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The Dimensions of Customer Satisfaction of Aavin Milk in Hyderabad, India

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The Dimensions of Customer Satisfaction of Aavin Milk in Hyderabad, India

Kameswara Rao Poranki

Professor in Department of Marketing, FAFS, Al Baha University, Saudi Arabia (KSA)
Email: kamesh_p2001@yahoo.com & kamesh_p2001@rediffmail.com

Abstract
It is a well known fact that the term 'Customer satisfaction' is widely used in all aspects of marketing
which is pivotal to any company to measure the level or height of satisfaction of the consumers of a
specific product or service. The researcher of this paper upon a thorough study have understood that
this measure or dimension would be an indicator of consumer intentions on repeated purchase with
loyalty, differentiation of products or services and to retain the customers under focus. The researcher
thus conducted the research on the Dimensions of Customer Satisfaction of Aavin Milk in Hyderabad,
India. To measure the satisfaction levels the researher has taken care while conducting this research.
Keywords: Customer Satisfaction, Brand awareness, Brand Influence, Brand Preferece etc.

Originality/value: The researchers has conducted this research to measure the customer satisfaction
levels of Avin Milk which is a brand of Tamilnadu Co-operative Milk Producers' Federation Limited,
Aavin Illam, Madhavaram Milk Colony, Chennai 600051-Tamilnadu of India. The study was focused
at Hyderabad, India as this company products also sold at Hyderabad.

Paper Type: Research Paper

Introduction

"In researching satisfaction, firms generally ask customers whether their product or service has met or
exceeded expectations. Thus, expectations are a key factor behind satisfaction. When customers have
high expectations and the reality falls short, they will be disappointed and will likely rate their
experience as less than satisfying. For this reason, a luxury resort, for example, might receive a lower
satisfaction rating than a budget motel even though its facilities and service would be deemed superior
in 'absolute' terms"( Farris, Paul W.; Neil T. Bendle; Phillip E. Pfeifer; David J. Reibstein, 2010). It is
a measure of how products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation
(Kameswara Rao Poranki, Yusuf Perwej, Asif Perwej, January, 2015). The authors opined that
(Kameswara Rao Poranki, Mohammed Abul Khair & Abdulaziz Khalid Alotaibi April, 2014)
customer satisfaction through standards tools of research however it was understood that Customer
satisfaction is a measure of how products and services supplied by a company. Also, the author
(Kameswara Rao Poranki 2014 and 2015) has defined as "the number of customers, or percentage of
total customers, whose reported experience with a firm, its products, or its services exceeds specified
satisfaction goals. However, the researcher Kameswara Rao Poranki has the opinion that there is a
need to know the brand awareness before measuring the level of customer satisfaction. According to
some other authors However, it is seen as a key performance indicator within business and is often part
of a Balanced Scorecard. In a competitive marketplace where businesses compete for customers,
customer satisfaction is seen as a key differentiator and increasingly has become a key element of
business strategy (Gitman, Lawrence J.; Carl D. McDaniel, 2005). Within organizations, customer
satisfaction ratings can have powerful effects and it is essential for businesses to effectively manage
customer satisfaction. To be able do this, firms need reliable and representative measures of
satisfaction.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Customer_satisfaction
The above figure is rightly explains us the circle of customer satisfaction interpreted by the author
(Kameswara Rao Poranki, 2015). We need to start with the assessment of the progress of selling the
particular brand of the company and then we need to ask the customers about their opinion on whether
they like the new product offered by the company. This kind of research by the marketers of the
company gives rise to an understanding of the customer preferences. Now the marketers has to fix the
problems if any by the company R&D for better changes suggested by the customers before selling the
products again in the market. Thus the improved product is being sold in the market and again the
company needs to assess the progress to complete the above circle of customer satisfaction as and
when required.

Review of Literature
In their research (Kameswara Rao Poranki, Mohammed Abul Khair & Abdulaziz Khalid Alotaibi
April, 2014) has analyzed the customer satisfaction through standard tools of research. He also
proposed that customer satisfaction is a term frequently used in marketing. It was noted that that the
measure of how products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation.
Also Kameswara Rao Poranki (2014 and 2015) has defined that the Customer satisfaction as "the
number of customers, or percentage of total customers, whose reported experience with a firm, its
products, or its services or ratings exceeds specified satisfaction goals. Kameswara Rao Poranki (2015)
has advocated that to gain market share any company need to improve its strategies in sales and
marketing of their more customized products. However, to this end it requires right marketing
strategies is challenging due to various factors influencing customer purchasing decisions. In another
research paper written (Kameswara Rao Poranki, Yusuf Perwej, Asif Perwej, January, 2015) and
defined that the "Customer satisfaction is measured at the individual level, but it is almost always
reported at an aggregate level either in FMCG companies or in any service sector like banks. Another
researcher (Batra and Athola 1990) has told that the utilitarian benefits of a product which are
associated with the more instrumental and functional attributes of the product without any inhibitions.
It is considered that customers judge products on a limited set of norms and attributes. Interestingly,
the studies took out the discussions about explaining the differences between expectations and
perceived performance (Kucukosmanoglu, Ahmet Nuri; Sensoy Ertan. 2010). There is a rich body of
research has shown that many of the relationships of customer satisfaction with its antecedents and
consequences are asymmetric and non-linear and on the basis for this research resides in the key idea
that people are usually more sensitive to negative information than to positive information, and that
losses loom larger than gains. Thus, negative events are not only more salient to customers, but they
also have a disproportionately larger impact in the satisfaction judgment formation process, and the
consequent consumer intentions and behaviors and this was summarized in an award winning paper by

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authors (Eugene W. Anderson and Vikas Mittal, 2000). It is therefore, the deleterious impact of failing
expectations is proportionately much stronger than the beneficial impact of exceeding expectations by
the same amount (Mittal, Vikas and Ross, William T. and Baldasare, Patrick M, 1998). These findings
are confirmed for many different industries and customer types (Mittal, Vikas & Carly Frennea, 2012).
The association between overall satisfaction and repurchase intentions as well as behaviors is also non
linear (Vikas Mittal and Wagner Kamakura, 2001)). According to some authors the Customer
satisfaction is defined as "the number of customers, or percentage of total customers, whose reported
experience with a firm, its products, or its services (ratings) exceeds specified satisfaction goals
(Farris, Paul W.; Neil T. Bendle; Phillip E. Pfeifer; David J. Reibstein,2010). Customer satisfaction is
measured at the individual level, but it is almost always reported at an aggregate level. It can be, and
often is, measured along various dimensions. A hotel, for example, might gather the level of customer
satisfaction with research of customer experience with its front desk and with the amenities in the
room, restaurants, and so on. Then the research on consumption experiences grows, evidence suggests
that consumers purchase goods and services for a combination of benefits namely hedonic and
utilitarian. The Hedonic benefits are associated with the sensory and experiential attributes of the
product whereas the Utilitarian benefits of a product are associated with the more instrumental and
functional attributes of the product (Batra and Athola 1990) as per their research. It is interesting to
note that the Customer satisfaction is an ambiguous and abstract concept and the actual manifestation
of the state of satisfaction will vary from person to person and product to service under examination.
The measurement or dimensions of satisfaction depends on a number of both psychological and
physical variables which correlate with satisfaction behaviors such as return and recommend rate of
the products or services and the level of satisfaction can also vary depending on other options the
customer may have and other products against which the customer can compare the organization's
products or services. According to Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry (Leonard L) between 1985 and
1988 provides the basis for the measurement of customer satisfaction with a service by using the gap
between the customer's expectation of performance and their perceived experience of performance in
their study. This kind of research thus, provides the researchers with a satisfaction "gap" which is
objective and quantitative in nature. According to the research work in this field, done by Cronin and
Taylor propose the "confirmation/disconfirmation" theory of combining the "gap" which is described
by Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry as two different measures namely perception and expectation of
performance into a single measurement of performance as per the expectation. There is another study
which measures of customer satisfaction of software providers such as Confirmit, Medallia and
Satmetrix (Kessler, Sheila,2003 and Gleanster Research. 2010) also worthwhile to mention in this
piece of research. But according to the website (http://asq.org) in any business with high service
quality will meet customer needs whilst remaining economically competitive is certain. Thus, the
improved service quality may increase economic competitiveness coupled with the aim may be
achieved by understanding and improving operational processes through identifying problems quickly
and systematically. This is to establish valid and reliable service performance measures and measuring
customer satisfaction and to measure various performance outcomes. The service quality model or the
‘GAP model’ developed by a group of authors- Kevin, Kristine and Berry at Texas and North Carolina
in 1985, which highlights the main requirements for delivering high service quality and this model
throws light on to identify five ‘gaps’ that cause unsuccessful delivery to the customers. The
researchers like Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry described in the SERVQUAL model that the
following variables should be studied. Those are reliability, responsiveness, competence, access,
courtesy, communication, credibility, security, understanding the customer and tangibles. The author
in this research has confined to suitable limited variables only.

Objectives of the study

1. To measure the awareness level of various services provided by Aavin milk
2. To assess the customers satisfaction level regarding the Aavin milk.
3. To suggest the measures to improve the system of marketing in the present situation.

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Methodology
In this research the researcher has used descriptive research design and the geographical area covered
is Aavin milk, Hyderabad with a sample size of 150 respondents by adopting convenience sampling
for research under non-probability sampling. The researcher selected the respondents based on his
convenience. The data was collected through both primary and secondary sources. While the primary
data was collected through questionnaire cum interview schedule and the secondary data was collected
from the net for industry profile and company profile. To analyze the data Simple percentage analysis
is used. Here the Percentage refers to a special kind of ratio used to describe relationships.
Percentage=class frequency/total frequency X 100.

About the Company

The Dairy Development Department was established in 1958 in Tamilnadu. The administrative and
statutory controls over all the milk cooperatives in the State were transferred to the Dairy Development
Department on 1.8.1965. The Commissioner for Milk Production and Dairy Development was made as
the functional Registrar under the Tamilnadu Cooperative Societies Act. With the adoption of 'Anand
pattern' in the State of Tamilnadu, Tamilnadu Co-operative Milk Producers' Federation Limited was
registered in the State on 1st February 1981. The commercial activities of the Department such as Milk
Procurement, Processing, Chilling, packing and sale of milk to the consumers etc., hitherto dealt with
by the Tamilnadu Dairy Development Corporation Ltd., were transferred to the newly registered
Tamilnadu Co-operative Milk Producers' Federation Limited, popularly known as "Aavin". In the
wake of liberalization policy, private dairies have also entered into the field of dairying. As per the
directions of the Hon'ble Chief Minister of Tamilnadu high priority has been given for improving the
performance of milk Co-operatives by adopting a systematic approach and proper strategy in Milk Co-
operatives. Significant achievement has been made by Milk Producers' Cooperative Societies, Unions
and Federation in the State of Tamilnadu. The cattle population in India is approximately 15% of total
cattle population in the world. India stood no. 1 position in milk production. Tamilnadu is one of the
leading states in milk production. The milk production in Tamilnadu per day is 145.88 Lakh litres.

Products of the Company

UHT Milk product

(UTH=Ultra High Temperature) Ghee products Flavored Milk

Results
It was interesting to note the results as the 33% of respondents told that their family size is 3 and 30%
of respondents are doing Business as their occupation and 30% of respondents belong to the income
group of Rs.5000-Rs/10000. As the survey progresses 30% of respondents respond that the source of
purchase in departmental store and 40%of respondents respond that they are buying Aavin milk and
27% the quantity they purchase is litre milk. However, 23% of respondents told that they purchasing
the existing brand for 1 year and 30% of respondents felt that the availability of milk in morning only.
Then 23% of respondents influenced to buy Aavin milk because of its price. 60%of respondents had
awareness on the addition of vitamin A is in Aavin milk. 51% of respondents don’t know about
pasteurization and homogenization and 57% of respondents respond that they know about milk card
system. Regarding the canned milk, 55% of respondents expressed that they know it. When finding out
the awareness on adulterants in milk 66% of respondents had awareness. 27% of respondents buy milk

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products from provisional store. 77% of respondents had brand awareness on Aavin milk products.
70% of respondents told that Aavin milk products are available as and when required. 35% of
respondents felt the service quality of Aavin milk is fair. 35% of the respondents have come across
television advertisement.

Conclusion
The researcher has able to conduct this study in the city of Hyderabad, India and deduced the results to
this area to know the dimensions of customer satisfaction among the customers of Aavin milk and
found that this company has a good reputation among the customers so it can be extended to supply
other areas of India also. The consumers has reposed confidence on the brand name of Avin since they
are satisfied with the quality, price, awareness and happy with the addition of Vitamin A in this milk as
this company cares about the health of the consumers. But from point of Marketing aspect, the
company is still need to increase the level of advertisement so as to expand its sales across other areas
of India. This company needs to increase its number of outlets to reach more consumers in different
areas. The future researchers can conduct similar research in other areas in India and cite this piece of
research in their research papers so as to increase the brand awareness of this company

References
1. Batra, Rajeev and Olli T. Athola (1990), “Measuring the Hedonic and Utilitarian Sources of
Consumer Attitudes,” Marketing Letters, 2 (2), 159-70.
2. Berry, Leonard L.; A. Parasuraman (1991). Marketing Services: Competing Through Quality.
New York: Free Press. ISBN 978-0-02-903079-0.
3. Eugene W. Anderson and Vikas Mittal (2000). "Strengthening the Satisfaction-Profit Chain",
Journal of Service Research, 3(2), November, 107-120. Available at SSRN:
http://ssrn.com/abstract=2345327
4. Farris, Paul W.; Neil T. Bendle; Phillip E. Pfeifer; David J. Reibstein (2010). Marketing
Metrics: The Definitive Guide to Measuring Marketing Performance. Upper Saddle River,
New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc. ISBN 0-13-705829-2.
5. Gitman, Lawrence J.; Carl D. McDaniel (2005). The Future of Business: The Essentials.
Mason, Ohio: South-Western. ISBN 0-324-32028-0.
6. "Gleansight Benchmark Report: Customer Feedback Management". Gleanster Research. 2010-
11-01. Retrieved 2013-09-17.
7. Kameswara Rao Poranki (2014), 'Competitive trends and Satisfaction levels of Customers of
white goods in India' in www.theinternationaljournal.org, RJSSM- ISSN:2251-1571 Volume:
03, Number: 12, April 2014, page-78-87.
8. Kameswara Rao Poranki (2015) 'The Level of Customer Satisfaction related to GSM in India '
in www.theinternationaljournal.org. RJSITM: Volume: 04, Number: 03, January-2015, page
32-33.
9. Kessler, Sheila (2003). Customer satisfaction toolkit for ISO 9001:2000. Milwaukee, Wis.:
ASQ Quality Press. ISBN 0-87389-559-2.
10. Kucukosmanoglu, Ahmet Nuri; Sensoy Ertan (2010). "Customer Satisfaction: A Central
Phenomenon in Marketing".
11. Mittal, Vikas and Ross, William T. and Baldasare, Patrick M., The Asymmetric Impact of
Negative and Positive Attribute-Level Performance on Overall Satisfaction and Repurchase
Intentions (January 1, 1998). Journal of Marketing, 62, January, 33-47, 1998. Available at
SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2345370
12. Mittal, Vikas & Carly Frennea (2012) "16- Managing Customer Satisfaction," Handbook of
Marketing Strategy, Venky Shankar and Gregory Carpenter (Eds.), 261. Available at SSRN:
http://ssrn.com/abstract=2345484
13. Mittal, Vikas and Baldasare, Patrick M., Eliminate the Negative: Managers Should Optimize
Rather than Maximize Performance to Enhance Patient Satisfaction (1996). Journal of Health
Care Marketing, 16(3), 24-31, 1996. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2345382

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14. Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry (1985 and 1988)
15. Vikas Mittal and Wagner Kamakura. (2001) "Satisfaction, Repurchase Intent, and Repurchase
Behavior: Investigating the Moderating Effect of Customer Characteristics". Journal of
Marketing Research, 38(1): 131-142. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2344925
16. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Customer_satisfaction
17. http://asq.org

ANNEXURE
Table-1: Family Size
Family Size Respondents Percentage
2 25 17
3 50 33
4 40 27
5 20 13
6 and above 15 10
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows that various sizes of families as per the responses

Table-2: Occupation
Occupation Respondents Percentage
Business 45 30
Employed 30 20
Self-Employed 25 17
Professionals 20 13
Others 30 20
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows that various occupations of the respondents

Table-3: Income group (In Indian Rupees)

Income (In Indian Rupees) Respondents Percentage
< 5000 20 13
5000-10000 45 30
10000-20000 30 20
>20000 30 20
No comments 25 17
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows that various Income groups of the respondents

Table-4: Source of Purchase

Source or Purchase Respondents Percentage
Departmental store 45 30
Provisional store 20 20
Milk booth 20 13
Cycle vendor 36 24
Delivery Boy 19 13
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows that various sources of purchase of the respondents

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Table-5: Brand preference

Brand preference Respondents Percentage
Aavin 60 40
Arokiya 40 27
Akshaya 0 0
Tasteme 0 0
Nanda 0 0
Nava 0 0
Chakra 0 0
Sakthi 0 0
Can milk 50 33
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows Brand preference of the respondents

Table-6: Quantity of Purchase (In Liters)

Quantity of Purchase (In Liters) Respondents Percentage
1/4 30 20
1/2 30 20
1 40 27
2-3 30 20
4 & above 20 13
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the quantity of Milk purchased by the respondents

Table-7: The period purchase of the brand

Period purchase Respondents Percentage
1 month 30 20
3 month 20 13
6 month 31 21
1 year 34 23
>1 year 35 23
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the period of purchase of the brand the respondents

Table-8: Avin Milk Brand availability

Avin Milk Brand availability Respondents Percentage
Limited time 25 17
Morning only 45 30
Evening only 20 13
Throughout the day 31 21
Round the clock 29 19
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the Avin Milk Brand availability according to respondents

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Table-9: Brand influencing criteria to purchase Avin Milk
Brand influencing criteria Respondents Percentage
Brand 30 20
Price 35 23
Taste 20 13
Thickness 15 10
Package 34 23
Availability 16 11
Advertisement 0 0
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the Brand influencing criteria of the respondents

Table-10: The influence of addition of Vitamin A in Aavin Milk

Influence of addition of Vitamin A Respondents Percentage
Yes 90 60
No 60 40
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the influence of addition of Vitamin A on the respondents

Table-11: The influence of Pasteurization & Homogenization & Its Advantage

Influence of Pasteurization & Homogenization Respondents Percentage
Yes 74 49
No 76 51
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the influence of Pasteurization & Homogenization and Its
Advantage on the respondents

Table-12: The influence of Milk Card System

Influence of Milk Card System Respondents Percentage
Yes 85 57
No 65 43
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the influence of Milk Card System on the respondents

Table-13: Awareness on Milk Sales (Canned Milk)

Awareness of Canned Milk Sales Respondents Percentage
Yes 82 55
No 68 45
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the awareness of canned milk sales of the respondents

Table-14: Awareness on Adulterants in Milk

Awareness on Adulterants Respondents Percentage
Yes 51 34
No 99 66
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the awareness on Adulterants in Milk of the respondents

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Table-15: Place of Purchase of the Milk Products
Place of Purchase Respondents Percentage
Departmental store 27 18
Provisional store 41 27
Milk parlour 37 25
Street vendor 24 16
Others 21 14
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the Place of Purchase of the respondents

Table-16: Brand Awareness

Brand Awareness Respondents Percentage
Yes 115 77
No 35 23
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the Brand Awareness of the respondents

Table 17: Product Availability of the brand

Product Availability Respondents Percentage
Yes 105 70
No 45 30
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the knowledge on Product Availability of the respondents

Table-18: Ranking on the Service Quality on Aavin Milk

Ranking on the Service Quality Respondents Percentage
Good 34 23
Satisfactory 29 19
Fair 52 35
Poor 35 23
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the Ranking on the Service Quality of the respondents

Table-19: Advertisement Awareness of Avin Milk

Advertisement Awareness Respondents Percentage
Television 52 35
Hand bills 5 3
News Paper 0 0
Railway Station 48 32
Sign Boards 25 17
Others 20 13
Total 150 100
Interpretation: The above table shows the Advertisement Awareness of the respondents

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