Business Research and Design
The target business of the given research is travel agencies. The organizational problem is the lack of sufficient managerial focus on customer satisfaction among travel agencies and related firms. The problem statement is investigating the link between customer satisfaction and traditional marketing approaches in the travel industry. Marketing research is the collective analysis of information on the movement of services or products from producer to consumer. These studies are used when firms want to provide the decision-making process with the necessary information to make it more adequate for the situation. Research results provide the facts needed for marketing decisions and determine the market space and location of a particular product or service.
The desire of organizations and individuals to effectively use the concept of marketing in the face of growing competition draws the producers of ideas, goods, and services to the consumer. The marketing concept assumes that marketing begins and ends with the consumer. The given idea is a focus on the needs, demands, and wishes of customers, supported by the integrated efforts of the marketing organization aimed at creating customer satisfaction as the basis for achieving the goals of the organization. Customer satisfaction is the main focus of the marketing concept. At present, organizations are compelled to withstand high competition, exist in conditions of limited resources, maintain the internal environment, and continuously struggle with the external.
In conditions of the growing uncertainty of the prospects for further development, the organization constantly has to improve its activities, modernize production, and introduce various innovations into the work process. In such harsh conditions, the management of the company unwittingly thinks about whether the consumer is satisfied with the efforts made by the firm. In addition, it is done to ensure successful functioning and providing the solution to the problem of consumer understanding and satisfaction.
Purpose of the Study
The main research question is finding out, as a travel agent, what can improve a company’s customer/agent relationship to ensure continued patronage. The hypothesis is that by providing customer-centric support tailored to customers’ wants and needs, a firm can deliver enhanced comfort and satisfaction when the traveler demands it. At the same time, a direct link between customer satisfaction and a company’s profitability is recognized
Satisfied consumers are the basis of the company’s existence on the market; loyal ones are the key to its success. The clients, who remain committed to the company, provide the firm with the proper level of profit. The monitoring of satisfaction and maintaining it at an appropriate level is possible through marketing research.
The first rationale for the research is that without the accurate measurement of customer satisfaction, managers cannot make effective decisions about the required improvement in service/product delivery.
Measuring customer satisfaction is an assessment of how consumers perceive the activities of a supplier of goods (Pizzi, Marzocchi, Orsingher, & Zammit, 2015). Therefore, in these cases, it is impossible to rely on information created within the enterprise as a guide to gaining success with consumers. The economic concept of “consumer independence,” which implies a choice on the market free from restrictions, requires an orientation towards consumer preferences and the production of goods, making decisions about its new versions and distribution channels.
The second rationale is that consumer orientation is the rule of the appropriate behavior of organizations in competitive markets where knowledgeable buyers operate. In competitive markets, it is necessary to keep closer to the buyer because rivalry can change the situation on the battlefield. In other words, it is essential to adhere to the concept of marketing (Hanaysha, 2017). Focusing on consumers means not only the requirement to keep up with their needs but also to “revitalize” them “for the sake of” all the functions of the business: marketing, production, research, systems to attract consumers, their motivation, which is the business marketing orientation of the organization.
Methodology
The main research strategy and instrument will involve conducting a survey and reviewing relevant studies. This approach will be focused more on quantitative analysis. The primary method of securing the sample population will include dispassionate selection and an unbiased survey. The survey will be delivered via e-mail, SurveyMonkey, and Google Forms. Satisfaction is a feeling experienced only after the purchase and use of goods.
At the same time, a company’s product or brand is perceived not in isolation but in comparison with real or imaginary products/services that can be replaced with them. The concept of consumer orientation is seen as meeting or exceeding their expectations, which depend on the choices offered in the market (Sharma & Sharma, 2014). Having exceeded consumer expectations in price and quality, one can assume that consumers will return to the organization.
Therefore, if a company pays attention to customer loyalty, then it produces impressive results. However, people must be aware that the launch of loyalty programs and the introduction of high-tech customer relationship management systems, for all their effectiveness, do not solve all problems. In order to achieve the expected effect, it will only allow a set of measures to restructure the entire business (Kurtkoti, 2014). In addition, it is planned to take into account the philosophy of “love for the client,” multiplied by the technological solutions and professionalism of the team.
Unethical research can be summed up simply as biased research, whereas ethical research seeks an unbiased answer. If, when performing research to test a hypothesis, the survey questions are obviously tilted toward only one possible outcome, then the research is useless. The study has then wasted a given amount of resources and time, as well as giving a false outcome and would make the study unethical. I found in my research that if any of these questions can be answered with a “yes,” then the research is unethical and needs to be re-evaluated to find an ethical decision.
- Does my decision treat me, or my company, as an exception to the rule?
- Would my decision lose profits if customers were aware?
- Would I repel qualified job applicants by telling them about my decision?
- Does my decision meet other employee’s opinions?
- Is my decision partial or biased?
- Does it divide the goals of the company?
- Will I have to pull rank to make others follow it?
- Would I prefer to avoid the consequences of this decision?
- Did I avoid any of the questions by telling myself that I can get away with it?
Survey questions:
- At what point in your planning process do you contact a travel agent?
- What are you looking for from the travel agent?
- What factors would make you select a travel agent?
- What factors would make you not select travel agent services?
- What time of day do you normally think about your travel arrangements?
References
Hanaysha, J. R. (2017). Impact of social media marketing, price promotion, and corporate social responsibility on customer satisfaction. Jindal Journal of Business Research, 6(2), 132–145.
Kurtkoti, A. S. (2014). Customer satisfaction of power distribution companies. Jindal Journal of Business Research, 3(1), 58–62.
Pizzi, G., Marzocchi, G. L., Orsingher, C., & Zammit, A. (2015). The temporal construal of customer satisfaction. Journal of Service Research, 18(4), 484–497.
Sharma, B. R., & Sharma, R. D. (2014). Exploring the impact of retailing ethics on customer satisfaction. Metamorphosis, 13(2), 13–21.