Bert Wong Has Decided to Pursue a Marketing Research Effort

Bert Wong has decided to pursue a marketing research effort to acquire information before his company makes a strategic relocation move to the West Coast. Which of the following marketing research process steps would be the first step that Bert's company (and marketing researchers) should take as it embarks on the research effort?

A) Define the research problem and establish research objectives.
B) Analyze, interpret, and summarize the results.
C) Determine the sources of information to fulfill the research objectives.
D) Consider the costs and benefits of the research effort.
E) Gather relevant data from secondary or primary sources, or both.