Richard K. Miller (RKMA) market research handbooks are useful starting points for understanding the current landscape of B2B, consumer, entertainment, hospitality, internet, and sports marketing. To dig deeper:
Mintel contains market research reports on a variety of consumer markets as well as on certain demographic groups. It provides reports for the UK, US, and a selection of other countries. For other countries not covered by Mintel, Passport (Euromonitor) provides coverage of many markets globally.
SimplyMap provides demographic analysis of the purchasers of many goods and services space in the United States.
Sports Market Analytics contains data on sport participants, spectators, and consumers of sporting goods and apparel.
Frost & Sullivan provides market analysis for cutting edge technologies in the chemical, healthcare, transportation, materials, and IT sectors.
How do I find information about demographics, consumers, and their buying habits?
SimplyAnalytics is web-based mapping tool which includes consumer survey data from MRI and Experian Simmons, consumer profiles, demographic data from the U.S. government, and millions of firms from Dun & Bradstreet. This enables you to find the buyers and users of products at the product or brand level.
Mintel Academic produces full-text market research reports for the U.S., U.K., and selected other countries. Mintel reports discuss market drivers, market size and trends, market segmentation, supply structure, advertising and promotion, retail distribution, customer charactaristics, and market forecasts.
International demographics and spending information can be found in Passport (Euromonitor) including forecasts.
Additional print publications in the library focus on specific demographic groups. Search the library catalog to find books like those from New Strategist Publications.
The Dictionary of Marketing Terms defines primary data as "The information collected specifically for the purpose of the investigation at hand" and secondary data as "The statistics not gathered for the immediate study at hand but for some other purpose." Primary data is usually gathered from original sources, mainly through telephone or mail surveys, interviews, and questionnaires. Secondary data is information that has already been compiled by someone else.
What is market share and how do I find it for my industry?
Oxford's A Dictionary of Business defines this concept as the, "...share of the total sales of all brands or products competing in the same market that is captured by one particular brand or product, usually expressed as a percentage."
The Market Share Reporter, available via Gale Directory Library and Business Insights Essentials provides this type of data for many consumer products. Market share information can also be found in market research resources like Mintel Academic and Passport (Euromonitor) for market share for products in countries around the world.
A comprehensive list of marketing firms can be found in the Green Book: The Guide for Buyers of Marketing Research. The Green Book provides information on thousands of organizations in the market research space including the abilty to filter by industry focus, direct marketing firms, and focus groups.
Where can I find information about international industries and markets?
Passport (Euromonitor) covers more than 180 countries. It contains reports and statistics which include current and forecasted data on market size and market share and profile the leading competitors in an industry. Passport makes it easy to analyze trends in consumer spending and establish the largest markets for a product. It is also possible to find data on the fastest growing, maturing, and declining markets.
IBISworld and Technavio are great sources for established and niche industry and market reports around the world.
Mintel Academic provides market research reports in full-text format for the U.K., and some European countries. Reports detail market drivers, consumer attitudes, and new products.
Industry reports from Fitch Solutions are available via ABI/INFORM. These reports cover hundreds of industries around the world.
The International Trade Administration provides industry sector analysis. These reports are a detailed analysis of those industries in which U.S. business have strong interests. They discuss current trends in industries, provide appropriate market/demographic data, outline potential opportunities, discuss local regulations affecting industries, and give key contacts.