Mixed Methods Research Design for Chumley Warner’s Case

Question

Task: This assessment requires a mixed methods (qualitative and quantitative) research design to address the Chumley Warner’s case, which has been uploaded to Blackboard.

If you decide to visit this business to try out their food, please do not ask the staff anything about this assignment as they are a busy small business. However, feel free to let them know you are doing an assignment about them if you do buy any food or drink there.

Your research design should not be written as an academic essay, but in a business style as if you were a marketing research firm pitching for this contract. However, you must still reference the sources used to justify your assertions. Another researcher should be able to follow quite specific steps in your research plan to collect the required data to address the research question. Use 1.5 line spacing, and either ARIAL or TIMES NEW ROMAN 12 point font.

Provide a title page including your name and student number. Your research design should be structured as follows:

1. In your own words, outline the management decision problem (MDP) in one sentence, and provide a one paragraph rationale using only the information provided in the case. Outline the market research question (MRQ), and provide a brief rationale that references the literature. Reference the definition for any construct included in the MRQ. List two research objectives that address the construct of interest in the MRQ.

2. Describe your proposed research methodology, utilising mixed methods (qualitative and quantitative), to address the research objectives. Be clear about how each objective is being addressed by each method. Describe your proposed sampling and data collection procedures. Indicate the data analysis techniques, for both your qualitative and quantitative stages.

3. Provide a one-page sample of a data collection instrument, such as a focus group moderator’s guide or your questionnaire items. You do not need to prepare an entire questionnaire. The questions recommended should clearly address a research objective.

4. Briefly acknowledge any limitations of your research design.

To reiterate, another researcher should be able to easily follow the specific steps in your research design to obtain the necessary information to address the MDP/MRQ.

Answer

Management decision problem
Rationale
It can be observed that Chumley Warner’s is one of the well-known British fish and chip shops that is located in Brisbane. To vary with the satisfactory level and demand of the customers, the chefs of the company, are trying to make various decisions based on the change of food and tastes of the foods according to the Australian community. It can be observed that the chip and fish preparation style of Australian cooking is different from British Chips and fish preparation. Therefore, to target the customers of different segments the decision has to be made on the basis of completely changing the food preparation style and make it as per the Austrian style. Additionally, customer satisfaction is essential as it may assist the company to attract new customers through the food preparation styles. Apart from that, the marketer of Chumley Warner are also required to develop a significant research design so that owner’s identity can be acknowledged and effective customer relationship management can also be initiated (Howes, 2019).

Market research question
Rationale
Does satisfaction vary between first-time customers and repeat visitors in each segment?
It can be observed that in the modern scenario the brand equity is becoming one of the most essential business strategies for the companies so that they can improve their performances and gain a significant economic position. Apart from that, the economic position and competitive strength can be achieved by Chumley Warner’s by improvising their food preparation techniques and improvise the production process as per the satisfactory level of the customers. Based on this, it can be stated that a satisfactory level of the customers mainly various between the first-time customers and repeat visitors (Ryu & Han, 2011). The customers who have already been visited in the outlet have already a specific overview regarding the quality and services of the outlet, as they are already been accustomed to it. But for the new visitors, it becomes quite unknown as which type of service they actually want. Therefore, based on this the customer satisfactory level may vary in terms of first visit and regular visits (Chen & Kim, 2019).In addition to that, increase revenue and enhanced profitability can be achieved by improvising the food tastes that can be aligned along with the preferences of the customers (Wu, 2019). Besides that, through understanding the attributes an Australian customer base in regards to the British food culture, effective brand decisions can be made and significant brand equity can also be created among a specific customer base (Babin et al.,2019). On the other hand, attaining the data regarding the forfeited chips and fish customers in the entire Australian community. Therefore, based on this Chumley Warner must investigate the customer preferences of various Australian regions and produce the products as per their purchasing habits and their food taste preferences. However, it can also be acknowledged that for the customers that high level of satisfaction from the products and also tends to experience a high level of perceptions from the foods mostly have a high level of brand loyalty (Vrontis, Thrassou & Michael R Czinkota, 2010). Therefore, based on this it can be stated that the information which has been gained from the customer insights is one of the most essential elements for the business operations of Chumley Warner that have delivered a significant impact on the customer's insights and can also assist the decision-making process of the organisation.

Do Chumley Warner’s three different customer segments all have the same expectations and same level of satisfaction with the experience?
Based on the above question it can be stated that Brisbane is one of the largest geographic markets of the Australian food regions. It can be understood that three different types of customer segments, such as geographical, demographical and behavioural. The chip and fish preparation process of the Australian community is slightly different from the British food culture. Therefore, variability id one of the main aspect, in this case, that may ensure the acceptance and preferences of the customers in the Australian food markets. The Australian customers of Chumley Warner also have the same type of expectations and satisfaction in respect of the food consumption habits (Pepe et al.,2016).

Research objectives
The research objectives regarding this assignment are stated as below:
Objective 1: To ascertain the differences between "British chippy” and Australian foods.
Objective 2: To understand the customer segments that create a significant impact on the business operations of Chumley Warner's in Brisbane.

Objective 3: To understand the differences in customer satisfaction level in between regular visitors and new customers in the outlet.

Focus group moderator’s guide
It can be stated that the very first stages of the group discussion are significantly critical as the moderator of the focused group must guide the individuals to conduct a permissive atmosphere and ensure that the survey has been conducted as per the provided ground rules. Besides that, based on the tone of the discussion the interviewing group can be attributed to the development of the open environments (Silverman,2016). However, the flexibility of the team members along with their dynamism has been maintained throughout so that a safe and reliable environment can be maintained as well. On the other hand, it can be acknowledged that the individuals are also free to ask any sort of free and frequent questions so that each of the groups can easily understand various focusing groups. As a focus group moderator, it is also essential to ensure a natural curiosity within the person available in the room and maintain significant ease while maintaining all the respective tasks (Flick, 2018). Besides that, the ability to remain imperial is also one of the most significant unbiased aspects that are required to be observed within the team members so that strong verbal skills can be discovered within a research perspective. Above that ensuring a proper trust and comfort of the respondents is also one most specific aspect that can ensure the success of the data collection section. However, during the focus group session, the moderator will look at the participants and will ensure that they are actively listening to all the discussions and topics. Above that, in respect of all participates of the groups, the moderator must listen to all the focus group members so that the desired results can be achieved (Goertzen, 2017).

Qualitative and quantitative research question
As this particular research follows the mixed methodology, therefore, both elements of qualitative and quantitative research will be used. In addition to that, it can be understood that the customer attitudes are required to be analysed so that free-flowing attributes of the participants can be ascertained based on their brand knowledge and product preferences. Besides that, a free-flowing interview session will be conducted within the supervision of the interviewer. Apart from that, the customers will be asked several open-ended questions as they will be asked to share their answers in terms of ratings (Matarazzo& Wiens, 2017). However, for collecting the qualitative research data stakeholders and other organisational representatives have been selected along with various secondary resources. The executives of the food market of Australia will be included in the research and their answers will be analysed for achieving the targeted objective. The primary research will conduct based on the following questionnaire sheet (Bryman, 2017).

Limitation of the research design
The following limitations can be acknowledged based on the current research design,
• The interviewing session and group discussion can take a significant time for completion that may cause the deadline to be exceeded.
• In addition, some type of consideration and compromise cannot be seen from all the participants.
• However, if the majority of the respondents decide to choose the first option, which is being neutral, may harm the prospect of the research result.

References
Babin, B., James, K., Camp, K., Jones, R., & Parker, J. (2019). Pursuing personal constructs through quality, value, and satisfaction. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 51, 33–41.
Bryman, A. (2017). Quantitative and qualitative research: further reflections on their integration. In Mixing methods: Qualitative and quantitative research (pp. 57-78). Routledge.
Chen, P., & Kim, Y. G. (2019). Role of the perceived justice of service recovery: A comparison of first-time and repeat visitors. Tourism and Hospitality Research, 19(1), 98-111.
Flick, U. (2018). Designing qualitative research. Sage.
Goertzen, M.J.(2017). Introduction to Quantitative Research and Data. Library Technology Reports, 53(4), 12-18.
Howes, D.(2019). Multisensory anthropology. Annual Review of Anthropology, 48,17-28.
Matarazzo, J. D., & Wiens, A. N. (2017). The interview: Research on its anatomy and structure. Transaction Publishers.
Pepe, M., Toledo Filho, R.D., Koenders, E.A. and Martinelli, E.(2016). A novel mix design methodology for recycled aggregate concrete. Construction and Building Materials, 122, 362-372.
Ryu, K., & Han, H. (2011). New or repeat customers: How does physical environment influence their restaurant experience?. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 30(3), 599-611.
Silverman, D. ed.(2016). Qualitative research. Sage.
Vrontis, D. Thrassou, A. & Michael R Czinkota. (2010). Wine marketing: A framework for -centred planning. Journal of Brand Management, 18(4-5), 245–263.
Wu, D. Y. (2019). Invention of the Pan-China Cuisine in American Chinese Restaurants. American Chinese Restaurants: Society, Culture and Consumption. New York: Routledge.