Assignment Brief

Module No:     5007MKT
Module Title:  Marketing Insight
Coursework 2 of 2 (50% of total module mark)
Report Word Length:  maximum 4,000- excluding references, tables of contents and abstract
Reflection Word Length:maximum 500 words

Background

The coffee shop industry in Singapore is a dynamic and competitive sector dominated by major international chains such as Starbucks and Coffee Bean, alongside a growing number of artisanal and independent coffee brands. While coffee consumption remains robust, independent players face increasing pressure from high overheads, shifting consumer behaviours, and rising expectations for convenience and quality. One such independent chain, Urban Grounds, believes enhancing customer retention is critical to sustaining growth. Management aims to assess how service quality, pricing, advertising strategies, and brand image influence customer loyalty in an increasingly saturated market.

Tasks

You have completed conducting online surveys among customers of Urban Grounds. Respondents were randomly selected from the company’s loyalty programme database. An initial invitation email was sent with a survey link, followed by two reminder emails. Out of 23,800 invited, 310 respondents completed the survey.

Project Requirements

You are to write a marketing research report for Urban Grounds’ management addressing all the factors in the study – price, advertising, brand image, service quality, and customer retention. The report should identify up to 10 themes aligned with the research objectives and include a maximum of three focus group questions per theme. Conduct appropriate statistical analyses to determine the significance of each factor in predicting customer retention. Analyse differences based on gender, age, household income, and working status. Conclude with insights and feasible recommendations and discuss the limitations of the research.

Learning Outcomes Assessed

1. Develop and design research to address a given business scenario.
2. Design quantitative and qualitative research instruments to address a research problem and apply data analysis techniques to find valid insights.
3. Conduct a marketing research project and critically analyze the findings and recommend solutions.

Contents of the Marketing Research Report

1. An abstract (max 250 words) summarising the industry background, business problem, research objectives, and key findings and recommendations (not included in word count).
2. The main report (~4,000 words ±10%):

• Introduction: Context of the coffee shop industry, business challenge at Urban Grounds, research aims.
• Qualitative Research: Up to 10 themes and 3 questions per theme for focus group discussions.
• Literature Review: Coverage of the research constructs (price, service quality, etc.), hypotheses development, and a conceptual framework.
• Methodology: Research and sampling methods, respondent demographics.
• Results and Analysis: Reliability tests, findings of statistical tests.
• Discussion: Theoretical implications, actionable recommendations for management.
• Limitations of the research study.

Reflection Report (500 words ±10%)

To be submitted separately. Should cover

• Most satisfying aspects of the project.
• Problems encountered and how they were solved.
• Useful resources
• Insights gained about the module.
• What you would do differently.

Note: Use the survey questionnaire in Appendix 1 for SPSS data formatting and statistical analysis. Do not attach the questionnaire in your report.

Each student must complete the peer evaluation form in Appendix 2 and include it in their reflection report.

Marking Rubric

Marks are also awarded for proper referencing. Students are expected to use the CU APA Referencing style.

Failure to reference works and provide a list of references will result in the work being FAILED

APPENDIX 1: URBAN GROUNDS CUSTOMER LOYALTY STUDY QUESTIONNAIRE

INSTRUCTIONS:

Please answer all the questions by circling the most appropriate answer. There are no right or wrong answers. The questionnaire takes approximately 15 minutes to complete.
Please use the following scale for all statements:
Strongly Disagree (SD), Disagree (D), Neutral (N), Agree (A), Strongly Agree (SA)

Demographics

Q1. Gender: Male / Female
Q2. Age: 18–24 / 25–34 / 35–44 / 45–54 / 55 and above
Q3. Monthly household income: Below $4,000 / $4,000–$6,999 / $7,000 and above
Q4. Working status: Working / Non-working

Brand Image

Service Quality

Price

Advertising

Customer Retention

APPENDIX 2: PEER EVALUATION FORM

Confidential

Please indicate the relative contribution of yourself and your teammates to the group project. Allocate points so that the total equals 100.

Name                           Contribution
Yourself
Member #2
Member #3
Member #4
Member #5
Total                            100 points

Comments (if any):
________________________________________________________________________

GROUP CHARTER

It is a normal business practice to get all agreements that are designed to be binding on the parties involved, put into writing. It is suggested that you decide what problems you wish to see overcome and provide some solutions as to how it could be done. It is further suggested that you now take the time to establish the acceptable group norms and behaviours that you will enforce by exclusion from the group, for any individuals who do not conform. Below is a ‘group contract’ that will bind you all to what All of YOU decide, until the group is dissolved when the final semester is concluded.