Markepeers: 2IBM6
Robin Smit 500685166 Hrach Ohanesian 500690209
Gazi Sari 500695712 Robin Kuyer 500689786
Pauline van Schaik 500678739 Marketing research

Introduction 3 The Assignment: 3 History of ABN AMRO 3 ABN AMRO bank nowadays 4
Establish the need: 5  Need for internal research and information: 5  Need for external research and information: 5
Define the problem 6
Determine objectives 7
Determine research design 7 Exploratory research 7 Descriptive research 8 Causal research 9
Determine information types and sources 9
Figure out the ways to access the data 10
Design data collection instruments 11
Determine sample size and protocol 12
Final steps: 13 Collect Data 13 Analyze data 13 Prepare report 13 Final words: 13

Introduction
The Assignment:
The purpose of this paper is to find out how to investigate and answer the following question: Should ABN AMROenter the African market?ABN AMRO wants to enter the African market through Nigeria, but they believe that there might be some negative points and possible setbacks in Nigeria. On the other hand,ABN AMRO believes that Nigeria might offer great opportunities within its market where political forces regulate the flow of money in order to generate economic growth.
If the results of the research are positive and ABN AMRO should enter the African market, the following sub-question should be asked as well: Should the focus of ABN AMRO in Nigeria be on either investment banking or usual multi-purpose banking?
History of ABN AMRO
ABN AMRO was founded in The Netherlands in the year 1991 as a result of a merger of the banks ABN and AMRO. ABN AMRO had a strong position in The Netherlands and their ambition to expand on international level was great.
A quick overview of the important events of ABN AMRO’s history:
- 1992: Overtake of the British securities house Hoare Grovett
- 1995: Activities considering stocks, bonds, mergers, privatization and emissions were now executed under the name ABN AMRO Hoare Grovett
- 1996: After overtaking multiple other securities houses ABN AMRO created a joint venture together with Rothschild bankers
- 1998: ABN AMRO made a bid of 24 billion gulden to overtake the Belgium General Bank, but the offer was refused because Fortis bade a higher price
- 2005: ABN AMRO holds almost three quarter of the Dutch housing funds
- 2007: Things were going downwards for ABN AMRO, because of high costs and lack of growth
- 2007: Many banks bade to take over ABN AMRO, and it where the three banks Fortis, RBS and Banco Santander who eventually took over ABN AMRO for 72 billion euro
- 2008: Due to the crisis Fortis sold its part of ABN AMRO to the Dutch government
- 2009: ABN AMRO II was founded as a daughter company of ABN AMRO, all the ABN AMRO parts owned by the Dutch government were within ABN AMRO II
- 2010: ABN AMRO (I) became The Royal Bank of Scotland, and ABN AMRO II became ABN AMRO Bank

ABN AMRO bank nowadays
The Dutch state is currently the owner of ABN AMRO bank and GerritZalm is the current CEO. ABN AMRO bank is nowadays active in 53 countries with more than 4500 offices. The ABN AMRO bank headquarters is situated in Amsterdam.
At the end of this year will be decided if the shares of ABN AMRO bank will offered to the public again in 2015.

The ABN AMRO bank headquarters in Amsterdam

Establish the need:
In order to conduct a good market research, we will first look at the need for information and thus if there is any need for any market research at all. Our purpose is to reduce the uncertainties in market decisions. We believe that this research has a broad scale, which indeed requires internal and external information. This means that we will have to address both aspects when doing our research. * Need for internal research and information:
ABN AMRO is a bank with great experience from the past 23 years, since they were merged together. Therefore, it is suggested that it has very crucial information already available in their internal data reports. This information should be able to inform us well enough on the internal situation and capabilities of expansion of ABN AMRO globally, both financially and non-financially. It is important to first identify if the research is financially affordable but also executable.
For that reason, more internal research seems not necessary at this point. We will use the information that is already available and if throughout the research process it is observed that there is a lack of information on a certain matter, further internal research in various forms will be conducted.
Looking at ABN AMRO’s operations worldwide, we observed its activity in other countries than the Netherlands, in Europe, Asia, North and South America and Australia. However, it does not have banking operations in Africa; except for an international Diamond and Jewelry Group based in Botswana. Even though these expansions do not focus on Africa directly, nor on investment or multi-purpose banking, the information available related to these operations remains valuable. It will be useful to look at successes and failures among these expansions and determine similarities with the African market. This information can first of all be acquired through the marketing intelligence system but we believe that within the company itself more detailed information, raw data but also analysis will be available to support our research. * Need for external research and information:
Nevertheless, we recommend and observe a need for external research. We may find information within the company on how to operate in other countries thanks to experience etc. but it is also necessary to have information available about the yet unknown, which is the African market. We believe it is crucial to conduct market research about the African market, including its threats and opportunities. We will first look at a broad image of this market but we will narrow this look down to specific countries. It has been suggested that ABN AMRO wants to enter the market through Nigeria; therefore, we will put a focus on this country. However, we will leave room for other countries if research points out great potential for these too.
This need for information includes all information necessary to work with a PESTLE analysis; meaning Political, Economic, Social, Technology, Legal and Environmental information.
Define the problem
Looking at the situation right now, ABN AMRO is considered a successful bank that managed to generate a total comprehensive income after taxation of € 1,314 million in 2013. Its strategy is to “selectively grow” their business.
Today, it plans to expand its business to yet another continent: Africa. Africa is a continent that has been recovering very well from the past years spent in a recession and investing in Africa and/or expanding your business in African seems to be a great opportunity. However, what seems to be an opportunity does not necessarily mean that it is one.
Here we find what we call a symptom. We need to look at whether or not entering the African market today is beneficial or whether it is better to wait. It is necessary to verify if the African continent really represents an opportunity for a bank to expand to. We intend to do so by measuring macroeconomic variables. Another important element is whether it matches the company’s mission and vision, in order to ensure success. Indeed, investing in Africa might be a success but it does not necessarily mean that it is in line with what the company stands for; it needs to suit its image and operation standards as well.
ABN AMRO has stated their mission to be the following: * To be successful through the success of our clients; * To strongly commit ourselves to and be positively recognized for our position on sustainability and transparency; * To be an organization that has the best talent and where people grow both professionally and personally.
In a later stage of the research it will also be important, whether if Nigeria represents a real opportunity as well or if there are other countries in which their opportunities out-weigh the Nigerian ones.
Determine objectives

In case of success when entering the African market, either in Nigeria or another country, further research needs to be done on what should be the focus in this country: * investment banking, * or usual multi-purpose banking.
Determine research design
Exploratory research
We will try to gain further background information, through determining the terms, concepts and definitions of the established opportunity. This will help us determine hypothesizes.
For this we will use different sources including: * Reports, and * Online reports
In this step, we will try to find out if entering the African market needs to be done through Nigeria or another African country. To do so, we will use first of all the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Business Environment Ranking report. This report ranks world countries according to their investor friendly environment. Added to this, we will make use of other data available online based on similar research such as World Bank Group Doing Business Economy Ranking.
It is suggested that doing more extensive research than these two documents has to be done in order to have a better view on the underlying influences to choose a country.
Using the data stated and available today, we have determined the following hypotheses that will be researched as an example: * Starting a business in Nigeria is not easy. * In Nigeria, there is a positive correlation between the ease of getting a credit and a successful banking system. * South Africa is a better country to expand to.
Descriptive research
Using descriptive research we will gather information through both the target group and (potential) investors from Nigeria. We will use a sample to analyze; create an image of the whole population. We only want to gather the data that will allow us to makeresponsible decisions on the issues and/or opportunities ABN AMRO faces considering the Nigerian and/or African market.
There are three ways that are useful to use considering descriptive research:
1. Defining the characteristics of the respondentsSurvey questions can either be used to directly ask the respondents to define several characteristics or behavior such as identifying their age group, providing information about how they spend their leisure time, a range of income, etc., or to ask respondents about opinions and attitudes, such as their level of satisfaction of their bank, what they consider important in a bank, how they feel about the Nigerian market and what their expectations are.
2. Comparing groups using the gathered data to identify characteristics and behavior/opinion about the respondents, different groups of people can be identified that can be compared to each other. This may show significant differences in opinions and/or behavior for example, which will allow ABNAMRO to get a better understanding of the different groups. For example, ABNAMRO could get to know whether they should or should not focus on particular segments.
3. Analyzing trends in the gathered data specific trends can be analyzed using data gathered through survey questions. A question where respondents would have to answer using a scale, for example, would be much more meaningful if it could be compared to the answers respondents would give to the same question in the future. However, this means that the same survey has got to be conducted again in the future, which may not be an option for this research.
Causal research
Causal research cannot be determined at this stage of the research. We do not have the necessary information available about the different variables we intend to look at. However, this does not mean that causal research is excluded; we will most certainly do this once the necessary information will be acquired.
Determine information types and sources 1) Secondary information:
We will be looking for information that is not outdated, meaning it is reliable and valid, and a maximum of 2 years old. We believe two years is the maximum because the banking industry is evolving a lot and in 2012 the world was still suffering significantly from the economic recession. However, looking at data from then to today onwards will allow us to see how the country(s) have developed. Choosing this data implies a few criteria; such as looking at the author of the document, who sponsored it, in whose interest it is and whether the conclusions are consistent with other available information. We will need to keep a healthy amount of doubt without directly rejecting any information.
Direct secondary data is not always available for anyone. However, we will surely take the information available thanks to syndicated service providers such as Moody’s or Standard & Poor’s; their grading and ranking of entities will enable us to see whether the potential countries have a government that is worth investing in. Indeed, it’s important to compare whether it is smart to invest in banking service in a country which has a certain ranking for investors. Ratings | Standard & Poor | Moody’s | Nigeria | BB- Negative | Ba3 | South Africa | BBB+ Stable | Baa2 |

Investment wise, looking at these ratings already gives a clearer view on the countries’ potential for investors. Nevertheless, South Africa is better ranked than Nigeria. 2) Primary information:
Depending on what secondary information was already available, we will determine what further information is necessary. The primary information is not available but through the suggested research indicated above, under descriptive research, and the use of proxy questions related to the identified opportunity, we will gather our own information so that it is valid and reliable.
Figure out the ways to access the data
Secondary data
Accessing secondary data is relatively easy. As already stated above, secondary data will mostly be gathered in the form of reports, research papers, articles and books.
Primary data Qualitative data
We want to do interviews with both the target group and potential investors to gain a more detailed understanding. The interviews will serve in support of the gathered quantitative data. By using open questions where we can ask for further explanation we are likely to get accurate information in the form of opinions and/or behavior. Quantitative data
In order to access reliable quantitative data we want to use online surveys using an incentive to reach the full potential considering response rate and reliability. We want to use a combination of both telephone surveys and online surveys. We want to conduct telephone surveys only for the investors whom we want to ask questions. The reason being is that it will be costly to conduct too many telephone surveys. We will not only use telephone surveys for the investors, but a combination of both (in a way that will fit in the limited budget). For the target group we want to use online surveys only.
To motivate respondents, we would like to use an incentive. To be sure to get a satisfactory response rate, an incentive should be high enough. However, the incentive should not be too high because it might lead to unreliable answers. Because of our lack of information considering the research budget, it is difficult to come up with an incentive that will lead to satisfactory results and is also in compliance with the budget. To find a final appropriate incentive we should consult ABN AMRO and discuss the possibilities. Possibilities for an appropriate incentive for filling in the survey: * A code will be given after filling in the survey – in case ABN AMROwould enter the Nigerian market, this code can be used by the respondent to get a special offer when opening an account, taking out a loan, etc. * ABN AMRO sponsors sports, society and cultural activities and events. Respondents could have a chance to win tickets for such an event/activity.
Design data collection instruments
In order to collect the data, we will have to determine a certain number of proxy questions that we will actually be able to ask to the people. We have decided to put four criteria on all our questions for them to be useful. Indeed, the questions need to be: focused, brief, grammatically simple and clear. Through these questions we intend to obtain general information about the sample of people questioned such as age, gender, income etc. We will provide these people with categories to choose from, such as female/ male or age categories.
However, the second part of the questionnaire will be different. We intend to use Extend Dual Choice statements, by giving a statement (for example: “Nigeria is a good country for a bank to invest in and expand to.”) and allowing the person to choose between two polar opposite expressions. We want to keep the scale visual nonetheless.
Example:

To evaluate and measure the results of this questionnaire, we will proceed to the use of a composite variable. However, as can be observed in the example we will divide the questionnaire in two sections, on Nigeria and South Africa and compare the answer to find out which alternative would be favored. Each section will focus on whether the country should or should not be chosen for investment and/or expansion, but also on what type of banking would be preferred (investment banking or multi-purpose banking).
The composite variable will however not give us a meaningful result; therefore, we will convert it to a number between 0 and 1, using the following formula: originalresult-"minimum" originalmaximum original-minimumoriginal=…%
Determine sample size and protocol
We now come to another important step in our research development; we will be looking at selecting an adequate sample. The sample will be a smaller part of a larger group you are interested in. There are however some elements that need to be considered when selecting the sample; among those are the research objective, the research question and a measurable element. * Sample size:how many should we select?
In order to determine the sample size, we have to look at the variation (“z² s²”) within a population concerning the subject, which we will have determined while doing our exploratory research. We will also have to determine what error (accuracy, “e”) we will be using. n= z²s²e² * Protocol:how should we select them?
Since ABN AMRO has been a successful bank in the past, we want to remain this way in the future and therefore believe that you should use the sampling method that is considered best at reflecting variations. This method is referred to as Stratified Sampling and represents the division of the population you are interested in, into subpopulations, also referred to as strata. Afterwards, we will use simple random sampling (giving an equal chance to each stratum to be selected) in order to create a selection of elements from within the subpopulation.
This technique is the most costly one; however, it ensures you of a better representation of the variation within your selected population. We believe that with your resources as a bank and the cost of such a great investment/expansion to Africa, it would be best to use Stratified Sampling. This will avoid risks and you will have a better representation of the population.

Final steps:
The following three steps will not be addressed in this report. The theory required has not yet been addressed and does therefore not allow us to make valid and reliable decisions for these steps.
Collect Data
Analyze data
Prepare report

Final words:
We would like to thank you for taking the time to read and consider our report. We are more than willing to accept the job and we can assure you that you will not be disappointed.

--------------------------------------------
[ 2 ]. ABN AMRO Annual report 2013
[ 3 ]. http://www.abnamro.com/en/about-abn-amro/worldwide-presence/index.html
[ 4 ]. ABN AMROAnnual Report 2013
[ 5 ]. http://www.abnamro.com/en/about-abn-amro/our-strategy-and-values/index.html
[ 6 ]. ABN AMRO Annual Report 2013
[ 7 ]. http://www.iberglobal.com/files/business_climate_eiu.pdf
[ 8 ]. http://www.doingbusiness.org/rankings
[ 9 ]. (we do not know anything about the eventual timespan and intentions of the research ABN-AMRO wants to conduct).
[ 10 ]. http://www.standardandpoors.com/en_US/web/guest/ratings/entity/-/org-details/sectorCode/SOV/entityId/397410
[ 11 ]. https://www.moodys.com/credit-ratings/Nigeria-Government-of-credit-rating-551435
[ 12 ]. http://www.standardandpoors.com/en_US/web/guest/ratings/entity/-/org-details/sectorCode/SOV/entityId/129834
[ 13 ]. https://www.moodys.com/credit-ratings/South-Africa-Government-of-credit-rating-686830
[ 14 ]. http://www.abnamro.com/en/about-abn-amro/sponsorship/index.html