As part of their annual service project, five students of the American Marketing Association student chapter have agreed to conduct marketing research for a local business the Lakeside Grill.

Brooke, Alexa, Juan, Destiny, and Zach began their research proposal by outlining the background for the study and specifying the research problem and research objectives. According to the group, The purpose of this research study is to determine why sales at the Lakeside Grill are declining, and what changes to the marketing mix are needed in order to improve sales and profitability. Based on the research purpose, the group wrote the following research questions:

1. What is the current level of customer satisfaction with various operational aspects of the Riverside Grill, such as the menu, hours of operation, atmosphere, quality of service, and quality of food?

2. Why have customers reduced their level of patronage at Lakeside Grill?

3. How has the addition of a new competitor down the street affected the Lakeside Grills customer base?

4. Would changing the Lakeside Grills menu, prices, advertising and/or promotional practices increase sales and profitability?

In terms of type of research, Juan explained, We will conduct descriptive research and collect primarily quantitative data. We really dont need to conduct any exploratory research because Mr. Zito (owner of Lakeside Grill) has provided us with information about the restaurants background and the situation that he is facing now.

Questions to answer:

1. Based on information provided in this chapter, improve and re-write the research purpose statement for the student group.
2. Are the research questions appropriate for the research purpose you wrote in response to Question 1, or do they need to be re-written also? If so, please re-write the research questions to match your new research purpose.
3. Would you agree with Juans statement that the best approach is descriptive research and quantitative data? Why or why not?
4. Would you agree with Juans statement that We really dont need to conduct any exploratory research because Mr. Zito (owner of Lakeside Grill) has provided us with information? Why or why not?