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Quantitative Techniques-II

Notes The results can conclude that the second Sales Promotion method was the most effective in
developing sales. This may be adopted nationally to promote the product. But one cannot say
that the same method of sales promotion will be effective in each and every city under study.
Precautions to be taken while Interpreting the Marketing Research Data

1. Keep the main objective of the research in mind.
2. Analysis of data should start from simpler and more fundamental aspects.
3. It should not be confusing.
4. Sample size should be adequate.
5. Take care before generalization of the sample studied.

6. Give due attention to significant questions.
7. Do not miss the significance of some answers, because they are found from a very few
respondents, such as “don’t know” or “can’t say”.

4.6 Reporting the Results

The goal of research is not just to discover something but to communicate that discovery to a
larger audience—other social scientists, government officials, your teachers, the general public—
perhaps several of these audiences. Whatever the study’s particular outcome, if the research
report enables the intended audience to comprehend the results and learn from them, the research
can be judged a success. If the intended audience is not able to learn about the study’s results, the
research should be judged a failure no matter how expensive the research, how sophisticated its
design, or how much of yourself you invested in it.

This conclusion may seem obvious, and perhaps a bit unnecessary. After all, you may think that
all researchers write up their results for other people to read. But the fact is that many research
projects fail to produce a research report. Sometimes the problem is that the research is poorly
designed to begin with and cannot be carried out in a satisfactory manner; sometimes
unanticipated difficulties derail a viable project. But too often the researcher just never gets
around to writing a report. And then there are many research reports that are very incomplete
or poorly written or that speak to only one of several interested audiences. The failure may not
be complete, but the project’s full potential is not achieved.
The stage of reporting research results is also the point at which the need for new research is
identified. It is the time when, so to speak, “the rubber hits the road”—when we have to make
our research make sense to others. To whom will our research be addressed? How should we
present our results to them? Should we seek to influence how our research report is used?

The research report will present research findings and interpretations in a way that reflects
some combination of the researcher’s goals, the research sponsor’s goals, the concerns of the
research subjects, and perhaps the concerns of a wider anticipated readership. Understanding
the goals of these different groups will help the researcher begin to shape the final report even
at the start of the research. In designing a proposal and in negotiating access to a setting for the
research, commitments often must be made to produce a particular type of report, or at least
cover certain issues in the final report. As the research progresses, feedback about the research
from its participants, sponsoring agencies, collaborators, or other interested parties may suggest
the importance of focusing on particular issues in the final report. Social researchers traditionally
have tried to distance themselves from the concerns of such interested parties, paying attention

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