Reference Books Can Help
We have several books in our Ready Reference Collection that can be useful when doing market research. Some are also available as eBooks. Here are just a few examples:
Who buys what : Identifying International Spending Patterns by Lifestyle
Who Drinks What : Identifying International Drinks Consumption Trends
The above Consumer Electronics volume is just one of the series. Click the above link to see the list. We have some editions in paper, but the latest editions should be available as GVRL eBooks.
Databases Useful for Markets/Demographics Research
- Euromonitor International: PassportProduced by Euromonitor, this database is about market research, and is international in scope. It contains reports on anything from beer in Belgium to soap preferences in China.
Here are a few useful library databases for market research. Want to explore more in this area? See
Marketing and Advertising Resource Guide
- Market Share ReporterThis reference annual, available back to 1991 in paper and back to 2000 as an eBook, is a great resource for tables and charts related to consumer purchases and brand power. On the eBook version, Control-Click multiple years if you want to search more than one volume at a time.
- DemographicsNow This link opens in a new windowDemographicsNow allows users to build a report on the statistical characteristics of a specific population. Start with a state, a zip code or other geographical area and then build a report from there. Demographic data categories include income, housing, race, age, education, consumer expenditures.
- GfK University Reporter (formerly MRI Mediamark Reporter)To access this database (for product and brand demographics), you must sign up for a free account USING YOUR SUFFOLK EMAIL and a Library supplied registration code. Users will be validated by an email sent to their SU email address.
And Don't Forget Market Research Tucked Away in BSC
Remember that when you do a search for a product type (say, smart phones) in Business Source Complete, you can use the refine option to look just at Market Research Reports. That category is usually not on the default display, so you might have to "Show More" to find the clickable box, as illustrated in the below screenshot:
ABI/INFORM Complete Also Has Market Reports
ABI/INFORM Complete also has market, industry, and other reports and data. However, such reports tend to get buried in the massive amounts of material in the database.
For best results, when looking for reports, first click Data & Reports in the top frame. Then specify the type of reports you want. (Here I unclicked all the boxes but "Industry Reports" and "Market Reports." Then type your product or industry keywords in the search box. And for the least number of bad hits, change the field search option from "All fields + text" to All fields (no full text) as shown above. More search options (like date limits) are available further down the page, if needed to further refine results.
For more on searching ABI, this guide page.