1. MARKETING RESEARCH AND MARKETING INFORMATION SYSTEMS
Marketing Information Systems (MkIS)
Primary vs. secondary data
Advantages and disadvantages of each
Marketing research tools

2. Learning Objectives Appreciate the costs and benefits of research
Appreciate the uses of both primary and secondary market research
Appreciate the respective advantages and disadvantages of different primary research methods
Develop an understanding of research method problems that can lead to misleading or incorrect conclusions.
Understand the proper sequence of research activities.

3. Marketing Research An “investment” to reduce uncertainty
Can help guide decisions on
Whether to enter
Product characteristics
Promotional strategy
Positioning
Must weigh costs and benefits of research
Money
Time spent
No perfect method—tradeoffs between methods

4. Marketing Information Systems (MkIS)
Set of procedures and methods for regular collection and analysis of information for marketing decisions
Databases (internal information—e.g., sales volumes)
Market research
Primary
Secondary

5. Data Mining
Processing of vast amounts of data to find relationships between variables—e.g.,
Items frequently purchased together  “strategic adjacencies” (items placed together in retail setting)
Seasonal patterns in sales
Customer segments

6. Primary Research Methods
Surveys
Experimentation
Observation
Focus groups
In-depth interviews
Projective techniques
Physiological Measures
Online research
Scanner data
Conjoint Analysis
Hybrid Methods

7. Primary Research Methods
Exploratory Methods
Observation (can be more definitive with larger sample sizes and focus on specific behavior)
In-depth interviews
Focus groups
Projective techniques
Precision Methods (“Conclusive”)
Experiments
Surveys
Panel
Scanner data

8. Choosing a Primary Research Method
Can the respondent answer accurately? (What someone consciously believes may differ from “deeper” opinions; beliefs about hypothetical products may not be well developed.)
Does the question involve OPINIONS or BEHAVIOR?
OPINIONS
BEHAVIOR NO
Can the relevant behavior be observed in the customer’s natural environment?
PROJECTIVE
METHODS
YES
EXPLORATORY or PRECISION research?
YES NO
SCANNER DATA (e.g., brand choice, impact of advertising, previous purchases, competing brands, demographics)
EXPERIMENTATION (determine causality—e.g., impact of product design, advertising message)
EXPLORATORY
PRECISION
OBSERVATION (e.g., how long does the shopper spend? What does he or she look at? Is anyone else involved?)
PHYSIOLOGICAL (e.g., determine reactions, attention, arousal)
INDIVIDUAL INTERVIEWS
SURVEYS
FOCUS GROUPS

9. Surveys Forms Planned questions
Mail (self-administered, single time)
Mail panel (self-administered, multiple surveys administered over time)
Telephone (from central location)
Mall Intercept
Computer/Internet
Planned questions
Open-ended
Closed-ended
Need large sample sizes for precise conclusions
SURVEY COSTS:
USUALLY LOW

10. Characteristics of Some Problematic Questions
Difficult to answer—respondent may not have knowledge needed
Amounts spent annually on specific product categories may not be known
Sensitive (embarrassing)
Two in one—e.g., “On a scale from 1 to 10, how fast and reliable are Microsoft programs?”
Leading questions—giving the feeling of the “desired” response
“Do you agree that soft drinks with sugar are bad for you?”
Non-exhaustive question
Non-mutually exclusive answers

11. Troublesome Questions
Note that respondents may not clearly remember this information. Responses may not be accurate.

13. Continuum Questions
Questions rating the degree of a characteristic (e.g., agreement or product usage) tend to be more effective than binary “Yes/No” questions
E.g.,
Strongly Neither Strongly
Agree Agree Agree Nor Disagree Disagree
Disagree

20. Some Areas Suited for Continuum Ratings
Interest
Purchase likelihood
Satisfaction/ Dissatisfaction
Brand loyalty
Price sensitivity
Knowledge
Experience
Involvement
Decision control
Frequency or level of use
Awareness
Information search
Personality traits
Variety seeking

21. Experimentation Subjects in different groups treated differently
E.g., for some, “target” product is given better shelf space
E.g., some get coupon
Can help isolate causes
Subject is not biased by questions—does not know how others are treated
EXPERIMENT COSTS:
HIGH

22. My Simulated Store…
A shopper in the everyday low price condition…

23. Ash’s Instant Coffee Study
GROCERY SHOPPING LIST
Ground beef
Potatoes
Apples
Flour
Sugar
Laundry detergent
Instant coffee
6 cups of yogurt
Paper towels
Bananas
GROCERY SHOPPING LIST
Ground beef
Potatoes
Apples
Flour
Sugar
Laundry detergent
Ground coffee
6 cups of yogurt
Paper towels
Bananas
Respondents were asked to describe their impressions of a housewife based only on her shopping list. These shopping lists differ only on one item.

24. Definition
Confound: The tendency of some phenomenon to be caused at least in part by some variable other than the one of interest.
E.g., does having more toys cause children to be more intelligent?

25. Confounds What is cause, what is effect, and what is coincidence?
Correlation is not necessarily cause
“Lurking” factors may be real cause of
Does sitting in front of the room cause higher grades?
Do vaccinations cause autism?
Does Prozac cause suicide?
Do fish-heavy diets cause stomach cancer?
Does fraternity/sorority membership cause higher grades?

26. (DEPENDING ON CODING AND
Observation
Looking at consumes in the field—e.g.,
Searching for product category area
Number of products inspected and time spent on each
Apparent scrutiny of labels or other information
Involvement of others
Behavior under limiting circumstances (e.g., time constraints)
OBSERVATION COSTS:
LOW TO HIGH
(DEPENDING ON CODING AND
ANALYSIS NEEDED)

27. Taste Tests Not experiments unless “Triangle” Measure
Two or more groups of people are treated differently (e.g., get different food version) or
The same person is being treated differently at separate times (e.g., half the participants receive new formulation, then current; half the participants receive in the opposite order)
“Triangle” Measure
Each respondent is given three items: One current, one new, and one duplicate of either old or new
Asked to identify the one that is different and explain why

28. (ESPECIALLY FOR THE AMOUNT OF INFORMATION COLLECTED)
Focus Groups
Groups of 8-12 consumers assembled
Start out talking generally about context of product
Gradually “focus” in on actual product
MOST
APPROPRIATE
AS EARLY
STAGE METHOD
Usually NOT the best approach. Should NOT be chosen as default research method!
FOCUS GROUP COSTS:
HIGH
(ESPECIALLY FOR THE AMOUNT
OF INFORMATION COLLECTED)

29. REMINDER
Focus groups are most useful for identifying issues that should be studied in more detail with more precise methods
Due to the small sample size and social influence on individual responses, it is difficult to generalize much from focus groups

30. In-depth interviews Structured vs. unstructured interviews
Generalizing to other consumers
Biases
Subtle, inadvertent feedback
IN-DEPTH
INTERVIEW COSTS:
HIGH

31. Projective Techniques
Getting at motivations that may not be consciously known— “Tell a story about this picture.”
Measurement of attitudes consumers are unwilling to express
It is easier to admit something embarrassing about someone else
Consumer discusses what other consumer might think, feel, or do
PROJECTIVE METHODS COSTS:
USUALLY HIGH IF PERSONAL INTERVIEWS OR EXTENSIVEINTERPRETATION IS NEEDED

32. Projective Examples
“Please tell me a story of what is going on in this picture.”

36. More Projective Examples

37. Projective Techniques--Examples

38. Physiological Measures
Consumer bodily responses are watched at various phases of advertisement or other marketing exposure
Tracking of
Eye movements
For areas of focus
For attention, involvement
Heart rate
Skin conductivity
Brain waves
State of mind
Attention
PHYSIOLOGICAL
METHODS COSTS:
HIGH

39. Online Research—Analysis of Customer Search Queries
Unmet demand—search for product not found on site
Message comprehension—comparison of search terms to media message
Consumer vocabulary
Feedback analysis
ONLINE SURVEY COSTS:
USUALLY LOW

40. Online Surveys Conditional branching—direct skip to relevant question
Quality of response
Time pressures
Willingness to write out answers or respond to multiple closed-ended questions
Willingness to read and follow instructions is limited
Reliability and browser compatibility issues

41. Conditional Branching
Traditional surveys: Have you bought a new car during the last six months? If not, please skip to Question 11.
Conditional branching: Respondent will be taken to the appropriate question according to answer
Customization of questions
E.g., consumer lists three brands  subsequent questions ask about these specific brands by name

42. Other Online Tools
“Click Stream Analysis:” Analysis of “clicking” path—how does the consumer get to a desired page or product?
Shopping cart analysis
COSTS: HIGH START-UP COSTS;
LOW VARIABLE COSTS
POSSIBLE WITH DEVELOPED
ALGORITHMS
USUALLY LOW
COSTS: HIGH START-UP COSTS;
LOW VARIABLE COSTS
POSSIBLE WITH DEVELOPED
ALGORITHMS
USUALLY LOW

43. Searching for Reports of Personal Experience
Sources
Blogs (blogsearch.google.com)
Photos (e.g., Flickr, Webshots, Picasaweb, Google image search)
Video (e.g., Youtube)
Cautions
May be “staged” or sensationalized
May represent what the writer or photographer wants to show
May be limited entries on certain “mundane” tasks such as dishwashing
Some issues
Joy, enjoyment
Decisions
Anxiety
Social setting and influence

44. Consumers rate several “profiles” (combinations of features)
Conjoint Analysis: Determining the Relative Importance of Product Attributes
Consumers rate several “profiles” (combinations of features)
Statistical analysis is used to “decompose” ratings into preferences 17

45. Example Car #1 Car #2 Gas mileage: 30 mpg Gas mileage: 20 mpg
Price: $18,200
Safety record: Average
Performance High
Reliability Poor
How would you rate car #1 overall
on a scale from 1 (Very poor) to
7 (Excellent?)
Car #2
Gas mileage: mpg
Price: $15,200
Safety record: Excellent
Performance Poor
Reliability Excellent
How would you rate car #2 overall
on a scale from 1 (Very poor) to
7 (Excellent?)
Each subject will evaluate several (usually 16+) combinations. A statistical technique determines the importance of each feature. 18

46. Conjoint Analysis: Advantages
Reveals ultimate preferences of consumers when competing influences exist
Able to predict desirability of combinations not actually explored
Can estimate contribution of each factor and assess its cost effectiveness
Will consumers pay $ to reduce the weight of a laptop computer by 2 lbs? 19

47. Conjoint Analysis: Disadvantages
May be difficult for subjects to rate many combinations
May need a large number of subjects for accurate measurement/sufficient precision
Must identify relevant attributes and levels in advance
Subject must know about product category (attributes must be meaningful) 20

48. COSTS: HIGH START-UP COSTS; POSSIBLE WITH DEVELOPED
Scanner Data
Panel members in test communities agree to
Swipe a card prior to each purchase
Have purchases matched to
Demographic profiles
Media/coupon exposure
Promotional status of competing brands
Past purchases
Problems:
Aggregation over household
Aggregation bias--averages of disparate segments obscure!
Only available for grocery and some drugstore products
COSTS: HIGH START-UP COSTS;
LOW VARIABLE COSTS
POSSIBLE WITH DEVELOPED
ALGORITHMS
USUALLY LOW

49. Scanner Data Research RECORDED PURCHASES TELEVISION EXPOSURE HOUSEHOLD
Purchase on occasion: Yes, no
Time since previous purchase
Previous purchases
Current price
Previous price
Current promotional status
Previous promotional status
Current display status
Previous display status
Display status of competing brands
Promotional status of competing brands
Coupon used: Yes, no
Coupon available: Yes, no
Coupon available for other brands? Yes, no
Amount of coupon
No. of ads seen by shopper
Ads seen for competing brands
“Split cable”
RECORDED
PURCHASES
TELEVISION
EXPOSURE
HOUSEHOLD
FILE
DEMOGRAPHIC
INFORMATION
ANALYSIS
Family size
Occupation
Income
Home ownership

50. Choosing a Primary Research Method
Can the respondent answer accurately? (What someone consciously believes may differ from “deeper” opinions; beliefs about hypothetical products may not be well developed.)
Does the question involve OPINIONS or BEHAVIOR?
OPINIONS
BEHAVIOR NO
Can the relevant behavior be observed in the customer’s natural environment?
PROJECTIVE
METHODS
YES
EXPLORATORY or PRECISION research?
YES NO
SCANNER DATA (e.g., brand choice, impact of advertising, previous purchases, competing brands, demographics)
EXPERIMENTATION (determine causality—e.g., impact of product design, advertising message)
EXPLORATORY
PRECISION
OBSERVATION (e.g., how long does the shopper spend? What does he or she look at? Is anyone else involved?)
PHYSIOLOGICAL (e.g., determine reactions, attention, arousal)
INDIVIDUAL INTERVIEWS
SURVEYS
FOCUS GROUPS