ANALYTICAL REPORT TOPIC DESCRIPTION, PURPOSE STATEMENT AND OUTLINE You have now been introduced to all the strategies necessary for researching and then writing business reports and you should have chosen a topic from the Reports Topic List located under the Module/Chapter 6.0 Analytical Report Instructions & Resources page. Click here if you need to review the list again. Over the next few weeks you will be required to complete several activities related to your ANALYTICAL research report. This assignment is the first activity related to your report. Using the template attached enter the topic # and description of the topic in the text box field. Next, determine your research question. Refer to The Human Find example on page 128. Enter your question on the text box field below Step 1. Step 2 requires you to think about how you will go about researching the data you need to answer your research question. A good rule of thumb is to determine the purpose of the report. In other words, what is the report’s objective, aim, or goal? Enter the purpose in the text box field below Step 2. Now that you’ve defined the problem and identified your purpose, you need to develop a research strategy to address the data, information, or knowledge gaps using sub-questions. These sub-questions will help you determine what factors you need to research/investigate and determine what subject areas you must look into to solve the problem. This is where you will generate the outline using the factors you need to research. What factors a problem involves can vary widely, but we can identify three common types. First, they may be subtopics of the overall topic about which the report is concerned. Second, they may be hypotheses that must be tested. Third, in problems that involve comparisons, they may be the bases on which the comparisons are made. The problem-solving case studies for your research reports are all evaluation studies, so you will probably use the Bases of Comparison factors. When the problem concerns evaluating something, either singularly or in comparison with other things, you should look for the bases for the evaluation. In other words, you should determine what characteristics you will evaluate and the criteria you will use to evaluate them. To perform this assignment, I will use the topic chosen by the student whose sample report is available under the Analytical Report Instructions & Resources page-tab 3-Report Template and Other Resources tab. Check out the end result/report and how it was developed using this assignment. That semester there were about 25 topics from which the students could choose. This student chose #17, so, in the textbox I will type: Topic #17: Compare the effectiveness of three different types of online advertising and recommend one for [company name here] The student chose to write the report for his family’s business – Cotijas Taco Shop. Step 1: requires you enter the problem/need statement in the form of a question as discussed in Module/Chapter 4 on page 128. Remember the problem statement ‘provides a clear description of the situation that created the need for your report’ Before we move forward, let’s read the sample report background information, where you will see that the company’s old way of marketing, using flyers and banners, is not generating any new customers. Additionally, the business has many more competitors in the area since its inception in 1995. As the student noted ‘The exponential growth of technology has enabled businesses to use the Internet as a marketing tool’ and it’s clear the surrounding competition has a comparative advantage over Cotijas because they utilize online advertising methods to generate customers. We can now determine that the situation has created a need for Cotijas Taco Shops to start using an online advertising campaign. Now let’s determine the problem/need statement in the form of a question to determine the factors to research. So, in the textbox I will type: Which of the top three types of online advertising methods would be the most effective for Cotijas Taco Shop? Step 2: requires you to now determine the purpose of this report. The purpose of the report addresses the report’s objective, aim, or goal! Here the goal is to explore different methods of online advertising to determine which one is most suitable (and most effective) for Cotijas Taco Shop Remember, the purpose asks what we need to do to meet the goal/objective/aim of the report, so in the textbox I am writing: The purpose of this report is to explore different methods of online advertising to determine which one is most suitable (and most effective) for Cotijas Taco Shop. NOTE: You will use this purpose statement again when you write the ‘Purpose of the Report’ sub-section in your report’s Introduction section. Moving on to Step 3: you will now use the problem and purpose statements to determine the factors you need to research to objectively conclude and recommend which online advertising method would be the most effective for Cotijas Taco Shop. You don’t need to enter anything under the first outline section I. Introduction heading; but, this student actually included a list of the sub-headings that are listed in the TEMPLATE. If it helps you focus, please feel free to do so — because they will be listed on the Table of Contents in the final report. Now, let’s look at the three online advertising methods and major factors the student researched in his report. You will notice that the student ended up using three section headings: II. Online Advertising Methods, III. Costs of Implementation and IV. Customer Analysis under which he then compared and contrasted the three online methods based on those factors. The factors listed under the section headings relate to the three types of online advertising methods he/she determined were the most popular and effective through his/her research. An alternative way of preparing the outline might be as follows: The three section headings would be: II. Social Media III. Video Advertising IV. Pay-per-click Then, the factors under each would be: Explicit Costs of Implementation Implicit Costs of Implementation Customer Analysis That ends the requirement you need to complete for this part of the assignment, because as you can see, you will not be entering any information for the Conclusion and Recommendation sections until you have completed your research, analysis, and writing of the rest of the report. Assignment Instructions: Download the attached document called Generating an Analytical Report Problem/Purpose Statement and Outline (FILLABLE PDF FORM) Enter the information in each of the text fields as they relate to the report topic you chose and following the video instructions. Save the file using the following format: Lastname-Firstname-Mod6-Report Outline (For example: Carcioppolo-Joann-Mod6-Report Outline). Submit Instructions: Attach your completed and saved PDF file and click submit using the instructions on the Canvas Student Guide-How do I submit an online assignment? Canvas Student Guides: How do I submit an online assignment? (Links to an external site.) https://community.canvaslms.com/docs/DOC-9539-421241972 (Links to an external site.) How do I upload a file as an assignment submission in Canvas? (Links to an external site.) https://community.canvaslms.com/docs/DOC-10663-421254353 (Links to an external site.) How do I know when my instructor has graded my assignment? (Links to an external site.) https://community.canvaslms.com/docs/DOC-10664-421254358 (Links to an external site.) Grading Rubric: If a grading rubric is used for this assignment, it will be visible at the bottom of this page. Please review it carefully before submitting your completed assignment to ensure you have met the highest level of requirements for each component. Attachment(s): Generating an Analytical Report Problem/Purpose Statement and Outline (FILLABLE PDF FORM) Analytical Report Topic-Purpose Statement-Outline (ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS).pdf Rubric Analytical Report Purpose Statement/Outline Analytical Report Purpose Statement/Outline Criteria Ratings Pts This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeTopic # and Description 5 to >2.0 pts Proficient Learner includes both the topic number and the topic description in the appropriate area within the template provided. 2 to >0 pts Needs Improvement Learner includes only the topic number or the topic description in the appropriate area within the template provided-partial credit earned. Not completed = 0 5 pts This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeProblem/Need Statement 5 to >2.0 pts Proficient Learner includes an appropriate problem or need statement using the strategies from the textbook in the appropriate area within the template provided. 2 to >0 pts Needs Improvement Learner includes a problem or need statement without using the strategies from the textbook in the appropriate area within the template provided. Not completed = 0 5 pts This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomePurpose Statement 5 to >2.0 pts Proficient Learner appropriately identifies the relevant purpose statement using the strategies from the textbook in the appropriate area within the template provided. 2 to >0 pts Needs Improvement Learner includes a purpose statement without using the strategies from the textbook in the appropriate area within the template provided. Not completed = 0 5 pts This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeOutline 10 to >5.5 pts Proficient Learner prepares an outline that includes: -Introduction (Heading Only) -Two Major Section Headings -At least two factors and/or sub-factors for each major section -Conclusion (Heading Only) -Recommendation (Heading Only) 5.5 to >0 pts Needs Improvement Learner prepares an outline that does not include two or more of the following: -Introduction (Heading Only) -Two Major Section Headings -At least two factors and/or sub-factors for each major section -Conclusion (Heading Only) -Recommendation (Heading Only) Not completed = 0 10 pts Total Points: 25 Tags: social media Business Communication advertising methods Cotijas Taco Shop Video Advertising User generated content is uploaded by users for the purposes of learning and should be used following Studypool’s honor code & terms of service.