Unit 3 : M2
In this assignment, I will be explaining the limitations of the market research used to
contribute to the development of Kellogg’s marketing plans.
Firstly, the most evident drawback of market research is the validity of the data received.
The data collected for a certain development may not always be reliable. For instance, if
Kellogg’s hires Mintel or Datamonitor to do a research, there is no guarantee that the firm
will provide effective feedback. The Kellogg’s company cannot rely entirely on these firms’
outcomes as there is no assurance that the results are honest and trustworthy. This is
because; these firms provide mostly second-hand information which may not be wholly
tailored for Kellogg’s personal purposes. Besides, the information which they collect may
be out of date or not representative and therefore may not benefit Kellogg’s. This can have
vital consequences as if Kellogg’s trusts research which is not adequate, when the company
introduces a new product based on the research, it can turn out to be a failure and ruin the
image of the brand.
There are also drawbacks associated with primary research. To begin with, gathering first-
hand information can prove to be costly. Kellogg’s will have to buy the required materials
and pay people to carry out the actual research itself. Furthermore, Kellogg’s will have to
hire someone to review and analyse the data collected to come up with a conclusion. This
whole process can also prove to be time-consuming as everything needs to be planned
meticulously. Therefore, secondary research can prove to be an easier source of data.
Moreover, there are additional weaknesses associated with using primary research.
When using a questionnaire for example, sometimes respondents might not want to
disappoint the company and might give biased answers, in order to please the company as
they are being paid by them. Most of us have a tendency to behave artificially when we
know that we are being observed, in order to appear in the positive light. Consequently, it is
very likely that the latter will only state their likes about a product and prefer to not
mention their negative opinions. This can provide a false picture to Kellogg’s as they will
believe that the customers are indeed satisfied with their product idea, when this may not
actually be the case. This can lead to a product launch based on fake findings.
Also, if a questionnaire is not designed appropriately, this can influence the answers given
by the respondents. Therefore, the questionnaires should have clear and well-designed
questions and be correctly formulated to retrieve both the positive and negative side of a
Kellogg’s product. If this is not the case, then the qualitative data received may be biased
and if Kellogg’s is not aware of its areas for improvement, it will not be able to identify and
find a solution to the problem. As a result, poor questions can lead to poor results, which
may affect product development.
In addition to this, if someone is being paid to read out the questions to the respondents,
then the latter needs to be suitably trained. They should not influence the results of the
In this assignment, I will be explaining the limitations of the market research used to
contribute to the development of Kellogg’s marketing plans.
Firstly, the most evident drawback of market research is the validity of the data received.
The data collected for a certain development may not always be reliable. For instance, if
Kellogg’s hires Mintel or Datamonitor to do a research, there is no guarantee that the firm
will provide effective feedback. The Kellogg’s company cannot rely entirely on these firms’
outcomes as there is no assurance that the results are honest and trustworthy. This is
because; these firms provide mostly second-hand information which may not be wholly
tailored for Kellogg’s personal purposes. Besides, the information which they collect may
be out of date or not representative and therefore may not benefit Kellogg’s. This can have
vital consequences as if Kellogg’s trusts research which is not adequate, when the company
introduces a new product based on the research, it can turn out to be a failure and ruin the
image of the brand.
There are also drawbacks associated with primary research. To begin with, gathering first-
hand information can prove to be costly. Kellogg’s will have to buy the required materials
and pay people to carry out the actual research itself. Furthermore, Kellogg’s will have to
hire someone to review and analyse the data collected to come up with a conclusion. This
whole process can also prove to be time-consuming as everything needs to be planned
meticulously. Therefore, secondary research can prove to be an easier source of data.
Moreover, there are additional weaknesses associated with using primary research.
When using a questionnaire for example, sometimes respondents might not want to
disappoint the company and might give biased answers, in order to please the company as
they are being paid by them. Most of us have a tendency to behave artificially when we
know that we are being observed, in order to appear in the positive light. Consequently, it is
very likely that the latter will only state their likes about a product and prefer to not
mention their negative opinions. This can provide a false picture to Kellogg’s as they will
believe that the customers are indeed satisfied with their product idea, when this may not
actually be the case. This can lead to a product launch based on fake findings.
Also, if a questionnaire is not designed appropriately, this can influence the answers given
by the respondents. Therefore, the questionnaires should have clear and well-designed
questions and be correctly formulated to retrieve both the positive and negative side of a
Kellogg’s product. If this is not the case, then the qualitative data received may be biased
and if Kellogg’s is not aware of its areas for improvement, it will not be able to identify and
find a solution to the problem. As a result, poor questions can lead to poor results, which
may affect product development.
In addition to this, if someone is being paid to read out the questions to the respondents,
then the latter needs to be suitably trained. They should not influence the results of the
