Research report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Research report - Essay Example for them to evaluate the needs and preferences of the customers based on their demographics and provide products and services which fit their individual needs. A research was conducted to identify the factors that contribute most to the selection of a particular hospital for delivery. The research used a survey method to acquire data from the respondents. A questionnaire was designed to which comprised of dichotomous questions, checklists and questions with a rating grid. The sample size composed of 270 individuals with 244 females and 26 males. The research helped Norton to successfully capture a glimpse of the demographics of the local population. The findings of the research showed that males and females significantly differ in rating the importance of different factors. Also it was apparent that females rate the factors highly than their male counterparts, so the importance of female as a target population was highlighted. In addition to that, the research spotlighted the importance of educational level and how it could be used to segment the target market since individuals with different qualification levels rated different factors in a different manner. The study also emphasized on the importance of certain factors which will be helpful in increasing the brand equity. Those mainly include quality of care, friendliness of staff, maternity facilities and reputation of hospital. Health care industry has undergone through massive changes and companies have increasingly become focused towards developing innovative strategies to attract and retain customers. Companies have recognized the importance of marketing research since a new trend was developed when Medicare started reimbursing hospitals by ways of Diagnose Related Illness (DRG’s) rather than on the basis of costs. DRG’s are basically an organized way to classify hospital cases that uses similar hospital resources (Reference). Patients have now become savvier and they decide how they should be