Marketing Research, Goldilocks, Three Bears, and a Porridge Story
Marketing research is much like a searching for the best pizza or hamburger place. We do not drive by and stop in just because there are a lot of cars in the lot, but we look online and ask our friends where they go for the best meal. One of the most important steps of marketing research is to identify the problem or opportunity in order to design the research. Goldilocks was looking for a warm place and something to eat. If she had done a little research, she may have found a more receptive family.
Businesses utilize marketing research to identify opportunities to discover why their companies are not doing well or to test a new market (product). Information of any kind is always important because in order to sell a product or service, you needed to know who will purchase the product (opportunity). Marketing research is important as a student studying to work in the industry, or as a consumer, in order to be a smarter shopper. In everything we do, from shopping for a bank, credit card or the dress for a wedding, we compare prices, read star reviews online and talk to dress shop sales clerks. I would not consider buying a big ticket item without doing some research first. Once you identify your opportunity, you will decide on the research design, collection method, design forms, sample, collect data, analyze & interpret data, and prepare the research. Will all researches be successful, yes, if you are looking for an answer if something will be welcomed with open arms or not. Another way of looking at it, if Coca-Cola has twenty-five beverages, how many others did they test that did not do well and did not make it on the market? A marketing research opportunity that did not survive the research process does not mean it was a failure, but it is a success because the project was researched, evaluated and deemed not worthy at that time. Considering the product could have been released and been a dismal failure, then how would the company look to the public?
Goldilocks would have done well if she had researched the Three Bears community and evaluated the opportunity before she ventured there and not been so disappointed.
This class project was interesting from the start of the project to the end when we presented to our client. I did not realize there were so many parts of the process and even after reading the section in the book, instead of five or six there were eight steps. Our group chose the project based on our desire to see more future student choose Western Technical College for their education and we would like to help attract more student. The Program Shadow opportunity hosts less than one hundred students in a calendar year and we prepared a survey that was answered by Program Heads. We utilized secondary data research skills by researching the competitors, our company and who the target audience is. Our survey results was limited to forty-seven results out of eighty-five emails that were sent, but we had a good return on our questions, because the Program Heads are interested in making the program work to the best of its ability. There were many Program Heads that were interested in being contacted to make this program work to the best of its ability. We presented several suggestions based on what our research gave us and we hope that in the end of the process, what our information gave the Recruitment Center was something to start with and grow. We thank Kelly Lisick and Deb Hether for the opportunity and the assistance they gave us in the process.
Our group started out as strangers but by the time the project was completed, we became more that classmates and we worked very well together. We may have started out weak in our leadership or time-management skills but by the end, we all knew what our strengths and weaknesses were and acted to the best of our ability. It was interesting to me that no one felt embarrassed to ask for help at the end, and knew who to go to. I have been involved in many groups and while I do not want to be a leader all the time, I enjoy being a member that helps everyone.
Western Program Shadow Best Practices Questionnaire.docx FINAL 180405 (Matthew Enright)