CHAPTER 4 Marketing Information and Research Real People, Real Choices CHAPTER 4 Marketing Information and Research

Chapter Objectives Understand the role of the Marketing Information System in decision making Describe the marketing research process Understand the differences among exploratory, descriptive, & causal research, & describe some research techniques available to marketers

Chapter Objectives Describe the different types of data collection methods & types of samples that researchers use Understand the growing use of online research

Knowledge is Power A Marketing Information System (MIS) determines what information managers need & then gathers, sorts, analyzes, stores, & distributes relevant & timely marketing information to users Marketing Research - process of collecting, analyzing, & interpreting data about customers, competitors, & the environment to improve decisions

Marketing Research Data Syndicated research reports secondary data collected by firms on a regular basis Sold Custom research reports primary data collected to provide answers to specific questions

Step 1: Define the Problem Specify the research objectives Identify the consumer population of interest Place the problem in an environmental context

Step 2: Determine the Design Can the information be acquired from existing data? If so, secondary data sources will be utilized If not, primary research will be necessary

Exploratory Research Generally qualitative data May take several forms Consumer interviews Focus groups Case studies Ethnography Projective techniques

Descriptive Research Utilizes a large sample of participants Generally quantitative data Designs Cross-sectional design involves the systematic collection of information from one or more samples of respondents at one point in time Longitudinal design tracks the responses of the same sample of respondents over time

Causal Research Attempts to understand cause-and-effect relationships Factors that might cause a change are independent variables while the variables that are affected are dependent variables Experimental design allows researchers to control possible explanations for the effect

Step 3: Choose the Data Collection Method Communication Mail questionnaires Telephone interviews Face-to-face interviews Online questionnaires Observation Personal Mechanical

Mail Questionnaires Advantages Respondents feel anonymous Low cost Good for ongoing research Disadvantages Slow return speed Low response rates Inflexible questionnaire Length of survey is limited

Telephone Interviews Advantages Fast High flexibility in questioning Low cost Limited interviewer bias Disadvantages Decreasing levels of cooperation Limited questionnaire length Consumers screen calls

Face-to-Face Interviews Advantages Flexibility of questioning Long questionnaires possible Can help explain questions Can use visuals Disadvantages High cost Interviewer bias possible Time requirements are high

Online Questionnaires Advantages Instant data collection Flexible question patterns Low cost No interviewer bias Access regardless of geographic location Disadvantages Unclear who is responding No assurance of honesty Limited questionnaire length Limitations inherent with self-selected samples

Observation Personal observation traffic analysis recording how products are used Unobtrusive measures pantry checks garbage search Mechanical observation people meters

Step 4: Design the Sample Probability samples each member of population has an equal chance of being included in the sample allows for inferences to be made about the population Non-probability samples unequal chance of being included in the sample (convenience sample) limits inferences to the population

Steps 5 & 6: Implementation Step 5: Collect the data May encounter special problems Step 6: Analyze and interpret the data Enter, clean, & code data Choose appropriate techniques for analysis Interpret analysis by drawing inferences from the results

Step 7: Prepare the Research Report Executive summary A description of research methods Discussion of results Limitations of study Conclusions & recommendations