Reference no: EM131218369 , Length: word count:4000

Marketing Research Assignment-

Outcome - The assessment is designed to rigorously test the application of theoretical concepts to a designated marketing research problem. Students are required to make an analysis of the marketing problem, identify and recommend the most suitable methodology for carrying out the research and for analysing the data that will be collected.

This assessment relates to:

- Discipline knowledge and capabilities: appropriate to the level of study related to a discipline or Profession.

- Critical thinking: evaluating information using critical and analytical thinking and judgment, and

- Self-management: working and learning independently, and taking responsibility for personal actions.

In that, students need to critically evaluate the case at hand and identify the most appropriate methodology (and relative operationalisation) designed to gather information to solve the management decision problem.

Research Proposal - A Case Study

Sara Lee Australia - A brief history

We've been making our desserts in Lisarow NSW for over 40 years now. All our recipes combine generous amounts of best ingredients - from Australia wherever possible. We use fresh eggs and our fresh cream comes from specially selected Australian dairies. We only use Australian wheat flour and the best seasonal fruits.

Our Guiding Principles

At Sara Lee, we believe that every recipe we make should be the best it can be. We take great care in finding the best ingredients to make our recipes just perfect. We go the extra mile by only using high quality ingredients we source from all around Australia as our first point of call. And, what we can't find here, we carefully select from only the best producers overseas.

Our dedicated team of pastry chefs and bakers have an honest passion for what we do, and we bake fresh everyday to deliver what we believe are the best desserts in Australia.

Creating the most delicious recipes is our primary objective - it's what we're known for! We create the most delicious recipes, using generous amounts of the best ingredients such as Australian Wheat, fresh cream, fresh eggs and the most luscious seasonal fruits.

"High Quality" is our mantra and something we take very seriously.

Creating the perfect recipe also entails maintaining the highest level of quality. We work diligently to ensure our quality systems are of the highest standard and we test every batch we bake to ensure it meets the standards we set.

https://www.saralee.com.au/

Recently, the research team at Sara Lee have developed a new product - Matcha iced cake. Matcha tea is an increasingly popular variation of green tea and considered to be a premium product. Ultimately, it's very high end green tea that has been ground into a fine powder. Because you actually consume the whole leaf as oppose to just steeping it, you get a much higher concentrate of good things in tea. Much like green tea, this product can be used as an ingredient in many other products.

https://www.abetterlemonadestand.com/trending-products-2016/

Hypothetically, you are the marketing research manager at Sara Lee. It is an important time for the marketing research manager and the marketing manager responsible for the new product. To successfully launch the new product - Matcha iced cake, you are concerned with the target customers' reception and potential behaviour (or responses) of this new product and would like to do a research to study this potential product. The target customers are married female aged between 30-45 earning $80,000 to $100,000 per annum with a child or children in the family. In particular, you need information to shed light on the aspects of the marketing mix elements such as price, promotion, and place; which can affect potential customers' buying behaviour. As such, you need to critically evaluate and determine the most adequate methodology to utilise in this proposal. You need to be very specific with regard to all aspects of the research proposal.

The research proposal should include:

1. Official Title page (This is a requirement of proposal writing [not included in the official word count])

• Project title;
• Your Full name and student ID number;

2. Executive Summary (not included in the official word count)

• An executive summary is a brief account (not more than a single page) of the major points (findings, conclusions, and recommendations) related to your proposal;
• Your executive summary is best prepared after your proposal is completed;
• Please remember that the executive summary is NOT an introduction i.e., what you intend to do. Please focus on what you did.

3. Table of Contents (this is a requirement of proposal writing [not included in the official word count])

4. Introduction (Guideline: 100-150 words)

• Clearly state the key issues to be addressed in the body of the proposal.

5. Background to the proposed research - (Guideline: 300-400 words)

• In this section, you need to describe what your task is and give background information relevant to the case at hand. You need to do so to remind the reader the reasons why this proposal is written and what are the specific issue(s) to be solved at hand.

6. The research objectives (Guideline: 100-150 words) in terms of the questions to be answered.

• Clearly state the key objectives - these can be presented in a bullet point format.

7. Research design recommended for the new research project (You must provide justification throughout this section): (Guideline: 2,000-3,400 words)

i) Type/s of research to be undertaken (with justification) e.g., qualitative, quantitative, descriptive, exploratory, causal, etc.

ii) Type of information required from the participants to address the research problem. If you propose qualitative research, produce a topic guide. If you propose a survey or other quantitative data collection instrument, specify the questions asked and the type of data that will be collected (these can be in an appendix and are not included in the word count). If you choose causal research then specify the experimental design. You can specify more than one type of approach (e.g. qualitative followed by quantitative research). This will also be influenced by the nature of research you recommend to undertake;

iii) Methods of data collection recommended (data collection methods - must be consistent with the type of research). Why would you use the specific technique? Why would that technique be appropriate? What is the design of the study?

iv) Sampling technique e.g., clearly define the target population and its key characteristics, identify the sampling frame and justify the chosen sampling technique (you may need to make assumptions).

Only one sampling technique is required for each method and choosing more than one will lead to you failing the assignment.

v) Plan of data analysis e.g., specify data analysis techniques that you would use to answer the question, including any specific statistical tests you would use with quantitative data.

vi) Costing: There is no need to cost the study. While Sara Lee does not want to spend money unnecessarily, they are willing to spend whatever it takes to do the research thoroughly. That is, they want to be certain that the research can answer the above questions in a clear, relevant and defensible way.

8. Limitations and caveats (Guideline: 100-150 words)

• Are there any perceived limitations e.g., organisation constraints, research design limitations, problems with generalisation or ethical issues.

9. Conclusions and recommendations (with a focus on of target consumers). (Guideline: 500- words)

• Recommendations should be feasible, practical and actionable;
• Recommendations should address the research objectives.
• Reference list [not included in the official word count]
• Only References cited in the proposal should be included.

Appendices [not included in the official word count]

• Appendices should include supporting evidence only. Tables, graphs and questionnaires you may develop or use.
• If you use appendices please ensure they are numbered and referred to within the proposal.