If you search for market(ing) research books on Google or Amazon, you will find that there is no shortage of such books. However, this book differs in many
important ways:
- This book is a bridge between the theory of conducting quantitative research and its execution, using the market research process as a framework. We discuss market research, starting off by
identifying the research question, designing the data collection process, collecting, and describing data. We also introduce essential data analysis techniques and the basics of communicating the
results, including a discussion on ethics. Each chapter on quantitative methods describes key theoretical choices and how these are executed in Stata. Unlike most other books, we do not discuss
theory or application, but link the two.
- This is a book for non-technical readers! All chapters are written in an accessible and comprehensive way so that readers without a profound background in statistics can also understand the
introduced data analysis methods. Each chapter on research methods includes examples to help the reader gain a hands-on feeling for the technique. Each chapter concludes with an illustrated case
that demonstrates the application of a quantitative method.
- To facilitate learning, we use a single case study throughout the book. This case deals with a customer survey of a fictitious company called Oddjob Airways (familiar to those who have seen
the James Bond movie Goldfinger). We also provide additional end-of-chapter cases, including different datasets, thus allowing the readers to practice what they have learnt. Other pedagogical
features, such as keywords, examples, and end-of-chapter questions, support the contents.
- While Stata has become a very popular statistics package in the social sciences and beyond, there are almost no books that show how to use the program without diving into the depths of syntax
language.
- This book is concise, focusing on the most important aspects that a market researcher, or manager interpreting market research, should know.
- Many chapters provide links to further readings and other websites. Mobile tags in the text allow readers to quickly browse related web content using a mobile device. This unique merger of
offline and online content offers readers a broad spectrum of additional and readily accessible information. A comprehensive Web Appendix with information on further analysis techniques and
datasets is included.