Research Design

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 Research Design: Definition

• A research design is a framework or

blueprint for conducting the marketing
research project. It details the procedures
necessary for obtaining the information
needed to structure or solve marketing
research problems.

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 A Classification of Marketing Research
Designs

Research Design

Exploratory Conclusive
Research Design Research Design

Descriptive Causal
Research Research

Cross-Sectional Longitudinal
Design Design

Single Cross- Multiple Cross-

Sectional Design Sectional Design
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 Exploratory & Conclusive Research
Differences
Exploratory Conclusive
Objective: To provide insights and To test specific hypotheses and
understanding examine relationships

Character- Information needed is defined Information needed is clearly

istics: only loosely. Research process is
flexible and unstructured.
Sample is small and non-
representative. Analysis of
primary data is qualitative
defined. Research process is formal
and structured. Sample is large and
representative. Data analysis is
quantitative

Findings/ Tentative Conclusive

Results:

Outcome: Generally followed by further Findings used as input into decision

exploratory or conclusive making
research
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 A Comparison of Basic Research Designs

Exploratory Descriptive Causal

Objective: Discovery of ideas Describe market Determine cause
and insights characteristics or and effect
functions relationships

Characteristics: Flexible, versatile Marked by the prior Manipulation of

formulation of specific independent
hypotheses variables, effect
on dependent
Often the front end Preplanned and variables
of total research structured design
design Control mediating
variables
Expert surveys Secondary data:
Methods: Pilot surveys quantitative analysis Experiments
Case studies Surveys
Secondary data: Panels
qualitative analysis Observation and other
qualitative research data
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 Uses of Exploratory Research

• Formulate a problem or define a problem

more precisely
• Identify alternative courses of action
• Develop hypotheses
• Isolate key variables and relationships for
further examination
• Gain insights for developing an approach
to the problem
• Establish priorities for further research

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 Methods of Exploratory Research

• Survey of experts
• Pilot surveys
• Secondary data analyzed in a qualitative way
• Qualitative research

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 Use of Descriptive Research

• To describe the characteristics of relevant

groups, such as consumers, salespeople,
organizations, or market areas
• To estimate the percentage of units in a
specified population exhibiting a certain
behavior
• To determine the perceptions of product
characteristics
• To determine the degree to which marketing
variables are associated
• To make specific predictions
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 Methods of Descriptive Research

• Secondary data analyzed in a quantitative, as

opposed to a qualitative, manner
• Surveys
• Panels
• Observational and other data

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 Cross-Sectional Designs

• Involve the collection of information from any given sample of

population elements only once

• In single cross-sectional designs, there is only one sample

of respondents and information is obtained from this sample
only once.

• In multiple cross-sectional designs, there are two or more

samples of respondents, and information from each sample is
obtained only once. Often, information from different
samples is obtained at different times.

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 Longitudinal Designs

• A fixed sample (or samples) of population

elements is measured repeatedly on the
same variables

• A longitudinal design differs from a cross-

sectional design in that the sample or
samples remain the same over time

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 Cross-Sectional vs. Longitudinal

Cross- Sample
Sectional Surveyed
Design at T1

Same
Sample Sample
Longitudinal also
Surveyed
Design Surveyed
at T1
at T2

Time T1 T2
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 Relative Advantages and Disadvantages of
Longitudinal and Cross-Sectional Designs

Evaluation Cross-Sectional Longitudinal

Criteria Design Design

Detecting Change - +
Large amount of data collection - +
Accuracy - +
Representative Sampling + -
Response bias + -

Note: A “+” indicates a relative advantage over the other

design, whereas a “-” indicates a relative disadvantage.

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 Uses of Causal Research

• To understand which variables are the cause

(independent variables) and which variables
are the effect (dependent variables) of a
phenomenon

• To determine the nature of the relationship

between the causal variables and the effect
to be predicted

• METHOD: Experiments

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 Potential Sources of Error in Research Designs

Total Error

Random Non-sampling
Sampling Error Error

Response Non-response
Error Error

Researcher Interviewer Respondent

Error Error Error
Surrogate Information Error Respondent Selection Error Inability Error
Measurement Error Questioning Error Unwillingness Error
Population Definition Error Recording Error
Sampling Frame Error Cheating Error
Data Analysis Error
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 Marketing Research Proposal

• Executive Summary
• Background
• Problem Definition/Objectives of the
Research
• Approach to the Problem
• Research Design
• Fieldwork/Data Collection
• Data Analysis
• Reporting
• Cost and Time
• Appendices
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