Chapter 3

Methods

Presented in this section were the discussions of the research design, research

subjects, research instrument, data gathering procedures, as well as the statistical treatment

of data.

Research Design

The researchers used a sequential-explanatory method for this study. According to

the study of Ivankova et. al (2006), this design involved two consecutive phases within one

study: quantitative then followed by qualitative (Cresswell et. al 2003).

Sequential-explanatory design implied the collection and analyzation of quantitative data,

and then qualitative data were collected and analyzed. The quantitative data composed the

first phase of the design and being followed by the qualitative data that is considered to be

the second phase of the design, both data gathered were connected in which the results

were integrated. The qualitative data and their analysis refined and explained those

statistical results (Rossman and Wilson 1985; Tashakkori and Teddlie 1998; Creswell

2003). The sequential-explanatory method was utilized by the researchers since the study

was intended to examine the relationship between advertising and sales and determine the

effects of advertising to the sales of Gasoline Station Ecoland, Davao City.

Research Subject

For the gathering of data, purposive sampling was used in selecting the subjects of

the study. This type of sampling method is a type of non-probability sampling in which the

participants were chosen based on their characteristics as well as experience as related to

the current study.

 The researchers chose one gasoline station in Ecoland, Davao City from four

gasoline companies to gather the essential information that the researchers need.

Gasoline station A was a Filipino company and was the leading and largest

independent fuel company in the Philippines. It continues to expand its retail network,

even in areas with under-served market, in providing high-quality and affordable products

to Filipinos.

Gasoline station B operated the largest petroleum refinery in the Philippines, it

supplied more than a third of the country’s oil needs. It continued to produce quality and

affordable products and services to Filipinos and it also continues to expand its retail

network.

Gasoline station C operated the largest oil company retail network in Australia. In

addition, it continued to produce world-class quality and affordable products and services

to Filipinos and it continued to expand its retail network.

Gasoline station D, was considered to be one of the largest oil companies in the

world. Being one of the largest oil companies in the world, it continued to produce

high-quality products and widened its business by expanding.

From the four gasoline stations, one representative was selected for the in-depth

interview, in which the participant should have prior knowledge about the marketing of the

company's products. They should also have a long-term experience within the company in

order for the collected information to be credible.

Research Instrument
 The researchers requested for primary information and data to collected

from gasoline stations in Ecoland, Davao City through the letter conferred that

was approved to obtain valid information for the research.

According to Cohen and Manion (1994), these set of tools were helpful in the

study and it served as the rating scale that was used to interpret the responses for the

indicators of media advertising within the sales volume of the gasoline stations.

General guidelines indicated whether or not the dimensions of the coefficient

provide meaningful data regarding the strength of association between two variables.

Showkat and Parveen (2017) stated that in-depth interview was one of most

efficient method of collecting primary data because it had benefits that help to uncover

more details of the interviewees’ experience and in-depth information that was needed in

the study. Also, the author emphasized that in-depth interview was a discovery-oriented

method which provided a more relaxed and has created a comfortable environment for the

interviewee to ask questions to uncover the best possible details that were essential in the

study.

A study reported by Silverman and Kwiatkowski (1998) stated that a protocol

was a written tool that described how the research questions were obtained through the

interviewees. It was more than an instructional manual for interviewing, for it allowed the

interviewer to carefully consider the research questions and the feasibility of the study.

Moreover, it should be a practical document that allowed the development of research

ideas into a completed study because a well-designed protocol was essential to the success

of the research study. Also, the primary objective and the chosen endpoints strongly

influence the subject selection, study procedures, design of the data collection and the

statistical analysis of the collected data. The credibility of this study resulted on the quality

of the data.
 The researchers designed a protocol that addressed all important issues that may

arise in conducting the interview. Moreover, the researchers defined the criteria or

qualifications that determined which interviewees were eligible for participating.

Researchers included inclusion and exclusion criteria which selected the best interviewee

that fitted in the study. In addition, the researchers had a detailed description of the

procedures so that the path of their discussion remained on the main objective of the study.

Also, the researchers created a table that summarized the objective of the protocol, a

simplified flowsheet with a checklist designed that helped the interviewer not to get lost

from the topic. Furthermore, the questions were brief, on point and clearly worded. The

questions were designed so that the responses were directly towards the analysis of the

data, and the best and effective method used was to specify a set number of responses and

provide a box to check if the interviewee hit the important details that the interviewer or

the study needed.

Data Gathering Procedure

The researchers followed definite steps in order to have a smooth and successful

flow before, during and after the conduct of the study. The following were the steps in

gathering of data.

Seeking permission to conduct the study. The researchers sought permission

from the principal of the University of Mindanao and the assigned manager of selected

gasoline stations to conduct the study.

Administration and distribution of the letter. After the approval, the study

began after this step. The letter administered by the researcher was the approval letter for

the data.

Retrieval of the data. The data was retrieved and collected by the researchers.
 Finding participants to be interviewed. Researchers chose the qualified

respondents and asked their permission for the interview.

Interviewing and Recording of Data. The chosen participants had

semi-structured, open-ended questions. The researchers had a specific task to do wherein

one of them asked the questions while the others took down notes on the details of the

answer and recordings of the interview using mobile phones.

Transcribing the collected information. From the recordings of data, the

researchers transcribed all the recorded conversations.

Analysis of data. The data was tallied, tabulated, analyzed and interpreted

confidentially and accordingly through the aid of the statistician.

Data Analysis Procedure

The data collected were tested using the following statistical tools:

Frequency. This tool was used to determine the percentage for the data on

profile.

Mean. This tool was helpful in determining the media advertising and sales

volume display among the gasoline stations in Ecoland, Davao City.

Standard Deviation. This tool was helpful in determining the distance of how far

the score is from the mean.

Pearson Product-Moment Correlation. This tool was used to determine the

significant relationship between media advertising and sales volume in answer to

sub-problem 3.

The following methods were used for identifying and analyzing qualitative data:
 Thematic Analysis. This method was used to identify and analyze themes and

patterns from the given answers from the in-depth interview regarding the effects of media

advertising towards the sales volume.

Coding. This method was used to identify concepts and relation between media

advertising and sales volume.

Trustworthiness of the Study

In order to establish the trustworthiness of this research, this paper contains

credibility, conformablity, transferability, and dependability which are further explained in

the following:

Credibility. The information collected were gathered from credible sources,

which makes them official and legitimate data. Furthermore, the researchers used

purposive sampling in which the participants that were chosen had knowledge and

background regarding the topic of the study. This type of sampling was used so that the

results were in lined to our subject matter. In addition, triangulation of research designs

ensured credibility because it used both quantitative and qualitative data to corroborate the

findings.

Conformability. The findings were from the ideas and experiences of the

participants. The researchers' biases did not tamper the results of the interpretation from

what the research participants had said. Overall, all of the results divulged were objective.

Transferability. The material of this study can be used in other researches

involving media advertisement. Also, people in the field of business can use the results of

this research to gain knowledge about the impact of media advertising. Furthermore, the

outcomes of this study can be applicable towards the business population.

 Dependability. The researchers have gathered sufficient information which

makes the study replicable. A future researcher would be able to replicate the study

because the work has provided enough data to be analyzed. Lastly, the product of the paper

would contain information useful to other investigations about advertising.

Ethical Considerations

The researchers will strictly follow the research ethics standards such as accepting

the researchers’ fallibility. By adhering the ethics, the enforcement and communication of

the ethical standards shall be followed in order to develop and maintain good research

practice.

Social Value. One of the problems that business people encounter is finding ways

to grab the attention of consumers. This paper established social value by providing

information that could aid entrepreneurs in understanding the influence of advertising to

businesses, which could help in luring potential customers. In addition, the results could

also aid future researchers when they choose to delve into a similar topic to study.

Informed Consent Form. The participants who were selected to participate in

this study were asked if they were willing to cooperate in this study. They were given a

document in which they can sign voluntarily to ensure that they have given their

permission to be subjects for this research. Aside from that, they were also thoroughly

informed about the process of the interview as well as given chances to ask questions when

needed.

Privacy and Confidentiality. In order to respect the privacy of each participant,

the identities of the respondents would not be stated in the paper. Instead, the researchers

used codes to represent each subject. Furthermore, only the researchers would be able to
access explicit data that would be linked back to the people who chose to cooperate to be in

this study.

Transparency. To ensure the transparency of this paper, the researchers would

only provide accurate and objective interpretations of statistics used. In addition, the

results would be based on the gathered data, ensuring straightforward and unbiased

information. In addition, the information shown would not be manipulated and tampered

in any way to ensure credibility and reliability of the study.