Nature and Purposes of Research

Nature and purposes of research in the Media Industry

Primary

This is where the research has been found out first hand, in the media industry, this helps the Filmmaker create a understanding of the subject and enables them to create a more informed final product. For example this could be a experiment or survey, which would then be analysed and put into statistics or writing. During my college course I have made multiple surveys to gain a understanding of a target audience. An example of this is when I made a survey to do with Re-Branding a unilever product, both qualitative and quantitative data was taken because it allowed us to create an advertisement that would appeal to a student target audience, rather than the previous family target audience. Evidence of this definition is on BBC Bitesize.com “involves gathering new data that has not been collected before”.


Secondary

This is where research is taken from another piece of primary research that someone else has done, the pros of this method of research is that it is quicker to acquire than primary research because it is already done, however it could be misinterpreted or bias meaning there is a chance the information may be false. For my Depict video, we researched into the “Film Noir” genre, in order to give our production the same feel to it. Evidence of this is shown in our production because of the black and White backgrounds, and the formal attire we used as costumes.

Still from Depict video

Quantitative

This type of research is usually used to gain statistics about a large group of people, this information gives numerical data.

quantitative

ˈadjective relating to, measuring, or measured by the quantity of something rather than its quality.

The pros of this type of research is that it's easier to analyse than qualitative, and the data can also be put into statistical graphs and charts to present if needed. In media, this was helpful in the creation of an advert rebrand, because the data that we collected allowed us to gain a good understanding of the previous target audience, so our groups could rebrand it for a different one. This method has few cons however there is a small chance that bias data may be submitted, rendering the statistics inaccurate.

Qualitative

This type of research is used to collect detailed answers of people's opinions, this type of research is focused on the quality of the answers, this was used in some of the surveys I made throughout my business course at college, this is because I had to gain people's opinions on a pricing strategy for a business presentation.The pros of this method is that responses are open ended and leave most of the decision making to the person answering which results in a detailed response which may help or hinder the research, this depends on what the researcher is trying to find out. An example of this is when I made a detailed film review on Cars 3, this can be seen as a qualitative review because although some figures were used it mostly consists of my personal views and opinions.

Data Gathering Agencies

These agencies are essentially made to collect data about different topics and add them to data banks. An example of a data gathering agency is BARB which is short for the Broadcasters Audience Research Board this companies main focus is to gather data about the viewership and rating on TV channels, all of the information collected is used by companies to see where they could improve on during their productions. This is useful especially in media because it allows advertisers to plan ahead on when the best time is to play their advertisement, so it has more viewers and can reach the right target audience. Furthermore increasing their product outreach.


Audience and Market Research

This is analysing the type of people that will be exposed to the media that is being shown. For example, people who make children's TV shows will research what the best time to air the programme is, and also look at the latest trends so the audience is able to relate to it so it entices them to watch more. Effective ways of gaining information is by analysing results and also using surveys in order to gain a good understanding of the audience, and the best way to make a product successful. An example of this was in media where I was tasked to rebrand a Unilever product. I chose Lynx and made a presentation about how I would target their new target audience. In competitive markets some productions also take the time to analyse their competitors, this is so they know what they can do to give them a edge over their competition.


Production Research

This research is used by filmmakers mostly in high budget productions, doing this helps give the filmmakers a estimate of how much each scene will cost to make, when devising a plan for the TV Advert I was a part of making in college there was a budgeting sheet included so the group were able to track each purchase that was used in the making of the Advert. When adverts are made in professional productions, they offer hire people to research what type of characteristics people have of the product that is trying to be marketed. So they can find the best way of showcasing the product and selling as much as possible. This research is also important for finding locations suitable for filming.

I also did research for the documentary that I Produced on the growth of competitive gaming. I planned interviews, and also thought about what different types of shots I wanted to include. And
any cutaways to other gameplay or interviews were also included.

Sources
https://classroom.synonym.com/pros-cons-qualitative-quantitative-research-8179604.html