It is expected that you will be developing the work you undertook for Assessment 1, but that you will (1) respond to the formative feedback provided in your feedback for Assessment 1, and (2) add inferential statistics where appropriate.
Given that you are adding content to your existing report, the page limit has increased from 10 to 12 pages.
Count research questions can only be answered with descriptive statistics because they do not have an independent variable, so you should not add inferential statistics to such questions.
If you have only used count research questions in Assessment 1, then you need to add cross-sectional or correlational questions so to be able to include inferential statistics, as required for assessment 2.
Where you have used cross-sectional research questions, you need to add an inferential statistic. If your independent variable has 2 categories, you should use a t-test, but if it has 3 or more categories, you should use ANOVA.
If you used dependent variables that were categorical variables, you are only able to report frequencies (i.e., counts, percentages) per category, but you cannot report Means. Thus, to compare means, you need to make sure that your dependent variables are continuous variables, so to run inferential statistics (i.e., t-test, ANOVA).
It was not expected that you pose correlational research questions in assessment 1 because these questions cannot be answered by descriptive statistics. As such, you would need to write a new correlational research question to include simple linear regression (e.g., the association between length of stay IV and spend DV).
Below I update the model answer for Assessment 1 by adding appropriate inferential statistics. The additions that I have made are highlighted in yellow. Except for count research questions, you should follow your descriptive statistics analysis with your inferential statistics analysis, as demonstrated below.
Choose a ‘real life’ industry client from your field (aviation or travel & tourism) and describe their business and current state. Identify challenges and problems that they currently face and which could be tackled by statistical research from which they could undertake data-driven decisions and strategies.
Tip: Research industry news stories to identify a client with a clear and real need.
Lugano Tourist Board are responsible for the development of tourism to the Swiss city of Lugano in the Province of Ticino. This client is concerned that Lugano has an unwarranted image as a sleepy destination, which may lead to Lugano being unable to access a broad market of tourists (Lugano Tourist Board, 2020). Further to the destination image of Lugano, tourism to the city suffers from close proximity to Italy, specifically the destinations of Como and Milan, which have more to offer a younger tourist, particularly in terms of nightlife, and which are cheaper than Lugano (TripAdvisor, 2020).
Research is required to better understand the challenges of the Lugano Tourist Board and to inform strategies that can help the Lugano Tourist Board to overcome their challenges.
What are the questions you will answer via your Insights report?
Pose three or four questions for which answers to can help your client overcome the challenges and problems they face. Your questions should be structured such that it is clear what research design and analysis you will be undertaking, whether that be looking for differences in a dependent variable between levels of an independent variable or whether that be looking for an association between an independent variable and a dependent variable.
Label the following components of your research questions:
- Independent Variable
- Dependent Variable
- Participants or Units
- Setting
Tip: Work backwards from the data in the database you are using so that your questions are viable (i.e., they can actually be answered).
- What is the influence of destination choice (independent variable; Lugano, Como, or Milan) on age (dependent variable) of tourists (participants) to Southern Switzerland/Northern Italy (setting)?
- What is the influence of age category (independent variable; on importance of core destination choice motivations (dependent variable; relaxation, beauty, activities, cultural, social) for tourists (participants) to Southern Switzerland/Northern Italy (setting)?
- What is the influence of destination (independent variable; Lugano, Como or Milan) on strength of attributes (dependent variable; relaxation, natural beauty, outdoor activities, cultural, social) for tourists (participants) to Southern Switzerland/Northern Italy (setting)?
How will your anticipated findings make a difference, and where?
Establish the importance of seeking an answer to your research question from the perspective of your client. Detail how the insights that you provide will inform strategies that can overcome the client’s challenges and problems.
Tip: Think through what the challenge is and how it can be overcome with evidence-based decision making.
Answers to the above research questions will inform the positioning strategy of Lugano in relation to its primary competitors of Como and Milan, as follows:
The first research question will give insight into Lugano’s current market in terms of tourist age, relative to its competitors of Como and Milan, providing a starting point from which Lugano can consider its positioning strategy.
The second research question will give insight into the relationship between age and motivations to choose a destination. In other words, what are the destination choice motivations of different market segments?
The third research question will give insight into motivations to choose Lugano and its competitors as a destination. In other words, from the perspective of tourists, what are the relative strengths of Lugano and its competitors?
Taken together, these insights can directly inform the positioning strategy of Lugano by identifying its destination attributes and the age groups that most value these attributes when making a destination choice. With this knowledge, Lugano can reposition itself to attract a new and viable market, communicating messages that support this new position via channels that most efficiently reach the new and viable market.
