Course: Research for Marketing Decisions Session

Research Design: An Introduction

Instructor: Vaibhav Chawla

Email: vaibhavchawla@iitm.ac.in
Where are we in Marketing
Research Process
Step 1: Defining the Problem

Step 2: Developing an Approach to the Problem

Step 3: Formulating a Research Design

Step 4: Doing Field Work or Collecting Data

Step 5: Preparing and Analyzing Data

Step 6: Preparing and Presenting the Report

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Step 3# Research Design
Definition

Research design is a detailed plan/outline

about
a. what information to collect to answer research questions
or hypothesis (structured or unstructured questionnaire),

b. from whom the information will be collected (sample),

c. how the information will be collected (personally, over

telephone, observation etc.),

d. how the collected information will be analyzed (Statistical

techniques)

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Types of Research Designs
Fig. 3.1

Research Design

Exploratory Conclusive Research

Research Design Design

Descriptive Research Causal Research

Cross-Sectional Longitudinal Design

Design

Single Cross- Multiple Cross-

Sectional Design Sectional Design

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 Exploratory vs. Conclusive Research
Designs

Uncertainty Influences
the Type of Research Design

CAUSAL OR COMPLETELY ABSOLUTE EXPLORATORY

DESCRIPTIVE CERTAIN AMBIGUITY

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 Exploratory vs. Conclusive Research
Designs
Table 3.1 Exploratory Conclusive
Objective: To provide insights and To test specific hypotheses and
understanding examine relationships

Character- Information needed is defined only Information needed is clearly defined.

istics: loosely. Research process is flexible Research process is formal and
and unstructured. Sample is small structured. Sample is large and
and non-representative. Analysis of representative. Data analysis is
primary data is qualitative quantitative

Tentative
Findings/ Conclusive
Results:
Generally followed by further
Outcome: exploratory or conclusive research Findings used as input into decision
making

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 A Comparison of Basic Research
Designs
Table 3.2
Exploratory Descriptive Causal
Objective: Discovery of ideas and Describe market Determine cause and
insights characteristics or effect relationships
functions
Manipulation of
Characteristics: Flexible, versatile Marked by the prior independent
formulation of specific variables, effect on
hypotheses dependent variables

Often the front end of Preplanned and Control mediating

total research design structured design variables

Expert surveys Experiments

Pilot surveys Secondary data:
Methods: Case studies quantitative analysis
Secondary data: Surveys
qualitative analysis Panels
qualitative research Observation and other
data
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A Comparison of Basic Research
Designs
Degree of Problem Definition

Exploratory Research Descriptive Research Causal Research

(Unaware of Problem) (Aware of Problem) (Problem Clearly Defined)
“Our sales are declining Determine the customer’s Will customers purchase
and we don’t know why?” perceptions about the more of our products in a
color of our package and new colored package?
compare it with major
competitors?

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Uses of Exploratory Research

• Formulate a problem or define a problem

more precisely
• Identify alternative courses of action
• Develop hypotheses
• Isolate key variables and relationships for
further examination
• Gain insights for developing an approach to
the problem
• Establish priorities for further research

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Methods of Exploratory Research

• Interview with experts

• Pilot surveys
• Secondary data analyzed in a qualitative
way
• Qualitative research

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Uses of Descriptive Research

• To describe the characteristics of

relevant groups, such as consumers,
salespeople, organizations, or market
areas
- To identify the demographics and
psychographics of customers

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Uses of Descriptive Research

• To estimate the percentage of units in a

specified population exhibiting a certain
behavior
- How many students study
marketing in India compared with
students in China?

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Uses of Descriptive Research

• To determine the perceptions of product

characteristics
- To determine the attitude of
customers towards a product
- To determine customer’s
knowledge about a product

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Uses of Descriptive Research

• To determine the degree to which

marketing variables are associated
- To what extent shopping at
department stores related to eating
out?

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Uses of Descriptive Research

• To make specific predictions

- To determine the predictive ability
of customer’s demographics to
estimate credit card usage of
a customer

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Methods of Descriptive Research

• Secondary data analyzed in a quantitative,

as opposed to a qualitative, manner
• Surveys
• Panels
• Observational and other data

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 Descriptive Design
Cross-Sectional Design
• Involve the collection of information from any given sample of
population elements only once

• In single cross-sectional designs, there is only one sample of

respondents and information is obtained from this sample only once.

• In multiple cross-sectional designs, there are two or more samples

of respondents, and information from each sample is obtained only
once. Often, information from different samples is obtained at
different times.

• Cohort analysis consists of a series of surveys conducted at

appropriate time intervals, where the cohort serves as the basic unit
of analysis. A cohort is a group of respondents who experience the
same event within the same time interval.

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Descriptive Design
Consumption of Various Soft Drinks by Various Age Cohorts
Table 3.3
Percentage consuming on a typical day
Age 1950 1960 1969 1979
8-19 52.9 62.6 73.2 81.0
20-29 45.2 60.7 76.0 75.8 C8
30-39 33.9 46.6 67.7 71.4 C7
40-49 23.2 40.8 58.6 67.8 C6
50+ 18.1 28.8 50.0 51.9 C5
C1 C2 C3 C4
C1: cohort born prior to 1900 C5: cohort born 1931-40
C2: cohort born 1901-10 C6: cohort born 1940-49
C3: cohort born 1911-20 C7: cohort born 1950-59
C4: cohort born 1921-30 C8: cohort born 1960-6918
Longitudinal Design

• A fixed sample (or samples) of

population elements is measured
repeatedly on the same variables

• A longitudinal design differs from a

cross-sectional design in that the
sample or samples remain the same
over time

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Cross-Sectional vs. Longitudinal
Design

Cross- Sample
Sectional Surveyed
Design at T1

Same
Sample Sample also
Longitudinal Surveyed at
Design Surveyed at
T1 T2

Time T1 T2 20
 Relative Advantages and Disadvantages of
Cross-Sectional vs. Longitudinal Design
Table 3.4

Evaluation Cross-Sectional Longitudinal

Criteria Design Design

Detecting Change - +
Large amount of data collection - +
Accuracy - +
Representative Sampling + -
Response bias + -

Note: A “+” indicates a relative advantage over the other design,

whereas a “-” indicates a relative disadvantage.

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 Cross-Sectional Data May Not Show
Change
Table 3.5

Brand Purchased Time Period

Period 1 Period 2
Survey Survey

Brand A 200 200

Brand B 300 300
Brand C 500 500
Total 1000 1000

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 Longitudinal Data May Show
Substantial Change
Table 3.6

Brand Brand Purchased in Period 2

Purchased in
Period 1 Brand A Brand B Brand C Total
Brand A 100 50 50 200
Brand B 25 100 175 300
Brand C 75 150 275 500
Total 200 300 500 1000

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Uses of Causal Research

• To understand which variables are the cause

(independent variables) and which variables
are the effect (dependent variables) of a
phenomenon
• To determine the nature of the relationship
between the causal variables and the effect
to be predicted
• METHOD: Experiments

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 Potential Sources of Error in
Research Design
Fig. 3.2
Total Error

Random Non-sampling
Sampling Error Error

Response Non-response
Error Error

Researcher Interviewer Respondent

Error Error Error
Surrogate Information Error Respondent Selection Error Inability Error
Measurement Error Questioning Error Unwillingness Error
Population Definition Error Recording Error
Sampling Frame Error Cheating Error
Data Analysis Error
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 Errors in Marketing Research
• The total error is the variation between the true mean
value in the population of the variable of interest and the
observed mean value obtained in the marketing research
project.
• Random sampling error is the variation between the true
mean value for the population and the true mean value for
the original sample.
• Non-sampling errors can be attributed to sources other
than sampling, and they may be random or nonrandom:
including errors in problem definition, approach, scales,
questionnaire design, interviewing methods, and data
preparation and analysis. Non-sampling errors consist of
non-response errors and response errors. 26
Errors in Marketing Research

• Non-response error arises when some of

the respondents included in the sample do
not respond.
• Response error arises when respondents
give inaccurate answers or their answers
are misrecorded or misanalyzed.

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Citicorp Banks on Exploratory, Descriptive,
and Causal Research

Marketing Research at Citicorp is typical in that it is used to

measure consumer awareness of products, monitor their
satisfaction and attitudes associated with the product, track
product usage and diagnose problems as they occur. To
accomplish these tasks Citicorp makes extensive use of
exploratory, descriptive, and causal research. Often it is
advantageous to offer special financial packages to specific
groups of customers. In this case, a financial package is
being designed for senior citizens.

The following seven-step process was taken by marketing

research to help in the design.

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Citicorp Banks on Exploratory, Descriptive,
and Causal Research

1) A taskforce was created to better define the market

parameters to include all the needs of the many Citicorp
branches. A final decision was made to include Americans
55 years of age or older, retired, and in the upper half of
the financial strata of that market.
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 Citicorp Banks on Exploratory, Descriptive,
and Causal Research

2) Exploratory research in the form of secondary data analysis of the

mature or older market was then performed and a study of
competitive products was conducted. Exploratory qualitative research
involving focus groups was also carried out in order to determine the
needs and desires of the market and the level of satisfaction with the
current products.

In the case of senior citizens, a

great deal of diversity was
found in the market. This was
determined to be due to such
factors as affluence, relative
age, and the absence or
presence of a spouse.

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Citicorp Banks on Exploratory, Descriptive,
and Causal Research

3) The next stage of research was brainstorming. This

involved the formation of many different financial packages
aimed at the target market. In this case, a total of 10 ideas
were generated.
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Citicorp Banks on Exploratory, Descriptive,
and Causal Research
4) The feasibility of the 10 ideas generated in step 3 was then
tested. The ideas were tested on the basis of whether they
were possible in relation to the business. The following list of
questions was used as a series of hurdles that the ideas had to
pass to continue on to the next step.

• Can the idea be explained in a manner that the target

market will easily understand?
• Does the idea fit into the overall strategy of Citicorp?

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Citicorp Banks on Exploratory, Descriptive,
and Causal Research

 Is there an available description of a specific target market for the proposed

product?
 Does the research conducted so far indicate a potential match for target
market needs, and is the idea perceived to have appeal to this market?
 Is there a feasible outline of the tactics and strategies for implementing the
program?
 Have the financial impact and cost of the program been thoroughly
evaluated and determined to be in line with company practices?
In this study, only one idea generated from the brainstorming session made
it past all the listed hurdles and on to step 5.

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Citicorp Banks on Exploratory, Descriptive,
and Causal Research

5) A creative work-plan was then generated. This plan was to emphasize

the competitive advantage of the proposed product as well as better
delineate the specific features of the product.

6) The previous exploratory research was now followed up with

descriptive research in the form of mall intercept surveys of people in
the target market range. The survey showed that the list of special
features was too long and it was decided to drop the features more
commonly offered by competitors.

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Citicorp Banks on Exploratory, Descriptive,
and Causal Research

7) Finally, the product was test marketed in six of

the Citicorp branches within the target market.
Test marketing is a form of causal research.
Given successful test marketing results, the
product is introduced nationally.

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Class Assignment

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