BMA611 Market Research and Decision-Making

Assessment 3: Market Research Report

Overview

The aim of this assessment is to write a research report. You will be provided with a research brief
including a number of client-focused research questions or problems, and a data set. You will be
required to analyse the data using SPSS to develop a client-focused market research report. The final
report must be of a professional standard. Make your report understandable, translate the findings
into ‘actionable items’, and most importantly, write in plain English.

There are many ways to write a market research report. In general terms, a research report needs to
cover the following issues:

 Background to the research problem

 The research questions/objectives
 The data sources/sample and methodology
 The data analysis/results/findings
 An interpretation/discussion of the findings
 Conclusions based on the findings
 Recommendations/‘actionable items’

Structure of the report

There is an outline for a market research report in the Hair et al (2014) textbook. This is Exhibit 17.1
(pp. 495-96) which is expanded on through the entirety of that chapter. This can be used as a
template for your work, ensuring that you have incorporated the points mentioned above.

A suggested structure (based on the textbook) is as follows:

1. Table of contents:
a. List the headings/sub-headings in the report
b. List the tables, figures, etc
2. Executive summary (no more than 150 words)
a. Background to the research
b. Research questions/objectives
c. Brief statement of sample and methods
d. Main results/findings
e. Conclusions and recommendations
3. Research issues and objectives
a. Background to the company (as relevant)/product/service/etc?
b. What is the decision problem faced?
c. What are the research objectives/outcomes/contributions?
d. What are the research questions to be tested and their rationale?
4. Methodology
a. What is the research design used?
b. What is the sampling technique and the nature of the sample?
c. What are the types of data and the data collections methods?
d. Brief statement of the data analyses to be conducted
5. Results/findings
a. What are the results as relevant to each research question or problem?
b. Provide tables and figures as appropriate
c. What do the results/findings tell us?
 6. Conclusions and recommendations
a. Provide concluding statements that generalise and summarise the results\
b. Provide recommendations/‘actionable items’
7. Limitations
a. Any limitations regarding the sample, methods and results?
8. References
9. Appendices

Other information about the report

Task Length: 2000 words (excluding references)

Assessment Criteria: Marking criteria will be provided separately
Link to Unit’s 2&3
Learning Outcomes:
Due Date: Week 13 – 5.00pm, Friday 18 October, 2019; please submit in the drop box
on MyLO
Value: 40 marks

Research brief

Please read the ‘Back Yard BBQ Story’ (BYBBQ) Case Study (14.1) on pp. 418-419 of the Hair et al
(2014) textbook. You are to take the role of the research agency mentioned in the case: Endmark Pty
Ltd. The relevant data set is on MyLO under Content/Assessment/Assessment 3.

The dataset consists of the following variables:

Q1 – Q10 – respondents’ fast food consumption behaviour and rankings of various consumption
preferences

Q11 – Q19 – respondents’ attitudes towards and preferences for fast food restaurants

Q20 – Q30 – respondents’ general opinions on a range of lifestyle issues

Q31 – Q33 – respondents’ responses regarding the fast food restaurant they most often visited in the
last 30 days (q3)

Q34 – Q40 – respondents’ demographic data

(Ignore the variables called fac1_1 to fac4_3)

As well as the issues discussed in the case regarding the trend to healthy eating and the saturation of
the fast food market in Australia, Management of BYBBQ are interested in the following:

 Are there any demographic differences and/or relationships with attitudes towards and
preferences for fast food restaurants?
 Are there any relationships between lifestyle issues and attitudes towards and preferences
for fast food restaurants?
 What variables predict ratings of satisfaction, likelihood of return and likelihood of
recommendation?
 What else can analysis of the results reveal?

Develop a client-focused market research report for the Management of BYBBQ.