With a group of three other students in your class, select a small retail business or quick-serve restaurant to use as a “client” for your project. (Be sure to get the manager’s permission before you conduct your research.)

Then choose one topic from among the following possibilities to develop a study problem:

• Employee–customer interactions

• The busiest periods of customer activity

• Customer perceptions of service

• Customer likes and dislikes about the menu • Customer likes and dislikes about the environment in the place of business • The benefits customers perceive to be important • The age-groups that frequent the place of business • The buying habits of a particular age group • How customer complaints are handled Develop a plan for the research.

a. Define the research question as you will study it.

b. Choose the type of research approach you will use.

c. Select the techniques you will use to gather data.

d. Develop the mode and format for data collection.
Conduct the research.
Write a report (or develop a class presentation)
that includes the five parts shown in step 7 of the market research process covered in the chapter.