While I know that you are
competent in doing all types of market research, what is the difference between
Qualitative and Quantitative Research?
| Qualitative Research and Analysis |
Quantitative Research and Analysis |
| |
|
| Powerful |
Statistically Reliable |
| Clients reach and express their own conclusions |
Dependent on Analyst |
| Communicate Persuasively |
Minimize Risk |
| Complexity |
Simplification |
| Feelings and Impressions |
Descriptions and Quantifications |
| Focus on Why? |
Focus on What? |
| How To Market |
What to Market |
| Individual Attitudes and Beliefs |
Group Attitudes |
| Interpretive |
Descriptive |
| Why they said it |
What they said |
| Meaning |
Redundancies |
| Means |
Ends |
| How to Market |
What to Market |
| Motives - Stable over Time |
Conclusions - Prone to Change |
| Nuance |
Standardization |
| Open-ended Responses |
Closed-ended Responses |
| Participants control process |
Researcher controls process |
| Perceived as Legitimate |
Perceived as Detached |
| Richness |
Patterns |
| Subjective Data |
Systemic Data |
| Volunteered Answers |
Prompted answers |
| What subjects find meaningful |
What researcher finds meaningful |
| Words and Meaning |
Numbers and Words |
| Words Very Accessible |
Numbers Less Assessable |
What is a Focus Group?
A focus group is a professionally structured group discussion that provides
in-depth insights and an understanding of motivations and perceptions. Focus groups
are helpful in generating, evaluating, and refining ideas, products, services, packaging,
positioning, and media.
A focus group can assess attitudes and motivations about customers, employees,
vendors, prospects, and suppliers. A focus group can help in the generation of new
concepts, ideas, and in questionnaire development.
Focus groups can help isolate key variables that can be included in quantitative
questionnaires and research. Professional focus groups are relatively inexpensive,
fast, and adaptable.
When should qualitative approaches be used?
Advertising
Can be used at any stage of development of an campaign to explore the actual or
potential effects of copy and layouts. Should not be used for recall or to evaluate
media but should be used to access the impact of the advertisement.
Attitude
Can be used to explore how people feels about a product or service.
Comparisons are made between similar products or services and perceived quality.
Brainstorming / Idea Generation
Used to uncover areas where existing products or services are not completely
fulfilling the needs or consumers. Provides data on problems people are having in
accomplishing a particular task.
Customer
Used to explore attitudes about various aspects of the products or services
offered. Useful in assessing satisfaction, dissatisfaction, complaints, and
potential crises.
Employee
Used to explore attitudes about various aspects of the organization for which they
work. Useful in assessing satisfaction, dissatisfaction, complaints, crises, and
work related litigation.
New Product
Used to test new products or service concepts and obtain the reactions of a group
of consumers. Can be used at various stages of the change or development process.
Packaging
Used to examine both existing and proposed packaging of products and services.
Perception
Can be used to explore how people feels about a product or service.
Comparisons are made between similar products or services and perceived quality.
Positioning
Oriented toward where a product, service, or institution is places or positioned in
the minds of consumers or where it should be positions for maximum marketing
effectiveness. Position is always determined relative to some set of attributes and
usually in relation to the possession of those relative to some set of attributes and
usually in relation to the possession of those attributes by other products, services, or
institutions.
Promotion
Aimed at the development of various kinds of promotional activities from coupons to
trade fairs. Can be used to to explore the effectiveness of a promotion campaign.
Usage
Used to obtain information about how consumers use existing products and services.
We thank Dr. Walter Kendall, CMC for his insight in helping to formulate
and address these issues.
