Welcome

to

Marketing Research/Thesis
Shafqat Ullah
shafqat.u@gmail.com
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Session 1
Introduction to Marketing Research

If you want to understand something, try to measure it.

Reading text
y Marketing Research: An Applied Orientation by Naresh K. Malhotra y Statistical methods for practice and research by Ajai S. Gaur and Sanjaya S. Gaur

What is research?
According to Clifford Woody, research comprises of:

Defining and redefining problems

Formulating hypothesis or suggested solutions

Collecting, organizing and evaluating data

Making deductions and reaching conclusions

Carefully testing the conclusions to determine whether they fit the formulating hypothesis

Objectives and types of research

y The purpose of the research is to discover answers to questions or to find out relevant and factual information to solve some problems through the application of scientific procedures. y The main aim of research is to find the truth which is hidden and which has not been discovered as yet.

Definition of Marketing Research

Marketing research is the systematic and objective
    

identification collection analysis dissemination and use of information

For the purpose of improving decision making related to the

 

identification and solution of problems and opportunities in marketing

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Classification of Marketing Research

Problem-Identification Research y Research undertaken to help identify problems which are not necessarily apparent on the surface and yet exist or are likely to arise in the future. Examples: market potential, market share, image, market characteristics, sales analysis, forecasting, and trends research. Problem-Solving Research y Research undertaken to help solve specific marketing problems. Examples: segmentation, product, pricing, promotion, and distribution research.

A Classification of Marketing Research

Marketing Research

Problem Identification Research

Problem-Solving Research

Market Potential Research Market Share Research Market Characteristics Research Sales Analysis Research Forecasting Research Business Trends Research

Segmentation Research Product Research Pricing Research Promotion Research Distribution Research
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Some types of research

y Quantitative vs. Qualitative y Quantitative research is based on the measurement of quantity or amount. It is applicable to phenomena that can be expressed in terms of quantity. y Qualitative research is concerned with qualitative phenomena, i.e., phenomena relating to or involving quality or kind. eg., why the market share of a product is decreasing, which factors ensure brand loyalty, etc.

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Marketing Research Process

Step 1: Defining the Problem Step 2: Developing an Approach to the Problem Step 3: Formulating a Research Design Step 4: Doing Field Work or Collecting Data Step 5: Preparing and Analyzing Data Step 6: Preparing and Presenting the Report

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Basic concepts
y Data y Groups of information (measurement) that represent the qualitative or quantitative attributes of a variable or set of variables. e.g., cigarettes smoked per day, height, qualification, level of likeness, preference, etc. y Data are often viewed as the lowest level of abstraction from which information and knowledge are derived.

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Basic concepts
y Raw data refers to a collection of numbers, characters, images or other outputs (unprocessed). y Processed data is derived from raw data which provides meaningful information. e.g., average, ratio, etc. y Secondary data is data collected by someone other than the user. Common sources of secondary data for social science include censuses, surveys, organizational records . y Primary data, by contrast, are collected by the investigator conducting the research.
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Basic concepts
y Population
y All items in any field of inquiry constitute a Universe

or Population.
y Examples: Population of Pakistan; All males living in

Karachi between the age of 25 50 years, students of a particular university. Give examples of populations from Demographic, Geographic, Behavioural, and Psychographic aspects, standalone as well as combined aspects.

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Basic concepts
y Elements
y All individual items in a Universe or Population. y Examples: Telephone users in Karachi, Graduates in

Pakistan, Teachers of an institution, Parents of teenagers, Working ladies, Housewives, 1.5 lit bottles of Pure Life, General stores in a locality, etc.

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Basic concepts
y Census
y A complete enumeration of all items in the population is known as a

census inquiry.
y Examples: Ages of all students currently enrolled in BBA, Census of

Pakistan, Dates of birth of all internet users in Pakistan.

y It can be presumed that in such an inquiry when all items are covered, no

element of chance is left and highest accuracy is obtained.

y But in practice it may not be true. Even the slightest element of bias in

such an inquiry will get larger and larger as the number of observation increases. Moreover, there is no way of checking the element of bias or its extent except through a resurvey or use of sample checks.
y Besides, this type of survey involves a great deal of time, money and

energy.
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Basic concepts
y Sample y When the field of inquiry is large, census becomes difficult to conduct because

of the resources involved. Even the government adopts census approach very rarely like population census is conducted once in a decade in most of the countries.
y Many a times it is not possible to examine each and every element in a

population, and sometimes it is possible to obtain sufficiently accurate results by studying only a part of total population.
y Resource constraints usually lead to a selection of respondents, i.e., selection

of only a few items (elements). The respondents thus selected should be as representative of the total population as possible.
y The selected respondents constitute what is technically called sample, and

the selection process sampling, while such survey is called sampling survey.
y Examples:
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Basic concepts
y Probability y Random sample y Characteristic y Variable y Dependent and independent variables y Parameter y Statistic y Descriptive statistics y Inferential statistics
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Next Assignment
Management problem, Research objective, Research question, Hypothesis.

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