Almost everything we as consumers buy in a store has a package. Packages have many functions – some, if not all, present marketers with the opportunity to gain competitive advantages. The packaging influences the usage behavior long after it has influenced the purchase, therefore it is an interesting empirical context to study within the field of marketing. Nevertheless, academic attention to packaging has been sparse over the last two decades even though the industry focus on packaging as a strategic tool has grown over that same period. Exceptions in the marketing literature are investigations of packaging and brand communication, advertisement-package coordination, and packaging size and shape. In contrast to the traditional approach that views packaging as a complimenting non-product-related attribute, it is suggested in this thesis that packaging is a product-related attribute that does affect the customers’ experiences of products. The overall aim of this thesis is to develop and test theoretical models and provide empirical evidence of customer experiences in the context of packaging from a service perspective. To study packaging from a service perspective is relevant for several reasons. One reason is that packaging can have several functions, which include more than the physical package. Another reason is that packages are carriers of information that is interpreted by customers. The combination of function, information, the physical package, and its content creates the total customer experience. The results of this thesis provide increased knowledge about packaging and customer experiences from a service perspective. On an attribute level, quality attributes such as protection and usability are categorized according to Kano’s theory of attractive quality. The results show that customers’ evaluations of packages are multi-dimensional. On a comprehensive or an overall level, structural equation modeling is used to investigate the consumption process. We conclude that the quality attributes of packages need to be designed to display quality both on the shelf in a store and during usage and consumption at both the attribute and comprehensive level.

This work investigates the problem of location methods putting load on GSM network. The work carried out covers analysis of various location methods, identification of network nodes and datapaths that are involved in getting location data from GSM network. It is shown that methods can generally be divided into two groups: those that use special devices to locate and then transfer results via GSM network and those that use GSM network for positioning. The impact of first group on GSM network load is limited to the time of data transfer time that depends on the coding scheme used, data transfer channels allocated and size of location data. The impact of second group depends on algorithm used. Analysis and experiments carried out using custom GSM network emulator show that standard “Provide Subscriber Info” based algorithm requires mandatory update of location information within GSM network using either SMS or preempted call setup that both require radio resources. Usage of “Customer Trace” algorithm for self-location applications is proposed to save radio resources. Additional benefits of this algorithm include usage of timing advance and signal strength information from “Customer Trace” data to increase the accuracy of location within current GSM network infrastructure.

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Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Masters in Business Administration (MBA), Business Studies Unit, Durban University of Technology in the Faculty of Commerce, 2008 / The conditions for doing business are changing rapidly. In the last decade, the resin market has witnessed a substantial growth and rapid changes globally as well as domestically. Customer satisfaction is a critical issue in the success of any business system, hence, one of the key challenges of this market is how to satisfy and retain their customers. This issue is strongly related to how service quality is managed and which holds a significant importance to customers’ satisfaction and their perceived performance of companies. In order for companies to survive and grow, they must find new ways of thinking, which has led to doing marketing researches, especially those related to customer satisfaction. In this study, the SERVQUAL model was employed to establish the customers’ perceptions versus their expectations of service quality at Cray Valley Resins. Both primary and secondary data were used to inform this particular research. The research was quantitative in nature and conducted in the form of a self-administered survey. The type of study used was the cross-sectional analytical survey method. The summary of the findings reveals that the dimensions with the highest expectation were tangibles followed by responsiveness. Coincidently these two dimensions also had the largest gap scores. The overall mean gap score (-0.326) is relatively small. Thus, it can be concluded that although the customers hold a good opinion of the quality of the services provided, expectations of the services were higher.

Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur kundens upplevelse formas i kontexten online product community, utifrån ett multidimensionellt perspektiv på kundupplevelsen.   Metod: Med bakgrund mot studiens syfte var det passande att använda en kvalitativ metod. Detta fenomen studerades genom en flerfallsstudie som den övergripande undersökningsdesignen.  Semi-strukturerade intervjuer har genomförts med respondenter från tre olika online product communities. Materialet har sedan analyserat genom en abduktiv analysmetod som är inspirerad av grounded theory.   Resultat & slutsats: Studien visar att kundupplevelsen för medlemmar i online product communities främst formas av den pragmatiska dimensionen, innehåll och funktionalitet är därmed centralt. Resultatet tyder även på att det finns två grupper av användare i dessa communities. Den ena gruppen är mer passiv och pragmatiskt inriktad medan den andra är mer aktiv och nöjesinriktad.   Förslag till vidare forskning: Då denna studie bygger på intervjuer med medlemmar i online product communities som både kan ses som aktiva och passiva medlemmar kan det vara av intresse att i framtiden studera hur de mest aktiva medlemmar upplever att delta i denna kontext, då det är denna kärna som genererar det största innehållet.   Uppsatsens bidrag: Denna studie sammanför den tidigare forskningen om kundupplevelse och senare forskning om kundupplevelse i online communities för att skapa en förklarande modell. Modellen beskriver vilka dimension som formar kundupplevelsen i denna kontext och testas sedan i tre case. Studien bidrar till en ökad förståelse för skillnaden mellan pragmatiska och mer nöjesinriktade användare.   Nyckelord: Customer experience, experiental marketing, online product communities. / Purpose of Study: The aim of this study is to examine how the customer experience is shaped in the context online product community, based on a multi-dimensional perspective on customer experience.   Method: Due to the purpose of the study qualitative methods were chosen. This phenomenon was studied by a multi-case study as the overall study design. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with respondents from three different online product communities. The material was then analyzed by an abductive method of analysis which is inspired by grounded theory.   Results & conclusion: The study shows that the customer experience for members of online product communities primarily is shaped by the pragmatic dimension, content and functionality is thus essential. The results also suggest that there are two groups of users in these communities. One of the groups is more passive and pragmatic, while the other one is more active and entertainment-oriented.   Suggestions for further research: Since this study is based on interviews with members of online product communities which can be seen as active and passive members it may be of interest in future research to study the most active members experiences in this context, because it is this core group that generates the largest content.   Contribution of the thesis: This study brings together previous research on customer experience and recent research on customer experience in online communities to create an explanatory model. The model describes the dimensions that shape the customer experience in this context and is then tested in three cases. The study contributes to a better understanding of the difference between pragmatic and more entertainment-oriented users.   Key Words: Customer experience, experiental marketing, online product communities.

Impulsive buying is another form of consumption behaviour that seems to be occurring more frequently today. This behaviour has both positive and negative effects, therefore, caution should be taken when making consumption decisions. This study attempts to investigate impulsive buying behaviour among marketing students at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. It discusses factors that contribute to such behaviour, some of which were identified in a study conducted by Youn & Faber (2000). These factors include lack of control (impulsivity), stress and absorption. The study highlights cultural influences on impulse buying behaviour. It mentions the several differences between male and female consumers. According to Zhou & Wong (2003), retailers need to understand how they can attract and retain a significant share of consumer impulse purchases for market survival. Understanding consumer behaviour helps in the development of effective marketing communications (Bothma et. al 2002). A literature review conducted to gain insight and understanding on impulse buying behaviour. A survey questionnaire was used to collect data from fifty University of KwaZulu- Natal marketing students. Findings on the study highlight vast unplanned consumption behaviours. / Thesis (MBA)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2006.

Abstract not available. / Thesis (MBA)-University of Natal, Durban, 2003.

The main driving force behind the increasing interest in delivering service quality, is the need to keep customers satisfied and loyal. Companies are realizing that it's far more profitable to service existing customers than it is to develop new ones. As a result, they are doing all they can to strengthen and foster customer relationships. This, in turn, has led to the need for more innovative service quality strategies. Knowledge of one's customers is an important factor. The more information a company has, the more targeted their marketing can be and the better able they are to serve their customers' needs. This research dissertation is aimed at identifying the strategies that contribute to delivering quality service that leads to customer satisfaction and eventually client retention. It evaluates the benefits of the human, work process and technological dimensions and determines what actions are required by The Company to improve the levels of customer service. Based on the analysis, the gap between the current service expectation of The Company and service delivery by The Company urgently needs to be reviewed in light of customer satisfaction and customer retention. The guiding principle at most companies today is to develop systems to economically produce goods or services that satisfy customer requirements. To carry this out effectively requires a companywide quality improvement program. / Thesis (MBA)-University of Natal, Durban, 2003.

Service management is a fascinating and complex subject. It is fascinating because, even entities that manufacture products get concerned about customer service. Management scientists such as Edward Deming developed a concept known as total quality management (TQM), which has been implemented in manufacturing companies mostly, and some of those companies include those discussed by Robbins & Decenzo (2001 : 65), namely ; General Motors, Ford, & Daimler-Chrysler. This concept TQM is implemented in order to make the ultimate customer happy and thus creating customer loyalty. If TQM was implemented only for the purpose of quality in products and not involve those employees in support departments such as Finance, Human Resources, Marketing & Sales, Customer Care/Enquiries, within one company, such an endeavour will be rendered ineffective and non-systemic. The service industry is however still lagging behind with it's own innovations. We still yet to see strategies spawned from the service sector. Service in this instance refers to the 'non-product' sector. It is for this reason that this study focuses on service management in the service industry, to make a clear distinction. Service management is complex. because, as it is argued in this study, it is intangible. The definitions of service developed by many authors such as Gronroos (1990), van Looy et al (2003), and Fitzsimmons & Fitzsimmons (2004), state that service is an activity of more or less intangible nature. They further say that service involves the interaction between a customer and service employees. This is what makes it complex. Service is about people. Zeithaml & Bitner (2000) pointed it out that "the employees delivering the service frequently are the service in the customer's eyes.."(pg. 13). Human activity systems, are typically complex, and as such service is likely to be complex because it involves human interaction. Such a complex system is likely to be characterized by complex phenomena. Complex systems are best studied through systems approach. It was in this light that this study is based on a systems inquiry. / Thesis (M.Com.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2005.