Marketing Research - Introduction

Research - some just hate this term and some make a living out of it. Research is an indispensably part of any study which involves products or services, be it pure sciences, medicine, or marketing. It encompasses the entire scope of identifying issues, looking out for solutions, analyzing the given set of solutions, testing people perception and association with the solution(s) and then publishing it.


In the series of posts that follow an attempt will be made to understand the various concepts and parts associated with market / marketing research and also address the ethical issues involved in this field.

Now let us define marketing research:
Marketing research is a process or series of steps (usually a complicated process) which involves gathering the data from the market under consideration, analyzing this collected data (from multiple sources and with using multiple means) and interpreting this analysis to gain an understanding of the current / potential users of a product or service. Along with this we can also understanding the customer profile, the entire scope of the industry and your competition by doing marketing research.

Ethics by definition go like this:

1. Moral principles that govern a person's or group's behavior.
2. The rules of conduct recognized in respect to a particular class of human actions or a particular group, culture etc.

Ethics in marketing research can range from narrowly defined issues to broader issues which may be social and philosophical. A sincere attempt should be made to maintain a fine balance between what is ideal and what is practical - so as to safeguard the interest of the stakeholders.