Chapter 8Marketing Research

Role of Marketing Research Defined as:

“the planning, collecting, and analyzing information to improve marketing decisions.”

A decision Support System (DSS) Keep isolated marketing managers in touch with markets. What’s hot? What’s not? DSS: Interactive, flexible, discovery-oriented & accessible Create customer profiles via database marketing

Marketing Research Scientific Method:

Is the objective and orderly process for testing ideas about relationships between variable(s).

Hypothesis is an educated guess about relationship between variables (if a, then b).

Is this the best way to understand consumers?

Marketing ResearchEthics

Withhold info: ads, phone-in poll, what else?Privacy“Fake” surveys: telemarketerAny other examples?

Marketing Research Steps1. Identify the problems (or opportunity)

Is the most difficult and important Book: often outside specialists must understand

situation. Budget constraints an issue. Coke/New Coke Va/ NOVa

Market research can bring new ideas

Service Need Metaphor New Service Idea

Retail Banking Accessibility Vending machine ATM

TV news More availableRound the clock radio CNN

Pizza Restaurant Indoor catering Call service Pizza taxi

Book shops Easy shopping Library at home Amazon.com

Maps Easy to study while driving Electronic co-driver Navigator

Why won’t you buy my insect killer?

McCann-Erickson advertisingagency asked users of roachkillers to create drawings of their prey.

From the drawings, the agency determined that roach spray sold better than insecticide disks since the users wanted control, and spray allowed them to actively kill the roach.

Marketing Research Steps2. Plan Research Design &

Collect Data RD=a plan that specifies which RQ must be

answered, how, when the data will be collected, how will it be analized

Quick and cost effective (eliminates need) Secondary data

Information already collected and or published Study information already available

End: decide if information is still needed If so, conduct a new, original (primary) research

study

How the Internet has Changed Secondary and Primary Data Collection Methods

www.edmunds.com (15 years of data=1500 usd! Not bad!)

www.archives.org

Marketing Research StepsPlan to gather data: surveys2b. If primary data, have to collect data

yourself Questioning: survey (Scales)

Set of questions to collect information directly from subjects (open or closed ended)

Self administer or in person (at events, malls) Problem: low response rates :10% is good Problem (from low response): representative Online surveys (zoomerang.com.surveymonkey.com)

Marketing ResearchMarketing Research Process

Plan to gather data: novel methods2b. Depth interviews

Observing “you can observe a lot, just be looking”Advantage: natural inquiry (kids), and gather

information without influencing customers.• What about disadvantages??

“Mystery shoppers” (what are examples??)Scanner data: collect buying information (unlimited use)Netnography/ethnographyOnline/focus groups/

Marketing ResearchPlan to gather data: experiments2b. Data

Experimenting Two similar groups

o Differ on one item of importanceo Hold all else constant

Advantage: causationDisadvantage: naturalism (is it so fake?)Look on the back of a prescription drug print

ad….that is an experiment

Marketing Research Steps5. Analyse/Interpret data

Solve with statistics Issues:

Reliability: consistency (same result in repeated trials; scale for weight)

Validity: measure what you intend to (accurate standardized tests

Statistical software assists you

SPSS vs. SAS

Marketing Research Steps

5. Analyze the data (not just interesting data, all data)

Run cross-tabs Hypothesis testing Association Measures Regression Analysis Structural Equation Models

Marketing Research6. Prepare/Present Report or Manuscript

Solve objectives clearly Search for the “better question” (ask about

food quality in dining hall; everyone talks about price or location)

Tailor to audience (executive or expert scholars

7. Follow up- How could your improve?- Was a decision made based on your study?- Build a relationship