Collection of Primary Data

The marketing researcher should, first of all, explore the secondary data from various sources and examine the possibility of their use for his study. In several cases, he may find the data inadequate or unusable and therefore, he may realize the need for collecting first –hand data. As in the case of everyday life, if we want to have first hand information on any happening or event, we either ask someone who knows above it or we observe it ourselves, or we do both. The same is applicable to marketing research. Thus, the main methods by which primary data can be collected are:

Sources of Market Data

• Observation,
• Retail Audit,
• Consumer Panel,
• Diary Method,
• Internet as a source of Data,
• Interviewing
• Questionnaire

Observation: Observation is one of the methods of collecting data. It is used to get both past and current information. For example, instead of asking respondents about their current behaviours, we may observe it and record our observation. Although it is not possible to observe past behaviours, we may observe the results of such behaviour. In a way, secondary data reflect the result the results of the past behaviours of people as also of past occurrences.

In marketing research, the observational method is not used frequently. All the same, as is used especially in marketing experimentation, a brief discussion in provided here.

At the outset, let us go through a few examples indicating how observation may be used in marketing research.

• One of the factors influencing the sale of a branded product is how readily it is kept in stock. An interested manufacture may send some observers to a sample of stores to find out how frequently the product is out of stock. Likewise, sales are also influenced by its display position in a store. A prominently displayed product will receive greater attention of the people visiting the store as against another product displayed in an obscure corner. Here, too, a manufacturer can ascertain from observers what sort of display his product is getting in selected stores and with what results.
• In order to ascertain what prices competitors charge, a manufacture may depute some observers to go round the stores.
• Today, certain mechanical devices are used for observation, for example, the eye-camera, the pupilometric camera and the motion –picture camera. A device known as the audiometer is attached to radio sets for recording automatically the station to which the radio –set is tuned. This is supposed to give an idea of the size of audience for a particular programme. Similarly, the size of audience watching a particular television programme can be ascertained through mechanical devices, which enable the manufacturer, who has sponsored that programme, analyses whether it whether it has been viewed by a sizeable number or not. Furthermore. He can ascertain the reaction of those who actually viewed the programme by interviewing a sample of them. Thus, the observation method in conjunction with interviewing the respondents provides very useful information.

There are some advantages of observation as a method of collecting information. To being with, the direct observational technique enables a researcher to record behaviour as it occurs. In contrast, other techniques record the data mostly retrospectively on the basis of the respondent’s report after the event. Another merit of direct observation is that it can be sued regardless of whether the respondent is willing to report or not. In a field survey, if an enumerator comes across an unwilling and hostile respondent, he cannot collect the desired information. But, this problem does not arise at all in the case of direct observation. Yet another advantage of observation is that it can be used even when it pertains to those who are unable to respond such as infants and animals.

There are, How ever, Some Limitations of this Method

• Firstly, only the neither current behaviour nor can one observes a person’s future behaviour because the act of observation takes place in the present.
• Secondly, observation does not help us in gauging a person’s attitude or opinion on a certain subject nor his knowledge of the same.
• Thirdly, the observational method is very slow and as such. When a large number of persons are to be contacted, it becomes of the long time required for this purpose.

Apart from these inherent limitations of observation, there are certain difficulties too.

Difficulties in Observation

Certain difficulties come in the way of accurate observation and cause it to become distorted.

These difficulties arise on account of

• Inadequacies of our sense organs,
• Interdependence of observation and inference, and
• Effects of interaction between the observer and the observed

The first set of difficulties arises on account of inadequacies of our sense –organs, which “operate in a highly variable, erratic and selective manner.” Several studies, conducted by psychologist, how that the perception of a man depends on several factors such as his freshness, interest, and freedom from interruption. The more favourable the conditions, the more receptive the person will be to outside impressions. Further, objects that are large or clear and sound that are repetitive are likely to receive greater attention of the person.

Other difficulties arise on account of the interdependence of observation and inference.

All perception, arise on account of the interdependence of observation and inference. All perception, after the first weeks of lire, is compounded to the immediate experience and of the stored experience. Anything that impinges on our senses conveys a meaning to us largely to the extent that we relate it to what we already know. Observation and inference are inspirable.

This means that whatever an observer sees he tries to explain on interpret it on the basis of his past experience. Thus, the observer inference problem is the main difficulty in as much as the observer can draw wrong inferences from observations. The third set of difficulties crops up because of the effects of interaction between the observer and observed. This may have two distinct dangers. First, persons being observed may become self-conscious of the observation and this may influence their normal behaviour. Second, observation may get distorted merely because one more person-the observer-is present and people are conscious of his presence.

Methods of Observation: There are several methods of observation of which any one or a combination of some of them can be used by the observer. Thus, there are structured or unstructured methods, disguised or undisguised methods, or observation made in a natural setting or laboratory setting, direct-indirect observation, or human-mechanical observation. These are briefly discussed below.

Structured –unstructured Observation: Structured observation is used when the research problem has been formulated precisely and the observer has been told specifically what is to be observed. They may be given a simple from to record their observations. Unstructured observation implies that observers are free to observe whatever they think is relevant and important. While structured observations are free from subjective bias, unstructured observations are subject to this limitation. The extent of the bias may vary to the extent an observation is unstructured.

Disguised –undisguised Observation: In the case of disguised observation, the subjects do not know that they are being observed. In some cases, disguised observation may be made by the observer by posing as one of the shoppers who are being observed. This type of observation of often preferred because it is farmed that people may behave differently when they know they are being observed, it may be difficult to completely disguise an observation, though this apart, it poses an ethical question of its desirability when those who are being observed are kept in the dark.

Observations under Natural Setting – Laboratory Setting: Another way to classify observations in on the basis of their setting, i.e. natural or laboratory Observations in field studies are in their natural setting and are, therefore, undertaken in extremely realistic conditions. Sometimes, an experimental manipulation may be introduced in a field study. Observation in a laboratory setting, on the other hand, enables the observer to control extraneous variables which influence the behaviours of people. Observational studies in laboratory settings have certain advantages over field studies. They enable the collection of data promptly and economically and in addition, permit the use of more objective measurements.

Direct –indirect Observation In the case of direct observation,: the event or the behaviour of a person is observed as it occurs. In contrast, indirect observation implies that some record of past behaviour is observed. In other words, the behaviour itself is not observed, rather its effects are observed. An observer engaged in indirect observation generally looks for physical traces of behaviour or occurrence of an event. Suppose, he is interested in knowing about the liquor consumption of a household, he would like for empty liquor bottles in the garbage. Similarly, the observer may seek the permission of the housewife of see the pantry. He may carry out a pantry audit to ascertain the consumption of certain types of products. It may be noted that the success of an indirect observation largely depends on how best the observer is able to identify physical traces of the problem under study. Direct observation is far more common than indirect observation.

Human-mechanical Observation: Another way of classifying observations is whether they are made manually research based on human observation wherein trained observers are required to observe and faithfully record their observations. In some cases, mechanical devices such as eye cameras and audiometer are use for observation. One of the major advantages of electrical / mechanical devices is that recordings are free from subject bias. As against this advantage, such observations may be less valid than human observation. This is because the observer’s power of interaction can lead to a more valid evaluation of the observation.

Retail Audit: Retail Audit is a common term in marketing research.. During the 1990s, it became increasingly important to develop a strong brand image. It’s not just the product that needs to be sold, but also the brand, charged with values such as ethics, quality, feelings and identity that put over a positive message to consumers.

Today, many companies are moving their production from their home countries to nations where manufacturing costs are considerably lower. However, the role of the company extends beyond just financial issues; every organisation has a social responsibility. Consumer and pressure groups are increasingly concerned about the social conditions in which workers from developed and developing countries are subjected. They expect companies to accept its responsibilities and to conduct its activities in accordance with the ethical and moral values accepted in the country in which their product is sold. Forced labor, child labor, low pay, poor conditions and dangerous working environments are all areas of serious concern to the reputable retailer or brand owner.

The audit process includes an opening meeting, factory tour, document review, interviews with employees and a closing meeting.

The Key Parameters That We Look at When Carrying out Retail audits are

• In-store availability of product/brand;
• Types of outlets (by owner, location, specialty);
• Sales volume cross-tabbed with type and location;
• Pricing of product/brand cross-tabbed with type/location of outlet;
• Display value;
• Customer demand;
• Resulting market share and rank/position of product/ brand

It must be noted that there are no readily available retail universe data. The design of a retail audit is critical to the success of the project. The data obtained from the retail audit is useful for carrying out

• Identification of market opportunities
• Trend analyses and forecasting
• Studying market structure
• Prioritization of markets
• Conducting analyses of competitors
• Product portfolio analysis
• Understanding changes in distribution
• Pricing trend analyses

Consumer Panel: There’s nothing (consumer) panel data can tell us that we don’t already know from scanner data. Consumer panels are a unique tool that can enable a clever researcher to examine dynamic longitudinal changes in behaviors, attitudes, and perceptions. Consumer panels can also be an overly costly, excessive generator of unused data

What are Consumer Panels?: There are two basic kinds of consumer panels. In the first kind, respondents report essentially the same information repeatedly over some period of time. The chief examples of these kinds of panels are the syndicated purchase panels using store and home, termed as, continuous panels. The second kind of panel consists of samples of pre-screened respondents who report over time on a broad range of different

The effect of a special offer can be measured through a before-and-after design using a panel approach. Thus, a sample of families might be interviewed initially to gather information on their purchases of soft drinks, possibly over several weeks to obtain a good idea of their “steady state” purchasing patterns. A special deal for a particular brand is then introduced, and the purchases of the same sample are monitored for perhaps every week for three months. In this way, sampling variation is minimized and both short-term and long-term effects of the deal are obtained. Topics, termed as discontinuous access panels.

Both kinds of panels come in all different forms. Panel studies can involve data collection at widely different intervals varying anywhere from a day to several years between waves of interviews. Panel operators are continuously faced with the decision about how often panel members should be contacted and asked to report. Contacting the panel either too frequently or too infrequently may lead to reduced cooperation,

The Benefits of Continuous Consumer Panels

• The effect of a special offer can be measured through a before-and-after design using a panel approach. Thus, a sample of families might be interviewed initially to gather information on their purchases of soft drinks, possibly over several weeks to obtain a good idea of their “steady state” purchasing patterns. A special deal for a particular brand is then introduced, and the purchases of the same sample are monitored for perhaps every week for three months. In this way, sampling variation is minimized and both short-term and long-term effects of the deal are obtained.
• A static consumer panel of families with young children might be set up to monitor the acceptance of new line of toys. In this case no type of experimental treatment is involved. Rather, information is obtained, say, every month on the toy purchases of the families. In this way, data are compiled on the types of families that are buying any of the new toys, how soon the toys are purchased after they have been placed on the market, and how many of the toys are purchased by each family.
• A dynamic consumer panel might be used to keep track of the purchases of frozen foods of one brand in relation to other brands. By obtaining such data every week for several years, very detailed information can be obtained on what sorts of families are purchasing each major brand and on the change in market shares of the different brands over time among different groups of consumers. Also estimates can be derived of the extent to which purchasers remain loyal to different brands.
• Diary Method,
• Internet as a source of Data,
• Interviewing
• Questionnaire