Objectives and Approach Although the first two editions of Marketing Research: Within a Changing Information Environment were well received in the marketplace, it was most of all the positive comments made by adopters of the book and reviewers (both adopters and nonadopters) as well as students which encouraged us to write this third edition. Our objectives in the new edition of Marketing Research remain threefold. First, we present students a body of knowledge and a set of facts that are easy to study and understand and that will facilitate practical self-learning of the basics of information research. Second, we provide students solid tools and the chance to learn skills necessary to solve business problems and exploit business opportunities. And finally, we provide a solid educational learning resource for instructors who strive to bring understanding to frequently complex subject matter. As students develop information acquisition skills and an understanding of basic research tools, they will quickly see how these can be applied to a changing marketing environment, to other academic courses, and to their personal lives.

Rapid changes in the business world are creating new decision situations that demand creative solutions and better skills for the acquisition and use of information. As a result of many recent advances in communication technologies, high speed communication systems, and other electronic technological advances, business decision makers and the marketing research industry have been forced to rethink their notions of information and of the practices used to acquire and generate data and information. A unique feature of the third edition of Marketing Research is the detailed treatment of and significantly greater emphasis placed on identifying, searching, gathering, analyzing, and interpreting secondary data and information. Another unique feature is the book's detailed and expanded coverage of customer relationship management and the integrative role that marketing information research plays in making CRM one of the hottest topics in information research today. In addition, this text places a heavy emphasis on the use of technology for marketing research practices. Finally, students and instructors will have the opportunity to engage the book's new interactive Web site (www.mhhe.com/hair06) linking students to a wide variety of additional practical marketing research examples, exercises, applications, learning modules, cases, and points of interest relevant to better understanding marketing research information tools, skills, and practices.

The third edition of Marketing Research: Within a Changing Information Environment provides detailed insights into alternative ways of dealing with new information needs and demands brought about by environmental changes. These changes have had direct impact both on marketing research practices and on the operating environments of business practitioners. Additionally, there have been many changes in the educational environment that have implications for how people acquire knowledge and master the skills and tools customarily associated with the practice of marketing research. Given the strong acceptance of the information research process presented in the prior two editions of this text, we again use that process not only to cover the traditional marketing research concepts, but also to provide insights for meeting the information challenges of the 21st century. The third edition is written for people at a fairly basic level; it does not require a strong background in statistics or any prior knowledge of marketing research. It is not intended for people who wish to teach advanced multivariate statistics, yet it serves well as a supplement text for those procedures.

We believe that self-learning is a critical and necessary component of a student's overall educational experience. To that end we have incorporated the following characteristics into the third edition to enhance the self-learning process:
o Easy-to-understand writing style and organization.
o Clearly presented and informative exhibits, tables, and boxes that provide real business applications.
o Integrative examples that illustrate the links between various research concepts.
o End-of-chapter Marketing Research in Action Features that demonstrate how researchers integrate concepts discussed within the chapter.
o Detailed treatment of critical research skills and tools.
o In-depth treatment of secondary data/information as well as customer relationship management.
o New in-depth treatment of technology in a marketing research environment.
o Anew interactive book Web site that links the students and instructors to additional examples and discussions on many different research topics.

Content and Organization Positive comments and acceptance from reviewers, adopters, and students of the previous edition encouraged us to maintain the overall content for the third edition, which, however, provides significantly new and expanded coverage of a number of marketing research topics in the second edition. Part One of the book covers marketing research programs and processes. Chapter 1 presents an overview of the role of marketing research for the decision-making/planning process. It also provides a detailed discussion of ethics in the marketing research industry. Chapter 2 takes an information approach to explaining the marketing research process and sets the tone for the remaining chapters. Chapter 3 incorporates decision-making and customer relationship management issues pertaining to secondary data acquisition and retrieval.

Part Two is devoted primarily to technology and the marketing research process. Chapter 4 of the new edition provides a detailed discussion of customer relationship management (CRM) and explores various research decisions using CRM approaches for data acquisition and intra-organizational sharing of data and information. Chapter 5 focuses uniquely on how research-driven decision support systems are created and used to support a research environment. This chapter is also supplemented with a fundamental discussion on the role of geographic information systems (GIS) for marketing research purposes.

Part Three covers the various research designs used to collect accurate data and information. Chapter 6 provides a detailed discussion of exploratory designs of in-depth interviews and focus groups. There is new and expanded coverage of online focus group practices. Chapter 7 continues with descriptive research designs along with other quantitative data collection methods that are associated with descriptive research objectives. Part Three concludes with a discussion of the value of observation techniques for marketing research projects in Chapter 8. This chapter takes a unique approach in the discussion of observational research approaches, designing experiments in a research environment, test marketing, and causal research designs.

Part Four demonstrates the necessary approaches for gathering and collecting accurate data. In the new third edition, we provide two chapters on sampling. Chapter 9 explores sampling from a theory and design perspective with a detailed discussion on theoretical and statistical factors of sampling. Chapter 10 examines sampling approaches used in a variety of marketing research situations. Chapters 11 and 12 are devoted to the concept of measurement, first addressing the issues associated with construct development and scale measurement (Chapter 11) and following with attitude scale measurements as used in survey research. Finally, Chapter 13 illustrates an innovative and detailed approach to questionnaire design and development.

Part Five is devoted to data preparation and data analysis. These topics, often viewed as complex and technical, are developed in a reader-friendly format. Chapter 14 discusses a "hands-on," step-by-step approach for coding, editing, and the general preparation necessary for data analysis. Chapter 15 presents tests for significant differences and Chapter 16 presents tests for association. Both chapters are enlivened by a wide variety of examples, exercises, and SPSS highlights to enhance pedagogy and readability. Chapter 17 discusses multivariate statistics, again emphasizing readability, comprehension, and clarity. The new edition concludes with Chapter 18 which illustrates the design and execution of the marketing research report and visual presentation. To complement this chapter, a PowerPoint illustration is provided on the text's Web site (www.mhhe.com/hair06).

Pedagogy Most marketing research textbooks are readable, but a more important question might be, "Can students comprehend what they are reading?" This book offers a wealth of pedagogical features, all aimed at answering the question in the affirmative. Here is a list of the major elements:

Learning Objectives. Each chapter begins with clear learning objectives that students can use to gauge their expectations for the chapter discussion in view of the nature and importance of the chapter's material.

Real-World Chapter Openers. Each chapter opens with an interesting and pertinent example of a real-world business situation that illustrates the focus and significance of the chapter's material.

Key Terms and Concepts. These are bold-faced in the text and defined in the page margins. They are also listed at the end of the chapters along with page numbers to make reviewing easier and included in the Glossary at the end of the book.

A Closer Look at Research. These illustrative boxes, found frequently throughout the chapters, come in three categories: Technology, Small Business, and In the Field. They are intended to expose the students to real-world marketing research issues.

Ethics. Ethical issues are treated early in the book (Chapter 1), revisited throughout the text, and illustrated in Ethics boxes.

Global Insights. These boxes encourage the student to see the international implications of, and opportunities for, marketing research.

Chapter Summaries. The detailed chapter summations, organized by learning objectives, will help students remember key facts, concepts, and issues. They also serve as an excellent study guide for preparation for in-class exercises or exams.

Questions for Review and Discussion. The Review Questions and Discussion Questions are carefully designed to enhance the self-learning process and to encourage the application of the concepts learned in the chapter to real business situations. There are two or three questions in each chapter directly related to the World Wide Web designed to provide students with opportunities for sharpening their electronic data gathering and interpretive skills.

Marketing Research in Action. The cases found at the ends of the chapters provide students with additional insights into how key concepts in each chapter can be applied to real-world situations. These cases can serve as in-class discussion tools or applied case exercises. An ingoing case-the Santa Fe Grill-found in several chapters uses a single situation to illustrate various aspects of the marketing research process.

Santa Fe Grill. The Santa Fe Grill continuing case is a specially designed business scenario embedded throughout the book for the purpose of questioning and illustrating chapter topics. First introduced in the Marketing Research in Action in Chapter 1, the Santa Fe Grill continuing case provides students with an ongoing example of applying marketing research concepts and the challenges associated with them as they appear in the text. A data set accompanies this useful learning example.

Supplements This book offers a rich ancillary package. Here is a brief description of each element in the package.

Instructor's Resource CD-ROM. This CD includes a thoroughly revised Instructor's Manual and PowerPoint slide presentation. A wealth of extra student projects and real-life examples provide additional classroom resources. The electronic test bank was also thoroughly revised and included on the CD.

Videos. The video program contains two hours of material on marketing research from the McGraw-Hill/Irwin video library.

Web Site. Students can use their Internet skills to log on to this book's dedicated Web site (www.mhhe.com/hair06) to access additional information about marketing research and evaluate their understanding of chapter material by taking the sample quizzes. Students can also prepare their marketing research projects with our online support system. Additional resources are offered for each chapter-look for prompts in the book that will guide you to the Web site for more useful information on various topics.

Six Data Sets in SPSS format. The data sets can be used to assign research projects or with exercises throughout the book. These databases cover a wide variety of topics that all students can identify with, and offer an excellent approach to enhance teaching of concepts. The databases include the following: Santa Fe Grill continuing case, Deli Depot (restaurant example), Remington's Steak House (perceptual mapping example), Qualkote (B-to-B example), DVD sales (B-to-C example), and Back Yard Burgers (restaurant example).

SPSS Student Version. Through an arrangement with SPSS, we offer the option of purchasing the textbook packaged with a CD-ROM containing an SPSS Student Version for Windows. This powerful software tool allows for the analysis of up to 50 variables and 1,500 cases. It contains the complete Back Yard Burgers data set and can be used in conjunction with data analysis procedures contained in the text.