The Office strives to help reduce the uncertainty that Outreach and Cooperative Extension staff face when developing and delivering products and programs, determining what to offer, when and where to offer it, to whom it would be offered, and how much should be charged. The Outreach Office of Marketing Research is a core support unit for Penn State Outreach and Cooperative Extension. Additionally, two half-time graduate assistants and staff assistants provide support services. World Wide Web searches have yielded useful information to decision makers concerning target audiences, enrollments, pricing, and scheduling preferences of potential customers in the discovery and design phases of program development. The Office conducts both qualitative and quantitative studies and utilizes informal as well as formal research methods.
Information is generated from both primary and secondary data sources.
Typically, the Outreach Office of Marketing Research completes between 200 and 300 projects annually. Outreach and Cooperative Extension relies upon the Outreach Office of Marketing Research for support in making decisions that are grounded in analyses of appropriate information. Its value-added input in the past, present, and future helps reduce the level of risk Outreach and Cooperative Extension assumes in its programming activities even though risk can never be completely eliminated. Its input on all projects is particularly valuable in understanding the program areas where Penn State has the best opportunity to succeed.