Chapter 2

Marketing Research Process

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

Upon completion of this chapter, you will be able to:

• Understand the steps in conducting research
• Understand the types of research
• Learn the purposes and methods of conducting exploratory research
• Learn about descriptive research and the types of descriptive research
• Have a preliminary idea about causal research
• Establish a difference between exploratory research, descriptive research, and causal research

2.1 INTRODUCTION

Research is all about finding something, the absence of which may distort our ability to take informed decisions (Nwokah et al. 2009).

The ability to take an informed decision is generated through a systematic study that is conducted through various interrelated stages. To design something, various parts are put together to complete the phenomenon. The same process is done to conduct a research. All the steps in a research are interrelated and no independent activity is launched without considering the decisions on the previous stages. One has to really understand that, from problem identification to presentation of findings, every step is interlinked and interrelated. For example, a research project title or objective is set as “Consumer motivation to purchase a refrigerator: A comparative study between two leading brands.” The title of the research project itself introduces the dimensions of these interrelated steps. In the light of the title, a researcher has to first construct a theoretical model of consumer motivation. All other steps such as the questionnaire design, setting the research questions, and setting the hypotheses are related to the title and are interrelated—not independent. Data analysis plan is also related to the title. The title clearly suggests that the researcher has to apply z-test for two populations to compare the two population means. This can be further supplemented by other statistical techniques such as simple or multiple regression. The title clearly indicates that z-test for a single population, analysis of variance (ANOVA) techniques, and non-parametric tests cannot be applied. Similarly, if a researcher decides to take a sample size as 300 from both the populations then t test cannot be applied. In short, by framing the objective, a variety of interrelated decisions is also conceptualized. Hence, a researcher cannot separate the interlinked characteristics of the various decisions to be taken while executing any research programme. The following section deals with the marketing research process design to understand the interlinked nature of any research programme.

2.2 marketing RESEARCH PROCESS DESIGN

Figure 2.1 explains the process of conducting marketing research. A research design is the detailed blueprint used to guide a research study towards its objective (Aaker et al. 2000). In the introductory section, it has already been discussed that the steps in conducting a research programme are interlinked and interrelated. A good research is conducted using 10 steps; they are problem or opportunity identification, decision maker and marketing researcher meeting to discuss the problem and opportunity dimensions, defining the management problem and subsequently the research problem, formal research ­proposal and introducing the ­dimensions of the problem, approaches to research, fieldwork and data collection, data preparation and data entry, performing data analysis, interpretation of result and presentation of findings, and management decision and its implementation.

FIGURE 2.1 Marketing research process design

2.2.1 Step 1: Problem or Opportunity Identification

The process of marketing research starts with the problem or opportunity identification. Actually, the management of the company identifies the problem or opportunity in the organization or in the environment. The management can identify the symptoms or the effects of the problem, but to understand the reasons of the problems, a systematic research has to be adopted. This required research should either be executed by a marketing research firm or a marketing researcher.

2.2.2 Step 2: Decision Maker and Marketing Researcher Meeting to Discuss the Problem or Opportunity Dimensions

The decision maker contacts the marketing research firm and then discusses the problem or opportunity with the marketing researcher. The researcher can only suggest solution to a problem, but the actual decision is taken by the decision maker. Hence, it is important that the decision maker should understand the dimensions of the research and the researcher should also understand the scope of decision making by the decision maker.

2.2.3 Step 3: Defining the Management Problem and Subsequently the Research Problem

The researcher then tries to explore the problem faced by the management. For this purpose, he audits the problem presented by the management. Like any other audit programme, problem audit is also a systematic exploration of the nature of the problem and the identification of its roots. Auditing the problem is also important because the management presents the symptoms only like decline in sales. The researcher has to actually find the probable reasons of the problems in the initial stage of conducting a research to have a direction of the research programme execution. This is the time when the researcher takes the help of the available secondary data and pilot study. A systematic analysis of the secondary data is vital to explore the problem. In some cases, the secondary data provide useful insight to deal with the problem and plan for collecting the primary data. It is always advisable to first explore the secondary data before collecting the primary data. Meaningful insight of the problem is also obtained through a systematic pilot study. The pilot study is an unstructured interview with the persons related to the problem. It helps a researcher to understand the problem clearly and also to introduce various dimensions in it. Taking the problem to the concerned persons determines its background. This is an important step and strengthens the right direction of the research.

The management problem is concerned with the decision maker and is action oriented in nature. For example, the management problem offers a psychological pricing to enhance the quantum of sales. This management problem focuses on the symptoms. Research problem is somewhat information oriented and focuses mainly on the causes and not on the symptoms. This is to determine the consumer’s opinion on psychological pricing and to estimate their purchase behaviour for the psychological price being offered.

A problem or an opportunity never comes in isolation. Every problem or opportunity, which a researcher wants to address, has a background. Without understanding the background of the problem or the opportunity, the researchers can neither propose a solution nor will he or she be able to propose suggestions to explore the opportunities available in the environment. There are many factors, such as the company’s resources and constraints, legal environment and economic policies of the country in which the company is operating, social and cultural environment, changing technological environment, and so on, which have a decisive role in conducting the research. While framing the research strategies, the researcher has to keep all these and some other local, national, and international impactful surrounding factors in mind. Rather than just defining the problem and start working on it, he or she should have a clear knowledge about the factors that can ultimately influence the study. For example, any researcher conducting a consumer study in India must have the background knowledge of changing consumer aspirations in the post-liberalization era, different status of rural and urban consumers, increasing disposable income, increasing literacy rate, impact of heavy advertisement campaigns, multiple availability of product options, and so on. The consumer study cannot be launched in isolation; all these and many other factors may have a decisive impact on the study.

2.2.4 Step 4: Formal Research Proposal and Introducing the Dimensions to the Problem

Now, the researcher prepares a formal proposal of the research and develops the approaches to the research problem. The first part is to develop a theoretical model to quantify an attitude. For example, to estimate the “buying intentions” for a particular product, first, the researcher has to prepare a theoretical model to measure an attitude like buying intentions. The theory provides a list of decisive factors in buying a particular product. The researcher collects these factors from the literature and then proposes a model containing various factors that are combined to measure the buying intention. Suppose the researcher has decided to take five factors as the antecedents or determinants of the buying intention. These factors are brand image, brand awareness, price, availability, and after-sales services and are treated as the main variables. The researcher explores every factor from the literature in a systematic manner. For example, he has explored the first factor—brand image—and collected seven statements from the literature to characterize it. These seven statements are converted into seven questions and are placed as the first seven questions of the questionnaire. Similarly, to measure the other four factors, five, eight, six, and nine concerned statements have been collected and questions related to these statements are formulated and placed in the questionnaire. In this manner, the questionnaire consists of approximately 35 questions, where each question is designed to measure some phenomenon of interest to the researcher. These questions are now rated on a 1- to 7-point rating scale. Thus, a respondent can score a minimum of 35 and a maximum of 245 to exhibit his buying intention. In fact, this process is adopted to quantify the attitudinal feeling—buying intention—scientifically, which otherwise is difficult to measure. Hence, the theory plays a key role in conceptualizing a research phenomenon. Apart from these five main variables, few other variables such as age, gender, and income also have a determining impact on the buying intention of an individual. These are not the main variables but are referred as the moderating variables, which in combination with the main variables have a reasonable impact on the buying intention. Moderating variables are the second set of independent variables, which a researcher believes to have a significant contributory or contingent impact on the originally assumed cause–effect relationship between the dependent and independent variables. Figure 2.2 shows a theoretical model to measure the buying intentions. As a next step, in the light of the main variables and the moderating variables, the research hypotheses are constituted.

FIGURE 2.2 Theoretical model to measure the buying intention

A marketing research problem can be formulated as a broad statement, and its inherent components are to be addressed by the researcher. He or she has to always keep in mind that the broad statement should not be too lengthy or too small. A lengthy statement will unnecessarily mislead the researcher and a shorter statement will not be able to address all the important issues of the research problem. In the previous example of determining the buying intention, brand image, brand awareness, price, availability, and after-sales services are considered as the determining factors. Thus, the main research question can be formulated simply as determining the buying intention for a particular product.

According to the researcher, the buying intention is a research phenomenon that is based on the five factors: brand image, brand awareness, price, availability, and after-sales services. The researcher assumes that after quantification of these independent variables, any enhancement in one of these variables will enhance the buying intention of the consumer. Thus, five hypotheses can be constructed as follows:

Hypothesis 1: “Brand image” has a significant liner impact on the buying intention.

Hypothesis 2: “Brand awareness” has a significant liner impact on the buying intention.

Hypothesis 3: “Price” has a significant liner impact on the buying intention.

Hypothesis 4: “Availability” has a significant liner impact on the buying intention.

Hypothesis 5: “After-sales services” has a significant liner impact on the buying intention.

Definitely, these hypotheses will be statistically tested through a simple regression model in which each of these will be considered as the independent variable and the buying intention will be considered as the dependent variable.

The researcher can also test the combined impact of these five variables on the buying intention. The proposed multiple regression model will be

The corresponding hypothesis may be constructed as follows:

Hypothesis 6: All the five factors in combination have a significant linear impact on the buying intention.

Similarly, three other hypotheses can be constituted to measure the significant impact of the moderating variables. It can be noted that all the nine hypotheses are concerned with the theoretical model proposed in Figure 2.2. Chapter 12 details the hypotheses setting and testing procedures.

2.2.5 Step 5: Approaches to Research

The research approach is formulated in the next step. In the light of the “type of data,” questions are framed and scientifically placed in the questionnaire. This chapter is based on the research design formulation, Chapter 3 deals with measurement and scaling, Chapter 4 with the aspects of the questionnaire design in detail, and as a next step, a sample size is determined and a sampling technique is selected in Chapter 5. A preliminary plan related to data analysis is also formulated.

Approaches to research consists of making a suitable decision regarding research components like types of research, measurement and scaling, development of questionnaire, ­sample size-determined sampling techniques and data analysis plan.

2.2.5.1 Types of Research

This section specifically focuses on the types of research. All researches can be broadly classified into three groups: exploratory research, descriptive research, and causal research. These three methods differ in terms of different aspects of conducting the research. Figure 2.3 exhibits the classification of different types of the research.

FIGURE 2.3 Classification of different types of research

Exploratory Research

As the name indicates, exploratory research is mainly used to explore the insight of the general research problem. It is also used to find out the relevant variables to frame the theoretical model. Decision alternatives are also explored by launching the exploratory research that is purely unstructured and provides an insight to the problem. While conducting a research, the researcher generally faces a problem of not knowing anything about the problem. In this situation, the exploratory research is used to explore the different dimensions of the problem, so that a better understanding of the research framework can be developed. The research procedure is unstructured, qualitative, and flexible and gives all freedom to a researcher to understand the problem. In some cases, the researcher talks to the concerned persons related to the proposed research and generates the required information.

Findings of the exploratory research are generally not conclusive and require further exploratory or conclusive research. This is required because the exploratory research is unstructured and the sample used to obtain the information is small and mostly determined on the basis of the convenience of the researcher. This is used for the following purposes.

Obtaining Background Information

It has already been discussed that a decision maker presents the problem to a marketing researcher who is supposed to launch the research. Sometimes, it happens that the researcher has got no clues about the problem. In this situation, the researcher has to conduct an exploratory research to know the meaningful insight about the problem. Even if the researcher has the background information about the problem, he or she has to conduct the exploratory research to accumulate the current and relevant information. This could also be ignored for no reason because the nature and dimension of the problem change with time. For example, consider a company established in 1920 that has a rich experience of 90 years and strong brand goodwill. Since the last 50 years, a marketing research firm is associated with the company and has conducted many research programmes. In recent years, the top management of the company has realized that its brand goodwill is diluting and likes to take some corrective actions. It has contacted the marketing research firm to conduct a research and find out the reasons of dilution. Although this research firm has got an experience of 50 years in dealing with the company, it has to conduct an exploratory research to understand the recent and relevant circumstances. There is no rationale why a researcher will be missing the exploratory research.

Research Problem Formulation or Defining it More Precisely

The exploratory research also helps in formulating a research problem. This is the most important aspect of conducting a research. It has already been discussed that the research steps are interlinked and interrelated and no step can be launched independently without considering the previous steps. Thus, defining the problem properly completes half the task, as it gives the necessary direction to conduct the research. On the other hand, if the problem is not defined properly, it really distorts the research direction and the researcher’s energy. Hence, it is important to first define the problem properly. It may be possible that before conducting the exploratory research, the problem is loosely defined. The exploratory research is helpful for both formulating the problem and defining it more precisely.

Identifying and Defining the Key Research Variables

Exploratory

research is used to identify and define the key research variables. In the buying intention example, five variables, such as brand image, brand awareness, price, availability, and after-sales services, have been identified by the researcher. The researcher has conducted an exploratory research and two more local variables, namely, “store employee behaviour” and “location of the store” have also been identified. Hence, the model is further refined and instead of five main variables, now, seven variables have been incorporated in the theoretical model. In addition, the exploratory research has identified “occupation” as another moderating variable—it has a determining impact on “buying intentions” and has been incorporated in the model. The refined model to measure the buying intentions is exhibited in Figure 2.4.

FIGURE 2.4 The refined theoretical model to measure the buying intentions (obtaining inputs from exploratory research)

Developing Hypotheses

Exploratory research is also helpful in formulating the hypotheses. For example, the theoreti­cal buying intention model can be used to note the difference between the buying intentions for two similar products produced by two different companies. Hence, null hypothesis can be formulated as “there is no difference in the buying intention for the two products.” An alternative hypothesis can also be formulated as “there is a significant difference in the buying intention for the two products.” Similarly, other relevant hypotheses can be formulated. Chapter 12 specifically deals with the procedure of hypothesis testing.

Methods of Conducting Exploratory Research

The researchers use a variety of methods to conduct the exploratory research. These methods are secondary data analysis, expert survey, focus group interviews, depth interview, case analysis, and projective techniques. Figure 2.5 shows the methods of conducting exploratory research.

FIGURE 2.5 Methods of conducting exploratory research

Secondary Data Analysis

Secondary data already exist in the environment and are mainly collected for some other purposes. The researchers generally use the secondary data to understand the problem and explore the dimensions of the problem. The secondary data are not only used for problem understanding and exploration but are also used to develop an understanding about the research findings. In recent times, after the introduction of the computers, the Internet, and other computer-related facilities, accessibility to the secondary data has become convenient and easy. In most of the cases, use of the secondary data for the research purpose is time and cost efficient and it really provides an insight to the problem. Considering the importance of the secondary data analysis, Chapter 6 exclusively deals with this topic.

Expert Survey

To get the authentic information about the problem, the researchers sometimes consult the experts of the concerned field. These experts provide authentic and relevant information useful for the research, which otherwise is difficult to obtain. For example, an automobile company would like to penetrate in the rural market segment and would like to understand the requirements of the potential rural customers. Apart from the directly interviewing customers, information can also be obtained from the dealers and retailers who have been operating in this field since long time. Thus, with respect to their continuous interactions with the rural customers, dealers, and retailers, the company can well identify the aspirations and expectations of the rural segment. In addition, the dealers and retailers can provide that category of information, which will not be possible for the researcher to obtain through interviews, as the interviews will make the prospective customers conscious. Although some experts do not directly involve in the selling process, they can also provide substantial information. For example, in the automobile case, engineers, workers, production managers, and consultants can also provide important and categorical information.

Focus Group Interviews

Focus groups are widely used in the investigation of applied-research problems and are recognized as distinct research methods (Bender and Ewbank 1994). In a focus group, a small number of individuals are brought together in a room to sit and talk about some topic of interest to the focus group sponsor (Churchill and Iacobucci 2004). In fact, the focus group interview is a qualitative research technique in which a trained moderator leads a small group of participants to an unstructured discussion about the topic of interest. It generally involves 8 to 12 individuals who discuss a particular topic under the direction of a moderator, who promotes the interaction and guides the discussion on the topic of interest (Richter et al. 2007).

In a focus group, the participants gather at a centralized location. There are usually 6 to 12 participants discussing a single topic in the presence of the moderator. The moderator introduces the discussion topic and encourages the participants to discuss the topic within the discussion range. In this mode of discussion, the participants are allowed to express their true emotional feelings, anxieties, frustrations, and opinions in a free discussion atmosphere. The focus group provides an opportunity for the researchers to probe the people’s emotional reaction to issues that offer further understanding of the target individuals’ reaction to the issues, thereby assisting in better understanding of the research finding (Zuckerman-Parker and Shank 2008).

The process of conducting a focus group interview starts with the identification of the problem by the firm. This is the stage when the firm has already identified and defined the problem and a qualitative research is required to explore the different dimensions of the problem. Framing the research objective is not sufficient, a researcher also has to frame the objective of the focus group interview. Although the pattern and discussion of the focus group are unstructured, it does not mean that there will not be any systematic pattern to conduct the focus group interviews. The researcher has to also prepare a questionnaire to have a structured way of obtaining the answers. The participant group involved in the focus group interview technique must have the knowledge about the topic of the discussion as the participants have to take the discussion forward. The participants should also have few similar characteristics, as a diverse group will not be able to generate the required information. It is also important to pre-establish the role of a moderator as he or she is the one who will be encouraging the discussion and will be trying to put the discussion on track. The moderator also intelligently places the discussion point during the discussion and tries to get the information desired by the researcher. Based on these guidelines, the researcher conducts the focus group interview and analyses the findings. As the process is exploratory and qualitative in nature, a careful interpretation is also required. The fact that the participants have an active role in the research process does not, of course, mean that everything can be left to the participants or that everything said should be taken at face value. The researchers need to analyse, conceptualize, and consider the validity of the interpretations made from the data (Heiskanen et al. 2008). He or she has to wind up the whole process of the focus group discussion within a stipulated time that varies from 1 to 3 hours.

The focus group is a popular technique of collecting information in the field of marketing research. The companies in Western countries frequently use focus groups to make the product or services better and desirable from the consumer point of view. The major advantage of the focus group interview is its ease of execution. In addition to being specific to the target group, it also presents an opportunity to analyse the outcome and is inexpensive in nature. The researcher can get the responses through the focus group interview, which is not possible in the structured survey, because it provides an opportunity to express the emotional feelings without any hesitation. The following section presents some of the advantages and disadvantages of the focus group interview technique.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Focus Group Interview Technique

It has already been discussed that the focus group research is popular in the field of business and marketing research. The following are some advantages of the focus group research:

• The focus group provides an opportunity to note the natural reaction of the respondents, which is rare in a survey. In addition, a careful examination of their facial expressions and voice modulation gives an opportunity to read the respondents’ feelings apart from words.
• In an individual interview, some of the thoughts or ideas can be dropped out, whereas in a focus group, there is a possibility to explore most of the ideas. If one participant will not be able to present an idea, it will be presented by another participant. In this manner, all the important dimensions of the problem are properly addressed.
• An unstructured discussion provides flexibility to the focus group interview technique. The moderator can lead the discussion to the desired direction.
• The presence of many participants really triggers the discussion. A careful selection of participants can lead to some fruitful information.
• The focus group has the biggest advantage in terms of spontaneous responses by the participants. The participants respond to a topic in a natural manner and flow of communication also follows a natural sequence.
• An experienced and effective moderator can control the discussion and generate the relevant information. The effective and required intervention by the moderator results in a channelized discussion in the focus group research.
• Interaction among the group members is an added advantage of the focus groups. Mutual exchange of thoughts stimulates every participant to express their views freely.
• The focus group can generate information fast. Its execution is also fast.

  Although the focus group interview technique is popular in the field of business research and marketing research, it is not free from some limitations. The following are some limitations.

• The first drawback of the focus group interview technique is the scientific validity of the findings. The findings are exploratory and qualitative in nature and need to be strengthened by conducting further structured research. Moreover, the statistical validity of the procedure is also under serious doubt as the participant group is small and may not be a true representative of the population.
• The second limitation of the focus group research is the bias because of the moderator and the participants. As the direction and mode of the discussion are based on the moderator, providing a biased approach cannot be easily ruled out by the moderator. The participants who can talk and express well can also divert the real findings of the focus group. One or two individuals dominating in conversation can really distract the discussion. In addition, the analysis is subjective in nature; hence, the findings cannot be cross validated.
• The third drawback of the focus group research lies in its important outcome as findings. No doubt, the focus group presents important information but these are not conclusive. As a matter of drawback of the focus group research, some managers treat the information as conclusive without taking the pain of launching a conclusive research.

Depth Interviews

A depth interview is a probing between a highly skilled interviewer and a respondent from the target population to unfold the underlying opinions, motivations, emotions, or feelings of an individual respondent, on a topic generally coined by the researcher. In addition to the focus group interview, the depth interview is also a widely used qualitative research technique for data collection. In the depth interview, one-on-one information is obtained from a member of the target population by a skilled interviewer. Similar to the focus group interview, unstructured and qualitative information is collected in a depth interview also. In the focus group research, the respondents can be influenced by peers and coping with this situation will be difficult for the moderator. In the depth group interview, through a one-on-one interaction process, an interviewer can explore the in-depth information, which is not possible through a focus group interview.

The quality of information obtained through the depth interview is dependent on the skill and experience of the interviewer, hence, a skilled and qualified interviewer is the first pre-requisite of the depth interview technique. The depth interview can last for 30 minutes to 1 hour. As a first step, the interviewer asks some basic and initial information. After passing through this phase, the interviewer adopts an unstructured format of interview. Initial response of the respondent decides the direction of the remaining interview. This probing technique is unstructured because the spontaneous initial response by the respondent is the basis of framing the subsequent questions in the interview and because next question of the interviewer is based on the respondent’s reply for the previous question. The sequence of the questions may be as follows: “do you like this product?”, “what do you like in this pro­duct?”, “why do you like this specific feature of the product?”, and so on. Probing is used to uncover the deep rooted, deeply instilled hidden feelings of the participants.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Depth Interview

It has already been discussed that the focus group research and depth interview are the two most common and widely applied qualitative research techniques in the field of business and marketing research. The following are some advantages of the depth interview technique:

• The depth interviews are especially advantageous when the research topic is sensitive or personal for a respondent. In this type of situation, the respondent always feels comfortable answering the questions from one interviewer rather than from a group.
• One-on-one interviews give greater flexibility to both the respondent and the interviewer. Much revealing and authentic information can be obtained from the depth interview.
• Personal interviews are easily scheduled when compared with the group interviews. Hence, the depth interviews can be arranged much conveniently compared with the focus group interviews.
• The depth interviews can handle some complex topics well, as it is personal in nature.

Like any other research technique, the depth interviews also have some limitations. The following are some limitations.

• Success of the depth interview is completely based on the skill of an interviewer. Searching a skilful and an experienced interviewer is not an easy task.
• Probing by the interviewer can sometimes put the respondent in an uncomfortable situation. The respondent may develop a feeling of being trapped in the situation and may become non-cooperative.
• Continuous interviewing sometimes generates monotony and boredom for the interviewer, which ultimately dilutes the quality of the gathered information.
• Like any other exploratory research technique, the analysis and interpretation of the data are difficult exercises. The reliability of the obtained data is also under serious doubt because there is lack of consistency in conducting the interview in terms of the approach adopted by the interviewer. The depth interviews also lack statistical validity.

Case Analysis A case study research method actually combines the record analysis and observations from individual and group interviews. The case studies become particularly useful when one needs to understand some particular problem or situation in great depth and when one can identify the cases rich in information (Noor 2008). In the case study research method, the researcher collects the information from various existing sources such as company brochures, sales data, newspaper and magazine articles, direct observation, and so on. This information is combined with the interview data obtained from the participants. Unconstrained by the rigid limits of questionnaires and models, it can lead to new and creative insights, development of new theory, and have high validity with practitioners—the ultimate users of the research (Voss et al. 2002).

When performing a case analysis, the researchers select multiple participants to have an opportunity to conduct a cross-case analysis. Mostly, multiple cases are used, but the importance of using a single case in some specific situations cannot be ruled out. The phenomenon is examined under natural settings and data are collected by multiple means. The case studies are mainly used for the exploration, classification, and hypothesis development stage of the research process. The case study research methodology generally deals with some contemporary issues and is conducted to explore the “why” and the “how” of a research phenomenon.

The major advantage of the case research is its appropriateness to research, an area where few studies have been carried out. The case studies are being conducted to address a real problem; hence, it really provides a sound knowledge base to the existing body of knowledge. Weakness of the case study research includes difficulties in generalizing research result and the subjectivity of the data collection and analysis process (Darke et al. 1998). In addition, the case analysis is time consuming and requires expert interviewers.

Projective Techniques

Projective technique is achieved by presenting the respondents with ambiguous verbal or visual stimulus materials, such as bubble cartoons, which they need to make sense of by drawing from their own experiences, thoughts, feelings, and imagination before they can offer a response (Catterall and Ibbotson 2000). The projective technique is used to generate the information when the researcher believes that the respondent will or cannot reveal the desired meaningful information by direct questioning. This is particularly useful when the respondent is unwilling to share his feelings because of the requirement of exhibiting socially desirable behaviour or any other reason. In this technique, a respondent is asked to explain the behaviour of another person in a given situation rather than to explain his or her own behaviour. In this process of explaining the behaviour of ­others, the respondents indirectly project their own behaviour in terms of their inner motivation, beliefs, ­attitudes, or feelings in a given situation. By explaining the behaviour of the other person in a given situation, the respondent actually describes his or her own behaviour when placed in a given situation. These are the feelings, emotions, attitudes, or opinions that the respondents will not like to share by answering a direct question. The various stimuli used in the projective techniques are intentionally vague and open to different interpretations, in the expectation that the participant will give meaning to the stimuli, which emerges from internal personality processes, and thus enable observation of these processes (Levin-Rozalis 2006).

In the field of marketing research, the projective techniques are broadly classified as word association, completion task, construction task, and expressive task. The following section presents a brief discussion of these four techniques.

Word Association

Word association provides a technique that facilitates the study and shading of attitudes, which cannot be ordinarily uncovered through standard interview methods (Vicary 1948). In the word association technique, the respondents are required to respond to the presentation of an object by indicating the first word, image, or thought that comes in his or her mind as a response to that object. The researcher observes both the verbal and non-verbal response to the given object. The technique is based on the assumption that the first reflection to the stimuli is the natural and spontaneous reaction and is the inherent attitude, feeling, or emotion about the stimuli.

The word association technique is a special technique to obtain the consumer’s response about a particular product or brand. For example, Sony colour television is tested on three words: quality, price, and availability. If the first response of the respondent is “quality” then the unprocessed and spontaneous response to the brand indicates that the quality of the brand is perceived well by the consumer. The word association techniques are also used to unfold brand personification or association of a brand or product with a person or personality type. In this technique, the respondents are presented with various pictures and words and asked to associate it with a particular brand or product. They are also asked to explain the reasons of their association of the word or picture with a particular brand or product.

The major advantage of the word association technique is its ability to generate a response in a simple manner, more specifically, as fun for the respondents. Subjective interpretation is a major disadvantage of the projective technique. Interpretation of the result of the word association technique is a difficult exercise and has a problem in terms of the individual and subjective interpretation. As a matter of subjectivity in the word association technique, sometimes, the researchers focus on the interpretation of what is not said instead of what is said. The time taken by the respondent to respond to a particular stimulus is also a potential consideration in the interpretation of the feeling of the respondent about the stimuli.

Completion Task

In a completion task, the respondent is presented with an incomplete sentence, story, argument, or conversation and asked to complete it. In the field of marketing research, the two widely used completion task techniques are sentence-completion task and story-completion task.

In the sentence-completion task, the respondent is presented with an incomplete sentence and asked to complete it. It is widely applied because this technique generates contextual and brand- or product-specific information. For example, to assess the respondent’s feelings about LG air conditioners, the completion task may be, “I use LG air conditioner because it gives me ______________.” This is just one example; many incomplete sentences can be constructed to elicit responses from different angles. Another example is, “People who use LG air conditioners are _________.”

In the second technique, story completion, the respondents are given an incomplete story, presented the direction to understand the topic but the ending is not known. The respondent is required to complete the story in his own words. In the process of completing the story, the respondent reveals his own emotional feelings about the matter under discussion.

Construction Task

Construction task is related to the completion task technique with a little difference. In the construction task technique, the respondent is provided with less initial structure as compared with the completion task where the respondent is provided with an initial structure, and then, he or she completes the task. In the field of marketing research, third-person questioning and bubble drawing (cartoon testing) are two commonly used construction techniques.

In the third-person questioning technique, the respondents are asked to present their opinion, emotion, attitude, or feeling about the other person in a given situation. He or she is asked to explain how a third person (neighbour or a friend) will act in a given situation. In this manner, he or she reveals his or her own feeling or opinion in the form of a third person without any hesitation because he or she can willingly express the thoughts as he or she does not feel any personal accountability. This technique has one serious limitation—the respondent can describe socially acceptable norm or behaviour instead of his or her own behaviour.

Bubble drawings are also referred as cartoon tests. The bubble drawing uses cartoon characters to exhibit a specific situation related to any problem. These cartoon characters are presented to the researcher in an ambiguous situation that is of interest. For example, in a ­two-cartoon character situation, one character is looking at the shelf of a departmental store and talking to the second character; indicating a particular product, “What is your opinion about that product?” While explaining the opinion of the second cartoon character, the ­respondent will actually explain his or her own behaviour. The limitation of this technique is also the same as that of the third-person questioning technique in terms of this technique’s assumption that the respondent will describe his own opinion, attitude, or feeling when describing the opinion, attitude, or feeling of others.

Expressive Task

In expressive task technique, the respondents are asked to role-play, act, or paint a specific (mostly desired by the researcher) concept or situation. In the role-playing technique, the participant is required to act someone else’s behaviour in a particular setting. For example, a salesperson playing the role of a sales manager projects himself as a sales manager and behaves like a sales manager. A person playing the role of another person actually exhibits his own expectation for that particular person. This technique is also based on the assumption that the participant playing the role will actually project his or her own feeling when he will be in that role.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Projective Techniques

The advantages of these techniques are typically hypothesized to be their ability to get around or under the conscious defences of the research participants and to allow the researchers to gain access to important psychological information of which the respondents are not consciously aware (Boddy 2005). In the consumer domain, the projective techniques are a means for the researchers to transcend communication barriers and illuminate the aspects of consumer experience that may be difficult to study (Steinman 2009). The biggest advantage of the projective technique is its ability to unfold the deep-rooted inner feelings of individuals in an indirect manner, which is not possible to be discovered in a direct manner. When a researcher addresses some personal issues of the individual, there is a high possibility that the individual will intentionally or unintentionally mislead or misinterpret the researcher.

Subjective interpretation of the result is the major disadvantage of any projective technique. Projective profiling techniques produce soft, opinionated data that are open to interpretation, and which has only random relevance to predict the customer behaviour (Yeager 2003). This technique requires highly skilled and experienced interviewers. In addition, sound background, knowledge, and experience of the interpreter are also a prerequisite for using the projective techniques. It is also possible that the participants of the projective technique may not be true representatives of the population.

Descriptive Research

As evident from the name, descriptive research is conducted to describe the business or market characteristics. The descriptive research mainly answers who, what, when, where, and how kind of questions. It attempts to address who should be surveyed, what, at what time (pre- and post-type of study), from where (household, shopping mall, market, and so on), and how this information should be obtained (method of data collection). However, descriptive designs are not capable of addressing any of the why questions associated with a given research problem (Hair et al. 2002).

Descriptive researches are generally used in segmenting and targeting the market. They are mainly conducted to describe the characteristics of some relevant groups for the research, to understand the demographic and other characteristics of the population, to understand the consumer perception about any product or services, to understand the degree of association between marketing variable, and to make some forecasting about sales, production, or other phenomenon of interest. For example, a consumer durable company has conducted a descriptive research to understand the consumption pattern for its product. Descriptive research has revealed that 80% of the customers are government employees, 10% are ­businessmen, and the remaining 10% are scattered in different segments of society. The research has also revealed that 70% of the customers are men and 30% are women.

The descriptive research is conducted on the basis of some previous understanding of the research problem and does not completely explore the research phenomenon as in the case of the exploratory research. Unlike the exploratory research, specific hypotheses are formulated before conducting the descriptive research. Hence, this is structured and pre-planned in comparison with the exploratory research. The structural nature of this research provides it a clear direction of information collection. Hence, information obtained from this research is not loosely structured. In short, unlike the exploratory research, it involves a clear definition of the problem, formulation of specific hypotheses, and collection of structured, detailed, and relevant data. It can be further classified into cross-sectional study and longitudinal study.

Cross-Sectional Study

Cross-sectional study is popular in the field of business and marketing research. Cross-­sectional research design involves the collection of information from a sample of a population at only one point of time. In this study, various segments of the population are sampled so that the relationship among the variables may be investigated by cross tabulation (Zikmund 2007). Sample surveys are cross-sectional studies in which the samples happen to be a representative of the population. The cross-sectional study generally involves large samples from the population; hence, they are sometimes referred as “sample surveys.”

Longitudinal Study

Longitudinal study involves survey of the same population over a period of time. There is a well-defined difference between a cross-sectional study and a longitudinal study. In a longitudinal study, the sample remains the same over a period of time. In a cross-sectional design, a representative sample taken from the population is studied at only one point of time. Addressing a question such as, “What is the effectiveness of an advertisement campaign for an air conditioner?” is an example of cross-sectional study. Whereas, “How have consumers changed their opinion about the performance of air conditioner as compared with that last summer?” is an example of longitudinal study. Longitudinal surveys usually combine both extensive (quantitative) and intensive (qualitative) approaches (Ruspini 1999).

In some cases, researchers use the term “panel” instead of longitudinal study. A panel is a sample of respondents who have agreed to provide responses over a specified time interval. Panels are also of two types: traditional panels and omnibus panels. In case of traditional panels, same questions are asked to the respondents on each panel measurement. For example, firms are interested in knowing the change in attitude, opinion, feeling, or emotion of the customers about a particular product over a specific time interval. In this case, brand switching studies are common. In the case of omnibus panels, different set of questions are asked to the respondents on each panel measurement. Hence, different set of information is obtained using omnibus panels. Use of panels is based on the objective of the research and the nature of the problem. Like traditional panels, the omnibus panels are also representatives of the target population and are demographically matched to some extent.

Both the cross-sectional and longitudinal studies have relative advantages and disadvantages. The longitudinal studies are mainly conducted to detect the change in the attitude, opinion, or feeling of the customers. Cross-sectional studies are not capable of detecting change. As discussed, longitudinal studies are conducted on panels. Panel members are generally compensated for their participation in research; hence, data collection is relatively easier in longitudinal study as compared with cross-sectional study. In addition, cross-sectional studies are based on the past-recall capacity of the respondents, which makes the collected data less accurate. In the longitudinal study, the same panel is used for the research, and thus there is no question of testing the past-recall capacity of the ­consumers. There are at least two major disadvantages of the longitudinal study. The respondents may not be true representatives of the population (discussed in detail in Chapter 12). Refusal to participate will elicit the inclusion of new respondents in the research, which ultimately generates a response bias. Cross-sectional studies have got a relative superiority in these two aspects. In a cross-sectional design, data are collected only once from a population, and hence, there is no question of response bias. The cross-sectional studies are not designed to generate responses from the same group of respondents over a period of time, thus, there is no issue of non-cooperation by the respondents being studied previously.

Causal Research

Causal research is conducted to identify the cause-and-effect relationship between two or more marketing (or decision) variables. Many marketing decisions are based on the causal relationship between the variables of interest. For example, a cement manufacturing company is working on the assumption that the increase in advertisement expenditure is going to increase the sales of the company. Although this assumption seems to be true, a strict validation of the assumption by conducting a formal research is essentially required. “Concept of causality” is discussed in detail in Chapter 8.

As discussed, the descriptive research is able to answer who, what, when, where, and how kind of questions but not the “why” part of the question. The causal research is designed to address the why part of the question. Unlike the exploratory research but similar to the descriptive research, causal research is a well-structured research design. In this design, the independent variables are manipulated in a controlled environment to identify the causal relationship between two or more variables. It discovers the functional relationship between the causal factors and its predicted impact on the dependent variable under the research investigation. Table 2.2 exhibits a comparison of exploratory research, descriptive research, and causal research.

TABLE 2.2 A relative comparison of exploratory research, descriptive research, and conclusive research

2.2.6 Step 6: Fieldwork and Data Collection

As a next step, fieldwork and data collection activities are planned. An analysis of secondary data sources is also executed to have supporting ideas. It is used in the various stages of the research execution. These are also useful in presenting the findings. Chapter 6 is exclusively based on secondary data sources. The researcher has to also decide whether he or she has to go for a survey or has to adopt the observation methods and decide whether the research will be based on the field data collection or it will be a laboratory experiment. Chapter 7 is based on survey and observation techniques, Chapter 8 introduces the various dimensions of experimentation, and Chapter 9 focuses on fieldwork and data preparation process.

2.2.7 Step 7: Data Preparation and Data Entry

After fieldwork, the collected data are in raw format. Before performing data analysis, it is important for a researcher to structure the data. There is a specific scientific procedure to deal with the missing data and other problems related to the data collection process. Chapter 9 details all these aspects of data preparation. After preparing the data, a researcher has to feed it into a computer spreadsheet in a pre-determined manner to execute the data analysis exercise. Preparing this data matrix through the spreadsheet is also a scientific exercise and requires a lot of expertise and experience. In addition to the data preparation exercise, Chapter 9 also explains the process of data entry.

2.2.8 Step 8: Data Analysis

After feeding the data in the spreadsheet, data analysis is launched. Chapters 10 to 19 present various sophisticated statistical analytical techniques to execute the data analysis exercise. These include univariate statistical analysis, bivariate statistical analysis, and multivariate statistical analysis. Chapter 10 gives insight into the central tendency of data. Chapter 11 focuses on the various measures of dispersion. Chapter 12 introduces readers to the hypothesis testing procedure for single populations. Chapter 13 discusses the hypothesis testing procedure for two populations. Chapter 14 deals with the analysis of variance and designs of experiments. Chapter 15 discusses the chi-square test and its applications. Chapter 16 discusses the applications of bivariate correlation and regression. Chapter 17 discusses multiple regression. Chapter 18 focuses on discriminant analysis and conjoint analysis. Chapter 19 discusses factor analysis, cluster analysis, multidimensional scaling and correspondence analysis.

2.2.9 Step 9: Interpretation of Result and Presentation of Findings

It has been already discussed that after applying data analysis techniques, a statistical result is obtained. There is need to interpret the result and present the non-statistical findings derived from the statistical result. A meaningful interpretation of the result is a skilful activity and is an important aspect of research. The researcher has to determine whether the result of the study is in line with the existing literature. It is also important to present the findings in a scientific manner. The results obtained from the analysis are statistical in nature. At the end, procedure and findings are systematically drafted and Chapter 21 discusses the method to systematically draft research work and results.

2.2.10 Step 10: Management Decision and Its Implementation

As the last step of conducting a research programme, the findings are conveyed to the decision maker after consultation with the research programmer. The decision maker analyses the findings and takes an appropriate decision in the light of the statistical findings presented by the researcher. This is not a formal part of the research process. Here, it is included as a step of the research process, because it is the decision maker who will ultimately take the decision and is the managerial implication of the research programme.

REFERENCES

Aaker, D. A., V., Kumar and G. S. Day (2000). Marketing Research, 7th ed., p 70. Wiley.

Bender, D. E. and D. Ewbank (1994). “The Focus Group as the Tool for Health Research: Issues in Design and Analysis”, Health Transition Review, 4(1): 63–79.

Boddy, C. (2005). “Projective Techniques in Market Research: Valueless Subjectivity or Insightful Reality”, International Journal of Market Research, 47(3): 239–54.

Catterall, M. and P. Ibbotson (2000). “Using Projective Techniques in Education Research”, British Educational Research Journal, 26(2): 245–56.

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Hair, J. F., R. P. Bush and D. J. Ortinau (2002). Marketing Research: Within a Changing Information Environment, p. 41. Tata McGraw-Hill.

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Levin-Rozalis, M. (2006). “Using Projective Techniques in the Evaluation of Groups for Children of Rehabilitating Drug Addicts”, Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 27(5): 519–35.

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Ruspini, E. (1999). “Longitudinal Research and the Analysis of Social Change”, Quality & Quantity, 33: 219–27.

Steinman, R. B. (2009). “Projective Techniques in Consumer Research”, International Bulletin of Business Administration, 10 (5): 37–45.

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Yeager, J. (2003). “Innovative Motivational Profiling: Comparing Marketing Projective Techniques versus Linguistic Forensic Techniques”, The Qualitative Report, 8(1): 129–50.

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SUMMARY

The ability to take an informed decision is generated through a systematic study that is conducted through various interrelated stages. A research design is the detailed blueprint used to guide a research study towards its objective. A good research is ­conducted using the following 10 steps: problem or opportunity identification, decision maker and marketing researcher meeting to discuss the problem and opportunity dimensions, defining the management problem and subsequently the research problem, formal research proposal and introducing the dimensions to the problem, approaches to research, fieldwork and data ­collection, data preparation and data entry, performing data analysis, interpretation of result and presentation of findings, and management decision and its implementation.

Research may broadly be classified into three groups: exploratory research, descriptive research, and causal research. These three methods differ in terms of different aspects of conducting the research. As the name indicates, exploratory research is mainly used to explore the insight of the general research problem. It is used in obtaining background information, research problem formulation or defining it more precisely, identifying and defining key research variables, and developing hypotheses. The researchers use a variety of ­methods to conduct exploratory research. These methods are secondary data ­analysis, expert survey, focus group interviews, case analysis, and projective techniques.

The second type of research, descriptive research, is conducted to describe the business or market characteristics. Descriptive research can be further classified into cross-sectional study and longitudinal study. Cross-sectional research design involves collection of information from a sample of a population at only one point of time. Longitudinal study involves survey of the same population over a period of time. The third type of research, causal research, is conducted to identify the cause-and-effect relationship between two or more marketing (or decision) variables.

KEY TERMS

Approaches to research, 25

Case analysis, 31

Causal research, 28

Completion task, 35

Construction task, 35

Cross-sectional study, 38

Data analysis, 24

Descriptive research, 28

Expert survey, 31

Exploratory research, 28

Expressive task, 35

Focus group interview, 31

Longitudinal study, 38

Management problem, 24

Problem or opportunity identification, 24

Projective techniques, 31

Research problem, 24

Secondary data analysis, 31

Word association, 35

NOTES

1. http://www.lupinworld.com/about_index.htm, accessed on August 2009.
2. Prowess (V. 3.1): Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy Pvt. Ltd, Mumbai, accessed August 2009, reprinted with permission.
3. http://www.lupinworld.com/ceo.htm, accessed on August 2009.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. What are the steps in marketing research process design?
2. What is the difference between a management problem and a research problem?
3. What are the different types of research?
4. For what purposes, exploratory research is used?
5. What are the uses of main variables and moderating variables in conducting a research?
6. What are the different methods in conducting an exploratory research?
7. What is a focus group interview? Explain the advantages and disadvantages of focus group interviews.
8. What is a depth interview? Explain the advantages and disadvantages of depth interviews.
9. What is the importance of case analysis in understanding and exploring a research problem?
10. What are projective techniques? Explain the different types of projective techniques. Explain the advantages and disadvantages of projective techniques.
11. What is descriptive research and when do researchers conduct it.
12. What is a cross-sectional study?
13. What is a longitudinal study?
14. What is cause–effect relationship in a causal research?

CASE STUDY

Case 2: Castrol India Limited: A Journey from Market Growth to Market Saturation

Introduction

As the story of any other sector in India, the lubricant industry has witnessed growth after 1992 when the lubricant market was deregulated. The lubricant industry in India was mainly dominated by three major public sector companies (Indian Oil Corporation Limited, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited, and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited) capturing almost 90% of the market share. This scenario started changing by the year 2004, as the share of these public sectors started shrinking with the major part taken over by a private sector player, Castrol India Limited (CIL). Apart from these four major players, many multinationals have also entered the market to make the competition tougher. The Indian lubricant market, which was mainly driven by three public sector companies, is now operated by 40 players in the market.

There is no doubt that the lubricant industry is witnessing a phenomenal growth in the last few years. Table 2.01 lists the past and future demand for the lubricant industry.

TABLE 2.01 Past and future demand for lubricant industry in million metric tonnes

CIL: A Key Player of the Market

The lubricant industry in India is broadly divided into three major sectors: automotive, industrial and marine, and energy applications. The industry is led by four major players: Indian Oil Corporation Limited, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited, and CIL. These four companies constitute more than 70% of the total market share. There are several players including global majors operating in the balance 30% of the market, leading to an extremely competitive market. CIL is the subsidiary of Castrol Ltd, an UK-based British Petroleum (BP) group company. In 1979, Castrol amalgamated its business in India with Indrol Lubricants and Specialties Ltd. (A producer of automotive and industrial lubricants.) In 1982, this merged entity was converted into a public limited company. CIL acquired its present name in 1990. Over the years, the foreign parent expanded its stake from 40% in 1979 to 71% as on 30 September 2007.¹

In the year 2000, Castrol was acquired by BP. It has become the leading brand within BP’s lubricant business. Castrol was selected by BP because it was seen as one of the great lubricant brands in the world with a name that is synonymous with superbly engineered products of the highest quality. Its success can be witnessed by its vision and mission, “We will sustainably enhance the profitability of our customers by developing innovative products and services offers. As a result, we will become the manufacturing partner of choice within the Equipment Manufacturing and Industrial Maintenance market spaces.”² Table 2.02 exhibits sales and profit after tax (in million Rupees) of CIL from Mar-98 to Mar-09.

TABLE 2.02 Sales and profit after tax (in million Rupees) of CIL

Challenges Faced by CIL

As discussed earlier, Castrol witnessed a tremendous growth rate from 1991 to 1996. The market share of the public sector oil companies decreased from 90% in 1993 to more than 65% in 2004; CIL’s market share has gone up from 6% to 20%.³ After 1996, CIL focused on consolidation and efficiency rather than growth. As a measure of consolidation, CIL has initiated several initiatives such as computerization, total quality management, balanced scorecard performance management system, working capital management, and brand management.

The challenge faced by CIL is to succeed in an industry that has evolved and made the transition from the growth stage to the maturity stage. The period of rapid growth in demand accompanied by rapid expansion in revenues and profit is over. The growth in demand has slowed down because of the factors such as hike in oil prices, introduction of Euro II compliant vehicles, and problems in the agriculture sector. Competition has also increased. New competitors have entered the market—the MNC competitors—and new invigorated public sector units (PSUs) are fighting for market share.⁴

In a multiplayer environment, customers shifting from one brand to another are common. All the companies are coming up with unique offers not only to retain its customers but also to encroach in the customer base of other companies. Suppose CIL is also willing to examine “brand shift” from Castrol to other companies and from other companies to Castrol. What kind of research strategy will it be opting? What should be the steps of this research programme? Make a blue print of this research programme.

NOTES

1. Prowess (V. 3.1), Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy Pvt. Ltd, Mumbai, accessed August 2009, reprinted with permission.
2. http://www.castrol.com/castrol/sectiongenericarticle.do?categoryId=8278011&contentID=…
3. www.indiastat.com, accessed August 2009, reprinted with permission.
4. Anupam Bawa. (2005): Case Analysis II. Viklpa, Vol. 3, No. 3, p. 141.