|M2| Explain the Limitations of Marketing Research Used to

Contribute to the Development of a Selected Organization’s

Marketing Plans

Aarong being a popular fashion house for their designs with a unique blend of Bengali tradition
and western culture in their clothing products had decided to go for a marketing research in order
to find out the current trend and the actual want of their beloved customers. (Aarong, 2019)

Marketing Research is a systematic method of collecting, organizing and analyzing the data of
the customers, market, consumers, competitors, etc. The predominant purpose of going through
this process is to increase sales, secure profit or at least touch the breakeven point. Market
Research without a doubt is one of the most effective ways to meet customers’ needs and create
a name in the industry. (Markus, 2016)

Aarong had decided to use different marketing research methods in order to collect effective
data and information, which can help them find the current trend of clothing and know what the
customers want in order to enhance their satisfaction level.

Aarong had explored the fields of both primary and secondary research methods and selected a
few suitable research methods, which had effectively helped Aarong to collect valuable data from
their customers in order to attain their objectives. However, along with the advantages, there
always remain a few limitations. There were a few limitations in the methods Aarong had used
in order to conduct the research. The research types, their limitations and also the opportunities
have been briefed below with the use of a table:

Research Methods Limitations Opportunities

Primary Research
Observation Time Consuming Reliable
Limited Information Access to Real Life Situation
Not In Depth
Survey Low Response Rate Capture Large Scale
Analysis can Remain Unclear Inexpensive
 High Chance of Dishonest and Biased Quick
Answers
E- Market Research High Chance of Unauthentic Information Easy to Conduct
Low Response Rate Can Capture Large Scale
Biased Answers Low Cost
24/7 Availability
Focus Group Inside Conflicts In Depth Research
Tough to Arrange Useful Recommendation
Chance of Low Outcome Very Authentic Data
Secondary Research
(Internal Sources)
Database Increased Cost of Maintenance Easy Access
Cost of Building an Information System Authentic Information
Hacking
EPOS Technical Errors Fast Access
Regular Maintenance Reliable
System Crack
Accounting & Production Errors of Monetary Values while Recording Easy and Inexpensive Access
Records
Secondary Research
(External Sources)
Internet Unreliable Information Easy Access
Viruses Fast
Popups Inexpensive
Magazines Information Provided can be Vague Trendy Information
Fashion Information
Annual Reports Rivals Might Get Access to Aarong’s Annual Authentic Data
Reports too

Primary Research

The researching method where the researcher collects data directly through various researching
methods like observation, piloting, and taking surveys in a particular subject or area other than
relying on the data which has been collected before is primary research. In easier words, it is the
research where we conduct research on First Time Data. It is very important for primary research
to be cost efficient, accurate, valid and fit for purpose. Aarong has used various methods of
primary research like, Observation, Survey, Focus Group and E-Market Research. (Driscoll, 2016)

There are some Limitations of Primary Research and they are, first of all, primary research
methods are way more time consuming compared to secondary research methods. As the data
is being collected for the first time, the time needed for analysis and collection is comparatively
way more than secondary research. On the other hand, in primary research the coverage is going
to be limited too, so, the areas Aarong is going to research on by covering are going to be the
only areas the information can be gathered from. (Hox, 2005)

Primary research is also comparatively expensive as there are different costs such as, researcher’s
charge, transport cost and many other expenditures. There also remains the risk of biased
answers from the people the researches are conducted on, so, there also might be time, where
the output is not as expected. Untimely response from the responders is a major problem of
primary research and that is devastating. Last but not least, for primary data collection, trained
people are required to conduct the research. Therefore, Aarong must be aware of the
expenditure, time-management and the risk of unsuccessful marketing for doing primary
research. (Hox, 2005)

On the bright side there also are various advantages of primary research, the data collected
using primary research is way more authentic compared to most of the secondary research
sources. The analysis of the primary research is in depth and on the other hand, according to the
want of the researcher. For example, if Aarong conducts a primary research now, they obviously
are going to conduct it about their customer’s choice, fashion trends of the current generation,
etc. which are going to be very relevant for their business. So, primary research can be very
effective for this types of circumstances. (Hox, 2005)

As Aarong has used different methods of primary research their limitations and opportunities
have been described below
Survey

A professional method of questioning is important. Survey is the marketing research method

where customers are provided forms and questionnaires consisting different effective questions
and sometimes also asked orally in order to collect data and information. Aarong can conduct
survey face-to-face, on telephone, through e-mail and by many other mediums. It is a very fast
method of research and very effective too. (Bevan, 2010)

Some major disadvantages of survey are according to an authentic research, its response rate is
quite low, in an average response rate of the internal survey is only 33 % (Lindermann, 2018). On
the other hand, there is a high chance of having biased answers from the customers. On the other
hand, sometimes, the customers are not even interested to fill up the survey and as a result, they
fill up the survey without having any concentration on it, it leads to irrelevant answers concluding
the overall research of companies like Aarong with irrelevancy. Last but not least, sometimes,
the answers provided on the survey remains unclear, later on it becomes a problem for the
analyzers to analyze. In order to prevent the low response rate, Aarong can provide the survey
takers incentives such as chocolates, gifts, etc. (Debois, 2019)

Aarong hadn’t gone for open ended question because it leads to various different answers, which
sometimes might irrelevant and on the other hand, there also remains the chance of having blank
answers, which will draw to no conclusion. So, Aarong has gone for dichotomous, multiple choice
and rating based questions. (Debois, 2019)

However, Survey has a few great advantages too. Firstly, Survey can cover a huge scale of
people in a very short amount of time and also can bring an effective outcome. Aarong had
designed a proper questionnaire with different questions regarding the current trend, customers’
want and their satisfaction level towards Aarong and Aarong has got a good response from the
survey. Last but not least, Survey is very cost-efficient compared to most of the other research
methods. The only cost for conducting the survey is the cost of production of the questionnaires
and designing them. (Reddy, 2017)
Observation

This is a very basic form of primary research where the researcher watch, hear, basically, they
observe the actual or potential customers of the market in order to collect information or data.
Yielding very appropriate data can be done using this method because the researcher is the
witness of the data, so, it cannot be wrong anyway. However, observation can cost Aarong a lot
of time because traveling to a place, waiting for the right time and moment will cost you time.
On the other hand, traveling, hiring a researcher and observing will cost us a lot of money making
the research expensive too. (Malhotra, 2007)

The limitations of this method are, first of all the data collected from this method is very limited
as Aarong will not be able to ask the customers different questions, all they can do is observe
their actions and reactions and make a judgment based on that. The method is very time
consuming as the researcher Aarong is going to hire in order to judge the reactions and actions
of the customer needs to stay for a long time in order to find some effective and appreciable
observation. Last but not least, the information collected from observation is not even that in
depth because there is no chance of asking questions, surveying, etc. if they do that it is going to
be an interview, not observation. Overall, Aarong must be cautious about the limitations of
observation in order to use this method. (Abby, 2017)

Along with the limitations there are some advantages too, observation is a very reliable
form of primary research as the researcher himself is present in the area and the data
collected from the place is obviously going to be authentic and relevant. Secondly, the
researcher is going to have access to the real life emotion and actions of the customers in
Aarong’s outlet, it will help Aarong to know about the true and in depth opinions of the
customers. Although it might be tough to find out something interesting and appreciable
form observation, still, great outcomes can be expected by Aarong. (Abby, 2017)

E-Market Research

In this era of technology, E-market research is indeed the most popular and extremely effective.
In this method, researchers go through surveys on the internet through e-mails, ads, texting and
many others. This helps to motivate the actual customers and attract more potential customers.
Another bright side of this method is that it is very cost efficient and a fast method. Aarong can
go through e-market research in order to know different customer perspectives about the
upcoming trends and on the other hand, their satisfaction level towards Aarong’s well-crafted
products. (Ahmed, 2014)

Some major limitations of E-market research are, the chance of having unauthentic information
because on the internet there is a high chance of going across unauthentic information as anyone
can share their perspective and there is no assurance that the information is right. There is a huge
chance for the information collected from the internet to be unauthorized and wrong. On the
other hand, just like usual survey, the response rate of internet survey is low, in fact the response
rate of internet survey is even lower. There is a high chance of dishonest and biased answers
through online surveys just like traditional methods of survey. Last but not least, there are people
who would prefer traditional approach from Aarong instead of online surveys, so, Aarong must
be prepared for that too. (Ahmed, 2014)

On the bright side, e-market research is very easy to conduct and can capture a huge amount of
information from a large scale of people in a very short amount of time, this is something most
of the companies like Aarong want. Through e-market research, Aarong can research anytime of
the day because internet is available 24/7. Last but not least, social media is a very active and
trendy medium right now and majority of the people use it, making proper use of social media in
order to do marketing can help Aarong have great outcome. (Ahmed, 2014)

Focus Group

In this method of Primary Research, businesses like Aarong unite a group of customers in order
to experiment, analyze and share opinions about products of companies like Aarong and many
others. This method is going to be quite effective for Aarong as Aarong will get to know about
their products’ loopholes and also will have suggestions for the upcoming products they are going
to launch in Eid. It leads to a quite in-depth analysis. (Harrison, 2011)

Some major limitations of Focus Group, Aarong must be aware of are, there is a chance of
having inside conflicts, which will lead to low amount of output and on the other hand, also will
waste the valuable time of Aarong. On the other hand, there is a chance of irrelevant discussions
in order to prevent that, Aarong can have people to friendlily monitor the discussion of the focus
group. There is going to be higher expense compared to survey and many other methods. Aarong
might find difficulties on convincing the selected samples for join them in a focus group. Providing
incentives can help them greatly. There remains a chance of low outcome and that is a major
problem Aarong must be aware of. (Thompson, 2019)

Along with the disadvantages there are great advantages too and that is why Aarong chose
the method. First of all, the research leads to very authentic data and data authenticity for
Aarong is quite important in order to know the current trends, which will help them hugely to
come up with designs to catch customers’ attention. The recommendation provided by the
people of the focus group is going to be very effective and relevant and as the sample are
common people and brought for a purpose, the recommendation has a very low chance of being
biased. Last but not least, the research is very in depth and will be considering different aspects.

Secondary Research

The form of research conducted by analyzing the data or information, which has been researched
before by someone else for some other purpose or same purpose is secondary research. In easier
words, conducting a research on a collected/existing data other than, going out in the field and
researching through observation and various other techniques. This is an easier form of research
and take less time but obviously, it is not as relevant or up to the mark as the primary research
method. This method is cheaper too. Aarong can use this method for knowing the current fashion
trend of the market in a very swift manner because, there is internet, newspaper, magazines and
many other external sources, which can keep Aarong updated with different fashion related
information. On the other hand, Aarong can also find out their own data by doing research on
the internal sources and analyze it for betterment that is a form of secondary research too.
(Jones, 2011)

There are some limitations of secondary research. First of all, the data collected might have the
chance of being unauthorized, unreliable and irrelevant, so, it is crucial for Aarong to thoroughly
analyze the data once it is collected. Second of all, the information will not be as up to date as
primary research as the information collected is old and existing whereas the information
collected in primary research is totally new and original data. The data might not even be as
specific as Aarong wants, Aarong will need to make the data specific for their purpose by
analyzing the data. Overall, Aarong must be cautious about outdated and irrelevant data as they
are conducting the research about the current market, therefore outdated and irrelevant data
are never going to help Aarong. (Burns, 2016)

There also are a few advantages of this method and they are, the data can be collected very
quickly and the cost is extremely low, so, over all, it will be a very efficient research for Aarong if
they go for secondary research. It also helps to enhance the primary data as it makes the data
even more researched, refined and improved, so it will help Aarong if the data is intensified and
modified according to Aarong’s want. (Burns, 2016)

Internal Sources

Internal sources are the sources from where the researchers collect the data, which exist within
the business in order to do research. Some examples of Aarong’s internal sources are, data
records, EPOS, Accounting and Production records. The sources can be easily accessed as they
exist within the business. (Jones, 2011)

Database

Aarong stores all their data in an organized way, so, that later on the analyzers can easily get
access to it, do, research and analyze and finally produce a report with effective findings.
Aarong’s data base can contain, sales records, employee records, product records and many
others including customer records. So, it was very effective for the researchers, while they were
analyzing. (Bevan, 2010)

Some limitation of this method are, first of all it increases the cost of maintenance as the
database need to be maintained by skilled employees and they have a charge, on the other hand,
building an information system also leads to a dynamic charge and in the current era, it is quite
important for huge companies like Aarong to have a secure and accessible information system.
Last but not least, the risk of hackers is always there, there are cloud hackers, who might get
access to Aarong’s information system and as a result there might be leakage of sensitive and
delicate information. However, to prevent it Aarong must build a very secure and highly
protected information system.

Along with the disadvantages there are some notable advantages too, firstly the access to the
database is extremely easy and the researchers can get the data in a very fast manner because
the data exists within Aarong. Secondly, the information collected from the database has to be
authentic because these are records recorded by the employees of Aarong, the chances of
unauthentic data is extremely low.

EPOS

EPOS stands for Electronic Point of Sales, it is used for keeping record product price, sales and
many other data. Using this Aarong can have better grip on their products and customers and
can take proper steps. (Jones, 2011)

There is a minimum amount of disadvantage for EPOS, one of them is that there might be
technical errors, which may lead to huge misconception about Aarong’s sales and many other
monetary values and Aarong must be aware of that. Secondly, the system of the EPOS can get
cracked and as a result useful data will be lost. Last but not least, EPOS obviously needs
maintenance and Aarong must be cautious about it.

On the bright side, the access to EPOS is very fast and it records authentic data. If EPOS is
maintained in a proper way, there will be an extremely low chance of having different types of
difficulties, so, Aarong must use this research method to know different information about their
products, price, etc.

Accounting and Production Records:

The predominant and professional business related records are these two. Accounting records
are the monetary records of Aarong and production records are the production records, it may
carry the amount of products produced, the amount of products, which have not been used,
etc. The analyzers can use this two records in order to plan the future products of Aarong with
a proper budget and with the previous records of different products.
Some minor limitations of this source are, there might be errors during calculating the monetary
values by the Accounting department. Aarong must check the values by hiring a professional
audit in order to be sure and confident about the data.

It is in fact a very easily accessible source, which is in fact a great advantage because it can be
accessed in a very fast way.

External Sources

External sources are the sources of data, which don’t exist within the business but the
researchers of Aarong can collect the data and information from different sources outside the
business, such as newspapers, research papers, internet and many others, is called research using
external sources. It is a very crucial method of researching nowadays, as it is easy and can also
provide valid information. (Bevan, 2010)

Internet

Internet is a facility that offers a humongous range of data from different aspects and sites.
Aarong can find out different information from the internet, which may help their research in a
magnificent way. For example, there are information about the latest fashion trends, price range
of other companies, etc.

The disadvantages of collecting information from the internet are, first of all, the information
can be unreliable as on the internet, anyone can share their thoughts and information, so, it is
important for Aarong to find out if the information they gather from the internet is authentic or
not. Reliable sources are always authentic. Secondly, there is the risk of viruses because different
unreliable sites can pass it to the computers of the researchers and that can draw a huge
problem. Last but not least, nowadays, a huge problem is popups, this may slow down the
research by a bit.

Some advantages of internet are, it has easy access as internet is very much available in this
modern era. On the other hand, it is fast and a huge amount of data can be collected in a very
short period of time. Last but not least, it is very inexpensive too, so, overall, internet is a very
efficient source.
Magazines

As Aarong is a fashion house, different fashion magazines can provide Aarong the information
about latest fashion styles, trends, designs and many more. Magazines are without a doubt a
great help for fashion companies, which sell clothing.

The information provided by the magazines can be vague sometimes and that is a
disadvantage. Vague information can lead to misconception for companies like Aarong, so, good
analyzers and researchers must be acquired by them in order to make the research successful
using different external sources like magazines, newspapers, etc. Lastly, some magazines can be
expensive to buy, which will lead to an expenditure.

The advantages are very simple, Aarong being a fashion house, trendy and fashion information
are needed for every occasion, so, magazines can hugely help Aarong to gather the data and
information they seek.

In the conclusion it can be said that, Aarong has conducted a successful research exploring
different research methods both primary research and secondary research. Although primary
research methods helped to collect very in depth and relevant data, secondary research helped
Aarong to collect various data in a large scale and in a very efficient with low cost. However, there
were many barriers, limitations and disadvantages of this method, which Aarong had to aware
off such as unauthentic data, time efficiency, proper outcome, downtime and many others. Along
with the limitations there were countless advantages and that is why Aarong had selected these
research methods to conduct the research. Overall, it was a successful research, which has
helped Aarong to apprehend the current market trend, their customers’ satisfaction level,
customers’ want and their opinions about Aarong.