MK 463 Marketing Research

Person Administered Survey

Interviewer and No Computer

Computer-Assisted Survey

Interviewer and Computer

Self-Administered Survey

No Interviewer and No Computer

Computer-Assisted Survey

No Interview and Computer

Person-Administered Surveys

The interviewer reads questions and records the answers on paper

Person-Administered Surveys - Advantages

Feedback, Rapport, Quality control, Adaptability

Person-Administered Surveys - Disadvantages

Human make errors, Slow speed, high cost, fear of interview evaluation

Computer-Assisted Surveys

The interviewer reads the questions and uses computer technology to record the answers and/or otherwise assist in the interview.

Computer-Assisted Surveys - Advantages

Speed, Relatively error-free interviews, Use of pictures, audiovisuals and graphics, Immediate capture of data

Computer-Assisted Surveys - Disadvantages

Technical skills may be required, setup costs may be high

Self-Administered Surveys

The respondent reads the questions on a page and responds by writing on the questionnaire.

Self-Administered Surveys - Advantages

Reduced cost, Respondent control, Reduced interview evaluation apprehension

Self-Administered Surveys - Disadvantages

Respondent control, lack of monitoring, high questionnaire requirements

Computer-Administered Surveys

The computer communicates the questions and records the respondent's answers.

Computer-Administered Surveys - Advantages

Breadth of user-friendly features, highly effcient, reduction of interview evaluation concern in respondents

Computer-Administered Surveys - Disadvantages

Requires computer-literate and internet-connected repondents, respondent misrepresentation

Mixed-Mode Surveys

aka hybrid surveys - use multiple data collection methods.

Mixed-Mode Surveys - Advantages

Multiple advantages to achieve data collection goal

Mixed-Mode Surveys - Disadvantages

Survey mode may affect response, additional complexity

Choosing an Appropriate Survey Approach

Is the assistance of the interviewer necessary? Are respondents interested in the issues being investigated? Will cooperation be easily attained? How quickly is the information needed? Will the study require a long and complex questionnaire? How large is the budget?

Ethical Issues

Participants' right to privacy The use of deception Respondents' rights to be informed about the purpose of the research The need for confidentiality The need for honesty in collecting data The need for objectivity in collecting data

Pretesting

screening procedure that involves a trial run with a group of respondents to iron out fundamental problems in the survey design

In-home interview

The interviewer conducts the interview in the respondent's home, normally at a preset appointment time.

Mall-intercept interview

Shoppers in a mall are approached and asked to take part in the survey. Questions may be asked in the mall or in the mallintercept company's facilities located in the mall

In-office interview

take place in person while the respondent is in his or her office or other company area.

Telephone interview

work well if the interviewer doesn't need to see the respondent. Two types of telephone surveys: Central and CATI

Fully automated interview

A computer is programmed to administer the questions. Respondents interact with the computer and enter in their own answers by using a keyboard or mouse, touching a screen, or through some other means

Online survey

Respondents answer a questionnaire that resides on the Internet.

Group self-administered survey

entails administering a questionnaire to respondents in groups rather than individually for convenience and to gain economies of scale

Drop-off survey

aka "drop and collect," in which the survey representative approaches a prospective respondent, introduces the general purpose of the survey to the prospect, and leaves it with the respondent to fill out on his or her own.

Mail survey

the questions are mailed to prospective respondents who are asked to fill them out and return them to the researcher by mail.

In-office surveys - Advantages

Useful for interviewing busy executives

In-office surveys - Disadvantages

Relatively high cost per interview, gaining access is sometimes difficult and it takes time to find them

Telephone Surveys - Advantages

Reasonable cost, good quality control, fast turnaround

Telephone Surveys - Disadvantages

Respondents can't be shown anything or physically interact with the research object, Telephone doesn't allow for observation of body language or facial expression, Limited in the quantity and types of information obtainable, Non-cooperation is increasing

Central Location Telephone Surveying - Advantages

Good and efficient quality control, Interviewing process can be monitored, Control over interviewer schedules

Computer-assisted telephone interviews

The most advanced telephone interview companies have computerized the central location telephone interviewing process with systems

Panel company

an institution that recruits a large number of potential survey respondents who participate for compensation

Panel Company - Advantages

Fast turnaround, High quality, Database information, Access to targeted respondents, Integrated features

Panel Company - Disadvantages

Not random samples, Overused respondents, Cost

Measurement

determining a description or amount of some property of an object that is of interest by assigning numbers in a reliable and valid way

Properties

are specific features or characteristics of an object that can be used to distinguish it from another object. (also known as concepts)

Objective properties

are physically verifiable characteristics. Age, Income, Number of bottles purchased, store last visited

Subjective properties

cannot be directly observed because they are mental constructs such as a person's attitude or intentions

Constructs

are abstract ideas or concepts that are thought to be related and are measured with multiple variables

Variables

are elements of a construct that can be measured or quantified.

Nominal Measures

Assigns a label to an object for identification or classification, Uses only the characteristic of description. Ex Football Jerseys

Ordinal Measures

A ranking scale allowing things to rank order the respondents or their responses. Indicates relative size differences among objects: greater than, less than, or equal to.

ex. 1st, 2nd, 3rd place in a race (place people in order, but not measure the distance between them).

Interval Scale

Rating scales for subjective properties where the distance is normally defined as one scale unit. Ex. Rate this from enjoyable to not enjoyable (likert scale).

Ratio Scale

Measures are ones in which a true zero origin exists. Ex. dollars spent, miles traveled, number of children in the household, or years of college education.

Likert Scale

format measures intensity of agreement or disagreement. Strongly agree to strongly disagree.

lifestyle inventory

takes into account the values and personality traits of people as reflected in their unique activities, interests, and opinions toward their work, leisure time, and purchases.

semantic differential

scale contains a series of bipolar adjectives for the various properties of the object under study

halo effect (from semantic differential)

in which a general overall feeling about a brand or store could bias responses on its specific properties.

Stapel scale

relies on positive and negative numbers, typically ranging from +5 to −5. The scale may or may not have a neutral zero.

Slider Scales

are grab-and-move features that enable a respondent to indicate an amount with a drag of his or her cursor. (engaging and more entertaining for respondents)

Introduction (of Questionnaire)

The introduction sets the stage, Who is doing the survey, indicates how respondents were selected, incentives, screening questions.

Incentives

are offers to do something for the respondent to increase the probability that the respondent will participate in the survey

Screening questions

are used to identify respondents who do and who do not meet qualifications necessary to take part in the research study.

Key Functions of A Questionnaire - Part 1

1. Translates the research objectives into specific questions asked of respondents

2. Standardizes those questions and the response categories so every participant responds to identical stimuli

3. By its wording, question flow and appearance, it fosters cooperation and keeps respondents motivated through the interview

Key Functions of A Questionnaire - Part 2

4. Serves as an enduring record of the research

5. Depending on the data collection mode used, such as online, a questionnaire can speed up the process of data analysis

6. Contains the information on which reliability and validity assessments may be made

Do's of Question Wording

Be focused, Be brief, be grammatically simple, be crystal clear

Don'ts of Question Wording

Lead on, load, Double-barrel, overstate

Population

an entire group under study as defined by the objectives of the research project

Sampling Process

involves drawing conclusions about an entire population by taking measurements from only a portion of all population elements (a subset or some part of a larger population)

Census

an accounting of the complete population. It requires information from everyone in the population

Sample

is a subset of the population that suitably represents the entire group

Sample unit

is the basic level of investigation

sample frame

a master source of sample units in the population.

Sampling frame Error

the degree to which the sample frame fails to account for all of the population (may be incomplete or inaccurate)

Sample error:

any error in a survey that occurs because a sample is used

Sample error can be caused by two factors

Method of sample selection and Size of the sample

Sample vs Census

S - more practical when considering such things as cost and population size.

C - creates a large amount of data and a firm may have an inability to analyze huge amounts of data. Expensive

Probability samples

ones in which members of the population have a known chance (probability) of being selected into the sample

Non-probability samples:

instances in which the chances (probability) of selecting members from the population into the sample are unknown

Simple random sampling

the probability of being selected into the sample is "known" and equal for all members of the population

Systematic sampling

uses a directory or list for the population. The researcher then decides on a skip interval, which is calculated by dividing the number of names on the list by the sample size.

Cluster sampling

method in which the population is divided into subgroups, called "clusters," each of which could represent the entire population

Area sampling

is a form of cluster sampling - the geographic area is divided into clusters.

One-step area sample

the researcher may believe the various geographic areas (clusters) to be sufficiently identical to allow concentrating his or her attention on just one area and then generalizing the results to the full population

Two-step area sample

the researcher selects a random sample of areas, and then, he or she decides on a probability method to sample individuals within the chosen areas

Stratified Sampling

separates the population into different subgroups and then samples all these subgroups

Convenience samples

samples drawn at the convenience of the interviewer

Chain referral samples

require respondents to provide the names of prospective respondents like themselves who might qualify to take part in the survey

Purposive samples

requires a judgment or an "educated guess" as to who should represent the population (judgement sampling)

Quota samples

specified percentages of the total sample for various types of individuals to be interviewed

Online Sampling Techniques

-Online Panels

-River Samples

-E-mail list Samples

Online panels

large numbers of individuals who have agreed to participate in online surveys

River samples

created via the use of banners, pop-ups, or other online devices that invite website visitors to take part in the survey

E-mail list samples

purchased or otherwise procured from someone or some company that has compiled email addresses of opt-in members of the population of interest

Steps in a Sample Plan

1. Define the population

2. Obtain a sample frame

3. Decide on the sample method

4. Decide on the sample size

5. Draw the sample

6. Validate the sample

Nonprobability Sampling

Convenience

Chain referral

Purposive

Quota

Probability Sampling

Simple random

Systematic

Cluster

Stratified

Survey

involves interviews with a large number of respondents using a predesigned questionnaire.

Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviews (CATI)

The most advanced telephone interview companies have computerized the central location telephone interviewing process with systems

Mail Survey - Disadvantages

Nonresponse

Self-selection bias

Scale measures

those in which the distance between each level is known

Types of Scale Measures

Interval

Ratio

Reliability

respondent responds in the same or a similar manner to an identical or nearly identical measure

Validity

accuracy or exactness of the measurement