Brand Identification Plays in Brand Loyalty and Brand Promotion - Essay Example

?Research Methodology This section aims to define the methods of achieving the research objectives and research approach that will be followed to solve the research problem. This section will also analyze some other topics such as proposed approach to Primary Research, Research Philosophies like Interpretivism and Realism, Research Approaches like Deductive methods, Research strategies such as survey, case study, sampling and Data collection etc. 3.1 Research Approach This research will use a positivistic approach to assess the impact of specific variable, CBI on outcomes like customer loyalty and customer satisfaction. A positivistic approach aim is to enables the researcher collecting data in an objective manner (Aronowitz and Ausch, 2000) and to discard extraneous variables and to hence prevent the context from affecting the quality or the integrity of the collected data (Barker, 2005). 3.2 Research Methods This research uses both primary data collection and secondary methods for testing the research hypothesis. The secondary research consists of a literature review that contains a critical analysis of the available literature and research on the customer brand identification, brand loyalty, brand promotion, customer satisfaction and retention. It also covers the theories on these variables and discusses any linkages between them. The primary research is carried out among 159 mobile customers in UK with the help of a questionnaire. The data collected in the city of York. Respondents of questionnaire were selected randomly and the target samples were shoppers from all age ranges from 18 to 66 years or more. Both males and females, who come out of retail settings, were used. The strategy used was to approach every third person coming out of a shops (Tesco, Asda, M&S, any high street shop, etc) to ensure that we get a random representative sample whose mindset is similar (shopping). Before giving the questionnaire to the respondents, the researcher explained the research rationale and asked the respondents to complete it based on their favorite mobile brand. Respondents were mainly females (51.6 per cent) in the age group of 18-35 (70.9 per cent). Tables given below give more details about the respondent characteristics: Respondents' Gender Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid Male 77 48.4 48.4 48.4 Female 82 51.6 51.6 100.0 Total 159 100.0 100.0 Respondents' Age Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid 18-25 55 34.6 34.8 34.8 26-35 57 35.8 36.1 70.9 36-45 35 22.0 22.2 93.0 46-55 6 3.8 3.8 96.8 56-65 3 1.9 1.9 98.7 66 or more 2 1.3 1.3 100.0 Total 158 99.4 100.0 Missing System 1 .6 Total 159 100.0 3.3 Research Design The research design consist of the sample size, data collection and sampling method, and analysis techniques. In this research we are using 112 items from previous studies to measure the relationship between the customers and their favorite brands, using seven 7-point scale items Scale of Escalas (1996). All questions will have multiple choices (Caproni 2005, p.146).The results of the questionnaires will be used to make conclusions later in this study We used about 25 item scale of potential measures of model constructs from C.B Bhattacharya & Sankar sen study to measure the relationship between company identity and identity attractiveness and also to know the link between identity attractiveness and c-c identity : We used the findings of Ahearne et al (2005), to examine the link between customer – brand identification in first and second section of our survey (general question about customer and favorite brand) and also to describe the level of overlap between the costumer and brand identity. Questionnaire used was of a seven-point format like; strongly disagree, disagree, slightly disagree, neither agree nor disagree, slightly agree, agree and strongly agree. The research will also examine if the CBI have an important role towards the brand loyalty and also in the process of brand promotion. 3.4 Ethical considerations This research uses all the ethical considerations that were required for studies involving human participants, namely, informed consent, privacy of participants and integrity of data (Fisher, 2004; Bell and Opie, 2002). The respondents were provided with full information about the study and why data is being collected and what is the purpose of the research and their informed consent was taken. Next, the researcher kept all the data collected confidential and promised never to disclose the demographic details of the participants to anyone. 3.5 Qualitative and Quantitative methods Most of the researches are using qualitative and quantities methods for data collection. Both qualitative and quantities methods of data collection have merits as well as demerits. “The benefits of the qualitative approach are that the information is richer and has a deeper insight into the phenomenon under study” (Methods of collecting qualitative data, n.d.). Qualitative data are usually collected both at individual level and group levels. Observations, in-depth interviews, action research and focus groups are some of the sources used for the collection of qualitative data. It should be noted that in-depth interviews will provide deep insights about the opinions of a person regarding a particular topic. If the interviewer is smart enough, he can bring out the hidden attitudes and opinions of the interviewee so that the data collected may get more reliability. Observational techniques are methods by which an individual or individuals gather first-hand data on programs, processes, or behaviours being studied. They provide evaluators with an opportunity to collect data on a wide range of behaviours, to capture a great variety of interactions, and to openly explore the evaluation topic (Overview of Qualitative Methods and Analytic Techniques, N.d.) Even though qualitative methods of data collection have many advantages, it has lot of disadvantages also. For example, data collected based on observations do not have the scientific backing. In other words, it is not necessary that the behaviors of a person always reflect his way of thinking. There are plenty of people who support the activities of others publicly even though they have reservations. For example, suppose a person congratulates his friend for purchasing a Samsung Galaxy S3 phone. Actually he may like iPhone more than Galaxy. However, in order to make his friend pleasant he may appreciate his friend for the purchasing of Samsung Galaxy. A researcher collecting data from the behavior of that person may fail to collect the actual attitude of that person towards galaxy phones or iphones. The researcher may wrongly interpret his behaviors. In short, the data collected from observations need not be true always. As in the case of observational data, data collected from interviews may also be wrong at times. There are plenty of cases in which the interviewee may submit misleading information to the interviewer to safeguard his or his organization’s interests. For example, Apple Company is always blamed for keeping its strategies secret. An interviewer who tries to collect Apple’s future intentions to produce new products may get wrong information from an Apple employee. “Collection of qualitative data is generally more time consuming that quantitative data collection and therefore unless time, staff and budget allows it is generally necessary to include a smaller sample size”(2/11 Advantages and Disadvantages of Qualitative Data Analysis, 2008). Most of the academic researches need to be completed within a specified time period. It is difficult to collect ample qualitative data within the specific time period because of the difficulties in arranging interviews and observing different kinds of people. In short, qualitative methods of data collection need not be reliable always even though many of the researches in the past and present are using it for making conclusions. That is why we avoided qualitative methods of data collection and relied entirely on the quantities data for making conclusions in this research. “The Quantitative data collection methods rely on random sampling and structured data collection instruments that fit diverse experiences into predetermined response categories. They produce results that are easy to summarize, compare, and generalize”(Data Collection Methods, N.d.). Moreover, “Quantitative research involves counting and measuring of events and performing the statistical analysis of a body of numerical data”(Matveev, 2002). Some of the other advantages of Quantitative data are given below. Allow for a broader study, involving a greater number of subjects, and enhancing the generalisation of the results Can allow for greater objectivity and accuracy of results. Generally, quantitative methods are designed to provide summaries of data that support generalisations about the phenomenon under study. In order to accomplish this, quantitative research usually involves few variables and many cases, and employs prescribed procedures to ensure validity and reliability Using standard compared with similar studies. Quantitative methods allow us to summarize vast sources of information and facilitate comparisons across categories and over time' Personal bias can be avoided by researchers keeping a 'distance' from participating subjects and employing subjects unknown to them (3/19 Advantages and disadvantages of quantitative data analysis, 2008) Internet searches, books, journals, published papers, surveys, experiments etc are some of the common sources of collecting quantitative data. Since secondary sources are plenty in number, the researcher can use a wide variety of secondary sources to arrive at conclusions. For example, internet is an ocean of information on any topic or subject. It should be noted that thousands of books, journals, periodicals, newspapers, and other published papers are available in internet so that a researcher can go through as many references in quick time. Unlike qualitative research, the data collected through secondary sources like internet or books are more reliable since these data have the backing of scientific research techniques. Quantitate data or secondary data are usually collected from a variety of sources and hence these data may have more reliability and value. For example, it is not necessary that Samsung brand may perceive as good as Apple brad in America. Same way, it is not necessary that Apple brand may be perceived as good as Samsung brand in Asia. Only the quantities data from different sources from different parts of the world will provide the actual figure of how many people like Samsung and how many dislike it. It should be noted that qualitative data provides the attitude of the consumers in a particular region whereas quantitative data can provide the views and opinions of people from every corner of the world. “Quantitative research uses statistical and mathematical methods to figure out results of a study. Quantitative research uses a simple format that consists of proving or disproving generated hypotheses”(Quantitative research, 2012). Analysis of data from quantitative research is simple and straight forward. Since quantitative research give more focus to numbers, it is easy even for a layman to understand the findings. On the other hand, it is not necessary that the data obtained from qualitative research always be straight forward and simple. One of the major strengths of Quantitative data is “Testing and validating already constructed theories about how and why phenomena occur” (Strengths and Weaknesses of Quantitative Research, N.d., p.1). In other words, the quantities or numbers collected from quantitative researches are more reliable since these data have the backing of scientific research conducted by previous researchers. The researcher can compare his findings against the findings of previous researchers if he uses quantitative research methods. On the other hand, qualitative data collection methods do not possess such facilities. Quantitative data are usually objective and subjective in nature (The use of Quantitative and Qualitative Data Collection Methods in Sociology, n.d., p.1) and hence it is easy to interpret it. On the other hand, qualitative data are usually subjective in nature. In order to increase the reliability of the findings of a research, it is necessary to increase the objectivity and subjectivity of the data collected. Moreover, it is easy to formulate hypothesizes based on quantitative data. Quantitative researches are less time consuming compared to quantitative researches. Since quantitiave data is readily available, the researcher need not wait lengthy time periods to collect it. For example, an internet search may generate ample quantitiave data instantly with respect to a particular topic. Quantitative data collection methods have some limitations also. Data collected through quantitative methods are usually numerical in nature. It deals with the quantities rather than qualities of an action. In order to make a research more reliable, numerical data alone may not be sufficient. For example, Chinese goods are used by plenty of people all over the world because of cheaper price. On the other hand, American goods and Japanese goods are highly expensive and used only by the rich people. In other words, it is impossible to judge the quality of a product based on the number of purchases. Another disadvantage of Quantitative data collection is that it requires large samples. “The logistical difficulties inherent in gathering a sufficiently large sample can sabotage the study before it even gets off the ground. Larger samples also tend to be more expensive” (Quantitative Research Limitations, n.d., p.1). It is not necessary that the data collected from large samples are similar in nature. So, the researcher may face difficulties in interpreting diverse and contrasting data. As mentioned earlier, American consumers may rate Apple brand as the most valuable one whereas Asian customers may rate Samsung above the Apple brand. Based on these contrasting opinions, it is difficult for the researcher to generalise his findings. In short, quantitative data collection methods seem to be more reliable than qualitative data collection methods, even though it has some limitations. That is why this research gives more importance to quantitative data collection methods. References 2/11 Advantages and Disadvantages of Qualitative Data Analysis, 2008. [Online] Available at: http://www.learnhigher.ac.uk/analysethis/main/qualitative1.html [Accessed 09 September 2012] 3/19 Advantages and disadvantages of quantitative data analysis, 2008. [Online] Available at: http://www.learnhigher.ac.uk/analysethis/main/quantitative1.html [Accessed 09 September 2012] Data Collection Methods, N.d. [Online] Available at: http://people.uwec.edu/piercech/researchmethods/data%20collection%20methods/data%20collection%20methods.htm [Accessed 09 September 2012] Methods of collecting qualitative data, N.d. [Online] Available at: http://libweb.surrey.ac.uk/library/skills/Introduction%20to%20Research%20and%20Managing%20Information%20Leicester/page_54.htm[Accessed 09 September 2012] Overview of Qualitative Methods and Analytic Techniques, N.d. [Online] Available at: http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/1997/nsf97153/chap_3.htm [Accessed 09 September 2012] Matveev, A.V. 2002. The Advantages Of Employing Quantitative And Qualitative Methods In Intercultural Research. [Online] Available at: http://www.russcomm.ru/eng/rca_biblio/m/matveev01_eng.shtml[Accessed 09 September 2012] Quantitative research, 2012. [Online] Available at: http://lon03.wordpress.com/2012/03/25/quantitative-research/[Accessed 09 September 2012] Quantitative Research Limitations, n.d. [Online] Available at: http://res7252011.wikispaces.com/file/view/Quantitative+Research+Limitations.pdf[Accessed 09 September 2012] Strengths and Weaknesses of Quantitative Research, N.d. [Online] Available at: http://www.southalabama.edu/coe/bset/johnson/oh_master/Ch14/Tab14-01.pdf[Accessed 09 September 2012] The use of Quantitative and Qualitative Data Collection Methods in Sociology, N.d. [Online] Available at: http://www.school-portal.co.uk/GroupDownloadFile.asp?GroupId=23573&ResourceId=2751570[Accessed 09 September 2012] Read More