There are many ways the product manager (PM) can gather information about creating a successful business plan to present to top management to justify funding and support for new product initiatives, projects and activities. Quantitative, qualitative, and experimental research methodologies are important processes for evaluating, identifying, and refining the many variables that help define the decision path for developing new products, product lines, and product portfolios. Primary research can be conducted by me or a company I hire to gather data and information for a specific project through interviews, focus groups, and experimentation. This quality of information is more regulated with a specific purpose in mind. However, costs may be higher and it may take longer to get results. Secondary research, on the other hand, is research that uses data already collected by another person and can be relatively inexpensive. This data, however, may be out of date and too general for a specific need. Secondary research can be found in journals, libraries, and online sites. Primary and secondary research can be quantitative or qualitative. Qualitative research is defined as the collection of information based on intelligence gained from the study of human behavior and the basis of that behavior. The qualitative technique explores the reasons (how and why) decisions are made (as well as what, where and when). In this research method, smaller samples are used to predict the behavior of a larger group and involving an interest and delve into the details of an issue in question. One type of qualitative research is the focus group. In this scenario, a group of individuals (based on...... half of the document ......ts• describes the attributes of the target market. Employing both quantitative and qualitative research during product development will offer a solid foundation for making the right choice for the company based on consumer understanding. Works CitedMora, M. (May 2010 How to use qualitative and quantitative research in new product development. Retrieved 3/10/14 from http: //www.aipmm.com/).html/newsletter/archives/000417.phpQualitative research. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qualitative_researchFocus group http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Focus_groupDocumentary Pizza Turnaround”. ) Retrieved 3/10/14 from http://pizzaturnaround.com/Katz, G. March 3, 2010. What are the disadvantages and advantages of ethnography. Retrieved 3/10/14 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tHgNXzS2EYQuantitative Research http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantitative_research