Marketing Communications

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Marketing Communications
Advertising Research

The concept is to identify variables, which are associated with the variable to be predicted and are
measurable at the time the prediction is required. Effective descriptive research has a clear statement of
the decision problem, specific research objective and detailed information needs. It has to be a carefully
planned and structured research design which should provide information about specific questions or
hypothesis, the research must be designed to ensure accuracy of results – that is, results that minimizes
systematic error or constant bias in the measurement process and reliability, the extent to which the
measurement process is free from random errors.

CROSS-SECTIONAL DESIGN: is the method used for descriptive research. This means taking a sample
of population elements at one point in time, a process referred to as the SURVEY RESEARCH DESIGN.
The survey research design is the most popular design; it is useful in describing the characteristics of
consumers and determining the frequency of marketing phenomena. It is usually expensive and demands
skillful, competent research personnel to be effective. Descriptive research designs can utilize one or
more of the following sources of data:

1. Interrogation of respondents


2. Secondary data


3. Simulation

CASUAL RESEARCH: the decision-making process demands assumptions in regards to the cause-
and-effect relationships present in the marketing system. Casual research is designed to gather evidence
regarding these relationships. It requires a planned and structured design that will minimize systematic
error, maximize reliability and permit reasonable unambiguous conclusions regarding causality.

Causal research is appropriate for the following research objectives:-

1. To understand which variables are the cause of what is being predicted – that is the effect –
   focusing on understating the reasons why things happen.


2. To understand the nature of the functional relationship between the causal factors and the
   effect to be predicted.

The main sources of data for causal research are:-

•    Interrogating respondents through surveys

•    Conducting experiments

Surveys can determine the degree of association among variables and the test hypothesis while
experiments are better in distinguishing causality.