1.10 Report Findings to
Communicate Research Information
to Others
WF SEM II
Characteristics of an Effective
Marketing Report
• Describes the research methods and the data collection procedures
• This section should explain what types of secondary data were used and
how the primary data were collected (questionnaire, telephone survey, etc.).
This section also should provide a description of the questions that were
asked and a profile of the people who were surveyed. A detailed description
of research methods and data collection procedures adds credibility to the
report.
• Answers specific research questions to solve specific problems and make
marketing decisions.
• An effective report answers questions by interpreting and summarizing the
research findings and offering recommendations.
• When presenting report findings and inclusions, the researcher should include
the information that is relevant to the marketing decisions to be made. Including
all the information can overwhelm decision makers with confusing findings.
Elements of a Marketing Report
• Limitations Section - all research is affected by certain outside events that have
an effect on its accuracy.
– Limitations associated with marketing research usually involve sampling
bias, measuring errors, time constraints, and limited finances.
– When preparing a marketing report, researchers should include information
about these limitations in order to present an honest and fair representation
of the findings.
– Limitations are part of any research project and should be presented openly
in the report.
• Appendix – Follows the main part of the report.
– Includes questionnaires, interview forms, and other technical documents
– It often appears last and are not necessary for the main report.
– In most cases, the main part of the report refers to information that is
provided in the appendix, which the reader may, or may not, choose to read.
– It is additional information that further explains the main part of the report.
Types of Visual Aids that can be used
Effectively in Marketing Reports
•
•
Supporting Tables and Graphs
– Presents and explains the research findings in an uncomplicated visual manner.
– Illustrating the research findings in tables and graphs is a way of presenting
complicated information in a format that is easy for readers to see and
understand
Computer Software
– An effective method of presenting complex report findings and
recommendations to a large group of managers
– Enables researchers to develop computer-generated presentations in order to
effectively explain complex report findings and recommendations to large
groups.
– By using computer software, researchers can create a wide range of multimedia
presentations that include text, graphics, sound, and video.
– These presentations hold the viewers' attention and graphically explain material
that may be complex.
– Also, computer-generated presentations can be shown to large groups and are
more professional looking than traditional presentation methods.
Oral Reports
Written vs. Oral
•
An oral presentation includes the same information as the written report.
– The oral presentation of this information is handled differently because there are limitations
on the amount of time available to give an oral presentation.
– Oral reports focus on explaining the research findings, which include relevant information and
pertinent data.
– Explaining the research methods used to collect the information is not as important as
explaining other parts of the report.
– Therefore, the research methods would be mentioned only briefly, if at all, in an oral
presentation.
Oral Reports
Elements of a Marketing Report that should be
Addressed in an Oral Presentation
•
•
•
Keep the presentation relatively simple.
During an oral presentation of report findings and recommendations, the audience has only a
certain amount of time to hear and understand the information.
– Therefore, the presenter needs to keep the oral presentation relatively simple and use words
and phrases that are easy to understand.
The information needs to be organized in a simple and logical manner and presented so that the
audience will be able to grasp the meaning in the time allotted.
– Keeping the presentation on a complex level or technically oriented might make it difficult for
the audience to understand the findings and recommendations.
– As a rule, simple is better.
– Although the presentation should be fairly simple, it should still include enough detail to
make the presentation meaningful.