An investigation to determine if there a link between CSR practices and customer loyalty : a case study on Coca-Cola comparing Irish and Spanish consumers /

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to achieve a deeper understanding of the link between Coca-Cola’s CSR practices and its Irish and Spanish consumers loyalty. The study aims to compare and contrast Irish Coca-Cola consumers with Spanish Coca-Cola consumers loyalty responses due to its CSR practices. A review of existing literature revealed the shortage of literature regarding this topic and studies carried out in countries such as Ireland and Spain, with a particular dearth of literature in the product based industries. While it was evident that there is limited but not extensive research carried out in Spain, it appears that research carried out to this respect in Ireland by in large appears to be omitted and therefore the goal of this study aims to fill this gap. A mixed method research approach (both quantitative and qualitative) was undertaken, and triangulation was used, to compare and contrast the findings. This study addresses a gap in the literature and forms the basis for further research into the link between CSR and customer loyalty. Findings identified that there is a link however, not necessarily a direct link between Coca-Cola’s CSR practices and it’s Irish and Spanish consumers loyalty. With the mediation of communication to build both Irish and Spanish consumers awareness of Coca-Cola’s CSR practices, the CSR-Customer Loyalty link does become clearer. Therefore, Coca-Colas CSR practices are indirectly linked to customer loyalty, once it is mediated by communication. In this study, Irish and Spanish consumers demonstrated very similar responses which could be due to their arguably similar PESTEL situations as they are both in the European Union. In conclusion, this study provides a clear direction for efficient communication of Coca-Cola’s CSR practices in order to improve its CSR-Customer Loyalty link going forward.