This is an introduction chapter of the course Marketing research.

1. Marketing Research
Md. Abdul Hamid
Assistant Professor
Dept. of Business Administration
Shahjalal University of Science and Technology
Bangladesh
July, 2010
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2. Text & Reference Books…
Saunders, M., Lewis, P., and Thornhill, A., (2003), Research
Methods for Business Students, Pearson Education (Singapore)
Pte. Ltd., First Indian Reprint.
Malhotra, N. K., (2007) Marketing Research: An Applied
Orientation, Pearson education, Inc.,5th edition
Cooper, D. R., and Schindler, P. S., (2006), Business Research
Methods, McGraw-Hill/Irwin, 9th edition.
Boyd Jr., Westfall, and Stasch, Marketing Research: Text and
Cases, 7th edition (1999), Richard D. Irwin Inc.
William G. Zikmand, Exploring Marketing Research, 8th edition
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3. Features of Research….
Data are collected systematically.
Those are interpreted systematically.
There is a clear purpose to find things out
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4. Marketing Research
“MR is the systematic and
objective identification, collection, analysis,
dissemination, and use of information
for the purpose of improving decision making
related to the identification and solution
of problems and opportunities in marketing.”
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5. MR Classification……..
Marketing Research
Problem Problem
Identification Research Solving research
(market potential, market share, (Segmentation, Product, Pricing,
sales analysis, Business trend etc.) Promotion, Distribution etc.)
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6. Distinctiveness of Business Research…
Knowledge development by other
disciplines.
Busy, Powerful, less access to data…
except commercial gain.
Practical consequences of the findings.
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7. Remember……….
“Business and management research
not only needs to provide findings
that advance knowledge &understanding,
it also needs to address
business issues and
practical managerial problems.”
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8. Basic Versus Applied Research…
Basic… Applied…
Expand knowledge Solution to problem.
Universal principles Deals with particular problem
Value to society Limited to problem.
Academic purpose Academic and Practical
Flexible timescales Tight timescales
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9. MIS versus DSS
MIS… DSS…
Structured problem Unstructured problems
Use of reports Use of models
Rigid structure User-friendly interaction
Info. displaying restricted Adaptability
Can improve decision Can improve decision
making by clarifying raw making by using ‘what if’
data analysis
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10. The General Process…
Formulating & Clarifying a topic
Reviewing the literature
Choosing a strategy
Collecting data
Analyzing data
Writing up
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11. Marketing research process…
Problem definition
Development of an approach to the problem
Research design formulation
Fieldwork or data collection
Data preparation and analysis
Report preparation and analysis
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13. Mgt. decision problem…
“…the problem confronting the decision maker. It asks what
the decision maker needs to do.”
Marketing research problem
“A problem that entails determining what information
is needed and how it can be obtained in the most
feasible way.”
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14. MDP: Should the advertising campaign be changed?
MRP: To determine the effectiveness of the
current advertising campaign
MDP: Should a new product be introduced?
MRP: To determine consumer preferences
and purchase intentions for the
proposed new product.
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15. Components of the Approach…
Objectives / Theoretical Framework
Analytical Model
Research Questions
Hypotheses
Specification of Information needed
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16. Consider before finalizing Topic…
Limited scope
A genuine interest in the topic
Financial and Time resources
Access to required data
Knowledge of the literature
Clearly defined research questions & objectives
Fresh insights into the topic
The scope to write an acceptable project report
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17. Ensure that…
“Your heart
as well as your head
is in your research project.”
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18. Can be done………..
Examining own strengths and interests
Looking at past project titles
Discussion with mates and mentors
Searching the literature
Relevance tress
Brainstorming
Using Delphi technique
Integrating ideas
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19. Brainstorming ???
“….technique that can be used to
generate and refine research ideas. It
is best undertaken with a group of
people.”
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20. Delphi method !!!
“… using a group of people who are
either involved or interested in the
research topic to generate and select
a more specific research idea.”
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21. Now you should….
Write research questions
…beware of research questions that are too easy.
…avoid at all costs is asking research questions that will
not generate new insights.
Write research objectives
…evidence of clear sense of purpose and direction.
…it requires more rigorous thinking, which derives from
the use of more formal language.
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22. Research Question:
How can the effectiveness of team briefing schemes
be measured?
Research Objective:
To establish suitable effectiveness criteria for team
briefing schemes.
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23. Research Question:
Should Sonali Bank change its transaction method
from manual to online?
Research Objective:
To compare the costs and benefits of the both
transaction methods.
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24. Theory….
“….a formulation regarding
the cause and effect relationships between
two or more variables, which
may or may not have been tested.”
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25. Contents of the research proposal…
Title
Background
Research questions & objectives
Methodology
Timescale
Resources
References
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26. Literature review….
“…recent and historically significant
research studies, company data, or
industry reports that act as the basis
for the proposed study.”
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27. Sources for review…
Primary… Reports, Theses, Emails, Conference
reports, Company reports etc.
Secondary… Newspapers, Books, Journals,
Websites, Govt. publications etc.
Tertiary… Indexes, Abstracts, Catalogues,
Dictionaries, Bibliographies etc.
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28. Ask yourself….
How recent is the item?
Does the item support or contradict your
arguments?
Does the item appear to be biased?
Have you seen references to this item in
other publications?
Does the context sufficiently match with
your research question?
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29. Credibility of Research findings…
Reliability…
“The degree to which
data collection methods
will yield consistent findings,
similar observations
would be made or Validity…
conclusions reached by “The extent to which
other researchers or research findings are
there is transparency in really about what they
how sense was made from profess to be about.”
the raw data.”
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30. Research ethics…
“…refers to the appropriateness of your behavior
in relation to
the rights of those
who become
the subject of your work, or
are affected by it.”
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31. Assignment – 01
Go to the p. 97 of your text book and answer the six questions of the case. It
must be hand written & don’t use more than 1000 words to answer all
questions.
Assignment – 02
Read the guidelines given at pp. 178-181 of your text book and take
preparation for conducting an FGD on…..
“The Attitude of Our youngsters toward FM Radio Channels: A Contemporary
analysis”
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