Quantitative Research Techniques

*Survey Research ...is a method of descriptive research used for collecting primary data based on verbal or written communication with a representative sample of individuals or respondents from the target population. It requires asking the respondents for information either face-to-face or using the telephone interview, or through mail, fax or Internet.

*Survey Research Objectives:Most survey research studies attempt to identify and explain a particular marketing activity. Marketing surveys typically have multiple objectives.Although surveys are generally conducted to quantify certain factual information, certain aspects of surveys may also be qualitative. For example, testing and refining new product concepts is often a qualitative objective in a new product development. Has non-business application as well. [e.g. donor research].

*ExampleWhat survey research objectives might Daewoo [motor car] develop to learn about car buyers?Consumer preference in design and features and how best to satisfy these preferences;shopping mall intercepts; mail interview etc.Demographic details, customer satisfaction;Testing certain aspects of advertising;Study product image.

*Person administered surveys I1.Direct, face-to-face Interview: Interviewer and interviewee see and talk to each other face-to-face. IncludesIn-home/In-office InterviewAppointment first, Face to face InterviewNeeds SkillMall Intercept InterviewInterview outside home, in supermarkets, departmental stores, other public places

*Face to face interviewAdvantagesDirect interactionClarity and display of exhibitsBetter quality and quantity of dataHigher response rateNo sequence biasIdentifying respondentsUnstructured

DisadvantagesHigh costLonger timeInterviewer biasAnonymity not maintainedInterviewer cheatingTime bias existsField control needed

*Person Administered Surveys II2. Indirect, non- face-to-face Interview:The interviewer and the interviewee do not see but talk direct to each other.Telephone Interview

*Telephone InterviewAdvantagesFaster ResultsInexpensiveBetter geographical coverageIrresistibilityReaching hard-to-reach peopleTiming: early or late OKPrivacy and better controlCoincidental data: immediate feedback.DisadvantagesNo exhibitsLong interview not possibleInability to make judgmentAnswering machines and caller identification deviceSampling problemObsolete directory: poor sampling frame

*Self-administered surveys MailAdvantagesWide geographical coverageProviding thoughtful answersAbility to ask sensitive questionsNo interviewer biasInexpensiveBetter controlAnonymityClaritySurveyDisadvantagesMailing list problemUnidentifiable respondentQuestionnaire exposureData limitationNo interviewer assistanceno exhibitsAssumed literacyPoor response rateLonger time Survey through Internet has similar advantages and problems

*A questionnaire [also called research instrument]Data collection instrument used for gathering data;A formalized schedule of an assembly of a carefully formulated questions;

Six important functionsConverts research objectives into specific questionsStandardizes the questionsKeeps respondents motivated to complete the researchServe as a permanent recordSpeed-up the process of data analysisReliability and validity purposes

*Questionnaire Development Process

Steps in a Questionnaire Development Process

Pre-design activities

Design

activities

Post-design activities

Determine Survey Objectives

Decide Data Collection Methods

Question Development

Question Evaluation

by Researcher and by Client

Pretest the Questionnaire

Tabulate and

Analyze Data and Finalize Report

Gather Data

Using the Question-

naire

Revise, Finalize, and

Duplicate

*Basic Question Formats

Various Question Formats

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Basic

Open-ended

Questions

Probing

Questions

Clarifying

Questions

Open-ended

Questions

Dichotomous

Questions

Single-coded

Multiple-coded

Multiple-Choice

Responses

Closed-ended

Questions

Labeled

Questions

Unlabeled

Questions

Scaled

Questions

Basic

Question Formats

*OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS: Questions to which respondents give their responses freely, according to their own will.

Basic Open Ended Questions.

Q. What do you particularly like about Lipton Tea?

______________________________________________________________________________

Q. Why are you unwilling to buy a cellular phone when it is available in the market?

________________________________________________________________________

Probing Questions

Q. What do you particularly like about Johnson & Johnson baby oil?

__________________________________________________________________________

PROBE: Anything else?

*Advantages and disadvantages of Open-ended QuestionsAdvantagesSince they do not restrict the respondents response, the widest scope of response can be attained. Most appropriate where the range of possible responses is broad, or cannot be predetermined. Less subject to interviewer bias. Responses may often be used as direct quotes to bring realism and life to the written report.DisadvantagesInappropriate for self-administered questionnaire since people tend to write more briefly than they speak.The interviewer may only record a summary of the responses given by an interview and fail to capture the the interviewers own ideas. It is difficult to categorize and summarize the diverse responses of different respondents. May annoy a respondent and prompt him/her to terminate the interview, or ignore the mail questionnaire.

*CLOSED-ENDED QUESTIONS: Questions to which respondents are required to answer from set of alternative responses provided by the researcher. Could be dichotomous or multiple choice.

Dichotomous Questions With No Neutral Response

_________________________________________________

Q. Do you have a cellular phone?

Yes ......................................1without neutral

No ......................................2response

Dichotomous Questions With Neutral Response

Q. Is it likely that you will purchase a cellular phone in the next six months?

Yes ......................................1with neutral

No ......................................2response

Not Sure ..............................3

*

Single- and multi-coded multiple choice questions

_____________________________________________________________________

Q. On an average, how much do you spend on newspapers, books and magazines in a month? (Please check one from the following responses.)

Less than $15 ...................................

1Single-coded

Between $16 & $30 .......................

2question

Between $31 & $45 .......................

3

Between $46 & $60 .......................

4

$60 or more ...................................

5

Q. Which of the following household appliances does your household have?

(Please check as many responses that are applicable to you.)

TV 1

VCR 5

LCD .2

Microwave . 6 Multi-coded

PC 3

Cellular phone .7 question

Fax 4

Others .8

Specify ____________

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

*Advantages and Disadvantages of Closed-ended QuestionsADVANTAGESAll respondents reply on a standard response set. This ensures comparability of responses, facilitates coding, tabulating and interpreting the data. Easier to administer and most suited for self-administered questionnaire. If used in interviews, less skilled interviewer may be engaged to do the job.DISADVANTAGESPreparing the list of responses is time-consuming. If the list of responses is long, the respondents may be confused. If the list of responses is not comprehensive, responses may often fail to represent the respondents point of views.

*

Scaling questions

Scaling questions are special types of closed-ended questions.

They include, among others, the following categories of questions.

Behavioral/Attitudinal questions

Buying-intent questions

Agree-Disagree questions

Preference questions

Ranking questions

Semantic differential questions

Constant-sum questions

The questions can be labeled or unlabeled

*

Labeled and Unlabeled Scaling Questions

Type of Scaled Questions

Examples

Advantages

Disadvantages

Unlabeled scaled-response question

On a scale of 1 to 7,

how would you rate the IBM Thinkpad on ease of operation?

1. Allows a respondent to express the degree of his/her intensity of feelings.

2. Easy to administer and code.

Respondents may not relate to the scale well.

Labeled scaled-response question

Do you disagree strongly, disagree, agree, or agree strongly with the statement, IBM laptops are a better value than Compaq laptops?

1. Allows a respondent to express the degree of his/her intensity of feelings.

2. Easy to administer and code.

3. Respondents can relate to the scale.

Scale may be forced or overly detailed.

*Considerations in choosing a question formatNature of the property being measuredSubjective Vs objectivePrevious research studiesNeed for comparison with past studiesData Collection ModeTelephone/face-to-face-interview/mailScale level desiredStatistical analysisAbility of the respondents

*Phrasing and Sequencing of QuestionsPHRASINGFocus on a single issue or topicAsk precise questions using respondents core vocabularyAvoid use of vague wordsasking leading or loaded questionsestimation questionsdouble barreled questionspresumptuous questionsSEQUENCING Start with simple opening questionsPlace broad-based questions first; more specific and narrow questions and difficult, sensitive, embarrassing questions should come later(Funnel approach)Classification questions last.Transition from one topic to another should be smooth

*Questionnaire LayoutProvide sufficient spacesUse prominent print for instructionsUse filtered questionsDo not slit the same question over two pagesNumber the questionsLayout should facilitate editing and coding

*

Comparative Evaluation of Various survey Methods.

________________________________________________________________________

Face-to-face Interview

Criteria

In-home/Mall-

Telephone Mail

In-officeinterceptInterview Survey

Flexibility of data collectionHigh

High

Moderate Low

Diversity of questions

High

High

Low

Moderate

Sample control

PotentiallyModerate Moderate to Low

high

high

Control of data collectionModerate toHigh

Moderate Low

environment

high

Response rate

High

High

Moderate Low

Show of exhibits

Yes

Yes

No

No

Quantity of data

High

Moderate Low

High

Anonymity of the respondents Absent

Absent

Moderate High

Access to sensitive informationLow

Low

High

High

Speed

ModerateFast

Fast

Slow

Cost

High

Moderate Moderate Low

Potential interviewer biasHigh

Moderate to Moderate Low

*Causal Research/ExperimentsIn causal research, the emphasis is on specific hypotheses about the effects of changes of one variable on another variable. Deals with cause-effect relationship.Involves experiment where an independent variable is changed or manipulated to see how it affects a dependent variable by controlling the effects of extraneous variables.Extraneous variables:Different from dependent or independent variablesVariables that may have some affects upon a dependent variable but yet are not independent variables.

*Experimental designA set of procedures for devising an experiment such that a change in a dependent variable may be attributed solely to the change in an independent variables.Various notations used:O = The measurement or the process of observation of a dependent variable on the subjects or groups of subjects to be tested. O1 and O2 refer to different measurements made of the dependent variable.X = The manipulation, or change, of an independent variable.R = Random assignment of subjects (consumers, stores, and so on) to experimental and control groups.E = Experimental effect; that is, the change in the dependent variable due to the independent variable.

*Types of Experimental DesignsMany DesignsQuasi- and true experimental designsQuasi designs: designs which do not properly control for the effects of extraneous variables.True designs: designs which properly control for the effects of extraneous variables and isolate the effects of independent variables on the dependent variables.Three examples:After only designOne Group, Before-After DesignBefore-After with control group

*Three ExamplesAfter only Involves one group, shown as X O1X represents the change in the independent variableOne group, Before-After DesignInvolves one group, shown as O1 X O2Both are examples of quasi experimental designBefore-after with control groupExperimental group: Group subjected to experimental treatment: O1 X O2Control group: Group not subjected to experimental treatment: O3 O4Change = (O2 -- O1) -- (O4 -- O3 )

*Illustrated Example

A supermarket intended to determine the affect of change in packaging style (independent variable) on sales of mangoes (dependent variable) through experimentation. At the time of the decision, the store sold the produce in pre-weighted packs containing two mangoes. After recording the sales of mangoes in this manner management changed (manipulates the independent variable) the packaging system and started selling the mangoes from open produce bins. The change yielded better sales figures. Now the question was Did the change in the system from the packs of two to free selection from produce bins caused this sales increase?

*

Question: Did the change from selling in packs of two to free selection from produce bins caused this sales increase?

In answering this question, the following questions need to be answered:

Could there be other variables that could have effected mango sales?

What would happen to the sales if the weather changed from rainy to fair?

Did the change take place during a festive season?

In this example, weather and the onset of the festive season etc. may be viewed as extraneous variables, having an effect on the dependent variable. However, these are not independent variables.

This example clearly shows that isolating the effects of independent variables on dependent variables without controlling for the effects of the extraneous variables is very difficult.

Experimental designs help to accomplish this task.

*Experimental Design: the mango exampleDivide the 16 supermarkets in two equivalent groups of 8 - one control group, the other experimental group.In the shops in control group, DO NOT CHANGE the packaging style, in the experimental group, make the change.Measure the sales for both groups before the experiment date and after the experiment date.Assume that the difference in the two groups are as below: After BeforeDifferenceControl group 30,720units [O4]27,980 [O3]2,740 [O4 - O3]Experimental group31,688 [O2]27,816 [O1]3,872 [O2 - O1]Sales increase due to new system1,132Change = (O2 -- O1) -- (O4 -- O3 )

*

Basic Research Designs Compared

EXPLORATORY

DESCRIPTIVE

CAUSAL

Objectives

Gather background information, define terms, clarify problems and hypotheses, establish research priorities.

Describe and measure marketing phenomena, characteristics, or functions of interest.

Establish causality, develop if-then statements

Characteristics

Relatively simple, versatile and flexible;

Often the first phase of a multiple research design, unstructured.

Prior formulation of specific hypotheses;

Pre-planned and structured design.

Manipulation of one or more independent variables;

Pre-planned and structured design;

Control of other mediating variables

Methods

Secondary data analysis

Qualitative research

Expert surveys

Pilot surveys

Secondary data analysis

Surveys

Panels

Observational and . other data

Experiments:

Laboratory

Field

Test marketing

Results/Findings

Tentative

Conclusive

Conclusive

*Other points related to experimentsValidityAn experiment is valid if:the observed change in the dependent variable is, in fact, due to the independent variable >> internal validityif the results of the experiment apply to the real world outside the experimental setting >> external validity.Test marketingA special type of field experiment used to testsales potential for a new product or service,variations in the marketing mix for a product or service.

*TEST MARKETING

Strengths and Weaknesses of

Laboratory Experiment and Field Experiment

Laboratory (Studio) Experiment

Field Experiment

STRENGTHS

WEAKNESSES

Better control of the environments and the experimental variables

Lower cost

Faster data collection

Competitors less likely to be aware

More adaptable to the use of mechanical/electrical equipment

Sometimes difficult to project test results

Less representative sample of respondents

More representative sample of respondents

Better generalization of test results

More difficult to control the environment and the experimental variables

Competitors more likely to be aware

Higher cost

Slower data collection

*Difference between Surveys and Experimental Designs

The fundamental difference concerns the manipulation of independent variables. In surveys, an effect is observed and a search for a cause follows. In experimental research, on the other hand, independent variables are manipulated to establish a cause-effect relationship.

*Alternative Research Strategies for collecting consumer information about a product.Elements ofStrategy Strategy 1Strategy 2Strategy 3Strategy 4

Survey Telephone MailPersonalPersonalMethodinterviewsurveyinterviewinterview

ResearchFew factualA 2-pageManyProjectiveinstrumentquestionsquestionnairequestionstests

Sampling A small All subscribersA large sampleA dozen plansample of to a consumerof subjectspeoplehouseholdsmagazinechosen on afoundchosen bynational using therandom digitprobability productdialing in the sampling

*Quantitative Research in Asia-Pacific RegionUnavailable/inaccurate secondary data:Much data on Asian markets are either non-existent, difficult to obtain or unreliable. For example, in many Asian countries consumers income estimates are inaccurate since they omit the unreported or underreported income. Problem with primary dataSurvey research suffers from lack of sampling frame; shortage of qualified researchers/interviewers; respondents unfamiliarity with research and lack of trust on researchers; less than truthful responses; and other cultural idiosyncrasies.Poor postal and telephone system; poor rate of literacy of respondents; high rate of change and political instability etc.The nature and magnitude of problems vary from country to country.

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