Marketing essay on: Customer Satisfaction – Marks and Spencer

1. Introduction & Company Background

It is one of the UK’s leading retailers that is well stylish and provides high quality great amount of value in terms of clothing and other products with respect to the global suppliers all around the world. They are responsible for global supplies. Thus the company employs 78000 people in the UK or abroad. They have 703 stores across the country in high streets and retail parks along with stations. Thus they also modernize and enhance the shopping environment with high range of hospitality options. Marks and Spencer was formed in the year 1884 and it also attempted the different changes to deal or to overcome with the problems or issues. The company not only create the problems of organizational culture but it could be used as a strategic analytic case. There are different benefits associated with the background of the company. Marks and Spencer had identified the market of being large in terms of the competitors. The company provided the excellent vehicle through which the culture could build and on the same way, competencies will be built.

This company did not introduce the facilities for the customers but it is clear that the culture does not drive the strategy. The characteristics of the Marks and Spencer culture define the culture and it also helps in certain parameters such as:-

Paradigm: The Company believes that they are the best and they occupy the middle ground. They also focus on high quality and respect the people who come for shopping in this organization.

Power: The Company depends highly on the top management and also it deals with the top-down control for both the stores as well as the supplies. They also know their place and behave with the top management. They thus set their self-confidence and ensure the continuous delivery. This way, it encourages the culture, power as well as the structure of the organization. They do not lack the financial resources and also they traditionally believe that there is a requirement of change as well as management. (Marksandspencer.com 2012)

As we know, Marks and Spencer is the general retailer that sells clothes, gifts, home furnishings and other items. The company operates in the financial segment as well and it creates high amount of values with respect to price as well as development. The mission of the company is to offer high quality value as well as service. This helps to develop long term relationship with the suppliers and this also provides the product at affordable prices. The core values of Marks and Spencer deals with quality, affordability and service that come from the competitors. It also includes handbags, footwear, goods and products for the home, toys for the children, books as well as cosmetics. Thus the company also sells the financial services through the help of credit card and personal loans, life insurance. (Collier & Johnson 2000)

Marks and Spencer follow the value price strategy and also maintain the high price value strategy with continuous pricing strategy. This develops the strong economic bonds and also managed to remain moderately priced. Their stores come in two formats that describes as the merchandise store and in the remote locations. The stores are located in the main streets of the major cities and also it should manage the global portfolio of prime cities and districts across the world. This focuses on building the networks of distribution and also it grows the global operations. The company highly relied on word of mouth strategy and it is really very powerful in the cost-effective manner. It also plans to focus on television campaign on the products of Marks and Spencer. The internationalization of the company helps in huge expansion and this could be seen as a great diversification. The company achieved the global presence with respect to political as well as economical risks. The company also believes in operating its own stores and become international to increase high amount of experiences. Thus they utilize the modes of entry around the world and believed in experiencing economic growth and development. This way, it continuously innovates and offers the opportunity to compete in the largest economy of the world. The decision making is centralized and they always try to meet the customer satisfaction. (Alon 2000)

This way and through this strategy, the customer satisfaction is highly satisfied and is highly dependent on the company’s rule and policies. They also deal the customers with high quality and provide the range of exceptional quality goods and products. There is also full availability of the product in terms of store and this locates around the country. It also increases the sales and directly maintains the relationship. This way, it creates the pleasant place for the customers to shop and also it builds with new technology to highly satisfy the customers. Thus it consistently creates the desirable results. (Berendji 2012)

1.2.        Conceptual framework

Customer satisfaction is an important issue for every organization. It includes the goals and surveys of the customer satisfaction. It is becoming the important factors in the modern market and the organization faces issue with respect to awareness, quality, loyalty and other important assets. (Larsen & Esbjerg 2006)

The problems associated with the quality of the product and the customer dissatisfaction with the product price, quality as well as other parameters. So the paper will present the discussion on these issues with the help and responses of the respondents. The paper will focus on the research with the help of primary methods of research because this will help to deal with the issues in terms of products or the variety and quality as well as in other important areas, customer satisfaction will be measured.

1.3.        About the research

The research is about the customer satisfaction in the organization known as Marks and Spencer associated with the product quality and its variety so as its features, price, design uses etc. This paper also focuses on the advantages so as disadvantages of customer satisfaction. It will also deal with the customer service in Marks and Spencer so as it will deal with people and their respondents. (Walters 2006)

The overall research is based on customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction is the major challenge and important parameter for the organization and also for the buying behaviour of the customers. There is high importance of service quality in terms of relationship with the customer satisfaction. Organizations need to understand the reasons of customer satisfaction and also they are required to create the definition of customer retention in terms of variety of products and services. This directly affects the customer satisfaction. It is also important because customer retention is directly influenced by customer satisfaction. This is the key factor to determine the successful organization in terms of customer relationships and to measure it. This is based on the idea of customer satisfaction. This also helps the organization to improve its reputation and image so as it increases the attention of the customers in terms of planning of total quality management and other work related stability. There are important benefits with market research and customer surveys because it helps to analyse the customer retention so as also the loyalty of the customer. This has the most important effect on the quality and other factor of customer satisfaction. So to state the above reasons, the effect on the customer exceptions is required for better service quality factors.

Customers want a meeting between the values and the object of the evaluations. The expectation of the customers is related to the past experiences, associates, friends, marketers as well as competitors.

1.4.        Organization Background

Marks and Spencer is the major British retailer and is headquartered in the London city with more than 700 stores in UK and 361 stores across the overall countries. The company was established with the partnership between Michael Marks and Polish Jew. Thomas Spencer was the cashier from Yorkshire. They made the reputation that there is only selling’s of British-made goods. This way, they entered in different locations and expanded their markets. The company also made the major improvements in some products and they also launched the online shopping services in the year 1999. This also bought with high financial performance so as it increased the environmental sustainability of the business. They always run the magazines or newspapers to deal in the market effectively. The product now could also be ordered online and the organization is expanding its new niche market.

1.5.        Reason for the research

The reason of this research is to identify the customer satisfaction with respect to the products and organization. The major reason of this research is to know and to understand the problems associated with the service and quality of the products. So after doing this research successfully, there will be easy interpretation of customer retention. It will help to meet the measurement of the satisfaction and also it will help to know the best methods of maximizing the response rate of customers.

This way, the organization will also collaborate to capture the powerful insights from the process management and also from the measurement of satisfaction. This provides the information in today’s competitive world to increase the efficiency and the effectiveness. (Telesight.com 2012)

This is relevant to experience the research management and also it invites to discuss the customer survey’s budget and other important steps etc. (Cssurveys.com 2012)

1. Aims and objectives

The major aim of this research is to focus on the customer satisfaction that includes certain goals and objectives such as to provide the world class services to the customers.

1. This research also aims to treat the customers in the professional manner efficiently and on time. This research will aim to increase the courtesy among the customers.
2. The customer complaints could get resolved on the same day if there are any issues linked with the organization side. This research will also focus on delivering the products at competitive prices.
3. It also helps to dispatch the stock and materials on the same day or within the 24 working hours. This also helps to provide with proper attention and best services to the customer satisfaction. It also will ensure that there is high encouragement and happy work force with trained, experienced and motivate human personnel. (Woodleyequipment.com 2005)

The above discussed few points are the major goals and objectives of the research.

1. Literature Review

Through this, the related theories and concepts will be effectively focused on the customer satisfaction and various other concepts associated or linked with it. Customer satisfaction is the important factor that helps in the growth and the intense competition. This also helps to consider the important chains in other countries. This way, it develops the demand and the more amount of focus in the customer satisfaction as well as loyalty so this helps in building the long term and the strong relationship with the customers. The major key factors for customer satisfaction is its expectations, quality, perceived value and other important factors. Perceived quality helps in interactive elements. (Kristensen Juhl & Stergaard 2001)

Marks and Spencer have more than 400 stores merely in United Kingdom. The company have achieved the better recognition, rewards and achievements.

The first impression, the availability of the products, the items and varieties, the delivery of the product helps to understand the customer satisfaction successfully. To measure the customer satisfaction, it can be effectively used in a number of ways such as:-

The improvement in quality will help to improve the customer satisfaction and also the modification of customer service programs will help the customer so as the organization to understand the two different terms known as “Wow and Delight”. There is a great deal of understanding and information associated with total quality management and the continuous management of quality helps in the better customer service and better customer satisfaction. It also helps to process the control so as helps to meet the exact requirements. Thus it helps to provide the excellent customer service to deal with the satisfaction of the customers. The satisfied customers help to do the business with proper spending and profits so as satisfaction.

For making the research more successful, this is important to understand the ensuring of success of the business. Quality and service both are required for satisfaction and retention. The overall goal of the business is to provide the superior customer service to the customers. The customer is satisfied if his or her needs are perceived meet or fulfilled. Quality helps in elegant as well as design. Thus it builds the measurement techniques to meet the definitions and objectives of the business. The cost of poor quality is very different and critical to determine the cost of the poor service and to provide the poor quality product or service. Another thing that must be considered is to improve the service and to increase the profitability. (Gerson, 2012)

This literature will help to understand the customer loyalty and also it will describe about the loyalty so as attitude of the individual’s in an organization. Measures of customer loyalty will reflect the ideas on the depth of the customer and the organization’s relationship. The use of surveys and questionnaire will also help to understand the customer loyalty relationship with respect to the customer and the organization. This will benefit the research as well as the organization also. (Hallowell, 1996)

1. Method justification

To conduct survey this research paper carries two methods 1.Telephonic interview and 2. Face to face interview through Skype (Online internet tool) to interact and collect data from the selected respondents through defined structured questionnaires to identify the scope of opportunities and scope of improvement that helps to develop more satisfaction among the target customer groups. The introduced questionnaires contains have two sections

1. Method explanation

Define sample size: Existing and potential customers of the company will be the major respondents for this research.

Structured questionnaires: Define structured questionnaires to identify the scope of opportunities and scope of improvement areas.

Thus the study will carry descriptive research and also it will classify the direct research from the respondents with respect to the study on the basis of the convenience and suitability of the respondents.

1. Surveys and interviews

Telephonic interview: Telephonic interviews has emerged the popular way to conduct the primary research and focus on the telephonic round at the time of telephonic round and interview in the success of the research.

Interview through internet tool Skype: This tool will help to understand the exact requirements and also it will help to know the correct and actual understanding with respect to direct face to face interaction and so as it will be easy to know the exact responses online. 

Questionnaire

Features and qualities required for customer satisfaction

Questionnaire’s for customers

Section A “Demographic Profile”

1) Name of the customer ………………………………………………………………………

2) Age-          15 – 20         21 – 25        26 – 30       31 – 35        36 – 40         41 – 45

3) Gender-                    Male                                         Female       

4) Marital status-         single             married 

5) Income Slab (in Rs.) –15,000  15,000-20,000 20,000-30,000 30,000-40,000 40,000+

Section B

1)      Please rate the level of  Importance as per the satisfaction of  customer :

2)      Please rate the level of  Satisfaction as per the current delivery of service :

1. Data analysis

To analyse the data the research paper used five Likert scale to measure the factors and parameters that identify in the questionnaires.

On the basis of data analysis, the use of mathematical tools & techniques and graphs as well as pie charts etc.

1. Ethical issues

There are several ethical issues associated with the paper such as the issue of plagiarism and other issues related with the copying of materials such as resources, study sources and other important materials.

This paper is presenting the discussion that this has been done originally and it has not been copied from anywhere in the internet.

Thus there will be no ethical issues associated with this paper.

1. Timescale and resources

The resources helped through the both the primary and secondary searches to complete this paper successfully and to understand the lack of customer service in different areas. Thus this paper has been completed with the help of proper understanding of customer requirements and also with the proper timelines and resources.

The best resources that have been successfully useful to complete this research is the responses from the customer and this results that the Marks and Spencer provides the better customer service with respect to the attention, retention and management of the customers. The customers feel satisfied and happy through this organization and its effectiveness.

Timeframe for each action

Primary – Respondents, supervisor, online information through respondents etc.

Secondary – Books, journals, articles, library, pdf, magazines and other sources

 Conclusion

With the help of this section, the paper will be able to present the effective discussion on the customer satisfaction, its loyalty and retention. The paper discussed in different sections about the importance of customer satisfaction and also about the loyalty of the customers. This paper also met with the discussions on proper management so as it helped to understand the proper focus of Marks and Spencer with respect to its customers. This way, the Company believes that they are the best and they occupy the middle ground. They also focus on high quality and respect the people who come for shopping in this organization. Thus they also retain them for long – term. This way, the paper came to an end.

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