Urgent 2

Wendy’s International Inc. is the number three hamburger chain by sales, which trail only those of McDonald’s and Burger King. As of 2005, there were more than 6,500 Wendy’s restaurants worldwide, offering burgers and fries as well as alternative items such as baked potatoes, chilli, and salads. Whilst Wendy’s has continued to perform well, they are finding it extremely difficult to compete with their rival’s edgy marketing, such as McDonald’s “I’m lovin’ it” campaign. In order to survive the merciless fast-food industry, Wendy’s is conducting marketing research in order to improve service and brand orientation. Wendy’s is also considering further expansion in the United States.

Questions:

1. Define the Decision Maker’s Purpose (2 marks)

2. Specify the research question that addresses the information needs required to answer the Decision Maker’s Purpose (2 marks)

3. List two research objectives that would guide the marketing research team to develop a suitable research design (2 marks)

4. What research design would be appropriate for this research, and why? (2 marks)

Quantitative Analyses

The nappy industry has always been in a stage of flux. Right from the beginning of the industry in the early 1960s, this industry has gone through periods of rapid growth and fierce competition. Not many other players besides Proctor & Gamble (Pampers) and Kimberly-Clark (Huggies) have been able to penetrate the disposable nappy market. One of the important reasons for this barrier to entry is technology and innovation. P&G and KC have continuously made innovations and improved technology to make Pampers and Huggies, respectively, extra absorbent and extra convenient. As of 2009, the global market of the disposable nappy industry was around $25 billion, and the economic recession seems to have intensified competition between P&G and KC to capture and increase market share.

In an effort to increase market share and customer satisfaction, KC initiated a customer survey. KC wanted to get specific information from potential customers to better understand market segments and related demographics. Since the focus of a new campaign will be on direct mail, the survey concerns the evaluation of a mailer. Based on the results of this survey, KC management will devise further strategies.

Use the SPSS data provided at the end of this supplementary task to address the following questions regarding the results of the survey.

Note: In some instances, you should choose the appropriate output based on assumptions for tests. Not all output is required.

Question 1 (3 marks)

Kimberly-Clark would like an overall assessment on how consumers evaluate KC products.

a) Describe the distribution of ‘Overall Quality’ in statistical terms. (2 marks)

b) Explain your statistical interpretation for KC management. (1 mark)

Question 2 (2 marks)

Kimberly-Clark wants to know if there is a difference in likelihood to purchase KC nappies (Likely to Purchase) for consumers that have a baby boy or a baby girl.

a) Interpret the appropriate output required to test these results. Explain your conclusion with reasoning. (2 marks)

Question 3 (4 marks)

Kimberly-Clark is interested in determining whether there is a difference in consumer evaluations regarding brand evaluations and their marketing communications.

a) Is there a significant difference between ‘Brand I trust’ and ‘Brand I recommend’? Interpret the appropriate output and explain your conclusion with reasoning. (2 marks)

b) Is there a significant difference between ‘Information is understandable’ and ‘Information is new & different’? Interpret the appropriate output and explain your conclusion with reasoning. (2 marks)

Question 4 (3 marks)

Kimberly-Clark used a 4-item scale to measure consumer evaluations towards their marketing communications. Was their scale reliable? Could it be improved?

a) Examine the appropriate output and provide a statistical interpretation. (2 marks)

b) What would you suggest to Kimberly-Clark based on these results? (1 mark)

SPSS OUTPUT

Likely to Purchase

Overall Quality

Brand I Trust

Brand I Recommend

Information is New & Different

Information is Understandable

T-Test

Mann-Whitney Test

T-Test

Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test

Reliability