Business Studies

Why is defining the problem the most important step in the marketing research process? Discuss how the research objective flows from the definition of the problem.

ANSWER

Defining the Problem in Market Research Process

The marketing research process entails the set of processes that connect the customers to the marketer through information utilized in identifying and describing the marketing challenges and opportunities and weigh and refine marketing activities and performance (Hair, Celsi, Ortinau and Bush, 2010). A marketing research process is an essential tool for organizations to successfully identify marketing approaches and examine business decisions using data. An essential part of the marketing research process is the definition of the problem. To conduct any research or collect data, defining the problem is required to determine what information is required and how it can be obtained.

Ideally, when a problem has been accurately and clearly identified, the research can be properly conducted. For instance, in market research for a certain product that is not selling well, the researchers will focus on why a certain product is not growing well in sales. If a problem is not well defined, all the steps before the research begin to fail to accurately and clearly set the course of the entire project. Considerably, defining the problem allows the research to be whittled down to the information required to solve a problem and determine what action needs to be taken regarding the potential causes of the problem.

The research objectives are used to define what the research is expected to achieve. The research objective flows from the definition of the problem since the researcher has described what is expected of a given problem. Therefore, the research objectives are exclusively designed to offer solutions to a well-defined problem. The research problem identifies the specific components and the general marketing research project. A clearly defined research problem shows the information needs. It establishes the focus of the study, which directs the objectives of the research to effectively offer solutions to the research problem.

References

Hair, J. F., Celsi, M., Ortinau, D. J., & Bush, R. P. (2010). Essentials of marketing research (Vol. 2). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.