Marketing Research Lecture Notes PDF

Business English Dr. Marwa Sayed  Marketing Research Definitions: Art and science Philip Kotler: “Marketing research is systematic problem analysis, model building, and fact-finding for the purpose of improved decision-making and control in the marketing of goods and services.” Acc...

Business English Dr. Marwa Sayed  Marketing Research Definitions: Art and science Philip Kotler: “Marketing research is systematic problem analysis, model building, and fact-finding for the purpose of improved decision-making and control in the marketing of goods and services.” According to the American Marketing Association (AMA), Marketing research is the systematic gathering, recording, and analyzing of data about problems relating to the marketing of goods and services.”  Market research is the process of gathering valuable information about the needs of your target market, consumer behaviors, and market challenges. Importance of Market Research 1- Improves Sales Market research provides unique insights into the expectations of your customers and clients, which helps you tailor your product to meet their specific needs. This would ultimately help to increase your sales. 2- Identifying New Business Opportunities With market research, you’d be able to spot untapped business opportunities in your industry and work on building a product in line with this. for instance, You can discover new geographical concentrations for your target market.  3- Reduces Business Risks As a business owner, your priority should be taking calculated risks, this can be achieved when you have knowledge of your industry. Conducting market research will help you make the right business decisions. 4- Advertising Market research also improves your advertising by helping you to identify the best channels to reach your customers. You’d better understand market demographics and also know the channels that can give the best returns. 5- Competitive Advantage With better knowledge of market needs and consumers’ preferences, you’d stay ahead of your competition.  Features of Marketing Research 1- Continuous process: Marketing research is not only continuous but also a scientific and systematic process. It is a continuous process because every firm is faced with problems and opportunities. 2- Systematic study & scientific process: It is scientific and systematic because it has well-defined procedures. It is a process of generating and evaluating data, and then refining it. It is professionally organized.  3- Applied research Research conducted to solve specific questions. E.g consumer behavior and price changes. 4- Wide scope: marketing research has a wide scope. It includes product research, market research, consumer research, promotion research, international market research, price research and distribution research.  5- Help to decision-making It helps the managers take practical decisions. Decisions based on experience and research. Thus, it's an essential tool for marketing managers and other functional managers. 6- Statistical tools: Various mathematical and statistical tools are used for data analysis and interpretation. Percentages, ratios, averages, z-test, t-test, chi- square tests, etc. are used for presentation and interpretation of findings  7- Research approaches: A researcher has several options of research methodology. Methods include the field survey method, the observation method and the experimental research. The choice depends on factors such as time availability, funds, number of respondents to be covered, location of respondents and literacy levels. 8- Links a company to the consumers and public: Marketing research is a function that links a company to the consumers, customers and public, through information. It evaluates marketing actions, marketing performances and marketing processes. This evaluation results in collection of information that brings company closer to its customer and society.  Different Types of Marketing Research Surveys: Marketing research is usually the first step in the marketing process, small companies conduct market research to obtain information from the marketplace. They use it to solve problems, obtain information on competitors and determine the needs and wants of consumers and customers. Marketers then analyze the data and develop various marketing strategies. There are several main types of marketing research.  1- The Use of Focus Groups The ideal size for a focus group is six to 10 people, the managers can ask participants various questions about the product and listen to the feedback about the products and services 2- One-on-One Interviews One-on-one interviews are conducted in a similar manner to focus groups, but with one person. One-on-one interviews go a step beyond typical personal interviews. Company managers use these interviews to watch someone actually use their product.  3- Conducting Phone Surveys Companies use phone surveys to further validate information obtained from focus groups and one-on-one interviews. Marketers conduct phone surveys among higher numbers of consumers and customers. Consequently, data obtained from the higher number of phone surveys are more indicative of what the average consumer thinks about a particular product or service. Market research questions for a new product 1- Which feature of the product did you use the most? 2- What improvements would you like to see? 3- How much would you be willing to pay for this product? 4- Was the product easy to use? 5- Was there anything you experienced during the trial that may deter you from using our product in the future 6- How often did you use the product? 7- Would you recommend this product to someone else? If yes, why? If no, why  Market research questions for existing customers 1- How did you first hear about our brand? 2- What made you choose us? 3- How long have you been a customer? 4- How would you rate your most recent experience with us? 5- Did we answer all your questions and requests for support? 6- Would you use us again 7- How likely are you to recommend us to a friend 8- What do you wish our product could do? 9- Do you believe our product is priced fairly? 10- What’s the maximum you’d pay for this kind of product? 11- What do you like most about our product