MKTG 201: Marketing Research Process Transcript
Begin visual description. Matt Madden stands in a recording studio and presents
a slide deck. All visual content is described in the audio. End visual description.
[00:00:00]
MATT MADDEN: We’re going to dive into the market research process today and
we’ll go deeper into each step of that process.
[00:00:06]
Let’s start with step 1, defining the problem.
[00:00:09]
It’s the most underrated of all the steps.
[00:00:11]
One of the most influential early articles on this topic was called “Backward
Market Research”, published in HBR multiple decades ago.
[00:00:19]
It still gets referenced today because so many people try to use research without
following step 1.
[00:00:24]
One quote from the article sums it up well.
[00:00:26]
Too often in market research, “before the research is undertaken the intended
action is left vague and general.
[00:00:32]
Managers tend to define the research problem as a broad area of ignorance.
[00:00:36]
They say in effect: ‘Here are some things I don’t know.
[00:00:38]
When the results come in, I’ll know more.
[00:00:40]
And when I know more, then I can figure out what to do.’ In my experience, this
approach makes it highly likely that the findings will be off target.” Sometimes
people get so excited about the research, they jump in too quickly to designing it
without thinking through the end goals.
[00:00:53]
A number of years ago I was doing analysis on a big budget project.
[00:00:56]
I was studying entertainment complexes, think like Fat Cats on steroids.
[00:01:00]
We designed a great analysis plan to figure out the right square footage, types of
activities, and more to put into these entertainment developments.
[00:01:07] On the day our client presented the results to the company’s executive team,
one person in the room immediately asked why none of our data projections
included the only metric that mattered to them.
[00:01:16] It turns out the company behind the research was Harrah’s, a hotel and casino
company.
[00:01:21]
The executive team didn’t just want to create the best entertainment complex.
[00:01:24]
They wanted to optimize the design and activities to maximize how much visitors
would spend on gambling.
[00:01:29]
It’s a very different problem to solve than the one that they sent to us.
[00:01:32]
Frankly, one that should have been avoided if the person in charge of the
research had defined the problem and determine how the research was going to
be used.
[00:01:39]
Sometimes it’s too tempting to jump into research design just because we know
the underlying issues. We have to be more disciplined and specific about our
goals.
[00:01:46]
Stephen Covey’s famous book, “Habit 2”, is to begin a project with a clear vision
of your desired direction and destination.
[00:01:53]
Where do you think he got this idea? It’s not just common sense.
[00:01:56]
He got this idea from the doctrine of creation.
[00:01:58]
All things are created in the mind before they’re ever created in actuality.
[00:02:03]
Good market research is created the same way with a clear vision on the end
results first.
[00:02:07]
If you get the right objectives, it leads very naturally to the right research design
in step number 2.
[00:02:12]
For example, if you’re focused on a business decision of whether or not to
launch a new product, your research objectives flow directly from that.
[00:02:18]
You design research, the estimates, demand optimizes the product features, and
pricing and uncovers the right customer should go after.
[00:02:24]
As you design the research, keep in mind you need to talk to the right people
and use the right techniques to solve the problem.
[00:02:29]
You might learn these techniques yourself or you will need experts to help
design the project.
[00:02:33]
Once you have the design ready, collect the data.
[00:02:35]
That might mean surveying people using existing marketing data or just having
open-ended qualitative conversations with other humans.
[00:02:41]
Just be careful about how you get your data.
[00:02:44]
Use reputable partners or you’re just collecting data that isn’t representative
and potentially misleading.
[00:02:49]
You should already have an analysis plan in place when the data comes back.
[00:02:52]
People often recommend using simple analysis.
[00:02:55]
I prefer to say straightforward.
[00:02:57]
Some well-known simple research techniques aren’t the most effective ways to
analyze data anymore.
[00:03:02]
Advanced analytics is a powerful growing area.
[00:03:04]
The most important rule is if you want to use a certain type of analysis, you need
to understand it.
[00:03:09]
You can certainly rely on experts, but make sure they can explain it to you well
enough that you in turn can explain it to others.
[00:03:15]
That market research analysis leads to reports full of lots of data and little
insight.
[00:03:20]
You always need to connect analysis to action that the client should take.
[00:03:23]
That’s why you start with a well-defined problem.
[00:03:25]
Your report should be full of recommendations backed by data.
[00:03:28]
While doing the analysis, you’ll probably create dozens of charts and tables.
[00:03:32]
But analysis doesn’t mean sharing everything that you did.
[00:03:35]
It’s always tempting to show off your effort and your smart thinking.
[00:03:38]
But none of that should be the priority.
[00:03:40]
Taking action is the priority.
[00:03:42]
Everything else is just supporting information in an appendix.
[00:03:45]
If you use research to take action, you should have plenty of concrete
recommendations.
[00:03:49]
Take our earlier example of whether a company should launch a new product.
[00:03:52]
You should act by having a yes or no answer followed by recommendations for
features and pricing and a target audience.
[00:03:58] When I was working in the marketing insights before joining the BYU Marketing
Department, my boss and CEO at Holland Partners was obsessed with delivering
what she called three things summaries to clients of our main reports.
[00:04:09]
Our best clients loved it.
[00:04:10] They would get these data dumps from our competitors that they would have to
spend time turning into reports so they could share across the company.
[00:04:16]
With our results, they just forwarded our findings on and immediately took
action.
[00:04:20]
The main point here is never let data be the end of your research.
[00:04:24]
Data analysis is the fuel.
[00:04:26]
Taking action is the destination.
[00:04:28]
Within the structure of these five steps, you’ve got plenty of room for being
inquisitive, creative, and analytical.
[00:04:33]
But you need to follow the process.
[00:04:35]
It makes you an effective user of market research.