Marketing Research Lecture Notes

Individual Survey Project

• Instead of a group project (done in regular semesters), students will create an individual survey due to the short semester.

• The survey will include:

  • Demographic questions.

  • Subject matter of interest.

  • Screening questions.

• Steps:

  • Create the survey and write it out in a document.

  • Program the survey into Qualtrics or Google Forms.

  • Send the survey out to contacts.

  • Create a PowerPoint analyzing the results of the survey.

• Goal: Understand the process of creating a survey, programming it, and data collection.

• Challenge: Getting at least 50 responses requires effort, reposting, and creative data collection methods.

• Topic Selection:

  • Avoid narrow topics (e.g., makeup in Mac).

  • Consider broad topics: movies, television, coffee, soda, water, gym, cars.

  • Avoid topics limited to FIU students.

Marketing Research: Bundles of Benefits

• Companies must offer valuable benefits to consumers.

• Research helps determine what to sell.

• Consider emotional benefits and how consumers perceive the company.

• Companies should avoid defining themselves too narrowly based on the physical product.

• Identify the competition and understand what the company or product means to consumers.

• Goal: Make the company the "go-to" place by improving customers' lives in a unique way.

Market Research Defined

• Process: Idea, theory development, problem definition, information search/collection, data analysis, and communication of findings.

• Example: Decreasing water sales.

  • Possible reasons: competition, new market entrants, decreased quality, lack of natural disasters.

• Information should be:

  • Accurate and objective.

  • Relevant to all aspects of the marketing mix (product, place, promotion, price).

  • Applicable to all organizations and institutions.

Basic vs. Applied Research

• Basic Research:

  • Simple, descriptive, aims to understand what's happening.

  • Expands marketing knowledge in general.

  • Example: Do consumers experience cognitive dissonance in low involvement situations?

• Applied Research:

  • More stringent, uses cross-tabulations.

  • Addresses specific marketing decisions.

  • Examples:

    • Should McDonald's add Italian pasta dinners to its menus?

    • Should Coca Cola change its formula?

Scientific Method

• Researchers use knowledge and evidence to reach objective conclusions.

• Steps:

  • Prior knowledge/observation.

  • Create a hypothesis.

  • Test the hypothesis.

  • Conclusion (new knowledge or validation).

Business Orientations

• Product-Oriented:

  • Focuses on improving the product itself.

  • Research is used for product improvement.

• Production-Oriented:

  • Focuses on improving production processes.

  • Example: Effects of speeding up a conveyor belt on product quality and logistics.

• Marketing-Oriented:

  • Focuses on selling products through price and advertising.

• Consumer-Oriented:

  • Focuses on understanding consumer wants and needs.

• Customer-Oriented Decisions:

  • Made with conscious awareness of consumer effects.

  • Emphasis on long-run profitability.

• Example: Gas station preference (price vs. loyalty programs).

Cross-Functional Perspective

• Marketing integrated across all business functions.

• Example: If marketing aims to increase sales by 10%:

  • Production needs to meet the increased demand.

  • HR needs to hire and train more people.

  • Accounting needs to provide funds.

• Without cross-functional alignment, customers may be unable to find the product, leading them to seek alternatives.

Relationship Marketing

• Goal: Build long-term customer relationships.

• Focus: Customer lifetime value.

• Benefits: Customers become accustomed to the product, advocate for it, and pass it on to future generations.

Marketing Research vs. Marketing Management

• Marketing Management: Deals with sales and promotions.

• Marketing Research: Understands the consumer and tests different strategies.

Developing and Implementing Marketing Strategy

• Stages:

  • Identifying and evaluating market opportunities.

  • Analyzing market segments.

  • Planning and implementing the marketing mix.

  • Analyzing firm performance (SWOT analysis).

SWOT Analysis

• Evaluate the:

  • Strengths: Internal, organization controls.

  • Weaknesses: Internal, organization controls.

  • Opportunities: External, beyond organization control.

  • Threats: External, beyond organization control.

• Pair a strength with opportunity.

• Constant SWOT analysis allows to be prepared to act on opportunities.

Geodemographics

• Describing the demographic profile of consumers in a particular geographic region.

• Knowing geodemographics enable effective communication with customers.

• Examples: Opening a Venezuelan Arepa place in areas with a high population of Venezuelans (e.g., Doral, Weston, Western).

• Find geo demographics through data mining.

The Four P's

• Marketing research supports decisions about:

  • Product

    • Concept Testing

    • Product Testing

    • Brand Name Evaluation

    • Testing the package

  • Price

    • Finding out what people are willing to pay.

  • Place (Distribution)

    • Figuring out locations in which people are going to be purchasing

  • Promotion

• Promotional Strategy investigates the effectiveness of advertising.

Media Research

• Choose the media alternatives that best convey the intended message.

• Consider: television, radio, magazines, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube.

• Social media allows for more intense, longer messages at a lower cost compared to broadcast television.

Performance Monitoring Research

• Routinely provides feedback. Used synonymously with Mystery Shops.

• Mystery Shops:

  • Fake inquiries that analyze customer care skills, speed, descriptions.

  • Evaluate employees to ensure they follow protocol.

  • Ensure customer satisfaction.

Retail

• Grading the employee to ensure they're following protocol, customer satisfaction, smiles, and remembering regulars.

When is Marketing Research Needed?

• Centered on:

  • Time constraint.

  • Data availability.

  • Nature of the decision.

  • Benefits versus cost (cost-benefit analysis).

Cost Benefit Analysis

• Determine if the payoff or rate of return is worth the investment.

• Example: Ford Pinto case

  • Ford knew about a faulty part in their Pinto car that caused explosions in rear-ended accidents.

  • They calculated that the cost of lawsuits from deaths was cheaper than recalling and fixing the part ($$11 per car).

  • The scandal went public after the memo was released, highlighting the ethical implications of prioritizing cost over safety.

Time Constraints

• If the need is immediate, there's not enough time for research.

The Nature of the Decision

• The decision is of strategic or tactical importance.

Global Market Research

• Can be done internationally.

• Crucial to use a local marketing agency for cultural understanding.

• Example: Chevrolet Nova in Mexico. In Spanish, Nova translates to "doesn't go". This was not effective in the Mexican Market.

• Replicate strategies with adjustments.