This document discusses the process of defining a research problem and setting research objectives. It covers recognizing the problem or opportunity, understanding why information is needed and the decision-making environment. It also discusses distinguishing between symptoms and the real problem, translating the management problem into a marketing research problem, determining if information already exists, and setting research questions, objectives and hypotheses. The goal is to develop clear and meaningful research objectives to guide the research process.

1. Problem Definition & Research Objectives Week 2 (1) Dr. Kelly Page Cardiff Business School E: pagekl@cardiff.ac.uk T: @drkellypage T: @caseinsights FB: kelly@caseinsights.com

3. The Problem Definition Process Recognize the problem or opportunity Find out why the information is being sought Understand the decision making environment Use the symptoms to help clarify the problem Translate mgt. problem to marketing research problem Determine whether the information already exists Determine whether the question can be answered State the research objectives Can the problem become opportunity? Any suspect motives? Examine cultural & bureaucracy issues Determine cause & effect relationships Mgt. support is key Have you researched other research? Are the objectives doable / realistic? Include timetable and responsible party

9. 5. Mgt Problem to Mkt Research Problem A statement specifying the type of managerial action required to provide insight to the marketing research problem. Should we invest in out-of-home media to reach our target audience? Management Decision Problem Marketing Research Problem A statement specifying the type of information needed by the decision maker to provide insight to the marketing research problem and how that information can be obtained efficiently and effectively. Gather information through surveys to determine the reach and impact of out-of-home media on target audience Marketing Research Objective A goal statement defining the specific information needed to provide insight to the marketing research problem. Measure recall (memory) & purchase effects of specific products featured in promotions via billboards, kiosk ads and vehicle wraps etc Management Problem Becomes a Marketing Research Problem

15. The content of this work is of shared interest between the author, Kelly Page and other parties who have contributed and/or provided support for the generation of the content detailed within. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales. http://creativecommons.org/ Kelly Page (cc)