m


 
m Exploratory Research (huh?)
Ú Designed to generate basic knowledge, clarify relevant issues
uncover variables associated with a problem, uncover information
needs, and/or define alternatives for addressing research
objectives.
Ú A very flexible, open-ended process.
m Descriptive Research (who, what, where, how)
Ú Designed to provide further insight into the research problem by
describing the variables of interest.
Ú Can be used for profiling, defining, segmentation, estimating,
predicting, and examining associative relationships.
m Causal Research (If-then)
Ú Designed to provide information on potential cause-and-effect
relationships.
Ú Most practical in marketing to talk about associations or impact of
one variable on another.
 m
 
 

   

m Ãiterature Search
Ú Conceptual literature
Ú Trade literature
Ú Published statistics
Ú Ãibrary homepage (www.uah.edu/library)

m Analysis of Selected Cases

Ú Intensive study of related cases or past activities
Ú May be internal or external
Ú Can help provide clues as to how other units or
companies have dealt with similar issues
 m
 
 

   

m Experience Surveys (a.k.a., depth interviews)

Ú Knowledgeable people with varying points of view
Ú Unstructured and informal interviews
Ú Respondent free to choose issues to be discussed
m ¦ocus Groups
Ú Ô to 10 people at one time
Ú Relatively homogeneous groups
Ú Multiple, heterogeneous groups
Ú Group dynamics
Ú Moderator is key
Ú Relies on general topical guide with plenty of time for
interaction
 m
 

 

m Goal of focus group research: learn and

understand what people have to say and why.
 ¦ind out how participants feel about a product,
concept, idea, organization, etc.;
 How it fit into their lives;
 Their emotional involvement with it
m May be conducted alone or as part of a broader
project
m May be use to define issues or to confirm findings
from survey research.




 
m Good group of information-rich participants
Ú How many people?
Ú How many groups?
Ú Characteristics of participants
m Discussion guide and outline
Ú Ground rules
Ú Agenda
Ú Guiding questions
m Œualified Moderator
Ú Controls flow
Ú Stimulates discussion
m Analysis and Report
 
 


m Must be able to break down barriers; get subjects to open up within

first 10 minutes
m Must be a quick learner
Ú Good listener
Ú Absorb content
Ú Gauge personalities
Ú Adapt quickly
m Must be in control, but not dominating (guide rather than lead)
m Must appear to be neither an expert nor naive
m Must be flexible to allow for free flow of discussion
Ú Don¶t concentrate too rigidly on the moderator guide
m Keep the big picture in perspective
Ú Know what is important
Ú When to move on
  
m Use a introductions to set the tone
Ú Use only first names in introductions
Ú Avoid job titles and positions, unless necessary
Ú State your purpose and establish position as an
objective, unbiased party
Ú Encourage everyone to participate; no right or wrong
answers
m Use an ice breaker to get everyone comfortable
m State ground rules, procedural details
m Ask for permission to tape if possible
m Ensure confidentiality/anonymity
Ú Report to contain summary of group, not individuals
m Use ³write-down´ method to allow for both introverts and
extroverts to have input, and to ³lock´ people into their
own opinions (avoids too much group think)
 G 

 
m Confusing Concept or Discussion Topic
Ú reak the concept into components that are easier to understand
Ú Use the confusion as a discussion point (ask for their
interpretation, then attempt to resolve)
m Dead Subject (no discussion initiative)
Ú Play one person off the other.
Ú Use projective techniques
 What color do you most closely associate with «. ? Why?
 What animal does ______ remind you of? Why?
 What type of people might use«? Why?
m Ãively Subject (everyone talking, often at once)
Ú Assert leadership role and take charge
Ú Promise more discussion time later
Ú Suggest that everyone wants to hear all opinions, which is easier
done one at a time
Ú Use ³write-down´ techniques to quiet the group down
 G 

 

m The Talkative Member

Ú Ãeverage his/her energy to you benefit
Ú Ask the rest of the group to respond to (agree/disagree with) what
the talkative member said
Ú Call on someone else specifically when asking questions
Ú Say, ³Don¶t let ³Ed´ do all the talking, I¶d like to hear from
someone else«.´
m Silent Members
Ú Call on them by name (³John, how do you feel about«´)
Ú Reinforce the value of their responses
Ú Do this several times in a row and they will open up voluntarily
Ú Probe their short answers for more detailed ones
 ³Tell me more about«´
 ³That is interesting, why do you feel that way/´
 m

 

m Purpose is threefold:
Ú Outline flow of discussion
 Defines issues
 Sets ground rules
 Provides time constraints
Ú Provides information for participants
Ú Serves as a guide for the final report
m May be very basic or extremely detailed depending on formality of the
research.
Ú rery exploratory research will require a simple guide
Ú More extensive analyses need more structure
 
m


m Introductory Statements (typically 10-15 minutes)
Ú Moderator introduction
Ú Respondent introductions
Ú Objectives/Statement of Purpose
Ú Ground rules
m Key Discussion Œuestions (45-50 minutes)
Ú Practice using multiple types of questions to elicit more detailed responses
Ú Think about the purpose of your questions:
 Collect information?
 Maintain flow?
 Ãead respondent?
m Wrap-up
Ú Clarify, rerify, Summarize
Ú Ask ³All things considered´ type questions to get them to summarize
 m  !

m egin with simple, easy to answer questions
m Place more specific, sensitive questions toward the mid-point in the
discussion
m Don¶t want to force them to work too hard early or scare them
m Ensure that questions are short and deal with a single issue
m Utilize vocabulary that is consistent with the respondents¶
m Include questions that the respondents would reasonably have
knowledge of and ability to answer
m Remember to keep the tone of the questions conversational, not
accusational, confrontational, or critical of individuals
m Don¶t ask questions that would potentially single one person out for
inspection
m e cautious about giving examples (might lead too much)
m Use parallel or similar questions to test commitment to positions
 ×"
# 

m Ãist generation
m Ranking or evaluating items
Ú May be abstract ideas or concrete objects
m Sentence completion
m Creating analogies
m Picture or word sort
m Create a collage of your feelings
m Drawing a picture or ideal image
m Role playing or enactment
Ú Personal experiences
Ú Hypotheticals
m Divide group for debate
m Monitor and follow-up on Nonverbals
 º $
m


m Depends on type of report desired
m Most focus group reports are designed to answer the
following questions:
Ú What was the purpose of the study?

Ú What were the research objectives?

Ú What methodology was used, and why?

Ú What was the group composition?

Ú What were the key findings?

Ú As a result, what are the recommendations?

 m
 
%&   
m Identifying comments that are frequently mentioned
m Evaluating rankings or "votes" occurring over the course of the project
m Grouping similar responses by meaningful subgroups (for instance, mentions
by region, age group, or company size)
m Resolving differences between groups
m Discussing messages with opposing ideas indicated perhaps by body language

To ensure accurate evaluation of focus group reports, keep in mind several rules of
thumb:

m Avoid quantifying results; remember this is qualitative analysis.

m Ãook for patterns that show consistent themes
m It is important to provide quotations to support your evaluations.
m Identify which thoughts were generated through a free-flowing discussion and
which were actually aided responses.
 ÿ'
 

m Advantages
Ú No geographic barriers
Ú Ãower costs
Ú ¦ast turnaround time
Ú Do not have to see a moderator face-to-face
Ú Can reach hard-to-reach managers
Ú Two way interaction between moderator and the client
is possible
 ÿ'
 
m Disadvantages
Ú Group dynamics are construed
Ú Nonverbal inputs are minimal
Ú Client involvement with participants is practically non-
existent
Ú Security - who is the person on-line?
Ú Attention to the topic - is the participant paying attention?
Ú Exposure to external stimuli - can not present product
prototypes.
 Or can we?
Ú Role and skill of moderator are more difficult
 
 $
"

m One-on-one interviews that probe and elicit detailed answers
to questions, often using nondirective techniques to uncover
hidden motivations.
m Advantages
Ú No group pressure
Ú Respondent is focus of attention and feels important
Ú Respondent is highly aware and active
Ú Ãong time period encourages revealing new information
Ú Can probe to reveal feelings and motivations
Ú Discussion is flexible and can explore tangential issues
 
 $
"


m Disadvantages
Ú Much more expensive than focus groups
Ú Do not get the same degree of client involvement;
clients do not want to observe single interviews
Ú Are physically exhausting for the moderator«reduces
the number of people that can be interviewed in a given
time period.
Ú Moderators do not have other group members to help
obtain reactions and to stimulate discussion.
 m
 
 


  

m Cross-Sectional Study
Ú Easily the most common type of research project.
Ú Typically involves conducting a survey of a sample of population
elements at one point in time.
Ú Useful because it provides a quick snapshot of what¶s going on
with the variables of interest for our research problem.
m Ãongitudinal Study
Ú An investigation that involves taking repeated measures over time.
Ú Useful for conducting trend analysis, tracking changes in behavior
over time (e.g., brand switching, levels of awareness, turnover) and
monitoring long-term effects of marketing activities (e.g., market
share, pricing effects)
Ú True panel vs. omnibus panel
 
 

m Evidence to Support Causation

Ú Concomitant variation
 If X is supposed to cause Y, then the two variables must move
together.
 If one variable changes, we should observe a resulting change in the
other.
Ú Time order of occurrence
 If X is supposed to cause Y, then changes in X must precede changes
in Y.
Ú limination of other possible causes
 If X causes Y, no other factor could have reasonably caused the
change in Y at that moment.
 Must hold all other variables constant.
 
 

m Experiments are the best way to satisfy elements of causation.

m May be ¦ield  periment or Ãaboratory  periment
m Tradeoff between realism versus control
m Examples of experimentation in marketing
Ú Market test (test marketing)
Ú Advertising response (recall, affect, attitude toward ad elements)
Ú Promotional design (consumer response to promotional deals,
incentives, tie-ins
Ú Store layout and design
Ú Product positioning
Ú Color tracking and package design