Seek and Find Marketing Research MarketingInformation Management LAP

Seek and Find Marketing Research Marketing-Information Management LAP 5

Objectives Describe marketing research and its role in business decision-making. Describe the steps of the marketingresearch process.

Objective Describe marketing research and its role in business decision-making.

• Marketing researchers use a systematic process similar to the scientific method. • Marketing research is extremely important for decision-making about: Ø Products Ø Prices Ø Promotions Ø Competitors Ø Target markets • With this knowledge, marketers contribute to business success.

Important Facts About Marketing Research • Marketing research is the systematic gathering, recording, and analyzing of data about a specific issue, situation, or concern. • It helps marketers keep up with trends and consumers. • It’s an important component of a marketing-information management system. • It helps businesses to make better decisions. • It can vary in size and complexity.

The Role of Marketing Research in Decision-Making • Contributes to business success through informed, effective decision-making • Allows decisions to be based on facts, not opinions, gut reactions, or past experiences

How Marketing Research Is Used • To solve specific marketing problems • To identify problems that may or may not be readily apparent • To help implement the marketing concept Ø Marketing concept: a philosophy of conducting business that is based on satisfying customer wants and needs while achieving company goals Ø Marketing research helps identify those wants and needs.

How Marketing Research Is Used • To develop a customer profile Ø Ø Age Income Education Spending patterns

How Marketing Research Is Used • To analyze the business’s sales and market share Ø How well is the business performing? Ø How do its sales compare with industry sales? Ø What is its market share?

How Marketing Research Is Used • To describe the target market Ø Ø Ø Who? How many? Where? Likes? Purchases?

How Marketing Research Is Used • To determine how to reach the target market Ø What messages appeal to the target market? Ø How frequently should the business communicate with the target market? Ø Which promotional methods appeal to the target market? Ø What advertising media are likely to be successful?

How Marketing Research Is Used • To forecast sales and trends Ø To predict future sales and trends, businesses need to know what customers are buying.

How Marketing Research Is Used • To be more competitive Ø How are we doing compared to our competitors? Ø What could we do to beat the competition? Ø What do customers expect of us and our competitors? Ø What characteristics do customers associate with different brands?

How Marketing Research Is Used • To prevent unnecessary financial losses Ø Ø Ø What markets should be targeted? What products should be offered? What sales channels should be used? What prices should be charged? What packaging should be used? How much inventory should be carried? Ø How should products be promoted?

How Marketing Research Is Used • To keep up-to-date Ø Trends Ø Styles Ø Buying patterns

How Marketing Research Is Used • To maintain or determine image Ø What are customers saying about the business? Ø Are they satisfied?

The Characteristics of Marketing Research • Systematic Ø Step-by-step • Accurate Ø Essential in all aspects of marketing research Ø Exact Ø Precise

The Characteristics of Marketing Research • Objective Ø Unbiased • Thorough Ø Sufficient • Timely Ø Due on a specific date

The Characteristics of Marketing Research • Reliable Ø Producing the same data every time • Valid Ø Measuring what the researcher intends to measure

Who Uses Marketing Research? • Businesses of all types and sizes Ø The business’s size usually determines how it does marketing research. • Large businesses Ø Usually have their own marketingresearch departments Ø May also hire outside research consultants

Who Uses Marketing Research? • Small businesses Ø Generally carry out marketing research on their own § Use data that they have on hand § Gather data from published reports and other sources § Survey customers to learn about customers’ wants and needs

Objective Describe the steps of the marketing-research process.

The Marketing Research Process: Identify the Reason for the Research • Identify the problem, issue, situation, or concern to be researched. • Determine: Ø Ø What kind of data to collect How much data to gather Why the data are needed Whether lessons learned from the research will be worth the potential cost

The Marketing Research Process: Set Research Objectives • Objectives: Objectives fall Specific into one goals or more for the research project categories based on the reason for the research: Ø To explore the current situation (a. k. a. exploratory research) § Helps researchers to clearly define reasons for research § Involves the collection of qualitative data—respondents’ opinions and personal interpretations

The Marketing Research Process: Set Research Objectives • Objectives fall into one or more categories based on the reason for the research: Ø To define the current situation (a. k. a. descriptive research) § Is used to gather specific data related to the identified research problem § Involves the collection of quantitative data—facts and figures that can be presented in the form of a chart or graph

The Marketing Research Process: Set Research Objectives • Objectives fall into one or more categories based on the reason for the research: Ø To test the situation (a. k. a. causal or conclusive research) § Focuses on cause and effect relationships § Tests “what if” theories § Determines the impact that one thing has on another

The Marketing Research Process: Set Research Objectives • Objectives fall into one or more categories based on the reason for the research: Ø To predict future situations (a. k. a. predictive research) § Helps to forecast future business developments

The Marketing Research Process: Develop a Hypothesis • Hypothesis: a statement of the expected outcomes of the research Ø Testable Ø Based on the research objective(s)

The Marketing Research Process: Determine the Research Design • Involves creating a written master plan for how the research will be carried out • Helps to keep the project on track • Helps ensure that the business and the researcher have the same information

The Marketing Research Process: Determine the Research Design • Addresses the following questions: Ø What types of data are needed? § Secondary data ü Are collected for purposes other than the project at hand ü Can be accessed quickly ü Are relatively inexpensive ü Sometimes meet researchers’ needs ü May not directly apply to the problem at hand

The Marketing Research Process: Determine the Research Design • Addresses the following questions: Ø What types of data are needed? § Primary data ü Up-to-date ü Relevant ü Gathered specifically for the project at hand

The Marketing Research Process: Determine the Research Design • Addresses the following questions: Ø How much data will be collected? § The project’s scope affects the amount of data needed.

The Marketing Research Process: Determine the Research Design • Addresses the following questions: Ø Where will researchers find the data? § Sampling: the process of choosing a representative group of customers to survey ü Whom should researchers survey? ü How many should be surveyed? ü How should those to survey be selected?

The Marketing Research Process: Determine the Research Design • Addresses the following questions: Ø Where will researchers find the data? § Internal data: ü Usually secondary data ü Found within the business

The Marketing Research Process: Determine the Research Design • Addresses the following questions: Ø Where will researchers find the data? § External data ü External secondary data are found outside the business in publications written and published by others. ü External primary data are gathered specifically for the project at hand.

The Marketing Research Process: Determine the Research Design • Addresses the following questions: Ø What primary data-collection methods will be used? § Survey ü Is the most popular data-collection method ü Involves developing and administering a questionnaire

The Marketing Research Process: Determine the Research Design • Addresses the following questions: Ø What primary data-collection methods will be used? § Observation ü Involves gathering data by watching customers physically and/or electronically

The Marketing Research Process: Determine the Research Design • Addresses the following questions: Ø What primary data-collection methods will be used? § Experiment ü Tests cause and effect relationships ü Includes test marketing

The Marketing Research Process: Determine the Research Design • Addresses the following questions: Ø How will the data be analyzed? § The way in which researchers plan to review and evaluate data affects the amount of data collected. § If analyzed by hand, the amount of data must be limited. § If analyzed by computer, researchers can collect much more data.

The Marketing Research Process: Collect the Needed Data • Involves surveying, observing, and/or experimenting • Is the most expensive step in the research process • Can be tedious, leading to mistakes

The Marketing Research Process: Analyze the Data • Data must be analyzed to be useful. Ø Data by themselves are just a collection of facts. Ø Data must be evaluated to determine how they relate to the research objectives. Ø Data that have been interpreted and transformed into a useful form become information. • Data analysis software and statistical programs can quickly determine what raw data really mean.

The Marketing Research Process: Make Recommendations Based on Findings • When research is complete, researchers prepare a written research report and suggest a course of action for the business. • The research report includes: Ø The original research objectives and hypothesis Ø The research methodology Ø Research results Ø Limitations to the research Ø The researchers’ recommendations for the business

• Think about your school’s extracurricular activities, CTSOs, or school-based enterprises. Ø Do any of the groups conduct marketing research? Ø If so, what types of data do they collect? Ø How do they collect the data? Ø How do they use the data?

• What group could benefit most from conducting marketing research? Ø Why should the group conduct research? Ø What data should it collect? Ø What data-collection methods should it use?

• Certaine wants to hire the Harrison & Hayes (H & H) marketing-research firm to conduct research on some of its newer products. • Certaine is offering ample funding. • There are strings attached: Ø Certaine wants to select the research sample. Ø H & H cannot publicize any derogatory data about the company or its products.

• H & H is tempted to sign the contract. Ø The firm could make lots of money Ø The project could put H & H on the “A” list of marketing researchers. • What would you do if you were Harrison and Hayes? • Would you accept Certaine’s offer?

MBAResearch Acknowledgments Original Developers Christopher C. Burke, April J. Miller, MBAResearch Version 1. 0 Copyright © 2010 MBA Research and Curriculum Center®

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