|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Research is the search for and retrieval of existing, discovery or creation of new information or knowledge for a specific purpose. Research has many categories, from medical research to literary research. 'Marketing research is a form of business research. and Business-to-Business (B2B)Marketing Research, or Business Marketing Research, previously known as Industrial Marketing Research. B2B Marketing Research investigates the markets for products sold by one business to another, rather than to consumers. Consumer Marketing Research is a form of applied sociology which concentrates on understanding the behaviours, whims and preferences, of consumers in a market-based economy. The field of consumer marketing research as a statistical science was pioneered by Arthur Nielsen with the founding of the ACNielsen Company in 1923.
Types of marketing researchMarketing research techniques come in many forms, including: Types of marketing researchMarketing research techniques come in many forms, including:
All of these forms of marketing research can be classified as either problem-identification research or as problem-solving research. A company collects primary research by gathering original data. Secondary research is conducted on data published previously and usually by someone else. Secondary research costs far less than primary research, but seldom comes in a form that exactly meets the needs of the researcher. A similar distinction exists between exploratory research and conclusive research. Exploratory research provides insights into and comprehension of an issue or situation. It should draw definitive conclusions only with extreme caution. Conclusive research draws conclusions: the results of the study can be generalized to the whole population. Exploratory research is conducted to explore a problem to get some basic idea about the solution at the preliminary stages of research. It may serve as the input to conclusive research. Exploratory research information is collected by focus group interviews, reviewing literature or books, discussing with experts, etc. This is unstructured and qualitative in nature. If a secondary source of data is unable to serve the purpose, a convenience sample of small size can be collected. Conclusive research is conducted to draw some conclusion about the problem. It is essentially, structured and quantitative research, and the output of this research is the input to Management information systems (MIS). Exploratory research is also conducted to simplify the findings of the conclusive/ descriptive research, if the findings are very hard to interpret for Marketing Manager. Some times it may happen to conduct conclusive research with out followed by an exploratory research. e.g. Consumer satisfaction Study. Because every year this study conducted by some one and initial ideas concern to the study may readily available. Marketing research methodsMethodologically, marketing research uses the following types of research designs:[1] A-BASED ON QUESTIONING:
B-BASED ON OBSERVATIONS:
Researchers often use more than one research design. They may start with secondary research to get background information, then conduct a focus group (qualitative research design) to explore the issues. Finally they might do a full nation-wide survey (quantitative research design) in order to devise specific recommendations for the client. Business to business market researchBusiness to business (b2b) research is inevitably more complicated than consumer research. The researchers need to know what type of multi-faceted approach will answer the objectives, since seldom is it possible to find the answers using just one method. Finding the right respondents is crucial in b2b research since they are often busy, and may not want to participate. Encouraging them to “open up” is yet another skill required of the b2b researcher. Last, but not least, most business research leads to strategic decisions and this means that the business researcher must have expertise in developing strategies that are strongly rooted in the research findings and acceptable to the client. There are four key factors that make b2b market research special and different to consumer markets:[2]
Commonly used marketing research termsMarket research techniques resemble those used in political polling and social science research. Meta-analysis (also called the Schmidt-Hunter technique) refers to a statistical method of combining data from multiple studies or from several types of studies. Conceptualization means the process of converting vague mental images into definable concepts. Operationalization is the process of converting concepts into specific observable behaviors that a researcher can measure. Precision refers to the exactness of any given measure. Reliability refers to the likelihood that a given operationalized construct will yield the same results if re-measured. Validity refers to the extent to which a measure provides data that captures the meaning of the operationalized construct as defined in the study. It asks, “Are we measuring what we intended to measure?” Applied research sets out to prove a specific hypothesis of value to the clients paying for the research. For example, a cigarette company might commission research that attempts to show that cigarettes are good for one's health. Many researchers have ethical misgivings about doing applied research. Sugging (or Selling Under the Guise of market research) forms a sales technique in which sales people pretend to conduct marketing research, but with the real purpose of obtaining buyer motivation and buyer decision-making information to be used in a subsequent sales call. Frugging comprises the practice of soliciting funds under the pretense of being a research organization. Education in Marketing ResearchThere are a number of excellent education opportunities, mostly of them offered by Universities or main Business Schools. A convenient and flexible approach is distance learning. "Principles of Marketing Research"[3] is a well-known and highly respected online course on Marketing Research run by the University of Georgia and supported by the Marketing Research Association (USA)[4] and ESOMAR (an international organization with headquarters in The Netherlands).[5] It is based on the Marketing Research Core Body of Knowledge (MRCBOK©), a standard for education in Marketing Research. Recently, a specialized course in Pharmaceutical Market Research was launched ("Principles of Marketing Research - Pharmaceutical Supplements")[6] References
See also
|
Sites |
Searched sites for "Marketing research" |
|
No sites found. |
Sorry, no matching site records were found. |
Want your site listed here?
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
