Posted: May 28th, 2015

Ice Cream Consumer Analysis

Ice Cream Consumer Analysis

Research Requirements: ? MRI/University Internet Reporter spreadsheets (Moodle)
? a minimum of 5 articles (databases + internet)
Consumer Research: Lifestyles, Attitudes and Behaviors of Ice Cream Consumers
Use the library’s article databases and online sources to research the people who buy and consume ice
cream. Report on as many characteristics as you can find about these people, including their
demographics, psychographics, behaviors and the benefits they derive from buying and using ice cream.
This section should be approximately 2 pages in length.
To get started, think about questions like these:
? What product features seem to be important to different kinds of consumers?
? How do attitudes toward ice-cream/desserts vary among consumers?
? What are these people interested in? When do they use ice cream? How does it fit into their
lives?
Do not try to segment yet. Just write a report on ice cream users.
Market Segmentation of Ice Cream Users: 3 Groups
Having written your report above, you should now be prepared to think about differences
between buyers of ice cream. Based on the information you reported, divide consumers
into three different segments. For each segment, describe the main characteristics of
consumers in that group. Be sure to use a combination of characteristics; i.e., don’t
describe each group only by age; combine age, attitudes, needs, benefits, psychographics,
etc. in each description.
Each segment will have a subheading that provides the name of the segment, followed by
a written profile of the people in that segment.
Buyer Demographics:
Use MRI+ Mediamark Internet Reporter to obtain demographic and geographic data for yoga ice cream
buyers.
1. The BA 415 Moodle site provides four spreadsheets for this assignment. You will compare
“principal shoppers” to one of the usage groups: “heavy,” “medium” or “light”.
1. Required Spreadsheet: Ice Cream Principal Shopper 2010.xls
2. Select ONE from the following:
a. ice cream heavy 2010.xls
b. ice cream medium 2010.xls
c. ice cream light 2010.xls
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2. To do your comparison, begin by constructing two tables: one for principal shoppers, and one
for the heavy, medium or light user. Use the % Down and Index numbers, as we did in class.
Tables are required to use the format provided below. Niether MRI table in this section should
exceed ½ page. Put both tables on the same page so they are easy to compare.
Ice Cream Principal Shopper – Last 6 Months
Fall 2010
% Down Index
Sex – –
Education – –
Age – –
– – –
– – –
– – –
– – –
etc. – –
Source: GfK MRI+ Mediamark Internet Reporter (2010)
Following each table, write a summary like this: “The ice cream principal shopper is primarily
(male/female), has a (college, high school, etc.) education, and is aged (age category). Ice cream users
tend to be engaged in (professional, sales, management, etc.) occupations, and their incomes range
from (income categories)…” [Note: It is possible that the categories you select will be different than
those provided in this example].
Finally, based on your tables and descriptions, answer the following:
? How do principal shoppers (i.e., the average ice cream user) differ from heavy, medium or
light users?
Media Usage: Heavy, Medium or Light Ice Cream Users
Create a third table listing relevant media usage of the people who are either heavy, medium or light ice
cream users, whichever you selected above. Select two vehicles/formats from each of the following
categories: cable, tv, radio, magazine and web sites. Select media on the basis of Percent Down and
Index numbers, as before.
The table should not exceed 12 rows.
Beneath the table, provide a one paragraph summary of the MRI media data. Do not duplicate the rows
and percentages provided in the table. Instead, describe the media that consumers are likely to use. See
the dos and don’ts below.
DON’T Nine percent of heavy ice cream users watch early evening network news shows (Index 150);
6.8% watch the news in the morning (Index 136). Users (25%) watch CNN with an index of 104.
The percentage of users who read Huffington Post is 10% with a high index number of 174.
DO People who are heavy users of ice cream tend to use news media, including broadcast evening
news, CNN, and websites like Huffington post. Popular magazines for these consumers include….
Demos
Source
Title
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Format requirements
Use no more than ONE quotation in the paper; use summaries and paraphrasing instead. When you do
quote (i.e., copy or cut & paste passages from the original source), use the proper format and give credit
to the author. The proper format is to put quotation marks around the copied passage and provide an
in-text citation: (author, year, page number). See Penalties for Inaccurate Documentation of
Sources/Plagiarism on the following page.
Writing:
? Use good grammar, proper spelling and appropriate writing style. Writing counts.
Page Format (Neatness counts)
? Title
? headings & subheadings
? double spacing
? page numbers
? 12 point font
? 1 inch margins
? separate references page(s)
Citations & References:
? Use APA style to properly document and cite sources.
? List referenced sources in alphabetical order.
Page Length
Do not exceed 6 pages (excluding References pages).
Here is a suggested reference format for MRI/University Internet Reporter in APA Style:
GfK Mediamark Research & Intelligence. (2010a). Fall 2010 Product: Ice Cream Principal
Shoppers. MRI+/University Internet Reporter. [Data file]. http://www.mriplus.com.
GfK Mediamark Research & Intelligence. (2010b). Fall 2010 Product: Ice Cream Heavy Users.
MRI+/University Internet Reporter. [Data file]. http://www.mriplus.com.
In-text citations:
(GfK Mediamark Research & Intelligence, 2010a) and
(GfK Mediamark Research & Intelligence, 2010b)
In-text citations and references page
Use APA style to format your in-text citations and References listings.
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Penalties for Inaccurate Documentation of Sources/Plagiarism
Expect the following at minimum (i.e., the penalty could be worse) for the following errors.
– 5 points ? the paper leaves out some citations & reference sources, or
? the paper has one or two quotations and/or paraphrases that are not properly
documented, but other material is ok, or
? APA style format is not employed
– 10 points ? The paper fails to use any in-text citations, even though references are listed.
? The paper uses in-text citations, but the References page is not provided.
– 20 points ? Much of the material is copied outright, without quotation marks. The penalty
applies even if in-text citations are provided, and/or
? Paraphrasing is consistently done incorrectly.
No credit Flagrant plagiarism; the paper presents evidence of intent to misrepresent the
sources of information, including but not limited to the following examples:
? The sources that are cited are not the sources actually used; the references
listed are not those that were actually used.
? Passages are copied outright without giving credit.
? The paper appears to have been written for a different course,
? Or by a different student, or by another third party.
In such cases the instructor may forward the paper to WOU Judicial Affairs.