QUALITATIVE MARKETING RESEARCH: BLACK SHEEP OR BLACK SWAN

摘要

Overall, the presence of studies in top marketing journals has improved since the previous decade; however, one third of the studies we analyzed came from the Journal of Consumer Research, followed by the European Journal of Marketing, JAMS and JM. The most common topics studied in these articles were related to consumer behavior (over 50%), followed by marketing strategy and business-to-business. Regarding the method used, the most utilized tools were the interview, in an overwhelming proportion, followed by ethnography, case studies and content analysis. When it comes to triangulation, or the combination with quantitative methods, 65% of the articles analyzed did not include quantitative studies. Regarding the social media discussions, more than half were centered around methods and bibliography, while topics such as validity and the scientific usefulness of the method were also encountered. The importance of questions asking for procedural advice and bibliography can show that there is a lack of focus on courses related to this method. Qualitative research is viewed as especially beneficial in the context of online consumer information, social media and big data analytics.