Promotional Strategies that can Lead to Customer Satisfaction (Research Proposal Sample)

Table of Contents TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u 1.Research Statement PAGEREF _Toc392499386 \h 12.Background (500 words) PAGEREF _Toc392499387 \h 13.Research methodology (1200 words) PAGEREF _Toc392499388 \h 23.1 Aims and objectives of the research PAGEREF _Toc392499389 \h 23.2 Research Design PAGEREF _Toc392499390 \h 43.3 Data collection methods PAGEREF _Toc392499391 \h 53.3.1 Use of interviews PAGEREF _Toc392499392 \h 53.3.2 Secondary sources PAGEREF _Toc392499393 \h 64.Data analysis methods (500 words) PAGEREF _Toc392499394 \h 65.Ethical issues (300 words) PAGEREF _Toc392499395 \h 7
1 Research Statement
What promotional strategies can differentiate any strategies that lead to customer’s satisfaction and maximize the profit in mobile telecommunications sector in London?
2 Background
Customer satisfaction can be defined as the as the feeling that a customer gets after buying a product and putting its worth into a consideration with the expected contentment of the product. The customer may feel disillusioned if the quality of the product goes below their expectations and they feel great enjoyment for satisfying products. In the modern world, customers have become educated and they know exactly what they want. They are also aware of healthy and appropriate customers approach and the detrimental ones. The most-difficult part of the task has been left to the companies that offer products to the customers as their offers have to be presentable to the customers. Their products must fulfill the expected qualities and they have to be in the right designs.
Bearing in mind that the customers are well informed about the proper quality and design of the products, the companies offering these products must present their products as the customers expect them. In additional to that, they have to move an extra mile and use the right approaches of attracting and maintaining customers. According to the research work of (Grigoroudis & Siskos, 2009) customers satisfaction should be taken into measurable parameters since it is the main indicator of the performance of the industry.
Customer satisfaction has therefore become a critical concept in the modern world. Initially, many businesses would go for more customers rather than focusing on satisfying the already gained customers. The current trends in many businesses today are aiming at satisfying customers with a view that more clients will be attracted to the business that puts the desires of the customers first by providing quality products and services. The mobile telecommunication industries in London are also making efforts to cope with the market trend. Studies on the telecommunication sector indicate that, mobile telecommunication industry plays a critical role in the development of the economy of countries and it has considerably contributed to the growth of economies of the developed countries (Hass, 2007).
Taking a keen look at the contribution of the mobile telecommunication especially in the economy of London raises the need to the enhancement of customers’ satisfaction in these industries to promote their growth and the expansion of the country’s economy. These mobile telecommunication industries however have not done enough to ensure customers’ satisfaction (Bakkers, 2001). Despite the fact that customer satisfaction in telecommunication industries is still wanting, very little research has been conducted on the promotional strategies that can differentiate any strategies that lead to customers’ satisfaction and maximize the profit gained by the telecommunication industries in London.
Lack of adequate research on the promotional strategies that can lead to customers’ satisfaction has impacted this industry to the extent that there is no literature work on promotional strategies that can lead to customers’ satisfaction in mobile telecommunication industry in London. The only available literature material focuses on the impacts of mobile telecommunication industry to the country’s economy. This raises the alarm on the need of detailed and urgent research on promotional strategies that can lead to customers’ satisfaction and maximization of profits in this sector.
Looking at other economic sectors, a lot has been done on attempts to satisfying customers and optimization of profits in various business sectors. One of the asserted ways of maximizing profit in organizations and ensuring customers’ satisfaction is by utilizing promotional activities maximally (Grumber, 2005). The researcher would wish to conduct research on promotional strategies that can lead to customers’ satisfaction and maximization of the profit in mobile telecommunications sector in London. There are five main mobile network operators:
* Three 3
* O2
* Orange
* T-Mobile
* Vodafone
All of them maintain their network operations. EE, the parent company of T-Mobile and Orange, have joint the networks of both operators. There are other virtual operators, but they use the network of the same main operators for example Virgin Mobile use T-Mobile's (and Orange's) networks and Tesco Mobile use 02.
The context of the research is the realization that mobile communication sector emphasize on other methods of familiarizing their products to the customers as compared to promotional method. The research is therefore aimed at finding out the appropriate promotional strategies that can lead to customer’s satisfaction and the effects of promotional plans to the customers.
3 Research methodology
In order to research on the aims and purposes of this investigation, the researcher will use both qualitative and quantitative research methods. The qualitative research methods will be important in this research because they will arm the research with the necessary knowledge of the existing situation. They will provide a textual description of promotional strategies that are used by some of the successful sectors in the economy. Besides that, they will also give the canvasser the current methods that are being used by these mobile companies to attract and retain customers. Secondary sources of data will be significant in the qualitative research methods applied in this research since they will provide the researcher with the study that has already been done by other scholars. From their description, the investigator will be in a position to weigh the existing approaches and the appropriate promotional approaches and a conclusion will be arrived at on the urgency and the complexity of the issue facing the mobile telecommunication industry.
The researcher will use the following qualitative research methods.
* In-depth interviews
* participant observation
* Focus group
* Case study
In-depth interviews
The researcher will carry out an in-depth interview with the each of the marketing managers of the five companies: Three3, O2, Vodafone, Orange and T-Mobile companies. In-depth interviews will be vital in this research since they will provide the researcher with the descriptive first-hand information about the history of performance of these companies. A direct response from the marketing managers of these companies will help the investigator to get a lucid understanding of the approaches that are currently being used to attract the customers and to retain them. The researcher will tape record their response to ensure all important information has been captured. They will also enable the researcher to analyze and compare their perspectives on the current trends in the market concerning the modern promotional strategies.
Participant’s observation
The investigator will take the initiative of visiting the marketing departments of each of the five companies. The research will then pay attention to their customer attracting and retention activities and strategies. Notes will be recorded for future analysis and decision making. The researcher will also listen to other analysis of the promotional strategies within the mobile telecommunication companies probably from the journalists in radios and television or from the from the market analysts. The information obtained from the researcher’s observation will be critical in arriving at convincing decisions since it is first hand and there is no risk of the information being tampered with there before.
Focus group
The researcher will organize a focus group made of five participants who will be the marketing managers of the five mobile telecommunication companies in London. The researcher will be the facilitator of the group and a list of open-ended questions will be used as a guide to accomplish the session. Each of the participants will be allowed an opportunity to air their views, opinion and suggestions concerning various aspects of the approaches of attracting and retaining the customers. The researcher will tape-record the conversation to make sure all details have been recorded and they can be used for future analysis. Focus group method will be important in this research because it will facilitate the acquisition of these companies’ beliefs, opinions and perspectives towards application of promotional strategies in satisfying their customers and enhancing their profit margins.
Case Study
In this qualitative research method, the researcher will conduct a detailed research on the chosen two companies Three3 and Orange. These two companies were randomly selected with the intention of getting detailed analysis of the marketing strategies. Within the two companies, the researcher will use observations, interviews, and use of documented information to obtain the required information. Descriptive notes will be written for future use while analyzing the data on the promotional strategies used. The case Study qualitative resea...