Marketing Research (part C)
by
Charles Lamson
Desk Research
Sources of desk research may be internal or external to the organization; internal information is that which is that which is obtained from within the organization while external comes from outside the organization. Examples of qualitative sources of data might include feedback from attendance at research seminars in the form of general impressions regarding the progress of competitor research and development as well as information gathered from group decisions held for earlier product development. Examples of quantitative sources that could be available from within the organization include sales statistics, sales force reports, production labels and research and development reports. Internal sources are inexpensive to use, but they relate to the market experience from within the organization, and consequently can be subject to bias. Furthermore access to the desirable data may be influenced by internal political group dynamics within the organization, e.g. departmental managers may prevent full disclosure of sales to protect the sales force. This may encourage the researcher to use external sources rather than internal sources, despite the information being available within the organization, resulting in higher associated costs.
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Field Research
Field research (or fieldwork) involves the live collection of primary data from external sources by using methods that provide qualitative data, e.g. personal in-depth, focus interviews and group discussions or quantitative data, e.g. surveys, observation and experiment. This research may be undertaken on an ad hoc or continuous basis. Ad hoc research is conducted on one particular occasion, e.g. to assess market demand for a new product. Continuous research is defined as being 'survey conducted on a regular and frequent basis among parallel samples with the same population, or in which the interviews are spread over a long time period' (MRS, 2006). It may be used to monitor changes in customer demand over the period in question.
Qualitative Research Methods
Qualitative research methods may be used to investigate issues in marketing research, including to:
The methods used can include: in-depth focus interview, sometimes termed intensive interview; group discussion (focus group); brainstorming, sometimes termed 'synectics'; observation; accompanied shopping; mystery shopping.
In-Depth Focus Interview
Depth interviews cover a variety of data collection techniques, but mainly for qualitative research undertaken with individual respondents rather than groups. Such an interview is a face-to-face meeting between an interviewer and an interviewee (or respondent) where the topic in question is explored in depth. Usually it takes at least one hour and may be extended to cover half a day or more; it may take place on one occasion, or on several occasions with the same individuals. Focused interviewing may be either unstructured, using a topic list as a guide for the interview process, or it may be semi-structured using a questionnaire covering relevant themes. The former are more frequently used; the latter usually require larger samples. The interview may be used alongside other forms of interview, e.g. accompanied shopping. The interview may be recorded using tape and/or video recorder (Greenbaum, 1998).
Group Discussion (or Focus Group)
Group discussion involves a number of respondents gathered together to generate ideas through the discussion of, and reaction to, specific stimuli. Under the steerage of a moderator, focus groups are often used in exploratory work or when the subject matter involves social activities, habits and status' (MRS, 2006). These groups involve persons who have not previously met who discuss issues related to the topic being investigated. Usually, nine persons are recruited to attend the group discussion, but typically, seven or eight persons actually turn up to participate in the session. With any more than eight person's attending, there is a danger of the group becoming unmanageable as respondents break off into side discussions with neighbors when they cannot get in to make their point in the main discussion. The group discussions are held in congenial places such as a hotel meeting room or in the sitting room in the home of the recruiter, or in custom-built viewing facilities. The person controlling the group discussion, termed a moderator, leads the discussion, focusing on issues of interest to the marketing research. Usually these groups meet for between one and two hours on a single occasion. Such group interviews may be recorded using tape and/or videos. The room used for the group discussion may have an observation suite sometimes termed 'viewing facility', with a one-way mirror window or by a video link so that the group discussion proceedings can be observed without disrupting the group process. Always the participants should be told that they are being observed. These viewing suites provide the marketing researchers' clients with exposure to their customers and their opinions (Greenbaum, 1998).
Brainstorming (Sometimes Termed 'Synectics')
This is the monitoring of the behavior of a group of persons while involved in problem-solving and creative-thinking tasks. It can be useful for marketing research when considering potential new product concepts and designs and may be used in conjunction with group discussions.
Observation
Actual and potential customers can be observed using cameras and tape recordings to establish patterns of behavior. Such observation takes place in many situations, including in a retail outlet when the individual is shopping, when he/she is reading a magazine to examine attention to advertising, and, if appropriate, when the individual is passing a poster site. Such observation methods may use both qualitative and quantitative techniques and can be supplemented by other research methods including accompanied shopping (see below).
The observation method can be combined with interviewing techniques to examine how the respondent makes decisions, termed the decision protocol interview. In particular, within a shopping situation, behavior is monitored using recorder cameras and in-store interviews at the time of undertaking the purchasing behavior. These methods give useful insights into how shopping decisions are made.
Accompanied Shopping
In the consumer market, when assessing a customer's approach to food purchasing, marketing researchers accompany the participant in the act of shopping. In this situation the interviewer asks questions to determine why the individual shops in particular ways at the time of purchase.
The accompanied shopping technique was used by the British Market Research Bureau (BMRB) market research agency when examining the market for mayonnaise and salad cream in the UK. The research showed that the customer buying decision process was influenced by a number of factors, including the household taste preferences and the nature of the container of the salad dressing. The findings were used to determine the preferred container for Hellman's mayonnaise and to develop a theme for the promotional campaign for a revamped product presentation of the mayonnaise.
Mystery Shopping
Mystery shopping is the 'collection of information from retail outlets, showrooms, etc., by people posing as ordinary members of the public' (MRS, 2006) which in the UK has been estimated to be worth about $66 million. Specialist interviewers (or shoppers) act as possible customers using both telephone calls are taped, with copies of the tapes supplied to local management. The video can be used in the same way to record the interview process. The findings are used to monitor customer service provision, e.g. banks assessing the quality of teller advice to customers concerning the availability of banking services or car manufacturers assessing the performance of their distributors' salesmen. It is also used as part of sales incentives schemes, supplementing sales achieved, as in the situation where the quality of service is assessed for the 'best pub of the month' award.
It should be appreciated that there are ethical problems associated with using mystery shopping related to the rights of the staff being interviewed. The MRS code of conduct ensures the data collected through mystery shopping are used fairly (MRS, 2006).
*SOURCE: FUNDAMENTALS OF MARKETING, MARILYN A. STONE AND JOHN DRESMOND, PGS. 127-130*
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