Marketing Research, 13th Edition presents a clear and comprehensive introduction to the field, with a strong focus on methodologies and the role of market research in strategic decision making. Employing a unique macro-micro-macro approach, the text begins with a broad overview of market research and its place within—and value to—an organization, before zooming in to detail the granular view of the research process. Step-by-step explanations cover the latest methodologies and current practices, highlighting advanced techniques as well as their limitations and potential benefits, followed by a high-level discussion of research applications.
An emphasis on real-world processes is underscored by end-of-chapter cases, allowing students to apply what they’ve learned in the context of real-life examples covering a broad range of products and organizations. This practical approach promotes engagement while building essential critical analysis, interpretation, and decision-making skills, preparing students to recognize potential research applications, alternatives where they exist, and the quality of research at hand. By pulling together market intelligence, strategy, theory, and application, this text helps students build a deep understanding while retaining the big picture perspective.
Table of Contents:
Part I The Nature and Scope of Marketing Research
1 A Decision-Making Perspective on Marketing Intelligence 1
Learning Objectives 1
An Overview of Business Intelligence 1
Introduction to Marketing Intelligence 4
Marketing Research 7
Role of Marketing Research in Managerial Decision-Making 9
Factors that Influence Marketing Research Decisions 17
Use of Marketing Research 19
Ethics in Marketing Research 20
The Respondent’s Ethics and Rights 21
International Marketing Research 23
Summary 25
Questions and Problems 25
End Notes 26
Case 1-1: Preteen Market—The Right Place to Be In for Cell Phone Providers? 27
Case 1-2: Best Buy on a Segmentation Spree 27
Case 1-3: Ethical Dilemmas in Marketing Research 29
2 Marketing Research in Practice 30
Learning Objectives 30
Information Systems Decision Support Systems and Marketing Research 31
Marketing Decision Support Systems 34
Suppliers of Information 37
Criteria for Selecting External Suppliers 43
Career Opportunities in Marketing Research 44
Summary 45
Questions and Problems 45
End Notes 45
Appendix: Marketing Research Jobs 46
3 The Marketing Research Process 47
Learning Objectives 47
Overview of the Marketing Research Process 47
The Preliminary Stages of the Marketing Research Process 48
Planning a New HMO 60
The International Marketing Research Process 62
Summary 66
Questions and Problems 66
End Notes 67
Case 3-1: A VideOcart Test for Bestway Stores 67
Case 3-2: Philip Morris Enters Turkey 69
4 Research Design and Implementation 71
Learning Objectives 71
Research Approach 73
Research Tactics and Implementation 79
Budgeting and Scheduling the Research Project 81
Research Proposal 83
Designing International Marketing Research 84
Issues in International Research Design 86
Summary 88
Questions and Problems 89
End Notes 89
Appendix: Errors in Research Design 90
Case 4-1: Reynolds Tobacco’s Slide-Box Cigarettes 91
Cases for Part I 95
Case I-1: Clover Valley Dairy Company 95
Part II Data Collection
Section A: Secondary and Exploratory Research
5 Secondary Sources of Marketing Data 98
Learning Objectives 98
Secondary Data 99
Uses of Secondary Data 100
Benefits of Secondary Data 100
Limitations of Secondary Data 101
Internal Sources of Secondary Data 102
External Sources of Secondary Data 103
Census Data 109
North American Industry Classification System 111
Appraising Secondary Sources 112
Applications of Secondary Data 113
Sources of Secondary Data for International Marketing Research 117
Problems Associated with Secondary Data in International Research 117
Applications of Secondary Data in International Research 118
Summary 119
Questions and Problems 119
End Notes 120
Case 5-1: Barkley Foods 121
Case 5-2: Dell in Latin America? 122
6 Standardized Sources of Marketing Data 123
Learning Objectives 123
Retail Store Audits 124
Consumer Purchase Panels 125
Scanner Services and Single-Source Systems 128
Media-Related Standardized Sources 134
Applications of Standardized Sources of Data 136
Summary 138
Questions and Problems 138
End Notes 139
Case 6-1: Promotion of Rocket Soups 140
Case 6-2: Kerry Gold Products Ltd. 144
7 Marketing Research on the Internet 147
Learning Objectives 147
Current Trends in Web Usage 148
WWW Information for Marketing Decisions 149
The Internet and Marketing Research Today 154
The Internet and Marketing Research Developments 166
Issues and Concerns 167
Summary 169
Questions and Problems 169
End Notes 170
Case 7-1: Caring Children’s hospital 172
8 Information Collection: Qualitative and Observational Methods 173
Learning Objectives 173
Need for Qualitative Research 173
Qualitative Research Methods 174
Observational Methods 194
Recent Applications of Qualitative and Observational Methods 200
Summary 201
Questions and Problems 201
End Notes 202
Appendix: Myths of Qualitative Research: It’s Conventional but Is It Wisdom? 204
Case 8-1: Mountain Bell Telephone Company 205
Case 8-2: U.S. Department of Energy (A) 207
Case 8-3: Hamilton Beach Conducts Primary Research in Mexico and Europe 208
Section B: Descriptive Research
9 Information from Respondents: Issues in Data Collection 209
Learning Objectives 209
Information from Surveys 209
Sources of Survey Error 210
Methods of Data Collection 215
Factors Affecting the Choice of a Survey Method 216
Ethical Issues in Data Collection 220
Summary 222
Questions and Problems 222
End Notes 223
Case 9-1: Essex Markets 224
Case 9-2: More Ethical Dilemmas in Marketing Research 224
10 Information from Respondents: Survey Methods 226
Learning Objectives 226
Collecting Data 226
Surveys in the International Context 248
Summary 250
Questions and Problems 250
End Notes 252
Case 10-1: Roland Development Corp 253
11 Attitude Measurement 255
Learning Objectives 255
Attitudes 256
The Concept of Measurement and Scaling 257
Types of Attitude Rating Scales 260
General Guidelines for Developing a Multiple-Item Scale 271
Interpreting Attitude Scales 274
Choosing an Attitudinal Scale 275
Accuracy of Attitude Measurements 277
Scales in Cross-National Research 279
Summary 280
Questions and Problems 280
End Notes 281
Case 11-1: National Kitchens 282
12 Designing the Questionnaire 284
Learning Objectives 284
Planning What to Measure 285
Formatting the Question 287
Question Wording: A Problem of Communication 292
Sequence and Layout Decisions 297
Questionnaire Design for International Research 303
Summary 305
Questions and Problems 305
End Notes 309
Case 12-1: Wine Horizons 309
Case 12-2: Smith’s Clothing (A) 312
Section C: Causal Research
13 Experimentation 313
Learning Objectives 313
Descriptive versus Experimental Research 314
What Constitutes Causality? 315
Laboratory and Field Experiments 317
Threats to Experimental Validity 318
Issues in Experimental Research 320
Types of Experimental Designs 322
Guidelines for Conducting Experimental Research 336
Limitations of Experiments 337
Summary 339
Questions and Problems 339
End Notes 341
Case 13-1: Evaluating Experimental Designs 341
Case 13-2: Barrie Food Corporation 342
Section D: Sampling
14 Sampling Fundamentals 344
Learning Objectives 344
Sample or Census 344
Sampling Process 346
Probability Sampling 352
Nonprobability Sampling 357
Shopping Center Sampling 362
Sampling in the International Context 363
Summary 365
Questions and Problems 366
End Notes 368
Case 14-1: Exercises in Sample Design 369
Case 14-2: Talbot Razor Products Company 369
15 Sample Size and Statistical Theory 372
Learning Objectives 372
Determining the Sample Size: Ad Hoc Methods 373
Population Characteristics/Parameters 374
Sample Characteristics/Statistics 375
Sample Reliability 376
Interval Estimation 378
Sample Size Question 380
Proportions 381
Coefficient of Variation 383
Stratified Sampling 383
Multistage Design 386
Sequential Sampling 386
Summary 387
Questions and Problems 387
End Notes 389
Cases for Part II 390
Case II-1: Currency Concepts International 390
Appendix A: Interview Guide for International Travelers (U.S. Citizens) 394
Part III Data Analysis
16 Fundamentals of Data Analysis 396
Learning Objectives 396
Preparing the Data for Analysis 397
Strategy for Data Analysis 401
Cross-Tabulations 405
Factors Influencing the Choice of Statistical Technique 407
An Overview of Statistical Techniques 409
Summary 414
Questions and Problems 414
End Notes 415
Appendix: Choice of a Statistical Package 415
17 Hypothesis Testing: Basic Concepts and Tests of Associations 416
Learning Objectives 416
The Logic of Hypothesis Testing 417
Steps in Hypothesis Testing 418
Basic Concepts of Hypothesis Testing 419
Cross-Tabulation and Chi-Square 422
Summary 431
Questions and Problems 431
End Notes 432
Case 17-1: Medical Systems Associates: Measuring Patient Satisfaction 433
18 Hypothesis Testing: Means and Proportions 435
Learning Objectives 435
Commonly Used Hypothesis Tests in Marketing Research 436
Relationship between Confidence Interval and Hypothesis Testing 439
Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) 440
The Probability‐Values (p‐Values) Approach to Hypothesis Testing 454
Effect of Sample Size and Interpretation of Test Results 455
Summary 456
Questions and Problems 456
End Notes 457
Case 18-1: American Conservatory Theater 458
Case 18-2: Apple Appliance Stores 459
Part IV Special Topics in Data Analysis
19 Correlation Analysis and Regression Analysis 461
Learning Objectives 461
Correlation Analysis 462
Regression Analysis 466
Summary 485
Questions and Problems 486
End Notes 488
Case 19-1: The Seafood Grotto 489
Case 19-2: Election Research Inc. 490
20 Discriminant Factor and Cluster Analysis 491
Learning Objectives 491
Discriminant Analysis 491
Multiple Discriminant Analysis 500
Summary of Discriminant Analysis 504
Factor and Cluster Analysis 504
Factor Analysis 505
Summary of Factor Analysis 516
Cluster Analysis 517
Summary of Cluster Analysis 527
Questions and Problems 527
End Notes 529
Case 20-1: Southwest Utility 529
Case 20-2: Store Image Study 530
21 Multidimensional Scaling and Conjoint Analysis 533
Learning Objectives 533
Multidimensional Scaling 533
Attribute‐Based Approaches 534
Summary of MDS 543
Conjoint Analysis 544
Summary of Conjoint Analysis 551
Questions and Problems 552
End Notes 553
Case 21-1: Nester’s Foods 554
Case 21-2: The Electric Truck Case 555
22 Presenting the Results 556
Learning Objectives 556
Guidelines for Successful Presentations 556
Written Report 562
Oral Presentation 566
Relationship with the Client 569
Summary 570
Questions and Problems 570
End Notes 570
Part V Applications of Marketing Intelligence
23 Marketing-Mix Measures 571
Learning Objectives 571
New-Product Research 572
Pricing Research 582
Distribution Research 585
Promotion Research 591
Total Quality Management 601
Summary 606
Questions and Problems 607
End Notes 609
Case 23-1: National Chemical Corporation 610
Case 23-2: Hokey Pokey is Born in India 611
24 Brand and Customer Metrics 613
Learning Objectives 613
Competitive Advantage 613
Brand Equity 616
Customer Satisfaction 622
Contemporary Applications of Marketing Intelligence 628
Maximizing Customer Profitability 630
Summary 633
Questions and Problems 633
End Notes 633
25 New Age Strategies 635
Learning Objectives 635
Database Marketing 636
Relationship Marketing 645
E-Commerce 649
Mobile Marketing 652
Social Marketing 654
Experiential Marketing 658
Word-of-Mouth Marketing 659
Internet of Things 662
Bots and Artificial Intelligence 664
Blockchain 666
Summary 668
Questions and Problems 669
End Notes 669
Appendix A 673
A-1. Standard Normal Cumulative Probability in Right‐Hand Tail for
Positive Values of z; Areas are formed by Symmetry 673
A-2. χ 2 Critical Points 674
A-3. F Critical Points 676
A-4. Cut‐Off Points for the Student’s t‐Distribution 681
A-5. Procedures for Conducting Univariate and Multivariate Analysis in SPSS 682
A-6. Output of Select Tables in SPSS 686
Glossary 699
Index 717
