On many occasions, in order to obtain the desired information in the most useful form,
hospitality organizations conduct market research. Marketing research is “the process of designing, gathering, analyzing, and reporting information that may be used to solve a specific marketing problem” (Burns and Bush, 2003, p. 7). The purpose of marketing research is to provide information to make marketing decisions. Marketing problem could apply to a wide variety of marketing-related objectives. For instance, a hotel may conduct market research to identify if opportunity for adding spa service to its facility exists with its targeted customers.
Because marketing research can be conducted for different objectives, it is important for hospitality organizations to clearly define their intentions for conducting such research prior to determining the best method for collecting the data.