Types of marketing research. Types of methods and process of marketing research Types and methods of marketing research briefly

Traditionally, taking into account the fundamental plan for conducting marketing research, that is, the tasks solved in it, the following types of research are distinguished:

intelligence;
descriptive;
experimental;
innovative.

Intelligence research is carried out in the event that there is the most vague idea about the object of research and the researcher is not yet able to put forward any hypotheses. For example, it is necessary to investigate the possibility of the emergence of a market for some especially new (fundamentally new or new for a given country) goods.

Descriptive research presupposes a systematic qualitative and quantitative description of an object. So, a certain type of product or service has a significant distribution in the market of a particular city. The entrepreneur wants to find out what the volume of the actual market for this product will be in another city, where he is going to implement his expansion plans.

Experimental research (the most important condition for its implementation is the presence of sufficiently serious knowledge and significant information on the problem under study) is aimed at analyzing cause-and-effect relationships in the development of certain economic processes. So, the entrepreneur sets the task of finding out how effective the advertising impact on the market will be in a certain situation. For this, an experiment is carried out to reveal how much the effect of the controlled variable (additional advertising impact) increases the number of sales.

Common type marketing research undoubtedly, the work carried out according to the innovative plan should be considered. Such a study is close to experimental in nature. However, it aims not just to identify causal relationships in an object, but to develop, based on knowledge of such relationships, some new methods of activity, marketing. In other words, in parallel with the conduct of the study itself (detection of problems, diagnosis of the situation), there is a search for ways to solve the identified problems, that is, the search for forms and methods of the most efficient organization marketing.

Marketing research can be carried out in the form of:

consumer opinion polls;
proper marketing research problem.

As for public opinion polls, that is, conducted on the basis of a representative sample using interview techniques or a questionnaire survey of studying the opinions of consumers of various goods and services, they are essential in marketing. Indeed, in the process of conducting a marketing research, an entrepreneur is most often interested not in the deep beliefs and moods of potential buyers, but in the consumers' assessments of the quality and other characteristics of goods and services, which mainly affect the decision-making to purchase a product or use a service. Such assessments are just contained in public opinion.

The specificity of a public opinion poll as a type of marketing research is that when it is carried out, a detailed research program is not developed (although here it is necessary to clarify the basic concepts and justify the representativeness of the sample), but are limited to a short business plan. Such marketing research is carried out most often, often it is their results that a firm, a company is limited, making decisions about working in a particular market.

Marketing research itself is deep, complex work on the study of certain markets, their segmentation, analysis of types of consumers or the effectiveness of advertising impact on them. When carrying out such studies, a detailed program is developed, hypotheses are put forward, a fairly serious arsenal of methods is used (polls, document analysis, observation, experiments, testing, etc.). The conclusions of such a study, the recommendations on its results, are qualitatively different from those inherent in public opinion polls.

An in-depth interview is a semi-structured personal conversation between the interviewer and the respondent in a form that encourages the latter to give detailed answers to the questions asked.

Distinctive features

The interview takes place in the form of a free conversation on a topic of interest to the researcher, during which the researcher receives from the respondent very detailed information about the reasons for his actions, about his attitude to various issues.

Technology

Preparing the structure of the conversation... Before starting a series of interviews, the researcher prepares a plan according to which the interview will be conducted. Unlike a regular survey, an in-depth interview plan is simply a list of questions on which the interviewer should get the respondent's opinion.

Selecting respondents and conducting interviews... After preparing the plan of the interview, the respondents are selected and the interviews themselves are conducted. The duration of an in-depth interview can be from half an hour to several (2-3) hours, depending on the complexity of the topic, as well as the number and depth of the issues studied. As a rule, an in-depth interview is conducted in a special room with a neutral atmosphere and good soundproofing, in order to avoid any external interference. The interview is recorded on audio and / or video equipment to facilitate subsequent decryption and analysis of data, as well as in order not to lose important information.

Processing of interview results and preparation of an analytical report... After completion of the interview, his audio and / or video is processed, as a result of which the researcher receives the full text of the entire interview. An analytical report is drawn up on the basis of these texts and the interviewer's impressions.

Interviewers

The success of an in-depth interview largely depends on the professionalism and personal qualities of the interviewer. To conduct an interview, a qualified specialist is required, preferably with a psychological education. He must have the skills of establishing contact with people, a good memory, the ability to quickly respond to non-standard answers, patience. During the interview, one should not exert psychological pressure on the respondent, argue with him.

Application

As a rule, in-depth interviews are used to solve the same problems as focus groups, namely:

study of consumer behavior, their relationship to goods, companies, brands;
development of new products, evaluation of the concept of a new product (packaging, advertising campaign, etc.);
obtaining a preliminary reaction of consumers to various marketing programs.

It is advisable to use an in-depth interview instead of a focus group in the following cases:

the topic of the interview involves a discussion of purely personal topics (personal finances, diseases);
interviews are conducted with representatives of competing organizations who will not agree to discuss this topic in a group;
discusses a topic in which there are strong social norms, and the respondent's opinion may be influenced by the group's response (paying taxes, etc.);
it is impossible to collect all the respondents in one place and at the same time (respondents are few in number, distant from each other and / or very busy).

Advantages and disadvantages

Main disadvantages in-depth interview methods are associated with the difficulty of finding interviewers. First, in-depth interviews require skilled professionals who are not easy to find. Further, the quality of the interview results is strongly influenced by the personality and professionalism of the interviewer. And, finally, the complexity of processing and interpreting the data obtained during the interview, as a rule, requires the involvement of psychologists for their analysis.

Dignity... With the help of in-depth interviews, you can get more complete information about a person's behavior, about the reasons for this behavior, his deep motives, which is not always possible in a focus group, where respondents put pressure on each other and it is difficult to determine who exactly gave this or that answer.

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Introduction

Marketing Is a relatively young scientific and applied discipline. The term first appeared in the American economic literature in 1902. Since the mid-twentieth century, the concept of marketing has rapidly conquered the minds of both theorists and practitioners - economists and managers. The intensive development of the theory and practice of management led to the accumulation of a huge empirical material about business processes, consumer behavior and competition. A number of scientists were able to systematize and generalize the available facts. Progress in theory, practical activity in the market gave rise to a new trend in the science of management - marketing.

In the very general view marketing means the study of the market for a specific purpose. In marketing, which is designed to meet the needs of people, research is essential. In market conditions, those firms and companies that know these needs better than others and produce goods capable of satisfying them gain advantages. But the market is constantly changing, the needs of people are also changing under the influence of various factors, so firms, in order to make a profit, must constantly monitor the market conditions.

It is through market research that firms can track changes in customer needs. Marketing research Is any research activity that meets the needs of marketing.

As a rule, the need for marketing research arises in cases when: 1) the company has not achieved its marketing goals; 2) the firm loses its position to a competitor; 3) the company is going to diversify its activities; 4) the firm prepares a new business plan; 5) any other cases when managers find it difficult to choose actions or involve significant investments.

What does marketing research give?

They enable firms to increase their knowledge of the marketing challenges they face, that is, to reduce the uncertainty in their marketing decisions. Very often, the main goal of marketing research is the desire to give an adequate description of market processes and phenomena, to reflect the position and capabilities of the company in the market. Typically, market research involves the market, competitors, consumers, goods, the marketing environment, the price of goods, and the promotion of goods. Marketing research results in developments that are used in the selection and implementation of marketing strategies and tactics.

ChapterI... The essence of marketing research

Concept, goals and objectives of marketing research

Marketing research Is a systematic search, collection, analysis and presentation of data and information related to the specific market situation that the company had to face. Marketing research can also be defined as the systematic collection, recording and analysis of data on marketing and marketing problems in order to improve the quality of decision-making and control procedures in the marketing environment. There are a number of similar and different definitions of marketing research. 1

The main goals of marketing research:

Reduce uncertainty and minimize risk in the process of making management decisions;

Monitor the implementation of marketing tasks.

The global goals of marketing research are marketing information support, that is, the collection of the necessary information and analytical support, which consists in using mathematical models to analyze data and obtain forecasts with their help and the possibility of making optimal decisions.

At the macro level, marketing research should identify and model the patterns and trends in the development of the market, assess the market situation, determine the market capacity and forecast demand.

At the micro level, assessments are given, an analysis and forecast of the firm's own capabilities (its potential and competitiveness), the state and development prospects of the market segment in which this firm operates are carried out.

The tasks of marketing research can be very diverse and dictated by the needs of developing a marketing strategy, the formation of price, product, communication, sales policy and other aspects of marketing management in the enterprise. The most typical tasks of marketing research to be solved:

Study of the characteristics of the market;

Measurement of potential market opportunities;

Analysis of the distribution of market shares between firms;

Sales analysis;

Study of trends in business activity;

Study of competitors' products;

Short-term forecasting;

Studying the reaction to a new product and its potential;

Long-term forecasting;

Study of pricing policy.

Marketing research is advisable in the following cases:

Insufficient amount of information for making a decision;

The presence of internal contradictions regarding the strategy, goals, mechanisms for their implementation;

Deterioration of the situation (loss of the market, slowdown in trade, etc.);

Exploring the reasons for unexpected success;

Formation of new strategic or tactical ideas.

Marketing research is carried out either by the firms' own marketing services or on a commercial basis by specialized marketing firms.

Stages of marketing research

When starting a marketing research, you need to make sure that the company needs it to improve business results, it is necessary to clearly define the needs and requirements of these buyers, to establish the importance of solving this problem in their fuller satisfaction, as well as to ensure effective business activity. This can give the appropriate effect if you carefully plan the entire process of marketing research. Despite the variety of types of marketing research conducted by firms, they are based on a general methodology that determines the order of their implementation. There are usually five main stages of marketing research:

Identifying problems and formulating research objectives

Selection of sources, collection and analysis of secondary marketing information

Planning and organizing the collection of primary information

Systematization and analysis of the collected information

Presentation of the obtained research results

Identifying problems and formulating research objectives... At this stage, marketing managers and the researcher must clearly define the problem and agree on the objectives of the research. If, for example, a manager simply says to a researcher, “Go and collect data on the market for our product,” he will probably be disappointed with the result of the work. After all, the market can be researched by hundreds of different parameters. If the research data is to be useful, it must have a direct bearing on the problem the firm is facing and needs to be addressed. Gathering information is expensive, and a vague or incorrect definition of the problem leads to waste.

After identifying the burning issue, the manager should formulate the objectives of the study. These goals can be search, i.e. provide for the collection of some preliminary data, shedding light on the problem, and possibly helping to choose a hypothesis. They can also be descriptive, i.e. provide a description of certain phenomena. There are also extreme goals, i.e. providing for testing the hypothesis of some causal relationship, for example, that a decrease in the price of a product by 2 thousand rubles. will cause an increase in its sales by 10%.

Selection of information sources... At this stage, it is necessary to determine the type of information of interest to the customer and the ways of its most effective collection. The researcher can collect secondary or primary data, or both at the same time.

Research usually begins with collecting secondary data.

Secondary data serves as a starting point for research. They compare favorably with the fact that they are cheaper and more affordable.

However, the information the researcher needs may simply not be available, or the existing data may turn out to be outdated, inaccurate, and incomplete. In this case, the researcher will have to collect primary data at a much greater cost and time, which is likely to be more relevant and accurate.

The second of the above stages of the marketing research process consists in the sequential implementation of certain procedures presented in Appendix 1.

Collection of information... Planning and organizing the collection of primary information is rightfully considered the most time-consuming stage of the marketing research process, the sequence of the main procedures of which is presented in Appendix 2.

Marketing research plays an important role in the process of creating and promoting a brand in the market. Without conducting research at one stage or another, competent brand building is not possible. Marketing research is a kind of link between the client, consumer and developer. It is marketing research that helps the client and the agency to better understand and hear both the end consumer and each other.

Many factors influence the brand building process. This is, first of all, the experience of the future owner and developer of the brand. In addition, competitors and information from open sources have an impact. But all these data, although they are very valuable, are nevertheless secondary data: the opinion of real, final consumers is taken into account separately, through the prism of professional market participants. While competently conducted marketing research allows you to hear an unbiased opinion of the final target audience, identify her desires, needs, perception barriers, get a vision of the real picture of the market. Research is an effective marketing tool in the hands of a professional, it helps to determine the constants on the basis of which the development will be carried out, it can follow market trends, or go against the generally accepted opinion, thus, research serves as a kind of navigation system that allows you to find a starting point for everyone subsequent developments.

There are several stages in the process of creating and promoting a brand on the market when taking into account the opinion of the consumer is critically important:

Types of marketing research

In marketing, two types of research are predominantly used: quantitative and qualitative research. Depending on the specific objectives of the research, standard methods can be adapted to one degree or another, taking into account the characteristics of the target audience, the specifics of research materials, etc.

Quantitative research

Quantitative research is always primarily aimed at obtaining accurate statistical information. A feature of this type of research is the fact that the obtained values and ratios correspond to the same parameters for all consumers. This, in turn, allows you to plan sales volumes, clearly describe the target audience of the brand and other parameters of brand development. Similar studies require the participation of a relatively large number of consumers (respondents), this forces all surveys to be carried out according to a simple, formalized scheme (questionnaire). Answer options, in most cases, are either in a predetermined format or in numbers.

The most commonly used types of quantitative surveys are:

Questionnaire surveys... Street or telephone. They allow you to relatively quickly get information about a certain range of issues (specified in the questionnaire). They are effective for preliminary determination of the size and parameters of the target audience, express selection of one of the options for a creative solution, etc.
Hall tests... Conducted in a pre-prepared room, in which the interviewee is shown pre-prepared materials. They are used for detailed analysis and selection of the best creative solution, studying the organoleptic tastes of consumers, etc.
Panel polls... These are regularly conducted large-scale surveys, as a rule, among the same consumers, using the same questionnaires. They allow you to: very accurately estimate the number of consumers of certain brands and types of products, track the dynamics of the number of consumers, the number and volume of purchases, etc. Conducted by specialized research companies that subsequently sell similar data to clients and agencies. A significant disadvantage of panel studies is their generalized nature, therefore, as a rule, they can only serve for a general understanding of the market picture.

Qualitative research

Qualitative research is one in which relatively free conversation is conducted with representatives of the target audience on predetermined topics. A casual form of discussion makes it possible to reveal information that could have been missed in the questionnaire (there were no relevant questions and / or answer options), as well as complex logical reasoning or consumer emotions. These methods make it possible to reveal original and unexpected thoughts and stereotypes of consumers, on the basis of which the product properties of the product, positioning and creative ideas are developed.

The main types of qualitative research:

Focus groups... Discussion during which 8 consumers and a moderator (focus group leader) take part. The discussion is conducted within the framework of the guide (discussion plan). The method allows respondents to freely express themselves on the topics discussed, to conduct interpersonal discussion, which allows them to better understand consumer logic.
Personal interviews... The structure of the work resembles focus groups, but the interview is conducted not with the group, but in person (the interviewer is the interviewee). The method is more costly and time-consuming, however, in some cases, it is much more effective. In particular, it allows for a more frank conversation, especially on sensitive topics (medicines, hygiene products, etc.), to better understand the opinion of each individual consumer (within focus groups, informal leaders are often highlighted who push their own ideas and assessments).
A separate subtype of research data is expert interviews, when a discussion is conducted with a consumer or a specialist who has a very large amount of data on a topic of interest. The specificity of this method is the need to use specialized vocabulary that can significantly increase the effectiveness of the interview, and by demonstrating competence in professional vocabulary - to get more detailed and detailed answers.

Choice of research methods

There is a general rule of how and in what situations it is worth applying certain types of marketing research, for example, when the research is carried out in order to obtain information about consumer behavior and is intended to develop positioning and / or creative solutions, preference should be given to qualitative methods that allow you to hear not formalized, original and fresh opinions. At the same time, if it is necessary to choose one or another variant of a creative solution, and / or to estimate the number of consumers for planning the financial and economic parameters of brand development, it is worth using quantitative methods. However, the decision on the choice of methods and the development of schemes for conducting marketing research is definitely worth making together with the brand developers. The experience of professionals will help determine which type of research will be useful at a particular stage of work, which ultimately will save the budget and at the same time achieve the best results.

		Introduction
		The essence of marketing research
		Concept, goals and objectives of marketing research
		Stages of marketing research
		Methods and types of marketing research
		2.1 Methods of marketing research
		2.2 Types of marketing research
		Types of information and methods of collecting it.

		Using the results of marketing research
		Conclusion
		List of used literature
		Applications