Qualitative attributes of the snack food about which the company might want to ask consumers
These are attributes given to a product based on an individual customer’s perception. The qualitative attribute of the snacks can range from freshness, taste, feeling, or appearance. These attributes have no order or rank and everyone will have his or her judgment. Company W can ask the customers through a comparison of the new snack and the old through such questions as does snack sample A, for the new formula taste like B, the older sample formula (Ludicke, 2006).
How nominal and ordinal data relate to a rating scale
In nominal data, there is no data ranking rather the data are identified based on their nominal features (names). Formulas A and B can be compared based on felt or observable features under nominal data (Creswell & John, 2009). On the other hand, snacks can be ordinals rated. The two snacks can be put side by side and their nominal futures put on a scale of 1-5 for consumers to rate. The rating scale can take the format of
- Strongly disagree,
- disagree,
- neutral,
- agree,
- strongly agree.
Quantitative attributes of the snack food that the scientists might want to measure
Quantitative attributes are measurable aspects of a product that are not biased. They are presented with numerical values, which can be discrete or continuous (Bearden, Netemeyer, & Haws, 2011). Measurement values can be in terms of mass, weight, or size (Michael, & Earl, 2011). Most customers are normally interested in comparing quantitative attributes of snacks suck as their mass and sizes (Luther, 2011).
The difference between interval and ratio data
These data measure quantities of data and are quantitative data type. Interval measured the difference between the two values. It is the extent to which one value is lower or higher than the other. They are derived from central values between two variables. A ratio is similar to the interval but has included the zero number to show the origin of the data. Hence, ratios are measured in absolute scale with the figures compounded to one another (Hakan, 2004).
The difference between a population and a sample
Data are collected in the universe. The sample group that gives the information in the universe is called the population. A sample is a selected section of the population. Since the universe where the data are to be collected can be very big, researchers can be forced to reduce their study population to a manageable level. This can be achieved through several research methods (Don, 2005). The population selected for the study is the sample. In the snack market, the population under study can be selected based on gender, class, geographical area, or age.
Why it is important to avoid bias when conducting research
Ethically researches should not be conducted under personal bias. Apart from ethical considerations, biased research always gives wrong information that misleads the user (Michael, & Earl, 2011). In essence, the bias in research causes a wasted of resources used in the research. Both qualitative and quantitative types of research can be used to collect data for decision making. However, in many cases, the qualitative data method precedes the quantitative data process
References
Bearden, W., Netemeyer, R., & Haws, K. (2011). Handbook of marketing scales: Multi-item measures for marketing and consumer behavior research. Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE.
Creswell, J., & John, W. (2009). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approach. Los Angeles: Sage.
Don, S. (2005). “In the Mix: A Customer-Focused Approach Can Bring the Current Marketing Mix into the 21st Century”. Marketing Management. London: Routledge.
Hakan, H. (2004). Rethinking Marketing: Developing a New Understanding of Markets. Southern Gates: John Wylliea’s.
Ludicke, M. (2006). A theory of Marketing. Outline of Social Systems Perspective. Frankfurt: Regine, Zimmer.
Luther, W. (2011). The Marketing Plan: How to Prepare and Implement. New York: Broadway.
Michael, G., & Earl R. (2011). Basics of Research Methods for Criminal Justice and Criminology. Belmont: Cengage Learning.