An ideal resource for those who want to conduct market research but have little experience in doing so,
The Market Research Toolbox describes how to think of market research in the context of making a business decision. The book begins by defining market research and discussing some of the various types and techniques. It then examines what objectives can be met by doing market research and the expected payoffs. Six traditional market research techniques are covered - secondary research, customer visits, focus groups, surveys, choice modelling and experimentation. The author describes how each technique works along with its costs and uses, tips for success, when and how to use certain techniques and precautions to take while using them. Next, McQuarrie discusses nontraditional types of market research that have evolved in recent years to meet the needs of business-to-business marketers and technology firms. The volume concludes with a chapter on five common business applications that can be addressed by combining several individual research techniques into a research strategy.
New to the Second Edition:
- Chapters 1 and 2 have been extensively revised and updated based on feedback from students.
- Chapter 3 on secondary research includes a new section on Internet research.
- Chapter 6 will be split into two chapters, one to focus on survey research procedures and the other to focus on questionnaire design.
- Chapter 7 will be revised to focus almost exclusively on conjoint analysis, a key tool.
- Chapter 9 will be deleted, and relevant material will be moved to other chapters.
- Chapter 10 will be expanded to include new topics such as forecasting
- An Instructors Resource on CD-ROM will be made available to lecturers adopting the book for course use. It contains PowerPoint slides, case questions, teaching notes for suggested cases that can be linked to the book, and a sample syllabus.
Edward F. McQuarrie is a professor in the Department of Marketing, Leavey School of Business, Santa Clara University, in California’s Silicon Valley. He received his Ph.D. in Social Psychology from the University of Cincinnati in 1985 and a B.A. in Psychology and Literature from The Evergreen State College in 1976. His research interests include market research appropriate to technology products, on the one hand, and advertising strategies that call on rhetoric, narrative, and semiotic resources on the other. He has also written the book Customer Visits: Building a Better Market Focus, co-edited the volume Go Figure! New Directions in Advertising Rhetoric, and published articles in the Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Advertising, Marketing Theory, Journal of Consumer Psychology, Journal of the Market Research Society, Journal of Advertising Research, and the Journal of Product Innovation Management, among others. For a current list of publications, you can access his profile on scholar.google.com or researchgate.net.
He was Associate Dean for Assessment at the Leavey School of Business, 2001-2010, responsible for the assessment of learning outcomes and the evaluation of teaching. He was Associate Dean for Graduate Studies, 1996–2000, responsible for the MBA and Executive MBA programs. Professor McQuarrie began moderating focus groups in 1980 for Burke Marketing Research. He has consulted for a variety of technology firms and has taught seminars on effective customer visits, managing focus group research, marketing research methods, and similar topics for the Management Roundtable, Hewlett-Packard, Sun Microsystems, Microsoft, Apple Computer, Tektronix, Varian Associates, Cadence Design, and other clients, in England, Germany, and New Zealand as well as the United States.
