MEDINA FOUNDATION COLLEGE

Sapang Dalaga, Misamis Occidental

Purok Jasmin, Poblacion, Sapang Dalaga, Misamis Occidental
Email Address:mfc_1984@yahoo.com

Department of Business Administration

COURSE CODE: MM6 – Marketing Research
2nd Semester of A.Y. 2020-2021
Midterm

EXPLORATORY, DESCRIPTIVE AND CASUAL REASEARCH DESIGNS

Marketers use marketing research to find answers to various questions related to market dynamics, business

environment and consumer behavior. For this a formal research design plan is created by marketers. However, some

marketers conduct research without formal plan as well. For example, a hotel owner who asks returning customers what

was their experience during their stay at his hotel, is conducting a research without a formal research design.

The Nature of Research Design

A research design is the detailed blueprint used to direct a research study toward its objectives. The process of designing

a research study involves many interrelated decisions. The major component of research design is to choose which type

of marketing research will be best suited for desired objective.

A marketing research design specifies the procedures for conducting and controlling the marketing research project.

The choice of particular design would follow from the problem. At such there is no single best design. The following are

the elements that the need to be explicitly stated in any marketing study about collection and analysis of data:

1. Type of data – What type of information is to be collected in line with marketing research objectives. Will it involve

exploratory, descriptive or casual research?

2. Source of data – What are the possible sources of data such as primary, secondary or commercial for obtain the

needed information?

3. Form of data – This refers to specification of how data are to be collected. Data could be collected by observation

method or communication method through various forms of data collection instruments.

4. Nature of data selection and analysis plan – This refers to whether data are to be collected at single point or

different points of time. The first is called cross-sectional while the latter is referred as longitudinal. Moreover, whether

the study will involve carrying out any simple selection and if there is how the sample will be collected. It must state how

the analysis will be carried out.

The research design should be constructed needs creativity and scientific expertise. A design to be efficient must be

simple, easy to administer and flexible. There is no such thing as a perfect research design for a marketing research

study. The standard for evaluation should be based on practicality, completeness or major issues and efficiency in terms

of time and money required.

Exploratory Research Design

Exploratory research is used in cases where the marketer has little or no understanding about the research problem due

to ack of proper information. The research methods are highly flexible, unstructured, and qualitative, for the researcher

begins without firm preconceptions as to what will be found. The research may use books, syndicated research, case

studies, focus groups, expert interviews and survey techniques to conduct exploratory research.

The absence of structure permits a thorough pursuit of interesting ideas and clues about the problem situation. For

example, a marketer has heard about social media marketing techniques which are employed by their competitors with

great success but he is not familiar with using these for his products/services.

He needs to use exploratory market research to gain/discover insights about this situation. Thus, when the goal of the

marketer is to precisely formulate problems, clear concepts, gain insights, eliminate impractical ideas and form

hypotheses then exploratory research is used.

The core goal of exploratory research is to equip marketers with enough information to facilitate marketers plan a format

research design correctly. For example, by conducting exploratory research the marketer can find out that the competition

is using popular social media like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube to reach target consumers effectively and

successfully engaging customers with the brand directly. Now with his information he can plan a formal research design

to test his hypothesis.

The exploratory approach attempts to discover general information about a topic that is not well understood by the

marketer. For instance, a marketer has heard news reports about a new Internet technology that is helping competitors but

the marker is not familiar with the technology and needs to research to learn more. When gaining in site [i.e. Discovery]

on an issue is the primary goal, exploratory research is used.

When it comes to online surveys, the most common example of exploratory research takes place in the form of open-

ended questions. Think of the exploratory questions in your survey as expanding your understanding of the people you

are surveying. Text responses may not be statistically measurable, but they will give you richer quality information that

can lead to the discovery of new initiatives or problems that should be addressed.

Methods of Exploratory Research

Exploratory research is the researcher’s tool to understand an issue more thoroughly, before attempting to quantify mass

responses into statistically inferable data. Used properly, exploratory research will provide rich quality information that

will help identify the main issues that should be addressed in our surveys and significantly reduce a research project’s

level of bias. Here are the different method researchers can use in exploratory research.

Literature Search

It is almost impossible to come up with the research topic that hasn't been conducted before. beyond this, when it comes

to designing your survey in research plan, it is usually not best to reinvent the wheel. all research strategies can benefit

from reviewing similar studies taken and learning from their results. consider your organization's previous researches free

direction and how you should design your present research goals. For example, if you are running from the 2nd annual

customer feedback survey, look at the questions that were provided the most useful information and we use them in your

new survey.

External secondary research can also help you perfect your research design. Beyond reviewing other organizations

research project, social media like blogs and forums and give you a better sense of the issues, opinions and behaviors that

go along with your research subject matter.

In-depth Interviews/Expert surveys

Expert service allows researchers to get information from specialist in a field that they are less qualified or

knowledgeable in. For example, if a researcher was tasked with serving the public stance and awareness on

environmental issues, he could create a preliminary expert survey for a selected group of environmental authorities. He

would ask broad open-ended questions that are designed to receive large amounts of content, providing the freedom to

the experts to demonstrate their knowledge. With their input, he would be able to create a survey covering all sides of the

issues.
It's important to start with a good literature search, but at some point, it is desirable to talk to persons who are well and

formed in the area being investigated. This people could be professional or persons outside of the organization. Here, the

researcher doesn't need questionnaire. the approach adopted should be highly unstructured, so participants Candy of

divergent used to top the knowledge and experience of individuals with information strongly related to the situation or

opportunity at hand. anybody with related information is a potential candidate for a depth interview, such as existing

client, members of the target market, executives and supervisors of the client organization, sales representatives,

suppliers, retailers, and so on. For example, a children's book publisher of tamed useful information regarding a sales

decline by speaking with librarians and school teachers we will that increasing numbers of people we're using library

facilities and possibly buying fewer books for the children.

Focus Groups

A focus group Most commonly contain eight to twelve people hitting the description of the target sample group and ask

them specific questions on the issues and subjects being researched. sometimes, focus groups will also host interactive

exercises during the session and request feedback on what was given. this depends on what is being researched, like a

food something for a fast-food chain or maybe a presentation of potential advertisements for an anti-smoking campaign.

Focus groups continue to be one of the most common uses of exploratory research, providing research it with a grain

foundation on where people stand on an issue. The open and natural discussion format of focus groups allows for a wider

variety of perspective in a shorter period of time.

The discussion is directed by a moderator who is in the room with the focus group participants. what using this

individual, care must be taken to see that they should have a common background and have comparable experiences in

buying. This is certainly needed since there should not be a conflict among the group members on the common problems

that are being talked about throughout the discussion, future buying attitudes, present buying opinion and the other

related information are collected.

Here are several ways of conducting focus group discussion:

1. Two-way focus group – Here one focus group watches another focus group and discusses the observed interactions

and conclusion.

2. Dual moderator focus group – Here one moderator ensures the sessions opposite sides in the issues under discussion.

3. Dueling moderator focus group – Here two moderators deliberately take opposite sides on the issue under

discussions.
4. Respondent moderator focus group – Here one and only one of the respondents is asked to act as the moderator

temporarily.

5. Client participant moderator focus groups – Here one and more client representatives participate in the discussion,

either covertly or overtly.

6. Mini focus groups – Here groups are composed of four or five members rather than 6 to 12.

7. Teleconference focus groups – Here the telephone network is used.

8. Internet-based focus groups – Such groups in which multiple respondents can meet electronically via chat rooms,

instant messaging, Web cameras, and the like, offer tremendous speed and cost benefits, particularly when using an

established online panel of respondents.

The moderator in the focus group plays the single most important and most difficult role in the process. for one thing, the

moderator typically translates the study objective into a guide book. The moderator’s guide book list the general (and

specific) issues to be addressed during the session, placing them in the general order in which the topics should arise. in

general, a funnel approach is used; With broad general topics first and then increasing focus on the specific issues to be

studied. a moderator must understand the background of the problem and what the client needs to learn from the research

process. without this information, it’s impossible to develop the guidebook and conduct a focus group effectively.

Case Analyses/Pilot Studies

Researchers can understand a lot in regards to a problem by studying carefully selected examples or cases of the

phenomenon. Case studies are suitable to undertake exploratory research. a research published case studies with regard to

variables like price, advertisement, Changes in the trend, and so on.

An increasingly popular form of case analysis is ethnography. ethnography is useful as an exploratory research tool. This

tool, which has been adapted from anthropology, often involves prolonged observation of consumers during the course of

their ordinary daily lives. It can allow insights based on real behavior, not just on what people say. Microsoft has used

teams of researchers observed and videotape computer users at home and at work. Not long ago, the researchers observed

50 families and seven countries as they use the next version of the company's operating system.

Through this process, they found over 1000 problems, about 800 of which hadn't been identified by company testers.

Interpreting the rich, qualitative data produced by this tool is very difficult to do. Remaining objective about the results

(such as not allowing preconceived ideas and expectations influence the interpretation) maybe even hard to do.
 Open-Ended Questions

All open-ended questions in your survey are exploratory in nature. The mere fact that companies allow respondents to

provide any feedback they please, gives them the opportunity to give insights on topics they haven't previously thought

of. adding a few of open-ended questions in surveys with large amounts of respondents can be a bit difficult and time

consuming to search through, but it can point a significant trend and opinions for more research.

For instance, and news website may ask its visitor the open-ended question.’ what would you like to see improved most

on our website?’ after analyzing the responses, it identifies each of three discussed areas which are navigation, quality of

information and visual displays. It can then use these three topics as its main focus or research objectives for a new

survey that will look to statistically quantify people's issues with the website with closed ended questions.

Observational Research

Observational research Can come in a different shapes and sizes. in general, there are two categories: strict observation

with no interaction with a subject at all, or observation with some level of intervention/ interaction between the

researcher and subject. there are many examples of observational research. Here are a few:

1. Usability testing - watching a subject use a prototype device is a form of observational research. again,

this can be done with or without intervention.

2. Eye tracking - Let's say a company has come up with the website. it might ask people to navigate his

website, and it will use eye tracking technology to create a “heat map” weather as go on the website. this

information can be used to redesign and optimize the page elements.

3. Contextual inquiry - this is a hybrid form of research that involves interviewing subjects as the

researcher watches them work or play in there and natural environment.

4. In-home observation - watching a family member goes to the morning routine and their home my turn

up useful insight into problematic points that need solving.

5. In-store observation - simply watching shoppers in action is another form of observational research.

what to shoppers’ notice? how do they go to a store? and some other question.

6. Mystery shoppers - This involves hiring a regular person to go into store and pretends to be an

everyday shopper. they will them report on aspects of the experience, such as store cleanliness, politeness of

stuff, and others. in the case, the mystery shopper is the researcher in the story is a subject being observed.
 The greatest benefit of this technique is that researchers can measure actual behavior, as opposed to use a reported

behavior. it's a big deal, because people will often the fourth one thing on a survey, but behaves in another way when the

rubber hits the road. observational research is a direct reflection of “real life” so this insights are often very reliable and

useful.

Descriptive Research Designs

Descriptive research Embraces a large proportion of marketing research. unlike exploratory research, descriptive

research is free plant and structured and design so the information collected can be statistically inferred on a population.

the purpose is to provide an exact picture of some aspect of the market environment. descriptive research is used to find

accurate answers of questions like:

1. who are users of my products/services?

2. how they are using my products/services?

3. what proportion of population uses my products/services?

4. what is the future demand for my products/services?

5. Who are all my competitors?

Does descriptive research is used to explain, monitor and test hypotheses created by marketers to help them find accurate

answers. Due to this reason descriptive research is rigid, well structure and well planned and uses quantitative technique

like questionnaires, structured interviews, data analysis and other instruments.

For instance, the marketer from previous case made use descriptive research to find out if he also starts using social

media marketing techniques for promoting his product and services then:

1. How many of his new customers will be attracted to them?

2. How many new customers Can be engaged using social media?

3. How much time, effort and money will be involved in this activity?

4. What will be the predicted return on investment (ROI)?

5. Will he be able to attract competitors’ customers?

The main idea behind using this type of research is to better define an opinion, attitude, or behavior held by a group of

people on a given subject. Consider your everyday multiple-choice questions. since there are predefined categories are

respondent must choose from, it is considered descriptive research. This question will not give the unique insights on the

issues like exploratory research would. instead, grouping the responses into predetermined choices will provide

statistically inferable data. This allows you to measure the significance of your results on the overall population you are

studying, as well as the changes of your respondent opinions, attitudes, and behaviors overtime.

Coming from a market research perspective, descriptive research can be an important tool in understanding consumer

behavior. In order to conduct this type of research in regard to a market, one must determine the purpose of the research,

form a question stating what the researcher wants to know and form a hypothesis as to what the answer might be. Once

the purpose, a question and hypothesis are put together, they can be used to create a market research study.

For example, a purpose, a question and hypothesis are created for two descriptive research situations below:

Situation one

Purpose: what should be the target market segments?

Question: Who buys our product?

Hypothesis: Customers who buy our products are between the ages of 28 and 30.

Question: Who buys the product from our competitors?

Hypothesis: Those who buy from our competition are 30 and over.

Situation two

Purpose: How should the new product be distributed?

Question: Where do consumers purchase similar products right now?

Hypothesis: Consumers by product similar to our new product at large discount chain stores.

Types of Descriptive Studies

Further classification of descriptive research would consist of following five categories:

Cross-sectional study

Cross-sectional research is used to examine one variable in different groups that are similar in all other characteristics.

It is based on observation that take place in different groups one time. This means there is no experimental procedure, so

no variables are manipulated by the researcher. Instead of performing an experiment, a researcher would simply record

information that he observed in the group's he is examining.

 Because of this, a cross-sectional research study can be used to describe the characteristics that exist in a group, but it

cannot be used to determine any relationship that may exist. This method is used to gather information only. This

information may then be used to develop other methods to study the relationship that is observed.

All too often, decision makers will make changes based on an intuition. Even if it's an educated guess based on

observable trends, the only way to make the right choice is to act on real data from actual audience.

For busy research is looking to provide insight on a smaller scope, cross-sectional studies are a more realistic and, often,

more effective way to get the data they need to make informed decisions.

While the exact benefits vary by project, there are three main reasons why research is niches to a cross-sectional study.

They are:

1. Faster - because of cross-sectional study only happens once, are we search you will be able to analyze

and act on his data immediately.

2. Less expensive - again, the strength of cross-sectional studies is that they happened once. a researcher

won't need to go Through the time and expense of administering multiple surveys over a long period of time.

with this method, it's one and done.

3. Easier to manage - is the researcher noticing a theme yet? one survey is much easier to manage to than

multiple, from design to collecting responses to analyzing dated to acting on the results.

Was there are lots of reasons to go cross sectional, there are reasons why researchers choose longitudinal studies. There

are data types and trends that are easier to track and analyze over the course as many weeks or months, and a researcher

simply won't get that kind of insect with a one-off survey.

These are the limitations of cross-sectional studies:

1. Observational – With a cross-sectional study, a researcher is only looking at the group. he is not able to influence

survey taker behavior or monitor changes in the behavior over time.

2. One time only – Sometimes, strength can be a weakness. because a researcher is only polling his audience once. He

will not be able to track changes over time.

3. Correlation, not causation – Correlation does not imply causation. and a cross-sectional study, it may be easy to spot

answers that correlate with one another, but a researcher will not be able to precisely find out what they appear to go

together.
 Longitudinal Study

A longitudinal study Is observational, meaning that there was no interference with the subjects, or respondents (if you

happen to be surveying). What makes a longitudinal study distinctive is the timeline? Instead of a researcher collecting

data from varying subject in order to study the same variables, as a subject are observed in multiple times, and often over

the course of many years.

What is noteworthy about longitude in a research is that data is gathered from the same individuals at the minimum of

two points in time. First, data is collected from individuals establish baseline information. Then, data is gathered from the

similar individuals at least one more time so that some type of comparison can be made.

Most information collected over time involve data collection points over months, years and/or decades; it is important

that data analysis and comparison of data between or among data collection points or periods to most exactly gauge

change over time as well as the effectiveness of an intervention or strategy.

There are three distinct kinds of longitudinal studies: panel, cohort, and retrospective.

1. Panel - A panel usually involves a somewhat random samples of the subjects.

2. Cohort - Observes subject in a similar group based on region, age, or common experiences.

3. Retrospective study - a retrospective study involves historical data, often times and comparisons

updated data. this is a type of longitudinal research that involves a look into the past using historical

documents, including medical records, employment records, or documentation recording a continuous quality

management initiative.

An applicable example might be a study of the benefits of jogging, where multiple measurements are taken; resting heart

rate, body mass index, blood pressure, all across groups of varying levels of exercise. Researchers and collecting data

from a single subject over several years to learn about effects of jogging, from any subject just once. This is often

referred to as a snapshot.

The key advantage to longitude in all studies is the ability to show the patterns of a variable senior later. This is one

powerful way in which they learn about cause and effect relationships. depending on the scope of the study, longitudinal

observation can also help to discover “sleeper effects” or connections between different events or over a long period of

time; events that might otherwise not be linked.

There are, of course, drawbacks to longitudinal studies, an electrician being one of them. If you are dependent on the

same group of 2,000 subjects for a study that takes place once every year, for 20 years, obviously some of those subjects

will no longer be able to participate, either due to death, refusal, or even changes in contact information and address. That

cuts down on usable data a researcher can draw conclusions from.

Another weakness is that while longitudinal data is being collected at multiple points, those observations goods are

predetermined and, take into description whatever has happened in between those touch points. After this advantage is

the idea of funnel conditioning, where over time, respondent can often unknowingly change the qualitative response to

better fit what they considered to be the observer’s intended goal. The process of the study itself has changed the subject

or a respondent views the questions.

The richness of data gathered over months and years cannot be undervalued; the breadth and depth of information

resulting from longitudinal research is unparalleled. It can be expensive, but those costs can be contained with careful

attention to the design of process. but there is no better way to document change in attitudes, behavior, perception,

employment, mobility and retention. In most cases it is the only way.

Causal Research Designs

In this form of research, the market or tries to determine if the manipulation of one variable, call the independent

variable, effects another variable, hold the dependent variable. In essence, the marketer is conducting an experiment. In

order to be effective, the design of causal research is highly structured and controlled so that other factors can affect

those being studied.

Marketers use this approach primarily for purposes of prediction and to test hypotheses, so it can also be used to a lesser

extent for discovery and explanatory purposes.

In marketing, causal research is used for many types of research including testing marketing scenarios, such as what

might happen to a product sale if changes are made to the product's design or if advertising is changed. If causal research

is performed well marketers may be able to use results for forecasting what might happen if the changes are made.

When it is necessary to show the one variable cause or determine the values of other variables, a causal research

approach must be used. descriptive research is not sufficient, for all it can show it that two variables are related or

associated. of course, evidence of a relationship or an association is useful; otherwise, researchers would have no basis

for even inferring that causality might be present. In order to go beyond this inference researcher must have reasonable

proof that one variable preceded the other and that there were no other causal factors that could have accounted for the

relationship.
 Causal research is used by marketers to find cause and effect relationship of variables. It is also sometimes referred as

“If... Then...” method. In this type of research, the marketer tries to understand effects of money chelating and dependent

variable on other dependent variables.

Causal research uses field and laboratory experimentation techniques to achieve its goals. This research is used by the

marketers may need to protect and test hypotheses. here are some test cases for causal research can be used:

1. What will happen to sale of my product if I change the packaging of the product?

2. What will happen to sale of my product if I change the design of the product?

3. What will happen to sale of my product if I change the advertising?

Like descriptive research, causal research is quantitative in nature as well as pre-planned and structured in design. for this

reason, it is also considered conclusive research. causal research differs in its attempt to explain the cause and effect

relationship between variables. this is opposed to the observational style of descriptive research, because it attempts to

decipher whether a relationship is causal through experimentation. in the end, causal research will have to objectives:

1. Understand which variables are the cause and which variables are the effect, and

2. To determine the nature of relationship between the causal variable and effectively predicted.

For example, cereal brand of owner wants to learn if they will receive more sales with their new cereal box design.

Instead of conducting the descriptive research by asking people whether they would be more likely to buy the serial and

it's you so they would set up an experiment in two separate stores. One will sell the serial and only its original box and

the other with the new box. Taking care to avoid any outside sources of bias, they would then measure the difference

between sales based on the serial packaging. Did the new packaging have any effect on the serial sales? What was that

effect?

Causal research falls under the category of conclusive research, because of its attempt to reveal a cause-and-effect

relationship between two variables. like descriptive research, this form of research attempts to prove an idea put forward

by an individual or organization. however, it significantly differs on both its method and its purpose. where descriptive

research is broad in scope, attempting to better define any opinion, attitude, or any behavior held by a particular group,

causal research will only have two objectives:

1. Understanding which variables are the cause, in which variables are the effect. For example, let’s say a

city councilor wanted to reduce car accident on the streets. they might find few preliminary descriptive and

exploratory research that both accident and road range have been steadily increasing over the past 5 years.

Instead of automatically assuming that road rage is the cause of these accidents, it would be important to

measure whether the opposite could be true. Maybe road rage increases in light of more accidents due to lane

closures and increased traffic. it could also be the case of the old saying “correlation does not guarantee

causation.” maybe both are increasing due to another reason like construction, lack of proper traffic controls,

or an influx of new drivers.

2. Reminding the nature of the relationship between the causal variables and the effect predicted.

Continuing with the example, let's say the city councilor proof that road rage had an increasing effect on the

number of car accident in the area. The causal of research could be used for two things. first measuring the

significance of the effect, quantifying the percentage increase and accidents that can be contributed by road

rage. second, observing how the relationship between the variables works (like enraged drivers are prone to

accelerating dangerously or taking more risk, resulting in more accidents).

Causal Research and Business Goals

It really doesn't matter what type of organization you are or what you have, causal research can be used to benefit you.

The goal of causal research is to give proof that a particular relationship exists. From a company standpoint, if you want

to verify that a strategy will work or be confident when identifying sources of an issue; causal research is the way to go.

1. Increasing customer retention - most franchise changes conduct causal research experiments within

their stores. In one case, a large auto repair shop recently conducted an experiment where select shop and

enforced a policy that an employee would have one on one with a client while their vehicle is being assessed.

they were instructed to go over any concerns and speak in layman's terms about anything wrong with the car,

focusing on the client understanding the issues. This experiment was implemented because of an online

survey that identified a lack of employee-client and communication as being barrier to repeat customers. After

identifying to solutions to this issue (facilitating discussion and increasing client understanding), the company

use this experiment to learn just how effective this solution with the increasing customer retention. by

comparing the sales and unchanged shops to those that were part of the experiment, the company noticed a

significant increase in customer loyalty.

2. Community initiatives – City councilors often use causal research the measure the success of their community

initiatives. Let’s say the City of Manila conducted a survey and learned that Manila conducted a survey and learned that

Manilas were dissatisfied with current public transit options. They could then set in motion a strategy to create more

“Park and Rides” to help more people be able to ride the bus. After implementing this strategy, they can resend the same

survey and measure what type of effect it has had on the overall satisfaction of public transit.

Market Testing

Introducing a new product or service without first testing the market is like jumping off a clit into the sea, blindfolded

unthinkable, life threatening, treacherous and unnecessarily risky. Many new ideas and products are successful because

their creators identified an unmet need in the market and verified the viability of that concept.

Your time and money are extremely valuable to you. You cannot afford to waste them by investing them in producing a

product or service that fails in the marketplace. The more you test your product before you produce and sell it, the more

likely you are to earn the sales and profits that you desire. Just remember, every peso you spend it market testing will

save you many pesos of losses later on in the marketing process.

Market testing is a tool used by companies to provide insight into the probable market success of a new product, or

effectiveness of a marketing campaign.

It can be used by a business to evaluate factors such as the performance of the product customer satisfaction or

acceptance of the product, the required level of the material support for the full launch, and distribution requirements for

a full launch.

Here's how to begin market testing:

1. Develop a prototype, model or description of the product or service that you can show to others. Most ideas for

new products or services don’t work the first time. With a model or prototype, you can photograph it or create a picture

of some kind and demonstrate it to a prospective buyer. It also allows you to try it out for yourself to make sure it works.

(Be sure to keep accurate notes of your research; you may come up with an even better idea later.)

2. Determine the price that you can sell the product for in the current marketplace. Get accurate prices and delivery

dates from suppliers, especially if you’re purchasing the product for resale. Determine all the costs involved in bringing

the products or service to market: the costs of offices, equipment, shipping, loss, breakage, insurance, transportation, of

doing business. Ask your friends and family if they’d buy this product at the price you will have to charge.
3. Go to a potential customer with your sample or prototype and ask if he would buy it. Be sure to call on the

individuals who makes buying decisions. Then ask him how much he’d pay for this product. If people criticize your new

product idea, ask them why. Ask how the product could be modified to make it more attractive.

4. Compare your product with other products on the market.Continually ask,” Why would someone switch and buy

from me?” Solicit the negative opinions of others. Don’t fall in love with your idea—be an optimistic pessimist by

looking for the flaws in your marketing plan.

5. Visit trade shows and exhibitions—they’re terrific place to get immediate feedback on a new product. You can

get into a trade show by signing up as either a manufacturer or wholesale buyer. Once you’re in, find out what else is

available that’s similar or that performs the same function as your product. Other companies marketing similar products

will have their products on display—take a good, hard look at what they have to offer. Then talk to product buyers—

sophisticated buyers at the trade show can tell you immediately whether or not your product will be successful.

The only real test of the product is a market test, where you take your new product or service to a customer who can buy

it to see if he like it.

As soon as you know your cost and price, make a sale call on a potential buyer. the ability to sell the product is more

important than any other still; this will give you a chance to sharpen yours. Listen carefully to the comments and

objections of the buyer their feedback is priceless.

Then once you’ve determined there's a large enough market for your product at the price will have to charge to make a

profit immediately begin thinking of ways to improve both the product and the marketing. Continually tweaking your

plans instead of sticking only with your original ideas will help ensure your product’s success.

Different Methods for Market Testing

There are different market testing methods based on the type of the market namely business to consumer (B2C) or

business to business (B2B).

The Main Methods for B2B are the following:

Simulated test market - In a simulated test market respondent become aware of a new product after being exposed to

advertising, typically a concept board. They then indicate their interest in purchasing the product. they are assigned to a

certain “awareness track” before viewing the product at the shelf. Simulated test marketing takes into account the

changing influences on consumer purchasing decisions. It allows a consumer to become aware of a new product as he

would in the real world.

 This provides marketers with an accurate purchasing wait for sales forecasting. Simulated test marketing primarily serves

as a forecasting tool. Additionally, it enables marketers to experiment on different inputs, from tactical elements such as

budget allocation across different digital media to strategic elements such as target and positioning. It allows them to test

a few alternative plans and choose the best one according to projected volume or sales. With the use of this market

testing method, companies are able to improve and revise their marketing plans and select the optimal plan that will most

likely a same performance object in the real world.

2. Test marketing - this is the final step before commercialization. The objective of this marketing phase is to test all the

variables and the marketing plan, including different elements and characteristics of the product. This page represents the

launching of the total marketing program, albeit on a limited basis. Three questions can do be answered through test

marketing:

a. is the overall workability of the marketing plan realized as planned?

b. do alternative allocations of the budget need to be evaluated?

c. can marketers determine whether users are being inspired to switch from their previous brands to the new one, and

whether repeat purchases are taking place?

3. Consumer panel - it is a group of consumers within a specific market; it is these consumers whose industry behavior

is believed to be a representative sample of the entire market. by studying such panels marketers are able to determine the

attitudes, values and beliefs of consumers in game and often carried out online and can consist of many hundreds or

thousands of respondents. It is through this online panels that marketers are able to gain sector specific insights quickly

and inexpensively.

As far as B2B is concerned the following are the methods for market testing:

1. The new product is tested in a limited geographical area. sales people attempt to make an actual sale

as part of a regular sales call.

2. The new product is tested in distributor and dealer display rooms. this method is reflected and product

normal selling situation.

The new product is tested in trade show. this method has an advantage of testing the new product to a large

number of potential buyers, but has the advantage of revealing the product to competitors. therefore, the seller

must be ready to launch the product to the market shortly after the trade show.
3. The new product is tested through speculative sale. sales people approached the potential customers

and pretend to make a sale using prepared selling materials, are real product and an actual price list. here the

objective is not to test whether an actual sale can be accomplished, but rather to test the customers level of

interest and excitement willingness to ask for a sample or purchase intention if the product was available.

ACTIVITIES

1. The OH – Hiro Biscuits is planning to launch a new product line of biscuits and wants to assess the
market size. The biscuits have a mixed-chocolate apple flavor and will be targeted at the lower end of
the market .Discuss how a descriptive research design will be adopted.

2. Serrano’s is a chain of fast food restaurants located in major cities of Metro Manila. Sales have been
growing very slowly for the last two years. Management has decided to add more items to the menus
they serve. However, they first wanted to know more about their customers and their preferences.
Answer the following questions to help the Serrano’s into their business.

a.) List at least 2 ways on how to market test the new menu.

b.) What type of research is fitting to the situation of Serrano’s? Defend your answer for your
choice.

EXAM

1. Explain the 6 methods of exploratory research.

2. How cross-sectional study differ from longitudinal study. Explain and give example.