Students

MKTG202 – Marketing Research

2015 – MQC1 Evening

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor, Lecturer, Tutor
Joseph Pitt
joe.pitt@mq.edu.au
Contact via joe.pitt@mq.edu.au
Please email Joe to arrange an appointment.
Credit points Credit points
3
Prerequisites Prerequisites
MKTG101
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description
This unit reviews the quantitative research techniques acquired in earlier units and introduces some qualitative methods. New and emerging research methods also are presented. The unit concentrates on the application of primary research techniques to problems confronting marketing managers in strategic and operational situations. While the emphasis is on applications, students will be expected to be able to appreciate the differences in techniques and to be able to select appropriate methodologies that will produce relevant information for decision making. The focus will be on placing research methodology into a decision-making context.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • Understand the need for, and uses of, marketing research.
  • Understand and design many of the various data-gathering techniques relevant for marketing decisions.
  • Understand and design processes involved in transforming raw data to usable marketing information.
  • Be capable of critically evaluating research methods and output reporting.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Due Groupwork/Individual Short Extension AI assisted?
Assignments 40% Weeks #4, #7, #12 No
Class test 10% Week #6 No
Assessed Coursework 10% Week #10 No
Final Examination 40% University Examination Period No

Assignments

Due: Weeks #4, #7, #12
Weighting: 40%
Groupwork/Individual:
Short extension 3: No
AI assisted?:

Submission:

Online submission through iLearn in three parts as follows.

  • Task 1a: Progress Report A (Individual Task): 10% results of qualitative research - exploratory study due in Week 4
  • Task 1b: Progress Report B (Group Task): 10% proposal for quantitative survey study due in Week 7
  • Task 1c: Final Report (Group Task): 20% Integrated complete report as for a client due in Week 12

Topics, marking guides and templates are available on the unit site on iLearn.

Extension and penalties:

  • No extensions will be granted for Task 1a: Progress Report A  (Individual Task) or Task 1b: Progress Report B (Group Task). Students who have not submitted the tasks prior to the deadline will be awarded a mark of 0 for the task, except for cases in which an application for Disruption of Studies is made and approved.
  • No extensions will be granted for Task 1c: Final Report (Group Task). However, late submissions will be accepted up to 72 hours after the deadline. There will be a deduction of 20% of the total available marks made from the total awarded mark for each 24 hour period or part thereof that the submission is late (for example, 25 hours late in submission - 40% penalty applies). This penalty does not apply for cases in which an application for Disruption of Studies is made and approved.

There will be no transfer of marks from these assessments to the final exam.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Understand and design many of the various data-gathering techniques relevant for marketing decisions.
  • Understand and design processes involved in transforming raw data to usable marketing information.

Class test

Due: Week #6
Weighting: 10%
Groupwork/Individual:
Short extension 3: No
AI assisted?:

Task 2: In-class test. This test will be conducted in Week 6 during usual tutorial class time as an online quiz.

Extension and Penalties: 

  • Students who do not attend the tutorial class and complete the in-class test will be awarded a mark of 0. No supplementary class tests will be granted except for cases in which an application for Disruption of Studies is made and approved.

There will be no transfer of marks from this assessment to the final exam.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Understand the need for, and uses of, marketing research.
  • Understand and design many of the various data-gathering techniques relevant for marketing decisions.
  • Understand and design processes involved in transforming raw data to usable marketing information.
  • Be capable of critically evaluating research methods and output reporting.

Assessed Coursework

Due: Week #10
Weighting: 10%
Groupwork/Individual:
Short extension 3: No
AI assisted?:

Task 3: PeerWise activities, ongoing activities but participation ends in Week 10.

  • PeerWise is a place for students to create, share and evaluate assessment questions with their classmates. This service is external to iLearn, and requires a separate log-in procedure.

  • 10 marks are awarded for contribution to the PeerWise service by writing, answering, commenting, rating questions that are related with the theories and practices in marketing research.

More details are provided on the unit website.

Extension and Penalties:

  • No extensions will be granted for this PeerWise activities. Students who have not submitted the task prior to the deadline will be awarded a mark of 0 for the task, except for cases in which an application for Disruption of Studies is made and approved.

  • Contents created by students are supervised and awarded with badges of appropriate types, which earns students up to 10 marks. Irrelevant questions and comments will be deleted by unit convenor.

No transfer of marks from these assessment tasks to the final exam.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Understand the need for, and uses of, marketing research.
  • Understand and design many of the various data-gathering techniques relevant for marketing decisions.
  • Understand and design processes involved in transforming raw data to usable marketing information.
  • Be capable of critically evaluating research methods and output reporting.

Final Examination

Due: University Examination Period
Weighting: 40%
Groupwork/Individual:
Short extension 3: No
AI assisted?:

Task 4: Final exam (closed book).

A combination of short-answer and multiple-choice questions designed to test your understanding and application of all parts of the unit.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Understand the need for, and uses of, marketing research.
  • Understand and design many of the various data-gathering techniques relevant for marketing decisions.
  • Understand and design processes involved in transforming raw data to usable marketing information.
  • Be capable of critically evaluating research methods and output reporting.

Delivery and Resources

Classes

  • 3 hours face-to-face teaching per week consisting of for example; 1 x 2-hour lecture and 1 x 1-hour tutorial/lab exercises
  • The timetable for classes can be found on the student portal: https://student.mqc.edu.au/

Required and Recommended Texts and/or Materials

Prescribed text:

  • Cengage Bundle: Zikmund, D'Alessandro, Winzar, Lowe & Babin (2014) Marketing Research, 3ed. Cengage: ISBN-10: 0170236021  ISBN-13: 9780170236027

Recommended texts:

  • Kirkpatrick, L.A. (2011), A Simple Guide to IBM SPSS® for Version 20.0, 12ed. Cengage: ISBN-10: 1285086015
  • Emerson, L. (2013), Writing Guidelines for Business Students, 5ed. Cengage: ISBN-10: 0170216381

These texts can be purchased from the Macquarie University Co-op Bookshop.

They are also available in the Macquarie Library.

Technology Used and Required

  • Students will need to have access to a personal computer, with access to the Internet and word processor software.
  • In laboratories, we will use MS-Word, MS-Excel, and SPSS statistical software.

Unit Web Page

  • The web page for this unit can be found at: iLearn http://ilearn.mq.edu.au
  • All announcements and resources will be available on the web site. Resource materials include lecture slides, practice questions, case studies and practice exam questions for both the within-semester and final exams. There is also a forum for student interaction and contact with faculty. You should consult the course Website several times per week for messages and updates.

Learning and Teaching Activities

This unit is taught using lectures and tutorials.

  • Lectures serve to highlight key topics and elaborate on important or difficult topics. They are not a summary of, or a substitute for, the textbook or other resources.
  • Tutorials serve to give students practice in applying concepts and developing skills in critical and logical thinking, information gathering and analysis.

Students are expected to read in advance of lectures, and participate in all lecture presentations. There is also an applied marketing research project assisting students to apply concepts introduced in course to the marketing environment. This will be introduced within the lecture presentations.

Changes since Last Offering of This Unit

A few changes are made to this unit since S2 2014:

1) The roles of teaching team are updated accordingly.

2) A few minor changes are made in assessments: Progress Report A is given 10 marks and remained as individual task due in Week 4; Progress Report B (10 marks) is changed into a group task due in Week 7; the Major Report as a group task (20 marks) is due one week earlier, in Week 12.

3) PeerWise contribution (10 marks) terminates in Week 10.

4) Timetable of weekly teaching activities has been update in accordance with the university calendar.

Unit Schedule

 

 

Week

Topic

Reading

Notes/ tutorial activities

1

Introduction to Marketing Research Assessment tasks

Ch. 1

Discussing assessment tasks

Forming groups

Exploring and choosing research topics

2

Aiming for the Goal: Marketing Research Process and the Research Report

Ch. 2,16

Focus group and exploratory qualitative research exercise

3

Types of Data and Exploratory Research

Ch. 3, 4

Progress Report A (Individual Task) - Task 1a progress check and discussion

4

Survey Technique and Projective Method

 

Ch. 5, 6

Projective techniques

Task 1a: Progress Report A (Individual Task) - Qualitative Research Summary due in iLearn by 11.59pm, Friday 10 April

This week's lecture and tutorial classes will be held on Saturday 11 April as make-up classes for the Easter Monday (Monday 6 April)

5

Causal Research and Experiment

Ch. 7

Print and bring your Progress Report A to class and exchange it for peer assessment and discussion in tutorial

6

Questionnaire Design

Ch. 8, 9

Task 2: In-Class Quiz in tutorial class

7

Sampling Technique

Ch.10 

Linking Research Questions and Hypotheses with Measurement

Task 1b: Progress Report B (Group Task) - Quantitative Research Proposal is due in iLearn by 11.59pm, Friday 1 May

8

Data Editing and Coding

Ch.11

Print and bring your Progress Report B to class and exchange it for peer assessment and discussion in tutorial

Univariate Statistics: Qualtrics Output

9

 Data Analysis Part I

Ch.12

Summarising data with SPSS and Excel

10

Data Analysis Part II

Ch.13

Univariate Statistics: Qualtrics Output

Task 3: PeerWise Activities due by 11.59pm, Friday 22 May

11

Data Analysis Part III

Ch.14

Bivariate Statistics in SPSS

12

Data Analysis Part IV

Review of semester to date

Ch.15

Multivariate Statistics in SPSS

Task 1c: Group Project Final Research Report due in iLearn by 11.59pm, Friday 5 June

13

Examination Review and Preparation

All chapters

Exam Preparation

This week's lecture and tutorial classes will be held on Saturday 6 June as make-up classes for the Queen's Birthday (Monday 8 June)

 

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central. Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Academic Honesty Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/academic_honesty/policy.html

Assessment Policy  http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/assessment/policy.html

Grading Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/grading/policy.html

Grade Appeal Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/gradeappeal/policy.html

Grievance Management Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/grievance_management/policy.html

Disruption to Studies Policy http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/disruption_studies/policy.html The Disruption to Studies Policy is effective from March 3 2014 and replaces the Special Consideration Policy.

In addition, a number of other policies can be found in the Learning and Teaching Category of Policy Central.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/support/student_conduct/

Results

Results shown in iLearn, or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au.

Macquarie City Campus students

Macquarie City Campus students should also refer to the Macquarie City Campus Student Portal at: https://student.mqc.edu.au/ for policies and important information related to Macquarie City Campus students.

Academic Honesty

The nature of scholarly endeavour, dependent as it is on the work of others, binds all members of the University community to abide by the principles of academic honesty. Its fundamental principle is that all staff and students act with integrity in the creation, development, application and use of ideas and information. This means that:

  • all academic work claimed as original is the work of the author making the claim
  • all academic collaborations are acknowledged
  • academic work is not falsified in any way
  • when the ideas of others are used, these ideas are acknowledged appropriately.

Further information on the academic honesty can be found in the Macquarie University Academic Honesty Policy at http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/academic_honesty/policy.html

Grades

Macquarie University uses the following grades in coursework units of study:

  • HD - High Distinction
  • D - Distinction
  • CR - Credit
  • P - Pass
  • F - Fail

Grade descriptors and other information concerning grading are contained in the Macquarie University Grading Policy which is available at:

http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/grading/policy.html

Grading Appeals and Final Examination Script Viewing

If, at the conclusion of the unit, you have performed below expectations, and are considering lodging an appeal of grade and/or viewing your final exam script please refer to the following website which provides information about these processes and the cut off dates in the first instance. Please read the instructions provided concerning what constitutes a valid grounds for appeal before appealing your grade.

More information about grading appeals and final examination script viewing:

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to improve your marks and take control of your study.

Student Services and Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

Student Enquiries

For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://informatics.mq.edu.au/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Macquarie City Campus students can also find more information about Macquarie City Campus online systems and Macquarie City Campus IT help at: https://student.mqc.edu.au/

Graduate Capabilities

Discipline Specific Knowledge and Skills

Our graduates will take with them the intellectual development, depth and breadth of knowledge, scholarly understanding, and specific subject content in their chosen fields to make them competent and confident in their subject or profession. They will be able to demonstrate, where relevant, professional technical competence and meet professional standards. They will be able to articulate the structure of knowledge of their discipline, be able to adapt discipline-specific knowledge to novel situations, and be able to contribute from their discipline to inter-disciplinary solutions to problems.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Understand the need for, and uses of, marketing research.
  • Understand and design many of the various data-gathering techniques relevant for marketing decisions.
  • Understand and design processes involved in transforming raw data to usable marketing information.
  • Be capable of critically evaluating research methods and output reporting.

Assessment tasks

  • Assignments
  • Class test
  • Assessed Coursework
  • Final Examination

Critical, Analytical and Integrative Thinking

We want our graduates to be capable of reasoning, questioning and analysing, and to integrate and synthesise learning and knowledge from a range of sources and environments; to be able to critique constraints, assumptions and limitations; to be able to think independently and systemically in relation to scholarly activity, in the workplace, and in the world. We want them to have a level of scientific and information technology literacy.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Understand and design many of the various data-gathering techniques relevant for marketing decisions.
  • Understand and design processes involved in transforming raw data to usable marketing information.
  • Be capable of critically evaluating research methods and output reporting.

Assessment tasks

  • Assignments
  • Assessed Coursework
  • Final Examination

Problem Solving and Research Capability

Our graduates should be capable of researching; of analysing, and interpreting and assessing data and information in various forms; of drawing connections across fields of knowledge; and they should be able to relate their knowledge to complex situations at work or in the world, in order to diagnose and solve problems. We want them to have the confidence to take the initiative in doing so, within an awareness of their own limitations.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Understand the need for, and uses of, marketing research.
  • Understand and design many of the various data-gathering techniques relevant for marketing decisions.
  • Understand and design processes involved in transforming raw data to usable marketing information.
  • Be capable of critically evaluating research methods and output reporting.

Assessment tasks

  • Assignments
  • Class test
  • Final Examination

Effective Communication

We want to develop in our students the ability to communicate and convey their views in forms effective with different audiences. We want our graduates to take with them the capability to read, listen, question, gather and evaluate information resources in a variety of formats, assess, write clearly, speak effectively, and to use visual communication and communication technologies as appropriate.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Understand and design many of the various data-gathering techniques relevant for marketing decisions.
  • Understand and design processes involved in transforming raw data to usable marketing information.
  • Be capable of critically evaluating research methods and output reporting.

Assessment tasks

  • Assignments
  • Assessed Coursework
  • Final Examination

Research and Practice

  • This unit uses research by Macquarie University researchers (Zikmund et al., 2014 and other resources on iLearn).
  • This unit uses research from external sources (Zikmund et al., 2014 and other resources on iLearn).
  • This unit gives you opportunities to conduct your own research.