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BUS 421, International Marketing: Evaluating Your Resources

Evaluating Sources

In this day and age, when it seems that anyone can publish whatever they want with relative ease, it pays to be critical about the information we choose to use. Whenever possible, verify information in an independent source. Here are some basic questions you might ask when evaluating your information sources.

Authority Quality
  • Who is the author? What are the author's credentials?
  • What is the author's reputation among his/her peers? In other words, do they cite the author as an expert or authority?
  • Is the author associated with a reputable institution or organization?
  • Who is the publisher? Commercial? Non-profit?
  • Is the information well-organized?
  • Has the author used good grammar?
  • Are there spelling or typographical errors?
  • Are the graphics (images, tables, charts, diagrams) appropriate and clearly presented?
  • Is the information complete and accurate?
Objectivity Currency & Relevance
  • Does the author state the goals of the publication?
  • Does the author exhibit a particular bias?
  • Is the viewpoint of the author's institutional affiliation reflected in the message or content?
  • Does the information appear to be valid and well-researched?
  • When was it published?
  • Does the source meet the requirements of your assignment?
  • Is the content appropriate for your assignment?

For a more comprehensive list of criteria, see:

Types of Sources

Different types of information sources serve varying purposes; the effective researcher uses a variety of sources, because they understand the characteristics and purpose of each. Below are a number of information types that may help you with your project.

Provided by the Company

Company Web Site
  • Good source for vision & mission statements, organization & structure, financial information (current), company promotion & marketing tools, product information, etc.
  • If it's product-based, the corporate information will be buried; look for an "About Us" or "Company" or "Investors" link on the home page
  • "Trust but verify" - the main purpose of a company's web site is to promote itself; always verify claims made on web site
Company Annual Report
  • Most recent report (and sometimes previous reports) usually available on company's web site
  • Older reports often available from SEDAR (Canadian) or EDGAR (American)
  • Good source for vision & mission statements, organization & structure, financial information (current), recent achievements, strategic plans, etc.
  • "Trust but verify" - all of the information on the company's achievements and performance can (and should) be verified in external, independent sources

Provided on the "Free" Web

Government Web Sites
  • Includes federal, provincial, and municipal levels
  • Good for demographics, economic conditions and indicators, employment issues, financial indicators and (public) company performance data, industry analyses, laws and regulations, foreign trade, country information, business and other statistics
  • Look for domain names that include .gov (United States), .gc.ca (Canada), or .bc.ca (B.C.)
  • Examples: B.C. Stats, Statistics Canada (look in Table of Contents for Economic information), and FedStats (U.S. federal statistics)
Other Web Sites
  • Good for product reviews and comparisons, third-party company information, critical issues facing companies
  • Quality varies - always read the "About" page to determine who is providing the information and why, as well as if the site has an editorial or review process for information published on the site
  • Look for domain names ending in .org  - these are more likely to be informational rather than promotional in nature

Provided by the Library

Books
  • May find a book about your company, or containing a chapter about your company (if it has distinguished itself in some way); search the UFV Library Catalogue for the name of your company
  • Good for overview of company history, strategy, critical issues, as well as in-depth analysis of company's past decisions, strategy, structure, etc., or to place your company within the context of other companies or an industry
  • Generally not good for very current information (can take 2-3 years to get a book into print, once it's written)
Encyclopedias, Directories, Handbooks
  • Look in the Reference section in call number areas HB-HF
  • Great source for directory information, basic facts (size of company, industry/products, company history, executives, key competitors)
Journals & Magazines
  • There are several different types; the research databases will help you make the distinction - look for magazines, newspapers, or trade journals (academic journals are not very useful for this project, although they will be for other assignments)
  • Can be available in print and online
  • Most have web sites that will offer a limited amount of free access to the content
  • Use the library's research databases to gain access to the subscription (fee-based) content
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