Currently, the worlds largest fast-food restaurant chain is McDonalds Corporation. In 1940, Dick and Mac McDonald was started their business and open the first restaurant in San Bernardino California. In 1948, the McDonald brothers were set a standard of modern fast-food restaurant with the introduction of “ Speedee Service System”. Now, McDonald’s has more than 20000 restaurants which can able to be found in 120 countries around the world, and about 80% are franchises. (Gross & Forbes, 1996)
“ Customer satisfaction is an integrated indicator of performance, expectation, equity, affect and disconfirmation.” (Kimita, K., Shimomura, Y., Arai, T., 2009) Now a day, the important key element for a business to success in a marketplace is customer satisfaction. This is because the customer is very important for the organisation or in the business world. Without any customer, the business cannot last longer and will be face bankruptcy.
In order to carry out this research, the researchers choose a topic regarding the level of customer satisfaction for food and services that provided by McDonald’s.
1. 2 Scope
Customer satisfaction for food and services that provided by McDonald’s.
1. 3 Problem statement
In order to maintain brand loyalty from the loyal customers and attract new potential consumers, McDonald’s need to study the level of customer satisfaction for the foods and services it provide.
McDonald’s can know the customer taste of the food, from there McDonald’s can do some changes to meet the customer needs.
This research is to know the nutrition fact and variety of choices for the food and the set meal.
To know the services that provided by the staff of McDonalds is important in this research. This is because a good service towards customer can maintain the customer to visit again to the shop. The example of the service like the courtesy, prompt and quick service that the staffs need to provide to the customer.
Through this research, McDonalds can know their level of progress compare with the great competitors – like KFC, A&W, Burger King and etc, because all these fast food restaurants serving almost similar food like burger, fried chicken and soft drinks.
1. 4 Research question
What are the factors that encourage customer to dining in McDonald’s?
How to improve the food and services in McDonald’s?
1. 5 objective
To increase the customer satisfaction when the customer dining in McDonald’s
To improve the quality of food and services in McDonald’s
1. 6 Research outcomes
The area that needs to improve by the staff of McDonald’s is the attitude of politeness to the customers.
Customer towards the cleanliness and the environment in the McDonald’s.
McDonald’s will understand the requirements and expectations from the consumer through this research.
After doing this research, McDonald can know how to strengthen their position in this fast-food business.
It was suggest that cleaner will be set to clean the wash room from usually once in a day to twice in a day to make sure the cleanliness of wash room and will put purifying system inside it.
Suggest McDonald’s using plantation oil or olive oil instead of normal oil to cook the food because older group of customers are more concern about their body healthiness.
From this research, McDonald’s will know what are their strengths and weaknesses in the fast-food business.
1. 7 Limitation
Since this research only for McDonalds, this does not mean that the research results are the same for all of the fast-food restaurants.
(595 words)
Task 2. 0 literature review
2. 1 “ Modeling repurchase frequency and customer satisfaction for fast food outlets”
According to Law et al (2004), they found out that in order can have more satisfied and loyal customer, company must understand the having an impact of service quality and waiting time on repurchase regularity and customer satisfaction. The authors used a general linear model (GLM) to study the relationship between the waiting time and the repurchase frequency in fast food operation. The results shows that the factors that influence the customer return repurchase frequency are food quality, seat availability, environment, waiting time and staff attitude. Besides that, the authors also used polytomous logistic regression (PLR) model to quantify the categorical measurement of overall satisfaction. The results indicate that the significantly affect customer satisfaction is food quality, food variety, waiting time and staff attitude. The authors believed that through this model can help managers to understand the important factor that influence customer loyalty as well as the satisfaction level from the customer in the fast food industry. Besides that, it can help the fast food industry to make some improvements accordingly.
This article can helping me have a better understanding for my research topic at the same time I can get the information regarding the factor that influence the customer return repurchase frequency to the fast food outlets.
(208 words)
2. 2 “ The influence of the quality of the physical environment, food, and service on restaurant image, customer perceived value, customer satisfaction, and behavioral intentions”
According to Ryu et al (2012), they found out that few exams have studied to identify the consequences and antecedents of image, especially restaurant image in relation to the restaurant experience. The authors used structural equation modelling (SEM) to simultaneously examine the structural relationships among the proposed constructs. The results show that the quality of the service, food and physical environment were important to determinants of restaurant image. In addition, the quality of the food and physical environment were important to predictors of customer perceived value. The results resistant that customer perceived value is certainly an important to determinant of customer satisfaction. The customer satisfaction is also important to predictor of behaviour intentions. From the authors research of limitation and implications, they found out the purpose of the study will help researcher to understand the complex relationship among behavioural, customer satisfaction, customer perceived value, restaurant image, physical environment, service and food to intentions in the restaurant industry.
From this article, I found out that the quality of the service, food and physical environment are important to determinant of the customer satisfaction. These points are valuable and helping to gain better understanding of my research topic.
(195 words)
2. 3 “ Measuring customer satisfaction in the fast food industry: a cross-national approach”
According to Gilbert et al (2004), they felt that in today’s ever-increasing globalization of brands and services, to attend to the satisfaction of their customer in both domestically and abroad, need to have service-oriented businesses. At the same time, they also need to exceed distinctive cultural dissimilarity from country to country. In this study, the authors provide a cross-cultural comparison of the service satisfaction of fast food business in four English-speaking countries. Based on the data collected from customer from five globally-franchised fast food chains, the authors are using an earlier developed service satisfaction instrument. The research finding from the future research support of this study, the quantity of cross-cultural service satisfaction among franchised services and brands could aid business managers’ hard work to evaluate the quality of the services. The factors that can make customer satisfaction are provision of courtesy, treatment received, the ease to get help, the security inside and the security outside. The finding indicated that all these factors are important for all over the countries. They also provide crossways nationwide boundaries and on a more practical basis and real time.
Provision of courtesy, treatment received, the ease to get help, the security inside and the security outside, all of these factors are important for all the country. These points are very useful for me while I to gather my information.
(224 words)
Task 3. 0 Research Methodology
3. 1 Research Question
What are the factors that encourage customer to dining in McDonald’s?
How to improve the food and services in McDonald’s?
The reason for me to choose the above question is because I can know the factors that encourage customer to dining in McDonalds, and McDonalds can further improve their food or services in order can attract more new customer at the same time also can maintain the old customer to dining in McDonalds.
3. 2 research approach
Deductive
According to David (2009), he stated that the deductive approach usually use in quantitative research and it was dominates. In that researchers are choose in advance which variables they will examine and state their hypothesis to be exanimate, sometimes an experiment can find out something not widely known or recognised earlier.
Inductive
According to Andrews et al (2005), they stated that the inductive approach was using by the researchers start with wide research questions rather than with a particular theory and/or testable hypotheses. The data was collected by the researcher and they will build mid-range theories from the ground up. These grounded theory data and new data collection is constantly changing and revising.
I am using the deductive approach for my research. This is because I need to gather lot of general information to do this research. This deductive approach can help me transforms the general theory into a particular hypotheses in order for me to prove and test whether is right or wrong.
3. 3 research strategy
Exploratory research
According to Krishnaswami and Satyaprasad (2010) they defined exploratory research “ is preliminary study of an unfamiliar problem about which the researcher has little or no knowledge. It usually takes the form of a pilot study”.
I will use exploratory research to investigate my research topic. The reason is when I do this research I will relies on the secondary research and also need my course mate to help me for pilot on my questionnire.
3. 4 quantitative / qualitative data
Quantitative Data
According to Joyce and David (2012), they stated that the quantitative data is numerical data are come from spreadsheets, databases or log files.
Qualitative Data
According to Dembkowski and Lloyd (1995), they stated that the qualitative data is non-numeric data that come from recording, storing, coding, categorizing, searching and retrieving and summarizing data.
I am looking for the qualitative data to do my research. This is because in order me to gather information about my research topic, I need to do searching from internet, journal or book.
3. 5 data collection method
In order me to do my research I will use primary and secondary sources to collect the data. The primary sources are to find five respondents to help me pilot my questionnaire. These five respondents are from Segi College Kuala Lumpur and all of them are my course mate. The reason I choose my course mate is because they rare understand about this subject. I believe the result that they are give to me are appropriate than other people.
I will gather my information by searching in internet, journal or book. I also refer to the researcher report regarding this topic. All these are my secondary sources for me to collect my data.
3. 6 ethical issues
The ethical issue that I need to consider in carrying out this research is all the data that I collected must be confidential and will not give to the third party. Besides that, I also need to be honest to report my data, result or methods.
(556 words)
Task 4. 0 questionnaire design
4. 1 research question
What are the factors that encourage customer to dining in McDonald’s?
How to improve the food and services in McDonald’s?
4. 2 cover letter
“ The level of customer satisfaction for food and services provided by McDonalds”
Dear Respondents,
I am a student from University of Greenwich in BA (HONS) Business Management (BABM) under collaboration of Segi College Kuala Lumpur. I am doing this research is to undertaken fulfilment of the requirement from my university. The following statements and questions are purely for my academic study to investigate “ The level of customer satisfaction for food and services provided by McDonalds”. All the information that provided by you will be kept in private and confidentially and will not give to the third party. It is only to be used for my research purpose.
Your kind cooperation will be high appreciated.
Thank you
Yours faithfully,
Loke Siow Kuan
4. 3 original questionnaires
Pilot by: _________________
This particular questionnaire is designed to get the response from the customer to survey “ The Level of Customer Satisfaction for Food and Services Provided by McDonalds”
Please tick (√) whichever relevant:-
Age
â-¡ Under 15 â-¡ 15 – 30 â-¡ 31 – 45 â-¡ 46 and above
Gender
â-¡ Male â-¡ Female
Race
â-¡ Chinese â-¡ Indian â-¡ Malay â-¡ Others
Marital Status
â-¡ Single â-¡ Married â-¡ Divorced â-¡ Widowed
Occupation
â-¡ Student â-¡ Private Sector Worker
â-¡ Government Sector Worker â-¡ Self employ
Monthly income level
â-¡ Less than RM1000 â-¡ RM1001 – RM2000
â-¡ RM2001 – RM3000 â-¡ RM3000 and above
Number of time(s) you visit to McDonald’s in a week
â-¡ 1 – 2 â-¡ 3 – 4 â-¡ 5 – 6 â-¡ More than 6
Section B: Information about customer satisfaction for food and services
Services
The staff served the food exactly as you ordered it?
â-¡ Yes â-¡ No
The staff provided prompt and quick service to you?
â-¡ Yes â-¡ No
The staffs are always willing to help you?
â-¡ Yes â-¡ No
The staffs made you feels comfortable when you dealing with them?
â-¡ Yes â-¡ No
The staffs are courtesy to you?
â-¡ Yes â-¡ No
Food
Very Satisfied
Satisfied
Neutral
Dissatisfied
Very Dissatisfied
The food tastiness
The food nutrition
The variety of food in the menu
The pricing of value lunch package
The pricing of the breakfast package
Factor to encourage customer dining in McDonald’s
Very Satisfied
Satisfied
Neutral
Dissatisfied
Very Dissatisfied
The pricing of the food
The location of the McDonald’s.
The environment in the McDonald’
The Wi-Fi in the McDonald’s
The cleanliness in the McDonald’s
