X 466 Consumer Market Research #252275 Instructor Contact Information Class Location & Hours Keith Gosselin Email: kgosselin@ucla.edu Phone: 310.954.4162 Boelter Hall 5249 Mondays 7:00 10:00 pm General Information Description Studies the nature and scope of research techniques employed in gathering information concerning marketing and advertising practices and procedures. Subjects include use of secondary sources, collection of primary data, sampling, interpretation of data, and communication of research results. Also includes class performance of an actual Businessto-Consumer marketing research project. Expectations Students are expected to learn the theories presented in the text and supplemental materials and apply them in conducting a real-life research project. Course Goals & Objectives Participants will obtain the: (a) Ability to understand the need for marketing research, the role it plays in the development of marketing activities and its affect on the structure of product development. (b) Capability of selecting applicable market research tools for different types of projects. (c) Ability to interpret raw research data into meaningful information to aid in determination of marketing strategies. Expected Learning Outcomes By the end of this Course, successful participants will be able to Conduct quality secondary research Design a survey instrument Synthesize data collected into meaningful conclusions and recommendations Present market research in a clear and concise report Materials Required Materials Not applicable [Course #] Syllabus Page 1
Optional Materials Not applicable Required Texts Marketing Research Essentials (8 th Edition) by Carl McDaniel, Jr. and Roger Gates; Wiley & Sons Publishing; ISBN-13: 978-1-1182-4932-1. Or, ebook: Marketing Research Essentials (8 th Edition) by Carl McDaniel, Jr. and Roger Gates; Wiley & Sons Publishing; ISBN-13: 978-1-1185-4292-7. Recommended Texts Not applicable Course Schedule Date Topics Activities Assignments 01/05 Market Research Introduction Discuss course structure Review Chapter 1 In-class team forming exercise Begin forming teams Review syllabus Read Chapter 1 01/12 The Market Research Ethics and the Research Process Interview research project decision maker(s) Melissa Giller, CMO of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation Review Appendix 1B Review Chapter 2 Read Appendix 1B Read Chapter 2 Prepare questions for research decision-maker(s) 01/19 NO CLASS MLK DAY! N/A N/A 01/26 Secondary and Qualitative Research Methods 02/02 Traditional and Online Survey Research Methods Review Chapter 3 Watch Wild Planet DVD Review Chapter 4 Review Chapter 5 Review Chapter Six Read Chapter 3 Read Chapter 4 Read Chapter 5 Read Chapter 6 02/09 Quiz #1 and Secondary Research Progress Meetings Conduct Quiz #1 Covering Chapters, 1, 1B, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6 from 7:00 pm 7:45 pm Discuss secondary research progress in team meetings with instructor Prepare for Quiz #1 Summarize team secondary research findings for meeting with instructor (not graded) 02/16 NO CLASS PRESIDENT S DAY! N/A N/A 02/23 Development of a Questionnaire Review Chapters 10 Read Chapter 10 [Course #] Syllabus Page 2
Date Topics Activities Assignments Review Chapter 9 Read Chapter 9 (only pages 222-236) Submit team Secondary Research Summary paper via Turnitin drop box provided on course website by 7:00 pm on 02/23! 03/02 Sampling and Survey Development Progress Meetings Review Chapter 11 Review Chapter 12 Discuss online survey instrument design progress in team meetings with instructor Read Chapters 11 Read Chapter 12 (NOT responsible for content from page 304 - starting at Population and Sample Distribution - to page 310 - up to Determining Sample Size ) Teams draft initial survey design for meeting with instructor (not graded) 03/09 Data Analysis and Communicating the Research Results Review Chapter 13 Review Chapter 15 Read Chapter 13 (only pages 325-348) Read Chapter 15 Team online surveys distributed by 03/08! 03/16 Quiz #2 and Data Analysis Progress Meetings Quiz #2 from 7:00 7:45 pm Prepare for Quiz #2 Covering Discuss data analysis progress in team Chapters 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 & 15 meetings with instructor Optional Mystery Shopper activity for extra credit Summarize team research findings for meeting with instructor (not graded) 03/23 Presentation of Research Results Teams present research findings to client Submit team Final Research Report via Turnitin drop box provided on course website by 7:00 pm on 03/23! Email PPT team presentations to instructor by 5:00 pm on 03/23! Team Peer Review Forms accessible on course website at 7:00 pm on 03/23 and due via email by each student by 11:59 pm on 03/26! Assignments & Grading Secondary Research Summary Guidelines This paper will describe secondary research that has been collected by the team, the conclusions they have drawn from this research, a list of the research still needed from the online survey to be designed and a description of the population of interest for the survey. As this first paper is a RESEARCH paper, citations should be made throughout to identify sources for facts presented using the APA format. Here is a website URL that provides details about APA guidelines: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01 [Course #] Syllabus Page 3
NOTE: In a real research project, this paper would not be written. For academic purposes, this paper is designed to make sure teams conduct quality secondary research before moving onto primary research, that they define their population of interest for their survey and determine the objectives of the survey before beginning its design. Written Paper s Format (PLEASE FOLLOW THESE GUIDELINES!!!): a. Academic Integrity/Plagiarism: All student-submitted materials are expected to be the product of the student s/team s own thought process. Information from other sources may be used; however credit must be given by using in-text citations (for the first paper, but not the second one). Use the References section to further identify the sources utilized. To make sure you do not accidentally plagiarize, please visit the following website to obtain a thorough description of what plagiarism is and is not, according to UCLA: http://guides.library.ucla.edu/citing It is the responsibility of EVERY student to be familiar with these guidelines. Unfamiliarity is NOT an excuse for plagiarism, as defined at this web page. If you do not adhere to these guidelines, the section containing plagiarism will be given a ZERO. If there is more than one section containing plagiarism in a paper, the entire paper will be given a ZERO and be subjected to further UCLA administrative review. NOTE: Though cited quotations are not plagiarism, students are expected NOT to have more than 10% of their content direct quotations. Most of the writing should be in the student s own wording. b. Use 12, Times New Roman font (one deducted if not followed) c. Use double spacing with 1 margins on top, bottom and sides of paper (one deducted if not followed) d. Cover page with team members name(s) on it (in alphabetical order by last name - one deducted if not followed), name of client, name of class, name of the paper being submitted and date of submission. e. Table of contents with page numbers provided (one deducted if not followed) f. Label each of the sections for each paper as described next (one deducted if not followed) SPECIAL NOTE For the first part of the project, each team will be conducting secondary research. Students can use the UCLA library to access current business periodicals by either going to the library physically, or via online access. Here are the sections for this paper (no Executive Summary or Abstract is needed for this paper): a. Significant Findings and Conclusions: This section should ONLY describe research that was found to be relevant and significant to the research project scope. Any research that was gathered that was either irrelevant or did not yield significant findings, should not be discussed. After each significant finding is summarized, conclusions that the team has drawn from it should be clearly described. HOWEVER, this paper should NOT include recommendations. It is premature to make such recommendations. The credibility of the sources used should also be described. If the source is a well-known and respected source (e.g. the U.S. Census Bureau or A.C. Nielsen), then this should be highlighted. If the source has potential bias (such as information obtained from a competitor or an industry trade association), this should be disclosed as well. The purpose of this section is to make sure each team has conducted quality secondary research before moving onto primary research (which will only consist of an online survey in this class). This section will usually be between 3-5 pages (it could be more or less, depending on the scope of the research project). Grading Scale: [Course #] Syllabus Page 4
Writing 3.0 mistakes 2.0 mistakes 1.0 There is plagiarism 0 Content Relevance All of the content is relevant to the subject matter 5.0 Most of the content is relevant to the subject matter 4.0 Some of the content is relevant to the subject matter 3.0 Very little of the content is relevant to the subject matter 2.0 Sources used All of the sources used are credible and properly cited 2.0 Most of the sources used are credible and properly cited 1.5 Some of the sources used are credible and properly cited 1.0 Few of the sources used are credible and properly cited 0.5 b. Research Still Needed from Survey: This section should describe the information that was NOT found during the secondary research efforts that must still be discovered during subsequent primary research efforts (the online survey). Oftentimes, secondary research is very general. Thus, the online survey to be developed must obtain more research-specific data. The purpose of this section is to make sure each team defines their information needs for the online survey to be designed in the next phase of the research project before beginning its design. This section will usually be between 2-3 pages (it could be more or less, depending on the scope of the research project). Grading Scale: Writing 2.0 mistakes 1.5 mistakes 1.0 There is plagiarism 0 Content Clarity All of the research needs are clearly stated 1.0 Most of the research needs are clearly stated 0.8 Some of the research needs are clearly stated 0.7 Very little of the research needs are clearly stated 0.6 [Course #] Syllabus Page 5
c. Population of Interest and Recruiting Plans for Survey: This section should describe the population of interest (being as specific as possible) to be used for the online survey to be developed and how elements will be recruited for participation in the survey (i.e. use of Facebook, workplace, peers, friends, family, etc.). NOTE: It is possible that the project sponsor will be providing access to the population of interest for the online survey. In this situation, the team should describe who the sponsor will be contacting, and how. The purpose of this section is to make sure each team defines who they will be surveying and how, so that these efforts can begin while they are designing the online survey with the help of the instructor. This section will usually be between 1-2 pages (it could be more or less, depending on the scope of the research project). Grading Scale: a Writing 0.5 mistakes 0.4 mistakes 0.3 There is plagiarism 0 Population of Interest Comprehensive-ness The definition of the population of interest is comprehensive 0.5 The definition of the population of interest is somewhat comprehensive 0.4 The definition of the population of interest is not comprehensive 0.3 The definition of the population of interest is not stated zero Recruiting Method Clarity All of the recruiting methods are clearly stated 0.5 Most of the recruiting methods are clearly stated 0.4 Some of the recruiting methods are clearly stated 0.3 The recruiting methods are not stated zero d. References: This section will list all of the secondary data sources cited in the paper using APA format (which includes listing them alphabetically and with spaces in-between each listing). Grading Scale: APA Formatting The entire section is properly formatted 0.5 Most of the section is properly formatted 0.4 Very little of the section is properly formatted 0.3 This section is not provided 0 [Course #] Syllabus Page 6
Final Report This is the only paper that would be given to the client. Grading is based on depth of the analysis, adherence to guidelines, substantiation of findings presented, feasibility of recommendations, credibility of sources and quality of writing. NOTE: Since the final report is in the form of a consultant s report, in-text citations are not required as done in the Secondary Research Summary paper, though a References section is required in the Appendices section of this paper. However, you will want to highlight credible secondary research sources used (e.g. According to research conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2014 ). Written Paper s Format (PLEASE FOLLOW THESE GUIDELINES!!!): a. Use 12, Times New Roman font (one deducted if not followed) b. Use double spacing with 1 margins on top, bottom and sides of paper (one deducted if not followed) c. Cover page with team members name(s) on it in alphabetical order (by last name - one deducted if not followed), name of client, name of class, name of the paper being submitted and date of submission. d. Table of contents with page numbers provided (one deducted if not followed) e. Label each of the sections for each paper as described next (one deducted if not followed) a. Executive Summary (Limit to One Page one deducted if not followed): This section should be written last, but written best! It is a synopsis of the most important aspects of the rest of the paper (including background, research methods used, most significant findings & conclusions and recommendations). The purpose of this section is to consider the fact that many project decision-makers do not read an entire report. Thus, the client should be able to read this one section and have a basic understanding about everything else to be discussed in the paper. Grading Scale for Executive Summary: Writing 3.0 mistakes 2.5 mistakes 2.0 The section is incomprehensive 1.6 Content Comprehensiveness all of the sections of the report 1.0 most of the report 0.8 some of the report 0.7 one of the sections of the report 0.6 b. Background: This section should describe what resources were used (budget, personnel, software tools such as SurveyMonkey), why the research was conducted (which should be guided by the project s Scope Statement and the interview with the research decision-maker), and the project s time frame. The project s Scope Statement should be used as a guide here but content should NOT simply be cut & pasted. NOTE: Since this section is being written for the client, there is no need to provide information about the client s company that is not relevant to the research project. In other words, there is no need to describe [Course #] Syllabus Page 7
the history of the client s business or what they do, unless such information is directly related to the scope of the research project. The purpose of this section is to consider the fact that research decision-makers may re-read this report at a later date and may need to be reminded as to why it was conducted. In addition, since the final report becomes secondary research as soon as it is published, other people may read this report in the future and would need to know why it was conducted and with what resources this helps them judge the level of accuracy they would expect from the research. This section is usually between 1-2 pages. Grading Scale for Background Section: Writing 1.0 mistakes 0.8 mistakes 0.7 The section contains plagiarism zero Content Relevance All of the content presented is relevant to this section 1.0 most of the report 0.8 some of the report 0.7 one of the sections of the report 0.6 c. Research Methodology: This section should describe the secondary research sources that were used (and why), the type of primary research that was conducted (the online survey - and why), the definition of the population of interest (and why), description of the sampling methods used (e.g. recruiting methods used for the online survey, whether it was probability sampling or nonprobability sampling, etc. - and why), and any special problems/considerations (e.g. non-representativeness of the survey respondents should be discussed; for instance, if an unusually high number of women responded to the survey (or a particular ethnicity, or from a particular area of the area of interest, etc.), this should be presented as potential survey bias. The credibility of the sources used should also be described. If the source is a well-known and respected source (e.g. the U.S. Census Bureau or A.C. Nielsen), then this should be highlighted. If the source has potential bias (such as information obtained from a competitor or an industry trade association), this should be disclosed as well. This section should also explain what kind of information the survey instrument was designed to obtain, how the questions were ordered (and why) and how the questions were formatted (i.e. open-ended, closed-ended, scaled, etc. and why). The final draft of the survey used by the instructor for input can be used to show the questions, or screenshots can be taken from SurveyMonkey. The purpose of this section is to build credibility for the research conducted. It is here that the client will determine whether or not the researcher(s) minimized biases throughout the research process, given the constraints of the resources available for the project. This section is usually between 2-3 pages. Grading Scale for Research Methodology: [Course #] Syllabus Page 8
Writing 1.0 mistakes 0.8 mistakes 0.7 The section contains plagiarism zero Content Relevance All of the content presented is relevant to this section 2.0 most of the report 1.6 some of the report 1.4 one of the sections of the report 1.2 d. Data Analysis: This section should contain a description of significant data findings and conclusions from BOTH secondary & primary research. NOTE: It is possible that you may get a very low number of responses from prospective survey respondents. However, for the purposes of this assignment, assume that the results from such a low response can still lead to actionable recommendations. This section should describe the significant findings from both secondary and primary research, the conclusions that were drawn from these findings and how these conclusions led to feasible, actionable recommendations. Students should use tables and graphs to better present their information in this section. Screenshots can be used from SurveyMonkey showing the data discussed in this section. However, don t just insert graphs, tables & images that leave it up to the reader to determine what is important. Highlight what is relevant by either circling data, cropping the image to enhancement certain areas, and/or providing a summary. Also, reduce noise in a report by omitting data collected that was either irrelevant or nonactionable. A shorter, clearer report is better than a longer, report with unclear data included. The purpose of this section is to clearly tie the research findings, conclusions and recommendations to the objectives of the research project. The writer must think of it as telling a story. Show how findings lead to a conclusion and how conclusions lead to a recommendation If the story is clear and seems to make sense, the decision-maker is more inclined to accept it as solid research. This section is usually between 3-5 pages. Grading Scale for Data Analysis: Writing 2.0 mistakes 1.6 mistakes 1.4 The section contains plagiarism zero Content Clarity All of the findings, Most of the Some of the Few of the [Course #] Syllabus Page 9
conclusions and recommendations are presented clearly 6.0 findings, conclusions and recommendations are presented clearly 5.2 findings, conclusions and recommendations are presented clearly 4.6 findings, conclusions and recommendations are presented clearly 3.8 Content Relevance All of the content presented is relevant to this section 2.0 most of the report 1.6 some of the report 1.4 one of the sections of the report 1.2 e. Appendices: This section should contain Appendix One: Survey, which has a copy of the survey used and Appendix Two: References listing the secondary data sources cited in the paper. Grading Scale for Appendices Section: Survey Appendix Survey is provided completely 0.5 Survey is provided partially 0.4 Survey is missing zero Survey is missing zero Reference Section APA Formatting The entire section is properly formatted 0.5 Most of the section is properly formatted 0.4 Very little of the section is properly formatted 0.3 This section is not provided 0 Assignment Breakdown: Assignment Type Description Points Percentage of Final Quiz #1 Twenty-question, multiple-choice quiz on Chapters 1, 1B, 2, 3, 4, 5, & 6 text and supplemental materials 100 25% Quiz #2 Twenty-question, multiple-choice quiz on Chapters 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, & 15 text and supplemental materials 100 25% Secondary Research Summary Paper that discusses secondary research collected for research project 15 15% Research Presentation to client Oral presentation to client on last day of course 100 10% [Course #] Syllabus Page 10
Peer Review Team members evaluate themselves as well as their teammates for participation and quality of work 100 5% Research Final Report Paper that presents the findings, conclusions 100 (10 and recommendations for the research bonus project to winning team) 20% TOTALS: 100 Points 100% Grade Percentage Letter Grade Pass/Fail 90-100% A Pass 80-89% B Pass 70-79% C Pass 60-69% D Fail >59% F Fail Course Policies Academic Honesty Policy Academic dishonesty covers behavior in cheating, plagiarism, and fabrication of information. These behaviors are not tolerated. Students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the UCLA Extension Student Conduct Code and the official statements regarding cheating and plagiarism at: https://www.uclaextension.edu/pages/str/studentconduct.aspx Services for Students with Disabilities In accordance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, UCLA Extension provides appropriate accommodations and support services to qualified applicants and students with disabilities. These include, but are not limited to, auxiliary aids/services, such as note takers, audiotaping of courses, sign language interpreters, and assistive-listening devices for hearing-impaired individuals, extended time for and proctoring of exams, and registration assistance. Accommodations and types of support services vary and are specifically designed to meet the disability-related needs of each student based on current, verifiable medical documentation. Arrangements for auxiliary aids/services are available only through UCLA Extension Disabled Student Services at (310) 825-7851 (voice/tty) or by email at access@uclaextension.edu. Please request such arrangements with at least five working days advance notice. All assistance is handled in confidence. Accommodations must be preapproved. Requests for retroactive accommodation will not be accepted. Quiz Makeups Quiz Make-Ups: If a student expects to miss a quiz, they must give notice at least 24 hours in advance of the quiz day/time. If, for some reason, they are unable to take the quiz on the date it is given without prior knowledge, they must inform the instructor via email or phone within 24 hours after the quiz time/day; failure to do so will result in a 0 for the quiz grade. There will only be one scheduled make-up quiz; failure to take the make-up quiz on that day/time will result in a 0 for the quiz grade. [Course #] Syllabus Page 11
Additionally, if a student arrives to take a quiz AFTER the first student has finished taking the quiz, they will NOT be allowed to take the regularly scheduled quiz. They MUST take the make up quiz. Make-up quizzes are generally more difficult and do not contain a bonus question. NOTE: All work MUST be the work of each individual student! Cheating on a quiz will result in score of zero with possible administration review for further action. Feedback on Assignments Answers to quizzes will be reviewed in subsequent class meetings. Research Papers will be graded within 72 hours of due dates Due Dates & Late Work Assignments handed-in late are deducted 10% of the total for each 24 hours they are late. [Course #] Syllabus Page 12