Business Statistics on the Web: Find Them Fast – at Little or No Cost

Barbara Sen (Senior Lecturer, School of Business Information, Liverpool John Moores University, UK)

New Library World

ISSN: 0307-4803

Article publication date: 1 January 2004

160

Keywords

Citation

Sen, B. (2004), "Business Statistics on the Web: Find Them Fast – at Little or No Cost", New Library World, Vol. 105 No. 1/2, pp. 90-91. https://doi.org/10.1108/030748004104515327

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2004, Emerald Group Publishing Limited


Paula Berinstein is described in the foreword written by Charles Cotton as someone who has learned the “old‐fashioned” way, how to find statistics. Someone, who has 25 years of experience to share.

The text is aimed at business people, journalists, public relations specialists, students, teachers and researchers, anyone who may have a use or requirement to find statistics in the area of business and economics.

This book differs from her previous book Finding Statistics Online which focussed on US sources, in its wider geographical coverage. This book includes coverage of not just the USA but Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. Most of the sites she includes are free, as the author aims to identify sources that are useful, usable, and reasonable cost wise.

The busy researcher will find the “Quick Start” chapter particularly useful. It is a compilation of Berinstein’s best tips and sources for finding statistics on a given business topic, including URLs to government gateways.

Chapter two is an excellent statistics primer, which considers what statistics are, how they are arrived at, and how to assess statistical validity. Asking the right questions is a critical issue in using the statistics found; questions of definition, currency, methodology and possible bias. This section is best used in conjunction with the glossary of statistics terms found in the appendix.

Chapter three goes on to develop an understanding of statistics producers and their aims in publishing statistics. It includes overviews of why the statistics are produced, who for, and the uses of those statistics. It covers associations, companies, government and government agencies, chambers of commerce, international organisations, market research organisations, interest groups, universities and research organisations.

The following chapter gives a host of practical tips for searching using Google (http://www.google.com). These strategies will be familiar to many business information researchers. They adopt a more journalistic approach and creative exploitation of phrase and string searching rather than the traditional complex Boolean search strategies and filters favoured by traditionalists. A useful table of “Lessons Learned” is included as a checklist of issues to consider while searching.

The following chapters have a subject focus relating to various sources of information. They cover industry sources, market research, economic and financial sources, company information, demographics and population, and are supplemented with helpful case studies and examples, with more “Lessons Learned” acting as a focus for reflection.

The two final chapters have very practical examples of successful searching and use of statistics in a business context. Uses of the statistics include how to determine what things cost, estimating a competitor’s marketing costs, and using government statistics.

Paula Berinstein’s closing chapter acknowledges the difficulty in finding the statistics that are wanted and offers creative solutions for estimating information you do not have from information that you do have, and using that knowledge for competitive knowledge. A list of “basic steps” is given to compiling information about a company and its industry segment. From the information gathered, an estimate can be made on issues such as number of units sold and company costs, which can then be used for competitor analysis.

This book is an excellent practical text, which would be a valuable addition to the bookshelves of business or information students, teachers and lecturers, businessmen and business researchers.

The wider geographic coverage is welcome and gives the book a wider appeal. The worked examples and case studies aid the understanding of the practical application of the statistical findings. It is altogether a well‐rounded and readable text supported by an equally useful Web site at http://www.berinstein.rsearch.com.

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