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Introduction

Questionnaire Effectiveness A questionnaire was used as part of my primary market research. Primary research means the collection of original data via direct contact with potential and existing customers. This enabled direct interaction with members of the selected potential target market, providing an insight into their needs, wants and requirements of a product. Questionnaire results gave the business an idea of: * How many people are willing to use the product/service if it were made available. * Whether they would buy the product and if so, at what price. * Who and where would buy the product. * What type of promotion/advertising would work. * What features of the product the business target market likes/dislikes. * What could be improved in order to make the product more appealing to its target market. * Whether the product is suitable/ unsuitable for the chosen target market. The results and feedback received helped to further develop the business ideas and improve accordingly. The questionnaire gave valuable insight to the four Ps, the basis of ensuring that the service was successful. The information gained will be used to help inform future business decisions and ensure a more satisfactory product/service is produced, better meeting consumer needs. ...read more.

Middle

There were various other types of market research I could have used instead of/as well as questionnaires, of which include 4 types of primary research: 1. Interviews with individuals or groups of potential customers - This will help to gain insight into consumer needs/wants and requirements of a product. This method is most similar to that used for questionnaires as, a set number of questions will be given and those questioned will need to state their opinion. This could potentially cover the 4 Ps effectively as a number of questions can be asked regarding the 4 Ps and the potential consumer opinions noted down. However, an interview has less limitations than a questionnaire i.e. it includes more qualitative questions. One of the main disadvantages of interviewing potential consumers is that, due to the high number of qualitative answers, it may be very hard to assess/analyse results. Also, different interviewers may interpret answers in different ways and this will mean conclusions/ analysis's are not as reliable. 2. Consumer Panels - This is where a specialist panel of consumers are used as respondents to answer research questions with regards to product testing, taste testing etc. ...read more.

Conclusion

Also, the information found may be unreliable as well as irrelevant to the business proposal. The reliability of some sources of information such as media reports may be easily questioned as large numbers of media reports are found to include bias, detracting from their credibility. Having said this, however, government reports, specialist trade journals and such documents have a higher reliability than documents such as media reports, as they are less likely to be bias (the government has a greater responsibility to ensure that its publications are reliable). Although some secondary sources may be reliable, there is also always a great chance that they are outdated, detracting from their usefulness and, possibly their reliability. Only a questionnaire was carried out for the market research as it appears that the questionnaire may be the most conclusive, reliable and accurate way of achieving the necessary results. This is due to the fact that, although the results can be subject to bias, they are reliable to a certain extent; those questioned are watched as they filled out their answers and answered without being under any external pressure that could influence a change in mind. Also, using a number of other methods of primary/secondary research would have been very time consuming. ?? ?? ?? ?? ...read more.

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