DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION MARKETING RESEARCH INFORMATION SYSTEM (A CASE STUDY OF NIGERIAN BOTTLING COMPANY PLC)

ABSTRACT

This project is aimed at the design and implementation of software package for use in the research of marketing Department in marketing research information system of N.B.C PLC Enugu.

This is intended to store all relevant information about the sales summary report and to be able to know the exact amount of goods in stock.

It wound also render a wide knowledge not restricted only on sales and stocks control it organized and most of the problem they have encountered using the manual system.

This would provide a computer facility to eradicate the problem identified.

Finally, based on the results of the analysis the project came up with recommendations that would facilitate and improve up on the marketing

Research information system of the above organization.

ORGANISATION OF WORK

This study is intended to be of value not only to the company used as the case study, but also to other firms.

The topic deals on design and implementation of marketing research information system.

The project consists of six chapters.

Chapter one does the introducing aspects of the study which involves statements of the problem, purpose of study, aims and objective of the study, its scope, constraints, assumption and definition of terms.

Chapter five the description and analysis of are existing system.

Chapter six gives the documentation about the work chapter seven which is the last chapter gives recommendation and conclusion of the entire work.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title page

Abstract

Organisation of work

Table of contents

CHAPTER ONE

1.0              Introduction

1.1     Back ground of the study

1.2              Purpose of the study

1.3              Aims and objectives

1.4              Scope or delimitations

1.5              Limitation or constraints

CHAPTER TWO

2.0              LITERATURE REVIEW

CHAPTER THREE

3.0              DESCRIPTION AND ANALYSIS

3.1       FACTS FINDING

3.2              OBSERVATION METHOD

3.3              RECORD INSPECTION

3.4              OBJECTIVES OF THE EXISTING SYSTEM

3.5              JUSTIFICATION FOR THE NEW SYSTEM

CHAPTER FOUR

4.1              OUTPUT SPECIFICATION AND DESIDN

4.2              INPUT SPECIFICATION AND DESIGN

4.3              FILE DESIGN

CHAPTER FIVE

5.1              IMPLEMENTATION

5.2              PROGRAMDESIGN

5.3              PROGRAM FLOW CHART

5.4              PSEYDOCOPE

5.5              TEST RUN

CHAPTER SIX

6.0              DOCUMENTATION

6.1       CONCLUSION

6.2              REFERENCES

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

            “Goal achievement” is the watch word of ever, business organization tries to main economics resources whatever maybe its views and philosophies and which ever route these goals are to be achieved. Given a set of resources organization try to maximize profitability.

            The philosophy applies to all spheres of the economy, particularly marketing organizations. In order to achieve laid down goals, modern techniques in business demand that planned and defined system, and tools be formulated and adopted to meet the requirement organizations required. One of such fundamental tools is marketing research, marketing research can be defined as a formal, systematic collection recording, analysing and reporting of data aimed at solving a given problem or identifying an opportunity.

            Marketing research also concerns itself with co – ordinating responsibilities, comparing actual sales volume with the forecasted sales volume and asking upon result to achieve maximum profit. The universal application of marketing research data by various marketing organization and their fields of human endeavour cannot be over emphases. N.B.C is not therefore an exception in this direction.

            In Nigeria context, we operate severs market economy which is a situation where whatever severs of different products brought in the market must be sold.

            Companies in Lagos State in particular and in Nigeria in general pay deaf ears to marketing research from the fact that the country is experiencing production crisis, which has pastured into crisis of supply, and which has made it impossible for our manufacturing firms to cope with the supply of a wide of consumer goods to it various companies that exist in our distribute system.

            Marketing research acts as a guide to business executives by controlling their scope of marketing concept negligence.

            It directs management to a realistic approach to its goals and objectives. The tools also harness the functions and efforts different departments of a company and ensures effective co- ordination of total marketing efforts in an organization.

            By this, deviation form laid down standard can be detected and corrected at the early state.

            Marketing research investigates whether or not marketing research as a management tool contributes to improved managerial efficiency and also to what extent this tool is to increase profitability.

            Then marketing information system (MIS) is an organized way of continually gathering and analysing data to provide marketing managers with information they need to make decisions.

            In some companies, an (MIS) is set up by marketing specialist. In order companies, it is set up by a group that provide all departments in the firm with information.

            Information is not wall maintained and documented. When important information is not properly stored, especially in disk, diskette, G.O or any computer storage device, it will likely get lose easily and the maintenance is not assured.

            Also the cost of maintenance will be very high in maintaining important information that is kept on a file or documents.

1.1       STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Some laymen and even marketing managers and elites nurse the motion that marketing research has no role and development impact in the up-grading of commercial and industrial programme in the developing economics like Nigeria.

Because of this, the managers do not put into consideration of the application of marketing research in their marketing problems in both decision making and an operational purpose.

This problem is not particular to marketing managers alone, others company managers like the production manager, financial controllers, personnel managers, Advertising managers and so on. they feels that marketing research is only useful in the selling of products they fail to realize that poor product planning, arbitary price setting and ill advertising campaign will behave a drastic effect in the sales volume of the product.

Also, our industrialist have never have the thought of applying the finding of marketing research in the formation and getting of their company’s objectives and policies. Ignorance of this often result in the folding of many companies prematurely.

Most serially is our service industries like the banks, hotels, hospitals etc. they never believe that the use of marketing research can help them in their effective operators.

The governments official decision makers who have prove unconvinced to apply the benefit of marketing research in their decision making process. Experts in the filed of business often sound a warning on the consequences of ignoring marketing processes, but they still pay deaf ear to it.

All these problems hinder the application of marketing research in the economic and commercial development in the economics.

Also some years back managers in marketing or marketing researcher gathered information mostly in manual form by the use of form, files and so on. Because of this, a lot of time, energy and resources are wasted faring the gathering of these information. Along the line errors are easily made and hardly will it be defected. Times are being wasted in the process and information is not well maintained or documented.

The security of the information in the file or records are not properly kept, security is not granted.

The company, used as a case is Nigerian bottling company plc, when it newly started they were finding it very difficult to know their profit or lose in the end of each financial year.

Since the managers needs information likewise the customers who needs to know the exact amount or price of a particular goals. The managers need information help them plan for new strategies, also for implementation and control.

They also need information, about potential target markets and their likely responses to marketing mixes as well as about competition and other uncontrollable variable.

By the introduction of computer the company finds it more convents to detect errors and to store information to future use and purpose they can also use it in research far a particular good and help the customers to know exactly the price of a particular goods because of the price are stored in a computer and it can be easily reach for.

Marketing managers for some companies make decision based almost totally on their own judgment with little lard data. When its time to make a decision, they may wish they lard more information, but by then its too late to do anything it, so they do without. There is a different between information that is available and information that is readily accessible. Some information that is just not available, for example, details of competitors plan. In other cases, information is available, but not without time consuming collection.

Such information is not really accessible. For example, a company may have records of customer purchases, what was sold by sales representatives last month, or what is in the warehouse. But if a manager can’t get this information when he needs it, it isn’t useful.

So the introduction of computer in marketing research information system help managers a lot for planning new strategies.

In this project we are going to discuss more about market research information system.

1.2              PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The main purpose of these study is to know the importance and the roles that computer play sin marketing research information system.

            Actually to know whether or not computer had played a role in marketing research information system (MIS). It is an organized way of continually gathering and analyzing data to provide marketing managers with information they need to make decision.

            Also an MIS system organize incoming data in most firms with an MIS have information processing specialist who help managers get standard reports and output from the data base.

            Decision support system (DSS) is a computer programme that makes it easy for making manager to get and use information as he is making decision. Typically the DSS help charge raw data, like product sales for the previous day, into more useful information for example.

            It may draw graphs to show relationship in data perhaps companies yesterday sales to the sale on the same day in the last four weeks. Some decision support systems go even further. They allow the manager to see how answers to questions mighty charge in various situation for example a manager may want to estimate how much scales well increase if the firm expand into a market area.

            The DSS will ask the manager for his judgment about how much business could be won from each competitor in data base the system will make an estimate using a marketing mode;. A marketing model is a statement of relationship among marketing variables.

            In short the decision support system puts the individual manager “on-line” so he can study available data and better marketing decisions faster.

1.3              AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

The primary aim and objectives of study is a develop a computer that is capable of carrying out the task in marketing research information system.

By the introduction of MIS (marketing information system) that will help the marketing managers to plan for strategy, have a steady or fixed price, know the customers reactions on a particular goods to help them tackle unforeseen circumstances that may arise, suney’s of secondary information, to determining data collection also implementation the research plan and others too numerous to mention. 

As an old adage says a problem well define is half solved. When the problem has been carefully defined, the manager and researcher must set the research objectives.

A marketing research project might have one of these type of objectives.

1.4              SCOPE OR DELIMITATIONS

The scope of this study covers mainly coca-cola plc from 1986 to 1999 a period of eleven years it been centered in mostly in marketing department sections the advertising and other section are briefly discuss.