Business studies

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Examples of primary research methods
Common methods of obtaining primary market research include:

Focus groups
Interviews (online & in-person)
Surveys & questionnaires
Mystery shoppers
Product testing and product trial
Primary market research is research data that is collected first-hand for a specific research purpose.
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Advantages of primary market research:
Directly focused on research objectives = fit for purpose

Tends to be more up-to-date than secondary research

Provides more detailed insights – particularly into customer views
drawbacks of primary market research:
Time-consuming and often costly to obtain

Risk of survey bias – research samples may not be representative of the population
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Secondary market research uses data that already exists and has been collected by someone else for another purpose.
Internal data sources should always be considered as the first source in any investigation because they are usually the fastest, cheapest, and most convenient source of information available.
In these cases, organizations may need to consider using extern
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What are external sources of secondary data?

There are several sources of existing data available from outside of the business that may be of value. These include:
The Government – the much wider availability of open data from the government has signific
Accurate, up-to-date information obtained by marketing research can be of enormous value to a business in gaining and/or maintaining its competitive edge. However, there are a number of reasons why, in reality, these potential benefits may not be realised
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Budgetary constraints Gathering and processing data can be very expensive.
g. , from secondary sources
Time constraints

Organisations are often forced to balance the need to build up as detailed a picture as possible regarding customer needs etc. against the desire to make decisions as quickly as possible, in order to maintain or improve their position in
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Data quality can be compromised via a number of potential routes, e.
Efforts to ensure that data is accurate, samples are representative and interviewers are objective will all add to the costs of the research but such costs are necessary if poor decision
Legal & ethical constraints the Data Protection Act (1998) is a good example of a law that has a number of implications for market researchers collecting and holding personal data.
For instance, researchers must ensure that the data they obtain is kept se
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Observation

Watching how consumers behave provides many insights, but can leave questions unanswered. Observation works well in retail markets; sit outside a shop and watch how many people walk by, look at the window display etc.
Postal surveys

Sent to the address of potential customers who complete the form and send back in a pre-paid envelope. cheap, a postal survey can cover a wide geographical area and avoids the potential for interviewer bias. However, response rates (the pr
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Telephone interviews

Not to be confused with "telesales" (which is a method of selling), the telephone interview allow quicker feedback than a postal survey. However, potential customers are often wary of being called and may be reluctant to give anythin
Online surveys

Increasingly popular and relatively low cost, online surveys are widely used by small businesses as a way of capturing the views of existing and potential customers
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Face-to-face surveys

Personal interviews conducted face-to-face. A costly, but good way to get detailed insights from an individual
Focus groups

Groups of potential customers are brought together to discuss their feelings about a product or market. Focus groups are a good way of getting detailed information about customer tastes and preferences
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Test marketing This involves selling a new product in a small section of the market in order to assess customer reaction.
For example, a start-up could start by selling to a limited local area in order to iron-out product issues.
Primary research is research you conduct yourself (or hire someone to do for you.) It involves going directly to a source – usually customers and prospective customers in your target market – to ask questions and gather information. Examples of primary re
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

drawbacks of primary market research:
Time-consuming and often costly to obtain

Risk of survey bias – research samples may not be representative of the population

Back

Advantages of primary market research:
Directly focused on research objectives = fit for purpose

Tends to be more up-to-date than secondary research

Provides more detailed insights – particularly into customer views

Card 3

Front

Internal data sources should always be considered as the first source in any investigation because they are usually the fastest, cheapest, and most convenient source of information available.
In these cases, organizations may need to consider using extern

Back

Preview of the back of card 3

Card 4

Front

Accurate, up-to-date information obtained by marketing research can be of enormous value to a business in gaining and/or maintaining its competitive edge. However, there are a number of reasons why, in reality, these potential benefits may not be realised

Back

Preview of the back of card 4

Card 5

Front

Time constraints

Organisations are often forced to balance the need to build up as detailed a picture as possible regarding customer needs etc. against the desire to make decisions as quickly as possible, in order to maintain or improve their position in

Back

Preview of the back of card 5
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