1. Problem Formulation
Chapter 4

2. Sources of Marketing Research Problems
PLANNED CHANGE
UNPLANNED CHANGE
Any change in the marketing environment or in an organization’s strategies creates a need for information
SLIDE 4-1

3. Problems or Opportunities?
OPPORTUNITY
PROBLEM
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4. Key Steps in Problem Formulation
Step One: Meet with Client
Step Two: Clarify Problem / Opportunity
Step Three: State Manager’s Decision Problem
Step Four: Develop Full Range of Possible Research Problems
Step Five: Select Research Problem(s)
Step Six: Prepare Research Request Agreement
SLIDE 4-3

5. The ALCA Model
ASK
LISTEN
CLARIFY
ANALYZE
SLIDE 4-4

6. The Relationship Between Decision Problems and Research Problems
Decision Problems Research Problems
* Discovery-Oriented (What? Why?)
Why are revenues so low? • Investigate current customer satisfaction.
• Assess target market perceptions of store.
• Determine target market awareness.
* Strategy-Oriented (How?)
How do we increase store traffic? • Investigate effectiveness of different sales promotions.
• Determine consumer response to two proposed ad campaigns.
• Measure consumer preferences for new store layouts.
SLIDE 4-5

7. Research Request Agreement
ORIGIN The events that led to the manager’s decision problem
DECISION PROBLEM The underlying question confronting the manager
RESEARCH PROBLEMS The range of research problems that would provide input to the decision problem
USE The way each piece of information will be used
TARGETS AND THEIR SUBGROUPS The groups from whom the information must be gathered
LOGISTICS Estimates of time and money that are available to conduct the research
SLIDE 4-6

8. Components of a Research Proposal
Tentative project title
Statement of the marketing problem
Purpose and limits of the project
Outline
Data sources and research methodology
Estimate of time and personnel requirements
Cost estimates
SLIDE 4-7