Primary Data

1.0 Introduction

Sources of information are generally categorised as primary, secondary or tertiary

depending on their originality and their proximity to the source or origin. For example,
scientific information moves through a dissemination cycle. Initially, findings might be
communicated informally by email, then presented at meetings before being formally
published as a primary source. Once published, they will then be indexed in a
bibliographic database, and repackaged and commented upon by others in secondary
sources. The designations of primary, secondary and tertiary differ between disciplines or
subjects, particularly between what can generally be defined as the sciences and the
humanities. Primary sources for critic studying the literature of the Second World War are
different from those for a research scientist investigating a new drug for arthritis. The
critic's primary sources are the poems, stories, and films of the era. The research
scientist's primary sources are the results of laboratory tests and the medical records of
patients treated with the drug. You should always check with your lecturer or tutor if in
doubt.

2.0 Analyzing Your Primary Data

Now that you've collected your primary data, its time to figure out what that data means
and what you can learn from it. The keys when analyzing your data is to pull out
information that is the most pertinent to your writing, information you can highlight and
discuss, and information that will support your claims (if you are making any).

Interviews

Interviews are fairly easy to analyze, as you simply have to go back through the answers
you received and decide how to use them within your writing. You can group the answers
into categories and create a chart of how those answers may best fit within your paper or
article.

If you recorded the interview with a tape or digital recorder, you may want to listen to it
and type a transcript of the interview. Since transcription is a tedious process, only use
this option if you need to.

Surveys
When analyzing surveys, you want to get the raw data into form that you can manipulate.
If you were using a numerical system or yes/no answer system for your survey, you may
find it helpful to enter the results into a spreadsheet program such as Microsoft Excel. If
the survey was an open-ended question style, see if you can fit your answers into
categories of responses.

Observations

Observations are more difficult to analyze because when you are taking notes, you often
write down everything that you see. Start by organizing your notes into categories or by
some criteria. Once you have everything organized, see if you can make some
generalizations about what you have observed.

Over-generalizing your results

Your first attempts at primary research will most likely include small groups of people
and may not be representative of the population as a whole. It is important to remember
not to over-generalize your findings--in other words, don't assume that your findings are
necessarily true of every person within the group or every person in a society.

Triangulation of Data

One of the benefits of combining primary research with secondary research is in the area
of data triangulation. Data triangulation is when a piece of data, a finding, or a
generalization is able to be verified with several different research methods. This helps
add to your credibility and makes your findings stronger.

For example, you are studying binge drinking on campus. You find national averages that
indicate that 45% of college students binge drink nationwide. You conduct your own
research at the Purdue campus. You find that 47% of the individuals you surveyed drink;
you also interview a counselor on campus who reports that approximately 1/3 of the
students who he sees suffer from a drinking problem. Thus, your results from an
interview with an expert and your own survey support the national averages.

3.0 Primary Data Sources

Primary data collection is necessary when a researcher cannot find the data needed in
secondary sources. Market researchers are interested in primary data about
demographic/socioeconomic characteristics, attitudes/opinions/interests,
awareness/knowledge, intentions, motivation, and behavior. Three basic means of
obtaining primary data are observation, surveys, and experiments. The choice will be
influenced by the nature of the problem and by the availability of time and money.

3.1 Observation

Observation means that the situation of interest is checked and a person or some
mechanical device records the relevant facts, actions, or behaviors. Accurate data about
what consumers do in certain situations is provided by observation. Observation does not
tell why it happened.

Mechanical Approaches

Mechanical approaches are reliable data collection instruments because they provide
objective measures. Data on the factors influencing product sales, such as competitor
advertising and other promotional activities can be effectively assessed. Information can
be obtained on a specific store or all the stores in a system, enabling rapid and effective
comparisons at various local, regional and national levels. The information is available
continuously and enables firms to plan down to the individual store level.

Scanner and bar coding technologies form the basis for capturing marketing information
at the retail level. Scanners are electronic devices at retail checkouts that read the bar
code for each item bought. They provide up-to-the-minute data on product purchases by
item and also by household. Telecommunications can transmit the information directly to
the manufacturer and shorten the communications cycle from weeks to minutes. With
this information the manufacturer can develop a profile for each retailer and establish the
optimum retail inventory for each location. The optimum inventory ensures stocking of
merchandise that customers buy with a minimum amount of inventory investment for the
retailer. Combining the retailer’s information with the manufacturer’s database yields
local promotional mailings, fine-tuned shelf displays, and redesigned store layouts.

Other mechanical devices include video cameras, Nielsen People Meters, and single-
source data systems that link consumers’ exposure to television advertising, sales
promotion, and other marketing efforts with their store purchases (Behavior Scan and
InfoScan of Information Resources, Inc.). Furthermore, measurements might be taken of
respondents’ eye movements, pulse rates, or other physical reactions to advertisements.

Personal Approaches

Marketers can learn by personally observing or watching actions and situations. For
example, when an organization is choosing a new location, it would observe the
neighborhood conditions. Also, marketers of pet products and baby products are
extremely interested in how respondents react to new products, but obviously cannot ask
them to describe their opinions or to fill out surveys. They must depend on observational
research.

3.2 Surveys
Surveys or questioning involve using a questionnaire (data collection instrument) to ask
respondents questions to secure the desired information. Questionnaires may be
administered by mail, over the telephone, by computer, or in person. Limitations of
surveys include opportunities for error in construction and administering of a
questionnaire, expense, and time needed to conduct a survey. Respondents may not
respond, may be unable to respond, or may give misleading responses.

Mail

Mail interviews can be used to collect large amounts of data and have a low cost per
respondent. Respondents can see a concept, read a description, and think about it at their
leisure. There is no interviewer bias. However, the questionnaires are not flexible,
cannot be adapted to individual respondents, and generally have low response rates. The
researcher has no control over who completes the questionnaire.

Telephone

Telephone interviews are easy to administer and allow data to be collected quickly at a
relatively low cost. The interviewer can clarify the questions. Response rates tend to be
higher and telephone interviewing allows for greater sample control. However, it is more
expensive than a mail questionnaire. The presence of an interviewer on the phone may
bias responses since respondents may be unwilling to discuss personal information. Also,
respondents can’t see product. A major limitation is that they must be short.

Computer

Advances in computers and technology have led to sophisticated data collection methods.
Computer and online interviewing allow rapid data collection from dispersed populations
at a low cost.

Personal

Personal interviews may be conducted one-on-one or with a focus group. A personal

interview is a direct, face-to-face interview between the interviewer and the respondent.
In the past, personal interviews were conducted door-to-door. Today, most personal
interviews (one-on-one) are conducted in malls and are referred to as mall intercept.
Personal interviews are the most flexible since interviewers can clarify questions and
probe for answers. Respondents can see a concept as well as read a description. More
information can normally be obtained through observation of the respondent’s
surroundings. Personal interviewing is expensive, yet it offers a great deal of flexibility
and allows for visual stimuli.

A focus group is a small group of people, carefully selected, who represent a specific
target audience. They are used to generate concepts and hypotheses. The strength of
focus groups is found in the group discussion and interaction. Focus group interviews are
a popular way of gaining insight into consumer thoughts and feelings about a product. In
the past, focus groups were regarded mainly as a simple and quick way of asking any
group of respondents, usually in someone's home, to answer questions about a product.
Today, focus groups are an important source of qualitative research. Advance preparation
ensures that the facility, moderator, and respondents are of high quality. An example of a
technique used in a focus group is a projective technique in which a People Board is used
to obtain attitudes through photograph associations and forced relationships. Participants
indicate which of several images in a category relate to the subject at hand. The findings
from a focus group are useful for general information but do not suffice to give absolute
quantifiable information.

A panel is a fixed sample of individuals from who repeated measurements are taken over
time with respect to the same variables. An example is MRCA, which has a 12,000
household panel that is representative of the national census in terms of significant
demographics. Surveys of the panel conducted frequently throughout the year provide a
means to measure relatively small changes in household purchases and product usage.
Another example is the consumer diary. Diaries are especially appropriate for answering
questions on brand penetration and loyalty. This approach indicates which factors
influence purchasing behaviors, such as price and advertising, and where purchases are
made -- supermarkets, discount stores, drugstores. Firms in packaged goods, apparel,
home furnishings, financial services, travel, and entertainment use this method.

3.3 Experiments

In an experiment, a researcher selects matched groups, gives them different experimental

treatments controlling for other related factors, and checks for differences in the
responses of the experimental group and the control group. Experimental research
attempts to explain cause-and-effect relationships. Data in an experiment may be
collected through observation and surveys. An experiment can be done in either a
laboratory or field setting. In a laboratory experiment, the researcher has complete
control during the experiment. A field experiment is conducted under more realistic
conditions. For example, if a charitable organization wanted to see whether inclusion of
return-address labels affected donors’ responses to a mail solicitation, it could select
similar sets of donors and send them the donation solicitation with and without labels to
see if one method is more effective than the other is.

4.0 References

iws.ohiolink.edu/moti/res_prim.html

final-year-projects.com/surveys.doc

ollie.dcccd.edu/mrkt2370/Chapters/ch3/3prim.html

owl.english.purdue.edu
brent.tvu.ac.uk/dissguide/hm1u3/hm1u3text3.htm

edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/HE/HE06000.pdf