Research Design International Marketing

Question: Discuss about the Research Design International Marketing. Answwer: Introduction Market research survey is an effective way to know what customers want, target demographics and key competitors. The research survey is important as it helps in measuring customer awareness, satisfaction and expectation over time. This report aims to assess the target audience for Manshake so that promotional strategies can be designed accordingly. This report shall help in developing promotional strategies so that the target audience can be well focused upon and potential segments can be attracted to buy Manshake products. Manshake is a health meal designed for men who can lose the beer gut and acts as meal replacements. The breakfast is rich in fibre, vitamins, proteins, mineral and has very less sugar content. The consumers can lose up to 3-5 kg per week as it has a fat burning blaster formula (Themanshake.com.au 2017). Opportunities and Issues Statement Strengths The company has won many hearts due to its high nutritional advantage (Themanshake.com.au 2017). The quality of product and price range is the most attractive features of the product (Themanshake.com.au 2017). The products can be ordered online that make the brand available to the consumers. The brand has customer service team available on call daily between 10am-5pm. Weaknesses There are no physical retail outlets for the people to visit that excludes a large number of potential customers. The cost of product is high as the ingredients used are very high quality (Themanshake.com.au 2017). Opportunities There is great opportunity to expand in the physical market to attract more customers. Strategies such as sales promotions and distribution of free samples can be used to boost sales and market share (Themanshake.com.au 2017). The shelf life of the products can be extended by developing new technology. Threats The brand faces intense competition from other homogenous brands such as Rapid Loss and Fat Blaster. The economical disadvantage may prevent customers to purchase the product. There are other healthy drinks such as smoothie and herbal beverages that make competition intense (Themanshake.com.au 2017). Table 1: SWOT Analysis Source: Created by Author Research Methodology Data collection is a systematic approach that enables the participants to answer questions in a systematic fashion. The data is collected using primary method of collection by conducting survey and gathering responses from a group of people. Consent was generated from the participants and information was collected from first hand sources (Flick 2015). Marketing Research Process Research Problem The purpose of this study is to analyse the target audience as promotional strategies play a crucial role in determining demand. Manshake has low market visibility and sales volume that needs to be increased through effective promotional strategies. The following research question is answered through this market survey: How do the Consumers perceive Promotional Strategies of Manshake? Research Design The research design chosen for this study is causal or explanatory as it attempts to reveal the cause and effect relationship between sales and promotional strategies. The research design analyzes the promotions and marketing strategies to observe the change in sales revenue (Creswell 2013). Questionnaire A questionnaire is prepared to conduct market survey and analyse their perception towards the promotional strategies of Manshake. Collecting Data Which age group do you belong to? 25-30 31-35 36-40 41-45 On average, how often do you buy health based food items? Daily Weekly Monthly Out of the following, choose your favourite flavour of health food brands? Manshake Rapid Loss Fat Blaster What is the best packaging standard in your opinion? Do you rely on reviews from various health sites prior purchasing of health products? Yes No Do you consider paid advertisements as a way to decide your purchase? Yes No As stated earlier, primary method of data collection is followed to gather information. The data was collected through surveys for which 20 participants were selected. A quantitative analysis is conducted in which the data is presented in the form of numeric and tables (Creswell 2014). Data Findings and Analysis This section represents the findings and results of the survey conducted to analyse the perception of customers about Manshake. According to the results of questionnaire, it was found that 7 respondents each belonged to the age group 25-30 and 31-35. However, the remaining 6 respondents belonged to the age group 36-40 and 41-45 as 3 respondents each. Frequency Percent 25-30 7 35.0 31-35 7 35.0 36-40 3 15.0 41-45 3 15.0 Total 20 100.0 Table 2: Results The study revealed that 40% respondents buy healthy food on a regular basis. However, 35% respondents buy healthy food on a monthly basis. The remaining 25% buy healthy food on a weekly basis. Frequency Percent Daily 8 40.0 Weekly 5 25.0 Monthly 7 35.0 Total 20 100.0 Table 3: Results The results indicate that Manshake is the favorite brand of people under health foods. However, there is a tough competition from Rapid Loss as 35% respondents prefer it. Fat Blaster with 25% preference is also the choice of consumers. Frequency Percent Manshake 8 40.0 Rapid Loss 7 35.0 Fat Blaster 5 25.0 Total 20 100.0 Table 4: Results The fourth question is descriptive in nature. In a nutshell, the respondents answered that the most cheap yet high quality packaging that prevents the product against spillage, leakage, rodents and insect infestation is the best packaging standard. The result of fifth question indicates that 70% respondents believe while 30% do not believe in reviews given by other people for health food. Frequency Percent Yes 14 70.0 No 6 30.0 Total 20 100.0 Table 5: Results The result of sixth question indicates that 65% respondents buy products based on paid advertisement while the other 35% do not. Frequency Percent Yes 13 65.0 No 7 35.0 Total 20 100.0 Table 6: Results Discussion The above results suggest that the consumers perceive promotional strategies of Manshake need to be improvised. It is argued that products are developed based on customer perceptions. The four Ps of marketing- product, price, place and promotion play a critical role in the enhancing customer demand (Kumar, Lassar and Butaney 2014). With intense competition faced from Fat Blaster and Rapid Loss, Manshake needs to enhance promotional strategies with strict focus on men. It is further argued that customer perception is flexible and promotional strategies need to be enhanced for Manshake so that there is a wider gap in demand for the brand (Westberg and Pope 2012). Conclusion From the above findings and analysis, it is evident that Manshake needs to enhance its marketing and promotional techniques. There is intense competition in the beverage market and special campaigns must be designed for men, as they are the target audience for the product. Further, it is recommended that the research study can involve qualitative data to get in-depth information about customer perception. References Creswell, J., 2013.Qualitative inquiry and research design. 1st ed. Los Angeles [etc.]: Sage. Creswell, J., 2014.Research design. 1st ed. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications. Flick, U., 2015.Introducing research methodology. 1st ed. NY: Sage. Kumar Roy, S., M. Lassar, W. and T. Butaney, G., 2014. The mediating impact of stickiness and loyalty on word-of-mouth promotion of retail websites. European Journal of Marketing, 48(9/10), pp.1828-1849. Themanshake.com.au, 2017. FAQs. [online] The Man Shake. Available at: https://www.themanshake.com.au/faqs [Accessed 28 Jan. 2017]. Themanshake.com.au, 2017. Meal Replacement Shakes for Weight Loss | The Man Shake. [online] The Man Shake. Available at: https://www.themanshake.com.au/about_us [Accessed 28 Jan. 2017]. Westberg, K. and Pope, N., 2012. Building brand equity with cause-related marketing: A comparison with sponsorship and sales promotion. Journal of Marketing Communications, 20(6), pp.419-437.