Another way to estimate sales is to buy reports from a marketing research firm that audits total
sales and brand sales. Nielsen Media Research audits retail sales in various supermarket and drugstore
product categories. A company can purchase this information and compare its performance
to the total industry or any competitor to see whether it is gaining or losing share, overall or brand
by brand. Because distributors typically will not supply information about how much of competitors’
products they are selling, business-to-business marketers operate with less knowledge of their
market share results.