MKTG1045 MARKET RESEARCH

MKTG1045 MARKET RESEARCH

FINAL ASSESSMENT

SEMESTER 2, 2020

ASSESSMENT DETAILS

Due date: MONDAY 26^th OCTOBER, 11:59PM (MELBOURNE TIME), via the MKTG1045 Canvas.

Your final assessment should be formatted and submitted according to the instructions below. It is your responsibility to carefully read and completely adhere to these instructions, as well as the assessment requirements, also stated below.

This assessment totals to 50 marks and is weighted at 50% of your final grade for this course.

FORMATTING AND SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

Your final assessment should be submitted via the Canvas link called “Download and Submit Final Assessment Here”. The submission process includes your assessment being put through Turnitin, where it will be checked for similarity with other students’ assessments and outside sources (including course lecture slides). Plagiarism will be investigated as a breach of academic integrity.

Your submission must adhere to the following guidelines:

• The final assessment must be submitted as a written document (Word or PDF file). No other file types (e.g., Pages) will be accepted.
• Times New Roman size 12 font, 1.5 line spacing, 2.5cm margins should be used (except where otherwise instructed in the final assessment – see Assessment Question 1).
• Paragraphs should be concise and follow a logical order. Bullet points can also be used where appropriate and useful (e.g., listing information).
• Tables may be used where instructed (again, see Assessment Question 1).
• You can format text in bold, italic, underline, or highlight where appropriate and useful.
• All pages are to be numbered in the bottom right corner.
• Please clearly label your response to each question (e.g., Question 1). You do not need to repeat the text of the question in your submission (this creates problems for Turnitin).
• Your name, student number, and course code should be included in the header of your submission document or on a cover page (a cover page is not included in the page limit).
• You do not need to include an executive summary, introduction, or conclusion. Your submission only needs to include your written responses to the three (3) assessment questions. You must include SPSS output where instructed (see Assessment Question 2).
• There is also no need to include a reference list since you are not required to draw on outside material. If you make the choice to include outside material, you will need to reference these appropriately and include in the page limit.
• Appendices are not required and will not be marked. SPSS output should appear in the body of your submission where instructed (again, see Assessment Question 2).

THERE IS A STRICT 10-PAGE LIMIT FOR YOUR SUBMISSION, USING THE FORMATTING INSTRUCTIONS ABOVE. ANYTHING THAT EXCEEDS 10 PAGES WILL NOT BE MARKED.

ASSESSMENT REQUIREMENTS

• The final assessment takes the form of a case study analysis.
• First, you will be presented with a written case study of a company. The case study includes:
  • A market research brief (see pages 3-4)
  • A questionnaire (‘Hanover Questionnaire’, see Canvas where you downloaded this document)
  • An SPSS datafile (‘Hanover SPSS Datafile’ see Canvas where you downloaded this document)
• Students will need to utilize and analyse all these materials to address the assessment questions.
• Second, you will be presented with three (3) assessment questions (see pages 5-7). Students will need to answer ALL questions. In doing so, students are required to act as a market research consultant whose role is to analyse the situation presented in the market research brief (as well as the questionnaire and SPSS datafile provided) and propose responses and recommendations. Specifically, you are required to prepare a written response to each of the three (3) assessment questions.
• The marks available for each question are listed next to it.
• Your responses to these questions should reflect your applied learning and resonate key knowledge and recommendations that are appropriate to the case study. Importantly, the questions seek your application, not regurgitation, of theory. You are expected to go above and beyond repeating information, and you must show application of theory, critical analysis, strategic insight, and structured thinking.
• It is recommended that you rely on your own learning and acquired knowledge in responding – that is, there should be no need to go outside the material you have already been provided (in the case study and the knowledge and skills you have learned throughout the semester) to respond to the questions. Please use your own words and strategic insights rather than looking to simply apply that directly of others.
• You must access the SPSS software to complete the final assessment. SPSS can be accessed via RMIT myDesktop and instructions for doing so can be found as follows:
  • How-to video (Weeks 9, 10, 11 Learning Materials)
  • Tutorial slides (Week 10 Learning Materials)
• You are required to complete this task individually without conferring with others (this includes your tutors and fellow students). Any student who is found to have breached this rule by engaging in consultation or discussion with others, through any form of media or contact, will be investigated for academic misconduct.
• Please direct ALL questions about the final assessment to the course coordinator, Dr. Amanda Spry (amanda.spry@rmit.edu.au) prior to the deadline.
  • Please note: The course coordinator can only answer questions related to administrative, clarification, or technical issues. They will not be providing guidance or advice on how to complete the questions nor will they review your answers.
• ***IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT SPECIAL CONSIDERATION***
  • Each student is responsible for correctly submitting their final assessment prior to the deadline.
  • If circumstances prevent students from being able to do this, they will need to apply for an extension prior to the deadline by:
    • Contacting the course coordinator
    • Visiting the Special Consideration website: https://www.rmit.edu.au/students/student-essentials/assessment-and-exams/assessment/special-consideration

MARKET RESEARCH BRIEF

Please read the market research brief below. It is provided by your client called Hanover.

Note: Hanover was a not-for-profit organization based in Melbourne, and the brief, questionnaire, and SPSS datafile included here were used in a past project conducted for Hanover. However, this organization and project are no longer active.

This case study has been set purely for assessment purposes. You do not need to undertake any further research on the company background.

Company Background

Hanover is a community agency that provides a range of services to people experiencing homelessness. Hanover is independent and has no structural links with churches, institutions or governments and has been providing support to those in need for almost 50 years.

Our services include the provision of:

• crisis, medium- and long-term accommodation
• education, training and employment solutions
• practical support, advice and guidance

Our mission is to empower people who are homeless or at risk of becoming so, to enable them to take greater control of their lives. Our mission is also to stimulate and encourage change in Australian society to benefit people experiencing homelessness. Our statement of values: Hanover values integrity in all its relationships, intelligence in its processes, the intrinsic worth of each individual and development and nurturing of community participation.

Hanover also provides a range of services and programs that focus on the prevention of homelessness. We provide specialist support services for young people, children, families and couples and singles. We also provide support for people with alcohol and substance addictions. We also play an important advocacy role with government.

Notably, Hanover, in partnership with the Brotherhood of St Laurence, opened the first Youth Foyer in Victoria. The Foyer is an integrated learning and accommodation centre which aims to develop the skills of young people (16-24 years) who can’t live at home by providing and combining affordable accommodation, education and training and employment so they can break the cycle of homelessness and lead independent, rewarding lives.

Past Market Research

We are a sector leader, renowned for our commitment to research – our research not only provides an evidence base to provide solutions to addressing homelessness, it also has an important focus on investigating the causes of homelessness across Australia.

One of Hanover’s flagship studies was undertaken in 2007, in partnership with its corporate sponsors, Maurice Blackburn Cashman and Roberts Research, to ascertain the public’s views about homelessness. This entailed focus groups with the general public about their attitudes and understanding of the causes, dimensions, responsibility and possible solutions of homelessness. The six focus groups were then followed up by a national telephone survey of 1000 respondents – the largest survey ever undertaken in Australia on this particular topic. While the research revealed that the general public tends to focus on the individual attributes or behaviour of people who experience homelessness, it also showed that a majority of people considered that the government was the main agency responsible for solving homelessness.

More recently, Hanover has conducted market research to better understand youth perceptions of homelessness in Victoria. Specifically, this project surveyed Victorians aged 18-25 years old regarding the perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs about homelessness. Further details of this study are provided below under ‘Current Market Research’.

Current Market Research

Project title: Youth Perceptions of Homelessness in Victoria

Project aim: To gain insight into the perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs about homelessness held by Victorians aged 18-25 years old

Research objectives:

1. To measure the awareness of the homelessness issue in Victoria
2. To identify and measure perceptions about homelessness
3. To identify and measure attitudes and level of concern towards people experiencing homelessness
4. To identify and measure beliefs about solutions to homelessness

The chosen research method was a survey. This can be found in the ‘Hanover Questionnaire’ file.

Key details of the survey research are below:

Target population: Young Victorians aged 18-25 years old

Sampling method: Judgement sample

Sample size: See Hanover SPSS datafile

The data collected with this survey can be found in the ‘Hanover SPSS Datafile’.

Hanover would like your assistance, as a market research consultant, to analyse the data they collected with this survey and develop recommendations. The specific tasks they would like you to address are detailed in the Assessment Questions (pages 5-7).

Remember that you will need to use the above brief, as well as the Hanover Questionnaire and Hanover SPSS Datafile (both on Canvas where you downloaded this document).

ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS

You need to complete ALL three (3) assessment questions below. Ensure you respond to these questions adhering to the instructions and requirements stated on pages 1-2.

All of the information you need to complete these questions is contained within this document, the Hanover questionnaire, and the Hanover SPSS datafile, in combination with the knowledge and skills you have learned throughout the semester.

QUESTION 1

This question relates to Hanover’s current market research project titled ‘Youth Perceptions of Homelessness in Victoria’ and requires you to work with the ‘Hanover Questionnaire’.

Hanover requests that you outline a data analysis plan based on the ‘Hanover Questionnaire’ they have given you.

For each of the following hypotheses, please state:

• The most correct descriptive OR inferential statistical test

• The number of variables involved
• The specific variables involved from the questionnaire and the level of measurement scale each variable is expressed upon
• A justification for why the proposed test is correct for the hypothesis

A note about formatting for Assessment Question 1: You can choose to present your response in text or a table. IF YOU CHOOSE A TABLE, you may use (1) landscape or portrait formatting and (2) single-line spacing to aid readability and a neat format.

1. Identify the number and percentage of people who define homelessness as (a) ‘living on the streets’ and (b) ‘dependent on government welfare’

2. Assess people’s average perceptions of those experiencing homelessness on the following aspects: (a) mental health status and (b) physical health status

3. The overall level of concern for people experiencing homelessness is significantly greater than ‘neutral’ on a 5-point scale

4. Perceptions of how serious homelessness is as a problem in Victoria is significantly different between people who know someone who is experiencing or has experienced homelessness and people who do not know someone in this category

5. The level of concern for youths experiencing homelessness is significantly lower than the level of concern for elderlies

6. Ethnic background is significantly associated with awareness of people experiencing homelessness in Victoria

7. The likelihood to volunteer for a relevant charity is significantly associated with people’s agreement/disagreement that they play a role in helping solve the issue of homelessness

8. The likelihood that people will donate to a relevant charity is predicted by (a) gender (b) education level (c) likelihood to provide monetary support (d) likelihood to provide non-monetary support (e) likelihood to volunteer for a relevant charity (f) likelihood to think reason for homelessness is economic downturn and (g) likelihood to think reason for homelessness is loss of employment

(12 marks)

QUESTION 2

This question also relates to Hanover’s current market research project titled ‘Youth Perceptions of Homelessness in Victoria’. It requires you to work with the ‘Hanover Questionnaire’ and the ‘Hanover SPSS datafile’.

Hanover requests that you now conduct the data analysis for their eight (8) hypotheses, following the plan you outlined for Assessment Question 1.

For each of the eight (8) hypotheses, you will need to conduct the correct statistical test to address the hypothesis and then present the following in your submission document:

1. The SPSS output from each statistical test you conducted (you can copy/screenshot this output and paste it into your submission document. You can include only the relevant parts of the output and you can resize it, to meet the page limit requirements. However, the SPSS output must still be neat and readable).
2. Your interpretation of the SPSS output from each statistical test you conducted. This should be written in text and contain your interpretation of all relevant parts of/numbers from the SPSS output and what they mean in relation to the hypothesis you’re testing.
3. Based on your SPSS output and interpretation, make a recommendation to Hanover in terms of how they could increase the likelihood that people will donate to a relevant charity.

(22 marks)

QUESTION 3

Your client, Hanover, is highly satisfied with the data analysis plan you outlined for Assessment Question 1 and the data analysis you conducted for Assessment Question 2.

Now, Hanover have requested that you conduct a short follow-up survey aimed at better understanding the attitudes and behaviours of individuals on the issue of homelessness, as well as their perceptions of the Victorian State Government, during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Hanover have sent you a publish of this new survey, which you will see below under ‘Hanover publish Follow-up Survey’.

You will need to review the publish survey and for each question in the publish survey:

1. Identify and explain any problem/s with the question wording and/or the measurement scale used. If you do not see any problem/s with a question, explain why this is the case.
2. Rewrite the survey question and/or measurement scale in a way that addresses the problem/s you identified.
3. Last, make a recommendation to Hanover as to which survey mode they should use to distribute this follow-up survey. Outline three factors that you considered and how each factor influenced your decision of which survey mode to recommend to Hanover.

(16 marks)

HANOVER publish FOLLOW-UP SURVEY

Q1 Have you donated money and donated items (e.g., food, drink) to a person experiencing homelessness in the last week?

• Yes
• No

Q2 Have you donated money to an organization that supports people experiencing homeless in the last two years?

• Yes
• No

Q3 On a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 = strongly disagree and 5 = strongly agree, to what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement:

‘I am a caring person who volunteers with organizations that support people experiencing homelessness’

Q4 On a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 = strongly disagree and 5 = strongly agree, to what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement:

‘The Victorian State Government has always done everything possible to support people experiencing homelessness during lockdown’

Q5 How often have you contributed to social issues in the last month?

• 0 times per month
• 0-1 times per month
• 1-2 times per month
• 3+ times per month

Q6 On a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 = not at all important and 5 = very important, how important is it to you personally to support people experiencing homelessness in Victoria?

Q7 What organizations are you aware of that support people experiencing homelessness during lockdown, such as Hanover? ______________________________________________________________________