Importance of Research Study – Four Reasons Why We Need a Research Work

Reasearch Design Methods Have you ever thought how a new-best-seller product e.g. Iphone be made ? How did the producers get an idea to create product such Iphone? How did they choose the way to market the product?

Those questions above perhaps ever emerge in our mind, especially for those who try to market a new product and want to get success. In modern marketing concept, consumers are the main central of business where product to be marketed must meet the consumers’ wants. However, it is not an easy job since consumers are getting more complex today. They will buy only products those meet their expectation. Therefore, producers have no option other than producing products as consumers wants, even those are sometimes seem impossible.

Understanding and creating marketable products, as I said before, is not an easy job. In this tight competition producers even have to take years to create the perfect product. Through market research they attempt to collect a complete information about their target consumers, how is their behavior, their habit, all their expectation about particular products, etc. Although in this article, the example given is on the marketing case, but you must remember that research in real- business is also required by other departments such as the departments of finance, human resources, operations, and so on.

Before we talk more about the importance of research, lets recall again our memories about definition of research. Research basically defined as a set of activities to figure out any important information about particular material that will be used to support an idea. For example, if you intend to find out how consumer response to the product that you are selling then you can conduct a market test or research on consumer satisfaction. Another case if you want to find out if the new shares you buy will provide a positive benefit in the future then you can do research on the profitability of the company whose shares you bought it.

According to Mc.Carthy (2007) there are four importances of research for business:

1. Description function.

Research helps us describe how particular phenomena could happen. For example, when you want to know how respondent will response your new product then you get the answer by conducting a market testing research. In that research you might make the product prototype and let some potential consumers try your prototype. By that research you can figure out how their attitude toward your product.

2. Explanation function.

Besides, provide you with information about "how things happened", research also helps you find "the cause" why particular phenomena could happen. For instance, you already know how your potential consumers' response to your new product. Then, you can conduct a deeper investigation, e.g. by interviewing them why they act like that, why they like or dislike your products, etc.

3. Prediction function.

After we can figure out what is the cause of any phenomena, then we can make a prediction in the future. For example, from our previous research we figure out the mayor consideration for consumers buy a smart phone is its physical form so that we can predict that mostly people may choose some brand of smart phone based on its physical form. Therefore, in the future we should develop a good-looking-physical-form product as consumers may want.

4. Control behavior.

This function is the highest level in research function because not all products which have passed research for years could success in shaping consumers' behavior. Control behavior means we not only can predict, but also we can shape and direct our consumers' behavior. We can use a phenomenal product such Iphone as our example. When the first time Iphone5 was launched in China last year, it incredibly could reach more than two million units sold in only three days after it launched. We note that Iphone5 actually not only achieved that sophisticated sales number, but also it has successfully changed consumers behavior toward smart phone. We used to think that telephone, even mobile phone, must have a lot of buttons. However, Iphone changes that paradigm with a belief that modern mobile phone needs only one button.

From explanation above we now understand how important research for our business. Research provides information needed by company to make right decision. When we conduct research, we must put attention on objectivity of information we gained. Objective means information we gained should be based on fact, even the fact is not the same as our expectation or in other words it rejects our previous hypothesis. In spite of that fact is different from our first hypothesis does not mean this information cannot be used. It instead can prevent us from make a wrong decision that will trap us to bigger problem.

What is Research? – Research Definition and Four Common Mistakes inUsing Research Term

Reasearch Design Methods Managers in a company must face problems in their daily work. Take an example, a Marketing manager will often encounter such problems in which the company's sales decline. This problem is actually a "normal" case, but if the decline has lasted for a long time, then we need to figure out the cause of the problem to be able to create the right solution. We cannot only guessing what happened to find out the answer. We need to do an investigation to find the true facts. Many of marketing managers commonly conduct a deep investigation by interviewing their customers. They quest their customers what causes them to stop buying their products. From that activity we can determine the cause of the decline in sales as well as we can figure out exactly what consumers want.

Illustration above shows us a common phenomenon happens around us. We realize it or not, we actually do research in our daily lives. Our curiosity encourages us to investigate and search for the answer from any phenomenas happen. However, not all of our investigations led us to the right conclusion.  Why? The common reason is we didn’t perform the right procedures in our investigations.

We maybe popular with the term “research”. Literally, research comes from two syllables: “re” and “search” which means “to search again”.  According to Merriem-Webster about definition of research, it defines research as below:

“Studious inquiry or examination; especially : investigation or experimentation aimed at the discovery and interpretation of facts, revision of accepted theories or laws in the light of new facts, or practical application of such new or revised theories or laws.”

Another definition comes from Leedy who defines it from a more utilitarian point of view:

Research is a procedure by which we attempt to find systematically, and with the support of demonstrable fact, the answer to a question or the resolution of a problem.

While Kerlinger uses more technical language to define research as:

The systematic, controlled, empirical and critical investigation of hypothetical propositions about presumed relations among natural phenomena.

The similarity from definition above is they define research as a sistematic way of investigation to get facts in order to answer particular problems. Other literatures also add that information gained from research should be important. Important means research findings have benefits for human lives. We could see these benefits from two side, for academic purposes and for business. For academic side, research provides useful information to enrichs the existing knowledge and theories. While for business organizations, research helps them to find potential opportunities and also offers them information to overcome their problems.

Although the term “research” has been popular to us, these are some of the ways in which this term is wrongly used as cited from Nicholas Walliman (2001):

1. People may define research as a mere gathering of facts or information. Gathering information is part of research activities, however there are other activities included in research which begin with defining research problem, designing research plan, analyzing fndings and presenting research report.


2. People may define research as moving facts from one situation to another. Some people may say, “I have done my research, and come up with this information which I present in this paper”. It is easy to say that we have conducted a research because we have gathered information and presented it in a report. However, gathering information and presenting it do not automatically called as research. In research, we need to interpret that information before we present it.


3. Research is defined as an esoteric activity, far removed from practical life. While many research projects deal with abstract and theoretical subjects, we often forget that the activity of research has greatly influenced all aspects of our daily lives and created our understanding of the world.


4. Many producers use research as a word to get their product noticed. They use it to impress and build confidence. If we ask them about the evidence of their research and methology used, they might face you with incomprehension answer.

From the definitions above, we can conclude that research is defined as the systematic investigation into the study of materials, sources etc. in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions. The information gained from the research should be a fact and important. The term research also connotes patient study performed over and over again. Thus, reseachers must not conduct research carelessly, eventhough they deal with deadline to submit the report. Reseachers have to obey the rules in research, which are being objective and follow code of ethics in research.