MBA 655 (Consumer Behavior) is about managerial application of the principles of consumer behavior, with an emphasis on consumer psychology. For firms that sell products and services that are purchased by consumers, the ultimate determinant of sales and profitability is consumer behavior. Managers are most successful when they can successfully predict the behavioral responses of consumers to the managerial actions under consideration. For example, will consumers like the new product we’re developing? How would consumers react to a decrease in price if it is accompanied by a decrease in product quality? How will consumers respond to the firm’s advertisements? Without an understanding of why consumers behave as they do, managers are left to simply guess at the answers to such questions.
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MBA Marketing Research — List of Topics
This post lists the topics we cover in MBA 650 (Marketing Research). The class is designed to teach students to effectively USE marketing research for managerial decision making. Rather than focusing on the conceptual underpinnings or technical details of only a few types of analyses (as would be done in a class that concerns itself with DOING marketing research), we examine many different types of analyses. Our focus is (1) the kinds of managerial problems each method can solve, (2) the strengths and weaknesses of each method, (3) how to interpret the method’s results, and (4) how to apply the results to the managerial situation at hand. We will examine a variety of widely used marketing research techniques (e.g., factor analyses, emergent qualitative coding, and perceptual mapping) and how they apply to a variety of managerial settings (e.g., market segmentation, competitive analysis, and brand image analysis).
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PharmaSim Take-aways
Recently, I did a Marketing Management class, and I used PharmaSim. On the final day of class, I wrapped up the long exercise with a debrief discussion. With students, I walked through this list of the take-aways I wanted them to get from their PharmaSim experience: Continue reading “PharmaSim Take-aways”
Advice about pursuing a Ph.D. in marketing
Students often ask me for advice about getting a Ph.D in marketing. Fundamentally, the questions are …
(1) Should I pursue a Ph.D.?
(2) What school should I attend to pursue a Ph.D.?
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Consumer Behavior Case Exam
This file is an old exam for my MBA Consumer Behavior class. The exam consists of one short case and two essay questions. I created the case to be amenable to a variety of different consumer behavior exam questions.
– Eric DeRosia
Basic Statistics — Study Materials and Practice Quiz
Some of the students in my marketing research class are a little rusty on inferential statistics. For most students, it’s something they’ve mastered in the past, but without practice it’s easy to forget the answers to questions like these:
- What is the difference between a standard error and a standard deviation?
- How should you interpret a histogram?
- How can you tell whether a variable is binomial or multinomial?
To remind students about these concepts, I give my marketing research students a quiz on basic statistics. To help students prepare for the quiz, Continue reading “Basic Statistics — Study Materials and Practice Quiz”
National Teaching Award
I am grateful and honored to have received a national award for teaching from the Marketing Management Association. As part of the 11th Annual Master Teacher Award Competition sponsored by Hormel Foods, the Marketing Management Association has awarded me with a 2013 Meritorious Teaching Award.
– Eric DeRosia
More than Surveys: Using Qualtrics as a Teaching Tool
In addition to using Qualtrics as a research tool, Qualtrics can be used as a teaching tool — beyond its obvious utility in a marketing research course. For example, at the Marriott School of Management (Brigham Young University) I use Qualtrics in my theory-driven consumer behavior MBA elective. In essence, I give two assignments in which students create stimuli designed for consumers. I use Qualtrics to show the stimuli to consumers and collect their evaluations. The results give students feedback from actual consumers, yielding a more “hands-on” assignment than can be achieved with traditional instructor feedback. Qualtrics makes three appearances in my course. Continue reading “More than Surveys: Using Qualtrics as a Teaching Tool”
Original Case for Marketing Research
To promote discussion in my marketing research class, I have written 10 full-length cases that describe managerial situations in which marketing research may be useful. As an example, one of the cases (on the topic of recommendation engines used in e-commerce) is posted below:
MBA 650 – Case – Hawthorne Woodworking Supplies
– Eric DeRosia
Example of a Moderator Guide
In my marketing research class, I assign students to create a focus group moderator guide for a case. Prior to that assignment, I give students this file as a good example of a moderator guide. In my experience, the best moderator guides give the moderator “room to run” with participant responses, allowing the focus group to be semi-structured rather than rigidly structured.
– Eric DeRosia