The Research Design Applied by Donatos for New Product Development Chapter 8 of the textbook gives a thorough discussion of the various descriptors of research design. This chapter provides the framework and various procedures for research activity that can be applied by different businesses based on the objective of the research. Donatos, for example, applies various strategies as their research design for the development of new products. The company, for instance, can be said to take exploratory steps such as the monthly Wassup meetings, observations made from the data collected from various sources on the changes in eating trends that are being recorded in the rapidly evolving industry. Ultimately, the comments received by email from the customers who are kind enough to give their feedback (Schindler, 2004). A fitting reference to the design adopted by Donatos in the development of a new product is the introduction of the low-carb craze that was aimed at tapping into the population that is moving towards an age that is health conscious. Majority of consumers are steadily becoming skeptics of fast food and the rising obesity levels observed in the modern culture (Schindler, 2004). The development process began with the development of a prototype that was immediately followed by the development of concepts that were aimed at conducting successful taste testing and screening within the employee and other personnel crowd. Based on the success or failure of this step the company had to resolve on whether to proceed with the concept. In this case the concept that had been recognized by the company was the dough free pizza (Schindler, 2004). Based on the success of the taste testing and screening of this concept, the company had to proceed to the naming process of the new product. Now that the new pizza name has been developed and the entire management has settled on the name, No-dough, they proceed to the tests that are conducted within the parent restaurant (Schindler, 2004). The reception of the new pizza would hence determine whether the company would resolve to further the tests in two additional restaurants within the chain. The in-restaurant tests would also include surveys where a selected group of participants would be asked to complete an intercept survey that would be self-administered to ascertain their level of satisfaction. The restaurant also enjoys another group of consumers that are represented in the company strategy as delivery customers. This group of customers would also participate in the surveys through a categorical callback phone survey that would involve a random selection of customers (Schindler, 2004). An Evaluation of the Wassup Meetings as an Exploratory Methodology That Helps In Defining the Research Question It is essential to note that an exploratory methodology plays a key role in the research process since it provides a productive strategy that assists in expanding knowledge about the problems and the workable ...

1. The Research Design Applied by Donatos for New Product
Development
Chapter 8 of the textbook gives a thorough discussion of the
various descriptors of research design. This chapter provides the
framework and various procedures for research activity that can
be applied by different businesses based on the objective of the
research. Donatos, for example, applies various strategies as
their research design for the development of new products. The
company, for instance, can be said to take exploratory steps
such as the monthly Wassup meetings, observations made from
the data collected from various sources on the changes in eating
trends that are being recorded in the rapidly evolving industry.
Ultimately, the comments received by email from the customers
who are kind enough to give their feedback (Schindler, 2004).
A fitting reference to the design adopted by Donatos in the
development of a new product is the introduction of the low-
carb craze that was aimed at tapping into the population that is
moving towards an age that is health conscious. Majority of
consumers are steadily becoming skeptics of fast food and the
rising obesity levels observed in the modern culture (Schindler,
2004). The development process began with the development of
a prototype that was immediately followed by the development
of concepts that were aimed at conducting successful taste
testing and screening within the employee and other personnel
crowd. Based on the success or failure of this step the company
had to resolve on whether to proceed with the concept. In this
case the concept that had been recognized by the company was
the dough free pizza (Schindler, 2004). Based on the success of
the taste testing and screening of this concept, the company had
to proceed to the naming process of the new product. Now that
the new pizza name has been developed and the entire
management has settled on the name, No-dough, they proceed to
the tests that are conducted within the parent restaurant
(Schindler, 2004). The reception of the new pizza would hence

2. determine whether the company would resolve to further the
tests in two additional restaurants within the chain. The in-
restaurant tests would also include surveys where a selected
group of participants would be asked to complete an intercept
survey that would be self-administered to ascertain their level
of satisfaction. The restaurant also enjoys another group of
consumers that are represented in the company strategy as
delivery customers. This group of customers would also
participate in the surveys through a categorical callback phone
survey that would involve a random selection of customers
(Schindler, 2004).
An Evaluation of the Wassup Meetings as an Exploratory
Methodology That Helps In Defining the Research Question
It is essential to note that an exploratory methodology plays a
key role in the research process since it provides a productive
strategy that assists in expanding knowledge about the problems
and the workable solutions that can serve as alternatives in
solving the problems identified. In this case, Donatos uses
wassup meetings as a forum for creating opportunities for the
company personnel to brainstorm and bring forward their
knowledge of element that is based on popular culture which in
turn can be digested and evaluated based on its effects on
Donato (Sekaran & Bougie 2016).
The meetings were interpreted as exploratory steps that were
undertaken by the company to serve the knowledge gap that
would be the barrier in identifying the dilemma brought by the
interest of the public in low-carb diets and how to address this
market need. The meetings were intended to provide additional
insight into the dynamic changes of the cultural and social
media trends besides supplementing reviews provided by other
sources such as monitoring of eating trends and feedbacks
provided via email.
The meetings are important to Donatos in the sense that they
help in the gathering of essential information regarding the
market from the immediate stakeholders, the employees who
have constantly proven to offer a much-needed input in the

3. product development process. With the help of this information,
the management can blend a strategic synthesis of data that can
best determine how company decisions affect the general public
that is targeted at the immediate consumer and persons from a
diverse group of cultures. The feedback collected from the
meetings can also be essential when it comes to tailoring the
questions that will be posed for research purposes especially the
exploration of knowledge from diverse cultures (Sekaran &
Bougie 2016). Some examples of questions that can be derived
from the process include; should the company introduce No
dough pizza to satisfy the demand from the low-carb diet
market? Or should the concept be modified?
Evaluation of the Test Market Used by Donatos
Donatos mainly used customer reactions from two main outlets
in one market as a test market. This test market raises several
reliability concerns. The first concern is the reliability of one
city as a target market. This approach is rarely used since it is
considered biased by most experts in the industry. The data
collected will be sensitive to the specific geographical region in
which the information was collected (Ross, Westerfield & Firer,
2000). The other point of concern is the way the test was
conducted. Despite the test being undertaken for several days in
the respective stores, no promotion was carried out to attract the
new group of customers targeted by the new development. The
introduction of many food products in the market is
traditionally done through the inception of promotional
activities such as sampling and discounts. The problem with this
approach is that the sample collected from the customers might
not be indicative of the priorities and preferences of the
targeted profile of potential customers (Ross, Westerfield &
Firer, 2000).
The final concern is that in most ideal experiments, test
products are created under closely monitored and controlled
conditions or environments. Other test markets, however, prefer
the application of actual market conditions that limit the
possibility of control (Ross, Westerfield & Firer, 2000). This

4. case, however, does not observe either of this approaches with a
lack of structure in the experiment, for example, the No dough
pizzas are prepared by inexperienced employees that were
between the ages of 16-17 years (Schindler, 2004). Lack of
professionalism in the experiment would result in
inconsistencies that would affect the accuracy of the result. The
study identifies several advantages and disadvantages of using
this test market.
In-Restaurant Tests
Pros
Minimized research costs
Faster data collection rates
Minimal supervision is required which translates to lesser
manpower
The need for expensive product-testing facilities is eliminated
Cons
The walk-in customers offer a misrepresentation of information
required since that is not the target market.
Call-Back Phone Surveys
Pros
Feedback is collected from a wider range of customers
Provides the ability to reach customers that could be initially
considered inaccessible
Anonymity helps in the collection of unbiased information even
if it is negative
Cons
Non-response error might be too large since Donatos cannot be
certain that all customers selected will be willing to participate
in the survey
There is a lack of motivation for the customers to participate
What Measurement Scales Would You Have Used in the Survey
Used as Part of the In-Restaurant Product Tests?
One can begin by outlining the various scales used in rating and
ranking that may prove to be appropriate for in-restaurant tests.
Such sample rating scales include the Likert or Numerical scale

5. where the product can be evaluated based on how the product is
liked or disliked through a simplified form of rating. Paired
comparison scales can then be used as an effective measurement
scale. This strategy would prove to be essential since other
types of pizzas could be developed using the low-carb
ingredients after feedback is collected from the customers and
comparisons are made based on preferences.
Graded Project
Case Analysis
© PENN FOSTER, INC. 2017 PAGE 1CASE ANALYSIS
Graded Project
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 2
PROCEDURE 2
WRITING GUIDELINES 2
GRADING CRITERIA 3
SUBMITTING YOUR PROJECT 4
© PENN FOSTER, INC. 2017 PAGE 2CASE ANALYSIS
Graded Project

6. CASE ANALYSIS
INTRODUCTION
You’ve already examined 14 cases from the textbook website.
For this project, you’re
going to read the Donato’s: Finding the New Pizza case and
answer the discussion
questions. The advertising introducing the NO DOUGH pizza is
on the on the website under
Video Cases.
PROCEDURE
Visit your textbook’s website, http://www.mhhe.com/cooper12e,
which contains all of
the cases provided to supplement your text. To find the cases,
do the following:
1. Click Student Edition in the “Online Learning Center” on
the left of the page.
2. On the next page, click Cases under “Course-wide Content.”
3. Read through the Donato’s: Finding the New Pizza case (the
direct link is
http://tinyurl.com/ljwvfko) and answer the discussion questions.
WRITING GUIDELINES
1. Type your submission, double-spaced, in a standard print
font, size 12. Use a
standard document format with 1-inch margins. (Don’t use any
fancy or cursive
fonts.) Your paper should be written in Microsoft Word or a
Word-compatible program.
2. Include the following information at the top of your paper:

7. n Name and complete mailing address
n Student number
n Course title and number (Business Research Methods, BUS
415)
n Research project number (50037300)
3. Read the assignment carefully and answer each question.
4. Be specific. Limit your submission to the questions asked
and issues mentioned.
5. Proofread your work carefully. Check for correct spelling,
grammar, punctuation,
and capitalization.
http://www.mhhe.com/cooper12e
http://tinyurl.com/ljwvfko
© PENN FOSTER, INC. 2017 PAGE 3CASE ANALYSIS
Graded Project
GRADING CRITERIA
The following rubric will be used to grade your project.
Grading
Criteria Excellent Good Proficient
Needs
Improvement
Content

8. (80 Points)
1. Map the
research design
used by Donato’s
for new product
development.
2. Evaluate
the Wassup
meetings as
an exploratory
methodology to
help define there-
search question.
3. Evaluate
the test market
Donatos used.
What were its
advantages and
disadvantages?
4. What mea-
surement scales
would you have
used on the
survey that
was part of the
in-restaurant
product tests?
The student
provides clear
well thought out
answers to the

9. assigned ques-
tions that indicate
and application
of topics covered
in the course; ad-
dresses the ques-
tions in complete
thoughts and or-
ganized manner;
provides support
for opinions by
properly citing
specific informa-
tion from the text;
stays focused
on the assigned
issues; writes in
his or her own
words and uses
quotation marks
to indicate direct
quotations.
The student
provides clear
answers for the
most part to the
assigned ques-
tions that indicate
some application
of topics covered
in the course; ad-
dresses the ques-
tions in complete
or mostly com-
plete thoughts

10. and organized
manner; provides
some support for
opinions by prop-
erly citing specific
information from
the text; stays
focused for the
most part on the
assigned issues;
writes in his or her
own words and
uses quotation
marks to indicate
direct quotations.
The student
provides answers
which may not be
clear in a many
cases to the as-
signed questions
but indicates
some application
of topics covered
in the course;
ad dresses the
ques tions in
partially complete
thoughts in most
cases and some-
what organized
manner; provides
some support for
opinions by citing
specific informa-

11. tion from the text;
stays focused
for the most part
on the assigned
issues; writes in
his or her own
words and uses
quotation marks
to indicate direct
quotations.
The student
work indicates
little application
of topics covered
in the course;
does not effec-
tively address
the questions
providing thought
out answers in
most cases and
in a disorganized
manner; does not
provides support
for opinions by
citing specific in-
formation from the
text; is not focus
on the assigned
issues; does not
write in his or
her own words
or does not use
quotation marks
to indicate direct

12. quotations.
Written
Communication
(10 Points)
Paper is properly
cited for informa-
tion used from
other sources.
Paper is properly
cited for informa-
tion used from
other sources.
Paper is cited for
information used
from other sourc-
es but may have
errors in format.
Paper is not cited
for information
used from other
sources.
Continued
© PENN FOSTER, INC. 2017 PAGE 4CASE ANALYSIS
Graded Project
Format
(10 Points)

13. The project is
double-spaced
and typed in font
size 12; uses the
correct format
provided in the
instructions; and
includes the
student’s name,
address, student
number, course
title and number,
and assignment
number.
N/A N/A The project is
incorrectly for-
matted using the
wrong font and
size; the mem-
orandum format
isn’t used or
doesn’t include
the required
student
information.
SUBMITTING YOUR PROJECT
Each project is individually graded by your instructor and
therefore takes up to a few
weeks to grade.
Be sure that your file contains the following information:
n Your name

14. n Your student ID number
n The lesson number (50037300)
n Your email address
To submit your graded project, follow these steps:
1. Go to http://www.pennfoster.edu.
2. Log in to your student portal.
3. Click on Take Exam next to the lesson you’re working on.
4. Follow the instructions provided to complete your exam.
Be sure to keep a backup copy of any files you submit to the
school!
http://www.pennfoster.edu