Week 3 - 09.27.04
Marketing Research
and Information
Systems
The Importance of
Information
Companies need
information about
their:
Marketing environment
Competition
Customer needs
Managers don’t need
more information, they
need better
information.
What is a Marketing
Information System (MIS)?
 A 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 Needs,
2. Develop Needed Information,
3. Distribute Information.
The Marketing Information
System
Functions of a MIS:
Developing Information
Information Needed by Managers Can be Obtained
From:
Internal Data
Computerized Collection of Information from
Data Sources Within the Company.
Marketing
Intelligence
Collection and Analysis of Publicly Available
Information about Competitors and the
Marketing Environment (i.e. Technological).
Marketing
Research
Design, Collection, Analysis, and Reporting
of Data about a Specific Marketing Situation
Facing the Organization.
Marketing Information System:
Developing Information
Company Internal Databases
Accounting
Manufacturing
sales and marketing
customer service
Marketing Information System:
Developing Information
Marketing Intelligence
 company personnel
 customers
 suppliers & resellers
 business publications
 trade shows
 competitive analysis
 information search firms
The Marketing Research
Process
Defining the
problem and
research
objectives
Developing the
research plan
for collecting
information
Implementing
the research
plan -- collecting
and analyzing
the data
Interpreting
and reporting
the findings
Marketing Research Process
Step 1. Defining the Problem &
Research Objectives
This video clip features Jerome Conlon, of
Consumer Insights and Brand Planning,
speaking about the marketing research done
for Starbucks.
Click to play.
Click to return
Exploratory
Research
•Gathers preliminary information
that will help define the problem
and suggest hypotheses.
Descriptive
Research
•Describes things as market
potential for a product or the
demographics and consumers’
attitudes.
Causal
Research
•Test hypotheses about causeand-effect relationships.
Ownership of Cats and Dogs by
Age Group
Source: Maritz Poll
Source: American Demographics, December 2000, p. 27. Adapted with permission.
Top Ten Zip Codes for Spending on
Fireworks
Source: American Demographics, July 2000, p. 24. Adapted with permission.
Marketing Research Process
Step 2. Develop the Research
Plan
Research plan development follows these
steps:
Determining Specific Information Needs
Gathering Secondary information
Planning Primary Data Collection
Develop the Research Plan
Gathering Secondary Information
Both Must
Be:
Information That
Already Exists,
collected for any
purpose other
than the one at hand.
+ Obtained More
Quickly, Lower Cost.
Relevant
Accurate
Current
Impartial
Online Databases
- Might Not be
Usable Data.
Of f e r a we a l t h of i nf or ma t i o n
t o mar k e t i ng d e c i s i o n mak e r s .
Examples:
•Lexis-Nexis
•CompuServe
•Dialog
Information
Collected for the
Specific Purpose
at Hand.
Develop the Research Plan
Planning Primary Data Collection
Observational
Research
Gathering data
by observing
people,
actions and
situations
Research Approaches
Survey
Research
Asking
individuals
about attitudes,
preferences or
buying
behaviors
Experimental
Research
Using groups of
people to
determine
cause-and-effect
relationships
Observation Research
A research method that relies
on three types of observation:
people
watching people
people
watching an activity
machines
watching people
Observation Research
People
Watching
People
Types of
Observation
Research
People
Watching
an Activity
Machines
Watching
People
Mystery Shoppers
One-Way Mirrors
Audits
Traffic Counters
Passive People Meter
On Line
http://www.bmiltd.com
Mystery Shoppers
Researchers posing as
customers who gather
observational data about
a store and collect data about
customer/employee
interactions.
Observation Problem
You have been hired by (a) to
determine when, where, how and
why students consume or use (b) . You
have to use observation techniques.
Explain how you proceed. Be creative
but ethical.
Forms of Survey Research
In-Home Interviews
Mail Surveys
Mall Intercept Interviews
Executive Interviews
Telephone Interviews
Focus Groups
(Home and Central Location)
Characteristics of Traditional
Forms of Survey Research
Questionnaire Design
Open-Ended
Question
An interview question that
encourages an answer phrased in
respondent’s own words.
An interview question that asks
Closed-Ended
the respondent to make a selection
Question
from a limited list of responses.
ScaledResponse
Question
A closed-ended question
designed to measure the intensity
of a respondent’s answer.
Types of Questions in
Questionnaire Design
Questionnaire Design
On Line
http://www.createsurvey.com
Clear and Concise
No Ambiguous Language
Qualities
of
Good
Questionnaires
Unbiased
Reasonable Terminology
Sampling Procedure
Universe
Sample
Probability
Samples
Non-Probability
Samples
Marketing Research Process
Step 3. Implementing the Research Plan
Collecting the
Data
Processing the
Data
Analyzing the
Data
Research Plan
Marketing Research Process
Step 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