Question

You are considering opening a bicycle shop. You will sell bikes for all ages, genders, abilities, and usage. (beginners and advanced; recreational riders, those who use it for their main mode of transportation, mountain bikers, racers, etc.)

However, you are still not sure if it’s worth the investment so you decide to do some planning. Specifically you want to assess the marketing environment and do some research.

What will you try to find out and how will you go about it?

What methods will you use to find out what you want to know? Be specific.

What ethical concerns will be on your mind while doing the research and after? Be specific

Answer 1

Ans 1 – First and foremost thing that needs research is regarding the feasibility of the investment. Feasibility study includes information about the competitors, location, suppliers, consumer demand etc. Competitors’ information means the knowledge of the number of other bike sellers, their product offerings, their pricing etc. Location needs to be decided considering the availability of resources, accessibility, connectivity and cost efficiency. Suppliers of bikes, spare parts and repairs services should be known for better product and service delivery. Consumer demand and buying behavior will give the clear ideas regarding the product offering of your own.

Ans 2 – For information regarding competitors’, field research can be done. For location contacting an agent with know how regarding the area is important and also personal selection and verification can be done for better prospects. Suppliers can be found through different mediums of communication most preferably internet. Consumer demand can be gauged by the knowing the population of the market and primary research can be done to get that information. Different methods can be used for research to be completed successfully. Methods of questionnaires, surveys, interviews and voting are very effective in gaining the appropriate data regarding the subject of research.

Ans 3 – Ethics are set of morals and values of different individuals in the society. Ethics perception for different individuals are different however, there are a set of rules which are considered right or wrong by everyone. Ethical concerns in research can be:

Informed consent: The person from whom information is obtained should voluntarily give the information after knowing the sole purpose of collecting the data.

Respect for confidentiality: The respondent of any research should be respected for the confidentiality of his/her identity for uninfluenced information to be obtained.