LO1: Task 3

Understand the nature and purpose of research in the creative media industries

Purpose of Research:

Research is done by many individuals and the purpose of research varies depending in what the usage is required for. The purpose of research can revolve around the following:

Exploratory

This is where an investigation is taken place due to the fact of little knowledge, this therefore allowing the use of research to increase what is needed to be known. This is most common in organisations, for example when producing a new product researching around interests of individuals and existing products in contrast allows better understanding in their interested subject.

Speculative

This type of research is when researchers look at the current situation and consider the future possibilities. This may be the use of media looking into different storylines on a current film, for example Final Destination and the possibilities that current situation can lead to and in this case providing the film from Final Destination - Final Destination 5.

Descriptive & Explanatory

Descriptive research is the gathering of information that clarifies patterns, similarities and differences. An example of this would be the links between student's GCSE results and Dropout rates in 16+. Whereas Explanatory is the presentation in reasoning of patterns links and relationships that are made. E.g. How GSCE skills help students in their A-levels.

Predictive & Evaluative

This type of research purpose is for the development of a model that allows a prediction of the outcomes and variables that may cause errors or problems in the circumstances allowing restrictions to be made and allows more knowledge into why they occur. Evaluative research has the purpose of looking into an area of impact created this being a policy change in customer's service.

I will be looking more specifically at these following types of purposes listed below:

Audience Research

One purpose that the use of research may be done is to find audience research. This can be a great method in finding out more about what market you're aiming towards. It is important for research on the audience in order to make sure that those whom view, buy and so on are satisfied by what they are being presented.The use of audience research can be done in different methods, this being the following:

Audience Data - This is a measure of demographic profiles and household data of the national audience for a television network at certain times when something is aired. The use of audience can be used in order to gain feedback on whether or not an advertiser is reaching out to the intended target audience. The use of the demographic number look into the number of individuals in the selected demographic in each household. 

Demographics -  these are statistical information of the human populations, this including their age and income. This can be used by many especially businesses in order to identify to market their goods and services. In relation to myself the use of demographics can be a great method in being able to see weather or not to put our advertisement that we as a group produced. Demographics are used in order to identify who the consumer are.

Audience Profiling - this is finding out the profile of your audience before putting across your message, product and so on in order to make sure that it is effective and produces the best results. It can include information such as an individual's gender, age, educational qualifications, work experience, field of work, interests, financial background and so on. An example of this is shown below: 

This example is of audience profiling for age, this looks into the listeners for Radio 3's listening hours, When looking at the results you are able to see that they are categorized into the different age groups.This is audience profiling as from this research identification has been made that the proportion in age group of 55 and over is now at 60% as mentioned in the print screen above. Collecting this type of information for example insure that Radio 3 know who their audience consists of. 

Geo- demographics 

The use of geo-demographic research considers the ethnicity, gender, class, and age of the audience. Furthermore to this the use of geo-demographics looking into where the audience is from in terms of their nationality. The use of geo-demographics can be a great method in gaining a better understanding of what the target audience is. 

Consumers behavior and customer attitudes - This type of research can allow better understanding of consumers and their interest in what you have to offer. This use of information can be a great method to see what you are offering fits in well with consumers behaviors and consumers attitudes. An example of looking into consumers behavior and attitudes is shown below: 

 

Looking at this example, you are able to see that by identifying what consumers interest is towards specific things, you are able to see what is a successfully and weather or not you should market what you have on offer to consumers. If I decided for example to advertise a watch collection for women I am able to see that in terms of shopping habits that more women buy jewelry and watches than men, therefore giving me more reason to market my product. Looking at the example above from looking into consumers attitudes and behavior I am able to see that it can be a good way to look into weather or not it is a good idea to market your product and if it can be successful. 

Market Research

This area of research for will look into the market that the item or product is being aimed into. It will look into the market itself as their is a wide range of markets. Furthermore to this it will also look into other in the market. This will a be good acknowledgement of what is being offered will be in the market and where it stands.

Product Market

Product Market includes marketing the product and identifying where the product is in the market segment. For example for my unit 30 our product for Zeus Sport it would be that the product is based in the sport section underneath the drinks, therefore specifically being in the market for Sport drinks. Being able to identify the market and their interest towards that market can mean that a product that is place in can be more successful and also can mean that the business are able to insure that the product that they are putting out in this market is suited well. 

Competition & Competitor analysis

During the stages of progressing within their market will want to insure that they gain better understanding of their consumers in an aim of keeping ahead of competitors. They will also want to insure that they are aware of their competitors. In relation for Zeus Sport this is a vital aspect as being aware of competitors can allow opportunities in overcoming competitors and also a method and aim in how to develop the business itself. Being aware of competitors is important in insuring that consumers are able to keep ahead of competition, for example if the business New look  were to start offering delivery within three days, whereas previously the procedure was seven days, consumers will immediately switch to faster services. Being able to identify another competitor's strong point and exploiting it within your own business is a great way to stay ahead of competition and maintain existing consumers and gain potential consumers within the business. This also being their unique selling point for example competitors such as Lucozade and them exploiting their product again water. 

One method in being able to identify and analyse the competition, is down by the use of research in the marketing section of the business plan. Knowing and identifying competitors is really vital and this can be done by finding out what competitors have on offer in comparison to your business. This in the sense that Zeus Sport will be looking at competitors such as Lucozade, Powerade and identifying what it is that they offer and provide that we don't.  Being able to identify the unique selling point of a competitor will be very important for and this can be done through the use of secondary research and looking at their websites and seeing what they have on offer that Zeus Sport does not.

Advertising Placement & Advertising effects

An important factors within the market research that is important is the use of advertising placement, this being the broadcast slots, looking at this I am able to identify that this is an important factor as where it is placed needs to insure that the interest of consumers are gained. This is a vital factor in the success of what is being put across and can help the business build and create more awareness from it. For Zeus sport this is a major factor that will have great impact therefore identifying advertisement placement interest of consumers can be vital to insure that Zeus Sport can gain their interest. Furthermore to this businesses can use BARB in order to see if their advertisement place on the channel set has been successful or not, it is a great method to monitor the success. 

The impact of advertisement and effect that had had on the target audience is very important as the organisation will want to make sure that individuals are interested in what is being provided and so that they are able to see success from what is being put across. This can be monitored in many ways one being by looking at the sales and seeing if they have increased from the advertised placement, another being that the business can look into the ratings that the product receives and finally to gain feedback from consumers and ask how they are able to improve in order to reach their expectations. 

Production Research

For production research I am able to identify that production research includes a wide range of factors, for the product or item to move forward then it is important to look into the production research and find out how to take forward the product. This can be a great method in allowing the individual to more organised and can allow the a more successful product as it manages the next steps that will be taken. These factors for research in the production are as follows:

Finance & Costs

The use of finance is very important, especially to our group. Finance controls what goes in and out of Zeus Sport this will then enable good investment decisions to take place. Finance records all the money that is spent so that Zeus sport know how much profit or loss they as a business are producing in each department of the organisation. The use of finance will allow Zeus Sport to have a good understanding in how much will be required in order to carry out the production for the advertisement.

Finance has an impact on the business Zeus Sport as when setting up the production for the advertisement, I will need the money to be able to finance Zeus Sport. This including being able to buy the equipment and materials for the product and this is where finance come in and the allocated budget amount.

Technological Resources

Technological resources are important to allow a production to be organised therefore by insuring that the business is prepared and equipped for any technical requirement  For a media industry this can be technical resources such as the equipment required fro the recording such as the type of cameras, tripods, microphones and so on. Furthermore to this it can include technological resources such as the media industry having the correct hardware in order to be able to do the editing required and so on. Furthermore to this it can also include the software's that the business have at the moment. All this aspects are important and will need to be looked over to insure that the organisation are able to produce what they want effectively. 

Locations

For many aspects the location is a vital factors, this including shops and their location in market but also the location in relation to my unit being the placement for recording this being where to record the advertisement.The locations are very important as within a production it is important to make sure that it fits in with the mis-en-scene and the message that is being aimed towards the viewers therefore meaning that it is very vital to insure that the message needed to be presented is reaching viewers. 

An example of meeting the requirements of location would for example for the advertising unit that having the product being Zeus sport, therefore the location may be sports related such as gyms, football pitches, changing rooms in getting ready and so on. This is very the likley placements would be in order to fit in with the product but also insure that the message of the energy from the drink can be presented through the use of sports.

Appropriateness of Research Techniques for different purposes

From the use of the research methods used there are different techniques used to gain the information required as some may not be possible to do so and others may not be appropriate. Also the use of technique will need to be effective for the purpose of the investigation. An example of the appropriateness in techniques is that if the business KFC decided to attempt interviewing each consumer that enters the shop they will need to require hiring a wide range of individuals to carry this out, this itself will be an unrealistic fund and not achievable. Therefore others techniques can be implemented such as sampling to make sure they meet there needs. 

LO1: Task 2

Understand the nature and purpose of research in the creative media industries

Methods and sources of research: 

Secondary Research

Secondary Research on the other hand is collecting date from other sources that already provide the information and research required. Some individuals may use both research methods so that they can balance out their findings but also so that the use of secondary can support their own findings or create a contrast in findings.

Gaining secondary research will be very easy as it is already provided to you and will require less time consuming the data that is needed. Secondary research can have an advantage in being used by some individuals as a sense of support on their findings in the primary research that is conducted. This research can be used to identify the accuracy of the information gained. In the affecting factor of price and expense in gaining secondary research will be less expensive as you will not be dependent on yourself to collect the selected data of your choice for your investigation.

The information provided from secondary research may not always be very reliable. This is down to the fact that the information gained is done by others therefore there will be uncertainty in the validity of the data provided. In addition to this at times the use of secondary research will not be alternated to your requirements and the information provided may not focus in the areas of your interest this will result to your results not being as strong as you require for your final judgement or decision.

In conducting the research required for secondary research, there are different techniques to gain the information wanted such as:

Using the Internet & Libraries (Reading & Searching Archives) 

For information in the area of secondary research it is useful to gain information from the Internet and libraries and reading materials. The Internet will generate the results of your search faster than looking for a book in the library, as you will have to search for it. The information gained from the internet will then need to be sifted so that information gained is relevant to your research, therefore this is actually taking longer than just gaining the information you want from a book in the library. Depending on where you access the internet will have impact also on time, if gain the information at home it will be easier to access as you are familiar with the loging in option however from the library gaining information will mean that you have to login which may take more time than if you decided to do this at home. Information gained on the Internet will be more up to date and will be ranged from around the world depending on your selection. Whereas from books information will vary on date and may not be very useful to you as the trends of today develop and change meaning that your decisions cannot be based in on information from late dates.  The use of the Internet will also provide a diversity in the information given therefore allowing a better overview of what you are searching for. Whereas in a library the books may not be very diverse as they may either have been borrowed or they do not more than one or two books on the topic of interest.  The ease of access for the internet is a major advantage as at home the access can be 24 hour option however the use in libraries will have a limited time of use from the morning to the evening.

The internet may bring a wide range of advantages however there are a few drawbacks such as the organisation of information, you will be required to sift around the links to find the information required and the results come up in a random order and change therefore no real organisation is constructed. Whereas the library will be more organised having the information provide in alphabetically order. This is will mean that it will be easy to find the information you require and will also allow better and efficient identification in what the library offer.  Another disadvantage from the use of the Internet is that it is transient; there is no real permanent use in information. Adjustments are made and the Internet’s information is only temporary whereas the library will have a range of old and new information therefore the use of the Information can be accessed whenever and no real concern will arise from not being able to obtain the information required.

Books 

Looking at the use of books in more detail that it is very useful and that it can be used to research about different aspects depending on the topics of search. There are a wide range of books that target a wide range of areas. The use of books as part of research can allow research to be more diverse and allow better decisions to be made. I am able to see that the use of books have advantages for example as they have always have been around for a good time, therefore this can allow comparisons to be made from present information to past. For example for fashion, the use of books can help show the development in fashion. The use of books are more accurate method in collecting data as the source/author can be identified at a faster rate.

However, the use of books does also hold some disadvantages and limitations, this being that some books are out of date, therefore basing your decisions on could lead to incorrect assumptions of interest. The figures used within the books could also be out-of-date, therefore making the book not very useful. On the other hand this figures can be useful in finding and establishing trends that have developed.

Primary Research

In order to conduct primary research you will be required to gain the information yourself, this may be through your target audience or just the general public so that the information is not biased. Primary Research is not existing information therefore requiring that individuals conduct and collects their own results for their investigation.

Some of the advantages the use of primary research brings is that in a sense as you are carrying out the research yourself the information you collect can actually be more reliable as you have more control over it, In addition to this you will have the control to decide in what you specifically want to include within the type of primary research you conduct, and you will not have to rely on other people work. Furthermore this control will also mean that you will not have to wait for data to be released or having to wait on others to conduct the research required which may be very time-consuming.

Another advantages of the use of primary research is that the information and questions selected can be tailored to your specific needs, this being for example if the business Tesco were to gather primary research themselves they will be able to take the typical questions asked and tailor it to their business, in the sense of the products and services they provide. By having this availability within the business it allows you to find out the consumers requirements which will then mean that you are able to insure that the business including this new product or even starting a new business is done more efficiently with better potential in success from the ability in being able to identify what is required. Furthermore another advantage is that you are able to take the results gained and interpret them in the results yourself allowing better and more accurate judgement to be made, this will mean that the information you have gained is more trustworthy and will put some individuals at ease in the aspect of basing your results on the business itself.

One main disadvantage from the use of primary research can be seen in the aspect that it is very time consuming and can mean a lot of money will need to be contributed in order to allow the primary research to be collected and sometimes some of the information you collect may not even be necessary to what you are wanting or expecting. The time consuming aspect of the primary research, will cause potential problems in the factor that if you are starting up a business it may delay the procedures in opening therefore resulting to more input being inserted within the business with no real identification of the outcome that the business will receive. The more time consuming gaining primary research becomes the more it means that it more likely and could lead to the likely consequence in that the business may lead to potential failure in bankruptcy in the amount they are inputting in contrast to what they need to be getting. 

Interviews and Observations

Observations are a common method, and bring a lot of advantages as it allows a better understanding in the human behaviour whereas an interview looks at the presentation of an individual with a basis of questions and the responsive actions. The difference between the two is that having interview may not provide a better understanding of individual's behaviour and attitudes as for example interviews for recruitment will have similar questions to what is expected and also individuals can be more prepared for an interview. Whereas it is better from observations as the outcome is not always know their perspective gained is more direct.  Observations can provide a better acknowledgement of problems by making in depth analysis of the situation at hand whereas at an interview there is no real idea in the problems for example in an interview for recruiting you will not know the capability of a candidate, it is made on judgement in their presentation.

Observations require a lot of time; waiting for an event to happen so that the study can commence may take a lot of time, whereas a construction of an interview can be arranged taking less time. Another disadvantage to the use of observations is the fact that the actual observer will be presented as unknown therefore no real trace can be made to know the reliability of information provided. Whereas an interview taken will require both the interviewer and interviewee therefore references can be made and will be easier to know the validity of the information gained.

Focus Groups, Questionnaires & Surveys

Focus groups include a group of people, this tends to usually be between 4 to 14 individuals. The people in the group are brought in together to hold a discussion. This discussion will be based on a topic while the individuals conducting the research is present. Focus groups will include discussions rather than simple answer to questions. The moderator will not get involved in the group discussions in order for fair opinions to be shown. They will simply ask the questions while the individuals answer around and this will then help a discussion and detailed responses.

Questionnaires and survey are usually paper based, however can be done online. They are set of formal questions used in order to gain statistical research, but can also gain more information by using open end questions.

Finding out your own research, you will be asking questions and there are different types of questions that can be asked. For example in a questionnaire the of multiple choice questions can be included. Whereas focus groups will tend to have open end questions. Different types of questions can be asked in order to gain the research. Example below shows the different types:


This types can be used when conducting research, the use of multiple choice narrows down options at times and can allow information to be more concentrated in terms of results. The numeric open end can allow better and more specific information on how much is spent. And finally the use of open end questions are great to gain a more detailed response from individuals.

A questionnaire is a set of questions selected to gain specific data whereas a survey is more in general which may include data extracted from questionnaires. Whereas a Focus group is a set of questions with no selection in options and consists of a group which answer the question.

Advantages of a Focus group is that it does not create any limitation in the opinions and views presented whereas a focus group or a questionnaire use a option box which narrow the criteria selected and a comment box for consumers if they want to add in their own. However the use of the criteria may put consumers off their own opinion and they may just end up selecting from the list provide. In comparison to surveys and questionnaires, a focus group is more expensive to carry out as it tend that the person part taking is provided with cash or some kind of benefit it request. The reason for this as it is very time consuming to people's lives therefore providing the benefits allows more interest.

Audience Panels/ Measurement 

This is where you measure how many individuals are in the audience. Looking into certain types of media this being Radio, television and so on. Your focus will be on those either viewing or watching the television.   

The use of having audience measurements helps aid broadcasters in finding out who is watching and listening by looking at the demographic and psychographic information. This can then help the by allowing the presenters to develop on their target audience or find out methods to increase the audience watching. 

Experimentation

This type of use in primary research is when an experiment or test is carried out and the results gained are used to prove or show something to individuals. The use of experiments tend to be mainly for scientific purpose, for example testing how product react with another this being magnesium and so on in the periodic table. This experimentation in primary research this used to find out new information about what they are testing and the outcome that is given.

This scientific edge can be established into businesses, this for example being a business like Head and shoulders looking to improve their shampoo, therefore meaning that test will be carried out in order to gain the aspect they want to combat and their unique selling point, this being the right smell for the product or even helping the hair by anti dandruff, shine and so on. This information can then help in terms of advertising as the business will then be able to use this as a great method in gaining the interest of users.

Data Gathering Agencies

Some individuals may decide to gain their research from data gathering agencies, this is a very simple method as what you want will be easily allocated. This is a major advantage as it makes the process less time consuming and results will be at a good standard. At a price of costing for individuals who want to gain the information.

Examples of some of the Data Gathering Agencies are RAJAR - Radio Joint Audience Research Ltd, BARB - Audience Research Board.  

(RAJAR) Radio Joint Audience Research Limited

This has been established in 1992 to operate a single audience measurement system for the use of the radio industry. 

The organisation RAJAR, has conducted extensive testing of electronic devices that either capture listening,  matching captured audio against a database of transmissions or picking up encoded signals within station transmissions and so on. 

RAJAR also did a joint venture with BARB, this involving electronic measurement panel to test the use of  "Arbitron's Portable People Meter" in order to be able to capture radio listening and tv viewing. In relation to research for myself the use of existing companies would be a great method as it means that the results can be gained from the company and easy for me to gain and in terms of what it provides this being the radio listing and tv viewing, it can be a great way to look into tv viewing habits of my target market and look deeper into the research for the advertising unit. 

(BARB) Broadcasters Audience Research Board 

This is an organisation  is the primary provider of television audience measurement in the UK who collect the viewing figures for the television in the UK. BARB audience measurement data shows the trading currency for broadcasters, advertisers and their agencies. BARB is a non-profit making limited company and funded by major players in the industry for example like the BBC, ITV etc. The information shown shows how well channels  advertisers and campaigners have done. This can be a great method in being able to see how successful the advertisement within our group can be through the use of BARB. 

Self-Generated

There's also the use of self- generated sources, this can be very useful to the business as it means that they are able to present their own information gained. This for example being the use of a documentary that can express different views on a topic and allow two sides of a topic to be explored. This use of own self generated footage can help aid in increasing the amount of research available and knowledge gained.

Example of self generated is for example by producing your own video, this is a great method as it is more observant and means that you are able to capture a wide range of elements. In addition to this a great method can be audio, this can be used in focus groups, interviews and so on to allow research to be more accurate and so that you are including the correct information from the individuals who participate rather than just taking notes which could lead to biased information. From the use of self generated information another aspect could be the use of photographic record of events. This is very good use in a more visualised term, by having images of events can help support the research being presented to individuals.

LO1: Task 1

Understand the nature and purpose of research in the creative media industries 

In this report, I will be looking at the purpose of research and will be looking at each type of research and what it contains. I will explore the advantages and disadvantages of its use. I will also cover market and product research, primary and secondary research. In addition to the quantitative and qualitative research.

Types of Research: 

Quantitative Research

Quantitative Data is purely based on figures, it the opinions of individuals presented in a form of statistics, ratings, Percentages, and web hits. This use of data is very popular in businesses to allow them to maintain their profit and inflow and outflow within a business. 

Quantitative Data will allow information to be reused or adjustments to be made to meet the specifications of the individual whom is conducting the research. Having quantitative data can be a great method insuring that researchers can use it to test a hypothesis as it is a great method in measuring data from the use of the statistics.  The use of quantitative research allows the researcher to measure and also analyse the data. You are able to use quantitative data in order to establish relationships between the variables. This element is an advantage as the researcher will be in a more objective position in the response collected. It can also be a great method in being able to identify developing trends, this being for example from the use of on-going ratings.

The main disadvantage from the use of quantitative research is it could be unreliable and very time consuming. The larger the sample size of the population must be studied. in order to get more statistically accurate results as it is insuring that a fair amount of results are gained and so that the results are not one-sided or biased.

An example of this may be the use of trend growth over the years allowing the same research to take place but an adjusted variable of the time. As you are able to see below:

For more information on graph: http://blog.trade.gov/2011/08/16/did-you-know-that-ita-has-new-import-trends-and-data/

Quantitative data is statistical analysis allowing research gained to be backed up with statistics; therefore allowing the information gained to have more s,upport and gives a clearer image of the situation.

Programme Ratings

An example of quantitative research is program rating, this is when the amount of viewers is counted and used to see which shows have the highest viewers. 

This is a great method of research in finding out the ratings on different channels, allows clear identification of popular programmes shown on TV. This type of research is quantitative research as it is providing ratings with an additional ranking of the TOP 10. The benefit of this specific quantitative data, is that the ratings allows a clear identification of what is a the high spectrum and what is at the lower end. You are able to see that this benefit is reinforced with the ranking of TOP 10 being provided. 

From the example you clearly are able to see the TOP 10 programs that are shown on ITV, with the use of the year and month allows information to be altered to suit the users. You are able to see that the figures show that Britain's got talent is number one with 9,174 viewers during april 2013. Looking at the ratings it helps present a clear interest of programmes, this type of research can aid many individuals. In relation to ratings within media it could have supported my Unit for advertising production as it could help support my decision on where to air the advertisement created and what type. This quantitative research can also help support by the decision made, you are also able to see that the use of ratings can also provide trends over a long period of time. This can be a great advantage in allowing predictions to be made and more effective decision being made. 

Other types of quantitative research include:

Hits on a website

This can be a great way to be able to see the success of the product or an item depending on the amount of hits received. It can be a great method to see how well a product or item has done. An example of this is on Youtube, this being that you are able to see how well a video has done depending on the amount of reviews gained but also the likes and dislikes likes included:

Looking above you are able to see that the use of hits can be a great method in conducting research, looking at this example you are able to see how many individuals viewed this advertisement. It also provides a brief understanding of how well it did by the use of the like and dislike buttons. This method of quantitative data is a great method in finding information as the responses are made by individuals who want to and is a lot easier to conduct. 

Sales on CD'S, DVS and Movies in Cinema

Another example of conducting quantitative data is through the use of Sales made, this can be a great method to see the success by monitoring how much profit comes into the business. You are able to see that this is a great method in being able to measure if their is a success in product as the more sales gained therefore meaning the higher amount of interest from users.

http://www.the-numbers.com/market/2013/summary

Looking at the image above you are able to see the sales made from the different movies that have come out. You are also able to see the release date of the movies. It gives you the amount of tickets sold for the shows being watched. This is a great way to see the success made as it allows you to place the different films in ranking. This will allow you to identify the popular choice and what has done more successful, this is shown above by providing the ranking in addition.

Qualitative Research  

Qualitative Research is around facts which an individual will use to help make judgement or to allow them to answer questions in the interest of an area they are looking into. In organisations it allows the exploration is the arising problems and the answers to resolve the circumstances. Examples of qualitative research would be the opinions, attitudes and behaviour patterns that people are having.

Advantages of qualitative data are that the information provided is realistic and it allows a clear understanding on the individual's perspectives. It also allows the information gained to be more in depth and be more detailed. This is gained for example in focus groups as the questions are more concentrated and allows more expression and overall opinion to be made as there is no restriction in the expression of their feeling and attitudes. This allows researchers to have a clear idea of what is expected of them.

A major disadvantage in the usage in qualitative data is that it is very difficult to repeat this and is expensive in training for researchers. It is labor intensive therefore costs will be very including training employees or going to hire researchers. The use of qualitative data could lead to complications in that if the employees within the business are not trained then this could impact the standard of the research. As they may not be able to interpret the responses in the intended way and this could lead to results not being valid or even biased. Another impact of not having trained researchers is that if they themselves are easily influenced by other they can then be subjective towards their opinions, which would cause the results to be biased. This being if the researcher imposes their own opinion in the final results. 

Example of qualitative research include the following:

Film & Game Reviews 

One method in gaining qualitative research is by gaining reviews from individuals, this is very useful as you will be able to see what an individual's thoughts about the topics. The example that I will be looking at is the use of reviews from a game.

As you are able to see that one method in gaining responses is looking at reviews, looking above you are able to see the reviews gained for the game "The Walking Dead". From this you are able to see that the reviews gained are from users and their thoughts. Looking at the one above you are able to see that they are mostly positive. From the use of reviews it can be an advantage as it can help aid in this case on purchasing the product. In a similar scenario reviews for films can also have its perks in the sense that it can help aid the decision for individuals in what they want to watch and decide to go watch.

The use of reviews as shown above can be a great method in research as you are able to gain a more direct opinion and it allows a better understanding of the product as it the response is detailed and specific. Looking at the review above you are able to see that the response also looks at the positive elements that has left the individual satisfied.

Fanzine Websites

This is another example of qualitative research, these websites are created by fans of a particular production. This can range from example such as filmes, games, book and son on. They are published for free to express different perspectives and viewpoints.

Due to the advance in the use of technology, social networking sites such as facebook and twitters are great place for discussions and views from individuals. Looking at the example above of a fanpage for both Rihanna and Beyonce you are able to see that is also a great method in promoting artists and their work.

These are a few examples of qualitative research, other examples of gaining this type of research is through the use of the attitudes to media products. This being from reviews on websites for example boots where consumers provide reviews on the products they are selling. This gives good feedback to those about the products and can help prompt their decisions in buying the products. I am able to see that the use of responses to news coverage can also be a great way for individuals to express what they are feeling on the topics that is being talked about. Examples of feedback from news coverages are on website such as daily mail - http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/index.html and when selecting of the topic and scrolling to the bottom you are able to see a wide range of users opinions on the topics. It also at times leads to discussions being made on the site.