The researcher made sure that ethical considerations were prioritised during all the phases of the research process – from the beginning of the study to the stage where the actual field work was carried out to the final draft of the study. Several issues about the participants were attended to with the utmost care. The principal aspects of ethical research were taken into account both before and during the study. Aspects such as the informed consent of the participants and confidentiality were adhered to by the researcher. The researcher also applied for and obtained an ethical clearance certificate (Appendix D). In addition, the researcher ensured that the guidelines and procedures set by the research institution’s code of ethics and any other research ethics that applied to the study were observed (Wagner et al 2012:71).
3.10.1 Confidentiality
The protection of the participants’ identity is an important issue in relation to ethics in research. Confidentiality means that the researcher must not give away the identities of the participants, even when it is obvious that he knows it. The researcher must also establish a relationship of trust with the participants and promise not to convey any of the information that has been given to the researcher by the participants to any unauthorised person (Wagner et al 2012:70). To this end, the researcher in this study did not disclose the identity of the participants. Their identities were protected by not
using their actual names, addresses, and ages of the participants in the report. The descriptions of the participants ambiguous.
3.10.2 Informed consent
The informed consent of the participants is pivotal in research due to ethical consideration. The researcher in this study provided the participants with adequate and relevant information on the research topic, thus enabling the participants to make an informed decision about whether or not they wanted to take part in the study. There is usually an informed consent form that the participants sign. The guidelines include a participant’s personal right to consent to participate in a study. The informed consent document was in accordance with the basic principles of informed consent, including a participant’s right to opt out of a study at any time. The entire process was voluntary. In view of the fact that it is possible that participating in a study may affect the participant’s emotional or physical welfare. The researcher made sure that the guiding principles were followed.
The goals and objectives of the study were restated in the section of the research design. The chapter elaborated on the population, sampling method, data collection and data analysis, as they pertained to the study, as well as reliability and validity. A summary of the chapter was provided. A qualitative research design was selected for the purposes of the study. Sampling design was also discussed with reference to the sampling methods, unit of analysis and target population of the study. The data collection methods used were interview guide and observation, and a discussion on that was provided. Finally, pretesting, issues of validity and reliability and ethical considerations that must be taken into account during research was discussed.
3.11 SUMMARY
This chapter discussed the research design, research method, ethical considerations, confidentiality, reliability and validity, and thematic analysis as they pertained to the study. The use of thematic analysis is deemed to be fundamental. However, irrespective of this perception, it still does automatically imply that the outcome is not sufficiently strong, or the quality is low but, instead, it is it could be that the underlying
review the data frequently from different angles and go through the various stages of data analysis once again. Thematic analysis may be described as an independent approach within the qualitative descriptive methodology. It has been explained that explaining the boundaries between the various qualitative approaches may enhance the logic and consistency of qualitative research. Thus, clearly describing the type of approach used in a study may create an acceptable language for researchers and reinforce the background of any approach to research. In addition, such a distinction between approaches provides clarity to the data analysis process and, and ultimately increases its rigour. This chapter discussed the methodology that was employed to conduct a qualitative analysis of IMC at the View Boutique Hotel, Johannesburg. Although it was not possible to generalise the findings, however, it was hoped that the study findings would enable the hotel management to take the necessary steps to address the marketing communication challenges confronting the hotel and forge a new and effective business pattern that would impact positively on the hotel’s business. It was felt that the management of the hotel would be able to do this by rethinking the existing IMC used in the hotel. It is also worth mentioning that the sample that was used for the study included only those participants who were willing to take part in the study and who were available as at the times the interviews were conducted and, thus, it may be claimed that convenient sampling was used.
The majority of the discussion in the research included the research design as a research design is the foundation or blueprint for achieving the research objectives and answering the research question. The chapter concluded with a description of the rudiments that went into the implementation of the study. The issues of reliability and validity were also discussed as were participant confidentiality and the ethical aspects that had been taken into account in the study. These include maintaining the anonymity of the interview participants and also how the researcher had adhered to the research codes of ethics as provided by the research institution. The next chapter focuses on the presentation and interpretation of the research results and the data analysis of the information obtained from the interviews which were conducted.
CHAPTER FOUR
PRESENTATION AND INTERPRETATION OF THE RESEARCH RESULTS
4.1 INTRODUCTION
The previous chapter focused on the research methodology used in the study. Accordingly, it discussed the research process, research design, population and sample, data collection method, data analysis as well as the issue of reliability and validity that was used for the study. This chapter deals with the presentation and interpretation of the research results. The goal of the study was to analyse the integrated marketing communication at the View Boutique Hotel in Johannesburg, South Africa. This, the chapter contains the presentation and interpretation of the data that was collected from the in-depth interviews that were conducted at the View Boutique Hotel. The sample size of 30 participants included the marketing manager, some marketing staff members and guests of the hotel. Thematic analysis was used to analyse and interpret the data and is discussed in the chapter as well.
This study used semi structured interviews which included a number of open-ended questions which were contained in the interview guide. The interviews were recorded, participant observation was used, and field notes were made during the interviews. In order to analyse the qualitative data, the researcher read and reread the field notes and the interview transcripts in order to identify recurring themes that emerged.
A discussion of the four IMC messages helped to deepen the understanding of the topic under investigation. The chapter concluded with a summary of the discussion on the planned, service, product and unplanned messages of the hotel. The research objectives of this study were discussed in accordance to how they impacted on each of the IMC message typology. In addition, recurring themes that emerged were highlighted. The next section discussed the demographic profile of the participants.