What types of Market Research are available for to study your market?

There are various market research methodologies, all of which contribute to gaining deeper insight into your target customer. It's useful to know which types of market research are best suited to your objectives and goals.

Generally, it's good practice to combine primary and secondary research techniques whenever you study any aspect of your market, so you can validate the results by comparing your own market research results to secondary research conducted by credible sources.

Depending on your business and the objectives of your study, you will find that some techniques are more effective than others. To understand which will work best, you should have at least a basic understanding of the different types of market research methodologies.

Types of Market Research - Primary vs. Secondary

The most basic and oftentimes most effective form of market research methodology is Primary Research. Primary research techniques involve communicating with customers and consumers on a personal level; this can be done face-to-face or via the telephone. Other methods include online surveys as well as studying online consumer behavior based on an analysis of search engine metrics. All of these methods are classified as quantitative techniques.

Primary Research can also be conducted using qualitative techniques; those would include methodologies such as focus group discussions, which allow for a more in-depth insight into the mind of the consumer than quantitative. In-depth interviews are another form of qualitative analysis, in which you will probe into the reasons and details behind the responses you receive from your target respondent. Other examples include product testing (such as taste-testing), or ethnography, which involves studying the consumer's product usage and behaviors in their natural or home environment.

Generally speaking, qualitative research is often conducted at the initial stages of a full-scale study. This is because qualitative methods allow you to gain insight into key messages and perceptions mentioned by target consumers. You would then take these messages and perceptions and attempt to quantify them by confirming their importance to the larger market using quantitative techniques.

So, for example, if during a focus group discussion which studies consumer usage of touch phones, a respondent mentions the importance of having a non-glare screen, you could then ask a question in your follow-up survey to the larger market about the importance of having a non-glare screen, and measure it on a scale of 1 to 5.

How you select your respondents is also important for several types of market research methodologies. You may be looking to survey only your customers or buyers. Then again, you might look to understand your competitors better by surveying people who use their products or services. Then again, maybe your aim is to understand why former customers have switched from buying your product to the competitors or vice versa. Perhaps you simply want to measure satisfaction. Or you want to know if there is interest for a new product concept and who demographically would be your ideal customer...

The Secondary Research category is no less important but is sometimes overlooked, especially when it comes to smaller businesses. It’s important to remember that these techniques are important to a business, no matter how big or small it is. These types of market research include market and industry reports, newspapers, trade journals, etc. Essentially, secondary research has been conducted and completed by someone else, and is available to you now as a source of information.

One excellent source of secondary market research is BizMiner. BizMiner has a plethora of industry and market research reports segmented by sector and even location. These reports are outstanding because they not only give you immediate insight into your potential markets, they also provide financial ratios and other important data for your industry. This helps you more accurately forecast within your business plan, and gives your plan more credibility than simply conjuring up financial and market data out of thin air.

How to Choose the Right Market Research Methodologies

Especially if you're starting a new business, you can save yourself loads of time, energy and cost by beginning with secondary research from sources like BizMiner. Having market and financial reports for your industry at your fingertips will give you a better picture into the trends and issues facing your industry from economic, political, geographic and demographic perspectives. More so, these reports can serve as a starting point for profiling your target customers and developing your own questions to ask them.

When looking for the right research strategies for your business plan, there are a few simple tips you can keep in mind. First of all, be very clear about what kind of data you want to collect and then settle on Primary or Secondary techniques, or a combination of both. The clearer you are about the kind of data you need, the easier it will be to decide which techniques you want to use.

Secondly, keep your budget in mind. Remember that these methodologies will need some investment on your part. With the right types of market research, you can get a better idea of what your consumer wants and how to deliver it to them. You will be able to identify potential markets with a better-focused marketing plan and product; conversely, you will also be able to avoid weak markets and consumers that might not be willing to spend.

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