Sources of data collection on business market research

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The purpose of market research, therefore, is to gather information about a product and its demand. Knowing the size and make-up of a market is a good indicator of how potentially lucrative a product might be.

Two types of data tools fulfill the second stage. 

  • Primary Data consists of obtaining information firsthand, at its source, for a specific purpose Methods of primary data collection include questionnaires, personal interviews, interviews with groups of people (focus groups), and mail and telephone surveys.
  • Secondary Data involves information that has already been collected – usually for another purpose.  Examples include demographic studies, surveys, college and university research projects, magazines, books, government data, Internet searches, and so on.  Secondary information can also be found in libraries, Small Business Administration (SBA) offices, the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE), local Small Business Development Centers (SBDC), local enterprise councils, a Chamber of Commerce, or even a community bank. Careful internet searches can also be invaluable.

Sources of Secondary Data Collection

Secondary data is the easiest source to begin with because it has already been collected – thus making it cheaper and faster to obtain.  Common sources of secondary data include, but are by no means limited to:

  • Books. Examples include:
    • The Business Periodical Index, which lists business articles that appear in major business publications.
    • The Encyclopedia of Associations, which lists and describes organizations and groups across the USA.
    • Standard & Poor’s Industry Surveys, which provide statistics and analyses of industries.
  • Commercial Information (usually sold to subscribers).  Examples include:
    • The A.C. Nielsen Company.  Provides data on market share, retail prices, sales, television audiences, household purchases and much more.
    • Information Resources, Inc.  Collects supermarket scanner information, grocery product movement data, and customer behavior.
    • NFO Research.  Provides information for mail order businesses, the beverage industry, product testing, attitude and usage studies, tracking, and market segmentation.
    • Simmons Market Research Group (MRB Group).  Publishes an annual report on lifestyles and regional demographics in regards to age, sex, income, and brand preference.
  • Government Publication Titles.  Examples include:
    • The Annual Survey of Manufacturers
    • Business Statistics
    • The Census of Manufacturers
    • The Census of Population
    • The Census of Retail Trade
    • Foreign Economic Trends and their Implications for the United States
    • Industrial Outlook
    • The Monthly Labor Review
    • The Survey of Current Business
    • The Vital Statistics Report
  • International Data Sources.  Examples include:
    • The Asian Economic Handbook
    • Country Studies
    • The Demographic Yearbook (information on 220 countries published by the UN)
    • The Economic Survey of Europe
    • The Europa Yearbook
    • The Statistical Yearbook (UN)
    • International Financial Statistics
    • International Marketing Data and Statistics 
    • The International Trade Statistics Yearbook (published by the UN)
  • Periodical Titles.  Examples include:
    • Advertising Age
    • The Journal of Marketing
    • Campaign
    • The Journal of Marketing Research
    • Chain Store Age
    • The Progressive Grocer
    • International Journal of Research in Marketing
    • Marketing Week
    • The Journal of Consumer Research
    • Sales and Marketing Management

Sources of Primary Data Collection

Make no mistake, primary data requires courage, time, and effort to collect. Questions must be proposed and written down, the right people need to be approached, and answers have to be analyzed in an unbiased manner (again, see Chapter 6 for workable suggestions on how to achieve these objectives). Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Knowledgeable people who have been through this process before will greatly add to the validity of research results. Examples of primary data collection include:

  1. Observing the Behavior of People.
    1. Posing as a customer to see what a competitor is doing
    1. Counting the number of customers that walk into a similar business or stop in front of a display
    1. Showing preliminary ads or samples to customers in order to gauge their reaction
    1. Investigating vehicular traffic flow patterns and/or the location of competitors
  2. Telephone Interviewing

Phoning potential interviewees is a fast, efficient way to speak to large numbers of people. Numbers from neighbourhood or membership phone books can provide a rich source of contacts because people of similar income brackets usually cluster in the same area. The drawback to phone interviews is that many people use answering machines to screen their calls and/or are offended by unsolicited phone calls (especially during mealtimes). Another obstacle of phone interviewing is that mobile phone numbers can be difficult to obtain.

  • Group Interviews (Focus Groups)

Bringing a number of people together (or visiting a group or club that meets on a regular basis) can be a convenient way to gather opinions, explore issues, and probe for information. A good focus group can also act like a brainstorming session in that the input of different people working together usually produces more than what one individual can provide on his or her own. Drawbacks include: pre-existing groups may not paint an accurate picture of the community as a whole, groups can be harder to control than one-on-one interviews (individual voices may not be heard in a group), and some groups may expect payment in return for their time.

  • Questionnaires

A questionnaire is a written set of questions designed to obtain and focus a targeted participant’s response (which is harder to do than it sounds). Questionnaires can contain open-ended questions (in which the respondent provides a short answer) or closed-ended questions (in which the answers are already written and the respondent chooses the most appropriate response). Each has its advantages and disadvantages. Close-ended questions can be answered easily and quickly, but because their answers are limited, they don’t allow for unforeseen options. Open-ended questions can reveal more than closed-ended questions, but can turn people off if they’re too personal or require long answers.

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