Marketing Research

1. Marketing Research Aaker, Kumar, Day Ninth Edition Instructor’s Presentation Slides

2. Chapter Ten Information from Respondents: Survey Methods http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

3. Basic Survey Methods • Personal Interview • Telephone Interview • Mail Survey http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

4. Personal Interviewing Characterized by interaction of Four Entities: • Researcher • Interviewer • Interviewee • Interview Environment http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

5. Personal Interview Methods • Door to Door Interviewing • Executive Interviewing • Mall Intercept Surveys • Self-Administered Interviews • Purchase Intercept Technique (PIT) • Omnibus Surveys http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

6. Personal Interviews (Contd.) Advantages: • Can arouse and keep interest • Can build rapport • Ask complex questions with the help of visual and other aids • Clarify misunderstandings • High degree of flexibility • Probe for more complete answers • Good for neutral questions • Do not need an explicit or current list of households or individuals http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

7. Personal Interviews (Contd.) Limitations: • Bias of Interviewer • Response Bias • Embarrassing/personal questions • Time Requirements • Cost Per Completed Interview Is High • Trained staff of interviewers geographically near the sample required http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

8. Comparative Indices of Direct Costs per Completed Interview* *Includes travel and telephone charges, interviewer compensation, training, and direct supervision expenses http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

9. Telephone Interviewing • Selecting telephone numbers • Pre-specified list • A directory • Random dialing procedure • Random digit dialing • Systematic random digit dialing (SRDD) • Plus-one dialing http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

10. Telephone Interviewing (Contd.) Advantages: • Central location, under supervision, at own hours • More interviews can be conducted in a given time • Travelling time is saved • Shorter data collection periods • More hours of the day are productive • Repeated call backs at lower cost (WATS) • Absence of administrative costs • Lower cost per completed interview • Less sample bias due to nonresponse • Intrusiveness of the phone • Ease of call backs http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

11. Telephone Interviewing (Contd.) Limitations: • Inability to employ visual aids or complex tasks • Interviewer must rely solely on verbal cues to judge the reaction and understanding of respondents • Can't be longer than 5-10 min. or they get boring • Amount of data that can be collected is relatively less • A capable interviewer essential • Potential for sample bias • No phone, unlisted phone or mobile phones http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

12. Mail Surveys • Requires a broad identification of the individuals to be sampled before data collection begins Some Decisions That Need to Be Taken Are: • Type of Return Envelope • Postage • Method of Addressing • Cover Letter • The Questionnaire Length, Layout, Color, Format etc • Method of Notification • Incentive to Be Given http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

13. Mail Surveys (Contd.) Advantages: • Lower cost • Better results, including a shorter response time • Reliable answers as no inhibiting intermediary • Survey answered at respondents’ discretion http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

14. Mail Surveys (Contd.) Limitations: • The identity of the respondent is inadequately controlled • No control over whom the respondent consults before answering the questions • The speed of the response can't be monitored • No control on the order in which the questions are exposed and answered • Respondents’ understanding of the questions http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

15. Mail Surveys (Contd.) Limitations (Contd.): • The respondent may not clearly understand the question and has no opportunity to clarify • Cannot have long questionnaires • Subject to availability of a mailing list • Response rate is generally poor • Number of problems such as obsolescence, omissions, duplications, etc http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

16. Factors Affecting the Response Rate • Perceived amount of work required, length of the questionnaire and ease of completion • Intrinsic interest in the topic • Characteristics of the sample • Credibility of the sponsoring organization • Level of induced motivation http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

17. Coping with Non-response to Mail Surveys To achieve high response rate: • Include monetary incentive • Send a follow-up letter • Include return envelope Alternatives: • Mail Panels • Fax Surveys • Web surveys http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

18. Response Rate Chart http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

19. Combination of Survey Methods • The Telephone Pre-notification Approach • The Lockbox Approach • The Drop-off Approach http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

20. Personal Interviewing Advantages • The best way to implement some sample designs. • Most effective way of enlisting cooperation. • Advantages of interview questions-probing for adequate answers, accurately following complex instructions or sequences. • Multi-method data collection feasible • Rapport and confidence building possible. • Probably longer interviews can be done in person. http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

21. Personal Interviewing (contd.) Disadvantages • Likely to be more costly than alternatives. • A trained staff of interviewers that is geographically near the sample is needed. • The total data collection period is likely to be longer than for most procedures. • Some samples may be more accessible by some other mode. http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

22. Telephone Interviewing Advantages • Lower costs than personal interviews. • Random Digit-Dialing (RDD) sampling of general population. • Better access to certain populations • Shorter data collection periods. • The advantages of interviewer administration (In contrast to mail surveys). • Interviewer staffing and management easier than personal interviews • Likely better response rate from a list sample than from mail http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

23. Telephone Interviewing (contd.) Disadvantages • Sampling limitations, especially as a result of omitting those without telephone • Non-response associated with RDD sampling is higher than with interviews • Questionnaires or measurement constraints • Possibly less appropriate for personal or sensitive questions if no prior contact http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

24. Self-Administration Surveys Advantages • Ease of presenting questions requiring visual aids. • Asking questions with long or complex response categories is facilitated. • Asking batteries of similar questions is possible. http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

25. Self-Administration Surveys (contd.) Disadvantages • Especially careful questionnaire design is needed. • Open questions usually are not useful. • Good reading and writing skills are needed by respondents. • The interviewer is not present to exercise quality control with respect to answering all questions, meeting questions objectives, or the quality of answers provided. http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

26. Mail Procedures Advantages • Relatively low cost • Can be accomplished with minimal staff and facilities. • Provides access to widely dispersed samples. • Respondents have time to give thoughtful answers, look up records, or consult others. Disadvantages • Ineffective as a way of enlisting cooperation. • Various disadvantages of not having interviewer involved in data collection. • Need for good mailing addresses for sample. http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

27. Drop-off Questionnaire Advantages • The interviewer can explain the study, answer questions, and designate a respondent. • Response rates tend to be like those of personal interview studies. • There is more opportunity to give thoughtful answers and consult records. Disadvantages • Costs about as much as personal interviews. • A field staff is required. http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

28. Fax Surveys Advantages • Relatively low cost; local faxes are free. • Can be accomplished with minimal staff and facilities • Provides access to widely dispersed samples. • Respondents have time to give thoughtful answers. • Telephone charges are decreasing. • Technology is improving. • List management is easy. • Fast; can send and receive by computer. • More reliable than mail in some countries http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

29. Fax Surveys (contd.) Disadvantages • Higher fixed costs for computer/fax equipment, multiple phone lines. • Costs increase with minutes. • Cost varies by time on line, time of day, distance, and telephone carrier. • Usually limited to organizational populations. • Loss of anonymity. http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

30. Trends in Survey Research • Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing • Computer-Assisted Self-interviewing • Fully Automated Self-interviewing • Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI) • Computer Discs by Mail • Electronic Mail Survey • Computer-generated Fax Survey http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/

31. Surveys in the International Context • Personal Interviewing • Dominant mode of data collection outside the US • Telephone Interviews • Low levels of telephone ownership in some countries • Poor communication network in some countries • Mail Surveys • Absence of mailing lists • Poor mail services in some countries http://www.drvkumar.com/mr9/