12
International research
NigelBradley:
Bradley:Marketing
Marketing
Research
Tools
andTechniques,
Techniques,
First
Edition
Nigel
Research
– –Tools
and
First
Edition
Oxford
University
Press
2007.
©©
Oxford
University
Press
2007.
Learning Outcomes
You should be able to:
1. Explain the purposes of international research
2. Describe the populations involved in international
research
3. Explain the procedures used in international research
4. Show what must be considered at the publication
stage of international research
5. List the differences between domestic research and
international research
Nigel Bradley: Marketing Research – Tools and Techniques, First Edition
© Oxford University Press 2007.
1. The purposes of
international research
International marketing research examines
needs and requirements across different
nations. It embraces FMCG and B2B so looks
at consumer behaviour and organisational
buyer behaviour
It operates at strategic levels
 Give information on
exporting
 Help find distributors
 Identify partners for joint
ventures
and operational levels
 new product development
tests
 pricing testing
 fine-tuning marketing
Nigel Bradley: Marketing Research – Tools and Techniques, First Edition
© Oxford University Press 2007.
2. The populations in
international research
• Nations can be divided into developed countries
and developing countries
• Developed countries are better equipped to
carry out studies and residents are more
“predisposed” towards co-operation
• Country profiles are important in selecting
respondents because of relationships between
demographics and purchasing power
Nigel Bradley: Marketing Research – Tools and Techniques, First Edition
© Oxford University Press 2007.
Segmentation
• Geo-demographics are found worldwide:
MOSAIC in Europe
PRIZM in America
• Existing segmentation methods include:
SES Socioeconomic Status Score (US)
SEG Socio-Economic Groupings (UK)
Social Grade (UK)
The European Social Grade (EU)
Nigel Bradley: Marketing Research – Tools and Techniques, First Edition
© Oxford University Press 2007.
Sampling
• Sometimes it is
impossible to
approach certain
respondents directly
• It is unacceptable to
pose questions to
some people in
certain circumstances
Consider:
conventions
tradition
religion
appearance
household
hierarchies
Nigel Bradley: Marketing Research – Tools and Techniques, First Edition
© Oxford University Press 2007.
3. Procedures used in
international research
• Research in different
countries differs:
 Costs vary
 Response rates vary
 Infrastructures vary (e.g.
postal systems)
• Developed countries are
best suited to research
Nigel Bradley: Marketing Research – Tools and Techniques, First Edition
© Oxford University Press 2007.
Language issues
We can overcome
“equivalence” by…
Projective Techniques
are an alternative to
direct questions
parallel translation
(two translations are made at the same
time and compared)
and back translation =>
(another translator translates back to the
original language)
Nigel Bradley: Marketing Research – Tools and Techniques, First Edition
© Oxford University Press 2007.
4.What to consider at the
publication stage
The proposal should specify very clear reporting
agreements
progress reporting
face to face debriefing
synoptic or separate country reports
The lead researcher should dictate the report style
and give headings to use
There are differences between Qual and Quant.
Nigel Bradley: Marketing Research – Tools and Techniques, First Edition
© Oxford University Press 2007.
5. Domestic &
international differences
Domestic
• Likely to be conducted in
one language, familiar to
the research team
• Sampling made easier by
a knowledge of
geography
• Data collection feasible
with a small team
• Straightforward to
communicate results
International
• Multiple language
obstacles, unknown
linguistic nuances
• Unknown sampling
obstacles
• Obstacles related to a
larger team and
subcontracting
• Many audiences and
ways to send results
Nigel Bradley: Marketing Research – Tools and Techniques, First Edition
© Oxford University Press 2007.