Managing Marketing Information Chapter 4

Marketing Info. System Marketing Information System (MIS) Consists of people, equipment, and procedures to gather, sort, analyze, evaluate, and distribute needed, timely, and accurate information to marketing decision makers. Goal 2: Define the Marketing Information System

Marketing Info. System Begins and Ends with Information Users: Interacts with information users to assess information Develops needed information from internal and external sources Helps users analyze information for marketing decisions Distributes the marketing information and helps managers use it for decision making Goal 2: Define the Marketing Information System

Fig.4.1.The Marketing Information System

Assessing Marketing Information Needs The MIS serves company managers as well as external partners The MIS must balance needs against feasibility: Not all information can be obtained. Obtaining, processing, sorting, and delivering information is costly Goal 2: Define the Marketing Information System

Developing Marketing Information Internal data is gathered via customer databases, financial records, and operations reports. Advantages include quick/easy access to information. Disadvantages stem from the incompleteness or inappropriateness of data to a particular situation. Sources of Info Internal data Marketing intelligence Marketing research Goal 2: Define the Marketing Information System

Developing Marketing Information Marketing intelligence is the systematic collection and analysis of publicly available information about competitors and trends in the marketing environment. The goal of marketing intelligence is to improve strategic decision making, assess and track competitors’ actions, and provide early warning of opportunities and threats Many sources of competitive information exist. Sources of Info Internal data Marketing intelligence Marketing research Goal 2: Define the Marketing Information System

Sources of Competitive Intelligence Company employees Internet Garbage Published information Competitor’s employees Trade shows Benchmarking Channel members and key customers Goal 2: Define the Marketing Information System

Developing Marketing Information Marketers often need formal studies of specific situations. Marketing research is the systematic design, collection, analysis, and reporting of data relevant to a specific marketing situation facing an organization. Sources of Info Internal data Marketing intelligence Marketing research Goal 2: Define the Marketing Information System

Companies use marketing research in a wide variety of situations. It can help marketers understand customer satisfaction and purchase behavior. It can help them assess market potential and market share. It can measure the effectiveness of pricing, product, distribution, and promotion activities.

Steps in the Marketing Research Process: Defining the problem and research objectives. Developing the research plan for collecting information. Implementing the research plan – collecting and analyzing the data. Interpreting and reporting the findings. Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Step 1: Defining the problem and research objectives The manager and the researcher must work together. The manager and researcher must set the research objectives. There are three types. The objective of exploratory research is to gather preliminary information that will help define the problem and suggest hypotheses. The objective of descriptive research is to describe things, such as the market potential for a product or the demographics and attitudes of consumers who buy the product. The objective of causal research is to test hypotheses about cause-and-effect relationships. These objectives guide the entire process. Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Step 2: Developing the Research Plan The research plan is a written document that outlines the type of problem, objectives, data needed, and the usefulness of the results. To meet the manager’s information needs, the research plan can call for gathering secondary data, primary data, or both. Secondary data: Information collected for another purpose that already exists. Primary data: Information collected for the specific purpose at hand Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Gathering Secondary Data Secondary data sources: Government information Internal, commercial, and online databases Publications Advantages: Obtained quickly Less expensive than primary data Disadvantages: Information may not exist or may not be usable Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Evaluate the Following When Judging Data Quality Secondary Data Evaluate the Following When Judging Data Quality Relevance Accuracy Currency Impartiality Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Primary Data Collection Primary research decisions: Research approaches Contact methods Sampling plan Research instruments Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Primary Data Decisions Observation research using people or machines Discovers behavior but not motivations. Ethnographic research, trained observers watch people. Survey research Effective for descriptive information. Single-source data systems start with surveys of huge consumer panels. Experimental research Investigates cause and effect relationships. Research Approach Contact Method Sampling Plan Research Instrument Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Primary Data Decisions Key Contact Methods Include: Mail surveys Telephone surveys Personal interviewing: Individual or focus group Online research Research Approach Contact Method Sampling Plan Research Instrument Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Advances in communications have resulted in a number of high-tech contact methods. Computer assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) is where interviewers sit at computers, read questions on the screen, and type in respondents’ answers. Completely automated telephone surveys (CATS) enables respondents to be dialed by computer and asked prerecord­ed questions. Online (Internet) marketing research includes Internet surveys, experiments, and online focus groups.

Strengths and Weaknesses of Contact Methods Relate to: Marketing Info. System Strengths and Weaknesses of Contact Methods Relate to: Flexibility Sample control Data quantity Cost Interviewer effects Speed of data collection Response rate Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Table.4.3 Strengths and Weaknesses of Contact Methods

Primary Data Decisions Sample: subgroup of population from whom information will be collected Sampling Plan Decisions: Sampling unit Sample size Sampling procedure: Probability samples Non-probability samples Decisions Research Approach Contact Method Sampling Plan Research Instrument Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Table.4.4 Types of Samples

Primary Data Decisions Questionnaires Include open-ended and closed-ended questions Phrasing and question order are key Mechanical instruments Nielsen’s people meters Checkout scanners Eye cameras Decisions Research Approach Contact Method Sampling Plan Research Instrument Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Table.4.5 A Questionable Questionnaire

Step 3: Implementing the Research Plan The researcher next puts the marketing research plan into action. The data collection phase of marketing research process is generally the most expensive and the most subject to error. Data is collected by the company or an outside firm The data is then processed and checked for accuracy and completeness and coded for analysis Finally, the data is analyzed by a variety of statistical methods Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Step 4: Interpreting and Reporting the Findings The research interprets the findings, draws conclusions and reports to management Managers and researchers must work together to interpret results for useful decision making Goal 3: Outline the steps in the market research process

Analyzing Marketing Information Statistical analysis and analytical models are often used Marketing scientists have developed numerous models to help marketing managers make better marketing mix decisions, design sales territories and sales call plans, select sites for retail outlets, develop optimal advertising mixes, and forecast new-product sales. Goal 4: Explain how companies analyze/distribute marketing information

Customer Relationship Management Smart companies capture information at every possible customer touch­point. These touchpoints include customer purchases, sales force contacts, service and support calls, Web site visits, satisfaction surveys, and every contact between the customer and the company. CRM consists of sophisticated software and analytical tools that integrate information from all sources, analyze it in depth, and apply the results to build stronger customer relationships. CRM analysts develop data warehouses. Once the data warehouse brings the data together, the company uses high-powered data mining techniques

Distributing and Using Marketing Information Routine reporting makes information available in a timely manner. User-friendly databases allow for special queries. Intranets and extranets help distribute information to company employees and value-network members. Goal 4: Explain how companies analyze/distribute marketing information

Other Considerations Marketing research in small businesses and not-for-profit organizations International marketing research Public policy and ethics Consumer privacy issues Misuse of research findings Goal 5: Discuss Special Issues Facing Market Researchers