MARKETING RESEARCH

MUBARAK, HANAPHY ADEMOLA

SANZHAR ORGANOV
MARHARYTA LAPPA

13.11.2019

CHAPTER 4

1.What are the differences between primary data, secondary data and marketing
intelligence?

The fundamental differences between primary and secondary data are discussed in the
following points:

1. The term primary data refers to the data originated by the researcher for the first
time. Secondary data is the already existing data, collected by the investigator
agencies and organisations earlier.
2. Primary data is a real-time data whereas secondary data is one which relates to the
past.
3. Primary data is collected for addressing the problem at hand while secondary data
is collected for purposes other than the problem at hand.
4. Primary data collection is a very involved process. On the other hand, secondary
data collection process is rapid and easy.
5. Primary data collection sources include surveys, observations, experiments,
questionnaire, personal interview, etc. On the contrary, secondary data collection
sources are government publications, websites, books, journal articles, internal
records etc.
6. Primary data collection requires a large amount of resources like time, cost and
manpower. Conversely, secondary data is relatively inexpensive and quickly
available.
2. What are the relative advantages and disadvantages of secondary data?
Advantages of Secondary data

1. It is economical. It saves efforts and expenses.

2. It is time saving.
 3. It helps to make primary data collection more specific since with the help of secondary data,
we are able to make out what are the gaps and deficiencies and what additional information
needs to be collected.
4. It helps to improve the understanding of the problem.
5. It provides a basis for comparison for the data that is collected by the researcher.

Disadvantages of Secondary Data

1. Secondary data is something that seldom fits in the framework of the marketing research
factors. Reasons for its non-fitting are:-
a. Unit of secondary data collection-Suppose you want information on disposable
income, but the data is available on gross income. The information may not be same
as we require.
b. Class Boundaries may be different when units are same.

Before 5 Years After 5 Years

2500-5000 5000-6000
5001-7500 6001-7000
7500-10000 7001-10000

c. Thus the data collected earlier is of no use to you.

2. Accuracy of secondary data is not known.
3. Data may be outdated.

3.At what stages of the marketing research process can secondary data be
used?
Secondary data is collected for some purpose other than the problem at hand. This data includes
information made available by business and government sources, commercial marketing research
firms, and computerized databases. Secondary data is an economical and quick source of
background information.

4. Why is it important to locate and analyse secondary data before

progressing to primary data?
While 'secondary data' is associated with quantitative databases, analysis focused on verbal or
visual materials created for another purpose, is a legitimate avenue for the qualitative
researcher. Actually one could go as far as claim that qualitative secondary data analysis “can
be understood, not so much as the analysis of pre-existing data; rather as involving a process of
re-contextualizing, and re-constructing, data.
In the analysis of secondary qualitative data, good documentation cannot be underestimated as
it provides future researchers with the background and context and allows replication.

5. How may secondary data be used to validate qualitative research findings?

(1) Make your research transparent - characterize how did you approaches the
issue and how did you realized the research. You should state the characteristics of
 your respondents (social position, age, gender, and other), how did you choose the
respondents (and why this population and not some other), place where the
interview took place, and how did you analyzed the data. For semi-structured
interviews, you should state the general topics of your interviews as well as the
methods of sampling (purposive, multi-site, snowballing etc.)
(2) Contextualize your research into existing discourse (or point out that there is no
relevant discourse) - use other researches (if there are any) and use other sources
of data (documents, media representations, statistics) as instruments to support
your interpretation.
(3) Keep in mind that qualitative research does not produce "truth" that can be
verified, but an one possible understanding of the issue, as qualitative research is
based on the social constructivist approach so you never have the complete
understanding of the issue or know the truth about the issue.
(4) You can use so called mixed methods - do part of your research qualitatively and
part quantitatively, or analyze the issue (research questions) by qualitative as well
as quantitative methodology and then compare the results and outcomes. That is
very demanding type of research and usually it takes to make a research team to do
the research.
(5) You can consider doing the research in a team as more heads know more. More
opinions, interpretations, and views within the team increase the validity of the
research.

6. What is the difference between internal and external secondary data?

You can break the sources of secondary data into internal sources and external sources. Internal
sources include data that exists and is stored inside your organization. External data is data that is collected
by other people or organizations from your organization's external environment.

Let's dig a little deeper into each of these general categories. Examples of internal sources of data include,
but are certainly not limited to, the following:

-Profit and loss statements

-Balance sheets

-Sales figures

-Inventory records

-Previous marketing research studies

If the secondary data you have collected from internal sources will not be sufficient, you can turn
to external sources of data. Some external sources include:

-Government sources

-Corporate filings

-Media

-Universities

-Foundations
 -Commercial data services

7. How can intranets help in the location and dissemination of secondary

data?
 It will show the gaps in existing information and the quality of evidence already available.
 It can provide a context in which to place your analysis of the primary data that you are
collecting.
 It can give you a greater understanding and insight into the problems, issues and practice related
to the field in which you are evaluating.
 It can help to suggest evaluation questions.
 It can provide a basis for comparison for the data that you are collecting.

8. By what criteria may secondary data be evaluated?

Because of the above mentioned disadvantages of secondary data, we will lead to evaluation of
secondary data. Evaluation means the following four requirements must be satisfied:-

1. Availability- It has to be seen that the kind of data you want is available or not. If it is not
available then you have to go for primary data.
2. Relevance- It should be meeting the requirements of the problem. For this we have two
criterion:-
a. Units of measurement should be the same.
b. Concepts used must be same and currency of data should not be outdated.
3. Accuracy- In order to find how accurate the data is, the following points must be
considered: -
a. Specification and methodology used;
b. Margin of error should be examined;
c. The dependability of the source must be seen.
4. Sufficiency- Adequate data should be available.

9. What criteria would you look for when examining the design and
specifications of secondary data? Why is it important to examine these
criteria?
The eight-stage process we propose below is based around a general strategy of identifying
stakeholders and their information requirements, identifying overlap in these requirements,
and then designing a strategy for data collection and sharing based upon stakeholder
incentives and capacity.
The first step is to identify the main stakeholders involved in management of the resource,
and their responsibilities and capacities (Stage 1) which will help define their potential roles
in the system. Management planning (Stage 2) is key to designing successful data collection
and sharing systems because the management objectives and strategies will be defined in the
plan. Based on the objectives in the plan, the data that will need to be collected can be
identified (Stage 3). Existing data that are already collected by different institutions are then
 reviewed (Stage 4) and gaps are identified, so that for the remaining data that are required by
the stakeholders, a strategy can be identified to collect those data (Stage 5). Pathways and
methods to share those data between stakeholders are agreed in Stage 6, and ways of
recording, storing and managing the data are identified in Stage 7. Finally in Stage 8, the
system is implemented, evaluated and refined. A scaled-down pilot system could be
implemented at first, involving a reduced number of data variables and stakeholders, so that
all involved can get a feel for the system and which ideas will work well or not in practice.

10.To what extend should you use a secondary data source if you cannot see
any explicit objectives attached to that research?
Secondary analysis refers to the use of existing research data to find answer to a question
that was different from the original work. Secondary data can be large scale surveys or data
collected as part of personal research. Although there is general agreement about sharing the
results of large scale surveys, but little agreement exists about the second. While the
fundamental ethical issues related to secondary use of research data remain the same, they
have become more pressing with the advent of new technologies. Data sharing, compiling
and storage have become much faster and easier. At the same time, there are fresh concerns
about data confidentiality and security.
11.If you had two sources of secondary data for a project, the first being
dependable but out of date, the second not dependable but up to date,
which would you prefer?
It will depend from type of project, because I can use both of them. If project always requires
a new information, so I can not use data which is out of date.
12.Evaluate the desirability of using multiple sources of secondary data and
intelligence?
The secondary analysis of existing data has become an increasingly popular method of
enhancing the overall efficiency of the health research enterprise. But this effort depends on
governments, funding agencies, and researchers making the data collected in primary
research studies and in health-related registry systems available to qualified researchers who
were not involved in the original research or in the creation and maintenance of the registry
systems. The benefits of doing this are clear but the barriers are many, so the effort of
increasing access to such material has been slow, particularly in low- and middle income
countries.
13.List and describe the main types of syndicated sources of secondary data?
- Surveys
- Purchase panel
- Media plans
- Scanner volume-tracking data
- Scanner panels with cable TV
- Audit services
- Industrial product syndicated services
14.Explain what an online panel is, giving examples of different types panel.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of online panels?
Benefits of Market Research Panels
Accessibility – a prearranged target group of people willing to help you.
Promptness of Fieldwork – a combination of online research with opt-ins leads to speedy data
collection.
Targeted Focus – in most cases, panels are created around interest/purchasing around specific
products or services. So, who better to survey than the people who already have your company in
their consideration set?
Efficiency – no need to re-screen participants on key qualification criteria.
Longitudinal Advantages – a large enough panel gives the client the opportunity to track change in
behavior over time.

15.What is an audit? Describe the uses, advantages and disadvantages of

audits?

Auditing is the process of inspecting the books of accounts to authenticate their accuracy and
reliability. It is an important process to the company itself, the government, the investors, creditors,
shareholder etc. They all rely on audited accounts to make important decisions.
Advantages of Auditing
1)Assurance to the Owners/Investors
One of the biggest advantages of auditing is that it offers assurances to the owners, investors,
shareholders etc. The owners of the business will be assured about the accuracy of their books of
accounts.
They will be satisfied with the workings of their various departments and the overall efficiency and
profitability of their business operations. It is the same case with investors, who will find assurance
in the books of accounts after auditing.
2] Errors and Frauds
An error is something that is done without the intention to fraud the company, it is an innocent
mistake. Fraud, on the other hand, is deliberate. During the process of auditing, both errors and
frauds are discovered. Auditing also helps prevent such errors and frauds. It creates a fear of being
detected.
So auditing helps us minimize the risks of errors and frauds in our books of accounts but does not
eliminate the risk entirely. There is always the chance that the error may go unnoticed, and the fraud
is very cleverly hidden so may go undetected.