MKTG1104 Marketing Research : Hygiene Product Category

Answers:

1.A.Critically evaluate the draft questionnaire developed for the research 

After reviewing the draft questionnaire for the research, the questions are prepared to collect data that address or links with the research objectives (Vaioleti 2016). The questionnaire are drafted to get answers from the customers about how much they have proper understanding of brands of toothpastes and oral hygiene product category. The questions are drafted in order to understand the customer segments in the toothpastes as well as oral hygiene product category. With the help of questionnaire method, it was easy to find out determining brand preferences as well as brand association for the toothpastes and oral hygiene product category by consumer segments (Blumberg, Cooper and Schindler 2014). After evaluating the draft questionnaire, it was easy to gather facts from the customers about their needs and expectations for the products (toothpastes and oral hygiene product). The researcher here is engaged in conducting a research project for a large Australian supermarket. The client here is evaluating the toiletries as well as health products for assessing the viability of launching a wide range of private label toothpastes and oral hygiene products at the same time. The managers along with the research assistant are working with the client and started to develop the market research project (Taylor, Bogdan and DeVault 2015).

After evaluating the draft questionnaire that had been prepared for the current research study, it is noted that the questions are prepared by keeping in mind about the research objectives. The first research objective is to recognize the consumer segments in the toothpastes as well as oral hygiene products. The second research objectives are to determine the brand preferences as well as brand associations for the toothpastes as well as oral hygiene product category by consumer segments. The data collected by using questionnaire method will properly address the research objectives of both the phases where the first phase is set to look at the usage and brand preference study for toothpastes as well as oral hygiene product category. The second phase is about the study that helps in assessing the potential for a range of private-level toothpastes as well as oral hygiene products (Tarone, Gass and Cohen 2013).

B.What data collection method would be recommended for the survey?

The data collection method used in the survey should be questionnaire method as it was easy to gather information by using this method and it should link with the research questions and objectives (Smith 2015).

Questionnaire is one of the data collection methods that are recommended to be used in particular research study as it is administered to the respondents. Here, open-ended questions are asked to the respondents that are followed by response options. Furthermore, there are questionnaires that need to be asked to the respondents for exploring the answers of the respondents (Roberts 2013).

Advantages and disadvantages of using the recommended method 

Advantages of Questionnaire method 

Questionnaire method is effective for market or consumer research where close-ended questions can be asked to the customers (Blumberg, Cooper and Schindler 2014). Questionnaire method is not at all expensive, quick and easy to analyze the data. This method is used by the researcher as it is best way to get the results where the respondents quickly answer the set of questions asked.

Disadvantages of Questionnaire method 

Using questionnaire method limits the understanding of researcher and need budget for reproduction of survey questionnaires (Reynolds et al. 2014).

C.Making suggestion on the type of sampling method that should be used in the research 

In the research brief section, it is properly mentioned that client will define a target population and number of sampling requirements for the present study (Panneerselvam 2014). It was requested that the sample size should be minimum of 3000 consumers whose age group is more than 18 years. The consumers selected should use toothpastes and mouthwash and dental floss. Stratified random sampling should be used for this particular research study. It is because the sample population is divided into different strata. After that, it is required to select simple random sample from each spectrum. It is recommended to the researcher to use stratified random sampling for obtaining a sample population that best represents the entire population that is being studied. This type of random sampling requires first dividing a population into sub-populations as well as then relating random sampling technique to each sub-population to form a test grouping (Neuman 2016).

Advantages and disadvantages of using the method

Advantages of stratified random sampling 

One of the advantages of stratified random sampling method is that it eliminates selection bias. It mainly stratifies the entire population before selecting random sampling methods as it help in ensuring a sample that correctly replicate the population that had been studied in terms of principle used for stratification (Neuman and Robson 2014).

Disadvantages of stratified random sampling 

One of the demerits of stratified random sampling is that it cannot be used in every research study. It is required for the researcher to recognize every member of a population that is being studied as well as classifies into one that is the sub-population (McGivern 2013).

D.Analyze and report data collected from the questionnaire 

In this particular question, it is properly explained about how it will analyze and report data collected from the questionnaire in the present research study (Matthews and Ross 2014). After setting objectives, it is now required to explain three inferential statistics tests for the present research study. The first objective was set to understand the consumer segments in the toothpastes as well as oral hygiene category. The second objective was set to establish the brand preferences as well as brand associations for the toothpastes and oral hygiene products by consumer segments (Blumberg, Cooper and Schindler 2014).

Explain three inferential statistical tests that would be suitable to tackle the research objectives 

The three inferential statistical tests that should be used by the researcher in the present research study are Chi-square test, correlation and Paired T-Test. For the first objectives, Chi-square test will be used where customer segment and demographic profile (age, gender, occupation and qualification) will be under one segment and other segment will comprise of toothpastes and oral hygiene products (Mackey and Gass 2015). Chi-square test is one of the statistical hypothesis test that help in determining whether there is a important difference between the predictable frequencies as well as experiential frequencies in one or two categories.

For the second objectives, two inferential tests will be carried out and these are correlation and Paired T-Test. In case of correlation, individual brand names with their preferences will be tested (Blumberg, Cooper and Schindler 2014). By using the test, it will be easy to understand which brand is preferable or likeable and then analyze the best one for getting final outcome. Correlation is one of the statistical techniques that highlights whether and how strongly pairs of variables that get related. In case of Paired T-Test, brand association and brand preferences will be taken into consideration and look at their association for getting final results. Paired T-test is one of the statistical test for comparing two population that have two samples where observations can be paired with observations in the other sample (Leary 2016).  

2.Making recommendations on research methods that could be used in Phase 2 of the research project 

There are two types of research approach that need to be evaluated by researcher and these are deductive approach and inductive approach (Gummesson 2014). The research methods that could be used in Phase 2 are deductive approach. This approach actually starts from general to specific. Deductive approach deals with developing a theory as it is based on accessible theory as well as then scheming research plan for testing the theory. Deductive reasoning is one of the top-down approaches where the market researcher begins a study by considering theories that have been developed in combination with the interest of topic. Deductive approach lets a market investigator think about the research that already has been conducted as well as developed an idea about extending or adding to that hypothetical groundwork. Deductive approach can be used by the researcher where they can make use of existing theories and model and then draw conclusion for getting better outcomes (Blumberg, Cooper and Schindler 2014). Any existing theory can be used if the researcher starts taking the deductive approach into consideration. This approach is quite better for this study as compared to inductive approach because inductive approach need innovative and new approaches that are used in the research study. However, it is not possible for the researcher to use inductive approach in the present research study. Therefore, the researcher should make use of deductive approach by using existing theories and then analyzing it to get the best outcome of results (Gast and Ledford 2014).

Data collection methods and proposed sampling plans 

The data collection method used in the research study should be quantitative data collection where questionnaire will be distributed to consumers (Glesne 2015). The sample size is 3000 consumers whose age is more than 18 years and use toothpastes and oral hygiene products. Sampling methods are categorized into two types such as probability sampling as well as non-probability sampling. For this particular research study, probability sampling is used and in that stratified sampling had been used (Blumberg, Cooper and Schindler 2014). The researcher needs to categorize the samples into different strata where the respondents belong to age group more than 18 and uses toothpastes as well as oral hygiene products. Stratified sampling method will help in getting the respondents based on two basic criteria that had been already mentioned in the research proposal. The sample population will be distributed in different strata that suffice the criteria set by the research and link with the research objectives. Therefore, questionnaire data collection methods should be used by the researcher and sampling method is stratified random sampling for the present research study (Gast and Ledford 2014).

3.Developing an instrument to be used for data collection based on recommendation of a research method 

The research instrument that will be used in the present research study is questionnaire. Here, questionnaire is one of the most important or common research instruments for obtaining the data beyond the physical reach of the observer. The questionnaire can be sent to 3000 consumers who can be either far away or just round the corner. The selection of consumer based on two criteria. The first one is the age group (more than 18 years) and the second one is the consumer who uses toothpastes and oral hygiene products. The questions asked to these consumers are closed ended-questions (Flick 2015).

The research instrument that should be used in the particular study is questionnaire where the researcher should draft the questions that have clarity of language, singleness of purpose, correct grammar as well as relevant to the objectives of the present research study (Blumberg, Cooper and Schindler 2014).

At the time of drafting the questionnaire, the researcher should keep in mind to describe or succeed terms that could simply be misinterpreted. The researcher should be careful in using descriptive adjectives as well as adverbs. The researcher should not use any inadequate alternatives and double negative words. Questionnaire comprises of number of questions where the respondents has to answer in a given set of format. There is lot of differences between open-ended questions as well as closed-ended questions. In this particular study, closed-ended questions will be asked by the researcher to the respondents (Clark and Creswell 2014).

Questionnaire method facilitates data gathering as well as easy to test data for dependability and soundness. This research instrument should be used by the researcher as it is less time consuming as compared to interview as well as observation. The method preserves the anonymity as well as confidentiality of the respondent’s reactions as well as answers. The researcher while preparing the questionnaire should use statement that can be easily interpreted the same way by the respondents of different sub-populations of interest. They should use statement where the person that can even have options or traits that can given different answer to the same question asked by the researcher. Questionnaire method is inexpensive, quick as well as easy for analyzing by the researcher (Choy 2014).

4.A.Using theory and frameworks discussed in the course and explain how planned research project could be turned into a longitudinal research

The planned research project could be easily turned into a longitudinal research study because category management aims at improving the overall presentation in product category through synchronized buying, pricing of the brands as well as merchandising for maximizing the total performance of that category (Blumberg, Cooper and Schindler 2014). Longitudinal study is one of the observational research methods where the data are collected for the same subjects constantly over a given period of time span. This projects can expand over years where the same individual are experiential over the given study period. In order to manage private-level brands, it is required for the retailers to employ a concept that is termed as category management. This theory had been explained in the entire course where category management is one of the processes that is used for managing categories of products as business units as well as customizing them into different stores for meeting the needs of the consumers. In order to effectively evaluate the effectiveness of category management, it is essential for the retailers to monitor the performance of their categories by using different metrics like market share as well as profitability (Tarone, Gass and Cohen 2013).

B.Making recommendations on how longitudinal research would be designed

Here, longitudinal wave are those waves where the disarticulation of the medium are either in the same way or opposite way (Gast and Ledford 2014). These waves are occasionally used for displacements of the medium as it is placed at right angles to the direction of propagation. One of the main concerns in retail management operations is pricing the product assortments offered within each category in and across locations. In addition, assortment decisions mainly affect positioning of retailer and traffic generated at its stores within the traditional approach by looking at the issue as it offer large assortments that aims at meeting the preferences of diverse customer base. On analysis, it is noted that managerial decisions undertaken are encountered by category managers as it prices the product categories as well as determining the price gap between store as well as national brands. Supermarkets need to decide over the displace space for products as well as look at how the products are sold in the store that are been merchandized. It is important to understand the fact that supermarkets can sell store brands at lower prices as compared to national brands as it is still being more profitable as well as store brands as it represents one key point of difference among the supermarkets in Australia (Tarone, Gass and Cohen 2013).

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