MKTG 480 - Product Development and Management

This guide suggests resources that will be useful in researching a new product for students in MKTG 480 courses.

We recommend all teams begin by reviewing the Industries page before digging into the libraries' research on the Company you have chosen. Then use the menu to explore the guide's other pages to find relevant library databases about Consumer Trends and New Products.

Each page will recommend library databases that can be used to inform your decision making throughout this project. Tutorials are linked on each page to show you how to search effectively in that database. 

Feeling overwhelmed by the research process? That's normal! Schedule a consultation with Prof. Price to make the research process a little easier.

JMU students, faculty & staff can use electronic resources when working off-campus via one of these methods.

Your AI tool was trained using publicly available information

That means that information that is locked behind subscriptions or paywalls - such as many scholarly journal articles and almost all industry reports or market research reports -- weren't use in the AI tool's training materials and won't be factored into or cited in its responses to your prompts. It's easy to assume that AI tools know "everything" but that isn't true, at least not yet. 

Be aware of your AI tool's Knowledge Cutoff Date

AI tools have access to information only up to a specific date, called the knowledge cutoff date. When using an AI tool for research, it's essential to identify this cutoff date and supplement the AI outputs with more up-to-date sources.

To test the knowledge cutoff date, ask the AI tool. Or ask whether a recently deceased celebrity is alive. Note: Microsoft Copilot, the JMU approved generative AI tool, doesn't have a knowledge cutoff date.

AI Is Getting Smarter — and Less Reliable

Researchers Jeffrey A. Sonnenfeld & Joanne Lipman (2025) say: "The more that these models are “trained” on incorrect information — including misinformation and the frequent hallucinations they generate themselves — the less accurate they become. Essentially, the “wisdom of crowds” is turned on its head, with false information feeding on itself and metastasizing."

Not all information can be uploaded to an AI tool

Some of the companies that sell business information are strict about how there information can be used in AI tools. Pay attention to the guidance on the pages of this research guide. And ask Prof. Price if you're unsure if your proposed usage might be illegal.

  Acknowledge how you use AI in your work

When using generative AI tools for course assignments, academic work, or other forms of published writing, you should give special attention to how you acknowledge and cite the output of those tools in your work. Learn more about Citation & Attribution of AI.