Customer Relationship Management Strategies

This assignment delves into the crucial role of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) in fostering sustainable purchasing rates for businesses of all sizes. It emphasizes the importance of understanding customer preferences, implementing effective communication strategies, and providing excellent customer service. The text outlines various recommendations for strengthening CRM practices, including leveraging customer feedback, offering convenient purchase options, and recognizing customer loyalty through appreciation events.

Running head: HOTEL AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY
Hotel and Hospitality Industry
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

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Executive Summary
This paper will analyze the five stages of consumer purchase decision of Qatar Airways. As there
are different stages of consumer purchase decision, it is vital to analyze all the stages and suggest
why Qatar Airlines will be preferred by customers. Further certain recommendations will also be
set to improve the interaction between the customers and the management of Qatar airways. All
the recommendations will be set in accordance with the literature review.

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Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Discussion........................................................................................................................................4
Five steps of consumer buying process of Qatar airways and their interaction with the
customer.......................................................................................................................................4
RECOMMENDATIONS:................................................................................................................6
New Bookings:............................................................................................................................7
Customer Loyalty:.......................................................................................................................8
CONCLUSION:..............................................................................................................................9
References......................................................................................................................................10

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Introduction
Consumer behavior is a study which is related to the individuals or groups using, buying
or disposing a product to fulfill the wants and needs. Customers usually spend a lot of time to
choose a product or a service. This paper will highlight the consumer buying decision process of
Qatar Airways. Qatar Airways is the one of the leading airline operator linking more than 150
destinations across South Asia, Central Asia, Africa, Middle East, South America and many
other countries. It is necessary to understand the customer’s buying decision. This paper will also
carry out further investigation as to how the Qatar airways try to fulfill the needs of the potential
customers and interact with them accordingly (Rezaei 2015). It is also necessary to find out
important ways as to how the organization will improve its profitability by attracting more
customers. In case of Qatar Airways, it is the consumer buying behavior which determines the
services that are generated by the company. Moreover, it is also necessary that the company will
provide the correct information to the customers and thus this will improve the profitability of
the company. Consumer behavior is straight forward decision making process. However, in case
of choosing an airline industry, as the process is expensive and it involves high amount of risk,
the complex buying behavior of the passengers is involved. The customers also evaluate the
possible alternatives and they put more emphasis on searching the information and then applying
it to the buying behavior (Horner and Swarbrooke 2016).

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Discussion
Five steps of consumer buying process of Qatar airways and their interaction with the
customer
There are five steps of the consumer decision making process. The end result will lead to
the purchase of the service. However, every consumer will not end in purchasing or preferring
the service provided by Qatar Airways due to its high price. The middle class consumers cannot
afford to travel in the premium class of Qatar Airways and hence they will prefer to choose
cheaper airline. But the services which are provided by Qatar Airways will not be provided by
other airline industry (Oppewal et al. 2015).
The first stage is associated with the need recognition of the customers so that it becomes
easier for Qatar Airways to understand the demands of the customers and accordingly provide
them the desired service. The customers will be looking for such service where they will get all
the service in an affordable cost. The consumers will also be facing problem if the ticket rates are
very high. The price of tickets of Qatar Airways is comparatively higher because of its premium
service. However, the customers will be attracted towards Qatar Airways because of the facilities
which they receive from them. The customers can enjoy a comfortable journey and the
management committee of Qatar Airways will also help the customers in every possible way
(Mithas et al. 2013).
The second stage of consumer buying decision is information search. In this stage,
customers will review the benefits and the facilities that are provided by the airline industry. A
good information research will help the customers to find out other alternatives of Qatar
Airways. Consumers will get more information of Qatar Airways in their official websites or

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they will also be attracted by the different kinds of advertisements which are published in social
media or other advertisement modes. Another leading form of advertisement that will be
effective is through the opinion leaders where the consumers try to buy the tickets after gathering
the experience from the customers who have travelled in Qatar Airways. These customers try to
deliver their wonderful experience in the airway and thus they attract other customers or refer
their friends and family for travelling through Qatar Airways (Bowie et al. 2016).
The third stage of consumer buying behavior is the evaluation of alternatives in which the
consumers tries to evaluate all the alternatives and compares the price, quality and the service.
The customers try to compare all the possible alternatives and choose the airline which will
fulfill their needs in an affordable cost. Moreover, the consumers also want to compare the
facilities and the service quality rather than the price. There are many other alternatives of Qatar
Airways such as Emirates, Ethiad where the consumers can get the tickets at an affordable price
and they can also avail some services similar to Qatar airways. The management committee of
Qatar Airways will try to attract more customers by showing its premium service and the classic
lounge service provided to the customers (Bruce 2016).
The fourth stage is the purchase decision and the purchase of the service by the
consumers. In this stage, the consumers decide whether they will be willing to purchase the
service of Qatar Airways. The customers of Qatar Airways can purchase the ticket through
online mode where they can set their preference for seat. The customer’s area also provided with
the option to choose various meals, beverages, snacks and many other facilities while they are on
board. The customers can also purchase the ticket from their nearest Qatar booking office or they
are even provided support from the salesperson. The amount of the ticket is paid either in cash or

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in card. Most consumers prefer to pay through their cards. There is also a provision of
purchasing the tickets ahead of the date and getting attractive discounts (Shaw 2016).
The final stage is the post evaluation purchase which is associated with the outcome of
the purchase of a service or a product by the customer. The customers will be satisfied after
travelling through Qatar airways. They will be happy with the meals that are provided in their
journey. This helps the consumer in making their journey satisfactory and they will also get the
desired comfort and pleasure while travelling through Qatar Airways (Lerrthaitrakul and
Panjakajornsak 2014.).
RECOMMENDATIONS:
In the present world of a geared up pace, which is maintained in each sector of the market
relying on customer base, among all is the sales segment surrounding any organization. It
becomes an utter difficulty for the organization to gain the customer attention as in a blink of the
eye, brand new competitors, surface in the horizon of the target market. Contemporaries in this
case are a major challenge to deal with to maintain the pace in the race. The most important
methodology involved in the enhancement of the customer base is the improvement of the
customer relationship through developing the customer service in a better way. The quality of the
product is important but is not the only factor that influences the purchase rate for the
organization. The major pointer that the customer links with any organization is the interaction
power and the quality provided to them. In reference to the literature review provided there are
mentioned steps for the enhancement in the same in a relative way. The literature provides
behavioral aspects linked with the purchasing procedures involved in the system. This brings
forward five relevant steps in scenario` the recognition of needs, relevant field research, the

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anticipation of alternatives, the purchasing decision and the post purchase communication, the
customer is subjected to. Every start up requires a strong customer relationship and loyalty from
their end, to develop as grand stature. Two major aspects as is queried, exists in the realm of
recommendations for the organization to increase the purchase rates for the selected
organization, namely, new bookings and Customer Loyalty (Yeoman 2016). The opportunities
and the solutions relative to these are presented in the upcoming sections of the report.
New Bookings:
As a business owner, the prior need is to enhance the client base as that is the lifeline for
Qatar Airways. Consistent streaming of new customers is healthy for the steady growth of the
organization. This helps to achieve the set objectives and build a profound foundation. There are
certain approaches that can in a way enhance the budding of new customers and attract them to
purchase the products and henceforth, the purchase rates would increase. These are presented as
follows in this section. Firstly, discovering the ideal customers is a priority for strategically
setting the target base for Qatar Airways. With knowledge of the type of customers, the product
is apt for; a composite plan can be strategized for the further marketing of the product. A little
amount of thinking is important be it relatively emotional or logical to have a streamlined focus
towards the service areas possible for the targeting market. Secondly, the research relative to the
market and the customers is extremely beneficial and important for the further conquests. A
vivid understanding of the business model and goals is important to build a firm knowledge
about the products and the nature of the service that should be practiced to attract the new
budding client stream. The background of the product and the service provides the details that
need to be strategized. Thirdly, approach with direct response marketing: this would help the
service providers to reach the customers for through the digital set up and hence providing the

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target base with more information about the product. The advertisement through emails and
social platforms is effective in this era of business. Creating ideas that will compel the idea of the
product towards the target base is an ideal approach in this case. It is very important to display
that the organization understands the necessities of its clients. Fourthly, developing attitudes
towards the customer is very important to convince the customers to avail the services. Finally,
never forget to maintain a follow up with the customers; this is organization’s responsibility to
close the loop. The detailing as well as the finishing quality of the execution is very important to
maintain with the clients (Sharma et al. 2014).
Customer Loyalty:
Brand loyalty is one of the most important aspects for any organization to achieve.
Working hard to achieve success is extremely important while customer retention and brand
loyalty are comparatively more valuable, as further studies and researches show that 30 to 40%
of revenue for the organizations is based on the returning clients for the services. Some
approaches towards increment of the customer loyalty is vividly presented in the following:
firstly, the customer service is a priority for any organization even maintain on the social grounds
is equally valuable. The need for loyal customers will be rewarded only if the services provided
gains a score following their evaluation based on the staff interactions even after the purchase of
the product. The staff in charge of the purchase segment should be friendly and understanding
enough towards their needs and feedback about the service and any product related details.
Secondly, a rewarding system should exist for the customers to feel interested towards repetitive
availing of the services. set up an infrastructure or model relative to the sales, which would offer
discounts, gifts and exclusive vouchers for a certain amount of purchasing level. Thirdly, as
mentioned customer feedback system is equally important, wherein, the organization should set

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up communication to gather advices and information about the product performance from the
customers to improve the future sales. Fourthly, offer some relevant conveniences for the
customers in terms of delivery time and venue, and the raised queries from the customers.
Finally, your approach should not only be based on money, conducting an appreciation event is
important for the long haul (Epstein and Buhovac 2014).
CONCLUSION:
Customer relationship management (CRM), as found via researches and studies is solely
responsible for the interlinking of global market and the target client base to develop a
sustainable purchasing rate for the big and small organizations. Major factor contributing to this
system of management is the understanding of the preferences lead forward by the customer
base, which helps develop the detailing of the product and services offered by the organization.
The relevant measures as set in the recommendation segment should be channelized to develop a
sustained customer base as well as an efficient CRM, benefiting the organization. As CRM is
based on the existing marketing beliefs to prioritize and know the customers like an individual.
This is a system to integrate the strategies set to achieve the objectives and goals of the
organization. Innovative initiatives regarding the improvement of customer communication with
the support of the available technologies might prove to be efficiently beneficial.

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References
Bowie, D., Buttle, F., Brookes, M. and Mariussen, A., 2016. Hospitality marketing. Taylor &
Francis
Bruce, P.J., 2016. Understanding decision-making processes in airline operations control.
Routledge.
Epstein, M.J. and Buhovac, A.R., 2014. Making sustainability work: Best practices in managing
and measuring corporate social, environmental, and economic impacts. Berrett-Koehler
Publishers.
Horner, S. and Swarbrooke, J., 2016. Consumer behaviour in tourism. Routledge.
Lerrthaitrakul, W. and Panjakajornsak, V., 2014. The impact of electronic word-of-mouth factors
on consumers' buying decision-making processes in the low cost carriers: a conceptual
framework. International Journal of Trade, Economics and Finance, 5(2), p.142.
Mithas, S., Krishnan, M.S. and Fornell, C., 2013, May. Why do customer relationship
management applications affect customer satisfaction?. American Marketing Association.
Oppewal, H., Huybers, T. and Crouch, G.I., 2015. Tourist destination and experience choice: A
choice experimental analysis of decision sequence effects. Tourism Management, 48, pp.467-
476.
Rezaei, S., 2015. Segmenting consumer decision-making styles (CDMS) toward marketing
practice: A partial least squares (PLS) path modeling approach. Journal of Retailing and
Consumer Services, 22, pp.1-15.

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Sharma, R., Mithas, S. and Kankanhalli, A., 2014. Transforming decision-making processes: a
research agenda for understanding the impact of business analytics on organisations. European
Journal of Information Systems, 23(4), pp.433-441.
Shaw, S., 2016. Airline marketing and management. Routledge.
Yeoman, I., 2016. The history of revenue and pricing management–15 years and more. Journal
of Revenue and Pricing Management, 15(3-4), pp.185-196.