Chapter Notes: Understanding Marketing Research and Ethical Considerations

1 CHAPTER NOTES Marketing research is the process of acquiring and analyzing data to be used in creating, carrying out, and evaluating a company's marketing strategies. Few people realize that marketing research is a far bigger and more widespread activity. Environmental Influences on Marketing ○ Competitive ○ Technological ○ Economic ○ Natural ○ Political/Legal ○ Social ● The following three key groups do marketing research: Businesses that manufacture or offer products and services, such as JC Penny and Sears Advertising firms (help consumers' interests and habits be understood) Companies that conduct marketing research (sometimes very small comps) Key Qualifications for Marketing Careers ○ analytical, communicative, good with people, at ease dealing with data and statistical methods, and knowledgeable about a wide range of marketing tactics. Why is it crucial to study marketing research? It teaches you how to use marketing research findings wisely as a consumer. Notes on the Marketing Research Process in Chapters 2 and 3 Definition of the Problem, Data Gathering, Data Analysis, and Information Reporting Data collection involves reflecting on and reviewing existing data in order to find primary data. Problem definition is when a problem or opportunity is clearly defined and can be researched. Casual research uses experiments to identify cause and effect relationships between variables. Descriptive research concentrates on describing a population, frequently emphasizing the frequency with which something occurs or the extent to which two variables interact

2 Edit data, code data, and comprehend data are all part of data analysis. ● Information Reporting: ○ Written research document report given to management that summarizes research results and conclusion. ● Each step within this roces is vital to success, no section should get more/less attention to the others. THE PRIMARY AIM IS TO MINIMIZE TOTAL ERROR! Marketing ethics are the standards of behavior that marketers should adhere to. There are three different types of ethical reasoning. Utility Approach: Do the Advantages Outweigh the Costs? Justice approach: Are costs and benefits allocated fairly? Rights-based perspective: Are human rights upheld? Research to evade: Research that is unethical, done to support a decision that has already been made, for which there are insufficient resources, and research whose costs outweigh its potential rewards