Impact of Social Media Analytics on Customer Relationship Management: A Case Study of AIA Malaysia

Running head: AIA MALAYSIA
AIA MALAYSIA
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

AIA MALAYSIA1
Executive Summary
The business environment can be understood to be very dynamic in nature and it is with respect
to this, that the different members of the firm would be required to undertake various activities
so as to ensure that they are successfully able to meet the needs of the different customers as
present. The marketing as an activity can be considered to be a crucial activity which the firm is
required to be undertaken by the organization and in lieu of this, it is also important, to ensure
that, the organization is being able to make adequate use of the social media analytics which are
available in the long run. However, it can be considered essentially important for the
organization to undertake considerable steps to adapt to the same. The main aim of the report lies
to present a comprehensive study on the relationship between the Social media analytics and the
related customers of the firm as present. In line with this the study was divided in to various
sections with each section throwing light into the overall concept of the social media analytics
and its impact on the customer relationship management as present in the firm. The case study of
the AIA Malaysia was undertaken. It was found that the social media analytics tends to have a
strong impact on the overall operations of the firm and that, the social media analytics can be
understood to have a very strong impact on the overall social media performance of the firm. In
line of this, the different customers often tend to judge a firm on the basis of social media
performance. The firms who engage in additional social media activities tend to attract the
different customers in a better manner and in lieu of this, the social media tends to have a
positive and a strong impact on the overall customer satisfaction as well. It is for this reason that
various business solutions have been recommended for the organization as well.

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Acknowledgement
Conducting this research has been one of the most enriching experiences of my life. The
contribution of this research to enhance my knowledge base and analytical skill has been
paramount. It gave me the opportunity to face challenges in the process and overcome them. This
would not have been possible without the valuable guidance of my professors, peers and all the
people who have contributed to this enriching experience. I would like to take this opportunity to
thank my supervisor ----------------------- for the constant guidance and support provided to me
during the process of this research. It would not be justified if I did not thank my academic
guides for their important and valuable assistance and encouragement throughout the research
process. I would also like to thank my friends who had provided me with help and
encouragement for collecting primary data and valuable resources. Finally, I would like to thank
the professionals from the retail industry who have participated in the research survey and
provided with valuable inputs into the subject. The support of all these people has been inspiring
and enlightening throughout the process of research in the subject.
Heartfelt thanks and warmest wishes,
Yours Sincerely,

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
List of Tables...........................................................................................................................6
List of Figures..........................................................................................................................6
1. Introduction..............................................................................................................................7
1.1 Overview...........................................................................................................................7
1.2 Problem statement.............................................................................................................8
1.3 Research aim.....................................................................................................................8
1.4 Research objectives...........................................................................................................9
1.5 Research questions..........................................................................................................10
1.6 Research Rationale..........................................................................................................10
1.7 Structure of the Paper......................................................................................................11
2. Review of Literature..............................................................................................................12
2.1 Social Media Analytics...................................................................................................12
2.2 Benefits of Social Media Analytics................................................................................13
2.3 Characteristics of Social Media Analytics......................................................................15
2.4 Evolution of SMA...........................................................................................................17
2.5 Business and IT Alignment.............................................................................................18
2.6 Business value from Social Media Analytics.................................................................20
2.7 Customer relationship Management...............................................................................21
2.8 Impact of Social media analytics on CRM.....................................................................24

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2.9 Aspects of theory............................................................................................................25
3. Research Methodology..........................................................................................................28
3.0 Overview..............................................................................................................................28
3.1 Research Outline..................................................................................................................28
3.2 Research Philosophy............................................................................................................29
3.3 Research Approach..............................................................................................................30
3.4 Research design...................................................................................................................31
3.5 Research Strategy................................................................................................................31
3.6 Sampling technique.............................................................................................................32
3.7 Data collection.....................................................................................................................33
3.8 Data analysis........................................................................................................................34
3.9 Ethical considerations..........................................................................................................35
3.10 Accessibility issue.............................................................................................................35
3.11 Summary............................................................................................................................36
4. Data analysis and Findings....................................................................................................37
4.0 Overview.........................................................................................................................37
4.1 About the sample............................................................................................................37
4.2 Qualitative analysis.........................................................................................................38
Objectives to be achieved through social media....................................................................38
Usage of internal talent or external media agency for social media......................................39

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Monitoring of the information...............................................................................................40
Social media analytics tools being used................................................................................42
Current social media scenario in the company......................................................................44
Benchmarking of the results..................................................................................................44
Departments generally responsible for the marketing and social media...............................46
Channels to develop consumer intimacy...............................................................................47
Domains deriving benefits from SMA tools..........................................................................48
4.3 Findings...........................................................................................................................49
Impact of social media analytics on the Customer relationship management of the firm.....49
Impact of social media on consumer perception...................................................................51
4.4 Application to AIA Malaysia..........................................................................................51
4.5 Summary..............................................................................................................................52
5. Conclusion.............................................................................................................................53
5.0 Overview.........................................................................................................................53
5.1 Conclusion......................................................................................................................53
5.2 Linking to objectives.......................................................................................................54
5.3 Limitations of the study..................................................................................................54
5.4 Future scope of Research................................................................................................55
6. Recommendations..................................................................................................................56
7. References..............................................................................................................................58

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8. Appendix................................................................................................................................64
Interview Questions...............................................................................................................64
Interview Transcript...............................................................................................................66
Interviewee 1.........................................................................................................................66
Interviewee 2.........................................................................................................................70
Interviewee 3.........................................................................................................................74
Interviewee 4.........................................................................................................................78
Interviewee 5.........................................................................................................................82
List of Tables
Table 1...........................................................................................................................................48
Table 2...........................................................................................................................................48
List of Figures
Figure 1: Social Media Analytics..................................................................................................14

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1. Introduction
1.1 Overview
The Social media can be understood to be a great example of the overall impact of the
Information technology on the different businesses and in line with this, the Social Media
Analytics can be understood to be an additional source for the organizations which would then
go a long way in increasing the innovation rate of the workplace, engaging in cost savings and
also getting involved in the brand recognition. As the social media can be understood to be a
manner in which the different businesses tend to get involved in an interaction system with the
different customers (Zeng et al. 2010). However, the role of the SMA is different in this case and
with respect to this, the application of the SMA generally tends to allow the different
organizations to Harvest in real time consumer insights, deal in digital presence and foster the
customer care relationships. Through the SMA, a business will be successfully able to deal with
the different customers as present, help them to provide with an offering which is best suited for
the overall functioning of a firm and in addition to these, allow the firm to create a competitive
brand positioning for itself. Although the overall procedures as well as steps can be considered
to be comparatively easier in nature, it is very difficult to implement the case in the business
operations due to the technologies as well as the operational challenges which are involved when
it comes to the business as well as the IT alignment. Hence, the Social Media Analytics
considerably focuses on the development and the evaluation of the informatics tools, frameworks
as well processes which can be used to collect, monitor, analyze, summarize as well as visualize
the social media data which is generally driven by specific requirements based on a target