Dr. Alan Dick
The following is a prototypical syllabus for MGM 403 Marketing Research
TEXT
Carl McDaniel and Roger Gates, Contemporary Marketing Research, West Publishing, 1993.
PREREQUISITES
MGM 301 and MGQ 301 are firm prerequisites for this class. You are expected to have a
working knowledge of statistics and an introductory marketing course.
COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVES
This is an introductory course in Marketing Research. As such, it will provide a basic knowledge of the various steps to be followed in conducting a marketing research project.
The objectives of this course are to:
1. Provide students with an understanding of marketing questions and problems that marketing research can handle and the type of structure required to make a marketing problem "researchable."
2. Provide students with the capability of designing marketing research proposals, appraising their feasibility and understanding the methodology for implementing marketing research.
3. Provide students with the ability to properly analyze research data, interpret results and understand the assumptions underlying the results.
4. Provide students with an understanding of how marketing research results are used in
marketing decision making.
COURSE MECHANICS
The course will use a combination of lectures, cases, and take-home assignments. Many classes
will end with a case discussion. It is therefore essential that students read and prepare the class
assignments regularly if they are to derive the maximum benefit (and grade) from the course.
Class participation will be graded regularly. To facilitate fair assignment of class participation
grades, students are required to furnish a small recent picture of themselves. No credit for class
participation can be earned until the picture is furnished.
GRADING
The course will be graded on a 1,000 point scale. Grades for the course will be determined
on the following basis:
| Item | Points |
| Group Project 1 | 100 |
| Group Project 2 Report | 150 |
| Group Project 2 Presentation | 50 |
| Cola Assignment | 50 |
| Exam 1 | 200 |
| Exam 2 | 300 |
| Class Participation | 150 |
| Grade | Cutoff |
| A | 920 |
| B | 820 |
| C | 720 |
| D | 620 |
| F | - |
Plus and minus grades may be assigned in borderline cases.
The exams will contain multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank and short problems.
No make-up exams will be allowed without a verified medical excuse.
ASSIGNMENTS AND PROJECTS
The course includes one individual project and two group projects.
Individual Assignment
Cola Taste Test Assignment
An in-class cola taste test is scheduled for September 12. Students will individually analyze their
own data to determine their ability to consistently discriminate between different brands of cola
in a blind taste test. Obviously, missing this class will make it very difficult to complete the
assignment.
Group Projects
Students, in groups of about 4 or 5, (depending on class size) will be required to complete two
projects. It is the student's responsibility to align him or herself with a group by September 26.
Students who have not become part of a group by that date will be assigned to a group at random
by the instructor.
Project I: Questionnaire Design
A set of 5 mini-cases will be handed out. Each group will be required to design an appropriate
questionnaire for one of the cases.
Project II: Case Analysis
Groups will be required to do some comprehensive work on case
analysis involving oral and written reports. You will be given a data set for the project so you
may complete the appropriate data analysis. This will be explained in more detail in class.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
Cheating on any aspect of this course will not be tolerated. Homework assignments are to be
done individually and collaboration on exams is prohibited. Any deviation from this will be
dealt with severely. See your student handbook for additional guidelines on academic integrity.
Below is a prototypical list of topics.
Introduction
The Process
Qualitative Research
Experimentation I
Advanced Experimentation
Cola Taste Test
Surveys
Observation
Measurement
Attitudes
Questionnaire Design
Sampling
Sample Size
Hypothesis Testing
Cross Tabulation
ANOVA
Multivariate Anova
Correlation & Regression
Multivariate Regression
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