Conducting

Marketing Research

Chapter 4
 Key Learning Points

• Marketing research functions

• Secondary sources of information
• Primary sources of marketing research
 Marketing Research
• Marketing research is the systematic gathering,
recording, and analysing data about issues
related to marketing products and services.

3
 Customer Insight

Customer insight is about revealing true hidden

customers needs, preferences and behaviors based
on the analysis of qualitative and quantitative
data.
A customer might pretend that she / he buys Apple
IPod because of its performance but the real reason
is “brand association” “extension of personality”

4
 Steps in the Marketing Research
Process
1. Defining the Problem and Research Objectives
2. Developing The Research Plan
3. Implementing The Research Plan “Collecting
Data”
4. Analysing and Presenting the Findings
5. Interpreting and Reporting The Findings
1. Defining the Problem and Research Objectives

Marketing managers and researchers must work

closely in order to find out the research problem
and the objectives.
Sales declines could be just a symptom of the
problem
 2. Developing The Research Plan

Developing The Research Plan for Collecting the

Information
The research plan suggests the sources of the
required existing data (Secondary Data) and
recommends (Primary Data) methods.
 Secondary Data

Secondary data consists of information that already

exists somewhere, having been collected for
another purpose.
Exp: GOVERNOMENT CENSUS
 Primary data

Primary data consists of information gathered

for the special research plan.
Planning Primary Data Collection
 Research Approaches

Observational research involves gathering

primary data by observing relevant people,
actions, and situations

Ethnographic research involves sending

trained observers to watch and interact with
consumers in their natural environment
 Research Approaches

Survey research is the most widely used method.

Survey research is best used for:
• Descriptive information—knowledge
• Attitudes
• Preferences
• buying behavior
 Advantages of Survey Research
The main Advantages of Survey Research are:
•Ease of use (compared to other data-collection methods)
•Less expensive
•Can be administered remotely via online, mobile devices,
mail …etc.
•Capable of collecting data from a large number
of respondents
•With survey software, advanced statistical techniques can be
utilized to analyze survey data to determine validity, reliability

https://www.snapsurveys.com/blog/advantages-disadvantages-surveys /
The main Disadvantages of Survey research are:
• Not being able to answer (due to ambiguity...etc.)
• Not willing to answer certain questions
• Providing misleading or pleasing answers
• Respondents being concerned about their privacy

http://www.fao.org/ag/humannutrition/33251-0a0b0928c3532ed36c3b6624d54d73f86.pdf
 Research Approaches

Experimental research is best for gathering

causal information—cause-and-effect
relationships.

Ex: Scientific research

 Qualitative marketing research

It is unstructured, primarily exploratory

design based on small sample, provides depth,
insight and understanding.
 Quantitative marketing research

Quantitative Research uses mathematical analysis.

Typically research analysis is done using measurable,
numeric standards.
Survey
scales
 Sampling Plan

Sample is a segment of the population

selected for marketing research to
represent the population as a whole
– Who is to be studied?
– How many people should be studied?
– How should the people be chosen? Sampling
Procedure
 Selecting the Sampling Procedure

Probability sampling or Random sampling refers to

methods of selecting individuals to include in a study
where each member of the population has an equal
chance of being selected.

Non-probability sampling is the process of selecting a

sample of participants based their association to the
topic. The researcher chooses the sample based on
who they think would be appropriate for the study.

19
 Contact Methods
and Instruments

Focus Group
“Qualitative Method”
• Focus Group : it is a form of group discussion of six
to ten people monitored by Trained moderator.
It is usually expensive to conduct
 Contact Methods
and Instruments
In-Depth Interviews
Qualitative Method

Personal interview is very flexible method. It

allows interviewers to ask more questions and
record additional information. It is ore costly than
focus group

21
 Advantages of Personal In-Depth
Interviews
The main advantages of personal In-Depth
Interviews are:
•Deliver a good response rates
•Longer interviews more likely to be tolerated
•Attitude can be observed
•Provide a direct interaction with interviewee
 Disadvantages of Personal In-
Depth Interviews
The main disadvantages of personal In-Depth
Interviews are:
• Expensive
• Time-consuming
• May produce a non-representative sample
•A trained interviewer with knowledge
in interviewing techniques is required
 Contact Methods
and Instruments

Telephone Interviews
“Qualitative Method”
Telephone interviews are considered the best
method for getting information quickly. They are
cheaper and easy to conduct , provide a high
response rate and consumes less time.

24
 Research
Contact Methods
Instruments
and Instruments
Questionnaires
“Quantitative Method”

Questionnaires are the most common and

flexible. They could be administered in person, by
phone or online.
 Contact Methods
and Instruments
Questionnaires

•Close-end questions: include all possible

answers, and subjects make choices among
them
– Provide answers that are easier to interpret and
tabulate
•Open-end questions: allow respondents to
answer in their own words
– Useful in exploratory research
3. Implementing The Research Plan (Collecting
The Data)

This stage involves collecting processing the

data. Researchers must make sure that all the
steps of the plan are implemented correctly.
4. Analysing and Presenting the Findings
The researcher must Analyse and present
findings that are relevant to the marketing
department.
5. Making the Decision
The marketing managers have to take a
decision based on reliable evidence from the
market research findings.
 Online Research

The following are the main advantages of online

research:
•Low cost
•Speed (less time consuming)
•Higher response rates
•Good for hard to reach groups (Capable of
collecting data from respondents from different
parts of the world)
 Technological Devices

• Eye cameras study respondents’ eye

movements to see where their eyes land
first, how long they linger on a given item,
and so on.
 Questionnaire Do’s and Don’ts

The main Questionnaire Do’s and Don’ts

are:
•Ensure questions are free of bias
•Make questions simple
•Make questions specific
•Avoid sophisticated words
•Avoid ambiguous words
 Question Types - Dichotomous
In arranging this trip, did you contact
American Airlines?
 Yes  No
 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

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education

4-33
 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
 Question Types –
Importance Scale
Airline food service is _____ to me.
 Extremely important
 Very important
 Somewhat important
 Not very important
 Not at all important

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education

4-35
 Question Types – Rating Scale
American Airlines’ food service is _____.
 Excellent
 Very good
 Good
 Fair
 Poor

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education

4-36
 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
Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education
4-37
 Question Types –
Completely Unstructured
What is your opinion of American Airlines?

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education

4-38
 Question Types –
Word Association
What is the first word that comes to your mind
when you hear the following?
Airline ________________________
American _____________________
Travel ________________________
 Question Types –
Sentence Completion
When I choose an airline, the most important
consideration in my decision is:
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
__________________.
 Student Workshop

Supermarket Shopping daze

You are required to come up with similar ideas in

order to learn more about consumers behavior
Using observation research method

41
 References
Kotler, P. and Armstrong, G. , Principles of Marketing, International
16th ed., Pearson Education, Inc., New Jersey.
Kotler and keller 2014 15 Global Edition
Kotler P and Lane-Kellar K (2006 stated in book), Marketing Management 12th Edition, Prentice Hall
Hollensen S (2003), Marketing Management A Relationship Approach, Financial Times Prentice Hall

Marketing Management, Global Edition, 15/E Philip Kotler and Kevin Lane Keller
Copyright © 2015 Pearson Education
Kotler, P. and Armstrong, G. , Principles of Marketing, International
16th ed., Pearson Education, Inc., New Jersey.

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education

Copyright © 2015 Pearson Education

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