Impact of Customer Satisfaction and Brand Image on Brand Loyalty: A Case Study of Sainsbury

This research proposal analyses the impact of customer satisfaction and brand image on brand loyalty, with a case study of Sainsbury. It includes research methodology, literature review, and recommendations.

DISSERTATION

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Topic: To analyse the impact of having customer satisfaction and brand image on brand loyalty:
Case study of Sainsbury...................................................................................................................3
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
Background..................................................................................................................................3
Research aim and objectives........................................................................................................3
Research questions.......................................................................................................................3
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY.....................................................................................................4
Research methods........................................................................................................................4
Research approach.......................................................................................................................4
Research philosophies..................................................................................................................4
Data collection.............................................................................................................................5
Sampling......................................................................................................................................5
Data analysis................................................................................................................................6
Ethical consideration....................................................................................................................6
TIMELINE.......................................................................................................................................6
LITERATURE REVIEW................................................................................................................7
Impact of customer satisfaction...................................................................................................7
Importance of brand image..........................................................................................................8
Influence of factors on brand loyalty...........................................................................................8
Recommendations........................................................................................................................8
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10
Books and Journals....................................................................................................................10

Topic: To analyse the impact of having customer satisfaction and brand image
on brand loyalty: Case study of Sainsbury.
INTRODUCTION
Background
Customers have the power to hold the success of business of an organisation. It impacts
the business and increases the morale of the team members while producing good retention rate.
In the current highly competitive corporate world, brand image is very important for an
organisation as it is one of the powerful asset required for the success of company. Successful
organisation work more on attaining high customer satisfaction and work hard to make a strong
brand image. Sainsbury is considered to be one of the largest chains in supermarket. The
company is headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It works in retailing industry. This
research proposal will highlight the impact of some factors on the brand loyalty for the company.
Research aim and objectives
Aims
The aim of this research is to determine the impact of factors such as customer
satisfaction and brand image on the loyalty of customers of Sainsbury.
Objectives
 To develop the understanding about the importance of customer satisfaction.
 To analyse the concept of brand image.
 To assess the impact of customer satisfaction and brand image on brand loyalty.
 To recommend strategies to increase brand loyalty.
Research questions
Q. 1. What is impact of brand image?
Q. 2. What is the impact of customer satisfaction?
Q. 3. What is the extent to which brand loyalty of Sainsbury is affected by these factors?

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research methods
Research is about having a careful consideration about the concern and problems with the
help of scientific methods. It is done by establishing new methods and investigating the problem.
there are two type of research, quantitative and qualitative research. Quantitative research is
based on the numerical and a non descriptive form. It makes use of statistics and numbers. It is
an iterative process in which evidence is evaluated. The results from quantitative study is
represented in form of tables and graphs. It helps in investigating the process of decision-
making. Qualitative research on the other hand is not numerical and is more descriptive. The
focus of such research type is to obtain the meaning and describing the situation. Such data is not
possible to be graphed and is more exploratory. In this research, quantitative research will be
used as it helps in understanding the attributes related to the topic and provides insight which are
specific to that industry. This research type incorporates the human experience and allows more
creativity.
Research approach
Approach for research is a process which is made form different steps from a wide range
of assumptions. There are two types of research approach, deductive approach begins by
considering a theory and developing a hypothesis based on that. An observation is created which
confirms the theory. Inductive approach for research begins with observation and drawing
patterns from that observation. A tentative hypothesis is developed which is used to generate a
theory. This research will use inductive approach as it is best for qualitative research and helps in
producing new theoretical framework. It is helpful in exploring the phenomenon by the process
of identifying themes and patterns. It addresses the research questions and aims which are to be
achieved in the research. It allows flexibility and helps in understanding close context of
generating new theory.
Research philosophies
It is the belief which is data related to the research is supposed to be gathered, analysed
and used. It deals with the source, nature and attaining the knowledge. Research philosophy will
reflect on the important assumptions which creates a base for the strategy for the research.

Positivism is a highly structured philosophy for research which includes having large samples
and measuring the quantitative and can be used qualitatively. Positivism is based on the
systematic collection of data. Interpretivism is related to collect small samples in more depth
context. It includes having qualitative investigations. Interpretivism will be used in this research
as it is helpful in attaining high level of validity and making the research be more trustworthy
and honest. It is based on the specific role related to the observation of social world and is based
on the interest of the research.
Data collection
It is the process of gathering facts and figures from different sources. Data collection is
used to make the process of decision- making and forming conclusion much easier. Data is a
valuable asset for the research and serves its purpose when its being analysed in order to obtain
desired results. Primary data is generated with the help of conducting surveys, interviews which
are designed in such as way which helps in understanding and solving the problem of the
research (Ørngreen and Levinsen, 2017). Secondary data is related to using the existing data and is
being extracted in order to attain more varied data files. This research will use both primary and
secondary data as primary data helps in first- hand data and secondary data helps in collecting
data which is already collected by someone else. Primary data is real time data which is very
involved and specific to the needs and requirements of researcher. Secondary data is past data
which is quick and easy to process.
Sampling
Sample is a group of people who are willing to participate in the research. Sampling is an
important process to draw valid conclusions based on the outcomes of the research. It is
important to carefully select the sample which will be a representation of a whole group. there
are two types of sampling methods. Probability sampling is the one which involves the process
of random selection of samples and allows in making strong and statistical inferences related to
that whole group. Non probability sampling is about selection which is not random and rather
based on the convenience and different criteria. It helps in making the data collection process
easy. In this research simple random sampling will be used as it provides each member of the

population with equal chances of getting selected. It work in the frame which includes whole of
the population. In this research samples will be collected from 20 customers.
Data analysis
Data analysis in the research is about the process which is used by the researchers in
order to reduce the data as well as interpreting in order to derive the insights about the topic. It is
used to carefully examine every component of collected data. Data is gathered from wide range
of sources which are related to the chosen topic. Data is analysed in order to draw conclusions
and form the base for the findings of the research. Thematic data analysis is the process used for
analysing the qualitative data which is related to searching and identifying its patterns. This
method is used to describe the data which involves interpretation as well as construction of
themes. Another method for data analysis is SPSS which is a software based method and is best
for analysing qualitative data. Thematic analysis will be used in this research as it provides a
more flexible approach which can be changed based on the needs of different studies. It provides
a detailed amount of data.
Ethical consideration
It is a very important part in the research. Ethical considerations makes the research being
moral make it more effective. This research will be conducted in an ethical form where consent
forms will be filled by the respondents. No one will be subjected to any harm regarding this
research. Consent forms will show that participation is completely voluntary while participants
having the right to withdraw at any point of time. A reference list will be provided at the end
which will show that the work is not copied but referenced from old articles. The information
gathered from the respondents will not be revealed. The privacy of everyone involved will be
respected and maintained throughout the research.
TIMELINE
Activities 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Research topic
selection

Determining research
aims and objectives
depending on the
topic
Drafting research
proposal
Selection of research
methods
Drafting
questionnaire
Collecting primary
data
Analysing the
gathered data
Analysing secondary
data
Giving conclusion
and
recommendations
Consulting the
outcomes derived
Making appropriate
modifications
Submission

LITERATURE REVIEW
Impact of customer satisfaction
Snyder, (2019) said that customer satisfaction is an important parameter in the process of keeping
current customers stay with the company and also attracting the new ones. Not satisfied
customers are there to produce more risk for the retention and losing them will result in hurting
the brand of the organisation. On the other hand, Alwi, Ali and Nguyen, (2017) mentioned that there
are many limitations of having customer satisfaction. It gives rise to measuring expected versus
delivered value which results in not measuring the overall value and quantity. More customer
satisfaction might not result in delivering increased profitability which impacts negatively on the
financial condition. Coelho, Rita and Santos, (2018) contradicted and mentioned that customer
satisfaction helps in forming a point for being a competition differentiator. It is a great business
strategy which does not require any marketing campaigns and promotions. It produces high
customer loyalty as they have gained the trust and will stay loyal towards the same.
Importance of brand image
According to Foroudi, and et.al., (2018) building a brand image is about being consistent
and recognisable. Strong brand marks for contributing in the success for the company and brand
image helps in providing better customer recognition as the customer will see the company as the
one delivering trust and being a safe area to invest in. Gil-Saura,and et.al., (2017) disagreed and
said that brand image leads to discourage people from trying other things and moreover, leads to
monopoly. It also contributes in creating confusion regarding what all is offered in the market.
Marín-García, Gil-Saura and Ruiz-Molina, (2020) said that brand image is an effective form of
advertisement as anything originated from a strong brand will meet the curiosity and reliance.
Influence of factors on brand loyalty
Puška, Stojanović and Berbić, (2018) believed that customer satisfaction and brand loyalty goes
hand in hand which is important in attaining the goals of organisation. Satisfaction has a
significant effect on the brand loyalty and makes customers purchase with the same brand. It
leads to attaining long term business profits. Christoforou and Melanthiou, (2019) said that Brand
image marks for creating the first impression for the organisation. Brand image is important
because the customer will form some certain opinions regarding different brands. When the

branding fails, it will result in wastage of time as well as efforts. A good image for the brand
helps in creating positive and memorable first impression from the beginning. Pandey,and et.al.,
(2020) added that when the customer is satisfied with the brand, they will purchase the products
of same without regards to any other brand.
Recommendations
Customer satisfaction can be increased according to Söderlund, (2018) with the help of
collecting regular feedbacks from the customer along with improving the areas where the
organisation lacks in. Turning these feedbacks of the customers in positive action and improving
the products and services. It is important to have a follow up with the customers. Lee and Lee,
(2018) said that image of the brand can be increased with the help of finding out different ways
which helps in attracting the targetted audience. It is important to communicate the brand and its
values which will help in delivering the desired message to the potential customers. All these
will result in increasing the brand loyalty along with being consistent with everything.
CONCLUSION
It can be concluded that brand loyalty is an important aspect for the success of an
organisation. The loyalty of the brand is affected by many factors such as customer satisfaction
and the image of the brand. These factors builds the organisation in a positive way and leads to
increase brand visibility. These factors can be used to solve brand issues and gain more benefits
within the market. This research will be conducted in qualitative way by using primary and
secondary methods for collection of required data.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Alwi, S.F.S., Ali, S.M. and Nguyen, B., 2017. The importance of ethics in branding: Mediating effects of
ethical branding on company reputation and brand loyalty. Business Ethics Quarterly. 27(3).
pp.393-422.
Christoforou, T. and Melanthiou, Y., 2019. The practicable aspect of the omni-channel retailing strategy
and its impact on customer loyalty. In The synergy of business theory and practice (pp. 239-
260). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
Coelho, P.S., Rita, P. and Santos, Z.R., 2018. On the relationship between consumer-brand identification,
brand community, and brand loyalty. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. 43. pp.101-
110.
Foroudi, and et.al., 2018. Perceptional components of brand equity: Configuring the Symmetrical and
Asymmetrical Paths to brand loyalty and brand purchase intention. Journal of Business
Research. 89. pp.462-474.
Gil-Saura,and et.al., 2017. The causal relationship between store equity and loyalty: Testing two
alternative models in retailing. Journal of Brand Management. 24(2). pp.193-208.
Lee, J. and Lee, Y., 2018. Effects of multi-brand company’s CSR activities on purchase intention through
a mediating role of corporate image and brand image. Journal of Fashion Marketing and
Management: An International Journal.
Marín-García, A., Gil-Saura, I. and Ruiz-Molina, M.E., 2020. How does sustainability affect consumer
satisfaction in retailing. Social and sustainability marketing: A casebook for reaching your
socially responsible consumers through marketing science.
Ørngreen, R. and Levinsen, K., 2017. Workshops as a Research Methodology. Electronic Journal of E-
learning, 15(1). pp.70-81.
Pandey,and et.al., 2020. Does price tolerance depend upon the type of product in e-retailing? Role of
customer satisfaction, trust, loyalty, and perceived value. Journal of Strategic Marketing, 28(6).
pp.522-541.
Puška, A., Stojanović, I. and Berbić, S., 2018. THE IMPACT OF CHOCOLATE BRAND IMAGE,
SATISFACTION, AND VALUE ON BRAND LOYALTY. Economy & Market Communication
Review/Casopis za Ekonomiju i Trzisne Komunikacije. 8(1).
Snyder, H., 2019. Literature review as a research methodology: An overview and guidelines. Journal of
business research, 104. pp.333-339.
Söderlund, M., 2018. The proactive employee on the floor of the store and the impact on customer
satisfaction. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. 43. pp.46-53.