ABSTRACT
The domain of scientific and technical information (STI), in its broadest sense, includes all aspects of the generation, storage, retrieval, and dissemination of data, facts, and information of a scientific or technical nature or about scientific or technical matters. The business of the STI industry is making available the information needed by scientists and engineers. The survey questions concerning the level of current STI marketing activity concentrated on the sources of products and product information. An aspect of the marketing of STI investigated was the frequency and value of contacts with sources of information regarding available STI products and services. The conventional wisdom in the STI industry held that STI was purchased by the firm’s information specialist, with perhaps some input from scientists and managers. Firms purchase STI in much the same way that they purchase other goods or services through the operation of an organizational complex or “buying center.”
