BASIC RESEARCH ISSUES

As technology advances, marketing researchers continually look for ways to adapt new technology to the practice of research. However, researchers must never forget that research basics cannot be overlooked. Rather, what must be done is to adapt the new techniques and technologies to these basics. All studies must address the following basic issues (Anderson, Berdie, & Liestman, 1984):
1 - ASK THE RIGHT QUESTIONS.
 This is the essence of project design and the heart of proper planning. Every project is unique, and as
 such must be tailored to the user’s needs.
2- ASK THE RIGHT PEOPLE.
 The goal of sample design should be that only those people who are of interest to the researcher are
 contacted, and that those contacted are representative of the group of interest
3 - ASK QUESTIONS THE RIGHT WAY.
 It is not enough to be able to ask the right questions; they must be asked the right way. This is the
 essence of questionnaire design. If the wording of the questions is not clear to the respondents, the
 results will be useless. Pretesting the questionnaire is crucial for ensuring that responses are the ones
 that are needed.
4 - OBTAIN ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS.
 Data collection is central to all marketing research. The techniques used should minimize
 non-response while maximizing response.
5 - RELATE ANSWERS TO THE NEEDS OF THE RESEARCH USER/CLIENT.
 Data seldom speaks for itself. Proper data analysis is needed if a study is to have any value to the user.
 Here there is a risk of letting advanced techniques become the master of the researcher rather than
 the opposite. Common sense is a valuable tool for the researcher when considering alternative analysis
 approaches for any project.
6 - COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY AND IN A WAY THAT THE CLIENT UNDERSTANDS.
 Many good projects are ruined because the information that is reported to the user is in a form that is
 not understandable. Reports must tell the user what information is relevant, and how it is relevant to
 the issues at hand.

HOW TO FORMULATE THE RESEARCH PROBLEM

Problem formulation is simplified once we define the components of the research problem.
1. Specify the Research Objectives
A  clear statement of objectives will help you develop effective research. It   will help the decision makers evaluate your project. It’s critical that you have manageable objectives. (Two or three clear goals will help to keep your research project focused and relevant.)

2. Review the Environment or Context of the Problem
As a marketing researcher, you must work closely with your team. This will help you determine whether the findings of your project will produce enough information to be worth the cost. In order to do this,
you have to identify the environmental variables that will affect the research project. These variables will be discussed in-depth in later chapters.

3. Explore the Nature of the Problem
Research problems range from simple to complex, depending on the number of variables and the nature of their relationship. If you understand the nature of the problem as a researcher, you will be able to
better develop a solution for the problem. To help you understand all dimensions, you might want to
consider focus groups of consumers, sales people, managers, or professionals to provide what is sometimes much needed insight.

4. Define the Variable Relationships
Marketing plans often focus on creating a sequence of behaviors that occur over time, as in the adoption of a new package design, or the introduction of a new product. Such programs create a commitment to
follow some behavioral pattern in the future. Studying such a process involves:
• Determining which variables affect the solution to the problem.
• Determining the degree to which each variable can be controlled.
• Determining the functional relationships between the variables and which variables are
 critical to the solution of the problem.

During the problem formulation stage, you will want to generate and consider as many courses of action and variable relationships as possible.

5. The Consequences of Alternative Courses of Action
There are always consequences to any course of action. Anticipating and communicating the possible
outcomes of various courses of action is a primary responsibility in the research process. Exhibit 1.3
provides an example of a company introducing a new product based on research that did not examine
relevant variables in the consumer purchase decision.

Developing the research questions

To understand faculty and student perception of the College of Arts and Sciences 

To understand faculty and student perception of the C of A&S  in relation to general education  

To gather gen ed requirements from ODAC schools and aspirational schools to compare to our perception findings 

In order to: 

Provide some grounding for a rebranding of A&S and provide some suggestions of for that branding based on the above research.

Stage 1: Clarify purpose of the research

1. Goals
• what the research is trying to accomplish? For example: the research intends to provide
wild mushroom harvesters more information about the condition of the mushroom crop
so as to help them have an informed dialogue with the Forest Service
• what type of problems the research is trying to solve? Are they ecological, economic
and/ or social? Examples are: the sustainable harvest of Non Timber Forest Products
(an ecological problem), forest worker rights (a social problem), and better markets for
small-diameter wood (an economic problem)

2. General Strategy
• what is the plan to attain research goals? Will the research involve: organizing meetings,
workshops, interviews, or data collection? Will the data be ecological, social, cultural, or
economic?

3. Values of the research partners 

• what are the ground rules that will guide the research? For example, ground rules can lay 

out the degree of emphasis on stakeholder involvement, transparency, organizing, 

capacity-building, and training. Also ground rules can clarify who will own the research 

results, and how will they be distributed

Stage 2: Identifying and involving diverse stakeholders in the research

Strategy. Identify all stakeholders affected by the research. Regardless of why parties choose 

to be involved, it is crucial that their participation is treated with respect. 

Tools. Make a list of stakeholders using the following questions. 

• Who is affected by the research? 

• Are there stakeholders who should be involved, but may need support? 

• What support is required and how can it be provided? 

• Are political or institutional “change agents” represented?

Stage 3: Building Trust

Unlike conventional research processes, developing the research question is not the starting 

point of the PR process. Building trust is a necessary stage prior to developing the research 

question. Building community members trust in the research process which is so crucial in 

PR takes a lot of time and patience. 

Strategy: Create space for informal communication and regular interaction amongst 

research partners in order to build trust. 

Tools: 

What is the college student equivalency of these tools? 

• Gatherings in people’s homes 

• Getting together over food such as potluck meals 

• Field visits 

• Informal meetings and meetings in small groups 

• Training sessions 

• E-mail lists and listservs for a greater flow of information 

Stage 4: Building Common Understanding

Questions to design a process that builds common understanding· 

• Is the language (scientific, cultural terms, English) being used understandable to all? 

• Do all stakeholders recognize and respect the different individual and cultural 

approaches to communication? 

• Do some stakeholders require technical or financial support to participate more fully? 

How can it be provided? 

Strategies. Stakeholders should be encouraged to explicitly spell out their goals so that it is 

possible to see where they overlap, and where the differences are. The most common 

strategy is to organize a meeting of stakeholders. The tools described in this section relate to 

organizing and facilitating meetings. They may not be appropriate for working with culturally 

diverse communities, and thus may need to be adapted to suit their needs. 

For example, when working with wild mushroom harvesters from Southeast Asia in Oregon, 

I found that they do not like to participate and speak in formal meetings. However after 

informally interacting with people with other groups, they willingly participate in meetings 

that include people whom they have got to know and trust. I cannot overemphasize how 

much sharing meals with them helped builds trust. 

Once a common understanding has been negotiated, and the stakeholder groups and the 

researchers agree on the goals of the research, this agreement could be formally recorded. A 

way to do this is for all participating groups to sign a memorandum of understanding that 

broadly outlines what the research hopes to accomplish. Though this seems an overly formal 

way to define a collaborative process, however it provides clarity and may help resolve future 

conflicts. An example of a formal agreement is that the NCFC regional centers sign a 

contract with their partner communities that describe the goals of the research. 

Tools. There are several different ways meetings can be organized for building a common 

understanding. For example, invite people with expertise on relevant issues to speak briefly. 

This could be used to initiate discussions. Also, experienced facilitators could facilitate 

meetings. When organizing meetings, we should pay careful attention to location and time so 

 5that it is convenient for stakeholders to participate. We should allow adequate time

Some of the tools that can be used in a meeting format are: 

1. Note card exercise
The purpose of this exercise is finding common ground and 

identifying shared priorities and values. At the beginning of a meeting of stakeholders who 

are trying to seek common understanding, ask people to fill out cards as they enter: “In five 

years, I’d like our community to have/be ___________”. Collect cards; shuffle them; read 

them out or capture on flipchart. Usually people find they have more vision in common than 

they thought.

2. Brainstorming creative solutions 
This exercise is used by groups of people working on a 

project to expose their preliminary ideas about the project for all those involved to see. 

The key ground rules are 

a) every idea is worthwhile 

b) suspend judgment - no critiques, evaluation, censorship; 

c) capture all ideas for later discussion

3. Venn Diagrams (People love visuals.)
This method uses diagrams to identify linkages and overlaps in ideas or 

perceptions. These commonalties are the used to a shared understanding of a issue, problem, 

or situation. The Venn Diagram is made up of two or more overlapping circles (see example 

below from www.graphic.com). They are used to describe and compare elements and 

characteristics of a situation. To create a Venn diagram to identify a shared understanding of an issue in a group setting, you can follow these steps: 

Step 1. Draw three circles which partially overlap and name them A, B and C.

Step 2. Ask group "What are the 3 most important elements of the issue?" Write these three 

elements in each of the three circles.

Step 3: Ask group “What is common between the elements in Circle A and B, or how can 

the differences between the elements in these circles be resolved?” Fill in the overlapping 

area of the two circles with the group’s response. 

Step 4. Repeat Step 3 with Circle B and C, and then with Circle C and A. 

The overlapping areas now document the common characteristics of the issue identified by 

the group and can form the basis of shared understanding.

Stage 5: Identify the Research Question or Questions

Essential questions a strategy should answer:

In case you missed it

Essential questions a strategy should answer: 

1. Where are we now? 

2. Where do we want to be? 

3. To whom are we talking (audiences)? 

4. What do we want them to do and why do we want them to do it? 

5. What are we going to say to them (messages)? 

6. Where are we going to reach them? 

7. When are we going to reach them? 

8. Which techniques (methods) are we going to use? 

9. How much are we going to spend? 

10. What if there are unforeseen problems? 

11. How did we do? 

Types of research (Terms to know)

•PrimaryPersons who are involved in some way with what is being studied

•SecondarySources include books, articles and journals

•FormalQualitative includes historical and legal research-informative but not measurable
Quantitative includes experimental research done in a lab, or survey research done in the field. It produces measurable results.

        Focus groups
Interviews with editors and key opinion leaders
Phone or e-mail survey

          Internet surveys

You need to have an understanding of the pros and cons of each

How do we start thinking about starting?

Where to start?

What is our question?

How do we make A&S a destination?

What is the foundational question to answer that first question?

Write down anything you know from your own experience, or from what you’ve read, seen or heard about what good liberal arts education looks like - even from TV. You do not have to be sure of the information you down, just record what you think about the subject. Also jot down questions that arise from the brainstorm. 

Check out the Google Drive for a great PDF books on conducting research of target markets. 

NEXT 

This a a typical beginning to any PR or Marketing plan. These are always the questions that begin the process.

·       Who is the target audience?

·       What goals do you want to accomplish?

·       What behaviors would you like to change or encourage?

·       What types of media and materials will you use to deliver your message?

       These questions help you to get started. I know that you don't know much but by answering these questions it will start to take you where you need to go. Once you have "puked on the page" then start to think about how to answer these questions that makes for proposal more formal. 

The Executive Summary

       This is the formal document where you start what it is that you will be doing for your client based on the research and discussions. Consider this the template for the campaign because it lays out what you think is the issue, what you plan to do about it and how you will evaluate your success (in the real world the most important thing to "get right").  

The Problem: State here what you believe the problem to be.

Program Goal: State here what your ultimate goal is.

Target Audiences: (1) Your primary audience, (2) your secondary (intervening) audience(s), and (3) your tertiary (special) audience(s).

Audience Objectives: (1) What you expect your primary audience to do, (2) what you expect your intervening audience(s) to do, and (3) what you expect your special

audience(s) to do.

Major Strategy: State your major strategy here, listing the key tactics that you will use in your campaign.

Recommended Budget: State your total anticipated income and sources, your anticipated expenses, and the anticipated net profit or loss.

Evaluation Plans: State how you expect to evaluate (and expect to know) whether or

not you've achieved each of your campaign and audience objectives.

Group Work; You're gonna love it!

What is the best way to work in a group?

Secrets to being more creative (When being artistic)

More secrets to creativity (at work)

Why Aren't Groups Creative?

The primary roadblocks in group creativity are: pressure to conform to group norms, inability or unwillingness to collaborate, a defensive communication climate, differences in group members' communication styles, and cultural norms.

1. Conforming to group norms. Without some conformity to group norms, groups would not be able to function. However, a preoccupation with group member conformity stifles creativity and encourages groupthink. When group members are overly concerned with following rules, innovation becomes difficult to achieve. Also, when group members prize unanimity instead of encouraging members to present differing perspectives, new ideas are unlikely to emerge.
   
2. Lack of collaboration. Competition among group members seldom leads to creative ideas because group members are more likely to keep information to themselves rather than share it. Competition also encourages group members to focus on themselves and their own agendas rather than the goals of the group. Often, group members lack the skills necessary to foster collaboration. By focusing on cooperation, group members are more likely to bring their ideas together and create something innovative (see also the section on teamwork in the Pragmatics module).
   
3. Defensive communication climate. When the characteristics of group communication include evaluation, control, strategizing (hidden agendas), certainty, and superiority, group members are interacting defensively. Such defensive communication leaves little room for new ideas. For example, if group member A says, "Let's try combining ideas B and C," and group member D says, "That will never work," a potentially useful idea will be lost. In addition, such critical evaluation will reduce the likelihood that group members will offer their ideas.
   
4. Differences in group members' communication styles. Some group members are more outspoken, extroverted, and vocal in their opinions, while other group members are more reserved, introverted, and hesitant to state their views. The more vocal group members often dominate group meetings, so only those members' ideas are heard. More reticent group members' may have important information to add to the discussion, but can be intimidated by aggressive group members.
   
5. Cultural norms. Creativity and innovation arise when people see the world in unique ways. Cultural norms, values, and beliefs are so engrained that we find it difficult to do that. People who can see things from unique angles are typically viewed as non-conformists. Thus, innovators' ideas are often discredited. To facilitate creativity, we have to balance respect for cultural norms with appreciation for innovation and freedom of expression.

How Can Group Members Encourage Creativity?

Groups become more creative when they develop norms that support creativity and innovative thinking. These are some norms groups can develop that promote creativity:

1. Embrace diversity. Group members should seek diverse perspectives and welcome the opportunity to listen to different views and approaches to problems. (see also the module on culture and small group communication)
   
2. Facilitate a supportive communication climate. Description, problem orientation, spontaneity, empathy, equality, and provisionalism are the hallmarks of a supportive communication climate.
   
3. Reward inventive and innovative creativity. Encourage group members who offer unique ideas and alternative viewpoints. Be cautious, however, of "stars" and "stage hogs" who promote themselves rather than address the group's goals.
   
4. Foster collaboration. In times of conflict, group members find it easier to avoid, accommodate, or compromise when their goals seem to be at odds. Groups that are committed to collaboration must be dedicated to discovering conflict solutions that everyone can agree on. Collaboration can be time consuming and frustrating, but generally results in innovative solutions to complex problems. (see the Teamwork section in the Pragmatics module)
   
5. Practice active listening. We can process what others say much faster then they can speak. Typically, we use that "in-between" time to think about what we want to say. In active listening, we use that time to ponder, interpret, and contemplate what others have said, before formulating our response.

A Systematic Approach to Creativity

Successful groups incorporate both innovation and routine in their interactions. Too much creativity can lead to chaos. Constant change leads to lack of direction, confusion, frustration, and reduced productivity. Too much stability leads to inflexibility, an inability to adapt, and a tendency to follow rules without questioning them.

Approaching creativity in a systematic way encourages group members to identify the purpose of their creative endeavors and provides discussion time dedicated to creativity. Thus, groups can integrate a format such as Standard Agenda with the creativity strategy outlined below.

A Creativity System

1. Determine the purpose of the innovation. The group needs to answer the questions: What do we want to change? Why does it need to change?
   
2. Describe the features of the object or process that the group wishes to change. That is, list the object's materials and design or list the parts and steps necessary to complete the process.
   
3. Describe the functions of the object or process. Answer the question: What does this object/process do?
   
4. Brainstorm for alternative functions. What do we want this object/process to do?
   
5. Identify features necessary to fulfill alternative functions.

Let's look at two examples: one object and one process.

Object: Hammer

1. Purpose: What features and functions would improve the common hammer and make it more useful?
   
2. Features: wood handle, metal head and claw
   
3. Functions: to pound nails and other objects (e.g., drive a wedge between a door and door jam), to remove nails and pry objects open
   
4. Alternative functions: measure force of hitting an object with the hammer; calculate number of times needed to hit a nail with the hammer; cushion hand holding hammer; entertain (built in radio?); provide carpentry tips (mini-cassette tape? Built-in computer chip?); give performance feedback messages (e.g., "good job!" "Opps, big mistake!"); play inspirational music
   
5. Features needed: device to measure striking force; plastic/rubber for cushioned hammer grip; metal strike surface; tiny radio; computer chip with 3 different programs for carpentry tips, feedback, and music

How realistic are these alternative functions and features? You may think, "Not very," but who would have thought 15 years ago that computers would be so central to our everyday lives.

Process: Student advising

1. Purpose: What features and functions would improve the advising system at West Coast U?
   
2. Features: advisors (3 advisors for each student: General Education, minor, major), faculty handbook, student handbook, course catalog, course schedule, paper forms, meeting areas (offices), time (meetings, waiting for meetings)
   
3. Functions: to advise students of the coursework they need to complete in order to graduate
   
4. Alternative functions: provide advisors with feedback on advising procedures; gather student ideas about course options; develop student-generated courses; have one stop for all advising; gather data on student interests; generate positive association with the university (for long-term goal of increased alumni support); keep students updated on requirements completed and requirements yet-to-be completed
   
5. Features needed: holographic advisors/students (such as the Doctor on Voyager); cyberspace meeting rooms; electronic forms for advising and gathering student information and input; electronic advising card (scan for all advising information); one advisor for all advising; interactive Frequently Asked Questions on advising website; electronic database that students can access to assess requirements completed and requirements yet-to-be completed; prizes and games that reward students for regular and timely advising sessions; prizes and games that reward advisors for accurate and timely information

These are brief examples of a systematic method used to facilitate creativity in small groups. Integrating this with a procedure such as Standard Agenda provides a way to balance innovation with stability.

What do you know about marketing and public relations

So what is PR anyway?

“Public relations is a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics.” 

Who is the public here and how does Nick persuade?

Listen to Uncle Nick, he will teach you to be a critical thinker.

As a management function, public relations also encompasses the following:

• Anticipating, analyzing and interpreting public opinion, attitudes and issues that might impact, for good or ill, the operations and plans of the organization.
• Counseling management at all levels in the organization with regard to policy decisions, courses of action and communication, taking into account their public ramifications and the organization’s social or citizenship responsibilities.
• Researching, conducting and evaluating, on a continuing basis, programs of action and communication to achieve the informed public understanding necessary to the success of an organization’s aims. These may include marketing; financial; fund raising; employee, community or government relations; and other programs.
• Planning and implementing the organization’s efforts to influence or change public policy. Setting objectives, planning, budgeting, recruiting and training staff, developing facilities — in short, managing the resources needed to perform all of the above.

                  - From the PRSA website

Definitions you need to know to talk the talk in PR. 

Words you will never use in this class.

So what is our question again?

Before we start watch this . . .