Sodas.

COCA COLA:
Coca cola has truly remarkable heritage. From a humble beginning in 1886 it has now become the
flagship brand of largest manufacturer, distributor of non alcoholic beverages in the world. In India,
coca cola was the leading soft drink till 1977 when govt. policies necessitated its departure. Coca
cola has made its return to the country in 1993.and made significant investment to ensure that the
beverage is available to more and more people in remote as well as inaccessible parts of the
world. Coca cola returned to India in 1993 and over the past ten years has captured the
imagination of the nation, building strong association with cricket, the thriving cinema industry,
music etc. coca cola has been very strongly associated with cricket, sponsoring the world cup in
1996

13
FANTA:
Fanta entered the Indian market in year 1996 under the coca cola brand over
the years Fanta has occupied a strong market place and is identified as “the fun
catalyst”. Fanta stands for its vibrant color, tempting taste and tingling bubbles
that not just uplifts feelings but also helps free spirit thus encouraging one to
indulge in the moment.

LIMCA:
Limca, a drink that can cast a tangy refreshing spell on anyone, anywhere. Born in
1971, Limca has been the original thirst choice, of millions of consumers for over
three decades. The brand has been displaying healthy volume growing year on
year and Limca continues to be leading flavouring soft drinks in the country. Dive
into the zingy refreshment of Limca and walk away a new person.

SPIRITE:
World wide Sprite ranked as no.4 soft drink and is sold in more than 190 countries.
In India, Sprite was launched in year 1999 and today it has grown to be one of the
fastest growing soft drinks, leading clear lime category. Today Sprite is perceived
as a youth icon. With strong appeal to youth Sprite has stood for a straight forward
and honest attitude. Its clear crisping taste encourages today‟s youth to trust their
instincts, influence them to be true who they are and to obey their thirst.

THUMS UP:
Strong cola taste, exciting personality. Thums Up is a leading carbonated soft drink
and most trusted brand in India. Originally introduced in 1977, Thums Up was
acquired by the coca cola company in 1993. Thums Up, is, known for strong, fizzy
taste and its confident, mature and uniquely masculine attitude. This brand clearly
seeks to separate the man from the boys.
MAAZA:
Maaza was launched in 1976. In 1993, Maaza was acquired by coca cola
India. Maaza currently dominates the fruit drink category. Over the years,
Maaza has become synonymous with mango. “Taaza Mango, Maaza mango,
Botal mei aam, Maaza hai naam”: consumers regard Maaza as wholesome, natural, fun loving
drink real experience of fruit. The campaign builds on the existing equity of the brand and delivers
a relevant emotional benefit to the moms rightly captured in tagline, “yaari dosti, and taaza
Maaza”.

GEORGIA:
Introduced in 2004, the Georgia gold range of tea and coffee beverages is the perfect
solution for refreshments. With variety of flavours Georgia offers freshly ground
roasted coffee, cardamom tea, hot chocolate, iced tea and col coffee.

14
MINUTE MAID:
Since 1945, with a history of over 60 years Minute Maid has been a refresher over the
years. It was developed by Florida Foods Corporation. It named after its ease of
preparation. Now Minute Maid is available in various flavours like Pulpy Orange, Fresh
Nimboo (Lemon), Apple etc.

KINLEY:
Kinley is another venture of Coca-Cola. It is named for Packaged Drinking Water
and Club Sodas.

15
 COMPETITORS OF COCA-COLA
The biggest and the closest competitor of Coca-Cola, not only in India, but all over the world is
PEPSI, known as Pepsico India Limited in India. With a variety range of products like Pepsi
(Regular and Blue), Diet
Pepsi, Mirinda (Orange and
Lemon), 7UP, Mountain
Dew, Slice, Nimbooz, and
Aquafina, PEPSICO also
has a different segment in
beverages market, i.e.
snacks. Pepsi owns Frito-
Lay‟s and Pizza-Hut. The
following chart illustrates the
market. While Coca-Cola
grabs the larger share with
42.8% Pepsi stands second
with 31.1%.
Coca-Cola also competes
with some other big brands
such as Parle Bisleri, Parle
Agro (Frooti and Appy),
Godrej (Jumpin), Tropicana,
Dabur Real, Leh Berry, RC
Cola etc.
Not only that, there are
some other contender too in
the market. It sounds
surprising, but Nestle and
Cadbury are also two big
names in the field.
In the comparative chart
beside, the consumption
rate of various beverages
such as coffee, tea, ice
cream, soft drinks etc. is
shown.

16
 PRODUCTION AND QUALITY CONTROL
The company produces concentrate, which is then sold to licensed Coca-Cola bottlers throughout
the world. The bottlers, who hold territorially exclusive contracts with the company, produce
finished product in cans and bottles from the concentrate in combination with filtered water and
sweeteners. The bottlers then sell, distribute and merchandise Coca-Cola to retail stores and
vending machines. Such bottlers include Coca-Cola Enterprises, which is the largest single Coca-
Cola bottler in North America and Western Europe. The Coca-Cola Company also sells
concentrate for soda fountains to major restaurants and food service distributors.

The production of all products sold and distributed by Coca-Cola Bottling Indonesia takes place in
Indonesia. There are ten production plants located throughout Indonesia.

Although production policy and development is directed from the National Office, located in
Cibitung, Bekasi, each production plant has well qualified and experienced production, technical
and quality control management.

All production plants meet and frequently exceed international standards and local regulatory
requirements and undergo regular audits in the areas of quality control, environmental,
health and safety practices.

Over the years, our plants in Indonesia have been awarded prizes from The Coca-Cola Company
for attaining standards above those of similar plants located in other parts of the world.

HOW Coca-Cola IS MADE?

Coca-Cola beverage products begin as raw material and go through many stages, until the final
step when the finished products reach the consumer.

1. The first step in creating "Coca-Cola" is quite simple: to make a

syrup of sugar and water. The water is carefully purified because
for "Coca-Cola" absolutely top quality ingredients are required.

2. To be certain that the water used for bottling and canning is clean
and pure, local drinking water is filtered and purified. Quality control
technicians test the water frequently as it is used to make the
finished product.

17
3. The checking and testing continues. Sophisticated equipment helps
technicians check everything from the condition of each package to
details of the carbonation level, taste and syrup content. Here the
syrup mix is checked.

4. "Coca-Cola" concentrate is added to the syrup. This flavor base for

"Coca-Cola Company manufacturing plants and still remains one of
the world's great trade secrets. Technicians carefully sample,
check and record the blend of each batch of syrup. After blending,
it is ready to have the 'bubbles' or carbonation, added. Strict quality
control is the reason "Coca-Cola" is famous for a perfect level of
'bubbliness'.

5. An army of glass and PET (Polyethylene terephthalate) bottles, as

well as cans, is now ready to be filled with the finished product. The
bottles go through a throughout test: first they're washed, rinsed
and inspected electronically and visually Only then are they ready
to be filled with the world's most popular soft drink.

6. The conveyor lines up bottle after bottle to be filled automatically.

This way the amount in each is exact, and the automatic sealing of
each bottle guarantees complete hygiene.

7. At last the bottles are labeled, date coded and packed into cartons.
The sales centre is then ready to dispatch "Coca-Cola" to the more
than 420,000 outlets in Indonesia which stock "Coca-Cola" product.

18
CHAPTER - 3

19
 MARKETING STRATEGY OF COCA-COLA
Coca-Cola is one of the most widely known trade mark of the world. With over 230 beverages to
its portfolio Coca-Cola is one of the leading brands all over the world. But there is a strong thought
full marketing strategy under the belt of this success.
Coca-Cola has segmented the market in three sections: (i) Demographic, (ii) Psychographic and
(iii) Geographic. What this has done is set a target market for its different products. Such as, Diet
Coke is for health conscious people, Maaza for kids or juice lovers, Sprite for young generation,
Fanta for girls and Thums Up for people with masculine attitude. It also consists of functional
positioning strategy emphasizing on Price, Quality and Product Control. It has balancing marketing
mix with 4Ps:
(i) Product: It consists of various brand packs and flavour. Its product strategy
promotes all brands available in brand pack.
(ii) Price: To effectively achieve the stable balance between sales and covering the
production cost. Coca-Cola has priced the
product same as that of its major
competitor of the market leader.
(iii) Place: It has a strong distribution channel:
SUPPLY CHAIN OF COCA-COLA  C&F
AGENT DISTRIBUTOR  RETAILER 
CUSTOMER
(iv) Promotion: Coca-Cola has always
maintained a top line promotion with
celebrity endorsements.

Opportunity in India:
As in India around 120 billion litres of beverage sis consumed every year, of which 5 per cent are
in packaged segment and also if we compare per head consumption of soft drink in India to U.S.A.
it is 6:700. So looking at these aspects we can say that there is lot of scope for the soft drink
industry to expand its market in India as the stakes are huge.

Segmentation of Market:
A market segment consists a group of customers who share a similar set of needs and wants. As
already said, Coca-Cola has segmented and targeted its customers.
Mass Marketing: However in some popular products Coca-Cola follows the mass marketing
strategy. In this type of segmentation it targets the whole market and not any particular set of
consumers. Eg: Coca-Cola, Kinley.
Target Marketing: Although the targeted group of the company is the whole population, they want
to earn more revenue from particular segments than other revenue generators. Eg: Thums Up,
Fanta. For this they recognize the following bases:

20
(A) Geographical:
A.1 Region: Coca-Cola has treated different country as different entity... such as in India
they have their unit named Coca-
Cola India where consumption
rate is about 70% in summer and
30% in winter. In India Coca-Cola
ha invested huge resources in
seasons of summers and
festivals, and targets the
domestic users, restaurants,
school and college canteens and
even rural chaupals while in
winter the targets are only the
party users and high-income
group consumers.

A.2 Market- Urban vs Rural:

The Coca-Cola company is one of the first global majors to have spotted the potential spin offs
from country‟s rural market. Population of rural sector is more conscious about price where as
the urban sector is conscious about the quality and brand name of the product. Specially after
the pesticide massacre it has become more serious.

(B) Demographic:
B.1 Age: India is considered to be a young country i.e. average age of India Population is
less then 38 years. Thus targeting the young generation can be beneficial marketing
strategy. Also this strategy makes a brand position, such as Diet Coke is for health
conscious people, Maaza for kids or juice lovers, Sprite for young generation etc.

B.2Gender: Also the gender

based segmentation sometimes
helps marketing as tastes differ
from male to female. Fanta for
girls and Thums Up for people
with masculine attitude – such
segmentations decide the market.

(C) Psychographic: Such segments

totally depends on mind set up of
the consumers, i.e. how the see
the products. It is totally effects
on brand positioning.

21
Branding: Another very much important point is the Branding or Brand Image. Brand is
defined as a name, term, symbol or design or a combination of all of
them, intend to identify the goods or services of one seller or group of
sellers and to differentiate them from those of competitors.
Through various researches it is found that a symbolically significant
name helps to sell a product. One of interesting illustration shows how
name affects marketing. When Coca-Cola was introduced in China
in1920, it sounded like „Ke-Kou-Ke-Le‟ which means „a joyful taste
and happiness‟. Thirsty Chinese consumers responded in drove to
felicitous meaning.

In India people like it to be desi. So Coca-Cola has taken a special

strategy called Brand Localization. In 2002 they launched a new
advertisement featuring famous actor Aamir Khan: “Thanda Matlab... Coca-Cola”. This went a very
successful
campaigning for a
long time. It was
target for the rural
and the semi-
urban segments.
The idea was to
position Coca-
Cola as a generic
brand for soft
drinks. It was
launched to
support Coca-Cola
in rural initiatives.
However, the poor
rural infrastructure
and consumption
habits are very
different from
those of urban
people were two
major obstacles to
crack in the rural
market for Coca-
Cola. Later they
launched another
initiative „Life Ho
To Aisi...‟ with the former Ms. World. It was successful and relevant tagline found in Coca-Cola‟s
advertising to this audience.

22
Distribution Channel: Distribution is one of four elements of marketing mix. Frequently there
may be a chain of intermediaries, each passing the product down to the next. Level before it
reaches to the end consumer or customer. This process is known as the „Distribution Chain‟ or
„Channel‟. So we say that a set of independent organizations involved in the process of making a
product available for the use or consumption is known as „Distribution Channel‟.
Coca-Cola is world wise famous for its „Distribution Channel‟. In India the distribution network of
Coca-Cola is so strong that it has over 6.5 Lakh outlets across the country. It formulated different
strategies for distribution in urban and rural areas.
In urban sector, the distributors buy product directly from the bottling plant and supply those to the
retailers themselves as per order. The retailer sells to the end customer.
But in rural area, it works in hub and spokes model. To reach out rural India, Coca-Cola started
out by drawing up a hit list of high potential villages from various districts. So to ensure full loads,
large distributors (Hub) were appointed. And they supply from the company‟s depot the smaller
distributors (Spokes). From there the retailers are supplied as per order to sell to the end
consumers.

Promotion and Advertisements:

Coca-Cola has uniformly maintained a quality promotion
and advertising campaigns. In case of India, they have
always carried the Indian flavour. In times they have
engaged various celebrities such as sports personalities to
movie actors. Not only that, they have used the Indian
festivals also into their promotions. Using the Indian touch
Coca-Cola has employed a successful marketing strategy. The chart beside illustrates how much
an advertise effects consumer, the 77% have responded positive while the rest thinks the other
way.

FACTORS EFFECTING SALES:

There are so many factors, which affects the sale of coke. Here we are discussing three major
factors which effects coke:
a) Per capita income
b) Competitors
c) Weather

a) Per Capita Income: First we will discuss about “ Per capita income”. This is major factor
that affects the sale of this soft drink. Because which every passing year budgets are
becoming very strict and tight in order to purchase things. So the disposable incomes of the
people are coming down. They spend heavily on rents, utilities, and education and basic
necessities and after that when they get extra money they think about this soft drink .So the
decreasing per capita income effects badly in selling and production of this soft drink. And
to get through with this difficulty there is need to increase the level of per capita income of
India because it is much lesser than the rest of the countries.

b) Competitors: Coke‟s major competitor is “PEPSI” and there is no hesitation to say this
because every one knows that and all the other cold drinks and water, coffee, tea are the
competitors.

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 c) Weather: Weather is the third major factor in effecting the Coke‟s selling. This is
underdeveloped market so the coke‟s consumption in summers is 60% and in winters is
40%.

MAJOR CUSTOMERS NEED:

First of all the majority don‟t care that what they are going to have. In other words, they don‟t care
before drinking that whether it is “Pepsi” or “coke”. They don‟t actually differentiate between these
two brands in order to their tastes. Consumers basically drink what they get. They believe on
“WHAT COLD THEY SOLD”. Consumer‟s availability in brands is basically works like: Push
availability Pull consumer‟s demand. For this reason Coca-Cola have provided their coolers and
freezers in the market. They have maximum number of coolers and freezers in the market. They
provide this infrastructure free of cost just to provide child coke to their customer, which they want
to be purchase. Their salesman and mechanics regularly visit all the shops where coke has its
infrastructure to check that either it is in proper condition or not, if not then they immediately
change or repair it.

STRATEGIES OF QUALITY:

After Micro and macro analysis Brand “coke” is primarily role

1. Enhance competition moments
2. When people watch cricket
3. Through commercialization
4. Fun time
Though these strategies there could be better understanding and better connection with the public.
These are the “key consumption”.

THREATS FROM COMPETITORS:

Threats are well planned. Price is the major threat. When price goes certain beyond the exact
price whether come down or go higher its effects the consumption of soft drink. Because when the
price goes higher people go for the substitute of “coke” i.e. Pepsi. And when price goes down they
think that there is must be some thing wrong in it. In short it all depends on customer‟s perception.

TARGETS THAT WOULD LIKE TO ATTAIN:

Every organization runs on the bases of profit maximization so Coke is also looking for a high
profit margin.
There are three major ways of making money
a) Over night profit
b) Windfall profit
c) Ethical and un-ethical ways

a) Over Night Profits: They could be over night profit that is for the number 1 brand for the
year. This could be got my increasing sales volume

b) Windfall Profit: Can be windfall profit. They are the extras profit. When the consumption is
on boom. So, there is different kind of profits.

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 c) Ethical And Unethical Ways: Profit can also get through ethical and unethical ways. They
believe on this quote “Every thing is fare in love and war”. Some profits stays for some time
like “over night profits” and some just come and go like “wind fall profits”. And they can also
get profit through different approaches.

EXPANDING TARGET MARKET:

In last few years Coke has come back in aggressive manner.

a) Consumer has choice
b) Attractive brand name
c) Brand differentiating

a) Consumer Has Got Choice: Now the consumer has got choice. Because now they know
the name of another big brand, though coke is the 2nd best name but it can get a better
position after some time
b) Attractive Brand Name: Now the consumers know the Name of Coke, because Coke is
the name, which is the most popular after the word “ok”. So people can better differentiate
brands with each other.

c) Brand Differentiation: Now different companies have got different brand names. So,
people can distinguish between brands. Two major brands “coke” and “Pepsi” also have
brand names.

Strategies of getting goals i.e. “High Profits”: To increase the price is the least thing, which
Coke can adopt. There are so many ways through which Coke can increase the profits. Some
major ways are as follows:
· Volume can be increased
· Interest level of consumers
· To take part in energetic festivals

How to increase the volume of consumers?

Coke can increase the volume by expanding the industry of coke. Through advertisements,
offering different interesting things to attract people towards this product.

How to increase the interest level of consumers?

Coke is increasing the interest level of consumers by offering different flavors. For example Coke
is increasing the number of flavors in “Fanta”, this is one of the product of coke. Through offering
different flavors Coke can increase the Level of consumers and through this profits can be gained.
How to take part in energetic festivals? Coke is already taking part in the festival like “Dewali”
since last 3 years. Coke offers different attractive things in their festival and through this Coke
gained high profit and consumption of coke increased on these occasions.

MARKETING STRATEGY:

Our local marketing strategy enables Coke to listen to all the voices around the world asking for
beverages that span the entire spectrum of tastes and occasions. What people want in a beverage
is a reflection of who they are, where they live, how they work and play, and how they relax and
recharge. Whether you're a student in the United States enjoying a refreshing Coca-Cola, a
woman in Italy taking a tea break, a child in Peru asking for a juice drink, or a couple in Korea
buying bottled water after a run together, we're there for you. We are determined not only to make

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great drinks, but also to contribute to communities around the world through our commitments to
education, health, wellness, and diversity. Coke strives to be a good neighbor, consistently
shaping our business decisions to improve the quality of life in the communities in which we do
business. It's a special thing to have billions of friends around the world, and we never forget it.

PRICE STRATEGY:

Trade Promotion: Coca-Cola Company gives incentives to middle men or retailers in way a that
they offer them free samples and free empty bottles, by this these retailers and middle man push
their product in the market. And that‟s why coca cola seen more in the market. And they have a
good sale in the market because according to the expert which product seen more in the market
that sells more. They do agreements with a shop keepers and stores to exclusive sale in that
store. These stores are called as KEY accounts in their local language. And coke also invest
heavy budget on these stores and offers them free samples and free bottles and some time cash
incentives.

Different Price In Different Seasons: Some times Coca Cola Company change their product
prices according to the season. Summer is supposed to be a good season for beverage industry in
India. So in winter they reduce their prices to maintain their sales and profit. But normally they
reduce the prices of their pet bottles or 1 litter glass bottle.

PROMOTION STRATEGIES:

Getting shelves: They get or purchase shelves in big departmental stores and display their
products in those shelves in that style which show their product more clear and more attractive for
the consumers.

Eye Catching Position: Salesman of the coca cola company positions their freezers and their
products in eye catching positions. Normally they keep their freezers near the entrance of the
stores.

Sale Promotion: Company also does sponsorships with different college and school‟s cafes and
sponsors their sports events and other extra curriculum activities for getting market share.

UTC Scheme: UTC mean under the crown scheme, coca cola often do this type of scheme and
they offer very handy prizes in it. Like once they offer bicycles, caps, tv sets, cash prizes etc. This
scheme is very much popular among children.

FACILITATING THE PRODUCT BY INFRASTRUCTURE: For providing their product in good

manner company has provided infrastructure these includes:
· Vizi cooler
· Freezers
· Display racks
· Free empty bottles and shells for bottles

ADVERTISEMENT: Coca-Cola company uses different mediums

a) Print media
b) POS material
c) TV commercial
d) Billboards and holdings

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a) Print Media: They often use print media for advertisement. They have a separate
department for print media.

b) POS Material: POS material mean point of sale material this includes: posters and stickers
display in the stores and in different areas.

c) TV Commercials: As everybody know that TV is a most common entertaining medium so

TV commercials is one of the most attractive way of doing advertisement. So Coca Cola
Company does regular TV commercials on different channels.

d) Billboards and Holdings: Coca cola is very much conscious about their billboards and
holdings. They have so many sites in different locations for their billboards.

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 COCA-COLA AND PEPSICO
Coca-Cola Inc. is set to invest about Rs.1000 crore ($250 million) in India over the next three
years to keep pace with its rival PepsiCo Inc., which presently dominates the local $1.75 billion
soft drinks market. According to Edward Neville Isdell, the chief executive of the world's largest
non-alcoholic beverages manufacturer, Coca-Cola is keen to make India one of its top ten markets
in the world in terms of volumes and it will not hesitate on injecting funds to expand its Indian
operations. "We are bullish on India. It is a matter of stimulation...as the growth comes, you have
to put in incremental investments," Isdell said, in an interview with Economic Times.
"We are investing $250 million. This will not be the last. More investments will come," he added.
Coca-Cola has already spent $1.2 billion over the last decade to strengthen its distribution and
marketing infrastructure.
Admitting that rival PepsiCo's CEO Indira Noori "drives us to compete very hard," Isdell said India,
which is one of the fastest growing soft drinks market in the world, poses a challenge to the soft
drinks giant to "maintain and accelerate growth."
"India is growing phenomenally. It is about putting the basics
together and removing the drags on growth. Constant rebuilding is
also significant to increase the market share and widen our
presence. All this should have a clear focus," Isdell said, adding
heavy responsibility rests on the shoulders of Atul Singh, head of
Coca-Cola India.
"Pepsi is slightly ahead of us. But the issue is total business. Cola-
to-cola, we are ahead. Every sub-category like lemon and orange,
we are ahead. Four out of top five brands are ours," he said.

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CHAPTER - 4

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 RECOMENDATIONS
New Dealer Activation: Coca-Cola has target to make themselves a compulsive product rather
than an impulsive product.
Impulsive goods are
purchased without any prior
planning or search effort.
But compulsive product is a
kind of need to the
consumer. Coca-Cola wants
to become a habit of the
consumers. The char
illustrates the consumption
rate among the consumers.
Coca-Cola wants people to
be apostles towards the
brand and its products.
Thus they want to outsmart
the other brands and
products. But, in a
competitive era such targets are not easy to achieve, because the competitors are not sitting rest.
So there is a need of outsmart strategies to beat them.

After completing project it is concluded with some recommendations, which are following:

A. Coca Cola Company should try to emphasis more on providing their infrastructure in the
market to facilitate their customers.

B. According to the survey, conducted by the international firm Indian people like little bit
sweeter cola drink. So for this coca cola company should produce their product according
to the local demand.

C. Marketing team should try to increase the availability of Coke in rural areas. In fact there
should be regular follow up of the supply and sales even in urban area also.

D. They should also focus the old people.

E. Now young generation has a trend to drink coke just to make up thirst. But now the bottling
plants as well as the distributors are having serious problems with the refundable glass
bottles. So Company should think about providing more satisfaction to them company
should introduce smaller disposable bottle.

F. There should be a proper communication between the retailer, distributor and the plant
representatives.

G. What the company is targeting, from impulsion to reach the compulsion stage, there should
be some offerings and tie-ups are required. Such as, they can tie-up with different
restaurant chains where only Coca-Cola is offered (such as they already have one with
McDonalds).

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 CONCLUSION
Our mission statement is to maximize shareowner value over time. In order to achieve this
mission, we must create value for all the constraints we serve, including our consumers, our
customers, our bottlers, and our communities. The Coca-Cola Company creates value by
executing comprehensive business strategy guided by six key beliefs:
1. Consumer demand drives everything we do.
2. Brand Coca Cola is the core of our business
3. We will serve consumers a broad selection of the nonalcoholic ready-to–drink beverages
they want to drink through out the day.
4. We will be the best marketers in the world.
5. We will think and act locally.
6. We will lead as a model corporate citizen.

The ultimate objectives of our business strategy are to increase volume, expand our share of
worldwide nonalcoholic ready to drink beverages sales, maximize our long term cash flows, and
create economic value added by improving economic profit. The Coca Cola system has more than
16 million customers around the world that sells or serves our products directly to consumers. We
keenly focus on enhancing value for these customers and helping them grow their beverage
businesses. We strive to understand each customer‟s business and needs, whether that customer
is a sophisticated retailer in a developed market a kiosk owner in an emerging market. There are
nearly 6 million people in the world who are potential consumers of our company‟s product.
Ultimately, our success in achieving our mission depends on our ability to satisfy more of their
beverage consumption demands and our ability to add value for customers. We achieve this when
we place the right products in the right markets at the right time.
Coca-Cola touches the lives of millions of people each and every day. From special occasions to
exceptional moments in everyday life, Coca-Cola is there. The brand has become a special part of
people's lives. Over the years, hundreds of people have sent us stories about how Coca-Cola has
affected their lives. Whether it is a childhood memory, a reminder of family gatherings, or a
recollection of good times with friends.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY
a. www.hoovers.com
b. www.slideshare.net
c. www.scribd.com
d. www.coca-cola.com
e. Anuja Enterprise (Distributor of Coca-Cola, Barrackpore Subdivision)
f. Marketing Management (Pearson India)

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 REMARKS

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(Authorised Signatory)

This is a survey report done under authorization of Institute of Management and Development, New Delhi and Bengal Beverages Pvt. Ltd
© All rights reserved, 2010

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