Year
2021
Units
4.5
Contact
1 x 1-hour lecture weekly
1 x 2-hour tutorial weekly
Prerequisites
1 of BUSN1009, BUSN1209, SOCI2025, POLI2026, PSYC1106, HLPE1005
Enrolment not permitted
BUSN3018 has been successfully completed
Topic description

This topic will provide an applied introduction to the theory and practice of marketing research, and its use as a management tool in business. It will enable students to transform business problems into research objectives, design a research plan and communicate the results effectively to management. The topic covers research design and practice with respect to survey and other research methodologies.

Educational aims

This topic aims to introduce students to marketing research in its business context, as a means of assessing consumer markets nationally and internationally and providing a communication channel between consumers and management. It will develop a template for transforming business problems into research objectives, designing a research plan and communicating the results effectively to management. The topic will also address, at an applied level, a range of issues in the design and practice of market surveys and other research methodologies. The topic will also aim to equip students with the skills to apply market research, and develop and further enhance decisions to amend marketing mix factors of an enterprise.

Expected learning outcomes
On completion of this topic you will be expected to be able to:

  1. Explain the role of marketing research in providing information for management planning and control
  2. Conduct exploratory marketing research based on focus groups and in-depth interviews
  3. Perform survey-based descriptive research and relationship-based causal research
  4. Draw inferences from marketing research data using appropriate computer software
  5. Work collaboratively to prepare a marketing research report for management and effectively present the results both orally and in writing
  6. Understand the different uses of marketing research in the business environment and as an aid to decision making, and discuss the ethics involved in marketing research
  7. Analyse a marketing data base
  8. Develop a qualitative and quantitative research instrument
  9. Critique marketing research designs and make practical recommendations about future marketing research needs
  10. Define methods of selecting and accessing marketing data