Case Study 5

Page 1 of 3
Case Study 5
5.1 Velvet Quilt
The research for Velvet Quilt is an example of a commercial test that was conducted when an
advertising campaign for an established brand had run its course. The revised campaign, “Fighting
the Cold,” emphasized that Velvet Quilt was an “extra-warm quilt”; previous research had
demonstrated that extra warmth was an important and deliverable product quality. The commercial
test was requested to measure the campaign’s ability to generate purchase interest.
The marketing department had recommended this revised advertising campaign and was now
anxious to know how effectively this commercial would perform. The test concluded that
“Fighting the Cold” was a persuasive commercial. It also demonstrated that the new campaign
would have greater appeal to specific market segments.
Method
Brand choices for the same individuals were obtained before and after viewing the commercial.
The commercial was tested in 30-second, color-moving, storyboard form in a theater test. Invited
viewers were shown programming with commercial inserts. Qualified respondents were women
who had bought quilts in outlets that carried Velvet. The results are shown in Table 1-4.
Table 1 Shifts in Brand Choice before and after Showing of Velvet Quilt Commercial
Question: We are going to give away a sample of fabric softener. You can select the brand you
most prefer. Which brand would you choose?
Brand Choice before Commercial
Brand Choice after Commercial (%)
Velvet Quilt
(n=23)
Other Brand
(n=237)
Velvet Quilt 78 19
Other Brand 22 81
Table 2 Pre/Post Increment in Choice of Velvet Quilt
Improvement in score based on exposure to commercial.
Demographic Group “Fighting the Cold” Norm: All Quilt Commercials
Base Score Average Range
Total audience (260) +15 +10 6-19
By marital status
Married (130) +17
Not Married (130) +12
By age
Under 35 (130) +14
35 and over (130) +15
By employment status
Not employed (90) +13
Employed (170) +18
Page 2 of 3
Table 3 Adjective Checklist for Velvet Quilt Commercial
Question: Which of these words do you feel come closest to describing the commercial you’ve just seen? (Check all
that apply.)
Adjective “Fighting the Cold” (%) Norm: All Quilt Commercials (%)
Positive
Appealing 19 23
Clever 5 24
Convincing 18 24
Effective 11 40
Entertaining 20 14
Fast moving 12 21
Genuine 7 4
Imaginative 7 21
Informative 24 18
Interesting 13 17
Original 7 20
Realistic 8 3
Unusual 3 8
Negative
Amateurish 9 11
Bad Taste 4 4
Dull 33 20
Repetitious 17 16
Silly 8 19
Slow 8 7
Unbelievable 3 5
Unclear 3 2
Unimportant 14 14
Uninteresting 32 19
Table 4 Product Attribute Checklist for Velvet Quilt
Question: Which of the following statement do you feel apply to Velvet Quilt? (Mark as many or as few as you feel
apply)
Attributes “Fighting the Cold) (%)
Extra warm 56
Lightweight 48
Pretty designs 45
Durable fabrics 28
Nice fabrics 27
Good construction 27
Question
Interpret the data in these tables. What recommendations and conclusions would you offer to
Velvet Quilt management?
Page 3 of 3
5.2 Harvey Motorcars
Harvey Motorcars is the new Fiat dealer in Edinburg, Texas. Harvey Motorcars has been regularly
advertising in its local markets area that the new Fiat 500 average 30 miles to a gallon of gas and
mentions that this figure may vary with driving conditions. A local consumer group wishes to
verify the advertising claim. To do so, it selects a sample of recent purchasers of Fiat 500. It asks
them to drive their cars until two tanks of gasoline have been used up and to record the mileage.
The group then calculates and records the miles per gallon for each year. The data in the following
table portray the results of the tests.
Table1. Miles per Gallon Information
Purchaser Miles per Gallon Purchaser Miles per Gallon
1 30.9 13 27.0
2 24.5 14 26.7
3 31.2 15 31.0
4 28.7 16 23.5
5 35.1 17 29.4
6 29.0 18 26.3
7 28.8 19 27.5
8 23.1 20 28.2
9 31.0 21 28.4
10 30.2 22 29.1
11 28.4 23 21.9
12 29.3 24 30.9
Questions
1. Formulate a statistical hypothesis appropriate for the consumer group’s purpose.
2. Calculate the mean average miles per gallon. Compute the sample variance and sample standard
deviation.
3. Construct the appropriate statistical test for your hypothesis, using a 0.05 significance level.