University of Montevallo
 
   
     
 

BuILDR

  
This online tool will serve as a supplement to class lectures. Each section directs you through specific steps in researching information that will add to your understanding of each marketing topic..

Market Research Methods


Most marketing decisions and many other business decisions rely heavily on industry and market data. In fact, it has been said "marketing is becoming more of a battle based on information than one based on sales power."

Marketing managers will often pay for marketing research studies of specific problems and opportunities. This research involved both primary and secondary data collection methods. When students think about market research, however, they usually think this involves only primary data collection methods such as surveys and interviews. Primary research involves the direct and original collection of data for decision making. Unfortunately, primary data collection is expensive and often takes a long time. Primary data collection should therefore never be conducted until all sources of secondary data are exhausted.

Secondary data have been collected by organizations for purposes that may be different from the manager's specific problem. Even so, secondary data often provides the information needed to solve a manager's specific problem. In addition, many sources of secondary data are free and can be accessed quickly.

Learning Business Research in College


Many courses taken in college by business majors require students to conduct research and write reports on industries, companies, markets and products. Such assignments are popular among professors because they provide valuable knowledge and skills reflecting many real-world tasks required of business people. Not only do these assignments improve students' ability to conduct research ahead of job interviews, they also prepare the students for various other tasks they may need to perform after entering the business workforce including: collect and analyze information about the industry in which they are employed, identify new business leads and channels, assess new product opportunities, track competitors, benchmark one's own organization, and various other topics and tasks to ultimately grow the business.

The Computer Generation in the Information Age


It also seems logical that the "computer generation" growing up in the "information age" must somehow know how to locate, analyze and present information related to their course of study. Despite the clear need for business research skills, however, students have not acquired the needed skills either before or during their college experience. With respect to the "information age," the greatest challenge today is not a lack of quantity of information, but more a problem of knowing where to look, for what information, how to evaluate the accuracy and validity of the information and what to do with it once you've located useful information.

Increased Focus on Information Literacy

Our librarian colleagues recognized and articulated this problem years ago in terms of "information literacy" (IL). The best way to understand IL is to consider the definitions and standards developed by the American Library Association (ALA):

  • "Information literacy is a set of abilities requiring individuals to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information."

 

Information literacy also is increasingly important in the contemporary environment of rapid technological change and proliferating information resources. Because of the escalating complexity of this environment, individuals are faced with diverse, abundant information choices--in their academic studies, in the workplace, and in their personal lives. Information is available through libraries, community resources, special interest organizations, media, and the Internet--and increasingly, information comes to individuals in unfiltered formats, raising questions about its authenticity, validity, and reliability. In addition, information is available through multiple media, including graphical, aural, and textual, and these pose new challenges for individuals in evaluating and understanding it. The uncertain quality and expanding quantity of information pose large challenges for society. The sheer abundance of information will not in itself create a more informed citizenry without a complementary cluster of abilities necessary to use information effectively.

Information literacy forms the basis for lifelong learning. It is common to all disciplines, to all learning environments, and to all levels of education. It enables learners to master content and extend their investigations, become more self-directed, and assume greater control over their own learning. An information literate individual is able to:

  • Determine the extent of information needed
  • Access the needed information effectively and efficiently
  • Evaluate information and its sources critically
  • Incorporate selected information into one's knowledge base
  • Use information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose
  • Understand the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information, and access and use information ethically and legally

(Source: Information literacy competency standards for higher education ALA.org)

Building Information Literacy Among Business Students


At the University of Montevallo, we have set out to develop an Information Literacy (IL) tool to be used by all students in the business school. The objective is to provide students with much-needed business skill training that is not currently available in the mix of textbooks and course materials available today..