Business Commons^™

Marketing Strategies: How Small Restaurant Businesses Use Social Media, Tasheenia Bennett

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Social media has changed the way businesses relate to their customers. Since the beginning of social media, traditional methods of communicating with customers have begun to decline. The purpose of this multicase study was to determine the strategies of 5 owners of small restaurant businesses in Western North Carolina who successfully used social media marketing for 1 year or more. Rogers's diffusion of innovation theory was the conceptual framework for this study. Data collection included semistructured interviews, documents pertaining to social media marketing strategies, and social media pages and websites from the participating restaurants. These data were analyzed following Yin's …

Creating Leadership Efficacy Through Digital Media In The Electricity Supply Industry, Kenny Moodley

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Business leaders lack transformational leadership strategies to promote the use of digital communication in the electricity supply industry. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore transformational leadership strategies to promote the use of digital communication to mitigate electricity-related shutdowns and other electricity-related product recalls. The conceptual framework for this study aligns with general systems theory. The participants recruited in the study were business leaders, key account electricity consumers, and electricity consumers located in Johannesburg, South Africa. The rationale for the target population was their success in implementing transformational leadership strategies to promote the use of digital communication …

British Virgin Islands Tourists' Motives To Travel, Destination Image, And Satisfaction, Sherrine Natahsa Augustine

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The turbulent events of the world have resulted in a decline in the number of travelers since 2011. Nevertheless, approximately one billion international tourists still travel annually.Tourist activity plays an important role in the global economic activity. The purpose of this correlational study was to examine if a relationship exists between destination images, push and pull motives to travel, and tourists' satisfaction. The target population consisted of noncitizen and nonresident tourists of the British Virgin Islands (BVI) between March 2017 and April 2017. Oliver's expectancy-disconfirmation theory that the individual will act in a particular way because the expectation that a …

Small Business Marketing Strategies For The First 5 Years, Shiina Pai

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Small businesses have an integral role in the U.S. economy and represent 99.7% of all employers in the United States; however, approximately 50% of small business start-ups fail within the first 5 years. Developing and implementing a well-formulated marketing strategy is critical to the success of business because a marketing strategy provides long-term benefits for a company's financial performance and increases the survival rate. The objective of this case study was to explore the marketing strategies that small retail business owners use to sustain their businesses for the first 5 years. The population was 5 successful retail-based small business owners …

Marketing Strategies To Enhance Profitability Among International Oil And Gas Service Companies, Hesameddin Zafari

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A significant drop in oil price in 2014 resulted in enormous pressure on marketing managers of international oilfield service companies to address new market expectations. In such competitive conditions, some marketing managers lack strategies to leverage profitability during downturns. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies that senior marketing managers of international oilfield service companies in the Middle East successfully used to enhance sales performance, revenues, and profits during periods of declining oil prices. Theory of market segmentation, targeting, and positioning formed the conceptual framework for this study. Data were collected through semistructured interviews of 5 …

Strategies To Teach Customer Service Skills, James Francis Ortman

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Business managers' failure to retain dissatisfied customers leads to millions of dollars in lost revenue. The purpose of this single case study was to explore managers' training strategies to teach sales associates customer service skills. The sample included 3 training managers from the mobile phone industry in Michigan who recorded a 25 % increase in customer retention after implementing customer service training. The conceptual framework for this study was human capital theory. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and training documents. Data analysis entailed using coding techniques and cluster analysis. Member checking applied to clarify the interpretation of participants' responses …

Strategies For Implementing Advertisements In The Green Industry, Ashley Deal Castle

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

After a growth in sales of 30% from 2007 to 2010, green product market sales declined 2% from 2010 to 2014 in the United States. Business leaders need to incorporate sustainable business practices and use green messaging within advertisements and marketing campaigns to assure that present needs do not compromise the ability of future generations to meet their needs. This qualitative case study explored marketing strategies that business leaders in the green advertising industry use to increase the sale of green products. The social cognitive theory was the conceptual framework used in this study. In-depth interviews with 5 purposively selected …

Social Media Strategies To Increase Professional Membership Association Dues Income, Robert J. Spangler

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Social media strategies can play an important and specific role in nonprofits by increasing membership dues income. However, insufficient data exists supporting effective strategies for social media in professional membership associations, potentially

affecting both business managers within those associations and the stakeholders they represent. The purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore social media strategies that nonprofit marketing professionals used to increase professional

membership association dues income. The sample included 7 nonprofit marketing professionals in a New Jersey-based professional membership association. Social exchange theory and social influence theory formed the conceptual framework. Data

collection occurred using semistructured …

Effective Strategies Small Retail Leaders Use To Engage Employees, Dr. Janet Lynn Deskins

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Research suggests that 70% of North American employees are disengaged in the workplace. Some small retail managers lack strategies for engaging employees. Using the employee engagement framework, the purpose of this descriptive case study was to explore successful strategies that small retail managers use to engage employees. The target population was small retail leaders, purposefully selected because of their success with engaging employees at an Orlando, Florida, company. Data collection was through face-to-face interviews with 5 leaders; and a review of archived organizational documents, including company memorandums, central email software, and online customer reviews through social media websites such as …

Integrating Consumer Feedback Into Business Marketing Strategies, Elijah G. Clark

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Consumer feedback and reviews are critical to the success of businesses because 49% of consumers trust online reviews more than other sources. The purpose of this multicase study was to explore marketing managers' strategies for using consumer reviews to improve marketing success, brand awareness, and their clients' profitability. The conceptual framework for this study was built upon organizational theory and disruptive innovation theory. The participants were recruited through local events, social media, and e-mail. Data were collected from public online records and semistructured telephone interviews using 1 marketing manager from each of 5 marketing agencies in North Texas. Thematic analysis …

Strategies For Crisis Preparedness Of Tourist Destinations, Carrine V. M. Todman-Lewis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Billion-dollar disasters are projected to increase at a statistically significant rate of 5% annually. Crises affect the viability and lucrativeness of tourism business and implicate destinations in the process. Crisis preparedness is vital to improving outcomes and reducing consequential effects in the tourism industry-a key contributor to socioeconomic progress and infrastructural development worldwide. The study was an exploration of the strategies used for crisis preparedness to reduce business interruptions and improve the image of destinations affected by large-scale natural disasters and human-induced crises. A multiple case study was conducted based on the cycle of preparedness framework. Data were gathered from …

Leadership Styles And Employee Motivation In Qatar Organizations, Anas Al Haj

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Organizations in the public sector in Qatar have a reputation for delivering inefficient services. Leaders lack an understanding of motivational factors affecting public sector employee performance. The purpose of this correlational research was to examine the relationship between leadership styles and employee motivation in public companies in Qatar. The independent variables were the transformational, transactional, and passive-avoidant leadership styles. The dependent variable was employee motivation. The moderator variables were employee age and salary. A sample of 92 employees from 4 public sector organizations in Qatar responded to the online survey. The full range leadership theory served as the theoretical foundation …

Perceptions Among Senior Consumers Regarding Stereotyping In Magazine Advertisements, Greg Milsom

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Marketing decision makers often employ stereotypes in their advertising messages, but constant exposure to negative messages is offensive to older consumers and contributes toward ageism. The general problem is that many senior adults feel dissatisfied with advertising directed toward them and may not purchase products that they could otherwise enjoy. Based on the tenets of social identity theory, the purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of a group of senior consumers toward the stereotypes used to portray older adult models featured in magazine advertisements by uncovering the factors that influence purchasing decisions and the stereotypes that are …