What is the role of marketing research in decision making?

The task of marketing research (MR) is to provide management with relevant, accurate, reliable, valid, and current information. Competitive marketing environment and the ever-increasing costs attributed to poor decision making require that marketing research provide sound information. Sound decisions are not based on gut feeling, intuition, or even pure judgment.

 

 

 

Marketing managers make numerous strategic and tactical decisions in the process of identifying and satisfying customer needs. They make decisions about potential opportunities, target market selection, market segmentation, planning and implementing marketing programs, marketing performance, and control. These decisions are complicated by interactions between the controllable marketing variables of product, pricing, promotion, and distribution. Further complications are added by uncontrollable environmental factors such as general economic conditions, technology, public policies and laws, political environment, competition, and social and cultural changes. Another factor in this mix is the complexity of consumers. Marketing research helps the marketing manager link the marketing variables with the environment and the consumers. It helps remove some of the uncertainty by providing relevant information about the marketing variables, environment, and consumers. In the absence of relevant information, consumers' response to marketing programs cannot be predicted reliably or accurately. Ongoing marketing research programs provide information on controllable and non-controllable factors and consumers; this information enhances the effectiveness of decisions made by marketing managers.

 

 

 

Traditionally, marketing researchers were responsible for providing the relevant information and marketing decisions were made by the managers. However, the roles are changing and marketing researchers are becoming more involved in decision making, whereas marketing managers are becoming more involved with research. The role of marketing research in managerial decision making is explained further using the framework of the "DECIDE" model:

 

 

 

The DECIDE model conceptualizes managerial decision making as a series of six steps. The decision process begins by precisely defining the problem or opportunity, along with the objectives and constraints. Next, the possible decision factors that make up the alternative courses of action (controllable factors) and uncertainties (uncontrollable factors) are enumerated. Then, relevant information on the alternatives and possible outcomes is collected. The next step is to identify and select the best alternative based on chosen criteria or measures of success. Then a detailed plan to develop and implement the alternative selected is developed and put into effect. Last, the outcome of the decision and the decision process itself are evaluated.

 

Research is essential to collect facts and statistics about a company's customers, employees and competitors. On the basis of these numbers, companies are able to make better managerial decisions. The collected statistics are organized into reports and the management team uses them to take action. A good research mechanism is essential, irrespective of the size of the company and its client base. Research is imperative for staying competitive in the market.

1. Significance

   • A business is able to make knowledgeable decisions because of research. In the research process, the company is able to obtain information about key business areas, analyze it, develop a strategy and distribute business information. Reports, provided to the top management, often include information on consumer and employee preferences and all the available routes for sales, marketing, finance and production. Management uses this information to decide the best strategy. Research is a prerequisite at all stages and phases of business operations. Initial research is required to gauge whether getting into the given type of business would be profitable and whether there is demand for the proposed product.

   Function

   • By conducting business research, the organization ascertains what its customers want and then takes steps to prepare a product meeting those desires. Research also helps determine whether a product is accepted in the market. Research aids expansion into new markets.

      
   Methods of Data Collection

   • There are two ways organizations typically collect data.

     One is primary data collection from your immediate consumers, who provide feedback on your products. You can also invite customers to offer opinions on future products. To gain this information, an interviewer asks the customer to provide views on how the company can modify the existing product to satisfy his needs better. The interviewer uses surveys and questionnaires to collect and record data. This method is helpful for gaining insight about a company's particular merchandise.

     The second method is secondary data collection, which uses data that has already been printed over the Internet and in magazines and journals. This is predominantly useful in gauging the broad market scenarios.

   Considerating a Consultant

   • Conducting research involves cost and time. The organization must weigh the pros and cons before hiring consultants to conduct research. Consultants must be made fully aware of what the organization is looking for from the research.

   Advantages

   • The primary benefit to business research is that the organization is able to learn more about consumer choices and preferences. Research provides information on the product features that lure customers and flaws in the product or marketing that contribute to slow sales. Research helps the organization fix problems and cash in on the strengths. Research also contributes to a company's ability to clearly identify the customer demographics and target demographic, including age, gender, monthly income of the household and educational levels. Research mitigates business risks and can help increase demand and sales.

Business management is about decision making. Every decision is invariably surrounded by uncertainties and, therefore, risks.

Marketing research helps to reduce such risks & uncertainties & increase the probability that the decisions which management has to take will help attain the organisation's marketing objectives.

 

 

Marketing research plays two key roles in the marketing system. First, as part of the marketing intelligence feedback process, marketing research provides decision makers with data on the effectiveness of the current marketing mix and offers insights into necessary changes. Second, marketing research is the primary tool for exploring new opportunities in the marketplace. Segmentation research and new product research help identify the most lucrative opportunities for a firm.                         Thank You.

This Specialised Masters draws upon the expertise of top-level professionals and the academic prowess of teacher-researchers specialising in consumer marketing, enabling participants to improve their understanding of the complex area of consumer marketing via a range of research studies, support brand strategies, make a positive contribution to an effective marketing mix and activate growth mechanisms on the highly challenged and challenging consumer product market. Carefully designed in close collaboration with managers, this programme showcases the most advanced techniques within the spheres of research and marketing, instils strategic and operational decision-making skills and hones the competences required within the various marketing professions.THE SPECIALISED MASTERS IN MARKETING RESEARCH AND DECISION MAKING TRAINS SENIOR MANAGERS TO: Understand and deploy the most cutting-edge tools for collecting, processing and analysing marketing information Exploit the results of marketing studies in order to build up a strategic direction, take the appropriate marketing decisions and assess the efficiency of the subsequent actions undertaken Obtain the necessary level of professional proficiency to be immediately operational in the consumer goods sector puce large griseUPON COMPLETION OF THE PROGRAMME PARTICIPANTS SHOULD BE CAPABLE OF: Handling the current marketing stakes and latest trends Steering marketing studies by applying the appropriate methodology Displaying recognised expertise in the use of panels Being a conceptual and operational driving force behind brands Defining and implementing customer activation plans Mastering relational marketing tools Understanding the challenges attached to multi-channel marketing Measuring marketing activity performance Capitalising upon a pronounced expertise for consumer goods marketing

Its same like cooking.without using perfect ingredients you cannot cook perfectly. Market research is the perfect ingredient for the placement of product in the market. If you dont know the potential of the competitor you cannot give a perfect slogan as per the differential advantage of your product. Market research helps you to give a perfect word of mouth for the customers, clients and consumers which we called slogan. We can apply4 P's (product, price, place, and promotion) perfectly only with a perfect market research such as the leading brand its advantages where they are placing and what kind of promotional campaigns they are running. So a good manager only can apply4 P's perfectly if He/She will do a complete home work on market research as per the product they are going to launch or they want to give boost to their sales.

Is all about sharing ideas and effort that it would help for the benifits of the company!

It will be the basis of your decision making if you will continue the project or not. It will help you to understand the pros and cons, the effect and the implementation 

Information is the life blood of business organisations as their successful operation rest entirely on what is right to be done and what should not. This implies that the first stage in effective decision making is analysis which depend on depend on marketing research for data provision. Any decision taken without adequate information for analysis will be baseless and misleading as decisions are entirely situationally feasible and applicable.

In essence, the role of marketing research is the provide decision makers with adequate information to guide effective decision making.

The primary role

Give you the features of the road

 

It describes the obstacles that you may encounter

The role of marketing research in decision-making for the project will be an important and essential role.

 

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