News Article Analysis

On March 16, 2012, William Grimes wrote an article titled, When Businesses can’t stop asking, “How Am I doing?” in the New York Times. The article focuses on the pressure that businesses are piling on their customers to fill out surveys as a form of measuring satisfaction and know how to serve them better (Grimes). The article also brings out the fact that, as these surveys increase in number; consumers are shying away from them; in the process defeating the whole idea. This study will analyze the importance of this issue to marketers, and how it relates to the issue of market research discussed in class.

Looking at the relevance and importance of this article to marketers, it is safe to assert that, it is highly important, for marketing success. Surveys provide a platform in which a client or potential client offers their views on what exactly they want from a company and its products. A marketer in turn, uses this information as a guideline in making marketing decisions both in the short and the long run. Moreover, this article is an eye opener to marketers that, in conducting market research, it is critical to apply a mix of techniques other than over relying on surveys. This is because, when overused, consumers are likely to develop survey fatigue and a decline in response rates (Grimes).

In terms of the relationship between this article and a topic covered in class, the article’s topic, “consumer surveys”, is part and parcel of market research a topic that we have covered in class. By definition, market research is a concerted effort meant to collect information about markets and customers. The idea is to analyze market needs, size and measure the competition. Grimes article analyzes a part of market research, which involves direct surveys on consumers. Clearly this article relates to market research, a topic that we have covered.