Editorial
There are five papers in this issue. As usual QMRIJ is international,with this issue representing the contributions of papers from overseas too.
The first paper is a contribution from a team at the University of Valencia in Spain. J. Enrique Bigné, Joaquín Aldÿs-Manzano, Inés Küster and Natalia Vila provide an explanation of the usefulness and application of a concept mapping method to their work in the travel agencies' sector. Concept mapping is seen by the authors as a new approach that has been "so far little applied to marketing". It might be that others could debate this, given the extent to which multi-dimensional scaling and perceptual maps have existed within the market research field. Whilst the authors have a need to resort to statistics to show the quantifiable results, their paper presents an articulate and persuasive view of concept mapping and where qualitative research has contributed. The way the authors have approached their work is innovative. The authors have also covered the issues of customer loyalty and branding in their discussion. It is interesting to note their viewpoint (see their section concerning "conceptual framework"), which says that despite brand loyalty having a long pedigree there is a lack of both quantification and studies to prove the validity of branding to loyalty concepts.
Branding associations are justifiable if one is "looking through the eye of the beholder". The authors of this paper, Debra Grace and Aron O'Cass, write in their abstract and final section about "limitations and future research", that brand models lack empirical testing because most are derived from the work of brand practitioners with little regard to the branding of services. This might go some way towards justifying the particular viewpoint in the first paper. The second paper, written in a readable and persuasive manner, concerns the importance of branding and research into branding models. Based upon the relevant literature and the authors' own qualitative research, consumer based information concerning the different dimensions of branded products and services is uncovered. There are three major questions posed and a sample of respondents chosen. Purposeful sampling is undertaken within the qualitative research remit. The authors illustrate how the various dimensions hold meaning for consumers,such as those where emotions, word of mouth and the nature of the servicescape add meaning and relevance for those concerned with the branding and consumption of services.
The third paper is concerned with the uncovering of specific qualitative dimensions involved in the social phenomenon of the consumption of beer in Australia. The Australian beer industry or the many different types of beers available are touched upon in general terms, with beer consumption explored as a specific activity. In this third paper Simone Pettigrew explains the grounded theory approach and the concept of image management, and justifies their use. Her informants are drawn from three groups: consumers, brewery representatives and bartenders. Data collection from three Australian states utilised participant and non-participant observations as well as interviews. Her findings pertain to the particular cognitive and emotional processes relating to consumer choices and consumption of certain beer brands. However, a core category is revealed as image management with implications for the understanding of consumer behaviour relating to consumption in this area.
The research for the fourth paper takes place in the UK and concentrates on the perceptions and attitudes held by small businesses in the ethnic community. The authors, Charles Blankson and Ogenyi Omar, through a series of informal questioning, delve into the contexts of running small businesses from ethnic minorities with the concomitant difficulties that persistently arise in African and Caribbean practices in London. Though the research appears highly exploratory by nature, on the surface of it there are answers that show what pertinent issues invariably affect, disenchant or promote marketing practices for such small businesses. The findings bear no surprises. There is a dearth of studies in this field and the authors are right to point out that there is a need for solid research. Qualitative research supported by quantitative data collection and analysis are needed from much larger samples and from different locations in the country. The findings could then be validated.
A good example of the application of an exploratory approach followed by quantitative data collection is demonstrated by Roger Palmer. Since the research concerns managerial perceptions concerned with marketing rather than market research, this paper takes its place in this issue as a research note. However,the methodology is appropriate to the context of showing the contributions of an exploratory study applied within a qualitative framework. The qualitative research sets the stage for the informal and open-ended discussions with managers. The objective of investigating managerial perceptions over a range of marketing issues is concerned with how managers judge and prioritise the tasks of marketing and their importance within organisations. To conduct the empirical study with 256 senior managers in industrial and technological organisations the questionnaire, as the survey instrument, is adopted to gather data for statistical analyses. The methodological contexts of the research are broadly sound, if as reported, the research delivers useful evaluations of current managerial understanding. However, the extent to which managers' views can be usefully perceived and measured against comparable benchmarks of good marketing practice elsewhere remains a thought provoking issue.
This issue finishes with the three special sections. As is the normal practice for QMRIJ all our readers are invited to contact the special editors directly. They have responsibility for each of the special sections at the end of each issue. The special editors play a vital role in representing the particularand diverse areas both within and affecting the qualitative domain. Their contact details are: Miriam Catterall (m.catterall@queens-belfast.ac.uk);Clive Nancarrow (cpnancar@aol.com); and Rehan ul-Haq (r.ul-haq@bham.ac.uk).
Len Tiu Wrightlwright@dmu.ac.uk
