Alternatives to the Traditional Retail Store Audit: A Field Study

Abstract

A field study was conducted to empirically compare market share data yielded by weekend selldown and store purchases audit methods with those provided by the traditional store audit method, for the beer product category. In one of the two test cities, market shares based on the weekend selldown audit method were statistically different for many major brands from those based on the traditional store audit method. Market share figures computed from the store purchases and traditional store audit methods, however, were statistically comparable in both test cities. The study points to the importance of focusing attention on the conditions under which the traditional store audit method and its economical alternatives may or may not yield comparable market data.