Assignment:
Formal Report: Is Vinyl Back?
Although you and fellow students were probably born long after the introduction of the CD in the early 1980s and download MP3 tracks from iTunes to an iPod, something strange is afoot. Lately, sales of turntables and vinyl longplaying records (LPs) have been picking up. “Classic” bands such as the Beatles and Pink Floyd are not the only ones on vinyl. Contemporary artists such as R.E.M., the White Stripes, the Foo Fighters, and Metallica, have released their music on vinyl to enthusiastic audiences. Listeners even claim that music sounds better on vinyl than it does on a CD. Perhaps most surprising, many vinyl fans are not nostalgic baby boomer parents but their teenage or twenty-something children.
Major music retailers caught on to the trend. Although Amazon.com has been selling vinyl records since its founding in 1994, it has recently begun to offer a vinyl-only section on its site. Now, your employer, Best Buy Company, is eager to test vinyl sales at some of its stores. Your manager, José Martinez, was asked by headquarters to explore the feasibility of offering a vinyl selection in his store, and he left this research job to you.
- This assignment calls for establishing primary data using a survey. Devise a questionnaire and poll young music consumers in your area to find out whether they enjoy and, more important, purchase vinyl records. Examine attitudes toward LPs in the populations and age groups most likely to find them intriguing. After collecting your data, determine whether your Best Buy store could establish a profitable vinyl business. Support your recommendation with conclusions you draw from your survey but also from secondary research detailing the new trend. To illustrate your findings, use pie charts for percentages (e.g., how many LPs are sold in comparison to CDs and other media), line graphs to indicate trends over time (e.g., sales figures in various consumer segments), and other graphics. Prepare a formal report for José Martinez, who will share your report with upper management.
Your answer must be, typed, double-spaced, Times New Roman font (size 12), one-inch margins on all sides, APA format and also include references.