Market research – questionnaires are one the main tools in the use of field research. A questionnaire contains a series of questions which gather primary marketing research data for the business. Questionnaires need to be designed carefully. The design of the questionnaire depends on the following: Objectives of the questionnaire – what information is needed, at a minimum, from customers who complete the questions? The type of person who is going to be asked – questions need be easy to understand and also easy to answer depending on the person who is answering. How the questionnaire is going to be taken? – A face-to-face questionnaire might include different questions to an emailed questionnaire. An interviewer will be filling in a face-to-face questionnaire and the person may be able to ask for the question to be rephrased if they do not understand it the first time. The types of questions that can be asked can be split into three groups: Simple yes/no answers – e.g. have you seen the new advert for cornflakes Multiple choice – a number of options are available to the answer Sliding scale – a value is placed on an answer e.g. how do rate the performance of this product – less than satisfactory, satisfactory, excellent (or could use a scale of 1-10 with 10 being excellent and 1 being dreadful!). Who carries out market research? • Normally, research is done by any business who needs it. • In smaller businesses, owners use secondary research since they cannot afford to conduct primary research. • However, if a business has enough money, it can afford to have a specialist market research agency to do the research for it. Accuracy of market research information The accuracy of market research depends on how the research was conducted and how carefully samples have been selected. Here are some ways to make information from market research more accurate: A sample needs to be truly representative of the total population, hence a quota sample is normally used. •The larger the sample, the more accurate the results. •Questionnaires need to be tested on a small group of people to see if there are misinterpretations. The questionnaires will be modified to be as clear as possible. Concerning secondary research, there are a few problems with it: Data collected by others may not be accurate since it was used for other purposes. •Data can be out of date. All in all, it must never be assumed that information collected from market research is completely correct. How to design and use a questionnaire Firstly, you need to ask yourself some questions: What do I need to find out? •Who do I need to ask? •Where will I carry out my questionnaire? Writing the questions Ask no more than 12 questions. (impatience) •Make the questions simple. The answers should be simple enough to collate. (e.g. Yes/No answers) •Use choice of age groups. •Avoid open-ended questions. •Avoid misleading the interviewee with questions. (don't want to cause offence) •The order of the questions should be logical. Carrying out the questionnaire First you need to figure out: How you will ask the questions. •How you will collate the results. Then: •Where are you going to ask the questions. •Who are you going to ask? And finally: How many people will be asked? •When will you ask the questions? (time) Analysing questionnaires Analysing the results should be straightforward if you have easily collated the data. It simply involves reading the answers and thinking about what they mean. Presentation of data from market research Presentation of data is important because it converts raw data into a form that is easier to understand. Information can be displayed as: Table/tally chart: It is the most suitable method of presenting data when raw data is needed. However, it offers little more than that and the information should be converted into other forms if it needs to be understood o analysed carefully. It is sufficient for info that is brief or does not contain a lot of different things. Bar chart: Charts are a more meaningful and attractive way to present data. They are normally used to compare two or more sets of stats with each other. Pictogram: It is similar to a bar chart but uses symbols instead of columns. It becomes extremely effective if the data is short and simple. Pie chart: Pie charts are ways to show the proportion that each components take up compared to the total figure. Line graph: Graphs show the relationship between two variables. It can be drawn in a straight or curved line. It is usually to compare things with time and to identify trends.
