Mastering Your Business Dissertation by Lomas Robert;

Author:Lomas, Robert;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Group

Surveys

A sample survey is probably the most familiar method of collecting primary data. Survey methodology, such as sampling and questionnaire design, must be carried out correctly if any confidence is to be placed in the data. The detailed methodology is covered in depth in a number of marketing research texts.

A sample survey is a technique to elicit information from other people, who may be agents, distributors, suppliers or customers. Some companies carry out their own survey work, but it is more usual for firms to commission such work from professional agencies. Examples that are quite familiar are public opinion surveys conducted by firms such as Audits of Great Britain, the British Market Research Bureau, and Gallup. Some of the larger agencies offer a very comprehensive range of marketing research services. Gallup, for example, carry out field research ranging from political and social surveys to areas such as leisure, travel, catering, staff recruitment and labour relations. Other research agencies are more specialized, such as Food and Drink Research Ltd. For the type of small-scale surveys carried out as part of an MBA research project, you will usually carry out your own interviews, although sometimes organizations do allow students to subcontract surveys. Such commissioned surveys should be treated as secondary data when writing up.

Survey methods can be used to gather information on a wide range of topics. Similarly, surveys can be used to gather information for sales-forecasting purposes, if your problem is one of prediction. You can, for example, survey the probable consumer reaction to a product, pack or price modification, or the purchasing plans of professional buyers in a particular industrial market segment.

The research instrument used in most survey work is the questionnaire. Careful planning should go into the design of the questionnaire, so that the questions asked are meaningful and unambiguous to respondents, and the information gained is useful and achieves the objectives of your survey.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.