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.1. Advertising and Marketing Research

Research may be defined as a careful, systematic, patient study and investigation in some field of knowledge, undertaken to establish facts or principles, in whatever field of study, in any subject. The research is an orderly procedure, a series of steps which should be followed to maximize the usefulness of the information obtained.

Advertising Research is thus to discover answers through the application of scientific procedures. Though each research study has its own specific purpose, advertising research is used to:-

-Help identify consumers-Look for new ideas in products and services-Improve current communication -Pinpoint causes of certain problems-Monitor activities-Help in communication development-Study promotional tools-Help in defining advertising strategies-Provide understanding of the market-Check if the advertising has achieved its objective

The role of research in advertising can be seen in various stages of advertising planning. Advertising is communication & it is extremely important to know about the consumers who are your target audience. Both demographics & psychographics are to be studied. The objectives of advertising campaign have to be clear.

Advertising research primarily relates to 3 critical decisions to develop an advertising strategy:--setting objectives-selecting the message-choosing appropriate media vehicles Prof. Anita Mandrekar 1

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Marketing Research is the systematic & objective search for information relevant to the identification and solution of any problem in the field of marketing. Marketing research is the function which links the consumer and public to the marketer through information which is used to identify and define marketing opportunities & problem generate, refine & evaluate marketing actions; monitor marketing performance and improve understanding of marketing as a process.Marketing Research helps to-measure market potential -study the characteristics of the market-find out the market share-evaluate new-product opportunities-evaluate acceptance of new products-test existing/new products relative to competitive products-optimize product/package designs-measure brand architecture-improve the quality of decision making-understand the ever-changing marketplace

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I.2. The Research Process

The research process is a series of steps, in a sequential manner may not necessarily be in that order. However for the sake of the understanding, the idea is comprehended in a sequential manner.

1 Define the problem2 Define the research objective2 Formulate hypothesis4 Determine the expected value of information 3 Determine the research technique and data collection method4 Define the sampling design5 Develop the questionnaire6 Pre-testing the questionnaire7 Briefing the field interviewers8 Supervision and back-checking the field work9 Compilation- tabulation10 Analysis11 Interpretation12 Report writing13 Determining the cost14 Determining the time to complete the research

The various steps are not mutually exclusive nor are they separate or distinct. One has to anticipate each step of the research process and the requirement of the subsequent stepsFormulating the research process: The researcher must single out the problem he wants to study. He must decide on what areas he wants information on. The formulation of a general topic into a specific research problem thus constitutes the first step. For this a thorough understanding of research problem is necessary and this has to be rephrased into meaningful terms for an analytical point of view.


It is therefore necessary to have discussions with one’s own people, with experts or other experienced persons. The researcher must examine all available data to know the problem on hand. After this he rephrases the problem in specific terms. The task of formulating a research problem is a step of greatest importance in the entire research process because it determines the data which are to be collected, the data which are relevant, the areas to be explored, the choice of techniques to be used and final report.

Then the researcher has to state the working hypothesis. It helps to guide the researcher by delimiting the area of research and keep on the right track.

The next step is to prepare the research design. The structure within which the research will be conducted has to be stated. This should be done in such a way that all relevant information is collected with minimum costs, effort and time. The researcher has to select the design appropriate for the project.

The sample design is a definite plan on hoe the sample is to be selected. It has to be decided before any data is actually collected. Samples can be either probability or non-probability sample.

Collecting the data can be by observation, personal interviews, telephone, mail questionnaire. The method selected will depend on the nature of the investigation, the objective and scope of the study, financial resources, the time available and the degree of accuracy desired.The questionnaire has to be prepared and pretested.The field work is then instituted in a systematic manner and in time. Field checks are made so that the information is collected with predefined standard of accuracy.Then coding, editing and tabulation need to be done.The report has to be according to a format. The preliminary pages include the title, date, and acknowledgement. There should be a table of contents, list of graphs and charts.The main text should have the introduction objectives, methodology adopted. The summary of findings comes next. The conclusion should be written clearly and precisely.


The Research Process can be presented in the form of steps as under

Step one;; DEFINE THE RESEARCH PROBLEM1. Define the managerial problem2. Refining and redefining the problem1. Translating the managerial problem into research problem

Step two CONSIDERING THE POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS1. Preliminary Investigation2. Formulating the Hypothesis/ Hypotheses

Step three DEVELOPING RESEARCH DESIGN1. Define the research objectives2. Plan and determine the scope of investigation3. Develop alternative methods for collection of primary data4. Define sampling unit, sample size procedure and sample method5. Develop methods of analysis and interpretation6. Estimate the time and personnel needed7. Prepare the budget8. Formulate research proposal and get it approved

Step four COLLECTION OF MARKETING DATA1. Collection of primary data by suitable method2. Collection of primary data tapping all the sources

Step five DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION1. Edit the data collected2. Code the data collected3. Tabulate the data4. Analyse the data drawing inference5. Interpret the data drawing inference6. Draw summary and conclusion7. Recommend and suggest improvement

Step six PREPARE AND PRESENT THE REPORT1. Arrange the research results as per format match2. Get report typed and bound3. Present the copies to the concerned authorities


I.3. Sampling

Sampling is technique of selecting sub sample for the purpose of determining the characteristic of the whole population.

A sample is a sub group of the population selected for the research.A population is an aggregate of all the elements that share common set of

characteristics that are required for the research.

The sampling process involves 6 steps to determine –

1. The sampling technique to be selected2. The sample size3. The sampling population4. The sampling frame5. The sampling unit6. The selection of sampling unit

Sampling Technique

Non-probability sampling Probability sampling

Convenience Simple RandomJudgmental Systematic samplingQuota Stratified sampling

Cluster samplingMultistage sampling

Convenience sampling – The selection of sampling units is left primarily to the interviewer. This type of sampling I normally used to get basic information to take elementary decision and for exploratory studies. This type of sampling is also called accidental sampling.


Judgmental sampling – The selection of sample is based on judgment of the researcher. This is normally used for industrial research. This is also called purposeful sampling. The reliability of this type of sampling depends on the judgement of the expert. If the sample is small this type may be used.

Quota sampling – It is frequently used in research. This involves fixing certain quotas which the interviewer has to follow. The various sub classes in the population are first estimated and quota is assigned to each subclass. The variable must be easy for the interviewer to classify and it should be closely related to the variable being measured in the study. The number of variables must not be too many.

Simple random sampling – It is the one in which each sample element has a known and equal probability of selection. It is drawn by a random procedure from a sample which is a list containing an exclusive and exhaustive enumeration of all sample elements.This technique of selection is not widely used as it is difficult to obtain a sampling frame from which a random sample can be drawn. There is normally no complete listing of persons or households or stores available. In industrial research there is greater scope to use this type of sampling. This method of sample selection may not result in a representative sample and may grossly misrepresent the target population especially if the sample size is small.

Systematic sampling – It is the one in which the sample is chosen by selecting a random starting point and then picking every nth element in succession from the sampling frame. It there are 600 members of population and a sample of 60 are needed the sample interval of 10 is used. A random number is selected between 1 and 10. If the number selected is 6 then the next one will be 16, 26 and so on. If the elements of the sample itself are random with regard to the characteristics under study, systematic sampling will tend to give results close to that of simple random sampling. Once the first sample is selected the selection of subsequent units becomes obvious. It is less costly and easier than Simple random sampling.

Stratified random sampling – It is the one where the population is divided into mutually exclusive and exhaustive strata. The division can be divided into different strata on the basis of age, sex, income and occupation. Stratification


does not mean absence of randomness. It means random sample is chosen within each stratum. This is useful when the researcher is interested only in some strata and not the whole population. If the population from which the sample is to be drawn does not constitute a homogeneous group, stratified sampling technique is generally applied in order to obtain a representative sample. Under this technique the population is divided into several sub populations that are individually more homogeneous than the total population. Then items are selected from each stratum to constitute a sample. Since each strata is more homogeneous than the total population it is possible to get a more precise estimates for each component parts.

.Cluster sampling – If the total area to be studied is large, a convenient way is to divide into a number of smaller non-overlapping areas and then to randomly select a few areas from each cluster. Cluster sampling reduces cost. For e.g. in one cluster we take Malabar Hill, Cuff Parade, Worli Sea Face, Bandra Pali Hill, Juhu and another cluster of areas like Tardeo, Dadar , Byculla , Mahim etc. ; then from these 2 clusters we randomly select 2 areas each, it will be cluster sampling.Multi-stage sampling – It is a further development of the principle of cluster sampling. E.g. selections of states, cities, districts and do the interviews in the randomly selected areas. This technique is used for study in large geographical areas. It is easier to administer because under a multi-stage, sampling is developed in partial units and a large number of units can be sampled for a given cost because of sequential clustering.


Sample sIze There are 2 basic approaches to determine the sample size:

1. Ad hoc or practical approach 2. Statistical approach

Determining sample size refers to the number of elements to be included in the research.What should be the size of the sample? How large or small should it be?The size of the sample should be large enough to give the desired confidence interval. Size will depend on the following:

1. The nature of the universe. Is the universe homogeneous or heterogeneous? If it is homogeneous than a small sample is okay. If it is heterogeneous than a larger sample size is needed.

2. The number of groups or sub-groups to be formed. If more sub-groups than a larger sample is necessary. Whether the variables are large in numbers.

3. The nature of the survey. In technical surveys the sample can be small; for general surveys the sample is larger.

4. The standard of accuracy and acceptable confidence level; if the desired findings need to be precise a large sample is required. In order to double the accuracy the sample size has to be increased 4 times.

5. Availability of finance.

There are 2 alternative approaches for determining the size of the sample.1. To specify the degree of precision required and then determine the sample

size.2. To weigh the cost of the additional information against the expected value

of the additional information. It is however difficult to measure the value of the additional information hence the first method is normally adopted.

The bigger the sample size, the greater the accuracy. As the sample size increases, the error value decreases becomes very small w.r.t the sample size. Hence the research has to make an optimum choice of sample size.

There are several methods of determining sample size:

1. Unaided Judgment where no specific method is applied and the size of the sample is decided on an ad hoc basis


2. Affordable sample size. In this case the fixed costs like field interviews etc are calculated and the size of the sample is based on what one can afford. This method is used often but one has to consider how effective the findings will be for important decision making.

3. Required sample per homogeneous group.4. The statistical method depends on the

(i) Variance in the population from which the sample is to be drawn (ii) Error that is permissible(iii) Confidence level that the sampling error will be within allowable

limits5. The Bayesian Statistical model is not widely used. It is complex and making

estimates is difficult.

There is no relationship between the sample size & the size of population. A size of 240 is considered adequate. In some case, the size of 50 is good enough.

Sampling PopulationThe population is defined in terms of elements. In marketing research the “whole “is a totality of market elements (persons, households, students) or marketing actions (such as purchases).Whatever the elements, statisticians call the whole to be sampled “population”. In marketing research we have to be content with the measurement or description of a sample rather than the whole population for reasons of both cost and time. The whole population is too large or diffuse to be measured in its entirety.The purpose of a sample is to approximate the measurement or description of the whole population well enough to the information user.

Sampling FrameSample selection depends on the existence of some form of sampling frame. The term frame refers to any descriptive physical arrangement that can be used to draw a sample.A survey sample is drawn from a sampling frame. If this frame does not include all elements of the defined population or if it includes some elements more


than once, a frame error will occur. Any estimate made on the basis of a sample drawn from a non-representative frame will be incorrect.A list of individual units that make up the population is the ideal sampling frame.If no list is available, he frame will consist of some mutually exclusive grouping of individual units such that(i) A list of groupings exist or can be made(ii) The list of all groupings includes all the units on the population

Sampling UnitA decision has to be taken concerning a sampling unit before selecting the sample frame.A sampling unit may be an individual, a geographical unit such as a state, village, a city block, or a household. Each unit is regarded as individuals and indivisible.

Selecting the sampling unitThe researcher has to be involved in the actual selection of sampling elements. Most problems in this stage are faced by the interviewer while contacting the sample respondents.In probability the interviewer cannot choose his respondents on his own. He has to approach only those persons who have been selected in the sample as per the random table.The sampling unit can be selected by assigning starting points and then following the interval assigned.


I.4. Research Design

Research design is the framework within which the research activity will be actually carried out. It is a blue print. The nature of the already available information tends to shape the research design.It is the plan and the strategy of investigation conceived so as to obtain answers to research questions.The super-structure and the basic structure of marketing research can be built only when the researcher has a plan of research. It is an action plan as to how a researcher if going to complete his research. It keeps the research study relevant to the research problem and encourages economical procedures in conducting research. It is a pattern or outline of the research project’s workings. It is a statement of only the essential elements of the study, those that provide the casic guidelines for the details of the project. The 3 important terms are 1) plan, 2) structure & 3) strategy.Structure is more specific outline.Strategy shows how the research will be carried out.Research design is the blue print for collection, measurement and analysis of data. Research design specifies the method & procedures for getting the information needed. It is the overall operational pattern or framework of the project which says what information is to be collected, from which source and by what procedure.The research design act as a bridge between promise and performanceIt avoids groping in the dark.

A research design should contain:1. The research problem2. Research Objective


3. Where research is to be done4. Type of research5. Sampling technique6. Sampling frame7. Sampling unit8. Sample size9. Sample break up

1 0 Type of interview: 11 Questionnaire Pre-testing the Questionnaire 12 Briefing the Interviewers 13 Field work 14 Supervision 15 Back-checking 16 Classification/Tabulation 17 Analysis 18 Conclusion 19 Recommendation 20 Time for completion and the cost.

Types of Research

The type of research can be classified into following 4 category- I Exploratory- Descriptive- Casual- Experimental Exploratory research – This research is very often the first step in any research. This is also called informal research. It is a preliminary investigation which does not have a rigid design. Exploratory research has specific use in breaking the broad and vague problem into smaller more precise sub-problem statements The purpose of research design is to fill the gaps of the existing knowledge. If the gaps are too wide and too many, the initial research must necessarily be exploratory so that the researcher can define the problem more clearly before conducting the actual descriptive research. To explore means to find out or discover. It is the starting point of all research. In this kind of research possible causes may be identified and hypothesis can be developed. The emphasis is on the discovery of ideas/causes. It is flexible in its approach. It is unstructured. It provides adequate Prof. Anita Mandrekar 13

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information which will facilitate the design of formal research studies. The purpose of this research is to know the unknown. It determines the alternatives that a researcher would not have perceived if the exploratory research was not done.

Descriptive research – Most research is concerned with describing marketing characteristics or functions. A market potential study, a market share study are examples of descriptive research. It is also conducted in product research, promotional research. Descriptive research are designed to describe some-thing say the characteristics of users of a given product, the degree of product use varies with age, sex or other characteristics, or a number of people who saw a particular TV commercial. These cover research designs that are intended to produce descriptions of variables relevant to the decision being faced by clients. These examples are only a few of the possibilities. Although associations can be used only to infer, and not to establish, a casual relationship, they are often useful for predictive purposes. Descriptive information provides a sound basis for solutions of marketing problems. This research in contrast to exploratory research, is marked by prior formulation of specific research questions. It is preplanned and has a structured design. It is undertaken when one is looking for the characteristics of certain groups such as age, sex, occupation etc. the objective of this type of research is to answer the ‘who, when, where and how’ of the subject under study. It is normally factual and simple. Descriptive research is used for some definite purpose.

Descriptive data are commonly used as direct basis for making marketing decisions.This research is more rigid and formal as opposed to exploratory research. It warrant a clear specification of who, what, when, where, why and how dimensions of research. Descriptive research however does not establish cause and effect relationship between variables. Descriptive research can be divided into following:-Cross-sectional research Longitudinal researchCross-sectional research involves sample elements of a population of interest. It may deal with households, retail outlets, students, companies etc.


Longitudinal studies is based on panel data. A panel is a sample of people who are interviewed not once but at specified intervals. The research among panel members may be on same item or on various other subjects under study.

Causal research (Experimental) investigates the cause and effect relationship between two or more variables. This type of research is useful to show the impact of one variable on the other. E.g. if the price of a brand or packaging has been changed, its effect on sales can be measured. The entry of a competitor brand can influence the sales of other brands. The survey conducted to study the effect of such changes in the environment is causal research.In experimental research one or more variables are manipulated under conditions that allow the collection of data that show the effects, if any, of such variables. Events occur at the discretion of the experimenter and controls are used to identify the sources of variation in the response. Experiments are artificially in the sense that situations are usually created for testing purposes.Experimentation is thus a process of manipulating one variable in a controlled environment while holding all other variables constant in order to established a causal relationship. All experiments involve three basic components;

1 the variable manipulated is the independent variable2 the actual treatment or the alteration3 the actual variable chosen to measure the subjects response known as the dependent variable

Experimentation or experimental design have both uses and limitations.It is useful in :Product design Experimental research can bring about changes in shape, size, colour, character, texture , density.Packaging design Experiments can be carried out in terms of its get up, graphics, colour, shape. Effects of a change in each can be studied .Pricing policies, Distribution policies and Promotional policies can similarly be experimented on for the study of the effect of any change in the independent variable.The limitations are:

It is costly and time consuming.


Experimental Designs

Informal Experimental DesignsThis type of design is structured in a fairly loose way. It does not allow the changes caused by the treatment to be singled out and that is why the statistical tests cannot be applied to their results. The test units are selected in a randomized manner. Inspite of the limitations and constraints associated with the informal designs, these are widely used in marketing research due to their simplicity and cost.There are four types of informal designs

1. Before-After Without Control.The researcher measures the test unit (i.e. the independent variable) before and after it has been subjected to the treatment. It involves no control group. It can be represented by: Sales before exposure to experimental variables Time Sales after exposure to experimental variables

2 Before –After with Control This method can be shown by the following diagram:

Sales before exposure to Time Sales after reductionThe reduction sale

Sales before reduction Control Group Sales after reduction

After only with Control

-Sales after exposure to Control Group Sales in control area Experimental Variable

Ex-post facto Design\ The groups are selected only after the experiment Formal experimental Design


In this design a random method is assigned to experiments to randomly selected test units

In this design there arei) Completely Randomized Designii) Randomized Block Designiii) Latin-square Designiv) Factoral Design

II Primary vs Secondary Research


I.5. Questionnaire

The questionnaire is a set of questions designed to evoke useful answers. The questionnaire is the vehicle of communication between those seeking insight (the researcher) and those from whom insight is sought (respondent)Many weeks of planning, reading and exploratory work will be needed before any sort of specification for a questionnaire can be determined.A questionnaire design cannot be taught from books. Every survey presents new and different problems.A questionnaire is not just a list of questions or a form to be filled out. It has to be designed according to particular specifications.We cannot judge a questionnaire as good or bad, efficient or inefficient, unless we know what the objective was.Error in research can arise because of bias due to questionnaire design and questionnaire wordings.Questionnaires can be classified into 3 main types:-1. Structured 2. Unstructured 3. Semi-structured

A structured questionnaire is a formal list of questions. The interviewer asks the questions strictly in accordance with a pre-arranged order.A non-structured questionnaire is one in which the questions are not structured and the order in which they are to be asked is left to the interviewer.While designing the questionnaire, the researcher has to remember three factors that could have a great impact on the effectiveness of the questionnaire1. The potential respondent should be able to understand the question2. The respondent must have adequate knowledge to answer the question3. The respondent should be willing to participate in the survey

Designing a questionnaire is not as simple as it looks. One has to find out –1. What information is to be collected


2. How many questions are to be asked3. What should be their sequence4. What should be the wording of each question5. What should be the layout of the questionnaire

Type of information collected can be one or more of the following types –1. Fact2. Quasi facts3. Awareness or penetration of information4. Opinions5. Attitudes6. Future plans7. Reasons

Different types of questions

1. Leading questions – Do you feel hard candies harm the teeth?We cannot suggest anything in a question

2. Filter questions is used to exclude a respondent from a question if those are irrelevant to him. If the questionnaire is on cars, your first question will be Do you own a vehicle? Scooter, bike, bicycle, car, none.What car do you have?We will not ask questions of the car if in the filter question the respondent does not have a car.

3. Open ended questions are where questions are not provided any options in their replies. It is a free answer. It gives freedom to the respondent. He lets his thoughts roam free. Free response questions are easy to ask.

4. Close ended questions are of 2 types:- a) multiple choice- a respondent has more than 2 choices for response; b) dichotomous – questions have 2 options only.

5. Behavioral- These help the researcher to know what the respondents do. E.g. frequency of purchase- decision maker etc

6. Corroborative- It contains questions to verify the accuracy of the answer. It implies that if one answer is wrong, the same can be caught by answer to similar other question.


7. Contingency questions are asked only if respondent gives a particular response to a previous question.

8. Matrix questions are those placed one under the other forming a matrix-response along the top and list of questions down the side.

9 Verbal versus Non-verbal questions. Many questionnaires are designed in a manner such that the questions can be read out to the respondents. However sometimes it is necessary to use non-verbal cues if the sample consists moinly of children or where the literacy level is very low.

There are compelling arguments in favour of both open and close-ended questions. Close-ended questions have the advantage of easy analysis. All the possible responses can be precoded; however they also have a drawback in the sense that thorough research has to be conducted and all possible options must be included in the response set. Open-ended questions do not impose any restrictions on the respondents and therefore eliminates bias. The researcher does not have to be familiar with the entire range of responses that can be obtained for that specific question.Some factors atat affect the decision to design the question as open-ended or close-ended are the level of literacy and the skill of the interviewer.Direct questions avoid ambiguity regarding the question content and meaning. Indirect questions probe the respondent by asking them to list choice of their friends or peers rather than their own. Direct questions can be used when the topic is not controversial. For sensitive topics it is more beneficial to use indirect approach. Dichotomous Questions are those wherer the resp;ondent is to choose between two alternative answersMultiple Choice Questions is one which provides several set of alternatives for its answers. The wording of the questions

1 use simple language2 use familiar vocabulary3 avoid lengthy questions4 be as specific as possible5 avoid double barreled questions 6 avoid leading question


7 The questionnaire design will vary with the interview medium.

Telephone interview: - The questions have to be short and simple. It should not exceed15 minutes. Rating questions should be avoided. Visible clarity is essential as no visual prompting is possible.

Personal interview: - Make the questions interesting and engaging. Build in open ended questions to explore issues. Be flexible to meet the specific needs of the respondent. Use short introduction to quickly communicate the purpose of the study. Make it clear that the answers will be treated in confidence.

Mail questionnaire should be short, simple and clear. It should be accompanied by a letter introducing the purpose of the study.

Order of the questionnaire

The researcher has to establish some rapport with the respondent and thus questions asked at the beginning should be simple. Difficult questions or those on sensitive issues should be asked last. Questions should flow from general to specific. They should flow logically. The answer to a question should not be influenced by previous questions.The criteria to evaluate the question contents can be:1 can the respondent understand the question?2 Dose the respondent have the necessary information to answer the

question?3 Will the respondent answer the question?Demographic questions should be asked last.

The design of the questionnaire should anticipate the editing and coding work.


sI.6. Data Representation

Editing & CodingEditing is the process of examining the collected data to detect errors and omissions with a view to correct when possible. It is the process by which data are prepared for subsequent coding. Editing involves careful scrutiny of the completed questionnaires. The aim of editing is to assure that the data are accurate, consistent with other facts so gathered, uniformly entered as complete as possible and have been well arranged to faithful coding classification and tabulation; The field interviews and other market research data is submitted for editing and coding. Editing is absolutely necessary as it is necessary to establish information categories. E.g. it may be necessary to classify each family’s response on the consumption patterns in 3-5 categories. It is similar with responses to other questions.Open ended questions responses also have to be categorized into a smaller group of classification.Invalid replies, contradictory replies need to be deleted or corrected.Editing eliminates errors or points of confusion in the raw data. Coding, by assigning answers to particular response categories expedites the tabulation.After the data forms have been edited and all placed into proper classes the data may be entered into the computer.

The editing procedure should be in writing and how every question has to be handled. How to edit the raw data should be included. All editing is done using a writing instrument with a color other than the one used by the interviewer.It is sometimes possible to detect incorrect answers when 2 or more questions are inconsistent. The handling of such answers depends on inconsistency. Very little can be done with most incomplete answers unless the question ties in with another question.For open ended questions, the researcher must first determine the most relevant set of factors to use when setting up the categories. Sometimes a researcher may find it useful to look at an answer given to 2 or more questions and then writes in a numerical code that summarizes the information contained in answers to all of those questions. Coding is the process of assigning


numbers or symbols to the answers to a questions into meaningful categories. The symbols or numbers used to indicate these categories are called codes. Coding is a must to carry out subsequent operations of tabulating and analyzing data.Coding decisions are made at the design stage of the questionnaire. Coding involves two steps. First to specify the different catetoriesor classes into which the responses are to be classified. Second is to allocate individual answers to different categories. Categories must be “all inclusive” and ‘mutually exclusive’. They must not be over-lapping. The computer can be programmed to count the number of responses falling into each category of any question. It can also make an entry of the responses of 2 or 3 questions simultaneously. Similarly measures such as percentages, ranges and frequency distribution can also be determined. If difference exists between categories, the researcher should explain why these differences are there especially if it is pertaining to important finding. iAfter drawing statistical conclusions, the analysis may be translated into recommendations. The effectiveness of the entire analysis function may be hampered because of poor editing and coding.

Data AnalysisIt is a process to arrive at a meaning or sense of the data collected. It involves converting a series of data in descriptive statements about variables and inferences about the relationship among variables. It reduces data to an intelligible and interpretable form so that relationship can be established. Data analysis signifies a set of methods and techniques that are used to obtain information and insights from the data collected.The type of data analysis required differs from case to case or from study to another. However there are five steps included in the procedure of data analysis

1. To put the raw date into meaningful categories2. To summarize the data contained in the categories3. To determine whether significant differences exist between categories4. To explain why the differences exist5. To make recommendations


Report WritingThe report is a written document that carries the information. The report is a written statement in collection of facts, event and opinions and usually expresses a summarized and interpretative value of the information. The report will give the

1 Title page2 Letters of authorization3 Preface and Foreword4 Table of contents5 The Main Text i ) Introduction Ii ) Objectives iii) Methodology iv) Tabulation v ) Findings vi) Implications of Findings vii) Limitations viii) Summary and Conclusions ix) Recommendations x) The Concluding SummaryThe Appendices and Bibliography are given in the end

The essentials/principles of report writing are:i) Make it easy to follow. The logical structure of the material, especially in the body of the Report, should be self-evident and the topics easy to find. Have Explicit headlines to indicate every different topic/subjects/sub -headlines. Paragraphs should be kept short and each of them Dealing with one point only.ii) Make it clear. Clarity in writing is a quality of communication that good writers develop only after considerable experience. An excellent check on the report is to have two or three people unfamiliar with the report, read it.


iii) Use good sentence structureiv) Use non technical languagev) Make it briefvi Stress practical actionvii) Vary typographyvii) Use visual devices in the report ix) Presentation The first step in developing is to know your audience. It is Necessary to know who plans to attend, what information do they already know and not know about the subject. One needs to know what they are capable to understand and what needs to be stressed and on what to anticipate questions. The use of visual aids is necessary for a oral presentation.


Product Testing

Product testing is a basic part of complete research system. It is aimed at providing management with a meaningful feedback in the probable acceptance of their product in the market place Product research includes evaluation of attributes/features of a product andthe resultant benefit. The evaluation can be ‘absolute evaluation’ or/and comparative evaluation.Basically product test is valid and desirable when –

1. There is high level of uncertainty among decision makers about the appeal of the proposed product design.

2. There is high financial risk involved3. Physical product performance is critical

One of the first steps of product research is to understand the attributes/benefits in which the product needs to be evaluated.Such researches provide findings that are an important and for product development and modification.

Product test can be of 2 types:-1. Improvement of existing product2. The development of an altogether new product

1. Improvement of existing product can be developed by adapting, modifying, magnifying, minimizing, substituting, rearranging or combining the existing features of a product. Different quality versions of the existing product can be developed so that the needs of different markets can be met.

2. New product development is difficult and time consuming. The development of new products involve a) Idea generation, b) concept development, c) product evaluation and development.


New product development are not so much based on really innovative new product ideas as they are on some alteration in form, content of the product.

Product Testing MethodsThere are many ways to test new brands/products and adapted products. The method selected should be one that gives the desired information at the lowest price and is the shortest time. The key product success is consumer acceptability.The methodology selected should be such that the selected sample is large and random enough to reflect the universe being measured.

The product test is normally of 2 kindsa) Blind product testb) As marketed test

a) In a blind product test the pack of the test product does not have any brand names. That is why it is called a blind product test. This is true because it has been shown that names new or old can have an influence on the response. To get an unbiased opinion of the product tested it is best when the sample is in an unmarked pack.

b) In an “As marketed” pack the product is in a package that is used in the market.

Product test can be a) Monadic testb) Paired comparisonc) Non directed test

a) In a monadic test the evaluation is done only in the test product. There is no comparison of the test product with any other similar product. The practice of giving a respondent a single item to evaluate in isolation from other alternatives is called monadic testing.


Advocates of the monadic test claims that this is more realistic than direct comparison test which creates a situation unlike the situation in which the product is normally used. A housewife does not cook two different brands, or use two different brands to find out which one is better. It is claimed that this reduces the artificiality of the test situation.

b) In the paired comparison test the respondent is given 2 or more samples, one at a time. The respondents give the reaction to one test sample. Then the second sample is given and the interviewer visits the respondents again and then gets the reaction to the second sample and at the end asks the respondent to compare the 2 samples tried.In all three, visits are made to the respondent.The instrument to measure the attitudes include measurement scales like - Semantic differential scale- Thurstone scale- Likert scale - Rank order methodsThe semantic differential scale is used most frequently.

The order of testing sometimes influences the outcome. Order bias has been noted to be in favor of the first item used. In some studies it is felt that the second item is favored. The effect of this can be controlled by randomization of the testing order.In coding the blind test sample, care has to be taken not to mark the samples as 1 and 2 or A and B. this is to avoid numerical bias.

II.2. Branding Research

Branding is the most effective way to designate a product and give it an exclusive name. The purpose of branding is to differentiate your product from others in the market. A successful branding programme is based on the concept of singularity. It creates in the mind of the prospect the perception that is no product on the market quite like your product. A brand must singularly represent your product.

The benefits of branding


Customers like brands because they offer identification and affect buying decisions. The purchasing process is faster and purchasing risks are lowered. Customers get additional function and emotional value from branding attributes for which they are willing to pay a price premium.

Companies profit from brands through :- The revenue generated by added value- Increased awareness and faster adoption rates - Cost savings gained from loyal customers- Lower advertising and product launch costs

Mass communication to the customer is easier because the message is supported by the implicit message of the brand.Sales people have no problem selling their branded products to end-users or winning good distribution channels.

Overall, branding information helps companies to:- Optimize cost of sales- Uncover potential threats and opportunities to brand image- Uncover discrepancies between the desired and the actually perceived

image- Maximize the acquisition of new customers and market penetration- Minimize he loss of current customers, hence an increase in customer

base- Safeguard and increase the revenue stream - Improve marketing and sales planning

Branding research can be performed for products, service, brands or people. Branding research first determines attributes and benefits for a product in a specific target market.This information is obtained through qualitative research such as primary interviews. The perception of each of these attributes is then tested quantitatively.Branding research can be done at every stage of Brand Building process, the various researches related to brand are:

- Personality of each option - Fit with the name of each option


- Fit with the brand association of each option- Fit on the pack- Fit with the proposed role in advertising of each option- Comparison among the character options- Fit with specific brand extension options

Quantitative research focuses on ascertaining the following information.- Thoughts evoked by each option, and grouping of these thoughts as

positive and negative- Likeability of each option- Specific likes and dislikes of each option - Uniqueness of each option - Comparison of each option with the symbols of the competition- Rating of each opinions fit with the pack- Preference amongst symbol options- Preference amongst names options

Brand logo research: When a new logo is to be chosen it is always advisable to evaluate it among 2 independent sets of people—one to evaluate the logo in isolation and other to evaluate the logo on the pack. Evaluation of the logo in isolation looks at its likeability, distinctiveness. Comprehension of the message conveyed, by logo options, preference among logo options, and preference of log among key competition. Evaluation of logo on the pack also looks a t same alternatives along with the speed with which the respondent would identify the test logo pack among a clutter of other similar packs. This helps to evaluate how the logo would stand out in the shelf.

Brand Association Research: for existing brands or existing competition of new brands, respondent’s minds would already have brand associations. In such cases, the evaluation should include the following questions:

- Ascertain the current state of affairs, without exposing the respondents to the new concepts.

- Expose new concepts- Ascertain the response to new concepts- Compare the responses generated before and after exposure of new

concepts to understand their effects.


Brand Loyalty research: It looks at the purchase patterns of the households at specific intervals. This helps us understand the shifts happening across brands and accordingly we can link the brand promotions to understand the effect on brand loyalty.Brand Health Research: Every brand has to survive among customers in the market place, and only the fittest survive. In order to understand the fitness of the brand, one needs to conduct a health check up of the brand. The brand health can be understood through a battery of measures:

- Brand awareness- Brand usership status and the concerned diagnostics- Brand communication memories- Brand image- Brand relationship

Brand Awareness: If a mind is not aware of a brand, then it would not have associations, communication memories and brand relationship. Hence brand awareness research looks at evaluating the brand in terms of its Top of mind (TOM) awareness, second in mind (SIM) awareness and others In mind (OIM) awareness as well as the aided recall rate of the brand in comparison with its competitors.

Research Options: Branding research is most efficient when combined with SWOT analysis. Together they uncover and track strength, opportunities and threats to a brand.II.3. Pricing ResearchThere are various types of pricing research. The appropriate test selected will depend on the objective of the research.

Direct Method: In this method, the price of the test brand is made known to the respondent. A single price may be used or a series of price.Describe the product then ask: would you buy this product if it costs Rs. 8/-A five point purchase intent scale may be used.

Rs 8/- Rs 10/- Rs 8/-Will definitely buy it ---- ---- ----Will probably buy it ---- ---- ----May, may not buy it ---- ---- ----


Will probably not buy it ---- ---- ----Will definitely not buy it ---- ---- ----

Psychological Price Test :This is another type of direct test.A price has 2 ends a) a maximum price at which buyer would buy it, b) a minimum price till which it is credible.

The respondent is exposed to the product and a card that has a range of prices. The respondent is asked at which price on this card would you not buy it because you feel the product is not worth it.Then , below which price on this card would you not buy the product because you think the quality will not be good.Price is an important signal for perceived product quality. Price and quality are not independent customer purchase influencers.

The Gabor-Granger Technique :Customers are asked if they would buy a product at a particular price. They would be asked the same question with different prices. From this data the levels of demand is worked out at each price point. This method is used only when the product is considered in isolation whereas in real life consumers have a choice of products to buy.

The Conjoint Analysis : This technique is more sophisticated and reliable than other research techniques. It helps us understand how choices are made and consequently the importance of prices.However the conjoint analysis is a more technical form of research and requires higher levels of design skills. Every customer making a choice between the products is faced with trade-offs.

Is high quality more important than low price and quick delivery or is good service more important than design and looks? Conjoint analysis allows us to work out how people make decisions and what they value in your products and services and this can help the form to work out the optimum level of features and services that balance value to the customer against cost to the company.


II.4. Pack ResearchA package has 3 important aspects:-

1) It helps communicate with the customers. It must communicate visually. It is important to understand how the package influences purchase behavior.

2) Customers look for convenient packaging. It can create brand differentiation. It is necessary to innovate current packaging and make it more convenient for customers and add value. It is necessary to identify difficulties and inconveniences being faced by consumers and improve on them.

3) A package provides the identity of the brand. It helps generate notice ability on the shelf. The customers eyes keep roaming at an outlet and the pack that catches attention make the brand get noticed. A marketer needs to know these aspects of packaging. Package research aids the process of knowing and developing.

Package Testing helps the marketer to understand :a) Utility: - Safety lid: convenience of opening, convenient to hold.b) Imagery : - Premiumness, quality connotations, Price connotation, brand

personalityc) Communication: - Instruction to use, quantity, made by etc.d) Design layout: - overall likeability ‘stand out’ uniqueness specific likes,

dislikes.e) Color: - stands out, likes, dislikes.

Packaging Research is done. a) Pre-introduction stage &b) Post launch.

Packaging Research:

Pre Launch Post Launch


1. Package screen a)Exploratory Research2. Package check b)Normal Surveys3. Pseudo-product use test. c)In use test 4. In use test d)Stand out test5. Forced exposure test6. Localized area test7. Select shop test. (Taschitoscopic Test)8. Exploratory Research(Focus groups: in dept interviews)9. Package communication

1) Package screen : a large no. or early design are created. The research objective is to identify the package designs that consumers like so that creative efforts can be focused on further development of the better designs. The highest rated designs are recommended for further developed.

2) Package check: - a representative sample of target consumers are shown one package(monadic test) and then they are asked a series of questions including open ended questions.

3) Pseudo product use test: - The same product is tested out in alternative designs. This test helps us to understand how the same product can be perceived differently in different pack design.

4) In Use test: - This helps us to understand the functional features of a package given the product it contains. This test has to be in a blind pack to eliminate brand bias.

5) Forced exposure test: - In this the respondents are exposed to the packs and their response noted down. There is no product in the pack. It may involve only looking at the pack or looking and handling the pack.

6) Taschitoscopic Test: - This method tests the attention getting (standing out power of the test packs). All the respondents are told about the Taschitoscope which is a mechanical or electronic device used to show the stimuli (packs) to viewer for a strictly controlled time period. Then the respondents are asked to recall what they saw. If more than one pack is tested, the process is repeated for each and the order of presenting the test pack is rotated to avoid positions bias.


7) Stand out test: - A pack is placed amongst competitive packs. This test shows how well the test pack competes with its competitor in an ‘outlet’. This type of display should correspond to the actual market environment. A brand has to stand out to get noticed. To find out if it attracts attention this test is handy.

8) Package communication: - Depth interviews are typically used to explore package communication issues: What is package communicating? What is the package failing to communicate? Usually the test package is shown at different time exposures using a Taschitoscope. At each level package recognition and communication are examined. Then the respondents are asked to examine every detail of package graphics and copy are explored in the interview. The purpose of this test is to learn how to improve brand recognition and package communication.


III.1 Copy Research

Copy research may be defined as the analysis and evaluation of the advertising message-both print broadcast and include both pre-testing and post testing. The word ‘copy’ refers to all the features of an ad

No matter what the advertisement, four basic questions always need to be answered:

a) What do we know of the product?b) What do we say?c) How will we say it?d) How will we do?

What do we know is a problem for the copy writers and the design people before the ad is prepared before even rough sketches are made. Research can be of help in fact gathering and helping the copy writer in learning what the consumer’s attitudes are. Hence a number of different ideas may be tried out in a preliminary way before they are developed into ads.

The second question “what shall we say?” is answered at the time, the preliminary writings and layouts are being prepared. Here is where advertising testing can become very more useful. The basic advertising themes can be compared and tested against each other as to its importance, exclusiveness, pleasantness, legibility, understandability etc. The third question “How shall we say it?” may be answered as the layouts or storyboards are being prepared.The fourth question “How well did we do?” is post testing. These four questions become the basis for a four step research programme.

a) Research prior to the development of the adb) Research during the development of the advertisement


c) Pre-testing of adsd) Post testing of ads

The first research has to do with the development of ad, ideas and evaluation of these ideas.The second research is essentially the evaluation of ad ideas in rough form.The third step is the pre-testing of ads before it is run.This involves consumer responses to the ads prepared but before the actual release of the ads.The fourth, the post-testing of ad research is on the effectiveness of the ads it has run.Research can only assist rather than control the creative process.

Making ad is an art while advertising research is a science. Methods of evaluating copy which are not scientific are likely to lead to misinformation. Measuring methods must confirm to the principles of science otherwise the answers may not be conclusive.Copy research attempts to measure and forecast reaction to complex stimuli. The results of such procedure almost never can be accepted with finality.

The number of basic method of copy research is comparatively small. Each method is adaptable to a variety of problems.

Before a research method is selected, it is essential to have a clear definition of the problem. There is no single criterion by which the effectiveness of all kinds of advertising can measured, because advertising is not homogenous with respect to its objectives. What is an effective ad for one set of conditions is not necessarily an effective ad for another. E.g.: readership, it is important that an ad be read, heard or seen however a high readership rating is not necessarily the most important consideration.

Successful ad must not only be seen, heard or read by people for whom it is meant. But claims of the ad are also important. They should be exclusive believable interesting understandable, etc.


Since the objectives of all ads are psychological, the testing methods actually psychological measures.

The psychological categories are initial attention, perception interest comprehension, feeling, emotion, motivation, belief, intentions, imagery, association recall and recognition.

Initial attention is the subject of a great deal of copy research attention. Stated simply the problem is to discover how many people see or hear an advertising message. Attention relates to the entire psychological process and no single test is comprehensive enough to evaluate the whole attention process.

Perception of advertising stimuli often occurs simultaneously with attention. One of the major problems of advertising is that presenting the message so that it is perceived as the creator intended. Interest in advertising copy is reflected by continued favorable attention. Interest involves feeling as well as ideas and may vary greatly in intensity.

Comprehension of an advertising message has to do with whether or not they are understood. It is much easier to test this than to measure attitudes and motives. In order to test comprehension it is necessary to first obtain a statement of what the advertiser intends to communicate feelings and emotional responses are difficult to define. People feel pleasant, indifferent, depressed and so on. The more the feelings are intensified, the more emotional the experience becomes.

Motivation covers a complex of attitudes, wishes, desires aspirations fears and anxieties and so on.

Beliefs intentions and decisions are all related to favorable response to advertising. These are subjective elements and cannot be directly observed.Association is involved in all memory activities.


Recall and recognition: Recall is demonstrated when people retain the idea without cues and aided recall occurs when cues are given. Recognition requires less mental effort since it is only necessary to identify the ad

It requires judgment to decide when to test, where to test, what to test, how to test and how to use the results. The three basic considerations are the

1. Accuracy: One needs to decide on the degree of accuracy required because this affects the size of sample and the methodology of the tests.

2. Timing: It is necessary to know how much time is available

3. Cost: Have to be justified. The cost of copy research is extremely small in comparison with the costs of advertising.

III.2 Concept Testing

New product ideas, however obtained are subjected to consumer evaluation by means of concept screening or concept testing. A concept is an idea, thought and mental image. The usual objective is to check the market acceptability of the ideas, usually expressed in verbal or pictorial form before costly developments are undertaken to build actual prototypes. The consumer is exposed to the concept and thus reactions are noted. More than one concept can be tested.Most concept evaluation procedures exhibit the following characteristics:

1. A sample of potential buyer is presented with verbal or pictorial description of the product, its unique features, and functions.

2. Respondents are asked to rate each concept on various scales, degree of interest and intentions to buy.

3. Ratings may also be obtained on various attributes of the concept and particular likes and dislikes about the concept are noted.


Concepts are presented on a card. Each concept is on a separate card. Concepts can be shown on a poster with the concept and the visual. Rough layouts may also be tested.

III.3 Name Testing

When a new brand is to be introduced, after or along with the product development, the brand name has to be decided.Several names are thought of, sometimes even two or three hundred names are put forward. These names are shortlisted and finally after several rounds of short listing, ten to seven names are selected and then tested out amongst the target audience. The respondents are shown the names one at a time and asked what products the name can be associated with-They are asked what thoughts come to their mind upon hearing the name-What the name means to them-How they pronounce the name-What do they particularly like/dislike about the name-What products would the name suit or not suit. -. A ranking is measured for all the names. The first three or five names are ranked. These rankings are weighted. If five rankings are measured then the total number ranking first is multiplied by 5, the second ranking by 4 and so on.

E.g.:Names 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th

1 10 25 15 31 192 21 18 11 32 183 37 15 16 22 104 12 38 25 11 145 20 04 33 04 39


All the 1st rankings are multiplied by 5, the 2nd by 4, and the 3rd by 3, 4th by 2 and last by 1

Names Total1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th

1 50 100 45 62 19 2762 105 72 33 64 18 2923 185 60 48 44 10 3474 60 142 75 22 14 3135 100 16 99 8 39 262

From the above table on can conclude that the best name, the major number of respondents have selected is the 3rd name followed at a distance by the 4th name.

III.4 Slogan TestingA slogan/headline is on integral part of brand image. It is an identification for the brand and gives the unique selling proposition. Thus positioning the brand in the right slot in the consumers mind. The purpose of slogan testing is to find the right slot in the consumers mind. The slogan must not only be seen, read or heard but it should make the target audience think that the ads are important, exclusive, believable, interesting, and understandable and so on.Slogan testing includes initial attention, perception, continued favorable attention or interest comprehension, etc.Unless the slogan/headline is positioned by the consumer the way the slogans positioning was done by the advertiser, the further work on the creation of the full ad cannot be done.


IV. Qualitative ResearchDefinition – “Qualitative Research is a loosely defined category of research designs or models, all of which elicit verbal, visual, tactile, olfactory and gustatory data form of descriptive narratives like field notes, recordings or other transcriptions from audio and videotapes and other written records and pictures or films.”

Also called: interpretative research, naturalistic research, phenomenological research [although this can mean specific kind of qualitative research as used by some], descriptive research.

Qualitative methods use descriptions and categories (words). Examples: open-ended interviews, naturalistic observation (common in anthropology), document analysis, case studies/life histories, descriptive and self-reflective supplements to experiments and co-relational studies. general sequence:

1. Observe events/ask questions with open-ended answers,2. Record /log what is said &/or done3. Interpret (personal reactions, write emergent speculations or hypothesis,

monitor methods)4. Return to observe, or ask more questions of people 5. [recurring cycles of 2-4---iteration]6. Formal theorizing [emerges out of speculations and hypothesis]7. Draw conclusions

Qualitative Research : Advantages Disadvantages

The most common method of obtaining information about the behavior, characteristics and attitudes of people is to ask them. It is not always possible or


desirable to use direct questioning to obtain information. People may either be unable or unwilling to give answers to questions they consider as invasion of their privacy, that adversely affect their self perception or prestige, that are embarrassing, that concern motivations they do not fully understand or cannot verbalize, or for other reasons. Therefore, additional approaches to obtaining information may be necessary. Depth interviews and projective techniques are frequently used by marketing researchers when direct questioning is impractical, more costly or less accurate. These techniques are generally referred to as qualitative research.These techniques with their respective advantages and disadvantages are as follows:Depth interview: - These can involve 1 respondent and 1 interviewer or they may involve a small group (8-12 respondents) and an interviewer. The latter are called focus group interviews, and the former are called individual depth interviews or one-on-ones. Groups of fours or fives are termed as mini-group.Of these 3 above mentioned types, the focus group is by far the most popular.

a) Individual Depth interviews: These require 30-45 minutes. The interviewer does not have a specific set of pre-specified questions that must be asked according to the order imposed by a questionnaire. There is a freedom to create questions, to probe those responses that appear relevant, it is generally tried to develop the best set of data in any possible practical way. However, the interviewer must make sure that he does not consciously try to affect the response given to him by the respondent. The respondent must feel free to reply to the various questions, probes and other, more subtle, ways of encouraging responses in a manner deemed most appropriate. In this method itself there are 3 questioning techniques. Laddering involves having respondents identify attributes that distinguish. Hidden-issue questioning focuses on individual respondents’ feelings about sensitive issues such as wanting to have an affair or having a desire for power. Symbolic questioning involves the respondents to describe the opposites of the product/activity of interest or a specific attribute of the product/activity.

Advantages of the Individual depth interviews: Detailed probing of an individual’s behavior, attitudes or needs is possible Subject matter under discussion remains highly confidential


Useful when subject matter is of embarrassing or emotionally charged nature

Certain strong, socially acceptable norms exist (like baby feeding) and the need to conform in a group discussion may influence responses

Highly detailed, step by step understanding of complicated behavior or decision making patterns possible

Such interviews can be carried out with professional people or people with the subject of their jobs.

Disadvantages of Individual Depth Interviews: The group settings can sometimes mask the details like nuances, shades of

differences, subtleties, etc. The results cannot be accomplished within the time and cost parameters

generally associated with focus group studies. While conducting individual in-depth studies there is interviewer burnout.

However much experienced or qualified the interviewer may be, there is bound to be a burn out. He is supposed to interview his subjects for more than 4-5 hours without sacrificing quality.

Focus Group Interview: this involves, on standard basis 8-12 individuals and lasts for about 2 hours. Normally, each group is designed to reflect the characteristics of a particular market segment.Advantages of Focus Groups :

The interaction process induced by the group situation produces a number of potential advantages.

Every individual is able to expand and refine their opinions in the interaction with the other members.

This process provides more detailed and accurate information than could be derived from each separately.

A group interview is generally more exciting and offers more stimulation to the participants than a standard depth interview.

Makes more meaningful comments likely. The security of being in a crowd encourages a few people to speak out when

they otherwise would not. A degree of spontaneity exists cannot be produced by other techniques. Individuals are not under pressure to ‘make up’ answers to questions. Focus groups can be successfully used with children over 5. Successful in countries where literacy levels are low and research is difficult.


Executives often observe the interviews (from behind the mirrors used in the process) or view films of the interviews. For many executives this is the only direct contact with the customers. This helps provide a feel for the market that is beyond the scope of the more quantitative approaches.

Disadvantages of the Focus groups: Unfortunately a lot of executives place too much reliance on the focus group

results. Since the interviews take place over period of 1.5 to 3 hours, and takes place

in a central location it is difficult to secure cooperation from a random sample.

Those who attend group interviews and actively participate are likely to be different in many respects from those who don’t.

Participants may ‘play games’ in the group setting and may go with what the group says and not say what they would want to.

One person in the group with strong views may alter the expressed ciews of the group substantially.

The presence of a one way mirror is known to have distorted respondent’s responses.

The moderator can introduce serious biases in the interview by shifting topics too rapidly, verbally or non-verbally encouraging certain answers, failing to cover certain areas.

These groups are expensive on per respondent basis. The combined effects of potential non-response errors, small sample sizes

caused by high costs, abnormal behavior by participants, and the potential for interviewer effects makes generalization from a few focus groups to the larger population a little risky.

Unfortunately, many researchers and managers make these generalizations.Mini groups – They consist of a moderator and 4-5 respondents rather than a group of 8-12 used in most focus groups. They are used then the issue being investigated requires more extensive probing than is possible in a large group.Advantages of mini groups

They allow the researcher to obtain substantial depth of response on the topics that are covered.

The intimacy of a small group allows discussion of quite sensitive issues.


Disadvantages of mini groups They do not allow the collection of as confidential or highly sensitive data as

might be possible in an individual depth interview. Rest of advantages and disadvantages are the same as the ones of standard focus groups, but on a smaller scale.

V. SCALE DEVELOPMENT(Measuring Attitudes & Preference)

Researchers have to develop measures that will be useful in assessing customer attitudes and preferences for both domestic and foreign products.Attitudes of customers shape their behavior. Attitude is defined as an overall evaluation that enables one to respond in a consistently favorable or unfavorable manner with respect to a given object or service.Attitudes are composed of 3 parts:

1. The cognitive or knowledge component represents the information that a person has about an object.

2. The second component is the affective or liking component that is the overall feeling of liking and disliking that a person has toward the object.

3. The intention component that represents the person’s expectations of future behavior toward the object.

Measurement is defined as the process of assigning numbers to certain characteristics of the object of interest, according to some prespecified rules. Based on the level of measurement, 4 categories of scales can be defined.

1. Nominal Scale – If a number has been assigned to establish the identity of an object it is called a nominal scale. These numbers help distinguish one section from all others and any comparison between these numbers would be meaningless. The numbers serve only as labels or tags for identifying objects.

2. Ordinal Scales – If objects are ranked and arranged in a particular order with regard to some common variable it is called an ordinal scale.There is no information on how much the difference there is between the objects. E.g. If we assign the number 1 to the highest ranking polish – it is an ordinal scale. We cannot say anything with regard to the cleansing ability.


3. Interval Scale – In this scale the numbers used to rank the objects represents equal increments in the attribute being measured and differences can be compared. It has the properties of order and distance. With this kind of scale one can calculate the mean, standard duration and correlation and conduct regression analysis and analysis of variance tests.

4. Ratio Scales tell us how much greater or smaller one objects is than another. All arithmetic operations are permissible on ratio scale measurement.

Types Of Scales

A scale can have many dimensions depending on the attribute it is trying to measure.Attitudinal Scales can be broadly classified as single item and multiple item Scales.

1) Single item scales are those that have only one item to measure a construct.

The most widely used single item scale is the –a) Itemised category.

E.g. Give us your opinion about the TOIVery Satisfied Quite satisfiedSomewhat satisfiedNot satisfied

Researchers should be prepared for the event that the target population may be illiterate. In mail surveys and personal interviews respondents can handle 5-7 categories with reasonable accuracy. In Telephone interviews the number of categories is reduced.The adjectives used to describe the categories are dependent on the country where the research is conducted. Some cultures require strong adjectives whereas in others the adjective should be toned down. Researchers have to decide whether to use a uni-polar or bi-polar and whether to provide a neutral point or not. Certain cultures like the Japanese tend to stick with the neutral when they have crisis.


2) Multiple Item Scale – When it is not possible to capture the entire range of attitudes, multiple item scales are used.a) Likert Scale (Summation Scale) requires a respondent to indicate the

degree of agreement or disagreement with a number of statements related to the characteristics of the object. E.g.

Strongly Agree

Somewhat Agree

Neither Nor

Somewhat Disagree

Strongly Disagree

Covers Locals news well

Covers local, national, international news well

Is worth the priceRegular in delivery

b) Thurstone Scale helps researchers obtain a uni-dimensional scale with interval properties. Therefore it is also called ‘equal appearing intervals.’ Intervals between categories are treated as equals.

c) The Scale can be designed in a manner such that comparison is implied.Give us your opinion about newspapers you read.

Excellent V. good

Average Below Average

Times

Asian AgeEconomic Times

The same scale can be modified to include comparison.d) Comparison scale – Compared to Asian Age how would you rate Times.


Excellent V. Good Average below Average

e) Another kind of single item scale is Rank Order Scale. Ranking has been used widely in international surveys. However if there are too many objects that might be problems of the middle item being obscure, the optimum number is 5-6.

f) Constant-Sum Scales asks respondents to allocate a fixed number of points among different categories.E.g. allocate 100 points among the following to indicate how important each factor is in your choice of a newspaper.

Regularity Of delivery ------------------------Cost ------------------------Coverage of local news ------------------------Coverage of national news ------------------------Coverage of international news ------------------------

Total 100

3.Semantic Differential Scales are widely used in international marketing research. Different aspects of the object are presented to the respondent and the respondent chooses one that matches closely with their opinions. There may or may not be a neutral point depending on which country the research is being done. E.g. High price------------------------------------------Low PriceGood Coverage -----------------------------------Poor coverage

4.Stapel Scale is a simpler version of semantic differential scale where the categories have only one pole. Respondent give a score to the category depending on their preference.Literacy and education level have to be considered when using measurement scales. Likert & Semantic differential scales are culture bound and should be treated as culture specific instruments.


Another issue important in international research is whether response format needs to be adapted for specific countries. E.g. in France a 20 point scale is commonly used. Designing scales calls for a great deal of adaptation. It has to be decided whether a single point scale has to be used in all the countries surveyed or whether it should be customized to suit each country. Many cultures tend to overstate their feelings while others are modest.It has been observed ‘verbal rating scales’ works the best in international research. One scale which has consistently provided accurate results is the Semantic Differential Scale. There are many problems associated with conducting cross-national research for comparative purposes.


VI. Pretesting Tools

Most organizations pretest advertising before the actual release of the campaign because costly mistakes, if any, can be avoided.A variety of tools maybe used in pretesting.

1. Communication Tests – A communications test simply seeks to tell if a message is communicating something close to what is desired. Communications tests are usually done in a group setting, with data coming from a combination of penci-&-paper questionnaires and group discussion.

2. Magazine Dummies – Dummy advertising vehicles are mock-ups of magazines that contain the editorial content and advertisements, as a real magazine would. Inserted in the dummy vehicle are one or more test advertisements.

3. Theatre tests – Advertisements are given theater tests in small theatres, usually set up in or near shopping malls. Members of the theater audience have an electronic device through which they can express how much they like or dislike the advertisements shown.

4. Thought Listings – Message research that tries to identify specific thoughts generated by an ad is referred to as thought listing, or cognitive response analysis. Here the researcher is interested in the thoughts that a finished or near-finished ad generates in the mind of the consumer.

5. Attitude Change Studies – An attitude change study uses a before-and-after ad exposure design. People from the target market are recruited, and their pre-exposure attitudes toward the advertised brand as well as competitors’ brands are gauged. Then they are exposed to the test ad, along with some dummy ads. Following the exposure, their attitudes are exposed again.

6. Physiological Measures—Physiological measures detect how consumers react to messages, based on physical responses. Eye-Tracking systems have been developed to monitor eye movements across print ads. Another is a psycho-galvanometer, which measures galvanic skin response (GSR). GSR is


a measure of minute changes in perspiration, which suggest arousal related to some stimulus—in this case, an advertisement. Vice response analysis is another high tech research procedure. Inflections in the voice when discussing an ad indicate excitement and other physiological states. Other, less frequently used physiological measures record brain wave activity, heart rate, blood pressure, and muscle contraction.

7. Commercial Pretest Services – Pretest message research can often be conducted by an advertiser in conjunction with its advertising agency. There are, however, several commercial pre-testing services that provide full-service, proprietary pre-testing for both television and print advertisements.

8. Experimentation in the marketplace—PILOT TESTINGPursuing message evaluation with experimentation in the marketplace is known as pilot testing. This extended testing can be of the do-it-yourself variety, or it can be accomplished again, with a commercial service provider. The 3 most common tests are:

Split-Cable transmission allows testing of 2 different versions of an advertisement through direct transmission to 2 separate samples of similar households within a single, well-defined market area.

Split-Run distribution uses the same technique as split-cable transmission except the print medium is used. 2 different versions of the same advertisement are placed in every other copy of the magazine.

Split-list experiment tests the effectiveness of direct mail advertising pieces. Multiple versions of a direct mail piece are prepared and sent to various segments of a mailing list.


Concept TestingConcept testing is a method to determine the best of a number of possible appeals to use in our advertising. A creative concept is defined as a simple explanation or description of the advertising idea behind the product.This maybe an integral part of creative planning and is undertaken for most clients as a matter of course. Creative concept testing can be defined as the target audience evaluation of (alternative) creative strategy. Specifically, concept testing attempts to separate the “good” ideas from the “bad”, to indicate differing degrees of acceptance, and to provide insight into factors motivating acceptance or rejection. There are a number of possible concept tests:

Card Concept Test – Creative strategies are presented to the respondents in the form of a headline, followed by a paragraph of body copy, on a plain white card. Each concept is on a separate card. Some concepts cannot be tested in card form (based on humor and personalities).

Poster Test – This is similar to a card test that small posters containing simplified illustrations and short copy are used rather than plain cards without illustrations.

Layout Tests – A layout test involves showing a rough copy of a print ad to respondents. Layout tests are more finished than poster tests. In that they use the total copy and illustration, as they will appear in the finished ad. Additionally, whereas a card or a poster test measures the appeal of the basic concept, the purpose of the layout test maybe to measure more subtle effects such as communication, understanding and confusion.

Finished Print Tests – This testing procedure can take many forms of measuring the finished ad as it would appear in print.

Print Testing ExampleThe video storyboard test tests TV and print ads. Its procedure goes something like this: Test ads, finished or unfinished, are inserted into a 20 page magazine-in-


a-folder containing both editorial and control ads. Prospects preview the magazine on one-on-one interviews in high traffic malls. Respondents are questioned regarding unaided, aided and related recall of the test ad. Next they are asked to focus on the test ad only and are probed for reactions. Agencies are furnished with diagnostic data to improve the ad. The ads are measured for stopping power, communication, relevance and persuasion.They also provide likes and dislikes about the ad. All of these costs about $3500 for each test execution per 100 respondents. Results take about 12 days.

Test Commercials Generally, commercial testing on film or videotape falls into one of four

categories: Animatics – This is artwork, either cartoons or realistic drawings. Some

animatics show limited movements, those that do not are usually called video storyboards. Animatics cost from $1,500 to $4,000 plus artist’s fees although the simplest non-movement video storyboard may cost as little as $750.

Photomatics – These are photographs shot in sequence on film. The photos may be stock (from a photo library) or shot on location. Photomatics cost about $10,000 to produce.

Liveamatics – This involves filming or taping live talent and is very close to the finished commercial. A liveamatic commercial test costs $10,000 to $20,000 to produce.

Finished Commercial Testing TV testing techniques can generally be classified into 2 categories:

Those that attempt to evaluate a commercial’s effectiveness in terms of viewers’ recall of a certain aspect of the commercial.

Those that attempt to evaluate a commercial’s effectiveness in terms of what it motivates a viewer to say or do.

Recent advances in production technology are helping the testing process. The more closely the test spot resembles the finished commercial, the more accurate the test results will be. Computer animation has become less expensive and so there is more computer generated artwork in commercial testing.BBDO’s Emotional Testing


According to BBDO, traditional copy tests have failed to measure emotional response accurately. The techniques tend to measure thoughts rather than feelings. Instead of asking consumers to choose from a list or write in their own words, the agency has devised a deck of 53 photos representing the universe of emotion. Each features one of six photos with different expressions ranging from the happy/playful to disgusted/revolted. There are total of 26 categories of emotions expressed. It works as follows:

As with most copy testing consumers are shown a single commercial or group of spots. Then they are given a questionnaire to test whether brand names and copy points are remembered.

Photos are given to participants. They are asked to sort through the photos quickly, setting aside any or all that reflect how they feel after viewing the commercial.

A researcher tabulates how often a particular photo is chosen by the 150 to 600 participating consumers. In the system, the expressions are plotted on a “perceptual map” to determine whether the response is positive or negative active or passive.


Pretesting Methods Level

- Concept level- Pre-finished ads- Finished ads

For pre-finished ads and concepts- Focus groups - Individual assessment using rating scales- Consumer juries

Print Pretesting- Portfolio tests- Dummy advertising vehicle

Pretests show what works with a particular audience. The slogan that seems persuasive to an adult may be confusing to a sixth-grader. A poster than captures the attention of teenagers in one community may alienate or seem boring to those in another.Pretesting can prevent like these. It helps ensure that materials convey a clear and effective message about alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs to a program’s target audience. Specifically, pre-testing can help program managers.

Select message concepts – Styles, formats, spokesperson, and appeals (fear, humor, compassion)

Guide creative work Fine tune wording and visual images Guide revisions (before spending time and money on the finished

product).


Pretesting is valuable at several stages of message and material development. Some methods can be used in the early stages to test concepts or general issues and to spark ideas; other methods are more useful when materials are in close-to-final form.Factors to consider in selecting a pretest method include, in addition to the stage of development of the materials, the kind of audience at which the materials are aimed (e.g. professional, rural), the sensitivity and complexity of the materials, and the resources available. The following overview summarizes the purposes, requirements, pros and cons of 6 pretest methods.

Use pretests to answer these questions. Are your materials and messages: Understandable? Believable? Personally relevant? Culturally relevant? Attention-getting? Memorable? Do-able?

Methods used for pretesting broadcast adsAlthough there is no infallible way to predict advertising success or failure, certain pretesting methods give advertiser useful insights if properly applied.

Central location projection tests: Respondents test commercial films in central locations like a shopping center.

Trailer Tests – Respondents see TV commercials in trailers in shopping centers and receive coupons for the advertised products, a matched sample of consumers just get coupons. The method measures the effect of coupon redemption.

Theater Testing Purpose: To obtain many responses at once; to measure recall under conditions that stimulate actual viewing.These protests gather large numbers of people together to view messages embedded in other programming. This method stimulates actual viewing


conditions. Theater testing can help you learn how and whether your message stands out among the clutter of other messages broadcast each day.For E.g: - To protest a PSA aimed at teenagers, a theater test in a classroom can show it as a part of a videotaped TV program. Students then fill out a questionnaire asking what they remember and how they liked the program, other commercials, and the PSA. If responses show that the PSA was not well remembered, a more dramatic presentation may be developed.Use to protest: Audiovisual materials (which can then be adapted to print materials such as posters displayed with other wall hangings in a clinic)Minimum number of respondents: 60 to 100 per target audience.Resources needed: List of potential respondents, fees or incentives to participate, large room, AV equipment, questionnaire; permits quick analysis of responses.Cons: Can be time consuming to arrange; can be expensive.

Live Telecast test: Test commercials are shown on closed circuit or cable TV. Respondents are interviewed or by phone and/or by sales audits are conducted at stores in viewing areas.

Sales Experiments: Alternative commercials run in 2 or more market areas.

Clutter Tests: Test commercials are shown with other non-competitve controlled commercials to determine effectiveness, measure comprehension and attitude shifts, and detect weakness.

Clutter Analysis

Clutter analysis is used to classify persons or objects into mutually exclusive and exhaustive groups. There should be high internal homogeneity and high external heterogeneity. Cluster analysis has been used in classifying consumers, products and has several uses. E.g. usage of calamine lotion of 15 people. A to O. A two dimensional perceptual map is drawn on the basis of income group and the frequency of usage.


As seen in the example the first cluster shows 5 individuals use calamine lotion less often and these individuals are from the higher income group. The second cluster G, D, O, N, K, I are from upper middle income group, more in number and with a higher frequency of usage. The third groups A, B, E, J are from income group with a slighter higher usage than the first cluster.

In cluster analysis a set of entities are grouped together. It is necessary to define.a) How similar one entity is to anotherb) How an entity is assigned a groupc) How clusters are built

Clusters can be classified into 2 major groups.1) Hierarchical i.e. top down or bottom up.2) Non- Hierarchical: In this method one takes a fixed number of clusters and

then find out, the best solutions that cluster means are maximally different.The hierarchical method is simpler but it is more unstable & unreliable. The non-hierarchical method is more reliable but difficult to interpret.

Limitations of Cluster analysis is that a researcher is often at a loss as to which method he should choose.A cluster lacks standard statistical tests. It also requires a good deal of computational time.

Uses of Cluster AnalysisIt is very useful in market segmentation to identify similar segments.It also provides a better understanding of buyer behavior and development of potential new products.


Cluster analysis is a useful technique for reducing a large mass of data into meaningful aggregates.

Theater TestingThe methods of theater testing operations vary, though all measures of brand preferences change.For e.g. Many of the services now use videotaped programs with the commercials embedded for viewing in one’s office rather than in a theater.Others establish viewing rooms in malls and/or hotel conference rooms, while others ask consumers to turn dials or push buttons on a keypad to provide continual responses.

Disadvantages – 1. Critics argue that environment is too artificial. The lab setting is bad

enough, but asking respondents to turn dials or, as one service does, writing responses takes them too far from a natural viewing situation.

2. The continued measure of brand preference change seems too phony to believe. Critics contend that participation will see through it and make changes just because they think they are supposed to.

3. The group effect of having others present & overtly exhibiting their reactions may influence viewers who did not have any reactions themselves.

Advantages Proponents argue that theater tests offer distinct advantages. In addition to

control the established norms (averages of the commercials performances) indicates how one’s commercial will fare against others in the same product class that were already tested.

Advocates say Brand preference measure is supported by actual sales results.

Despite the limitations of theater tests, major consumer product companies have used it to evaluate their commercials. This method may have shortcomings, but it allows them to identify strong or weak commercials & to compare them to other ads.


Post Testing

Measuring advertising effectivenessThe effectiveness of advertising programs can be checked regularly by using one or more of the following tests.

1) The same ad is run in 2 different publications with a different identifying mark on each. Customers are asked to clip the ad and bring it in for a discount or free sample or of customers order by mail, a code is put. By looking at the marks on the clipped ads of the addresses on the mail-in orders, we can tell which ad pulled better.

2) A product is offered as slightly different prices in different magazines. This has the added benefit of showing whether consumers will buy the product at a higher price.

3) Advertise the item in one only. Then count the calls, sales or special requests for that item. If people call the ad is working.

4) Stop running an ad if sales drop the ad affects sales.5) Sales results are checked whenever an ad is run for the first time. Checks

like these will give some idea how it is working.Research shows that an ad from a new company has to be notices by a prospect a total of nine times before that prospect becomes a customer.

Judging the effectiveness of Advg. The table below sets out some possible objective/tasks and how the effectiveness of the ad might be measured.

Advg. Objectives How success can be measuredStimulate an increase in sales No. of enquiries from ad


No. of enquiries converted into salesRemind customers of the existence of a product

Test customer awareness both before and after ad campaign

No. of enquiries Test customers Awareness

Inform customers No. of requests for further info Sales

Build a brand image Test customer awareness of brand recognition and perceived values

Build customer loyalty and relationship Levels of repeat purchase Levels of customer retention Measure demographic profile of

purchasesChange customer attitudes Measure type of goods ordered by new

purchasers Compare with previous data

Recall V/S Recognition TestsFor many years, there has been considerable controversy concerning the relative merits of these two measurement methods of collecting data pertaining to the readership of print ads and, in more recent years, the viewing of TV commercials.By recall is meant “…the mental reproduction of some target item experienced or learned earlier…some contextual cue is provided, and the respondent must retrieve the target item from memory.”Given such cues, the respondent is asked to play back as much of the ad as possible. The same approach, but with modifications, can be used with TV and Radio commercials. This type of testing yields low response rates-only a very few respondents can recall having seen an ad especially if the lapse of time between seeing the ad and being queried is relatively long.Recognition tests are used primarily with the print ads. “the critical thing that defines a recognition test is that the person is given a copy of the information he or she needs to find in memory.” A respondent is shown a series of ads contained in a specific publication issue to which the respondent has been exposed. The subject is then queried as to whether or not she or he has even seen the particular ad in that issue.


If an ad is reported as “noted,” the respondent is asked to indicate what parts were read.Many respondents falsely claim to have seen an ad.

A somewhat similar test involves the use of 2 matched groups, the first of which is shown a group of TV commercials in a trailer located next to a supermarket. The second group does not see the commercials. Both the groups are given tickets with redemption value that group members use in the supermarket to buy whatever brands they wish in the product category involved in the test. The store, through its check-out electronics, records the purchases made by each group thereby providing the data needed to measure the effects of the test commercials.

InquiriesSome ads are designed to produce direct results, such as sales or inquiries. In such cases, a basis exists for measuring accurately the ads’ worth.

Inquiry tests maybe handled in several ways.1) The same offer may be placed in different pieces of copy placed in different

issues of the same medium. The difference in the number of inquiries received should indicate the “pulling power” of the different pieces of copy.

2) The same offer is placed in different Advg. Copy that appears in different magazines or newspapers. The assumption is that differences between media are either negligible or can be corrected for (say, on basis of circulation), and that the adjusted returns will indicate the best copy.

3) The same offer is placed in a medium that provides a split-run service. This is a procedure whereby half the copies of the magazine or newspaper contain one piece of copy and half contain another piece of copy. This is accomplished in a systematic way so that 2 pieces of copy reach similar audiences.

It must be remembered that a large number of inquiries does not mean that the Advg. is successful – unless inquiries are the sole Advg. objective. If the advertising objective is to help the long term build-up of a general attitude, the number of enquiries may not necessarily be a sound basis for judging the advertisement’s effectiveness.


Comparison Tests2 ads/products are presented to the respondent one at a time. The item is evaluated on various attributes of the product. Then the second product is evaluated on the same attributes. After that both the ads/products are compared on the same attributes to find out which is rate better.Some times 3 products are or four can be tested.

Recognition TestsThe key advantage to BRC’s approach is based on people’s ability to recognize things they have seen before, something they can do easily and with great accuracy.Recognition is the best way to determine attention getting value.Recognition provides high test-retest reliability. You get the same results every time. Recognition persists for a long time, unlike recall which decays rapidly.And accurate segregation of the sample into those who noticed the advertising and those who didn’t is critical for all the remaining steps in testing the impact of advertising. The first is measuring the ability of the ad r commercial to get the name across. Both the attention getting value and the ability to get the name across are well measured in recognition-based testing.

Brand Recall-aided and Unaided RecallBrand recall is the extent to which a brand name is recalled.Some researchers divide the recall into both “unaided” and “aided” recall. “Aided recall” measures the extent to which a brand name is remembered when the actual brand name is prompted. An example of such a question is “Do you know of the Honda brand?In terms of brand exposure, companies want to look for high levels of unaided recall In relation to their competitors. The first recalled brand name (often called “top of mind”) has a distinct competitive advantage in brand space, as it has the first chance of evaluation for purchase.

Sales TestSales tests may be stimulated in a variety of ways-for example, consumers are exposed to alternative pieces of copy through POP displays or direct mail


In the case of POP displays, the need to test 2 ads would require 2 matched store samples. Product sales would be measured in each store before and after the introduction of the appropriate display. The changes in sales between the 2 periods for the 2 store samples would be compared, and that group with the largest increase would be presumed to have the best copy. Similar experimental design studies can be conducted by mail, using coupons.

Projective Techniques

Projective techniques are based on the theory that the description of vague objects requires interpretation and this interpretation can only be based on the individual’s own background, attitudes and values. The more vague or ambiguous the object to be described, the more one must reveal of oneself in order to complete the description.Projective techniques allow greater latitude of consumer response. The following general categories of projective techniques are – word association, sentence completion, cartoons, ink blots, ballon tests thematice perception tests and other ambiguous stimuli and the respondent has full freedom to react as they wish. When the respondent is presented with ambiguous stimuli, he will interpret the material in a manner that will reflect his own personality or need-value systemThe purpose of projective techniques is to provide a tool that will increase the validity of the attitude measure by disguising it purposeWhen properly used, projective techniques can provide extremely useful data.

Advantages They are valuable and useful market research tool to develop a

successful new product concept. They help to uncover information not available through direct

questioning or observation They are particularly useful in the exploratory stages of research


They can generate hypothesis for further testing and provide attribute lists and terms for more structured techniques, such as the semantic differential

The results can also be used to directly for decision making

Disadvantages Tend to be very expensive This, in turn, has led to small sample sizes that increase the probability

of substantial sampling error Furthermore, the reliance on small samples often has been

accompanied by non-probability selection procedures. Thus, selection error is likely to be present

Measurement error is also a serious issue w.r.t projective techniques. The possibility of interpreter bias is obvious.

Another problem with Projective techniques is non response. Some of the Projective techniques require the respondents to engage in behavior that may seem strange to them. This is particularly true for techniques, such as representative sample to be taken.

a) Sentence Completion Test is perhaps the most useful and reliable of all the indirect or projective test. In this technique the informant is given the first part of opening phrases of a number of sentences and asked to finish each of them. The given phrases have to be carefully constructed in order not to give any clue as to what might be the expected answer.Sometimes the area left for response is very high, sometimes it is very concentrated. An example of the more concentrated type can be seen in the following sentence-completion used in the instant coffee enquiry

Powered coffee is……..The nicest coffee……….Coffee that is quickly made……..She was ashamed of the coffee she had just served because………The I enjoy most about coffee……..People who don’t inhale……….What I most enjoy about coffee is…….


A wider field is opened up in the following What I like most about looking after a house is………Women who go out to work……Housework…..Tinned Food……Slaving over a hot stove…….Women who use labour-saving devices…..Looking after a family……. Sometimes a sentence-completion test is concerned not with the attitudes towards a particular product or problem but with the personality of the respondentSentence completion can cover any sort of area and be multiplied to any extent. However, two extremely important requirements have to be borne in mind. Such tests have to be used in batteries of several times. Also the answers have to be studied and analyzed in in relation to all the other information which is continued in the questionnaire.Sentence completion tests can often be used in conjunction with depth-interviewing at the motivation pilot stage of the enquiry.

Word Association Another technique which has a good deal in common with the sentence- competition is the word-association test. Here the stimulus which is given to the informant is not the opening phrase of a sentence but a single word. A respondent is given a word and asked to say immediately what other word comes into his/her mind. A whole series of individual words can be gone through like this with the sentence-completion test. Under some pressure a respondent is likely to blurt out a meaningful response. There are dozens of variants of this particular test and it is possible to think of hundreds more. Sometimes the informant is asked to give one word-association to each stimulus-word. Sometimes he is asked to give a number. Sometimes, in what is called the ‘controlled’ form, his choice is limited, in that he is asked to give a word of similar meaning ro the opposite meaning or an adjective or the name of a colour or again he/she is given a number of word-association and asked to choose between them e.g. Disinfectant: clean, germs, health, danger


Cooking: appetite, stove, work nourishment Soap laundry, beauty lather, bathWord-association test, like sentence-completion tests, can be used in either stage of Motivation Research enquiry.There techniques catch people unaware thus getting them to reveal without knowing it what they might not be able or willing to reveal consciously.

Battery Attitude Test

Essentially , an attitude battery consists of a number statements, which may be about the informant himself, his beliefs or behavior; about other people in general, their belief or behavior or about products, brands or services. These are shown to the respondentsand he is required to say in respect of each whether he agrees or disagrees, or sometimes whether he regards them as true or false.Sometimes he is further asked whether his agreement or disagreement is strong or not so strong or true or not so true.People have given a lot of different reasons when asked why they go to a café. They were asked to look at the following list and say which was true and which untrueI go to a café:While waiting for a busTo drink and talk with friendsFor a change of scene To drink a peaceful glass of beerTo play cards or dominoesJust to relaxTo pass the timeFor business reasonsBecause I like beerOut of habit It can be easily be seen how a different pattern of true/false answersto these questions can indicate different patterns of motivations and behaviour


visualization

Visualization is sometimes referred to as ‘role playing”. These can beVerbal or pictorial, but in both cases the informant is presented with an Imaginary situation and asked to describe something about it- what Sort of people are involved, what are they saying, why they are behaving so and so on.

Verbal VisualizationIn this test a sample of house-wives were shown a shopping lest and given the instructions as follows“read the shopping list below. Try to project yourself into the situation as far as possible until you can more of less characterize the woman who bought the groceries. Then write a brief description of her personality and character. Wherever possible indicate what factors influenced your judgment”

a pound and a half of hamburgertwo loaves of wonder breada bunch of carrotsone can of Rumford’s Baking PowderNescafe instant coffee

cans peaches 5lbs of potatoes

About half of the housewives who were shown this shopping list described the woman as lazy or as failing to plan household purchases well. From this response it was not possible to tell which items on thelist were contributing to this idea. Another identical sample of housewives were presented in the same Way with the same shopping list with one difference. The name of anOrdinary brand of ground coffee was substituted for Nescafe and Nobody described the woman as lazy and only 12% described her as failing to plan household purchases. The presence of the Nescafe brand led to the unfavourable connotations.


Balloon TestRespondents are presented with a rough sketch showing two people Talking. One of them has just said something, represented by words written into a ‘speech-ballon’. The other person’s balloon is empty and the respondent is asked what the other person in the balloon isreplying?Pictorial tests of different sorts can be designed for almost anyrequired purpose.

Physiological Rating scale

Brain Wave Analysis

Brain Wave measuring equipment resembles a pair of headphones. It takes measurement from surface of the head and converts them into an “Engagement “ Index (EI) five times per second. “Engagement” refers to the amount of electrical activity in the cognitive portion of the brain. It was to find if different programmes produce different levels of attention/involvement and if different attention levels carry into the commercial break and if the viewer engagement has an effect on communication or recall of the ads.

Eye Movement Research

Our visual system is extraordinarily complex. When we look around us we are aware that we perceive if fully, clearly and immediately. We actually perceive in detail only a small fraction of our visual world at any one time.Our eyes are never still. Some are voluntary some are not under our conscious control. Sometimes what we are looking at and what we are attending to can be different. Eg as in driving where the driver may realize, suddenly a car has braked, despite having been ‘looking’. Eye movement research examines how visual information is taken in by someone when does it contribute to the person’s behavior. If we show someone a picture and then ask them what they looked at, often it is


found that what they actually looked at does not correspond to where they actually looked .Eye movement research indicate quarter page display ads are noticed more than plain listings.

Galvanic Skin Response

Changes in electrical conductivity of the skin is detected by a sensitive galvanometer. It is an emotional indicator.Galvanometer is an electronic instrument used for exploring phenomena. It is based on the fact that skin resistance is affected by one’s mental and emotional state. It registers very minute variations in resistanceIt is known by several different names like Psychogalvanometer or eEletropsychometer. These instrument can have different features and different degrees of sensitivity but essentially address the sme phenomena. The current passing through the body is negligible and has neither positive nor a negative effects on itself. The sole purpose is to monitor the mental state of the client

Mental MassThe meter measures ‘mental mass.’ An additional gadget is entered in the circuit. This additional gadget varies according to the person’s mental state. The extra stuff that is connected is called mental state. The extra stuff that is connected is called mental mass. The meter reacts when the mental stress are brought up.Its working is similar to the methods used in polygraph, a lie detector. However it does not detect truth and falseness.If one is burdened by problems there is a lot of mental mass. When one , full of joy and no worries, there is very little mental mass.Mental mass can be regarded as consisting of pictures, ie internal representation of external circumstances. Eg if something happened in the physical universe and is stored in your mind it becomes an active part of one’mind.These pictures are not just about visual information. It is all possible perceptions that are being recorded, sight, sound, smell taste, touch, emotion etc. these pictures can cause trouble and need clearing.


When the ‘picture’ is located the negative effect is of the picture is eliminated

The Pinch Test

The meter is put at a place where the respondent can see it. His psermission is taken to pinch his arm. The pinch should be strong enough to hurt him. The respondent is told to look into the meter needle. The needle falls. Then the respondent is asked to recall the pinch. As he recall the needle falls again. This is repeated and the needle falls every tome he realls the pinch. As we go over the charge, the reaction gets smaller the more times he recalls it. Eventually nothing is left.The area of charge is located at a place where it can produce a reading. In the beginning the meter is kept for the respondent to see how it works. Later it is removed out of his sight

Pupilometer

it is a device to measure the dilation of a participant’s pupil in response to a stimulus. It measures changes in pupil dilation. Increased pupil size reflects positive attitudes, interest and arousal in an ad or a package. But it really measures some unknown combination of arousal, mental effort, processing load and anxiety. Therefore pupilometer measurements have poor validity

Voice Pitch Analysis

The study of changes in the relative vibration frequency of the human voice in order to measure emotion is Voice Pitch Analysis. The greater the emotional intensity of the person’s normal voice, the greater the emotional


intensity of the person’s reaction to a stimulus such as a question. Used in package research, to predict brand preference and to determine predisposition to buy. It is also now used to measure consumer’s emotional responses to advertising. However the validity of this method is questionable.

Challenges in Pre-testing

Pre-testing advertising, for the most part, takes place in a setting different from those in which people will encounter in real life.Most pretesting takes place in settings that are abnormal.

1. It is impossible to pretest in a fully normal setting 2 Adequate control of non-advertising variables cannot be accomplished in a normal setting.

3 The expense of pretesting in a fully normal setting is exorbitant relative to the advertising budget. 4 The respondent gives more attention to the test advertising that

he would to regular advertising.In pretesting research respondents are often made aware of the ad to be tested.He therefore tends to remember it better and to hold a more conscious opinion of the ad than he would normally. No matter how the research is designed sooner of later the respondent is bound to understand which ad the researcher is interested in. He may pay greater attention to the advertising and his attention can if the research is carried out in a theatre, a laboratory etc It is difficult to say how much the alerting of a respondent affects his reaction to the test advertising. To get as close to pretesting in normal settings the test advertising is:

a) Presented in a medium identical to that in which it will appear as regular adb) Both the test ad and the regular ad must have the same physical

characteristic including form, finishing, completeness


The creation of a normal setting is difficult. However a normal setting is sometimes is unnecessary or impracticalDepartures from a normal setting are considered of little consequence if the aim of the research is simply to elicit or weigh ideas which can later be tested in the context of an ad or commercialA dummy magazine is sometimes the most suitable testing vehicle for a print ad because it permits the establishment of a uniform interval between the time each respondent sees the test ad and the time he is questioned about it. The dummy magazines is left with the respondent overnight. It contains some advertising and several pages of editorial material. The respondent is asked to read it. When the interviewer returns the next day he ascertains what the respondents feel about the ad.

Another challenge in ad testing is that pretests cannot measure the cumulative effects of ads derived from repeating similar themes or from the interaction of the ad with other phased of the over all advertising and promotion effort. Thus one ad may appear better than another in a single pretest, but after repetition or in the context of the actual marketing environment the apparently weaker ad may prove more effective than the other. It is also a challenge to pretest humourous ideas illustrations or off beat campaigns

The Halo Effect The Halo effect occurs when the respondent lets himself be influenced by an overall feeling of like or dislike. If he decides he likes a particular make of car, he will give it high marks for performance, comfort braking, efficiency and so forth. If he does not like it, he will stress its shortcomings in neither case has he assessed each item on its merit. A different form of the Halo effect express itself in a response set. If the rating scales are arranged one underneath the other and always with the ‘good’ end on the left hand side and the’ bad ‘ end on the right, then the respondent, having made up his mind and rate on one side only without actually giving each of items a separate thought. To counter this effect the researcher tries to randomize the direction of the scales, so that the socially most liked end falls sometimes on the left and sometimes on the right.


There is also the Halo effect of colour, the extent to which it affects our whole attitude to a particular object.


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