COCO-COLA DENMARK

Assignment for Research and Methodology

Bachelors of International Sales & Marketing Management

13

Contents

Acknowledgement 3 Introduction 3 *What is Coca-Cola Denmark? 3 *A move from soft beverages to value added drinks 3 *What does customers feel about value added drinks? 4 Assignment 4 Problem Formulation 4 Research Statement 4 Delimitations 4 Research Methods 5 Research onion 5 Research philosophies 6 Approaches to Theory Development 7 Research Methodological Choices 7 Research Strategies 8 Time Horizon` 8 Data collection & Analysis *Primary data 9 *Secondary data 9 Definitions of Reliability & Validity 9 Application to the data collected 10 Examples of quantitative research 11 Conclusions 12 References 12

Acknowledgement

Coca Cola Denmark case study of CocaCola Denmark hereby referred as CCD has been given to us as to write an assignment regarding the fulfillment of the course in research and methodology. As per the project manual CCD is willing to invest in Danish market and target even more market segments and also achieve the prolific market share in the Danish market. The company is more aware of the contemporary situation that people are now more focused on drinks embedded with nutrients rather than just the refreshing drinks in the past. I will be elaborating further about the company in the introduction part.

As a student of methodology, we are asked to do investigate the prospects of CCD’s new drinks embedded with nutrients in the Danish market so it wasn’t tough for me to develop the analysis for the company with the knowledge of theories. However, it might not have been well presented as an experienced researcher. Moreover this synopsis has made me focus on methodology part and I have got an enhanced knowledge about the research methodology by referring to most of the part of the books in a timely manner.

Introduction

#What is CocaCola Denmark?

Coca-Cola is a multinational company and commenced its business in Danish market on 1936, January1. Coca-Cola Denmark is alhereas the company distributes which produces and markets non-alcoholic beverages and is termed as a market leader with over 40 brands portfolios in this sector since more than a century. Moreover, Coca-Cola Denmark hereby referred as CCD, is a branch of The Coca-Cola Company, who introduced Coke to Denmark in 1935. Despite of it's popularity in other parts of the world, Coca Cola has not been able to create a milestone in Denmark because of it's competitor Jolly Cola as well as other restraints. 1

The products sold by Coca-Cola Denmark include Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Coca-­‐Cola Zero, Fanta Orange, Fanta Exotic Thrill, Fanta Free Orange, Fanta Free Pineapple, Sprite, Sprite Zero,Glaceau vitamin water and Carlsberg Sport.

#What made CCD to shift its focus from refreshing drinks to value added drinks?

CCD as we all know is a market leader in non-alcoholic beverages with strongest portfolio of brands and it has been continuously working to realign its strategy in order to fulfill the consumer need. Moreover, people now are more concerned about the effects of what they consume. These days people are more considered to drink healthy therefore opt for drinks which is not only limited to quench thirst but give them some nutritional value which would lead them to a sustainable life. Therefore as to remain in the industry CCD made a strategical shift to develop a new product range.2

1 www.coca-­cola.com/company

2. www.coca-­‐cola.dk/products

# What does consumers feel about the value added drinks?

A customer's perceived value is an imperative thing for a company in the long term run. In the contemporary world, people are much more concerned about healthy way of living and a way to follow it. This phenomenon has act as a catalyst for the CCD to shift their focus from generic refreshing drinks to a way more towards value added drinks. However, people are also concerned with the prices they are devoting to get a product. Indeed ,if customers perceive they are paying higher for a low value product, they tend to substitute the products. Coca-Cola products may be good for the taste buds, however they do not have enough quantities of nutrients in them. Since Danish people are very concerned about their health and prefer healthy and nutritional products, so the traditional Coca-Cola products may not be the first choice for them every time. So it is quite important that Coca-Cola Denmark focuses on introducing value added drinks to it's product line with ample amount of vitamins and nutrients in them.

ASSIGNMENT:

To determine the possibility of success of a new soft drink enriched with protein, vitamins & minerals to be consumed in Danish market through survey strategy followed by collection and analysis of quantitative data by questioning the Danish people.

Problem Formulation

As CCD wants to do a well defined research on Danish market to get an overview of the market so I decided to focus on the Danish people’s preference on value added drinks compared to traditional refreshing Coca Cola products.

Research Statement :

Based on the health concerns of Danish people, shall they prefer value added beverages to traditional coca-cola products?

Delimitations:

As the project is to explore the prospects of a new value added drink in the Danish market and also the opportunity for the success of that drink from customers perception. Therefore I won't consider to take any secondary data for analysis because of time restrictions. Moreover, I was limited to the external website of the company and the course book for research methods. Also, internal visit to company for in depth knowledge would not have been granted on such a short notice. Also, due to the time restraint factor the sample size may not be so significant. The survey was focused with danish people in my community of Bronshoj , so it can not represent whole Denmark at a glance.

# Research Methods :

Coca-cola Denmark wants to figure out if adding value added drinks to it's product line will be beneficial to its sales or not. To find that out ,we will have to conduct a quantitative research on the preference of value added drinks to the usual refreshing soft drinks in the Danish market. So to conduct my research, I decided to give it a design based on the

Research Onion. This design will be helpful to know what type of data needs to be collected and analyzed and will be a good tool to verify my quantitative research. Research onion has different layers which act as guidelines while trying to collect data and findings. With it's help, we can identify and address the problems and create a standard structure design for the research.3

Developed by Saunders et al, 2007 , the Research Onion in itself is a metaphor of framework for any research carried out on a standard basis and the onion gives an explicit path for the timely and functional conduct of the research. Saunders et al. developed the research onion so as to create a defined strategy for designing the research, data collection and analysis. Here, we define the various layers of the research onion, the concepts it involves and the techniques to be applied so as to study the data and collect them appropriately.4

Fig. 1 The Research Onion4.1

#Research Philosophies: (Layer 1)

A research philosophy can be defined as the beliefs which define the nature of the reality of the research and further development of knowledge. The researcher has certain assumptions on which he will evaluate the whole scenario of the research and carry out the research based

3. Maria Moller Grabe’s Lecture and notes 4 https://onion.derby.ac.uk/

4.1 https://fronter.com/easj/links/files.phtml/1790901545$248634152$/Resources/Co urse+materials/Methodology+and+Science+Theory/research+onion.png

on the same. So it is important to choose an appropriate philosophy based on which the researcher can conduct further research processes and create a framework of the project. .4.1.1

‘The philosophies involved in a research come under first layer of the research onion are either based on Objectivism and Subjectivism. Objectivism always deals with the truth or existence of the idea and not any abstraction or underlying thoughts. Objectivism is the philosophy that is grounded in reality and defines the existence of human beings and the true nature of world.

On the other hand, Subjectivism deals with the non-existent or abstract thoughts and beliefs that have no ground of truth. The nature of an object is defined only in the thoughts of the researcher and the reliance is only on his awareness of it and not in real. ‘4.2

Positivism, Realism, Pragmatism, Constructionism and Interpretivism are some of the philosophies in which a project can be based. Hence, it is important to decide which philosophy our research is based on. As our research is focused on the preference of value added drinks to the usual soft drinks that Coca-Cola produces, so I have chosen Realism4.3 as the philosophy in which the further research shall be conducted. While positivism relies on the fact that the reality exists independently irrespective of what the people or the things being studied believe, Realism takes into account the truth i.e. facts as well as the beliefs and thoughts of the research subject as well. Hence, I favored Realism as the philosophy of my research because I will have to consider the actual number of people that are ready to consume the product as well as their beliefs associated with the product.

#Approaches to Theory Development: (Layer 2)

The researcher always has one or more hypothesis about the research to be conducted. As he understands the theory of the research under which the data is to be collected, he has to determine which of the approaches he is going to adapt for the further data collection.

There are 3 approaches in general, the Inductive and the Deductive and the Abductive

approach in theory development.

‘The Inductive approach moves from a specific theory to a general one. In this case, the researcher has already some observations and facts that he believes in, and he looks forward to the same results in the data and process further for theory development.

The Deductive approach focuses on a previous theory and develops hypothesis and findings on the basis of that theory. It is appropriate to use Deductive approach when there are previous experiments done and the researcher has to only add more confirmations to test those theories. So first the researcher establishes a existing theory and gains knowledge from the research to be used against the theory.

4.1.1 Research Methods For Business Students Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis, Adrian Thornhill(7th edition) page 124

4.2 Maria Moller Grabe’s Lecture and Notes

4.3 http://www.academia.edu/4107831/The_Layers_of_Research_Design

The Abduction approach is a two-way approach, i.e., it can be Inductive or Deductive based on the surprises in the research and data. The researcher can move from theory to data and vice versa.’ 5.1

My research will be focused on the Deductive approach. Since I believe that the Danish people are more into health and longevity, so they will definitely prefer the value added drinks rich in nutrients to the general Coca-cola drinks. My research will be conducted to confirm my belief that if the price is right, the nutritional drinks will get higher sales than the usual drinks people consume.

#Research Methodological Choices: (Layer 3)

‘While choosing the methodology for the research, there can be two choices in front of the researcher: Qualitative and Quantitative.

As the name suggests, the Qualitative data focuses on the characteristics, attributes, properties, perception, etc. of humans or a phenomenon. Here, the researcher will have to create such a methodology in which the feelings of the respondent are to be analyzed than the researcher himself. The researcher can develop questions to be asked so as to examine a particular social phenomena and analyze the findings.

Quantitative data is concerned with the numerical or statistical data rather than the attributes. This methodology is applied when there is ample of data available and the researcher can statistically manipulate and analyse the findings. The data here has some scale for measurement and hence a wide range of social anomaly can be examined.’ 5.2

‘Mono method refers to the data collected which is either one kind of Qualitative or Quantitative, but never the both. There is only one method of collection of data in the Mono methodology i.e. either Qualitative Mono method or Quantitative Mono method.

Multiple Method uses both Qualitative and Quantitative data and hence has a combination of both the qualitative and quantitative data. Multiple method further consists of Mix and Multi Method. The Mix method may have a mixture of number of Qualitative and quantitative data. The multi-method consists of a number of Qualitative data or a number of Quantitative data but never the both.’5.3

For my research, I have chosen the Mono Quantitative method of data collection as the findings of my research will be based on a survey strategy and correspondence of a small sample group in numerical terms.

5.1 http://www.ukessays.com/essays/psychology/explanation-of-the-concept-of-research-onion- psychology-essay.php

5.2 http://w3.unisa.edu.au/researchstudents/milestones/data.asp

5.3 Research Methods For Business Students Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis, Adrian Thornhill page 166

#Research Strategies(Layer 4)

Research strategy refers to the guidelines or planning of a researcher to create questions in order to collect data from the samples (people). He will need to develop a research strategy on how to go about the research and the type of studies that will needed to conduct the research seamlessly.6

Case Study, Survey, Questionnaires, Interview, Experiment, etc. are the types of research strategies that can be applied. For my research, I have decided to conduct Survey for my data collection. A survey is conducted by asking a number of questions to the sample group and collecting their responses in quantitative form. With the help of survey, statistical inferences can be made with the population being studied. It gives a numerical form of agreement or disagreement to the questions asked to the population and findings can be evaluated thereby.

7.

#Time Horizon: ( Layer 5)

The total time given to a research i.e., from the theory selection to the completion of the research is known as Time Horizon. It consists of Cross-sectional and Longitudinal Time Horizon. When the research has limited population or samples to be evaluated and takes a short time for completion, it is said to have Cross-sectional Time Horizon. When there is enough data to be collected which takes a longer period of time for completion, then the research is said to have Longitudinal time horizon. 8

For my research, I have chosen to go with Cross-sectional time horizon as I had a limited number of sample population to be evaluated and limited time to complete the research.

Data Collection and Data Analysis:(Layer 6)

Data can be of two different types, Primary Data and Secondary Data.

Primary data refers to the data that has been collected from the original source or population and is generally raw, so it needs to be further analyzed.Primary data collection may take a longer time and may cost more as it is collected by the researcher himself independently and therefore is in the raw form and are generally afresh which means collected for the first time. Questionnaires are the most general form to collect primary data.8.1

Secondary data refers to the data that are collected by some readily available sources and hence they can be used easily by the researcher without going through much trouble. It takes

6 http://www.academia.edu/4107831/The_Layers_of_Research_Design

7 http://www.academia.edu/4107831/The_Layers_of_Research_Design

8 http://www.academia.edu/4107831/The_Layers_of_Research_Design

8.1 http://www.slideshare.net/parabprathamesh/primary-­‐ sec

a short time to gather secondary data and is less costly compared to the primary data.These datas are already collected by someone else for their own purpose of research. 8.1

I have collected Primary data for my research by conducting Survey using questionnaires in Bronshoj, Denmark. Due to lack of time and resources, I was not able to collect secondary data for the research.

#Reliability and Validity:

The idea of reliability and validity is related to each other.

Joppe (2000) defines reliability 9as “The extent to which results are consistent over time and an accurate representation of the total population under study is referred to as reliability and if the results of a study can be reproduced under a similar methodology, then the research instrument is considered to be reliable”. It means that the data collected and analyzed needs to be consistent over time to be reliable and should represent the whole population. If the research is to be carried out for another sample group representing the same population, the findings and results should be the same in stable conditions. The three approaches to Reliability are: Test re-test(Asking to fill the questionnaires for more than once), Internal Consistency(Compare the different questionnaires) and Alternative form(Use a longer questionnaire).

Joppe (2000) explains what validity 10 is in quantitative research: Validity determines whether the research truly measures that which it was intended to measure or how truthful the research results are. In other words, does the research instrument allow you to hit "the bull’s eye" of your research object? Researchers determine the validity of the research by asking a series of questions and referring to other's researches for validity. There are three approaches to Validity: External Validity, Internal Validity, Test Validity and Face Validity.

Application of reliability and validity to the data collected:

Despite, the sample group was fairly small , the reliability of the research will probably depict similar results. Most of the respondents were pretty aware of the questions asked to them and have replied being unbiased. So I am certain even if we did the test re-test strategy with these respondents, the result would have been identical.

As for the validity of the research it will be impossible to pin point how accurate it really is with such a small sampling. But ,even though the size was small, the range was pretty versatile that represented the market segments in Denmark. So the face validity of the research has been fairly close to the reality. Taking the external validity into consideration, I reckon this research is valid.

9 http://nova.edu/ssss/QR/QR8-4/golafshani.pdf

10 http://nova.edu/ssss/QR/QR8-4/golafshani.pdf

Example of Quantitative research using the survey method

I have chosen to collect the primary data for my research by opting for face to face questionnaires. Moreover, I have selected a sample group of 10 from Bronshoj locality because of time restrictions.The sample group has been further categorized into 2 age groups segment market i.e. 18-35 & 36-65. I have mentioned below a sample of questionnaire I have prepared and got almost same feedback from all which made it further apparent that how serious Danes are regarding what they eat/drink.

Survey Questions for Value added soft drinks by Coca cola :

11Name: Sergej M. Age: 33

1. How health conscious are you ?

Not at all ! Moderately ! Highly £

2. Do you buy any coca cola products?

Never ! Occasionally £ Frequently ! Always !

3. Does nutritional value of the product effect your consumption? Yes £ No !

4. How important is Brand name and Price for you?

Not important at all ! Little important ! Extremely important £

5. Will you consume Heath drinks enriched with multi vitamins & minerals made by Coca cola Company?

No ! May be ! Yes £

6. Will you consume Health drinks enriched with multi vitamins & minerals made by 3rd party but distributed by Coca company?

No ! May be £ Yes !

7. How would you rate your current coca cola products , where 1 being worst to 5 being best?

1 ! 2 ! 3 £ 4 ! 5 !

8. If Coca cola brings out a health drinks enriched with Proteins, Vitamins and minerals,would you recommend it to others?

11 One respondent belonging to the age group 18-33. Total respondents were 10.

No ! May be ! Yes £

# Data Analysis:

In our survey, we have had 10 respondents in total where 5 each belonged to age groups of 18-35 and 36-65 years respectively. Everyone was presented with the same questionnaire and given ample time to choose their response. We shall interpret their perception solely based on the answers given by them in the questionnaire and contemplating each question.

When asked about their health consciousness, 90% of the total respondents were moderately or highly health conscious while 100% of respondents in the age group 18-35 were found to be health conscious.

Also, only 30% were frequent buyers of coke products while 10% bought it occasionally and rest 60% never bought coca cola products. 70% of the respondents confirmed that the nutritional value adds on their consumption. 70% of our respondents perceived price & brand extremely important while 10% answered that it is of little importance to them.

Further, 60% of our respondents showed enthusiasm to consume value added health drinks produced or distributed by Coca cola while 20% were not sure about it. Only 10% of the age group 36-65 decided to try it while 4 out of 5 were either not interested or not sure about the product.

When asked to rate current coca cola products 60% chose to rate it at 3 while 10% voted it worst along with other 30% chose 2 out of 5 ratings index. Hence, if Coca cola was to introduce value added drinks then only 30% chose to refer it to others while 40% of the respondents were not so sure about it yet.

Conclusion

The research was successfully conducted to find out the preference of Danish people in regards to the usual Coca Cola products (soft drinks) or the value added health drinks produced by Coca Cola. The analysis makes it quite apparent that Danish people have always been keen towards maintaining a good health. This may be a result of raised health awareness in them. According to our survey and the interpreted results, we can conclude that currently Coca Cola products are not that favorable in Denmark but most of the people showed enthusiasm to consume new value added drink from Coca cola, if it is available in a considerable price. It means that the products need to be affordable as well as rich in nutrients. Moreover, most of the respondents in the age group 18-35 showed high zeal and commitment for the new drink while older generation from age group 36-65 years were not very certain about the consumption. This ascertains that the health drinks are more popular in the younger generation. Coca Cola may be facing competition from other brands, so it is moderately popular in Denmark. To increase it's popularity, Coca Cola needs to produce drinks that all age groups can consume and that fulfills the health preferences of the Danish people in general.

References : -­‐

Books/Notes

[1] Research Methods For Business Students Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis, Adrian Thornhill (Seventh Edition)

[2] Maria Moller Grabe Notes

Websites

1.www.coca-­‐cola.com/company 2.www.coca-­‐cola.dk/products 3.https://onion.derby.ac.uk/

4. https://fronter.com/easj/links/files.phtml/1790901545$248634152$/Resources/Cou rse+materials/Methodology+and+Science+Theory/research+onion.png

5. http://www.academia.edu/4107831/The_Layers_of_Research_Design

6. http://www.ukessays.com/essays/psychology/explanation-­‐of-­‐the-­‐concept-­‐of-­‐ research-­‐onion-­‐psychology-­‐essay.php

7. http://w3.unisa.edu.au/researchstudents/milestones/data.asp 8.http://www.academia.edu/4107831/The_Layers_of_Research_Design 9 http://www.slideshare.net/parabprathamesh/primary-­‐sec

10. http://nova.edu/ssss/QR/QR8-­‐4/golafshani.pdf