To compete in today’s highly competitive markets, it is essential to stay up to date on market conditions, consumer behavior and emerging trends. Market research is a process of gathering information about a target audience, which allows a business to discover potential customers and their needs. Market research involves analyzing data, but it’s all about uncovering the “why” behind the numbers.
What is the difference between primary and secondary market research?
Markets and customers are in fact constantly evolving, and market research requires time and resources. They are essential before starting a new business; to enter new markets; and to launch new products and/or services on the market. There are two main types of market research:
Primary market research: Includes methods such as focus groups, interviews, buyer persona research, market segmentation research, and observational research. Two different types of data can be collected from these research methods:
Qualitative: These include consumers’ preferences and emotional responses.
Quantitative: Data generated by numbers, including for example page views, survey results and social media followers, enabling the production and reading of graphs and charts
Secondary market research: here the analysis data on a sample of respondents are already available, in fact, it is a type of research conducted by someone else, and allows a business to have a macro-level view of the market sector. Therefore, the following items are identifiable as secondary market research:
Business Reports — Reports created by companies about their business.
Industry Stats — Information and data on entire industries, rather than individual companies.
White Paper — Authoritative market research written by a third party on a specific topic related to a given industry. This is where trade magazines and market research companies take over
Government Agency Data — Information and data collected by the government and shared with the general public such as: labor statistics, economic bulletins, and census data.
The research method you choose will depend on what you are trying to understand about your market. Want to know what your customers want or need? Are you trying to figure out how to improve your business? Choose the Focus Marketing services and start the market research for your business now.
