Introduction
Consumer satisfaction is a major factor for the success of
business organisations. Therefore, it is one of the major objective of the
business organisations that have to achieve by them to run their business
activities successfully and increase the market share for the in the industry.
The satisfaction of the consumers depends on the quality of the products and
services provided by the business organisations. The consistency in the quality
of the products can produce some loyal customers for the organisations. Some
new organisations also provide some rewards for producing loyal consumers in
the market. The business organisations have to recognize the behavior of the
consumer to acquire the knowledge about the process of satisfying the
customers. However, the business organisations try to satisfy the customers by
meeting the requirements and demand of the consumers (Solomon, 2014, p.235). Consumer satisfaction
also depends on the after sales services provided by the organisations.
Business organisations have to use some appropriate techniques and tools to
acquire a brief knowledge about the demand and requirements of the customers. Organisation
also tries to design and develop their products according to the requirements
of the consumers to achieve high customer satisfaction. The following research proposal
provides a brief knowledge about the process by which the modern business
organisations acquire the knowledge about the Consumer behavior. The process
followed by the business organisations to produce some loyal customers in the
market also will be mentioned in the study.
Overview of the Whitakers Chocolates ltd
The research proposal also provides brief knowledge about the
process followed by the Whitakers Chocolate ltd to produce some loyal customers
in the market. Whittaker's chocolate ltd is one of the leading chocolate
manufacturing companies in UK which was established by the John and Rebecca Whitakers
in 1889. The Company successfully satisfies the customers with their chocolate
products for the last 128 years. The company also develops their technologies
and production process of the chocolates according to the demand of customers.
In resent the company produces 10 million chocolate products every week.
Task 1
1.1 Outlining Loyalty of Consumers and effects of Reward
Schemes
Consumer loyalty can be explained as ‘the outcome of
consistent experiences of positive emotions’ which provides the customers
satisfaction based on physical attributes including the product or service
offered and their perceived values. It, thus, refers to the emotional bond that
the consumer has with Whitakers Chocolates ltd. that accounts for the loyalty.
Consumer Loyalty: As per Peter et al. (2013, p.122), to hold back old consumers is easier than
attracting new consumers. For this reason, consumer experience management
appears to be the most effective approach to rise up consumer satisfaction,
retaining them and driving their loyalty to a higher level. Loyal customers are
more inclined to buy supplementary products and services while ensuring sales,
thus saving expenses related to the education of consumers and marketing the
product.
Loyalty Schemes and Reward Programs: Consumers making
frequent purchases are offered the loyalty program. Such schemes and programs
allow the consumer beforehand access to special coupons on sales, merchandises
for free. It even includes chances to lay hands on Whitakers Chocolates ltd.’s
new products before general consumers can.
Overall effect on consumer psychology: Taking into account
the peaking competitions in today’s business landscape, such programs can help
the organisation stand ahead of other firms competing in the race. Such
distinction happens to be effective in occupying the attention and loyalty of
consumers while boosting profits as the consumer happens to cherish the product
or service in present and even after its use (Chernev et al. 2015, p. 341).
1.2 Factors influencing the selection of the research
project
●
Societal
Issues: with the change in society, new topics emerge out which require
attention. Whether to choose a topic or not and to carry out research on it is
influenced mainly by its importance in the changing society. With new trends,
new issues arise. To understand these new issues, new researches have to be
conducted.
●
Researcher
Values: Based on the beliefs, interests and the values one holds, the
researcher may be instigated to choose a topic. It can often be the outcome
based on the experiences the researcher holds, religion he belongs to, his
social class, and may be even based on how he or she wants the society to
change.
●
Perspectives:
Perceptions vary from person to person. Based on the insights of the researcher
and also, what and how interests him, the researcher may wish to choose a topic
he finds suitable as per his interest.
●
Funding:
Money is of the chief essence in all research related works. Thus the
availability of funds to carry forward the research is very significant. The
more the topic appears to affect the society for its good, easier may it be to
attract funding. It is a must for researchers to be able to afford the ongoing
the research on the topic they propose.
●
Data
availability: The availability of data for a new topic or access to data
existing before hand for smooth operation of the research must be kept in mind.
Often researchers are attracted to fields with gaps. But they must keep in mind
the availability of data if they wish to fill the gap.
1.3 Reviewing the main factors for choosing the topic:
●
Critical
analysis of socially conditioned psychologies: In the blooming era of
consumerism, understanding the mindsets, viewpoints and behaviors of consumers
is of chief importance to expect the smooth consumption of the product or
service being provided (Wirtz et al. 2007,
p. 332).
●
Availability
of data: Easy collection of data through questionnaires on public forums,
social platforms and daily consumers in the market. This not only helps in
understanding the needs of the consumers but also realizing the expectations
they wish to be fulfilled by Whitakers Chocolates ltd. they are loyal to.
●
Understanding
the effect of loyalty schemes on consumer can be made from a wide range of
people: With the rise of brand loyalty, consumers have become more consistent
with their choices (Yi and Jeon, 2003, p. 231). Based on Whitakers Chocolates
ltd./brand’s strategies, loyalty programs to give rewards and incentives such
as samples and free gifts attract even confused consumers to their products.
●
Focusing
on company’s promises and people’s expectations can provide increased profits:
As analyzed by Dowling et al. (2003,
p. 296), trying to discover the gap between the brand and consumers’ ideals and
what exactly they want, Whitakers Chocolates ltd. strives to meet their end.
This in the process can lead Whitakers Chocolates ltd. to create new products,
pulling in more customers while trying to meet the demands of the ones loyal to
them.
1.4 Research Project Proposal: An investigation into
Consumer Loyalty and Research Schemes
Customer
trends:
World Wide Web - The Promising Factor
In the age of digitalization, most consumers are deeply
influenced by the internet. They fail to
accumulate loyal emotions for any particular brand. The availability of excess
information on the web helps a consumer to compare and contrast among a wide
range of factors before buying a product.
Programs of Direct Purchase:
This program is a method which allows the consumer to
purchase stocks in a company first hand, i.e. directly from Whitakers
Chocolates ltd. without any broker fees or any kind of commission, the
customers are aided an advantage.
Customer Relationship Management:
The principles, guidelines and practices being followed by
Whitakers Chocolates ltd. to interact with it consumers is referred to as
‘Customer Relationship Management’ or CRM. The building blocks of CRM include
Whitakers Chocolates ltd.’s official website, emails, mass mailings, telephone
calls and social media interaction.
Customer Information File:
As opined by Lewis (2004, p. 289) an electronic or physical
file storing all exclusive information (personal and account info) of a
consumer is known as ‘Customer Information File’ or CIF. The profiles of such
sensitive information must be secured to maintain secrecy and accuracy of such
sensitive data.
Transferable Points Program:
The transferable point program enables customers to use the
points earned by using credit cards to be transferred and used in any other
program they are participating in.
Tailored Advertising:
With the rise of internet, tailored advertising has become
more widely used strategy. This involves issuing coupons for particular
products or services (Keh and Lee, 2006, p. 129). This is based on purchases
made in the past using datas to deliver a message on advertising to particular
segments of market or campaigns designed to run in particular areas.
1.5 Presentation of a Gantt Chart with respect to research
specification
|
Activities
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First Week
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Second Week
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Third Week
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Fourth Week
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Fifth Week
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Sixth Week
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Selection of the topic
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 |
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Collection of secondary data
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Literature review
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Selection of research technique
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Collection of primary data
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Data analysis and findings
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Developing conclusion
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Formation of draft
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Submission of final work
|
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Table 1: Gantt Chart
(Source: Created by the author)
Task 2
2.1: Role of research resources and the relationship between
the research resources and research questions and hypothesis
Aim of the research proposal
The main aim of the study is to recognize the benefits of the
process of producing loyal customers on the Whitakers Chocolates ltd. The impacts
of loyal customers on the market of the company are also a major factor of the
company. The research study also provides a brief knowledge about the
activities followed by the company to satisfy their customers continuously.
Objectives of the research proposal
The main objectives of the research proposal are as follows:
A) To identify the activities which are adopted by the Whitakers
Chocolate Ltd for producing some loyal customers in the market.
B) To analyze the importance of producing loyal customers in the
market.
C) To understand the issues faced by the Whitakers Chocolate ltd
to produce the loyal customers in the market?
D) To identify the solutions of the issues faced by the company in
the process of producing some loyal customers.
E) To determine the advantages are being got by the
Whitakers Chocolate ltd of the process of producing loyal customers in the
market.
F) To recognize the response of the customers towards the products
of the Whitakers after the adoption of the activities in the company.
Research Hypothesis
H0: The effectiveness of the process of producing loyal
customers for the company.
H1: The negative impact of the process of producing loyal
customers on the Company.
Research questions:
A) What are the strategies followed by the Whitakers Chocolate ltd
to produce some loyal customers in the market?
B) How the strategies help the Whitakers chocolate company to
produce leyal customers in the market?
C) What are the impacts of the loyal customers on the Whitakers
Chocolate ltd?
D) What are the factors that help to evaluate the strategies
of producing loyal customers in the market?
E) What are the changes made in the Whitakers Chocolate ltd after
producing the loyal customers in the market?
Research resources
The research a resource is the sources of information that help to
complete the research proposal in an efficient manner. There are two types of
resources can be used in this research proposal the first one is primary
resources and secondary resources. In the primary resource the information are
collected from the audiences directly but in the secondary resources the
information are collected from the Journals, magazines, newspapers,
websites etc.
Relationship between the research resources and research question
or hypothesis:
There is a deep relationship between the research resources and
research questions or hypothesis. The major relationship is the sources of
information depend on the type of question required in the research proposal.
The research questions or hypothesis of the research proposal provide the
objectives for the selection of research resources.
2.2: Required ‘Questionnaire’ to collect data for the
research proposal
Data collection method- Data collection method
provides the information about the process of the collection of data which are
relevant for the research proposal. The research proposal can use two types of
data collection method the first one is Qualitative data collection method and
the other one is Quantitative data collection method.
Qualitative Data Collection: (2 managers)
These types of data collected from the case study, historical
research and interview. These data are descriptive in nature and provide
important information about the research topic in details. For the collection
of these types of data the researcher take interview of two managers of the
Whitakers Chocolate ltd.
Quantitative Data Collection: (20 customers)
This types of data are collected by using different mathematical
tools and statistical analysis. The researcher uses some questionnaire and asks
the questions to the 20 customers of the company.
Questionnaire
For qualitative (2 questions)
Question 1: What is the role of loyal customers in Whitakers Chocolate Ltd?
Question 2: What are the activities followed by the Whitakers Chocolate Ltd
for producing loyal customers in the market?
For quantitative (6 questions)
Question 1: How long you have been customer of Whitakers Chocolate Ltd?
Question 2: How the Chocolate products of the Whitakers satisfy your
requirements?
Question 3: How do you agree that the reward process plays a vital role for
producing loyal customers?
Question 4: How far do you agree that reward process help the company to
retain the loyal customers?
Question 5: How far do you agree that the process of producing loyal customers
help the company to handle the grievances?
Question 6: What are factors that help the Whitalers to increase the number
loyal customers in the market?
2.3: Presentation of the collect data from the research
project by using the graph and table
Quantitative data analysis:
Question 1) How long you have been customer of Whitakers Chocolate
Ltd?
|
Options
|
Number
of respondents
|
Total
respondents
|
%
of respondents
|
|
3
months
|
2
|
20
|
10%
|
|
6
months
|
7
|
20
|
35%
|
|
1
year
|
6
|
20
|
30%
|
|
More
than 1 year
|
5
|
20
|
25%
|
Table 2: Retention
period of the customers
Figurer1:
Retention period of the customers
Question 2) How the Chocolate products of the Whitakers satisfy
your requirements?
|
Options
|
Number
of respondents
|
Total
respondents
|
%
of respondents
|
|
Excellent
|
6
|
20
|
30%
|
|
Good
|
4
|
20
|
20%
|
|
Average
|
7
|
20
|
35%
|
|
Marginal
|
3
|
20
|
15%
|
Table 3: Satisfaction
level of the customers
Figure 2: Satisfaction level of the customers
Question 3) How do you agree that the reward process plays a vital
role for producing loyal customers?
|
Options
|
Number
of respondents
|
Total
respondents
|
%
of respondents
|
|
Excellent
|
5
|
20
|
25%
|
|
Good
|
4
|
20
|
20%
|
|
Average
|
6
|
20
|
30%
|
|
Marginal
|
5
|
20
|
25%
|
Table 4: Measure
the performance of reward process
Figure
3: Measure the performance of reward process
Question 4) How far do you agree that reward process help the
company to retain the loyal customers?
|
Options
|
Number
of respondents
|
Total
respondents
|
%
of respondents
|
|
Strongly
agree
|
6
|
20
|
30%
|
|
Agree
|
5
|
20
|
25%
|
|
Neutral
|
5
|
20
|
25%
|
|
Disagree
|
4
|
20
|
20%
|
Table 5: The retention of the customers through the reward
process
Figure 4: The retention of the customers through the reward
process
Question 5) How far do you satisfy that the process of producing
loyal customers help the company to handle the grievances?
|
Options
|
Number
of respondents
|
Total
respondents
|
%
of respondents
|
|
Strong
trustworthy
|
6
|
20
|
30%
|
|
Trustworthy
|
7
|
20
|
35%
|
|
Neutral
|
4
|
20
|
20%
|
|
Not
trustworthy
|
3
|
20
|
15%
|
Table 6: Handling
the grievances level of the customers
Figure 5: Handling the grievances level of the customers
Question 6) what are factors that help the Whitalers to increase
the number loyal customers in the market?
|
Options
|
Number
of respondents
|
Total
respondents
|
%
of respondents
|
|
Quality
of the Chocolates
|
7
|
20
|
35%
|
|
Marketing
strategies
|
3
|
20
|
15%
|
|
Pricing
strategies
|
4
|
20
|
20%
|
|
Customer
services
|
6
|
20
|
30%
|
Table 7: Factors that increase the number of loyal
customers
Figure 6: Factors that increase the number of loyal customers
Qualitative data analysis:
Question 1: What is the role of loyal customers in Whitakers
Chocolate Ltd?
According to the 1st manager the loyal customers played a vital
role for the success of the company. The loyalty of the customers helps the
company to run the business activities for the last 128 years. The loyal
customers also help the company for generating new customers in the market for
the company (Lantos 2015, p.263).
According to the 2nd manager the loyal customers not only generate
new customers but also provide some relevant informations about the changes of
the consumers behavior and demand (Park
et al.2014, P.265). The
information helps the company to develop some new products according to the
demand of the customers. These new products help the company to satisfy the
requirements of new customers in the company.
Question 2: What are the activities followed by the Whitakers
Chocolate Ltd for producing loyal customers in the market?
According to the 1st manager Company always try to maintain the
standards of the quality of the products of the company (Segev et al. 2014,
p.1585). The continuous application of feedback process helps the
company to know about the opinions of the customers about the quality of the
products. The feedback also provides some relevant information about the change
in the taste and preferences of the customers (Hultman et al. 2015,
p. 2230). The development of new products helps the company to meet the
new requirements of the customers and improve the quality of the products. The
development of new products and the improvement of the existing products help
the company to produce some new loyal customers in the market.
According to the 2nd manager the customer services of the company
also help the to improve the number of loyal customers (Das, 2014, p. 289). The efficient employees of the customer
service departments not only recognize the issues faced by the company but also
provide some efficient solutions to the company to solve such issues of the
customers.
Task 3: The process of interpret and analyze the results of
the research proposal
3.1: Application of research evaluation techniques to
evaluate the results
Research Philosophy:
The application of the research philosophy in the research
proposal helps the researcher to recognize and understand the topic of the
research proposal in an efficient manner. The application of research
philosophy depends on the nature of the topic used in the research proposal (Heitz-Spahn, 2013, p.575). There are three
types of research philosophy can be used in the research proposal such as
positivism, post positivism and realism. The researcher use the post positivism
research philosophy to interpret the models, backgrounds and theories
associated with the topic of the research proposal.
Research approach: The application of
research approach in the research proposal helps the researcher to develop a
format for the topic of the research. There are two types of research approach
can be applied in the research proposal the first approach is deductive
approach and the second approach is inductive approach (Gursoy et al. 2017,
p.810). The researcher selects the research approach based on the
availability of the information about the topic of the research proposal. The
inductive approach helps the researcher to develop some new models and theories
about the topic of the research proposal. On the other hand the deductive approach
helps the researchers to collect some relevant information about the
implementation and application of the topic in the practical activities of the
company (Aksoy et al.
2014. P.40). The main objective of the selection of
the deductive approach in the research proposal is to interpret the models and
theories in details associated with the topic by using the data analysis
process.
Research design: The research design helps the researcher to
explain the topic of the research proposal in details to the audience. The
researcher can complete the research proposal with the help of the three
types of research design such as descriptive, explanatory and exploratory. The
descriptive research design help the researcher to identify the issues
associated with the topic properly. It also help the researcher to explain and
describe the topic. The explanatory research design provide attention on the
questions arise about the topic of the research proposal. The Exploratory
research design helps the researcher to define the topic of the research
proposal properly. It also provides some important information about the topic
that help the other researchers in the further research about it.
3.2: Interpretation and analysis of the research topic by
using the frequency and percentage
Interpretation of the outcomes from the quantitative questions (6
questions)
Question 1: How long you have been customer of Whittaker's Chocolate Ltd?
Interpretation: 55% of the participant customers are being the customers of the
company for one year and they want to be the loyal customers of the company for
a long period of time because companies can sale high quality chocolate
products at a lower price than the other companies in the industry.
Question 2: How the Chocolate products of the Whitakers satisfy your
requirements?
Interpretation: 50% of the participants customers are satisfy with the quality of
the chocolate products of the company. The use of new technologies and
production process in the production activity not only increase the quality of
the chocolates but also increase the taste of the chocolate which plays a vital
role to satisfy the customers.
Question 3: How do you agree that the reward process plays a vital role for
producing loyal customers?
Interpretation: 45% participant customers are happy with the reward process of the
company and they want to be the loyal customers of the Whitakers for a long
period of time. The reward process of the company is working as a motivation
for the customers to be the loyal customers of the company for a long period of
time.
Question 4: How far do you agree that reward process help the company to
retain the loyal customers?
Interpretation: 30% and 25% of the participant customers in the research proposal
are agreed that the process of producing loyal customers adopted by the company
not only produce new loyal customers but also increase the loyalty of the
existing customers. The main reason of such outcome in the research proposal is
the meeting of the requirements of the new customers improves the quality of
the existing products.
Question 5: How far do you agree that the process of producing loyal customers
help the company to handle the grievances?
Interpretation: 30% and 35% of the participant customers are thick that the
process of producing loyal customers is trustworthy for handling the grievances
of the customers. The main reason of such outcome is that the company can
collect the information about the requirements and demand of the customers
through the process of producing loyal customers. At the similar time the
customers also provide their opinions about the quality and issues associated
with the products.
Question 6: What are factors that help the Whitakers to increase the number
loyal customers in the market?
Interpretation: Among the all above factors the quality of the chocolates played
an important role to increase the number of the loyal customers. 35% customers
of the company turn into loyal customers for the quality of the products. 20%
of the participant customers are turn into loyal customer for the pricing
strategies of the company. The company has to improve their marketing
strategies because only 15% participant customers are turned into loyal
customers for the marketing strategies of the company.
3.3: Recommendations of different areas for the further
research
Recommendations
The future researchers can use the following recommendations for
the further research about the topic. The application of following
recommendations in the further not only improves the quality but also increase
the efficiency the research proposal. The recommendations are as follows:
A) The further researcher can collect some information about the
process of producing loyal customers followed by the competitors of the
company.
B) The further research can also use some analytical tools such as
SWOT analysis, PEST analysis to acquire information about the future of the
company.
C) In the further research the researcher can increase number of
participant customers and managers during the research questionnaire part.
D) The number of the research questionnaires also can be increased
by the future researchers to collect some additional information about the
topic.
E) The researchers can use other techniques and tools to interpret
the models and theories associated with the topic of the research proposal.
Task 4: The presentation of the result and recommendations
of the result
4.1: Recommendations through a proper media
The researcher can use some appropriate media and format to
present the outcome of the research proposal to the audiences. The appropriate
use of media and format to present the outcome of the results help the
researcher to educate the audience about the use of research topic in the
practical situation. The researcher can present outcome of the research to a
small group of people or the researcher can use an auditorium to provide the
information about the outcome to a large number of people. The presentation of
the outcome of the research proposal provides some new opportunities to the
researcher if the research topic helps the audiences to solve the practical
problems. The feedback from the audience helps the researcher to determine the
loophole of the research proposal. The recovery of the loopholes of the
research proposal not only improves the quality but also the increase the
knowledge of the researcher about the project.
Conclusion
The application of rewards
process in the organisations to increase the number of loyal customers in the
market is discussed throughout the entire research proposal. The organisations
can use the reward process to increase the number of loyal customers in the
company. The above research proposal also provides some recommendations to the
company about the process of increase the number of the loyal customers. The
reward process can motivate the existing and new customers to be loyal to the
company for the long period of time.
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