Marketing Intelligence: Research Brief and Competitor Analysis

Research Background and Objectives

Market research is important because it enables company management to make informed decisions that maximize profit, increase sales, minimize risk, and determine the strategic positioning of the company and its products. It involves gathering, recording, and analyzing primary and secondary data in order to find correlations between the needs and wants of a target audience and how the company can fulfill them. It helps to create a link between consumers and the marketer through information. The information collected is then used to identify and define the marketing opportunities that exist, as well as the problems that may be encountered in marketing a product. Before the marketing department proceeds with its activities, it is important to understand the complexities and costs involved. This requires undertaking research to understand the market, market trends, performance, and consumer needs (Webb, 2002).

Market research serves several purposes. First, it aids in making marketing decisions — helping marketers decide on the marketing strategy and positioning of the company's products and services. Research shows the marketer whether or not the product is meeting the needs of the target audience and how competitors are faring in meeting those same needs. The marketer is then able to evaluate options for the successful marketing of their products and services. Marketers also need to decide on their target market, which requires detailed information about that market such as age, location, buying habits, and gender. Market research also helps to determine market trends — the movements taking place in the market — including changes in competitor product positioning, potential customers, and customer segments. Market research is thus an important tool in the decision-making process, as it creates a better understanding of the market and helps the marketer understand the different roles within the decision-making unit (Mayer, 1970).

The research to be conducted here will serve the purpose of determining market trends, since the target audience is already known. This will largely support the generation, refinement, and evaluation of marketing activity while creating a platform to monitor market performance. The research will also evaluate the effectiveness of current marketing strategies in order to address any shortcomings.

Research Methodologies

There are two major types of research designs that can be used in market research. The first is quantitative research, in which a statistical analysis of both primary and secondary data is conducted. This involves the collection of numerically measurable data, usually related to market size, growth in market share, and other numerical measures of market trends. Sampling plays a key role in this design, since it helps to establish the validity and reliability of study findings and ensures that the sample is representative of the target audience. Random sampling is the preferred method, as it helps ensure the sample is representative of the entire population being studied. Data is usually obtained through surveys and questionnaires.

The second design is qualitative research, which is subjective and personal in nature. It involves gathering soft information such as the attitudes and emotions that consumers hold toward a company's products or its competition. The primary purpose of qualitative research is to understand the behavior, attitudes, and perceptions of consumers. Interviews and focus groups are the most common methods of collecting qualitative information, as they are designed to elicit detailed responses from consumers (Ferrell and Hartline, 2010). This particular research will employ a quantitative design, since it is concerned with collecting numerical data on market trends.

Secondary Sources and Data Reliability

There are several methods of collecting data for market research. Desk research involves collecting and analyzing secondary data, while field research involves the collection of original data that does not already exist. Several sources of secondary data can be used in this market research, divided into internal and external sources. Internal sources include sales reports, which show the sales performance and trends of the company's products. Customer reports detailing customer satisfaction, complaints, suggestions, and queries can also help explain market trends. Other company reports, such as marketing reports and budgetary reports, are important as they show the expenditure on marketing and how it influences sales. External sources of secondary data include information published by competitors, which helps to evaluate their performance. Government publications and commercial publications can also help identify market trends. Data published by trade associations and market research firms may likewise be helpful.

For marketing success, any market research must be accurate and reliable. Reliable marketing research requires balance in the sample so that it accurately represents the population. This means that both the subset of the population interviewed for primary data and the secondary data analyzed should be representative of the total population — in this case, the target audience. During data extraction, data should be captured as-is, and where possible, semantic scales ranging from excellent, very good, good, fair, or poor should be applied. Numerical data may also be analyzed on numerical scales. Finally, data analysis should be as accurate and detailed as possible to capture all relevant aspects of the research.