Delivery of Customer Value of Coca Cola Company - Assignment Example

Delivery of Customer Value of Coca Cola Company Coca Cola was first invented in 1886 by Doctor John Pemberton. The drink was then sold to the public providing nine serves each day. The expenses for the first year exceeded the sales and hence the doctor had to suffer losses. In the following year, the drink formula was sold to another businessman named Asa Candler and by the end of 1890 the drink became highly popular accompanied by extensive marketing of the product. Thus the company’s sales gradually increased over the years and today the Coca Cola Company is the leading beverage company in the world (Bellis). The company has gone a long way till the present times when it has more than 3000 beverage products serving in more than 200 countries making huge sales and satisfying customers to the utmost level. The company intends to expand their products and services and advance their features towards making their brand and services stronger thus attracting more customers and reach out to the global market as the leader in the beverage industry in the world (Our Company). The current study focuses on the company’s products, pricing, distribution and promotion to reflect the value that the company provides to its customers. Organizational Objectives of The Coca Cola Company: The primary mission of the Coca Cola Company is to serve its products to its customers to refresh them, arouse pleasure and cheerfulness and create value making a difference in the industry. In order to achieve this mission the company’s objectives include over viewing the changes in the trends and preferences of choices of the customers. Also the company has its focus on achieving and maintaining quality growth and its objectives include the 6 Ps that are the main concerns of the company. These 6Ps are the people, portfolio, partners, planet, profit and productivity. The company intends to be highly effective in its performances thus generating huge profits for the company as well as satisfying the employees and the customers of the organization. The company focuses on providing the employees with a suitable workplace to enhance their level of performance. Also the organizational objectives include maintaining a quality oriented portfolio of products keeping its focus on the market and following their values (Mission, Vision & Values). The Coca-Cola Company: Product and Brand Portfolio: The current data on the company reflects that there are more than 3,500 beverage products that the company presently produces and sells in the market. This include diet and sparkling beverage products as well as fruit juices and drinks, water, energy drinks, tea, coffee, milk and beverages based on soy (Product List). Coca Cola has the record of the highest selling drink in the world that is made available in more than 200 countries (Product Descriptions). Other products are also made available and are highly popular among the customers. These products have been manufactured by the company keeping in focus on the needs and expectations of the customers. For example, the energy drinks are nowadays increasingly being consumed by the customers and Coca-Cola Company provides the products with nutritional values incorporated in them. The fruit drinks and juices can be understood to provide the customers with the dietary values that are required in the daily lives of human beings. The variety of products that the company provides is made available across the entire globe. Thus the company’s product and brand portfolio can be understood to be focused on providing its customers with value and satisfying them with their demands. Thus, if the product positioning of the company can be studied it can be realized that the wide range of products provided by the company has created a leading position of the company’s brands and products in the minds of the consumers. Their products are highly popular and satisfactory. Pricing Strategies: The Coca-Cola Company: The Coca-Cola Company has reached to a position in the current scenario where the pricing strategy followed by the company is the price skimming and hence the company is capable of raising its prices for its customers. This is possible since the company has a competitive advantage over the other beverage companies and hence can dominate over the pricing of the products. However, the above mentioned strategy might also create disadvantages by allowing competitor companies to enter the market with lower prices. The main pricing strategy that the company follows includes keeping its prices low in the home market while raising them at the international market. This strategy was however questioned and the company defended its position mentioning that the company has been able to manage their operations as well as inflation depending on the various channels and packages that they provide. Also, the company focuses on smaller packages to compress the level of prices for its products. The strategy for lower prices is mainly focused on improving the volume of products that can be sold (Rappeport). Also, the company follows channel pricing thus the prices of the drinks may vary depending on the region and place where it is sold (Bhasin). Thus the pricing strategy on the products of the Coca-Cola Company can be understood to have its focus on low and reasonable prices for its customers to afford the products and satisfy their needs. This also aids the company in attracting newer customers and hence the overall profits of the company are raised. It can be analyzed at this point that the company providing its customers with a vast range of products and services, the pricing strategy is highly relevant to the company’s success. The company’s pricing strategy clearly presents the marketing effectiveness of the company with respect to its value that is provided to the customers. The lower prices are meant to retain the existing customer base and attract new customers thus providing more value to the customers. Distribution Strategy: The Coca-Cola Company: Since the manufacture of the products and the bottling processes take place at different locations, contracts are formulated between them for the manufacture and sale of the beverage products. The company sells its products to bottling divisions and they are passed on to the wholesalers and the retailers. These products are then distributed to the retail stores and other selling points for the ultimate sale to the customers. The company makes use of mediators to perform its functions of distributions. This implies that the products of the company are not directly sold to the customers instead the distribution channels pass the products step by step till they ultimately reach the end-consumers. This is a form of indirect distribution that the company follows in its product distribution. Also, the distribution strategy of the Coca-Cola Company involves an intensive distribution through which the company makes its products available to all available outlets for the easy access to the product. Such outlets include the small stores, the retail shops, as well as large shopping malls, restaurants, roadside vendors, entertainment locations and every other place that might have the customers available at the place (Coca Cola Marketing Plan). Thus the distribution strategy of the company can be seen to be enhanced and focused towards disciplined method of selling and distribution of the company’s products. The company intends to let its products reach to its customers on demand, and hence makes it available in every possible outlet. Thus the strategy can be understood to be focusing on providing value to the customers in the way that the products are delivered on time to the designated locations and the customers get them whenever they wish and in the nearest outlet available to them this naturally increases the value of the product to the customers. Promotion Mix of the Coca-Cola Company: The promotion mix of the company includes the 4 Ps of the company namely Product, Price, Place and Promotion. In regard to the product, Coca Cola is known to be the best selling beverage product. Being a product for business, it is sold through all available outlets and is highly reasonable thus enabling customers to afford it. The features of the product are also popular among its consumers presenting a competitive advantage over other beverage products. Regarding the price of the product, the company has its focus on pricing strategies that are competitive yet attractive to the customers. Thus when the product is sold at different outlets, the price tends to vary. When place of the product is considered, the product can be found to be distributed to over 200 countries with all the varieties of products available to the company (The Coca-Cola Company). For its promotion purposes, the company uses the marketing communication and markets its products to variety of people. The company uses advertisement and websites as its primary weapons of promotion. Links are also provided through such websites that enable consumers to learn about the products, their features and other necessary information about the company and its brands (The Coca-Cola Company, 2008). Thus if the promotion mix of the company is analyzed it can be realized that the company effectively makes use of the 4 Ps in its production and marketing of its products. This enhances the value of the product to the customer since a proper promotion policy lets the product successfully reach to its customers which has the potential to attract more customers increasing the significance of the product’s availability on demand. Conclusion: The study on the Coca-Cola Company clearly reflects that the company is a leader in the beverage industry that is supported by the business strategies that the company follows. The company has been performing through a long way and is now the most successful company providing its customers with huge verity of products and services. The objectives of the company are set on the basis of the needs and expectations of its customers since the company values its customers to the utmost level. The pricing strategies of the company are focused on the competition in the market as well as the customers’ affordability is always kept in focus. The distribution strategies of the company are also designed in a manner such that the products are not directly sold from the company to the customers but the intermediaries who perform this act are effectively letting the products reach the customers on demand. For this the products are made available in all available small and big outlets in different locations of the nation. The company promotes its products through advertisements and campaigns and uses the marketing communication for the purpose. Thus the ultimate intention of the company can be realized to be providing its customers with value implying that the company values its customers significantly and this is achieved by the effective strategic measures undertaken by the company. References 1) Bellis, Mary. The History of Coca Cola, About, 2011, October 21, 2011 2) Bhasin, Hitesh, Pricing Strategies, Markting91, 2010, October 21, 2011 from: http://www.marketing91.com/pricing-strategies/ 3) “Coca Cola Marketing Plan”, Bookrags, 2006, October 21, 2011 from: http://www.bookrags.com/essay-2003/6/14/53228/5227 4) “Mission, Vision & Values”, The Coca-Cola Company, 2011, October 21, 2011 from: http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/ourcompany/mission_vision_values.html 5) “Our Company”, The Coca-Cola Company, 2011, October 21, 2011 from: http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/ourcompany/ar/ 6) “Product Descriptions”, The Coca-Cola Company, 2011, October 21, 2011 from: http://www.virtualvender.coca-cola.com/ft/index.jsp 7) “Product List”, The Coca-Cola Company, 2011, October 21, 2011 from: http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/brands/product_list_b.html 8) Rappeport, Alan, Coca-Cola chief defends pricing strategy, 2011, October 21, 2011 from: http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/457977fe-8d42-11e0-bf23-00144feab49a,s01=1.html#axzz1bP8Y3Rhg 9) “The Coca-Cola Company”, Slideshare, 2008, October 21, 2011 from: http://www.slideshare.net/dgclip1981/the-coca-cola-company Read More