The Chinese University of Hong Kong

Department of Marketing, CUHK Business School

MKTG3010A: MARKETING RESEARCH
Meeting time:
Meeting period:
Meeting place:

Tue 14:30 17:15

Sep 6, 2016 Nov 29, 2016
ELB 207

Instructors:

Prof. Mandy Hu
Rm1105, 11/F, Cheng Yu Tung Building, CUHK
MandyHu@baf.cuhk.edu.hk
Tel: 3943-5908
Any time by appointment

Office Hour:
Teaching Assistant:

Ivy DANG
Rm1149-1151, 11/F, Cheng Yu Tung Building, CUHK
dangchu@baf.cuhk.edu.hk
Tel: 6436-0831

Description of the course

The main objective of this course is to equip students with the key concepts, process
and methods of marketing research, and learn how to apply those tools to solve reallife business problems. We cover the technical aspects of marketing research (both
qualitative and quantitative research methods) through lectures and discuss real life
applications using various articles and cases. An important element of this course is a
marketing research project (more details under the Marketing Research Project
section below) where students identify and solve a real business problem using
marketing research methods.
Learning objectives
1. To develop an appreciation for the potential contributions and limitations of
marketing research.
2. To learn about the steps in the marketing research process, which include
problem definition, research design (exploratory, descriptive and causal), data
collection methods, questionnaire design, sampling schemes, and data analysis.
3. To develop critical thinking in the evaluation of different marketing research
methods used in real business world

Learning outcomes
On successfully completing this course, students should be able to:
1. Understand the basic concepts, processes and techniques of marketing
research.
2. Apply the knowledge to solve real business problems.
3. Appreciate the fundamental role marketing research plays in developing a
credible marketing plan and supporting a companys short-term and long-term
objectives.
Prerequisite Courses
MKTG 2010 and DSME2010 or DSME2011 or STAT2006

Class Requirements & Grading

Class commitment: 30%

Group Project: 30%
Final Exam: 40%

Required materials
Required Textbook: Marketing Research: An Applied Orientation, 6th ed., by Naresh
K. Malhotra, Pearson, 2009
Required software: Microsoft EXCEL (version 2007 or newer)
Reading/Watching materials: You may download all the reading materials/video
from Blackboard.
The Science of Shopping
Boost Your Marketing ROI with Experimental Design
Self-Reports: How the Questions Shape the Answers
Market Research The Inside Story (BBC Documentary)
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eirq6hdiJbU)
5. Majority Illusion A quick puzzle to tell whether you know what people are
thinking
(https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/business/wonkblog/majorityillusion/)
(https://www.technologyreview.com/s/538866/the-social-network-illusionthat-tricks-your-mind/)
6. The See-through consumer
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AkVX25adEo)
7. How Companies Learn Your Secret
1.
2.
3.
4.

Detailed Class Requirements

Class commitment (30%)
Given that marketing research is an applied subject where participation and discussion
is essential for learning, I encourage class participation and interaction as much as
possible. Class participation is mainly evaluated by the following criteria:
Electronics Policy
You may not use electronic devices (laptops, iPads, tablets, mobile phones,
Blackberries, etc.) in class unless directed to do so.
Classroom Etiquette
Attendance and Punctuality: Class will begin on time. Please make every effort to
arrive for class on time as late entries are distracting to your classmates. If you are
unable to arrive on time or must leave early, please enter/exit the room as quietly as
possible so as not to disturb your fellow students. If you are unable to attend class for
any reason, please notify me in advance (or as soon as possible) by email. There are
exceptions in accordance with CUHK policy for religious holidays, funeral, and
student/dependent hospitalizations, weddings, interviews, etc. Students are expected
to remain in class for the entirety of the session.
Beverages and Snacks: You are welcome to bring something to drink to class. Please
dont bring food into class.
Class Sessions
Rather than merely rehashing concepts developed in the textbook, class sessions will
be devoted to extending and applying the concepts. You should be prepared to discuss
and present in class the readings and/or problems that have been assigned for that
session.
Reading/Watching Material Presentation
In the spirit of flipped classroom, which is a concept promoted by the university on
the education in the big data era (https://www.cuhk.edu.hk/clear/new/1516-s1-03.htm),
this term we will try a modified version. Starting from Week 4, the second half of the
classes will be dedicated to the presentation and discussion of the reading and
watching materials. The readings will be uploaded to Blackboard in the beginning of
the semester. The links to the videos are provided in the course outline. One of the
groups will be given 20 minutes to present the assigned readings/videos for that week.
The decision of which team will present for a particular week will be made as a
random draw. Each group will be given one week to prepare for the presentation.
Prepare three to four questions at the end of the presentation to the class and lead the
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discussion. And be prepared to answer questions from the audience. The rest of the
class should also read/watch the material before coming to class. The presentation
should include: (1) the summary of the content of the material; (2) how it links to the
knowledge points covered in the class; (3) your comment or thought on the material;
(4) how it links to the local business in HK.

Final Exam (40%)

The purpose of the exams is to assess your analytic skills and technical competence.
The exam will cover materials presented in textbook, lectures, articles discussed in
class and the reading/watching materials. Exams are closed book. No make-up exam
unless you have a legitimate reason. And conflicting with another exam doesnt count.

Marketing Research Project (30%)

The objective of the research project is to provide students with experience in
applying the concepts and methods learned in class to a real world problem.

Group Formation and Choice of Research Problem

The project is to be done in groups of 6 to 8 students. You are required to send the
names, student IDs and pictures of group members to the TA by 6pm on Sep 20. The
group submission form can be downloaded from Blackboard. You are not allowed to
change group members after the course add/drop period.

Evaluation
Your final group project report is due in Week 14. To help you manage the project, I
have broken it into five tasks:
1. The research proposal
You should have a brief description of the client background, the business
problem, research objectives, and how they follow from the business problem.
Outline a research design and briefly justify the choice (e.g., interviews + web
survey, focus groups + phone survey, on-site observations + survey, etc.).
Discuss potential problems in the research design.
2. An exploratory research

This part should include secondary data analyses and qualitative research.
Your secondary data analyses may include analysing industry reports,
economic trends, input from existing data sources (e.g., company data, census,
trendwatching.com, etc.); your qualitative research may include one-on-one
interviews, focus groups, observations, etc. You are welcome to make videos
of focus groups or on-spot observations.
In the exploratory research report, please:
1. Describe the insights gained from secondary data (include proper
citations)
2. Describe the qualitative research that you conducted and the key
findings
3. Discuss how these findings may be used to refine your research
objective and identify the target population.
4. Include in the appendix any tables and figures, as well as guiding
questions used in the qualitative research.
3. Draft questionnaire and sampling strategy:

1. Define planned target population for data collection. If you are considering
online surveys with panel respondents, please be precise (e.g., Females 1865
who purchase yogurt at least once a week).
2. Your sampling strategy and sample size (if using a random sample)
3. A draft questionnaire that you have developed to address the research
objective and research questions that you have identified. The questionnaire
should include:
An introduction (who you are, what the survey is about, how long it is going
to take, any compensation/incentive, and reasons why they should complete
this)
The questions
A thank you section
Contact information in case the respondents have questions about the research
and/or the survey
The accompanying cover letter/email/verbal script

A few suggestions:
1. Try to show professionalism in wording, formatting and sequencing the
questions.
2. For each question in the questionnaire, think about how it will help you
answer the bigger research questions and what type of analysis you are
planning to use on the responses to that question (set of questions).
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4. Data Analysis Plan and Final report

You dont need to collect data for your survey due to the time constraint but
you are required to specify a plan about how you are going to analyse the data
based on each survey question. Try to be as detail as possible using the data
analysis techniques that are covered in class. The final report should be 12point font, 1-inch margin and should not be longer than 12 double-spaced
pages, excluding tables and figures and the final questionnaire. Please note
that if your client does not wish the contents of the report to be made public,
make sure that you put CONFIDENTIAL on the front cover of the report.

Your final report should follow this structure:

1. An executive summary. Describe in one paragraph the business problem,
the research methodology, the main findings, the conclusions and your
recommendation to the client. The purpose of the executive summary is to
allow really busy CEOs to get a good grasp of what you have done, and digest
the most essential information without reading every sentence in the report.
2. Background. Define the problem to be studied and the purpose to be served
by the research (What is the benefit to the client? What is the value of the
research project?). This is what you did in the first task.
3. The research strategy. Define the population and the sampling frame.
Describe your sampling method as well as the size and profile of your sample.
If secondary data are used, identify the sources. This is what you did in the
first task.
4. Describe the exploratory research you conducted. The insights you
generated and how that led to the design of your questionnaire. This is what
you did in the second task.
5. Include the final version of your questionnaire in the Appendix so that I
know exactly what questions were asked and what scales were used in the
questionnaire. You also need to talk about your sampling strategy in the report
which should include all the components I introduced in class. This is what
you did in the third task.
6. Data analysis plan and potential findings. You need to discuss how you are
going to analyse the data, and how would the analysis help you answer your
research questions. You may conduct some scenario discussion, such as if
the results to the question is , then the company should . This will help
the audience understand the implication of the questions you ask.

7. Discussion. Talk about what you have learned from this project and how
your research can help the company.
8. Appendix
9. List of references.
5. Presentation
All groups have to submit your presentation PowerPoint in week 12 to TA via
email. You are not allowed to change after that. You will make a 15-minute
presentation of your project in class. Your presentation should be based on
your research report and have the following structure.
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)

Introduce the business problem

Define the research objective
Exploratory research
Link c) to your questionnaire design
Describe your sampling strategy and sampling method
Data analysis plan
Discussion

General presentation guidelines:

1. All the members of the group should make the presentation.
2. Time limit: 15 minutes (with another 5 min Q&A). The group marks will
be deducted 1 point (out of the total 30 points) per 1 minute overdue.
3. Q & A 5 minutes. Be prepared to answer questions from the Client.
Students may be randomly selected to ask questions and give comments.
4. Evaluation. The marking is based on the evaluation from the rest of the
class (40%) and the instructor (60%).

Other Class Related Issues

Course Website: All relevant material related to the course will be posted on
Blackboard. Schedules, reading material, cases, and class notes will be made available
in class.
Grading: You can only appeal a grade if there is a clear misreading of what you wrote.
I can give you suggestions for improving your work, but will not respond to
emotional appeals.
Due dates: All due dates are strictly enforced without valid reason and prior
permission. Late assignments will not be accepted.

Feedback: If at any point during the course you have any questions regarding the
materials covered in class or regarding preparation for assignments or cases, please
raise them either in class so others may also benefit, or via email, or in person.
Group member review: Group members can evaluate each others performance on the
assignment and project using a peer review form available on Blackboard. If no
evaluation is turned in, I will assume that everybody in the group contributed equally.
Individual project grades may be adjusted up or down depending on the evaluations
by all the other group members.
Plagiarism: Attention is drawn to University policy and regulations on honesty in
academic work, and to the disciplinary guidelines and procedures applicable to
breaches of such policy and regulations. Details may be found at
http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/.
To uphold the University's policy on plagiarism, please submit your written
assignment through VeriGuide (https://veriguide1.cse.cuhk.edu.hk/cuhk/). When turn
in a hard copy, please attach a signed "Academic Honesty Declaration Statement" to it.

Class Schedule
Note: For classes noted with * Bring your own laptop with Excel installed

Week 1 (Sep 6)
Topic:

Course Overview
Self-Introduction and Reading/ Watching Material

Skim:

Chapter 1-2

Week 2 (Sep 13)

Topic:

Marketing Research Problem Definition and Research

Design

Read:

Chapter 3

Skim:

Chapters 4-5

Week 3 (Sep 20)

Topic:

Group Formation and Discussion

There will be no lecture due to the conference leave of the instructor. This class will
be free discussion. It will provide you with the chance to form groups and decide on
your research topic. Class attendance will be taken by the TA.
Submit (gr)

Please submit your Group Form to TA by email

(due at 6pm on Sep 20).

Week 4 (Sep 27)

Topic:

Research Design

Read:

Chapter 6 7

Flipped Classroom: Presentation - 1

Reminder:

Project Proposal should be completed

Week 5 (Oct 4)
Topics:

Types of Scales and Attitude Measurement

Read:

Chapter 8-9

Flipped Classroom: Presentation - 2

Week 6 (Oct 11)

Topics:

Questionnaire Design

Read:

Chapters 10

Flipped Classroom: Presentation - 3

Week 7 Oct 18
Topic:

Sampling & Sample Size

Read:

Chapters 11-12

Skim:

Chapters 13-14

Flipped Classroom: Presentation - 4

Reminder:

Exploratory research should be completed

Week 8 (Oct 25)*

Topic:

Designing New Products (Conjoint Analysis)

Read:

Chapter 21

Skim:

New Way to Measure Consumers Judgements

Flipped Classroom: Presentation 5

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Week 9 (Nov 1)*

Topic:

Frequency Distribution, Cross Tabulation, and Pivot Table

Read:

Chapters 15

Flipped Classroom: Presentation 6

Reminder:

Questionnaire and Sample Strategy should be completed.

Week 10 (Nov 8)*

Topic:

Regression

Read:

Chapters 17, 19

Flipped Classroom: Presentation - 7

Reminder:

Data analysis plan should be completed.

Week 11 (Nov 15)

Topic:

Group Project Consultation

Week 12 (Nov 22)

Topic:

Group Presentation

Submit (gr)

Final Project Presentation Slides (due before class)

Week 13 (Nov 29)

Final Exam (time= 6:30 pm 8:30 pm; venue = TBD)
Week 14
Submit (gr)

Final Project Report (due at 8pm on Dec 6)

Please submit a zip file that contains your i) final report, and
ii) supplement material.

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