published_or_final_version / Management Studies / Master / Master of Business Administration

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The saturation of Western markets, strong and predatory competition, and the end of supranational state units, all these factors have contributed to eminent interest of multinational companies in the newly created markets of the Commonwealth of Independent States. For that reason, the thesis discusses marketing theories as well as a wide range of marketing strategies and tools tailored to local specific cosmetics markets based on executed situation analysis.

[Introduction] The 1980s have ushered in an era of extreme competitive pressure for the modern business organisation. In previous times many business organisations have succeeded simply because of the excellence of their products, with little concern or attention being paid to the wants and needs of potential customers. As the business environment has become more competitive, however, the point of focus has changed. There is ample evidence which suggests a correlation between success in business and firms which have adopted a marketing-orientated philosophy of business. The evolution of marketing as a discipline has been hastened in recent times by the need of the firm to survive in the face of increasing competition. This "increasing attention" is occurring because of the realisation that sheer product excellence alone will not necessarily mean that the firm will succeed in establishing a group of satisfied customers in the long term. It is the adoption of the so-called "marketing concept" which provides the opportunity for the firm to develop a competitive edge which will more likely eventuate in success.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management in Strategic Marketing 2016 / Since 1994, the number of South Africans who have the ability to hire domestic help has increased due to the economic inclusion of the African majority. This research has been conducted amongst South Africa’s middle to upper class (also referred to as LSM 7-10 or LSM A). A sizeable number of them have a monthly household income of R50 000 and above and another significant number is made up of business owners. The aim of the study is to assess the extent to which domestic workers’ perceived brand quality of homecare products influence the brand loyalty of the same as far as their employers are concerned. The data collection of this study was exclusively conducted online for the simple reason that the target population of the study is made up of office bound and busy people. A large majority of the respondents in fact spend 4-5 hours in their homes per day during the week. Therefore expecting them to fill in a questionnaire and submit to the researcher would have been a challenge. The research’s point of departure was based on the assumption that employers of domestic workers are not the end users of the products under discussion as their lifestyle did not permit this. However, the fact that the employers are the eventual buyers of the products presented the researcher with a point of curiosity. The key finding of the research was that there was a very strong link between Employer Brand Association and Employer Brand Loyalty. However, there was a weak influence of Employer Brand Awareness on Employer Brand Loyalty. These findings therefore ultimately suggest that domestic worker Brand Quality perceptions, will influence the Brand Equity of homecare products in South Africa. Overall, the Domestic Worker Perceived Brand Quality of homecare products had a positive influence on Employer Brand Awareness and Employer Brand Associations / GR2018

by Lam Lai-Ming, Tai King-Chi. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [35-36]). / ABSTRACT --- p.ii / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.iii / ACKNOWLEDGMENTS --- p.v / Chapter I. --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / Overview of the Project --- p.1 / Industry Background --- p.1 / Customer --- p.2 / Objectives --- p.3 / Scope of Study --- p.3 / Definition of Terms --- p.5 / Organization of the Project --- p.6 / Summary --- p.6 / Chapter II. --- METHODOLOGY --- p.8 / Research Design --- p.8 / Exploratory Research --- p.8 / Literature Review --- p.9 / Company Interview --- p.9 / Observation --- p.9 / Descriptive Research --- p.10 / Field Work --- p.10 / Sampling --- p.10 / Questionnaire Design --- p.11 / Summary --- p.11 / Chapter III. --- COMPANY BACKGROUND --- p.13 / Setting the Foundation --- p.13 / Business Philosophies and Social Responsibility --- p.14 / Business Development --- p.16 / Marketing Objective of Setting the Hong Kong Counter --- p.17 / Summary --- p.18 / Chapter IV. --- THE ENVIRONMENT --- p.19 / Market and Competitors --- p.19 / Target Group --- p.20 / Summary --- p.21 / Chapter V. --- THE CURRENT MARKETING STRATEGIES --- p.22 / Product Strategy --- p.22 / Price Strategy --- p.23 / Communication Strategy --- p.24 / Endorsement of Celebrities --- p.24 / Services and Salesforce Strategy --- p.25 / Distribution Strategy --- p.26 / Summary --- p.27 / Chapter VI. --- DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION --- p.28 / Interviewee Profile --- p.28 / About Color Cosmetic Users in General --- p.29 / Buyer Behavior and Brand Loyalty --- p.29 / Awareness Level Among Different Brands --- p.33 / About Those Who Know MAC --- p.35 / MAC Visitors --- p.35 / MAC Purchasers --- p.36 / Information Channels --- p.37 / Intention to Buy --- p.38 / Impression on MAC --- p.39 / Summary --- p.41 / Chapter VII. --- IMPLICATION OF FINDINGS --- p.43 / Low Loyalty --- p.43 / """Word-of-mouth""" --- p.43 / Criteria in Selecting the Shop and Making Purchase --- p.44 / Importance of Point of Purchase Material and Salesperson --- p.44 / Success Factors of MAC --- p.45 / Weaknesses of MAC --- p.45 / Conclusion --- p.46 / Chapter VIII. --- RECOMMENDATIONS --- p.47 / Product Strategy --- p.47 / Price Strategy --- p.49 / Communication Strategy --- p.49 / Services and Salesforce Strategy --- p.51 / Distribution Strategy --- p.51 / Summary --- p.52 / Chapter IX. --- LIMITATIONS --- p.54 / APPENDIX / BIBLIOGRAPHY

Leung, Kar Man, Man, Angela Wing Yee. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 37). / ABSTRACT --- p.ii / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.iii / LIST OF FIGURES --- p.vi / LIST OF TABLES --- p.vii / CHAPTER / Chapter I --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / Chapter 1.0 --- Overview --- p.1 / Chapter 1.1 --- Objectives of our study --- p.2 / Chapter 1.1.1 --- Research objective --- p.2 / Chapter 1.1.2 --- Decision making objective --- p.3 / Chapter II --- CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK --- p.4 / Chapter 2.0 --- Theory of Reasoned Action --- p.4 / Chapter 2.1 --- Reason for choosing the Theory of Reasoned Action --- p.4 / Chapter 2.2 --- What is the Theory of Reasoned Action? --- p.4 / Chapter III --- METHODOLOGY --- p.8 / Chapter 3.0 --- Methodology --- p.8 / Chapter 3.1 --- Research design --- p.8 / Chapter 3.2 --- Sample and sampling method for the main study --- p.8 / Chapter 3.2.1 --- Sample --- p.8 / Chapter 3.2.2 --- Sampling method for the descriptive research --- p.9 / Chapter 3.3 --- Operationalizatoin --- p.9 / Chapter 3.4 --- Data analysis --- p.11 / Chapter 3.4.1 --- Analyzing consumption behavior --- p.11 / Chapter 3.4.2 --- Testing the conceptual model --- p.11 / Chapter 3.5 --- Research activities --- p.11 / Chapter 3.5.1 --- Exploratory research --- p.11 / Chapter 3.5.1.1 --- Literature review --- p.11 / Chapter 3.5.1.2 --- Focus group --- p.11 / Chapter 3.5.1.2.1 --- Sampling method --- p.12 / Chapter 3.5.1.2.2 --- Sample --- p.12 / Chapter 3.5.1.2.3 --- Research area --- p.12 / Chapter 3.5.1.2.4 --- Pre-testing the instrument --- p.13 / Chapter 3.5.2 --- Descriptive research --- p.13 / Chapter 3.5.2.1 --- Description of the instrument --- p.13 / Chapter 3.5.2.2 --- Procedure for administering the questionnaires --- p.14 / Chapter 3.5.2.3 --- Analysis and interpretation of the responses --- p.14 / Chapter IV --- RESULTS --- p.15 / Chapter 4.0 --- Results --- p.15 / Chapter 4.1 --- Consumption behavior --- p.15 / Chapter 4.1.1 --- Men's classification of cosmetics items --- p.15 / Chapter 4.1.2 --- Consumption behavior of cosmetics and toiletries --- p.16 / Chapter 4.1.3 --- Year(s) of experience of using skincare products --- p.16 / Chapter 4.1.4 --- Knowledge of brands that carry men's cosmetics --- p.17 / Chapter 4.1.5 --- Relative importance of independent factors --- p.17 / Chapter 4.1.6 --- Demographic description of the respondents --- p.18 / Chapter 4.1.6.1 --- Jobs/ industries --- p.18 / Chapter 4.1.6.2 --- Highest education level attained by respondents --- p.19 / Chapter 4.1.6.3 --- Respondents' monthly income --- p.19 / Chapter 4.1.6.4 --- Age distribution of the respondents --- p.19 / Chapter 4.2 --- Path analysis --- p.19 / Chapter 4.2.1 --- Reliability analysis --- p.20 / Chapter 4.2.2 --- LISREL analysis --- p.21 / Chapter 4.2.3 --- """Model 1"" of the conceptual model" --- p.22 / Chapter V --- CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS --- p.26 / Chapter 5.0 --- Conclusion --- p.26 / Chapter 5.1 --- Managerial implications --- p.26 / Chapter 5.1.1 --- What to market --- p.26 / Chapter 5.1.2 --- How much to price --- p.27 / Chapter 5.1.3 --- How to market skincare products to men --- p.27 / Chapter 5.1.4 --- Whom to target at --- p.28 / Chapter 5.1.5 --- How to position skincare products --- p.29 / Chapter 5.1.6 --- How to make your brand recognized --- p.29 / Chapter 5.2 --- Limitations --- p.30 / Chapter 5.2.1 --- External validity --- p.30 / Chapter 5.2.1.1 --- Sampling bias --- p.30 / Chapter 5.2.1.2 --- Sampling method --- p.31 / Chapter 5.2.2 --- Limited scope --- p.31 / Chapter 5.2.2.1 --- Specific definition of the research subject --- p.31 / Chapter 5.2.2.2 --- Lack of segmentation --- p.32 / Chapter 5.2.2.3 --- Incomprehensive list of factors --- p.32 / Chapter 5.2.3 --- Different administrative methods used --- p.33 / Chapter 5.2.4 --- Maturation effect --- p.33 / Chapter 5.2.5 --- Unanswered sections --- p.34 / Chapter 5.2.6 --- Leading questions affecting validity --- p.34 / Chapter 5.3 --- Suggestions for future research --- p.34 / Chapter 5.3.1 --- Larger and more random sample --- p.34 / Chapter 5.3.2 --- Wider scope --- p.34 / APPENDIX --- p.36 / Chapter 1 --- Population by age group and sex at the end of2001 / Chapter 2 --- Sales of cosmetics and toiletries in the Asia-Pacific region by sector1998-2000 / Chapter 3 --- Constructs of the conceptual model and statements usedin questionnaire / Chapter 4 --- Questions and answers for the focus group / Chapter 5 --- Research instrument - the questionnaire / Chapter 6 --- Percentage of respondents who consider the stated items as cosmetics / Chapter 7 --- Usage frequency of cosmetics and toiletries / Chapter 8 --- Year(s) of experience of using skincare products / Chapter 9 --- Knowledge of the brands which carry men's cosmetics / Chapter 10 --- Relative importance of factors affecting the use of skincare products / Chapter 11 --- Industries which respondents workin / Chapter 12 --- Highest education level attained by respondents / Chapter 13 --- Respondents' monthly income / Chapter 14 --- Respondents' age distribution / Chapter 15 --- Results from reliability analysis / Chapter 16 --- LISREL outputs / BIBLIOGRAPHY --- p.37