Body on Tap Case Study

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Body on Tap Case Study Lakeland College March 28, 2011 Abstract This case study discusses the ethical issue of Bristol-Myers using blind monadic testing in their research of their prototype shampoo Body on Tap. According to the text, the product was to be tested compared to other shampoos. Instead the evidence showed that several groups of approximately 200 women each tested just one shampoo (Zikmund, 2003, p.505). It is important to discuss the method Bristol-Myers used in its testing of a prototype shampoo product and other methods that would have given more objective results on which product type consumers preferred. Prototypes are often tested to optimize the characteristics of customer appeal. They do so to discover strengths and weaknesses of the prototype they would like to market. This includes utilizing the monadic product tests. In these tests a consumer tests the product and evaluates that single product. If there is more than one product to be tested, matched groups of respondents would test each product, with the data collected from each group being compared to each other (http:// www.burke.com/services/cmr/product_research.cfm?p=1&id=15). In reading the definition according to Burke, I think Bristol-Myers could have utilized this method to better determine the marketing of their product had they followed the typical protocol of this type of testing. They could have maintained the testing as a blind monadic product test but it would have been more useful for their needs. As in the previous case study we reviewed on Shampoo, they could have solely looked at their own product utilizing the coding method of questionnaires. This would have given them better descriptors for their prototype and not caused legal action. This type of testing could have still
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