No description available.

No description available.

Consumer surveillance, seen in the social sorting capabilities of loyalty marketing, is gendered. Using Canadian examples, gender is added to the existing literature on social sorting in relation to class (Burrows and Gane 2006; Parker, Uprichard and Burrows 2007) and racial or ethnic background (Gandy 1993; 1996; 2006a; 2006b; 2010; 2011). The prevalence of loyalty programs in Canada raises some significant issues regarding social sorting, as they tend to allocate unequal life chances and choices based on certain aspects of individuals’ profiles, allowing retailers to focus their efforts and resources toward their most desirable clientele. It is important to consider the role that gender plays in loyalty marketing in order to understand how being labelled a ‘man’ or a ‘woman’ can influence how one’s personal information is categorized and utilized by companies. As these programs use data mining and social sorting techniques to attract preferred customers, men and women are targeted in different ways by different loyalty marketing schemes, depending on the perceived value of their digitized profiles. The findings of the 2006 Globalization of Personal Data survey are interrogated for a background analysis of gender and loyalty. A statistical analysis of the Canadian responses investigates whether membership rates and popular attitudes about loyalty programs vary significantly between different demographic groups. / Thesis (Master, Sociology) -- Queen's University, 2013-06-26 10:41:49.585

The purpose of this research was to investigate the nature of consumer decision making. It considered the purchase of a video cassette recorder and investigated whether the assumptions of a model based on satisficing behaviour could be justified. It considered the nature of search behaviour and evaluation during the decision process and the factors which might influence it. The research therefore studied the stages of the decision process from the nature of Problem Recognition and Problem Classification, including the development of evoked sets during the decision process, the preference for and use of different information sources, the nature of search behaviour, the importance of choice criteria and the decision rules used while employing these choice criteria. This was investigated using three seperate but linked research approaches. A sample of the population in the West of Scotland was analysed to investigate differences between video owners and non video owners, while qualitative interviews were conducted to study the decision process itself. Conjoint Analysis was used to consider the relative importance of choice criteria. The study confirmed the sequential nature of the decision process and found a phased sequence of choice and search. Despite the nature of the good (expensive and innovative) the decision was generally considered of a low involvement nature. While the predictions of low involvement learning that a satisficing decision would be taken were found to be true our findings disagreed with the accepted theory on the use of information sources. It was also considered that it would be wrong to assume no cognitive processes were taking place as various choice heuristics were found which simplified the decision for the consumer.

No description available.

This research study is located in the field of consumer behaviour. It positions means-end theory in the interpretivist philosophical tradition and follows a cognitive approach to understanding purchase motivation. The thesis reports on the collection of empirical data to examine the relationship between consumer benefit and price sensitivity as a way of extending means-end theory. The subjects are purchasers of women's fine fragrances and trainers, in the UK and Germany. The literature review covers values research, in which means-end theory is contrasted with the macro approach, and price sensitivity, where the advantages of using the price sensitivity mechanism are discussed. The fieldwork is presented as a three-part process. In the pilot stage, constructs for laddering interviews and basic price sensitivity data were elicited from purchasers of the two product categories across the two markets. The results of the second stage, in-depth interviews are reported as ı hierarchical value maps (produced manually) and price sensitivity charts (produced using' Lotus 1-2-3). Stage three involved a large scale survey carried out in both markets and this is then reported along with the results of the final analysis (produced using SPSS). Notwithstanding poor response rates among the German samples, the findings support the first research proposition that there is a relationship between consumer benefit and. price sensitivity. The correlation results reveal that a high level of benefit is associated with low price sensitivity among purchasers of trainers in the UK (with a near zero correlation recorded for the German sample). In the case of perfume, a high level of benefit is shown to be associated. with high price sensitivity. Implications of the findings are discussed with reference to both marketing theory and practice. Finally, the strengths and weaknesses of the research design are reviewed, followed by the presentation of 14 items for future research.

M.Com. (Economics) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.B.A. / Throughout the world companies are restructuring there processes. Companies are trying to provide a better service to the customers with the same cost or alternatively at a lower cost. The service-profit chain is an equation that establishes the relationship between corporate policies, employee satisfaction, value creation, customer loyalty and profitability. This paper examines the direct relationship between employee satisfaction and customer satisfaction. It concentrates on the elements that influence employee and customer satisfaction in line with “Heskett’s Service Profit Chain” model.

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Technology: Marketing, Durban University of Technology, 2008. / South Africa will host the Soccer World Cup in 2010. About 2.7 million local spectators and 400,000 visitors need to be transferred to and from the 1() host cities in 43 days . .This is a huge challenge to the intercity bus transport ihdustry, because the current transport system may not meet the demand for one of the world's largest sporting event. The purpose of this study is to identify the current barriers to good service quality in the intercity bus transport industry. It focuses on the measurement of service quality and I communication. In this research, the literature survey defined the service quality 'gap' in this industry, identified the role of effective communication. in the service delivery system, measured the variables affecting current service delivery using the SERVQUAL instrument, and prioritized the importance of the factors influencing service delivery in this industry. A questionnaire with 25 questions was designed to coUect data. This study used convenience sampling to select 400 passengers as a sample, viz. 348 South Africans and 52 foreigners at the Durban bus station, since Durban is one of the ten host cities of the 2010 FIFAWorld Cup. The data was analysed using SPSS. The results of this research pointed to the importance of external communication in the industry. Specific recommendations are made to improve the productivity, reduce vacancy rate and maximize the benefits to this industry in 2010 and beyond. / M

University of Macau / Faculty of Law