Marketing Research

CERTIFIED PROFESSIONAL MARKETER (ASIA PACIFIC)
QUALIFYING EXAMINATIONS

MARCH 2001

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

SUBJECT : MARKETING RESEARCH

DATE : 19 MARCH 2001 (MONDAY)

TIME : 6.30PM to 9.30PM

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

INSTRUCTION TO CANDIDATES

1. The duration for this examination is THREE (3) hours.

2. This examination paper consists of THREE (3) sections and an answer sheet.

SECTION A - MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS (10 Marks)

Section A has 10 multiple choice questions worth one mark each. Answer ALL questions by circling
your answer on the answer sheet provided. Attach the answer sheet together with the Answer
Book. No deductions will be made for incorrect answers or non-responses.

SECTION B (30 Marks)

Section B has THREE (3) questions each worth 10 marks. Answer ALL questions in the answer book
provided.

SECTION C (60 Marks)

Section C has SIX (6) questions. Answer any THREE (3) out of six questions, for 20 Marks each, in the
answer book provided.
3. Please write your Examination Registration Number on all examination materials handed in. Do not
write your name.

4. Total number of pages (including this page) : 8

SECTION A: MULTIPLE CHOICE ( 10 MARKS)

Carefully read the TEN (10) multiple-choice questions given below and answer ALL of them. Circle

your answers on the answer sheet provided. Each correct answer is worth 1.00 mark. No

deductions will be made for incorrect answers or non-responses. Remove the answer sheet and

attach it to the Answer Book.

1. In the new millennium, the need for marketing information is stronger than ever because of:

a. expanded geographical coverage
b. switching emphasis from buyer wants to buyer needs
c. increased price competition
d. lengthening channels of distribution

2. The increasing adoption of the marketing concept by organization will most likely:

a. decrease the utilization of marketing research in the short run but increase it in the long run.
b. increase the utilization of marketing research in both short and long run.
c. increase the utilization of marketing research in the long term but not in the short run.
d. affect the use of marketing research, but the direction cannot be predicted;
decrease the utilization of marketing research in both short and long run.
3. Alpha Enterprise plans to use the results of an earlier primary research study to develop explanations for
the increased price sensitivity of consumers. The use of this research illustrates

a. conclusive research.
b. the research design.
c. secondary data analysis.
d. primary data collection.
4. John is conducting research to try to determine how the level of advertising expenditures affects sales of
a particular product. Which of the following statements concerning this research is false?
a. John is conducting experimental research.
b. In the research design, sales would be the independent variable and the level of advertising
expenditures would be the dependent variable.
c. John is conducting research designed to study cause-effect relationships.
d. John’s research effort will require a more formal research design than if he was conducting
exploratory research.
5. Recent buyers of "Sonal" brand of refrigerators are asked to rate their refrigerator purchased on the
basis of the "ease of cleaning, ease of storing eggs, convenience of the built-in ice maker, and fit, in
kitchen decor." This is an example of

a. Non-disguised research.
b. Applied research.
c. Basic research.
d. Scientific research.

6. If the names of the students in your class are written on 3x5 cards, shuffled, and 10 cards are drawn to
select 10 students to be interviewed, what type of process has occurred?

a. Quota sample
b. Stratified random sample
c. Systematic sample
d. Random sample

7. Carefully evaluate the following statements about the relationship between a manager’s experience and
marketing research. Which of the following statement(s) is true?

a. In making decisions, marketing managers must always conduct marketing research.
b. In many decision situations marketing research may not at all be necessary as manager’s
experience alone may be relied on.
c. Marketing research and a manager’s experience often compliment each other.
d. B and C above.

8. Of the following statements, __________ is not a characteristic of the number system.

a. Equal differences can be defined.
b. Ordering of the number follows a convention.
c. Each number in the system is divisible.
d. Equal ratios can be defined.

9. After studying the case histories of Singapore businesses, you want to be able to classify companies as
probable successes or failures. The appropriate statistical tool is:

a. Multiple regression
b. Discriminant analysis
c. Factor analysis
d. ANOVA
10. In a research report, items such as raw data, calculations and statistical analyses should be contained
in the _______ section.

a. Introduction
b. Methodology
c. Data analysis
d. Appendix

SECTION B: ( 30 MARKS)

There are THREE (3) questions, each worth 10 marks, in this section. Answer ALL questions in the
answer book provided.

Question 1

Write a short essay on basic and applied research explaining their characteristics and use in marketing.
(10 marks)

Question 2

List the various research designs available to researchers and compare and contrast them in terms of their
objectives, characteristics and methods.
(10 marks)

Question 3

What questions must a researcher answer in order to select the appropriate statistical procedure for data
analysis?
(10 marks)

SECTION C ( 60 MARKS)

Answer any THREE (3) of the SIX (6) questions. Each is worth 20 marks.

Question 1

a. Explain marketing research and its importance and usefulness in the context of marketing in your own
country.
( 8 marks)
b. How does it relate to marketing information system?
(6 marks)
c. Describe three situations when marketing research may not be necessary?
(6 marks)

Question 2

a. Explain a focus group, its basic characteristics and objectives.
(9 marks)

b. Discuss some of the major advantages of focus groups.
(5 marks)

c. What are some of the desirable characteristics for focus group moderators?
(6 marks)

Question 3

a. Explain attitude and the objective and usefulness of attitude measurement in marketing research.
(6 marks)
b. What questions must the researcher always ask when measuring attitudes?
(4 marks)
c. Briefly explain the general methods of attitude measurement in marketing.
(10 marks)

Question 4

a. Define sample, sampling frame and sampling error.
(6 marks)
b. A national youth organization in your country has 1800 currently active youth members and 3,000
ex-members. In national conventions held every second year, both categories of members are invited to
participate. However, it has been observed that the proportion of the current and ex-members attending
the convention has been about 20 percent only. The leaders of the organization are keen to raise the
proportion of attendance. Keeping this in view, the present Director of the membership program wants
to conduct a survey to find out how the attendance may be enhanced.
i. What sampling frame(s) would likely be available for this purpose?
(3 marks)
ii. Should there be two samples to conduct the study or one? Why? Explain how you would select a
simple random sample of current and ex-members.
(6 marks)
iii. What should be the sample size if the director wanted to use a 95% level of confidence and an error
margin of � 5% in his computation.
(5 marks)

Question 5

You have been asked to develop a survey questionnaire to determine consumers' attitudes toward the health
care provided by the public hospitals in your capital city. What type of questions (i.e., disguised/ non-disguised/combination; open-ended/closed ended etc.) would be preferable in this situation? How many
questions should you ask? Explain your answer.
(20 marks)

Question 6

Consider the following data obtained from a survey conducted by an office canteen in Singapore.

______________________________________________________________________

Respondent Sex Age Race Preferences for Average consumption per
Lunchtime meal week [times] of preferred: Food Drink Food Drink

______________________________________________________________________


Analyze the data and write a short report. Your report must contain

i. A frequency distribution of respondents’ age, gender and race.
(3 marks)
ii. Total consumption of three types of foods and two types of drinks.
(2 marks)
iii. Cross-tabulation of the respondent’s
a. Age and sex with drink preference, and
(4 marks)
b. Race and sex with food and drink preference.
(8 marks)
iv. Other observations about the data.
(3 marks)

* END OF PAPER*

Zahid Ibrahim	M	19	Malay	Malayan	Cola	5	2
P. Narayanam	M	17	Indian	Chinese	Non-cola	3	5
Tony Chia	M	20	Chinese	Malayan	Non-cola	1	7
Winnie Teo	F	19	Chinese	Indian	Cola	5	2
Jimmy Tay	M	18	Chinese	Chinese	Cola	4	4
Halima	F	18	Malay	Malayan	Cola	4	4
Albert Wong	M	17	Chinese	Indian	Non-cola	3	8
Molly Tan	F	19	Chinese	Indian	Non-cola	7	1
Zulekha Aini	F	19	Indian	Malayan	Cola	2	6
Alfred Tan	M	17	Chinese	Chinese	Non-cola	5	3
Eddy Gan	M	18	Chinese	Chinese	Non-cola	5	1
Julie Chew	F	20	Chinese	Indian	Cola	2	6
Jack Tay	M	18	Chinese	Chinese	Cola	4	4
Jubaida	F	16	Malay	Malayan	Cola	4	4
Alvin Wong	M	17	Chinese	Chinese	Non-cola	5	4
Felicia Tan	F	19	Chinese	Indian	Non-cola	1	7
Zohair Ali	M	18	Malay	Malayan	Cola	4	4
James Wan	M	17	Chinese	Malayan	Non-cola	3	8
Lily Tay	F	16	Chinese	Indian	Cola	5	1
Jacob Goh	M	18	Chinese	Malayan	Cola	2	6