Chapter 6—Secondary Data Research in a Digital Age
TRUE/FALSE
1. Secondary data are typically historical data that have already been collected.
2. Secondary data require current access to respondents who provided the data.
3. The primary advantage of secondary data is their availability.
4. A disadvantage to secondary data is that they were not designed specifically to meet the objectives of
the current project.
5. It’s usually safe to assume that secondary information is relevant, useful, and reliable.
6. One disadvantage of secondary data is that it cannot be converted to conform to a researcher’s needs.
7. A researcher should always evaluate the professional reputation of the organization that has gathered
secondary data in terms of evaluating the quality of the data.
8. A reliability analysis is done by comparing data from one source with data from another source.
9. Fact-finding is the simplest form of secondary data research.
10. Market tracking is the observation and analysis of trends in industry volume and brand share over
time.
11. Model building involves specifying relationships between two or more variables, which is more
complicated that simple fact-finding.
12. Market potential is frequently estimated through the use of secondary data.
13. Marketing researchers frequently use external accounting data to generate sales forecasts.
14. A moving average sales forecast works best in a dynamic competitive environment.
15. The index of retail saturation is the ratio of local market potential (demand) to local population
density.
16. Data mining techniques can help to define the underlying meaning of data.
17. Neural networks are a form of artificial intelligence in which a computer is programmed to mimic the
way that human brains process information.
18. Single-source analysis is a form of data mining that analyzes anonymous point-of-sale transactions
databases to identify coinciding purchases or relationships between products purchased and other retail
shopping information.
19. Secondary data are always data that are external to the organization.
20. An enterprise search is like an Internet search but focuses on data within the organization.
21. Secondary data can be bought and sold like other products.
22. Trade associations gather data to help the organizations in a specific industry.
23. Diary panel data are data gathered by households that have agreed to record their consumption
behavior over an extended period of time.
24. The marketing research industry uses the term multiple-source data for diverse types of data offered by
a single company.
25. It is safe to assume that secondary data from governments around the world are accurate.
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Obtaining secondary data is typically ______ and ______ expensive than obtaining primary data.
a.
faster; more
b.
slower; more
c.
faster; less
d.
slower; less
2. A researcher who is interested in new car sales but who discovers that the secondary data from the
U.S. government are in the form of statistics that include both car and light truck sales combined in the
data has discovered that the data fail to meet which criterion?
a.
Are the data in the correct unit of measurement?
b.
Do the data apply to the time period of interest?
c.
Are the data supplied by a reputable source?
d.
Do the data show evidence of reliability and validity?
3. All of the following are common reasons why secondary data do not adequately satisfy research needs
EXCEPT _____.
a.
outdated information
b.
too expensive
c.
variation in definition of terms
d.
different units of measurement
4. The process of changing the original form of data to a format more suitable for achieving a stated
research objective is called _____.
a.
data transformation
b.
reliability assessment
c.
cross-checking
d.
data mining
5. Sherrie is interested in average monthly sales for smartphones in the United States. She found
information on the Internet that gives annual sales, so she took the annual sales and divided it by
twelve to get a monthly average. This is an example of _____.
a.
data mining
b.
data division
c.
data transformation
d.
data validation
6. Which of the following is a disadvantage of secondary data?
a.
user has no control over their reliability and validity
b.
inability to convert the data
c.
typically require additional access to research respondents
d.
all of these choices
7. What is it called when a researcher compares secondary data from one source with data from another?
a.
data conversion
b.
cross-check
c.
data mining
d.
data enhancement
8. A researcher is interested in knowing the median income of residents in the state of Ohio and has
found several sources with this information. He is comparing the information from each source to
verify the information. This researcher is performing a _____.
a.
reliability assessment
b.
data conversion
c.
cross-check
d.
data transformation
9. A typical objective for secondary-data research design is _____.
a.
model building
b.
fact-finding
c.
database marketing
d.
all of these choices
10. The simplest form of secondary-data research is _____.
a.
fact-finding
b.
model building
c.
forecasting sales
d.
database marketing
11. Purchasing data from a company such as NPD Group, Inc. on consumption of soft drinks in the U.S. is
an example of which objective for secondary data analysis?
a.
model building
b.
database marketing
c.
data mining
d.
fact-finding
12. Tracking monthly sales trends over the past year is an example of which objective for secondary data
analysis?
a.
model building
b.
fact-finding
c.
database marketing
d.
environmental scanning
13. The observation and analysis of trends in industry volume and brand share over time is called _____.
a.
market tracking
b.
model building
c.
data mining
d.
database marketing
14. When a marketing manager reads publications like The Wall Street Journal and
BloombergBusinessweek to try to determine changes in consumer behavior, this is a form of _____,
a.
environmental scanning
b.
model building
c.
database marketing
d.
data mining
15. _____ involves specifying relationships between two or more variables, perhaps extending to the
development of descriptive or predictive equations.
a.
Data transformation
b.
Data analysis
c.
Model building
d.
Fact-finding
16. Lance has noticed that companies that advertise a lot seem to have higher sales than those that do not.
His use of secondary data to help specify this relationship is an example of _____.
a.
data conversion
b.
validation
c.
reliability
d.
model building
17. The process of predicting sales totals over a specific time period is called _____.
a.
sales forecasting
b.
market potential estimation
c.
sales analysis
d.
market tracking
18. Every year, Westview Marble goes through the process of estimating sales for the upcoming year by
looking at the company’s previous years’ sales and market sales along with economic trends and
predictions by experts. This process of predicting sales totals over a specific time period is called
____.
a.
model building
b.
trend analysis
c.
sales forecasting
d.
market potential estimation
19. Kyle is conducting a sales forecast by adding up his company’s sales over the past five years and then
dividing that by five (the number of years). The forecasting technique he is using is called _____.
a.
moving average forecasting
b.
dynamic forecasting
c.
static forecasting
d.
indexing
20. Which of the following is FALSE regarding sales forecasting?
a.
The moving average forecasting is best suited to a dynamic competitive environment.
b.
Accurate sales forecasts frequently come from secondary data research.
c.
Simple moving averages are often applied in practice.
d.
Marketing researchers often use internal company sales records to project sales.
21. When Subway Sandwiches uses secondary data to determine the best location for its franchise outlets,
this is an example of _____.
a.
site analysis
b.
model building
c.
database marketing
d.
market tracking
22. Which of the following is a calculation that describes the relationship between retail demand and
supply?
a.
index of retail sales
b.
index of retail utilization
c.
index of retail saturation
d.
index of retail sites
23. If the population of a city is 230,000 and its annual per person expenditure on athletic shoes is $45, if
there are 64,688 square feet of retail space used to sell athletic shoes in this city, its index of retail
saturation is _____.
a.
3.56
b.
12.65
c.
159.99
d.
330.06
24. Pottery Barn is a retail chain of home products. Before entering a new geographic area, the company
develops an index consisting of a ratio of local market potential in dollars (demand) to local market
retailing space in square feet. If this ratio is below a predetermined level, the site is not considered
further. However, if this ratio is greater than that level, further site-selection analyses are performed.
This index is called _____.
a.
index of retailers
b.
index of retail utilization
c.
index of retail sales
d.
index of retail saturation
25. Many companies use powerful computers to dig through volumes of data to discover patterns about
their customers and products. This activity is called _____.
a.
data mining
b.
data digging
c.
sugging
d.
neural networking
26. Which of the following is a form of artificial intelligence in which a computer is programmed to
mimic the way that human brains process information?
a.
brain scan
b.
neural network
c.
schematic network
d.
intelligent network
27. Watson, a computer developed by IBM that beat humans on the television game-show Jeopardy, uses
artificial intelligence that mimics the way the human brain processes information. This artificial
intelligence is called _____.
a.
robotic thinking
b.
brain simulator
c.
intelligent agents
d.
neural networks
28. Many retailers mine the databases provided by checkout scanners to identify coinciding purchases or
relationships between products purchased and other retail shopping information. This type of analysis
is referred to as ____.
a.
neural networking
b.
scandowns
c.
database marketing
d.
market-basket analysis
29. Which of the following involves mining data to look for patterns identifying who is likely to be a
valuable customer?
a.
customer discovery
b.
data dissection
c.
data profiling
d.
customer cloning
30. When a credit card company uses information about each customer’s age, gender, income, and past
credit history to find patterns that make customers a poor credit risk, this is an example of _____.
a.
single-source data
b.
data conversion
c.
customer discovery
d.
index of customer saturation
31. The practice of using databases to promote one-to-one relationships with customers and create
precisely targeted promotions is called _____
a.
zoned marketing
b.
target marketing
c.
database marketing
d.
electronic marketing
32. L.L.Bean is a retailer best-known for direct marketing through catalogs and the Internet. Laurie
purchased from the retailer quite frequently, but since her daughter started college she hasn’t had as
much disposable income and stopped ordering merchandise. The elapsed time since her last purchase
triggered an offer for $20 off her next purchase from the retailer. This is an example of _____.
a.
database marketing
b.
neural networks
c.
customer discovery
d.
electronic marketing
33. Secondary data that originate inside the organization are called _____.
a.
first order data
b.
internal data
c.
exclusive data
d.
valid data
34. All of the following are examples of internal secondary data EXCEPT _____.
a.
sales invoices
b.
census data
c.
inventory levels
d.
back orders
35. Secondary data owned and controlled by the organization is referred to as _____.
a.
proprietary data
b.
selective data
c.
prime data
d.
personal data
36. A(n) _____ is like an Internet search but focuses on data within the organization’s internal network.
a.
primary search
b.
internal search
c.
enterprise search
d.
discovery search
37. A researcher for Kraft is searching sales data from the corporation’s Intranet. He’s able to use a
search engine similar to Google, but he is not searching the entire Internet. This type of search is
called a(n) _____ search.
a.
enterprise
b.
Intranet
c.
internal
d.
primary
38. Facts observed, recorded, and stored by an entity outside of the researcher’s organization are called
_____.
a.
proprietary data
b.
external data
c.
internal data
d.
primary data
39. All of the following are producers of external secondary data EXCEPT _____.
a.
libraries
b.
trade associations
c.
government
d.
media
40. Which of the following is TRUE regarding U.S. government sources of secondary data?
a.
Most of the data published by the U.S. federal government can be counted on for accuracy
and quality of investigation.
b.
Provides a real-time view of business news and financial statistics including stock values,
exchange rates, and more.
c.
Provides customer satisfaction ratings for hundreds of large firms doing business in the
United States.
d.
Reports market-share data using Universal Product Codes (UPC) and optical scanning at
retail store checkouts.
41. Which of the following data can be purchased from commercial sources?
a.
advertising research
b.
market-share data
c.
consumer attitudes and public opinions
d.
all of these choices
42. Buying new-car purchase data by zip code from the Polk Company is an example of which type of
secondary data?
a.
media source
b.
commercial source
c.
trade association source
d.
primary source
43. Asking a group of households to record their consumption of certain products over a two-year period
is an example of _____.
a.
model building
b.
database marketing
c.
data conversion
d.
diary panel data
44. What term is used by the marketing research industry to refer to diverse types of data offered by a
single company?
a.
primary data
b.
single-source data
c.
compound data
d.
integrated data
45. All of the following are limitations of international secondary data EXCEPT _____.
a.
data may simply be unavailable in certain countries
b.
data may be too expensive
c.
researchers may question the accuracy of some data
d.
various countries use different definitions and accounting and recording practices
COMPLETION
1. Data that were collected previously for a different research study are known as ______ data.
2. When original data are changed to a different format in order to make them consistent with a research
objective, this is known as data ______.
3. Comparing data from one source with data from other sources to determine the consistency of the data
is known as performing a(n) ______.
4. Tracking industry unit sales over the past twelve months is a form of ______ tracking.
5. Reading The Wall Street Journal to study possible changes in consumer consumption patterns of
specific products is an example of ______.
6. Using secondary data to study relationships between advertising and sales is an example of ______.
7. Predicting next month’s dollar sales based on past sales for the previous twelve months is an example
of a(n) ______.
8. Techniques that use secondary data to select the best location for a retail or wholesale operation are
called _____ techniques.
9. The mathematical result of describing the relationship between retail demand and supply for a specific
geographic area for a specific product is known as the index of retail ______ .
10. When an organization uses powerful computers to try to discover patterns of customer relationships
for its products, this is known as ______.
11. _____ is a data-mining application that similarly involves mining data to look for patterns that can
increase the value of customers.
12. Using customer databases to provide customized relationships with customers for specific promotions
is an example of ______ marketing.
13. A(n) _____ search is like an Internet search but focuses on data within the organization’s internal
network.
14. Data which are created outside of the organization are called ______ secondary data.
15. Diverse types of data offered by a single company are known as ______ data.
ESSAY
1. Explain why researchers often look for secondary data first when conducting research but also discuss
the drawbacks of using secondary data.
2. Name and describe the three broad objectives that can be achieved using secondary data and give an
example of each.
3. Identify various internal sources of secondary data and explain how researchers can search this type of
data.
4. Give examples of various external sources of secondary data and discuss how information, as a
product, is distributed.
ANS:
5. A researcher has been commissioned by a major U.S. consumer packaged-goods company to
determine the market potential for peanut butter in China. Discuss some concerns the researcher may
have when attempting to find and use secondary data in this country.