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Conducting
Marketing Research
Venus Razor
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What is Marketing Research?
Marketing research is the systematic design,
collection, analysis, and reporting of data
and findings relevant to a specific marketing
situation facing the company.
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Types of Marketing Research Firms
Syndicated
Custom
Specialty-line
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The Marketing Research Process
Define the problem
Develop research plan
Collect information
Analyze information
Present findings
Make decision
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Step 1: Define the Problem
Define the problem
Specify decision alternatives
State research objectives
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Types of Research
Exploratory
Descriptive
Causal
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Step 2: Develop the Research Plan
Data sources
Research approach
Research instruments
Sampling plan
Contact methods
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Data sources
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Research Approaches
Observational and ethnographic
Focus group
Survey
Behavioral
Experimental
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Focus Groups
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Research Instruments
Questionnaires
Qualitative Measures
Technological Devices
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Qualitative Techniques
Word Associations
Visualization
Projective Techniques
Laddering
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Questionnaire Do’s and Don’ts
Ensure questions are Avoid negatives
free of bias Avoid hypotheticals
Make questions simple Avoid words that could
Make questions specific be misheard
Avoid jargon Use response bands
Avoid sophisticated Use mutually exclusive
words categories
Avoid ambiguous words Allow for “other” in fixed
response questions
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Question Types - Dichotomous
In arranging this trip, did you contact
American Airlines?
Yes No
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Question Types – Multiple Choice
With whom are you traveling on this trip?
No one
Spouse
Spouse and children
Children only
Business associates/friends/relatives
An organized tour group
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Question Types – Likert Scale
Indicate your level of agreement with the
following statement: Small airlines generally
give better service than large ones.
Strongly disagree
Disagree
Neither agree nor disagree
Agree
Strongly agree
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Question Types –
Semantic Differential
American Airlines
Large ………………………………...…….Small
Experienced………………….….Inexperienced
Modern……………………….…..Old-fashioned
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Question Types –
Importance Scale
Airline food service is _____ to me.
Extremely important
Very important
Somewhat important
Not very important
Not at all important
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Question Types – Rating Scale
American Airlines’ food service is _____.
Excellent
Very good
Good
Fair
Poor
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Question Types –
Intention to Buy Scale
How likely are you to purchase tickets on
American Airlines if in-flight Internet access
were available?
Definitely buy
Probably buy
Not sure
Probably not buy
Definitely not buy
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Question Types –
Intention to Buy Scale
How likely are you to purchase tickets on
American Airlines if in-flight Internet access
were available?
Definitely buy
Probably buy
Not sure
Probably not buy
Definitely not buy
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Question Types –
Completely Unstructured
What is your opinion of American Airlines?
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Question Types –
Word Association
What is the first word that comes to your mind
when you hear the following?
Airline ________________________
American _____________________
Travel ________________________
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Question Types –
Sentence Completion
When I choose an airline, the most important
consideration in my decision is:
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
__________________.
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Question Types –
Story Completion
“I flew American a few days ago. I noticed
that the exterior and interior of the plane had
very bright colors. This aroused in me the
following thoughts and feelings.” Now
complete the story.
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
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Technological Devices
Galvanometers
Tachistoscope
Eye cameras
Audiometers
GPS
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Sampling Plan
Sampling unit: Who is to be surveyed?
Sample size: How many people should be
surveyed?
Sampling procedure: How should the
respondents be chosen?
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Contact Methods
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Pros and Cons of
Online Research
Advantages Disadvantages
Inexpensive Small samples
Fast Skewed samples
Accuracy of data Technological
Versatility problems
Inconsistencies
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What is a
Marketing Decision Support
System (MDSS)?
A marketing decision support system is a
coordinated collection of data, systems,
tools, and techniques with supporting
hardware and software by which an
organization gathers and interprets relevant
information from business and environment
and turns it into a basis for marketing action.
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Barriers Limiting the Use of
Marketing Research
A narrow conception of the research
Uneven caliber of researchers
Poor framing of the problem
Late and occasionally erroneous findings
Personality and presentational differences
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Market Research Can Fail
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Table 4.3 Characteristics of
Good Marketing Research
Scientific method
Research creativity
Multiple methods
Interdependence
Value and cost of information
Healthy skepticism
Ethical marketing
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What are Marketing Metrics?
Marketing metrics are the set of measures
that helps marketers quantify, compare, and
interpret marketing performance.
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Table 4.4 Marketing Metrics
External Internal
Awareness Awareness of goals
Market share Commitment to goals
Relative price Active support
Number of complaints Resource adequacy
Customer satisfaction Staffing levels
Distribution Desire to learn
Total number of Willingness to change
customers Freedom to fail
Loyalty Autonomy
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What is Marketing-Mix Modeling?
Marketing-mix models analyze data from a
variety of sources, such as retailer scanner
data, company shipment data, pricing,
media, and promotion spending data, to
understand more precisely the effects of
specific marketing activities.
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Figure 4.2 Marketing
Measurement Pathway
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Figure 4.3 Marketing Dashboard
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Table 4.4 Sample Customer-Performance
Scorecard Measures
% of new customers to average #
% of lost customers to average #
% of win-back customers to average #
% of customers in various levels of satisfaction
% of customers who would repurchase
% of target market members with brand recall
% of customers who say brand is most preferred
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