Secondary Data Literature Review and Hypotheses 10 05 2015 Secondary Data Data not gathered from the immediate study at hand but for some other purpose Sometimes called desk research Internal Secondary Data Data collected by the individual company for accounting purposes or marketing activity reports marketing programs inventory management and so forth External Secondary Data Data collected by outside agencies such as the federal and state government trade associations nonprofit organizations marketing research services academic researchers or periodicals o Popular Sources o Scholarly Sources o Government Sources o Commercial Sources Syndicated or Commercial Data Data that have been compiled according to some standardized procedure provides customized data for companies such as market share ad effectiveness and sales tracking Ex below Consumer Panels Large samples of household that provide specific detailed data on purchase behavior for an extended period of time Ex NPD Group Consumer Report on Eating Share Trends National Eating Trends TNS Global Synovate ViewsNet Youthbeat Media Panels Similar to consumer panels but the information focuses on media usage behavior Ex Nielsen Media ResearchArbitron Inc Store Audits Formal examination and verification of how much of a particular product or brand has been sold at the retail level Ex product brand sales in relation to competition effectiveness of shelf space and POP display sales at various price points and levels effectiveness of in store promotions and point of sale coupons direct sales by store type product location territory and region o North American Industry Classification System NAICS A system that codes numerical industrial listings designed to promote uniformity in data reporting procedures for the U S government Secondary research approaches are increasingly used to examine marketing problems because of the relative speed and cost effectiveness of obtaining the data Secondary data research has gained substantial importance in marketing research with the increase emphasis on business and competitive intelligence and the ever increasing availability of information from online sources Examples of Secondary Data Sources www usaspending gov and www opensecrets com Primary Data Information collected from a current research problem or opportunity Also called field research Example linking purchase data collected in store and online with customer profiles already in company databases so companies can enhance their ability to understand shopping behavior and better meet their customer needs Literature Review A comprehensive examination of available information that is related to your research topic This section of the report typically is labeled background research or literature review Purpose Even if researchers are planning on conducting primary research literature review can be helpful because it provides Background and contextual information for the current Clarifies thinking about the research problem and questions that are the focus of the study Reveals whether information already exists that addresses the issue of interest Helps to define important constructs of interest to the study study Can suggest research hypotheses to investigate Can identify scales to measure variables Suggests sampling and other methodological approaches that have been successful in researching similar topics Synthesizing Secondary Research for the Literature Review Divergent perspectives and findings need to be included o Differences between findings and studies include estimates of descriptive data Three major cause of discrepancies in online retail estimates o Inclusion or not of travel spending o Methodological differences o Some degree of sampling error Conceptual Model Literature reviews can also help conceptualize a model that summarizes the relationships you hope to predict If you are performing purely exploratory research however you will not need to develop a model before conducting your research Elements Needed to Conceptualize a Model o Variable An observable item that is used on a questionnaire They have concrete properties and are measured directly Examples gender marital status company name number of employees how frequently a particular brand is purchased etc o Construct An unobservable concept that is measured by a group of related variables Examples Service quality value customer satisfaction brand attitude Constructs that represent characteristics of respondents may also be measured for example innovativeness opinion leadership and deal proneness o Relationships Associations between two or more variables When modeling causal relationships variables or constructs in relationships can be either independent or dependent variables Independent Variable The variable or construct that predicts or explains the outcome variable of interest Dependent Variable The variable or construct researchers are seeking to explain Conceptualization Development of a model that shows variables and hypothesized or proposed relationships between variables o Involves Identifying the variables for your research Specifying hypotheses and relationships Preparing a diagram conceptual model that visually represents the relationship you will study Process of Conceptualization o Identify variables for research o Specify hypotheses and relationships o Prepare a diagram that represents the relationship visually Developing Hypotheses Hypotheses An empirically testable though yet unproven statement developed in order to explain phenomena o Descriptive Hypotheses Possible answers to a specific applied research problem Development Involves 1 1 Reviewing the research problem or opportunity 2 2 Writing down the questions that flow from the research problem or opportunity 3 3 Brainstorming possible answers to the research questions o Causal Hypotheses Theoretical statements about relationships between variables The theoretical statements are based on research findings confirmed previously in another situation and thought to be applicable to the new situation Two hypotheses can be formally stated as Hypothesis 1 Higher spending on advertising leads to higher sales Hypothesis 2 Higher prices lead to lower sales Positive Relationship An association between two variables in which they increase or decrease Negative Relationship An association between two variables in which one increases while the other decreases Characteristics of a Good Hypotheses o Follow from research
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