Marketing Research: Overview

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Marketing Research Overview

• Jeremy Kees, Ph.D.

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What is Marketing Research?

• .. the process of collecting and using
  information for marketing decision-making
• Marketing Research is conducted by
• Companies large and small
• Independent Marketing Research Firms

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What is Marketing Research?

• Marketing Research helps us
• Assess Market Potential (Target Market Selection)
• Explore what Product/Service Offerings Customers
  Want
• Develop New Products
• Develop Effective Promotional Strategies
• Determine price points
• Measure Existing Customer Satisfaction
• Monitor the External Environment

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Formulate Problem
Stages in the Research Process (Researchers Pers
pective)
Determine Research Design
Design Data Collection Method and Forms
Design Sample and Collect Data
Analyze and Interpret the Data
Prepare the Research Report
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Popular Research Designs

• Exploratory Research
• Discovery
• Descriptive Research
• Relationships
• Causal Research
• Experiments

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Overview of Research Design
Uses
Types

• Formulate problems more precisely
• Develop Hypotheses
• Establish priorities for research
• Eliminate impractical ideas
• Clarify concepts

• Literature search
• Experience survey
• Analysis of select cases
• Interviews
• Ethnographies
• Focus groups
• Etc.

Exploratory Research

• Describe segment characteristics
• Estimate proportion of people who behave in a
  certain way
• Make specific predictions

Descriptive Research

• Longitudinal study
• Panels
• Sample Survey

• Provide evidence regarding causal relationships
• Rule out all other explanations

Causal Research

• Laboratory experiment
• Field experiment

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Relationship Among Research Designs
Descriptive Research
Exploratory Research
Causal Research
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Qualitative versus Quantitative Research

• Data
• Quantitative numeric data
• Qualitative non-numeric data
• Caveat all qualitative data can be coded and
  all quantitative data is based on judgment
• Common Assumption
• Qualitative Data preliminary
• Quantitative Data confirmatory

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Qualitative vs. Quantitative Research
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Focus Groups

• Focus groups small group discussions led by a
  trained moderator
• Objectives
• Generate ideas
• Understand consumer vocabulary
• Reveal consumer needs, motives, perceptions, and
  attitudes on products and services
• Understand findings from quantitative studies

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Focus Groups

• Advantages
• Generation of fresh ideas
• Client interaction
• Versatility
• Ability to tap special respondents
• Disadvantages
• Representative of the population?
• Subjective interpretation
• High cost-per-participant

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Focus Group Characteristics
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Other Popular Qualitative Techniques

• In-Depth interview
• Uses a set of probing questions posed one-on-one
  to a subject by a trained interviewer so as to
  gain an idea of what the subject thinks about
  something or why he or she behaves a certain way
• Ethnographies
• developing understandings of the everyday
  activities of people in local settings
• Observation
• Insight into actual, not reported, behaviors
• Mystery Shopping

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Descriptive Research

• Describe what is going on or exists
• Estimate how groups of consumers might behave
• Examine relationships between two or more
  variables
• Predict

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Descriptive Research

• Two Basic Types
• Longitudinal
• Cross-Sectional

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Causal Research

• Helps us determine if one or more IVs (treatment,
  predictors) causes or affects one or more DVs
  (outcome variables)
• Most demanding designstrongest conclusion
• Requires the highest degree of understanding of
  the problem

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Types of Experiments
Laboratory Experiment
Research investigation in which investigator
creates a situation with exact conditions, so as
to control some, and manipulate other, variables
Experiment
Scientific investigation in which an
investigator manipulates and controls one or more
independent variables and observes the
dependent variable for variation concomitant to
the manipulation of the independent variables
Field Experiment
Research study in a realistic situation in which
one or more independent variables are
manipulated by the experimenter under as
carefully controlled conditions as the
situation will permit
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Definitions and Concepts

• Independent variables (IV) are variables or
  alternatives that are manipulated and whose
  effects are measured and compared, e.g., price
  levels.
• Test units are individuals, organizations, or
  other entities whose response to the independent
  variables or treatments is being examined, e.g.,
  consumers or stores.
• Dependent variables (DV) are the variables which
  measure the effect of the independent variables
  on the test units, e.g., sales, profits, and
  market shares.
• Extraneous variables are all variables other than
  the independent variables that affect the
  response of the test units, e.g., store size,
  store location, and competitive effort.
• Covariates

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Validity

• Internal validity refers to whether the
  manipulation of the independent variables or
  treatments actually caused the observed effects
  on the dependent variables. Control of
  extraneous variables is a necessary condition for
  establishing internal validity.
• External validity refers to whether the
  cause-and-effect relationships found in the
  experiment can be generalized. To what
  populations, settings, times, independent
  variables and dependent variables can the results
  be projected?

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Causal Research (Experimental Design)

• Internal Validity

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Causal Research (Experimental Design)

• External Validity

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Design Data Collection and Forms

• Secondary Data
• Exploratory Research
• Informal and flexible
• Script
• Descriptive / Causal Research
• Rigid and Structured
• Survey

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Design Sample and Collect Data

• Why is sampling important??
• Basic Sampling Methods
• Probability
• Non-Probability

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Analyze and Interpret Data

• Exploratory Research
• Identify themes and patterns
• Open for more subjective researcher
  interpretation
• Descriptive / Causal Research
• Statistical Analysis
• Regression, ANOVA, Multidimensional Scaling,
  Cluster Analysis, etc.
• More conclusive

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Prepare Research Report

• Key Issues
• Try to be objective as possible and honest with
  your client
• Take note of the technical sophistication of your
  client
• Be careful when reporting results versus making
  inferences / recommendations

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Critical Issue

• The MOST important issue to consider throughout
  the research process is making sure that the
  research is actionable.
• Avoid nice to know research projects!!!