2 1 MARKETING RESEARCH Marketing Research process of designing gathering analyzing and reporting information that may be used to solve a marketing problem This includes product development pricing studies customer satisfaction assessments distribution analysis and promotion effectiveness studies Cluster analysis statistical analysis technique that identifies customer segments The researcher measures things like price sensitivity and importance of quality and on time delivery Basically identifies groups segments clusters of customers with similar characteristics Why is it important Firms can plot segments against their core competencies what sets them apart to target groups with the highest probability of purchasing their products This creates less wasted marketing Example Ford competes mostly with Chevy or Toyota not Mercedes Where did it come from In the 1980 s there was a movement called the TQM Movement Deming Juran that researched customer orientation This includes customer reaction to product comparison to competitors and researching problems with product Types of Research Applied research designed to solve a specific problem usually a specific company as well Basic research designed to extend knowledge of a specific marketing phenomenon EXAMPLE Recent paper looked at the play between a firms outward affiliation with a religious group and the customers reaction to a service failure Chick Fil A vs In N Out Marketing Research Process 1 Problem Definition includes exploratory research qualitative research which allows a researcher to better define the problem by getting a look at it a first hand 2 The Research Design there are two types of data and several types approaches of information Secondary data information that has been collected for a purpose other than the research at hand Primary data information that has been gathered specifically for the research objectives at hand Exploratory information less information made up of focus groups observation and secondary data Descriptive information somewhere in the middle includes surveys say who buys what they buy when where and how much they buy Causal information gives the most info is mainly made up of experiments identify cause and effect between variables 3 Sampling Population elements units or individuals of interest to researchers for a specific study Sample a limited number of units chosen to represent the total population Sampling selecting representative units from a total population Probability sampling random selection Non probability sampling is not random is based upon characteristic within the population Can be done by human interviews focus groups machine scanner data observation or self reporting surveys Regression a technique that is used to predict a dependent variable with one of more independent variables In marketing they predict sales levels with different levels of advertising price and services 4 Data Gathering 5 Data Analysis 6 Report Preparation 2 2 SEGMENTATION TARGETING POSITIONING AND REPOSITIONING Market segmentation the process of dividing up a marketing into smaller groups called segments The groups are designed to have similar wants and needs but the idea is that firms can use their marketing mix to tailor the products for the different groups Targeting firms use this segmentation to develop new products or reposition old ones to target lucrative groups of consumers Segmentation bases Undifferentiated entire market is one target market with only one marketing mix Differentiated two or more segments more than one market mix Concentrated single market segment with one marketing mix EXAMPLE Singles sites there are specific ones for people with tattoos smokers NASCAR fans people in prison Demographics describe characteristics of a population like gender age ethnicity and religion Geographic region city size urban rural and region Psychographics personality motives and lifestyles Redbull markets to people who do extreme things Behavioristic usage volume benefits loyalty price sensitivity McDonalds does this with things like the McBaguette in Paris Use Related Segmentation categorizes consumers in terms of product SkyMiles programs market to people who use the same service and use it frequently service or brand usage characteristics such as usage rate awareness status or degree of brand loyalty Generally a small group of heavy users often account for a disproportionally high percentage of product use and thus are targeted by marketers Other marketers take note of the gaps in the market coverage for light and medium users and profitably target those segments Awareness status encompasses the notion of buyer readiness consumer awareness or interest level They must determine whether potential customers are aware of the product interested in the product or need to be informed about it Brand loyalty identifies those customers who continually purchase the same brand The Value and Lifestyles Survey VALS helps classify customers based on psychological characteristics that are correlated with purchasing behavior and related to key demographics Nielsen s Claritas provides market research and target marketing They offer Prism a geo demographic segmentation tool which can be helpful in choosing store location purchasing targeting advertising etc Sales forecast the amount of a product a company expects to sell during a specific period at a specified level of marketing activities Time Series Analysis using historical sales data to discover patterns in the firm s sales Trend analysis using aggregate sales data from many years ago to determine general trends Cycle analysis analyzing sales for three to five years to assess consistent fluctuations Seasonal analysis analyzing daily weekly or monthly sales to assess seasonal influences Regression analysis predicting sales based on finding a relationship between past sales and one or more independent variables Cannot use this method for new products but this is very useful when historical data is extensive Test market making a product available to buyers in one or more test areas and measuring purchases and consumer responses This is extremely effective for new products but it is time consuming and expensive Product positioning the process of developing and maintaining a product image in the minds of consumers Perceptual mapping the idea is to position objects in a multidimensional space according to their relative similarities or customer preferences PUT THIS TOGETHER
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