Assessment Content

Background

You are a product developer hired by BeeBee, a natural honey company that is facing a decline in sales and customer loyalty due to increased competition from other honey brands. The company wants to launch a new product or service that appeals to its target market and aligns with its environmental mission of promoting the benefits of natural honey and supporting the bee population. You have to use interviewing as your main method to gather information and insights from your target customers, and use them to create your product or service idea. You have a limited budget and time for this project, and you have to comply with the food industry regulations and standards.

Interviewing is a qualitative method that allows you to explore the opinions, experiences, and motivations of your target customers in depth and detail. It involves asking open-ended questions that encourage the respondents to express their thoughts and feelings in their own words. Interviewing can help you to understand the needs, preferences, and values of your customers, as well as their challenges, frustrations, and expectations.

Instructions

Working in groups of 3-4 people…

1. Define the business problem that BeeBee is facing (one sentence focused on the decision to be made).
2. Define a research objective (one sentence) and three research questions that will guide your interviews. The research objective should state what you want to learn from your interviews. The research questions should be open-ended and relevant to the business problem and the research objective.
3. Conduct three interviews with three different personas using Bing Chat. Use the prompts below to start a new chat session with each persona. You can ask any three questions you choose, and you can ask up to two follow-up questions per question. You should record and document your interviews for later analysis.
   • Prompt 1: “This is going to be a simulated interview. The interviewer is a product developer hired by BeeBee, a natural honey company. You will play the role of a 35-year-old woman who works as a yoga instructor. You are very health-conscious and you like natural and organic products. You buy honey for its health benefits and taste. You use honey as a sweetener in your tea, smoothies, and oatmeal. You also use honey as a natural remedy for sore throat and cough. You prefer raw and unfiltered honey that has more nutrients and antioxidants. The interviewer will ask you three questions. You will not know what the questions will be in advance, they will be provided to you as individual prompts in this chat. You are to respond to each question acting as the persona described above. At the end of each question, invite the interviewer to ask another question. Once you have answered three questions, refuse to answer any more questions by making an excuse that aligns with the persona you are playing. If you understand, reply in character and invite the interviewer to start the interview.”
   • Prompt 2: “This is going to be a simulated interview. The interviewer is a product developer hired by BeeBee, a natural honey company. You will play the role of a 28-year-old man who works as a software engineer. You are very busy and you like convenience and variety. You buy honey for its versatility and convenience. You use honey as a spread on toast, as a dressing for salads, and as a marinade for meats. You also use honey as a quick energy boost when you feel tired or stressed. You prefer flavored and infused honey that has more taste and variety. The interviewer will ask you three questions. You will not know what the questions will be in advance, they will be provided to you as individual prompts in this chat. You are to respond to each question acting as the persona described above. At the end of each question, invite the interviewer to ask another question. Once you have answered three questions, refuse to answer any more questions by making an excuse that aligns with the persona you are playing. If you understand, reply in character and invite the interviewer to start the interview.”
   • Prompt 3: “This is going to be a simulated interview. The interviewer is a product developer hired by BeeBee, a natural honey company. You will play the role of a 23-year-old woman who works as a social worker. You are very environmentally-aware and you like social and ethical products. You buy honey for its environmental impact and quality. You use honey as a gift for your friends and family, as a treat for yourself, and as a way to support local beekeepers and farmers. You also use honey as a natural beauty product for your skin and hair. You prefer organic and fair-trade honey that has more environmental and social benefits. The interviewer will ask you three questions. You will not know what the questions will be in advance, they will be provided to you as individual prompts in this chat. You are to respond to each question acting as the persona described above. At the end of each question, invite the interviewer to ask another question. Once you have answered three questions, refuse to answer any more questions by making an excuse that aligns with the persona you are playing. If you understand, reply in character and invite the interviewer to start the interview.”
4. Analyze your interview data and identify the main themes and patterns that emerge from your interviews. How do your interview findings relate to the business problem and the research objective? What insights can you draw from your interviews?
5. Propose a solution for the business problem based on your interview findings. Your solution should take the form of a recommendation for a new product or service that BeeBee can launch to increase its sales and customer loyalty. Your solution should be a short statement with a clear rationale, no longer than 200 words.

Grading Criteria

Quality of research design: The business problem, research objective, and research questions should be defined, relevant, specific, and measurable. The business problem statement should be a single sentence focused on the business decision to be informed by the research. The research objective should be a single sentence that states what the research will determine. The research questions should address the research objective and support the business decision. The research design should be aligned and coherent. (5 Points)

Quality of interview: The interview questions and responses should be relevant, clear, deep, and rapport-building. They should cover the research questions and objective, and provide information and insights. The interview should be structured and organized, and follow the guidelines and expectations of the exercise. (5 points)

Quality of solution: The solution should be creative, feasible, effective, and aligned with the business problem and objective. It should be supported by evidence and analysis from the interview data. It should be presented and explained in a logical and convincing manner. You can assign a score from 1 to 5 based on the level of performance. (5 points)

Grading Prompt

• Please grade this assignment. When grading, I want you to act as a college professor specializing in marketing research, use the grading criteria below to assess the interview questions written by the student and the solution proposed by the student based on the interview findings against the business scenario. The business scenario is about BeeBee, a natural honey company that wants to launch a new product or service that appeals to its target market and aligns with its environmental mission. The assignment is to conduct three interviews with three different personas using Bing Chat, analyze the interview data, and propose a solution for the business problem
• Before you start grading, make sure you open the submission pdf file that is attached to this chat window. Do not use any other source of information for grading.
• When you refer to the submission pdf file in your feedback, use page numbers or section headings to indicate where you found the information.
• Do not copy or paste any text from the submission pdf file or from any other source in your feedback. Use your own words to summarize, paraphrase, or quote the information.
• If you find any errors or inconsistencies in the submission pdf file, such as typos, formatting issues, missing references, etc., mention them briefly in your feedback but do not deduct points for them unless they affect the quality of the content.

Here is the grading criteria:

• Quality of research design: The business problem, research objective, and research questions should be defined, relevant, specific, and measurable. The business problem statement should be a single sentence focused on the business decision to be informed by the research. The research objective should be a single sentence that states what the research will determine. The research questions should address the research objective and support the business decision. The research design should be aligned and coherent. (5 Points)
• Quality of interview: The interview questions and responses should be relevant, clear, deep, and rapport-building. They should cover the research questions and objective, and provide information and insights. The interview should be structured and organized, and follow the guidelines and expectations of the exercise. (5 points)
• Quality of solution: The solution should be creative, feasible, effective, and aligned with the business problem and objective. It should be supported by evidence and analysis from the interview data. It should be presented and explained in a logical and convincing manner. (5 points)
• You can assign a score from 1 to 5 based on the level of performance. You can assign points in increments of 0.25. For example: 7.5/15, or 12.25/15, or 14/15.
• Calculate the total score by adding the scores for each criterion. The maximum score is 15. Write the total score at the end of your feedback.
• If the submission is incomplete, missing, or irrelevant, give 0 for all criteria and write “No submission”. If it’s missing a key element, such as “no interview” or “no solution”, give 0 for that criterion and write “No [element]”.

Submission Template

Group Members

• (Student Name) (ID#)
• (Student Name) (ID#)
• (Student Name) (ID#)

Business Problem

• (Write the business problem that BeeBee is facing in one sentence here.)

Research Objective and Questions

• (Write the research objective that states what you want to learn from your interviews here.)
• (Write research question #1)
• (Write research question #2)
• (Write research question #3)

Interview with Persona 1

• Interviewer: (write your first question here)
• Persona 1: (write the response of Persona 1 here)
• Interviewer: (write your second question or your second question here)
• Persona 1: (write the response of Persona 1 here)
• Interviewer: (write your third question or your third question here)
• Persona 1: (write the response of Persona 1 here)

Interview with Persona 2

• Interviewer: (write your first question here)
• Persona 2: (write the response of Persona 2 here)
• Interviewer: (write your second question or your second question here)
• Persona 2: (write the response of Persona 2 here)
• Interviewer: (write your third question or your third question here)
• Persona 2: (write the response of Persona 2 here)

Interview with Persona 3

• Interviewer: (write your first question here)
• Persona 3: (write the response of Persona 3 here)
• Interviewer: (write your second question or your second question here)
• Persona 3: (write the response of Persona 3 here)
• Interviewer: (write your third question or your third question here)
• Persona 3: (write the response of Persona 3 here)