Research Design: Classification:

The primary objective of exploratory research is to provide insights into, and an understanding of, the
problem confronting the researcehr2. Exploratory research is used in cases when you must define the
problem more precisely, identify relevant courses of action, or gain additional insights before an approach
can be developed. The information needed is only loosely defined at this stage, and the research process
that is adopted is flexible and unstructured. For example, it may consist of personal interviews with
industry experts. The sample, selected to generate maximum insights, is small and nonrepresentative. The
primary data are qualitative in nature and are analysed accordingly. Given these characteristics of the
research process, the findings of exploratory research should be regarded as tentative or as input to further
research. Typically, such research is followed by further exploratory or conclusive research.
The objective of conclusive research is to test specific hypotheses and examine specific relationships.
This requires that the researcher clearly specify the information needed. Conclusive research is typically
more formal and structured than exploratory research. It is based on large, representative samples, and the
data obtained are subjected to quantitative analysis. The findings from this research are considered to be
conclusive in nature in that they are used as input into managerial decision making.
Exploratory Research
Exploratory research could be used for any of the following purposes:
Formulate a problem or define a problem more precisely.
Identify alternative courses of action.
Develop hypotheses.
Isolate key variables and relationships for further examination4.
Gain insights for developing an approach to the problem.
Establish priorities for further research.
The opening example in the overview section illustrated the used of exploratory research to identify the
social causes that American businesses should be concerned about. This research identified the following
causes as salient: child care, drug abuse, public education, hunger crime, the environment, medical
research, and poverty. In general, exploratory research is meaningful in any situation where the researcher
does not have enough understanding to proceed with the research project. Exploratory research is
characterized by flexibility and versatility with respect to the methods because formal research protocols
and procedures are not employed. It rarely involves structured questionnaires, large samples, and
probability sampling plans. Rather, researchers are alert to new ideas and insights as they proceed. Once a
new idea or insight is discovered, they may redirect their exploration in that direction.
Exploratory research can greatly benefit form use of the following methods.
Survey of experts
Pilot surveys
 Case studies
Secondary data analyzed in a qualitative way
Qualitative research
Types of exploratory studies:
A review of academic and trade literature to identify the relevant store characteristics (choice
criteria), demographic and psychographic factors that influence consumer patronage of department
stores.
Interviews with retailing experts to determine trends, such as emergence of new types of outlets
and shifts in consumer patronage patterns (e.g., shopping on the Internet).
A comparative analysis of the five best and five worst stores of the same chain to gain some idea
of the factors that influence store performance.
Focus groups to determine the factors that consumers consider important in selecting department
stores.
Note that Waterpik did not rely exclusively on exploratory research. Once new product concepts were
identified, they were further tested by descriptive research in the form of consumer surveys. This example
points to the importance of descriptive research in obtaining more conclusive findings.
Descriptive Research
As the name implies, the major objective of Descriptive research is to describe something usually
market characteristics or function Descriptive research is conducted for the following reasons:
1. To describe the characteristics of relevant groups, such as consumers, salespeople, organizations,
or market areas. For example, we could develop a profile of the heavy users (frequent shoppers)
of prestigious department stores like Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus.
2. To estimate the percentage of units in a specified population exhibiting a certain behaviour. For
example, we might be interested in estimating the percentage of heavy users of prestigious
department stores who also patronize discount department stores.
3. To determine the perceptions of product characteristics. For example, how do households perceive
the various department stores in terms of salient factors of the choice criteria?
4. To determine the degree to which marketing variables are associated. For example, to what extent
is shopping at department stores related to eating out?
5. To make specific predictions. For example, what will be the retail sales of Neiman Marcus
(specific store) for fashion clothing (specific product category) in the Dallas area (specific
region)?
In fact, a major difference between exploratory and descriptive research is that descriptive research is
characterized by the prior formulation of specific hypotheses. Thus, the information needed is clearly
defined. As a result, descriptive research is preplanned and structured. It is typically based on large
representative samples. A formal research design specifies the methods for selecting the sources of
information and for collecting data from those sources. A descriptive design requires a clear specification
of the who, what, when, where, why and way (the six Ws) of the research. (It is interesting to note that
news reporters use similar criteria for describing a situation).
Other examples of descriptive studies are:
Market studies, which describe the size of the market, buying power of the consumers, availability
of distributors, and consumer profiles.
Market share studies, which determine the proportion of total sales received by a company and its
competitors.
Sales analysis studies, which describe sales by geographic region, product line, type and size of
the account.
Image studies, which determine consumer perceptions of the firm and its products.
Product usage studies, which describe consumption patterns.
Distribution studies, which determine traffic flow patterns and the number and location of
distributors.
Pricing studies, which describe the range and frequency of price changes and probable consumer
response to proposed price changes.
Advertising studies, which describe media consumption habits and audience profiles for specific
television programs and magazines.
A vast majority of marketing research studies involve descriptive research, which incorporates the
following major methods:
Secondary data analyzed in a quantitative as opposed to a qualitative manner
Surveys
Panels
Observational and other data.
Descriptive research can be further classified into cross-sectional and longitudinal research.
Cross-Sectional Designs:
The cross sectional study is the most frequently used descriptive design in marketing research. Cross-
sectional designs involve the collection of information from any given sample of population elements
only once. They may be either single cross-sectional or multiple cross sectional. In Single cross
sectional designs, only one sample of respondents is drawn from the target population and information is
obtained from this sample only once. These designs are also called sample survey research designs.
In multiple cross sectional designs, there are two or more samples of respondents and information
from each sample is obtained only once. Often, information from different samples is obtained at different
times over long intervals. Multiple cross sectional designs allow comparisons at the aggregate level but
not at the individual respondent level. Because a different sample is taken each time a survey is
conducted, there is no way to compare the measures on an individual respondent across surveys. One type
of multiple cross-sectional design of special interest is cohort analysis.
COHORT ANALYSIS: Cohort analysis consists of a series of surveys conducted at appropriate time
intervals, where the cohort serves as the basic unit of analysis. A cohort is a group of respondents who
experience the same event within the same time interval8.
Longitudinal designs:
In longitudinal designs, a fixed sample (or samples) of population elements is measured repeatedly on
the same variables. In other words, the same people are studies over time and the same variables are
measured.
Sometimes, the term panel or true panel is used interchangeably with the term longitudinal design. A
Panel consists of a sample of respondents, generally households that have agreed to provide information
at specified intervals over an extended period. Syndicated firms maintain panels, and panel members are
compensated for their participation with gifts, coupons, information, or cash. Panels are discussed further
in Chapter 4. A panel design can be used to understand and monitor changes.
Causal Research:
Causal research is used to obtain evidence of cause-and-effect (causal) relationships. Marketing
managers continually make decisions based on assumed causal relationships. Causal research is
appropriate for the following purposes:
1. To understand which variables are the cause (Independent variables) and which variables are the
effect (dependent variables) of a phenomenon.
2. To determine the nature of the relationship between the causal variables and the effect to be
predicted.
Although descriptive research can determine the degree of association between variables, it is not
appropriate for examining causal relationships. Such an examination requires a causal design, in which
the causal or independent variables are manipulated in a relatively controlled environment. A relatively
controlled environment is one in which the other variables that may affect the dependent variable are
controlled or checked as much as possible. The effect of this manipulation on one or more dependent
variables is then measured to infer causality. The main method of causal research is experimentation.
Microsoft: Experimenting with Usability:
The key to the success (high awareness and high sales) of Office 2007 (www.microsoft.com) was that the
product was carefully designed and tested by the Usability Group. In a controlled experiment, one group
of computer users was asked to work with Office 2007. Two other carefully matched groups worked with
the previous versions of Office: one with Office 2003 and the other with Office XP. All three groups rated
the products on ease of use, capabilities, and the ability to enhance a computer users experience. Office
2007 was rated significantly better than the previous versions on all factors, leading to the introduction of
this version18.
In the Microsoft experiment, the causal (independent) variable was the Office suite, which was
manipulated to have three levels: XP, 2003, and 2007. The effect (dependent) variables were ease of use,
capabilities, and the ability to enhance a computer users experience. The influence of other variables,
such as user expertise and experience with Microsoft Office, had to be controlled. Although the preceding
example distinguished causal research from other types of research, causal research should not be viewed
in isolation. Rather, the exploratory, descriptive, and causal designs often complement each other.