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Course Syllabus

Bachelor 2019/2020

Marketing Research

Type: Elective course (International Business and Management Studies)
Area of studies: Management
Delivered by: Department of Management
Where: St.Petersburg School of Economics and Management
When: 3 year, 3, 4 module
Mode of studies: offline
Instructors: Anna Daviy
Language: English
ECTS credits: 4
Contact hours: 64

Course Syllabus

Full Syllabus

Abstract

Rapid changes in the business world are creating new decision-pressing situations that demand better skills for the acquisition and use of management and marketing information. Marketing research plays an important role in supporting both management and marketing decision-making processes by providing an accurate, relevant, and timely information. Therefore, the course pays significant attention to such activities as identification, search, collection, analysis, and interpretation of primary and secondary marketing research information.
Learning Objectives

Learning Objectives

  • The main purpose of the course is to equip the students with the concepts and techniques pertaining to the sphere of marketing research. The course also aims to provide the learners with an opportunity to apply the obtained knowledge to an array of real business and research problems.
Expected Learning Outcomes

Expected Learning Outcomes

  • (1) understand how to apply marketing research to management
  • (2) provide a detailed overview of the steps of the marketing research process and explain the key activities within each step
  • (3) identify sources of reliable external secondary data
  • (4) discuss the main research designs
  • (5) identify the conceptual differences between qualitative and quantitative research methods and explain the main methods of either group
  • (6) develop data collection forms
  • (7) design a sampling approach and a sampling frame
  • (8) manage the data collection process
  • (9) use statistical packages to analyse quantitative data
  • (10) interpret the result of a data analysis, later reporting and communicating the results
Course Contents

Course Contents

  • Topic 1. Introduction to Marketing Research
    Marketing research and decision making. Definition of marketing research. A classification of marketing research. The marketing research industry. The marketing research process. The limitations of marketing research. Ethics in marketing research practices. The marketing research proposal and the marketing research brief
  • Topic 2. Secondary data.
    Primary versus secondary data. Advantages and disadvantages of secondary data. Classification of secondary data. Sources of secondary data. Criteria for evaluating sources of secondary data and data itself.
  • Topic 3. Research design.
    Research design definition. Research design classification. Exploratory research. Descriptive research. Causal research.
  • Topic 4. Qualitative research methods. In-depth interviews.
    Rationale for using qualitative research. Advantages and disadvantages of qualitative research methods. A classification of qualitative research methods. Questioning techniques in qualitative research. Steps in developing the guide and conducting an in-depth interview. Focus group interviews.
  • Topic 5. Qualitative data analysis. Content analysis.
    Definition of content analysis. Objects of content analysis. Software for content analysis. Steps of content analysis.
  • Topic 6. Quantitative research methods
    Survey methods. A classification of survey methods. Questionnaire design. Questionnaire development. Scale measurement. Basic level of scales. Scales to measure attitudes and behavior. Pilot-testing. Sampling methods and planning. Steps in developing a sampling plan.
  • Topic 7. Data analysis.
    Fieldwork and data preparation. Exploratory factor analysis. Cluster analysis.
  • Topic 8. Online research.
    Typology of online research. Design of online surveys. Big data. Online Ethnography.
  • Topic 9. Mixed-method research design.
    Сlassic advice on making decisions about research methods. The different strengths of different methods. Three motivations for combining methods. Sequential priorities model. Research cycle for sequential priorities. - Preliminary Qualitative Inputs to Quantitative Projects. - Preliminary Quantitative Inputs to Qualitative Projects. - Qualitative Follow-up to Quantitative Projects. - Quantitative Follow-up to Qualitative Projects. More Complex Designs.
  • Topic 10. Observation techniques. Commercial ethnography.
    Overview of observation techniques. Ethnography for marketing and consumer research.
Assessment Elements

Assessment Elements

  • non-blocking Tests
    Students will have three tests during the course. Tests will be given at the beginning or at the end of the class, and they will take around 15-20 minutes. All tests will be based on students’ home reading, guest lectures’ materials, information obtained during the previous classes or the current class.
  • non-blocking Workshops / Practicums
  • non-blocking Individual task
  • non-blocking Group project
    Students will conduct a real marketing research. Group project is carried out in the group of 5-6 students. Deadline of the whole project: the last class of the course according to the course schedule.
  • non-blocking Exam
    The exam format is a written test based on the course materials. The exam is conducted via the LMS platform. All the students writing the test should also connect to a parallel meeting in ZOOM. The students must connect to the ZOOM meeting and open the LMS system on schedule. The student's computer must meet the following requirements: a working camera and a microphone. To participate in the exam, the student must: use his or her last name and first name as the signature on the avatar, connect to the ZOOM meeting, open the LMS platform on schedule, and turn on the camera and unmute the microphone at the beginning of the test. During the exam, students are forbidden to turn off the camera and use notes and hints. A short-term communication failure during the exam is considered to be a communication failure. A long-term communication violation during the exam is considered to be a violation of a minute or more. If there is a long-term communication failure, the student cannot continue to participate in the exam. The retaking procedure involves the use of complicated tasks.
Interim Assessment

Interim Assessment

  • Interim assessment (4 module)
    0.2 * Exam + 0.3 * Group project + 0.1 * Individual task + 0.2 * Tests + 0.2 * Workshops / Practicums
Bibliography

Bibliography

Recommended Core Bibliography

  • The Marketing Research Guide Stevens, Robert E.; Loudon, David L.;and more Routledge 2005 ISBN: ISBN number:9780789024169, ISBN number:9781136422126

Recommended Additional Bibliography

  • Poynter, R. (2010). The Handbook of Online and Social Media Research : Tools and Techniques for Market Researchers. Chichester, West Sussex, U.K.: Wiley. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=339147
  • Taylor, S. J., DeVault, M. L., & Bogdan, R. (2016). Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods : A Guidebook and Resource (Vol. 4th edition). Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=1061324