1. If AFLAC wants to forecast the demand for supplemental health and life insurance, what type of research design should be adopted and why?

AFLAC Incorporated (www.aflac.com) sells supplemental health and life insurance.
In the United States, AFLAC is known for its policies that “pay cash” to supplement or replace a policyholder’s income when an accident or sickness prevents the policyholder from working. In 1989, the Columbus, Georgia, company American Family Life Assurance Company adopted the acronym AFLAC. At that point, the company had very little brand recognition; the name AFLAC meant nothing to potential customers. To boost brand recognition, AFLAC undertook extensive marketing research and emerged with the symbol of the duck. As of 2011, AFLAC boasts 90-percent brand recognition. This is so high that it actually rivals Coke, the company with the highest brand recognition, at 95 percent. Even children (ages 8 to 13) are familiar with the AFLAC name, ranking it in the company of Pepsi, Old Navy, and M&M’s. This is important, because as children grow up and start to buy insurance, the AFLAC name will be at the front of their minds.
Marketing research was at the forefront of the campaign. First, the decision was made to simply try to use ads to increase brand recognition rather than sell insurance.
This decision came from focus groups and survey research that found customers would think that they did not need whatever type of insurance was being advertised, whether life, health, home, or so on. Instead, research indicated that customers would respond to insurance ads better if they simply raised the recognition of the brand. Then, salespeople would do the job of educating potential customers about the need for different types of insurance products.