CHAPTER 18- MARKET RESEARCH

Market research

Collecting, recording & analysing data about customers, competitors, and markets.

Identify market features

To assess size, growth, and competitors in the market.

Advantage of identifying market features

Helps assess market potential & risks.

Disadvantage of identifying market features

Market data may be outdated or inaccurate.

Identify consumer characteristics

Understanding consumer wants, needs, and demographics.

Advantage of identifying consumer characteristics

Allows accurate targeting & segmentation.

Disadvantage of identifying consumer characteristics

Consumer behaviour can change quickly.

Primary Research

First-hand data collected for specific needs.

Advantages of Primary Research

Directly relevant, specific to business needs and provides up-to-date information.

Disadvantages of Primary Research

Expensive, time-consuming, and risk of survey bias.

Secondary Research

Using existing data collected for another purpose.

Advantages of Secondary Research

Cheaper, faster to access, often uses large samples.

Disadvantages of Secondary Research

Data may be outdated or not tailored to business needs.

Big Data

Huge amounts of publicly available data from sources like social media.

Advantages of Big Data

Provides deep insights and wide sources for cross-checking.

Disadvantages of Big Data

Requires expensive analysis tools and expertise.

Sampling

Selecting a group of respondents from a larger population.

Advantages of Sampling

Saves time & cost compared to a full population survey.

Disadvantages of Sampling

Small samples may be unrepresentative, risking inaccurate results.

Reliability of Data

Assessed by recognizing sources of bias in the research.

Mean

Arithmetic average used in quantitative data analysis.

Advantage of Mean

Uses all data values for a comprehensive average.

Disadvantage of Mean

Can be distorted by extreme results.

Mode

Most frequent value in a data set.

Advantage of Mode

Easy to identify and useful in retail for popularity.

Disadvantage of Mode

Not useful if data has no repetition.

Median

Middle value in a data set.

Advantage of Median

Not distorted by extremes.

Disadvantage of Median

Ignores other values in the data.

Range

Difference between the highest and lowest values.

Advantage of Range

Simple measure of spread.

Disadvantage of Range

Only uses two data points, making it unreliable.

Qualitative Research

Explores opinions, attitudes, and beliefs.

Advantages of Qualitative Research

Explains reasons behind consumer behaviour.

Disadvantages of Qualitative Research

Small samples and subjective results make it harder to quantify.

Presentation of Data

Methods used to organize and display data for analysis.

Advantages of data presentation

Makes data easier to interpret and communicate.

Disadvantages of data presentation

Risk of misleading visuals if scaled improperly.