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Abstract:
Market research can be a complicated and complex process nowadays, especially when it involves sophisticated techniques with names like probabilistic sampling, Box-Jenkins, or conjoint analysis. There is a need for a guide that will help managers determine the dimensions of the task, the resources that must be summoned, the data required, and other key elements. Here, from the head of market research at General Motors, is such a guide in outline form. Vincent P. Barabba walks the reader through the five major stages of the research effort. Each stage is represented in one table, and together the tables combine into a mammoth foldout for easy perusal. The stages are: 1. Assess the market information needs. 2. Measure the marketplace. 3. Store, retrieve, and display the data. 4. Describe and analyze market information. 5. Evaluate the research and assess its usefulness. Comprehensiveness is a hallmark of the "encyclopedia." In the second table, for example, one of the headings under "nonprobabilistic data" is "central location interviewing." Barabba lists the limitations of this kind of research: "Very expensive; responses in this artificial environment may not reflect responses in the market; complicated logistics; development of test product can be time consuming and expensive."