This paper looks at the changing environment of brand research and assesses the implications for exploring brand equity quantitatively within the context of brands of similar status outside the immediate product area within the retail environment and also in use.
This paper discusses the assumptions implicit in much advertising used in Western European countries and how these are not always appropriate to what are often new markets in Central and Eastern Europe. In the same was as all Western European countries cannot be considered similar and may require different advertising, the same is TRUE when considering markets further East. It examines what are the sources of acquisition of knowledge, such as TV and films (often American), what can be taken as shared knowledge and what cannot, and how this is likely to affect understanding and interpretation of the images presented in advertising. Examples are given from recent research carried out in a number of countries in Central and Eastern Europe.
In an ever changing world it is necessary to apply market research techniques that help keep pace with this changing environment. This paper introduces a technique, SMARTIE, not just for measuring current company image, but for identifying those areas to which a Company can most fruitfully devote its attentions to bring about improvement so as to help increase its sales. An example is given to illustrate the method and the nature of the findings.
The paper reviews the use of research in the development of site-based tourist facilities, covering a wide variety of private and public sector operations. It firstly examines the particular features of the markets in which such facilities operate, in comparison with consumer goods markets for which the great bulk of development research is carried out. This is followed by a discussion of the information needs for different categories of facility development, leading into a description of the main available research techniques which can be applied. It is argued that tourism facility research needs to borrow heavily from techniques used in industrial and retailing research, as well as some of those applicable to fast moving goods. Two case studies are given to illustrate the application of research techniques, in one case to a new accommodation concept, in the other to an existing visitor centre facility. The paper concludes that the contribution of research to tourist facility development is now well-established, despite the complex and uncertain markets. The problem of further improving the quality of this contribution is not primarily one of technique development, but rather of building enough experience to generate satisfactory models of the markets and how they operate, as has already been achieved for fast moving goods.