Lesson 1.2.2b

1.2.2b Primary and secondary research methods Quiz: Pearson Edexcel Business, Unit 2

20 questions

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Lesson 1.2.2b, Primary and secondary research methods: 20 multiple choice questions for the Pearson Edexcel GCSE Business (1BS0), Unit 2: Spotting a business opportunity, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. Which of these is an example of primary research?

    • Using a published sales figure from a trade association's annual yearbook
    • Reading a government report on the average income of households in the region
    • A questionnaire handed to customers outside a shop to ask about their buying habits
    • Browsing an online market report that summarises sales in the clothing industry

  2. Which of these is an example of secondary research?

    • Watching customers at a checkout to see which products they pick up
    • Asking shoppers in a town centre to fill in a survey on their food preferences
    • Reading a market report published by an independent research company
    • Holding a focus group with a small group of customers in a community hall

  3. What is the main advantage of primary research over secondary research?

    • It is always cheaper to carry out than any other form of research for a firm
    • It is collected specifically for the business and answers its own questions
    • It is already available to rival firms, so it gives no competitive advantage
    • It always comes from government sources, which are more reliable than others

  4. What is the main advantage of secondary research for a small business?

    • It means the business never needs to interview customers in person at any stage
    • It is always more up to date than research the business collects itself
    • It is usually quicker and cheaper to access than collecting new data
    • It is always tailored exactly to the business's own customers and products

  5. Which method would be classed as primary research?

    • Using internet data on the number of online shoppers in the country each year
    • A focus group where a small group of people discuss a new product's design
    • Studying a market report on the growth of the games industry over several years
    • Reading a government report on the spending habits of families in the region

  6. A town bakery wants existing data on local age groups without collecting it itself. Which of these is secondary research?

    • Looking at government reports on the population of a town to see its age structure
    • Holding a discussion group with teenagers about their preferred brands of trainers
    • Carrying out an observation of customers entering a shop on a busy Saturday
    • Asking a sample of residents to complete a questionnaire about local transport

  7. Which of these is a limitation of primary research?

    • It can only be carried out by large firms with a large number of staff
    • It can be expensive and time consuming to collect the information
    • It can never be used to find out what customers think about a product
    • It is always out of date by the time the business receives the results

  8. Which of these is an example of observation used in primary research?

    • Reviewing a published market report on trends in the sale of household goods
    • Looking up the population figures for a town in an official government database
    • Counting how many customers buy a product in a shop over one afternoon
    • Reading the annual report of a rival company to see its sales figures for the year

  9. A business uses an online survey to ask customers about their preferences. Which type of research is this?

    • Primary research, because the business collects new information itself
    • Primary research, because the survey data is always available free to everyone
    • Secondary research, because online surveys always use information that already exists
    • Secondary research, because online surveys are always published by government

  10. Which is the best description of secondary research?

    • Using information that has already been collected by someone else
    • Observing the way customers move through a shop to find out what they buy
    • Asking a group of customers to discuss their views on a new product's design
    • Collecting new information directly from customers through interviews and surveys

  11. A business wants to find out how many people in its area own a car before opening a garage. Which source is likely to be quickest?

    • A new survey of every household in the area carried out by the business itself
    • A focus group of local drivers invited to the garage to discuss their cars
    • A government census or published statistics for the local area
    • An observation study of traffic on the main road for the next six months

  12. Which of these would be the most useful primary research for a restaurant wanting to know customers' favourite dishes?

    • A government report on the average spending on eating out in the country
    • A market report on the restaurant industry in the wider economy each year
    • A survey of diners asking them to rate each dish on the menu
    • The internet's list of popular restaurant cuisines for the whole of the region

  13. Which of these is a benefit of secondary research?

    • It means the business never needs to check whether its data is accurate
    • It always costs more than primary research because it needs specialist staff
    • It always gives the business information about its own customers in detail
    • It can provide a large amount of data without the business collecting it itself

  14. A firm holds a focus group with ten customers to discuss a new packaging design. What type of research is this and why?

    • Secondary research, because the customers have already bought the product before
    • Primary research, because the firm collects first-hand views from its target customers
    • Secondary research, because focus groups always use data from published sources
    • Primary research, because focus groups are always carried out by the government

  15. Which is the most important limitation of secondary research?

    • The data always comes from a source that the business cannot trust
    • The data is always too expensive for any firm to access in practice
    • The data may not have been collected for the specific question the business is asking
    • The data is only available to businesses in the same industry as its source

  16. Which of these shows a firm using secondary data in a market research project?

    • Carrying out interviews with local shoppers about their smoothie preferences
    • Holding a tasting session where customers rate different smoothies for taste
    • Running an online survey about the smoothies that customers would like to buy
    • Using a published trade report to estimate the size of the market for smoothies

  17. A business uses data from a government report on average household spending. Which type of research is this?

    • Primary research, because government reports are always written for one firm
    • Secondary research, because the data already existed before the business used it
    • Primary research, because the business has collected the data itself from households
    • Secondary research, because the business has interviewed every household in the area

  18. Which of these is a method of primary research that involves watching customers?

    • Government statistics
    • Internet search
    • Market report
    • Observation

  19. Why might a business choose a focus group rather than an online survey?

    • A focus group allows detailed discussion and follow-up questions about customers' views
    • A focus group produces numerical data that can be easily compared across the country
    • A focus group is always cheaper than an online survey for any business to run
    • A focus group avoids the need for any input from the customers being researched

  20. Which of these is an example of a market report used as secondary research?

    • A published report estimating the size of the UK coffee market for the last five years
    • An interview with a café owner about the type of coffee their customers prefer
    • A focus group discussing the taste of a new coffee blend with ten local customers
    • A questionnaire given to customers in the business's own café about their coffee habits

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