| Consumer Brand Preferences Report | |||||
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METHODOLOGY This section explains how the initial data was gathered from the sample group.
Structure of Questionnaire A questionnaire was the primary tool for data gathering; it was set up in an online Web page. A brief introduction explained what the survey intended to measure (the effect of advertising on brand preference) and the purpose of the survey (collect responses for further research and analysis in an educational setting). The first section of questions asked respondents to list the last brand they could recall purchasing from three different product types: bath soap, shampoo, and deodorant. Section 2 followed this up by having respondents rank their purchase preference between three given brands in each product category using a constant-sum scale — they had to divide 10 points between the three brands in each category, with 0 being least likely to buy and 10 being most likely to buy. Respondents were then shown three print advertisements, one for each brand of men's deodorant listed in Section 2: Suave, Gillette, and Adidas. After the ads, respondents were again asked to rank their purchase preference between the three brands with the constant-sum scale of 10 total points. A follow-up set of questions asked them to tell which brand (if any) they felt the most differently about after seeing the ads and why their attitude changed. The next section contained 10 statements about each brand name. Respondents were to indicate how strongly they agreed or disagreed with the statements by selecting one of the five given options from the Likert scale (Strongly Agree, Agree, Neither Agree nor Disagree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree). There were also two sections in which respondents answered statements based on the specific advertisements they saw. In the first of these sections, they were given a list of advertisment qualities (such as Boring, Informative, Memorable) and they were asked to select any and all qualities that the three ads contained. The second section had respondents answer Yes or No statements about the ads (such as "This ad was believable"). A final section collected demographic and lifestyle information: age, sex, education level, and deodorant purchasing habits (how often, specific brands).
Design of Research This survey used a copy testing format of measuring brand perception both pre- and post-advertisement exposure. Respondents were first asked to rank three brand names prior to advertising and then again immediately after viewing one print ad for each brand. Other attitudinal responses were also measured after viewing the ads. Due to time constraints and lack of sufficient resources, there was no control group against which to compare the responses.
Description of Sample A convenience sample was used for this research. Respondents were selected from the researcher's classmates and peers at the University of Texas, family members, and other personal friends outside the university. These respondents were also encouraged to pass along the survey to others (snowball sampling). Over the course of one week, about 70 individuals completed the questionnaire. Of these, a total of 62 responses were valid and could be used for the study.
Data Collection Process An Web page questionnaire was constructed and put online for respondents to access. Potential respondents were sent an email containing the link they could click. Using the Dreamweaver software program, the researcher created a form that would store completed responses into a Microsoft Access database. The information from the database was then transferred into an SPSS spreadsheet file from which all the statistical analyses could be performed. |
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