CHAPTER - 1

INTRODUCTION:

TOOTHPASTE INDUSTRY: AN OVERVIEW

The toothpaste history in India can be tracked back from 1975 with 1200

tonnes of toothpaste produced by the toothpaste industry. Prior to the toothpastes

Oral Hygiene was the domain of local homemade powders and ayurvedh

practitioners. With the entry of Colgate in Indian marketplace the awareness about

Oral care and the importance of oral care. In recent years the Industry has shown

impressive growth rate of 18.6% (this growth is calculated in terms of value growth

in Rs.).

The growth in the urban market has been largely by the Gel Segment. Presently,

a large chunk of the Market is still held by Colgate. The major players in the

toothpaste Industry being Colgate Palmolive and Hindustan Lever Limited and

several minor players like Balsara hygiene, Dabur etc.

Presently Colgate Dental Cream holds 52% of market share. HLL’s Close up

lies  far behind with 23% of the existing market share. The third player in the

marketplace in terms of market share is Colgate Gel with 10.5% of the market

share. That leaves 14.5% market share for other Brands like Close up, Close up G,

Promise, Babool , Sensofoam, Forhans, Cibaca, Neem, Vicco etc. The toothpaste

market is presently valued at Rs. 750 crores out of which the Gel segment has

already bagged 1/3rd portion of it. The Gel segment presently stands at Rs. 248

crores and is growing at a rate much faster than Cream. In India toothpaste usage as

compared to other countries is very low which signifies about the potential of the

market. In Urban India the usage of toothpaste per person per year is just 190gms.

Where as it is 200gms of toothpaste per person per year in developing countries as

Indonesia and Thailand. In developed countries as USA and other European 1

countries the toothpaste usage is 375 gms per person year. In India the toothpastes

companies are going in for advertising on a heavy note, on an average the

companies managing this FMCG category are spending 6.15% of their sales on

development. Colgate Palmolive had shelled out 15% of their sales on ads in the

year 1994. Dabur had an ad expenditure of 5.07% for the year 1993. Whereas

balsara Hygiene spend a huge 10.17% of their sales.

CLOSE UP TOOTH PASTE:

Young people. The target market being “Multi Brand Households” where

young does not use what their parents. This particular targeting was significant

when Close Up was launched because Colgate positioning was a sort of Flip flop

between Tooth decay and Bad Breath and Colgate was going for a Broad market

constituting of all the age groups.

Sought to be perceived by the customers was Fresh Breath. The physical

appearance by the users. The Bright Red Gel synerized well with the Fresh breath

Benefit. The advertising account was handled by LINTAS which focused on Fresh

Breath that brought teenagers closer.

By 1980 Close Up had 3% of the 16,000 tonnes toothpaste market. The

production capacity was doubled through a deal with third party manufacturer and

the Brand was taken National over the next year and a half, the Premium slashed

by 30%.

Close Up countered this move by sharpening product benefits, while urging

the customers to do the HA test by blowing air on the palm, the message was that

Close Up feels a lot cooler which reiterated the basic benefit of a fresh breath.

2

1987 was a “Probe into Problem” year for HALL as Close Up was much

below expectations with only 4.5% of the 32,000 tonnes toothpaste market. They

identified two  basic problems:

(1) Appearance of Toothpastes  detracts prospects from its serious buyers.

(2) Commercials displayed too much of proximity between couples which was too

much for a mother, who actually purchased the Toiletries.

1998 Lever reworked 3 Ps in its Marketing mix in Tamil Nadu where

people have a strong sense of Oral Hygiene and the area has a cost effective media

Reach. The three reworked Ps are as follows:

 

(1) Product :

·   Blue mint flavour introduced.

·        Tangerines of Read reduced. (For serious buyers.)

·        Soft Squeeze lamitubes for toothpastes introduced for the first time in the

country.

(3) Distribution

·        Took Brand to Sub Urban and Rural areas.

·        Posters and Mobile Vans arrived in areas where urban lifestyle was a

matter of aspiration. This was a purposeful move as the company did not want the

Brand to be saddled with a restrictive.

3

In 1991, Close Up launched Zing Green and simultaneously Lever sponsored

“Close up Sangeet Muquabala” targeted at the rural youth. In 1991 Close Up’s

market share increased to 16% of Rs 377 crores per year market. 1991 witnessed a

few problems for Close Up Blue, which was faltering on  repeat purchases as

customers did not  perceive much freshness value in it. In 1992, HLL launched

“AQUA BLUE” with added attributes like increased Mouthwash contents and a

more Minter flavour, so that customer’s perceived benefit is Freshness which is

Lever’s positioning stance. In response Colgate introduced “Red Actirinse” and

then “Colgate Blue”. People at HLL thought to counter Colgate’s growth by

cashing in on Medicinal appeal and came out with “Close up” with Germicheck snf

“Mentadent G” now renamed as “Close up G” for Gum problems. Colgate

countered this move by launching “Colgate Total” as an advanced paste to fight.

Tartar, Gingivitis, and other Dental ailments. 1993 was the year when HLL tried

to woo the customers by innovative packaging. Firstly it introduced “Stand Up

Pump dispensers” for metros but it bombed in the market because of High price

perception as compared to benefits. Sachets formula was used by lever to break

into Colgate’s fort. The Close Up  sachets was priced at Rs. 3 per unit and it

offered  20 uses, which means that a family of five could use  it four times each.

The year it sponsored zee Close Up Antaksharee. HLL also went in for Close Up

Toothbrushes under the Brand name “Confident” and launched it in Tamil Nadu.

The confident toothbrushes were taken National and most importantly HLL

advertisement account shifted from LINTAS to FTA due to

Global alignment move by Lever’s parent Unilever. The brief given to the new

agency was to “Strengthen the Audience’s perception of Brand’s functional

values.”

Close Up’s formulation was reworked and the new Close Up was enriched with

“Microwhiteners” so that the perceived benefit by the customer be that he will have

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Shining Teeth. As the ad account was handed over to HTA, the ad moved closer to

the Indian Culture, they also took note of the cultural changes which showed in

their ads like Females were now more than equal participants in Boy Girl activity

as in Salim Anarkali ad which showed her confidence by joining the Boy on the

stage and saving the day.

S1996 witnessed introduction of “Close Up Liquid fresh” a liquid in a carry

along squeeze can in two sizes:

30 gm Rs.

100 gm Rs.

HLL gave it a dual positioning platform of a Mouthrinse and toothpaste,

like squeeze the Gel directly into Mouth. Close Up is pushing hard for semi Urban

and Rural areas were disposable incomes are rising rapidly and in order to tap these

markets it is going for Vernacular Advertising in Eight languages. In Bengal as the

communication did not work all that work initially, HTA has contracted Anjan

Dutta a signer popular with both Young and old alike in Bengal. 

5

CHAPTER – 2

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

Primary Objective:

To study the consumer satisfaction towards Close up toothpaste.

To know how many of consumer to know the content and use the

close up tooth paste.

To know which thing in close up to attract the consumer.

To know how many of them to know the main ingredient.

Secondary Objective:

To obtain information regarding the consumer preference towards

various flavors offered by Close up toothpaste.

To know the views of the user with the performance of Close up

toothpaste.

To give suitable suggestions to enrich the consumer preference of

the Close up toothpaste.

6

CHAPTER - 3

SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The project is done in Chennai. This is done for students only.

The study is conducted to know the consumer preference of Close up

toothpaste. This may help the company to decide upon their new ventured.

The research focuses on the several features of the close up and to know the

suggestions of the user which may help the company in further development

of the close up toothpaste.

The research provides a complete feedback on The close up toothpaste

which may give a Sincere backup for their future plans with respect to

design area.

LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The sample size is only 50.

The period of study is limited

There is no comparative study made.

Under the study illiterate people excluded.

7

CHAPTER - 4

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

CUSTOMER:

Customers are the people who are going to purchase and use that

product.

CONSUMERS VALUE:

Consumers delivered value is the difference between total consumers value

and total consumers cost. Total consumers value is the bundle of benefits

consumers expect to incur in evaluating, obtaining, using and disposing of the

product or service.

CONSUMERS STATISFACTION:

“Satisfaction is a person’s feelings of Pleasure of disappointment resulting

from comparing products perceived performance (or outcome) in relation to his or

her expectations”.

At this definition makes clear, satisfaction is a function of perceived

performance and expectations. If the performance falls short of expectations, the

consumer is dissatisfied. If the performance matches the expectations, the

consumers are satisfied. If the performance exceeds expectations, the consumer is

highly satisfied or delighted.

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Many companies are aiming for high satisfaction because consumers who

are just satisfied still find it easy to switch when a better offer comes along. Those

who are highly satisfied are much less to switch. High satisfaction or delight

creates an emotional bond with the brand, not just, a rational preference. The result

is high consumer’s loyalty. From past buying experience, friend’s and associate’s

advice, and marketer’s and competitor’s information and promises. The key to

generating high consumer’s loyalty is to deliver high consumers value According

to Michael Lanning, in high delivering profitable value; a company must develop a

competitively superior value proposition and a superior value delivery system.

A company’s value proposition is much more than it’s positioning on a

single attribute, it is a statement about the resulting experience consumers will have

from the offering and their relationship with the supplier. The brand must represent

a promise about the total resulting experience that consumers can expect. Whether

the promise is kept depends upon the company’s ability to manage its value -

delivery system includes all the communications and channel experiences the

consumers will have on the way to obtaining the offering.

9

CHAPTER -5

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:

DATA COLLECTION:

The word ‘data’ comes from ‘datum’. The ‘datum’ is a Latin word,

which literally means ‘something given’. It means a piece of information, which

can be either quantitative or qualitative. The term ‘data’ is the plural of ‘datum’ and

means ‘facts and statistics collected together for reference or analysis’. There are

two type of that are collected and analysed in statistics.

Primary data, and

Secondary data.

PRIMARY DATA:

Primary data is known as the data collected for the first time through field

survey. Such data are collected with specific set of objectives to asses the current

status of any variable studied. By survey methods the data can be collected by any

one or more of the following ways.

Questionnaire

Schedule.

Interview

Observation.

Feedback from.

Sales force opinion.

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Projective techniques.

Mechanical devices.

SECONDARY DATA:

The secondary data, are those which have already been collected

some other agency and which have already been processed. Generally speaking,

secondary data is collected by some organization to satisfy its own need but it is

being used by various departments for different reasons. Census figures taken are

used by social scientists (economists) social planning and research.

SOURCES OF SECONDARY DATA:

INTERNAL SOURCES:

Register, Documents, Annual report, Sales reports, Previous research

papers, Sales records, Invoice etc.,

EXTERNAL SOURCES:

Journals on magazines, Newspapers, Public speeches, State and

Central government departments reports etc.,

SAMPLES:

Samples size : 50.

Target sample : Age between 20-30.

Sampling techniques : Random sampling.

11

CHAPTER - 6

DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

ANALYSIS

Analysis refers to the methodical classification of data gives in the financial

statements.

INTERPRETATION

The term ‘Interpretation’ means explaining the meaning and significance of

the data so arranged. It is the study of relationship between various factors.

ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

Analysis and Interpretation are closely related. Interpretation is not

Possible without analysis and without interpretation analysis has no value. Hence

the term analysis is widely used to refer both analysis and interpretation. Reader’s

satisfaction is an important element of marketing function which decides the

profitability of any concern. In this chapter an attempt is made to analyze the main

factors influencing the purchase decision of the selected sample respondents in the

study area. For the purpose of the analysis, variables are classified into two

important strata viz., dependent variables and independent variable. The

independent variables used in the study are age, sex, educational status, occupation,

and income of the respondent, size of the family and awareness of the sample

respondents.

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The study uses both primary as well as secondary data; primary data

was collected through field survey method. For collecting the data questionnaire

was used as a main tool. The data thus collected were tabulated systematically in

an orderly form. Simple statistical too like percentage age, and chi-square test were

employed

13

CHAPTER - 7

PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS:

AGE:

INTERPRETATION:

The above table inferred that 100% of respondents are aged between 21-

30 years.

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AGE GROUP

NO. OF

RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS

<19 0 0

20-24 50 100

25-29 0 0

35< 0 0

TOTAL 50 100

GENDER:

GENDER NO. OF

RESPONDENTSPERCENTAGE

ANALYSIS

MALE 35 70

FEMALE 15 30

TOTAL 50 100

INTERPRETATION:

The above table inferred that 70% of respondents are male and 30% are

female.

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EDUCATION QUALIFICATION:

Qualification Respondents Percentage

analysis

PG 30 60

UG 20 40

TOTAL 50 100

INTERPERTATION:

The above table inferred that 60% of respondents are PG and 40% of

respondents are UG.

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OCCUPATION:

OCCUPATION NO. OF.

RESPONDENT

PERCENTAGE

ANALYSIS

STUDENTS 35 70

WORKERS 12 24

BUSINESS 3 6

TOTAL 50 100

INTERPRETATION:

The above table inferred that 70% of respondents are students and

24% of respondents are workers and 6% of respondents are business people.

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HOW MANY TIMES BRUSH EVERY DAY:

NO. OF

TIMES

BRUSH

NO. OF.

RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE

ANALYSIS

ONCE 13 26

TWICE 26 52

THRICE 11 22

TOTAL 50 100

INTERPERTATION:

The above table inferred that 26% of respondents are one time

brush every day and 52% of respondents are two time brush every day and 22% of

respondents are three times brush every day.

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RESON FOR USING:

REASON NO. OF

RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE

ANALYSIS

ECONOMICAL 18 36

DOCTOR’S

ADVICE

12 24

ADVERTISEMENT 20 40

TOTAL 50 100

INTERPRETATION:

The above table inferred that 70% of respondents are students and

24% of respondents are workers and 6% of respondents are business people.

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HOW LONG HAVE BEEN USING?

USING NO.OF. RESPONTENTS

PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS

PAST 6 MONTH 17 34

PAST 1 YEAR 22 44

MORE THAN A YEAR

11 22

TOTAL 50 100

INTERPRETATION:

The above table inferred that 34% of respondents are using past 6

month and 44% of respondents are using past 1 year and 22% of respondents are

using more than a year.

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SATISFIED IN CLOSE UP:

SATISFIED NO. OF. RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS

HIGHLY SATISFIED

18 36

SATISFIED 12 24

NETURAL 7 14

DISSATISFIED 8 16

HIGHLY DISSATISFIED

5 10

TOTAL 50 100

INTERPRETATION:

The above table inferred that 36% of respondents are highly

satisfied, 24% of respondents are satisfied, 14% of respondents are neutral 16% of

respondents are dissatisfied and 10% of respondents are highly dissatisfied.

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ATTRACTIVE THING IN CLOSE UP:

ATTRACTIVE NO. OF. RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS

MICRO WHITENERS

21 42

ACTIVE CLEAN 18 36

COLOUR 11 22

TOTAL 50 100

INTERPRETATION:

The above table inferred that 42% of respondents are attractive in

micro whiteness, 36% of respondents are attractive in active clean, and 22% of

respondents are attractive in colour.

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QUALITY OF PRODUCT:

QUALITY NO. OF. RESPONDENT

PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS

EXCELLENT 18 36

GOOD 19 38

NOT SATISFIED 13 26

TOTAL 50 100

INTERPRETATION:

The above table inferred that 36% of respondents are says

excellent, 38% of respondents are says good, and 26% of respondents are not

satisfied.

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PRICE OF OUR PRODUCT:

PRICE NO. OF. RESPONDENTS

PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS

VERY CHEAP 15 30

AFFORDABLE 20 40

EXPENSIVE 15 30

TOTAL 50 100

INTERPRETATION:

The above table inferred that 30% of respondents are says very

cheap, 40% of respondents are says affordable, and 30% of respondents are says

expensive.

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MAIN INGERDIENT:

INGERDIENT NO. OF. RESPONDENT

PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS

SORBITAL 23 46

SODIUM FLUORIDE

15 30

SODIUM SACHARIN

12 24

TOTAL 50 100

INTERPRETATION:

The above table inferred that 46% of respondents are sorbital, 30%

of respondents are sodium fluoride, and 12% of respondents are sodium saccharin.

25

CHAPTER – 8

FINDING AND SUGGESTION:

It was found that 52% of respondents are three times brushing every day,

26% of respondents are once in a day, and 22% of respondents are three

times brush every day.

It was found that sales are increase in his advertisement. Because in my

survey 40% person using after seeing the advertisement.

It was found that sale is increase in last one year. In the survey past one

year 22 person starts to buy close up tooth paste.

It was found that many consumers highly satisfied in this product. In the

survey 36% of consumer says that is highly satisfied.

Many of consumer are attractive in the micro whiteners in the close up.

Afterwards active clean is more attractive in the close up.

Quality of product is many consumers are satisfied. Because 38% of

consumers say that’s good. Afterwards 36% of consumers say that’s

excellent.

The price of the product is very affordable to the consumers. Because in

the survey 40% of consumer says price is affordable.

In this product only 46% of consumers only know the main ingredient in

this paste. Others do not know the main ingredient of the product.

Many of the consumer are giving suggestion is to introduce the more

flavour in the close up.

Many consumers want to more innovation in the products.26

SUGGESTION:

The following are the suggestion offered to increase the satisfaction level of the

close up toothpaste based on the reader’s opinion and analysis of the data.

Most of the consumers expressed dissatisfaction over the price of the

toothpaste and suggestions are given to improve the cavity protection of this

toothpaste.

A few respondents felt that their gum felt weak, so the makers have to take

steps to improve this gum care feature.

A few respondents in rural areas are dissatisfied because of non-availability

of this toothpaste. Hence this toothpaste should reach rural areas also.

A few respondents are dissatisfied about cavity protection of this toothpaste,

so the maker has to ensure this feature.

People in rural areas would like to have close up toothpowder.

The company to improve the quality of the product. Because in the survey

excellent percentage is less than the other. Most of the buyers only say that’s

good.

The company to give more importance to the advertisement. To put new and

innovative advertisement.

27

CHAPTER -9

CONCLUSION

Toothpaste plays a vital role in our life. Food is one of the most

important things to live and to eat and grind that food tooth is needed, so to keep

that teeth safe toothpaste is essential selection of toothpaste is also important in

protecting our teeth. They have contributed enormously for the protection of our

teeth. From the data analysis most of the respondents have preferred close up

because of its gum care and cavity protection. Suggestions have been given by

respondents to improve its quality.

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CHAPTER - 10

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Books

KOTHARI- Research methodology

PHILIPS KOTLER- Marketing management

S.A. SHERLEKAR-Marketing management

Websites

WWW. Wikipedia.com.

WWW. Google.com.

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I, BASKAR doing MBA in Sathyabama University. As I have to do a project for

the fulfillment of my degree and requesting to fill a following question.

1. NAME :

2. AGE :

3. GENDER : MALE FEMALE

4. EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATION :

5. OCCUPATION : STUDENT BUSINESS WORKER

6. WHICH TOOTHPASTE ARE YOU USING?

a) COLGATE b) PEPSODENT c) CLOSEUP d) OTHER ----------- (PLEASE MENTION THE NAME OF THE TOOTH PASTE)

7. HOW MANY TIMES DO YOU BRUSH EVERYDAY?

a) ONCE b) TWICE c) THRICE

8. WHY ARE YOU USING THAT PASTE PARTICULARY?

a)ECONOMICAL b) DOCTOR’S ADVICE c) ADVERTISEMENT

9. HOW LONG HAVE BEEN USING CLOSE UP?

a) PAST 6 MONTH b) PAST 1 YEAR c) MORE THAN A YEAR

10. ARE YOU SATISFIED WITH THIS TOOTHPASTE?

a) YES b) NO

11. WHAT IS THE ATTRACTIVE THING IN CLOSEUP?

a) MICRO WHITENESS b) ACTIVE CLEAN c) COLOUR

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12. WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT THE QUALITY OF OUR PRODUCT?

a) EXCELLENT b) GOOD c) NOT SATISFIED

13. WHAT DO THINK ABOUT THE PRICE OF OUR PRODUCT?

a)VERY CHEAP b) AFFORDABLE c) EXPENSIVE

14. WHAT IS THE MAIN INGERDIENT IN CLOSE UP?

a)SORBITOL b) SODIUM FLUORIDE c) SODIUM SACCHARIN

15.DO YOU HAVE ANY SUGGESTONS AND FEEDBACK FOR THE

BETTERMENT OF THE PRODUCT?

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