A marketing information system (SIM) consists of people, equipment, and technology to collect and organize, analyze and evaluate, and then transmit timely, needed, and accurate information to marketing decision-makers.

SIM elements:

INTERNAL RECORDING AND ACCOUNTING SUBSYSTEM, which collects operational data on the day-to-day activities of the company (e.g. monthly sales reports by spatial and product cross-section, salesperson performance evaluations, information on returns and complaints, inventory data, company archives, etc.).

MARKETING INQUIRY SUBSYSTEM, which makes it possible to collect information on the company’s environment and the changes taking place in it (customer information from sales representatives, review of specialized magazines, reading of the press, participation in trade fairs, congresses, etc.).

MARKETING RESEARCH SUBSYSTEM, which is used to solve specific decision-making problems of the company. MARKETING RESEARCH – is a systematic and objective process of collecting, processing, analyzing, and presenting information relevant to the situation in which the organization finds itself, carried out to make marketing decisions of a tactical and strategic nature (learning the opinions of potential buyers about the product, predicting sales, assessing the effectiveness of advertising).

MODELS SUBSYSTEM, which allows the processing of the collected information using statistical and econometric methods, contains a bank of analytical and decision-making models and computer software.

The need to create SIMs is accompanied by an increasing acceptance of acting by the concept of MARKETING. Businesses of all types and sizes are driven by the need to meet the expectations of buyers demonstrating their needs and preferences in the marketplace. As the importance of marketing in business management increases, so does the need for systematic data acquisition and analysis.

A special place in the SIM system is occupied by MARKETING RESEARCH, which can provide information on many aspects of market-oriented enterprises. The primary purpose of marketing research is to provide information necessary for decision-making.

Marketing research can be useful in all phases of the DECISION-MAKING PROCESS. The information provided to managers through marketing research is essential for decisions in novel situations (most decisions are repetitive and a manager’s common sense will allow an intuitive approach to decision making).