Executive Summary

Cement is the most widely used building material in the world and has been for
thousands of years. The historical record confirms that the ancient Persians,
Assyrians and Babylonians used cement in the binding and affixing of mud
bricks. The Egyptians also used cement in construction. It was the Romans,
however, that perfected the production of slaked cement that made many
construction advances possible.

India, being the second largest cement producer in the world after China with a
total capacity of 151.2 Million Tonnes (MT), has got a huge cement industry. 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.

The sample size 150 is selected comprising Premium & Multi brand dealers and
retailers as respondents. Majority of them are in the cement business for last 5-7
years. Some respondents are completely and some are partly satisfied. Some
have issues related to price, marketing & promotion, packaging ,logistics etc
and mix of all and some have no issues. Everything will be clearly visible in the
report through various statistical tools and techniques used to analyze and
interpret the data.

1
 Research Design

METHODOLOGY:

OVERVIEW OF METHODOLOGY

The method used is the “Descriptive Research Method” since the research
problem and result were organization specific. The primary methodology applied
was in the form of determining the satisfaction level of the channel members
which was significantly different to differentiate one member from another.

The secondary methodology applied is “Exploratory Research Method”. to

assess the core competency of ACC Ltd and the various activities by the
company and the competitors.

Sampling plan:

 Method of Sampling: Simple Random Sampling

 Sample Size: 150 samples from West Delhi.

Data collection:

 Personal Interview: The interviewing the persons by asking questions and

recording the additional observations about the respondents.

 Questionnaire Method: Collecting facts through systematically prepared

questionnaire.

Data analysis:

Collected data will be analyzed in the form of tables, percentages, numerical

forms, bar charts, and pie charts.

2
 Data Interpretation

Q.1 Which are the businesses you are carry out ?

(To know Whether cement is Respondent's bread & butter or not)

No. of
Nature Of business Units Percentage
Cement & Aggregates 17 11.33%
Cement & building Material 55 36.67%

Cement & Coal 1 0.67%

Cement & Hardware 8 5.33%

Cement & POP 3 2%

Cement & Property 1 0.67%

Cement & Sanitary 6 4%

Cement 59 39.33%
Total 150 100%

3
 Nature Of Business

11% Cement & Aggregates

39% Cement & building
Material
Cement & Coal
Cement & Hardware
Cement & POP
37% Cement & Property
Cement & Sanitary
5% Cement
4%
1%
2% 1%

4
Q.2. Which brands do you sell ?
(To know dealer is exclusive or M.B.)

Dealers/Retailers No. of units Percentage

ACC 9 6.00%
Ambuja 11 7.33%
Bangur 1 0.67%
Binani 2 1.33%
Multibrand 103 68.67%
JK Lakshmi 2 1.33%
Rockstrong 2 1.33%
Shriram Nirman 4 2.67%
Shriultra 8 5.33%
Ultratech 4 2.67%
Birla Samrat 4 2.67%
Total 150 100%

80.00% ACC
70.00% Ambuja
60.00% Bangur
50.00% Binani
Multibrand
40.00%
JK Lakshmi
30.00% Rockstrong
20.00% Shriram Nirman
10.00% 5Shriultra
0.00% Ultratech
Dealers & Retailers Birla Samrat
Q.4. How much time does it take for delivering material after you
place the order ?
(Tells about the service quality).

Time Of Delivery No. Of Units Percentage

1-2 hrs 5 3.33%
2-4 Hrs 109 72.67%
4-8 hrs 25 16.67%
More than 8 hrs 11 7.33%
Total 150 100%

6
 Time of delivery

80.00%

70.00%

60.00%

50.00%
Percentage
40.00%

30.00%

20.00%

10.00%

0.00%
1-2 hrs 2-4 Hrs 4-8 hrs More than 8
hrs

7
Q.6. How many customers take material in bulk from you ?
(Tells about his secondary cost & general tendency about customer
storage capacities in the area)

Bulk Buying(in %) No.of Respondents Respondents(in %)

0 to 5 34 22.67%
5 to 10 18 12%
10 to 15 44 29.33%
15 to 20 7 4.67%
20 to 25 19 12.67%
25 to 30 5 3.33%
30 to 35 7 4.67%
35 to 40 0 0%
40 to 45 9 6%
45 to 50 0 0%
50 to 55 4 2.67%
55 to 60 0 0%
60 to 65 1 0.67%
65 to 70 2 1.33%
Total 150 100%

8
 Bulk Buying
30.00%

25.00%

20.00%

15.00% Respondents(in %)

10.00%

5.00%

0.00%
0 to 5 to 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65
5 10 to to to to to to to to to to to to
15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70

Q.7.Do you have your vehicle for lifting material (from warehouse
/siding/plant)?
(Tells about malpractices)

9
 Response No. of Respondents Respondents(in %)

Yes 6 4%

No 144 96%
Total 150 100%

Response

100%
90%
80%
70%
60% Respondents(in %)
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Yes No

10
Q.8. How is the behavior of the field officer who visits your shop ?
( Tells about the strength of relation between him & officer)

No. of No. of respondents

Behaviour of the officer respondents (in %)
Friendly 123 82%
Informative 1 0.67%
Rude 0
Behaviour of the officer 0%
Never comes 10 6.67%
Ok 7% 16 10.67%
11%
Total 150 100%

1%
Friendly
Informative
Rude
Never comes
Ok

11 82%
Q.9. Are there any visits from senior management & CSS or how
often you visit to company’s office?
(Tells about the relation between dealer & company.)

Visits From Senior No. of

Mgmt. respondents No. of respondents(in %)
Regularly 63 42%
Rarely 30 20%
No visits 57 38%
Total 150 100%

12
45%

40%

35%

30%
Regularly
25% Rarely
20%
No visits

15%

10%

5%

0%
Visits from Senior management

13
Q.10. How many customers asks for specific brand ?
(Tells about the brand pull of the brands in that area).

No. of
Demand For Specific Brand(in %) Respondents Respondents(in %)
1 to 10 18 12%
10 to 20 63 42%
20 to 30 4 2.67%
Above 30 65 43.33%
Total 150 100%

Demand For Specific Brand

45%

40%

35%

30%

25% Respondents(in %)

20%

15%

10%

5%

0%
1 to 10 10 to 20 20 to 30 Above 30

14
Q.11. Do you try to convince the customer to buy specific brand ?
(Shows seller's attachment to the brand & his capability of being a
local brand ambassador )

Response No. of Respondents Respondents(in %)

Yes 81 54%
No 69 46%
Total 150 100%

Response

54%

52%

50%
Respondents(in %)
48%

46%

44%

42%
Yes No

15
Q.13. What are the best marketing Response
/promotional
activities that your co does and is it done by
by them or you ask for it?
60.00%
(Tells about the initiatives taken by other co.)
50.00%
40.00%
30.00%
No. of
Response
20.00% Respondents Respondents(in %)
Co.does on its own
10.00% 76 50.67%
Respondents(in %)
Dealer/Retailer have to ask for it 26 17.33%
0.00% Both 48 32%
Co.does on its Dealer/Retailer Both
Total
own have to ask for 150 100%
it

16
Q.15. How good is the CSS support of the co.?

(Sshows the level of support staff commitment in the market)

Css Support Very Dissatisfied Neither Satisfied Very Total

of the co. Dissatisfied Satisfied Satisfied
nor
Dissatisfi
- ed
Freuency of 50% 36% 7.33% 3.33% 3.33% 100%
visits by CSS
officer at site

Freuency of 6% 8% 24.67% 31.33% 30% 100%

17
 visits by CSS
officer at Shop

New initiatives 22% 27.33% 32.67% 14.67% 3.33% 100%

by the
company

Contractor/ 48.67% 35.33% 9.33% 3.33% 3.33% 100%

Mason Meets
& influence

18
 100%

90%

80%

70%

60% Contractor/Mason Meets & New initiatives by the

influence company
50% Freuency of visits by CSS Freuency of visits by CSS
officer at Shop officer at site
40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
) ) ) ) )
d (1 d(2 D(3 d(4 d(5
e e N e e
tisfi tisfi NS tisfi tisfi
a a
ss ss Sa Sa
Di Di er
y
r y V
Ve

Q.17. How much influence does packing have on you & customer?
(Shows the perception of customer based upon packing of cement)

19
 No. of
Level of Influence No. of respondents respondents(in %)
0 to 10 31 20.67%
10 to 20 5 3.33%
20 to 30 7 4.67%
30 to 40 5 3.33%
40 to 50 7 4.67%
50 to 60 9 6%
60 to 70 11 7.33%
70 to 80 16 10.67%
80 to 90 14 9.33%
90 to 100 6 4%
100 to 110 39 26%
Total 150 100%

30.00%

25.00% 0 to 10
10 to 20
20.00% 20 to 30
30 to 40
40 to 50
15.00% 50 to 60
60 to 70
10.00% 70 to 80
80 to 90
90 to 100
5.00% 100 to 110

0.00%
Level Of Influence

LIMITATION:

20
The study is limited within the area of West Delhi and need to be complete with in
a time span of 2 months. The study focuses on Channel member’s satisfaction
which is likely to change over a period of time.

Areas Covered During the Study

1) Vikas Puri

21
2) Janak Puri
3) Ramesh Nagar
4) Kirti Nagar
5) Tagore Garden
6) Rajendra Place
7) Peeragarhi
8) Anand Parbat
9) Sultanpuri
10) Shakur Basti
11) Najafgarh
12) Nangloi Sayed
13) Nangloi Jat
14) Dwarka Mod
15) Dwarka
16) Uttam Nagar
17) Pankha Road
18) Dabri Palam Road
19) Pankha Road
20) Mahavir Enclave
21) Mansarover Garden
22) Rajouri Garden
23) Mayapuri
24) Pashchim Vihar
25) Sant Nagar
26) Inder Puri
27) Karol Bagh
28) Moti Nagar
29) Karam Pura
30) Patel Nagar (East)
31) Patel Nagar (West)
32) Shalimar Bagh
33) Rohini
34) Pitampura
35) Tilak Nagar
36) Bijwasan
37) Punjabi Bagh
38) Tilak Nagar
39) Pandav Nagar
40) Hast Thal Village

Findings

(On the Basis Of Data Collected Through Questionnaire & Interview)

22
The study conducted on the comparison of the satisfaction level of the Dealers &
Retailers of ACC and Non ACC network has following findings –

1) It was found that the following no. of respondents are involved in the
cement and other business for their bread and butter .Their details
percentage wise are as follows-
- 11.33 % of the respondents are involved in cement & aggregates
business ,

- 36.67 % of the respondents are involved in cement & bldg material

business,

- 0.67 % of the respondents are involved in cement & coal business,

- 5.33 % of the respondents are involved in cement & hardware business,

- 2 % of the respondents are involved in cement & POP business,

- 0.67 % of the respondents are involved in cement & property business,

- 4 % of the respondents are involved in cement & sanitary business,

- 39.33 % of the respondents are involved only in cement business.

2) It was found that following no. of respondents are involved in selling

particular brand of cement, their detail percentage wise is as follows –
- 59 % of the respondents sells cement of multiple brands.

- 6 % of the respondents sells ACC cement.

- 7.33 % of the respondents sells Ambuja cement.

- 0. 67 % of the respondents sells Bangur cement.

- 1.33 % of the respondents sells Binani cement.

23
 - 1.33 % of the respondents sells JK Lakshmi cement.

- 1.33 % of the respondents sells Rockstrong cement.

- 2.67 % of the respondents sells Shriram Nirman cement.

- 5.33 % of the respondents sells Shriultra cement.

- 2.67 % of the respondents sells Ultratech cement.

- 2.67 % of the respondents sells Birla Samrat cement.

3) It was found that the three best things of the brand sell by the respondents
are following-

- 60 % of the respondents responded as Service , Marketing & Brand Pull.

- 30 % of the respondents responded as Service ,Margin & Brand Pull.

- 8 % of the respondents responded as Margin , Marketing & Brand Pull.

- 2 % of the respondents responded as Brand pull , Marketing & Customer

Service.

4) It was found that the time required for delivering the cement by the company
after placing the order by Dealer or retailer is as following –

- According to 3.33 % of the respondents it takes 1-2 hrs. to deliver cement

by the co. after placing the order.

- According to 72.67 % of the respondents it takes 2-4 hrs. to deliver

cement by the co. after placing the order.

- According to 16.67 % of the respondents it takes 4-8 hrs. to deliver

cement by the co. after placing the order.

24
 - According to 7.33 % of the respondents it takes More than 8 hrs. hrs. to
deliver cement by the co. after placing the order.

5) It was found that –

- 30 % of the respondents receives material from the cement siding.

- 10 % of the respondents receives material from the plant.

- 52 % of the respondents receives material from the cement siding, plant

& warehouse.

- 8 % of the respondents receives material from the dealers.

6) It was found that –

(a)
- 60 % of the respondents deliver material by rickshaw & tempo.

- 30 % of the respondents deliver material by rickshaw , tempo & tractor.

- 10 % of the respondents deliver material by rickshaw , tempo and

sometimes customer manage to carry on its own.

(b)
– 22.67% of the respondents says that 0 to 5 % customers goes for bulk
buying.

– 12% of the respondents says that 5 to 10 % customers goes for bulk

buying.

– 29.33% of the respondents says that 10 to 15 % customers goes for bulk

buying.

– 4.67% of the respondents says that 15 to 20 % customers goes for bulk

buying.

25
 – 12.67% of the respondents says that 20 to 25 % customers goes for bulk
buying.

– 3.33% of the respondents says that 25 to 30 % customers goes for bulk

buying.

– 4.67% of the respondents says that 30 to 35 % customers goes for bulk

buying.

– 0% of the respondents says that 35 to 40 % customers goes for bulk

buying.

– 6% of the respondents says that 40 to 45 % customers goes for bulk

buying.

– 0% of the respondents says that 45 to 50 % customers goes for bulk

buying.

– 2.67% of the respondents says that 50 to 55 % customers goes for bulk

buying.

– 0% of the respondents says that 55 to 60 % customers goes for bulk

buying.

– 0.67% of the respondents says that 60 to 65 % customers goes for bulk

buying.

–1.33% of the respondents says that 65 to % customers goes for bulk

buying.

7) It was found that –

- 4 % of the respondents have their own vehicle for lifting the material from
cement siding , warehouse and plant.

26
 - 96 % of the respondents does not have their own vehicle for lifting the
material from cement siding , warehouse and plant.

8) It was found that –

- 82 % of the respondents feel that the behavior of the field officer is friendly.

- 0.67 % of the respondents feel that the behavior of the field officer is
informative.

- 10.67 % of the respondents feel that the behavior of the field officer is ok.
- 6.67 % of the respondents says that the field officer make no visits.

9) It was found that –

- 42 % of the respondents says that there are regular visits by the officials
from the senior management of the company.

- 20 % of the respondents says that there are very rare visits by the officials
from the senior management of the company.

- 38 % of the respondents says that there are no visits by the officials from
the senior management of the company.

10) It was found that –

- 12% of the respondents says that customer demand for specific brand is
between 1 to 10 %.

- 42% of the respondents says that customer demand for specific brand is
between10 to 20 %.

- 2.67% of the respondents says that customer demand for specific brand is
between 20 to 30 %.

27
 - 43.33% of the respondents says that customer demand for specific brand
is above %.

11) It was found that

- 54 % of the respondents says that they try to convince the customer to buy
a specific brand.

- 46 % of the respondents says that they never try to convince the customer
to buy a specific brand.

12) It was found that –

- 68.67 % of the respondents who sell multiple brands convince the
customer to buy those brands in which maximum margin can be fetch.

- 31.33 % of the respondents who are premium sellers tries to convince the
customer to buy that brand which they are selling.

13) It was found that –

- 50.67 % of the respondents says that all the marketing & promotion is done
by the company on its own.

- 17.33 % of the respondents says that the marketing & promotion is done
by the company when the dealer or retailer ask for it.

- 32 % of the respondents says that the marketing & promotion is done by

the company on its own and sometime dealer or retailer have to ask for it.

14) It was found that –

- 98 % of the respondents do not conduct any of the activities related to
marketing & promotion on their own .

28
 - 2 % of the respondents physically participate in the activities related to
marketing & promotion.

15) It was found that –

- 50 % of the respondents are very dissatisfied ; 36 % are dissatisfied ;

7.33 % are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied ; 3.33 % of them are satisfied
and 3.33 % of them are very satisfied with the frequency of visits by CSS
officer at site.

- 6 % of the respondents are very dissatisfied ; 8 % are dissatisfied ;

24.67 % are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied ; 31.33 % of them are satisfied
and 30% of them are very satisfied with the frequency of visits by CSS
officer at shop.

- 22 % of the respondents are very dissatisfied ; 27.33 % are dissatisfied ;

32.67 % are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied ; 14.67 % of them are satisfied
and 3.33 % of them are very satisfied with the new initiatives taken by the
company.

- 48.67 % of the respondents are very dissatisfied ; 35.33% are dissatisfied ;

9.33 % are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied ; 3.33 % of them are satisfied
and 3.33 % of them are very satisfied with the contractor/Mason meets &
influence.

16) It was found that –

29
 - 39.33 % of the respondents feels that all the factors like Tv ads , Price ,
Brand ,Quality, Packaging, Seller’s influence & Mason’s & Contractor’s
Recommendation are equally important for influencing the customer.

- 42.67 % of the respondents feels that factors like Price , Brand ,Quality
& Packaging are equally important for influencing the customer.

- 11.48 % of the respondents feels that the factors like Price , Brand ,
Quality, Packaging & Seller’s influence are equally important for influencing
the customer.

- 6.52 % of the respondents feels that the factors like Tv ads , Price ,
,Quality, Seller’s influence & Mason’s & Contractor’s Recommendation are
important for influencing the customer.

17) It was found that –

– 20.67% of the respondents feel that the importance of packaging is
between 0 to 10 % which influence the seller to stock & customer to buy the
cement.

– 3.33% of the respondents feel that the importance of packaging is

between 10 to 20 % which influence the seller to stock & customer to buy
the cement.

– 4.67% of the respondents feel that the importance of packaging is

between 20 to 30 % which influence the seller to stock & customer to buy
the cement.

– 3.33% of the respondents feel that the importance of packaging is

between 30 to 40 % which influence the seller to stock & customer to buy
the cement.

30
 – 4.67% of the respondents feel that the importance of packaging is
between 40 to 50 % which influence the seller to stock & customer to buy
the cement.

– 6 % of the respondents feel that the importance of packaging is between

50 to 60 % which influence the seller to stock & customer to buy the cement.

– 7.33% of the respondents feel that the importance of packaging is

between 60 to 70 % which influence the seller to stock & customer to buy
the cement.

– 10.67% of the respondents feel that the importance of packaging is

between 70 to 80 % which influence the seller to stock & customer to buy
the cement.

– 9.33% of the respondents feel that the importance of packaging is

between 80 to 90 % which influence the seller to stock & customer to buy
the cement.

– 4% of the respondents feel that the importance of packaging is between

90 to 100 % which influence the seller to stock & customer to buy the
cement.

– 26% of the respondents feel that the importance of packaging is between

100 to 110 % which influence the seller to stock & customer to buy the
cement.

18) It was found that –

- 33 % of the respondents have idea about packaging of only those brands
which are sell by them.

- 7 % of the respondents feel that Ambuja’s packaging is best in the industry.

- 37 % of the respondents feel that ACC, Ambuja & Ultratech have the best
Packaging in the industry.

31
 - 15 % of the respondents feel that ACC , Ambuja & Shri Ultra & Binani
have the best packaging in the industry.

- 8 % of the respondents feel that all the companies in the market are
providing good packaging these days and which is getting better day by day.

19) It was found that –

- 70 % of the respondents says that schemes, discounts, cash incentives ,
gifts , tours etc. are offered by the area sales promoter.

- 30 % of the respondents says that nothing is offered by the sales promoter

to them.

20) It was found that –

- 20 % of the respondents gave no suggestions.

- 50 % of the respondents gave suggestion related to increasing price of the

cement.

- 30 % of the respondents gave suggestion related to the benefits to the

channel members ,marketing & promotion and told about the issues they
have with the company for last so many months.

32
 Conclusion

There is a mix kind of response received from the channel members some of
them gave positive feedback and some responded negatively and it is the
responsibility of the company to change the perception of the people who
responded negatively and should keep on working according to the expectation
of the people who responded positively.

33
 Questionnaire Used

Name of Respondent

Company Name

Address

Contact no.

1) Which are the businesses you are carry out ?

(inference- to know cement is his bread & butter or not)

Cement Aggregates
Sanitary Hardware

2) Which brands do you sell ? (inference- to know dealer is exclusive or M.B.)

Ultratech Bangur
Ambuja Acc others(please specify)

3) What are the three best things of the brand you sell ?
( inference-to know why is he selling the brand )

Service(In terms of order delivery) Margin(Price & discounts)

Brand pull(in terms of customer demand) Customer service
Marketing activities

4) How much time does it take for delivering material after you place the
order ? ( inference-tells about the service quality).
1-2 hrs. 2-4 hrs.
4-8 hrs. More than 8 hrs.

34
5) From where does the material come ?
(inference- tells about the logistics strength of the co.)

Cement siding warehouse

Directly from plant others(please specify)

6) How do you deliver material to the end customer & how many customers
take material in bulk from you ?
( inference-tells about his secondary cost & general tendency about
customer storage capacities in the area)

7) Do you have your vehicle for lifting material(from warehouse/siding/plant)?

( inference-tells about malpractices)

8) How is the behavior of the field officer who visits your shop ?
( inference-tells about the strength of relation between him & officer)

Friendly informative
Rude other(please specify)

9) Are there any visits from senior management & CSS or how often you visit
to company’s office?
( inference-tells about the relation between dealer & co)?

10) How many customers asks for specific brand ?( inference-tells about the
brand pull of the brands in that area).

1-10 % 11-20 %
21 -30 % more than 30 %

35
11) Do you try to convince the customer to buy specific brand ?
(inference –shows his attachment to the brand & his capability of being a local
brand ambassador )

Yes No

12) If yes Which ?

13) What are the best marketing /promotional activities that your co. does

and is it done by them or you ask for it?( inference-initiatives taken by

other co.)

14) Do you conduct any activities on your own / do you take part in the

activities –( inference-shows his commitment towards the company)

Financially physically others(please specify).

15) How good is the CSS support of the co.-( inference-shows the level of

support staff commitment in the market)

--- frequency of visits by CSS officer at site

--- frequency of visits by CSS officer at Shop
---New initiatives taken by the co.
---Mason/contractors/architects meets & influencing

16) What influences the customer the most(frequency of visits by CSS

officer at -shows the key buying factors for customer/builder)

36
 TV ads Price Brand Quality
Packaging Your influence Masons/Contractor ‘s Recomm.

17) How much influence does packing have on you & customer.(Shows the

perception of customer based upon packing of cement).

18) What do you like the most about the packaging of ACC or other

brands(inference-Shows the perception of customer based upon

packing of cement).

19) What are the best practices adapted by your area’s sales

promoter ?(Inference-shows the sort of relationship/involvement the

sales promoter have in the market)

20) Any suggestions you would like to give.

37
38
 Report on :

Comparative Study of Satisfaction Level of

Dealers & Retailers -

ACC & Non ACC Distribution Network

(Year - 2010)

Submitted to : Submitted By :

Mr.Narendra Dutta Pranshur Aggarwal

(Area Manager) (P.G.D.M. Student)
ACC Ltd., Institute Of Marketing &
Sales unit Management,New Delhi.
82-84,Janpath, Academic Year-2009-11
New Delhi - 110001

39