UNIT - I BBA -II SEM RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Prof. Amit Kumar
FIT Group of Institutions Page 1
Research Methodology
Introduction:
Research can be defined as the search for knowledge, or as
any systematic investigation, with an open mind, to establish
novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new
ideas, or develop new theories. The primary purposes of
basic research are documentation, discovery, interpretation,
or the research and development of methods and systems
for the advancement of human knowledge. Approaches to
research depend on epistemologies, which vary considerably
both within and between humanities and sciences.
Definition-
Redman and Mory define research as ''systematized effort
to gain new knowledge''
The advance Learner's dictionary of Current English lays
down the meaning of research as -''investigation or
experimentation aimed at the discovery and interpretation
of facts, revision of accepted theories or laws in the light of
new facts, or practical application of such new or revised
theories or laws''
Application of Research in Various Functions of
Management-
The function of research is often to measure various
elements important for business decisions. These elements
are often call metrics and can include advertising results,
product usage and customer feedback, according to Dobney,
an international marketing research consulting firm. The
research functions will usually be contingent upon a
company's overall research objectives. For example, some
companies conduct research to determine the potential
success of a new product. Other companies need solutions
to problems.
Measuring Brand Awareness
One business research function is determining a company's
brand awareness. Brand awareness is the percentage of
consumers who are aware of a company's brand in the
marketplace. For example, 95 percent of all consumers
nationally may be aware of a large consum er products
company. However, only 10 percent of all customers in a
local market may be aware of a small cleaning company.
There are two main types of brand awareness: Aided and
unaided. Aided brand awareness is usually measured by
asking consumers, "Have you ever heard of 'Joe's Hardware'
store?" The person conducting the survey will usually
provide the company's name to measure aided brand
awareness. Contrarily, a company will not provide a
company's name to measure unaided awareness. Instead,
the company may include the survey question: "Which
hardware stores are you familiar with in the local area?"
Companies with strong unaided awareness among
consumers may be one of the preferred brands in the
market.
Measuring Customer Satisfaction
Business research is often used to measure satisfaction
among consumer or business customers. For example, a
company may want to determine how satisfied customers
are with its customer service department. Market
researchers may ask consumers to evaluate their
experiences with a company's phone, email and technical
support, three possible levels of customer service.
Companies may also ask customers how satisfied they are
with product features or prices. A publisher may ask
business clients how satisfied they are with the content of its
newsletter. Customer satisfaction is an important element
for companies to track in business research. Satisfied
customers are usually more likely to keep buying a
company's products.
Tracking Ad Effectiveness
Business r esearch functions also include tracking advertising
effectiveness. Companies like to know how many people
saw their ads and who respo nded to an offer as a result of
an ad. Companies use business research to track ad results
from print, radio, direct, television and other types of
advertising. Sometimes, a company will even track the
number of people who recall its advertising slogan or
message. For example, a pizza restaurant company may ask
consumers what details they remember from a television ad
campaign.
Solving Problems
Companies also use business research to solve problems. For
example, a consumer products company may want to
evaluate why consumers are switching to a competitive
brand of peanut butter. In the course of surveys, the
consumer products company may find that consumers
prefer the taste and text ure of competitive brands.
Consequently, the consumer products company may need to
develop a better tasting peanut butter.
Types of Research-
The basic types of research are as follows:
(i) Descriptive vs. Analytical:
Descriptive research includes surveys and fact-finding
enquiries of different kinds. The major purpose of
descriptive research is description of the state of affairs as it
exists at present. In social science and business research we
quite often use the term Ex post facto research for
descriptive research studies. The main characteristic of this
method is that the researcher has no control over the
variables; he can only report what has happened or what is
happening. Most ex post facto research projects are used for
descriptive studies in which the researcher seeks to measure
such items as, for example, frequency of shopping,
preferences of people, or similar data. Ex post facto studies
also include attempts by researchers to discover causes even
when they cannot control the variables. The methods of
research utilized in descriptive research are survey methods
of all kinds, including comparative and correlation methods.
In analytical research, on the other hand, the researcher has
