Basic Marketing: A Global Managerial Approach

Perreault−McCarthy: Basic

Marketing: A

Global−Managerial

Approach, 14/e

8. Improving Decisions
   with Marketing
   Information

Text © The McGraw−Hill

Companies, 2002

222 Chapter 8

Some people think that only large firms can develop an effective MIS. In fact,

just the opposite may be true. Big firms with complicated marketing programs often

face a challenge trying to develop an MIS from scratch. And once a large firm has

a system in place it may be very costly to switch to something better. It can be eas-

ier for small firms because they are often more focused. They can get started with

a simple system and then expand it as needs expand. There is a lot of opportunity

in this area for students who are able and willing to apply computer skills to solve

real marketing problems.^4

MIS systems tend to focus on recurring information needs. Routinely analyzing

such information can be valuable to marketing managers. But it shouldn’t be their

only source of information for decision making. They must try to satisfy ever-chang-

ing needs in dynamic markets. So marketing research must be used—to supplement

data already available and accessible through the MIS.

MIS use is growing
rapidly

New questions require
new answers

The marketing concept says that marketing managers should meet the needs of

customers. Yet today, many marketing managers are isolated in company offices—

far from potential customers.

This means marketing managers have to rely on help from marketing research—

procedures to develop and analyze new information to help marketing managers

make decisions. One of the important jobs of a marketing researcher is to get the

“facts” that are not currently available in the MIS.

Most large companies have a separate marketing research department to plan and

carry out research projects. These departments often use outside specialists—includ-

ing interviewing and tabulating services—to handle technical assignments. Further,

they may call in specialized marketing consultants and marketing research organi-

zations to take charge of a research project.

Small companies (those with less than $4 or $5 million in sales) usually don’t

have separate marketing research departments. They often depend on their sales

people or managers to conduct what research they do.

Some nonprofit organizations have begun to use marketing research—usually

with the help of outside specialists. For example, many politicians rely on research

firms to conduct surveys of voter attitudes.^5

The basic reason for doing marketing research is to get information that people

can trust in making decisions. But as you will see in this chapter, research often

involves many hidden details. A person who wants to misuse marketing research to

pursue a personal agenda can often do so.

Perhaps the most common ethical issues concern decisions to withhold certain

information about the research. For example, a manager might selectively share only

those results that support his or her viewpoint. Others involved in a decision might

never know that they are getting only partial truths. Or during a set of interviews,

a researcher may discover that consumers are interpreting a poorly worded question

many different ways. If the researcher doesn’t admit the problem, an unknowing

manager may rely on meaningless results.

Another problem involves more blatant abuses. It is unethical for a firm to con-

tact consumers under the pretense of doing research when the real purpose is to sell

something. For example, some political organizations have been criticized for sur-

veying consumers to find out their attitudes about various political candidates and

What Is Marketing Research?

Research provides a
bridge to customers

Who does the work?

Ethical issues in
marketing research