Josh Kuzma

Research Assignment

Introduction 2

Purposes of Research 2Examples of my research 4

Quantitative Research 4Qualitative Research 7

Methods of Research 8Primary Research 8

Advantages 8Disadvantages 8

Secondary Research 9Advantages: 9Disadvantages: 9

Bibliography 11

Introduction

Josh Kuzma

The aim of my report is to help the reader to understand the uses and methods of research in creative media.My report will cover the different ways that research is used, and I will show examples of each subject that I talk about.I will also show how each method is used and what sources are available. I will provide examples of how each method is used and what each method can be used to help find specific information.

Purposes of ResearchResearch is important in the creative media industry because it allows media companies to gain insight into what their customers want.

The collection of information on subjects like the audience and market is vital for a media industry, along with the analysis of the data, they use this data to create a brand new product which will sell well because the industry has made the product with the research in mind.

Audience research - This is what i found out about the collection and analysis of information for target research.

As the media industry began to grow it became drastically important for them to learn what their audience wants to ensure that they were making what their audience wanted. The research that they are required to conduct allows them to discover the size of the audience they have, the average age of the audience and so on.

Market Research - This is what i found out about the collection and analysis of information for market research.

Market research is the process of finding out what your market wants to purchase. This can involve reading and interpreting statistics, conducting surveys and polls, interviewing consumers or decision makers and analysing your competition’s marketing activities.

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The goal of market research is to get a clear view of the market and to develop a strategy to reach them with your sales message. Without conducting proper market research, you would be relying on guess work.

“Research is fundamental to all aspects of creative media production and is the essential starting point forproductions of any scale. It can be used to determine the financial viability of a future production, to gather arange of information relevant to the content of the production, or to assist with the planning of technical andlogistical requirements.There are also media companies which conduct extensive research using a range of sophisticated methodsto gather data about audience consumption of media products and services. This has become increasinglynecessary in the highly mixed and competitive environment media industries operate in.Learners who are looking for a job which requires research skills might consider employment in a researchagency, or in pre-preproduction for radio, television or film, whilst a knowledge and understanding ofresearch techniques is vital in a number of roles in advertising and marketing. They are also, of course,important in journalism. However, some ability to undertake research is essential for anyone working in themedia industries.” - Unit 3 research techniques handout

Examples of my researchThe example of my research is the research that i did of macmillan for my social action, i had to research into what exactly macmillan did what how i can help. I looked into their website to find out what it was that macmillan does to help people with cancer and if there was a way i could raise money to help support their efforts.

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Types of ResearchThere are two main types of information research that are used by people who work in the creative media industry; these two research types are quantitative research and qualitative research.

Quantitative ResearchThe methods that are used in quantitative research emphasize the measurements of an objective and the analysis of data such as statistics and mathematics. The data that quantitative research focuses on is numeral data to help explain an event to groups with differing levels of understanding. When you are using quantitative research for a study, it is your goal to determine a link between two variables.

“Quantitative methods emphasize objective measurements and the statistical, mathematical, or numerical analysis of data collected through polls, questionnaires, and surveys, or by manipulating pre-existing statistical data using computational techniques. Quantitative research focuses on gathering numerical data and generalizing it across groups of people or to explain a particular phenomenon.” - UCSLibraries

Quantitative research can be recognised by some of its characteristics, such as having large quantities of tables and graphs as in the graph below.

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BARB is an acronym for Broadcasters Audience Research Board, which is an organisation that provides the official measurements of audiences

watching television for the UK. BARB uses quantitative research to collect data about UK TV shows, some of this data is what channels and what shows are watched the most and who watches them the most.

There is another company that is in a similar vein as BARB that is called RAJAR (Radio Joint Audience Research), they collect data about radio broadcasts rather than TV data. They do pretty much the same job as BARB but with radio stations, as of writing this report they have around 310 radio stations that they report on and include in their surveys.

Josh Kuzma

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Qualitative ResearchThe use of qualitative research is to obtain information about other people’s opinions, preferences and views on different subjects rather than looking only at facts. Qualitative research is done by looking at what different people choose and why they chose that specific selection. The reason that researchers use qualitative research is to help them to understand what people like to watch and what they want in the shows that they view. Having this information helps the producers of the shows to improve their programmes with new ideas.

“Qualitative Research is primarily exploratory research. It is used to gain an understanding of underlying reasons, opinions, and motivations. It provides insights into the problem or helps to develop ideas or hypotheses for potential quantitative research. Qualitative Research is also used to uncover trends in thought and opinions, and dive deeper into the problem.” - SnappySurveys

Qualitative Research consists of interviews, questionnaires and observations, such as the example below.

Methods of Research

Josh Kuzma

There are two types of methods that are used in research; these methods are called primary and secondary. Primary research can also be called field research because the research is done by going out and looking into the subject yourself. Secondary research is also called desk research because all the work is behind a desk while looking at other people’s studies on the subject.

Primary ResearchA primary source is another name for original source work, this means that the writer is writing from their own experience of the subject rather than them writing their article using work done by another writer. One of the examples of primary sourcing is a writer going to investigate the subject of the article that they are writing.

Advantages● the Information is specific to issue.● The Information is Reliable.● The information is Accurate for the subject.

Disadvantages● The cost of performing primary research can be expensive● Finding primary sources may be difficult or impossible● It can take a long time to gather first hand information● There can be a low chance that sources will want to grant an interview

Here is an example of primary research:

Secondary ResearchSecondary research is performed in order to obtain information from pre-existing sources, such as newspapers, internet sites, online reports or magazines.

Media companies can expand upon their primary source information by using information obtained from secondary sources.

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Advantages:● The price of performing secondary research is quite cheap because much of it can be gathered without cost● The information from secondary sources can readily found online

Disadvantages: ● When looking up information online, you are depending on the research and writing abilities of the author,

which can be of variable quality● The information gained might not well suited to the subject that you are researching● Some sites may have information that is quite old and not as relevant at the present time.● Without seeing the author’s primary source, you might not see the whole picture of his research

Conclusion Research is important in the creative media industry because it allows media companies to gain insight intowhat their customers want in order to maximise their success.

I have looked at the importance of qualitative and quantitative research types, which help to give media companies specific input for use in their marketing campaigns.

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Next i looked at primary and secondary sources and how they are used in the the industry's research to help them gain an advantage over their competitors.

Overall, research is a very important thing when it comes to the media industry. It helps the company to understand what they need to do to sell their products and services better.

Josh Kuzma

BibliographyQuantitative Quote and Research - http://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/quantitative

Quantitative graph - https://www.skillsyouneed.com/images/pie-chart.png

Qualitative Research and Quote - https://www.snapsurveys.com/blog/qualitative-vs-quantitative-research/

Qualitative Picture - http://www.leeds.ac.uk/educol/documents/000000682.diag.03.gif

Primary Research Image - https://image.slidesharecdn.com/task5methodsofresearch-131202050136-phpapp02/95/task-5-methods-of-research-8-638.jpg?cb=1385960576

Secondary Research Image - https://image.slidesharecdn.com/primaryandsecondaryresearch-120720024944-phpapp01/95/primary-and-secondary-research-3-728.jpg?cb=1342752621

Barb Image - https://media.licdn.com/media/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAdiAAAAJGJiMzM2MGJiLWY0M2EtNDFiOC04MDc5LTMxMjkxZTI5YTViYg.png

Barb Tv Example - http://www.barb.co.uk/tv-landscape-reports/tracker-number-tvs/

RAJAR Logo - http://themediaangel.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/rajar.jpg

RAJAR Radio Example - http://www.rajar.co.uk/content.php?page=bulletin111