Unit 4 Assignment on Research Project Easy Jet

Program	Diploma in Business Travel and Tourism
Unit Number and Title	Unit 4 Research Project Easy Jet
QFC Level	Level 5

Task 1

1.1 Formulate and record possible research project outline specifications.

Introduction to the study: The title of the research project is “Factors influencing customer satisfaction at Easy Jet”. Easy Jet is one of the leading airlines of Europe which is known for providing budget services to the customers. It operates on more than 800 routes and has around 250 aircrafts (Khan & Khan, 2014).  It has more than 70 million passengers which makes it a strong brand in the industry. This research report is focussed on the development and services of Easy Jet plc which focuses on the customer satisfaction and aims to provide best services to them in lower fares (Liu, et al., 2015). The research aims at identifying all those factors which determines the satisfaction or dissatisfaction of the customers of Easy Jet. Data has been collected through primary and secondary sources to research to the conclusions (Kim & Lee, 2011).

Aims and Objectives of the study: The main aim of the study is to identify the main influential factors for the satisfaction of the customers of Easy Jet.

The main objectives of the study include the following:

• To understand what is customer satisfaction
• To investigate how Easy Jet provides satisfaction to its customers
• To identify the factors which influence the satisfaction level of the customers

Literature review: Customer satisfaction can be referred to the level of fulfilment of the expectations of the customer by using the product or service of the company. It is very important for the businesses to improve their businesses and to gain a strong position in the industry.  Easy Jet is the low cost airline of Europe which is preferred by people due to its high service quality in lower prices (Inc., 2015).

Customer satisfaction is crucial to be measured for maintaining the competition in the industry where there are lot of other airline service providers fighting for market share. Gaining customer satisfaction is not easy and the companies have to adopt various techniques and methods to gain maximum customer satisfaction which also creates loyal customers for the business (Singh & Srivatava, 2013). There are many factors which have its influence on the customer satisfaction levels and some of these factors are:

• Quality of services
• Perceived Value
• Brand reputation and image
• Customer loyalty
• Prices of the services
• Employee attitudes
• Performance of the company
• Performance of the competitors in the industry (Bryman & Bell, 2014).

1.2 Identify the factors that contribute to the process of research project selection.

The factors which motivated me to select the topic of the research are:

• Customer satisfaction has a very wide scope
• This project contributes to the success of the business
• I have personal interest in the field of customer satisfaction
• The project has more benefits and lower risks

1.3 Undertake a critical review of key references about ‘customer satisfaction’ and ‘influential factors on customer satisfaction’.

Customer happiness, his delight can be termed as customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction in service industries depends on many factors and it also plays a very important role in the success of the enterprises (Strickland, 2014). Customer satisfaction is the most important objective of marketing activities of the companies and it also determines that how many loyal customers the business will create. It affects the future purchase  organisations behaviour  of the consumers as well. Satisfied customers increase the profitability of the business and also the success of the organisations (Leedy & Ormrod, 2009).

There are both primary and secondary sources used and referred to know about the factors which influence the customer satisfaction.  Questionnaire has been prepared which is distributed among the students of UKCBC as many of them have travelled through many low cost airlines. This questionnaire will get the responses from the real customers of Easy Jet and other low costs airlines and the main objectives of the research will be achieved. These responses will be analysed to know the factors which influence the satisfaction of customers regarding Easy Jet (Saunders, et al., 2012).

Secondary sources are also used which shows that what are the satisfaction levels of customers from airlines and what factors are influencing the customer satisfaction. These sources are the journal articles, research papers, internet sources, etc. According to (Khan & Khan, 2014), Airline industry is highly competitive and the most important part of the whole process of business in these industries is customer. Customer is regarded as the king who can provides heights of success to the business or can take it down (Chi & Gursoy, 2009). Customer Satisfaction is not same for all the customers, it is different. Some might get satisfied because of the quality while some might give more important to prices rather than quality. According to (Kim & Lee, 2011), there are different factors which are used in combination to fulfil the minimum expectations of the customers. Customer satisfaction can be termed as a dynamic process; it changes with the time and with the change in other factors (Singh & Srivatava, 2013).

               Staff behaviour with travellers in Easy Jet

1.4 Produce a research project specification. 

Research Proposal

• Research Topic:  “Factors influencing customer satisfaction at Easy Jet”.
• Introduction: Easy Jet is the leading airlines of Europe known for providing budget services to the customers and it operates in more than 30 countries. This research report is focussed on the customer satisfaction and at identifying all those factors which determines the satisfaction of the customers of Easy Jet. Data has been collected through primary and secondary sources to research to the conclusions.
• Research Aim: The main aim of the study is to identify the main influential factors for the satisfaction of the customers of Easy Jet.
• Research Objectives: The main objectives of the study includes the following: 

          To understand what is customer satisfaction.

          To investigate how Easy Jet provides satisfaction to its customers.

          To identify the factors which influence the satisfaction level of the customers.

• Literature Review: Easy Jet is the low cost airline of Europe which is preferred by people due to its high service quality in lower prices. Customer satisfaction is crucial to be measured for maintaining the competition in the industry where there are lot of other airline service providers fighting for market share. There are many factors which has its influence on the customer satisfaction levels and some of these factors are Quality of services, Perceived Value, Brand reputation and image, Customer loyalty, Prices of the services, Employee attitudes, Performance of the company, Performance of the competitors in the industry and more (Yin, 2009).
• Research methodology: Research Methodology is the section which holds the most important details about the research Project. It has the information about the type of research, the details about the information sources, the analysis method and all the other details which are needed to carry out the research.
• Research design: The design of this research on customer satisfaction is  market mix  research where both the qualitative and quantitative data is used for getting better results. Both the types of data are used in combination.
• Data collection sources: The data collection sources used are both primary and secondary in order to support the data collected at first hand and the data collected which has already been used. Primary data source is questionnaire survey in which questions are asked from the students of UKCBC to know the factors which make them satisfied while travelling through airlines. The secondary sources used are journals, articles, websites, etc. (White, 2013).
• Sample size- 20
• Sampling technique: Random sampling technique is used. 20 students are selected randomly to get their responses for the purpose of analysis and making the conclusions of the research.
• Data analysis and presentation: Data collected through primary and secondary sources is been analysed through different statistical tools and the analysed data is been presented in the form of tables and charts so that it can be easily readable and understandable by the users of the research.
• Reliability and validity: To show that the data collected is valid and reliable, proper references are shown. The data collected is secured with the passwords so that no alteration can be done in the results and authenticity can be maintained for the data.
• Research Limitations: The main limitations of the research include the shortage of time which did not allow selecting a large sample size to collect the data.

1.5 Provide an appropriate plan and procedures for the agreed research specification.

Research plans are made so that the research can be completed on time. The below table shows the time taken in the activities of the research:

Stages of project	Time duration	Review dates	Detailed information
Research planning	5 days	15 October 2016	Here, research plans are made regarding the initiation of research and how the information will be collected and in how much time the research is to be completed.
Data Collection	16 days	05 November 2016	Here, data will be collected through both primary and secondary sources for better  findings of the research
Evaluation of data	10 days	15 November 2016	Data collected will be evaluated for getting the results. This evaluated data with the help of statistical tools will be represented either is charts or graphs for making it more understandable.
Conclusion and recommendations	5 days	20 November 2016	This is the last stage where conclusions are made and suggestions are given for providing higher consumer satisfaction.

Gantt Chart

Task 2

2.1 Match resources efficiently to the research question or hypothesis.

For conducting the research successfully, the primary and secondary data has been used so that the factors can be studied which influence the customer satisfaction of the students of UKCBC who used the services of Easy Jet or other low cost airlines.

The question for the research is what are the influential factors of customer satisfaction regarding easy Jet? To find out the answers to this question, primary and secondary sources are used.

• Primary sources: primary sources are those which are not been used earlier and it is been used for this research and provides raw data. For collecting primary data questionnaires are designed which are been distributed to the 20 students of UKCBC who used the airline services of Easy Jet. This questionnaire contains the questions which tests the satisfaction level of customers with the help of various factors like quality of services, services of competitors, etc. (Quinlan, 2011).
• Secondary sources: On the other hand, secondary sources are those which provide the information which has already been extracted before and now is used for the purpose of supporting the primary information of the current research. The secondary sources used in this research are Journal articles, websites, newspaper articles, etc. (Wantara, 2015).

A research question is the question which is required to be answered by the whole research program and the various tools and techniques are used which helps in answering those questions of the research whereas a hypothesis is not a question but it is a statement which establish a relationship between two or more variables. The variables in this research are like the factors like service quality, service promptness, price of services, etc. These factors showcase influence on the satisfaction of customers.

2.2 Undertake the proposed research investigation in accordance with the agreed specification and procedures. 

A questionnaire has been designed for the purpose of collecting the primary data by distributing the questionnaire in UKCBC college among 200 students selected randomly to know their responses on the questions. These questions are on the factors which influence the satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the customers of Easy Jet (Bee & Murdoch-Eaton, 2016).

(The questionnaire is attached in the appendix)

2.3. Record and collate required data. Record the collected data from participants in the form of a table that shows responses briefly.

Data collected through questionnaire survey among the 30 students of UKCBC is been shown in the form of tables which are shown below. This data shows the factors which determine the satisfaction or dissatisfaction of customers of Easy Jet.

1 How often do you use services of Easy jet?

Options	Percentage of respondents
Once in a year	45%
Every 2-3 months	30%
Once in a month	25%
Never	0
Total	100%

Quality of services is the most important element for which you chose Easy jet.

Options	Percentage of respondents
Highly Agree	15%
Agree	25%
Neutral	35%
Disagree	15%
Highly disagree	10%
Total	100%

What is the main factor which makes you prefer easy Jet over other airline service providers?

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Lower priced services	55%
The quality of services	20%
Promotional activities	25%
Availability of seats	0%
Total	100%

Please rate the behaviour of staff of Easy Jet.

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Excellent	15%
Good	35%
Average	25%
Bad	15%
Poor	10%
Total	100%

Are you satisfied with the services provided during travel time?

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Yes	35%
No	45%
Can't say	20%
Total	100%

Will you recommend travelling with Easy jet to others?

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Yes	65%
No	35%
Total	100%

Do you feel the services of Easy jet are value for money?

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Yes	40%
No	45%
Can't say	15%
Total	100%

Overall, how much satisfied you are with Easy jet?

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Highly satisfied	30%
Satisfied	25%
Neutral	20%
Dissatisfied	15%
Highly Dissatisfied	10%
Total	100%

In which area, Easy jet should make an improvement?

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Prices of services	10%
Quality of services	35%
safety and Security	25%
Any other factor	30%
Total	100%

Task 3

3.1. Use appropriate ‘research evaluation techniques’. Which types of evaluation (formative or summative) is more appropriate for your research? Why?

Research evaluation techniques refer to the methods which are used to evaluate the data collected in the research to reach to the ultimate conclusions. There are basically two main types of evaluation techniques which are Formative evaluation techniques and summative evaluation techniques.

• Formative evaluation: is basically taken up to improve the research design and it is adopted during or after the process of research. It supports the summativee significant as it provides an understanding on the progress of the project and how the factors are working during the project.
• Summative evaluation: on the other hand, takes place after the project process and focuses on the ultimate outcomes. It is more objective kind of evaluation method which focuses on the quantitative methods of the data collected in the project.

Summative evaluation technique is better and more appropriate for the research program on “Factors influence customer satisfaction at Easy Jet” because it will focus on the responses given by the customers and not on the process which is followed by easy Jet. Quantitative information or data is to be evaluated for getting an idea about the factors which bring satisfaction to the customers.

3.2. Interpret and analyse the results in terms of the original research specification by using ‘Frequency’ and/or ‘Percentage’ calculations.

A questionnaire was designed containing 9 questions which was circulated and distributed to the 20 randomly selected students in the UKCBC college and the responses are collected on these questions to know the factors which satisfy or dissatisfy the customers of Easy Jet. The responses were analysed through percentage calculations and then they are presented in the form of charts to make it more presentable.

How often do you use services of Easy jet?

Options	Percentage of respondents
Once in a year	45%
Every 2-3 months	30%
Once in a month	25%
Never	0

Analysis: It can be analysed that out of 20 students of UKCBC, 45% of the students i.e. 9 students travels once in a year and 6 students travels in every 2-3 months and 5 students travels once in a month. This data is shown in the chart above.

Quality of services is the most important element for which you chose Easy jet.

Options	Percentage of respondents
Highly Agree	15%
Agree	25%
Neutral	35%
Disagree	15%
Highly disagree	10%

Analysis: It is clear from the above calculated figures that most of the students i.e. 35% (7 students) are neutral on the statement that Quality of services is the most important element for which you chose Easy jet and 15% highly agree to it while 10% highly disagree to it.

What is the main factor which makes you prefer easy Jet over other airline service providers?

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Lower priced services	55%
The quality of services	20%
Promotional activities	25%
Availability of seats	0%

Analysis: It has been analysed from the data collected from survey that the main factor which makes them prefer Easy Jet over other airline service providers is the lower priced services for which the service provider is famous and popular among the customers and 55% of the students agreed on this option while 20% are the only respondents who prefer Easy Jet due to the quality of services.

Please rate the behaviour of staff of Easy Jet.

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Excellent	15%
Good	35%
Average	25%
Bad	15%
Poor	10%

Analysis: From the above analysis it is clear that 35% of the respondents believe that the behaviour of the staff of easy jet is good and only 10% says it is poor. It means customers are satisfied by the behaviour of staff.

Are you satisfied with the services provided during travel time?

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Yes	35%
No	45%
Can't say	20%

It is clear that most of the customers are not satisfied by the services provided by Easy jet during the travel time. They only travel because they find it cheap than other providers.

Will you recommend travelling with Easy jet to others?

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Yes	65%
No	35%

Analysis: It is clear from the data calculated that 65% of the students will recommend the services of Easy Jet to others while 35% of the students will not.

Do you feel the services of Easy jet are value for money?

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Yes	40%
No	45%
Can't say	15%

It is clear that 45% i.e. 9 customers feel that Easy Jet does not provide value for money services while 40% of the customers feel they provide the same.

Overall, how much satisfied you are with Easy jet?

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Highly satisfied	30%
Satisfied	25%
Neutral	20%
Dissatisfied	15%
Highly Dissatisfied	10%

Analysis: While 30% of the customers are highly satisfied by the services of easy Jet, only 10% are highly dissatisfied. This shows that easy Jet is preferred by the customers due to its low priced services and that is why most of the students are highly satisfied with it.

In which area, Easy jet should make an improvement?

Options	Percentage of Respondents
Prices of services	10%
Quality of services	35%
safety and Security	25%
Any other factor	30%

Analysis: It is analysed that most of the respondents (35%) said that Easy Jet should make an improvement in the quality of their services because the quality is been compromised when the prices of services is low. 25% said that they should improve on the safety and security.

3.3. Make recommendations and justify areas for further consideration customer satisfaction in Easy Jet or Ryanair.

Research has been done on the customer satisfaction of easy Jet and on the basis of the analysis of data collected, some recommendations are made which are given below:

• Easy Jet should make improvements in the quality of their services to increase overall satisfaction of the customers
• Easy jet should focus on increasing the safety and security of the customers along with the increase in comfort and affordability.
• Easy Jet can get indulge in other areas of business to increase its profits and revenues without increasing the prices of services. These areas can be hotels, cafes, sightseeing activities and more.
• The costs of operations of the services should be reduced in order to increase profits.
• It should have back up for operating in the fluctuating markets so that there would be no interruption in the services of customers.

The areas of research for further consideration can be:

• The impact of brand awareness in customer loyalty of Easy Jet
• Research on the factors behind brand switching in airline industry
• Research on providing full package tour services by Easy Jet

References

Bryman, A. and Bell, E. (2014). Business Research Methods (3rd ed.), Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Chi, C.G. & Gursoy, D. 2009, "Employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction, and financial performance: An empirical examination", International Journal of  Hospitality Management , vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 245-253.
Inc., N. B. (2015). factors that affect customer satisfaction. Retrieved 25 10, 2015, from https://www.nbrii.com/customer-survey-white-papers/10-factors-that-affect-customer-satisfaction/
Khan, U., & Khan, N. (2014). Customer Satisfaction in Airline Industry. International Proceedings of Economics Development and Research
Kim, Y. K., & Lee, H. R. (2011). Customer satisfaction using low cost carriers. Tourism Management. .
Liu, C., Chou, S., Gan, B. & Tu, J. 2015, "How “quality” determines customer satisfaction",The TQM Journal, vol. 27, no. 5, pp. 576-590.
Quinlan, C. 2011, Business research methods, South-Western Cengage Learning, Andover, Hampshire, U.K.