RESEARCH PROPOSAL.

This is for Proposal for Dissertation for Masters level. The assessment brief and details are attached. Please advise if this is doable and cost. Regards Ben

Running head: RESEARCH PROPOSAL
RESEARCH PROPOSAL
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

Executive Summary
The consumer needs and demands have been changing considerably and with respect to this, the
different organizations would now be required to come up with various technological
advancements which would assist them in improving the customer experience. The give report is
the Research proposal which is aimed at finding the impact of the Digitalizing the overall
departmental stores on the improvement of the customer behavior. The Research question,
research objective and overall research techniques to be used will be provided.

Table of Contents
Introduction and context..................................................................................................................4
Background..................................................................................................................................4
Research Aim...............................................................................................................................5
Research Objectives.....................................................................................................................5
Research questions.......................................................................................................................5
Literature Review............................................................................................................................6
Overview......................................................................................................................................6
Consumer experience...................................................................................................................6
Factors affecting consumer experience.......................................................................................7
Digitalization of the departmental stores-relating Technology.................................................10
Investigative Approach and Methods............................................................................................12
Research Strategy......................................................................................................................12
Data collection method..............................................................................................................13
Data analysis..............................................................................................................................15
Ethical issues.................................................................................................................................16
Timeline and Resources.................................................................................................................16
References......................................................................................................................................18

Topic: Can consumer’s shopping experience be improved through digital adoption in
department stores in Singapore?
Introduction and context
Background
The context of the retail industry has been changing to a great extent and with respect to
this; it can be understood to be very integral for the firm to ensure that, they are being
successfully able to undertake crucial initiatives in order to see to it that they are being able to
meet these changing forces. In association with this, it becomes integral to ensure that the
customer needs are met with (Mathras et al. 2016). The cust0omer needs and preferences have
been changing to a great extent and in relation to this, all the businesses would be required to
undertake various initiatives and innovative techniques which would assist them in offering the
customers with a relatively new offering and will also enable them to engage in long term
success. The digitalization era has bought about various experiences and evolved the way in
which the business can be conducted. Hence, with respect to this, the aim of the study can be
understood to be focused on the understanding of the new digitalization technologies and the
manner in which these can be utilized in order to meet the needs of the different customers and
ensure that they are being able to successfully enhance the consumer experience (Mandel et al.
2017). The research proposal is largely focused on ensuring that the experience of the consumer
can be improved and the manner in which the digitalization in the departmental stores can be
adopted. Moreover, it is crucial to mention that the study will be based in Singapore. Hence, the
proposal will outline the Research aim and questions and along with this, it will highlight the

Review of Literature along with providing the different ways in which the overall investigation
techniques can be carried out successfully.
Research Aim
The aim of the research can be stated to be to understand the manner in which
consumer’s shopping experience be improved through digital adoption in department stores in
Singapore. The study will identify the impact of the digital adoption in the department stores in
Singapore on the overall shopping experience of the customers.
Research Objectives
The research objectives which have been outlined for the purpose of the study can be
understood to be as follows:
1. To understand the manner in which the customer experience can be improved through the
adoption of digitalization at the department stores in the Singapore.
2. To analyze the factors affecting consumer experience in Singapore.
3. To analyze the factors affecting adoption of digitalization in the departmental stores in
Singapore.
4. To find the relationship between the customer experience and the digitalization of the
departmental stores as present in Singapore.
Research questions
The research questions which have been underlined for the purpose of the study can be
understood to be as follows:

1. What is the manner in which the customer experience can be improved through the
adoption of digitalization at the department stores in the Singapore?
2. What are the factors affecting consumer experience in Singapore?
3. What are the factors affecting adoption of digitalization in the departmental stores in
Singapore?
4. What is the relationship between the customer experience and the digitalization of the
departmental stores as present in Singapore?
Literature Review
Overview
The literature review forms a relevant part of the study and assists in understanding the
manner in which the overall study can be undertaken so as to ensure that the theoretical
frameworks and the overall concepts which are involved in the study are discussed soundly. The
focus of this Review of Literature will lie in understanding the concept of the Consumer
experience and understand the manner in which the digitalization of the departmental stores can
affect their experience.
Consumer experience
According to Zhang and Benyoucef (2016), Consumer experience can be defined as the
interaction which takes place between the organization and a customer over the duration of their
overall relationship during the particular time period. In line of this, it is integral to understand
that, the customer interaction can be made of the overall customer journey, the brand touch
points as well as the manner in which the customer tends to interact with the firm in the

environment. Their experience needs to be such that it will improve the overall manner in which
the customer tends to interact with the firms and the manner in which their customer interaction
with the organization will have an impact on the overall sales of the organization. When the
experience of a customer is good then in such a case, it can be understood that the overall
expectations have been met with and has matched their needs. The experience of the customer
can be implied with the customer involvement at different levels such as rational, emotional,
sensorial, spiritual and physical (Silverman 2016). In line with this, it is integral to ensure that,
the customers generally respond diversely to the indirect and direct contact with the company.
The direct contact usually involves the purchase or the use which is generally initiated by the
customers and with respect to this, the indirect contact involves news report, advertising,
unplanned encounters, word of mouth and other such techniques.
In addition to being associated with the inner aspects of a customer, the customer
experience can also be understood to be affected by the overall manner in which the organization
tends to interact with the different customers (Bradford et al. 2017). In line with this, it is
important to note that, the quality of the customer care, advertising aspects, packaging aspects,
service features, product package and delivery among other aspects tend to affect the manner in
which the organization tends to perform and in line with this, it is important for the firm to create
good company offerings and improve the overall quality of the customer care (Godey et al.
2016). The customer experience is a combination of personal values and the contribution of the
company which provides the experience (Lantos 2015). Hence, the events before and after the
customer interaction can have the overall capacity on the experience of the customer at large.

Factors affecting consumer experience
There are a large number of factors which have a strong impact on the overall customer
experience and these can be understood to be as follows:
Brand
The brand image and the brand value of the organization also tend to have a strong
impact on enhancing and driving the customer experience (Stephen 2016). With association to
this, it can be mentioned that, the business to consumer firms must focus on ensuring that they
are successfully being able to enhance the individual relationships and company brand.
Price
The price of the product or service which is provided to the different consumers can be
understood to be a factor which has a strong influence on the different customer experiences. In
line of this, it needs to be understood that, if an organization needs to ensure success then in such
a case, the price of the product should be such that, it enhances the experience of the customer
present.
Requirements
The requirements can be understood to be the varying needs of the customers and the
different constraints which are present (Murphy and Dweck 2016). The service provided by them
needs to ensure that the customer needs are being met with accurately. The customer is generally
satisfied, if their overall requirements are being met with actively.
Availability

The availability of the product or the service can be understood to be one of the key
drivers of customer experience. In line with this, it can be understood that, when the product is
available to the different customers then in such a case their overall experience can be enhanced
accordingly (Bechtsis et al. 2017).
Figure 1: The Customer experience Framework
(Source: Juster 2015)
Convenience

The convenience of the customers is one of the key factors which tend to have an impact
on the overall experience of the customers. In line with this, it is important that the customers are
being served at the right time and at the right manner and in such a scenario, coming to the
convenience customer can have a long term impact on the overall customer experience.
Service Support
The customer experience can be taken to be a key resultant of the service or support
which is provided to the customer (Solomon et al. 2014). In line with this, it can be understood
that, one of the key aspects of enhancing the customer experience can be understood to be
relating to the manner in which the firm provides an overall in house experience along with
providing an overall after service experience as well.
Quality
The quality of the service or the product which is generally provided to the customer also
acts as a determiner of the overall experience which is attained by the different customers. In line
with this, it is crucial to understand that, the firm must function with the aim of providing good
quality services to the customers which will then enhance the overall customer experience.
Fashion and Trends
The different customers are often attracted by the overall cool factor. In line of this, it can
be rightfully understood that a firm will have the overall capability to ensure success if it is
following the latest trends and the fashion (Juster 2015). When a store makes use of the latest
technology then in such a case, the customer experience is enhanced to a great extent.
Digitalization of the departmental stores-relating Technology

According to Ajzen (2015), the Digitalization of the departmental stores can be
understood to be the use of the digital technologies in order to create a ground for game changing
experience which can engage the firm in carrying out the disruptions for the existing industries
as well as creating the new ones. In line with this, it is integral to ensure that in the retail segment
such as the departmental stores, the overall experience of the different customers can change to a
great extent through the quality of service which they experience (Zhang 2015). This is because,
not much can be changed about the manner in which the departmental stores are being able to
sell the product. In line with this, the retail industry has been greatly affected by the overall
manner in which the firm is able to engage in the association with the customers. It can also be
affected by the ways in which the consumer acquires the product and how their entire journey is
affected by the digitalization.
Digitalization of the departmental stores can be defined as an aspect whereby an
organization will be successfully able to meet the expectations of the customers. This means that,
the definition of service for a retailer has changed to a great extent and now, just keeping the
store clean and the line short cannot be considered as the key to success. The stores need to
entice the customers and presently the key to enticing the customers is digitalizing the overall
operations which the store has to offer.
The key drivers of the digitalization can be understood to be as follows:
 The evolving expectations of the customers with regard to the so called digital or Omni
channel shopper.
 The need to blur the digital as well as physical experiences with the in-store experience.

 The challenges which are being faced by the organization in regard to the supply chain
management (Calvino and Criscuolo 2019).
 The competition which is received with respect to the customer experience can be
understood to be increasing the cost pressure.
 The shoppers these days prefer to gain a personalized experience which then enables the
firm to engage in digitalization which would allow them to ensure long term association
with the customers.
Investigative Approach and Methods
Research Strategy
The research strategy has been outlined as follows:
Research Philosophy The Positivist research philosophy will be
adopted which shall assist in understanding
the impact of the digitalization of the stores
on the customer experience in Singapore.
Research Approach The research approach which has been selected
is the Deductive approach (Silverman 2016).
This is because; the important information
would be deduced from the response of the
customers.
Research Design The research design which has been adopted

for the purpose of the study can be understood
to be the Descriptive research design which
would assist in ensuring that, the different
aspects of the study can be explained in a
descriptive manner.
Data collection method
Type of data
The type of data which would be essentially required in the research would involve the
customer data. This information needs to be first hand in nature which would go a long way in
convincing the readers that the different aspects about the research have been collected with
respect to the view of the customers. Hence, primary data would be required to be collected from
the different customers (Carlsson 2018). This would assist in ensuring that the different
departmental stores would be able to understand the kind of service which they are required to
provide to the different customers and how the digitalization will be able to impact their
experience enhancing operations (De Mooij 2019). Hence, two main types of data which would
be required by the customer can be understood to be related to the qualitative information with
respect to the previous researches which have been undertaken. This shall be undertaken to
understand the manner in which the past researchers have contributed to the study in the given
domain. Additionally, quantitative data in the form of the consumer responses would be required
in order to gain an idea of the manner in which the relationship between customer experience and
the digitalization of the departmental stores can be verified.

Justification
The reason why this data would be required is because, it would assist in providing
adequate justification to the different readers and the managers of the departmental stores
regarding the different ways in which the different customers can be satisfied accordingly and
the ways in which the overall experience of the customers can be enhanced.
Sources of data
The sources of data with respect to which the data will be carried out and the research
will be undertaken can be contributed to the fact that the Primary data collection would be the
most appropriate method using which the data for the research needs to be collected. Under the
primary data collection method, the responses will be collected from the different customers by
making use of the survey. It is through these responses that the analysis will be undertaken which
will assist in understanding the manner in which the customer experiences are enhanced by the
digitalization of the retail stores.
Justification
The reason why the Primary source of data collection has been adopted because it will
assist in understanding the manner in which the different customers react and response to the
digitalization of the stores. With respect to this, it is integral to understand that, as customer
perception is required, collecting the experiences of the customers through the survey would be
the best way to collect the data.
Sampling approach

The sampling approach which will be adopted for the purpose of the research can be
understood to be the Simple Random Probability Sampling. In this method, the data will be
collected from the different customers and shoppers who are present in Singapore (Flick 2015).
A sample size of 300 shoppers will be selected which will serve as the adequate sample size.
Justification
In this way, the researcher will be able to get real time and current information about the
manner in which the different customers react to the digitalization of the stores and the overall
service provided by them.
Data analysis
The data analysis technique can be understood to be a technique with respect to which the
data for the research will be analyzed and in relation to this, the data analysis method which will
be selected for the research can be stated to be the quantitative research analysis technique
(Kumar 2019). In this method, the responses of the different customers will be carried out in a
quantitative manner and various tools like the Statistical tools of Regression analysis will be used
to analyze the relationship between the customer experience and the digitalization of the
departmental stores.
Limitations of the Research
The limitations of the research can be understood to be as follows:
 The first limitation is with respect to the time and the budget of the research
 Secondly, the analysis has been planned to be carried out in the Primary Quantitative
manner which is just one approach

 Moreover, a limited number of responses can be collected.
Ethical issues
The Research ethics can be defined as the manner in which the overall ethical aspects of
the study will be maintained. Hence, while conducting the research, the researcher would be
required to maintain the overall ethical issues in the entire research procedure. Moreover, the
privacy of the opinion and personal information as given by the respondent needs to be
maintained (Quinlan et al. 2019). Moreover, the researcher is under the obligation of not leaking
the data of the respondents and additionally, they have to maintain the overall privacy. In regard
to the overall research paper, the researcher is bound not to get involved in any kind of a
plagiarism issue and other unethical means which are against the University.
Timeline and Resources
Activity Months
M
Jan
M
Feb
M
Mar
M
April
M
May
M
June
M
July
Finalizing of the topic 
Collection of data from primary
and secondary sources.
 
Formation of the overall layout of
the research.

Conducting the LR of the related
topic.
  
Formation of the research strategy  
Selection of the proper research
Strategies
 

Collection of the data from primary
source points.
 
Analyzing the data sets  
Interpreting the data 
Conclusion of the study 
Rough draft  
Final work submission  
Hence, from the above analysis, it can be rightfully understood that the research will be
collected in a span of 7 months. The different resources which will be required can be
understood to be in terms of time, monetary and other academic sources. The researcher aims to
subscribe to various online data journals and moreover, for the survey, the researcher would visit
a mall to gain the experiences of the shopper.

References
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preferences and consumer behavior. Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, 55(2-3), pp.119-145.
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