The concept of “big Data” has drawn attention to the vast potential size of data bases. Demographic and Sociographic data set are no exception. There has never been so much publicly and commercially available data related to people, their characteristics, and their behaviors. No matter what the mission of your organization is, there is highly relevant data available for your use. But where do you start?

Data use should be driven by purpose. Once the objective of the analysis is established, the most relevant sources, data sets, and ultimately data variables can be selected. Once data collection is complete, the analysis can begin, applying the best mathematical and statistical tools to turn the dat into information. Analytic methods may steel the limelight at the end, but the best research studies are marked by careful determination of the research objectives right from the start.