Master degree need your help(further info)

J

jessica_chan

Joined
Apr 21, 2003
Messages
13
Hi everyone,:D
For those of you who i seen my orginal questionnaire, This will seems very familiar. Base on your previous comments and discussions with the company involved i have now got an updated questionnaire. again, I will appreciate it very much if you would spare me a couple of minutes to answer a few questions for me.
(to confirm defintions, I am using penknife to mean a folding knife of any size)
thanks for all your previous response, and i look forward to hear some more. :) :) :)

1. In which country do you live?

2. your gender?
female/male

3. your age?
18-25/26-30/31-40/41-50/50-60/61+

4. what is your occupation?

5. what do you purchase a pocketknife for?
present/personal use/display/collection

6. if you use the pocketknife yourself, what do you use it for?

7. when i choose a pockeknife, the most important consideration in my decision is -----
(eg. brand name/function/design/price/quality)

8. if you found the ideal pocket knife on the web would you:
a. purchase on-line
b. order the item over the telephone
c. email for further details
d. not purchase but look for the item locally.

9. how long would you expect to wait for your order to be delivered?

10. 10. what price are you prepared to pay for a pocketknife?(US$, Euros, £sterling)
10-50/51-100/101-200/201-300/300+

11. what is your opinion of the related items that could be offered on a folding knife web-site, such as:
a. fixed blade knives
b. sharpening steels and stones
c. publications
d. or others

12. what else would you expect from a web-site offering folding knives for sale?

:) :cool: :D :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

sorry for so many questions, but they are all important. thank you very much for your cooperation.;)

Jessica
 
Isn't this really close to spam? You are soliciting information for your own gain (research and a degree) and then sharing it with a manufacture that is not even in the USA or part of this forum. You are a basic member, which means you haven't even put any money into the system that you are trying to milk. Why anyone would want to share this information with anyone, much less you is beyond me. What do you offer in return for the information? Nothing is what I see.
 
Jessica, here are my answers.

1. In which country do you live- USA

2. your gender? Male

3. your age?-18-25

4. what is your occupation?-college student

5. what do you purchase a pocketknife for?-Personal use/collection

6. if you use the pocketknife yourself, what do you use it for?-General use, opening boxes, letters, and some heavy use.

7. when i choose a pockeknife, the most important consideration in my decision is-Brand, quality and function. The knife has to be from a well known maker (production or custom)with a good reputation.

8. if you found the ideal pocket knife on the web would you-Purchase online, there are not really any knife stores where I live.

9. how long would you expect to wait for your order to be delivered? I can wait awhile(a few weeks) I just like to be notified of how long it will take by the person I buy it from.

10.what price are you prepared to pay for a pocketknife?-I would and have paid up to $300 for a production knife.

11. what is your opinion of the related items that could be offered on a folding knife web-site, such as:
a. fixed blade knives- I believe a knife dealer would be losing a lot of potential business if they did not offer fixed blade knives.
b. sharpening steels and stones- Important, nice to buy them online together with your knife to save money on shipping.
c. publications-Do not care
d. or others

12. what else would you expect from a web-site offering folding knives for sale? Good service and be on top of the newest knives that are released



sorry for so many questions, but they are all important. thank you very much for your cooperation.

Jessica
 
Hi Jessica,

From one "Basic Member" who hasn't "put any money into the system" to another :rolleyes: , I'd be glad to help you out. I guess to some if you're not a "Gold Member," you're not worth their time, only their critcism. Good luck with your project, I hope this helps.


1. In which country do you live?... USA

2. your gender?... male

3. your age?... 31-40

4. what is your occupation?... marketing

5. what do you purchase a pocketknife for?... personal use

6. if you use the pocketknife yourself, what do you use it for?... everything from opening letters to cleaning game

7. when i choose a pockeknife, the most important consideration in my decision is... design

8. if you found the ideal pocket knife on the web would you...
a. purchase on-line

9. how long would you expect to wait for your order to be delivered?... 1 to 2 weeks

10. what price are you prepared to pay for a pocketknife?...
US$ 101-200

11. what is your opinion of the related items that could be offered on a folding knife web-site, such as:
a. fixed blade knives... if it's a folding knife web site, I'd say pass on the fix blades
b. sharpening steels and stones... it's hard to compete with companies who specialize in these accessories
c. publications... unless its your own, why bother
d. or others... spare parts (blades, clips, etc.), lubricants

12. what else would you expect from a web-site offering folding knives for sale?... GREAT customer service with several ways to get in touch with them
 
1. USA
2. male
3. 31-40
4. Registered Nurse
5. personal use, collection
6. Cutting boxes, string, mail, bags, carving/whittling
7. when i choose a pockeknife, the most important consideration in my decision is Design, quality, material(all in equal importance)
8. if you found the ideal pocket knife on the web would you:
a. purchase on-line
9. Production - 2 weeks, custom - depends
10. 10-50/51-100/101-200
11. All would be welcome
12. what else would you expect from a web-site offering folding knives for sale? a better price, timely delivery, a break on shipping
 
Crank, I was a basic member for a long time here. What I mean by my post is that you have a person who has started coming to our forum for the sole purpose of gathering information. This information is also being shared with a knife company and will probably go toward helping them make a buck or two as well. Is she a member of the knife buying, knife using public? Who knows? She hasn't seen fit to share any of that information with us. She only wants to take from the group without doing one thing to contribute, money (gold membership) or otherwise (knife experiences, etc). If you folks want to share you info with this unknown person for her unknown causes then go ahead. That's a freedom of choice that we have here in America. Just like I have the freedom to say that this all seems like self serving Bullsh!t to me. You also seem to have quite an attitude for someone who is so new here. Welcome to the forums.:)
 
1. In which country do you live?
USA

2. your gender? male

3. your age? 17 - 25

4. what is your occupation? Student and knife maker.

5. what do you purchase a pocketknife for? Personal use or gift

6. if you use the pocketknife yourself, what do you use it for? Utility and self defense (hopefulyl never actually USED for self defense, but available incase)

7. when i choose a pockeknife, the most important consideration in my decision is ----- Design, Function and Quality.

8. if you found the ideal pocket knife on the web would you:
a. purchase on-line

9. how long would you expect to wait for your order to be delivered?
No more than two weeks.

10. 10. what price are you prepared to pay for a pocketknife? For a good quality production knife, between $35 and $250.

11. what is your opinion of the related items that could be offered on a folding knife web-site, such as:
a. fixed blade knives
b. sharpening steels and stones
c. publications

12. what else would you expect from a web-site offering folding knives for sale?
Good customer service, easy navigation, prompt delivery dates, honesty, good quality photos and descriptions.


Good luck to you with your project.

I find it interesting - I wonder how many people would be complaining if it was Spyderco, or Benchmade, or CRKT, asking these questions - and not a newbie college student.
 
Jessica,

At which university are you studying ?

If I'm correct, this is not an uncommon part of a business degree program, they do similar things at Dartmouth's Tuck School.

The idea is that the students, working with a local business, do a project which gets them "real-world experience." It's a win-win situation because the students get to interact with an actual business environment, and the company gets the fruits of their labor, which may be a marketing plan, based upon market research (let's face it, guys, we're the market, although, Jessica, I would beware, BFC members do not prepresent the public at large, we are much more particular). It may also be an efficiency analisys, a new business plan, etc.

Am I right?

anyway, just though I'd try to help clarify, it is what it is. decide if you like it or not for yourself.

Nathan


PS: I don't think any of us have to think to hard to imagine a knife-related comapny in Sheffield
 
hi all,
thank you for replies, and sorry to keep asking, but can anyone help me with this please? :)

thanks,
Jessica
 
Interesting how he or she isn't answering any questions. Makes me wonder if he or she is really a future competitor trying to get some demographic info... :rolleyes:
 
Nfmee/alphamani,:rolleyes:

Business might not share everything because it involved in profit but it does share something, such as experience. There are so many thing for us learn from others. As what I explain business concept is learning, listening and practice. Learn from your competitor, listening to your customer, and then practice it on your business.
I am the one made this questionnaire, but obviously, this questionnaire is benefit on all of you who business in cutlery industry, do you agree?

Other than that, the focus of the work is to find out about the customer wants and needs, and then how could the company satisfy those potential customers.

I am not your competitor, I just a student, working on my consultancy project, my final presentation and report, and conducting with the topic is part of a consultancy project for a UK cutlery and knife company that we have been tasked with.

Again, if you were interesting in pocketknife, how would you like the company satisfy your needs? Please help me with this. :) :) :)

thanks,

Jessica

P.S Sheffield is famous in Cutlery :)
 
Originally posted by swede79
Interesting how he or she isn't answering any questions. Makes me wonder if he or she is really a future competitor trying to get some demographic info... :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Ok, let's say for arguments sake that she really is a knife industry spy who is on a covert, conspiratorial mission to get our thoughts on a folding knife web site. However, I'd almost bet she isn't due to the fact that she's had to fine tune her questionnaire because the questions were a bit vague, and her terminology was wrong, but still, let's say that she is a "research spy." Yeah, I know that she is doing this for a real company, but really, what are the chances that a knife maker will take over the industry because of the results obtained from a project of a college student?

First, if she is trying to gather information for a future competitor, so what? I'm positive BM, Spyderco, and every other manufacturer did the same thing before they opened their doors for business. Even after a company is open for business, they will always do ongoing research to find out what their customers want. Every successful business does this as part of a marketing/business plan. Second, once again, let's say that this is for a future competitor, isn't it better for the market to have as much diversity in a product line as possible? Isn't competition what makes companies produce better products and sell them at more competitive prices? And third, as a consumer, don't you want as many choices in knives as is possible? It seems like a new knife company would be a good thing.

I'm having a trouble understanding why some are giving this girl a hard time. :confused: If you don't care to answer her questions, then don't. If she does something that deserves to be reported to the moderators, then by all means, report her. But whatever you do, try to be constructive.


...Crank
 
Crank,

I was just trying to illustrate how little we know about posters. It would be relatively easy for someone to masquerade as a female grad student, try to get info, etc. This person has been less than forthcoming with his or her answers.

No, it's not a big deal. This probably isn't the right forum for this thread. I do, however, have a problem with someone coming in and using these forums to possibly set up a web site in direct competition with the sponsors of Bladeforums using underhanded tactics. If they are completely up front about their intentions, then that is fine. I certainly didn't get that impression from this post.

Anyway, answer all you like! I'll go back into the ignore mode...
 
1. In which country do you live? The USA.

2. your gender? Male.

3. your age? 18-25.

4. what is your occupation? Student (if that's an occupation).

5. what do you purchase a pocketknife for? Personal use.

6. if you use the pocketknife yourself, what do you use it for?
Cutting things. Usually food or mail. When I'm actually working,
it gets used for various things at work.

7. when i choose a pockeknife, the most important consideration in my
decision is: Most important? Price. Then quality.

8. if you found the ideal pocket knife on the web would you:
a. purchase on-line (but only from a US company)

9. how long would you expect to wait for your order to be delivered?
No more than five days. Three is acceptable.

10. what price are you prepared to pay for a pocketknife?(US$, Euros, £sterling) $51-100. Anything that costs more than a hundred, I can wait to buy used.

11. what is your opinion of the related items that could be offered
on a folding knife web-site, such as:
a. fixed blade knives -- Absolutely.
b. sharpening steels and stones -- Also absolutely.
c. publications -- Absolutely wouldn't buy, but I'm sure some would.
d. or others -- I'm big into lights too, seems like a lot of knife
people are.

12. what else would you expect from a web-site offering folding knives for sale?
My big issue is excessive shipping, or even perceived excessive shipping. I think if a knife website priced things as shipped, and then just said to take however much off each additional piece, it'd maybe do well. Then again, it might get undersold on everything. One of the intricacies of consumer psychology, I suppose. I know it'd appeal to me, though.
 
Originally posted by jessica_chan
I am the one made this questionnaire, but obviously, this questionnaire is benefit on all of you who business in cutlery industry, do you agree?
Click to expand...

Not to rain on your parade, but I don't think that this survey will particularily benefit anyone.

It's been a while since I took research methods in college, but I'm pretty sure that an anonymous, voluntary survey over the internet on forums frequented by the top 1% or less of the knife buyers will not exactly get you valid results for knife buyers in general.

Especially when you're looking for a total of 20 responses.

In addition, your survey is missing some important possible answers. For example, in the age question, you're missing "under 18".

Performing a survey in an anonymous manner is, IMHO, in poor taste. While you don't need to use the name of the company, you could certainly share the name of the school you attend.

Using a lycos email account with a different name from your user ID, and refusing to answer/ignoring questions raises nothing but red flags in my mind.

Best of luck with your project.

-- Rob
 
I have a bachelors degree in mathematics from UCLA, I did graduate studies in survey sampling at the University of Michigan.

I agree with baraqyal. I believe that the results of this survey cannot be considered representative of the general population, or of the particular population interested in knife related sites. I think that neither the sampling universe nor the sampling method nor the sampling size nor the questionaire are adequate.

I did answer the questions in the first thread, I see no harm in doing so and don´t see the need to take it too seriously.
 
Hi everyone :)

First I'd like to thank everyone who's responded so far. Whether positive or negative, they all help me learn how to approach this sort of thing in the future.

To clear up a couple of things:
my university is Sheffield Hallam University (no problems in telling that, didn't think it was relevant at first)
being Chinese my given name is Huixiang, but Jessica is my English name (choose whichever one you find easier to pronounce :D)

NFMee, you are right. Maybe I didn't explain enough from the start, so thanks for summarising it for me. :)

With regards to how useful the responses will be, I understand the points raised. There are a number of sources I am trying to gather data from, hopefully together it will be enough to draw worthwhile conclusions. I would like to post some of these conclusions if the company agrees, we shall have to see if it is acceptable.

So, thankyou all again. I appreciate you taking your time to help me.

Jessica :) ;) :D
 
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