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MKTG 382: Consumer Behavior: In Depth Research Report

Research resources for MKTG 382

MKTG 382 Client for Fall 2024

The client for MKTG 382 is Ritual Records, a record store located in downtown Bellingham. When researching record stores, you will need to think about what aspect of record stores you are looking for. Record stores are ultimately local businesses competing with larger national brick-and-mortar and online retailers. Record stores sell a product and an experience. They sell physical media (vinyl albums, CDs, and cassette tapes), and they often host performances. They also sell a "vibe." 

When researching record stores, it mat be more important to search for the product they sell rather than store. A search for "record stores" in Business Source Complete was not useful, but a search for "vinyl records" resulted in articles about the popularity of vinyl and the return of the "retro" media. Searching for "retail stores" provides information related to the overall retail sector. 

Resources: 

Industry Reports (IBISWorld): An industry report for Record Stores is available, but note that there aren't any major players or competitors listed because the majority of them are small local businesses and industry reports are national. Consider that competitors may be other local retails stores as well as major chains, as well as digital platforms, like Spotify. 

Articles (trade and other):

  • Search Business Source Complete, Academic Search Complete, Regional Business News (you can search them all together) to find articles related to the retail industry and retail stores. Record stores will face some of the same challenges of general retail. 
  • Search Business Source Complete and Academic Search Complete for articles related to vinyl records. Articles get into the manufacturing and sales of new and used records. 

Other Sources: Don't discount Google or other online resources like Pew Research and YouGov. 

  • Pew Research is a non-partisan thinktank that researches views towards multiple topics, including technology. Reports are available for free and are searchable. 
  • YouGov does a variety of surveys including surveys related to entertainment. In 2019, they surveyed who was buying vinyl. records. Note that thiese reports are often snapshots and are a good starting point for some information. . 

Current Trends and Background

Consumer Behavior

Technology Use

Citation Tools

Searching Multiple EBSCO Databases

Local Business and Local Market