MANAGING INFORMATION AND MARKETING RESEARCH

Chapter 4

Presented by: Dr. John V. PaduaLyceum of the Philippines University Manila

CHAPTER OBJECTIVES:At the end of the chapter, you are expected to: • Explain the importance of information to the company;• Define marketing research;• Know and understand the importance of marketing research;• Identify and describe the steps in marketing research;• Determine and explain marketing research budget

The Importance of Information

• Companies need information about their:

• Customer needs,• Marketing environment,• Competition.

• Marketing managers don’t need more information, they need better information.

Marketing Information System• An MIS consists of people, equipment, and procedures to

gather, sort, analyze, evaluate, and distribute needed, timely, and accurate information to marketing decision makers.

• The MIS helps managers to: 1. Assess information needs2. Develop needed information3. Distribute information

The Marketing Information System

Information Managers Would

Like to HaveWhat

They Really Need & What is

Feasible to Offer

Functions of an MIS: Assessing Information Needs

Assessing Information Needs

• A good MIS balances the information users would like against what they really need and what is feasible to offer.

• Sometimes the company cannot provide the needed information because it is not available or due to MIS limitations.

• Have to decide whether the benefits of more information are worth the costs.

Internal DataElectronic Collections of

Information from Data Sources (i.e. Accounting) Within the

Company

MarketingResearch

Design, Collection, Analysis, and Reporting of Data about a Specific Marketing Situation

MarketingIntelligence

Publicly Available Information about Competitors and the Marketing Environment (i.e.

Technological)

Functions of an MIS: Developing Marketing Information

Information Needed by Managers Can be Obtained From:

The Marketing Research Process

Marketing Research ProcessStep 1. Defining the Problem & Research Objectives

ExploratoryResearch

DescriptiveResearch

CausalResearch

Test hypotheses about cause- and-effect relationships.

Gathers preliminary information that will help define the problem

and suggest hypotheses.

Describes things as market potential for a product, or the demographics and consumers’

attitudes.

Marketing Research ProcessStep 2. Developing the Research Plan

Research plan development follows these steps:• Determining the Exact Information Needed

• Developing a Plan for Gathering It Efficiently

• Presenting the Written Plan to Management

Information That Already Exists Somewhere.

+ Obtained More Quickly, Lower Cost.

- Might Not be Usable Data.

Develop the Research PlanGathering Information

Both Must Be:

Relevant

Accurate

Current

Impartial

Information Collected for the Specific Purpose at Hand.

• Information that already exists somewhere:• Internal databases• Commercial data services• Government sources

• Available more quickly and at a lower cost than primary data.

• Must be relevant, accurate, current, and impartial.

Gathering Secondary Data

• Consists of information collected for the specific purpose at hand.

• Must be relevant, accurate, current, and unbiased.• Must determine:

• Research approach• Contact methods• Sampling plan• Research instruments

Primary Data Collection

Observational Research

Gathering data by

observing people,

actions and situations

(Exploratory)

Experimental Research

Using groups of people to determine cause-and-

effectrelationships

(Causal)

Developing the Research Plan Primary Data Collection

Survey Research

Asking individuals

about attitudes, preferences or

buying behaviors

(Descriptive)

Research Approaches

• Mail surveys• Telephone surveys• Personal interviews

• Individual interviewing• Focus group interviewing

• Online marketing research• Surveys• Experiments• Focus groups

Contact Method

• Sample: segment of the population selected to represent the population as a whole.

• Sampling requires three decisions:• Who is to be surveyed?

• Sampling unit • How many people should be surveyed?

• Sample size• How should the people in the sample be chosen?

• Sampling procedure

• Probability vs. non-proability samples

Sampling Plan

Develop the Research Plan Primary Data Collection

Mechanical Devices• People Meters• Supermarket Scanners• Galvanometer• Eye Cameras

Questionnaire• What questions to ask?• Form of each question?• Closed-end• Open-end

• Wording?• Ordering?

Research Instruments

• Collecting the data• Most expensive phase• Subject to error

• Processing the data• Check for accuracy• Code for analysis

• Analyzing the data• Tabulate results

Implementing Research Plan

Collecting the Data

Processing theData

Analyzing theData

Research Plan

Marketing Research ProcessStep 3. Implementing the Research Plan

Marketing Research ProcessStep 4. Interpreting and Reporting Findings

Researcher Should Present Important Findings that are Useful in the Major Decisions Faced by

Management.

Step 1. Interpret the Findings

Step 2. Draw Conclusions

Step 3. Report to Management

Functions of an MIS: Distributing and Using Marketing Information

Distributes NonroutineInformation for Special

Situations

Information Must be Distributed to the Right Managers at the Right Time

Distributes Routine Information for Decision Making