Research proposal

Individual Assignment

ABSTRACT
The purpose of the project is to look into the relationship between advertisements of a firm and buyers behaviour. A multiple number of surveys were carried out in order to do this research, the outcome from this research concludes that advertisements can positively influence costumers loyalty to a market offering and possibly enhance customer commitment. This research studies about the Influence of Advertisement in Consumer Brand Preference in the Soft Drinks, which is one of the major competitive markets in Sri lanka. Every Brand in this industry use advertisement as a major tool to overcome the cutthroat competition. There is a large amount of advertisements of different Soft drink brands shown on Television. But, the main thing the marketers want to identify is that, do all these advertisements positively influence the consumers brand preference or is it their own choice? In order to carry on with the research there are three main variables that we have to look in to, such as communication, comprehension and also information. A structured questionnaire was also used to collect some primary data. In this case study we can find that all of the three variables has a high amount to influence of advertisement in consumer brand preference, but having said that the advertiser wants to view the indicators which has low and moderate influence in their upcoming developments of the advertisements to maintain their place in the industry in the long run. Also this research recommends some actions in order to improve the influence of advertisement in consumer brand preference.

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Table of Contents
CHAPTER 01.. ............................................................................................................................... 3 1.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 3 1.2 Problem Statement ....................................................................................................................... 3 1.3 Justification of the problem .......................................................................................................... 4 1.4 Research questions ....................................................................................................................... 4 1.5 Research Objectives ...................................................................................................................... 4 1.6 Significance of the study ............................................................................................................... 5 1.7 Scope and limitations .................................................................................................................... 6 Chapter 2................................................................................................................................................. 7 2.1 Brief Literature Review ................................................................................................................. 7 2.2 Conceptual framework ................................................................................................................. 8 2.3 Hypothesis..................................................................................................................................... 9 Chapter 03............................................................................................................................................. 10 3.1 Methodology............................................................................................................................... 10 Questionnaire ....................................................................................................................................... 11 3.2 Sampling ...................................................................................................................................... 13 3.3 Convenience Sampling ................................................................................................................ 13 3.4 Action plan .................................................................................................................................. 14 Chapter 04............................................................................................................................................. 15 4.1 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................... 15 4.2 Code of ethics ............................................................................................................................. 15 Chapter 05............................................................................................................................................. 16 5.1 Reference .................................................................................................................................... 16 Chapter 06............................................................................................................................................. 17 6.1 Appendix ..................................................................................................................................... 17

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CHAPTER 01

1.1 Introduction The study of marketing and consumer behavior deals with the factors that affect the purchase and use of goods and services such as availability, advertising, image and consumer characteristics (Engel et al., 1986). The relationship between the consumer and the brand consumer's perception of that brand is the key to brand acceptance. The strength of the relationship between the consumer and the brand will reflect the fit between the consumers own physical and psychological needs and the brand's functional attributes and symbolic values, as perceived by the consumer (Hankinson and Cowking, 1993). Advertising is a part of promotional mix which is one of the Four Ps in the marketing mix which is product, price, place and promotion. As a promotional strategy, advertising plays a main role in creating product awareness and persuade consumers to take eventual purchase decisions. When we talk about advertisements we can see some eye catching advertisements on television, posters, magazines and so on and we can also hear advertisements on radio but the most appropriate way of advertising is through the television where consumers see and get attracted to the product concerned.

1.2 Problem Statement Do all these advertisements positively influence the consumers brand preference?

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1.3 Justification of the problem There is a high amount of advertisements in medias such as television adverts, Radio adverts, Newspaper, Magazines and also on Facebook but the important aspect that we have to look into is Do all these advertisements positively influence the consumers brand preference? if the advertisements do not create a positive influence in consumers brand preference and the marketers dont get the feedback from the consumers as they expected then the money, effort and time and all the other resources that they spent on advertising will go in vain. Therefore in order to avoid all the disappointments and the hard work, it is essential for a marketer to identify the extent to which the advertisement is going to create a positive change in preferring the particular brand of the company.

1.4 Research questions Do all these advertisements positively influence the consumers brand preference? Do advertisements have the appropriate techniques to attract their customers or what would they need to adapt? Do advertisements blend with the new generation and trends?

1.5 Research Objectives 1) Identifying the impact of the information in the advertisement in deciding the consumer brand preference. 2) Examining the influence of the method of communication in the advertisement in deciding consumer brand preference. 3) Understanding the influence of comprehension of the advertisement in deciding consumer brand preference.

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1.6 Significance of the study Company This research will give the companies a clear picture about their customers and they will be able to plan their future advertisements in order to increase customers and to satisfy customers with their services. It also gives companies the opportunity to identify some statistics on what the majority of the consumers want and set their future strategies according to that in order to increase their customers and also for gaining popularity.

Consumers The consumers will be able to see what the companies have to offer them and with their expectations they will choose the most appropriate brand of their choice. From this study we will be able to identify whether the consumers get the exact message that the company wants them to extract and how they react accordingly. This study will also allow the consumers of different brands to give their own idea and suggestions.

Advertising firms As this research will provide details on factors that should be taken in to consideration when a firm is advertising to Sri Lankan consumers, the advertising firms will be benefited because they will get a clear picture on how they should create a eye catching television advertisement or other sort of advertisements. The main concern of the advertisement firm should be how to deliver a companys message to the consumers in an efficient way so that new consumers will also demand the specific good or service. From the recommendations the advertising firms can improve their overall quality of their advertisements and also meet customer expectations which will satisfy their customers.

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1.7 Scope and limitations

Companies chosen This research will be conducted only on Elephant, Coca-Cola, Fanta and Ole as it is few best and leading brands in Sri Lanka. Moreover they have really impressive and up-to-date flavors of consumers choice. Also they offer a wide variety to thousands of consumers in Sri Lanka. Industry Soft drink industry has been chosen to conduct this research as it is an industry where it involves a lot of advertisements between the company and the customer. However it could be noted that the findings will be suitable to most of the companies in other industries. Geographical Area Most of the developments in Sri Lanka is centered around Colombo, it is identified that most of the companies are more focused on this region. Furthermore it is seen that most of the customers are mainly from the Colombo district. For this reasons it is decided that this research will be focused on Colombo. Demographics This research will be carried out based on all males and female over the age of 10 since it is important that the population that the research is conducted on are the people who consumes the soft drinks. Duration This research will be conducted in a period of one months time which is enough to carry out this research project with less number of activities involved. Data Most of the information for this research will be based on the secondary sources which will be collected through the internet, articles and magazines. Furthermore the information will also be gathered from a primary source in the form of questionnaires.

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Chapter 2
2.1 Brief Literature Review The role of the advertisement differs from company to company and also with what the company wants them to do. Every Brand in this industry use advertisement as a major tool to survive from the cutthroat competition. Advertisements tend to be highly informative & present the customer with a number of important product attributes or features that will lead to favorable attitudes and can be used as the basis for a rational brand preference. People get information from the advertisement through the attractiveness it holds, and the attention it creates and the awareness it gives. (Arens, 1996) One key concern for the advertiser is whether the advertisement or commercial conveys the meaning intended. The receiver is viewed as very active, involved participant in the communication process whose ability and motivation to attend, comprehend and evaluate messages are high. If the consumer or the audience gets the message and understand it as the advertiser has it in mind, it is a great success for the advertiser. That understanding leads the person to prefer and purchase the brand. (Clow & Back, 2002) Advertising is also a type of communication. It is actually a very structured form of applied communication, employing both verbal and non-verbal elements that are composed to fill specific space and time determined by sponsor. Effective communication through advertisement leads the consumers toward the purchasing of brand. (Belch & Belch, 1998)

Based on the above brief literature review the following conceptual framework is developed for the research purpose.

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2.2 Conceptual framework

Independent Variables

Dependent Variable

Comprehension Recall Link Attitude Communication Message Source Media

Information Attractiveness Attention Awareness Ha4 Ha5 Ha6 Ha1 Ha2 Ha3

Consumer Brand Preference

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2.3 Hypothesis Ho1:There is no relationship between recall and customer brand preference Ha1: There is a relationship between recall and customer brand preference Ho2:There is no relationship between link and customer brand preference Ha2: There is a relationship between link and customer brand preference Ho3:There is no relationship between attitude and customer brand preference Ha3: There is a relationship between attitude and customer brand preference Ho4:There is no relationship between message and customer brand preference Ha4: There is a relationship between message and customer brand preference Ho5:There is no relationship between source and customer brand preference Ha5: There is a relationship between source and customer brand preference Ho6:There is no relationship between media and customer brand preference Ha6: There is a relationship between media and customer brand preference Ho7:There is no relationship between attractiveness and customer brand preference Ha7: There is a relationship between attractiveness and customer brand preference Ho8:There is no relationship between attention and customer brand preference Ha8: There is a relationship between attention and customer brand preference Ho9:There is no relationship between awareness and customer brand preference Ha9: There is a relationship between awareness and customer brand preference

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Chapter 03

3.1 Methodology This study is based on secondary sources of information as well as primary sources of information. Secondary information will be used to begin the research with. The main sources of secondary information are the internet, journals and articles. Internet is a suitable option as most of the organization relies on providing their own website customized to serve the needs of its consumers. Soft drink companies also have its own website which will provide a great amount of information for the needs of this research. Beside these there are numerous amount of authors that have published their own articles online to which others can refer and gather information from it. This can be a valuable source of secondary information for conducting this research. At the end the data will be collected from the primary sources. Here the information is going to be collected through overlook the thoughts of the customers. The information will be collected through letting the customers fill a questionnaire designed to meet the needs of this research.

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Questionnaire
I am Nayomi Ekanayake, a student doing HND in business management at ICBT. Currently I am conducting a research on the influence of advertisements in consumer brand preference. I want you to fill this questionnaire which would help me to complete the assignment.
1. Age

10-18
2. Gender

19-39

40+

Male
3. Geography

Female

Colombo 1-3 Colombo 10-12

Colombo 4-6 Colombo 13-15

Colombo 7-9

4.

What type of brand you usually drink?

Coca-Cola Fanta
5.

Elephant

Ole

Which brand do you think have a better taste?

Coca-Cola Fanta
6. Why do you prefer that brand?

Elephant

Ole

Cheap Taste

Trend

Advertisements

7. Do you think the promotion method is good enough?

Yes
8.

No

Not sure

How did you get to know this particular brand?

Advertisements Family

By friends

Other

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Research proposal 9. Do you think the advertisements are attractive?

Individual Assignment

Yes

No

Not sure

10. In what media do you hear or see these advertisements from mostly?

Television

Newspapers

Radio

Facebook

11. Who do you think that the advertisements are focused on?

Teenagers

Children No Not sure

Adults

12. Do you think advertisements are essential for a brand to be famous?

Yes

13. From your point of view do you think advertisements can influence consumer brand preference? Maybe No Yes 14. Do you extract the message the companys trying to put forward ?

Yes

No

Not at all

Sometimes

15. Any suggestions?

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3.2 Sampling Sampling is where we select a portion of the entire population from the area we have selected for the research. The sampling is done to simplify the research study and also to carry forward the study only on the targeted people from the population. The sample, that is, a subset of population, will represent a subset of manageable size. 19,886,000 is the whole Sri Lankan population 2,421,000 is the whole Colombo district population 647,100 is the whole population of Colombo municipal council (Refer appendix 6.1) The sampling frame for this study is based on the following characteristics of the population. Customers: From all of the population, the sample for this research will be from Customers of different soft drink companies. It is because this research is based on soft drink industry of Sri Lanka. Geographical area: The population from Colombo will be taken in to consideration for this research. Gender: This is not an issue as both males and females will be taken into sample. However this will be taken in to consideration. Income: The sample will be taken from all sort of people from different backgrounds. Age: The sample will consist of people of the population above the age of 10.

3.3 Convenience Sampling From the characteristics mentioned above the sample will be done at my convenience that is reaching only to those who is easily accessible for me. As it will make the overall research easier. The people at my convenience are namely my family, friends, relatives, neighbors etc., whom I can access easily, will be taken for sampling randomly.

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3.4 Action plan

Days Descriptions
1
st

nd

rd

th

th

th

th

Identifying the problems and objective setting. Creating research plans and data collection methodologies. Secondary data collection Creating the questionnaire. Pilot study and revising the questionnaire Creating a sampling framework Primary data collection; consumer audit through handing out questionnaire Process and analyze the data collected using data analysis techniques Selecting presentation methods, preparing for presentation and developing the final reports Presenting & Reporting

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Chapter 04
4.1 Conclusion The research analyses the influence of advertisements on consumer brand preference. It also studies how effectively consumers extract the message they get from the advertisements and also what they suggest that should take place for a brand to be popular and how they prefer a brand from their point of view. From further study, it enables the companys and the advertising firms to understand the consumers and what they expect from them and also to fulfill their expectations from advertisements. 4.2 Code of ethics This research project, about Do all these advertisements positively influence the consumers brand preference?, is a research carried out by myself, Nayomi Ekanayake.

As I said earlier all the information taken to do this research has been taken from numerous secondary and primary sources. All information collected about the soft drink advertisements are those that are easily available through the companies websites. These information have been collected through the annual reports and other articles available through the websites. The research is reasonably limited to certain areas due to the limited time frame, funds and resources. These have been outlined clearly under scope and limitations. At the same time it also identifies the areas that this research will consider to study. Any help that I got shall be acknowledged and recognized and also mentioned under references. I will not plagiarize any material in any form within this research. Areas where I got information from a source for secondary research will be clearly identified with proper referencing.

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Chapter 05
5.1 Reference Arens, W.F. (2002). Contemporary Advertising, 8th ed., Pearson Education Inc, India. Belch, G.E. and M. A. Belch. (1998). Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing Communications Perspective, 4th ed., Irwin/McGraw-Hill, New York. City population 2008, Sri Lanka , [Online], Available: http://www.citypopulation.de/SriLanka.html [Accessed 4th December 2012] Clow,K.E. and R. Back. (2002). Integrated Advertising & Marketing Communication, 2nd ed., Prentice-Hall, India. Engel.LP. Blackwell. R.D. and Milliard.P.W. (1986), Consumer Behavior, 5th ed. Dryden Press, Chicago. IL. Hankinson, G. and Cowking, P. (1993), Branding in Action, McGraw-Hill, London.

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Chapter 06
6.1 Appendix population
Name
1 Colombo

Adm.
COL 647,100 210,546 177,563

2 Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia COL 3 Moratuwa 4 Negombo 5 Sri Jayawardenepura 6 Kandy 7 Kalmunai 8 Galle 9 Batticaloa COL

GAM 121,701 COL KAN AMP GAL BAT 116,366 109,343 94,579 90,270 80,313

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