Comments on: Who cut the cheese I mean market share? http://plumbbobresearch.com/marketing/2009/04/who-cut-the-cheese-i-mean-market-share/ Market Research Counselor Sun, 28 Mar 2010 22:53:05 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: scharles http://plumbbobresearch.com/marketing/2009/04/who-cut-the-cheese-i-mean-market-share/comment-page-1/#comment-8 scharles Thu, 30 Apr 2009 15:59:17 +0000 http://plumbbobresearch.com/marketing/?p=166#comment-8 <a href="#comment-7" rel="nofollow">@Celtic Curmudgeon</a> CC: thanks! To your comment about "useful" I would add that you have to understand the context and the perspective. The installed base of Windows OS is important, as is the installed base of Intel based PCs, because those represent control points. It would hard to change processors without buying a new machine, and users are unlikely to change OS. But it's very easy to change browsers or have more then one. Market share has an important place in the decision making process, but you have to understand it's just one element among many. More on this topic later for sure. @Celtic Curmudgeon
CC: thanks! To your comment about “useful” I would add that you have to understand the context and the perspective. The installed base of Windows OS is important, as is the installed base of Intel based PCs, because those represent control points. It would hard to change processors without buying a new machine, and users are unlikely to change OS. But it’s very easy to change browsers or have more then one.

Market share has an important place in the decision making process, but you have to understand it’s just one element among many. More on this topic later for sure.

]]> By: Celtic Curmudgeon http://plumbbobresearch.com/marketing/2009/04/who-cut-the-cheese-i-mean-market-share/comment-page-1/#comment-7 Celtic Curmudgeon Wed, 29 Apr 2009 23:27:00 +0000 http://plumbbobresearch.com/marketing/?p=166#comment-7 I learned long ago in an historiography class, a sort of training class for folks interested in actually writing history, that just because it is written doesn't make it so. We were trained not to take any source at face value, but to evaluate it for biases. Market share numbers quoted by a manufacturer are always questionable, because they'll never quote a number that makes them look bad, even if they have to parse a number so small as to make it otherwise useless or make a comparison that is meaningless. The number of copies of IE copied on to PC hard drives at the same time as a copy of windows is meaningless, the share of browsers actually used by customers is a more useful number for companies wanting to sell into that market. I learned long ago in an historiography class, a sort of training class for folks interested in actually writing history, that just because it is written doesn’t make it so. We were trained not to take any source at face value, but to evaluate it for biases. Market share numbers quoted by a manufacturer are always questionable, because they’ll never quote a number that makes them look bad, even if they have to parse a number so small as to make it otherwise useless or make a comparison that is meaningless. The number of copies of IE copied on to PC hard drives at the same time as a copy of windows is meaningless, the share of browsers actually used by customers is a more useful number for companies wanting to sell into that market.

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