Experiment.. (Hypothesis)

Well, although there's so much to know and do, I've decided to focus on one thing at a time.
Experiment Hypothesis:
Increased knowledge of the possibilities of MDS will results in a willingness to pay more for MDS.

As in everything, there must be a purpose in everything. So I'll try to explain the thought process as well as try to work out the experiment here.

Preparation process:
Logbook

1. Gives me a rough gauge as to how often they already use MDS.
2. Shows (more or less) how well they ALREADY know what MDS has to offer (hopefully)

Questionnaire

1. Again, how much they know about what MDS has to offer (actual questions later)
2. How they already use MDS

Purpose of the Logbook n Questionnaire: to group subjects

After the sample has completed the preparation process, they'll be ranked according to their knowledge of MDS as well as their willingness to pay for the services. Essentially, I'll try to get 4 groups: high knowledge & willingness, low knowledge & willingness, high knowledge low willingness and low knowledge high willingness. The last group might prove unlikely but i'll have to modify the experiment as it proceeds. (Adjusting for Covariates)

e.g. Rank 1 will go into the first group, 2-2, 3-3, 4-4 and rank 5 will go back into the first group etc.

The rest of this post will be on the optimistic assumption that I DO get the 4 groups. (The pessimistic one will come much later.)

So.. what happens after I get the 4 groups?

Well, I think the appropriate thing is to split them evenly into 2 - Experiment and Control

After this, What I've mentioned earlier SHOULD come into play, with the video being the variable. After the video has been played, ideally subjects should have another 2-day logging exercise now that they have a clearer idea of what MDS can do for them.

At the end of the second information logging exercise, a questionnaire which measures the same variables as the questionnaire in the preparation process should be administered.

At the conclusion of the experiment, I should be able to obtain enough raw data to do a between and within groups comparison of the information usage and willingness to pay.

Erh, my comm studies lecture is starting.. will post the pessimistic scenario later on...

Research Question & Basic Design

Ok, after thinking about it for some time, I've more or less decided exactly what I want to know.
As mentioned earlier, I'm interested in finding out how much YATs know about what MDS can do, as well as how much MORE they would pay IF they knew more about what was available thru MDS.

Still taking Research Methods this semester, so I'll have to improvise a little, will seek the prof's comments later on....
Basic Design:
Experiment Method 2 groups before-after design, N=?

Both Groups will start off by having a logbook like the one i did (available on my other side) about their information requirements/how they used their handphone.
Also, they will answer some basic questions meant to gauge how well they know MDS, how much they're paying (if any) for GPRS and whats the maximum they'll pay.

GROUP 1
After the preparations, they'll be exposed to a video which will increase their awareness as to the possibilities of MDS. Following which, another set of qns will be given to them, these qns (HOPEFULLY) will reveal an increased willingness to pay for MDS. (As compared to previously)

GROUP2
Being the Control Group, they WON'T watch the video at all. But also, they'll be asked the exact same qns as group 1.

Research Design?

Well, since I've got about an hour before my 2nd tutorial for the day starts, thought I'd get started on the research design...
Hmmm....
According to the Prof, he'd like me to focus on children and how they use MDS. Gave me a few ideas on what I could do actually, but I was at a loss as to what to tell him when he asked what I wanted to do. The truth is, there is so much out there! How do I do everything? Guess I've gotta make some choices about this.
As such, I've decided to research on the young adults/teenagers market.
Why? Well, children GENERALLY do not get that much of a say when purchasing handphones, although they MAY or MAY NOT use the mobile data services available (e.g. GPRS)
Average income level households at least. I know because I've asked a convenience sample of my brother's friends (Age = 12, N=8)

SO, the research topic will be about young adults/teenagers (YATs). (I'll explain why when I have more time) And what exactly do I want to find out about? all these questions will have to be answered before I begin on the actual experiment (?) design.

Explore explore explore....
Well, I guess my main interest is to find out how YATs use their mobile data devices.
Also, I want to find out how MUCH they know about what their mobile data devices can do, i.e. how much they know about what MDS can do for them.

I guess first order of business would be a questionnaire.
I've gotta design one such that I can find out how much they know. Or perhaps a focus group would be in order.
I'm working with the prof with his MBA student's during the intersem, perhaps I could use their mobile data logs to have a clearer idea as to how YATs use their mobile data devices.
However, his MBA students might not be YATs at all, although I have a feeling the 2 groups are not mutually exclusive.
Ah well lesson's starting soon, so more on that later...

Additions to the Adopter Segments - Misers

MISERS
This segment is unwilling to pay for Wireless Data Services. However as someone somwhere somewhen must have said, there's no such thing as a free lunch. As such, WDS/MDS will always incur costs and will have to be paid for. As this segment is unwilling to pay for MDS, it is likely that they will not adopt MDS unless the need is really pressing.

However, from the earlier part of the article, socialites are also unwilling to pay for the services. Does this suggest that misers are present in every single segment? Perhaps in some more than others. For example I believe that there will be very few misers in the sophisticates segment. Sophisticates are influenced by status needs and probably will be willing to pay to boost their self status.

Also, there may be some very basic "human" issues in play here. Would people pay for something the wouldn't need? (Of course, its been said that a man will pay $100 for something he needs while the woman will pay $1 for 100 things she dosen't need). But generally I believe rational thinking suggests that people WILL NOT pay for things that they think they do not require. As such, the basic explanation that "They are misers, hence they are unwilling to pay" does not seem really acceptable. Could it be that they do not know what MDS has to offer them? In my first meeting with the Prof, I actually realised that there were many more applications to MDS than I initially thought possible. Rather, I never bothered that MDS could be helpful in so many instances.

Another thing is that people might CLAIM that they were unwilling to pay in the hope that they would not be charged for MDS. For example, if you asked somebody how much he was willing to pay in parking charges if you built a carpark in Orchard, he or she would probably give you a pretty low figure in the hope that future parking charges along Orchard Road would be much cheaper. Perhaps some research into SMS adoption after users claimed to be unwilling to pay for SMS is required. Misers MUST have some needs which can probably be fulfilled by MDS.

Also, perhaps the Product/Service Design is not good enough to stimulate adoption. Just because something is POSSIBLE dosen't mean that its available. Perhaps MDS should be better designed such that people are WILLING to pay for it! e.g. S*NY® which charges a premium for product design and packaging.

Commercial Possibility?
Perhaps since 3G is cheaper, MDS providers might want to bundle data services together with existing mobile plans and offer them for the same price. This way, creates a psychological "saving" among people in that "I'm paying the same price for more services!"

Lifestylers.. the main fountain of profits...

Characteristics of Lifestylers

1. Fulfil convenience needs
2. Partly overlap with early adopters
3. Phones to them are fashion accessories
4. Largely follow or imitate one or more early adopter segments

Issues to consider.

IF they partly overlap with early adopters and largely follow or imitate one or more early adopter segments, what makes them adopt it later as their needs are the same or even more?

I say even more because their characteristics are supposed to be an amalgamation of different early adopter segment needs and behavious. If you need A and do something, and you need B and do something, won't you do it even faster if you need both A and B?

Perhaps the the urgency isn't there, thats why although the needs exist, majority adopters are willing to wait before adopting MDS.

This also implies that one design cannot fit all lifestylers. ONE DESIGN CANNOT CAPTURE THE FULL MARKET! Which is probably why makers of mobile devices come up with so many different combinations for their devices, be they PDAs or handphones etc.

Another implication is that perhaps for each market there is an individual Rogers Diffusion Model. If the data is available, perhaps a 3D Model might be more appropriate since there are so many segments. It might be easier to break up adoption rate into different segments, but since there's such a large amount of overlap among segments and needs among the lifestylers whom businesses are most concerned with, I belive a 3D model would probably be more suitable for illustrating the adoption rates according to segments.