Impacts of Marketing Strategies on Consumers Behaviour in the Telecom Industry in Qatar - Research Paper Example

Impacts of marketing strategies on consumer’s behaviour in the telecom industry in Qatar

Table of content

1. Introduction3

2. Background of the study3

3. Literature review5

3.1 Overview of telecom industry in Qatar5

3.2 Consumer behaviour6

3.3 Marketing mix strategies9

3.4 Impacts of marketing strategies13

4. Research questions14

5. Research aim and objectives14

6. Research methodology15

6.1 Research philosophy16

6.2 Research approach17

6.3 Strategy of the research18

6.4 Data collection method18

6.5 Data analysis techniques19

6.6 Ethical consideration20

7. Time scale20

Reference List21

• 1. Introduction

In the recent era of global competitive market, there are great impacts of marketing strategy of the organisations on the customers purchase decision making behaviour as the planning influences the consumers to make the buying decision. The main purpose of this research is to identify the impacts of the marketing strategies of telecom companies in Qatar on the consumers buying decision making behaviour. The research aims and objectives are crucial in this study to follow a suitable path to proceed in the research and complete it successfully by fulfilling all the research questions. The researcher tries to review the existing literatures about the research topic. In order to collect the theories and models, the researcher gathers more information from books, articles, websites and journals. Therefore, the literature review in this research is essential to understand the topic of this research and analyse it successfully.

After discussing the existing literatures, the methodology of this research is also important to proceed in the research process in a systematic manner, so that it is easy to analyse the research topic appropriately. The methods of research, research philosophy and data collection and analysis are essential for the researcher to collect authentic data and analyse it to understand the research topic successfully. Moreover, time scale of this research provides an appropriate planning to proceed in the study and complete it successfully. The main aim of this study is to acknowledge the impacts of marketing strategies in the customer’s behaviour in the telecom industry in Qatar through gaining more knowledge and following proper research methods.

• 2. Background of the study

Qatar telecom industry is well established and quiet efficient to serve quality products and services to the consumers. The population of Qatar was almost doubled in 2014 which was 2.1 million as compared to 0.98 million in 2006 (BQ Magazine, 2014). Therefore, it is quiet difficult to serve a wide range of population of the country. Due to existing brands, there is high competition in the country due to existing brands in the telecom industry. Nowadays, it is the major issues of the multinational corporations to retain more potential buyers towards the brand to increase sales volume and profitability. The companies try to deliver world class telecommunication service to the consumers so that it is possible to gain sustainable competitive advantage over other existing firms. Both the ministry of ICT and CRA (Communication Regulatory Authority) try to make considerable efforts to establish the advanced infrastructure successfully in the country (Qatar e-government, 2016). It is also challenging for the telecom industry of Qatar to maximise the benefits of the consumers by ensuring social and economic development. In such an increasing era of globalisation, the number of internet users is rising. Therefore, the demand for the telecom products and services is also changing day to day as per their needs and preferences.

It is not easy for the existing companies to acknowledge the actual needs and preferences of the individuals. It is also the main issues in the country and therefore, the companies need to develop appropriate marketing strategies through which they can retain more potential buyers towards the brands. Therefore, the study is important to forecast the impacts of the marketing strategies on the consumer’s purchase decision making behaviour in the telecom industry of Qatar (Qatar e-government, 2016). It is crucial for the organisations in Qatar to adopt effective marketing planning through which they can influence the buying decision of the consumers and retain more potential buyers in Qatar. It is an important issue now to gain competitive advantage over other existing brands by retaining more consumers towards the brand. In Qatar, there are mainly two telecom industry named Vodafone and Ooredoo which increases competition between these two companies. In this regard, the main purpose of this study is to identify the strategies of the companies to establish the brands in effective market place (Qatar e-government, 2016).

The main aim of the organisations is not only to provide the customers e-commerce service but also to offer efficient mobile sites and websites in simpler way. Apart from the e-commerce facility, the organisations try to improve e-education, e-business and e-government facility and for increasing social and economic values in the country, it is important to retain more consumers towards the organisations. Apart from Vodafone and Ooredoo, there are other companies such as Qatar National Broadband Network, MEEZA and ES’hailSat that try to develop integrated communication infrastructure for meeting the future needs (Manochehri et al., 2012). Therefore, the study is helpful to understand the strategic management of the organisations to influence customer’s buying decision and increase economic and social values through developing the telecom sector in Qatar.

• 3. Literature review
  • 3.1 Overview of telecom industry in Qatar

The telecom industry in Qatar is increasing rapidly since past few decades due to rising number of mobile and internet users. People of Qatar use different communications technologies such as computers, broadband internet connections, tablets and smartphone. The government initiatives and large investment helps the country to establish efficient network system with the advanced ICT (Information and Communication Technology) system that mainly supports the whole telecom industry (Al-Kaabi et al., 2010). The market growth and increasing demand for broadband and internet data service facilitates more sustainable market growth in the telecom industry of the country. There are mainly two brand named Vodafone and Ooredoo that are successful in generating attractive profitability and create more competitive market in the country (Manochehri et al., 2012). Apart from that, private and public investment in real estate development is crucial to foster more development in the country and strengthen the infrastructure of the telecom sector. Qatar is one of the most highly connected markets in the Middle-East and increasing number of mobile phones and broadband subscribers create more competitive environment in the market (Qatar e-government, 2016). Increasing number of population in the country raises the demand for the infrastructure including transportation, schools, hospitals etc and the government tries to establish Qatar as a smart city with more urban development (BQ Magazine, 2014).

Qatar National Broadband Network Company (QNBN) is selected to offer network and broadband capacity to both of the companies, Ooredoo and Vodafone. Qatar is successful in developing advanced ICT system and with the help of it, the country facilitates more multidimensional development including science and technology, research and development facilities and green economy and e-transport system (Al-Kaabi et al., 2010). In 2014, the government took the initiatives to establish new independent Communication Regulatory Authority (CRA) to make the telecom industry efficient for providing high quality products and services to the consumers. In 2015, the authority suggested that the country needs to reduce the roaming charges for voice calls, SMS and mobile data so that it is possible to retain more potential buyers towards the organisations (Manochehri et al., 2012). The goal of the country is mainly to have 100% government service in the telecom industry and tries to foster faster communications in the country for economic and social sustainable development. The country is known for fast fibre deployment in the region and develops national fibre based network named QNBN.

The telecom industry in Qatar plays a crucial role in developing the economic and social structure of the country which is known as National Development Strategy documented as Qatar National Vision 2030. The strategies further develop the areas of e-commerce, e-transport, e-government, e-learning, e-health and e-education system. In 2015, the growth in telecom industry was approximately 9.7%, which was lower as compared to 10.8% growth rate in 2014 (Manochehri et al., 2012). In 2009, Vodafone entered in the country and become second telecom operator and thus, Ooredoo was the first company enjoying the monopoly power in the market. The government of Qatar is concerned about making the business transparent and non-discriminatory to develop the telecom industry sustainably. The government also facilitates more sustainable economic and social growth by creating values for the social communities (BQ Magazine, 2014). Public safety in communication and flexibility in the telecom system due to advanced ICT infrastructure help the country to strengthen the telecom sector. By reducing regulatory framework and reserve appropriate spectrum for future innovative technologies, the government tries to improve efficiency in serving the consumers in the country (Al-Kaabi et al., 2010). Therefore, technological advancement and innovation is essential to support and promote the telecom services and products to the customers and gain competitive advantage in the market.

• • 3.2 Consumer behaviour

The consumer’s behaviour about purchase decision making practice includes five steps such as problem recognition, information search, evaluation of the information, purchase decision and post-purchase evaluation. Through these steps, the consumers make the decision to buy a particular products and services. The steps can be discussed below:

Figure 1: Consumers buying decision making process

(Source: Fifield, 2012)

• Problem recognition:

It is important to identify the needs and references of the consumers before making the purchase decision. The consumers try to acknowledge the needs as per their budget constraint so that they can afford the particular bundle of products and services (Fifield, 2012). The needs and references of the individuals help to identify the articular product or service that can increase the satisfaction level of the consumer.

• Information search:

The second step is to find relevant information about the product and service that the customer requires as per their preferences and needs. The individual can access the information from personal, commercial, experimental and public sources. Word of mouth is one of the major strategies through which the individual can gain personal information from friends, family, colleagues and others (Christopher et al., 2013). On the other hand, advertisement, packaging of the products and billboards, display and branding are the commercial sources through which the consumers get relevant information about the chosen service or product. Moreover, newspaper and magazines are the public sources from which the product information can be gained and individual experience is the experimental sources for which the company can retain more old as well as new consumers towards the brand (Leonidou et al., 2013).

• Information evaluation:

The next step after accessing all the information is evaluation of the information as the individual seek more data about any alternative products or services. Therefore, the consumers gather more information, real life experiences and news about more substitute products and services to choose the best option ultimately (Proctor, 2014). The consumers try to evaluate the products on the basis of their chosen criteria. They are mainly aware about the durability, warranty, quality, and price and after sales customer service. Therefore, the evaluation of the information is necessary to choose the right product or service as the customer’s preferences and needs.

• Purchase decision:

After gathering all the information about the main products and also substitute products, the consumers make the purchase decision. They choose the best option according to their needs, preferences and budget constraint (Armstrong et al., 2014). After evaluating all the alternatives and searching more information, the consumers make the purchase decision as per their requirements.

• Post-purchase evaluation:

After making the purchase decision, the consumers try to evaluate the post-purchase decision. The post-purchase evaluation includes the analysis of them for satisfaction level, utilisation of the product and need fulfilment. The customers compare the products or services for identifying that whether the products meet their previous expectation or not (Gilligan and Hird, 2012). The post-purchase evaluation actually depends on brand loyalty, information search and alternative data searches.

Therefore, the whole decision making process is crucial for improving customer satisfaction after utilising the products and services. It is also important to identify the feedback from the customers about their experience and the companies try to gain the feedback through website, Facebook or other social media network. The companies in the recent years need to aware about the feedback and develop effective planning to retain more long-term consumers by ensuring more customers interaction and brand loyalty.

• • 3.3 Marketing mix strategies

The marketing mix strategy is crucial for understanding the planning of the organisations to gain effective market share in such an edge of global competitive market. Through the marketing mix strategies, the companies try to target the potential buyers in the international market and influence demand of the consumers (De Mooij, 2013). Therefore, marketing mix strategies provide a smooth process to the organisations to implement and execute effective marketing planning. In this regard, 4P marketing mix strategy is useful to make planning about price, product, place and promotion through which the multinational corporations can gain competitive advantage as compared to other existing competitor brands. The marketing mix strategy is effective to establish the position of the product at target market (Piercy, 2014). Therefore, the strategies are important to fulfil the marketing objectives of the companies and improve customer’s value by providing quality products and services at affordable price. The marketing mix strategies and firm’s planning can be illustrated below to understand strategic management of the corporations to retain more consumers towards the brand.

Figure 2: Marketing mix strategy

(Source: Parente and Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, 2014)

• Product:

Product is the main component through which the company can establish the brand in the international market. The main aim of the company is to maximise the values of the consumers and for creating values for them. It is necessery to deliver high quality products to them. Quality and features of the products need to be improved to attract more potential buyers in the international market (Parente and Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, 2014). Through maintaining product quality, the company can improve customer’s service and increase brand image in the market. The companies also try to maintain availability of the products and provide warranties such that it is possible to build brand loyalty and retain more long-term consumers towards the organisational products. Therefore, it is the main objective of the companies to deliver quality products and services to the consumers which can increase customer’s satisfaction and values (Kapferer, 2012). Product differentiation strategy in this context is an essential step for the multinational corporations to promote the brand in the market in a new different way

• Price:

After product quality, the price is another important factor that can influence the purchase decision of the customers. In order to promote the product at target market, the companies try to set effective price level as compared to the other existing brands. The differentiated price level is an important strategy to gain competitive advantage in the international market which reduces the threats of substitute products and threats of competitive rivalry (Solomon et al., 2013). The branding strategies that the companies implement are such as sales promotion, discounts and offers at different occasions, direct marketing through providing benefits of credit sales. The companies mainly try to set an effective price level which represents the quality and features of the products so that it can easily retain more long-term customers towards the brand (Piercy, 2014). Sales promotion and offers at different occasions are also effective strategies in this context to attract the potential buyers towards the brand.

• Place:

In order to retain more consumers towards the brand, it is important to place the brand at target market. It is important to strengthen sales channel so that the brand can distribute their organisational products and services at effective market after identifying the demand of the consumers to place the brand in new market,. It is also important to maintain supply chain and efficient distribution network through which the organisations can deliver the quality products and services to the customers according their needs and preferences successfully (Parente and Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, 2014). Therefore, efficient trade channels helps the multinational corporations to access all the market information as well as provides a scope to distribute the products at effective place within appropriate time. Thus, in order to establish the brand at effective market, it is necessary to strengthen distribution network for delivering the products successfully.

• Promotion:

Promotion is the main factor through which the brand can provide all the relevant information to the customers and this strategy is essential for retaining more old as well as new consumers towards the brand. In the recent years, as the number of internet users is increasing rapidly and people try to be updated with latest news and information daily (De Mooij, 2013). Therefore, the companies mainly try to implement the strategy of social media marketing which increases social community involvement and helps for branding the company in the market. Through using the online sites such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Blogs, the companies can interact with the customers (Piercy, 2014). This strategy further provides a scope to provide positive brand image and acknowledge the customer’s needs and preferences. More interaction and online support helps to improve customer’s service which is essential for the companies to improve customer’s loyalty and brand trust. Moreover, through increasing market communication by arranging social campaigning, sales promotion and direct marketing are also essential strategies fro promoting the companies in the international market.

• People:

People are also an important part of the companies who make the business activities possible in smooth way (Gilligan and Hird, 2012). The main stakeholder of the business is the customer and the main aim of the organisations is to maximise the values of the customers by improving their satisfaction and loyalty (Parente and Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, 2014). Treating the customers properly, providing efficient customer service and interacting with them are necessary to manage strong consumer base of the companies. On the other hand, employees are also another stakeholder who is important to conduct business activities in a systematic manner. The company tries to recruit the right employees who can wok efficiently with more creativity and technological advancement for increasing organisational potential to meet the requirements of the customers (Piercy, 2014). Maintaining proper culture within the organisations is also necessary to conduct the business activities smoothly. It is important to motivate the employees at workplace by providing proper remuneration, performance related pay, arranging effective training and development program, encouraging their creativity and providing safety and healthy working environment to the employees. Therefore, it is necessary to improve satisfaction of the organisational people so that it is possible to satisfy all the business stakeholders.

• Physical evidence:

Physical evidence is also necessary to promote the brand at effective market place so that it is easy to retain more potential buyers towards the brand. Product packaging and maintaining the quality of the products is necessary to satisfy the consumers (Parente and Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, 2014). The companies also try to increase the number of locations and stores so that the consumers can identify their products and services.

• Process:

The organisational process is also another strategy to establish the brand at effective international market. Customer focus process and customer oriented business activities are helpful for the companies in such an era of global competition to improve customer’s satisfaction level and establish the brand at international market. Customer focus process is also essential to improve efficiency of customer’s service. In addition to these, IT (Information Technology) support system and technological advancement is also required for improving organisational efficiency (De Mooij, 2013). The companies in the recent years focus on more innovations to establish the brand in the international market in a different way. On the other hand, investment on research and development facilitates more growth of the companies and improves organisational efficiency to deliver the quality products and services successfully.

• • 3.4 Impacts of marketing strategies

The marketing strategies are necessary in such an era of global competitive market and the organisations try to establish the brand in effective market by proper marketing planning. The marketing planning increases brand exposure and provide a market insight which is necessary to promote the brand name in the international market. This is also helpful to target the potential buyers towards the organisational products and services and through implementing effective marketing strategies, it is possible to retain more long-term consumers towards the brand. The marketing strategies are also essential to increase business partnership which leads to more sales volume and profitability. It is an important strategy to promote brand image and the organisations try to provide relevant information about the products and services to the consumers through implementing the marketing strategies. Moreover, word-of-mouth strategy is also another effective planning through which the brands can retain more old as well as new consumers towards the company (Parente and Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, 2014). Therefore, the marketing planning is required to improve social community involvement through which the companies can share messages with the consumers. Moreover, more interaction through social media, company’s website and email marketing facility is useful to improve customer’s loyalty and brand image in the international market.

Accordingly, the organisations can improve the customer’s service through more market interactions as market communication facilitates more opportunity to gain customer’s feedback and as per the feedback and companies try to improve their service. Therefore, it is important to improve technical support by encouraging more employees’ creativity and technological advancement. It is also beneficial to manage the organisational people properly and fulfil all the requirement of the business stakeholders. This strategy is also advantageous for managing the organisational activities successfully (Gilligan and Hird, 2012). Maintaining cultural diversity is also another important strategy of the company which provides a scope to maintain the customer’s needs and preferences as per their demographic and social status as well as manage their employees at workplace. Therefore, the marketing strategies are important in the recent years to expand the business activities across the globe and run the organisation smoothly without any ethical issues. The companies become successful to establish the brand at international level and attract more consumers towards the brand by implementing appropriate marketing strategies.

• 4. Research questions

The research questions of this study are helpful to conduct the paper in a systematic way and the questions are illustrated below:

• What are the factors that attract the consumers in the telecom industry in Qatar?
• What are the effective marketing mix strategies to retain more customers towards the organisations in telecom industry in Qatar?
• What are the impacts of marketing strategies on the consumers in the telecom industry of Qatar?
• What are the suggested recommendations to retain more consumers towards the telecom organisations in Qatar?
• 5. Research aim and objectives

The aim of this research is to identify the impacts of the marketing strategies of the telecom brands in Qatar on the consumers in the country. The research objectives provide a smooth way to the researcher to proceed in the research by fulfilling each of the objectives. The objectives are:

• To identify the factors that influences the purchase decision making behaviour of the consumers in Qatar.
• To analyse the marketing strategies that are helpful to retain more consumers towards the telecom organisations in Qatar.
• To evaluate the impacts of marketing mix strategies on the consumer’s buying behaviour in the telecom industry in Qatar.
• To recommend some suitable suggestions for implementing effective marketing strategies that can retain more potential buyers towards the telecom brands in Qatar.
• 6. Research methodology

The methodology of the research provides an opportunity to the researcher to conduct the research by maintaining a proper path. The research onion in this context is essential to follow every fold of it so that it is possible to collect relevant data and analyse it to understand the research topic successfully. The research onion provides different steps including philosophy, approach, strategies, data analysis techniques, data collection method and time scale.

Figure 4: Research onion

(Source: Saunders et al., 2012)

Through following each and every steps of this research onion, the research can proceed in the research process to analyse the topic appropriately. The research philosophy, approach and strategies are explained in further sections.

• • 6.1 Research philosophy

The philosophy of the research is of three types such as positivism, realism and interpretivism. The interpretivism philosophy helps to interpret the study with the help of secondary research (Taylor et al., 2015). On the other hand, realism philosophy builds proper connection with the reality. As per the realism philosophy, the researcher tries to conduct the study on the basis of real life examples and therefore, under this method, the researcher mainly focuses on the primary data collection techniques to collect first hand data from the people.

Figure 5: Philosophy of the research

(Source: Taylor et al., 2015)

Lastly, the positivism philosophy provides a scope to conduct the study on the basis of observation and through data collection method and analysis techniques. In this research, the researcher selects positivism philosophy to evaluate the research topic on the basis of observation. The researcher tries to analyse the topic after gaining proper knowledge regarding telecom industry and marketing mix strategies in Qatar.

• • 6.2 Research approach

There are mainly two research approaches such as inductive and deductive. Under the inductive approach of the research, the researcher tries to form hypothesis to explore new ideas and thoughts after observing the topic (Flick, 2015). In this approach, the researcher aims to form new theories and models after testing the research hypothesis to construct new ideas. However, deductive approach is different from the Inductive approach as under the deductive approach, the researcher tries to test the existing theories and models regarding the research topic.

Figure 6: Research approach

(Source: Flick, 2015)

The researcher in this approach develops the existing theories, findings and observation to analyse the topic. In this approach, it is tested that whether the hypothesis are confirmed or rejected on the basis of existing theories, case studies and findings (Symon and Cassell, 2012). Therefore, the deductive approach is useful to test the theories and models related to the research topic. Under this research, the researcher selects deductive approach to analyse the existing theories and models for evaluating the topic of this study.

• • 6.3 Strategy of the research

There are several strategies through which the researcher can conduct the research successfully such as experiment, action research, survey, archival, case study analysis, grounded theory and ethnography. In this research, the researcher selects survey study to collect relevant data and analyse it for evaluating the research topic successfully. Survey study provides a scope to collect data from a wide range of group in systematic way (Symon and Cassell, 2012). In this method, the researcher prepare sample questionnaire and distribute it through online and offline method among the people and also conduct interviews to collect real life experience from the managers (Saunders et al., 2012). This is the main technique that is followed by the researcher in this study. Therefore, the researcher in this survey method collects real life experiences through questionnaire design, arranging interviews and discussion and observation. Survey method in this research is helpful as the researcher can collect authentic data from the people.

• • 6.4 Data collection method

There are mainly two types of data collection method, one is primary and other is secondary. The secondary data can be collected through literature sources such as books, journals, articles, newspapers and business reviews (Flick, 2015). In this research, the researcher collects the secondary data from the secondary sources such as books, journals and articles. The theories and models can be explored from books and journals. The researcher collects the theories related to this research topic to analyse it successfully.

Figure 7: Data collection methods

(Source: Symon and Cassell, 2012)

On the other hand, primary data can be collected through proper feedback of the individuals. In this study, the researcher collects primary data through distributing questionnaires among the customers in telecom industry at Qatar. The primary data are essential in this study to identify the feedback of the people in Qatar about the marketing strategies and the purchasing behaviour of the telecom products and services. The questionnaire is about the different marketing strategies and the researcher tries to identify the impacts of it on the consumers during purchasing decision making behaviour. In this study, the researcher tries to distribute the questionnaire among the consumers through social media and selects 50 customers as a sample size to collect authentic data. Therefore, the primary as well as secondary data collection methods are crucial in this study to evaluate the impacts of marketing strategies on the customer’s purchase decision in the telecom industry of Qatar.

• • 6.5 Data analysis techniques

There are two types of data analysis techniques such as quantitative and qualitative data analysis. As per the quantitative data analysis technique, the researcher analyses the collected data through graphs, charts and statistical tools like SPSS (Symon and Cassell, 2012). On the other hand, the qualitative data analysis technique provides a scope to the researcher to analyse the collected data on the basis of secondary sources that are collected from journals, books and articles. In this study, the researcher selects qualitative data analysis techniques and analyse the primary data on the basis of the secondary data including theories and models. This technique is helpful in this research to understand the impacts of marketing planning on the customer’s decision making behaviour through applying the theories of marketing mix and consumer behaviour in real life experiences. Henceforth, the qualitative data analysis technique after collecting relevant data from primary and secondary sources is useful to conduct the study successful.

• • 6.6 Ethical consideration

During the research process, the researcher tries to maintain ethics of the research for reducing any risk in near future and proceeding in the research process successfully. The researcher applies Data Protection Act 1998 to protect the collected data so that there will be no copyright issues. The researcher ensures that the collected data is only used for academic purpose. During the research process, the researcher maintains integrity and honesty to collect the data ethically. The researcher does not force anybody to provide answers to the questionnaire and this behaviour further helps to maintain ethics oif conducting the research.

• 7. Time scale

Activity

1st month

2nd month

3rd month

4th month

5th month

6th month

7th month

Recognition of the area of research

Making research proposal to proceed in the research paper successfully

Secondary data collection for gaining more information

Review the literature

Research Methodology

Primary data collection

Secondary data collection for analyzing the primary data

Final submission of the research paper

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