Corporate Reputation and Customer Satisfaction: A Study of the Economic Upshot

After conducting a thorough review of the provided references, it is evident that they span across various disciplines and topics. The majority of the references are related to customer satisfaction, service quality, marketing, and research methodology. Some notable studies include: 'Preliminary Research on Customer Satisfaction Models in Taiwan: A Case Study from the Automobile Industry' (Chiu et al., 2011), which investigates customer satisfaction models in Taiwan; 'Consumer-Based Brand Equity Conceptualisation and Measurement' (Christodoulides & Chernatony, 2010), which explores brand equity; and 'Marketing and Sustainability' (Clarke-Hill et al., 2008), which examines the relationship between marketing and sustainability. Additionally, there are references on research methodology, customer service, emotional labor, and quantitative and qualitative evaluation methods. Overall, this diverse collection of references provides a foundation for understanding various aspects of customer satisfaction, service quality, and marketing.

RESEARCH
PROJECT

TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION.....................................................................................................1
Research project description........................................................................................................1
Background of the organization...................................................................................................1
Research aim and objectives........................................................................................................2
Reason for selection.....................................................................................................................2
Research Methodology................................................................................................................2
Timescale.....................................................................................................................................3
Chapter 2 Literature Review............................................................................................................4
Introduction..................................................................................................................................4
Literature Review........................................................................................................................5
Factor influencing the customer services and satisfaction......................................................5
Customer Loyalty....................................................................................................................6
Ways of improving the services..............................................................................................6
Importance of customer Service..............................................................................................7
Chapter 3 Methodology...................................................................................................................9
Methodology, Methods and Techniques......................................................................................9
Sampling....................................................................................................................................10
Data collection...........................................................................................................................11
Ethical considerations................................................................................................................11
Chapter 4 Data Collection and Analysis........................................................................................12
Data Collection..........................................................................................................................12
Data Analysis and Discussion...................................................................................................14
Chapter 5: Conclusions and Recommendations............................................................................21
Conclusion.................................................................................................................................21

Recommendations......................................................................................................................22
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................24

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION
Research project description
Customer service plays an important role in every business industry. They are the ones on
which the success of an organization depends. It has to be noted that they are not only concerned
with the buying but they also look to expect high quality services from the firms (Azulay, 2012).
Even after the process of buying, a company needs to maintain a long term relation with its
clients. The present retail environment is highly competitive and changes are seen at regular
intervals. Due to globalization the market has become so wide that companies are having
customers at beyond the boundaries of the nations also. It has become difficult for them to deal
with the consumer behaviour as it is influenced by many factors such as cultural, language,
background, tradition, beliefs etc (Bailey, 2009). Now a days, people can change their perception
related to products and services in couple of seconds. That is the reason terms like customer
satisfaction, loyalty and services have become very crucial for the companies. They need to
make sure that people remain loyal towards their respective brands always. The subject of this
research study also deals with evaluating the satisfaction & services at Sainsbury Glasgow
(Bernoff and Schadler, 2013). The motive is to examine the level of customer services and
satisfaction at a retail store of Sainsbury. This research makes an effort to bring improvements in
the services of the store in case if they are discovered not up to the mark.
Background of the organization
Sainsbury comes on second position in the list of supermarkets in UK. Currently it is
holding 17% of share in the supermarket sector. The brand was established in 1869. It has been
realized that Sainsbury was the first company to adopt self-service retailing. The business of the
company is divided into three segments that is supermarkets, convenience stores and banks. The
vision and mission statements of Sainsbury has remain unchanged for several years (Sainsbury,
Annual report, 2013). The vision is to become the most trustful brand within UK where people
can come in large numbers and do sopping. This report puts an check on how the company is
performing and how it is fulfilling the needs of it customers.
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Research aim and objectives
The major aim of the research is to examine the level of customer services at Sainsbury
store in Glasgow. In order to achieve the above aim following objectives have been framed:
 To investigate the customer service level at Sainsbury store
 To examine the satisfaction level among the customers at Sainsbury store
 To discover what the expectation are of customers with regard to services
 To identify the way through services at the Sainsbury can be improved
Reason for selection
There are many reasons which contribute toward the selection of topic for this research. It
is evident that customer service and satisfaction plays an important role in the retail industry.
Companies are required to pay huge attention on these two aspects. The services are required to
be improved at regular intervals. Customers are the most vital stakeholder within the business as
they act as the key to achieve success. Hence this research work can be very useful in
understanding the retail environment and the customer’s needs and expectations.
Research Methodology
The methodology is concerned with the tools and techniques which are applied for
collecting the primary data. It is essential that a research should have an effective methodology
which can contribute towards the achievement of goals and objectives of the study.
 Data Collection – In the task of data collection, relevancy and validity are very crucial.
There is a need to obtain the data from valid and authentic sources. For this research data
has been collected from both primary as well as secondary sources (Kimmel, 2009).
Primary data has been collected from customers of Tesco by applying the questionnaire
approach. On the other side secondary data has been compiled from published sources
such as books, annual reports, newspapers etc.
 Sampling – Sampling is an activity which is undertaken to make the data collection work
easier and simpler. It is performed to identify the representative set of sample from which
the primary data is needed to be collected. For this research work sample has been chosen
2

by applying the combination of random and purposive sampling (Kumar, 2005). A
sample size of 50 customers has been kept for the questionnaire process.
 Research type – It decides the framework under which the research is to be conducted.
Researcher has the option of applying two different type. One is qualitative and other one
is quantitative. The qualitative type is related with investigating the human behaviour
such as satisfaction, comfort etc (Marlow, 2010). Quantitative is more concerned with
numbers, figures, tables etc.
Timescale
ACTIVITY/WEEK 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
 Identified the problem
 Systematic analysis to choose
the topic for the study
 Chose the research
 Conduct literature review for
secondary data collection
 Set the objectives
 Primary data collected from
customers
 Identified research approach
 Design research methodology
 Preparation of structured
questionnaire
 Make Fill up the questionnaire
from customers
 Organize collected data in
excel sheets
 Apply suitable technique to
analysis data
 Interpretation of the data
 Evaluation and finding of the
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research
 Recommendation and
suggestions for further study
 Outline the findings chapter
 Create report in a presentable
manner
 Submission to instructor and
awaiting for feedback
 Revising the final draft
 Submit report
 Present report to the audience
Expected outcomes
The major objective of this research is to investigate the level of customer services at the
Sainsbury Store in Glasgow. This study makes an effort to bring any improvements in the
services if they are discovered to be not up to the mark. In order to fulfil that primary data has
been collected from the retail customers of Sainsbury. It is expected that by conducting survey
on the visiting customers at the stores, their issues, requirements and expectations can be find
out. This research can prove to be a valuable source for the different retail firms as they will get
to know how the customers can be kept satisfied.
Chapter 2 Literature Review
Introduction
This section is the most vital part of the study as it helps in understanding the learning
which is going to be derived from the study. It will demonstrate the knowledge associated with
the literature and tries to establish a critical link with the research question. The review relies on
published academic journal articles within the research area. It facilitates the researcher to lear
about the various theories and views which have been contributed towards the subject. It also
includes some specific terms such as customer service, loyalty, satisfaction etc. A brief
understanding of the above terms is also established. This section will lay down the basis for the
outcomes of the study.
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Literature Review
Factor influencing the customer services and satisfaction
There are many factors which puts an impact on the minds of the customers. The factors can
be lined up in the following manner:
 Quality – According to Chiu and et.al., (2011), it is a factor which is reflected from the
products and services. The characteristics of a particular good or service are also
measured in term of quality. In the present context, customers are highly concerned about
the quality of the services. They expect the product to be long lasting and highly
sustainable. This factor helps in giving satisfaction to the customers and loyalty to the
companies. It is also a source of gaining competitive advantages.
 Employees – According to Cook, (2008), employees are the biggest assets for an
organization. The business cannot be imagined without their contributions and efforts.
They are also responsible for maintaining customer relationship management and
satisfaction. The services are reflected from them as they are the face of the organization.
According to Lam, and Chen, (2012), within the retail industry, employees are the ones
who remain in face to face interactions with the customers. They hold the responsibility
for developing the good reputation and image of the firm in terms of the services
 Price – This has been concluded from several authors that price is the biggest motivating
factor for the people. They are tend to be attracted towards the discounts, offers and
schemes. According to Cang, Lai and Cheng, (2012), Entities while designing their
business strategies, gives a special consideration on the setting of prices. This is because,
price is the factor which is associated with the emotions and mentality of the customers.
They expect a high quality product at reasonable prices. In order to increase the sales,
companies should focus on different schemes and offers related to their products and
services.
 Innovation – According to Zeithaml, Bitner and Gremler, (2006), innovation is another
factor which highly influence the minds of the consumers. People wants that innovation
must be seen in offering of products and services from the side of the companies. While
the comparison, they will notice how the service is unique and different from what has
been offered from the other companies. Hence this factor is very crucial for the success.
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Customer Loyalty
According to Karten, (2013), the market has become highly competitive and companies
faces various difficulties in acquiring the new customers. It has been observed that cost of
procuring new clients is comparatively very higher as compared to the cost of procuring new
ones. Hence in that sense, the concept of customer loyalty has come into existence.
According to Kazanjian, (2007), customer loyalty can be considered as the trust which is
detained by the customers on the brands which they are using. They also concluded that cost of
acquiring a new customer is five times higher within business. It is quite difficult to maintain the
loyalty as it needs confirmation of high level of trust among the people.
According to Lam and Chen, (2012), if rate of customer retention increases by 5% then,
profit could rise from 25% to 100%. The loyalty can be divided into two categories which are
behaviour and attitude. Repetitive purchase, patronage of products, word mouth publicity etc are
various components of loyalty. It also act as immunity to the promotional activities of other
companies.
According to Raulerson, Malraison and Leboyer (2009), customer loyalty can be
regarded as the repeated purchases from the same brand for a long period of time. It is a stage
where customers started feeling that they are being considered as the partners of the company.
The study derived that loyal customers helps in achieving competitive advantages and their
existence within business is imperative.
According to Ryu Lee and Gon Kim (2012), Customer loyalty is not easy to derive as it is
gained after establishment of very high amount of faith. An individual develops a mentality in
his mind that one specific brand only can fulfil all its requirements and wants. It takes a long
period of time develop that mentality from the side of the company. That is the reason the
competition in retail market has become extremely high.
Ways of improving the services
There can be various ways though which services of an organization can be improved.
These can be described in the following manner:
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 Discounts & offers – Customers are highly attracted towards the things such as discounts
and offers. They become happy to receive any kind of discount on products and services
like buy one get one, one product free with one another, loyalty cards etc (Siebelink,
2007). This motivate them to come to the door of the stores at least. If these things are
offered at constant intervals, then it will be easy for the company to achieve loyalty and
satisfaction.
 Training & development – Employees are the medium through which services are
rendered. To bring improvements in the services it is essential that workforce must be
given proper training (Alam Mohd and Hisham, 2011). Training must be given about
how to satisfy the needs and requirements of the customers. It will enhance the skills of
the employees which will further contributes towards the goals and objectives of the
business.
 Constant feedback – Services can also be enhanced by taking constant feedback from the
people. It is a very effective technique of bringing the improvements. The feedbacks can
be obtained on any platforms such as at the time of purchase, through online surveys,
through phone calls etc (Awmechi and Long, 2013).
Importance of customer Service
Customer service is the act of taking care of customer's needs by providing quality
service before, during and after purchase of goods and service. If a organization want to be
successful in competitive market; it must use customer service as a business model. It create
advantage for both customers as well as business (Christodoulides and de, Chernatony 2010).
Customers get benefits because the business is providing service that meet their desires and the
business get benefits because satisfied customers may come again. Good customer service
helping out a organization to establish itself in market.
Importance of customer service in retail sector:-
Satisfy customers are the best indicator of quality of customer service providing by a
business. It helps a business to increase number of repeated customers. A big part of the
company's profit come from repeat sales and it cost a business five time more to get a new
customer then existing one (Clarke-Hill, Comfort and Hillier, 2008). Organisation must be create
a friendly environment for customers so that they feel comfortable. Customers are not only
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interested in the product offering to them but also want additional service from company's side.
If a business actively interacting with it's customer this help the organization in inviting new
customers.
Customer’s service is organization's liability because customers are a valuable resources
for organization. When a company take care of it's customer's issues effectively, it make a
positive image of the business in mind of customers. In retail market level of competition is very
high so business should focus on services like shipping, return, and after sales services (Bernoff
and Schadler, 2013). The Organization should improve customer service by finding solution for
their problems. It will ultimately help the company to increase it's profitability with higher
number of satisfy customers.
Quality in customer service giving opportunity to expand the business throughout the
market. The company should always try to think from customer's point of view so that service
can be improved as customer's requirement. Maintaining long term relations with customers is
also type of service (Kazanjian, 2007). It helps the company to build an image of brand in the
mind of customers and also helps to attract new customers. Good customer services increase the
loyalty among the customers and helps in improve the brand image of the company. One from
three new customers come to the retail store as a direct result of recommendation of existing
customers.
According to Zeithaml, Bitner and Gremler, (2006.), Price is not the main reason for
customer attraction; they look for overall satisfaction through services, product quality etc.
Customers are backbone of the organisation and they are responsible for increasing its sales and
profitability. Good customer service helps the business to maintain reputation and goodwill in
the market. High number of satisfied customers reduce risk of business failures or losses. Large
number of satisfy Customer directly motivate organization's employees. It decrease load of
achieving targets so employees can work in comfortable corporate environment, it help them to
work with their maximum capacity. This benefits the company to increase its overall
productivity.
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Chapter 3 Methodology
Methodology, Methods and Techniques
This section offers a detailed rationale about the researcher intend to achieve the research
objectives. It is developed with regard to perform discussion on different research tools and
techniques. It includes different types of terms such as data collection, philosophy, approach,
analysis, validity, reliability, ethical consideration etc.
Research Approach
Research approach which is selected for the study is to be identified by defining the
purpose of the work. It recognize the path of development for the research. There are mainly two
types of approaches first is inductive and other is deductive (Kimmel, 2009). Inductive approach
explores an existing phenomenon from a different perspective. It makes use of research question
in order to narrow down the scope of the research. On the other side deductive approach is
concerned with testing a theory and is related with quantitative research.
For this study, inductive approach has been applied because customer service is a very
common subject and has been widely researched by many researchers (Kumar, 2005). In this
case, the researcher will make effort to analyse the subject from different angle. The main idea is
to explore something new from the subject.
Research Philosophy
It is a tool which helps in disclosing the assumptions related to the subject. It plays an
important role in the data collection activity (Marlow, 2010). Researcher has the option of
selecting different types of philosophies such as positivism, realism, pragmatism, realism etc.
Positivism philosophy is useful for making quantifiable observations and generalization.
Interpretative philosophy is developed on the assumption that social world of business
management is of complex nature (McBurney and White, 2009). Realism philosophy is useful in
the case when there is interdependency between the human believes and perceptions.
For this research, interpretative philosophy has been applied because it will help in
achieving satisfactory results on the basis of responses collected from the respondents. Further
the study is of qualitative nature and hence that is the reason this approach has been selected.
9

Research design
The design is the quality of the study. It can make the research of more effective and
responsive nature. Selection of design is based on the nature of the investigation. In front of the
researcher there are many designs which can be selected. These includes descriptive,
experimental, explorative etc (Merriam, 2009).
For this study, descriptive design has been adopted because it is very useful in identifying
the characteristics of the participant in accurate manner. It is also suitable because it demands
gathering of the data without causing any change in the environment (Sam and Daniel, 2011).
This reflects that all the facts will be presented in a manner that they are avoiding any kind of
manipulation.
Research type
It is a framework under which the research is to be performed. The researcher has the
option of applying two different research types which includes qualitative and quantitative
(Quantitative and Qualitative Evaluation Methods. 2007). The qualitative type is related with
investigating the human behaviour such as satisfaction, comfort etc. Quantitative is more
concerned with numbers, figures, tables etc.
Sampling
Sampling is an activity through which the data collection work is made easier and
simpler. It is performed to recognize the representative set of sample from which the primary
data is to be collected. There are types of sampling methods which includes probability and non-
probability (Wyse, E. S., 2013). Under probability sampling, every individual has an equal
chance of selection. On the other side under non-probability sampling, every individual does not
have the chance of being selected.
For this research study, sample has been chosen by applying the combination of random
and purposive sampling. Random sampling is applied because the sample will be picked from
outside the store of Sainsbury on random basis (Punch, 2009). Purposive sampling is applied
because this study demands gathering of the information from the customers of Sainsbury only.
A sample size of 50 customers has been kept for the questionnaire process. It is
appropriate and it is expected that this will achieve the goals and objectives of the research.
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Data collection
In the task of data collection, relevancy and validity are very crucial. There is a need to
obtain the data from valid and authentic sources. For this research data has been collected from
both primary as well as secondary sources.
Primary data is a very raw and fresh information collected for the first time. It is
unprocessed in nature (Wright, 2010). It is collected through techniques such as questionnaire,
survey, focus groups, direct observation etc. Secondary data is the information available from the
published sources such as books, journals, newspapers, internet, magazines etc.
Primary data has been collected from customers of Sainsbury by applying the
questionnaire approach. On the other side secondary data has been compiled from published
sources such as books, annual reports, newspapers etc.
Ethical considerations
Researcher is required to follow the ethical framework associated with the study. He goes
through many ethical issues while the course of the study. First of all the data is required to be
collected from valid and authentic sources. No information is to be taken directly from any
source. Proper citation and referencing will be done. Before starting the questionnaire process,
proper permission will be taken from the participants. They will be given complete freedom and
liberty while the course of the process (McBurney and White, 2009). No manipulation will be
done with the collected information and it will be presented in the manner it has been collected.
Generally the secondary sources are considered invalid due to lack of accuracy and validity.
Hence the researcher must take into consideration that all the information is collected from
ethical sources.
Research Limitations
There are many research limitations associated with the research. These are as follows:
 Lack of time – It is the biggest issue seen in every research. It is a time consuming
process because it requires high level of concentration and focus. Time is to be managed
properly for better results
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 Lack of content – It is another issue faced by the researchers. Sometimes it becomes
difficult for the scholar to find accurate and correct information for analysis. In that case
lack of appropriate content can hamper the quality of the study (Marlow, 2010).
 Lack of access – It is another limitation faced by the researcher. He may not be able to
access the permission to conduct questionnaire process on the customers of Sainsbury.
Chapter 4 Data Collection and Analysis
Data Collection
Questionnaire
1. Name:
2. Age Group
 15 – 25 years
 25 – 35 years
 35 – 45 years
 More than 45 years
3. Gender
 Male
 Female
4. What is your occupation?
 Student
 Employed
 Self-employed
5. Are you a regular customer of Sainsbury?
 Yes
 No
6 How often do you shop from the stores of Sainsbury?
 Never
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 Once a month
 2 – 3 times a month
 More than 3 times a month
7. Do you agree that shopping environment at store is good for the people?
 Strongly agree
 Agree
 Disagree
 Strongly disagree
8. How satisfied you are with the customer services offered from Sainsbury?
 Highly satisfied
 Satisfied
 Dissatisfied
 Highly dissatisfied
9. How will you rate the value of money at Sainsbury’s stores?
 1
 2
 3
 4
 5
10 Do you agree that your complaints and grievances are handled effectively at stores?
 Strongly agree
 Agree
 Disagree
 Strongly disagree
11. Please tell about the customer service areas where you are facing the problems?
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12. Do you think that improvements are required in the services?
 Yes
 No
13 Suggest ideas for enhancing the services
Data Analysis and Discussion
Age Distribution
26%
42%
22%
10%
Age Group
15 – 25 years
25 – 35 years
35 – 45 years
More than 45 years
The above pie chart shows the age distribution of the sample people. After deriving the
responses it was realized that 26% of the sample belongs to age group of 15-25 years, 42% of the
people belongs to age group of 25-35 years, 22% of them belong to 35-45 years and 10% of
them belong to age group of more than 45 years. From this it can be interpreted that most of the
people arriving at the retail store are of age group of 25-35 years
Gender Distribution
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38%
62%
Gender
male female
The above pie chart distribution reflects the gender distribution of the sample population.
According to the responses derived, 38% of the sample were male and 6% of them were female.
Hence it can be interpreted that females are the ones who mostly comes for shopping at the retail
stores.
Occupation
26%
50%
24%
occupation
Student Employed Self-employed
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Here the motive of the researcher was to know the occupational level of the sample
respondents. On getting the responses it was realized that 24% of them were self-employed, 50%
of them were employed and 26% of them were student.
Are you a regular customer of Sainsbury?
yes No
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
41
9
Are you a regular customer of Sainsbury?
The purpose of the researcher is to identify whether the sample respondents are regular
customers of Sainsbury brands or not. On getting the responses, it was derived that majority of
the sample people were regular customers of the company. It is evident from the fact Sainsbury
comes into the category of top retail brands within UK. After Tesco and Marks & Spencer the
brand which has gained huge popularity is Sainsbury. It also maintain a good market share
within the retail industry
How often do you shop from the stores of Sainsbury?
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Never Once a month 2 – 3 times a
month
More than 3 times
a month
0
25
19
6
The motive of the researcher is to discover how often the sample population shop from
stores of the Sainsbury. On getting the responses it was derived that 12% of them shop more than
3 times in a month, 38% of them shop for 2-3 times in a month, 50% of them shop at once in a
month. From this it can be interpreted that customers have the tendency to shop once in a month.
Do you agree that shopping environment at store is good for the people?
Strongly agree
4%
Agree
12%
Disagree
62%
Strongly
disagree
22%
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Here the motive of the researcher was to analyse whether the shopping environment at
Sainsbury is good or not. The derived responses showed that 22% of them strongly disagrees,
62% of them disagrees, 12% of them agrees and rest of them strongly agrees. From this it can be
interpreted that customers are dissatisfied from the shopping environment which they receive at
the stores of Sainsbury. Customers are expecting the environment to be more pleasing and
amusing. They expects their queries should be handled in effective manner. Further there can be
many reason for the dissatisfaction among the people. It can be crowded cash counters,
decreased quality of goods, no customer feedback, bad service response, lack of flexibility etc.
How satisfied you are with the customer services offered from Sainsbury?
12%
24%
52%
12%
Highly satisfied Satisfied Dissatisfied Highly dissatisfied
The purpose of the researcher was to identify whether the sample respondents are
satisfied with the customer services or not. On getting the responses it was derived that 12% of
them were highly satisfied, 24% of them were satisfied, 52% of them were dissatisfied and rest
of them were highly dissatisfied from the services. Hence it can be analysed that Sainsbury is
facing serious issues in terms of customer services and satisfaction. It is a bad condition for the
company because it is a very recognized brands in UK. Customers always expect high quality
services from such bigger brand name. This could be a loss to the goodwill of the organization. It
is allowing other companies to get competitive advantages hence there is a requirement to
improve the level of customer services.
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How will you rate the value of money at Sainsbury’s stores?
12%
58%
10%
10% 10%
1
2
3
4
5
The purpose of the researcher is to identify how the customer rate the value of their
money on shopping at the stores of Sainsbury. After deriving the responses it was realized that
58% of them rated 2 out of 5, 12% of them rated 1 out of 5 and rest of the respondents rated 3, 4
and 5 out of 5. From this analysis it can be interpreted that level of customer services is not up to
the mark at the Sainsbury store. The people are giving poor ratings to the customers. Keeping in
mind a good reputation, it is not good for the business of the organization. These things are to be
avoided from the side of the management and they are required to adopt some effective
measures.
Do you agree that your complaints and grievances are handled effectively at stores?
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26%
24%24%
26%
Strongly agree Agree
Disagree Strongly disagree
Here the purpose of the researcher was to know whether complaints and queries of the
customers are deal in good manner or not. Very mixed amount of responses were derived. 50%
of them agrees with the saying and 50% does not agree with the saying. It can be interpreted that
Sainsbury is facing issues in dealing with its customers. The store management is proving
incapable in handling the duties and responsibilities towards the customers. It is required from
the company to adopt some actions and become responsive towards the needs and wants of the
customers.
Areas where consumers are facing issues
Sample customers were also asked about the issues faced by them at the stores. Majority
of the respondents stated that consistency is required in the level of services. At present there is
no continuation in the processes which are implemented. Further issue of lack of attention was
identified. They are not being attended in proper manner. This leads to miscommunication and
leads to many difficulties for the customers. If there is no adequate focus from the staff side then
it becomes difficult for the customers to derive information about any product in the store.
Further there are issues related with handling of complaints.
The problems are not listened carefully and a lot of time is taken in taking any action.
Further there was issue of overcrowded billing cash counters. Sainsbury is a very big brand
which is having wide range of products and services. Customers come to the stores in large
numbers on daily basis. In that scenario it is not easy for the store management to handle such
crowd at one point of time. In this way lot of disturbance is created.
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Another problem discovered was related with communication and flexibility. The staff of
the store is not capable enough to handle the problems. There are no contingency plans prepared
hence a lot of time is taken in solving a particular issue. Customers want their problems to be
solved on immediate basis but failure to that creates a bad impression on their minds.
Do you think that improvements are required in the services?
The research participants were asked whether improvements are required in the services.
On getting the responses it was realized that improvements are demanded by majority of the
customers. Improvements are required because people are not satisfied at all. They are facing
many issues which can have an impact on the sales and profitability of the company.
Chapter 5: Conclusions and Recommendations
Conclusion
From the above study now a days, people can change their perception related to products
and services in couple of seconds. That is the reason terms like customer satisfaction, loyalty and
services have become very crucial for the companies. There are many factors which affects
services such as Quality, Employees, Price, and Innovation etc. Customers are not only
interested in the product offering to them but also want additional service from company's side.
It can be concluded that Glasgow store of Sainsbury is facing issues in terms of bad customer
services. The findings derived from the questionnaire process are indicating that customers are
not satisfied with the way they are handled. The store has also received poor service ratings from
the people. The problems which were identified as lack of communication & flexibility, bad
shopping environment, complaint handling etc. The company is not been able to keep
consistency in its business operations. People are suffering from issues because their issues are
not being handled in appropriate manner. There is a need to bring improvements in the services.
As a big brand Sainsbury needs to make its competitive position strong and effective. They need
to work on enhancing the customer satisfaction and loyalty. It is also evident that competition is
very tough in UK retail sector. Cost of procuring new clients is comparatively very higher as
compared to the cost of procuring new ones. This concept is needed to be taken into
consideration. It takes a very long time and costs to create a loyal customer base and that base
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has to be retained for the business for very long period of time. They need to make sure that
people remain loyal towards their respective brands always.
22

Recommendations
It has been evident from this research that customer satisfaction of Sainsbury is not up to
the mark and hence it required to incorporate corrective actions as soon as possible. This is so
required so that it can attain sustain for longer and hence can attain the edge over rivals. In this
regard, follow recommendation are offered to Sainsbury for boosting its customer satisfaction
and survey:
1. Self-payment system: Company can incorporate self-payment system in their premises in
order to reduce the chances of dissatisfaction of customers due to long queue at cashier.
This is one of the key method that can help company in enchanting its efficiency and it
will also aids in attaining an edge over the rivals. Additionally, it will support the
company in reducing the load from employees and hence they can able to focus more on
service delivery. This will aids in boosting the efficiency and satisfaction level of
customers. Through this, mechanism, employees will be able to guide customers at the
time of shopping from which shopping experiences of buyers get increased.
2. Click and Collect System: In addition to it, one of the contemporary practice that
emerged in retail sector now a days is of click and collects. It is a concept in which
buyers will shop the item from online store and he himself will visits the store to collect
the same. This practice is getting high amount of attention from the customers as large set
of people are willing to take delivery of products on their own. Further, individual are not
ready to wait for long hours for delivery of goods that been ordered by them. If Sainsbury
will be engaging this activity, then it will gain the advancement of first movers from
which overall customer satisfaction will get increased. Also, it will help in reducing the
cost of the company from which overall profitability of the company will gets increased.
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3. Better offers and convenience: Last but not the least, company can bring offers and
schemes on more frequently in order to gain the attention from the customers. From the
research, it has identified that offers and schemes of Sainsbury are not that attractive as
that of its competitors. Therefore, company need to work on it and for this, offers can be
develop on daily basis. In this, company will be giving discount or other similar offer on
one specific category of products and so on. From this, customers will be visiting the
store or make online purchase through a week through which overall sales will get
increased. This will meet the satisfaction level of customer as well from which overall
effectiveness of the firm will get increased.
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