CUSTOMER AWARENESS WITH RESPECT TO

ASIAN PAINTS

Project Report
Submitted To
SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT SCIENCES

For The Award OF

Post Graduate Diploma In Management

Submitted By
Abhishek Kumar Sankrit
(Roll No. : PG/08/4)

SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT SCIENCES

LUCKNOW

1
 ABSTRACT

Paint industry has shown a rapid growth in the last year 2008-

2009, and since then there has been a decreasing growth in the

industry. Asian Paints – one of the largest paint companies in

India, which has shown a tremendous growth since its

establishment, liberalization. This is an achievement, achieved

by careful planning a following firm procedures set by the

company management.

Asian is qualitative company with strict rules and regulations. All

the planning takes place at the central office Mumbai.

Each Asian paint production center has a distinguished packing

so that by looking at the drum or cartons the plant identification

become easy to the godown incharge.

The company has a excellent distribution network which is the

prime reason for its success followed by marketing plans.

The company has a full fledge research of development function,

whose aim is develop and present new products every year.

The price and selection of target is also done to protection.

Considering the promotional part Asian Paints employed Ogilvy

and Mather to attract the customers.

2
Asian Paints has developed many brands and which have well

penetrated in the minds of customers.

Ex: Apcolite, Apex, ACE, etc.,

And Asian Paints was the first to enter with manual color

dispensing concept which took off with the advent of computers,

Asian is not lacking behind in this they have developed “Colour

World” for the consumers with 1150 shades to be selected from.

The study of my topic is “Customer Awareness” with reference to

Asian Paints India Limited. And Advertising, sales promotion,
personal selling, public relations, and publicity are the customers
awareness programs to be conducted by the company.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

3
 A project of this nature calls for intellectual , professional help
and encouragement from many quarters .Research project
constitute the important of any management education
programme. A management graduate has to quite frequently do
the project work during his or her career plans.

This idea of Research Project has been conceived as part of 4th

semester of PGDM programme at the “ SCHOOL OF
MANAGEMENT SCIENCES “ Lucknow on the topic of “ Customer
Awareness with respect to Asian Paints “.

Abhishek Kumar Sankrit

(School of Management
Sciences , Lucknow)

Chapter 1

ABOUT ASIAN PAINTS

4
Asian Paints is India's largest paint company and ranked among the top ten Decorative
Coatings Companies in the World with a turnover of INR 54.63 billion. Asian Paints
along with its subsidiaries has operations in 18 countries across the world and 26 paint
manufacturing facilities, servicing consumers in 65 countries through Berger
International, SCIB Paints-Egypt, Asian Paints, Apco Coatings and Taubmans.

Vision
Asian Paints aims to become one of the top five Decorative coatings companies world-
wide by leveraging its expertise in the higher growth emerging markets. Simultaneously,
the company intends to build long term value in the Industrial coatings business through
alliances with established global partners.

Environment and Safety

Mr. P M Murty
MD & CEO

Asian Paints approaches the environment issue from the perspective of waste
minimisation and conservation of resources. Thus, the continued attempt is to reuse,
recycle and eliminate waste, which results in less and less waste being generated.
Accordingly, our material losses in manufacturing have been reduced substantially over
the last few years.

Further, the company's four paint plants and the two chemical plants have the ISO
14001 certification for environment management standards. The company's latest
manufacturing facility which is situated at Sriperumbudur near Chennai will be certified
for ISO 14001 in this financial year 2006-07.

All our paint plants have achieved 'zero industrial discharge' capability. This has been
achieved by the installation of upgraded effluent treatment facilities and installation of
reverse osmosis plants in conjunction with appropriate recycling and reuse schemes.
Our emulsion manufacturing facility has also achieved 'zero waste' status. We have
adopted the principles of "green productivity".

Some of our innovative schemes which enhance green productivity are dealer tinting
systems which has resulted in large batch sizes ; bulk storage facility for monomers

5
which reduces wastage; Use of natural gas which is a cleaner fuel ; solvent recovery
plants have been set up which has resulted in zero reduction of solvent disposal ;
Improved incinerating systems and reverse osmosis.

Safety at its best

The company has made significant investments in the area of safety over the past
several years. It's steadfast commitment to safety is reinforced by the fact that four of
Asian Paints plants were conferred with the 'Sword of Honour' by the British Safety
Council for the second time in quick succession. The British Safety Council is the
world's leading occupational health, safety and environmental organizations, working
closely with the world's leading companies in developing safe systems for work. The
"Sword of Honour", instituted by the BSC, is recognized the world over as the pinnacle of
achievement in safety management systems.

CII national conservation awards

Another recognition received in FY 2006 was the CII (Confederation of Indian Industries)
Award for National Energy Conservation received by the Ankleshwar and Patancheru
plants. The award function was held at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi, where the
Ankleshwar facility in the state of Gujarat was honored with the second prize, while the
Patancheru plant in Andhra Pradesh received a certificate of merit. The awards were
presented by His Excellency, the President of India, Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam. The CII
Award for National Energy Conservation is yet another testimony of Asian Paints
commitment towards the continual improvement in our work process to help the
environment through the manufacturing excellence programme.

Group Subsidaries

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Apco Coatings is a subsidiary of Asian Paints in the South Pacific islands. Asian Paints
operates in Australia, Fiji, Tonga, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu under the brand name
of Apco Coatings.

Asian Paints Industrial Coatings Limited has been set up to cater to the powder coatings
market which is one of the fastest growing segments in the industrial coatings market.

Few companies can claim of a history of consistent growth for over two and a half centuries , a
presence in over 35 countries and an impact on the lives of over a billion people. Berger does that
with elan. Ever since it was founded in England in 1760 by Lewis Berger, who perfected a new
process for making Prussian Blue the colour of most military uniforms then, Berger has never
looked back.
Over the years Berger expanded its operations across oceans, to cover numerous
geographies. In 1994, Berger units were brought under the single umbrella of the holding
company 'Berger International Limited (BIL)' with headquarters in Singapore, which was
also listed on the Singapore stock exchange. In November 2002, BIL became a part of
the Asian Paints Group. Today, the name of Berger is synonymous with quality and
innovation. BIL has presence across three regions viz. Middle East, Caribbean and
South East Asia. In the Caribbean region, Berger is a household name. And considering
that the company celebrated 50 successful years in the region recently, this is not
surprising.
Incidentally, Berger Paints Jamaica Limited, which is listed on the Jamaican stock
exchange, is amongst the top ten companies in the country in terms of market
capitalisation. In the Middle East too Berger is a well-respected brand. It is the largest
paint company in Bahrain. Using its state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities there, and in
United Arab Emirates, it exports to countries in the Commonwealth of Independent
States, Gulf Cooperation Council and Africa. In South East Asia Berger enjoys a fine
reputation and has operations in Singapore and Thailand.

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Founded in 1979, SCIB Paints today is a reputed name and ranks amongst the top five
paint companies in Egypt. SCIB Paints became a part of the Asian Paints group in
August 2002.

Asian PPG Industries Limited, a joint venture between Asian Paints (India) Limited and
PPG Industries, Inc. USA with 50:50 equity sharing was established in March 1997 with
the objective of providing solutions to the paint requirements of Indian Automobile
manufacturers. The joint venture brought together two leading companies with strengths
in technology, manufacturing and customer insight.

Taubmans Paints Fiji, the fourth largest paint company in Fiji, became a part of the
Asian Paints family in September 2003. Taubmans Paints is the dominant player in the
project sales segment in the country and is a leader in the neighbouring Samoa Islands.
It has two manufacturing facilities, one in Suva (Fiji) and the other in Samoa.

Awards & Recognition

8
Awarded the "Sword of Honour" by the British Safety Council for all the paint plants in
India. This award is considered as the pinnacle of achievement in safety across the
world.

Forbes Global magazine, USA ranked Asian Paints amongst the 200 'Best Small
Companies of the world' in 2002 and 2003 and amongst the top 200 'Under a Billion
Firms' of Asia in 2005.

Ranked 24th amongst the top paint companies in the world by Coatings World - Top
Companies Report 2006.

The Asset - one of Asia's leading financial magazine ranked Asian Paints amongst the
leading Indian companies in Corporate Governance in 2002 and 2005.

Received the Ernst & Young "Entrepreneur of the Year - Manufacturing" award in 2003.

9
 PAINTS – THE COLOUR OF OUR LIFE

(A PROFILE)

What is Paint?

Basically, Paint is a mixture of four elements.

 Solvents

 Binders

 Pigments

 Additives

 Solvents

Which give a paint its flow, and enable it to be brushed on a

surface

Binders

Which hold the paint together, as well bind it to the surface

that is painted, thus giving its property of durability.

Pigments

Which give paint its colour and opacity.

Additives

Which give paint special properties such as resistance to fungus,

rust ..etc.,

10
Paints can be distinguished as

EMULSIONS :

These are water based paints Acrylic Emulsions are

extremely durable and give wall silky and smooth finish. They

washable and easy to maintain.

Eg: Asian Paints offers three brands to choose.

Premium Apcolite Royal Acrylic Emulsion.

Medium Apcolite Super Acrylic Emulsion.

Economical Super Decoplast.

DISTEMPERS:

These are also water based paints but their binders may be

very natural or synthetic. Distempers are economically priced,

they offer good value for money as they are durable.

Eg: Asian Paints has

Tractor Acrylic washable Distemper.

Tractor washable Synthetic Distemper.

LUSTER AND MATT FINISHES:

11
 These are solvent based paints are extremely durable. The

former gives a gloss egg shell finish while matt finishes have a

dead matt finish.

Eg: Asian Paint has

 Apcolite luster finish.

 Apcolite synthetic matt finish.

EXTERIOR FINISHES:

For exterior cement paint is mainly used as it is economical.

It also has a reasonable life if in areas where monsoon is not too

heavy.

Eg: Gattu cem.

ENAMELS:

It provide the best coating for metals they are tough,

durable, glossy in finish. The smooth shiny look lasts for years.

Enamels protect from corrosioin.

Eg:

 Apcolite Synthetic Enamel.

 # mangoes Synthetic Enamel.

PRIMERS:

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 Primers are usually the first coat applied on a surface it is

meant to prepare the surface for painting. It offers protection to

the paint.

Eg:

 Asian Metal Primer.

 Woodorite Primer.

FILLERS / PUTTIES:

It is used to fill up the crises or any unevenness to ensure

that the finish coat gives a smooth surface.

AUTOACQUER:

It is NITRO CELLULOSE paint for auto finishing.

Eg:

 Krilo

 Apca

 Aspa

13
 PAINT INDUSTRY IN INDIA

Foundation for paint was laid in the year 1902 with the

setting up of Shalimar Paints in Calcutta. It was during the and

after the World War II. That large number of paint manufacturing

units was set up in India. Since then the Indian paint industry has

made substantial progress.

The paint industry has come to the recognition as an

important sector in the national economy in producing industrial

coating and decorative paints. Decorative paints available in

wide range of combination account for 70% of the coatings total

production. While industrial paints share the balance of 30%.

This rate is diametrically opposite to the trend in the

industrialized countries where industrial paints account for 70%

and Decorative paints for the balance of 30%.

The Indian paint industry is at the crossroads. All most all-

major paint companies have expanded or are expanding its

capacity substantially. With demand rising slowly competition is

becoming increasingly intense.

The decreasing growth rate has made the paint companies

to woo customers aggressively. The customer is being offered

10% rebate in most products, Unheard in the industry so far.

Most companies have increased their discounts to their dealers to

14
unimaginable level dealers are offered higher credit levels,

flexibility in payment, foreign trips for selling even low value

products and the like. The increasing competition to offer

solutions through technology has made all the paint make as

offer a large number of shades through computerized colour

dispensing system.

IMPORTANCE

Generally paints and coatings are applied to products to

protect them from

 Emnvironmental Corrosion.

 Protection of Food and Beverages in metal cans.

 Improve aesthetic appeal.

CATEGORIES

Paints are classified into two broad categories.

 Decorative or Architectural finish paints.

 Industrial Paints.

Decorative or Architectural finish paints:

This market can be further segmented on the basis of the

following

 Customer types : Institutional / retail or domestic use

15
 Product features / categories: Distempers, Enamels,

emulsions etc.

 Price: Premium, Medium, Economy etc.,

Industrial Paints:

This market can be further divided into the following four

sub segments depending on the end user profile.

 Automotive paints.

 Marine Paints.

 Powder Paints

 High Performance coatings

 Other general industrial finishes.

In India, decorative paints dominate with the share of 75%

of the total paints consumed while in developed countries

Industrial paints have a share of 50 – 70%.

Decorative Paints used in buildings include distempers,

emulsions, synthetic Enamels, Cement pains and Wood finishes.

Interior Paints makeup of the segment. The rest is made up of

exterior paints mainly cement paints.

PLAYERS IN DECORATIVE PAINTS

16
 In decorative paints Asian Paints dominates with a 37%

market share and number two player Goodlass Nerolac has a

market share of 14%. These paints are by medium technology

and hence the unorganized sector

has a major share. A recent estimate that over 2400 companies

are in unorganized sector.

INDUSTRIAL PAINTS

Industrial paints include automotive paints (original auto

manufactures and refinishes), Powder coatings marine paints

high performance coatings and special purpose finishes. These

are technology intensive and hence the presence of the

unorganized sector is very limited. In fact, there is no presence

of the unorganized sector in the original paints. This can be

explained by the fact that to bag an order from automobile

manufacturer collaboration with a well known foreign paint

company is a must Goodlass Nerolac is an un disputed leader n

industrial paint.

Till early 90’s paints were treated a s luxury items by the

governments this resulted in higher excise duty and higher end

prices, leading low consumption of paints in India. However the

17
progressive reduction of the excise duty from 40% in 93-94 to

18% in 96-97, the companies have passed on the duty reductions

as price cuts.

However the per capita consumption of India is still a merge

of .5 kg compared to 26 kg in U.S and 1.2 kg in Thailand.

As already mentioned paints were viewed as luxury item by many

even today. Their productive value is not under stood and

repainting is limited and if ever done is once in 7 – 10 years. The

government interest to protect all surfaces is also low and the

loss due to corrosion is estimated to be over Rs. 5000 crores p.a.

By the central Electro chemical Research institute at Karaikad,

Tamilnadu.

With a view to emphasing the importance of protection

through painting the Indian paints Association (IPA) had brought

slogan in 1995 “Paint and Protect”. This slogan is popularized

through various communications however a lot needs to be done

to reach the millions of customers effectively.

DEVELOPMENTS IN VARIOUS SEGMENTS

18
 Two significant developments took place in the last three

years in the decorative paints segment.

 Advent of Computerized Colour Dispenser

 Sudden increase of Exterior Market.

Colour Dispenser:

Traditionally companies used to supply pre mixed shades to

dealers who in turn offered to their customers.

Asian Paints brought in the manual colour dispensing

concept in 1998 and offered 151 shades through it. This was the

first salvo in offering in variety of shades. This concept took off

and Asian Paints went about establishing 2000 colour corners

which would stock the 151 shades. Additional shading

requirements were catered by providing colours as per the

demand after mixing the bases with strainers through colour

dipencer other companies followed it soon and Goodlass Nerolac

introduce ed 301 shades under the same concept.

In 1995 Jhenson and Nichelson, the 5th ranking company in

the industry, pioneered the concept of CCD. And started installing

them at dealer shops with the support of TIKKURILA of FINLAND.

19
 The concept is similar to that of the manual colour

dispenser except that the dispensing is automatic pre decided

formula registered in the computer and the shades are offered

instantly shops to customers.

Today Berger Paints, is the 2nd Company to enter this

system offering 5000 shades a clear indication of the trend. In

the year 1997-98 has

seen the introduction of the concept by the two giants. Asian

Paints and Nerolac. Today around 1000 dealer shops are

installed this concept.

CCD or it is called “AUTO COLOUR DISOENCER” have helped

the dealers to reduced their inventories offer a large variety of

shades instantly, consistently and accurately. Consumer have

also benefited by this concept as the shopping environment has

changed dramatically with the advent of CCD.

EXTERIOR MARKET

The second development is the introduction of the 100%

Acrylic Exterior Paints and the focus of major companies on the

Exterior Paints market. Traditionally, the exterior paint market

20
was catered to by KILLICK NIXON and several other small players.

The main offered were cement paints in India. But the real

change has be thought by Asian Paint through APEX – its 100%

exterior paint market has started growing exponentially. In 1999

Nerolac introduced EXCEL in the category and offered qualitative

product at low material cost. Both Apex and Excel have propelled

the exterior paints growth by over 60% in 2002 and the trend is

expected to continue for at least of three more years.

A major development in 1997-98 was the “Pay by scooter / car”

concept by companies. As practiced in western countries, in

India also the concept of taking care of the complete painting job

has been under taken by paint companies. Goodlass Nerolac has

commenced this concept with Mahindra cars by managing the

entire paint shop and being paint on the basis of per painted

cars. Asian Paints also followed it up with a similar tie up with

LML for its scooters.

POWDER COATINGS

The other “industrolycoat powers”, in collaboration with

VAISPAR CORPORATION of U.S.

Higher performance coatings is another rapidly growing

segment which is used at fertilizer / sugar plants, airports, big

21
construction projects, Berger, Asian., Nerolac dominates this

segment due to their international collaborations and high

quality range of products.

PAINTS DEFINED

Technically paints can be defined as a homogenous fluid

made from our ingredients namely pigments, resins, solvents and

additives which the raw materials can be classified into four

categories. A typical paint formation consists of over 500 input

materials.

However the key raw materials are

Pigment:- Titanium dioxid

Resins:- PAN,Pentaerythrill

Together these constitute 40-50% of the total raw material

dependent on the category of paints.

To conclude the following are the critical factors in success

in decorative and industrial paints.

DECORATIVE PAINTS

 Managing logistics

 Managing input costs

22
  Focus on rural markets and viewers segments

 Strong marketing and brand equity

 Quality and technology

INDUSTRIAL PAINTS

 International technology

 Consistent quality

 Customers service

 Competitive price

 Continuous innovation.

PACKAGING

Asian Paints has four production plants and each has four

distinct packing pattern. So that the work of the godown in

charge becomes easier in recognizing the tins from which plant

they have come.

The packing is as follows

Ankleshwar

Bhandup

Patancheru

Kasna

And the products are packed as

23
Enamels 20, 10, 4, 1 liters

500, 200, 100, 50 ml

Distemper 20, 10, 5, 2, 1 kgs.

Emulsions 20, 10, 4, 1 liters.

PLANT IDENTIFICATION

Plant identification marks for cartoons, drums, tins are given

below.

Bhandup plant

1. All liter number will be four digit starting from 1001.

2. Alphabets B as label indicate Bhandup plant

3. Drums will not have any brands on the top side

4. Cartoons will not be Blue in colour.

Ankleshwar plant

 All liter number will be four digit starting from 2001.

 Alphabets A as label indicate Ankleshwar plant

 Drums have one brand on the top side

24
  Cartoons will red in colour.

Patacncheru plant

a. All liter number will be four digit starting from

3001.

a. Alphabets p as label indicate Patacncheru plant

b. Drums have two brands on the top, one dotted

line.

c. Cartoons green in colour.

Kasna plant

1`. All liter number will be four digit starting from4001.

2. Alphabets K as label indicate Kisna plant

3. Drums have one brand with three dots with nine

alternatives.

4. Cartoons are brown in colour.

PRICING

In the narrowest sense price is the amount of money

charged for a product or service .

25
 Price has ben the major factor in affecting buyer choice.

This is still true in poorer nations, among poorer groups and with

commodity products. However non price factors have become

more important in buyer choice behavior in recent decades.

With respect to Asian Paints there are two price lists.

 Dealers price list

 Maximum price list.

Dealer price list:

It is applicable to dealers and consists of their trade

discount of 3%, additional trade discount of 3%, cash discount

5%.

If written in equation

DPL = trade discount 3%

+ Additional trade discount of 3%

+ Cash discount of 5%.

26
Maximum Price List:

MPL = consists of dealers price list – trade discount 3% -

additional trade discount 3% - cash discount 5% + local tax.

Those dealers who has regular payment of performance are

benefited largely by cash discount and those dealers whose

payment is not regular do not get products.

The company operates at a very low over due outstanding

rate. Thus it can be said that the company has very stringent

rules regarding the credit given to the dealers.

PROMOTION

Modern marketing call for more than just developing a good

product pricing attractively and making it available to the target

customers companies also must communicate to their customers

and what they communicate should not be left to chance.

Asian Paints promotional activities consists of

advertisements, schemes, point of purchase, painters schemes.

27
 The advertisement activities are given to OGILVY AND

MATHER who has designed the advertisements as shown and

partly by contract ad agency.

TARGET GROUP

According to the information provided by the company

personnel the target group differs from product to product.

Eg:

Utsav - rural (chunna and distemper)

Distemper - middle income group

Royal - higher income group

FACTORS BEHIND SUCCESS OF ASIAN PAINTS

Asian paints was founded in 1942 as a small Indian

partnership firm at a time when the paint industry was fiercely

competitive. Two marketing breakthroughs propelled the

company to leap into the decorative segment. The first was the

introduction of smaller sized cans into the market where the paint

was sold in bulk. The second was a dealer expansion thrust to

reach out to end customers and offering them quality paints

which were hitherto available to them in the urban areas only.

28
These two steps meant going beyond selling paints and, in

particular responding to the customers unmet need. The result

was that in 1967, Asian paints captured to the top position in the

decorative paint segment. Today the company is not just a

leader in the paint industry but sells twice as much paint as any

other company in India. In 1994-95 the company had a turnover

of Rs. 614 crores and 38% share of the organized paint market

Marketing Strategies

The success of Asian Paints is primarily attributed to

marketing acumen. The company has made excellent use of the

electronic and print media, besides publishing informative

brochures for all its products. The company’s mascot “Gattu”

created to give an ethnic touch has almost become synonymous

with the generic product.

Critical Success factors – Distribution

The marketing success of Asian Paints was based on the

realization that the semi-urban was untapped and the small

consumer neglected. To reach those consumers in small town,

the company built a broad distribution network across the whole

country. From small towns Asian Paints moved to reach out to

the metropolitan market. Today, the network with 17,000

retailers across the country is making the company responsive to

a large customer base.

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Use of Information Technology

To strengthen the distribution network, the company has

gone in for computerization at the branch and the depot level. All

branches and 45 depots across the country are connected to the

four plants and the Product Management Group at the Head

Office through the VSAT. The use of the IT has meant faster flow

of information, more efficient management of supplies, and

better inventory control.

Width of Product Line

Based on the surface on which they are applied, decorative

paints are usually classified as wall, metal, wood and plastic

finishes. The products could be emulsions, enamels, varnishes,

automotives, or undercoats. Their end use could be in the sign

board, bus body, industry or household segments.

Asian Paint has offered brands in all possible applications.

For instance:

 Synthetic / Acrylic Washable Distempers : Tractors

 Acrylic Emulsion : Apcolite (Quality I,) Royale (premium

category)

30
 Plastic emulsion Paint (Interiors / Exteriors) : Decoplast

(Quality II), Apex (Quality I).

 Synthetic Enamel : Apcolite, Gattu

 Packet Distemper : Utsav

 Wooden Surfaces : Touch Wood, Silkwood, Apcolite Natural

Wood finish

 Cement Paint (external) : Gattu

Industrial Segment

 General Industrial Finishes : Apcolite (Hammerton Finish)

 Other Industrial Products : Expory Coatings, Chlorinted Rubber

finishes, viny I & Polyurethane Systems.

Automotives

 Kirlo – an Acrlic Paint, Apca – nitro-cellulose based Paint, Aspa

– an Allkyd, autocare.

Primers

 Asian Metal Primer Redoxide

31
 Tractor Redoxide Primer for Metal

 Woodrite for Wood Substrate

 Decorative – Cement Primer

TECHNOLOGY TIE-UPS

The company has a technical collaboration with PIG of the

UDS and Nippon Paint Co, Japan for the manufacture of

automotive paints, powder coatings, and coil coatings. Through

this move, Asian Paints remains a step ahead because companies

like Deawoo and General Motors that use PPG paint overseas are

likely to source their automobile paint requirements from Asian

Paints. Technical inflows ( From Sigma Coating of the

Netherlands) have also added to manufacturing capabilities in

the areas of heavy-duty marine coatings, anti-corrosion paints

and high-tech resins(that serve as raw materials), thus ensuring

that product quality even in sophisticated items match

international standards.

Product line Extensions

As stated earlier under conceptual issue, line extensions, as

a part of marketing strategy is a low-cost, loss-risk way to meet

the needs of various customer segments. It can satisfy

32
customers’ desires to provide a wide variety of brands under a

single umbrella or family name.

Asian Paints strategy to penetrate into the hitherto

unexplored distempers market was a similar move, which was a

departure from its earlier strategy of concentrating on higher-end

products.

New Market Penetrations

The search of new markets and overseas opportunities has

led the company to neighboring Nepal and the distant South

Pacific Islands – Fiji, Tonga and the Soloman Islands. The

company also exports its to the Middle East, South East Asia and

Europe.

Launch of low priced brand as growth strategy

In late 1992, Asian Paints introduced the brand called

“Utsav” as a long term strategy to penetrate the rural market.

The overall marketing strategy adopted by Asian Paints for this

distemper is now detailed.

Entry into the low end distemper market

33
 The Rs. 2047 paints market has a pyramidal structure. At

the very top end are [premium emulsions priced at about Rs. 155

to Rs. 170 per liter/kg (which comprise brands like Royale and

Velvet touch); next are the synthetic emulsions at the range of

Rs. 90 to Rs. 105 per liter ( e.g. Apcolite, Nerolac, Dulux and

Rangoli); and at the base is the distemper segment (with Asian

Paints Tractor) between Rs. 33 and Rs. 40. There was a huge

untapped market at the lower end which no organized player had

attempted to tap. This comprised largely packet distempers, dry

distempers and lime ash, hawked in a brand band of Rs. 3 to Rs.

25.

Reason for entry

Around 1991 a recession in the user industries and hike in

the excise rates had slowed the industry growth rate to 2.2%.

Asian Paints realized, that to overcome this phase of stagnation,

it had to penetrate new markets and real volumes would come

only be converting consumers using limewash, dry distemper,

cement paint or other local painting methods into branded paint

uses. This would also expand the market base, besides reaping it

the “first mover advantage“ among the major producers of the

paint industry. All the company need was new paint to penetrate

into this segment.

34
Barriers to Entry

 No data on market size, consumer buying habits, etc., on the

distemper market.

 Regional brands, many in number, had an established

clientele.

 Unorganized sector brands were priced low and offered heavy

dealer discounts to push their brands.

 National players / Market leader risked losing premium image

and quality association by entry into this low priced segment.

 Consumer preferences heavily influenced by regional cultures,

lifestyles, hence the market was fragmented.

 Servicing a huge semi-urban and rural market would entail

huge up-front investment, with returns not assured.

 Dominance of packet distemper brands, e.g., Dilkash and

Lakmi, which filled the aspirational value slot.

35
Company specific problems / Disincentives

 Large price differential between the company distemper brand

Tractor (Price Rs. 45 ) and the unorganized sector’s products

(Rs.3-25 ).

 Danger of eroding Tractor’s equity if a low price variant is

introduced.

 Threat of substitution of the higher period Tractor brand by the

cheaper one by the painter, which had a poorer finish resulting

in customer dissatisfaction.

The Company’s Competitive advantage

 High degree of awareness about the company among the

target market constituents.

 Company regarded as a quality-produce maker.

 Market leader, financial and marketing strength to sustain

investment pressures

 Core competence in paints, wide variety and well-developed R

& D.

 Wide dealer network and good information base about

different markets.

36
The Total Strategy followed

(a) Strategic Thinking

This was influenced by the following factors:

 70% of the Indian houses were of the non-pucca variety.

 Painting of the hose, especially interiors, was a deeply

entrenched habit.

 Wall-Paints usage was dominated by lime wash and dry

distempers.

 Branded paints were perceived to be out of reach by the

ordinary consumers.

 Penetration of all major paint brands put together was 24% of

the users.

 The company realized that the only option it had was to

reduce margins and relentlessly chase volumes. But to

achieve volumes, a high penetration in the rural and semi-

urban markets would be required.

(b) Product and Price

37
 The company realized that it would have to develop a brand

that would offer “Value for Money”. Hence in late 1992, it

unveiled its new distemper Utsav, the name denoting seasonal

and festival-oriented relevance of the product. It was position as

do-it-yourself, oil-based-distemper. At Rs. 26 per kg, it greatly

narrowed the price differential and brought, for the first time, a

major branded paint within the reach of the price-conscious

consumer.

The packet size was fixed at 1 kg, a small size, since the

users had smaller-sized houses and did not require large pack

sizes. Also, the product was found to cover more surface area

than other products. The product as offered inn eight new

shades, typically in deep colours, keeping the end-user profile in

mind.

(c) Place / Distribution

 Region wise launch of the brand, to coincide with regional

festivals.

 Focusing on the north Indian Market, the largest, was

scheduled to incorporate market feedback from the other

regions and change the marketing-mix elements if required.

 Company salesman linked up with sub dealers and petty

dealers, usually grocers, in villages and small towns, who in

38
 turn would be serviced by the company’s established 15,000

strong dealer network.

 Undertook innovative promotional campaigns, like arranging

demonstration sessions, besides using the regional media and

local print media, and customer education to create strong

brand pull that would help increase of take and provide the

small retailer the incentive to stock Utsav. There was also the

prestige element in stocking Asian Paints products, which the

company exploited to the hilt.

 The Company funded its (established) dealers transportation

overheads incurred in reaching out to the new 80,000 odd

outlets.

(d) The Ultimate

 Utsav has been a success in the markets where it has been

launched.

 It has overcome the main hurdle of dealer and consumer

resistance.

 The brand has gained market share at the expense of local

packed distemper brands. Margins for the product are low

about 2-3%, while the higher end brands fetch 20%.

39
 However, the product has provided the company a clear

advantage. It can now use its rural network to build its entire

economy range comprising the Enamel range Gattu and other

products like primers. Thus it has a clear head start over its

competitors in the volumes game.

THE COMPANY

Asian paints manufacturers and markets a wide

spectrum of coatings and ancillaries, which include decoratives,

protection paints and heavy duty coatings. The manufacturing

facilities of the company for paint products are currently spread

over four locations

# BHANDUP MAHARASTRA 1955

# ANKLESWAR GUJRAT 1980

# PATANCHERU A.P. 1981

# KASNA

40
 The manufacturing of paints in patancheru started in 1985.

Asian paints, their modern manufacturing facility offers the

widest range of paints among all the paint companies in India, in

terms of products shades as well as pack sizes. Asian paints have

promoted 5 successful overseas subsidiaries.

Asian paints has been turning out consistency good

performance over the years. For more than two decades now, it

has continuously been the leader in the industry. Besides being

the market leader the company has also respectively provided its

excellence in terms of operating performance which has earned

the company a place among the worlds leading manufacturers.

And Asian paints logo “GATTU”, the impish boy holding paint tin

and brush is one of the most recognized and most prosperous

mascots in Indian business.

DISTRIBUTION

In an industry the availability of stocks is crucial

determinant of sale, control of material units assumes great

significance especially since Asian paints offer the widest range

of products, shades and packs to the 13000 dealers in the

country through the network of over 47 depots.

This is achieved through a sophisticated material

distribution system which optimizes production and movement

from plants and meshes it with demand pattern in the market.

41
 The distribution system monitors the dispatch of materials

from plants / other processing units to the branches / depots

directly or through the warehouses or regional distribution

centre.

A bonded store room (BSR) in one where in material for

which excise duty has not been paid is stored. Each plant has a

bonded store room where material is sent immediately after

production. As and when these materials are dispatched it moves

out of the bonded store room. Excise duty is livable at applicable

rates on actual movement’s basis.

During the course of this section and subsequent sections

reference will often be made to an SKU and SAU. An sku is

acronym for stock keeping unit which is combination of particular

pack, product, shade.

Eg. Apcolite synthetic enamel 500ml bus green is one

sku

Apcolite synthetic enamel 500ml sky blue is

one sku

42
CLASSIFICATION OF SKU

All products can be divided into bazaar and industrial on

the end use. Bazaar and industrial item can further be divided

into inventoried and non inventoried items

Inventoried sku are those for which constant demand for

which sales forecast with a degree of certainty.

FORM-A

Bazaar sku inventoried at company / branches / depots.

The supply of sku’s is affected through multi plant

distribution system.

FORM-B

Bazaar sku’s which shades are under the specific focus of

management group new products, packs are not inventoried at

all branches / depots.

FORM-C1

43
 Regular bazaar sku inventoried at branch / depot/ but

not at company level.

FORM-C2

Bazaar sku not inventoried at the branch / depots/

company levels.

FORM-D

Industrial inventoried sku.

FORM-E

Industrial not inventoried sku.

FORM-F

44
 All non confirming stocks( This includes damaged stocks

defective stocks, old stock –packed before 3yrs for trade products

and beyond validity period for the industrial products.

CUSTOMER ACCOUNTING PROCEDURES

TYPES OF CUSTOMERS MODE OF

PAYMENT

1. Local dealers Local cheques / pay

order
2. Retail sales / cash sales/ Local cheques party is
known as

45
 pay order upcountry dealers or
cash
location, local cheques if the
dealer
has local bank account.

Industrial customer’s local cheques, D.D payable locally. In

case absolutely necessary an upcountry cheques or D.D’s.

Cash / local cheques -- Date of collection memo

1. Upcountry cheques - 7days from the date of collection memo

as it takes around 7days for an up country cheques to be cleared.

2. DD/Pay date of DD as the ordered customer is debited as

soon as DD is purchased by the customer. Although the company

may not be credited(i.e the customer is given the benefit.)

PLANING PROCESS In the sales function the planning is as

follows.

Phase-I

46
 “Market assessment” It consists of assessment of market

and market share for total and major products, growth

assessment segment wise for this purpose retail audit is

conducted. All the sale representatives collect data form each

retailer.

Phase-I I

“Objectiove fixation” Based on the above analysis all units

should set objective of achievement of total sales volume / sales

growth. Volume sales strategically important products like

emuilsions auto refinishes, wood finishes and collection

efficiency.

Phase-I I I

In this phase plan for meeting the budget shown be drawn

up. These plans involving product / segment focus, town focus,

dealer focus would form the basis of the planning document.

Phase-IV

“Resource planning” It consists of

A: “man power planning”

B: input plans

C: sales promotion plans

PROFITS

47
 For the quarter ended Dec 31, 2009, on consolidation of accounts of
the subsidiaries and joint venture of Asian Paints – Net Sales of the Group has
increased by 22.5% to Rs. 1620 crores from Rs. 1322 crores as compared to
the previous corresponding quarter. PBDIT excluding other income for the
quarter was up by 188.1% to Rs. 318.1 crores as compared to Rs. 110.4
crores in the previous year. Net Profit after Minority Interest increased by
236.5% to Rs. 198.6 crores as compared to Rs. 59 crores in the previous year.

For the Nine Months period, Net Sales of the group increased by 18.9 % to
Rs. 4804.2 crores from Rs. 4040.7 crores. PBDIT excluding other income was
up by 86.1% to Rs.916.8 crores as compared to Rs. 492.7 crores. Net Profit
after Minority Interest increased by 116.7% to Rs. 643.1 crores as compared
to Rs. 296.7 crores in the previous year.

PRODUTION CAPACITY

The company has four production centers to cater to the

needs of the customers in India they are as follows

ANKLESHWAR
BHANDUP
PATANCHERU
KASNA
The production plats are like four pillars to the company and

the company is planning to set up a new plant by expanding its

capacity.

The aggregate capacity of the four plants roughly mounts to

7000 tones / month in the decorative paints segment.

48
NEW PRODUCTS DEVELOPMENT

Asian paints have got a full fledged research and

development function to counter the competition and produce

the technologically advanced products to provide a better service

to the customers.

The research and development and the management has a

plan to 7produce four new products every year. And the new

products added till dates are

# APEX anti fungal exterior paint

# ACE economy emulsion
# Utsav
# Asian wall putty
# NC sanding sealer
and in the future the tally is going to be increased by their

research and development function.

LOGO

Logo is a symbol which represents the company by looking

at the logo any one who has little knowledge about the paints

would say that it is gattu and the company is Asian Paints.

A boy standing with a brush and a paint tin is famously

known and the logo for Asian Paints which is a popular one has

been designed by R.K.LAXMAN a well known cartoonist.

49
 THEORTICAL ASPECTS
INTRODUCTION:

Today’s companies are facing their toughest competition

ever. Companies can outdo their competition if they can move

from a product and sales philosophy to a marketing philosophy.

The success of the companies lies in doing a better job of

meeting and satisfying customer needs. Only customer-centered

companies are adept at building customers, not just building

products.

Over 35 years ago, Peter Drucker observed that a

company’s first task is “to create customers.” But today’s

customers face a vast array of product and brand choices, prices,

and supplies.

Now the customers started estimating which offer will

deliver the most value. Customers are value-maximizers, within

the bounds of search costs and limited knowledge, mobility, and

income. They form an expectation of value and act on it.

Whether or not the offer lives up to the value expectation affects

customer’s satisfaction.

50
CUSTOMR AWARENESS:

Customers are informed and remaindered about the

products and are requested and persuaded to purchase their

products. Such communication may be made their along the

product or well in advance of the introduction of product into the

market. Such communication becomes necessary when a new

product or service is introduced in the market or an old product is

improved or it is simply to increase the sales of the products.

“Awareness compasses all the tools in the marketing

mix whose major role is persuasive communications.”

PHILLIP KOTLER

The main features of awareness are:

1. Customers are informed about the product or services of

the company. Either at the time of introduction of a new

product into the market or when any change is made in the

existing product.

2. Customers are reminded of the products and services of the

company.

51
 3. Customers are requested or persuaded to purchase the

product and services of the company.

4. Awareness includes, advertising, personal selling and other

sale promotion techniques.

Consumers must have awareness about the new products

and their usage. Such activities are performed by the

manufacturer. It is the responsibility of the producer to get

information about the consumers and prospective consumers so

that the necessary product may be served to meet their

demands.

Subject matter companies must do more than make good

products they must inform consumers about the product benefits

and carefully position products in customers mind. To do this

must skillfully use the mass promotion tools like advertising,

sales promotion and public relations, personal selling, publicity.

ADVERTISING:

Advertising is defined as any paid form of non personal

presentation and promotion of an idea, goods or services by an

identified sponsor.

“The best advertising is done by satisfied

customers.”

52
 -- PHILLIP KOTLER

Advertising can be traced back to the beginning of the

recorded history. Archeologist working in the countries around

mediterrian sea have dug up signs announcing various events

and offers. The roman painted walls to announce Gladiator

fights, and the Phoenician painted pictures promoting their waves

and large locks along parade routes.

In 1993 advertisers ran up of bill of more than $ 138

billions through advertising is used mostly by business firms it is

also by a wide range of non profit organization professionals

social agencies that advertiser target to various target publics.

Major Decision In Advertising:

Advertising has the impersonal contact and gives

message to the receiver. The advertiser uses visual media like

newspapers, magazines, radio, television, posters and pamphlets.

There is no feedback to know the response from the people.

Advertising is directed towards consumers. This leads to more

expenses and so the things become an costly affair.

1. Advertising Objectives

a) To inform

b) To persuade

53
 c) To remind

2. Setting the advertising budget

 After determining the advertising the objectives, the company

next sets its adverting.

 Budget for each product. The role of advertising is to effect

demand for the product.

 However some specific factors are that should be considered

when the setting the advertising budget.

a) Stage in product life cycle.

b) Market share
c) Competition
d) Advertising frequency
e) Product differentiation.

3. Message Decision

A large advertisers can spent the same amount on

advertising, yet have very different results studies show that

creative advertising message can be more important to

advertising success than the number of dollars spent.

54
4. Message Strategy

The purpose of advertising is to get consumers to think

about or react to the product company in certain way. People will

react only if they believe that they will benefit form doing o.

Effective message consist of customers benefit, creativity,

Meanings, distinctive in nature.

5. Major steps in media selection.

a) Deciding on reach, frequency, impact

Reach is a measure of the percentage of the people in the

target market who are exposed to the ad campaign during a

given period of time.

Frequency is a measure of how many times the average

person in the target market exposed to the message.

Impact – qualitative value of a message exposure through a

given medium.

b) Choosing various media types:

55
Newspapers Magazines

Televisions Radios

Outdoors Internet

c) Media timing

SALES PROMOTIOIN

It includes activities other than advertising, personal selling,

publicity and public relations which are used in promoting sales

of the product or in persuading the customer to purchase the

product. Distribution of samples, premium coupon, point of

purchase display, off-spring etc., are the examples of sales

promotion techniques.

Samples - Offers to consumers of a trail amount of a product.

Coupons - Certificate that give buyer a saving when they

purchase a specified product.

Rebates (cash refund offers) – It offers to refund part of the

purchase price of the product to consumers who send a “proof of

purchase” to the manufacture.

Principles - It reduce prices that are marked by the producer

directly on the label or package.

56
Premiums – Goods offered either free or low cost and incentive

to buy a product.

Advertising specialties – useful articles imprinted with an

advertisers name given as gift to consumers.

Patronage reward – Cash or other rewards for the regular use

of a certain companies products or services.

Point of purchase(POP) – It displays and demonstration that

takes place at the point of purchase of sale.

Discount – Straight discount on price on purchase during a

period of time.

PUBLIC RELATIONS

Another major promotion tool ism public relations – building

good relations with the companies various publics by obtaining

favorable publicity, building up a good “Corporate image” and

handling off unfavorable rumors, stores and events. The old

name for marketing public relations was publicity, which was

seen simply as activities to promote a company or its products by

planting news about it in media not paid for by the sponsor.

Public relations are much broader concept that includes publicity

57
ass well as many other activities. Public relations department

may perform following functions.

a) Press relations – Creating and placing news worthy

information in the media to attack attention to a person,

product or service.

b) Produce publicity – Publicizing specific products.

c) Public affairs – Building and maintaining national or local

community relations.

d) Lobbying – Building and maintaining national or local

community relations.

e) Investors relations – Maintaining relationship with

shareholders and others in the financial community.

f) Development – Public relations with donors or members of

non profit organization to gain financial or volunteer

support.

PERSONAL SELLING

Selling is one of the oldest professions in the world. The

people who do selling go by many names.

58
 Sales people, sales representatives, Account executives,

Sales consultants, Sales engineers, Agent District managers, and

Marketing representatives to name just few.

Sales person, an individual acting for a company by

performing one of more following activities.

Prospecting, communicating, Servicing and information

gathering.

PUBLICITY

Publicity is a non-personal not paid stimulation of demand

of the products or services or business units by planting

commercially significant news or editorial comment in the print

media or by obtaining a favorable presentation of it upon radio,

television or stage.

59
 OBJECTIVES

PRIMARY OBJECTIVES:

 To find out which factors has got influence on customer

awareness in Paints Industry.

 To know the awareness level of “Asian Paints” customers as

well as other customers.

SECONDARY OBJECTIVES:

 To identify the customer requirements.

To analyze the customers perception regarding the preference of Asian

Paint Products.

60
 NEED FOR STUDY

The main objective of the study is to know the Customer

awareness with respect to Asian Paints.

The need for this can be explained if one knows the

importance of understanding the Customer awareness. So in the

following paragraph the Customer awareness and its role in the

success of an organization has been explained.

Customer awareness are taken up to boost the sales of a

product by the company. A company having production

capabilities may produce a product and price is according and

sell through the dealers and retailers by its distribution network.

Considering the fact that consumer according to the time

need, want and the purchasing power, it depends on the product,

therefore, the marketers rely on the marketing mix to cater to

the customers efficiently and effectively.

So the companies producing the product, pricing and

planning them have to care fully look into the minds of the

consumers and place the products favorably in the minds of the

consumers.

61
 Chapter 2

METHODOLOGY

In order to realize the study the objectives a considerably

volume of both primary and secondary data is needed. It has

been therefore found necessary to conduct an Interview schedule

for gathering relevant data from the users.

Primary Data has be collected with the help of a structured

Questionnaire with stratified sample of 100 respondents have to

be taken for carrying out the study.

Secondary Data the information regarding the Indian paint

industry has to be drawn from various published sources. They

include Professional business Journals and Magazines, besides the

News papers. The data relating to Asian Paints has to be

collected from company records.

This study is necessarily based on the limited knowledge

and little practical exposure the constraints of resources and time

have further imposed limits to the study boundaries.

Chapter 3

62
 DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

Exhibit :1

Occupation Frequency %of

Respondents
Builders 84 84
Contractors 6 6
Engineer 2 2
Others 8 8
Total 100 100

CUSTOMER PURCHASING PATTERN

Graph :1

8%
2%
6%

Builders
Contractors
Engineers
Others

84%

63
INFERENCE:

From the above table it is found that 84% of the product

purchasers are builders.

It is found that 6% of the customers are contractors. 2% of

product purchasers are engineers and 8% of product bought by

others.

It is clear from the above data above, that 84% of the

customers are builders because they do painting before handing

over the houses to the respective owner.

64
Exhibit :2

EXPERIENCE IN PAINTING PROCESS

No. of Experienced %of

Respondents
Respondents Respondents
0%
100 100 100
Graph : 2

100

100%

INFERENCE:

65
 It is found that all the respondents have experienced in

painting process, even though, the buyers are purchasing then

products for the 1st time, since it is known that buying of paints

can be not only for self but even for other such as relations and

friends.

66
Exhibit :3

APPROXIMATE BUDGET TOWARDS PAINTING

Graph:3

Value of the Budget Frequency %of

Respondents

Below 50,000 18 18

50,000 – 75,000 6 6

75,000 – 1,00,000 31 31

Above 1,00,000 45 45

Below 50,000

50,000 - 75,000

75,000 - 1,00,000

Above 1,00,000

67
INFERENCE:

From the above table out of 100 respondents it was found

that 18% of the respondents are in budget below Rs. 50,000/-

which means they are ready to spend for paints. 6% of the

respondents are in budget between Rs. 50,000/- to Rs.75,000/-.

31% of the respondents are in budget between Rs.75,000/- to

Rs.1,00,000/- and the remaining 45% of the respondents are in

budget above Rs.1,00,000/-.

So it was found that maximum numbers of respondents are

ready to spend upto Rs.1,00,000/- and above for paints.

68
Exhibit :4

USAGE OF DIFFERENT INTEROIOR PRODUCTS

Interior Products Frequency %of

Respondents
Enamel 22 22
Distemper 52 52
Polish 6 6
Emulsion 20 20

Graph: 4

Enamel
Distemper
Polish
Emulsion

69
INFERENCE:

From the above table out of 100 respondents, it is found

that 22% of the respondents are in requirements of enamel paint

for their interiors, 52% of the respondents required the interior

paint like distemper, 6% of the respondents are in requirement

of Asian Paint polish, while the other 20% of the respondent are

in requirement of Emulsion.

In interior product usage, there is a greater demand for the

distemper followed by the enamel.

70
Exhibit :5

USAGE OF DIFFERENT EXTEROIOR PRODUCTS

Exterior Products Frequency %of

Respondents
Cement Paint 18 18
Textured 5 5
Emulsion 35 35
Permanent Finish 2 2
SnowCem 40 40
Graph: 5

Enamel
Distemper
Polish
Emulsion

71
INFERENCE:

From the above table out of 100 respondents, it is found

that 18% of the respondents are in requirement of cement paint

for their exterior purpose, 5% of the respondents are in

requirement of textured, where as 35% of the respondents

required the Exterior Paint like emulsion and 2% of the

respondent are in requirement of permanent finish product, while

the remaining 40% of the respondents are in requirement of

Snowcem.

Snowcem had a greater demand, because most of the

middle class families are using Snowcem, and next to snowcem

the familiar product is emulsion.

72
Exhibit :6

LIFE EXPECTANCE FOR INTERIOR PAINTS BY CUSTOMERS

Period Frequency %of

Respondents
6 months - -
1 Year - -
2 Year 14 14
5 Year 86 86

Graph : 6

2 Year
5 Year

73
INFERENCE:

From the above table, out of 100 respondents, it is found

that 14% of the respondents or customers are expecting the life

of interior paint to be 2 years and the remaining 86% of the

customers are expecting more than 5 years of lie, for their

interior products.

In details, if we go, “No customer is expecting life below 2

years”. And most of the customers are expecting their product

life above 5 years.

74
Exhibit :7

LIFE EXPECTANCE FOR EXTERIOR PAINTS BY CUSTOMERS

Frequency %of
Period
Respondents
6 months - -
1 Year 5 5-
2 Year 34 34
5 Year 61 61
Graph :7

1 Year
2 Year
5 Year

INFERENCE:

75
 From the above table, out of100 respondents, we can find

that 61% of the customers are expecting more than 5 years of

life for the exterior paints and 34% of customers are expecting

more than a life of 2 years, while the remaining 5% of

respondents are expecting more than 1 year of life for their

exterior paints.

No one among respondents are expecting the life of interior

paint products for less than 1 year.

76
Exhibit: 8

TYPE OF FINISH REQUIRED FOR EXTERIOR PAINTS BY

CUSTOMERS

Type of Finish Frequency %of

Respondents
Smooth 69 69
Textured 18 18
Permanent 12 12
Others 1 1
Graph: 8

Smooth
Textured
Permanent
Others

INFERENCE:

From the above table, out of 100 respondents, A smooth

type of finish is required by 69% of the respondents where as

77
18% of the respondents require a textured type of finish, and

12% of the customers require permanent type of finish, while the

remaining 1% of the customers require other type of finishes.

78
Exhibit :9

TYPE OF FINISH REQUIRED FOR INTERIOR PAINTS BY

CUSTOMERS

Type of Finish Frequency %of

Respondents
Distemper 77 77
Emulsion 23 23

Graph: 9

Distemper

Emulsion

INFERENCE:

79
 From the above table, out of 100 respondents, “Distemper

finish” is required by 77% of the respondents, while the other

23% of the respondents require emulsion finishing for their

interiors.

80
Exhibit :10

WOOD FINISH PRODUCT PREFERENCE BY CUSTOMERS

81
 Frequency

%of
Frequency
Respondents %of
Type of Finish
Respondents
Enamel(glassy) 87 87
Enamel(satin) 9 9
Melamine 3 3
Poly Utherene (OPAL) 1 1

INFERENCE:

From the above table, out of 100 respondents, it came to

know that 87% of the respondents prefer for enamel(glassy) type

of wood finish, where as 9% of the respondents prefer for

Enamel(satin) type of wood finish, and 3% of the respondents

prefer Melamine and the remaining 1% of the respondents prefer

poly-utherene type of wood finish.

82
 So it is clear from the above analysis that most of the

respondents i.e.,87% of the respondents are going for

enamel(glassy) type of wood finish.

83
Exhibit :11

AWARENESS ABOUT ASIAN PAINTS PRODUCTS

Awareness Frequency %of

Respondents
Yes 90 90
No 10 10

Graph : 11

Yes

No

84
INFERENCE:

From the above table, out of 100 respondents, it came to

know that 90% of the respondents are aware of Asian Paint

Products , while the other 10% of the respondents are not aware

of Asian Paint Products.

So company can go for some more awareness programme

in order to capture the remaining unaware sector.

85
Exhibit :12

AWARENESS ABOUT COLOUR WORLD CONCEPT

Awareness Frequency %of

Respondents
Yes 35 35
No 65 65

Graph : 12

Yes

No

86
INFERENCE:

From the above table, out of 100 respondents, 35%f the

respondents are aware of “Colour World”tinting machines

concept of Asian paints, while the other 65% of the respondents

are not aware of this concept.

So, the company need to communicate about the a “Colour

World” tinting machine concept to the customers by conducting

awareness programme or by advertisement.

87
Exhibit :13

CUSTOMERS’ CHOICE OF COMPANY FOR INTEREIORS

Name of the Frequency %of

Company Respondents
Asian 57 57
Berger 25 25
Nerolac 8 8
Others 10 10

Frequency
% of Respondents

88
INFERENCE:

From the above table, out of 100 respondents, 57% of the

respondents are opting for Asian Interior Paints, while 25% of

the respondents are preferring for Berger Interior Paints, and 8%

of the respondents are opting for Nerolac Interior Pains, where as

the remaining 10% of the respondents are opting for some other

companies for the interiors.

So, it is clear that Asian Interior Paint products have more

customer preference when compared to other brands.

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Exhibit :14

CUSTOMERS’ CHOICE OF COMPANY FOR EXTEREIORS

Name of the Frequency %of

Company Respondents
Asian 50 50
Berger 23 23
Nerolac 12 12
Others 15 15
Graph : 14

Asian
Berger
Nerolac
Others

INFERENCE:

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 From the above table, out of 100 respondents, 87% of the

respondents are opting for Asian Exterior Paints, while 23% of

the respondents are preferring for Berger Exterior Paints, and

12% of the respondents are opting for Nerolac Interior Pains,

whereas as the remaining 15% of the respondents are opting for

some other companies for the interiors.

When compared to interior paints, company exterior paints

are not preferred by some of the customers who were preferring

Asian paint interior products.

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Exhibit :15

TYPE OF GUIDANCE EXPECTED FROM COMPANY BY THE

CUSTOMERS

Type of Guidance Frequency %of

Respondents
Provide details on recent 38 38

development & products

Educate on product features 24 24
Appraise on product 8 8

suitability
Knowledge of sales Discount 15 15
Budgeting while painting 15 15
Graph : 15

Provide details on
recent development &
Products
Educate on product
features

Appraise on product
susitability

Knowledge of sales
Discount

Budgeting while
painting

Slice 6

ting

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INFERENCE:

From the above table, out of 100 respondents, it was found

that 38% of the respondents are in need of guidance regarding

the details on recent development and products, whereas 24% of

the respondents are in need of guidance regarding education on

product features. While 8% of the respondents are in need of

guidance for appraise on product suitability. 15% of the

respondents are in need of guidance regarding the knowledge on

sales discounts. While the remaining 15% of the respondents are

in need of guidance regarding the Budgeting while Painting.

93
 Chapter 4

FINDINGS

As a part of my study, survey on “Customer Awareness”

was conducted during Feburary – March 2010. Important findings

are concerning from the customers, have resulted from the

survey. They are summarized in following paragraph.

 The First and foremost observation that has been made from

the study is that “Asian Paints” is the leader in the industry of

paints. It has a very high brand equity in the market.

 According to observations of the survey, price is the

dominating factors, which influences the purchasing decision

of the respondents followed by quality, company name,

coverage and service. Comparing to competitors Asian Paint

Company Prices is high.

 From the analysis point of view, when compared to interior

paints, company exterior paints are not preferred by some of

the customers, who are preferring Asian Paints interior

product.

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  At last, most of the customers are satisfied with Asian Paint

products, but at the same time they require guidance

regarding the recent development of the products.

Chapter 5

SUGGESTIONS

 Sales promotion committee should be formed to formulate and

implement new market strategies to compete with

competitors and to extend the market share.

 Company sales representatives must maintain relations with

construction companies as well as with painting contractors with

the help of the dealers.

 Company should conduct meetings, at least to make the

customers to know about the latest development in the paint

industry and their products.

 Companies should even concentrate on Exterior Paints as its

market share is very low.

 Advertisement should be increased to update the image of

Asian Paints in the changing environment.

 Company must look after, there is a close relationship between

sales representatives and dealers with the customers.

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 Company should maintain the customer records.

Chapter 6

LIMITATIONS

 The respondents of the questionnaire are very

busty and could not afford more time to answer.

The average time to response was 5-6 minutes

only.

 A limited sample size of 100 customers was

considered because of time constraint. An

assumption is made that the sample represents

the whole population. It will not carry the total

reflection of the copier market. Total sample size

is comparatively less to represent the entire

population.

 A time period of only 45 days was allowed for the

completion of this product. So considering all the

consumers for the study was not possible.

96
 The data was of primary nature. So the degree

biases were relatively high as the sample was

randomly selected.

 Study restricted to geographical territory of Lucknow city only

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Principles of Management

Philip Kotler

Marketing Management

Rama Swamy

The Hindu Guide Magazines

Business India

WEBSITE:

www.asianpaints.com

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 Questionnaire

1) Name:

2) Address:

3) Phone No.:

4) What is your occupation?

(a) Builder (b) Contractor

(c) Engineer (d) Other

5) Have you experienced in painting process?

(a) Yes (b) No

6) What is your approximation of budget towards painting?

(a) Below Rs. 50000 (b) Rs. 50000 – Rs. 75000

(c) Rs. 75000 – Rs. 10000 (d) Above Rs. 100000

7) Which type of interior paint do you require?

(a) Enamel (b) Distemper

(c) Polish (d) Emulsion

98
 8) Which type of exterior paint do you require?

(a) Cement Paint (b) Textured

(c) Emulsion (d) Permanent Finish

(e) Snowcem

9) How many life do you expect from interior paint?

(a) 6 Months (b) 1 Year

(c) 2 Years (d) 5 Years

10) How many life do you expect from exterior paint?

(a) 6 Months (b) 1 Year

(c) 2 Years (d) 5 Years

11) Which type of finishing do you require from exterior paint?

(a) Smooth (b) Textured

(c) Permanent (d) Other

12) Which type of finishing do you require from interior paint?

(a) Distemper (b) Emulsion

13) Which type of wood finish product required by you?

(a) Enamel (Glassy) (b) Enamel (Stain)

(c) Mealmine (d) OPAL

14) Are you aware about Asian Paints products?

99
 (a) Yes (b) No

15) Are you aware about colour world concept of Asian Paints?

(a) Yes (b) No

16) What is your brand preference for interiors?

(a) Asian (b) Berger

(c) Nerolac (d) Other

17) What is your brand preference for exterior?

(a) Asian (b) Berger

(c) Nerolac (d) Other

18)Which type of guidance do you expect from the company?

(a) Provide details on recent development and products.

(b) Educate on product features.

(c) Appraise on product suitability.

(d) Knowledge of sales discount.

(e) Budgeting while painting.

100
 CONTENTS
Page No.

CHAPTER -1I

 About Asian Paints

5-57
 Objectives of the Study
58
 Need for Study
59

CHAPTER – 2

 Methodology
60
CHAPTER – 3

 Data analysis and Interpretation

61-90
CHAPTER – 4

101
 Findings
91
CHAPTER –5

 Suggestion
92
CHAPTER – 6
›› Limitations 93

BIBLIOGRAPHY 94

Questionnaire 95-97

102
103