Deck 4: Marketing Research and Information Systems

Question 1

Discuss the role of the marketing information system in helping marketing managers make better decisions.

Answer 1

A marketing information system (MIS) is a framework for the day-to-day management and structuring of information gathered regularly from sources both inside and outside the organization. As such, an MIS provides a continuous flow of information about prices, advertising expenditures, sales, competition, and distribution expenses and can be an important asset for developing effective marketing strategies. The main focuses of an MIS are on data storage and retrieval, as well as on computer capabilities and management's information requirements. MIS can help with producing regular sales reports by product or market categories, data on inventory levels, and records of salespeople's activities, which can all help in marketing decision making.

Question 2

All of the following are steps in the marketing research process except

A) collecting data.
B) interpreting research findings.
C) designing the research project.
D) reporting research findings.
E) understanding your customer.

Answer 2

E

Question 3

Compare and contrast the response rates of the four basic survey methods. Are there methods to increase any of these response rates?

Answer 3

The four basic survey methods include mail surveys, telephone surveys, online surveys, and personal interview surveys. A mail survey is less expensive than a telephone or personal interview survey as long as the response rate is high enough to produce reliable results. A major disadvantage of this method is the possibility of a low response rate. One method of improving response rates involves attaching a brief personal message on a Post-it Note to the survey packet. Premiums or incentives that encourage respondents to return questionnaires have been effective in developing panels of respondents who are interviewed regularly by mail. A telephone survey has some advantages over a mail survey. The rate of response is higher because it takes less effort to answer the telephone and talk than to fill out and return a questionnaire. If enough interviewers are available, a telephone survey can be conducted very quickly. However, only a small proportion of the population likes to participate in telephone surveys or interviews. This can significantly limit participation and distort representation. Many households are excluded from telephone directories by choice (unlisted numbers) or because the residents moved after the directory was published. Potential respondents often use telephone answering machines, voice mail, or caller ID to screen or block calls; additionally, millions have signed up for "Do Not Call Lists." Moreover, an increasing number of Americans are giving up their fixed telephone lines in favor of cellular or wireless phones. These issues have serious implications for the use of telephone samples in conducting surveys or interviews. In an online survey, questionnaires can be transmitted to respondents either through e-mail or through a website. Marketing researchers often send these surveys to online panel samples purchased from professional brokers or put together by the company. The potential advantages of online surveys are quick response and lower cost than traditional mail, telephone, and personal interview surveys if the response rate is adequate. Marketers can use digital media forums such as chat rooms, blogs, newsgroups, social networks, and research communities to identify trends in interests and consumption patterns. In a personal interview survey, participants respond to questions face-to-face. Respondents can be selected more carefully, and reasons for nonresponse can be explored. Today, many personal interviews are conducted in shopping malls. Shopping mall intercept interviews involve interviewing a percentage of individuals who pass by an "intercept" point in a mall. Like any face-to-face interviewing method, mall intercept interviewing has many advantages.

Question 4

Compare reliability and validity. Why are they important considerations in marketing research?

Question 5

Explain the conditions that would favor an exploratory study over a conclusive study.

Question 6

Marketing research is a process designed to gather information

A) exclusively about a company's customers.
B) from the company's database.
C) not currently available to decision makers.
D) about the needs and desires of employees.
E) concerning the interpretation of the company's sales goals.

Question 7

To maintain the control needed to obtain accurate information, marketers approach marketing research as a process. Which of the following steps of that process focuses on uncovering the nature and boundaries of the marketing situation to be studied?

A) Locating and defining problems
B) Designing the project
C) Collecting data
D) Interpreting findings
E) Reporting findings

Question 8

Compare the advantages and disadvantages of the two types of collecting a sample.

Question 9

What pitfalls should a marketing researcher avoid in preparing a report for a company executive? Why?

Question 10

How can companies use information technology as a competitive advantage?

Question 11

Why is ethics an important consideration in marketing research?

Question 12

The use of marketing research is

A) limited strictly to large corporations.
B) limited to for-profit businesses of all sizes.
C) controlled by the federal government.
D) widespread throughout business and nonprofit organizations.
E) carefully monitored by each state's trade agencies.

Question 13

Pointing out any deficiencies and the possible reasons for them should be done in the ____ step of the marketing research process.

A) interpreting research findings
B) collecting data
C) defining the issue or problem
D) reporting research findings
E) designing the research project

Question 14

Decreasing sales, increasing expenses, or decreasing profits

A) are to be expected during the marketing research process.
B) are examples of symptoms that point to larger problems.
C) usually have no effect on the marketing research process.
D) are important considerations in designing the research project.
E) should be carefully considered before collecting data.

Question 15

Why is it essential that a questionnaire be carefully designed and prepared? What problems can arise when a survey has not been well thought out?

Question 16

The real value of marketing research to the organization can best be measured by

A) its immediate impact on profits
B) the amount of time spent.
C) how much it costs.
D) improvements in the ability to make decisions.
E) the increase in sales volume or market share.

Question 17

Why would a personal interview be favored over a mail or telephone survey?

Question 18

Problem location and definition is the first step toward finding a solution to a marketing problem or launching a research study. The first sign of a problem

A) involves an informed guess or assumption about a certain set of circumstances.
B) is usually accompanied by a cost/benefit analysis.
C) most often comes in the form of customer complaints.
D) is often mentioned in secondary data reports, such as trade journals.
E) is typically a departure from some normal function, such as a failure to attain objectives.

Question 19

Marketing research is best defined as

A) the systematic design, collection, interpretation, and reporting of information to help marketers solve specific marketing problems or take advantage of market opportunities.
B) a framework for the day-to-day management and structuring of information gathered by marketers.
C) a continuous gathering of data for an organization, the systematic design, collection, to make marketing decisions take advantage of market opportunities.
D) the collecting of data from secondary sources and internal documents.
E) an intuitive process for making decisions based on personal knowledge and experience to take advantage of market opportunities.

Question 20

How does marketing research differ when conducted in other countries?

Question 21

Students from a marketing research class are involved in a project about the level of sleep, exercise, and stress individuals experience. They have decided to collect data from three student-center areas on campus. When they analyze their data they find the responses are very similar across the three areas. The students feel comfortable they have achieved which of the following with regard to their data?

A) reliability
B) causal relationships
C) validity
D) sampling accuracy
E) measurability

Question 22

Research that allows marketers to make causal inferences about relationships is called

A) variable research.
B) relationality.
C) exploratory research.
D) linkage research.
E) experimental research.

Question 23

____ that are either accepted or rejected become the primary conclusions of a marketing research study.

A) Descriptions
B) Issues
C) Primary data
D) Samples
E) Hypotheses

Question 24

A firm has conducted market research and found that customer satisfaction with its product is quite high. Nonetheless, repurchase behavior is very low. The research design evidently has a problem with

A) secondary data.
B) reliability.
C) validity.
D) reporting findings.
E) generalizability.

Question 25

A study that is valid and reliable

A) is called a marketing research study.
B) measures what it is supposed to measure and produces almost identical results in repeated trials.
C) is expensive to implement and complete.
D) measures subtle differences in the population being studied and produces almost identical results in repeated trials.
E) is difficult to produce without expert researchers.

Question 26

Designing research procedures that produce reliable marketing data means that

A) others using the same procedure will get almost identical data.
B) the procedure must give results that support the hypothesis.
C) the procedure must not give results that contradict other research studies.
D) the procedure may give results that contradict other research studies.
E) sampling must be done in a completely random manner.

Question 27

Research that is conducted to clarify the characteristics of certain phenomena to solve a particular problem is called ____ research.

A) primary
B) experimental
C) descriptive
D) secondary
E) exploratory

Question 28

Jack knows his business has a problem because of an increasing number of consumer complaints received recently. He has decided how to make this problem a precise, researchable statement and should next move on to

A) calculating reliability and validity.
B) designing the research project.
C) collecting data.
D) interpreting research findings.
E) taking corrective action.

Question 29

When more information is needed about a problem and a tentative hypothesis needs to be made more specific, marketers usually conduct ____ research.

A) descriptive
B) experimental
C) exploratory
D) analytical statistical
E) conclusive

Question 30

Research designed to verify insights through an objective procedure to help marketers make decisions is called

A) primary.
B) secondary.
C) exploratory.
D) conclusive.
E) hypothetical.

Question 31

Cover Girl believes that sales of one of its lipstick lines have fallen due to the introduction of a new color palette. However, in order to best determine the impact of the color palette, Cover Girl should conduct _____ before proceeding with this tentative hypothesis.

A) experimental research.
B) hypothesis testing.
C) exploratory research.
D) conclusive research.
E) descriptive research.

Question 32

Suppose that marketers at Sun Products are trying to determine whether the use of free samples of Snuggle fabric softener was the reason for a sales increase in a particular store. The type of research conducted to answer this question is

A) exploratory.
B) descriptive.
C) experimental.
D) informal.
E) qualitative.

Question 33

Costco believes that most of its sales are to small businesses rather than consumers -- and that women are more likely to be making the purchasing decisions. This is an example of a(n) ____ that Costco could test through marketing research.

A) descriptive sample
B) hypothesis
C) experimental question
D) sampling error
E) conceptual error

Question 34

Palmetto Regional Hospital has designed an upcoming research project for determining the best methods for improving patient care. The next step the organization must take in the marketing research process is

A) interpreting research findings.
B) collecting data.
C) developing a testable hypothesis.
D) sampling the population.
E) reporting research findings.

Question 35

Marketing researchers at Nike decided to test several new designs and colors of shoes with its young, urban target market. The shoe colors used in the experiment were bright yellow, light blue, bright green, red, and black. Nike repeated the particular experiment several times in different large cities and discovered that the results produced each time were nearly identical. The participants preferred the green, red, and black. However, when the shoes were produced, the sales were higher for the plain white version, the black, and red. The sales of the bright green were very low. Nike couldn't understand why the test results were consistent, but the results didn't match with the actual sales. This phenomenon would indicate that the test results were _____ but not _____.

A) reliable; valid
B) valid; reliable
C) compatible; useful
D) predictable; compatible
E) compatible; valid

Question 36

If Little Caesars wants to determine the impact of different coupon offers on pizza unit sales, it needs to conduct

A) exploratory research.
B) hypothesis development.
C) survey research
D) stratified sampling.
E) experimental research.

Question 37

When marketing researchers try to manipulate an independent variable and measure the resulting changes in a dependent variable, they are engaging in

A) surveys.
B) secondary data gathering.
C) interviews.
D) observation.
E) xperimentation.

Question 38

An overall plan for obtaining the information needed to address a research problem or issue is called the

A) research design.
B) problem recognition.
C) hypothesis.
D) data collection method.
E) sampling procedure.

Question 39

A valid study

A) portrays the population being studied.
B) results in a causal relationship between the independent and dependent variables.
C) uses random sampling.
D) verifies expected results.
E) measures what it is supposed to.

Question 40

An informed guess or assumption about a certain problem or set of circumstances is known as

A) a description of the situation.
B) good research design.
C) a hypothesis.
D) a reliable guess.
E) managerial intuition.

Question 41

The two basic types of sampling that marketing researchers use are

A) random and nonrandom.
B) probability and nonprobability.
C) stratified and quota.
D) even and odd.
E) planned and spontaneous.

Question 42

When marketing researchers consider sampling techniques, they are preparing to collect ____ data.

A) census
B) statistical
C) internal secondary
D) ex ternal secondary
E) primary

Question 43

The objective of sampling in marketing research is to

A) obtain responses from as many people as possible.
B) control independent variables that might influence research results.
C) select representative units from a total population.
D) ensure that measures in the study are reliable.
E) provide data that can be used to test the hypotheses being investigated.

Question 44

Information from the U.S. Census Bureau is commonly used as ____ by a variety of agencies and organizations.

A) external secondary data
B) sampling systems
C) primary data
D) internal secondary data
E) hypotheses

Question 45

One overlooked internal source of secondary marketing information discussed in the text is

A) sales receipts.
B) accounting records.
C) interviews with salespeople.
D) quality control data.
E) consumer surveys.

Question 46

In which of the following sampling designs do all members of a population have an equal chance of being selected?

A) Stratified
B) Nonprobability
C) Quota
D) Random
E) Judgement

Question 47

Saks Fifth Avenue wants to learn about its consumers' attitudes toward on-line purchases. There are numerous studies that are available about consumers and on-line buying, but Saks believes its customers might be different from the usual on-line consumer profile, so they decide to conduct their own study. If Saks were to use the available data about consumer attitudes, it would be using ___ data; however, if Saks does its own study it would collect ______ data.

A) descriptive; primary
B) experimental; descriptive
C) secondary; primary
D) primary; secondary
E) secondary; descriptive

Question 48

All the elements, individuals, or units of interest to researchers for a specific study are called the

A) data set.
B) sample.
C) population.
D) focus group.
E) target market.

Question 49

Secondary data cannot be obtained from

A) trade journals.
B) the government.
C) international sources.
D) surveys
E) computerized literature retrieval databases.

Question 50

Primary data are best described as the

A) first batch of data collected for a specific study.
B) data that are necessary for a correct decision.
C) data that are observed, recorded, or collected directly from subjects.
D) data that are compiled for some purpose other than the study in question.
E) data that are collected inside and outside the organization for some purpose other than the current investigation.

Question 51

In marketing research, a sample is best described as

A) a small group that is a part of a larger group.
B) all the elements, units, or individuals of interest to researchers for a specific study.
C) a limited number of units chosen to represent the characteristics of a total population.
D) a group that shares a common attribute within a population.
E) a small portion of a product offered to customers to try a new product.

Question 52

Georgia-Pacific needs information about trends in housing starts and remodeling around the country. Since it will be difficult to collect _______ from the numerous locations, it decides to use _____ data from the U.S. Department of Commerce reports to get this information.

A) descriptive; primary
B) exploratory; secondary
C) primary; exploratory
D) descriptive; secondary
E) primary; secondary

Question 53

Kristen is the new marketing manager for the footwear division of her company and is currently planning next season's product lines. She needs to gain access to data about recent purchasing patterns in the industry, but has a limited budget and time. Which type of data would be the best choice for Kristen to use in this situation?

A) sampling data.
B) secondary data.
C) quota data.
D) primary data.
E) survey data.

Question 54

Time Warner Cable uses its sales reports broken down by geographic regions as part of its marketing research to determine which markets are most rapidly adopting high-speed Internet connections. In this example, Time Warner Cable is using

A) internal sampling.
B) primary data.
C) external secondary data.
D) external primary data.
E) internal secondary data.

Question 55

Data that are observed or collected directly from respondents are called

A) direct samples.
B) secondary data.
C) stratified data.
D) primary data.
E) firsthand information.

Question 56

When working as a summer intern for a local retail store, Jan Halverson was sent to the library to look up data on population forecasts for the city of San Antonio. The population information she found would be considered

A) primary data.
B) secondary data.
C) information data from syndicated research services.
D) secondhand data.
E) a primary database.

Question 57

Subscription services from firms such as ACNielsen provide marketing researchers with a good source of ____ data.

A) census
B) statistical
C) internal secondary
D) ex ternal secondary
E) primary

Question 58

Which sampling design gives every member of the population an equal chance of appearing in the sample?

A) Nonprobability
B) Random
C) Quota
D) Stratified
E) Poll

Question 59

If the University Bookstore wanted to understand the textbook and school supplies needs on the campus of the University of Michigan, the population of study would be

A) the faculty and staff of the University of Michigan
B) all college-aged adults in the state of Michigan.
C) all the people who live in Ann Arbor and surrounding areas.
D) undergraduate students at the University of Michigan
E) all students, faculty, supporters, and staff of the University of Michigan

Question 60

Patricia Robertson is running for Congress from the Sixth District in her state. She is interested in knowing the intended choices of the voters. All the registered voters in her district would constitute the study's

A) experiment.
B) dependent variable.
C) population.
D) independent variable.
E) sample.

Question 61

Peter, the director of marketing at Holcomb, Inc., calls in Andrea, the firm's marketing research director. Peter wants a study done to assess the company's image relative to a new competitor, Levitt Labs. He has a flexible time schedule, has very little money to devote to the research, and feels that a relatively low response rate will not be a major problem. Andrea will probably recommend using a ____ survey.

A) mail
B) telephone
C) random
D) personal interview
E) population

Question 62

The major disadvantage of a mail survey versus a telephone or personal survey is

A) having to offer premiums.
B) the failure of respondents to return the questionnaire.
C) the elimination of interview bias.
D) the lack of open-ended questions.
E) the cost.

Question 63

Mika is the marketing research manager for a company that sells skis and other sporting equipment. His company currently has a profitable brand and a good share of the traditional ski market, but would like to enter the "extreme" category of winter sports. Mika needs to obtain information about consumer attitudes of the company's current products as well as attitudes of potential customers in the "extreme" consumer market. He does not have constraints on time, but he does have a modest budget for research. Mika should probably use _____ to obtain the data about the company's current products, and _____ to obtain information about the extreme consumers' attitudes.

A) Crowdsourcing; online surveys
B) Online surveys; focus groups
C) Telephone surveys; focus groups
D) Personal interview surveys; online surveys
E) Focus groups; mail surveys

Question 64

Baskin Robbins is conducting research on possible new ice cream flavors and products. It is selecting at random 100 males and 100 females in order to collect data. This is an example of ____ sampling.

A) nonprobability
B) random
C) quota
D) stratified
E) selective

Question 65

If Weight Watchers is interested in collecting information about Americans' perceptions of dieting programs, and the company believes that significant regional differences may exist, the best type of sampling would be

A) random.
B) quota
C) population
D) stratified
E) nonquota.

Question 66

Nelson Marketing Research is concerned about using surveys to conduct a marketing research project because

A) fewer people are willing to participate.
B) primary data are so much cheaper and easier to gather.
C) survey data collection is highly inaccurate.
D) survey data do not provide in-depth responses.
E) the survey method has been replaced by the Internet.

Question 67

Which of the following is a probability sampling technique used to reduce errors within random sampling?

A) Quota
B) Stratified
C) Nonprobability
D) Cluster
E) Snowball

Question 68

Which of the following is the least flexible survey method?

A) Telephone surveys
B) Focus-group interviews
C) Personal interview surveys
D) Mail surveys
E) Observation

Question 69

Compared to a mail survey, telephone surveys have

A) lower response rates but higher validity
B) a slower response time, but less cost
C) faster response time, but less cost
D) fewer expenses overall
E) higher response rates, but higher costs

Question 70

Quota sampling is most commonly used in

A) descriptive research.
B) population research.
C) surveys.
D) collecting primary data
E) exploratory studies.

Question 71

An offshoot of mail surveys, ____ have shortcomings because the people who participate in them generally have higher incomes and education levels than the general population.

A) purchase diaries
B) telephone surveys
C) online surveys
D) focus-group interviews
E) immediate feedback forms

Question 72

Assume that Verizon Wireless is interested in studying the pricing expectations of its customers. If the study calls for selecting at random 100 people from each of three age groupings, ____ sampling is being used.

A) random
B) stratified
C) quota
D) area
E) experimental

Question 73

In which type of sampling design is the final choice of respondents left up to the interviewer?

A) Stratified
B) Random
C) Cluster
D) Area
E) Quota

Question 74

Which of the following survey methods has the potential to offer quick response at a lower cost than traditional mail and telephone surveys?

A) Total population surveys
B) In-home (door-to-door) interviews
C) Focus-group interviews
D) Personal interview surveys
E) Online surveys

Question 75

What is the primary factor contributing to the increasing difficulty associated with gathering primary data through surveys?

A) Most companies do not have any funding for survey research.
B) Fewer people are willing to participate in surveys.
C) Laws significantly limit firms' ability to conduct surveys.
D) Unreliable methods of distributing surveys make them difficult to conduct.
E) Very little useful information is ever gathered from survey results.

Question 76

In ____ sampling, there is no way to calculate the likelihood that a specific element of the population being studied will be chosen.

A) population
B) random
C) stratified
D) probability
E) nonprobability

Question 77

When researchers divide the population of interest in a study into groups and then arbitrarily choose participants from each group, they are using

A) q uota sampling
B) selective surveying
C) random sampling.
D) stratified sampling.
E) researcher samples.

Question 78

The manager of MegaMarket is interested in asking consumers what they think about the store's new layout and expanded produce selection. If the manager would like to obtain a high response rate and have the study conducted as quickly as possible, which data collection method would you recommend?

A) Mail survey
B) Direct observation of consumers in the store
C) Telephone survey
D) Focus-group interview
E) Shopping mall intercept interview

Question 79

Although telephone surveys can be conducted very quickly, a major limitation is

A) the ability to gain rapport with respondents.
B) the difficulty in asking probing questions.
C) that few companies prefer this survey method.
D) that only a small portion of the population likes to participate in telephone surveys.
E) the expense compared to in-home interviews.

Question 80

Subway wants to collect data about employee satisfaction within its organization. It decides to survey a sample of 500 employees by having a computer program automatically pick which employees will be in the sample. If it uses the payroll database as the list of names to chose from, which type of sampling method is Subway using?

A) random sampling.
B) sampling populations
C) stratified sampling.
D) nonprobability sampling.
E) quota sampling.