Introduction:
Customer loyalty is a wide topic and is achieved by an organization when a customer buys goods from the same organization continuously without going to other suppliers. It involves the commitment of a customer to continue using the given brand from the same supplier without any forms of complains (Kabani, 2010). In case of any problems or complains, the customer can have a certain level of confidence in the organization that their specific problems will be addressed. The factor of customer loyalty is considered to be more than just clients repurchasing goods from the same organization. This is because customers may choose to repurchase goods from an organization due to lack of alternative products. The real customer loyalty exists when customers might go an extra mile to pay higher amounts of money in order to obtain the product they desire due to their confidence in their organization and the product. This brings a lot customer to the organization and is a great asset to any form of organization.
The use of social media for improving the level of customer loyalty can be one of the most effective ways of marketing to any form of organization if well used. Many people have access to the internet and social forms of communication including televisions, making it one of the easiest forms of accessing clients and getting information about a given brand to them (Kabani, 2010).
Thesis statement:
The use of social media in promoting the brand and customer loyalty is an important factor in any firm since it captures a wide range of customers across the world, where purchasing of products can be made online in order to give room for marketing and buying of goods from customers outside the country of the organization.
Identification of the research question, issue or problem and its context:
This research proposal explores how different organizations across the world can increase the level of customer loyalty by the use of social Medias. It looks at the different social Medias involved in promoting customer loyalty and the impacts of this achievement to the general operation of a given organisation. Once the loyalty of customers is earned, the process of marketing its products is fastened and made easy (Kabani, 2010).
In the research proposal, an analysis is done on how the social media impacts the level of customer loyalty at different levels of life. Analysis is done on the classes of customers who access the media and the type of Medias accessed by each customer. An extensive research is done on the way customers respond to different marketing strategies provided by the social media, information collected, and finally analysed to determine the effectiveness of the given methods of marketing (Singh and Diamond, 2012).
The type of social media accessed and used by clients is identified in order to establish the correct means of communication and marketing to the customers. In order to earn the loyalty of customers at each level, an organization has to zero down to the lowest level of social media accessed and used by their clients in order to perform the process of marketing at each level to completely satisfy their customers’ needs. They do these by outlining the specific social media accessed including the radios, televisions, and internet, and finally establish the correct timing to place their advertisements where maximum concentration to social media is always attained, meaning that they identify the most watched programs on television and come up with advertisements in between the programs (Singh and Diamond, 2012).
In this research proposal, the main research questions to be addressed are:
- How does an organization increase customer loyalty by the use of social media?
- How does the social media impact the customer loyalty and hence the marketing systems of an organization?
- How do customers use the social at different levels across the country and which social media could make them easily accessible?
- Which specific social media could have the most influential positive effects on the customer loyalty and boost the marketing process?
- Is it worth for any given organization to invest a huge amount of money in social media?
Access to data, organization, and respondents:
As a business student and researcher, the writer of this proposal has all the sources of information to obtain the relevant information on social media and how it relates to the customer brand and loyalty. The researcher understands the need for business organizations to do an extensive marketing of their brand in order to realize the targeted goals and results. The writer acknowledges the fact that any business firm or organization, customer loyalty goes beyond the act of simply purchasing goods from a specific supplier (Singh and Diamond, 2012). It involves the build up of confidence in customers on the brand that is offered by a supplier as well as the consistent repurchase of goods from the given supplier.
It is also noticed that customer’s loyalty can result to customers offering tips, presents, and paying extra amounts of money on goods so long as they obtain them. The writer, therefore, does an extensive research on the types of existing social media and their general influence on the customer and brand loyalty (Zimmerman and Ng, 2013). The author uses different methods of research including the use of interviews and primary data to determine the most effective form of social media that can be used for the purposes of marketing a brand in an organization.
Initial review of relevant literature:
The use of social media for building customer loyalty refers to the process by which an organization gains website attention or traffic through the social media sites. The main programs of building customer loyalty through the social sites mainly concentrate on efforts of creating contents that encourage and attract the customers and readers. After making such an advertisement, what follows is the spread of the underlying message from one consumer to another. The resulting information should not appear to have come from third party rather it should come be trusted directly from the organization itself.
The different social media platforms include the social networking sites on the internet, mobile phones, televisions, and public advertisements in towns. The use of social networks allows closer interaction with one another from the company to the customers. Joining of companies with social networks builds their social channels and makes interaction with their consumers easy and direct (Zimmerman and Ng, 2013). This interaction is made more personal, therefore, allowing organizations to determine the needs and complains of their customers at an individual level.
The social networks allow the posting of blogs which gives room for personal followers to repost and retweet comments made by services or products being promoted. A repeat of this message allows all the users to see the messages which allow the message to get to more people on the social website. Social networking sites allow personal interaction through communication with individual followers. The closer interaction at a personal level develops a feeling of loyalty into the customers. Products of organizations are therefore, able to reach a narrow target of potential customers (Zimmerman and Ng, 2013).
Mobile phones are also useful gadgets in developing customer loyalty in social media marketing. This is one of the most reliable forms of marketing because almost everyone owns a mobile phone that has capabilities of social networking. Organizations can, therefore, make a constant connection with their customers through consistent updates and reminders on their uses, importance, capabilities and many other factors.
The use of social devices such as home televisions can also be effective. There are specific programs watched at home where maximum concentration is realized by a large group of people in households. These programs are aired on television at hours when people have retired from their days work. Advertisements on television can then be placed in between such programs in order to capture a lot of people at one instance (Safko, 2013).
The social networking system is considered the most effective method of developing customer loyalty. It has the ability to capture customers across the world rather than being confined to one country. By companies creating websites and posting blogs, they can interact with individual followers across the world. There is a provision of making purchase of goods and services online even from other countries, therefore, suppliers are able to extend their market edges to other nations.
It is worth for any organization to invest in social media. In order to realize results, customers of any given organization must have a certain level of confidence in their suppliers, as well as the products sold to them (Safko, 2013). Research shows that the difference between the capitals spend on marketing of products and services and the maximum profit obtained is much higher when compared to working without involving the social media in the marketing process.
Proposed methodology:
Looking at the best approach to arrive at conclusive recommendations that will promote customer loyalty in form of organization that offers services and products, there is the need for change in the profit margin realized at the end of each sell period.
In data collection, a wide range of methods will be applied in conducting this research proposal; the use of quantitative data will be applied in observing and establishing the trends of the organizations forms of marketing and improving customers loyalty. Each method previously used in a case study organization will be brought to book and critically analysed, then the resulting information recorded. This method has been chosen in order to look at the former trends of marketing systems and their levels of effectiveness in promoting customer loyalty (Safko, 2013).
Questionnaires will be applied in the research proposal will be distributed randomly to citizens in public institutions in schools, hospitals, and other organizations. They will fill out information according to the most programs watched on television, the time they are aired, the websites that are mostly visited and all the results will be analysed by the company in order to determine the relevant information concerning the social media.
It is suggested that the limitation of this research proposal could be in the questionnaires obtained from public institutions and the general public. It is not able to cover a large area of the country; therefore, a very small percentage of the population is used to come up with the findings and recommendations of the proposal.
Ethical considerations:
A clear form of ethical issues form will be filled and the purpose and objectives of the research proposal distributed to the all the participants of organization and research proposal prior to the process of conducting the research (Safko, 2013). A written consent will be brought forward from all the people involved in conducting the research and all the results obtained from the primary data and questionnaires kept safely in confidentiality. All the participants involved in the study will be informed in order to keep the general public posted when it comes to validating the findings of the research.
Research Plan:
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