NUST BUUSINESS SCHOOL, ISLAMABAD

STRATEGIES FOR BUILDING A BETTER BRAND IMAGE: A

CASE OF COLA RIVALS IN THE PAKISTANI CONTEXT

Consumer Behavior – Research Paper

12/29/2009

Asma Shamshad – Junaid Manzoor – Sidra Manzoor – Warda Zubair – Zafar A. Khan
CONTENTS

Table of Contents

Introduction to Cola Companies ............................................................................................................. 4

Company Profile – PepsiCo Inc................................................................................................................. 4
Company Profile – Coca Cola Company.................................................................................................... 4
Introduction to Cola Wars....................................................................................................................... 5
Early battles leading to new Coke ............................................................................................................ 5
Introducing a new flavor.......................................................................................................................... 6
Battle shifts to International Markets..................................................................................................... 6
Pepsi troubles in Brazil ............................................................................................................................ 6
Intrigue in Venezuela............................................................................................................................... 7
Pepsi’s problems elsewhere in International Markets……………………………………………………………………………7

Coke faces problems in Europe ............................................................................................................... 8

Issues of Contamination .......................................................................................................................... 8
Coca Cola finally acts aggressively............................................................................................................ 9
Pepsi’s Competitive maneuver near the millennium ............................................................................ 10
Pepsi’s role in Coke’s European problems. ............................................................................................. 10
Pepsi’s antitrust initiations against Coca Cola ........................................................................................ 10
Coke and Pepsi in the Subcontinent ..................................................................................................... 10
Literature Review. ................................................................................................................................ 12

Theoretical Framework. ........................................................................................................................ 14

Independent Variables………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….14

Communication. .................................................................................................................................... 14
Perceived Quality ................................................................................................................................. 15
Availability............................................................................................................................................. 15
Price ..................................................................................................................................................... 15
Dependent Variable………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………16

Brand Image. ......................................................................................................................................... 16

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Hypotheses Development…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….16

Analysis & Findings……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..17

Hypothesis Testing……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..24

Conclusion &
Recommendations……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..27

Appendix………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…………………..28

List of Figures

Figure 1: Gender Classification of the respondents ................................................................................ 17

Figure 2: Age Group Classification.......................................................................................................... 17
Figure 3: Do you drink Cola-soft drinks?................................................................................................. 18
Figure 4: Weekly Consumption .............................................................................................................. 18
Figure 5: Choice of Cola Brand ............................................................................................................... 19
Figure 6: Preferred way of consumption ................................................................................................ 19
Figure 7: Preferred Cola Brand apart from consumption ........................................................................ 20
Figure 8: Preferred Consumption Quantity ............................................................................................ 20
Figure 9: Advertisements as Influencers ................................................................................................ 21
Figure 10: Influence of Celebrity Endorsement on Choice ...................................................................... 21
Figure 11: Coca Cola as a Brand ............................................................................................................. 22
Figure 12: Pepsi as a Brand .................................................................................................................... 22
Figure 13: Determinants of Quality of a Beverage .................................................................................. 22
Figure 14: Switching due to Non-Availability .......................................................................................... 23

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ABSTRACT

A brand is a transforming idea that converts something intangible into something of value. A firm’s
brand image is continually evolving. As it enters new countries or markets, new brand extensions or
product lines are added. Also new features in product and positioning may be modified or radically
changed. With rising media, promotional costs and the trend towards globalization, brand image is
perceived differently across different cultures. In the competitive markets it is imperative that company
is able to narrate the brand identity by building a strong brand image. A company can follow number of
strategies to create a better brand image. Ultimately the way consumers associate themselves with the
brand would determine its success.

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INTRODUCTION TO COLA COMPANIES

COMPANY PROFILE- PepsiCo Inc.

PepsiCo is one of the largest companies in the U.S. It figures amongst the largest 15 companies
worldwide according to the number of employees hired.
PepsiCo is a world leader in the food chain business. It consists of many companies amongst which
the famous one is Pepsi-Cola, Frito-Lay and Pepsi Food International. The group is presently into
two of the most profitable and growing industries namely, beverages and snack foods. It has scores
of big brands available in nearly 150 countries across the globe. The group has established for itself
once of the strongest brands in various segments of its operations.
The beverages segment primarily markets its Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Mountain Dew and other brands
worldwide and 7-UP outside the U.S. markets. These are positioned in close competition with Coca-
Cola Inc. of USA. A point which is worth mentioning is that Coca-Cola gets 80% of its profits for
International operations while the same figure for PepsiCo stands at 6%. The segment is also in the
bottling plants and distribution facilities and also distributes the ready to drink tea products of
Lipton in North America. In a joint venture with orient spray juice products PepsiCo also
manufactures and distributes fruit juices.
The snack food division manufactures and distributes and markets chips and other snacks
worldwide. The international operations of this segment extend to the markets of Mexico, the UK
and Canada. Frito-Lay represents this segment of PepsiCo.
A packaged goods company comprised of Pepsi-Cola Company and Frito-Lay will continue to bear
the PepsiCo name. The move should enhance both corporations ability to prosper with their fully
dedicated structure and management team.

COMPANY PROFILE- Coca Cola

The Coca-Cola Company (herein known as Coke) possesses one of the most recognized brands on
the planet. Coke paints itself as a wonderful corporation that produces amazing life enhancing
products for the whole world to enjoy. The company has proven, however, that the power is its
brand recognition along with its constant aggressive marketing, public relations and advertising

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INTRODUCTION TO COLA WARS

Intense competition between Pepsi and Coca-Cola has characterized the soft drink industry for decades.
Despite the strong challenges from Pepsi, however Coca Cola ruled the soft drink industry throughout
the 1950’s, 1960’s and early 1970’s. It outsold Pepsi by two to one. But this was to change. Then the war
was taken over to international arena and it became “cold war”.

EARLY BATTLES LEADING TO NEW COKE

By the mid-1970’s, the Coca Cola Company was a huge success. Performance reflected phenomenal
growth rate. Between 1976 and 1978, the growth rate of Coca Cola soft drinks dropped from 13 percent
to 2 percent. As the giant stumbled, Pepsi Cola was gaining competitive advantage. First advertisement
that came was ‘Pepsi Generations’ which was build on the premise of increasing association with youth
and vitality which greatly enhanced the image of Pepsi and firmly associated worth to largest consumer
market for soft drinks.

Then another management coup, called the Pepsi Challenge in which comparative tastes for consumers
showed a greater preference for Pepsi. This campaign led to rapid increase of consumer market share
form 6 percent to 14 percent of total US soft drink sales.

Coca Cola in defense conducted its own taste tests. This was own as the blind test where people liked
the taste of Pepsi better and the market changes reflected this. The market share between Pepsi and
Coke became narrow. Further indication of the diminishing position of Coke relative to Pepsi was a study
by Coca Cola’s own marketing research department showed that in 1972, 18 percent of the soft drink
users drank Coke exclusively, while only 4% drank only Pepsi. In the period of ten years the picture
changed drastically with 12 percent who had brand loyalty towards Coke while 11% of market
purchased Pepsi.

What made the deteriorating comparison to Coca Cola to Pepsi was that in spite of outspending the
advertising budget by 100 million, it still faced a declining sales trend. It had twice as many wending
machines, dominated fountains and more shelf space, and was competitively priced. Why was it losing
market share? Was Coca Cola not following effective strategies for creating a brand image? Was its
advertising creating brand confusion?

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INTRODUCING A NEW FLAVOR

With market share erosion of late 1970’s and early in80’s, despite the over spending at the image and
superior distribution. The company began to look at the soft drink product itself. Testes were suspected
as the chief culprit in Coke decline and marketing research confirmed this. In Sept 1984 the technical
division developed a ‘sweetened flavor. It was a hug marketing test had cost with spending around S4
million and among the people intertwined, 55 percent agreed to change the taste over original formula
of Coke and Pepsi. Top executives agreed to change the taste and take the old Coke off the market.

But the results astonished the executives when they saw a great dispersion on expected and actual
results. Loyal yet angry customers of old coke were coming at the rate of five thousand a day in addition
to a barrage of angry letters.

Anger spread across the country which was fueled by media publicity. Fiddling with the formula for a
ninety nine year old brand beverage became an affront to patriotic pride. The ultimate reason was that
changing tastes made a confused brand image in customers mind.

Unfortunately for Pepsi, the euphoria of a major blunder by Coca –Cola was short lived. The two Cola
strategy it still kept the new flavor in addition to bringing back the old classic-seemed to be stimulating
sales far more than expected. Coke Classic was outselling New Coke by better than two to one
nationwide.

Coca Cola’s fortune continued to improve steadily. By 1988 it was producing five of the ten top-selling
soft drinks in the country and had a total 40 percent of the domestic market compared to 31 percent of
Pepsi.

BATLE SHIFTS TO INTERNATIONAL MARKETS

PEPSI TROUBLES IN BRAZIL

Early in 1994 PepsiCo began an ambitious assault on the soft-drink market in Brazil. Making this
innovation even more tempting was the opportunity to combat archrival Coca-Coal already entrenched
in this third soft drink market in the world-behind only the United States and Mexico.

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The robust market of Brazil and had attracted Pepsi before. Its hot weather and growing teen
population positioned Brazil to become one of the world’s fastest growing soft-drink markets, along
China, India and Southeast Asia. But the potential had been barely met. Brazilian consumers averaged
only 264 eight ounce servings of soft drinks a year, far below the US average of about 800.

INTRIGUE IN VENEZUELA

Brazil was only symptomatic of the other overseas problems for Pepsi. Roger Enrico Pepsi CEO, had
reasons for apprehension for survival of his brands and to wonder how “the gods turned against him”.

One of the major reasons of staggering performance of Peps in Venezuela market was that Enrico’s
friend Oswaldo Cisneros, Head of oldest and largest bottling franchises, suddenly abandoned Pepsi for
Coca –Cola. Essentially this took Pepsi out of the Venezuela market.

Oswaldo wanted to sell Pepsi its bottling operations; however Pepsi was not interested in buying more
than 10 percent. On the context, Coca Cola wooed the Cineroses with red carpet treatment and
frequent meetings with the executives. Eventually Coca Cola agreed to pay an estimated $ 500 percent
of the business.

PEPSI’S PROBLEM ELSEWHERE IN INTERNATIONAL MARKET

Pepsi’s problems in South America mirrored its problems world-wide. It had lost its initial lead in Russia,
Eastern Europe and parts of Southeast Asia. While it had head start in India, this was eroded by hard-
driving Coca Cola. Even in Mexico, Pepsi’s main bottler reported a loss of $15 million in 1995.

The contrast with Coca Cola was significant. Pepsi was still generated more than 70 percent of its
beverage profits from United States; Coca-Cola got 80 percent from overseas.

Most of Pepsi’s revenue was in the U.S beverage snack food and restaurant businesses with such well –
known brands as Frito Lay chips and Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and KFC restaurants. But as a former Pepsi CEO
was fond of stating: “We are proud of the U.S business, But 95% of the world doesn’t live here”. Pepsi
seemed unable to hold its own against Coke in this world market.

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COKE FACES PROBLEMS IN EUROPE

In early 1998 after Douglas Ivester took over as the new chairman and chief executive of Coca Cola, the
company witnessed a slowdown in North American market. The major reason for this was the change in
pricing strategy which was done to overcome weaknesses for overseas economic woes.

Other problems emanated from racial discrimination lawsuit, as well as from Mr.Ivester brassy attempts
to make acquisitions such as Orangina and Cadbury Schweppes, angering overseas regulators and
perhaps motivating them to make life difficult for Coke.

THE ISSUE OF CONTAMINATION

On June 8, a few dozen Belgian schoolchildren began throwing up after drinking Cokes. This was to
result in one of the greatest crises in Coca-Cola 113 year history. An early warning had seemingly been
ignored when local pub in Belgium complained four people becoming sick of drinking bad smelling Coke.

Even after the justification of Coke officials to health ministry in Belgium that new coke may have been
the reason for headaches in children. The problem however worsened when fifteen more children were
reported to be sick after drinking Coke.

European newspaper speculated that contamination came from bottling plants in Antwerp, Ghent and
from Dunkirk plant that produced cans for Belgium market. It was thought that these cans were
poisoned with rat poison.

Soon hundreds of people in France got sick and blaming their illnesses on Coke. France banned products
from Dunkirk plant. The setback left Coke out of the market in many parts of Europe because the
company had badly underestimated how much explanation governments would demand before letting
it back in business.

Countries lifted the ban after the health risks were evaluated. Some 14 million cases of Coke were
eventually recalled in five countries and estimates were that Coke was losing 3.4 million per day in
revenues. It was expected that sales volume in Europe would decrease 6-7 percent. The peak European
summer had arrived and the time of scare could not have been worse.

The European Union requested further study as health care spread. At the same time Coca Cola and its
local distributors launched an advertising campaign defending the quality of their products. The
company blamed defective carbon dioxide (used for fizz) for problems at Antwerp plant. It also said that

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outside of cans made at Dunkirk were contaminated with wood preservative during shipping. A study
conducted diagnosed that health effects were on individuals head.

Problems continued to spread. All glass bottles of Bonaqua a bottled brand of Coca Cola were recalled in
Poland because about 1500 bottles were found to contain mold. This recall soon spread to glass bottles
of Coke. The Company officials believed the mold was caused by inadequate washing of returnable
bottles. The company soon recalled 180000 plastic bottles of Bonaqua after discovering non-hazardous
bacteria. Coca Cola also had a recall of some soft drinks in Portugual after small bits of Charcoal from the
filtration system were found.

COCA COLA FINALLY ACTS AGGRESSIVELY

In the initial contamination episodes, Coca Cola was accused of dragging its feet. Part of the problem in
ameliorating the situation was the absence of an explanation by any Coca Cola’s top officials. Ivestor
was blamed for hiding out until finally appearing ten days after the scare. He revisited Brussels to meet
the prime minister and make strenuous efforts to improve the company’s image and public relations
then began.

Coca Cola’s main advertising campaign apologized to Belgium consumers and explained how the
company allowed break downs occurred. The ads showed photographs along with these opening
remarks: “My apologies to the consumers of Belgium, I should have spoken to you earlier”. Ivestor
further promised to buy every household of Belgium a coke. A special consumer hotline was established
and fifty officials including several top executives were temporarily shifted from Atlanta to Brussels.

Five Thousand delivery people were delivering free 1.5 liter bottle of Coke’s main brands to 4.37 million
households. Coke had trucks displayed proclaim: “Your Coca Cola is coming back’”. In newspaper ads,
the company explained its problems, noting that it destroying old products and using fresh ingredients
for new drinks. A similar strategy was adopted in Poland where 2 million free beverages were
distributed to consumers.

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PEPSI’S COMPETITIVE MANEUVERS NEAR THE MILLENIUM

PEPSI’S ROLE IN THE COKE’S EUROPEAN PROBLEMS

Some critics thought that Coca Colas problem should have been Pepsi’s gain. Yet, Pepsi did nothing to
capitalize on the situation, did not gloat and did not increase advertising for its brand. World wide Pepsi
increased temporary increase in sales.

PEPSI’S ANTITRUST INITIATIONS AGAINST COCA COLA

In 1999 when Coca Cola was still recovering from the contamination issue, it had to face yet another
problem from European Union Officials who accused Coca Cola for using its dominant market position to
wipe out completion. Such alleged non competitive activities hampered company’s plan to acquire
additional businesses in Europe.

The major allegation was that Coke was using rebates to enhance market condition. The several kinds of
rebates under investigation were rebates given to distributors who either agreed to sell full range of
Coke products or to stop buying from the competitors.

Pepsi also filed a complaint with the Italian regulators who were quicker to act. Coca Cola was accused
of violating the antitrust laws by abusing a dominant market position through practices such as
discounts, bonuses, and exclusive deals with wholesalers and retailers.

Coca Cola responded to this accusation by Pepsi stating that because Pepsi was not performing well in
Italian market due to their poor investment decision they wanted to take the competition from market
place to court room.

COKE AND PEPSI IN SUBCONTINENT

INTRODUCTION AND RESEARCH PROBLEM

Coca Cola and Pepsi are the two biggest beverage companies of the world. Coca Cola's brand value is
much more than Pepsi. In fact Coca stands at number 3 among the top brands of year 2009 with
estimated brand value of $ 67.6 billion. Pepsi is at number 44 with brand value of $ 15 billion. It is
obvious that Coca Cola stands far higher than Pepsi in Brand Value but Pepsi has always given a tough
competition to Coca Cola in all the World markets. What makes Pepsi different from Coke? They both

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have different brand identities, brand personalities, marketing strategy and target groups. It will also be
interesting to study them because both Pepsi and Coca Cola are direct competitors in most of the
markets in the world as well as in Pakistan. They have wide experience of developing different
competitive products which are needed by the consumers. They also have diverse experiential
philosophy to communicate their products to consumers in contrast to each other. Coke is placed much
above Pepsi in some countries like Japan and USA but in some cultures like Pakistan and India Pepsi is
more popular than Coke. The focus of our study remains on the Brand Image of both the brands in
Pakistan and how the consumer relates that Brand Image to a number of factors and subsequently its
effects on the overall sales of the two brands in the country.

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LITERATURE REVIEW

Building a brand driven culture is a lifelong commitment to a mindset and a way of life that takes time,
planning and perseverance that produces intangible outputs which include greater customer
satisfaction, reduced price sensitivity, fewer customer defections, a greater share of customers’ wallets,
more referrals, and a higher percentage of repeat business (Knapp, 2000).

BRAND
A set of brand associations enable a brand to develop a rich and clear brand identity and hence a brand
image. While some customers may attach greater importance to functional benefits, social, spiritual and
psychological dimensions helps the brand stand above others. Building brand image requires a company
to understand its brand as well as competitors’ brands through customer research.
By carrying an effective customer research by studying its customer’s former customers, industry
experts, and Intermediaries companies can create a better brand image.

BRAND IMAGE VS BRAND IDENTITY

Brand image is the perception in the mind of the customers about the brand and its associations. A
brand image is directly related to brand identity which includes Brand strengths associated with beliefs
and values which are more powerful and most difficult to imitate.
In contrast to brand image (the brand’s current associations), a brand identity is inspirational and may
imply that the image needs to be changed or augmented. In a fundamental sense, the brand identity
represents what the organization wants the brand to stand for (Aaker and Joachimsthaler, 2000). The
“brand as personality” stage marks an important transition phase since not all brands evolve into
consumer icons, especially if the consumers do not relate to, or believe in, the communications of the
brand, or they sense some inconsistencies with the brand’s communications (Wee and Ming, 2003). A
brand’s personality provides a richer source of competitive advantage than any functional feature can
(Sherrington,2003). Personality attributes help the brand to achieve sustainable competitive advantage
due to the difficulty in ability to imitate.

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FACTORS AFFECTING BRAND IMAGE

The Functional Dimension concerns the perception of benefit of the product or service associated with
the brand.

The Social Dimension concerns the ability to create identification with the group.

The Spiritual Dimension is the perception of global or local responsibility

The Mental Dimension is the ability to support the individual mentally.

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THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

INDEPENDENT VARIABLES

Percieved
Communication Availability Price
Quality

DEPENDENT VARIABLE

Brand Image

INDEPENDENT VARIABLES
Communication

Communication is referred to as the exchange of information between the sender and the recipient. The
sender of information in this case is the organization and the recipient of the information/message is
the customer or the end consumer. Communication takes into account all the messages i.e.
Advertisements (Print and TVC), Public Service Messages, Promos etc. Such communication tells the
audience about the organizations offerings, products, promotions etc. Decoding the information in the
communication is undoubtedly the most important part of the communications process. It is to be
ensured that the message is properly encoded so that it can be properly decoded. Communications
plays the most important role in image building of a product and help it to upgrade itself into a well
known brand. At the time of brand strategy, target audience is first identified and then ads are made in

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order to strike a chord with the wavelength of the target audience. Advertisement and other
promotional tools with the same underlying slogan is aired through various channels (electronic media,
print media, pamphlets, and many more) which tries to create a particular desired image of the product
into the mind of the consumers. Hence, the most effective tool in creation of a brand image is played by
communication.

Perceived Quality

Perceived quality can be defined as the customer’s perception of the overall quality or superiority of a
product or service with respect to its intended purpose, relative to alternatives. Communications can
make a consumer choose the product amongst other alternatives but it is the quality of the product that
would ensure repeat purchase and it will make the consumer loyal to the brand.
Perceived quality is initially a consumer’s perception about a product, and thus is a concrete overall
opinion about a brand. Nevertheless, this feeling is usually based upon essential dimensions, such as
product features and performance. Furthermore, perceived quality is often differentiated from the
actual quality, and can derive from past experiences involving former products or services.

Availability
Distribution is another important characteristic of a brand that would help create a better brand image.
It is the responsibility of the organization to ensure that whether its offerings are able to make a way to
its target audience. If the distribution is good then naturally there are chances that a better image is
expected provided other factors create a synergy with distribution. Otherwise, if the brand is not
available then the brand image might be in hot water.

Price
Consumers generally search, choose ad consume products or services that provide them value for
money. Price is the most important factor that would for some consumers, determine whether they will
opt for a particular product or not. The pricing of a product determines the perception about that
particular product which in turn results in the creation of one aspect of the image of the brand.

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DEPENDENT VARIABLES

Brand Image
A strong Corporate Identity is vital for any organization irrespective of its size. Even a smaller company
with strong corporate identity can beat its strong contenders. In other words, the brand image of any
company, business or organization is vital to its success.

Brand Image of a particular product is the perception of the consumers about it. A product may have
one or more images in the market in accordance with the customer segment.

Hypothesis Development

HA1: Communication solely shapes up the Brand Image of a Cola Brand.

HA2: Availability and Pricing of the carbonated drinks are positively correlated.

HA3: Perceived quality and Brand image are positively correlated.

HA4: There is a positive correlation between Brand Image and Availability.

HA5: There is a strong relation between Brand Image and the overall experience of the brand.

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Analysis and Findings

Out of the total 60 respondents, 37 were female and 23 were male. See fig.1 for further detail.

Gender of Respondents
Male Female

38%

62%

Figure 1: Gender Classification of the respondents

In lieu of the empirical findings, maximum respondents were from the age group 15-20 years i.e. 44%.
Percentage division of the age groups of the respondents is given in Fig.2

Age Group Classification

15-20 20-25 25-30 30 and above

12%
14% 44%

30%

Figure 2: Age Group Classification

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In the answer to the question that whether the respondents consume cola drinks, 96.67% opted for
‘Yes’ as their answer and the remaining 3.33% answered ‘No’. Fig. 3 illustrates the findings.

Do you drink cola-soft

drinks?
Yes No

3%

97%

Figure 3: Do you drink Cola-soft drinks?

As mentioned earlier, 97% of the sample agreed that they consume Cola drinks. Out of this majority, a
maximum of 48.3% drank upto 6 bottles per week, whereas 51.72% drank more than 7 bottles per
week. Fig.4 shows detailed results of the findings.

Weekly Consumption
30
Frequency

20
10
0
≤1 1-3 4-6 7-9 ≥ 10
Series1 9 5 14 20 10

Figure 4: Weekly Consumption

In an answer to the question that whether the respondents prefer Pepsi or Coke, 50% vouched for Coca
Cola, 31% for Pepsi and 19% for others. When enquired that what do they mean by others, the most

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popular answer was the consumption of brands like Sprite, 7up etc. Thus it is clear that majority would
vouch for Coca Cola instead of any other brand.

Cola Consumption
Pepsi Coke Others

19% 31%

50%

Figure 5: Choice of Cola Brand

Preferred Way of Consumption

In daily routine 31

Occasionally, at parties or at a get 13

together

As a substitute to water 5

With meals 9

Figure 6: Preferred way of consumption

The diagram above (Fig. 6), illustrates the preferred way of consumption of the 58 respondents who
drank cola beverages. 31 respondents i.e. 53.45% consume in daily routine followed by 22.41%

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consuming occasionally. Regular consumers accounted for 8.62% of the sample and 15.52% consumed
colas with their meals.

In another question the respondents were asked apart from what they consume, which brand would
they prefer? Results are shown in Fig. 7.

Preferred Cola Brand

Pepsi Coca Cola

34%

66%

Figure 7: Preferred Cola Brand apart from consumption

Cola drinks are available in different packaging and quantities in the market. The main aim of asking this
question was to analyze what quantities are used or consumed by the people. 500 ml bottle seems to be
the most popular one with 57% respondents preferring this quantity followed by only 7% preferring the
2.25 Liter bottles. Fig. 8 gives detailed picture of the consumption pattern.

Preferred Cosumption
Quantity
250 ml 500 ml 1.5 Liter 2.25 Liter
7% 15%
21%

57%

Figure 8: Preferred Consumption Quantity

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When asked that how much influence an advertisement has on the choice of the cola product, 34.48%
were of the opinion that advertisements have no affect on their choice. The distribution is shown in fig
9.

Influence of Advertisement on choice

Very little 14

Little 6

Not at all 20

A lot 11

Very much 7

Figure 9: Advertisements as Influencers

Fig. 10 shows the result to the question that would the presence of a favorite celebrity affect the choice
of cola drink. 50% of the respondents were pretty sure that it would not whereas 21% said it would and
29% were uncertain.

Influence of Celebrity Endorsement

on choice
Yes No Maybe

29% 21%

50%

Figure 10: Influence of Celebrity Endorsement on Choice

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Since Coca Cola and Pepsi are the two big names in the cola industry, the respondents to the
questionnaires were inquired about their opinions about Coca Cola as a brand. 31% were of the opinion
that it’s a very good brand, 40% thought it is good and 5% thought its really bad. The detailed findings
are shown in Fig. 11. The opinions of the respondents regarding Pepsi a a brand are shown in Fig. 12.

Coca Cola as a Brand Pepsi as a Brand

Very Bad Bad Average Very Bad Bad Average
Good Very Good Good Very Good

9%2%
5%
31% 29%
24% 17%

40%
0% 43%

Figure 11: Coca Cola as a Brand Figure 12: Pepsi as a Brand

Very consumer has a different view point on quality. What comes under quality may not be considered
quality by the other one. Four different dimensions were placed for the respondents, so that they could
define their meaning of quality. 48% of the respondents are of the opinion that the taste of the drink
determines quality, whereas 28% say it’s the fizz in the drink. The detailed results are shown in Fig. 13.

Determinants of Quality
of Beverage
Taste Fizz Quantity Packaging Design

14%
10%
48%
28%

Figure 13: Determinants of Quality of a Beverage

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Brand Loyalty is a measure to determine how loyal the consumers are towards a particular brand. When
asked if their particular preferred drink is unavailable, would they switch to the substitute? The answers
showed that 79% of the respondents would shift and only 21% would not. Fig. 14 shows the results.

Switching due to non-

Availability
Yes No

21%

79%

Figure 14: Switching due to Non-Availability

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HYPOTHESES TESTING

We will be using correlations to test our hypotheses that we have mentioned earlier in this research
paper.

HA1: Communication solely shapes up the Brand Image of a Cola Brand.

When we calculate the correlation coefficient ‘r’ between the two variables i.e. Communication and
Brand Image for Coca Cola and Pepsi Cola the results are as follows:

Coca Cola Pepsi Cola

Correlation Coefficient (r) 0.662 0.419

Interpreting the value of ‘r’ tells us that the two variables are positively correlated, which means that
with an increase in one variable there will be an increase in the other one too i.e. with an increase in
communication the brand image will improve too.

HA2: Availability and Pricing of the carbonated drinks are positively correlated.

Calculating the correlation coefficient ‘r’ between the two variables i.e. Availability and pricing for Coca
Cola and Pepsi Cola the results are as follows:

Coca Cola Pepsi Cola

Correlation Coefficient (r) 0.060 0.263

Interpreting the value of ‘r’ tells us that the two variables are slightly positively correlated, which means
that with an increase in one variable there will be an increase in the other one too.

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HA3: Perceived quality and Brand image are positively correlated.

When we calculate the correlation coefficient ‘r’ between the two variables i.e. Perceived Quality and
Brand Image for Coca Cola and Pepsi Cola the results are as follows:

Coca Cola Pepsi Cola

Correlation Coefficient (r) 0.688 0.763

Interpreting the value of ‘r’ tells us that the two variables are strongly positively correlated, which
means that with an increase in one variable there will be an increase in the other one too i.e. with an
increase in quality the brand image will improve too.

HA4: There is a positive correlation between Brand Image and Availability.

When we calculate the correlation coefficient ‘r’ between the two variables i.e. Availability and Brand
Image for Coca Cola and Pepsi Cola the results are as follows:

Coca Cola Pepsi Cola

Correlation Coefficient (r) 0.384 0.673

Interpreting the value of ‘r’ tells us that the two variables are positively correlated, which means that
with an increase in one variable there will be an increase in the other one too i.e. with an increase in
availability the brand image will improve too.

HA5: There is a strong relation between Brand Image and the overall experience of the brand.

When we calculate the correlation coefficient ‘r’ between the two variables i.e. Overall experience of
the brand and Brand Image for Coca Cola and Pepsi Cola the results are as follows:

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 Coca Cola Pepsi Cola

Correlation Coefficient (r) 0.699 0.739

Interpreting the value of ‘r’ tells us that the two variables are strongly positively correlated, which
means that with an increase in one variable there will be an increase in the other one too i.e. with an
increase in the overall experience the brand image will improve too.

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CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATIONS

The Cola beverage industry is growing at a fast pace and over the years new local brands like Amrat Cola
and Mecca Cola have started operations in Pakistan in the wake of the cartoon issue that has affected
the Muslim masses in Pakistan. This controversy led to a boycott of western brands like Coke and Pepsi,
and resultantly local beverage companies mentioned above.

These companies did gain some popularity in the beginning but it was not possible for them to challenge
the might of Coke and Pepsi. In the last year another local cola drink namely ‘Gourmet Cola’ was
launched. Due to its extensive supply chain and a well established distribution network they have
acquired some market share and its rising.

What coke and Pepsi need to do at the moment is that they should strengthen their brand image even
further by addressing to the factors underlined by this research.

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APPENDIX

Thank you for taking out time. This questionnaire is designed to conduct a study about sales effort management. The following
questionnaire is for research purposes only.

INSTRUCTIONS: Please encircle the answer that you choose.

Gender: Male Female

Which age group do you lie in?

 15-20
 20-25
 25-30
 30 and above

Do you drink cola-soft drinks?

 Yes
 No

Which cola-brand do you consume the most?

 Coca-Cola
 Pepsi
 Other: ____________________

Apart from consumption which brand do you prefer?

 Coca-Cola
 Pepsi
 Neither

What is your preferred way of consuming cola drinks?

 With meals
 As a substitute to water
 Occasionally, at parties or at a get together

What is your preferred consumption quantity?

 250 ml
 500 ml
 1.5 Liter
 2.25 Liter

How many bottles do you drink per week?

 ≤1
 1-3
 4-6
 7-9
 ≥ 10

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What are your opinions about Coca Cola as a brand?

 Very good
 Good
 Neutral
 Bad
 Very bad

What are your views about Pepsi Cola as a brand?

 Very good
 Good
 Neutral
 Bad
 Very bad

How much influence does the advertisement have on your choice of cola-product?
 Very much
 A lot
 Not at all
 Little
 Very little

Would an advertisement with your hero affect your choice of cola-product?

 Yes
 No

Would this affect the consumption of the product?

 Yes
 No

What is likely to happen to your consumption rate?

 Increase
 Stay the Same
 Decrease

What in your opinion determines the quality of the Cola beverage?

 Taste
 Fizz
 Quantity
 Packaging Design

How would you rate the quality of both Coke and Pepsi?

Excellent Good Normal Bad Worse

Coca Cola

Pepsi Cola

Which of the Colas, in your opinion, is available at your favourite outlets?

 Coca Cola
 Pepsi

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In case if you wanted a cola drink and your preferred brand was not available, would you switch?

 Yes
 No

How would you rate the present state of the following factors for Coca cola? (On a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being excellent and 1 being poor)

Advertisements 1 2 3 4 5

Quality 1 2 3 4 5

Availability 1 2 3 4 5

Price 1 2 3 4 5

Overall Image 1 2 3 4 5

Overall Experience 1 2 3 4 5

How would you rate the present state of the following factors for Pepsi Cola? (On a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being excellent and 1 being poor)

Advertisements 1 2 3 4 5

Quality 1 2 3 4 5

Availability 1 2 3 4 5

Price 1 2 3 4 5

Overall Image 1 2 3 4 5

Overall Experience 1 2 3 4 5

Thank you for your time and Effort!

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