BUS8375 – Research Methods and Data Analysis
Retail sector analysed: Convenience Store
Conestoga College
Fall Semester – 2019
Section no. 8
Instructor Andrea Jansen
Group 8
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART 2: INTERVIEW PREPARATION 4
PART 3: POST INTERVIEW-ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION 5
INTRODUCTION
The report entails the analysis of evaluating literature review as well as the key methods for the collection of data for the research. The research focuses on a compressive overview of the challenges, growth and opportunities tied to the retail sector. Convenience stores are extensively assessed and their effect addressed to the stakeholders concerned. Phase 3, concisely, includes reviewing the findings of the literary analysis outlined in Phase 2 and eventually citing the apposite methods to validate the challenges faced by the convenience stores. The phase 3 review takes into account the perceptions of third parties in the Kitchener-Waterloo region and, ultimately, explicitly assesses and communicates final results to the investor for decision making. Data collection would rely on interviews, questionnaires and the online survey. Responses to the research questions will be recorded from the data collection methods. The context of research that will be assessed through the collection of data will revolve around the scope of the convenience store market, the challenges identified through the PESTLE analysis and the techniques used to unravel the hitches.
PART 1: INTERVIEW METHODS
In regards to the remaining questions, the responses would be collected from a questionnaire that would be useful in the completion of the analysis for the Convenience Store accordingly, referring to appropriate reviews and feedback. We use the A+B+C approach to collect the data from phase 1 and phase2 in the primary data set. Within method A, questions are still unanswered from the previous phase. In B there are Phase 2 questions that are yet to be answered, for instance-
- Identify the possible beneficiaries of the business and the relationship between them and their interest, power and influence towards the business
In C, the social research techniques that support our organisations in their work were asked, for instance-
- What would we benefit from the turnover in the good or service?
- What product or brand in the store should be marketed more?
The stakeholders’ strategies would be examined in depth with respect to their views and opinions. The people’s interests who engage in the project would thus be taken into consideration in a way that would effectively address their needs in terms of optimal outcomes. The emphasis on the target interest is vital to the convenience store as it applies to the needs of customers and potential investors. It would help to find the answers to the remaining questions of the interview correctly and thus achieve the desired outcomes for the objectives concerned with the project. This would better examine the stakeholder analysis with respect to comprehensive solutions. In addition, those concerned would also be consulted who have ideas and knowledge of the retail industry in the Kitchener- Waterloo region.
| Power | ||||
|
| Low Power | Medium Power | High Power | |
| Level of Interest |
High | Competitors | Manager Employees | Customers |
|
Medium | Bank for Loan | Investors | Local Authorities | |
|
Low | NGO’s | Government Inspection Authorities | Distributors Suppliers |
Table 1: Stakeholder Analysis
The interview questions will play a central role in presenting the relevant information in a comprehensive way with regards to the satisfactory responses. Everyday convenience shoppers and the people concerned with the retail industry will be thoroughly interviewed. The people who are knowledgeable and skilled in the area of retail business would thus also be consulted to achieve the right objectives. People concerned with the logistics and vendor management will also be interviewed to gather vast information. The creative and honesty dimensions would also be thoroughly examined. In order to ensure an effective response to the remaining questions two interviews (structured and unstructured) would be conducted, suggesting the derivation of desired outcomes.
If
the desired outcomes are to obtained properly the interviewees
must be treated with utmost respect and dignity. Consequently, the
ethical considerations in relation to questionnaire formulation must
be examined before the start in terms of interviews. With regard to
this concern in relation to conducting interviews, the authorization
for the Ethics Committee would be important. This means the value of
ethics regulation in an apt manner.
PART 2: INTERVIEW PREPARATION
The questionnaire should be crafted in an unambiguous manner which would help to clarify interview questions in a viable way, suggesting that complex issues have no challenges or obstacles. Therefore, special training for an effective interview will be given to the interviewer. First, the question is asked and for good interviews the interviewer must test the questions over and over again. In addition, additional emphasis will be placed on the concept of BIAS before proceeding with the interview. Further information is collected about the subject and how the interviewer can be inspired.
The interviewer takes note of the premise of the interviewee, for instance what they generally like to see in a convenience store. The questions classes should be separated as required, thus allowing participants to easily obtain answers to the questions in the correct manner in terms of the usefulness of the responses. It is also vital that the respondents can understand the language of the questions easily. The questionnaires must be made available online and the participants must be informed in advance of the links to the websites in the desired way, thus effectively including their participation. This allows respondents to be positive with the surveys of the Convenience Store, thereby ensuring their utmost satisfaction. (Chao, 2015). Participants must be persuaded in advance of the beneficial results of interviews, resulting in so-called findings for the Convenience Store.
The aim of the questions should also be effectively informed to the participants so that the objectives of the convenience store are met accordingly. This would inspire the respondents (in terms of the positive results) to demonstrate their excitement with respect to the questionnaire.
PART 3: POST INTERVIEW-ANALYSIS AND
EVALUATION
The interviews held in an orderly manner in relation to the nature of an organised system. In order to make the interviewees relaxed to the very best, the element of a friendly approach to them was suggested in capturing their responses in an unprecedented way. The questionnaire instructions were also available in the manner prescribed for the participants ‘ support. Both interviews were held without any obstructions. The purpose of the interviews was to suggest that the interviewees did not feel threatened or had trouble answering questions in a satisfactory manner with regard to the positive results.
The interviews had to be led to the appropriate solutions in relation to the retail sector discussed and thus proving to be useful to the interviewees. The respondents were successfully persuaded to express their views and viewpoints on a systematic basis. In addition, the respondents who had struggled with face to face interviews often received telephone interviews. Research approach components and strategies, levels of participation of the interviewer, the research environment, the target population for conducting interviews and the dimensions of a time structure as indicated in the second phase are all factors which have been taken into consideration for the conduct of interviews.
The interviews contributed significantly to the compilation and evaluation of the relevant data. The convenience store’s policies, social, political, technology, economic and legal dimensions were also considered during phase two, together with considerations pertaining to marketing’s 4P’s such as product, place, promotion and price, in order to carry out interviews.
CONCLUSION
It can be inferred by saying that phase 3 is justified in terms of responses recorded for the research questions. In the selection of the sources of the relevant information, the dimension concerning the efficient response of the other questions was analysed. The stakeholder research was also performed successfully, leading to evaluations in terms of their level of power and interests/needs concerning the accomplishments of the objectives. The questionnaires component has also been studied in detail in order to promote the participants ‘ interpretation of the questions in an understandable and coherent manner and thereby to yield effective results. The goals of the questionnaires were also denoted, resulting in the strengths and efficiency of the questionnaires. The approaches to conducting interviews were also identified with respect to the full and useful outcomes for the interviewees. In that context, the factors related to comfort of the interviewees were also considered and the desired results were obtained. In essence, Phase 3 was presented correctly in terms of the interview questions’ analysis.
REFERENCES
Akram, U., Hui, P., Khan, M. K., Hashim, M., & Rasheed, S. . (2016). Impact of store atmosphere on impulse buying behaviour: Moderating effect of demographic variables. International Journal of u-and e-Service. Science and Technology, 9(7), 43-60.
Chao, R.F., (2015). The impact of experimental marketing on customer loyalty: Using brand image and satisfaction as the mediating variables. The journal of international management studies, 10(2), pp.52-60
Han, S., Ye, Y., Fu, X. and Chen, Z. (2014). Category role aided market segmentation approach to convenience store chain category management. Decision Support Systems, 57, 296-308.
HIM. (July 2019). Convenience Market Report 2019. U.K.: HIM. Retrieved from https://www.himshopper.com/latest-thoughts/article/convenience-market-trends-and-opportunitie/
Mateusz Bąska, Helena Dudycz, & Maciej Pondel. (2019). Identification of advanced data analysis in marketing: A systematic literature review. Journal of Economics and Management, (1), 18. https://doi.org/10.22367/jem.2019.35.02
Nandonde, F. A. (2019). A PESTLE analysis of international retailing in the East African Community. Global Business and Organizational Excellence, 38(4), 54-61.
Nishida, M. (2014). Estimating a model of strategic network choice: The convenience-store industry in Okinawa. Marketing Science, 34(1), 20-38.
Appendix 1
Structured Questionnaire
Interview1
Question 1: What could be one unique of marketing strategy for a Convenience Store?
Answer: The products featured in the Convenience store should be attractive and eye catching. Apart from the usage of social media platform, banners/billboards, fliers and television, LCD/LED display screen would be the best way to advertise. First of all, advertising by moving vehicles is the best way to increase revenue as it will be eye catching to the majority of people using buses as well as those in cars, even if they drive on the road. Second, usage of social media to promote the convenience store in the local market would be highly recommended since social media is the best platform to begin your promotion with.
Question 2: How would stakeholders benefit from the strategy formulated and implemented by the convenience store?
Answer:
The stakeholder benefits through:
(i) Supreme quality of the
products and services available in the store.
(ii) The revenue generated through sales aids in employee wages and maintenance of the store fund.
Question 3: What would the planning and lobbying factor be for the Convenience Store?
Answer: The main element of marketing strategy and store lobbying is to draw and support more and more customers. The primary objective of marketing is to draw customers and increase the company’s profit. The advertisements must be appealing, as the theme should be bright, eye-catching and with a brief story. Publicity plays an essential role in the success of a business because this is the first way that consumers can know about the products and services that are available in the market.
Question 4. Is competition identified as one of the pertinent factor limiting the operations of the retail sector?
Answer: Yes, competition is surely identified as one of the appropriate factors which limit the operations of the retail sector. Market leaders who are already established and have secured a position do pose as a challenge to the business.
Question 5: Are there any areas for improvement?
Answer: Yes, there are many areas on thr grounds of improvement. For instance, the interior of the store will be renovated in the coming time. The quality and quantity of the products also increases gradually. In addition we shall focus on the quality of our products, as we collect input from each customer who visits our shop and, if any suggestions are listed for our store, we definitely work on this and submit customers ‘ suggestions for store improvements. The shop’s opening stage will be hard, but we will occasionally make adjustments for the store’s progress.
Appendix 2
Question 6: What are your personal recommendations regarding the Convenience Store?
Answer: I recommend the inclusion of local Canadian products, along with the international foods as well to promote a vast variety of products on the shelves.
Question 7: What steps and measures are being taken for achieving a competitive advantage?
Answer: There are many steps to achieve the competitive advantage. The first and foremost step is to give the customer reasonably value quality products and services, as if the store offers the good quality of the products at a reasonable price, so it will lead to the competitive advantage. The second is to bring more attention. Coca-Cola and Pepsi, for instance, are similar products in taste and colour, but Coca-Cola is more common than Pepsi because Coca-Cola gives more ads than Pepsi. Advertisements are therefore also very necessary to achieve competitive advantage.
Question 8: What can be the objectives for the Convenience Store in the long run?
Answer: The long-term goal of the store is to make loyal customers by offering them the high quality products and services and other long-term aim is to become the market leaders in the K-W region to lead the market and to benefit by meeting the customer’s needs, return on our investments, etc.
Interview 2
Question 1: What is the future of the convenience store in the retail market of K-W region?
Answer: The future of the convenience store depends on the marketing strategies and how the businesses treat their customers. When the store sells good quality product and union material, people are engaged with their products every day; the store is to be continued in future.
Question 2: What will be one unique point of your marketing strategy for the Convenience store?
Answer: In order to succeed, marketing strategy is an important part of any company. The store needs to choose where our brand and business can be advertised. The 6 w should be used in this store to promote their product.
Question 3: What can be the advertising aspects for the Convenience Store?
Answer: Advertising can be done through the social media platform or the distribution of weekly flyers to attract crowds along with special introductory prices.
Question 4: How would the stakeholders be benefitted by the strategy formulated and implemented in the Convenience stores?
Answer: Stakeholders can greatly benefit from the Convenience store. Such investors can make profit by investing in the store if the plan formulates well. It also draws more investors and can expand their business with investment.
Appendix 3
Question 5: List any possible ground for improvements?
Answer: Opening a convenience store business can be quite challenging. There should be proper risk analysis and potential risks should be mitigated once assessed.
Question 6: Do you have any recommendations concerning the Convenience Store?
Answer: Selling good quality products is one individual recommendation. Smile and listen to your customers and help them find the best product for them. Sell the products in trend and hence obtain a decent profit margin.
Question 7: How can you achieve a competitive advantage?
Answer: Try to overcome the market competition by selling best quality products at cheaper price. Each move of the competitor is carefully evaluated.
Question 8: What can be the possible objectives for the Convenience Store in the long run?
Answer: The goals and objectives of selling high quality products to establish customer relationship and other stakeholders and ultimately, obtain a decent profit margin from the business.
Unstructured Questionnaire
Interview 1
Question 1: Which brand the store should carry the most?
Answer: In my opinion, the store should carry all the Compliments products.
Question 2: Why this brand in particular?
Answer: The ‘Compliments’ products are cheap and of good quality.
Question 3: What kind of products do you think sell the most?
Answer: Every store should have the munchies or the RTE snacks.
Question 4: What products in particular do you think sell the most in that category?
Answer: Cheesy Pizza Roll-ups, Dorito Chicken Tenders, Ramen, etc.
Question 5: Any particular reason as to why you chose this location?
Answer: Within the walking distance from the University of Waterloo, a lot of university students are able to approach the store at their convenience.
Question 6: How do you think the store earns profit?
Answer: Through selling high quality products and maintain customer relationship.
Appendix 4
Question 7: How do you generally hire employees?
Answer: Through indeed.ca
Question 8: Do the customers get additional benefits or rewards with a purchase?
Answer: Customers can collect air miles with every purchase they make.
Interview 2
Question 1: Which brand the store should carry the most?
Answer: I think every store should carry coca cola pops and Red bull energy drinks.
Question 2: Why this brand in particular?
Answer: They have good market value and people love these products.
Question 3: What kind of products do you think sell the most?
Answer: Apart from fresh food, cigarettes sell the most.
Question 4: What products in particular do you think sell the most in that category?
Answer: Sandwiches and salads.
Question 5: Any particular reason as to why you chose this store?
Answer: It’s convenient for a mixed demographic area, plus this is the only store around this area which is open round the clock.
Question 6: How do you think the store earns profit?
Answer: The selling strategies and customer loyalty.
Question 7: How do you generally hire employees?
Answer: We take walk-in interviews as well as postings on Indeed.
Question 8: Do the customers get additional benefits or rewards with a purchase?
Answer: Customers can accumulate reward points with third party applications.
GROUP- 8
Karanbeer
Singh, 8599250
Tanveer S. Pawra, 8426397
Harpreet Singh,
8334286
No. of words: 3073