8.2. Sources of Marketing Information

Information requirements

Information collected by market research can be either qualitative or quantitative:

Quantitative data refers to numbers – for example, the value and volume of sales per period of time or numbers of shoppers per week - which can be presented in a numerical or graphical format.

Qualitative data refers to information concerning the motives and attitudes of consumers. It focuses, not on how consumers behave, but why they behave in certain ways. Qualitative data is a useful supplement to quantitative data. It is sometimes the only source of information when numerical data is scarce.

There are two main sources of market research information: primary research, where researchers gather information about the market them­selves; and secondary research, where researchers use information that has already been collected by other people and organisations.

So-called desk-based research makes use of secondary data, or data which has already been collected for another purpose. Sources of secondary data may be found both within a business and from outside the firm.

Internal sources

Most firms will find that the experience of their staff and internal business records provide valuable information about the past performance of products. Sources of internal information may include:

• Existing market research reports

• Data on the success of various past promotions

• Distribution data on delivery times, and customer details

• Shopkeepers’ opinions on products

• Stock records and product quality audits

• Sales records showing seasonal variations in sales

• Accounting records showing cost variations

• Databases of information built up on customers via returned warranty cards

External sources

Secondary information is also available from outside the firm, often at little or no cost, from a variety of organisations:

Government statistics. The government publishes a vast array of information on all aspects of the economy, business, and the population. Publications such as Social Trends, Regional Trends, the Census of Population, the Family Expenditure Survey, and the Annual Abstract of Statistics provide useful background marketing information about regional and national population characteristics, income and expenditure patterns and trends, and much more.

Specialist business organisations. A number of organisations specialise in market research and produce regular reports which can be bought by the public. Examples include Neilsons Retail Audit, Mintel, and Dun and Bradstreet. Additionally, many sources of secondary market research exist on computer databases and are available to firms with computer links at a charge. These include surveys by The Economist Intelligence Unit, The Financial Times Business Information Service, and economic reports by the OECD (the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development).

International publications. Organisations such as the World Bank, United Nations, and European Community publish a wide variety of papers and journals containing economic and social data on different countries which are useful to market researchers.

Competing firms. Public limited companies (plcs) are required to produce annual reports on their activities. A rival firm will be able to obtain information about company profits and sales from these reports.

The media, TV, radio and newspapers, will often carry features on economic, business, and social patterns and trends.