Marketing research question
The major marketing research question is “Can an AVR based promotional game in Gucci catalog magazines increase catalog readership?”. This major research question would be assessed through other minor research questions such as “What are consumer’s attitudes towards promotional games in catalogs?”. “Have consumers experienced catalog promotional games before”, “What qualities would make a promotional game interesting?” and “Can promotional games lead to increased customer purchases?”
Criteria for selecting survey methods
Sampling issues need to be top in the list in terms of determining whether the questions can be answered or not. This is normally determined by the nature of information required from the respondents and the kind of access the researcher has to them. This research should target fashion retailers who use AVR technology. In order to ensure that the participants have those qualities then the organization should consider doing stratified sampling.
This refers to a method of sampling which focuses on a set of the population that possesses certain qualities. It then selects participants randomly from that sample in order to have a suitable number of representatives taking part. These concerns of having the right individuals should definitely play a major role in ensuring that things go according to plan.
Bias issues also need to be considered when selecting the survey method. Some consumers would want to appear socially desirable so chances are that they may make the concept of promotional games in magazines look good when it really is not. Also, since the questions will require physical viewing of the catalogs then the participant may actually need to interact with the researcher and this may increase biases.
Lastly, one must consider the content of the questions asked. In this case, the research is trying to find out something about a relatively new addition in the market. Some respondents may not know about promotional games in catalogs so related questions would not be appropriate to them.
Survey method to be used
The most appropriate survey method would be personal interviews through the use questionnaires. This method was identified because the nature of the questions is such that it requires one on one interaction with the participant – consumers need to look at certain catalogs and ensure that they rate them. Additionally, the method is likely to yield higher response rates and also allows the concerned interviewer to assess whether the right respondents was actually filling in the answers.
They will ask for clarification directly in case they do not understand the questions. On the other hand, this method requires prior preparation through calls in order to set up appointments and may take up a lot of logistics for all 217 participants. It also does not leave room for additional findings from customers who have more helpful material to Gucci.
Sample
Margin of error=Standard deviation/√(number of respondents)×1.96.
0.95=2/√(number) ×1.96.
√number=2×1.96/0.95=4.12.
Measuring scale in : Thurstone scaling.
Likert scaling.
Rasch model.