Market Research Overview

Importance of Market Research

• Essential for businesses to understand consumer demands.
• Helps determine:
  • Goods and services customers want.
  • Appropriate pricing strategies.
  • Competitor analysis.
  • Customer feedback on existing products and services.

Types of Market Research

1. Desk Research

• Definition: Involves looking at pre-existing information (secondary data).
• Advantages:
  • Quicker and often less expensive than field research.
  • Free sources available (e.g., Google searches).
  • Information is widely accessible via online platforms, newspapers, magazines, etc.
• Disadvantages:
  • May not be relevant to the specific business needs.
  • Potentially outdated information.
  • Risk of biased data.
• Sources:
  • Newspapers
  • Websites
  • Government reports (e.g., census)
  • Sales figures
  • Journals

2. Field Research

• Definition: Involves collecting new, first-hand information specifically for the business.
• Advantages:
  • Provides current and accurate market data.
  • Information is relevant to the business's specific needs.
• Disadvantages:
  • Expensive to conduct.
  • Time-consuming, potentially delaying decision-making.
  • Requires hiring and training personnel.
• Methods:
  • Interviews
  • Focus groups
  • Postal surveys
  • Telephone surveys
  • Online surveys
  • Hall tests
  • Observations

Recommendations

• Explore the BBC Bitesize website for detailed explanations of research methods and their advantages and disadvantages.

These notes summarize the key points about field and desk research, highlighting their importance, advantages, disadvantages, and methodologies. This serves as a study aid for understanding market research in business management.