2. Quantitative and Qualitative Techniques
By the end of this unit, you will be able to:
• Explain the purpose of qualitative research
• Describe the different approaches to qualitative research
• Show the benefits of different approaches to qualitative research
• Show the limitations of different approaches to qualitative research
• Explain the purpose of quantitative research
• Describe the different approaches to quantitative research
• Show the benefits of different approaches to quantitative research
• Show the limitations of different approaches to quantitative research
3. Qualitative Research
‘Qualitative research’ involves using techniques that attempt to gain an
understanding of the existence of attitudes and opinions. It then goes on to
assess the breadth and depth of those attitudes.
Qualitative research studies do not measure the ‘amount’ of emotion or
opinion, but they may give an indication of the dominant feelings. Rather
than measurement tools associated with quantitative methods, the use of
discussion, observation, and projective methods are used to elicit responses
(Bradley, 2013: 236).
4. Tools of Qualitative research
Depth interviews- these are extended interviews that require discussion
guides. The discussion guide is a relatively unstructured list of topics which
act as an aid to the memoir. The moderator plays an important part in
determining the success of the qualitative research. During the interview the
moderator takes some notes but more likely the interview will be recorded.
The emphasis here is on quality as opposed to quantity.
Focus groups- the respondents are carefully selected by the moderator usually
5-10 people who take part in the discussion. The respondents are carefully
selected because they represent a target audience- which is the focus.
5. Tools of Qualitative research
The discussion takes place at a special venue with viewing and recording
facilities. The group members can interact to have a shared experience to
allow information which would not have been shared. Findings from the focus
group can therefore provide a clear response that there might be no need to
proceed with a quantitative anymore.
Ethnography- there has been a decrease from market researchers in
ethnography. Ethnography is the study of humans in a specific environment.
According to Hague et al, (2016:47) “The ethnographer seeks to understand
the behaviour of a specific group by living close to it so as to observe and
listen.” (Bradley, 2013: 238-239).
6. Important Principles of Desk Research
The use of desk research though less costly and less time consuming is also
challenging in that required information may involve a lot of attention on
where to get the right information in the necessary format. For example,
information available on Google may not be sufficient for the required
research or may require the use of certain terms in search. Therefore, several
sources of secondary data may be considered in order to broaden the amount
of data collected. A lot of scrutiny is required when collecting secondary data
from some data sources may not be reliable (Hague et al, 2016).
Besides the advantages of secondary data mentioned above, the source has
its own disadvantages which include the possibility that (Koziol & Arthur,
2011): the original research design and data may not talk to the research
question at hand, the available data may be deficient in the required depth
and some investigations may not require secondary data.
7. Sources of Information
Desk research assists market researchers to acquire information next to
nothing, as the data is right under our noses. Information that is already in
the public domain is considered more reliable because it has been tried,
tested and challenged, although it may not necessarily be correct, hence the
need for scrutiny by the market researcher (Hague & Wilcock: 2017).
Online Sources
There are several online databases that can be accessed by market
researchers. Some of these databases are freely available but the important
issue here is to know the keywords to use when looking for information. For
academic purposes, students are encouraged to make use of published
journals because they are regarded academically sound. LCIBS is subscribed to
a database called EBSCO HOST. Students can approach librarians and get
assistance on how to access it.
8. Sources of Information
The Internet
Hague and Wilcock (2017) noted that the arrival of the World Wide Web transformed
the manner in which researchers look for information. Data, whether archived or
recent can now be retrieved with a click of a button. The two important information
sources on the internet according to Hague and Wilcock (2017) are: websites for
organisations and individuals who advertise their product offering and communication
platforms found online such as social media, chat forums and blogs.
Company Data
Collecting intelligence on competitors is now easily gathered from a company’s
website. Vast amounts of information such as service and product information, the
history of the company, latest news and in some cases financial reports (Hague &
Wilcock: 2017).
Government Statistics
In Botswana, information required for desk research can be obtained from Statistics
Botswana. Another useful government institution is the Department of Trade and
Industry.
9. Quantitative Techniques
Quantitative methods involve bigger sample sizes exceeding 100 respondents
and deals with measurements (Hague et al, 2016). Quantitative research
deals with the quantification of data during the collection and analysis
process. It is aligned with the deductive and objectivist research strategy
(Bryman and Bell, 2011).
Quantitative research use pilot studies, questionnaires and surveys to collect
data. This Study Unit is going to discuss online surveys as a quantitative
research method.
10. Sending out e-Surveys
The introduction of e-surveys facilitated the collection of market research data
easily and cheaply, allowing many business people to use the “do-it-yourself” (DIY)
method when it comes to conducting research (Hague et al, 2016).
According to Delavar (2006), a survey is "a research process to gather information
on what people know, think, or do".
Chambliss & Schutt (2009) defined e-survey as the process of sending and receiving
survey information through a computer.
Kalantari, Kalantari, and Maleki, (2010) stated that there are two types of e-
surveys,
(1) e-surveys done on a personal computer or using a computer programme and
(2) e-surveys carried out on the web and an example of this is Survey Monkey.
Survey Monkey is a useful platform for the compilation of questionnaires and also
provide multi –means distributing the questionnaire, through links or emails.
Survey Monkey allows the designing of different types of questionnaires, which
includes Likert Scales, multiple choice types and vertical or horizontal closed
questions.
11. Advantages of e-surveys
• Expensive samples can be easily accessible
• Facilitates enlargement of sample size
• Increases survey speed and accuracy
• Data processing becomes cheap and easy
• The use of computers in data gathering minimises human error
12. Disadvantages of e-surveys
• Respondents may not have time to complete the survey
• There could be software and hardware challenges
• Users may lack computer skills
• Information security concerns.
Mesch (2012) stated that online surveys give advantages such as the ability to
reach distant, previously inaccessible respondents, automating the collection
of data and the reduction of effort and time associated with data collection.
The disadvantages arise on matters of data validity and the design of the
online surveys.
13. Online Panels
The emergence of online panels created an industry of online panel
companies that charge research companies for the collection of data or
completion of questionnaires by their panels.
Panel companies are capable of getting questionnaires completed because
they negotiate with their respondents the sort of inducement they require to
complete the questionnaire.
The continuous growth in e-surveys where businesses could at any one point
in time, send a series of surveys to consumers through DIY became a huge
bore that resulted in big drops in the response rate. This challenge resulted in
research companies becoming more creative through the creation of online
panels.
The online panel is a team of selected respondents that are rewarded so that
they can respond to a series of surveys. These respondents are carefully
selected based on geographical, demographic, age, gender, habits, lifestyle
and the level of education (Hague et al, 2016).
14. Advantages of Online Panels
• Provided reliable results in political polls
• The surveys are not expensive to conduct
• Facilitates easy international surveys
• Provided consistent results with telephonic surveys
• Are increasingly becoming a popular mode of getting quick data
15. Disadvantages of Online Panels
• Rewarding the respondents might mean the complete questionnaires out
of duty and not out of personal experiences
• Members used for online panels are only those who are computer
literate
• There are concerns about the validity of results
Online panels can produce high-quality results given that market researchers
can design questionnaires in such a way that they can cross-check the
provided answers. This can help to pick responses where answers were just
made up.
Online surveys using Survey Monkey, for example, can indicate the amount of
time that the researcher spends on a survey, allowing removal of those
completed in suspiciously short time frames, thus removing invalid responses
(Hague et al, 2016).
16. Arranging Online Surveys
When carrying out an online survey, it is important to take serious
consideration of the suitability of the method in collecting the required data.
Insight Survey (2016) recommends that before carrying out online surveys, it
is important to ensure that
(1) there is a list of accurate emails,
(2) the target audience has access to internet and
laptop/computer/smartphone/tablet and
(3) the survey should be not last for more than 15 minutes.
Hague et al, (2016) also share the same views by stating that online surveys
are ideal where a larger number of respondents are involved, especially
where the general public is the target audience with access to a computer.
17. Arranging online surveys
To ensure that the online survey responses are high it is key to: have an
introductory memo from management, send individualised invitations to
participate in the survey, send reminders that are individualised and check the
validity of responses (Insight Survey, 2016).
The preparation of online surveys requires the designing of a questionnaire (this is
discussed in detail in Research Methodology) in Microsoft Word format that is then
converted to HTML.
Questionnaires that require responses from different languages should be able to
direct respondents to their respective language. It is important to check and re-
check the correctness of questions in the questionnaire. The complete
questionnaire is then tested in a pilot study to ensure that the responses collected
are valid. A pilot study is when the surveys are administered to a small group of
respondents for purposes of testing the correctness of the data collection
instrument (questionnaire) (Saunders et al 2009).
18. Online Focus Groups
Online focus groups involve inviting and recruiting participants to join an
online chat room to discuss a certain research problem where the researcher
act as the content moderator.
NB: focus groups fall under qualitative research.
According to Hague et al, (2016), online focus groups have the following
advantages:
• Eliminates the distance barrier: B2B and B2C markets that are
geographically sparse can be easily co-opted for a virtual focus group to
discuss a market research problem.
• Low cost of administration: Online focus groups do not require a venue
that may come with booking costs, costs for food and transportation.
19. Advantages of online focus groups
•Flexibility in participating: Respondents can log into the chat room at any time of
the day during the discussion period, which can be spread over two days.
•Reflection time: When participants write their contributions and wait for
responses, they have time to reflect and come up with new insights on the subject
for the benefit of the research.
•Respondents do not know each other: A different genre of customers and non-
customers or B2B and B2C customers can be part of one online focus group but the
responses can be sorted per each category later.
•A high number of participants: A higher number of participants for focus groups
can be recruited.
However, online focus groups also have challenges where products requiring the
audience to smell, touch, feel may require courier services to participants prior to
the discussion.
20. Websites and Google
Researchers can make use of Google Analytics to study the number of visits on
a company website and the average time that the visitors spend on the site.
Pop-up questionnaires can be administered through those websites that have
high volumes of traffic, although Hague et al (2016) argued that the response
rate for this type of a survey is as low as two per-cent. This method is limited
in the sense that the market researchers cannot determine the profile of
website visitors, which may be important in certain market research needs.
DIY market researchers are enabled by Google tools to conduct market
research at extremely low cost. The research questionnaire, however, should
have at most 10 questions in order to get optimum results.
21. Mobile Surveys
Mobile Surveys are those surveys that are designed for respondents who use
mobile devices. These are achieved through online or panel surveys or a short
messaging system SMS format (Hague at el, 2016).
“The use of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets for survey
completion is growing rapidly, raising concerns regarding data quality in
general, nonresponse and measurement error in particular” (Struminskaya,
Weyandt & Bosnjak, 2015).
The increase in mobile phone penetration has broken boundaries where
customers that were previously unreachable and excluded from
communication channels can be easily contacted. Web surveys and Online
Panels that were initially intended for respondents using a computer are now
responded to via smartphones and tablets (Peterson, 2012).
Refer to pages 234 to 293 in your prescribed textbook for a comprehensive
explanation of quantitative and qualitative techniques.
22. Mobile surveys limitations
Limitations of Mobile Surveys Limitation Source
The need for web page format should fit on
phone screen
Hague at el (2016)
Legal restrictions on access to cell phone
numbers
Hague at el, (2016)
Low survey completion rates Mavletova (2013) and Hague at el (2016)
Provide shorter answers compared to
computer respondents
Peterson (2012)
Omit open-ended questions compared to
computer respondents
Struminskaya, Weyandt and Bosnjak (2015)
Provide some answers inaccurately unlike
computer respondents
Antoun (2015)
Longer completion time due to connectivity
issues and multi-tasking
Struminskaya, Weyandt and Bosnjak (2015)
23. Case study
Lerato has a successful bakery in Soweto that has enjoyed growth over a
period of five years. The bakery is now generating an annual turnover of ten
million Rands, employing a team of twenty hard-working employees. Lerato
managed to invest her excess cash in the money market over the years and
she now feels that she has enough capital to consider opening two more
branches in the Gauteng Province. The biggest challenge that she is facing is
to establish the most suitable location for these new branches. She ruled out
the possibility of carrying out primary research because of exorbitant fees
that market research companies charge. Desk research could be the only way
forward for Lerato.
24. Revision/Case Study questions
1) How is desk research defined? (3)
2) Making reference to the case study in paragraph 5.9 below, provide any five
sources of information that Lerato can collect secondary data from. (5)
3) Evaluate the reliability of data collected from the sources above. (5)
4) Advise Lerato on the most suitable data that she must collect. (5)
5) Provide a detailed discussion of the limitations of desk research. (10)
6) In a graphical format, demonstrate the steps necessary in preparing for an
online survey. (8)
7) Compare and contrast online panel surveys and mobile surveys. (10)
8) Suggest any three ways that can be used to improve the response rate and
accuracy of online surveys. (6)
9) Write a detailed report on how you can carry out an online focus group for a
South African market research company (10)
10) What are the limitations of an online focus group? (5)
