Investigating Brand Loyalty Factors among Young Mobile Phone Users

One of the key elements in marketing mix is to successfully promote and build a brand name for business to progress. Hence, this study is to investigate Brand Loyalty factors among young mobile phone users in the Mobile Telecommunication Sector in Malaysia. In this research, five antecedents of customer satisfaction that leads to customer loyalty are identified. The variables measured are "Switching Cost", "Corporate Image", "Service Quality", "Trust" and "Promotion". A total of 400 questionnaires were distributed to three schools in Bukit Mertajam, Pulau Pinang. 337 questionnaires were returned and useable representing 84.3 percent response rate. The Pearson correlations test that was conducted showed that "Promotion" is the highest influential factor in influencing brand loyalty in mobile telecommunication sector. This is followed by "Trust", "Service Quality", "Corporate Image" and "Switching Cost". The findings although might be premature since it was conducted in a small scale. However, it could have prescribed potential implications for mobile telecommunication service providers to review their loyalty programs to retain existing customers and at the same time attract new ones

Evaluating the websites of small-and-medium-sized hotels (SMHs) in Malaysia

This study develops a set of evaluation criteria to evaluate the websites of small-and-medium-sized hotels (SMHs) in Malaysia and to identify current levels of sell-side e-commerce among SMHs in Malaysia. Each of the criteria is evaluated by a 5-point Likert scale rating.The study scaned thoroughly 33 websites of the SMHs located in Kuala Lumpur. The preliminary findings suggest that 51.5 percent of the websites are easy to access, but have no site map or search engine provided within the website.90.9 percent of the websites do not offer a customer loyalty program.A total of 75.8 percent of SMHs do not provide a privacy and security policy on the website.This study concludes that the current levels of sell-side e-commerce among SMHs in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia is at level 4, which is an interactive site supporting transactions with users.This research has implications for hotel practitioners, specifically to SMHs in the context of website development as they move to higher levels of sell-side e commerce

Sensory quality of pilot-scale prebiotic chocolates in Malaysia

Prebiotic, such as inulin, has been applied as functional food and known for its various health benefit effects such as increased mineral absorption, improved immune response and colorectal cancer prevention. An attempt was made to determine the level of Malaysian consumers’ acceptance and market potential of newly developed pilot scale prebiotic milk chocolates (MC-1) and dark chocolates (DC-1) with no sugar added as compared to control milk and dark chocolate (containing sugar), MC-0 and DC-0, respectively. Trained panels were employed to evaluate the sensory quality of the chocolate products using the quantitative descriptive analysis (QDA) technique and the 7-point hedonic scale was used by consumer panels. In comparison with control milk chocolate (MC-0), consumer and trained panels gave better (p0.05) as control chocolates (MC-0 and DC-0). Similar likeness were shown by both trained panels and untrained Malaysian public consumers, where prebiotic milk chocolate MC-1 was the most preferred compare to prebiotic dark chocolate DC-1. This could be due to bitter taste driven by high cocoa liquor content in dark chocolate compared to milk chocolate. However, both type of prebiotic chocolates have high potential (>70%) to be bought by Malaysian consumers once introduced in the market

Assessment of surface water quality using Malaysia Water Quality Index (MWQI) and National Sanitation Foundation Water Quality Index (NSFWQI) during road construction activities

The study of this project was basically on the assessment of surface water quality by using Malaysian Water Quality Index (MWQI) and National Sanitation Foundation Water Quality Index (NSFWQI) during road construction activities. The site area selected for this study was located at Kampung Rahmat, Batu Pahat, Johor where a new road to cross the Sri Gading Estate was constructed. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of road construction activities on the quality of water bodies. In addition, the determination of water quality index based on six parameters used were biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), dissolved oxygen (DO), ammoniacal nitrogen, pH, and total suspended solids (TSS) at site construction of a new road for Kampung Rahmat is underway. The data used was secondary data collected from previous study to determine the water quality index based on Malaysian Water Quality Index (MWQI) and National Sanitation Foundation Water Quality Index (NSFWQI). High values of water quality index indicated that surface water in that road construction area was less polluted. The importance of this study was to determine the level of surface water quality due to road construction activities. It was very important to assess the quality of water in a place to maintain its cleanliness because water serves as a basic need for living organisms. Based on the calculation of water quality index values by using MWQI and NSFWQI, it showed that the highest value of water quality index recorded compared to other parameters was total suspended solids (TSS) which was 186 mg/L while the lowest value of water quality index recorded was 0.1 mg/L in December by ammoniacal nitrogen. Thus, the comparison of results made between MWQI and NSFWQI showed that MWQI was more effective and accurate to assess the water quality index compared to NSFWQI

INTERACTION OF TRIPLEN HARMONICS PRODUCED BY SYNCHRONOUS GENERATOR WHEN CONNECTED WITH RECTIFIER

The third harmonic has caused much power quality problem in the neutral of distribution system. Salient pole synchronous generator and non-linear load have been known and recognized as the source of triplen harmonics. Main purpose of this project is to study the characteristics of triplen harmonics current produced by synchronous generator when connected with rectifier and various types of loads. This research is done by shunt connecting full bridge rectifier between synchronous generator and load. The measurement of third harmonics is taken at generator, rectifier and load to see the characteristics of the third harmonics. In this research, the phase angle of the third harmonics is also taken into account. When full bridge rectifier is shunt connected between synchronous generator and load, the third harmonic current at rectifier and load are actually coming from the generator that depend on the load impedance and phase angle. The third harmonic current of the generator is the vector sum of both load and rectifier third harmonic current for generator load with rectifier connection. In parallel operation of synchronous generator with rectifier and load, the third harmonic current at generator does not affected by rectifier due to the delta of transformer blocking the third harmonic from flowing to the load and rectifier. However, the third harmonic current recorded at rectifier is due to the rectifier drawing the current in non-sinusoidal form from the star side of transformer. From overall findings of the project, the rectifier affects the third harmonic current level at generator when operated in island mode with and without the existence of transformer. However, it does not affect the third harmonic currents level at generator in parallel operation

Training for Hydrographic Surveyors at the Centre for Hydrographic Studies, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

The Centre for Hydrographic Studies (CHS) established at the Faculty of Surveying and Real Estate, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, is the only academic institution in the country presently focusing its effort toward the development of hydrographic surveying. One of the main objectives of the centre is to provide an education and training for hydrographic surveyors to cater for the increasing need of the country. This paper presents an overview of the establishment of the centre. However, the focus of this paper is to discuss on the design and development of the Hydrographic Surveying I (HYDRO I) course offered by the CHS to the hydrographic surveying community in Malaysia and the region

A study on key success factors and variables among cottage and village industries contributing towards consumers satisfaction and loyalty in Northern Kedah / Mohammad Zaki Ayob and Fatimah Mohd Saman

Numerous efforts had been undertaken by government agencies to improve rural poverty . One initiative is establishing cottage-based enterprises that are intended to function as all-year revenue generato rs for farm families. The issues related to this initiative are market acceptance, competitive advantage, customer satisfaction, and loyalty toward these products . This study was thus conducted to find out present customer ratings on important variables that contribute to customer satisfaction and loyalty. A group of existing and potential customers were selected to provide feedback for this study and their age group range from 13 to 25 years old. However, 73.7% of the selected respondents were above 20 years. Sample subjects were subsequently interviewed based on some '· ~as te tests" provided and data were collected after the taste test. Due to the lack of a reliable sampling frame, nonprobability sampling technique was used. The selection of sample subjects was based on their ability to discriminate product attributes and assess service quality. The information collected relates to Product Quality (taste, packaging, freshness, attractiveness, and health benefits), Service Quality (availability, price, display, and promotion), Customer Satisfaction (value for money , fulfillment , overall quality, and exceeding expectations), and their indication of Product Loyalty (comparable to ideal, willing to recommend, confident people will be loyal , self willing to be loyal) . The period of study was from September 2004 to April 2005. The Structural Equations Modeling was utilized to obtain an acceptable model , regression coefficients and causal strengths oflatent (y) and measured (A) variables. The., tes t result shows that presently Service Quality influences 71.3% towards Customer Satisfaction while Product Quality only influences 14.7%. Customer Satisfaction, however, explains 98% of Customer Loyalty. Based on these data, the current predictor of Customer Satisfaction is Service Quality. Hence , there is a need to enhance Product Quality and its attributes besides maintaining Service Quality

Perbandingan terjemahan manusia dengan terjemahan mesin dalam buku Fitness 24/7

Kajian ini dijalankan bertujuan mengkaji persamaan yang wujud antara terjemahan manusia dengan terjemahan mesin untuk menterjemahkan teks teknikal. Pendekatan fungsional oleh Christian Nord diaplikasikan dalam penelitian ini. Kaedah analisis teks dijalankan terhadap buku Fitness 24/7 (2008) yang telah diterjemahkan ke dalam bahasa Melayu oleh Kevin Zahri (mewakili terjemahan manusia) menerusi buku Cergas 24/7 (2008), manakala Google Translate digunakan untuk mewakili terjemahan mesin. Perincian persamaan yang dilihat oleh pengkaji adalah dari aspek pilihan kata, struktur ayat dan makna keseluruhan ayat bagi kedua-dua hasil terjemahan. Dapatan kajian menunjukkan bahawa persamaan yang wujud antara terjemahan manusia dengan terjemahan mesin dalam menterjemahkan teks teknikal adalah rendah, iaitu sebanyak 31.6 peratus. Penterjemahan mesin masih memerlukan tenaga manusia untuk menghasilkan terjemahan yang lebih baik

Identifying methodology to investigate cost data input in life cycle cost analysis of a building

Purpose –Life Cycle Cost (LCC) estimation process can be divided into three main phases: data inputs, conversion and outputs. The objective of this paper is to identify the most appropriate methodology to investigate the quality of data used as inputs in LCC estimation for building works in the Malaysian construction industry. The focus of quality data here is cost data inputs of building LCC. This paper reports part of a three-year research programme to enhance quality of LCC outputs through the enhancement of quality data input requirements. Design/ Methodology/ approach – A comprehensive literature review was carried out to critically review all the methodologies used to study LCC data inputs in other countries. The goal is to identify the most appropriate methodology to investigate the quality of cost data inputs in LCC analysis of building with regard to the context of Malaysian construction industry Findings – The outcomes of the study proposed that a qualitative research strategy comprises of two approaches, i.e. a literature review and modified Delphi as the most appropriate methodology to critically review and examine behaviours of cost data inputs in LCC analysis of the building based on the opinions from a collective intelligence panellists. Research limitations - The considerable limitation of modified Delphi is to find the appropriate level of panellists that possess skills, knowledge and expertise in the field of LCC. In addition, the Delphi process is normally long and time-consuming because it involves multi-round of questionnaires

Masalah Pembelajaran Mengenai Topik Ikatan Kimia Dalam Konteks Penyelesaian Masalah Di Kalangan Pelajar Tingkatan Empat

Kajian ini dijalankan untuk mengenal pasti masalah pembelajaran pelajar mengenai konsep ikatan kimia. Aspek-aspek yang dikaji melibatkan aspek asas pembentukan sebatian, pembentukan ikatan ion, pembentukan ikatan kovalen, mensintesis sifat sebatian ion dan sebatian kovalen dan salah konsep pelajar terhadap topik ikatan kimia. Seramai 86 orang pelajar aliran sains beberapa sekolah menengah di daerah Kota Bharu, Kelantan dipilih secara rawak dalam kajian ini. Data-data diperolehi dengan menggunakan soal selidik yang mengandungi 2 bahagian iaitu Bahagian A (maklumat latar belakang responden) dan Bahagian B (10 soalan subjektif). Kesemua data dianalisis secara deskriptif dengan mengira kekerapan, peratusan dan min. Di samping itu, analisis buku teks terhadap topik ikatan kimia turut dijalankan. Hasil kajian menunjukkan terdapat beberapa masalah pembelajaran dan salah konsep pelajar mengenai topik ikatan kimia iaitu pelajar mempunyai kerangka alternatif dalam menyatakan jenis ikatan kimia, tidak dapat menulis persamaan ion dengan lengkap, tidak menguasai teknik melukis gambarajah susunan elektron bagi sebatian ion dan sebatian kovalen, tidak dapat menulis susunan konfigurasi elektron dengan betul dan keliru dalam membezakan sebatian ion dan sebatian kovalen. Beberapa cadangan penyelidikan lanjutan juga dikemukakan bagi mengatasi masalah pembelajaran mengenai topik ikatan kimia seperti melibatkan sampel yang lebih besar, melibatkan guru sabagai sampel kajian dan melakukan pemerhatian di dalam bilik darjah bagi memantapkan hasil kajian. Implikasi kajian ini adalah seperti guru perlu memperbanyakkan aktiviti latih tubi berkaitan konsep-konsep dalam aspek yang sukar dikuasai oleh pelajar