U.S. Government Electronic Data Sources for Global Marketing Decisions

Abstract

The amount of information available to business people interested in global marketing opportunities is overwhelming. The United States government publishes a vast amount of information, a great deal of which is available electronically on the Internet and CD-ROMs. This paper evaluates the usefulness of four of the government's most important electronic sources of global marketing information. It will serve to guide students as future marketers and faculty members as to what is the most appropriate and likely source according to their specific information needs. The paper also describes a workshop using these sources which can be incorporated into a marketing course.

Key Words:

• International marketing
• classroom teaching techniques
• government data/sources
• National Trade Data Bank
• Country Commercial Guides
• Country Studies/Area Handbooks
• World Fact Book
• Market Research Reports