This Case study is an example of what happens when life gets in the way. Mr. Rogers originally called a meeting with Jeff Dean and Celeste Brown to go over any questions the Mr. Dean had in regards to the survey findings. Mr. Rogers had to excuse himself from the meeting for personal reasons and instructed Ms. Brown to find out what questions Mr. Dean had. He then instructed her to run the analysis and they would go over the results the following day. Ms. Brown ended up with six questions that Mr. Dean was especially interested in. (Burns, A., Bush, R. (2006) p518) The problem with this case study is even though Ms. Brown may be a competent employee she isn’t Mr. Rogers. Mr. Rogers called the meeting and has his own agenda in regards to the survey findings. Unless Mr. Brown and Mr. Rogers are on the exact same page she may not be able to determine the right questions that Mr. Dean may ask: furthermore, her analysis may be in complete depending on what information she has taken form Mr. Dean. Mr. Rogers should have rescheduled the meeting so that he could ensure all pertinent areas regarding the results of the survey and questions were adequately addressed. The strengths of this case are apparent in that it is assumed that Ms. Brown has a good understanding of what Mr. Rogers wants. If she is able to accurately gather the information from Mr. Dean in regards to his concerns about the survey, then her analysis should be accurate: however this will not be known until the following day when Mr. Rogers and Ms. Brown go over the results. There is an apparent weakness in this case study in that Mr. Rogers is not present for the fact finding portion in regards to what questions Mr. Dean may have. Not to mention Mr. Rogers has left the analysis part up to Ms. Brown. It’s good that he is going over the results but, it would be better if he was present for the entire process. Ms. Brown has a great opportunity to show case her talents and prove to Mr. Rogers that she is capable of performing the analysis and gathering the pertinent information from Mr. Dean. Ms. Brown has been able to compile six questions that Mr. Dean is especially interested in and this should prove to be adequate in addressing both his concerns and Mr. Rogers concerns in regards to the results of the survey. As far as a threat for this case study it may occur if Ms. Brown does not accurately perform her analysis or if she has gathered the wrong information. If she is unable to meet the needs of Mr. Dean then the hopes of being able to conduct future business with him are not likely. For this case study the author does not provide any recommend solutions, but rather lays out what Ms. Brown will be doing and presents us with the six questions that she has gathered from Mr. Dean: however it would have been better if Mr. Rogers was present for the entire process and as the perceived manager, he should have made himself available. In order to see if there is a difference between the two groups (male & female) you should test the null hypothesis “or the hypothesis that the difference in their population parameters is equal to zero”. (Burns, A., Bush, R. (2006) p493) you can utilize either a t-test or analysis of variance to answer whether or not The Hobbit’s Choice is more appealing to men or women. After going to (hobbitdata.sav) and looking at the survey data matrix I did my own t-test for equality of variance: | | | F | Sig. | t | df | Sig. (2-tailed) | Mean Difference | Std. Error Difference | | | | | | | | | | | Equal variances assumed | | | 0.38 | 0.538 | 0.282 | 398 | 0.778 | 0.35 | 0.124 | | | | | | | | | | | Equal variances not assumed | | | | | 0.282 | 397.852 | 0.778 | 0.35 | 0.124 |

According to my calculations there is no significant difference for the Hobbit’s Choice to be more appealing to women or men.
2. With respect to the restaurant’s atmosphere, is a string quartet preferred over a jazz combo?
For this question I would utilize a paired sample Statistics as we are comparing two questions not two groups. The results are that pair 1 prefer a string quartet: 2.50 | 400 | 1.420 | .071 |

Prefer jazz combo: 3.70 | 400 | 1.221 | .061 |

Using the above information the average number of respondents that prefer the jazz combo is equal to 3.70. While the average number of respondents that prefer the string quartet is 2.50. So it is apparent that the jazz combo is preferred over the string quartet: meaning that Mr. Dean should go with the jazz combo.
3. In general, establishments are appealing to higher income households, while they are less appealing to lower income households. Is this pattern the case for the Hobbit’s Choice Restaurant?
ANOVA:
| Sum of Squares | Df | Mean Square | F | Sig. | Between Groups | 453.301 | 6 | 75.55 | 188.28 | 0.000 | Within Groups | 157.697 | 393 | 0.401 | | | Total | 610.998 | 399 | | | |

MULTIPLE COMPARISONS: Which if the following categories best describes your before tax household income (I) | Which of the following categories best describes your before tax household income (J) | Mean Difference (I-J) | Std. Error | Sig. | <$15,000 | $15,000 to $24,999 | .084 | .165 | 1.000 | | $25,000 to $49,999 | -1.452 | .143 | .000 | | $50,000 to $74,999 | -1.506 | .136 | .000 | | $75,000 to $99,999 | -2.769 | .201 | .000 | | $100,000 to $149,999 | -3.327 | .157 | .000 | | $150,000+ | -3.103 | .147 | .000 | $15,000 to $24,999 | <$15,000 | -.084 | .165 | 1.000 | | $25,000 to $49,999 | -1.536 | .129 | .000 | | $50,000 to $74,999 | -1.590 | .122 | .000 | | $75,000 to $99,999 | -2.853 | .192 | .000 | | $100,000 to $149,999 | -3.411 | .145 | .000 | | $150,000+ | -3.186 | .134 | .000 | $25,000 to $49,999 | <$15,000 | 1.452 | .143 | .000 | | $25,000 to $49,999 | 1.536 | .129 | .000 | | $50,000 to $74,999 | -.054 | .089 | 1.000 | | $75,000 to $99,999 | -1.317 | .173 | .000 | | $100,000 to $149,999 | -1.875 | .119 | .000 | | $150,000+ | -1.650 | .105 | .000 | $50,000 to $74,999 | <$15,000 | 1.506 | .136 | .000 | | $25,000 to $49,999 | 1.590 | .122 | .000 | | $50,000 to $74,999 | .054 | .089 | 1.000 | | $75,000 to $99,999 | -1.263 | .168 | .000 | | $100,000 to $149,999 | -1.821 | .111 | .000 | | $150,000+ | -1.596 | .095 | .000 | $75,000 to $99,999 | <$15,000 | 2.769 | .201 | .000 | | $25,000 to $49,999 | 2.853 | .192 | .000 | | $50,000 to $74,999 | 1.317 | .173 | .000 | | $75,000 to $99,999 | 1.263 | .168 | .000 | | $100,000 to $149,999 | -5.58 | .186 | .059 | | $150,000+ | -.333 | .177 | 1.000 | $100,000 to $149,999 | <$15,000 | 3.327 | .157 | .000 | | $25,000 to $49,999 | 3.411 | .145 | .000 | | $50,000 to $74,999 | 1.875 | .119 | .000 | | $75,000 to $99,999 | 1.821 | .111 | .000 | | $100,000 to $149,999 | .558 | .186 | .059 | | $150,000+ | .225 | .124 | 1.000 | $150,000+ | <$15,000 | 3.103 | .147 | .000 | | $15,000 to $24,999 | 3.186 | .134 | .000 | | $25,000 to $49,999 | 1.650 | .105 | .000 | | $50,000 to $74,999 | 1.596 | .095 | .000 | | $75,000 to $99,999 | .333 | .177 | 1.000 | | $100,000 to $149,999 | -0.225 | 0.124 | 1.000 | The above data analysis shows that we would reject the null hypothesis. .000 indicates that at least one pair of means has a significant difference. According to the significant values the top three income groups show a higher mean level of appeal then the bottom groups. If that is correct then the pattern for the Hobbit’s Choice Restaurant is in line with other establishments. Meaning that establishments are appealing to higher income households and he should market his restaurant accordingly.

References

Analysis of Variance Between Groups. Retrieved January 30, 2012 from: http://www.physics.csbsju.edu/stats/anova.html
Burns, A., Bush, F. Marketing Research (2006) 5th Ed. Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River NJ
Martz, W. The Use of a T-test or Z-Test. (2010) Retrieved January 30, 2012 from: http://homepages.wmich.edu/~wmartz/assets/020810 _DifferenceTesting.pdf
SPSS Data Set. Retrieved January 30, 2012 from: http://www.mktgresearch.com/4eWebsite/Both/DataSets.htm