Understanding Business and Management Research - Assignment Example

 Part 1: Evaluating published research Introduction The terms business and management refer to the different elements that make up the working of an organization. This includes its objectives, plans, policies, practices, strategic planning and organization, marketing, information, technology, communication and financial planning (Bryant, 2011). These elements combined with other systemic elements define the business models and operating methods used by the enterprise in attracting and retaining its customers. Business research and methods involve an understanding of these inter-related domains for effective understanding and theorizing of research objectives (Bryman & Bell, 2007). The article chosen for studying and applying business research methods and analysis for this paper is a research article by Jothi, Neelamalar and Prasad on the role of communication and social networking sites in promoting brands (2011). The choice of this article was based on the growing significance of social media application in business enterprises and the contribution of this research in understanding the impact of communication and technology tools in promoting brand values and marketing strategies. Research context The article focuses on the role of online communication and collaboration in social media context. The existing business environment is adapting to new technologies and applications that have expanded scope for nurturing new business opportunities. Social media is one such tool that has gained recognition from business ventures across the globe. More and more firms are integrating their marketing communication strategies with social media tools to explore new market potentials and enhance customer experience through improved commitment and value. While the application of such tools and technology may have become common place, the real challenge lies in exploiting these resources towards defined business goals and objectives. Not many managers are aware of the behavioural aspects of this tool and its application in business context for increased business value and profitability (Evans, 2008). The article investigates how firms can exploit the social media platforms to promote and develop brands through effective communication strategies. The objectives of the research involve the analysis of effective communication strategies in social networking sites; study the effectiveness of brand communication in social media from users and organizational perspectives; and to find out the impact of such interactions on popular social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Orkut. Online marketing strategies have gained momentum over the past few years considering the new market opportunities and extended client outreach offered by this medium. The use of Internet in business outfits has intensified with new and innovative business models adopted by companies to exploit the prospect of growth and revenue offered by e-commerce sites and social networking sites (Shih, 2009). More and more companies are venturing to social media in an attempt to develop and maintain stronger relations with the customers. The media enables the firms to advertise their products and retain existing customers through adequate information and communication relating to their products and services. The new marketing tactics believe in increased customer involvement and engagement to build brand loyalty and long-lasting customer relationships (Borges, 2009). While the rules of marketing have changed to accommodate increased customer interaction and accessibility through online channels, the key to success in this media lies in effective communication and managerial practices that support transparency and freedom to be creative in customer relationship. Research methods analysis Jothi et al in their research article (2011) focus on analyzing and exploring the effectiveness of communication strategies in promoting brands in social networking sites. Since the research goals were directed towards finding and analyzing the perception of managers and their experiences with social media, the research design adopted survey and content analysis method. Surveys are a popular research method adopted by researchers to explore and investigate research issues from different perspectives (Babbie, 2010). A typical survey research method involves the designing of a set of questionnaires that is presented to a selected sampling unit. The responses to the questionnaires are collected for further analysis and study. The use of surveys is popular in international business research since it enables the researcher to analyze issues and situations through deeper insights into practical experiences and individual perceptions related to the research context (Vissak, 2010; Hair et al., 2011). The primary strength of this research method is its ability to relate to realistic environment and identify distinctive trends and practices that have been shaping the research study area. The method helps in investigating different dimensions related to complex business processes such as business networking, marketing relationships, customer-orientation and behavioural changes. This approach “is probably the best method available to the social researcher who is interested in collecting original data for describing a population too large to observe directly” (Babbie, 2010). The approach is favoured by business researchers for these distinctive benefits that help in exploring new insights and observations. The findings are analysed through existing knowledge and literature review on the research context to define new patterns and trends that are playing a vital role in business performance and operations. The analysis thus traces the path for defining new trends and identifies scope for further research in the area (Soy, 2006). The research study adopts this research method to identify and define the perspectives of international managers on social media applications in business. For this purpose the researcher collected primary data through surveys conducted among users of Facebook, Twitter and Orkut. The sampling unit was restricted to the age group of 16-30 years since most of the active users of social networking sites belong to this age group. The total sampling size was 100. The research method begins with the specification of the research questions that highlight the goals and objectives of the research. Once the research questions are framed, the next step is the selection of sampling unit and data collection process for supporting research arguments and further analysis (Cooper & Schindler, 2008). The data collection processes involves intimation of research purpose to the identified case study objects and obtain their willingness to be a part of the research project. This is followed by the collection and assimilation of data from both primary and secondary sources for data analysis. The data analysis process used in this research study is content analysis method. The content analysis method is a procedure that allows the researcher to categorize or code the findings into distinctive categories (Peer & Nesbitt, 2004). The coding of the data helps the researcher in identifying and defining some of the vital trends and responses that in turn support research arguments (Hsieh & Shannon, 2005). The method is simple and reliable that is based on coding of factual evidence. Hence the researcher can code the findings under distinct headings that form the base for further analysis and interpretation. For the purpose of this study the researcher categorized the data for subsequent analysis on the target group, types of advertisements, ad placements, communication strategy, visual appealing factors, user interaction, accessibility, user interest and customization. Data analysis and observations The findings of the study conclude that interactive marketing approaches are more appealing to customers than the conventional marketing methods. It is also interesting to note that most users refer to the social media sites for detailed product performance updates and related information before making a purchase. Social networking sites can hence prove to be effective platforms for marketing goods and services through increased interactions with prospective and existing customers. Mini –report Social Media Applications in Business and Associated Customer Value Contents Contents 7 Executive Summary 8 Introduction 9 Literature review 10 Research Methodology 14 Analysis 15 Conclusion 17 Appendix 19 References 23 Executive Summary The social media networking applications have re-defined business strategies to accommodate new concepts and strategic practices that focus on delivering increased value to customers and other stakeholders of the business. The implications of this technology revolution on business performance and outcomes are diverse. The growth of open communication channels has promoted the emergence and development of healthy communities or group practices that have made a visible impact on business growth strategies. The future of social networks and its successful application in business growth is largely dependent on effective management practices and strategies that promote knowledge sharing practices. The significance and increasing reliance of organizations on knowledge management practices is largely accountable to the increasing globalisation of the economies that warrants business enterprises to stay updated on market trends and changes in the industry dynamics that has a direct impact on profitability and growth. Hence, the use of social networks for spreading information and updated statistics on the market movements can be extremely useful in deciding managerial strategies and designing effective business growth models. The report evaluates the potentials and scope of this media tool in promoting business goals and supporting new business models in retail industry. Introduction In today’s world, out of the various means of communication available, social media is one of them. It is a medium of communication through the use of audio, video, text, images or can be combination of all of these. It acts as a strong tool of communication for individuals, other businesses and organizations. It acts as a gateway to many new opportunities for the companies to have a strong and sustained relationship with their clients and customers (Zonneveld, 2007; Anderson, Harter, Hagen & Plenge, 2010). In spite of its immense scope in the areas of retaining business and establishing new businesses, many companies are still not very open to the idea of adopting the social media practices (Evans & McKee, 2010). In order for the companies to nurture the potentials of the social media and to be able to change the way business is done, lot of strategic changes needed to be adopted. There are many ways through which people can obtain information, news etc from various electronic and printing media. Social media is not expensive and does not require much research or resource to publish information (Zarrella, 2008; Bonchi, Castillo, Gionis & Jaimes, 2011). Those companies which can understand and realize the importance of the social media on the customer front can bring about a remarkable change in their organization. Social media techniques are still to be developed fully. In the coming years the tools of social media would be used and implemented by almost all the companies (Cerado, 2009; Gordon, 2010). Based on the observations the report here provides an assessment of the trends and application of social media tools in promoting business value and contributing to enhanced customer value. The literature review on social media highlights the key aspects of this technology and its role in promoting business value for enterprises. The analysis and interpretation of evidences from this report is used to exemplify the benefits and potentials of the social media tool in business environment through the study of TESCO. Literature review Social media has a powerful impact on the organizations. The initiative needs to be taken by the concerned company to fully take the advantage of the presence of the social media. Compared to the traditional ways of the methods adopted by the organizations like changing the sales structure, reduction in the service costs etc, social media can prove to be much fruitful towards the growth and the development of the company (Anjum, 2011; ISACA, 2010). The global economy has undergone many changes since approximately two decades ago. This change was quite unpredictable for the people of that era. They had the same trend of business operation and the strategies were also quite similar as the 1960’s (Lee & Carter, 2005). Even the supermarket and the grocery market relied mostly on the paper work and the point of sale mechanism. Electronic inventory was quite out of place. After the 1980’s the changes were brought about in the field of medical sciences and genetic engineering. Within ten years the shape and size of the computers were also changed and was made quite user friendly as well as easy to handle (Safko, 2010). The internet marked its presence in the 1990s. Internet and other web based applications enabled the companies to change their strategy and work in sync with the concept of e-commerce and virtual marketplace (Anderson, 2010).With the help of new and advanced technologies, such as the World Wide Web, mobiles has created many opportunities for the company and the businesses to produce better products. This has increased the level of satisfaction among the customers as well. Internet has also helped the companies to reach many customers at one go. This reduces the effort and the cost involved (Gommans, Krishnan & Scheffold, 2001; Kabani & Brogan, 2010; Kessler & Ruesga, 2010). According to the data, by 2012 approximately 24.5% will access the Internet services at least once in a month. China constitutes the largest population accessing Internet users. According to the e-marketer (www.emarketer.com) 1.7 billion people will use Internet every month (EIU, 2011). In Asia Pacific the number of internet users is speculated to be more than 500 million (Luukka, 2011). Out of the various advantages of the social media, enhancing smooth interaction and exchange of ideas and transfer of knowledge is one of them. This facilitates the companies to provide better customer service through smooth and easy access to the customer’s demands and needs. The companies can improve their communication methods to adhere to the customers demands and can understand their grievances as well (Sheals, 2011). This improves the working of the companies by correcting their mistakes and thus improvises their products. With the virtue of the social media the company can adopt new and advanced technology which aids the suppliers as well to decrease the cost and time in information accessing (Singh, Becker & Williams, 2009). The bid information can also be viewed online, which is much structured, detailed and giving ample space to the suppliers to choose the best bid. In short, social media provides a forum for the companies to help the customers and in turn work on their profit statement (Jaokar, Jacobs & Moore, 2009). The successful usage of social media as a tool for an effective business depends much on its potential. Many organizations have tested different forms of business engagements, for example increase in sales, reduction of the service costs and trying new techniques to improve the manufacturing of the products etc. Not many have actually tried the strategies pertaining to the opportunities offered by the spread of social media (Qualman, 2010; Lietsala & Sirkkunen, 2008). Over time, the taste of the consumers with respect to the choosing of the products and services has changed immensely. Through the virtue of the social media, people are now more open to entertain good and reputed brands, other favourites into these networks. With the help of various social and networking sites people have now become open to the idea of taking inputs as well as sharing feedbacks about any kind of services and products offered by a company (Harbour, 2010; Qiao, 2008). Thus the social media becomes a boom as well as bane for the companies. The organizations look for a two way relationship with their customers, the purchase of a product or the selling of the same in one of the many ways with which a company is able to know the feedback of the products they are offering in the marketplace (Rad & Benyoucef, 2010). So the data obtained from the reports of the stores or the malls regarding the amount of the sold items of a company is not the only parameter on which the business value of the company can stand on to. Some new and other mean of value is required to analyze the loophole in a business and re-tool to correct the same (Wade, 2011). Social media helps the companies in that respect. They can help a company to build a deep and an everlasting relationship with their clients as well as the customers. The traditional approach of managing customer relationships is to deal with the customers so as to work on their profit margin. This is usually restricting to differentiating the customers according to their contribution to profit. For example, the segment of customers who can be called high spending might be given the after care with respect to the product compared to the one who are not spending much amount on that product. They are the lower spending customers (Demailly & Silman, 2008). The segment who is contributing much to the profit statement of the company, their feedback or the insights can enhance business value. This can be possible only if their thoughts and opinion is shared and made meaningful. When an organization wants to have better understanding or engagement of the market with perspective to the customer’s point of view, they need to have more investment. This can be either human resources for a thorough market analysis or investment in terms of installing any new software. Studies have revealed that organizations are though keen to keen to experiment with the social media works, but a strong business initiative or change is required to implement the same (Luukka, 2011). Any company can try for adopting different ways for initiating customer engagement but for the whole assimilation of the social media tools and practices would require an overall change in the management or a top-down change. The only disadvantage of the social media being the transactional metrics are clearly laid down and they can be depicted in numbers, social conversations are somewhat unstructured and not easy to analyze and understand (Sheals, 2011). Research Methodology Research methods adopted in management focus on analyzing practical considerations and variables that define the extent to which these factors influence the study context (Sekaran & Bougie, 2009). The research design for the purpose of this study comprised of both primary and secondary data collection process. The secondary research method adopted for this report was the case study approach. The case study approach was chosen to highlight the potential benefits and business opportunities that can be exploited by firms through the intelligent use of the social media platform (Greener, 2008). Tesco has integrated social networks with customer relationship management (CRM) solutions to build communities and relationships with online contacts to help increase sales, improve response rates and offer efficient customer service (Futurelabs, 2011). This strategy has helped the company in improving customer relationships and developing new contacts for business development and expansion. The study made use of primary research method that involved a sample survey through questionnaires to test the customer perception of Tesco brands through the social media networking sites. A small sampling unit of 30 was selected for the study. The selection of the sampling unit for this purpose was done on a random basis by approaching some online users in the age group of 18-40. Online messages detailing the research objectives and the data collection approach were sent to the selected sampling unit. The researcher sought the permission of the participant to this study through online messaging system. Each participant was sent the questionnaire via email after receiving their confirmation and willingness to be a part of this research process. The participants filled in their responses to the questionnaire and sent it back to the researcher through email. The questionnaire designed for the study comprised of 10 closed questions that required the respondents to select the answer that closely reflected their views and opinions. The choice of close ended questions for the study was based on the perception that such question formats make it easier for the respondents to answer (Johnson & Christensen, 2010). Moreover, it is less time consuming for the respondent and easier for the researcher to categorize the responses (Lazar, Feng & Hochheiser, 2009). Analysis The findings of the primary research process suggest that most of the customers in the sampling group used social media application tools to access product reviews and other related information. The graph below illustrates the response pattern to the social media application tools and usage – 25 out of 30 respondents were active users of social networking sites and most of the respondents claimed that this technology can be used effectively for nurturing customer relationship and acquiring new customers. 28 out of 30 respondents had visited the Tesco website and accessed its social networking pages. A majority of the respondents (27 out of 30) felt that social networking sites will play an important role in shaping consumer behaviour and influencing purchase decision. The findings from the study of Tesco provided interesting insights. According to the findings the retail industry has experienced significant changes in terms of customer preferences and expectations. A significant number of shoppers turn to online channels for availing retail information and comparing products of different companies before making a purchase. The IMAP Global Retail Industry Report (2010) observes that online retail sales have increased by 14.5 percent globally. The past few years have witnessed vital changes in customer perception and usage pattern of online medium in the retail sector. Leading players like Tesco are enhancing their presence online to fulfil the needs of the tech-savvy customers seeking high value services for goods purchased (IMAP, 2010). Social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and Orkut have provided companies like Tesco with new platforms to influence customer purchase behaviour and create extended presence. The number of visitors to the social networking sites has increased by nearly 27 percent from the previous year. The focus of the companies is on strengthening customer relationships through increased interaction and collaboration that helps in understanding and meeting their needs effectively. Customer care forms a vital aspect of sales and performance in the retail industry and social media platform has helped in supporting customer retention and loyalty goals of retail firms (Right Now, 2009). The emphasis is on catering to customer information and other needs at any point of time. Accessibility and convenience are the key factors driving the effectiveness of social marketing strategies online. Tesco believes strongly that social networks can provide businesses with extended reach and utility in terms of assisting enterprises in adapting to rapidly changing business environment through adequate knowledge management applications, information sharing platform and enhanced communication tools (Right Now, 2009). With organizations shifting a global operational environment it is increasingly important to drive growth through innovation and for this an organization has to depend on people. People or organizational workforce can implement innovative practices provided the company provides them with the necessary information and knowledge resources that can be strengthened through increased collaboration. Social networks can hence play an effective role in driving business growth and development as is evident in the practices of a multinational organization like Tesco (Global Human Capital Journal, 2008; Bock & Paxhia, 2008). Conclusion The customers in today’s world expect a different kind of relationship and behaviour of the companies whose products and services they are buy and aspire for. Owing to this changed attitude of the consumer the work of the relationship management has become tougher and demands more attention and openness in terms of the service. Social media creates an open forum for the customers to express their opinion and it also helps the companies to work in tandem with the customers needs, wants as well the areas of improvement which the consumers are looking for from the companies. Thus social media might increase the challenges for an effective relationship management but on the brighter side it helps the companies to work in a mutually beneficial way. The need of the hour is the proper and thorough understanding as well as implementation of the potentials of social media. This will also help a company have a competitive advantage over their rivals. Appendix Questionnaire – 1. What according to you is social media – a. Online tool for collaboration and communication with others b. Facebook, Twitter, Orkut and other similar sites c. Not sure 2. Have you used any of the social media sites like Facebook, Twitter etc? a. Yes, I am an active user. b. Yes but I just follow the activity of others c. No, I do not use any of these tools. 3. I use the Internet for – a. Accessing information b. Making purchases online c. Only for my work 4. Do you use the Internet to access detailed information relating to the products you wish to buy? a. Yes b. No 5. Have you visited the Tesco website – a. Yes b. No 6. If yes, what do you feel about the website – a. Very informative and helpful b. Not so impressive c. Very poorly designed 7. Have you interacted on Tesco’s Facebook page – a. Yes b. No 8. If yes, did you find the page informative and useful – a. Yes b. No 9. What according to you are the key benefits of using the social networking sites for businesses - a. Expand customer base through more visibility online b. Cater to customer inquiries and complaints instantly c. Connect to existing and potential customers 10. Do you compare products information and details online before making a purchase - a. Yes b. No 11. What according to you are the potential benefits of using online social media tools – a. Customer relationship b. New customer acquisition c. Both 12. Do you purchase products online – a. Yes b. No 13. Do you feel that effective use of this technology tool can lead to improved business performance in terms of revenue and customer service – a. Yes b. No c. Not sure 14. How will you rate the customer service interaction of Tesco online – a. Excellent b. Good c. Poor 15. How will you rate the promptness in responding to customer queries and complaints - a. Excellent b. Good c. Poor 16. Do you think the social networking sites will play an important role in influencing customer purchase decision and brand loyalty – a. Yes b. 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