Types of Research and Information Documents – III

This final part of the article discusses about Summary documents that give the essence of the report that can be either Analytical document or Informational document. Unlike the previous types of documents, a Summary document is much shorter and quickly presents the essence or gist of the larger version in a simple and concise way.

Summary Documents

Summary documents give a quick overview of the main or original work that helps to understand the big picture. They are used in almost all the fields ranging from academia, science to business. Every research, concept, report or informational document has some form summary to facilitate understanding the gist. A brief description of each of them is as below-

Datasheet
A datasheet is usually used in technical aspects. It is a document summarizing the technical specifications of an electronic component, technology, a system or software as a list. Usually, a datasheet looks like a spreadsheet with little description.

Typically, a datasheet is created by the author or manufacturer of the component. A datasheet helps in understanding the component better to use it properly.

Fact Sheet
It is a summary of data about an event, an organization, an issue, a product or a service. They are more popular online as they give quick basic information that can be printed out instantly.

A fact sheet contains a list of basic facts or key attributes about the subject. It is a simpler presentation of data on a subject as key points with a simple structure in less space. They may contain lists, statistics, points in FAQ form, and in how-to style.

‘Onepage’ is a type of Fact sheet.

Abstract
Abstract is a brief summary or abridgement of a larger complex work, such as a research article, book, and thesis. Abstracts are mainly used in academic research to let the readers know the essence of the work quickly avoiding them to go through the entire work to understand the subject matter. Abstract is the research work in a nutshell that is usually in a single page.

Executive Summary
Executive summary is usually used in business for a summary of a longer report or a proposal. Executive summary is written for an executive who will not have enough time to read the original or entire report. It is prepared in such a way that readers can rapidly become aware of the larger version without reading it. It is intended to aid decision making by business managers.

An executive summary differs from an abstract in the structure and purpose. An abstract is short and provides a neutral overview or orientation rather than being a condensed version of the full document like an executive summary. Unlike an abstract, it can be more than a single page based on the original report and contains conclusions and recommendations.

Types of Research and Information Documents – II

The second part of the article discusses about informational documents. As the documents confine themselves only to present information, they are aptly named as Informational documents. Unlike Analytical papers, they will not discuss about an issue or a research problem. They cover many areas in the process of gaining comprehensiveness of the subject.

Informational Documents

These documents involve lot of research and documentation about a subject or many subjects of broader scope that is useful to a fairly large section of the people. They are primarily published to give information to public. These documents are mostly used in politics and industry. These documents are often updated in the process to be contemporary and relevant to the current times. Blue Book and Living document come under this category. A brief description of each of them is as below-

Blue Book

Blue book or Bluebook is a term often referring to an almanac or other compilation of statistics and information. A prominent example is the Blue Book published annually by the Office for National Statistics of UK that contains the estimates of the domestic and national product, income and expenditure for the United Kingdom. In industry, the industry bodies release Blue Book that contains information related to the companies in that industry.

A Blue Book acts as an authoritative reference to the information related to the field. Primarily, it is a compilation of statistics and information updated on a yearly basis.

Living Document

A living document is a document, which is continually edited and updated by either a limited or an unrestricted group, for example- an article in Wikipedia. A living document may or may not have a proper framework for updates, changes, or adjustments. The United States Constitution is sometimes considered a living document as it can be reinterpreted and updated endlessly by judges without actual amendment.

The main purpose of the constant updates is to make the document achieve comprehensiveness over the subject in the course of time.

In business, a living document is more structured and exists as a shared document among the employees. It may be a draft work initially, which transforms into a more acceptable document over a series of modifications that finally standardizes with the consent of the employees involved. However, it is open to modifications even at this stage.

The common aspect of the information documents is they just present data in a structured manner, facilitating different kinds of applications by different users for diverse purposes. In the next and final part of the article, we will discuss about summary documents.

Types of Research and Information Documents – I

Research and information documents give useful insights on a specific point or data to understand the bigger picture of the subject. These documents are broadly categorized into three types as mentioned below based on their basic purpose –

1. Analytical documents
2. Informational documents
3. Summary documents

This is the first part of the article that talks about the analytical documents.

Analytical Documents or Papers

These documents involve lot of research and analysis about an issue or a subject that will have a considerable impact on a fairly large section of people. These documents are used in various fields such as politics, business, and science. Green Paper, White Paper, Purpose Paper, and After Action Report come under this category. A brief description of each of the type is as below-

Green Paper

The Green Paper is usually used by the Government. It is strictly aimed at stimulating discussion on an issue among the public or the interested parties to get the consensus. Once the consensus is reached, a green paper may result in a White paper, which is a basis of a bill. It is only a first-draft document and does not represent the final policy. It will accept modifications in the process of consultation and debate.

The purpose of the Green paper is to have a robust debate over the issue in order to throw light on all the aspects of the issue that may finally results in a flawless policy. It prepares the ideal ground for a fruitful discussion.

A green paper usually presents a range of ideas (usually listed) that are unbiased and objective as it is meant to invite all the interested individuals or organizations to contribute views and information.

White Paper

A white paper is an authoritative work that addresses a problem(s) and recommends a solution. In some cases, White Paper follows Green Paper. Unlike Green Paper, a White Paper is also often used in business and technical subjects apart from politics. A White Paper provides an in-depth analysis of a subject, technology, trend, product or a process. White papers are predominantly informational rather than promotional material. A White paper educates and guides readers and helps to understand the issue clearly and completely.

We can divide white paper into three types based on their purpose in the fields they are circulated.

Government White Paper – Usually follows a Green Paper. White paper represents the policy and future course of action by the Government on an issue. It precedes a bill in the house to make a law.

Marketing White Paper – A white paper has become a standard marketing tool today. Here White Paper is used to inform and bring awareness on how a particular product or service can solve a problem benefiting the customer. It analyses a gap (need) in the market, what should be done, discusses several alternatives, technology/process underlying the alternatives, and guides towards the best alternative to serve the need of the customer.

A marketing White Paper answers why a particular product or service is better than competitors’ substitute products.

Technical White Paper – Discusses about a particular technology in all the dimensions. It is an informational instrument offering an overview of standards, feasibility, how a technology works, intricacies, results, issues, solutions – its importance, use and implementation, and benefits.

After Action Report (AAR)

An After Action Report (AAR) is a process of retrospective analysis of the execution of a project and its success generally done by the person behind the project. The AAR is done as part of performance evaluation and improvement. Earlier, AARs were usually used by Defense and Science communities. Modern-day examples of AARs include project evaluations in business, and retellings of large gaming sessions in computer games.

AAR focuses on lessons learned from an incident. It is complete only when it gives recommendations for improvements, as it is important for decision makers to plug the holes.

The structure of a general AAR is as follows-

1. Project Overview
2. Goals and objectives
3. Events synopsis
4. Analysis of outcomes
5. Analysis of critical tasks performance
6. Conclusions
7. Recommendations

Position Paper

A position paper presents an opinion or stance about an issue. Position papers are used in many fields such as politics, academics, science, business, law, and social organizations to give out their opinion or policy towards and issue. Position papers are often biased as it presents only one side of the issue like in a debate. It tries to convince or influence the audience to agree with the argument.

The position paper is published to generate support on an issue. It describes a position on an issue and the rational for that position.

A position paper should have-

• Evidence to support the argument, such as statistical facts
• Authoritative and highly reliable references

The common aspect of analytical papers is in depth research, detailed analysis and clear presentation. Analytical paper helps us to understand a problem and its backdrop comprehensively and guides through several alternatives towards a more optimum solution to the problem.

In the second part of the article, we will discuss about the Informational documents.

The Role of Internet in Marketing Research

Marketing research specifies the information required to address the vital issues in decision making, designs methods for collecting information, manages and implements the data collection process, analyzes and communicates the findings and their implications. In simple marketing research is about researching the whole company’s marketing process.

The Role of Internet in Marketing Research:
Internet became the part and parcel of the businesses to make and convey decisions. The decision-making is done based on the information generated by the marketing research. Increasingly Internet is becoming a major source for the market research. The reason is Internet contains vast resource of information available for market research.

• Access to Multiple Resources
  Accessing information through the Internet is an efficient alternative to hours spent with traditional sources like libraries. The Internet connects businesses, academic institutions, trade associations, government agencies and private individuals. Using browsers, it is possible to access the sites or user groups who are linked through the Net.

• Information at Finger Tips
  Any kind of information that is available in Internet is just a few clicks away. For marketing research, the Internet has two important sources of information. One is the websites, which represent companies, organizations and individuals to promote their products, services or communicate their views. The other source is user groups. The information given in the websites rather than the user groups is more reliable for a researcher. The companies and organizations generally give genuine information about their businesses in their official portals. The user groups can give some useful leads by giving key words and URLs.

• Exchange Information Globally in Less Time
  Through Internet it is possible to send and receive information from far distant countries. You can send and receive market reports to and from China as easy as Canada. All this will happen in few minutes with less effort and cost. The effortless transmission of information across the boundaries made the job of the marketing research easier, to process both globalized and localized information for the marketing research.

It is undisputed to state that Internet has a vital role to play in the marketing research. The information base in Internet is expanding by the online versions of the other sources of information such as libraries, press, books etc. This will give a new exposure to the marketing research to become more effective and efficient in delivering better results.

Online Desk Research –The New Tool in Market Research

Desk research is also known as secondary research. Desk research is analyzing already existing information from various sources and creating research reports according to the business requirements. Online desk research leverages the Internet as the major information source. Various advantages of online desk research are as follows -

• Preliminary Assessment of Market
  Desk research is a good option for a preliminary study of the markets. It can be used highly effectively to provide leads that help the decision makers to get more detailed analysis about the market situation.
• Competitive Intelligence
  Competitive Intelligence is more than analyzing competitors. Having a clear picture of competitors both existing and potential is always crucial. Online desk research is a better option to evaluate some areas of the competitive intelligence. Internet has various sources like business websites, trade associations websites, research websites, government portals etc. These sources will help to get good information about the competitors.
• Market Trends
  Identifying market trends is the basic requirement to run a business. Many databases of articles and reports can be accessed through the Internet. By using these databases online desk research produces both contemporary and historical framework of the market trends. These frameworks allow identifying new market trends and drawing parallels.
• Quick Reference
  Desk research provides a quick reference to the already existing information without much effort. In examining information like social, economic or demographic trends it is a better option than the primary research.
• Leverage Published Data
  Internet contains information from many sources like businesses, academic institutions, trade associations, government agencies etc. These resources are put into good use to get the desired results in online desk research. As a result online desk research becomes economical and takes less time to yield results.
• Aids Primary Research
  Carrying out an initial desk research is strongly recommended to gain background knowledge to a subject. Though the desk research has a disadvntage of processing outdated data, this data can give cruicial leads for primary research. This approach has a potential that can add a new dimension to primary research.

Typically, secondary data accessed through desk research is initially generated through primary research. Online desk research can be very fruitful when it is viewed as preliminary guide to the market. It is a better option to carry out online desk research first and then filling the gaps through the primary techniques.