Chapter 3 - Marketing Research & Customer Insight

Question 1

What are the concepts within marketing research and customer insight, and how are they defined?

Answer 1

• Market research: work undertaken to determine the structural characteristics of the industry of concern.
• Marketing research: work undertaken to understand how to make specific marketing strategy decisions. Systematic = steps are well documented and planned in advance.
• Customer insight: generated based on the knowledge gained by different research activities. Deeper understanding of what drives customers’ behaviors.
• Marketing analytics: mathematical and statistical analytical procedures used to distill insights out of Big Data

Question 2

When is a customer insight of value?

Answer 2

If it is rare, difficult to imitate and of potential use to formulate management decisions.

Question 3

To who can market research be commissioned?

Answer 3

• a full-service agency. The organization does not have the expertise to design research or collect/analyze the data.
• a consultant. Job does not require extensive field work
• a field and tabulation agency. Organizations can design their own research but not undertake data collection.
• a data preparation and analysis agency. The organization can both design and collect the data, but does not have expertise to analyze it.

Question 4

What are 5 criteria for evaluating agencies ability to undertake research?

Answer 4

• reputation
• perceived expertise
• whether the study offers value for money
• time taken to complete the study
• likelihood that the research design provides insight to the management problem.

Question 5

What does the marketing research brief include?

Answer 5

• A background summary providing a brief introduction about the company.
• A clear statement of the management problem; why the research is needed and what business decisions depend on its outcome.
• The marketing research question; a detailed list of the information necessary to make the decisions outlined.
• The intended scope of the research; outlines the areas to be covered, which industries, type of customer, etc.
• Tendering procedures. How agencies are selected.

Question 6

What are the five stages of the Marketing Research Process?

Answer 6

1. Problem definition
2. Deciding the research plan
3. Data collection and sampling
4. Data analysis and interpretation
5. Report preparation and presentation

Question 7

What does the Problem definition stage in the Marketing Research Process consider?

Answer 7

The first step. Defining the problem and writing the research brief. Problem can be vague = don’t know what info is required. Researcher talks with organization and creates a marketing research question while removing management’s assumptions. The agency provides a research proposal of how they will investigate the problem

Question 8

What does the “decide the research plan” stage in the marketing research process consider?

Answer 8

The framework for conducting the project is developed. The research need is specified based on three parts; Objectives, Source and Methodology

Question 9

Describe the Objectives of stage 2 in the marketing research process.

Answer 9

Three general types:

1. Exploratory research. Little is known about the problem, needs to be explored further. Enables new concepts/hypotheses
2. Descriptive research. Describing considered variables in key customer groups.
3. Causal research. Determines if one variable causes effect in another.

Question 10

Describe Source in stage 2 of the marketing research process.

Answer 10

• Primary research. Conducted for the first time, collecting data for the purpose of the particular project.
• Secondary data/research. Collected for someone else’s purpose. Gain access to previous results = more efficient and less costly. Undertaken first to see if there are any previous similar studies, then cover gaps with primary research.

Question 11

Describe Methodology in stage 2 of the marketing research process.

Answer 11

• Qualitative research. Small samples, open questions to uncover underlying motives/feeling, hard to replicate. Used in exploratory marketing research.
• Quantitative research. Predetermined standardised questions, many respondents. Statistically analysed. Common in descriptive/causal research. Replication is desirable. Good if we have previous knowledge we want to understand further.

Question 12

What does the the “Data collection and sampling” stage in the marketing research process consider?

Answer 12

Conducting fieldwork and collecting data. Some concerns are if the research should be conducted in-house or be commissioned to a field and tab agency, and how to ensure high data quality.

Question 13

What does the “Data analysis and interpretation” stage in the marketing research process consider?

Answer 13

Stage 4. Data input, analysis and interpretation. Be aware of and counter biases that might affect conclusions. Look at validity (free from bias) and reliability (can it reproduced in later study) for quantitative data.

Question 14

What does the “Report preparation and presentation” stage in the marketing research process consider?

Answer 14

Reporting results and presenting study findings to client. Present free from bias and in a format that is meaningful for the client.