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The 8 types of market research: definitions, uses and examples.

13 min read What are the different types of market research that can help you stay ahead of the curve with your marketing strategy? Understand how to use each type, and what the advantages and disadvantages are.

Market research (also called marketing research) is the action or activity of gathering information about market needs and preferences. This helps companies understand their target market — how the audience feels and behaves.

There are 8 types of market research, each with their own methods and tools:

• Primary research
• Secondary research
• Qualitative research
• Quantitative research
• Branding research
• Customer research
• Competitor research
• Product research

Let’s start our list by exploring primary and secondary research first.

Free eBook: How to rethink and reinvent market research

1. Primary research

Primary research is research that you collect yourself but going directly to the target market through a range of methods. Because it is data you create, you own the data set.

Two types of results — exploratory information (determines the nature of a problem that hasn’t yet been clearly defined) and conclusive information (carried out to solve a problem that exploratory research identified) — from participants are collected as raw data and then analyzed to gather insights from trends and comparisons.

This method is good for getting the views of a lot of people at one time, especially when time is short, but it comes with its own management issues. The interviewer must prepare a way to gather answers and record these, while engaging in conversation with many people.

Participants may be affected by the group setting, either from acquiescence bias (the desire to say yes to please the interviewer), dominance bias (stronger participants can alter the results from less dominant participants) or researcher bias (where the research leads or impacts the participant responses indirectly).

This provides a structured setting where the interviewer can listen to what’s being said and investigate further into an answer. The interviewer can also pick up on non-verbal cues from body language can help the interview understand where to deep-dive and broaden their understanding.

However, some of the same biases (acquiescence and researcher) still exit in this format. The method is time consuming to do the interviews and collect the data afterwards.

A survey is an excellent method for carrying out primary research as participants do need to be physically present with the interviewer to carry it out. The survey can be completed anywhere there is an internet connection, meaning there is flexibility for the participants to use different devices and for interviewers to contact participants in different geographical time-zones.Preparation is key, however, as the researchers must segment the market and create a list of participants to send the survey to. Hiring a panel or using existing marketing lists can help with this.

2. Secondary research

Secondary research is the use of data that has previously been collected, analysed and published (and therefore you do not own this data). An example of this for market research is:

Most information is freely available, so there are less costs associated with this kind of secondary research over primary research methods.

Secondary research can often be the preparation for primary research activities, providing a knowledge base. The information gathered may not provide the specific information to explain the results, which is where primary market research would be used to enhance understanding.

There is also a logistics planning need for a recording solution that can handle large datasets, since manual management of the volumes of information can be tricky.

Both primary and secondary research have its advantages and disadvantages, as we’ve seen, but they are best used when paired together. Combined, the data can give you the confidence to act knowing that any hypothesis you have is backed up.

Learn more about primary vs secondary research methods

The next market research types can be defined as qualitative and quantitative research types:

3. Qualitative research

Qualitative market research is the collection of primary or secondary data that is non-numerical in nature, and therefore hard to measure.

Researchers collect this market research type because it can add more depth to the data.

This kind of market research is used to summarise and infer, rather than pin-points an exact truth held by a target market. For example, qualitative market research can be done to find out a new target market’s reaction to a new product to translate the reaction into a clear explanation for the company.

4. Quantitative research

Quantitative research is the collection of primary or secondary data that is numerical in nature, and so can be collected more easily.

Researchers collect this market research type because it can provide historical benchmarking, based on facts and figures evidence.

There are a number of ways to collect this data — polls, surveys, desk research, web statistics, financial records — which can be exploratory in nature without a lot of depth at this stage.

Quantitative market research can create the foundation of knowledge needed by researchers to investigate hypotheses further through qualitative market research.

The next four variations of market research are specific to topics areas, that bring about specific information.:

5. Branding research

Branding market research assists a company to create, manage and maintain the company brand. This can relate to the tone, branding, images, values or identity of the company.

Research can be carried out through interviews, focus groups or surveys. For example, brand awareness surveys will ask your participants whether the brand is known to them and whether it is something they would be interested in buying.

Additional areas for brand research is also around brand loyalty, brand perception , brand positioning , brand value and brand identity .

The aim of research will be to understand how to know if:

• Your brand is performing in relation to other competitors
• There are areas to improve your brand activities
• There are positives to showcase to enhance your brand’s image

6. Customer research

Customer market research looks at the key influences on your target customers and how your company can make changes to encourage sales.

The aim of this research is to know your customer inside out, and continuously learn about how they interact with the company. Some themes covered by this include:

• Customer satisfaction – Exploring what keeps customers happy, as higher customer satisfaction is more likely to lead to increased customer retention.
• Customer loyalty – This looks at what experiences have happened to lead to greater customer loyalty across the customer lifecycle.
• Customer segmentation research – Discovering who the customers are, what their behaviour and preferences are and their shared characteristics.

Relevant desk research may look at historical purchase records, customer journey mapping , customer segmentation, demographics and persona templates.

Primary research, such as NPS and customer satisfaction surveys , or customer satisfaction interviews at the end of customer support calls, can also give more details.

7. Competitor research

Competitor market research is about knowing who your competition is and understanding their strengths and weaknesses, in comparison to your organization. It can also be about your competitive offering in the market, or how to approach a new market.

The aim of this research is to find ways to make your organization stand out and future planning through horizon scanning and listening to customer preferences.

For example, for competitive analysis, researchers would create a SWOT for your business and your competitors, to see how your business compares.

Primary research could interview customers about their buying preferences, while secondary sources would look at competitor’s market dominance, sales, structure and so on. With this thorough analysis, you can understand where you can change to be more competitive, and look for ideas that make you stand out.

8. Product research

Product market research is a key way to make sure your products and services are fit for launching in the market, and are performing as well as they can.

The aim of this research is to see how your product is perceived by customers, if they are providing value and working correctly. Ideas can also be formed about upgrades and future product development.

There are a number of avenues within product research:

• Product branding – Does the product brand and design attract customers in the intended way?
• Product feature testing – this can happen at various stages of development with target markets (in early development, between versions, before product launch, etc.) to check if there are positive reaction to new or improved features
• Product design thinking – what solutions would solve your customers’ current or future problems?
• Product marketing – Do the marketing messages help your product’s memorability and saleability, or can they be improved?

Primary research methods have a clear advantage in this kind of market research: Surveys can ask for rankings on the popularity or usefulness of features or conduct conjoint analysis, while in-person observation interviews (where the participant can handle a product) can be particularly useful in seeing what customers do with the product in real time.

How to use market research types in your company

In a good marketing strategy, it’s preferable to have a mixture of data across:

• Qualitative and quantitative research
• Primary and secondary research
• Your specific topic area or area of focus

With these three components, you can make sure your market strategy gives you a complete picture of your market’s operational data and experience data , — what your market does and why .

Economical experience data (O data)

This type of experience data is quantitative in nature (including operations, featuring sales data, finance data and HR data ). As it can be quantified into numerical values, it can be measured over and over, providing datasets.

There is the opportunity to use a data-driven approach to understanding the results and making predictions based on historical trends.

This sort of data can be measured more easily than emotions and feelings. But it can only tell you about past activities and what happened. It can’t tell you what will happen in the future and why things will happen — this is where X data comes in.

Emotional experience data (X data)

This type of experience data seeks to find reasons to explain emotional decisions and how brands ‘sit’ in people’s minds. In this way, this data is qualitative in nature.

Companies that have X data have a ‘mental advantage’ over other companies,  as they are able to understand the perceptions of the customer, their needs and values.

When you have tangible insights on the audience’s needs, you can then take steps to meet those needs and solve problems. This mitigates the risk of an experience gap – which is what your audience expects you deliver versus what you actually deliver.

Related resources

Market intelligence 10 min read, marketing insights 11 min read, ethnographic research 11 min read, qualitative vs quantitative research 13 min read, qualitative research questions 11 min read, qualitative research design 12 min read, primary vs secondary research 14 min read, request demo.

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4 Types of Market Research + 6 New Ways to Do It Smarter

In June this year, 500 business leaders shared their favorite types of market research with me via a direct external survey.

Astonishingly, 83% of people said the same thing: favoring qualitative research ( specifically market research surveys ) over anything else.

Having a favorite is all good and well, but as we know, variety is the spice of life. By avoiding dependency on any single type of market research, you get a relevant, unbiased view of your market and opportunities at all times.

Spoiler alert 🚨 The types of market research I outline in this post will speed up your time to insight significantly. Instead of a process that spans days and weeks, certain tasks can be done and dusted in a few hours at most.

To help you stay on top of your game, I’m outlining the different types of market research, their benefits, and how to use them. As a bonus, I’m sharing six modern ways to do market research using digital research intelligence tools (like Similarweb).

The 4 types of market research

1. Primary research

Primary research is the first-hand collection of data. You go directly to a source instead of relying on existing information. It’s also known as field research.

Who is it for? Doing primary research involves collecting information relevant to a specific research context. For instance, if data is required about the shifting needs of a target market , primary research methods are a great way to explore this.

How to collect the data? Usually, an individual will go into the marketplace (field) to find the information they need.

Benefits of primary research

• You get more control over the research methodologies.
• The information is up-to-date.
• Because data is relevant, it reveals current trends, not outdated ones.
• Most primary research addresses the individual market instead of the mass market.
• The data collector retains ownership of the data.

Types of primary research

The right research method depends on the goal of the research and the resources available. Here are five of the best ways to do primary research.

• Ethnographic or observational research
• Trials or experiments
• Focus groups

2. Secondary research

Secondary research collates existing information or research for analysis. Essentially, it’s a type of market research that uses second-hand data.

Who is it for? Secondary research is ideal for start-ups and small businesses, needing a type of market research that’s low-cost and quick to undertake.

How to collect the data? Secondary data is collected from various places but always comes from existing third-party information.

Benefits of secondary research

• A low-cost type of research
• It’s quick to conduct
• Data is easy to access
• Initial findings can help shape any longer-term investment in primary research
• Anybody can do it; there’s no professional training required
• Gives you a broad understanding of a topic quickly

Types of secondary research

Most secondary market research methods can be done for free. It’s also called desk research . Here are some of the most popular places to obtain that data.

• Internet search engines
• Trade associations
• Research companies
• Media outlets
• Industry experts
• Government and non-government agencies
• Digital intelligence platforms (like Similarweb)
• Educational institutions
• Company reports
• Academic journals
• Public libraries
• Competitor websites

If you’d like to learn more, read our complete guide to desk research .

3. Qualitative research

Qualitative research aims to understand opinions, beliefs, experiences, attitudes, and interactions by collecting and analyzing non-numerical data. It helps researchers understand why things are so, through observation or unstructured questioning.

Compared to quantitative methods, this is more of a touchy-feely type of market research. It’s more about emotions and opinions than crunching numbers.

Who is it for? Any business or start-up can use (and benefit from) qualitative research. To understand the sentiment of a target audience or market in detail, this type of research uncovers key insights which help shape and develop products, services, and strategies.

How to collect the data? You can conduct qualitative research remotely or in person. What’s key is that the data is collected first-hand, directly from an individual or group of people.

Benefits of qualitative research

• Captures shifting attitudes or sentiments within a target group.
• Can uncover key insights that numbers alone couldn’t reveal.
• More targeted research, often more concentrated compared to quantitative research.
• Cost and speed can be managed more effectively with smaller groups.
• Promotes authenticity in discussions as responses aren’t formed by pre-set constraints.
• Greater flexibility than other research methods as questions can be adapted over time.

Types of qualitative research

• Participant observation
• Ethnography
• Case Studies
• Grounded theory (using research to generate a theory)
• Thematic analysis (looks to identify or interpret patterns and their connected meanings)
• Open-ended surveys
• Diary or Journal logging
• Phenomenological study (where you take a customer or individual, and examine things from their perspective)

Read More: 83 Qualitative Research Questions & Examples

4. Quantitative research

Quantitative research is focused on collecting, analyzing, and comparing numerical data. It’s predominantly used to make predictions, spot trends , find patterns, and establish averages. It deals with primary and secondary data, as long as it is represented in numerical form.

Who is it for? Quantitative research provides data that can shed light on statistical information about a market or business. It’s useful for start-ups and established companies and can help with forecasting, market sizing , market validation , and more.

How to collect the data? Using various methods, quantitative research is systematically collected and recorded to do analysis in a database through graphics, charts, and tables.

Benefits of quantitative research

• Data can be analyzed reliably and consistently.
• Studies can be easily replicated in the future or a different market.
• It’s possible to do a broader study with large sample sizes.
• Fewer variables are involved as data is often close-ended.
• Automation makes data collection quicker and easier to conduct.
• More cost-effective than qualitative research.

Types of quantitative research

Due to the often complex nature of this type of market research, I’ve added a quick explainer.

• Experimental research Also referred to as true experimentation, this relies on theory. In most cases, multiple theories that have not yet been proven. An analysis is carried out to prove or disprove the theory.
• Descriptive research This is used better to understand a specific situation, population, or phenomenon. It seeks only to measure (not manipulate) variables through observation to investigate them thoroughly.
• Survey research Quite simply, this uses a range of online or offline polls to understand what customers or a group of people think about products, services, and more.
• Quasi-experimental research Similar to experimental research, it aims to evaluate a cause-and-effect relationship amongst variables. However, it’s a dependent and independent variable in this case.
• Correlational research This is typically undertaken to determine a relationship between two closely related entities. It explores how each entity impacts the other and examines key changes.

Read More: 98 Quantitative Market Research Questions & Examples

Mixed-method research approach

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6 modern types of market research

Outside the four core types of market research, there are modern ways to discover valuable information that can leverage better insights. If you’re looking for new types of research that’ll help you quickly find new opportunities to go after, read on.

1. Competitor research

In-depth competitor analysis allows you to quickly find growth opportunities, by taking a detailed look at what is and isn’t working for your rivals. What’s more, it can help you spot emerging trends and shifts, so you can take action when and where it matters most.

These are some of the things you can expect to uncover with competitive market research:

• Understand how to track and target your competitors’ audiences.
• Discover the best traffic sources to see where rivals are gaining referrals from.
• Establish a clear view of rival’s market share across any industry.
• See traffic changes over time amongst industry leaders and emerging players.
• Find out which channels are working best for competitors.
• Benchmark your business against others in your space.
• Track a customized list of players in your sector to see gains and losses.

Read more: This post explains how to start doing competitive research .

2. Audience research

Consumer insights are fundamental to the success of any organization, regardless of size or sector. Through the analysis of consumer behavior, you can drive better engagement, discover new digital strategies , and develop a more detailed understanding of your prospects and customers.

Here are just a few examples of how doing audience-based research can help:

• Better understand audience interests relative to an industry or your rivals.
• Measure audience loyalty .
• See where they spend their time online.
• Build a picture of an audience layered with insights from real-world browsing habits.
• Uncover key demographics , interests, and geographies of an audience.

To help you get started, here are four audience analysis examples .

3. Content and keyword research

At the last count, there were roughly 1.93 billion websites online, and I’m not even going to get into how many social media accounts there are. But with so many digital channels, you must ensure your content and company can be easily found online. This is where ( and why ) content and keyword-based market research deliver immense value.

Get it right, and you’ll reap the benefits through more visitors, leads, conversions, and revenue. The golden nugget you uncover with keyword and content research is a greater understanding of an audience. Although most people would associate keyword research with SEO, it serves a dual purpose.

To get started, do a competitive content analysis within your market.

4. Campaign effectiveness

Knowing how effective a specific type of advertising channel, message, or format is for a target audience can quickly help you determine where’s best to spend your marketing dollars. By researching the effectiveness of ads in your space, you can more easily see the best places to invest your time and effort.

This type of market research helps you:

• Find out if paid advertising is working or not.
• Discover the highest-converting ads.
• See what types of creatives work best for your target audience.
• Look at competitors’ total spend in a specific channel.
• View social media referrals and their impact on website traffic.
• Drill-down into top-performing ads to see messaging, visuals, and more.

5. Mobile app market research

Mobile-first consumer habits have seen industries turned on their heads overnight. For most, it’s not a question of ‘if’ but ‘when’ mobile apps will infiltrate their market. In any industry, seeing the impact of apps in your space is vital. The need to see a complete view of the digital landscape is rising fast.

Some of the key things you can uncover through app intelligence -focused research include:

• Find trending apps in any sector, specifically looking at growth/decline.
• App usage and engagement metrics across multiple markets.
• Analyze an app’s ranking over time.
• Identify underserved markets and spot opportunities to break into new spaces.
• Evaluate iOS vs. Android stats to determine which platform is optimal for an audience.
• View the performance of competitors’ apps over time.
• Compare app performance metrics directly against desktop or mobile web channels.
• Determine whether or not to invest in a mobile app for your business.

6. Market segmentation

Understanding whole market trends are useful. But the real pearls of wisdom can be found when you slice and dice a market into manageable portions. Market segmentation is important for businesses to identify and target specific customer groups, tailor their products and services, and measure their performance. This type of market research helps you:

• Deliver personalized marketing
• Identify market shifts
• Find opportunities for growth in specific segments of a market
• Improve targeting
• Allocate resources more efficiently
• Improve customer engagement and loyalty
• Increase return on investment by identifying opportunity segments

Choosing the right type of market research

Whatever your industry, role, or experience, the type of market research you choose will influence key decisions in your business. With rapid shifts in consumer behavior and emerging threats now virtually an everyday thing, you need a broad and relevant view of the landscape. No single type of market research alone gives a complete picture.

Organizations must keep a finger on the pulse to stay relevant, adapt, and compete. While using traditional types of market research is key, you can gain key insights much quicker, often for a much lower cost, using modern tools like Similarweb Digital Research Intelligence .

Why not take it for a trial run today? For free.

What’s the difference between qualitative and quantitative research? Quantitative research is based on numbers and seeks to explain theories or hypotheses. In contrast, qualitative research is more about understanding the ‘how’ and ‘why’ things happen.

Should I use more than one market research method at a time? Yes, it’s important to take a balanced approach when choosing the best type of research. While it’s vital to clearly understand what is happening, you also need to consider the ‘why’ things happen.

What type of market research is best for start-ups? Most start-ups use secondary research as it’s quick and affordable. However, there are many benefits to conducting first-hand primary research as well.

What types of market research can you do for free? Most secondary research is free to conduct. If you have access to a list of subjects or prospects, you can also use market research surveys to conduct primary market research for free.

Is quantitative research primary or secondary? It can be both. Secondary and primary data can be quantitative (number-based) or qualitative (verbal or opinion-based).

Related Posts

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The 8 Types Of Market Research—And How To Use Them

Don't fall behind. Learn about the types of market research you need to be doing to stay ahead of the game.

Why market research is so important

“If you keep doing what you’ve always done, you’ll keep getting what you’ve always got.”

Doesn’t sound too threatening if you’ve always been successful, right?

Continuing to do what you’ve always done means you’ll fall behind—and probably fade to darkness—to where all the forgotten brands go.

Take Kodak. They were a major player in photography for decades—remember? When digital photography boomed, Kodak kept doing what they always did. Their business floundered and people forgot about them. Well, everyone apart from Pitbull.

Now, look at Fujifilm, one of Kodak’s biggest competitors. They did the opposite and looked for ways to apply their expertise in film to the technology of the new millennium instead. Their company is still going strong.

The same goes for research. If you’re doing the same old types of market research, speaking to the same old people, and doing the same old tired surveys—you’re already behind.

How do you decide what kind of market research you need to do? It all comes to what you need to know and what your business goals are.

In this article, we’ll explain the various types of market research you can use to solve issues and challenges in your business. We’ll throw you a freebie too and provide some market research tips about when to use each strategy.

Let’s get you ahead of the curve.

The 8 Types of Market Research

Market research can help you solve problems and reduce the risk of making important business decisions. Discover the 8 types of market research you can conduct to identify and solve any business challenges.

Brand research helps with creating and managing a company’s brand, or identity. A company’s brand is the images, narratives, and characteristics people associate with it.

When to use it

Brand research can be used at every stage in a business’s lifecycle, from creation to new product launches and re-branding. There are at least seven types of brand research:

• Brand advocacy. How many of your customers are willing to recommend your brand?

•  Brand awareness . Does your target market know who you are and consider you a serious option?

• Brand loyalty. Are you retaining customers?

• Brand penetration. What is the proportion of your target market using your brand?

• Brand perception. What do people think of as your company’s identity or differentiating qualities?

• Brand positioning. What is the best way to differentiate your brand from others in the consumer’s mind and articulate it in a way that resonates?

• Brand value. How much are people willing to pay for an experience with your brand over another?

How it’s done

A researcher will use several types of market research methods to assess your and your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses. Generally, they will conduct competitor research, both qualitative and quantitative, to get a picture of the overall marketplace. Focus groups and interviews can be used to learn about their emotions and associations with certain brands.

Market research surveys are useful to determine features and benefits that differentiate you from competitors . These are then translated into emotionally compelling consumer language.

“Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is, I don’t know which half”  — John Wanamaker

This type of market research is designed to evaluate whether your advertising messages are reaching the right people and delivering the desired results. Successful campaign effectiveness research can help you sell more and reduce customer acquisition costs.

If the folks at market research firm Yankelovich, Inc. are correct, people see up to 5,000 advertising messages each day. That means attention is a scarce resource, so campaign effectiveness research should be used when you need to spend your advertising dollars effectively.

Campaign effectiveness research depends on which stage of the campaign you use it in (ideally, it’s all of them!).  Quantitative research  can be conducted to provide a picture of how your target market views advertising and address weaknesses in the advertising campaign.

Competitive analysis allows you to assess your competitor’s strengths and weaknesses in the marketplace, providing you with fuel to drive a competitive advantage.

No business exists in a vacuum—competitive analysis is an integral part of any business and market plan. Whether you’re just getting started, moving into a new market, or doing a health check of your business, a competitive analysis will be invaluable.

A researcher will typically choose a few of your main competitors and analyze things like their marketing strategy, customer perceptions, revenue or sales volume, and so on.

Secondary sources  such as articles, references, and advertising are excellent sources of competitive information; however,  primary research , such as  mystery shopping  and  focus groups  can offer valuable information on customer service and current consumer opinions.

Consumer insights research does more than tell you about who your customers are and what they do. It reveals why customers behave in certain ways and helps you leverage that to meet your business goals.

Knowing your customers deeply is integral to creating a strategic marketing plan. This type of market research can help you anticipate consumer needs, spark innovation, personalize your marketing, solve business challenges, and more.

Consumer insights research should be specific to your business—it’s about getting to know your target audience and customers. Various market research methods can be used, such as interviews, ethnography, survey research, social monitoring, and customer journey research.

Here are some of the characteristics you should understand through consumer insights research:

• Purchase habits

• Interests, hobbies, passions

• Personal and professional information

• How they consume media and advertising

Customer satisfaction research is a type of market research that measures customers’ experiences with products or services, specifically looking at how those meet, exceed, or fail to live up to their expectations.

Customer satisfaction  is a strong indicator of customer retention and overall business performance. Successful customer satisfaction research should help you understand what your customers like, dislike, and feel needs improvement. You can use this type of market research to look at quality and design of products; speed and timeliness of delivery; staff and service reliability, knowledge, friendliness; market price; and value for money.

There are several ways to measure customer satisfaction, most commonly using surveys. An NPS or Voice of the Customer Survey can help you measure customer loyalty. Customer Effort Scoring measures how satisfied people are with customer service or problem resolution. CSAT is any survey that  measures customer satisfaction , typically measured using  Likert Scale surveys . They can be conducted at different points in the customer experience, allowing deeper insight into that moment.

Customer segmentation studies aim to divide markets or customers into smaller groups or personas with similar characteristics to enable targeted marketing. By understanding how people in each category behave, you can understand how each influences revenue.

As soon as you’re ready to start giving customers individualized experiences. Not every customer in your target market is the same. The more you understand each specific persona, the easier it is to focus on delivering personalized marketing, build loyal relations, price products effectively, and forecast how new products and services will perform in each segment.

Market researchers use four characteristics to segment customers.

• Demographics. Demographic information such as age, gender, family status, education, household income, occupation and so on.

• Geography. Where people live, from cities and countries to whether they are city dwellers or suburbanites.

• Psychographics. Socioeconomic status, class, lifestyle, personality traits, generation, interests, hobbies, etc.

• Behavior. Brand affinity, consumption and shopping habits, spending, etc.

A researcher will identify your current customers and collect data about them through various market research methods, such as surveys, database research, website analytics, interviews, and focus groups. The aim is to gather as much information as possible.

Market research for product development involves using customer knowledge to inform the entire process of creating or improving a product, service, or app, and bringing it to market.

Innovation is hard work. A quick Google will tell you that 80 – 95% of new products fail every year. Conducting market research for product and app development helps minimize the risk of a new product or change going bust as it enters the market. There are four stages where you can use market research:

• Conception. The moment you’re thinking about adding something new, market research can find market opportunities and provide insights into customer challenges or their jobs-to-be-done, so you can find a way to fill the gap.

• Formation. Once you have an idea, market researchers can help you turn it into a concept that can be tested. You can learn more about strategizing pricing, testing advertising and packaging, value proposition, and so on.

• Introduction. Market research can help you gauge attitudes towards the product once it’s in the market and adapt your messaging as it rolls out.

• Keep making the product better or find opportunities to introduce it to new markets.

Product development research will utilize different market research methods, depending on the goal of the research. A researcher could present focus groups with product concepts and listen to their opinions, conduct interviews to learn more about their pain points or perform user testing to see how they interact with an app or website.

Usability testing is concerned with understanding how customers use your products in real time. It can involve physical products, like a new blender, or digital products like a website or app.

Usability testing is helpful when you need to detect problems or bugs in early prototypes or beta versions before launching them. It typically costs far less to test a product or service beforehand than to pull a flawed product off the shelves or lose sales because of poor functionality.

There are several types of usability tests, which vary based on whether you’re testing a physical or digital product.

• Journey testing involves observing the customer experience on an app or website and monitoring how they perform. This type of study can be done online.

• Eye tracking studies monitor where people’s eyes are drawn. Generally, they are conducted on websites and apps, but can also be done in stores to analyze where people look while shopping.

• Learn ability studies quantify the learning curve over time to see which problems people encounter after repeating the same task.

• Click tracking follows users’ activity on websites to evaluate the linking structure of a website.

• Checklist testing involves giving users tasks to perform and recording or asking them to review their experience.

Mixing and matching market research methods

When it comes to market research, no one ever says, “let’s do a survey!”

You need to ask yourself what business challenge or question you’re trying to address. Then select the appropriate methods and tools, such as market research automation to simplify your process.

From there, the world of useful data and actionable insights will open to you.

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What Is Market Research?

• How It Works
• Primary vs. Secondary
• How to Conduct Research

The Bottom Line

• Marketing Essentials

How to Do Market Research, Types, and Example

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Market research examines consumer behavior and trends in the economy to help a business develop and fine-tune its business idea and strategy. It helps a business understand its target market by gathering and analyzing data.

Market research is the process of evaluating the viability of a new service or product through research conducted directly with potential customers. It allows a company to define its target market and get opinions and other feedback from consumers about their interest in a product or service.

Research may be conducted in-house or by a third party that specializes in market research. It can be done through surveys and focus groups, among other ways. Test subjects are usually compensated with product samples or a small stipend for their time.

Key Takeaways

• Companies conduct market research before introducing new products to determine their appeal to potential customers.
• Tools include focus groups, telephone interviews, and questionnaires.
• The results of market research inform the final design of the product and determine how it will be positioned in the marketplace.
• Market research usually combines primary information, gathered directly from consumers, and secondary information, which is data available from external sources.

Market Research

How market research works.

Market research is used to determine the viability of a new product or service. The results may be used to revise the product design and fine-tune the strategy for introducing it to the public. This can include information gathered for the purpose of determining market segmentation . It also informs product differentiation , which is used to tailor advertising.

A business engages in various tasks to complete the market research process. It gathers information based on the market sector being targeted by the product. This information is then analyzed and relevant data points are interpreted to draw conclusions about how the product may be optimally designed and marketed to the market segment for which it is intended.

It is a critical component in the research and development (R&D) phase of a new product or service introduction. Market research can be conducted in many different ways, including surveys, product testing, interviews, and focus groups.

Market research is a critical tool that companies use to understand what consumers want, develop products that those consumers will use, and maintain a competitive advantage over other companies in their industry.

Primary Market Research vs. Secondary Market Research

Market research usually consists of a combination of:

• Primary research, gathered by the company or by an outside company that it hires
• Secondary research, which draws on external sources of data

Primary Market Research

Primary research generally falls into two categories: exploratory and specific research.

• Exploratory research is less structured and functions via open-ended questions. The questions may be posed in a focus group setting, telephone interviews, or questionnaires. It results in questions or issues that the company needs to address about a product that it has under development.
• Specific research delves more deeply into the problems or issues identified in exploratory research.

Secondary Market Research

All market research is informed by the findings of other researchers about the needs and wants of consumers. Today, much of this research can be found online.

Secondary research can include population information from government census data , trade association research reports , polling results, and research from other businesses operating in the same market sector.

History of Market Research

Formal market research began in Germany during the 1920s. In the United States, it soon took off with the advent of the Golden Age of Radio.

Companies that created advertisements for this new entertainment medium began to look at the demographics of the audiences who listened to each of the radio plays, music programs, and comedy skits that were presented.

They had once tried to reach the widest possible audience by placing their messages on billboards or in the most popular magazines. With radio programming, they had the chance to target rural or urban consumers, teenagers or families, and judge the results by the sales numbers that followed.

Types of Market Research

Face-to-face interviews.

From their earliest days, market research companies would interview people on the street about the newspapers and magazines that they read regularly and ask whether they recalled any of the ads or brands that were published in them. Data collected from these interviews were compared to the circulation of the publication to determine the effectiveness of those ads.

Market research and surveys were adapted from these early techniques.

To get a strong understanding of your market, it’s essential to understand demand, market size, economic indicators, location, market saturation, and pricing.

Focus Groups

A focus group is a small number of representative consumers chosen to try a product or watch an advertisement.

Afterward, the group is asked for feedback on their perceptions of the product, the company’s brand, or competing products. The company then takes that information and makes decisions about what to do with the product or service, whether that's releasing it, making changes, or abandoning it altogether.

Phone Research

The man-on-the-street interview technique soon gave way to the telephone interview. A telephone interviewer could collect information in a more efficient and cost-effective fashion.

Telephone research was a preferred tactic of market researchers for many years. It has become much more difficult in recent years as landline phone service dwindles and is replaced by less accessible mobile phones.

Survey Research

As an alternative to focus groups, surveys represent a cost-effective way to determine consumer attitudes without having to interview anyone in person. Consumers are sent surveys in the mail, usually with a coupon or voucher to incentivize participation. These surveys help determine how consumers feel about the product, brand, and price point.

Online Market Research

With people spending more time online, market research activities have shifted online as well. Data collection still uses a survey-style form. But instead of companies actively seeking participants by finding them on the street or cold calling them on the phone, people can choose to sign up, take surveys, and offer opinions when they have time.

This makes the process far less intrusive and less rushed, since people can participate on their own time and of their own volition.

How to Conduct Market Research

The first step to effective market research is to determine the goals of the study. Each study should seek to answer a clear, well-defined problem. For example, a company might seek to identify consumer preferences, brand recognition, or the comparative effectiveness of different types of ad campaigns.

After that, the next step is to determine who will be included in the research. Market research is an expensive process, and a company cannot waste resources collecting unnecessary data. The firm should decide in advance which types of consumers will be included in the research, and how the data will be collected. They should also account for the probability of statistical errors or sampling bias .

The next step is to collect the data and analyze the results. If the two previous steps have been completed accurately, this should be straightforward. The researchers will collect the results of their study, keeping track of the ages, gender, and other relevant data of each respondent. This is then analyzed in a marketing report that explains the results of their research.

The last step is for company executives to use their market research to make business decisions. Depending on the results of their research, they may choose to target a different group of consumers, or they may change their price point or some product features.

The results of these changes may eventually be measured in further market research, and the process will begin all over again.

Benefits of Market Research

Market research is essential for developing brand loyalty and customer satisfaction. Since it is unlikely for a product to appeal equally to every consumer, a strong market research program can help identify the key demographics and market segments that are most likely to use a given product.

Market research is also important for developing a company’s advertising efforts. For example, if a company’s market research determines that its consumers are more likely to use Facebook than X (formerly Twitter), it can then target its advertisements to one platform instead of another. Or, if they determine that their target market is value-sensitive rather than price-sensitive, they can work on improving the product rather than reducing their prices.

Market research only works when subjects are honest and open to participating.

Example of Market Research

Many companies use market research to test new products or get information from consumers about what kinds of products or services they need and don’t currently have.

For example, a company that’s considering starting a business might conduct market research to test the viability of its product or service. If the market research confirms consumer interest, the business can proceed confidently with its business plan . If not, the company can use the results of the market research to make adjustments to the product to bring it in line with customer desires.

What Are the Main Types of Market Research?

The main types of market research are primary research and secondary research. Primary research includes focus groups, polls, and surveys. Secondary research includes academic articles, infographics, and white papers.

Qualitative research gives insights into how customers feel and think. Quantitative research uses data and statistics such as website views, social media engagement, and subscriber numbers.

What Is Online Market Research?

Online market research uses the same strategies and techniques as traditional primary and secondary market research, but it is conducted on the Internet. Potential customers may be asked to participate in a survey or give feedback on a product. The responses may help the researchers create a profile of the likely customer for a new product.

What Are Paid Market Research Surveys?

Paid market research involves rewarding individuals who agree to participate in a study. They may be offered a small payment for their time or a discount coupon in return for filling out a questionnaire or participating in a focus group.

What Is a Market Study?

A market study is an analysis of consumer demand for a product or service. It looks at all of the factors that influence demand for a product or service. These include the product’s price, location, competition, and substitutes as well as general economic factors that could influence the new product’s adoption, for better or worse.

Market research is a key component of a company’s research and development (R&D) stage. It helps companies understand in advance the viability of a new product that they have in development and to see how it might perform in the real world.

Britannica Money. “ Market Research .”

U.S. Small Business Administration. “ Market Research and Competitive Analysis .”

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Types of Market Research: 10 Effective Methods

Either if you’re a company or market researcher, one of the most important things to understand is the different types of market research that are available to you. Each type has its strengths, weaknesses, and unique applications. It’s essential to know which one to use for your research needs. In this post, we’ll break down the most common types of market research and explain when to use each.

LEARN ABOUT: Behavioral Research

What are the Types of Market Research?

When it comes to market research, there are many different types to choose from, each with its strengths, weaknesses, and unique applications. The key is understanding the different types and knowing when to use them to get the most valuable insights for your research goals. Remember, the more you know about the different types of market research, the better equipped you’ll be to make informed business decisions.

LEARN ABOUT: Market research vs marketing research

Companies can use surveys as a type of market research to gather valuable information about their customers, their market, and their competition. Here are a few ways that a business owner can use surveys for market research:

• Customer satisfaction : Surveys can gauge how satisfied customers are with a business’s products or services and identify areas where improvements can be made.
• Market segmentation : Surveys can gather information about a business’s target market, including demographics, behaviors, and preferences. This information can be used to segment the market and tailor products or services to specific groups of customers.
• Product development : Surveys can gather information about customers’ needs and preferences, which can inform the development of new products or services.
• Competitor analysis : Surveys can gather information about competitors, including their products, prices, and marketing strategies. This information can be used to inform a business’s own strategic decisions.
• Brand awareness : Surveys can measure customers’ understanding of a business’s brand and how well the market perceives it.
• Advertising : Surveys can gather information about a business’s advertising campaigns’ effectiveness and identify improvement opportunities.
• Employee satisfaction : Surveys can be used to measure the satisfaction of a business’s employees and identify ways to improve employee morale and productivity.

LEARN ABOUT:  Market Evaluation

2. Exploratory Research

Exploratory research is like going on a treasure hunt, but instead of looking for gold and jewels, you’re searching for valuable insights and information. It’s a way to dive deeper into a topic, uncover new angles, and better understand the subject.

Think of it like a choose-your-own-adventure book, where every turn leads to a new discovery. You might uncover a new market research trend , a gap in the market, or a customer pain point you never knew existed. You never know what you’re going to find, but that’s the fun of it!

Exploratory research is all about asking open-ended questions and taking a flexible approach. It’s not about finding one specific answer but rather gathering as much information as possible. It can include methods such as focus groups, interviews, and literature reviews.

LEARN ABOUT:   Research Process Steps

3. Qualitative Research

This type of research is all about understanding people’s experiences and perspectives. It’s often conducted through interviews, focus groups, or observational studies. The data is then analyzed to identify themes and patterns. Qualitative research is significant for understanding things like consumer attitudes and motivations, and it’s often used to explore new marketing ideas and gain a deeper understanding of a topic.

It is the investigator of the research world, diving deep into the human experience to uncover people’s motivations, perceptions, and attitudes. It’s not just about collecting data but understanding its meaning and the “why” behind the “what.”

4. Quantitative Research

Quantitative research is excellent for understanding consumer behavior and market trends, and it’s often used to test hypotheses and make predictions. This type of research is all about numbers and statistics. It involves collecting data from a large sample of people through surveys, polls, or experiments. The data is then analyzed to identify patterns and trends.

5. Observational Research

This type of research is all about watching and recording what people do. It’s often conducted through ethnography, field studies, or participant observation. Observational research is excellent for understanding consumer behavior and social dynamics, and it’s often used to gain a deeper understanding of a particular group or population.

6. Primary Research

Primary research is a type of research where the researcher collects data themselves rather than using pre-existing sources. It’s a way for the researcher to gather original, firsthand information on a specific topic. This can be done through surveys, interviews, focus groups, and experiments.

This is an example of primary research . For instance, if a company wants to know what its customers think of their new product, it might survey to gather this information. The information collected through this survey is original and managed by the company itself rather than being sourced from elsewhere.

7. Secondary Research

Secondary research is a type of research that involves gathering information that has already been published by someone else. It’s a way to gather information by looking at sources that have already been created, such as market reports, industry publications, and online resources.

For example, suppose you’re a business owner and want to know more about your competitors. In that case, you could use secondary research to find market reports and industry publications that have already been written about your industry. This information can be used to understand the competitive landscape, identify trends, and inform your business strategies.

8. Experimental Research

This type of research is all about testing cause-and-effect relationships. It’s often conducted through experiments, where variables are manipulated to see how they affect the outcome. Experimental research is excellent for understanding consumer preferences and product performance, and it’s often used to test hypotheses and make predictions.

9. Ethnographic Research

This type of market research is a type of qualitative research that involves observing and studying people in their natural settings. It’s a way to understand a culture, community, or group of people and how they interact with a product or service.

Ethnographic research is a valuable tool for businesses because it provides a rich and detailed understanding of the customer experience. It allows the company to see the product or service in the context of the customer’s everyday life and gain insights that may not be apparent through other types of research.

LEARN ABOUT: 5 Ways Market Research

10. Product Testing

Product testing is a type of research that involves evaluating a product or service by using it in a controlled environment. It’s a way to gather information about the product’s performance, usability, and overall customer satisfaction.

For example, you might conduct product testing if you’re a business owner and want to know how customers will react to your new product. You would give the product to a group of testers and ask them to use it sometime, then gather feedback about their experience. This information can be used to identify any issues or improvements that need to be made before the product is released to the market.

Why do Business Owners need to Know the Types of Market Research?

Market research is a way for businesses to gather information about their target market, customers, and industry. It helps companies to make informed decisions about product development, marketing strategies, and overall business direction. There are several types of market research, each with itn purpouse and methods, which any business owner needs to know.

• Making informed decisions: Knowing the different types of market research allows businesses to choose the right kind of research for their specific needs. This can help them make more informed decisions about their products, services, or overall business strategy.
• Identifying opportunities: Market research can help businesses identify new opportunities, such as untapped markets or unmet customer needs. This can help them stay ahead of the competition and grow their business.
• Understanding customers: Market research can help companies understand their customers better. They can learn about their customers’ attitudes, behaviors, and needs by conducting research. This can help them tailor their products and services to meet those needs better.
• Monitoring the market: Market research can also help businesses monitor their market and stay informed about industry trends. This can help them anticipate changes and make strategic adjustments.
• Identifying potential problems: Market research can also help identify potential problems or challenges before they occur. For example, by conducting research, they may discover that a new competitor is about to enter the market or that a change in consumer behavior is affecting their sales. This can help them take proactive measures to address these issues.

Overall, by understanding the different types of market research and how to use them, we can gain valuable insights that can help us make more informed decisions, identify new opportunities, and grow businesses. It’s essential to stay on top of the research trends and industry changes to ensure the company runs smoothly and profitably.

LEARN ABOUT:  Market research industry

Learning about customers, markets, and competition is essential. We’ve covered the types of market research that we can use to gather valuable information. Whether you’re looking to gauge customer satisfaction, segment your market, or conduct competitor analysis, various research methods are available to help you make informed decisions for your business.

LEARN ABOUT: 12 Best Tools for Researchers

But if you’re looking for a powerful survey tool to help you conduct all types of market research, look no further than QuestionPro. With QuestionPro, you’ll have access to a wide range of features to help you create, distribute, and analyze surveys and gather insights that can inform your business strategies. So don’t hesitate. Subscribe to QuestionPro today and start conducting market research like a pro!

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Types of market research: Methods and examples

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Here at GWI we publish a steady stream of blogs, reports, and other resources that dig deep into specific market research topics.

But what about the folks who’d appreciate a more general overview of market research that explains the big picture? Don’t they deserve some love too?

Of course they do. That’s why we’ve created this overview guide focusing on types of market research and examples. With so many market research companies to choose from, having a solid general understanding of how this sector works is essential for any brand or business that wants to pick the right market research partner.

So with that in mind, let’s start at the very beginning and get clear on…

Market research definition

At the risk of stating the slightly obvious, market research is the gathering and analyzing of data on consumers, competitors, distributors, and markets. As such it’s not quite the same as consumer research , but there’s significant overlap.

Market research matters because it can help you take the guesswork out of getting through to audiences. By studying consumers and gathering information on their likes, dislikes, and so on, brands can make evidence-based decisions instead of relying on instinct or experience. 

What is market research?

Market research is the organized gathering of information about target markets and consumers’ needs and preferences. It’s an important component of business strategy and a major factor in maintaining competitiveness.

If a business wants to know – really know – what sort of products or services consumers want to buy, along with where, when, and how those products and services should be marketed, it just makes sense to ask the prospective audience. 

Without the certainty that market research brings, a business is basically hoping for the best. And while we salute their optimism, that’s not exactly a reliable strategy for success.

What are the types of market research?

Primary research .

Primary research is a type of market research you either conduct yourself or hire someone to do on your behalf.

A classic example of primary research involves going directly to a source – typically customers or prospective customers in your target market – to ask questions and gather information about a product or service. Interviewing methods include in-person, online surveys, phone calls, and focus groups.

The big advantage of primary research is that it’s directly focused on your objectives, so the outcome will be conclusive, detailed insights – particularly into customer views – making it the gold standard.

The disadvantages are it can be time-consuming and potentially costly, plus there’s a risk of survey bias creeping in, in the sense that research samples may not be representative of the wider group.

Secondary research 

Primary market research means you collect the data your business needs, whereas the types of market research known as secondary market research use information that’s already been gathered for other purposes but can still be valuable. Examples include published market studies, white papers, analyst reports, customer emails, and customer surveys/feedback.

For many small businesses with limited budgets, secondary market research is their first choice because it’s easier to acquire and far more affordable than primary research.

Secondary research can still answer specific business questions, but with limitations. The data collected from that audience may not match your targeted audience exactly, resulting in skewed outcomes. 

A big benefit of secondary market research is helping lay the groundwork and get you ready to carry out primary market research by making sure you’re focused on what matters most.

Qualitative research

Qualitative research is one of the two fundamental types of market research. Qualitative research is about people and their opinions. Typically conducted by asking questions either one-on-one or in groups, qualitative research can help you define problems and learn about customers’ opinions, values, and beliefs.

Classic examples of qualitative research are long-answer questions like “Why do you think this product is better than competitive products? Why do you think it’s not?”, or “How would you improve this new service to make it more appealing?”

Because qualitative research generally involves smaller sample sizes than its close cousin quantitative research, it gives you an anecdotal overview of your subject, rather than highly detailed information that can help predict future performance.

Qualitative research is particularly useful if you’re developing a new product, service, website or ad campaign and want to get some feedback before you commit a large budget to it.

Quantitative research

If qualitative research is all about opinions, quantitative research is all about numbers, using math to uncover insights about your audience. 

Typical quantitative research questions are things like, “What’s the market size for this product?” or “How long are visitors staying on this website?”. Clearly the answers to both will be numerical.

Quantitative research usually involves questionnaires. Respondents are asked to complete the survey, which marketers use to understand consumer needs, and create strategies and marketing plans.

Importantly, because quantitative research is math-based, it’s statistically valid, which means you’re in a good position to use it to predict the future direction of your business.

Consumer research 

As its name implies, consumer research gathers information about consumers’ lifestyles, behaviors, needs and preferences, usually in relation to a particular product or service. It can include both quantitative and qualitative studies.

Examples of consumer research in action include finding ways to improve consumer perception of a product, or creating buyer personas and market segments, which help you successfully market your product to different types of customers.

Understanding consumer trends , driven by consumer research, helps businesses understand customer psychology and create detailed purchasing behavior profiles. The result helps brands improve their products and services by making them more customer-centric, increasing customer satisfaction, and boosting bottom line in the process.

Product research 

Product research gives a new product (or indeed service, we don’t judge) its best chance of success, or helps an existing product improve or increase market share.

It’s common sense: by finding out what consumers want and adjusting your offering accordingly, you gain a competitive edge. It can be the difference between a product being a roaring success or an abject failure.

Examples of product research include finding ways to develop goods with a higher value, or identifying exactly where innovation effort should be focused. 

Product research goes hand-in-hand with other strands of market research, helping you make informed decisions about what consumers want, and what you can offer them.

Brand research  

Brand research is the process of gathering feedback from your current, prospective, and even past customers to understand how your brand is perceived by the market.

It covers things like brand awareness, brand perceptions, customer advocacy, advertising effectiveness, purchase channels, audience profiling, and whether or not the brand is a top consideration for consumers.

The result helps take the guesswork out of your messaging and brand strategy. Like all types of market research, it gives marketing leaders the data they need to make better choices based on fact rather than opinion or intuition.

Market research methods 

So far we’ve reviewed various different types of market research, now let’s look at market research methods, in other words the practical ways you can uncover those all-important insights.

Consumer research platform 

A consumer research platform like GWI is a smart way to find on-demand market research insights in seconds.

In a world of fluid markets and changing attitudes, a detailed understanding of your consumers, developed using the right research platform, enables you to stop guessing and start knowing.

As well as providing certainty, consumer research platforms massively accelerate speed to insight. Got a question? Just jump on your consumer research platform and find the answer – job done.

The ability to mine data for answers like this is empowering – suddenly you’re in the driving seat with a world of possibilities ahead of you. Compared to the most obvious alternative – commissioning third party research that could take weeks to arrive – the right consumer research platform is basically a magic wand.

Admittedly we’re biased, but GWI delivers all this and more. Take our platform for a quick spin and see for yourself.

And the downside of using a consumer research platform? Well, no data set, however fresh or thorough, can answer every question. If you need really niche insights then your best bet is custom market research , where you can ask any question you like, tailored to your exact needs.

Face-to-face interviews 

Despite the rise in popularity of online surveys , face-to-face survey interviewing – using mobile devices or even the classic paper survey – is still a popular data collection method.

In terms of advantages, face-to-face interviews help with accurate screening, in the sense the interviewee can’t easily give misleading answers about, say, their age. The interviewer can also make a note of emotions and non-verbal cues. 

On the other hand, face-to-face interviews can be costly, while the quality of data you get back often depends on the ability of the interviewer. Also, the size of the sample is limited to the size of your interviewing staff, the area in which the interviews are conducted, and the number of qualified respondents within that area.

Social listening 

Social listening is a powerful solution for brands who want to keep an ear to the ground, gathering unfiltered thoughts and opinions from consumers who are posting on social media. 

Many social listening tools store data for up to a couple of years, great for trend analysis that needs to compare current and past conversations.

Social listening isn’t limited to text. Images, videos, and emojis often help us better understand what consumers are thinking, saying, and doing better than more traditional research methods. 

Perhaps the biggest downside is there are no guarantees with social listening, and you never know what you will (or won’t) find. It can also be tricky to gauge sentiment accurately if the language used is open to misinterpretation, for example if a social media user describes something as “sick”.

There’s also a potential problem around what people say vs. what they actually do. Tweeting about the gym is a good deal easier than actually going. The wider problem – and this may shock you – is that not every single thing people write on social media is necessarily true, which means social listening can easily deliver unreliable results.

Public domain data 

Public domain data comes from think tanks and government statistics or research centers like the UK’s National Office for Statistics or the United States Census Bureau and the National Institute of Statistical Sciences. Other sources are things like research journals, news media, and academic material.

Its advantages for market research are it’s cheap (or even free), quick to access, and easily available. Public domain datasets can be huge, so potentially very rich.

On the flip side, the data can be out of date, it certainly isn’t exclusive to you, and the collection methodology can leave much to be desired. But used carefully, public domain data can be a useful source of secondary market research.

Telephone interviews 

You know the drill – you get a call from a researcher who asks you questions about a particular topic and wants to hear your opinions. Some even pay or offer other rewards for your time.

Telephone surveys are great for reaching niche groups of consumers within a specific geographic area or connected to a particular brand, or who aren’t very active in online channels. They’re not well-suited for gathering data from broad population groups, simply because of the time and labor involved.

How to use market research 

Data isn’t an end in itself; instead it’s a springboard to make other stuff happen. So once you’ve drawn conclusions from your research, it’s time to think of what you’ll actually do based on your findings.

While it’s impossible for us to give a definitive list (every use case is different), here are some suggestions to get you started.

Leverage it . Think about ways to expand the use – and value – of research data and insights, for example by using research to support business goals and functions, like sales, market share or product design.

Integrate it . Expand the value of your research data by integrating it with other data sources, internal and external. Integrating data like this can broaden your perspective and help you draw deeper insights for more confident decision-making.

Justify it . Enlist colleagues from areas that’ll benefit from the insights that research provides – that could be product management, product development, customer service, marketing, sales or many others – and build a business case for using research.

How to choose the right type of market research 

Broadly speaking, choosing the right research method depends on knowing the type of data you need to collect. To dig into ideas and opinions, choose qualitative; to do some testing, it’s quantitative you want.

There are also a bunch of practical considerations, not least cost. If a particular approach sounds great but costs the earth then clearly it’s not ideal for any brand on a budget.

Then there’s how you intend to use the actual research, your level of expertise with research data, whether you need access to historical data or just a snapshot of today, and so on.

The point is, different methods suit different situations. When choosing, you’ll want to consider what you want to achieve, what data you’ll need, the pros and cons of each method, the costs of conducting the research, and the cost of analyzing the results. 

Market research examples

Independent agency Bright/Shift used GWI consumer insights to shape a high-impact go-to-market strategy for their sustainable furniture client, generating £41K in revenue in the first month. Here’s how they made the magic happen .

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Types of Market Research Explained and How to Use Them

6 min. read

Updated October 29, 2023

As a small business, you must understand your market, target customers, and brand. 

This knowledge significantly affects your decision-making, marketing effectiveness, and potential for business growth.

And while the steps to do market research are relatively simple—your research options are far more complex.

Let’s explore the different types of market research and how to apply them to your business.

• 1. Primary research

Primary market research is first-hand information you collect from customers within your market.

For business owners:

Use this method when validating your business idea . Break it down into two result categories — exploratory and specific.

Exploratory is non-quantifiable customer feedback. You’re not looking to measure results but gauge interest or an emotional response.

Now, follow up with very specific questions that can be quantified. Use this to evaluate the value of a product or service, your market direction, and product/market fit. 

Your goal is to come back with numerical (purchases, revenue, estimated sales, etc.) insights to drive and support your decisions.

Research methods:

• 1:1 Interviews
• Focus groups
• Observations

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• 2. Secondary research

Secondary research covers every other piece of data you have available. This includes resources such as:

• Public sources: Typically free and highly accessible information gathered through government-sponsored research projects. 
• Commercial sources: Research studies conducted by private organizations regarding the state of specific markets, industries, or innovations. 
• Internal sources: Data you have collected through everyday business operations.

For business owners: 

Secondary research is a cost-effective way to gather existing information on the industry, market trends, and competitors. It helps you benchmark against industry standards and identify potential market opportunities.

Use this research as a starting point. It can inform the direction of more costly primary research methods. 

• Industry reports
• Market statistics
• Academic publications
• News articles
• In-house data
• 3. Qualitative research

Qualitative research is the collection of information that is not reliant on numbers making it difficult to measure. It adds depth or context to quantitative research by measuring sentiment or collecting responses to open-ended questions.

Qualitative research delves deep into customer psychologies, helping you understand the reasons behind their choices. This can guide product development, branding, and marketing strategies to better resonate with your audience.

• In-depth interviews
• Case studies
• 4. Quantitative research

The collection of numerical data can be easily collected and analyzed. It should be seen as exploratory. Your goal is to uncover evidence or trends that can be explored further through qualitative research. 

Quantitative research provides measurable data that you can then analyze. 

Short-term, it helps you make data-driven decisions, forecast trends, and understand the market size and segmentation. Long-term, it’s your baseline for performance that can be referenced in additional market research efforts. 

• Financial data
• 5. Observational research

Researchers observe and record the actions of participants. This can be done in a formal or informal setting. 

For example, you want to open a coffee shop and need to understand the total foot traffic in a specific area. You could stake out the location and count the number of people that pass by over a set period.

Observational research offers genuine real-time insights into how customers interact with products or services. 

You can identify potential pain points, understand if features meet expectations, and even improve  

• Direct observation
• Participant observation
• Time-lapse videos
• Eye-tracking studies
• 6. Competitive analysis

Research competitors in the market to understand their strategies, strengths, and weaknesses.

A competitive analysis helps position your business. 

You’ll identify your unique selling points, opportunities to improve, and potential threats to your business. 

• SWOT analysis
• Competitor benchmarking
• Mystery shopping
• Online monitoring
• 7. Branding research

This focuses on how a brand is perceived in the market. It relates to your company’s tone, imagery, design, and overall values.

Branding research can help in creating, managing, or maintaining your brand. 

You can research brand awareness, loyalty, perception, value, and positioning. For this research to be effective, you must have a distinct purpose. 

Typically, you’re attempting to gauge overall performance, identify opportunities to enhance your brand or diminish areas that do not reflect it.   

• Brand awareness surveys
• Brand loyalty assessments
• Social listening (brand mentions, interactions, etc.)
• 8. Customer research

This involves gathering insights directly from current or potential customers to understand their needs, preferences, and experiences.

Customer research is pivotal in ensuring your business meets customer needs and expectations. It can guide customer service improvements, enhance loyalty, and increase customer lifetime value.

• Customer satisfaction surveys
• Net Promoter Score (NPS) surveys
• Customer feedback forms
• Customer interviews
• 9. Product research

This focuses on evaluating a product’s performance, acceptance, and potential improvements in the market.

Product research helps refine product features, understand its market fit, and identifying areas for innovation. It ensures that the product meets customer needs and stays competitive.

You can test hypothetical solutions, product features, branding, and marketing collateral. Ideally, you’d test each of these elements in specific phases. And let the results inform the direction of each step.

• Product usage surveys
• Product testing and trials
• Feature preference studies
• Concept testing
• 10. Experimental research

Involves manipulating one variable to determine if it causes a change in another.

Experimental research can help test hypotheses about market behaviors, allowing for optimization of product features, pricing strategies, or marketing campaigns based on actual results.

• Controlled experiments
• Field experiments
• A/B testing
• Lab experiments
• 11. Field trials

Testing products, services, or promotions in a real-world setting before a full-scale launch.

Field trials use a real-world testing ground to gauge the effectiveness of a new product or campaign and make necessary adjustments before a broader rollout.

For physical products, this could be done geographically. Where only a select number of locations receive and sell a given product.

For software or services, you can beta test with a selection of users. Ideally, these are dedicated customers deep in your solution and can provide pointed feedback.

• Product sampling
• Test marketing
• Beta testing
• Store audits
• How to choose the best research method(s) for your business

You’ll end up using several types of market research. You may have even noticed how many of the market research methods overlapped. 

What you start with depends on several factors:

Why you’re doing this research and the desired results will influence your chosen methods. 

For those starting a business, focus on getting market data and direct customer insight. You want a broad understanding of the market you’re entering, your competitors, and where you fit. 

You also need to know your target market. Quantitative data is a great starting point, but you won’t have a clear picture without direct conversation.

Research requires monetary investment. Whether it’s purchasing reports, hiring a research firm, or compensating a tester. You should account for the payroll cost if it’s you or an employee doing the research. 

Research doesn’t have to be expensive. Many online tools offer free or affordable options for surveys and feedback collection. But if you need to go deeper, you’ll likely need to pay more.

Time investment

Research requires time. Time to run, analyze, and report. You need to understand how long a specific method will take and the return you expect.

Remember, it may take time now, but it will ideally save you time (and money) in the future.

• Explore more on marketing research

Choosing how you’ll conduct market research is just part of the process. Check out our curated selection of resources to learn more about: 

• Finding your customer
• Get to know your competitors
• Market research tools

Clarify your ideas and understand how to start your business with LivePlan

Kody Wirth is a content writer and SEO specialist for Palo Alto Software—the creator's of Bplans and LivePlan. He has 3+ years experience covering small business topics and runs a part-time content writing service in his spare time.

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Published October 17 th 2023

10 Essential Methods for Effective Consumer and Market Research

When it comes to understanding the world around you, market research is an essential step.

We live in a world that’s overflowing with information. Sifting through all the noise to extract the most relevant insights on a certain market or audience can be tough.

That’s where market research comes in – it’s a way for brands and researchers to collect information from target markets and audiences.

Once reliant on traditional methods like focus groups or surveys, market research is now at a crossroads. Newer tools for extracting insights, like social listening tools, have joined the array of market research techniques available.

Here, we break down what market research is and the different methods you can choose from to make the most of it.

What is market research, and why is it critical for you as a marketer?

Market research involves collecting and analyzing data about a specific industry, market, or audience to inform strategic decision-making. It offers marketers valuable insights into the industry, market trends, consumer preferences, competition, and opportunities, enabling businesses to refine their strategies effectively.

By conducting market research, organizations can identify unmet needs, assess product demands, enhance value propositions, and create marketing campaigns that resonate with their target audience. 

This practice serves as a compass, guiding businesses in making data-driven decisions for successful product launches, improved customer relationships, and a stronger positioning in the business landscape. 

For marketers and insights professionals, market research is an indispensable tool. It helps them make smarter decisions and achieve growth and success in the market.

These 10 market research methods form the backbone of effective market research strategies. 

Continue reading or jump directly to each method by tapping the link below.

• Focus groups
• Consumer research with social media listening
• Experiments and field trials
• Observation
• Competitive analysis
• Public domain data
• Buy research
• Analyze sales data

Use of primary vs secondary market research

Market research can be split into two distinct sections: primary and secondary. These are the two main types of market research.

They can also be known as field and desk, respectively (although this terminology feels out of date, as plenty of primary research can be carried out from your desk).

Primary (field) research

Primary market research is research you carry out yourself. Examples of primary market research methods include running your own focus groups or conducting surveys. These are some of the key methods of consumer research. The ‘field’ part refers to going out into the field to get data.

Secondary (desk) research

Secondary market research is research carried out by other people that you want to use. Examples of secondary market research methods include studies carried out by researchers or financial data released by companies.

10 effective methods to do market research

The methods in this list cover both areas. Which ones you want to use will depend on your goals. Have a browse through and see what fits.

1. Focus groups

It’s a simple concept but one that can be hard to put into practice.

You bring together a group of individuals into a room, record their discussions, and ask them questions about various topics you are researching. For some, it’ll be new product ideas. For others, it might be views on a political candidate.

From these discussions, the organizer will try to pull out some insights or use them to judge the wider society’s view on something. The participants will generally be chosen based on certain criteria, such as demographics, interests, or occupations.

A focus group’s strength is in the natural conversation and discussion that can take place between participants (if they’re done right).

Compared to a questionnaire or survey with a rigid set of questions, a focus group can go off on tangents the organizer could not have predicted (and therefore not planned questions for). This can be good in that unexpected topics can arise; or bad if the aims of the research are to answer a very particular set of questions.

The nature of the discussion is important to recognize as a potential factor that skews the resulting data. Focus groups can encourage participants to talk about things they might not have otherwise, and others might impact the group. This can also affect unstructured one-on-one interviews.

In survey research, survey questions are given to respondents (in person, over the phone, by email, or via an online form). Questions can be close-ended or open-ended. As far as close-ended questions go, there are many different types:

• Dichotomous (two choices, such as ‘yes’ or ‘no’)
• Multiple choice
• Rating scale
• Likert scale (common version is five options between ‘strongly agree’ and ‘strongly disagree’)
• Matrix (options presented on a grid)
• Demographic (asking for information such as gender, age, or occupation)

Surveys are massively versatile because of the range of question formats. Knowing how to mix and match them to get what you need takes consideration and thought. Different questions need the right setup.

It’s also about how you ask. Good questions lead to good analysis. Writing clear, concise questions that abstain from vague expressions and don’t lead respondents down a certain path can help your results reflect the true colors of respondents.

There are a ton of different ways to conduct surveys as well, from creating your own from scratch or using tools that do lots of the heavy lifting for you.

3. Consumer research with social media listening

Social media has reached a point where it is seamlessly integrated into our lives. And because it is a digital extension of ourselves, people freely express their opinions, thoughts, and hot takes on social media.

Because people share so much content on social media and the sharing is so instant, social media is a treasure trove for market research. There is plenty of data to monitor , tap into, and dissect.

By using a social listening tool, like Consumer Research , researchers can identify topics of interest and then analyze relevant social posts. For example, they can track brand mentions and what consumers are saying about the products owned by that brand. These are real-world consumer research examples.

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Social media listening democratizes insights, and is especially useful for market research because of the vast amount of unfiltered information available. Because it’s unprompted, you can be fairly sure that what’s shared is an accurate account of what the person really cares about and thinks (as opposed to them being given a subject to dwell on in the presence of a researcher).

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4. Interviews

In interviews, the interviewer speaks directly with the respondent. This type of market research method is more personal, allowing for communication and clarification, making it good for open-ended questions. Furthermore, interviews enable the interviewer to go beyond surface-level responses and investigate deeper.

However, the drawback is that interviews can be time-intensive and costly. Those who opt for this method will need to figure out how to allocate their resources effectively. You also need to be careful with leading or poor questions that lead to useless results. Here’s a good introduction to leading questions .

5. Experiments and field trials

Field experiments are conducted in the participants’ environment. They rely on the independent variable and the dependent variable – the researcher controls the independent variable in order to test its impact on the dependent variable. The key here is to establish whether there’s causality.

For example, take Hofling’s experiment that tested obedience, conducted in a hospital setting. The point was to test if nurses followed authority figures (doctors) and if the authority figures’ rules violated standards (The dependent variable being the nurses, the independent variable being a fake doctor calling up and ordering the nurses to administer treatment.)

According to Simply Psychology , there are key strengths and limitations to this method.

The assessment reads:

• Strength: Behavior in a field experiment is more likely to reflect real life because of its natural setting, i.e., higher ecological validity than a lab experiment.
• Strength: There is less likelihood of demand characteristics affecting the results, as participants may not know they are being studied. This occurs when the study is covert.
• Limitation: There is less control over extraneous variables that might bias the results. This makes it difficult for another researcher to replicate the study in exactly the same way.

There are also massive ethical implications for these kinds of experiments and experiments in general (especially if people are unaware of their involvement). Don’t take this lightly, and be sure to read up on all the guidelines that apply to the region where you’re based.

6. Observation

Observational market research is a qualitative research method where the researcher observes their subjects in a natural or controlled environment. This method is much like being a fly on the wall, but the fly takes notes and analyzes them later. In observational market research, subjects are likely to behave naturally, which reveals their true selves. 

They are not under much pressure. However, if they’re aware of the observation, they can act differently.

This type of research applies well to retail, where the researcher can observe shoppers’ behavior by day of the week, by season, when discounts are offered, and more. However, observational research can be time-consuming, and researchers have no control over the environments they research.

7. Competitive analysis

Competitive analysis is a highly strategic and specific form of market research in which the researchers analyze their company’s competitors. It is critical to see how your brand stacks up to rivals. 

Competitive analysis starts by defining the product, service, brand, and market segment. There are different topics to compare your firm with your competitors. It could be from a marketing perspective: content produced, SEO structure, PR coverage, and social media presence and engagement. It can also be from a product perspective: types of offerings, pricing structure. SWOT analysis is key in assessing strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

We’ve written a whole blog post on this tactic, which you can read here .

8. Public domain data

The internet is a wondrous place. Public data exists for those strapped for resources or simply seeking to support their research with more data.  With more and more data produced every year, the question about access and curation becomes increasingly prominent – that’s why researchers and librarians are keen on open data.

Plenty of different types of open data are useful for market research: government databases, polling data, “fact tanks” like Pew Research Center, and more. 

Furthermore, APIs grant developers programmatic access to applications. A lot of this data is free, which is a real bonus.

9. Buy research

Money can’t buy everything, but it can buy research. Subscriptions exist for those who want to buy relevant industry and research reports. Sites like Euromonitor, Statista, Mintel, and BCC Research host a litany of reports for purchase, oftentimes with the option of a single-user license or a subscription.

This can be a massive time saver, and you’ll have a better idea of what you’re getting from the very beginning. You’ll also get all your data in a format that makes sense, saving you effort in cleaning and organizing.

10. Analyze sales data

Sales data is like a puzzle piece that can help reveal the full picture of market research insights. Essentially, it indicates the results. Paired with other market research data, sales data helps researchers better understand actions and consequences. Understanding your customers, their buying habits, and how they change over time is important.

This research will be limited to customers, and it’s important to keep that in mind. Nevertheless, the value of this data should not be underestimated. If you’re not already tracking customer data, there’s no time like the present.

Choosing the right market research method for your strategy

Not all methods will be right for your situation or your business. Once you’ve looked through the list and seen some that take your fancy, spend more time researching each option.You’ll want to consider what you want to achieve, what data you’ll need, the pros and cons of each method, the costs of conducting the research, and the cost of analyzing the results.

Get it right, and it’ll be worth all the effort.

Former Brandwatch Employee

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How to Do Market Research: The Complete Guide

Learn how to do market research with this step-by-step guide, complete with templates, tools and real-world examples.

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What are your customers’ needs? How does your product compare to the competition? What are the emerging trends and opportunities in your industry? If these questions keep you up at night, it’s time to conduct market research.

Market research plays a pivotal role in your ability to stay competitive and relevant, helping you anticipate shifts in consumer behavior and industry dynamics. It involves gathering these insights using a wide range of techniques, from surveys and interviews to data analysis and observational studies.

In this guide, we’ll explore why market research is crucial, the various types of market research, the methods used in data collection, and how to effectively conduct market research to drive informed decision-making and success.

What is market research?

Market research is the systematic process of gathering, analyzing and interpreting information about a specific market or industry. The purpose of market research is to offer valuable insight into the preferences and behaviors of your target audience, and anticipate shifts in market trends and the competitive landscape. This information helps you make data-driven decisions, develop effective strategies for your business, and maximize your chances of long-term growth.

Why is market research important? 

By understanding the significance of market research, you can make sure you’re asking the right questions and using the process to your advantage. Some of the benefits of market research include:

• Informed decision-making: Market research provides you with the data and insights you need to make smart decisions for your business. It helps you identify opportunities, assess risks and tailor your strategies to meet the demands of the market. Without market research, decisions are often based on assumptions or guesswork, leading to costly mistakes.
• Customer-centric approach: A cornerstone of market research involves developing a deep understanding of customer needs and preferences. This gives you valuable insights into your target audience, helping you develop products, services and marketing campaigns that resonate with your customers.
• Competitive advantage: By conducting market research, you’ll gain a competitive edge. You’ll be able to identify gaps in the market, analyze competitor strengths and weaknesses, and position your business strategically. This enables you to create unique value propositions, differentiate yourself from competitors, and seize opportunities that others may overlook.
• Risk mitigation: Market research helps you anticipate market shifts and potential challenges. By identifying threats early, you can proactively adjust their strategies to mitigate risks and respond effectively to changing circumstances. This proactive approach is particularly valuable in volatile industries.
• Resource optimization: Conducting market research allows organizations to allocate their time, money and resources more efficiently. It ensures that investments are made in areas with the highest potential return on investment, reducing wasted resources and improving overall business performance.
• Adaptation to market trends: Markets evolve rapidly, driven by technological advancements, cultural shifts and changing consumer attitudes. Market research ensures that you stay ahead of these trends and adapt your offerings accordingly so you can avoid becoming obsolete. 

As you can see, market research empowers businesses to make data-driven decisions, cater to customer needs, outperform competitors, mitigate risks, optimize resources and stay agile in a dynamic marketplace. These benefits make it a huge industry; the global market research services market is expected to grow from $76.37 billion in 2021 to $108.57 billion in 2026 . Now, let’s dig into the different types of market research that can help you achieve these benefits.

Types of market research 

• Qualitative research
• Quantitative research
• Exploratory research
• Descriptive research
• Causal research
• Cross-sectional research
• Longitudinal research

Despite its advantages, 23% of organizations don’t have a clear market research strategy. Part of developing a strategy involves choosing the right type of market research for your business goals. The most commonly used approaches include:

1. Qualitative research

Qualitative research focuses on understanding the underlying motivations, attitudes and perceptions of individuals or groups. It is typically conducted through techniques like in-depth interviews, focus groups and content analysis — methods we’ll discuss further in the sections below. Qualitative research provides rich, nuanced insights that can inform product development, marketing strategies and brand positioning.

2. Quantitative research

Quantitative research, in contrast to qualitative research, involves the collection and analysis of numerical data, often through surveys, experiments and structured questionnaires. This approach allows for statistical analysis and the measurement of trends, making it suitable for large-scale market studies and hypothesis testing. While it’s worthwhile using a mix of qualitative and quantitative research, most businesses prioritize the latter because it is scientific, measurable and easily replicated across different experiments.

3. Exploratory research

Whether you’re conducting qualitative or quantitative research or a mix of both, exploratory research is often the first step. Its primary goal is to help you understand a market or problem so you can gain insights and identify potential issues or opportunities. This type of market research is less structured and is typically conducted through open-ended interviews, focus groups or secondary data analysis. Exploratory research is valuable when entering new markets or exploring new product ideas.

4. Descriptive research

As its name implies, descriptive research seeks to describe a market, population or phenomenon in detail. It involves collecting and summarizing data to answer questions about audience demographics and behaviors, market size, and current trends. Surveys, observational studies and content analysis are common methods used in descriptive research. 

5. Causal research

Causal research aims to establish cause-and-effect relationships between variables. It investigates whether changes in one variable result in changes in another. Experimental designs, A/B testing and regression analysis are common causal research methods. This sheds light on how specific marketing strategies or product changes impact consumer behavior.

6. Cross-sectional research

Cross-sectional market research involves collecting data from a sample of the population at a single point in time. It is used to analyze differences, relationships or trends among various groups within a population. Cross-sectional studies are helpful for market segmentation, identifying target audiences and assessing market trends at a specific moment.

7. Longitudinal research

Longitudinal research, in contrast to cross-sectional research, collects data from the same subjects over an extended period. This allows for the analysis of trends, changes and developments over time. Longitudinal studies are useful for tracking long-term developments in consumer preferences, brand loyalty and market dynamics.

Each type of market research has its strengths and weaknesses, and the method you choose depends on your specific research goals and the depth of understanding you’re aiming to achieve. In the following sections, we’ll delve into primary and secondary research approaches and specific research methods.

Primary vs. secondary market research

Market research of all types can be broadly categorized into two main approaches: primary research and secondary research. By understanding the differences between these approaches, you can better determine the most appropriate research method for your specific goals.

Primary market research 

Primary research involves the collection of original data straight from the source. Typically, this involves communicating directly with your target audience — through surveys, interviews, focus groups and more — to gather information. Here are some key attributes of primary market research:

• Customized data: Primary research provides data that is tailored to your research needs. You design a custom research study and gather information specific to your goals.
• Up-to-date insights: Because primary research involves communicating with customers, the data you collect reflects the most current market conditions and consumer behaviors.
• Time-consuming and resource-intensive: Despite its advantages, primary research can be labor-intensive and costly, especially when dealing with large sample sizes or complex study designs. Whether you hire a market research consultant, agency or use an in-house team, primary research studies consume a large amount of resources and time.

Secondary market research 

Secondary research, on the other hand, involves analyzing data that has already been compiled by third-party sources, such as online research tools, databases, news sites, industry reports and academic studies.

Here are the main characteristics of secondary market research:

• Cost-effective: Secondary research is generally more cost-effective than primary research since it doesn’t require building a research plan from scratch. You and your team can look at databases, websites and publications on an ongoing basis, without needing to design a custom experiment or hire a consultant. 
• Leverages multiple sources: Data tools and software extract data from multiple places across the web, and then consolidate that information within a single platform. This means you’ll get a greater amount of data and a wider scope from secondary research.
• Quick to access: You can access a wide range of information rapidly — often in seconds — if you’re using online research tools and databases. Because of this, you can act on insights sooner, rather than taking the time to develop an experiment. 

So, when should you use primary vs. secondary research? In practice, many market research projects incorporate both primary and secondary research to take advantage of the strengths of each approach.

One rule of thumb is to focus on secondary research to obtain background information, market trends or industry benchmarks. It is especially valuable for conducting preliminary research, competitor analysis, or when time and budget constraints are tight. Then, if you still have knowledge gaps or need to answer specific questions unique to your business model, use primary research to create a custom experiment. 

Market research methods

• Surveys and questionnaires
• Focus groups
• Observational research
• Online research tools
• Experiments
• Content analysis
• Ethnographic research

How do primary and secondary research approaches translate into specific research methods? Let’s take a look at the different ways you can gather data: 

1. Surveys and questionnaires

Surveys and questionnaires are popular methods for collecting structured data from a large number of respondents. They involve a set of predetermined questions that participants answer. Surveys can be conducted through various channels, including online tools, telephone interviews and in-person or online questionnaires. They are useful for gathering quantitative data and assessing customer demographics, opinions, preferences and needs. On average, customer surveys have a 33% response rate , so keep that in mind as you consider your sample size.

2. Interviews

Interviews are in-depth conversations with individuals or groups to gather qualitative insights. They can be structured (with predefined questions) or unstructured (with open-ended discussions). Interviews are valuable for exploring complex topics, uncovering motivations and obtaining detailed feedback. 

3. Focus groups

The most common primary research methods are in-depth webcam interviews and focus groups. Focus groups are a small gathering of participants who discuss a specific topic or product under the guidance of a moderator. These discussions are valuable for primary market research because they reveal insights into consumer attitudes, perceptions and emotions. Focus groups are especially useful for idea generation, concept testing and understanding group dynamics within your target audience.

4. Observational research

Observational research involves observing and recording participant behavior in a natural setting. This method is particularly valuable when studying consumer behavior in physical spaces, such as retail stores or public places. In some types of observational research, participants are aware you’re watching them; in other cases, you discreetly watch consumers without their knowledge, as they use your product. Either way, observational research provides firsthand insights into how people interact with products or environments.

5. Online research tools

You and your team can do your own secondary market research using online tools. These tools include data prospecting platforms and databases, as well as online surveys, social media listening, web analytics and sentiment analysis platforms. They help you gather data from online sources, monitor industry trends, track competitors, understand consumer preferences and keep tabs on online behavior. We’ll talk more about choosing the right market research tools in the sections that follow.

6. Experiments

Market research experiments are controlled tests of variables to determine causal relationships. While experiments are often associated with scientific research, they are also used in market research to assess the impact of specific marketing strategies, product features, or pricing and packaging changes.

7. Content analysis

Content analysis involves the systematic examination of textual, visual or audio content to identify patterns, themes and trends. It’s commonly applied to customer reviews, social media posts and other forms of online content to analyze consumer opinions and sentiments.

8. Ethnographic research

Ethnographic research immerses researchers into the daily lives of consumers to understand their behavior and culture. This method is particularly valuable when studying niche markets or exploring the cultural context of consumer choices.

How to do market research

• Set clear objectives
• Identify your target audience
• Choose your research methods
• Use the right market research tools
• Collect data
• Analyze data 
• Interpret your findings
• Identify opportunities and challenges
• Make informed business decisions
• Monitor and adapt

Now that you have gained insights into the various market research methods at your disposal, let’s delve into the practical aspects of how to conduct market research effectively. Here’s a quick step-by-step overview, from defining objectives to monitoring market shifts.

1. Set clear objectives

When you set clear and specific goals, you’re essentially creating a compass to guide your research questions and methodology. Start by precisely defining what you want to achieve. Are you launching a new product and want to understand its viability in the market? Are you evaluating customer satisfaction with a product redesign? 

Start by creating SMART goals — objectives that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound. Not only will this clarify your research focus from the outset, but it will also help you track progress and benchmark your success throughout the process. 

You should also consult with key stakeholders and team members to ensure alignment on your research objectives before diving into data collecting. This will help you gain diverse perspectives and insights that will shape your research approach.

2. Identify your target audience

Next, you’ll need to pinpoint your target audience to determine who should be included in your research. Begin by creating detailed buyer personas or stakeholder profiles. Consider demographic factors like age, gender, income and location, but also delve into psychographics, such as interests, values and pain points.

The more specific your target audience, the more accurate and actionable your research will be. Additionally, segment your audience if your research objectives involve studying different groups, such as current customers and potential leads.

If you already have existing customers, you can also hold conversations with them to better understand your target market. From there, you can refine your buyer personas and tailor your research methods accordingly.

3. Choose your research methods

Selecting the right research methods is crucial for gathering high-quality data. Start by considering the nature of your research objectives. If you’re exploring consumer preferences, surveys and interviews can provide valuable insights. For in-depth understanding, focus groups or observational research might be suitable. Consider using a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods to gain a well-rounded perspective. 

You’ll also need to consider your budget. Think about what you can realistically achieve using the time and resources available to you. If you have a fairly generous budget, you may want to try a mix of primary and secondary research approaches. If you’re doing market research for a startup , on the other hand, chances are your budget is somewhat limited. If that’s the case, try addressing your goals with secondary research tools before investing time and effort in a primary research study. 

4. Use the right market research tools

Whether you’re conducting primary or secondary research, you’ll need to choose the right tools. These can help you do anything from sending surveys to customers to monitoring trends and analyzing data. Here are some examples of popular market research tools:

• Market research software: Crunchbase is a platform that provides best-in-class company data, making it valuable for market research on growing companies and industries. You can use Crunchbase to access trusted, first-party funding data, revenue data, news and firmographics, enabling you to monitor industry trends and understand customer needs.

• Survey and questionnaire tools: SurveyMonkey is a widely used online survey platform that allows you to create, distribute and analyze surveys. Google Forms is a free tool that lets you create surveys and collect responses through Google Drive.
• Data analysis software: Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets are useful for conducting statistical analyses. SPSS is a powerful statistical analysis software used for data processing, analysis and reporting.
• Social listening tools: Brandwatch is a social listening and analytics platform that helps you monitor social media conversations, track sentiment and analyze trends. Mention is a media monitoring tool that allows you to track mentions of your brand, competitors and keywords across various online sources.
• Data visualization platforms: Tableau is a data visualization tool that helps you create interactive and shareable dashboards and reports. Power BI by Microsoft is a business analytics tool for creating interactive visualizations and reports.

5. Collect data

There’s an infinite amount of data you could be collecting using these tools, so you’ll need to be intentional about going after the data that aligns with your research goals. Implement your chosen research methods, whether it’s distributing surveys, conducting interviews or pulling from secondary research platforms. Pay close attention to data quality and accuracy, and stick to a standardized process to streamline data capture and reduce errors. 

6. Analyze data

Once data is collected, you’ll need to analyze it systematically. Use statistical software or analysis tools to identify patterns, trends and correlations. For qualitative data, employ thematic analysis to extract common themes and insights. Visualize your findings with charts, graphs and tables to make complex data more understandable.

If you’re not proficient in data analysis, consider outsourcing or collaborating with a data analyst who can assist in processing and interpreting your data accurately.

7. Interpret your findings

Interpreting your market research findings involves understanding what the data means in the context of your objectives. Are there significant trends that uncover the answers to your initial research questions? Consider the implications of your findings on your business strategy. It’s essential to move beyond raw data and extract actionable insights that inform decision-making.

Hold a cross-functional meeting or workshop with relevant team members to collectively interpret the findings. Different perspectives can lead to more comprehensive insights and innovative solutions.

8. Identify opportunities and challenges

Use your research findings to identify potential growth opportunities and challenges within your market. What segments of your audience are underserved or overlooked? Are there emerging trends you can capitalize on? Conversely, what obstacles or competitors could hinder your progress?

Lay out this information in a clear and organized way by conducting a SWOT analysis, which stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Jot down notes for each of these areas to provide a structured overview of gaps and hurdles in the market.

9. Make informed business decisions

Market research is only valuable if it leads to informed decisions for your company. Based on your insights, devise actionable strategies and initiatives that align with your research objectives. Whether it’s refining your product, targeting new customer segments or adjusting pricing, ensure your decisions are rooted in the data.

At this point, it’s also crucial to keep your team aligned and accountable. Create an action plan that outlines specific steps, responsibilities and timelines for implementing the recommendations derived from your research. 

10. Monitor and adapt

Market research isn’t a one-time activity; it’s an ongoing process. Continuously monitor market conditions, customer behaviors and industry trends. Set up mechanisms to collect real-time data and feedback. As you gather new information, be prepared to adapt your strategies and tactics accordingly. Regularly revisiting your research ensures your business remains agile and reflects changing market dynamics and consumer preferences.

Online market research sources

As you go through the steps above, you’ll want to turn to trusted, reputable sources to gather your data. Here’s a list to get you started:

• Crunchbase: As mentioned above, Crunchbase is an online platform with an extensive dataset, allowing you to access in-depth insights on market trends, consumer behavior and competitive analysis. You can also customize your search options to tailor your research to specific industries, geographic regions or customer personas.

• Academic databases: Academic databases, such as ProQuest and JSTOR , are treasure troves of scholarly research papers, studies and academic journals. They offer in-depth analyses of various subjects, including market trends, consumer preferences and industry-specific insights. Researchers can access a wealth of peer-reviewed publications to gain a deeper understanding of their research topics.
• Government and NGO databases: Government agencies, nongovernmental organizations and other institutions frequently maintain databases containing valuable economic, demographic and industry-related data. These sources offer credible statistics and reports on a wide range of topics, making them essential for market researchers. Examples include the U.S. Census Bureau , the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Pew Research Center .
• Industry reports: Industry reports and market studies are comprehensive documents prepared by research firms, industry associations and consulting companies. They provide in-depth insights into specific markets, including market size, trends, competitive analysis and consumer behavior. You can find this information by looking at relevant industry association databases; examples include the American Marketing Association and the National Retail Federation .
• Social media and online communities: Social media platforms like LinkedIn or Twitter (X) , forums such as Reddit and Quora , and review platforms such as G2 can provide real-time insights into consumer sentiment, opinions and trends. 

Market research examples

At this point, you have market research tools and data sources — but how do you act on the data you gather? Let’s go over some real-world examples that illustrate the practical application of market research across various industries. These examples showcase how market research can lead to smart decision-making and successful business decisions.

Example 1: Apple’s iPhone launch

Apple ’s iconic iPhone launch in 2007 serves as a prime example of market research driving product innovation in tech. Before the iPhone’s release, Apple conducted extensive market research to understand consumer preferences, pain points and unmet needs in the mobile phone industry. This research led to the development of a touchscreen smartphone with a user-friendly interface, addressing consumer demands for a more intuitive and versatile device. The result was a revolutionary product that disrupted the market and redefined the smartphone industry.

Example 2: McDonald’s global expansion

McDonald’s successful global expansion strategy demonstrates the importance of market research when expanding into new territories. Before entering a new market, McDonald’s conducts thorough research to understand local tastes, preferences and cultural nuances. This research informs menu customization, marketing strategies and store design. For instance, in India, McDonald’s offers a menu tailored to local preferences, including vegetarian options. This market-specific approach has enabled McDonald’s to adapt and thrive in diverse global markets.

Example 3: Organic and sustainable farming

The shift toward organic and sustainable farming practices in the food industry is driven by market research that indicates increased consumer demand for healthier and environmentally friendly food options. As a result, food producers and retailers invest in sustainable sourcing and organic product lines — such as with these sustainable seafood startups — to align with this shift in consumer values. 

The bottom line? Market research has multiple use cases and is a critical practice for any industry. Whether it’s launching groundbreaking products, entering new markets or responding to changing consumer preferences, you can use market research to shape successful strategies and outcomes.

Market research templates

You finally have a strong understanding of how to do market research and apply it in the real world. Before we wrap up, here are some market research templates that you can use as a starting point for your projects:

• Smartsheet competitive analysis templates : These spreadsheets can serve as a framework for gathering information about the competitive landscape and obtaining valuable lessons to apply to your business strategy.
• SurveyMonkey product survey template : Customize the questions on this survey based on what you want to learn from your target customers.
• HubSpot templates : HubSpot offers a wide range of free templates you can use for market research, business planning and more.
• SCORE templates : SCORE is a nonprofit organization that provides templates for business plans, market analysis and financial projections.
• SBA.gov : The U.S. Small Business Administration offers templates for every aspect of your business, including market research, and is particularly valuable for new startups. 

Strengthen your business with market research

When conducted effectively, market research is like a guiding star. Equipped with the right tools and techniques, you can uncover valuable insights, stay competitive, foster innovation and navigate the complexities of your industry.

Throughout this guide, we’ve discussed the definition of market research, different research methods, and how to conduct it effectively. We’ve also explored various types of market research and shared practical insights and templates for getting started. 

Now, it’s time to start the research process. Trust in data, listen to the market and make informed decisions that guide your company toward lasting success.

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Types of Market Research and Their Differences

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There are many different types of market research that cover various areas of study, and as a result are often misunderstood.

Whether you’re interested in learning more about your customer’s buying habits or how much they might pay for a new product, market research can help (if you use it correctly).

To help you identify which type of market research is right for you, we’re going to outline the different types, their purposes, and when to use each one.

Common Types of Market Research

By “types of research” I don’t necessarily mean how you’re collecting data. Instead I mean the procedures and methodology used to analyze the data collected.

These procedures include market segmentation, product testing, advertising testing, key driver analysis for satisfaction and loyalty, usability testing, awareness and usage research, and pricing research (using techniques such as conjoint analysis), among others.

Market Segmentation

When conducting market segmentation studies we’re generally asking survey questions aimed at capturing needs, values, attitudes, behaviors and demographics. A B2B company might also want to investigate firmographic data such as company size, revenues, and product category that are relevant to the industry in question.

Marketing can’t effectively speak to every type of person or business at the same time, so one of the main goals of market segmentation is to allow for more efficient and effective marketing tactics.

Without market segmentation companies are shooting in the dark and wasting valuable bullets. They may hit a customer by accident, but they would miss a lot of others.

Product Testing

A detailed understanding of how your product meets (or doesn’t meet) your customer’s needs is crucial both to product development and marketing, so these types of market research studies need to be conducted throughout a product’s life.

Ultimately you should be able to make informed “go” or “not go” decisions about new features and products before launch, and thus save capital, time and effort.

Successful product testing should:

• Give insight into product/service viability by investigating competing and substitute alternatives along side customers’ willingness to embrace new products/services.
• Determine competitive advantage as well as possible threats from similar products/services.
• Identify the products with the highest revenue potential.
• Clarify what improvements should be prioritized before a product launch (or re-launch).
• Pinpoint which product features (both existing and potential) are most important to your target audience.
• Help produce marketing messages to change or enhance existing perceptions about your products/services.

Advertising Testing

Like product testing, tests of your advertising campaigns can save you valuable time and resources. By taking potential campaigns directly to your audience and gauging their response you can focus on creating truly impactful advertising.

Satisfaction and Loyalty Analysis

Satisfied customers aren’t necessarily loyal customers , but consistently measuring customer satisfaction is a great way to increase customer retention.

This type of research is aimed at identifying key drivers of satisfaction and measuring the likelihood of customers to continue using a company’s products and services.

The goals of these kinds of studies are:

• Determine what factors influence loyalty, advocacy, and repeat purchases, including product/service attributes, company operation, customer service, price, etc.
• Carefully monitor overall satisfaction, recommendation likelihood, and defection likelihood over time.
• Provide early warnings about emerging gaps in product/service performance, customer service, and processes that might lead to customer defection.
• Help identify areas of the product or service that need improvement to meet changing needs.
• Guide the creation and/or ongoing development of customer loyalty and retention programs.
• Signal when organizational changes need to be made to improve operations and customer retention.

Brand Awareness and Reach

By conducting regular, well-designed brand awareness surveys you can keep tabs on how effective your marketing campaigns really are.

When done right, a brand awareness survey can help you measure:

• Brand Recall: Can a customer spontaneously recall your brand, or do they think first of a competitor?
• Brand Recognition: When presented with a list of brands, does your audience recognize yours as a reputable option?
• Brand Identity: Brand identity is what you as a marketing team create. It’s important to determine whether these efforts are being successful.
• Brand Image: While brand identity is created by the brand itself, a brand’s image is based in the customer’s perception alone. Tracking disparities in these two can reveal gaps in your marketing efforts.
• Brand Trust: In an era of data breaches, keeping tabs on your levels of brand trust is key. If your brand doesn’t appear trustworthy, you will have difficulty retaining customers.
• Brand Loyalty: Loyal customers can become evangelists, but you need to consistently track loyalty levels to determine how often this transformation is happening.
• Customer Profile: Changes in your core customer base may signal the need for a pivot, either in the product or your marketing messages (or both).

For more on starting your own brand awareness initiative, see our guide on these critical marketing surveys .

Pricing Research

Surveys that ask customers to choose between different products with unique features and price points, typically done via conjoint analysis , can help you identify what features are most valuable to your audience and what they’d be willing to pay for them.

Combined with some basic research on your competitors’ pricing, these insights can give you a distinct advantage in pricing your products and services.

Knowing Which Type of Research to Use

When to use each of these different types of market research data collection methods and types of research depends on the business issues we are dealing with in one or more of four key areas:

• Awareness : let the market know that the product or service exists
• Targeting : reach the target segments with the highest profit potential
• Acquisition : optimize the marketing message, offer, and price that will close the sale
• Retention : generate repeat purchases from current customers

The chart below, which we call the Relevant Wheel, shows when it is most appropriate and relevant to conduct different types of research.

Our clients at Relevant Insights often use this chart as a reference to determine when a particular type of research is needed. Once this is defined, we then discuss the most appropriate qualitative or quantitative data collection methods.

Data Collection and Analysis Methods

Here we need to make a distinction between data collection methods and market research types based on analytical approach, which are often confused. Data collection methods differ based on whether we want to conduct quantitative or qualitative research.

Qualitative research , which is exploratory in nature, usually uses data collection methods such as focus groups, triads, dyads, in-depth interviews, uninterrupted observation, bulletin boards, and ethnographic participation/observation.

Quantitative research , which looks to quantify a problem, collects data through surveys in different modalities (online, phone, paper), audits, points of purchase (purchase transactions), and click-streams.

Choose the Market Research Type that Meets Your Needs

Next time you wonder what type of market research to conduct, I invite you to ask yourself where the particular problem at hand belongs: Awareness, Targeting, Acquisition or Retention. Then take a look at the Relevance Wheel to find the approach that will help you answer your specific questions.

If you choose your method carefully market research can give you a big advantage over your competition.

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How To Do Market Research: Definition, Types, Methods

Jan 2, 2024

11 min. read

Market research isn’t just collecting data. It’s a strategic tool that allows businesses to gain a competitive advantage while making the best use of their resources. Research reveals valuable insights into your target audience about their preferences, buying habits, and emerging demands — all of which help you unlock new opportunities to grow your business.

When done correctly, market research can minimize risks and losses, spur growth, and position you as a leader in your industry. 

Let’s explore the basic building blocks of market research and how to collect and use data to move your company forward:

Table of Contents

What Is Market Research?

Why is market research important, market analysis example, 5 types of market research, what are common market research questions, what are the limitations of market research, how to do market research, improving your market research with radarly.

Market Research Definition: The process of gathering, analyzing, and interpreting information about a market or audience.

Market research studies consumer behavior to better understand how they perceive products or services. These insights help businesses identify ways to grow their current offering, create new products or services, and improve brand trust and brand recognition .

You might also hear market research referred to as market analysis or consumer research .

Traditionally, market research has taken the form of focus groups, surveys, interviews, and even competitor analysis . But with modern analytics and research tools, businesses can now capture deeper insights from a wider variety of sources, including social media, online reviews, and customer interactions. These extra layers of intel can help companies gain a more comprehensive understanding of their audience.

With consumer preferences and markets evolving at breakneck speeds, businesses need a way to stay in touch with what people need and want. That’s why the importance of market research cannot be overstated.

Market research offers a proactive way to identify these trends and make adjustments to product development, marketing strategies , and overall operations. This proactive approach can help businesses stay ahead of the curve and remain agile as markets shift.

Market research examples abound — given the number of ways companies can get inside the minds of their customers, simply skimming through your business’s social media comments can be a form of market research.

A restaurant chain might use market research methods to learn more about consumers’ evolving dining habits. These insights might be used to offer new menu items, re-examine their pricing strategies, or even open new locations in different markets, for example.

A consumer electronics company might use market research for similar purposes. For instance, market research may reveal how consumers are using their smart devices so they can develop innovative features.

Market research can be applied to a wide range of use cases, including:

• Testing new product ideas
• Improve existing products
• Entering new markets
• Right-sizing their physical footprints
• Improving brand image and awareness
• Gaining insights into competitors via competitive intelligence

Ultimately, companies can lean on market research techniques to stay ahead of trends and competitors while improving the lives of their customers.

Market research methods take different forms, and you don’t have to limit yourself to just one. Let’s review the most common market research techniques and the insights they deliver.

1. Interviews

3. Focus Groups

4. Observations

5. AI-Driven Market Research

One-on-one interviews are one of the most common market research techniques. Beyond asking direct questions, skilled interviewers can uncover deeper motivations and emotions that drive purchasing decisions. Researchers can elicit more detailed and nuanced responses they might not receive via other methods, such as self-guided surveys.

Interviews also create the opportunity to build rapport with customers and prospects. Establishing a connection with interviewees can encourage them to open up and share their candid thoughts, which can enrich your findings. Researchers also have the opportunity to ask clarifying questions and dig deeper based on individual responses.

Market research surveys provide an easy entry into the consumer psyche. They’re cost-effective to produce and allow researchers to reach lots of people in a short time. They’re also user-friendly for consumers, which allows companies to capture more responses from more people.

Big data and data analytics are making traditional surveys more valuable. Researchers can apply these tools to elicit a deeper understanding from responses and uncover hidden patterns and correlations within survey data that were previously undetectable.

The ways in which surveys are conducted are also changing. With the rise of social media and other online channels, brands and consumers alike have more ways to engage with each other, lending to a continuous approach to market research surveys.

3. Focus groups

Focus groups are “group interviews” designed to gain collective insights. This interactive setting allows participants to express their thoughts and feelings openly, giving researchers richer insights beyond yes-or-no responses.

One of the key benefits of using focus groups is the opportunity for participants to interact with one another. They spark discussions while sharing diverse viewpoints. These sessions can uncover underlying motivations and attitudes that may not be easily expressed through other research methods.

Observing your customers “in the wild” might feel informal, but it can be one of the most revealing market research techniques of all. That’s because you might not always know the right questions to ask. By simply observing, you can surface insights you might not have known to look for otherwise.

This method also delivers raw, authentic, unfiltered data. There’s no room for bias and no potential for participants to accidentally skew the data. Researchers can also pick up on non-verbal cues and gestures that other research methods may fail to capture.

5. AI-driven market research

One of the newer methods of market research is the use of AI-driven market research tools to collect and analyze insights on your behalf. AI customer intelligence tools and consumer insights software like Meltwater Radarly take an always-on approach by going wherever your audience is and continuously predicting behaviors based on current behaviors.

By leveraging advanced algorithms, machine learning, and big data analysis , AI enables companies to uncover deep-seated patterns and correlations within large datasets that would be near impossible for human researchers to identify. This not only leads to more accurate and reliable findings but also allows businesses to make informed decisions with greater confidence.

Tip: Learn how to use Meltwater as a research tool , how Meltwater uses AI , and learn more about consumer insights and about consumer insights in the fashion industry .

No matter the market research methods you use, market research’s effectiveness lies in the questions you ask. These questions should be designed to elicit honest responses that will help you reach your goals.

Examples of common market research questions include:

Demographic market research questions

• What is your age range?
• What is your occupation?
• What is your household income level?
• What is your educational background?
• What is your gender?

Product or service usage market research questions

• How long have you been using [product/service]?
• How frequently do you use [product/service]?
• What do you like most about [product/service]?
• Have you experienced any problems using [product/service]?
• How could we improve [product/service]?
• Why did you choose [product/service] over a competitor’s [product/service]?

Brand perception market research questions

• How familiar are you with our brand?
• What words do you associate with our brand?
• How do you feel about our brand?
• What makes you trust our brand?
• What sets our brand apart from competitors?
• What would make you recommend our brand to others?

Buying behavior market research questions

• What do you look for in a [product/service]?
• What features in a [product/service] are important to you?
• How much time do you need to choose a [product/service]?
• How do you discover new products like [product/service]?
• Do you prefer to purchase [product/service] online or in-store?
• How do you research [product/service] before making a purchase?
• How often do you buy [product/service]?
• How important is pricing when buying [product/service]?
• What would make you switch to another brand of [product/service]?

Customer satisfaction market research questions

• How happy have you been with [product/service]?
• What would make you more satisfied with [product/service]?
• How likely are you to continue using [product/service]?

Bonus Tip: Compiling these questions into a market research template can streamline your efforts.

Market research can offer powerful insights, but it also has some limitations. One key limitation is the potential for bias. Researchers may unconsciously skew results based on their own preconceptions or desires, which can make your findings inaccurate.

• Depending on your market research methods, your findings may be outdated by the time you sit down to analyze and act on them. Some methods struggle to account for rapidly changing consumer preferences and behaviors.
• There’s also the risk of self-reported data (common in online surveys). Consumers might not always accurately convey their true feelings or intentions. They might provide answers they think researchers are looking for or misunderstand the question altogether.
• There’s also the potential to miss emerging or untapped markets . Researchers are digging deeper into what (or who) they already know. This means you might be leaving out a key part of the story without realizing it.

Still, the benefits of market research cannot be understated, especially when you supplement traditional market research methods with modern tools and technology.

Let’s put it all together and explore how to do market research step-by-step to help you leverage all its benefits.

Step 1: Define your objectives

You’ll get more from your market research when you hone in on a specific goal : What do you want to know, and how will this knowledge help your business?

This step will also help you define your target audience. You’ll need to ask the right people the right questions to collect the information you want. Understand the characteristics of the audience and what gives them authority to answer your questions.

Step 2: Select your market research methods

Choose one or more of the market research methods (interviews, surveys, focus groups, observations, and/or AI-driven tools) to fuel your research strategy.

Certain methods might work better than others for specific goals . For example, if you want basic feedback from customers about a product, a simple survey might suffice. If you want to hone in on serious pain points to develop a new product, a focus group or interview might work best.

You can also source secondary research , such as industry reports or analyses from large market research firms. These can help you gather preliminary information and inform your approach.

Step 3: Develop your research tools

Prior to working with participants, you’ll need to craft your survey or interview questions, interview guides, and other tools. These tools will help you capture the right information , weed out non-qualifying participants, and keep your information organized.

You should also have a system for recording responses to ensure data accuracy and privacy. Test your processes before speaking with participants so you can spot and fix inefficiencies or errors.

Step 4: Conduct the market research

With a system in place, you can start looking for candidates to contribute to your market research. This might include distributing surveys to current customers or recruiting participants who fit a specific profile, for example.

Set a time frame for conducting your research. You might collect responses over the course of a few days, weeks, or even months. If you’re using AI tools to gather data, choose a data range for your data to focus on the most relevant information.

Step 5: Analyze and apply your findings

Review your findings while looking for trends and patterns. AI tools can come in handy in this phase by analyzing large amounts of data on your behalf.

Compile your findings into an easy-to-read report and highlight key takeaways and next steps. Reports aren’t useful unless the reader can understand and act on them.

Tip: Learn more about trend forecasting , trend detection , and trendspotting .

Meltwater’s Radarly consumer intelligence suite helps you reap the benefits of market research on an ongoing basis. Using a combination of AI, data science, and market research expertise, Radarly scans multiple global data sources to learn what people are talking about, the actions they’re taking, and how they’re feeling about specific brands.

Our tools are created by market research experts and designed to help researchers uncover what they want to know (and what they don’t know they want to know). Get data-driven insights at scale with information that’s always relevant, always accurate, and always tailored to your organization’s needs.

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Market research is a cornerstone of all successful, strategic businesses. It can also be daunting for entrepreneurs looking to launch a startup or start a side hustle . What is market research, anyway? And how do you…do it?

We’ll walk you through absolutely everything you need to know about the market research process so that by the end of this guide, you’ll be an expert in market research too. And what’s more important: you’ll have actionable steps you can take to start collecting your own market research.

What Is Market Research?

Market research is the organized process of gathering information about your target customers and market. Market research can help you better understand customer behavior and competitor strengths and weaknesses, as well as provide insight for the best strategies in launching new businesses and products. There are different ways to approach market research, including primary and secondary research and qualitative and quantitative research. The strongest approaches will include a combination of all four.

“Virtually every business can benefit from conducting some market research,” says Niles Koenigsberg of Real FiG Advertising + Marketing . “Market research can help you piece together your [business’s] strengths and weaknesses, along with your prospective opportunities, so that you can understand where your unique differentiators may lie.” Well-honed market research will help your brand stand out from the competition and help you see what you need to do to lead the market. It can also do so much more.

The Purposes of Market Research

Why do market research? It can help you…

• Pinpoint your target market, create buyer personas, and develop a more holistic understanding of your customer base and market.
• Understand current market conditions to evaluate risks and anticipate how your product or service will perform.
• Validate a concept prior to launch.
• Identify gaps in the market that your competitors have created or overlooked.
• Solve problems that have been left unresolved by the existing product/brand offerings.
• Identify opportunities and solutions for new products or services.
• Develop killer marketing strategies .

What Are the Benefits of Market Research?

Strong market research can help your business in many ways. It can…

• Strengthen your market position.
• Help you identify your strengths and weaknesses.
• Help you identify your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses.
• Minimize risk.
• Center your customers’ experience from the get-go.
• Help you create a dynamic strategy based on market conditions and customer needs/demands.

What Are the Basic Methods of Market Research?

The basic methods of market research include surveys, personal interviews, customer observation, and the review of secondary research. In addition to these basic methods, a forward-thinking market research approach incorporates data from the digital landscape like social media analysis, SEO research, gathering feedback via forums, and more. Throughout this guide, we will cover each of the methods commonly used in market research to give you a comprehensive overview.

Primary vs. Secondary Market Research

Primary and secondary are the two main types of market research you can do. The latter relies on research conducted by others. Primary research, on the other hand, refers to the fact-finding efforts you conduct on your own.

This approach is limited, however. It’s likely that the research objectives of these secondary data points differ from your own, and it can be difficult to confirm the veracity of their findings.

Primary Market Research

Primary research is more labor intensive, but it generally yields data that is exponentially more actionable. It can be conducted through interviews, surveys, online research, and your own data collection. Every new business should engage in primary market research prior to launch. It will help you validate that your idea has traction, and it will give you the information you need to help minimize financial risk.

You can hire an agency to conduct this research on your behalf. This brings the benefit of expertise, as you’ll likely work with a market research analyst. The downside is that hiring an agency can be expensive—too expensive for many burgeoning entrepreneurs. That brings us to the second approach. You can also do the market research yourself, which substantially reduces the financial burden of starting a new business .

Secondary Market Research

Secondary research includes resources like government databases and industry-specific data and publications. It can be beneficial to start your market research with secondary sources because it’s widely available and often free-to-access. This information will help you gain a broad overview of the market conditions for your new business.

Identify Your Goals and Your Audience

Before you begin conducting interviews or sending out surveys, you need to set your market research goals. At the end of your market research process, you want to have a clear idea of who your target market is—including demographic information like age, gender, and where they live—but you also want to start with a rough idea of who your audience might be and what you’re trying to achieve with market research.

You can pinpoint your objectives by asking yourself a series of guiding questions:

• What are you hoping to discover through your research?
• Who are you hoping to serve better because of your findings?
• What do you think your market is?
• Who are your competitors?
• Are you testing the reception of a new product category or do you want to see if your product or service solves the problem left by a current gap in the market?
• Are you just…testing the waters to get a sense of how people would react to a new brand?

Once you’ve narrowed down the “what” of your market research goals, you’re ready to move onto how you can best achieve them. Think of it like algebra. Many math problems start with “solve for x.” Once you know what you’re looking for, you can get to work trying to find it. It’s a heck of a lot easier to solve a problem when you know you’re looking for “x” than if you were to say “I’m gonna throw some numbers out there and see if I find a variable.”

How to Do Market Research

This guide outlines every component of a comprehensive market research effort. Take into consideration the goals you have established for your market research, as they will influence which of these elements you’ll want to include in your market research strategy.

Secondary Data

Secondary data allows you to utilize pre-existing data to garner a sense of market conditions and opportunities. You can rely on published market studies, white papers, and public competitive information to start your market research journey.

Secondary data, while useful, is limited and cannot substitute your own primary data. It’s best used for quantitative data that can provide background to your more specific inquiries.

Find Your Customers Online

Once you’ve identified your target market, you can use online gathering spaces and forums to gain insights and give yourself a competitive advantage. Rebecca McCusker of The Creative Content Shop recommends internet recon as a vital tool for gaining a sense of customer needs and sentiment. “Read their posts and comments on forums, YouTube video comments, Facebook group [comments], and even Amazon/Goodreads book comments to get in their heads and see what people are saying.”

If you’re interested in engaging with your target demographic online, there are some general rules you should follow. First, secure the consent of any group moderators to ensure that you are acting within the group guidelines. Failure to do so could result in your eviction from the group.

Not all comments have the same research value. “Focus on the comments and posts with the most comments and highest engagement,” says McCusker. These high-engagement posts can give you a sense of what is already connecting and gaining traction within the group.

Social media can also be a great avenue for finding interview subjects. “LinkedIn is very useful if your [target customer] has a very specific job or works in a very specific industry or sector. It’s amazing the amount of people that will be willing to help,” explains Miguel González, a marketing executive at Dealers League . “My advice here is BE BRAVE, go to LinkedIn, or even to people you know and ask them, do quick interviews and ask real people that belong to that market and segment and get your buyer persona information first hand.”

Market research interviews can provide direct feedback on your brand, product, or service and give you a better understanding of consumer pain points and interests.

When organizing your market research interviews, you want to pay special attention to the sample group you’re selecting, as it will directly impact the information you receive. According to Tanya Zhang, the co-founder of Nimble Made , you want to first determine whether you want to choose a representative sample—for example, interviewing people who match each of the buyer persona/customer profiles you’ve developed—or a random sample.

“A sampling of your usual persona styles, for example, can validate details that you’ve already established about your product, while a random sampling may [help you] discover a new way people may use your product,” Zhang says.

Market Surveys

Market surveys solicit customer inclinations regarding your potential product or service through a series of open-ended questions. This direct outreach to your target audience can provide information on your customers’ preferences, attitudes, buying potential, and more.

Every expert we asked voiced unanimous support for market surveys as a powerful tool for market research. With the advent of various survey tools with accessible pricing—or free use—it’s never been easier to assemble, disseminate, and gather market surveys. While it should also be noted that surveys shouldn’t replace customer interviews , they can be used to supplement customer interviews to give you feedback from a broader audience.

Who to Include in Market Surveys

• Current customers
• Past customers
• Your existing audience (such as social media/newsletter audiences)

Example Questions to Include in Market Surveys

While the exact questions will vary for each business, here are some common, helpful questions that you may want to consider for your market survey. Demographic Questions: the questions that help you understand, demographically, who your target customers are:

• “What is your age?”
• “Where do you live?”
• “What is your gender identity?”
• “What is your household income?”
• “What is your household size?”
• “What do you do for a living?”
• “What is your highest level of education?”

Product-Based Questions: Whether you’re seeking feedback for an existing brand or an entirely new one, these questions will help you get a sense of how people feel about your business, product, or service:

• “How well does/would our product/service meet your needs?”
• “How does our product/service compare to similar products/services that you use?”
• “How long have you been a customer?” or “What is the likelihood that you would be a customer of our brand?

Personal/Informative Questions: the deeper questions that help you understand how your audience thinks and what they care about.

• “What are your biggest challenges?”
• “What’s most important to you?”
• “What do you do for fun (hobbies, interests, activities)?”
• “Where do you seek new information when researching a new product?”
• “How do you like to make purchases?”
• “What is your preferred method for interacting with a brand?”

Survey Tools

Online survey tools make it easy to distribute surveys and collect responses. The best part is that there are many free tools available. If you’re making your own online survey, you may want to consider SurveyMonkey, Typeform, Google Forms, or Zoho Survey.

Competitive Analysis

A competitive analysis is a breakdown of how your business stacks up against the competition. There are many different ways to conduct this analysis. One of the most popular methods is a SWOT analysis, which stands for “strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.” This type of analysis is helpful because it gives you a more robust understanding of why a customer might choose a competitor over your business. Seeing how you stack up against the competition can give you the direction you need to carve out your place as a market leader.

Social Media Analysis

Social media has fundamentally changed the market research landscape, making it easier than ever to engage with a wide swath of consumers. Follow your current or potential competitors on social media to see what they’re posting and how their audience is engaging with it. Social media can also give you a lower cost opportunity for testing different messaging and brand positioning.

SEO Analysis and Opportunities

SEO analysis can help you identify the digital competition for getting the word out about your brand, product, or service. You won’t want to overlook this valuable information. Search listening tools offer a novel approach to understanding the market and generating the content strategy that will drive business. Tools like Google Trends and Awario can streamline this process.

Ready to Kick Your Business Into High Gear?

Now that you’ve completed the guide to market research you know you’re ready to put on your researcher hat to give your business the best start. Still not sure how actually… launch the thing? Our free mini-course can run you through the essentials for starting your side hustle .

About Mary Kate Miller

Mary Kate Miller writes about small business, real estate, and finance. In addition to writing for Foundr, her work has been published by The Washington Post, Teen Vogue, Bustle, and more. She lives in Chicago.

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8 Types of Market Research (Updated 2024)

Market research is the process of gathering, analyzing, and interpreting consumer data to make informed business decisions.

It is an indispensable tool that empowers companies to understand their audience, refine their strategies, and stay ahead in an ever-evolving market. In this piece, we'll explore the eight essential types of market research that form the backbone of strategic decision-making. 

Primary market research 

Primary research is the research data that you collect yourself by going directly to your target audience. This can be done a number of ways, but the most popular are often through focus groups, interviews, and surveys. 

Focus Groups

A focus group is a research method that brings together a small sample of people to answer questions about your product, brand, or category in a moderated setting. This group is often selected based on predefined demographic or behavioral traits, and the questions are designed to shed light on a specific topic of interest. 

While this approach is flexible and can provide deep insights, it does come with drawbacks. A group setting can cause a number of bias's to emerge, like social desirability bias (the desire to answer questions “correctly” instead of honestly) or acquiescence bias (a desire to please the interviewer). 

A survey is simply a collection of closed and open ended questions that are sent to a targeted group of respondents, usually digitally. Surveys are a great way to carry out your own primary research, allowing you to gather responses digitally instead of having to physically source participants. They also allow you to gather consumer data at a larger scale. But, much like anything, it does come with some drawbacks. Long monotonous surveys can cause respondent fatigue, which degrades the overall data quality. 

Secondary Market Research 

Secondary research involves using data that has already been collected, analyzed, and published; usually by an agency or reporting group. One of the key advantages to this type of research is that it allows you to get insights without having to collect the data yourself. It can save you time, budget, and allows you to build upon existing knowledge. 

But secondary research has its disadvantages. One major drawback is the fact that the data is not specific to your exact market, brand, or product, so making assumptions based upon it can be dubious. There is also no guarantee that the data you need is credible, authentic, or even available. 

Quantitative Market Research 

Quantitative market research is the collection of data that is quantifiable in nature. This can include responses to surveys, polls, or questionnaires. Researchers collect this type of data because it provides hard facts on a brand, product, or market. 

Qualitative Market Research 

Qualitative Research is the collection of data that is non-numerical in nature, making it difficult to measure. It often comes from focus groups or one-on-one interviews, where insights are derived from free-flowing discussions. Researchers will often collect this type of data to add more depth and perspective to their foundational quantitative market research. 

Branding Research 

Brand research is the process of gathering feedback from past, present, and prospective customers to better understand how your brand is perceived in the market. This type of research allows you to measure the ROI of your -often intangible- brand building efforts. 

Using brand trackers and surveys, you can measure and analyze key performance indicators like: 

Brand awareness 

Understand how familiar the market is with your brand.

Brand perception

Find out what consumers really think about your brand.

Brand usage

Determine how often customers purchase and use your products.

Brand preference

Measure the degree to which consumers choose your brand over competitors.

Brand loyalty

Understand the likelihood of customers continuing to engage with your brand.

Net Promoter score (NPS) 

Quantify the probability that a customer will recommend your brand.

You can use a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods, like focus groups and surveys, to gather the insights you need . 

Product Research 

Product research is the process of applying market research techniques during your product development cycle. It is used to make sure your products are ready for launch and perform as well as possible . 

Product research can be used at nearly every stage of your product development for a number of reasons: 

Find gaps in the market

Screen product ideas and prototypes , test product designs and pricing, better understand the wants, needs, and preferences of your ideal customers, find the best messaging to describe your product.

Primary research methods will be the most useful here, with surveys and experiments ranking among the most popular ways to gather quantitative data. Some specific tools you can use include:

Concept testing for screening your product ideas, prototypes, and designs . 

Conjoint analysis or MaxDiff analysis for finding the right set of features for your product.  

Gabor-Granger or Van Westendorp to  help you find your optimal price. 

Customer Research 

Customer research explores the preferences, behaviors, influences, and needs of your target customers. The goal is to better understand the people who buy your products, and find ways to keep them happy. Some common themes of customer research include: 

Creating customer segments / buyer personas

Measuring metrics like customer satisfaction, loyalty, or a net promoter score (nps), checking in on the customer experience at various touchpoints.

Surveys are often the most popular way to gather customer research at specific points along the customer journey.

Marketing Research 

Marketing research uses tools and techniques from market research to improve marketing impact and better understand audiences . It is used to collect feedback from current and target customers that can be used to inform your messaging, advertising, and overall marketing strategy. 

Marketing research is often used to: 

Understand what your audience wants, where they are, and what messaging resonates with them to ensure marketing ROI. 

Learn the topics, formats, and tone your audience prefers to deliver blog, video, and social content that wins. 

Better align your messaging to speak the language of your customers. 

A mix of surveys, ad testing, messaging testing, and tracking studies be useful for this type of research. 

Market Research with SightX

SightX is an AI-driven market research platform that offers you a single unified solution for product, brand, marketing, and pricing research. While powerful enough for insights teams at Fortune 500 companies, our user-friendly interface makes it simple for anyone to start, optimize, and scale their research. 

And with our new Generative AI consultant, Ada, you can harness the power of OpenAI’s GPT to transform your marketing research and insights. Collaborating with Ada is like having an expert researcher, brilliant statistician, and ace marketer on your team, helping you ask the right questions, choose the best experiments, pick out key insights, and seamlessly apply them to your business. 

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What are the Market Research Methods?

• August 15, 2023
• Topic: Brand Strategy , Corporate , Corporate Trends , Customer Experience , Market Analysis , Product Lifecycle
• Resource type: Insights Blog

So, you have a question, but you are unsure of how to get your answer. Maybe you are wondering who your target audience is or why you lost out on a deal to your competition. Maybe you are looking to expand into a new market and want to know more about the customers and competitors in the industry. While these examples are similar in the way they help you understand your business better, they all require different market research methodologies to arrive at the answer.  

What are Market Research Methodologies?  

Research methodologies are various ways to perform research to understand your problem. The correct type to employ depends on the answers you are seeking, the information you have, and the information you need to gather. There are many different methods, but most fall into four categories: data analytics, survey, qualitative, and secondary.

In this post, we will provide an overview of the four main research methodologies along with benefits and challenges of each.   

Custom or Syndicated Research  

In addition to the types of methodologies, there are two types of funded research: custom and syndicated.   

Custom research is funded by a single company and is focused on answering the key questions the business seeks to understand. Though more costly, the research design, implementation, and results are unique and targeted toward addressing the funding company’s needs.  

On the other hand, syndicated research is not curated or funded by a specific client; a market research company conducts it to offer data such as industry statistics, current best practices, or recent trends. Though not directly tied to a single company’s situation, businesses often buy syndicated research to gather perspective on their performance and identify areas where custom research can help provide more insight.   

The Four Types Of Market Research   

Data analytics  .

Data analytics research involves collecting and analyzing large sets of data to derive answers, uncover patterns, and predict future outcomes. This method helps you identify and understand things you are aware of but don’t yet understand.

Data can come from a variety of sources including CRM data, historical transactional data, survey data, a third-party publisher, and more to build a holistic map of the situation, identify gaps and discern trends. Data analytics is the most common research method with almost 70% of companies using it in at least one market research project in the past year.  

For example, you might have large sets of historical data and know there is a data-backed answer for how to segment your customers, but you have yet to compile all your information together to identify the answer.  

Benefits and Challenges

Benefits: Analyzing historical data provides a holistic view of a situation by combining different sets of data and modeling potential scenarios and outcomes. You can confirm hypotheses, break biases, and help build cases internally.

Challenges: This method requires a lot of data, and some of that data may be hard to access, hard to generate, or not easily analyzed. This method also requires a lot of time, money, and resources to acquire and parse the correct data.   

Survey research involves gathering opinions, preferences, and experiences by asking a set of questions to a targeted group of people. The focus of survey research is to test theories, assumptions, and hypotheses. The answers are collected from a representative sample of a targeted audience, allowing the researchers to quantify data and generalize the results to the wider population with a reasonable margin of error and strong confidence level.

Survey data can be collected from consumers, other business decision-makers, or your customer lists. Surveys are a very popular market research methodology with over 60% of companies performing at least one survey in the last year.  

For example, you may be wondering how satisfied your customers are, what factors drive satisfaction, and how you compare to key competitors in the market. By surveying your customers and those of key competitors you can understand the drivers of satisfaction and your relative strengths and opportunity areas in the market.  

Benefits and Challenges 

Benefits : Surveys provide an aggregate but statistically significant picture that companies can leverage to make decisions that align with their audiences’ preferences. Surveys also offer the ability to segment answers based on segments of the audience to analyze how different groups respond to the same questions.   

Challenges: Surveys are a fixed set of questions and cannot be adjusted once the survey has been deployed. Responses are limited to the questions posed by the researcher and don’t allow for open-ended qualitative responses. Surveys require many respondents, and depending on the target audience, it can be challenging to find a large enough sample size to provide statistically significant results. Lastly, surveys need to incentivize respondents, which could lead to a high price tag.  

Qualitative Methodologies   

Qualitative research focuses on targeted insights around concepts, opinions, and preferences. Unlike quantitative methods, these market research methodologies leverage a smaller set of data and respondents but allow for more in-depth answers. It also allows for companies to gather follow-up data that delves deeper into the reasoning behind responses  

This method is exploratory in nature to help you formulate hypothesis and establish directional themes or trends. Qualitative research also helps you understand the underlying motivations, attitudes, and perceptions of respondents.  

 The two most common qualitative research methodologies are in-depth interviews and focus groups.  

In-depth interviews  

This market research methodology involves one-on-one conversations between interviewers and those from the target audience. The interview follows a pre-determined set of questions to reveal sentiment, decision-making processes, and unmet needs. With only 40% of companies conducting them, interviews are the least used methodology, likely a result of the challenges mentioned below.  

Benefits : Interviews provide the ability to gather more in-depth answers on customer preferences by allowing researchers to ask follow-up questions to probe deeper and further clarify responses. It also allows respondents to answer in their own words rather than be bound by the available responses offered by a survey. 

Challenges: Interviews are responses from a small group of people and the results cannot be generalized to a wider audience. They are also very challenging to implement. Often, it is a struggle to identify and incentivize enough participants, and the price per respondent can be costly depending on their rarity and level of expertise. It is also critical to enlist an experienced interviewer to ensure that both the initial and follow-up questions are tailored to gather accurate information that fully addresses your target questions.   

  Focus groups   

These facilitator-led group discussions reveal perceptions of or reception to a concept or idea. While the facilitator guides the meeting, the direction of the conversation is determined by the participants creating organic responses that stem from participant perception. Just over half of companies have conducted a focus group in the last year.   

Benefits: F ocus groups allow for exploration of concepts and physical products beyond set responses like those available in through a survey. The social aspect of the focus group can also gather multiple points of view on a topic in one setting. This can add additional insight for both participants in their ongoing feedback and facilitators for their final analysis.

Challenges: Focus groups are kept small to gather meaningful insights from a group of people, something that would be difficult if the group was too large. As such, the sample size is very small, and the responses can‘t be extrapolated to a larger audience.  It is also challenging to find a group of qualified participants that are all available at the same time.

Traditionally, focus groups were conducted in person and there was a higher cost to host the group live. Now depending on the product or concept being reviewed, focus groups can be conducted over video calls, lessening the burden of cost and logistics, however the cost to incentivize members to take part remains. Similar to interviews, you will need to enlist an experienced moderator that can facilitate the conversation and help direct it as needed to ensure the target questions are addressed  

Secondary Research Methodologies     

Secondary research, a lso known as desk research, is leveraging data that already exists to answer your questions. This market research method is helpful for answering questions or deepening your understanding of things you are not directly familiar with but understand. It can be used to understand what others in your market are doing, identify potential markets for growth or expansion, or allow you to compare your organization to others on key performance indicators.  

For example, you might understand that customer preferences have affected your market, but you don’t know the exact changes. However, others have already done related research that can provide context or direct answers to your question. Secondary research is a very popular method with over half ( 55% ) of companies conducting secondary research to get insights they need for their strategies.   

Benefits: Secondary research is one of the quicker methodologies as it leverages existing data. The bulk of the time is spent identifying the problem, accessing existing data, and consolidating it for analysis and insights.   

Challenges: Some of the data you need might require payment, which would increase the cost of the overall project. There is also the risk that a data point needed for your analysis does not exist, requiring you to either speak to an expert or conduct your own research to fill in the gap.  

Picking the Right Research Methodology  

Though there are many options to choose from, the correct market research methodology to implement will be guided by the information you already have and the questions you are trying to answer.

Before you start your research, begin by listing what you know and what you are looking to learn. Some choices are very clear cut. For example, are you looking to learn more about your company’s operations in the hopes of identifying a better strategy? Since you have access to your own data and are looking to learn more, data analytics would be your best path forward.  

Sometimes choosing the right market research methodology might require more thought. For example, are you looking to launch a new product and want to learn more about customer preferences? You could interview customers or launch a focus group, but do you know what questions to ask? And as the sample pool is so small, the results from qualitative methods should not be used to make assumptions about a larger customer base.

The best place to start would be to conduct a survey to the target audience to get a basic understanding of the market and potential customer preferences. If it is a well-known customer base, you may be able to through secondary research by leveraging existing data to analyze the market.  

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Market Research: A How-To Guide and Template

Discover the different types of market research, how to conduct your own market research, and use a free template to help you along the way.

MARKET RESEARCH KIT

5 Research and Planning Templates + a Free Guide on How to Use Them in Your Market Research

Updated: 02/21/24

Published: 02/21/24

Today's consumers have a lot of power. As a business, you must have a deep understanding of who your buyers are and what influences their purchase decisions.

Enter: Market Research.

Whether you're new to market research or not, I created this guide to help you conduct a thorough study of your market, target audience, competition, and more. Let’s dive in.

Table of Contents

What is market research?

Primary vs. secondary research, types of market research, how to do market research, market research report template, market research examples.

Market research is the process of gathering information about your target market and customers to verify the success of a new product, help your team iterate on an existing product, or understand brand perception to ensure your team is effectively communicating your company's value effectively.

Market research can answer various questions about the state of an industry. But if you ask me, it's hardly a crystal ball that marketers can rely on for insights on their customers.

Market researchers investigate several areas of the market, and it can take weeks or even months to paint an accurate picture of the business landscape.

However, researching just one of those areas can make you more intuitive to who your buyers are and how to deliver value that no other business is offering them right now.

How? Consider these two things:

• Your competitors also have experienced individuals in the industry and a customer base. It‘s very possible that your immediate resources are, in many ways, equal to those of your competition’s immediate resources. Seeking a larger sample size for answers can provide a better edge.
• Your customers don't represent the attitudes of an entire market. They represent the attitudes of the part of the market that is already drawn to your brand.

The market research services market is growing rapidly, which signifies a strong interest in market research as we enter 2024. The market is expected to grow from roughly $75 billion in 2021 to $90.79 billion in 2025 .

Free Market Research Kit

• SWOT Analysis Template
• Survey Template
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Why do market research?

Market research allows you to meet your buyer where they are.

As our world becomes louder and demands more of our attention, this proves invaluable.

By understanding your buyer's problems, pain points, and desired solutions, you can aptly craft your product or service to naturally appeal to them.

Market research also provides insight into the following:

• Where your target audience and current customers conduct their product or service research
• Which of your competitors your target audience looks to for information, options, or purchases
• What's trending in your industry and in the eyes of your buyer
• Who makes up your market and what their challenges are
• What influences purchases and conversions among your target audience
• Consumer attitudes about a particular topic, pain, product, or brand
• Whether there‘s demand for the business initiatives you’re investing in
• Unaddressed or underserved customer needs that can be flipped into selling opportunity
• Attitudes about pricing for a particular product or service

Ultimately, market research allows you to get information from a larger sample size of your target audience, eliminating bias and assumptions so that you can get to the heart of consumer attitudes.

As a result, you can make better business decisions.

To give you an idea of how extensive market research can get , consider that it can either be qualitative or quantitative in nature — depending on the studies you conduct and what you're trying to learn about your industry.

Qualitative research is concerned with public opinion, and explores how the market feels about the products currently available in that market.

Quantitative research is concerned with data, and looks for relevant trends in the information that's gathered from public records.

That said, there are two main types of market research that your business can conduct to collect actionable information on your products: primary research and secondary research.

Primary Research

Primary research is the pursuit of first-hand information about your market and the customers within your market.

It's useful when segmenting your market and establishing your buyer personas.

Primary market research tends to fall into one of two buckets:

• Exploratory Primary Research: This kind of primary market research normally takes place as a first step — before any specific research has been performed — and may involve open-ended interviews or surveys with small numbers of people.
• Specific Primary Research: This type of research often follows exploratory research. In specific research, you take a smaller or more precise segment of your audience and ask questions aimed at solving a suspected problem.

Secondary Research

Secondary research is all the data and public records you have at your disposal to draw conclusions from (e.g. trend reports, market statistics, industry content, and sales data you already have on your business).

Secondary research is particularly useful for analyzing your competitors . The main buckets your secondary market research will fall into include:

• Public Sources: These sources are your first and most-accessible layer of material when conducting secondary market research. They're often free to find and review — like government statistics (e.g., from the U.S. Census Bureau ).
• Commercial Sources: These sources often come in the form of pay-to-access market reports, consisting of industry insight compiled by a research agency like Pew , Gartner , or Forrester .
• Internal Sources: This is the market data your organization already has like average revenue per sale, customer retention rates, and other historical data that can help you draw conclusions on buyer needs.
• Focus Groups
• Product/ Service Use Research
• Observation-Based Research
• Buyer Persona Research
• Market Segmentation Research
• Pricing Research
• Competitive Analysis Research
• Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty Research
• Brand Awareness Research
• Campaign Research

1. Interviews

Interviews allow for face-to-face discussions so you can allow for a natural flow of conversation. Your interviewees can answer questions about themselves to help you design your buyer personas and shape your entire marketing strategy.

2. Focus Groups

Focus groups provide you with a handful of carefully-selected people that can test out your product and provide feedback. This type of market research can give you ideas for product differentiation.

3. Product/Service Use Research

Product or service use research offers insight into how and why your audience uses your product or service. This type of market research also gives you an idea of the product or service's usability for your target audience.

4. Observation-Based Research

Observation-based research allows you to sit back and watch the ways in which your target audience members go about using your product or service, what works well in terms of UX , and which aspects of it could be improved.

5. Buyer Persona Research

Buyer persona research gives you a realistic look at who makes up your target audience, what their challenges are, why they want your product or service, and what they need from your business or brand.

6. Market Segmentation Research

Market segmentation research allows you to categorize your target audience into different groups (or segments) based on specific and defining characteristics. This way, you can determine effective ways to meet their needs.

7. Pricing Research

Pricing research helps you define your pricing strategy . It gives you an idea of what similar products or services in your market sell for and what your target audience is willing to pay.

8. Competitive Analysis

Competitive analyses give you a deep understanding of the competition in your market and industry. You can learn about what's doing well in your industry and how you can separate yourself from the competition .

9. Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty Research

Customer satisfaction and loyalty research gives you a look into how you can get current customers to return for more business and what will motivate them to do so (e.g., loyalty programs , rewards, remarkable customer service).

10. Brand Awareness Research

Brand awareness research tells you what your target audience knows about and recognizes from your brand. It tells you about the associations people make when they think about your business.

11. Campaign Research

Campaign research entails looking into your past campaigns and analyzing their success among your target audience and current customers. The goal is to use these learnings to inform future campaigns.

• Define your buyer persona.
• Identify a persona group to engage.
• Prepare research questions for your market research participants.
• List your primary competitors.
• Summarize your findings.

1. Define your buyer persona.

You have to understand who your customers are and how customers in your industry make buying decisions.

This is where your buyer personas come in handy. Buyer personas — sometimes referred to as marketing personas — are fictional, generalized representations of your ideal customers.

Use a free tool to create a buyer persona that your entire company can use to market, sell, and serve better.

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What Is Market Research?

4-minute read

• 21st March 2024

No matter your industry, conducting market research helps you keep up to date with shifting patterns and trends. But what’s the best way to collect the information you need for success? Don’t worry – we’ve got the answers. In this post, we’ll take you through everything you need to know about market research to stay competitive in an evolving ecommerce landscape. Keep reading to get started.

Market research is the process of collecting relevant information about a specific industry or market, such as details about a product or service, a target audience, and direct competitors. This research is then analyzed and presented in a business report , and the relevant data are applied to strategic marketing efforts. 

Market research can be primary or secondary – and both have their uses in business. Primary research involves collecting data directly from the source, such as through surveys, focus groups, interviews, or direct observations. Secondary research is analyzing and evaluating existing data from research that has already been published, such as market reports, government publications, or studies. Having a good balance of both is a good idea to ensure your research findings are as well-rounded as possible. 

There isn’t one right time to conduct market research – it can be conducted as often as necessary at various stages of a business’s life cycle. Market research can be especially beneficial when you’re: 

• Starting a business
• Launching a new product
• Expanding to a new market
• Responding to recent market changes
• Updating existing products or services
• Assessing customer satisfaction 

Types of Market Research

Many different types of market research exist, each with its own process and objective. Next, let’s take a closer look at some of the most common forms, ways to gather the data you need, and ways you can use the results.

Target Market Analysis

Analyzing your target market helps you understand the essential characteristics of your intended audience, including demographics, pain and gain points, and behavior patterns, to create buyer personas . Knowing your customer base allows you to tailor your products more precisely to meet specific needs – and ensures your marketing efforts are reaching the intended audience. You can conduct a target market analysis through informal outreach to current and former customers (e.g., surveys, interviews, and social media engagement).

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Competitor Analysis

A competitor analysis evaluates the strengths (and weaknesses) of your closest competitors. Learning from the successes and failures of other businesses in your industry helps you identify areas where your own business can improve. When assessing your competitors, evaluate the basics, such as pricing and size, and gather more in-depth information, such as their marketing and branding techniques, ratio of positive to negative customer feedback, and ranking on search engine results pages. 

Market Trends and Forecasting

Forecasting and evaluating rising market trends can help you predict the success of new products or services and decide the direction in which to take your business. Learning about social and cultural patterns and trends is valuable for adapting to changes and staying ahead of the competition. This approach also applies to technological developments, which often have a major impact on market dynamics, especially for ecommerce businesses. Many forecasting tools are available, so when selecting software, be sure to do your research to find the best fit for your specific business needs. 

Product and Service Feedback

Gathering feedback on your business’s products (or potential products) can help you get a better idea of customer preferences and expectations. To get an accurate representation of customer experiences, encourage all current and former customers to write a review or testimonial and let you know what they’d like to see from your business in the future.

SWOT Analysis

Another example of market research is a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis, which helps you identify internal and external factors that may impact your ability to capitalize on market trends and strategize accordingly.

Market research can be a valuable tool that helps you better understand your audience and take your business to the next level. No matter what market research strategy you use, Proofed can ensure your business’s reports are clear, actionable, and ready to present to your team. Schedule a call with our team today and start seeing results. 

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Diversity of Research Methodology : A Guide to Different Types of Research Methodology

• December 9, 2021

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Research is a methodology used by scientists from various fields to experiment with different topics of interest. Researchers do their experiments to either reject or accept a formulated hypothesis or to just study a topic in depth. The conclusions from such are mostly for the betterment of society and to enhance the knowledge about subjects that were not touched many times before. 

Research as a scientific tool helps these researchers to measure sample data with as minimum as possible biases and much higher accuracy rate. This helps them to confidently put forth a conclusion to the society knowing that the data gathered is legit and the results drawn from the studies are systematic and statistically sensible. 

Researchers adopt various methods of research that best suit their study. In this article we will be seeing various types of research methodology that are classified based on their common features and use.

What is the importance of research methodology?

Research methodology offers a systematic and structured framework that helps researchers gather, analyze, and interpret data to evaluate hypotheses. The various types of research methodology ensure that the results are reliable, meaningful, and valid. 

• A well-defined methodology offers credibility to your research findings. 
• It helps establish a clear path for other researchers to replicate the research and validate your result. 
• Different methodologies are suited for different data types and research goals. Choosing the right one ensures you gather precise and accurate data. 
• Selecting the proper research methodology helps optimize resource allocation. It ensures that you effectively utilize the time, budget, and resources to achieve the research objective.

17 Types of research methodology

Research types are classified based on their objective, depth of study, data analysis, time, and cost efficiency. Researchers are likely to use various types in combination for their study. 

Types of research methodology based on PURPOSE

01. Theoretical research

Also known as pure research or basic research. Theoretical research is used when the researcher wants to gather more information about a particular topic without considering its practical work. Such research is used mostly for documentaries and mathematical formulas, which give a better understanding of the subject. 

Example : Social research was conducted to understand the economic mentality of middle-class citizens.

02. Applied research

Applied research works to find a solution to a scientific problem. The main objective is to address the STEM fields, such as engineering, medicine, etc., which are more closely connected to human lives with their actual applications. There are two types of applied research:

• Technological applied research aims to enhance the efficiency of the products through betterments in the technological aspects. 
• Scientific applied research helps to generate a predictive analysis based on the available data, which will be even more helpful in the goods and services sector. 

Example : A business can analyze the customers’ purchase strategies and plan the marketing accordingly.

Read how Voxco helped Modus Research increase research efficiency with Voxco Online, CATI, IVR, and panel system.

Types of research methodology based on the DEPTH OF SCOPE

03. Exploratory research 

As the name suggests, exploratory research is used as a preliminary study for the topics about which there is no deeper knowledge explored yet. It acts as a reference to the further in-depth studies that will emerge from this hypothesis. As it is not a deep study, it focuses more on data collection that will explain the causes of the phenomena. 

Example : A study conducted to understand the relationship between millennials and social media usage. 

04. Descriptive research

This, too, does not go very deep into the phenomena as it just focuses on finding out the characteristics the phenomena show rather than the factors that cause it. Researchers have to make sure they are not disturbing the observed phenomena and causing a change in them. 

Example : investigating the standard of living in rural and urban areas.

05. Explanatory research 

It is most commonly used for establishing the cause-effect relationship between the variables. The results from explanatory research can then be generalized for the rest of the variables. 

Example : understanding a toddler’s behavior while watching cartoons.

Types of research methodology based on the TYPE OF DATA USED 

06. Qualitative research 

Qualitative research is used to collect, compare, and analyze large descriptive data from the sample. This data is often collected through surveys, interviews, and focus groups where people are allowed to express their opinions and thoughts openly to open-ended questions. The data from qualitative research is usually large and needs data labeling or coding while analyzing it. 

Example : Studying the effects of exercise on health

07. Quantitative research 

Quantitative research collects the data through quantitative and close-ended questions, and the data is analyzed using statistics, mathematical, and computerized tools. The data is mostly collected through surveys and it is in the form of numeric values. 

Example : Conducting a survey on the likes and dislikes of the customers regarding clothing. 

Types of research methodology based on MANIPULATION OF VARIABLES

08. Experimental research 

Experimental research starts with replicating a phenomenon in a scientific environment. The variables are tested for the cause-effects on the sample chosen at random by putting them in two groups – a control group and a treatment group. The result is an understood cause-effect relationship between the variables. 

Example : Experiment to test a new drug in the market on patients. 

09. Non-experimental research 

It focuses on experimenting with the population in their natural environment. Also known as an observational study, researchers do not directly intervene in the experiment. As it is observed, it is also used with descriptive research.

Example : A study on the effects of a certain education program on a batch of students. 

10. Quasi-experimental research 

It is very similar to experimental research but the only difference is the sample for the experiment is not selected at random. Since it is a narrowed-down study focusing on a certain kind of population, the sample should be tested and then assigned to the treatment or control group.

Example : A study was conducted to know the effects eating more cheese has on bad breath. 

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Types of research methodology based on TYPE OF INFERENCE

11. Deductive investigation

It focuses on explaining reality with the help of general laws referring to certain conclusions. These conclusions are a part of research problems and are said to be true if the deductive investigation turns out to be applied in the right way.

12. Inductive investigation

It is also an observational study that focuses on achieving generalized results. It collects the data from which new theories can be generated. 

13. Hypothetical-deductive investigation

It first formulates the hypothesis based on basic observation and then uses deductive investigation to conclude the study, which will, in return, reject or accept the hypothesis. 

Types of research methodology based on TIME OF STUDY

14. Longitudinal study 

Also known as Diachronic research, it observes one event, individual, or group at different times. It aims to track the changes in the subject over time. It is generally used in medical, para-medical, and social fields. 

Example : To study the health of a patient under treatment over several weeks. 

15. Cross-sectional study

Also known as Synchronous research, it focuses on observing events, individuals, or groups of subjects over time. 

Types of research methodology based on INFORMATION SOURCES

16. Primary research

This is research that is done from scratch. Researchers themselves gather data that is specific to their study and is more reliable since it is first-hand information. 

17. Secondary research 

This research is conducted on someone else’s work. Researchers use available material like research papers, interviews, and documentaries as a source of data and information in their research. The problem with this is there is no guarantee that the collected information is reliable or not, and there is a chance of getting more irrelevant data outside of the research topic at hand. 

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Advantages of Using Different Types of Research Methodology

Embarking on a research journey involves navigating diverse methodologies, each serving as a unique lens for scrutiny. These approaches not only help achieve research goals but also elevate the entire process to thorough analysis. Let’s explore the advantages of various research methodologies:

• Verification and Fact-Checking: Methodologies act as guardians, providing a structured framework for reliable outcomes.
• Diverse Perspectives: Varied methodologies present unique angles, unraveling nuanced aspects for a comprehensive analysis.
• Quantitative Precision with Surveys: Surveys offer numerical efficiency, bypassing intricacies for streamlined, informed results.
• Qualitative Depth in Case Studies: Qualitative methods, like case studies, dive deep into intricacies, offering insights overlooked by quantitative methods.
• Validation and Generalization: Employing multiple methods ensures cross-verified, consistent results, allowing findings to be applicable to a broader audience.

In the intricate dance of research, these diverse methodologies play a pivotal role, elevating the quality and reliability of discoveries. Researchers, navigating this ever-expanding landscape, unlock new dimensions of understanding, making their findings impactful.

What factors should you consider when selecting the type of research methodology?

To run a research, you don’t just need to know how to analyze data but also identify the suitable method that helps resolve the research problem efficiently with a high degree of accuracy.

1. Define your research objectives: 

You should have a clear and precise idea of the research problem you intend to resolve. A good research question should be valuable and applicable.

2. Know the research type: 

Learn about the types of research methodology available to identify which categories your research falls under. For example, the quantitative method involves gathering statistical data, while the qualitative method focuses on gathering customer’s voices.

3. Create inclusive surveys: 

To ensure your research findings represent the target population, you must ensure that you create inclusive surveys.

4. Survey questions should align with the research problem: 

The questions you ask should address the intended research objective. The responses to each survey question should help test the hypothesis.

When selecting the right research methodology, it’s important to consider the time available for conducting the research.

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In the intriguing realm of research, the different types guide you through the complex landscape of data collection and analysis. The types of research methodology serve as the backbone of acquiring valid data to address problems and test hypotheses. Follow the various types mentioned above, some tips, and their importance, equipping your project with the right methodology and making impactful discoveries.

• What is the research methodology?

Research methodology is a systematic approach used by researchers to plan, conduct, and analyze studies, ensuring reliable and valid results.

• What is a mixed research method?

Answer: In a mixed methods study, researchers collect and analyze quantitative and qualitative data within the same study.

• How do I choose the right research methodology?

Consider your research objectives, data type, and available time, focusing on factors like depth of study, manipulation of variables, and type of inference.

• Can I use multiple research methodologies for a study?

Yes, using a combination of methods enhances verification, fact-checking, and validation, providing more comprehensive and applicable results.

• What is the difference between research methods and research methodology?

While research methods aim to solve a research problem, research methodology evaluates the appropriateness of the methods used. The types of methodology are tools for selecting a research approach, and the methodology assesses the suitability of all approaches and procedures employed in the research.

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