ERIC ED417342: Market Research Manual for Providers of Vocational Education and Training.

110 Pages·1996·1.4 MB·English

by  ERIC

DOCUMENT RESUME
CE 076 097
ED 417 342
Tamblyn, Annette; Shelton, Diane
AUTHOR
Market Research Manual for Providers of Vocational Education
TITLE
and Training.
Victoria Office of Training and Further Education, Melbourne
INSTITUTION
(Australia).
ISBN-0-7306-9312-0
ISBN
1996-00-00
PUB DATE
NOTE
108p.
Guides Non-Classroom (055)
PUB TYPE
MF01/PC05 Plus Postage.
EDRS PRICE
Case Studies; *Data Collection; *Educational Demand; Field
DESCRIPTORS
Studies; Foreign Countries; *Information Sources; Marketing;
Public Agencies; Qualitative Research; Questionnaires;
Research Design; *Research Methodology; Research Reports;
Statistical Analysis; Surveys; *Vocational Education
Australia (Victoria); Educational Marketing; *Market
IDENTIFIERS
Research; *TAFE (Australia)
ABSTRACT
This manual, which is intended for vocational education and
training (VET) providers, does the following: explains fundamental market
research concepts; highlights situations where market research can help VET
providers with their planning and policy development; and illustrates the
uses of market research in VET institutions. The following topics are
discussed: purposes of market research; situations where market research is
useful (defining problems, determining information requirements, and deciding
between in-house and commissioned market research); market research briefs
(format and content); data for market research (existing data, new data, and
sampling); sources of existing data (internal sources, external sources, and
14 public agencies providing statistical data about VET in Australia);
collection of qualitative data (situations where qualitative data are useful,
methods, and collector skills for qualitative research); collection of
quantitative data (survey methods, ques',onnaire design, and questionnaire
samples); and management of the research process (field work, data
processing, data analysis, and report writing). Concluding the manual are
five case studies focusing on conducting research to determine the following:
best way(s) to use promotions budgets; reasons for declining enrollments;
feasibility of raising fees for short courses; student satisfaction with
courses or programs; and an institution's image in the community. The book
contains 13 references.
(MN)
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,
U S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
OM a of Educational Research and Improvement
ATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION
ED
CENTER (ERIC)
his document has been reproduced as
received from the person or organization
originating it
Minor changes have been made to
improve reproduction quality
Points of view or opinions stated in this
document do not necessarily represent
official OERI position or policy
PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND
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For Providers of
Vocational Education and Training
OTFE
Published by the Office of Training and Further Education
525 Collins Street
Melbourne Vic 3000
Australia
[phone]
Tel:
Fax: [phone]
© State of Victoria 1996
Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and copyright should
be addressed to the General Manager, Strategic Planning and Research,
Office of Training and Further Education, 525 Collins Street,
Melbourne Vic 3000, Australia.
The views expressed in this book do not necessarily represent the views
of the Office of Training and Further Education.
National Library of Australia cataloguing-in-publication data:
Tamblyn, Annette.
Market Research Manual for Providers of Vocational Education
and Training
Bibliography.
ISBN 0 7306 9312 0
Vocational education - Research
Victoria.
1.
Occupational training
Research - Victoria.
2.
Marketing research - Methodology.
3.
Shelton, Diane.
I.
Victoria. Office of Training and Further Education.
II.
Title.
III.
374.01309945
Acknowledgements
This manual was written by Annette Tamblyn and Diane Shelton of Chant
Link and Associates as part of a project for the Office of Training and
Further Education, Victoria.
The publisher thanks Associate Professor Gerald Burke,
Centre for the Economics of Education and Training, Monash University,
for his assistance in preparing the directory on pages 33-40.
The Office of Training and Further Education thanks all those who took
part in the research to ensure that the manual would be useful to providers
of vocational education and training.
Contents
Preface
introduction
1
Purposes of market research
2
3
The market research process
When shouDd market research be used?
5
Problem definition 6
Information requirements
6
Should market research be used in this case?
6
In-house or commissioned research?
6
Market research brief
9
Format
10
Sample brief
13
Data for market research
17
Existing data 18
New data
18
20
Sampling
Sources of existing data
25
26
Internal sources
26
External sources of statistical data
27
Directory
Collecting qualitative data
35
When is qualitative data useful? 36
37
Methods of collecting qualitative data
39
Collector skills for qualitative research
Collecting quantitative data
43
44
Survey methods
46
Questionnaire design
59
Questionnaire samples
AVAUBLE
a
COPY
bEST
Managing the research process
67
Field work
68
Processing data
69
Analysing data
71
Reporting
72
Case studies
75
How can we best use the promotions budget?
76
1
2 A case of declining demand
82
3 Should we raise the fees for our short courses?
87
4 How satisfied are our students?
91
5 What is the image of our institute in the community?
96
References
103
6
iv
Preface
This
manual was commissioned by the Office of Training and Further
Education to give providers of vocational education and training an overview
of the role and importance of market research and a guide to why, when and
how to use market research.
Senior managers with little experience of market research will appreciate
this overview of ways in which market research can be used to advantage.
Staff with responsibility for commissioning or conducting market research
can use the manual as a text or a reference. It is not designed to be a step-
by-step guide to conducting market research. Market research needs to be
tailored to the specific needs of the organisation that requires marketplace
information.
The main aims of the manual are to:
familiarise non-specialists with fundamental market research concepts;
indicate suitable contexts for market research processes for providers of
vocational education and training;
highlight situations in which market research can help providers of
vocational education and training with their planning and policy
development;
identify a range of situations for employing market research within
vocational education and training organisations;
provide illustrative case studies of market research undertaken by
providers of vocational education and training.
The format and content of the manual have been developed as the result
of a number of depth interviews and group discussions with senior
management and marketing personnel of TAFE institutes and private
provider institutions in regional and metropolitan Victoria. These
discussions, themselves a form of qualitative research, provided insights into
the current status of market research amongst providers of vocational
education and training, and an understanding of the range and level of
market research topics that were important to them. On completion of the
draft version of the manual, sample workshops were held to pilot the manual
with users. Participants were drawn from the earlier discussion groups.
Introduction
1
The market for vocational education
and training has changed markedly
over the last five years. An increased number of providers, changes in the
types and expectations of students and other clients, and changes in state
and federal government policy, have all contributed to a competitive market
for vocational education and training.
Universities, private providers and TAFE institutes now all compete for
students. Students have a greater number of choices and are increasingly
aware of their power to choose.
Providers of vocational education and training have to attract and satisfy
a number of client groups: not only students undertaking training but their
sponsors, employers, government agencies, parents, enterprises that
commission training and the community in general. Community
expectations are particularly important in regional locations.
The rapid pace of change in vocational training has left many people
unsure of the relative merits of different suppliers of vocational education
and training. Hence, there is considerable confusion in the marketplace
about the role of providers of national education and training within the
overall system.
Government policies now favour open competition between providers to
determine who will deliver vocational education. All providers, including
TAFE institutes are now competing with other suppliers to 'sell' their
training and educational services to a range of clients including large
government funding bodies, industry groups, individual companies and
corporations and individual students.
Market research can help institutes to manage and optimise opportunities
in this complex and heterogeneous market. Market research can increase the
capacity for informed decisions in an environment where intuition and
experience may no longer suffice.
Please note that the use of the term 'institutes' in this manual refers to
2
both public and private providers of vocational education and training.
cr
RQSRPOSES OF MARKET' RESEARCH
Market research is a formalised, systematic approach to gathering and
analysing information about your market in order to make sound
cc
management decisions. It can be used by providers of vocational education
and training to provide valuable information for:
cc
management decisions, whether as direct input or to raise questions that
a
need to be addressed before making a decision;
a.
2
4&.
better understanding of the education needs of students and other client
groups, of their attitudes towards your institute, of how they choose one
institute over another and of how their attitudes and values affect their
choice;
knowing what business enterprises require in terms of both course content
and course delivery mechanisms, so as to be able to extend relationships
already built up with local business to a wider business market;
better understanding of preferred delivery modes, for example student and
employer preference for study at home, at an institute or at a workplace;
testing client satisfaction, for example with the range of programs and
an important issue given the importance
services that you are offering
of return business in this market and the importance of word-of-mouth
recommendations;
evaluation of programs and services, for example using results of
outcome-focused research with former students and their employers, to
justify continued support by government or private enterprise;
communication strategies for publicity and promotion, for example to
pinpoint whether the most effective channel of communication to your
target markets is the local paper, the city paper, the radio or television;
development of the institute's image, for example to understand how
student, employer, community and government perceptions of your
institute and its image should affect your decisions about name changes,
signage, colours or logos;
knowing your competitors and your position in the market relative to
them, which is particularly useful for distinguishing the real threats from
the supposed ones;
pricing of services to ensure that you are competitively priced and that
you are receiving the optimum price for your services;
new market opportunities.
z
TI-IE MARKET' IRESEAACM PROCESS
The process for conducting market research involves a number of key stages:
0
0
investigating, planning, data collection, analysis, reporting and action or
implementation. Each of these stages is discussed in detail in the following
0
-4
chapters. The market research process is outlined on the following page.
0
z
3
4_ V)