Chapter 8

Developing a Global Vision through Marketing Research

McGraw-Hill/Irwin

2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Where we are
Part

I:

Overview and the External Environment

The

Economic Environment Social / Cultural Environment Political, Legal and Regulatory Environment Part

2:

Assessing Opportunities
Marketing

Research Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning

Overview
Intro

and Scope of Global Marketing Research Sources of Market Information Marketing Research Process Current Issues Summary In Class Exercise

Illustration of the importance of Marketing Research

Selling

Apples in Japan

Washington State Apples

Why did the sales of apples decline?
Seasonality Nationalism Competition

Apple Computer

Issues
Businesses slow to use PCs as a means of increasing productivity Philosophical differences

Marketing Research
1. Defined as the systematic gathering, recording, and analyzing of data to provide information useful in marketing decision making.

8-2

International Marketing Research Complications

2. Information must be communicated across cultural boundaries. 3. The environments within which the research tools are applied are often different in foreign markets.

Irwin/McGraw-Hill

The Scope of Global Research

How

is international marketing research different?

Added complexity / diversity Need to consider priorities and allocation of resources between countries 3 types of different information needs:
Assessment

of foreign markets (general information relating to countries) Industry information (relates to product category) Specific Market Information (used to develop marketing plan)

International Marketing Research Occurs at Different Levels

Assessment of a foreign market (general information about a country)
Economic Social / Cultural Political / Legal Technological

Industry Information (relates to product category)

Market size Segmentation Competition Consumer

Specific market information (used to develop marketing plans)

Product Pricing Distribution Promotion

Steps in the Research Process

8-3

Step I: Define the research problem Step 2: Developing a research plan Step 3: Collecting data Step 4: Analysing research data Step 5: Presenting the findings

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Research Process in Detail

1.

Define the problem and establish objectives

Critical step because of unfamiliarity with international markets Problems can arise when researchers:
Fail

to recognize or anticipate the influence of the local culture or fail to identify the SRC effect
Treats the problem as if it exists in the home country

Fail

to establish problem limits broad enough to include all relevant data

Collecting Data
Primary Data When data is not available, and must be obtained through some form of data collection. Secondary Data When data exists and is available through a variety of sources (i.e. internet, publications, government records, etc.)

Problems with obtaining relevant data

Secondary

Data defined Data collected by another agency or researcher Problems with obtaining relevant and accurate Secondary data 1. Availability of Data 2. Reliability of Data 3. Comparability of Data 4. Validating Secondary Data

Validating Secondary Data

Who collected the data ? Would there be any reason for purposely misrepresenting the facts ? For what purpose were the data collected ?

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How were the data collected ? (Methodology)

Are the data internally consistent and logical in light of known data sources or market factors ?

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Primary & Secondary Data

Secondary
Readily available, used for other purposes

Primary
Generated first-hand, tailor made research

Availability Relevancy Reliability Comparability

Issues

Ability to communicate Willingness Sampling Plan Language/Comprehension

Gathering Primary Data

8-6

Quantitative Research Qualitative Research

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Methods for Developing Primary Data

Focus Groups Panels Experiments

Data
Qualitative? Quantitative?

Surveys

Observation

Interviews

Focus Group Research

Problems of Gathering Primary Data

Ability to Communicate Opinions

8-7

Willingness to Respond Sampling in Field Surveys Language and Comprehension

Back Translation Parallel Translation

Decentering

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Uses of Internet in International Research

o On-Line Surveys and Buyer Panels
8-8

o On-Line Focus Groups

o Web Visitor Tracking o Advertising Measurement o Customer Identification Systems o E-Mail Marketing Lists o Embedded Research

Irwin/McGraw-Hill

Copyright2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Talents Required to Analyze and Interpret Research Information

Cultural Understanding
8-9

Creative Talent for Adapting Research Findings Skeptical Attitudes when Handling Both Primary and Secondary Research

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Estimating Market Demand

Historical Data Local Production Plus Imports

8-10

Expert Opinion
Analogy

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Five Rules of International Research

1. Apply the WHAT, WHY, WHERE and WHEN of information. 2. Use locally available information first. 3. Identify information sources abroad. 4. Know where to look. 5. Do not assume the information you get is comparable or accurate.

Problems with Multicultural Research

Multicultural

research defined:

Conducting research where countries have difference languages, social structures, behavior and attitudes. Differences need to be considered and used when conducting research Comparability is difficult

Other important Points

A. Research on the Internet Fastest growing method of conducting research Although U.S. hosts 2/3 of the internet usage, international usage is growing at twice the rate over the U.S (examples) www.stat-usa.gov, (data published by U.S. government) www.exporthotline.com (private website that provides market research for 80 countries) B. Estimating market demand where secondary data is inadequate or not available 1. Expert opinion 2. Analogy (demand in one country is similar to demand in another country) Can be inaccurate and mistakes are likely to occur

Other important Points

C. Communicating with Decision Makers
Needs

to be timely and top managers should be knowledgeable about all their markets and customers

D. Problems in Analyzing and Interpreting Research Information

Researcher

must have the following to avoid incorrect interpretations of the research data Be culturally adept and sensitive to differences Be able to adapt research results appropriately Be skeptical in handling both primary and secondary data

Other Important Points

D. Who is responsible for conducting Marketing Research
Assigned

by company (department or division or agent) Local analysts (decentralized) Best approach is to have local researchers with close coordination between local research company and headquarters.