ABSTRACT

Brand awareness refers to how aware customers and potential customers are of your business and its products. Brand awareness, as one of the fundamental dimensions of brand equity, is often considered to be a prerequisite of consumers buying decision, as it represents the main factor for including a brand in the consideration set. Brand awareness can also influence consumers perceived risk assessment and their confidence in the purchase decision, due to familiarity with the brand and its characteristics.

The main objective of the study is to find out the factors influencing the Brand Awareness of Dalmia Cement and steps to be taken to create awareness about Dalmia Product. The scope of this study is to access and evaluate various aspects of the consumers awareness and their preferences to other brands in the market. The survey brings out where the company needs to concentrate and their present status and future potential. Interview schedule with 24 individual statements were used to collect the primary data. The population of the study is 300 out of which the researcher took 120 as the sample size. The researcher adopted Simple Random Sampling Technique. The data is analyzed using SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Science). The various statistical tools that have been used are Percentage Analysis, Chi-square test, Multiple Regression. Findings and suggestions were made based on the analysis.

The study reveals the Consumers opinion about the study was satisfactory and it was found to be effective. A few areas of dissatisfaction are also identified and relevant suggestions are also made to overcome the conflicts.

INTRODUCTION

Brand awareness
Brand awareness is a marketing concept that enables marketers to quantify levels and trends in consumer knowledge and awareness of a brand's existence. At the aggregate (brand) level, it refers to the proportion of consumers who know of the brand. With the opening of the market or the post liberalization period has resulted in many companies entering the markets with offerings of their goods and services. In the earlier stages of economic revolution consumer had to accept what the manufacturer has produced. But todays consumers are much more educated, demanding; expect lot more to suit their ever changing life styles.

There by their quality expectations have been elevated from time to time in order to rebuild it-self around its customer. The manufacturer should be able to satisfy, with the type of product and services to match the ever-changing customer requirements. In developing a marketing strategy for products, the sellers have to confront the branding decision. Brand is a major issue in product. Customers have strong preference for particular versions and brands of basic goods and services.

The manufactures eventually learn that market power lies with the brand name companies. Consumers buying decisions are influenced by the brand. In this competitive world, the Brand plays an important role and a brand is very prominent asset owned by an organization. Brand is endowed with awareness, perceived quality, associations and brand loyalty. Brand is presented as creative idea. A brand is a promise of the seller to deliver a specific set of benefits or attributes or services to the buyer. Brand represents a level of quality.

Meaning: A Brand is symbol, a mark, a name that acts as a means of communications which brings about an identity of a given product. A Brand in short is an identifier of the seller or the maker. A brand name consists of words, letter or numbers that can be vocalized. Brand mark is the visual representation of the brand like a symbol, design, distinctive coloring or lettering. Brand creates a bond between the customer and a product.

Definition: According to American Marketing Association(AMA) A Brand is defined as a name, item, sign, symbol or special design or some combination of these elements that is intended to identify the goods or services of one seller or a group of sellers. A brand differentiates these products from those of competitors. In the word of Philip Kothler A brand is a name, term, sign, symbol or design or combination of them. Intended to identify the goods or services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of competitors. Role of Branding In todays world brand names come to create identify to distinguish one product from another. The following points to pin down its precise role: Brand is a massive asset: Brand is an intangible asset, because it is impossible to duplicate brand name. Brand is promotional tool: The product differentiation is done by a brand through sales promotion

 Cement Industry in India

India, being the second largest cement producer in the world after China with a total capacity of 151.2 Million Tones (MT), has got a huge Cement Company. With the government of India giving boost to various infrastructure projects, housing facilities and road networks, the cement industry in India is currently growing at an enviable pace. More growth in the Indian cement industry is expected in the coming years. It is also predicted that the cement production in India would rise to 236.16 MT in FY11. It's also expected to rise to 262.61 MT in FY12. The cement industry in India is dominated by around 20 companies, which account for almost 70% of the total cement production in India. In the present year, the Indian cement companies have produced 11 MT cement during April-September 2009. It took the total cement production in FY09 to 231 MT.

Industry Background

The history of the cement industry in India dates back to the 1889 when a Kolkata-based company started manufacturing cement from Argillaceous. But the industry started getting the organized shape in the early 1900s. In 1914, India Cement Company Ltd was established in Porbandar with a capacity of 10,000 tons and production of 1000 installed. The World War I gave the first initial thrust to the cement industry in India and the industry started growing at a fast rate in terms of production, manufacturing units, and installed capacity. This stage was referred to as the Nascent Stage of Indian Cement Company. In 1927, Concrete Association of India was set up to create public awareness on the utility of cement as well as to propagate cement consumption.

The cement industry in India saw the price and distribution control system in the year 1956, established to ensure fair price model for consumers as well as manufacturers. Later in 1977, government authorized new manufacturing units (as well as existing units going for capacity enhancement) to put a higher price tag for their products. A couple of years later, government introduced a three-tier pricing system with different pricing on cement produced in high, medium and low cost plants.

Cement Company, in any country, plays a major role in the growth of the nation. Cement industry in India was under full control and supervision of the government. However, it got relief at a large extent after the economic reform. But government interference, especially in the pricing, is still evident in India. In spite of being the second largest cement producer in the world, India falls in the list of lowest per capita consumption of cement with 125 kg. The reason behind this is the poor rural people who mostly live in mud huts and cannot afford to have the commodity. Despite the fact, the demand and supply of cement in India has grown up. In a fast developing economy like India, there is always large possibility of expansion of cement industry. COMPANY PROFILE Founded in 1935 by Jaidayal Dalmia; the cement division of DCBL was established in 1939 and enjoys a heritage of 70 years of expertise and experience. The headquartered in New Delhi with cement, sugar, travel agency, magnesite, refractory and electronic operations spread across the country.The Dalmia Group had established four cement plants in pre-independence years, two of which were affected by the partition and Independence. The two remaining plants operate as Dalmia Cement and have also made strategic investment in Orissa Cements Limited(OCL). Managed by a professional team, we have sustained the path to innovation and growth for seven decades. Early on in our history we learnt that a strong business is an amalgamation of strong relationships. The key to establishing such relationships is to learn from each other, to enjoy a spirit of camaraderie, and to recognize and identify with their needs of the people we work with. Today with their rich experience we have been able to broaden our horizons to include a holistic approach to the best practices in the industry. DCBL prides itself on having been at the forefront of pioneering and introducing many new technologies, which exist today, which are followed by others in the industry. DCBL has been and continues to be an industry leader in the niche market segments. This timeline highlights some of the significant moments that took place over the years and shows how our business has evolved. The cement plants in southern states of Tamil Nadu (Dalmiapuram & Ariyalur) and Andhra Pradesh (Kadapa), with a capacity of 9 million tonnes per annum. A leader in cement anufacturing since 1939, DCBL is a multi spectrum Cement player with double digit market share and a pioneer in super specialty cements used for Oil wells, Railway sleepers and Air strips. We also hold a stake of 45.4 % in OCL India Ltd., a major cement Player in the Eastern Region, and now control a cement capacity of 14.3 million tonnes & has a strong presence in Southern & Eastern Regions of the Country.What makes us unique is our constant ability to innovate. On the key efficiency parameters, we rank right up there with the best in the industry.

We have set up over 53 windmills in Muppandal (Tamil Nadu) to generate inexpensive and ecofriendly captive power for our plant. This power is wheeled through the State utility transporter for consumption at the plant. With the plant located close to its source of raw materials, we keep our freight and transport costs low, giving it an edge over competition. Over 65 per cent of the cement consumption in India is catered to by the retail segment where branding and distribution are the critical drivers for leadership. And it is in this that we enjoy an edge over our competitors. We are the only single unit cement manufacturer to successfully market our brands in core markets at prices on par with those of large consolidated/national players. In our focus area of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, which are among the fastest growing in cement consumption, we enjoy a significant market share today.. ESSENCE OF DALMIA The year 1939 saw the establishment of one of Indias first cement plants with an installed capacity of 250 tonne cement per day-we as DCBL had just arrived. The plant today has grown by manifolds in terms of capacity. We as a group too have expanded both in terms of vision as well as business interests ranging from harnessing of the bounty of iron-ore and magnesite in the country, Travel and export activities. These diversifications were an effort to build and contribute to the development of basic industrial materials. The year 1993 saw us foraying into the Sugar business with an installed capacity of 2500 TCD. Today alongwith the Cement business, Sugar business is one of the key growth engines of DCBL. Apart from establishing our footprints across various business segments we have also kept up our pace of excellence. In 1993, DCBL became the first company in South India to obtain ISO 9002 certification and second in the country among the Indian Cement Plants. In 2004, we became an ISO 14001 Certified company. Our efforts in sustaining growth with responsibility have merited us many notable awards for Energy Conservation & Efficiency, Safety, Health & Environment issues from the Government and other reputed agencies.

Today, we stand as one of the most profitable players in the industry, with sustainable high margins and strong financials backing our efforts. Our vision which balanced the changing needs with our corporate imperatives, our organization has grown over the years taking us to new heights and building onto our strengths. Today we stand on a strong foundation of high organizational values and business ethics through which we have cemented our growth. Our business has year on year moved up the value chain with a consistent record of making profits and paying dividends, making the company financially strong and stable. With a total income of over Rs 2194 crores DCBL has business interests in two major segments, Cement and Sugar. Our objective is to grow further and be among the top manufacturing industries today. In this course, our cement business has grown with an increased production capacity from 1.5 million tonnes [MT] in the past to the current installed capacity of 9 MT. Also our sugar business since its commencement in 1994, has grown to have three Integrated Sugar Mills in the State of Uttar Pradesh with total installed capacity of 22,500 tonnes of cane crush per day leading to

sugar manufacturing of about 300,000 MT per annum, distillery capacity of 80 KL per day & cogeneration facility. With the launch and commencement of its two Greenfield projects in the Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh and Ariyalur in Tamil Nadu with a total 5MN tonnes capacity, DCBL has expanded its cement footprint in the Southern India. DCBL also holds a stake of 45.4 % in OCL India Ltd., a major cement Player in the Eastern Region. Dalmia Cement now controls a cement capacity of 14.3 million tonnes & has a strong presence in Southern & Eastern Regions of the Country. This parabolic growth in last few years is a testament of our determination to grow into a leadership position. Our aim is to sustain the growth that we have witnessed for the past years as well as forge ahead with the ambitious plan we have envisioned for ourselves with the help of professional Management team under the guidance of the experienced promoters of the Group. Quality of our products and Innovation is what has made us, unique in the Indian Cement Industry. We have given India several vital projects from dams to critical defense installations and created special cements for special applications with newer and innovative technologies. This spirit of innovation has fuelled the development of specialty cements for special needs, which includes strengthening Airstrips, concretizing Railway Sleepers, cementing Oil Wells, etc. In this journey of success we have always been the benchmark of the latest and best technology with an endurance to achieve noteworthy milestones. The homegrown talent of its people has fueled the commendable growth of the company. DCBL has been and is committed to its people, and considers them to be vital to our success. To this end we focus on creating opportunities for growth and diversity for all our employees. We foster an environment that is supportive of their personal and professional development, so that they may maximise the opportunity to achieve their career goals.

Being a value based organization our approach has been based on our guiding principles of mutual respect, dignity, responsibility, ownership, commitment, honesty, initiative, innovation, collaboration, and faith. This strong foundation is what has been leveraged for attracting the best talents in the industry for decades to be part of the success and growth. The Dalmia Group of Companies came into existence in India in the early 1930s as the Dalmia-Jain Group. Founded by the late Ramkrishna Dalmia, with the assistance of his younger brother Jaidayal Dalmia and his son-in-law Sahu Shanti Prasad Jain, the groups activities included banks and insurance companies, newspapers and publishing houses, aviation and railway companies, electric supply companies, collieries, a motor car company, biscuits, cement, chemicals, distilleries, dairy products, jute, paper, plywood, paints, refractories, sugar, textiles and others.The Groups greatest contribution to national development was in the emergence of the Indian cement industry. Entering this area in 1936 as a challenge to the monopoly of one powerful combine, the ACC Ltd., the Group set up several cement factories. Reflecting the geographic expansion of the group and its presence in each corner of the country, cement factories were set up in Dalmianagar (Bihar, East India), Dalmia Dadri (Haryana, North India), Dandot (West Punjab, now in Central Pakistan), Dalmiapuram (Tamil Nadu, South India),

Karachi (Sind, now in South Pakistan), Rajgangpur (Orissa, East India) and Sawai Madhopur (Rajasthan, North India). In 1943, the Group established the Bharat Bank Ltd., which on the basis of authorised capital, became the biggest bank of its time. Later it acquired controlling interests in the Punjab National Bank and in the Times of India group of publications. At the time, the Dalmia companies together ranked third among Indias major industrial groups after the Tatas and the Birlas. In the automotive sphere, one company of the Group, Allen Berry & Co. Limited, purchased the entire lot of American surplus disposal vehicles, numbering about 50,000, after World War II. This company ran vast workshops in various parts of India till the 1950s when it was disbanded. The Dalmia (Rajasthani: (Devanagari) ( Perso-Arabic)) Family traces its roots to a town in Rajasthan, known as Chirawa. Traditionally, the Dalmias belong to the community loosely known as Marwaris, a term commonly used to denote businessmen hailing from the Shekhawati region of Rajasthan and neighbouring districts of Haryana. Though Marwar is a geographical region and former kingdom in Rajasthan, the term Marwaris gained coinage as a description of the business community from Shekhawati rather than an indication of geographical origin. Dalmia as a surname originated from a place name in Haryana but the Dalmia people have now spread to many regions of India and abroad. No longer restricted to trading, they follow other professions as well in modern times. The Dalmia Family, or the Dalmia Group, usually refers to the blood-line and businesses of those who descended from the late Ramkrishna Dalmia and the late Jaidayal Dalmia - industrial pioneers and the first prominent businessmen to emerge on a global scale from the community. Today, the family and its relatives have interests, among others, in media, industrial explosives, cement, magnesite, sugar, olive and other edible oils, leisure resorts and hotels, refractories, castings, cigarettes, soda ash, textiles, rigs and drilling equipment, non-conventional and renewable energy and services such as inbound tourism, business process outsourcing, software development and financial services.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Though the last decades specialized literature revealed and crystallized the concept of brand equity (in relation to which brand awareness is one of the fundamental dimensions) the term has been and still is approached in several manners in the specialized literature. Aaker (1991) approaches brand equity as a set of fundamental dimensions grouped into a complex system comprising mainly: brand awareness, brand perceived quality, brand loyalty and brand associations. He also suggests a brand equity ten model for assessing brand equity (Aaker, 1996), taking into consideration several factors among which brand awareness is fundamental. Kevin Lane Keller (1998, p.45) approaches brand equity from a customer based perspective defining it as the differential effect of brand knowledge on consumer response to the marketing of the brand. Farquhar (1989) considers that building a strong brand within consumers minds means creating a positive brand evaluation, an accessible brand attitude, and a consistent brand image, the accessible brand attitude actually referring to what the others term as awareness. As already mentioned, an important dimension of brand equity is brand awareness, very often an undervalued component. Not only that awareness is almost a prerequisite for a brand to be included in the consideration set (the brands that receive consideration for purchase), but it also influences perceptions and attitudes, and can be a driver for brand loyalty (Aaker, 1991). Reflecting the salience of the brand in the customers mind, awareness can be assessed at several evels such as recognition, recall, top of mind, brand dominance (the only brand recalled), or, even more, brand knowledge (what the brand stands for is very well known by consumers) (Aaker, 1996). Brand awareness is the first and prerequisite dimension of the entire brand knowledge system in consumers minds, reflecting their ability to identify the brand under different conditions: the likelihood that a brand name will come to mind and the ease with which it does

so (Keller, 1993). Brand awareness can be depicted into brand recognition (consumers ability to confirm prior exposure to the brand when given the brand as cue) and brand recall (consumers ability to retrieve the brand when given the product category, the needs fulfilled by the category, or some other cues). Brand awareness is essential in buying decision-making as it is important that consumers recall the brand in the context of a given specific product category, awareness increasing the probability that the brand will be a member of the consideration set. Awareness also affects decisions about brands in the consideration set, even in the absence of any brand associations in consumers minds. In low involvement decision settings, a minimum level of brand awareness may be sufficient for the choice to be final. Awareness can also influence consumer decision making by affecting brand associations that form the brand image (Keller, 1998). Considering Farquhars (1989) approach of brand equity, the accessible attitude he refers to is related to how quickly a consumer can retrieve brand elements stored in his/her memory (brand awareness). The attitude activation is sometimes automatic (it occurs spontaneously upon the mere observation of the attitude object) and sometimes controlled (the active attention of the individual to retrieve previously stored evaluation is required). It was also proven (Farquhar, 2000) that only high accessible attitudes (brands with a high level of awareness) can be relevant when purchasing or repurchasing a brand. Other authors (Laurent, Kapferer and Roussel, 1995) suggest three classical measures of brand awareness in a given product category: spontaneous (unaided) awareness (consumers are asked, without any prompting, to name the brands they know in the product category in this case the unaided awareness of a brand is the percentage of interviewees indicating they know that brand), top of mind awareness (using the same question, the percentage of interviewees who name the brand first is considered) and, respectively, aided awareness (brand names are presented to interviewees in this case the aided awareness of a brand is the percentage of interviewees who indicate they know that brand).

The outcome of any brand choice can only be known in the future, the consumer being thus forced to deal with uncertainty. Brand choice could be considered the central problem of consumer behavior, while the perceived risk associated to buying decisions is a pivotal aspect of brand choice. Risk is often perceived to be painful in that it may produce anxiety, in which case it must be dealt in some manner by the consumer. Among the main functions of a brand from the consumers perspective is considered to be the minimization of perceived purchasing risk, which in turn helps cultivate a trust-based relationship. Brand awareness can influence consumers perceived risk assessment and their confidence in the purchase decision, due to familiarity with the brand and its characteristics. The central concern of brand building literature experienced a dramatic shift in the last Decade. Branding and the role of brands, as traditionally understood, were subject to Constant review and redefinition. A traditional definition of a brand was: the name, associated with one or more items in the product line, that is used to identify the source of character of the item(s) (Kotler 2000, p. 396). The American Marketing Association (AMA) definition of a brand is a name, term, sign, symbol, or design, or a combination of them, intended to identify the goods and services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of competitors (p. 404). Within this view, as Keller (2003a) says, technically speaking, the n, whenever a marketer creates a new name, logo, or symbol for a new product, he or she has created a brand (p. 3). He recognizes, however, that brands today are much more than that. As can be seen, according to these definitions brands had a simple and clear function as identifiers.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research is a common word that refers to the search for knowledge. One can also define research as a scientific and systematic search for pertinent information. The advanced learners dictionary of current English lays down the meaning of research as a careful investigation or inquiry specially through search for new facts in any branch of knowledge. Research comprises of defining and redefining problems, formulating the hypothesis or suggested solution, collection, organizing and evaluating the data; making deductions and reaching the conclusions and at last carefully testing the conclusions to determine whether they will fit with hypothesis formulation. Research is, thus an original contribution to the existing stock of knowledge.

RESEARCH DESIGN The research design chosen is descriptive as the study reveals the state of facts existing.

Descriptive research studies are those studies which are concerned with describing the characteristics of a particular individual, or a group. The study is concerning whether certain variables are associated with the study. And also the study is concerned with the specific predictions, with narration of facts and characteristics concerning an individual, group or situation.

SAMPLING DESIGN Target Population The target population is the consumers that used Dalmia Cements in Trichy district. Sample Size The sample size consists of 130 consumers in Trichy district.

Sampling Technique Simple random sampling is adopted to select the sample. DATA COLLECTION In this project, the data are collected through primary and secondary sources.

PRIMARY DATA Primary data are collected from the retailers of Madurai district through a well structured questionnaire.

SECONDARY DATA Secondary data are collected from company records, books, journals, company magazines, etc

DATA ANALYSIS The data collected are tabulated, analyzed and interpreted using simple percentage method, Anova and chi-square test. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY 1. To know the Brand Awareness of Dalmia Cement. 2. To find out the factors which influence the customer to prefer the Dalmia Cement 3. To study on Customer Satisfaction about Dalmia Cement 4. To find out the Dalmia Cement position in Trichy District. 5. To analyze the level of perception towards Dalmia Cement.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY: 1. The research study is confined to Dalmia Cements 2. The research would be useful to the concerned authorities of Dalmia Cements and also the competitors. 3. A survey was conducted during of the month of April to June 4. Respondents were Retailers and Consumers. LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY 1. Major limitations faced in the study were to make the Consumers open up their honest view about each question. 2. Time constraint was another disadvantage during the study. 3. Questionnaires may produce errors in surveys because various meanings are attached to the same word by different groups of people and the replies are liable for misrepresentation. 4. Unwillingness of the Consumers to answer the questions, with the feedback of the questions to be of personal and intimate nature, also proved to be a major constraint. 5. Individual interviewing can be quite expensive in terms of time and effort and may be intimidating to some who are not comfortable sharing details with a student. 6. The success of the interview is directly related to cognition, motivation and accessibility. This might not be the case for each and every respondent.

TOOLS FOR ANALYSIS STATISTICAL PACKAGE FOR SOCIAL SCIENCES

Statistical package for Social sciences (SPSS) is meant for statistical analysis of data. It has got tools to obtain accurate results. These tools are used in scientific calculations to derive accurate results. This is mainly used because manual errors are totally avoided. Using the tools the researcher will arrive at a faster at the same time 100% error free conclusions. In this project work percentage analysis, chi-square analysis, regression, t-test were used to derive accurate and scientific results from the primary data. Tools used for analysis Percentage Analysis Chi-Square Test Regression Analysis