From Oreos, Jell-O, raisins, and milk to amusement parks, retail centers, ATMs, and mutual funds, the case studies presented in Marketing Research That Pays Off offer you insight into how actual companies have used market research to successfully solve marketing problems. Editor Larry Percy has collected a series of cases from consumer, service, and industrial marketing executives that provides a problem/solution look at how to address major marketing issues with marketing research.

The studies presented cover such topics as communications issues, new product introduction, brand equity, brand positioning, and sales analysis. Because they represent successful applications of marketing research to challenging questions, these cases offer a number of specific lessons. Throughout, Marketing Research That Pays Off shows you how to:

• use the right sample for reliable data
  
• reduce the time needed for traditionally multi-phased research
  
• avoid the pitfalls of short-term effects in tracking data
  
• deal with multinational research
  
• use attitude measures to help interpret sales data
  
• involve marketing management to ensure acceptance of results
  
• make effective use of small budgets

The format of each chapter allows the authors to pose a question or present a particular marketing problem and then take you step-by-step through the solution. Actual problems solved include how to improve upon a successful campaign, revitalize a failing retail center, avoid misunderstanding in conducting multinational research, use scanner data to help understand the package goods market, avoid being mislead by short-term effects in tracking data, learn what aspects of a package attract attention and what they communicate, and how to effectively reach both children and their parents with one message--all on a small budget.

It is the unique problem/solution approach to marketing research that makes Marketing Research That Pays Off especially valuable to all marketing research professionals and beginner- to mid-level marketing managers. In addition, the book's easy-to-read presentation of case studies makes it approachable and useful as a companion text for classes in marketing and marketing research.