Market Research
Domain 5: Market Research. Tests the difference between primary and secondary data, the main research methods and sampling, questionnaire design, and how findings become demand estimates.
Core distinctions
- Primary data: collected first-hand for this decision (surveys, interviews, observation, focus groups, experiments). Secondary data: already published (NamRA, Namibia Statistics Agency, local authority reports, trade publications, competitor websites).
- Quantitative answers 'how many or how much'; qualitative answers 'why and how'.
- Population is everyone in the target group; the sample is the subset studied. A random sample gives everyone an equal chance; convenience sampling (friends, classmates) is cheap but biased.
Questionnaire design
Use short, neutral, unambiguous questions; closed questions for counting, open questions for insight; avoid leading questions such as 'You agree our prices are fair, don't you?'; place sensitive questions last; pilot on five to ten people and fix what confuses them.
Worked example
Estimating demand for a school tuck-shop. There are 800 learners; 80 are surveyed randomly; 40% say they would buy once a day at N$5. Reasoning: 800 x 0.40 = 320 buyers; 320 x N$5 = N$1 600 potential daily turnover. Adjust for politeness bias, say 25% overstatement, giving N$1 200, then compare against stock and labour costs before deciding. State the assumption clearly, because marks are given for showing the calculation steps, not for the final number.
Traps
- Surveying only classmates and calling the result representative.
- Saying 'the internet' as a secondary source without naming it.
- Ignoring competitor prices and existing substitutes.
- Presenting findings with no recommendation or link back to the marketing mix.