Question

In the final section of study reports, there is a section on implications and recommendations. Describe the difference between these terms. Provide examples from one of the studies that you critiqued.

Answer 1

Research implications are basically the conclusions that you draw from your results and explain how the findings may be important for policy, practice, or theory. Whereas, Recommendations urge specific actions to be taken with regard to policy, practice, theory, or subsequent research. are specific suggestions that you make with regard to further research on the topic.

example,

The implication is that marketers, and more specifically South African marketers, need to consider the possibility of using the Internet as a main or alternative sales channel when selling products or services to South African Internet users.

Recommendation: Marketers need to determine whether or not there is a demand for their products or services to be sold via the Internet. Once a need is identified for their offering, marketers need to offer their products and/or services by using the Internet as a primary sales channel. If the seller is a current "brickand-mortar" business, the possibility should be investigated to utilise the Internet as an alternative sales channel. Marketers from "brick-and-mortar" sellers need to, however, be cautious not to simply pursue the Internet as a "nice-to-have" or "add-on" sales channel, but should draft proper business and marketing plans to actively pursue the Internet as a separate profitable sales channel.