Fragrant Soap Launch to Household Consumers in California - Research Proposal Example

 Market Research Proposal on Fragrant Soap Launch to Household Consumers in California Fragrant Soap Co. was established in the United States in 1989 and has become a market leader in the supply of liquid soaps in hotels and spas in the United States. The company is particularly strong in the California, Michigan and Illinois states. Liquid soaps are popular to many consumers because they ease dry skin and keep skin healthy. Major competitors of Fragrant Soap Co. are Heaven Soap and Coconut soap. Heaven Soap Company is the most aggressive among the top three players as it caters to both household consumers and hotel and spa markets. In 1985, the Heaven Company purchased the liquid soap business from Mint and since then it has remained the top brand in the United States market. Fragrant Soap Co. is now contemplating on the possibility of expanding its market by serving liquid soaps to the household consumer market. The company plans to initially launch the product in California, where it already has a strong brand image among hotels and spas. The company feels that it is necessary to examine household consumers’ attitudes towards liquid soaps in the United States particularly in California, where they are initially planning to launch the product. However, the company also has to consider the competition which already serves this market. Pricing, advertising, distribution are some of the issues that first need to be addressed by the company before they embark on this opportunity. Background of Liquid Soap Industry Liquid soaps were first used in the late nineteenth century. In 1980, the Mint Corporation introduced the first modern liquid soap called Mint brand liquid soap. Mint captured the liquid soap market by buying up the whole supply of the plastic pumps needed for the liquid soap dispensers. In 1985, the Heaven Company purchased the liquid soap business from Mint. The American liquid soap market totals about 5.3 million tons annually. While the total tonnage is high, the diversity of habits creates additional factors for manufacturers to consider. As increasing numbers of Americans express interest in using liquid soaps, the opportunity to offer products related to the consumers becomes available. Project Rationale In the United States, Fragrant Soap supplies to hotels and spas, but not to the general public. Fragrant is now considering the possibility of offering the American general public the same quality soap that it supplies to hotels and spas. The working name for this soap is ‘Yoursoap’. One of the challenges Fragrant is facing is continued growth. Of course, the simplest growth path may be through the introduction of close in-line extensions, such as new flavors, scents, or varieties in the same category as the original parent liquid soap. Since these obvious opportunities are exhausted, Fragrant Co. is searching further to identify new opportunities. The company concludes that the brand must extend its franchise outside its home market and into new markets and territory and for different types of consumers to continue growing. While the Fragrant brand is interested in extending, the ability to do this successfully varies significantly, and this is why the company’s executives are debating this option rather than moving forward at once. Some executives claim that while Fragrant has strong brand awareness for hotels and spas it does not necessarily mean it will also be successful when offered to the consumer market. Regardless of the strength of the Fragrant liquid soap brand, product line extension is not something that should be entered into lightly by the company. Doing it correctly requires thorough preparation, with at least of a few months taken to analyze the opportunity and produce a detailed plan for implementation. The returns can be huge and significant, but only if studied properly through an initial marketing research study to assess the size, opportunity and needs of the market. Objectives The overall objective is to examine attitudes to the use of liquid Soap in the American home. This has been broken down to the following sub-objectives: 1. To examine how liquid soaps are used in the domestic setting. 2. To identify attitudes to ‘Yoursoap’ and competing brands 3. To determine promotional platforms that can be used to launch ‘Yoursoap’ Further areas beneath each objective have been detailed. 1. To examine how liquid soaps are used in the domestic settings. This objective will seek to follow the liquid soap from arrival in the home until it is used or disposed of in some other way. It will establish how many households use liquid soaps in the home and what kind of liquid soaps are usually kept. It will look at for what purpose are liquid soaps currently used and, perhaps more importantly, it will attempt to identify what should constitute the target audience. 2. To identify attitudes to ‘Yoursoap’ and competing brands This objective will attempt to look beyond the practical uses. It will be necessary to introduce the product and find out which groups of people are most likely to use this high-quality liquid soap. This should give indications of quantities they are likely to buy and whether they would be prepared to pay more for ‘Yoursoap’. It will establish what other types of liquid soaps household consumers are aware of. Both aided and unaided awareness will be utilized to achieve this objective. 3. To determine promotional platforms that can be used to launch ‘Yoursoap’ This objective is far more exploratory and will help to reveal what appeals to the most segments for the brand. The proposed research will have two stages. The first stage will be to inspect existing sources to uncover usage figures and any useful information. The second stage will involve quantitative and qualitative research using house-to-house personal interviews to provide in depth information on liquid soap usage in the home, attitudes to liquid soaps and the possibilities for the use of liquid soaps. Research Design Desk Research Purpose. The search for secondary resources will be carried out to refine the objectives and provide lines of inquiry for the next stages. To be specific, the desk research stage will collect information on usage in California of liquid soaps over the last five years. This trend should give a useful indication about the status of the market place. At this stage a list of brand names must also be generated. Pertinent information regarding the competition that may be useful for the next part of the researched should likewise be uncovered. The desk research will seek to ascertain the following: - How many households keep liquid soaps at home? - What are liquid soaps currently used for? - What prices are charged? - What packaging sizes are used? - What promotions are presently used? - Who should be the target audience? Procedure. The search will begin internally with Fragrant Soap Co. The company will be asked to allow consultation with personnel who have access to records. The personnel would be briefed on the requirements of the research and three meetings would be expected to be held for this purpose. Access to internal reports on the domestic marketplace, information on distribution to hotels and spas, correspondence with customers, regional buying patterns, and any complaints would be requested. This information will all be suggestive of the likely marketplace and will determine strengths and weaknesses that will help in segmentation. Information from external sources will also be gathered. Existing market assessments from research agencies will be obtained and studied. Relevant Trade associations will be contacted. Published journals and other similar resources will also be inspected for any indications of bath soap use. Furthermore, a portfolio of advertising and promotional materials used by the competition will be collected. This will enable the exploration of possible promotional platforms. Quantitative Research We propose to carry out Face-to-face in- home interviews using a face to face interviewer guided questionnaire. This has been chosen as an effective way of contacting relevant respondents. The Face-to-face survey gives us the opportunity to choose respondents accurately and swiftly. Given the exploratory nature of some aspects of the research objectives, detailed qualitative information (open ended questions) will be asked as well. Focused research will be used to examine and understand the attitudes of potential customers towards the existing brands and ensuing quantitative research will be used to measure how extensive these attitudes are. The qualitative phase will probe the following: How and where liquid soaps are stored in the home. Liquid soaps of which households are aware. What liquid soaps are currently used for Which group of people are more likely to buy Whether potential customers would be prepared to pay more for ‘Yoursoap’ Purpose This stage aims to quantify how many households in California use liquid soaps in the home and the types of liquid soaps that are usually used. It will also provide percentages for aided and unaided awareness. By establishing classification data, we will know what type of people buy and use, and the prices they are prepared to pay. Furthermore, information on a product’s use or non-use measures a product’s market penetration opportunity. The specific questionnaire item here is very simple: “Do you use liquid soaps or not?” The percent of the respondents answering “yes” measure the product’s size of market penetration. Therefore, the percent answering “no” gives the size of the product’s market penetration opportunity. For example, if the product’s data gives a94% market penetration ratio, this will alert Fragrant Soap Co.’s marketers that if they wish to invest in market penetration strategies, they are then wasting resources. There is hardly any more market to penetrate. On the hand, if the data quantifies that the size of its market penetration level is at 65%, there is then a market penetration opportunity of 35%. Population and sampling. Sample Size: 200 Survey Method: Face-to-face in-home interviews Sampling Method: Face-to-face questionnaire Sampling process goes trough three stages (1) randomly selecting population locations using probability proportionate to size; (2) randomly selecting households from the population locations using updated maps; (3) selecting a person who is 18 years or older from among the persons in the house. In order to encourage respondents to talk freely, we assure them of complete anonymity. Respondents will not have to give their names and filled questionnaires are placed in a folder where they are mixed with all others; it is not possible to trace a specific questionnaire to a certain respondent. The random selection of household samples is by random start. This is the method involving “spot mapping”. The output of this task called the spot map Field work Fieldwork is the research process’ most critical step because the survey data’s quality and validity largely depend on it. Field training will be necessary to determine the bad interviewers, since they are highly responsible for interviewing errors. Field training will take at least three days. The first day takes place in the office. Morning is devoted to getting the interviewers to understand the purpose of the survey, sampling procedure, questionnaire and field area assignments. The afternoon is allotted to role playing of the interview process. The interviewers form pairs who interchange and take turns in playing the interviewer-respondent roles. The second day is a field dry run where interviewers are each assigned to complete interviewing three or four respondents. The third and final day is for clearing, in which field supervisors report on their observations of interviewers and interviewers share with the others field problems they encountered. Report problems from supervisors and interviewers are cleared, final instructions are issued and the fieldwork proper starts the next day. The client, Fragrant Soap Co., has every right for interviewer quality checking. During the fieldwork proper, client executives may also request the field area assignment on the day they choose to spot check. The Questionnaire The questionnaire helps determine the critical unmet needs the consumer faces. From the information gathered, the company will be able to determine how Fragrant Liquid Soap can meet those needs. The questionnaire tries to find out critical data related to these consumer needs. The questionnaire is made up of 26 core items. The core data comprise the following: A. Awareness data: 1. Brand awareness B. Product Usage data 1. Product category use or non use 2. When used or for what purposes 3. Who else in the house use the product category 4. Where used and with what 5. Brands ever used 6. Brands last used 7. Brand used previous to last 8. Brand used most often 9. Brands on hand (“pantry check” by observation) C. Purchase data 1. Where the last category purchase was made 2. Where the category purchases are often/ usually made 3. Frequency of category buying 4. Quantity of category purchase 5. Price paid for last purchase 6. Price paid for last purchase 7. Brand in mind during the last buying trip 8. If not found in store where last shopped 9. If found in store, what did: bought any brand available, looked for brand in another store, postponed buying till brand had in mind became available, ot other. 10. What else bought with category in last purchase D. Attitude data 1. What looked for, what expected in product category 2. What not like in bran last bought 3. What liked in brand last bought E. Product and brand image data 1. Importance of rating of product category attributes, product values 2. Rating of selected brands on each product attribute In the last portion of the questionnaire, data are collected on respondent demographics such as: age, sex, civil status, number of children, educational attainment, household size, total monthly household income, and home ownership. Questionnaire Introduction Good day. I am __________ from Marketing Associates, a market research organization. We are conducting a survey here in your neighborhood about people’s opinions and experiences regarding how they take care of their skin. Screening 1. How many adult members of this household are 18 years old and above? 2. Who are they and what are their respective ages and sex starting from the oldest down to the youngest? [Interviewer: Record answers in your probability selection key table, to choose your probability key respondent] 3. Do you have a member of the family or a close relative who works for a liquid soap manufacturing company? [Terminate] ← Have 1 ← Not have 2 4. Do you have a member of the family or a close relative who works for an advertising agency? [Terminate] ← Have 1 ← Not have 2 5. Do you have a member of the family or a close relative who works for a market research agency? [Terminate] ← Have 1 ← Not have 2 [Interviewer: If respondent’s answer to Q3 to Q5 are all not have, then he/ she is qualified for further interviewing.] I would like now to ask for your cooperation in answering a number of questions. Our pretest of this questionnaire showed that we are able to complete it in about 15- to 20 minutes. That is about how much time I am asking you now for this interview. Core Data Portion 6. Will you tell me if you use liquid soaps or not? No← 1 [Go to Q8] Yes← 2 7. Will you please let me know why you do not use liquid soaps? Why else? [Interviewer: Probe for specifics.] _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ (Proceed to the Classification Portion) 8. What types of liquid soaps do you now use? For normal skin 1 For dry skin 2 For oily skin 3 9. When or for what occasions do you use liquid soaps? When or for what else? [Interveiwer: Probe for specifics] ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ 10. Who else in the family besides yourself uses liquid soaps? Parents 1 Brothers/ Sister/s 2 Baby/ Infant 3 Others (specify) ( ) 11. With what other products do you use liquid soaps? __________________________ With what else? _____________________________________ 12. What brand of liquid soaps have you ever used? What else? 13. What brand did you last use? 14. What brand did you use previous to this last one? 15. What brand do you use most often? Q 11 Q 12 Q 13 Q 14 Heaven Soap 1 1 1 1 Coconut Soap 2 2 2 2 Others: specify 16. When you last bought liquid soap, where did you buy it? 17. Where do you buy liquid soaps most often? Q 24 Q 25 Supermarket 1 1 Drugstore 2 2 Department store 3 3 Others: specify 18. How often o you usually buy liquid soap? Every _____ weeks. 19. What type of liquid soap did you last buy? 20. How many of that size did you last buy? 21. What price did you pay in that last purchase? ___________ 22. What else did you buy to go along with your liquid soap when you last bought liquid soap? _________________________________________________________________ 23. The last time you bought liquid soap, did you have a brand name in mind? [Go to Q26]←No 1 Yes 2 24. What was that brand? 25. Did you find that brand in the store you went to? No 1 [Go to Q26]← Yes 2 26. What did you do then? Did you: [Interviewer: use answer show card. Tell respondent to choose any one answer] Buy whatever brand was available 1 Look for another brand 2 Postponed buying until next trip 3 Others: specify 27. In buying liquid soap, what product qualities do you look for? What else? [Interviewer: Probe for specifics] __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ 28. What is it about the brand of liquid soap that you last bought which you specifically did not like? What else? [Interviewer: Probe for specifics.] __________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________ 29. What is it about the brand you last bought which you specifically liked? What else? [Interviewer: Probe for specifics] ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ( ) none 30. I will now read to you a list of liquid soap product qualities and characteristics which I would like you to rate according to how important each of them is to you when you have to choose a liquid soap brand. Would you say that (start the attribute with a tick off) is to you: 4 = extremely important 3 = quite important 2 = a little important, or 1 = not that important EI QI LI NI Cleans skin 4 3 2 1 Lathers a lot 4 3 2 1 Leaves skin soft 4 3 2 1 Makes skin fragrant 4 3 2 1 31. Now, may I ask you for your opinion about each of the following two liquid soap brands? Will you rate each of them on each of the attributes that you just rated in importance? Let us start with (brand tick off) and rate it on (attribute with tick off). Would you rate (brand) on (attribute): 5 = very highly 4 = generally highly 3 = neither highly nor poorly 2 = generally poorly 1 = very poorly Heaven Soap Coconut Soap Cleans skin Lathers a lot Leaves skin soft Makes skin fragrant 32. May I please see whatever liquid soap brands you have in your house? On hand Not seen Not recognized Heaven Soap 1 1 1 Coconut Soap 2 2 2 Others: specify Classification Data Portion Before we end, may I ask you a few questions about yourself? This is to enable us to classify in what group of people we will count your answers to compute averages and percentages. 33. Are you married? Married 1 Not married 2 34. What schooling did you finish? [ Interviewer: Use schooling showcard] a. No schooling 1 b. Elementary 2 c. High school 3 d. College 4 e. Graduate school 5 35. Are you currently employed? No 1 Yes 2 36. Considering what all the household members earn, in which category of total monthly income do you belong? [Interviewer: Use income class showcard] a. $2,500 or less 1 b. $2,501 – 3,500 c. $3,501 - 4,500 d. $4,501 – 5,500 e. $5,501 – 6,501 f. More than $6,500 37. Do you or your household own this house you are living in? Own 1 Rent 2 Other: specify _____ ( ) Thank you very much for your cooperation! Did you feel that in answering your questions, this respondent was: Yes No Honest with his/her answer? 1 2 More like he/she was trying to impress you? 1 2 Impatient with the interview? 1 2 Negative in his her attitude toward you and theinterview? 1 2 References Kotler, Philip and Armstrong, Gary. (2004). Principles of Marketing, 10th Ed., New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Read More