Research Aim
The research study is carried out on Apple retail in UK to identify how the company has satisfied its customers and the ways in which it can improve customer satisfaction and loyalty. In the rapidly changing business environment, the organizations are required to emphasize upon improving the level of satisfaction of its customers in order to retain them and ensure their long- term profitability. Therefore, it is necessary for the organizations to satisfy their customers and obtain regular feedback from them in order to improve their products and services to remain ahead of the competitors. A satisfied customer is deemed to provide recurring revenues to an organization. This report will enable the researcher to carry out his or her research in a proper manner, which would help in determining how Apple Retail UK meets the expectations of the customers and the manner in which it measures the satisfaction level of the customers. The researcher shall be able to conduct the research while considering the limitations and in accordance with the time scale developed.
The aim of the research study is to analyze how Apple retail measures customer satisfaction feedback in UK and the ways in which the organization meets and enhances the level of customer satisfaction. The research shall analyze the importance of customer satisfaction that help in retaining the customers and ensure business profitability.
Research Objectives:
The following are the objectives of the research study:
- To investigate the methods used by organizations for measuring customer satisfaction or feedback
- To find what are the customer satisfaction methods used by Apple Retail UK
- To investigate the manner in which organizations can meet and exceed the customer needs and satisfaction
- To measure the quality of the customer service provided by Apple Retail UK
- To recommend the ways in which Apple Retail UK can further improve its customer satisfaction
The above figure states the ways in which an organization can attain loyal customers. According to Lin et al. (2017), customer satisfaction and proper customer retention strategies help an organization to obtain loyal customers. A customer is satisfied when his or her expectations from a product or service are satisfied.
On the other hand, according to Oliver (2014), an organization is able to retain its customers by ensure good quality products and services along with maintaining good relations with the customers. The customers become loyal when they are satisfied with the products and services of an organization and the organization makes efforts to retain them in the long- run.
Consumer satisfaction is a after purchase evaluation of a product or service. According to Botreau et al. (2014), consumer satisfaction as a perspective in which the needs, wants, and desires of the customers all through the product or service span have been met or not, which decides the future repurchases and reliability of the customers. He gave a more present approach and mentioned that in order to have a fruitful business, all associations apply a portion of defense and offense techniques – the offense for acquisition of new customers while defense involves securing or retaining the existing client base. Earlier, organizations used to emphasize more upon acquiring new clients than retaining the existing customers. Be that as it may, in a highly competitive environment comprising of organizations that offer more or less the same products and services, great defense is essential. Ensuring consumer satisfaction is a defensive technique and its ultimate objective is to obtain client loyalty. A satisfied customer is deemed to provide recurring revenues to an organization. Acquiring new customers from the market is relatively a more difficult job than retaining the old customers. Customer satisfaction is highly important because it helps in the growth and profitability of an organization. It helps the organizations to develop products and services according to the need and preferences of the customer. Taking proper feedbacks from the customers and implementing the necessary changes in the products and services enables an organization to easily retain the customers and obtain loyal customers.
Research Objectives
On the other hand, Oliver (2014) mentioned that consumer loyalty will be impacted if the demand and supply are unique. The level of satisfaction will be fall when the client request is heterogeneous and the supply is homogeneous. Exchanging boundaries make it exorbitant for client to change to competing firms and consumer satisfaction makes it expensive for rival organizations to acquire existing customers of the other competing firms. As indicated by Dube (2015), high consumer loyalty decreases the competition as far as price promotion while exchanging boundary enormously includes in price promotion. For a client to stay loyal towards an organization, he or she should trust that the association’s administration keeps on serving the best choice alternatives. Moreover, he or she will be less delicate to the cost of the products and services (Suryonaningsih 2016).
According to Bansal and Taylor (2015), there are several methods using which an organization can contact its customers. These methods involve outbound phone, inbound phone, SMS, E mail, Direct mail, Web, Application based and in- store. Outbound phones have a strong rate of response however; it is an expensive approach for the organizations to adopt. Inbound phones help in obtaining immediate feedback and have a good rate of response however; this method requires hiring technical experts. SMS help in obtaining immediate response however; it is not an effective method of collecting feedback. E- mails are relatively cheaper way of conducting surveys however; it has lower rate of response. Direct mails are capable of obtaining detailed feedback however; they are costlier than e-mails and have lower rate of response. Web is usually used for e-mail based survey and requires knowledge of internet. In store survey involves paper- based or device- based survey for obtaining relevant feedback.
According to Oda and Billore (2017), there are several methods of rating the response of the customer in a customer satisfaction survey. However, there are several errors associated with this method such as imbalanced rating scales. These errors have the capability of skewing the results. Some of the rating scales comprise of the options of above expectation, met expectation, below expectation and no opinion while some comprise of the options of excellent, good, fair and poor.
Survey questions:
This method involves preparing questionnaires that comprise of several relevant questions that help in determining the level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction among the customers. The questionnaires can be close- ended or open- ended. In case of close- ended questionnaires, the respondent is required to just select any one of the options available for a question however; in case of open- ended questionnaires, the respondents are required to provide their feedback in long sentences (Dillman, Smyth and Christian 2014).
Preliminary literature review
According to Akbari and Darabi (2015), Tte SERVQUAL model represents the quality of service as the inconsistency between a client’s wants of offerings and the client’s evaluation of the products and services got. This makes it a state of attitude measure. This model emphasizes upon the differences between the expectations of the customers and the actual benefits derived from the products and the services. This estimation of service quality depends on both the manner in which the purchaser evaluates the service conveyance process and the benefits obtained from the service. A decent service quality meets the desire of the customers of the services.
On the other hand according to Ali and Raza (2017), it is prescribed that the SERVQUAL model is a decent method to be utilized when evaluating service quality in different ventures yet that it is suitable to pick the most vital measurements of this model fit to that specific services being measured keeping in mind the end goal to guarantee solid and substantial outcomes. In such manner, this model is utilized to measure customer satisfaction since it considers client’s desire of a service.
These days, consumer satisfaction is one of the key objectives for all associations. In service sector it is incredibly critical, in light of the fact that consumer loyalty is most likely the primary “key” to an effective business, acknowledgment and maintenance of clients. It is essential to clarify not just the most vital determinants of consumer loyalty with the services of variables, yet additionally strategies that permit to discover it, investigating in the best way. According to Tontini, Søilen and Silveira (2013), Kano model clarifies what data can be normal and got from clients keeping in mind the end goal to discover fulfillment factors. In his model, Lin et al. (2017), recognizes three item prerequisites (highlights) used to decide consumer satisfaction:
- Must- be prerequisites (highlights): If these are not satisfied and do not perform out the fundamental capacities, the customer shall be to a great degree dissatisfied. The must-be necessities are the principle criteria of the product or service. These perquisites are the necessary perquisites, which are to be satisfied at any cost.
- One- dimensional necessities (highlights): As indicated by these prerequisites, consumer satisfaction is dependent upon the requirements of the level. The more is the fulfillment level, the higher becomes the level of consumer satisfaction and vice- versa. One-dimensional prerequisites are a reasonable client’s necessities.
- Alluring necessities (includes):Alluring necessities are neither pressing nor expected by the client. According to Verhoeven and Sha (2017), if any association can provide both the must- be and one- dimensional necessities along with alluring attributes, it is deemed to be energetic and surprising.
The customers can be satisfied only when their expectations from a product or service are fulfilled and they feel appreciated. The following are the methods using which customers can be satisfied:
- Developing products and services as per the requirements of the customers: This can be done by obtaining continuous feedback from the customers. Proper analysis of the feedback obtained from the customers enable the organizations to develop products and services as per the needs and wants of the customers.
- Paying attention to the customers and listening to them: In order to ensure that the customers are satisfied, it is necessary to pay attention to the customers and listen to their grievances and commendations of the customers so that proper solutions can be provided to their problems.
- Communicate with the customers: It is necessary to establish good relations with the customers in order to retain them. This is only possible when an organization properly communicates with the customers.
Customer satisfaction is highly important because it helps in the growth and profitability of an organization. It helps the organizations to develop products and services according to the need and preferences of the customer. A satisfied customer is deemed to provide recurring revenues to an organization. Acquiring new customers from the market is relatively a more difficult job than retaining the old customers. Taking proper feedbacks from the customers and implementing the necessary changes in the products and services enables an organization to easily retain the customers and obtain loyal customers (Oliver, 2014). Therefore, customer satisfaction is considered to be the most important part of organizational functions.
Conceptual framework
Research methodology refers to the procedure adopted by a researcher in order to obtain the desired results and fulfill the research objectives. This involves selection of appropriate research techniques and data collection methods (Saunders and Lewis 2012). This particular research study has been designed to understand how Apple Retail UK satisfies its customers. Therefore, the researcher shall use positivism theory, deductive methodology and descriptive design in this particular research study.
In this research study, the researcher aims at identifying the ways in which Apple Retail UK satisfies its customers. The customer satisfaction can be analyzed by adopting the positivism philosophy (Collis and Hussey 2013).
There are three types of investigation:
- Exploratory
- Explanatory
- Hypothesis
Exploratory research is used when the researcher does not have any proper knowledge and idea of the research topic and the research is conducted with the help of certain scientific viewpoint. Explanatory research is used when there are relevant theories and concepts related to the research topic. Hypothesis research is used when the researcher is required to prove a hypothesis correct or incorrect (Bryman and Bell 2015).
In this research study, descriptive research study shall be adopted by the researcher as the relevant theories and concepts are easily available.
There are mainly two types of data collection methods namely primary data collection method and secondary data collection method. Primary data collection refers to collection of data directly from the respondents in the form of interviews, surveys and questionnaires. On the other hand, Secondary data collection refers to the collection of data from secondary sources such as books, journals, magazines, authentic websites and articles (Matthews and Ross 2014).
For this particular research study, the researcher shall use primary data collection method as the data shall be collected from the employees and customers of Apple Retail UK in order to know the ways in which the company is able to satisfy its customers.
There are basically two types of sampling method for completing a research process. Those are as follows:
- Probability
- Non-Probability
Probability sampling is the selection of the sample population at a random basis. On the other hand, non- probability sampling is the choosing of the sample, which is usually based upon some logic (Bryman 2015).
In this research study, the researcher shall use non- probability sampling method to collect the appropriate information.
The researcher faces several issues in terms of accessibility of the required data. Obtaining feedback from the respondents is a major concern in the entire research process.
Meaning of customer satisfaction
The researcher shall ensure that the privacy of the data obtained is maintained. The researcher shall not leak the details of the respondents. The researcher shall obtain consent from the respondents before proceeding with the survey (Taylor, Bogdan and DeVault 2015).
The major limitations to be faced by the researcher are time and budget. The insufficient budget and time might be the major limitations of the study.
The research process shall involve conducting interviews from the employees and customers of Apple Retail UK in order to know the ways in which the company is able to satisfy its customers. This shall involve incurring several costs such as purchasing audio tape for recording the interviews, notepads for noting the responses and traveling costs to reach the interviewees.
References:
Akbari, P. and Darabi, A., 2015. Factors affecting customer satisfaction, quality banking services to Iran, using the SERVQUAL model case study: Resalat bank of Kermanshah province.
Ali, M. and Raza, S.A., 2017. Service quality perception and customer satisfaction in Islamic banks of Pakistan: the modified SERVQUAL model. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 28(5-6), pp.559-577.
Bansal, H.S. and Taylor, S.F., 2015. Beyond service quality and customer satisfaction: investigating additional antecedents of service provider switching intentions. In Proceedings of the 1999 Academy of Marketing Science (AMS) Annual Conference (pp. 75-82). Springer, Cham.
Botreau, R., Legrand, I., Polkinghorne, R., Pethick, D.W., Lherm, M., Picard, B., Doreau, M. and Terlouw, C., 2014. Win–win strategies for high beef quality, consumer satisfaction, and farm efficiency, low environmental impacts and improved animal welfare. Animal Production Science 10 (54), 1537–1548.(2014).
Bryman, A. and Bell, E., 2015. Business research methods. Oxford University Press, USA.
Bryman, A., 2015. Social research methods. Oxford university press.
Collis, J. and Hussey, R., 2013. Business research: A practical guide for undergraduate and postgraduate students. Palgrave macmillan.
Dillman, D.A., Smyth, J.D. and Christian, L.M., 2014. Internet, phone, mail, and mixed-mode surveys: the tailored design method. John Wiley & Sons.
Dubé, L., 2015. An experimental investigation of the effect of perceived service quality on consumer satisfaction with service encounters. In Proceedings of the 1992 Academy of Marketing Science (AMS) Annual Conference (pp. 444-448). Springer, Cham.
Lin, F.H., Tsai, S.B., Lee, Y.C., Hsiao, C.F., Zhou, J., Wang, J. and Shang, Z., 2017. Empirical research on Kano’s model and customer satisfaction. PloS one, 12(9), p.e0183888.
Matthews, B. and Ross, L., 2014. Research methods. Pearson Higher Ed.
Oda, T. and Billore, S., 2017. A proposal of new rating method applying extended fuzzy logic for the study of consumer behavior. In 12th Global Brand Conference-Academy of Marketing’s SIG in Brand, Identity and Corporate Reputation, Kalmar, Sweden, April 26-28, 2017.
Oliver, R.L., 2014. Satisfaction: A behavioral perspective on the consumer. Routledge.
Saunders, M.N. and Lewis, P., 2012. Doing research in business & management: An essential guide to planning your project. Pearson.
Suryonaningsih, E., 2016. The Effect of Price and Brand Image on Consumer Satisfaction With Buying Decision As Intervening. Journal of Management, 2(2).
Taylor, S.J., Bogdan, R. and DeVault, M., 2015. Introduction to qualitative research methods: A guidebook and resource. John Wiley & Sons.
Tontini, G., Søilen, K.S. and Silveira, A., 2013. How do interactions of Kano model attributes affect customer satisfaction? An analysis based on psychological foundations. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 24(11-12), pp.1253-1271.
Verhoeven, P. and Sha, N., 2017. A study based on Kano model to improve satisfaction of students at university libraries in Sweden.
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