Case 1:Research Methodology
Introduction:
These case defines about the day which is not very far when the Indian travelers can criss-cross,
the globe with just a few clicks. Taking e-commerce and information technology services a step
further, the Indian travel industry is composing itself to usher in the era of e-clicking. But most
of the customers prefer standing in queues for booking a ticket. But some people are scared for
booking online tickets as they think that online transactions are not safe. But nowadays online
transactions have become safer and there are very much exciting offers available on booking
online tickets. There are various websites where a consumer can book tickets. Eg:
travelguru.com, yatra.com, indiatimes.com, rediff.com, makemytrip.com, cleartrip.com, etc.
Facts:
Srininandan Rao, CEO of Ghoom.com a travel portal that has been in existence for the past three
years wandered whether he can look at a bigger customer base for his travel booking business or
look at an alternative e-business. Many people now a days trust online booking system and there
are offers available like various itinerary for the proposed holiday. They even offer a convenient
pick-up and drop service. With such a range of services being offered at your fingertips,
expectations are that more and more number of travelers would start using such easy, fast and
convenient services as compared to the conventional booking process across a reservation
counter. Yet it is still been observed long queues at the various reservation counters. And it is
also known that some people who can book online tickets also sometimes prefer traditional travel
booking counters.
Theoretical Background:
People who prefer online booking :
The age group of 22-31 years comprises the young population, which are the early starters in
their professional career. These travelers are more inclined to spend on travel and explore new
destination, as compared to the travelers in the higher age-group category. It is reported that this
age group spends approximately $200 billion on travel every year. These travelers have
revolutionized the online travel industry by the extensive use of technology. Smartphones and
other mobile devices are largely preferred to make travel arrangements. Moreover, social media
platforms are used to review various travel service providers, destinations, transportation, and
accommodations. These young traveler’s first research online and scan various sites, when
planning for a vacation or a short weekend getaway. They are always active on social media
sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, repeatedly updating their virtual image by
posting their day-to-day activities, including travel check-ins. Their travel decisions are strongly
influenced by online travel review sites, social media, blogs, and friend’s recommendations.
Market players are introducing new and enhanced versions of mobile apps, which offer great
travel deals and hassle-free booking to attract young travelers. In addition, online travel booking
via mobile is the most preferred booking medium for most of the young travelers due to ease of
use, convenience, and 24/7 accessibility.
People who don’t prefer online booking:
1. 39% were just looking and had more research to do.
2. 37% abandoned due to high prices and wanted to compare prices elsewhere.
3. 21% needed to check with other travelers before booking.
4. 13% felt the booking process was too long or the checkout too complicated.
5. 9% experienced technical issues.
6. 7% had issues with payments or the option they wanted was unavailable
A holiday is one of the biggest purchases of the year for most people, so they will spend time
researching and visiting multiple sites before making a decision. According to Millward Brown
stats, users booking holidays take up to 45 days and visit as many as 38 travel sites There are a
lot of similar studies around with different numbers, but the central point is that people take time
over travel purchases and like to compare sites. So, for ‘just looking’ consumers, sites will find it
hard to prevent abandonment as they just want to see what’s available and are unlikely to commit
before shopping around. However, there’s plenty sites can do about the other reasons, which
we’ll explore later in this article.
Analysis:
The Indian travel industry is flooding in the era of e-ticketing and e-commerce and information
technology have taken a leap. Many travel portals such as travelgure.com, yatra.com,
makemytrip.com provide all the necessary details to the customers while online booking. When
customers switch from offline to online travel system it creates certain doubts in the minds which
are termed as perceived risks. Srininandan Rao, CEO of Ghoom.com who has been in the travel
business for 3 years and is trying to find a bigger customer base or look at alternative of e-
business.
Q1. What is the kind of research study that you can undertake for Mr. Rao?
Ans. Research can be defined as a systematic process of collective data in order to come up with
a valid proposition and conclusion for others. Mr. Rao was the CEO of a portal for the past three
years and wanted to look at a bigger customer base for his business. If I undertake the research
study for Mr. Rao, firstly I would look upon the number of customers using the online travel
booking through official government records and also undertake a geographical and
demographical survey regarding the same as a part of my secondary data collection system. The
existing employers are capable to gather new customer base needs to be analyzed as well.
Research will be conducted in the organization as it is also an important factor affecting
customer need and demand is different. It may be possible that the online portal of Ghoom.com
is difficult for the customers to access and that can be a major reason as why the customer base is
not increasing. Competitor research is also necessary as we should know all about the offers and
schemes to various travel destinations offers and schemes to various travel destinations offered
by the competitor agency and we should suggest the changes accordingly to Mr. Rao
Q2. Formulate the Research problem and the objectives of your study. Can you suggest an
alternative research approach that you can take?
Ans. Research problem:
Srininandan Rao, CEO of Ghoom.com had a travel port since three years and wondered whether
he can look at a bigger customer base for the business or should switch to another e-business. He
would like specific answers.
Objectives of the study:
Switching customers from offline environment to online environment. Retaining existing
customer base. Competitor strategy used and how are they different then our current strategy.
Customer satisfaction and maintaining customer loyalty. USP to attract new customer base.
Alternative research approach:
As a researcher we can interview experts and industry gurus who could provide some indication
of recent trends contacting travel agents, online portal entrepreneurs who have done as a resource
person. In the review of literature, the researchers can look upon reliable published data. As this
research is applied in nature the researcher is looking for a solution input. The researcher is
expected to learn and study about the entire online travel portal industry and not specific to
Ghoom.com. The history and trends of the industry should be thoroughly studied by the
researcher.
Q3. Develop a working hypothesis for your study?
Ans. According to me in this case I understand that people do trust online booking but at a
certain limit. People firstly check online rates on different websites and then book the tickets
accordingly. But some people they prefer traditional approach of booking tickets like standing in
long queues for hours, because of threat of online booking. But online booking has also become
safer, as different companies have made many transactions safety for better convenience of
customers. And customers also get different offers by online booking as described by the
company. Mainly young age group people make online booking while in middle aged people,
only a limited percent of online booking is done that also by some of the regular customers who
do booking frequently.
