MNM302-5 SUMMARY
STUDY UNIT 1 – ROLE OF MARKETING RESEARCH
DEFINING MARKETING
Marketing can be defined as those decisions made in a business organisation about whom to serve with what product. The
definition refers to two decision making areas:
Demarcating the enterprise’s potential consumers into market segments and to decide which of these market
segments to choose as a target market.
Developing a total product consisting of the actual product, the distribution to the target market, marketing the
product to the consumers by means of advertising and determining the price that will be acceptable to the target
market. These four components - product, price, promotion and place - are known as the marketing mix.
To determine the enterprise’s strengths and weaknesses, the opportunities open to the enterprise and the threats that it will
face, an analysis of the business environment needs to be conducted. This is where “marketing research” comes into play. The
analysis of the marketing environment is also called a “situation analysis”
DEFINING MARKETING RESEARCH
Marketing research can be defined as the systematic collection, analysis and interpretation of information about all marketing
problems by means of recognized scientific methods to provide information that marketing management can use in the
decision-making process.
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF MARKETING RESEARCH:
Quantitative vs. Qualitative - Can be scrutinized mathematically. Determining the effect which an increase in the fuel
price would have on the consumption of the organization’s product is qualitative in nature.
Applied vs. Basic Research - Is aimed at analysing an opportunity or a threat in the marketplace. The research findings
can be applied to take advantage of the opportunity, or to address the threat in the marketing environment. Basic
research is aimed at extending knowledge. For example – Years ago research was initiated to find alternative fuels to
petrol. Hydrogen was one of these alternatives = basic research. Later on, motor vehicle manufacturers started to
developed a hydrogen-powered car = applied research.
Inaccurate vs. Accurate - Marketing research findings can be highly accurate or fairly accurate. For example – Analysing
the colour preferences of a firm’s consumers can result in accurate data regarding the need for each colour. Estimating
the drop in sales when a firm decreases its advertising expenditure cannot be accurate.
Time vs. Budget Constraints - Most research ventures are aimed at addressing threats or opportunities which require
rapid response. An elaborate research design and extensive fieldwork is time consuming and NOT possible. Visiting 300
consumers (respondents) at home and asking them about their usage of our product is a costly exercise.
THE ROLE OF MARKETING RESEARCH IN THE MARKETING MANAGEMENT PROCESS
Marketing research is not only conducted as part of the situational analysis, it is also utilized in three phases of the marketing
management process.
Who we plan to serve the target market with a specific product (marketing mix – 4 P’s)
The marketing strategy is formulated by addressing two decisions
I. Defining served market segments.
II. Establishing the competitive advantage of the product.
The development of the marketing mix programes (4 P’s). The final phase of the marketing planning process is the
control phase during which the results of the marketing programmes are evaluated against the objectives that were set
for them.
Marketing plays 3 functional roles in marketing decision making:
DESCRIPTIVE – gathering and presenting statements and facts
DIAGNOSTIC- Explaining of data or actions
PREDICTIVE – Specification of how to use descriptive and diagnostic
STUDY UNIT 1 – ROLE OF MARKETING RESEARCH
DEFINING MARKETING
Marketing can be defined as those decisions made in a business organisation about whom to serve with what product. The
definition refers to two decision making areas:
Demarcating the enterprise’s potential consumers into market segments and to decide which of these market
segments to choose as a target market.
Developing a total product consisting of the actual product, the distribution to the target market, marketing the
product to the consumers by means of advertising and determining the price that will be acceptable to the target
market. These four components - product, price, promotion and place - are known as the marketing mix.
To determine the enterprise’s strengths and weaknesses, the opportunities open to the enterprise and the threats that it will
face, an analysis of the business environment needs to be conducted. This is where “marketing research” comes into play. The
analysis of the marketing environment is also called a “situation analysis”
DEFINING MARKETING RESEARCH
Marketing research can be defined as the systematic collection, analysis and interpretation of information about all marketing
problems by means of recognized scientific methods to provide information that marketing management can use in the
decision-making process.
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF MARKETING RESEARCH:
Quantitative vs. Qualitative - Can be scrutinized mathematically. Determining the effect which an increase in the fuel
price would have on the consumption of the organization’s product is qualitative in nature.
Applied vs. Basic Research - Is aimed at analysing an opportunity or a threat in the marketplace. The research findings
can be applied to take advantage of the opportunity, or to address the threat in the marketing environment. Basic
research is aimed at extending knowledge. For example – Years ago research was initiated to find alternative fuels to
petrol. Hydrogen was one of these alternatives = basic research. Later on, motor vehicle manufacturers started to
developed a hydrogen-powered car = applied research.
Inaccurate vs. Accurate - Marketing research findings can be highly accurate or fairly accurate. For example – Analysing
the colour preferences of a firm’s consumers can result in accurate data regarding the need for each colour. Estimating
the drop in sales when a firm decreases its advertising expenditure cannot be accurate.
Time vs. Budget Constraints - Most research ventures are aimed at addressing threats or opportunities which require
rapid response. An elaborate research design and extensive fieldwork is time consuming and NOT possible. Visiting 300
consumers (respondents) at home and asking them about their usage of our product is a costly exercise.
THE ROLE OF MARKETING RESEARCH IN THE MARKETING MANAGEMENT PROCESS
Marketing research is not only conducted as part of the situational analysis, it is also utilized in three phases of the marketing
management process.
Who we plan to serve the target market with a specific product (marketing mix – 4 P’s)
The marketing strategy is formulated by addressing two decisions
I. Defining served market segments.
II. Establishing the competitive advantage of the product.
The development of the marketing mix programes (4 P’s). The final phase of the marketing planning process is the
control phase during which the results of the marketing programmes are evaluated against the objectives that were set
for them.
Marketing plays 3 functional roles in marketing decision making:
DESCRIPTIVE – gathering and presenting statements and facts
DIAGNOSTIC- Explaining of data or actions
PREDICTIVE – Specification of how to use descriptive and diagnostic
