Marketing Chapter 16 Sixteen Communicating Research Results Communicating Research Results Ataglance Introduction The

Chapter Sixteen: Communicating Research Results

Chapter 16

Communicating Research Results

AT-A-GLANCE

I. Introduction

II. The Project and the Report

A. Report format

B. Tailoring the format to the project

C. The parts of the report

1. Title page

3. Letter of authorization

5. The executive summary

7. The appendix

D. Basic marketing research report

III. Using Tables Effectively

A. Creating tables

IV. Using Charts Effectively

A. Pie charts

B. Line graphs

C. Bar charts

V. Oral Presentation

VI. Reports on the Internet and Follow-Up

A. Self-contained presentations

B. Follow-up reports

LEARNING OUTCOMES

1. Create an outline for a research project using the basic parts of a final report

3. Summarize how to select and use the types of research charts

5. Discuss the importance of Internet reporting and research follow-up

Chapter Sixteen: Communicating Research Results

CHAPTER VIGNETTE: Effective Research Is a Stone’s Throw

Away

The Rosetta Stone, discovered near the ancient city of Rosetta, Egypt at the end of the Eighteenth

Century, allowed the translation of hieroglyphics. While marketing researchers don’t have to

write research reports in stone, effective communication can still be pretty hard. The research

report is the tool that translates the marketing research to those not generally schooled in the

technical aspects of marketing research. Even if the research is properly conducted, it can still be

SURVEY THIS!

Students are asked to develop at least three research questions, to examine them using the data

from the survey, and to prepare a written report and slide show presentation that could be used to

brief an interested audience of businesspeople who wish to better serve this particular market.

RESEARCH SNAPSHOTS

➢ Statistics Show 20 Percent of Report Statistics Are Misleading. Oh Yeah??!!

Sometimes, newspaper reports that present numbers in ways that are confusing, misleading,

or even incorrect. One example states that Visa offered a credit card with a rate “four percent

above the prime rate,” which confuses percentage and percentage points. Another example

➢ Presentation Today?

The LCD projector and the common types of presentation software that we use today became

the tool of choice for presentations in the late 1990s. The projectors themselves have become

increasingly small and portable enabling presentations to be given just about anywhere where

a power source is available.

However, the modern marketing researcher doesn’t even need a projector. Increasingly, tablet

computers are used to give presentations to small groups. In fact, the researcher doesn’t even

need to be present for the presentation as Skype-type software programs and communication

Chapter Sixteen: Communicating Research Results

part, except for use as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a

password-protected website for classroom use.

Similarly, if the presentation is to be completely canned and viewed by the users without the

presence of the researcher, these types of visual and voice over annotations can be extremely

useful. These technological tools are real trends in presentations today.

TIPS OF THE TRADE

➢ Research reports, like all communications, are interpreted by the receiver. Try to be clear and

unambiguous in preparing the research report.

➢ Research reports should generally follow the principles of good technical writing.

➢ Whenever possible, have someone else proof the report and slides before submitting them to

the client or editor.

➢ Whenever possible, stick to the standard outline for the paper.

➢ The executive summary is critically important because on occasion it is the only part read in

detail by the client.

➢ Consider the audience in preparing the report and presentation.

➢ Make the communication understandable.

▪ Avoid jargon and put any complex statistical output in a technical appendix.

▪ Use charts and tables to illustrate findings.

• Good ethical practices dictate that charts, graphics and tables be presented in

a way that minimizes the likelihood of misinterpreting meaning.

▪ Presentation slides should be clear and legible.

• Err toward larger font, not smaller.

OUTLINE

I. INTRODUCTION

A. If people who need to use the research results have to wade through a disorganized

presentation, find themselves confused by technical jargon, or find sloppiness of

B. The research report is a crucial means for communicating the whole project’s

benefits.

II. THE PROJECT AND THE REPORT

A. A research report is an formal presentation and/or a written statement that

communicates research results and draws appropriate conclusions following from a

research project.

B. The report provides the “answers” and documents procedures to the interested

audience.

1. For an applied market research project, the report presents the results

Chapter Sixteen: Communicating Research Results

vii. The summary contains four elements:

(a) It states the objectives of the report, including the most important

background information and the specific purposes of the project.

(b) It presents the methodology and the major results.

(c) The conclusions, which are the opinions based on the results and

f. The Body

i. Constitutes the bulk of the report.

ii. It begins with an introduction section setting out the background factors

that made the project necessary as well as the objectives of the report.

iii. Explains why the project was done and what it aimed to discover.

vi. The last part explains exactly what the project tried to discover,

discussing the statement of the problem and research questions as they

were stated in the research proposal.

vii. The second part of the body is the research methodology section and

should address four topics:

(a) Research design

(b) Sample design

(i) What was the target population? What is the sampling frame?

(c) Data collection and fieldwork

(i) How many and what types of fieldworkers were used? What

training and supervision did they receive? Was the work

verified?

(d) Analysis

viii. The results section should make up the bulk of the report and should

present those findings of the project that bear on the objectives.

detailed ones should be saved for the appendix).

ix. The last part of the body is the conclusions and recommendations

section.

g. Appendix

i. Presents the “too …” material.

ii. Any material that is too technical or too detailed to go in the body should

appear in the appendix.

Chapter Sixteen: Communicating Research Results

part, except for use as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a

password-protected website for classroom use.

iii. Examples include data collection forms, detailed calculations,

discussions of highly technical questions, detailed or comprehensive

tables of results, and a bibliography (if appropriate).

iv. Much appendix material is posted on internal Web pages.

D. Basic Marketing Research Report

2. Basic research reports (e.g., published in an academic business journal) have a

slightly different outline since some components become irrelevant.

3. Common outline

a. Abstract

b. Introduction

c. Background

i. Literature Review

ii. Hypotheses

d. Research Methods

e. Results

III. USING TABLES EFFECTIVELY

interpreted in the text.

D. Several types of graphic aids may be useful in research reports: tables, charts, maps,

and diagrams.

E. Creating Tables

2. Each table should include the following elements:

4. Title – should indicate the contents of the table and be complete enough to be

intelligible without referring to the text.

6. Notes – includes any explanations or qualifications for particular table entries.

7. Source notes – if based on material from one or more secondary sources, the

sources should be acknowledged, usually below the table.

IV. USING CHARTS EFFECTIVELY

A. Charts translate numerical information into visual form so that relationships may be

Chapter Sixteen: Communicating Research Results

C. Each chart should include:

2. Title – should describe the contents of the chart and be independent of the text

explanation.

4. Source and footnotes – secondary sources for the data should be acknowledged

and footnotes may be used to explain items.

D. Charts are subject to distortion, whether unintentional or deliberate.

E. A particularly severe kind of distortion comes from treating unequal intervals as if

they were equal.

F. Pie Charts

1. One of the most useful types of charts.

3. Each angle, or “slice,” is proportional to its percentage of the whole and should

be labeled with its description and percentage.

4. The writer should not try to include too many slices—about six slices is a typical

maximum.

G. Line Graphs

2. The dependent variable is generally shown on the vertical axis and the

independent variable on the horizontal axis.

3. The most common independent variable for such charts is time, but it is not the

only one.

H. Bar Charts

2. Multiple-bar chart – shows how multiple variables are related to the primary

variables.

4. The writer should not use too many divisions or dependent variables.

5. Too much detail obscures the essential advantage of charts, which is to make

relationships easy to grasp.

V. ORAL PRESENTATION

A. The conclusions and recommendations of most research reports are presented orally

as well as in writing.

B. The purpose of an oral presentation is to highlight the most important findings of a

C. One simple rule—be as straightforward as possible.

D. The key to effective presentation is preparation.

E. Communication specialists often suggest that a person preparing an oral presentation

begin at the end, meaning what a researcher wants the client to know when it has

been completed.

G. Must be ready to defend the results.

H. Another key to effective oral presentation is adapting to the audience.

Chapter Sixteen: Communicating Research Results

I. Don’t lecture or read to the audience.

J. Avoid research jargon and use short, familiar words.

2. Open up your arms to embrace your audience.

4. Avoid quick and jerky gestures which make you appear nervous.

VI. REPORTS ON THE INTERNET AND FOLLOW-UP

A. Many clients want many employees to have access to research findings.

B. One easy way to share data is to have executive summaries and reports available on a

company intranet.

C. A company can use information technology on the Internet to:

1. Design questionnaires

3. Analyze data

4. Share the results in a presentation-ready format

D. Real-time data capture allows for beginning-to-end reporting.

E. A number of companies offer fully Web-based research management systems.

F. Self-Contained Presentations

1. Points to keep in mind

a. Make sure the title page indicates who did the research and for whom it was

done.

b. Keep in mind that viewers may use all sorts of media devices to view the

presentation. As a result, simpler is better.

f. Include links to any technical appendices that support the work.

g. On the last slide, provide clear and unambiguous contact information for

easy follow-up.

G. Follow-Up Reports

2. Purpose is to determine whether the researchers need to provide additional

part, except for use as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a

password-protected website for classroom use.

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND CRITICAL THINKING/ANSWERS

1. What are the parts of a market research report?

1. Title page (sometimes preceded by a title fly page)

3. Letter of authorization

5. Executive summary

a. Objectives

6. Body

a. Introduction

7. Appendix

a. Data collection forms

2. How does an applied market research report differ from a basic or marketing research report?

1) Abstract

3) Background

4) Research Methods

6) Discussion

7) Conclusions

Chapter Sixteen: Communicating Research Results

part, except for use as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a

password-protected website for classroom use.

8) References

9) Appendixes

The material in the sections does not change very much between market and marketing research.

3. What types of tables might be used to describe some of the various statistical tests discussed

in previous chapters?

4. What is the difference between a basic marketing research paper and an applied market

research report?

5. What is a pie chart? What is a bar chart? When might one be preferable over the other?

6. Why might a researcher create a graphic that leads a user to overestimate the size of some

effect? Describe with an example.

Researchers sometimes are tempted to choose the scale values for axes on charts in a way that

may make a small finding seem much larger than it really is. Consider Exhibit 16.4. The Exhibit

displays results of an experiment testing the difference between two alternative advertising

designs on purchase intention. Subjects recorded their purchase intentions after viewing one of

the ads using a 10-point scale scored from 1 (Extremely Unlikely to Buy) to 10 (Very Likely to

Buy). Both frames in the Exhibit display exactly the same data. However, would a reader draw

the same conclusion from either frame? Frame A makes ad 2 seem much more advantageous

part, except for use as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a

password-protected website for classroom use.

7. How might a marketing researcher unintentionally distort results of an independent t–test

examining brand A’s customer–satisfaction against brand B’s customer satisfaction where

customer satisfaction is measured on a 0 to 100 point satisfaction scale (0 = no satisfaction to

100 = complete satisfaction)? How might the researcher intentionally distort the interpretation

of these results?

8. What are some basic business research journals? Find some published research reports in

these journals. How do they meet the standards set forth in this chapter?

9. What rules should be followed when preparing slides for computer-generated presentations?

10. [Ethics Question] What ethical concerns arise when you prepare (or read) a report?

11. Prepare an Exhibit similar to 16.2 that shows the per capita bottled water consumption for

the countries listed. Population stats for each country can be found in the CIA factbook

discussed in an earlier chapter. Sort the countries from most to least consumption per capita.

What Exhibit would be more valuable for someone looking for opportunities in the bottled

water industry?

Chapter Sixteen: Communicating Research Results

part, except for use as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a

password-protected website for classroom use.

Student answers will vary depending on when they pull the data from the CIA factbook, as these

figures are likely to change from year to year. The instructor should verify student answers by

visiting the CIA factbook page.

RESEARCH ACTIVITY

1. This activity can be used for the term long project. In the resources that accompany this book,

you will find a Powerpoint file that contains a detailed outline for a research project. This file

contains a skeleton or template of a final research presentation. The outline also serves as the

framework for a research report. Using instructions from your instructor regarding the topic

Student responses will vary, but as the activity states, this is an excellent long term project that

can be used to hone students’ presentation skills.

2. Input “Amazon.com” or “Apple” in an Internet search engine along with other key words that

may lead you to research reports that describe some aspect of these mammoth companies

Students’ responses will vary on this activity.

3. Using the data from an earlier chapter describing coffee drinking habits by the shift that

workers work (shown again here), prepare a pie chart(s) and at least one other type of chart

that depicts some meaning from the data. For instance, show the proportion of workers in

each shift (a pie chart works well for this) and show the means of coffee drinking by shift.

Use a statistical package like SAS JMP or SPSS to create the charts. Also, create the charts

using EXCEL or Powerpoint. What software seems to be the most easy and most flexible in

creating charts?

CASE 16.1 Consumer Price Knowledge

Objectives: To allow students the opportunity to determine what to report given results of a

study.

Chapter Sixteen: Communicating Research Results

part, except for use as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a

password-protected website for classroom use.

In general, charging different prices is called price discrimination and is legal unless it

discriminates by race or sex or involves antitrust or price-fixing laws. Results of the study are

provided for students to interpret and use to answer the following questions.

Questions

1. The information provided here is not detailed enough for a formal report, but assume that you

are making an informal report in a preliminary stage of the reporting process. Which of these

findings do you want to emphasize as your main points? Why?

2. Prepare a written summary of the findings, using at least two tables or charts.

3. Prepare two tables or charts that would be suitable to accompany an oral presentation of these

results. Are they different from the visual aids you prepared for question 2? Why or why not?