Marketing Research - An Introduction

Every marketer requires marketing research, and most of the large companies have their own marketing research departments.  Marketing research involves a four-step procedure.  The first step consists of manager and researcher attentively defining the problem and setting the research objectives.  The objective can be descriptive, exploratory or causal.  The second step consists of developing the research plan for collecting the data from primary and secondary sources.  Primary data collection calls for selecting a research approach (, survey, observation, experiment); selecting a contact method (telephone, mail, personal); designing a sampling plan (how many to survey, whom to survey and how to choose them); and developing research instruments (mechanical, questionnaire).  The third step consists of implementing marketing research plan by processing, collecting and analyzing the information. The fourth step consists of reporting and interpreting the findings. Further information analysis support marketing managers to apply information and provides advanced statistical process and models to develop more exact findings from the information.

Some of the marketers face special marketing research considerations, like conducting research in non-profit, small-business, or international situations. Marketing research may be conducted effectively by small organizations having small budgets.  International marketing researchers follow the  similar  steps  as  domestic  researchers  but  frequently  face  more  challenging  problems. All of the organizations need to understand major public policy and morals issues surrounding the marketing research.