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How Our Hotel Used Data to Make Our Laundry Service Glamorous

March 01, 2017

Customer Surveys Are No Substitute for Actually Talking to Customers

Graham Kenny
January 17, 2019

“Actually,” She Said, “He Works for Me.”

Karen Firestone
April 09, 2013

Branding in the Digital Age: You're Spending Your Money in All the Wrong Places

David C. Edelman
From the December 2010 Issue

Understanding the Postrecession Consumer

Paul Flatters
Michael Willmott
From the July–August 2009 Issue

When Employees Think the Boss Is Unfair, They're More Likely to Disengage and Leave

Sylvia Ann Hewlett
Ripa Rashid
Laura Sherbin
August 01, 2017

How Biden Won Back (Enough of) the White Working Class

Joan C. Williams
November 10, 2020

What Customers Want from the Collaborative Economy

Alexandra Samuel
October 08, 2015

Trust, but Verify

Gardiner Morse
From the May 2005 Issue

Turning Great Strategy into Great Performance

Michael Mankins
Richard Steele
From the July–August 2005 Issue

A Data-Driven Approach to Addressing Racial Disparities in Health Care Outcomes

Karthik Sivashanker
Shauna Ford
Cheryl Clark
Sunil Eappen
July 21, 2020

Defeating Feature Fatigue

Roland T. Rust
Debora Viana Thompson
Rebecca W. Hamilton
February 01, 2006

The Explainer: Marketing Myopia

Theodore Levitt
July 15, 2014

How 6 Countries Compare on Executive Gender Balance

Avivah Wittenberg-Cox
July 18, 2014

Research: How Cultural Differences Can Impact Global Teams

Vasyl Taras
Alfredo Jiménez
Fabian Froese
June 09, 2021

Case Study: Should a Dollar Store Raise Prices to Keep Up with Inflation?

Marco Bertini
From the March–April 2023 Issue

Test Marketing in New Product Development

Jay E. Klompmaker
G. David Hughes
Russell I. Haley
From the May 1976 Issue

How Business Schools Lost Their Way

Warren Bennis
James O’Toole

Looking Ahead: Implications of the Present

Peter F. Drucker
Esther Dyson
Charles Handy
Peter M. Senge
From the September–October 1997 Issue

Understanding China’s Young Consumers

Zak Dychtwald
June 11, 2021

Away: Scaling a DTC Travel Brand

Joseph B. Fuller
November 11, 2019

Consumer Behavior Exercise (F)

John Deighton
Susan Fournier
August 25, 1995

Johnson & Johnson: The Tylenol Tragedy

Stephen A. Greyser
October 12, 1982

Siebel Systems: Anatomy of a Sale, Part 1

Das Narayandas
August 26, 2002

Hubble Contact Lenses: Data Driven Direct-to-Consumer Marketing

Ayelet Israeli
August 01, 2018

Selling CFLs at Wal-Mart, Epilogue

Eric J. Johnson
Daniel M. Bartels
October 21, 2011

Coca-Cola: Liquid and Linked

Noah Fisher
John T. Gourville
November 19, 2013

UnME Jeans: Branding in Web 2.0

Thomas Steenburgh
November 12, 2008

People Management

Boris Groysberg
August 05, 2005

CVS Health: Promoting Drug Adherence

Leslie K. John
John A. Quelch
Robert S. Huckman
January 20, 2015

Marsh Supermarkets, Inc. (A): The Marsh Super Study

Raymond R. Burke
November 02, 1993

Blue Mountain Resorts Ltd.: The Night Skiing Decision

Terry H. Deutscher
Susan Burke
January 01, 1983

Tommy Hilfiger Adaptive: Fashion for All

Elizabeth A. Keenan
Sandra J. Sucher
Shalene Gupta
November 05, 2021

Ford KA (C): The Market Research

Markus Christen
David A. Soberman
January 01, 2003
Phillip E. Pfeifer
February 24, 2017

Gallardo's Goes to Mexico

Clayton M. Christensen
May 20, 2005

Kameda Seika: Cracking the US Market

Akiko Kanno
February 23, 2017

Beyond Competitive Advantage: How to Solve the Puzzle of Sustaining Growth While Creating Value

Todd Zenger
June 14, 2016

Building Brand Community on the Harley-Davidson Posse Ride (Multimedia Case)

Sylvia Sensiper
James McAlexander
John Schouten
December 28, 2000

Citigold: Growing the Gold Conversation

Kristiaan Helsen
Karishma Grover
March 20, 2018

The Prominence of Small Creators

Rebecca Karp
Simon Friis
May 22, 2024

Keeping up with The Joneses: Stealth, secrets, and duplicity in marketing relationships

Ekin Pehlivan
Pierre R. Berthon
Mine U. Hughes
Jean-Paul Berthon
November 15, 2015

14 Market Research Examples

Curiosity.

At the heart of every successful marketing campaign is a curious marketer who learned how to better serve a customer.

In this industry, we scratch that curiosity itch with market research.

To help give you ideas to learn about your customer, in this article we bring you examples from Consumer Reports, Intel, Visa USA, Hallmark, Levi Strauss, John Deere, LeapFrog, Spiceworks Ziff Davis and more.

This article was originally published in the MarketingSherpa email newsletter .

Example #1: National bank’s A/B testing

You can learn what customers want by conducting experiments on real-life customer decisions using A/B testing. When you ensure your tests do not have any validity threats, the information you garner can offer very reliable insights into customer behavior.

Here’s an example from Flint McGlaughlin, CEO of MarketingSherpa and MECLABS Institute, and the creator of its online marketing course .

A national bank was working with MECLABS to discover how to increase the number of sign-ups for new checking accounts.

Customers who were interested in checking accounts could click on an “Open in Minutes” link on the bank’s homepage.

Creative Sample #1: Anonymized bank homepage

After clicking on the homepage link, visitors were taken to a four-question checking account selector tool.

Creative Sample #2: Original checking account landing page — account recommendation selector tool

After filling out the selector tool, visitors were taken to a results page that included a suggested package (“Best Choice”) along with a secondary option (“Second Choice”). The results page had several calls to action (CTAs). Website visitors were able to select an account and begin pre-registration (“Open Now”) or find out more information about the account (“Learn More”), go back and change their answers (“Go back and change answers”), or manually browse other checking options (“Other Checking Options”).

Creative Sample #3: Original checking account landing page — account recommendation selector tool results page

After going through the experience, the MECLABS team hypothesized that the selector tool wasn’t really delivering on the expectation the customer had after clicking on the “Open in Minutes” CTA. They created two treatments (new versions) and tested them against the control experience.

In the first treatment, the checking selector tool was removed, and instead, customers were directly presented with three account options in tabs from which customers could select.

Creative Sample #4: Checking account landing page Treatment #1

The second treatment’s landing page focused on a single product and had only one CTA. The call-to-action was similar to the CTA customers clicked on the homepage to get to this page — “Open Now.”

Creative Sample #5: Checking account landing page Treatment #2

Both treatments increased account applications compared to the control landing page experience, with Treatment #2 generating 65% more applicants at a 98% level of confidence.

Creative Sample #6: Results of bank experiment that used A/B testing

You’ll note the Level of Confidence in the results. With any research tactic or tool you use to learn about customers, you have to consider whether the information you’re getting really represents most customers, or if you’re just seeing outliers or random chance.

With a high Level of Confidence like this, it is more likely the results actually represent a true difference between the control and treatment landing pages and that the results aren’t just a random event.

The other factor to consider is — testing in and of itself will not produce results. You have to use testing as research to actually learn about the customer and then make changes to better serve the customer.

In the video How to Discover Exactly What the Customer Wants to See on the Next Click: 3 critical skills every marketer must master , McGlaughlin discussed this national bank experiment and explained how to use prioritization, identification and deduction to discover what your customers want.

This example was originally published in Marketing Research: 5 examples of discovering what customers want .

Example #2: Consumer Reports’ market intelligence research from third-party sources

The first example covers A/B testing. But keep in mind, ill-informed A/B testing isn’t market research, it’s just hoping for insights from random guesses.

In other words, A/B testing in a vacuum does not provide valuable information about customers. What you are testing is crucial, and then A/B testing is a means to help better understand whether insights you have about the customer are either validated or refuted by actual customer behavior. So it’s important to start with some research into potential customers and competitors to inform your A/B tests.

For example, when MECLABS and MarketingExperiments (sister publisher to MarketingSherpa) worked with Consumer Reports on a public, crowdsourced A/B test, we provided a market intelligence report to our audience to help inform their test suggestions.

Every successful marketing test should confirm or deny an assumption about the customer. You need enough knowledge about the customer to create marketing messages you think will be effective.

For this public experiment to help marketers improve their split testing abilities, we had a real customer to work with — donors to Consumer Reports.

To help our audience better understand the customer, the MECLABS Marketing Intelligence team created the 26-page ConsumerReports Market Intelligence Research document (which you can see for yourself at that link).

This example was originally published in Calling All Writers and Marketers: Write the most effective copy for this Consumer Reports email and win a MarketingSherpa Summit package and Consumer Reports Value Proposition Test: What you can learn from a 29% drop in clickthrough .

Example #3: Virtual event company’s conversation

What if you don’t have the budget for A/B testing? Or any of the other tactics in this article?

Well, if you’re like most people you likely have some relationships with other human beings. A significant other, friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, customers, a nemesis (“Newman!”). While conducting market research by talking to these people has several validity threats, it at least helps you get out of your own head and identify some of your blind spots.

WebBabyShower.com’s lead magnet is a PDF download of a baby shower thank you card ‘swipe file’ plus some extras. “Women want to print it out and have it where they are writing cards, not have a laptop open constantly,” said Kurt Perschke, owner, WebBabyShower.com.

That is not a throwaway quote from Perschke. That is a brilliant insight, so I want to make sure we don’t overlook it. By better understanding customer behavior, you can better serve customers and increase results.

However, you are not your customer. So you must bridge the gap between you and them.

Often you hear marketers or business leaders review an ad or discuss a marketing campaign and say, “Well, I would never read that entire ad” or “I would not be interested in that promotion.” To which I say … who cares? Who cares what you would do? If you are not in the ideal customer set, sorry to dent your ego, but you really don’t matter. Only the customer does.

Perschke is one step ahead of many marketers and business leaders because he readily understands this. “Owning a business whose customers are 95% women has been a great education for me,” he said.

So I had to ask him, how did he get this insight into his customers’ behavior? Frankly, it didn’t take complex market research. He was just aware of this disconnect he had with the customer, and he was alert for ways to bridge the gap. “To be honest, I first saw that with my wife. Then we asked a few customers, and they confirmed it’s what they did also. Writing notes by hand is viewed as a ‘non-digital’ activity and reading from a laptop kinda spoils the mood apparently,” he said.

Back to WebBabyShower. “We've seen a [more than] 100% increase in email signups using this method, which was both inexpensive and evergreen,” Perschke said.

This example was originally published in Digital Marketing: Six specific examples of incentives that worked .

Example #4: Spiceworks Ziff Davis’ research-informed content marketing

Marketing research isn’t just to inform products and advertising messages. Market research can also give your brand a leg up in another highly competitive space – content marketing.

Don’t just jump in and create content expecting it to be successful just because it’s “free.” Conducting research beforehand can help you understand what your potential audience already receives and where they might need help but are currently being served.

When Spiceworks Ziff Davis (SWZD) published its annual State of IT report, it invested months in conducting primary market research, analyzing year-over-year trends, and finally producing the actual report.

“Before getting into the nuts and bolts of writing an asset, look at market shifts and gaps that complement your business and marketing objectives. Then, you can begin to plan, research, write, review and finalize an asset,” said Priscilla Meisel, Content Marketing Director, SWZD.

This example was originally published in Marketing Writing: 3 simple tips that can help any marketer improve results (even if you’re not a copywriter) .

Example #5: Business travel company’s guerilla research

There are many established, expensive tactics you can use to better understand customers.

But if you don’t have the budget for those tactics, and don’t know any potential customers, you might want to brainstorm creative ways you can get valuable information from the right customer target set.

Here’s an example from a former client of Mitch McCasland, Founding Partner and Director, Brand Inquiry Partners. The company sold a product related to frequent business flyers and was interested in finding out information on people who travel for a living. They needed consumer feedback right away.

“I suggested that they go out to the airport with a bunch of 20-dollar bills and wait outside a gate for passengers to come off their flight,” McCasland said. When people came off the flight, they were politely asked if they would answer a few questions in exchange for the incentive (the $20). By targeting the first people off the flight they had a high likelihood of reaching the first-class passengers.

This example was originally published in Guerrilla Market Research Expert Mitch McCasland Tells How You Can Conduct Quick (and Cheap) Research .

Example #6: Intel’s market research database

When conducting market research, it is crucial to organize your data in a way that allows you to easily and quickly report on it. This is especially important for qualitative studies where you are trying to do more than just quantify the data, but need to manage it so it is easier to analyze.

Anne McClard, Senior Researcher, Doxus worked with Shauna Pettit-Brown of Intel on a research project to understand the needs of mobile application developers throughout the world.

Intel needed to be able to analyze the data from several different angles, including segment and geography, a daunting task complicated by the number of interviews, interviewers, and world languages.

“The interviews were about an hour long, and pretty substantial,” McClard says. So, she needed to build a database to organize the transcripts in a way that made sense.

Different types of data are useful for different departments within a company; once your database is organized you can sort it by various threads.

The Intel study had three different internal sponsors. "When it came to doing the analysis, we ended up creating multiple versions of the presentation targeted to individual audiences," Pettit-Brown says.

The organized database enabled her to go back into the data set to answer questions specific to the interests of the three different groups.

This example was originally published in 4 Steps to Building a Qualitative Market Research Database That Works Better .

Example #7: National security survey’s priming

When conducting market research surveys, the way you word your questions can affect customers’ response. Even the way you word previous questions can put customers in a certain mindset that will skew their answers.

For example, when people were asked if they thought the U.S. government should spend money on an anti-missile shield, the results appeared fairly conclusive. Sixty-four percent of those surveyed thought the country should and only six percent were unsure, according to Opinion Makers: An Insider Exposes the Truth Behind the Polls .

But when pollsters added the option, "...or are you unsure?" the level of uncertainty leaped from six percent to 33 percent. When they asked whether respondents would be upset if the government took the opposite course of action from their selection, 59 percent either didn’t have an opinion or didn’t mind if the government did something differently.

This is an example of how the way you word questions can change a survey’s results. You want survey answers to reflect customer’s actual sentiments that are as free of your company’s previously held biases as possible.

This example was originally published in Are Surveys Misleading? 7 Questions for Better Market Research .

Example #8: Visa USA’s approach to getting an accurate answer

As mentioned in the previous example, the way you ask customers questions can skew their responses with your own biases.

However, the way you ask questions to potential customers can also illuminate your understanding of them. Which is why companies field surveys to begin with.

“One thing you learn over time is how to structure questions so you have a greater likelihood of getting an accurate answer. For example, when we want to find out if people are paying off their bills, we'll ask them to think about the card they use most often. We then ask what the balance was on their last bill after they paid it,” said Michael Marx, VP Research Services, Visa USA.

This example was originally published in Tips from Visa USA's Market Research Expert Michael Marx .

Example #9: Hallmark’s private members-only community

Online communities are a way to interact with and learn from customers. Hallmark created a private members-only community called Idea Exchange (an idea you could replicate with a Facebook or LinkedIn Group).

The community helped the greeting cards company learn the customer’s language.

“Communities…let consumers describe issues in their own terms,” explained Tom Brailsford, Manager of Advancing Capabilities, Hallmark Cards. “Lots of times companies use jargon internally.”

At Hallmark they used to talk internally about “channels” of distribution. But consumers talk about stores, not channels. It is much clearer to ask consumers about the stores they shop in than what channels they shop.

For example, Brailsford clarified, “We say we want to nurture, inspire, and lift one’s spirits. We use those terms, and the communities have defined those terms for us. So we have learned how those things play out in their lives. It gives us a much richer vocabulary to talk about these things.”

This example was originally published in Third Year Results from Hallmark's Online Market Research Experiment .

Example #10: L'Oréal’s social media listening

If you don’t want the long-term responsibility that comes with creating an online community, you can use social media listening to understand how customers talking about your products and industry in their own language.

In 2019, L'Oréal felt the need to upgrade one of its top makeup products – L'Oréal Paris Alliance Perfect foundation. Both the formula and the product communication were outdated – multiple ingredients had emerged on the market along with competitive products made from those ingredients.

These new ingredients and products were overwhelming consumers. After implementing new formulas, the competitor brands would advertise their ingredients as the best on the market, providing almost magical results.

So the team at L'Oréal decided to research their consumers’ expectations instead of simply crafting a new formula on their own. The idea was to understand not only which active ingredients are credible among the audience, but also which particular words they use while speaking about foundations in general.

The marketing team decided to combine two research methods: social media listening and traditional questionnaires.

“For the most part, we conduct social media listening research when we need to find out what our customers say about our brand/product/topic and which words they use to do it. We do conduct traditional research as well and ask questions directly. These surveys are different because we provide a variety of readymade answers that respondents choose from. Thus, we limit them in terms of statements and their wording,” says Marina Tarandiuk, marketing research specialist, L'Oréal Ukraine.

“The key value of social media listening (SML) for us is the opportunity to collect people’s opinions that are as ‘natural’ as possible. When someone leaves a review online, they are in a comfortable environment, they use their ‘own’ language to express themselves, there is no interviewer standing next to them and potentially causing shame for their answer. The analytics of ‘natural’ and honest opinions of our customers enables us to implement the results in our communication and use the same language as them,” Tarandiuk said.

The team worked with a social media listening tool vendor to identify the most popular, in-demand ingredients discussed online and detect the most commonly used words and phrases to create a “consumer glossary.”

Questionnaires had to confirm all the hypotheses and insights found while monitoring social media. This part was performed in-house with the dedicated team. They created custom questionnaires aiming to narrow down all the data to a maximum of three variants that could become the base for the whole product line.

“One of our recent studies had a goal to find out which words our clients used to describe positive and negative qualities of [the] foundation. Due to a change in [the] product’s formula, we also decided to change its communication. Based on the opinions of our customers, we can consolidate the existing positive ideas that our clients have about the product,” Tarandiuk said.

To find the related mentions, the team monitored not only the products made by L'Oréal but also the overall category. “The search query contained both brand names and general words like foundation, texture, smell, skin, pores, etc. The problem was that this approach ended up collecting thousands of mentions, not all of which were relevant to the topic,” said Elena Teselko, content marketing manager, YouScan (L'Oréal’s social media listening tool).

So the team used artificial intelligence-based tagging that divided mentions according to the category, features, or product type.

This approach helped the team discover that customers valued such foundation features as not clogging pores, a light texture, and not spreading. Meanwhile, the most discussed and appreciated cosmetics component was hyaluronic acid.

These exact phrases, found with the help of social media monitoring, were later used for marketing communication.

Creative Sample #7: Marketing communicating for personal care company with messaging based on discoveries from market research

“Doing research and detecting audience’s interests BEFORE starting a campaign is an approach that dramatically lowers any risks and increases chances that the campaign would be appreciated by customers,” Teselko said.

This example was originally published in B2C Branding: 3 quick case studies of enhancing the brand with a better customer experience .

Example #11: Levi’s ethnographic research

In a focus group or survey, you are asking customers to explain something they may not even truly understand. Could be why they bought a product. Or what they think of your competitor.

Ethnographic research is a type of anthropology in which you go into customers’ homes or places of business and observe their actual behavior, behavior they may not understand well enough to explain to you.

While cost prohibitive to many brands, and simply unfeasible for others, it can elicit new insights into your customers.

Michael Perman, Senior Director Cultural Insights, Levi Strauss & Co. uses both quantitative and qualitative research on a broad spectrum, but when it comes to gathering consumer insight, he focuses on in-depth ethnographic research provided by partners who specialize in getting deep into the “nooks and crannies of consumer life in America and around the world.” For example, his team spends time in consumers’ homes and in their closets. They shop with consumers, looking for the reality of a consumer’s life and identifying themes that will enable designers and merchandisers to better understand and anticipate consumer needs.

Perman then puts together multi-sensory presentations that illustrate the findings of research. For example, “we might recreate a teenager’s bedroom and show what a teenage girl might have on her dresser.”

This example was originally published in How to Get Your Company to Pay Attention to Market Research Results: Tips from Levi Strauss .

Example #12: eBags’ ethnographic research

Ethnographic research isn’t confined to a physical goods brand like Levi’s. Digital brands can engage in this form of anthropology as well.

While usability testing in a lab is useful, it does miss some of the real-world environmental factors that play a part in the success of a website. Usability testing alone didn’t create a clear enough picture for Gregory Casey, User Experience Designer and Architect, eBags.

“After we had designed our mobile and tablet experience, I wanted to run some contextual user research, which basically meant seeing how people used it in the wild, seeing how people are using it in their homes. So that’s exactly what I did,” Gregory said.

He found consumers willing to open their home to him and be tested in their normal environment. This meant factors like the television, phone calls and other family members played a part in how they experienced the eBags mobile site.

“During these interview sessions, a lot of times we were interrupted by, say, a child coming over and the mother having to do something for the kid … The experience isn’t sovereign. It’s not something where they just sit down, work through a particular user flow and complete their interaction,” Gregory said.

By watching users work through the site as they would in their everyday life, Gregory got to see what parts of the site they actually use.

This example was originally published in Mobile Marketing: 4 takeaways on how to improve your mobile shopping experience beyond just responsive design .

Example #13: John Deere’s shift from product-centric market research to consumer-centric research

One of the major benefits of market research is to overcome company blind spots. However, if you start with your blind spots – i.e., a product focus – you will blunt the effectiveness of your market research.

In the past, “they’d say, Here’s the product, find out how people feel about it,” explained David van Nostrand, Manager, John Deere's Global Market Research. “A lot of companies do that.” Instead, they should be saying, “Let's start with the customers: what do they want, what do they need?”

The solution? A new in-house program called “Category Experts” brings the product-group employees over as full team members working on specific research projects with van Nostrand’s team.

These staffers handle items that don’t require a research background: scheduling, meetings, logistics, communication and vendor management. The actual task they handle is less important than the fact that they serve as human cross-pollinators, bringing consumer-centric sensibility back to their product- focused groups.

For example, if van Nostrand’s team is doing research about a vehicle, they bring in staffers from the Vehicles product groups. “The information about vehicle consumers needs to be out there in the vehicle marketing groups, not locked in here in the heads of the researchers.”

This example was originally published in How John Deere Increased Mass Consumer Market Share by Revamping its Market Research Tactics .

Example #14: LeapFrog’s market research involvement throughout product development (not just at the beginning and the end)

Market research is sometimes thought of as a practice that can either inform the development of a product, or research consumer attitudes about developed products. But what about the middle?

Once the creative people begin working on product designs, the LeapFrog research department stays involved.

They have a lab onsite where they bring moms and kids from the San Francisco Bay area to test preliminary versions of the products. “We do a lot of hands-on, informal qualitative work with kids,” said Craig Spitzer, VP Marketing Research, LeapFrog. “Can they do what they need to do to work the product? Do they go from step A to B to C, or do they go from A to C to B?”

When designing the LeapPad Learning System, for example, the prototype went through the lab “a dozen times or so,” he says.

A key challenge for the research department is keeping and building the list of thousands of families who have agreed to be on call for testing. “We've done everything from recruiting on the Internet to putting out fliers in local schools, working through employees whose kids are in schools, and milking every connection we have,” Spitzer says.

Kids who test products at the lab are compensated with a free, existing product rather than a promise of the getting the product they're testing when it is released in the future.

This example was originally published in How LeapFrog Uses Marketing Research to Launch New Products .

Related resources

The Marketer’s Blind Spot: 3 ways to overcome the marketer’s greatest obstacle to effective messaging

Get Your Free Test Discovery Tool to Help Log all the Results and Discoveries from Your Company’s Marketing Tests

Marketing Research: 5 examples of discovering what customers want

Online Marketing Tests: How do you know you’re really learning anything?

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Market Research Company Blog

10 Famous Brands That Depend on Market Research

by Nicole Cullen

Posted at: 6/18/2024 12:24 PM

What do Starbucks, Apple, McDonald’s, LEGO, Dove, and Zappos all have in common? Well, I’ll tell you. These famous brands all depend on market research.

T hese household names use the data to their advantage to win over their customers and challenge their competitors .

Market research can help organizations achieve:

Strengths reputation and credibility
Enhances brand awareness
Understanding market segments and trends in the marketplace
Obtaining feedback on customer preferences
Establishing the effectiveness of marketing and product promotion

Not only can market research enhance a brand’s marketing and product strategy, but it can strengthen a company’s relationship with its customer and recruit new ones as well.

See for yourself as we highlight a few of the many brands that depend on market research.

1. Starbucks Coffee Company

Ah, the first of our successful marketing research examples!

Starbucks is the largest and most successful global coffeehouse chain in existence. However, it is no secret how they become the number one coffee company in the world (no shade to Dunkin’.)

Starbucks became the largest coffeehouse chain in the world because of its value for market research.

Starbucks’s market research approach includes:

Tracking cultural trends
Monitoring social media
Gathering customer feedback
In-store product testing

Over the past 14 years, Starbucks has used market research by obtaining consumer feedback through its My Starbucks Idea platform.

This platform essentially allows customers, potential customers, and employees to visit the website to submit any creative ideas they come up with.

These ideas can range anywhere from new offerings to minor changes in a current product. Starbucks considers all customer feedback for its business and marketing strategy .

Recommended Reading: The Ultimate Guide to Customer Satisfaction Surveys

2. Apple Inc.

Apple is one of the most successful technology companies worldwide. Apple made that possible through product innovation and market research to understand its consumers’ needs.

Apple has a deep appreciation for market research and demonstrates it by developing an in-house research team.

Its panel is called the “Apple Customer Pulse,” which is an online community committed to catering to the needs of the technology consumer by analyzing data and i ts research is done through a variety of customer satisfaction surveys .

As a result, these surveys have paved the way for new product development and modification of existing Apple products.

For example, Apple has expanded its screens on some devices to enhance its customers’ viewing experience.

We understand most brands cannot employ an entire market research team. Lucky for you, Drive Research is ready to act as an extension of your team to help execute any of your research needs.

Our market research team provides a variety of services such as online surveys, intercept surveys, focus groups, customer surveys, and more.

Learn more about the benefits of working with a third-party market research firm.

3. McDonald’s Corporation

McDonald’s is one of the biggest fast-food chains in the world. To remain number one in the fast-food industry, McDonald’s frequently uses market research to make its customers happy.

McDonald’s uses four key questions in its market research approach:

Which products are performing well?
What prices are most affordable for the consumers?
To effectively advertise, what are consumers reading and watching?
Which restaurants are most attended, and why?

By answering these questions, McDonald’s can gauge whether or not its customer base is expanding or not.

If not, then it adjusts its strategy to satisfy its customers and outperforms its competitors.

Additionally, McDonald’s obtains customer feedback to alter its product offerings.

For example, a plethora of McDonald’s customers were concerned with the absence of healthy and organic food items on its menu.

So McDonald’s took that feedback into account and added healthy items on the menu, such as apple slices. It even launched an advertising campaign to prove that its chicken nuggets and patties contain real meat.

Below is just another example of how market research can improve your advertising.

McDonalds Real Beef Advertising Campaign

4. The LEGO Group

Last but certainly not least, LEGO uses market research to promote inclusivity for all children to play with its toys.

Over the years, LEGO has primarily been a boy-oriented toy company. However, LEGO didn’t want to limit itself to only cater to one gender. It wanted to involve all children to enjoy its products.

Within four years, LEGO conducted a study involving 3,500 girls and their mothers to understand the children’s playing habits. It was a great approach to determining opportunity size when expanding into a new market .

As a result of the market research study, LEGO launched a new toy line, “Friends” to encourage girls to play with LEGO toys.

LEGO used market research data to determine the bright colors of the packaging and the figurines’ size.

Dove has long been a beauty brand that promotes self-love. Their proactive ads and marketing campaigns are designed to spark social commentary around body positivity.

So, what better way to promote these values than diving into market research?

Even though Dove began their #SpeakBeautiful campaign in 2015 , its impact still needs to be measured by marketers who want to make an important statement. The campaign focused on the fact that women were saying more negative things about themselves than positive ones on Twitter.

After partnering with Twitter, market research for social media was used to give life to the #SpeakBeautiful campaign. Before the campaign, a shocking 5 million female Twitter users had posted self-deprecating comments about themselves. After, that number had gone down to 3.4 million.

When covering our brand research examples , it’s important to note the deep impression they can have not just on the company, but on society as well.

Zappos is one of those brands that seems to effortlessly juggle both employee and customer satisfaction. For the sake of this post, we’ll be covering their customer service efforts.

Zappos uses tried-and-true market research tactics like customer surveys and in-person interviews to achieve true personalization .

When dealing with such a large brand like Zappos, it’s essential they treat customers like actual people–we promise, this is the key to continued business success. Customer surveys and in-depth interviews are designed for this purpose exactly.

💡 The Key Takeaway: Zappos zeroes in on customer needs through detailed surveys and interviews with customers. These tactics work to humanize a brand’s customer base, so their needs can be better understood.

Recommended Reading: What Are IDIs? Explaining In-depth Interviews in Market Research

7. Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola uses multiple market research methods such as taste tests, online surveys, ethnographic studies, and social media listening.

Taste tests are a great way to determine what consumers like about a food or beverage, such as flavor, sweetness, and so on. While, o nline surveys help identify emerging trends and gather detailed consumer opinions.

Additionally, the soda brand makes use of ethnographic studies and social media listening.

Ethnographic studies reveal cultural insights related to Coca-Cola consumption, providing a better view of consumer behavior.

Social media listening helps gauge sentiment about a product by tracking how users interact with it on channels like Facebook, Instagram, and so on.

8. Procter & Gamble (P&G)

P&G is no stranger to market research, as it uses multiple methods to improve business.

Using quantitative research methods, P&G are able to gather large-scale data, providing helpful insights around consumer behavior and purchasing habits.

Additionally, the business uses qualitative research methods like focus groups and in-depth interviews to discover more detailed consumer insights.

Usability testing is also conducted by P&G, which helps to improve the functionality of their offerings based on consumer interactions.

With this method, consumers will be observed interacting with products. P&G actively uses this consumer feedback to enhance both their product development and marketing strategies, which creates a strong bond with their base.

As one of the world's biggest e-commerce companies, Amazon relies on market research methods to drive sales. Their emphasis on purchase history helps analyze large amounts of data to identify trends and emerging market segments.

Amazon closely tracks what customers are saying about them in reviews/ratings. Using sentiment analysis and text mining, Amazon can extract key insights to learn from their reviews.

This is ideal for targeting areas of improvement, which has a large impact on customer satisfaction levels.

Recommendation algorithms allow Amazon to suggest relevant products that align with customers' preferences, which can enhance their overall shopping experience.

Lastly, Amazon has found success using market surveys and recruiting panels to receive feedback on shopping services, helping them to make data-driven decisions.

10. Netflix

Netflix, the world's leading streaming entertainment service, gathers viewing data from millions of subscribers from across the globe to identify audience habits and preferences.

They also use content testing to measure how interested viewers are in new shows and movies. A/B testing and audience surveys are used by Netflix to understand factors like character likeability and storyline appeal.

The beloved streaming giant also has seen success using audience segmentation.

This method measures demographic factors, viewing preferences, and behavioral data to help personalize movies and show recommendations.

Lastly, Netflix uses methods like market surveys and focus groups to highlight areas of improvement, helping them gain a better understanding of subscribers.

Primary Market Research Goals for Famous Brands

As you can see, each of these brand research examples has two primary goals.

1. Each brand strives to satisfy the customer’s needs and high expectations.

Customers expect high-quality services and products. If they don’t have their expectations met, then they will take their business elsewhere.

So brands need to maintain customer expectations by understanding what customers want through market research.

2. These brands have a desire to eliminate competition.

Starbucks, Apple, McDonald’s, LEGO, Dove, and Zappos need to stay on top of their market to be one step ahead of their customers’ needs because each company knows a customer won’t hesitate to find an alternative if they are dissatisfied with the product offering.

Without market research, companies would not have been able to produce innovative products, enhance their product offerings, understand their customers, or solve the most challenging problems.

Therefore, market research is an essential part of making a brand successful.

💡 The Key Takeaway: Market research has done wonders for each massive company we covered. By using detailed research, brands are able to make accurate assumptions about their customers, which leads to better marketing and advertising strategies.

Contact Our Market Research Company

Drive Research is a full-service market research firm located in New York. Our team partners with organizations across the country to deliver data-driven insights through customer surveys, new product development, focus groups, and more.

Interested in learning more about our services ? Contact us today.

Message us on our website
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Categories: Consumer Behavior

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Market Research Trends to Conquer 2023

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Market Research trends didn’t shift all that much over the course of the year. But, there are some that became far more prominent than others.

As an essential component of any business strategy, Market research is knowledge. And as we all know, knowledge is power. The right research tells you who your customers are, what they need and want, and what they expect from your business. While market research itself is extensive, knowing market research trends is almost equally important.

Surely, you can’t rely solely on in-person audience questionnaires and surveys as your entire strategy anymore. This isn’t the 60s. We’ve evolved and so has the world, so you can’t expect to use the same strategies forever.

That’s where knowledge of trends in market research can help you. Let’s cover some of the top market research trends for 2023 so you can meet your customers where they are and grow your business.

Trend 1. Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Businesses are blessed with massive amounts of data to analyze customer needs. But the vastness is a double-edged sword. How do you collect and analyze such vast amounts of information promptly while still conducting other essential business tasks?

Shocker: AI isn’t one of the most recent trends in the market research industry. Companies have used it for the past decade, but it is now more commonplace, more widely adopted, and smarter than ever.

Human capital isn’t enough to compile, organize, and analyze datasets from every possible source; that’s where AI can help. AI and machine learning do the heavy lifting, saving you both time and money in labor costs. Imagine seeing deep insights across millions of datasets laid out for you within minutes. Magic.

On top of the improved efficiency, AI offers more room for innovation in the types of data you can collect in your research. Today, Emotion AI analyzes facial expressions, eye movements, voices, and other non-verbal cues to figure out how a customer feels about something. These valuable insights can complement a customer survey – or replace it if it’s found to be more accurate.

Innovators beware, though. AI isn’t a complete replacement for human capital, it’s a supplementary tool. You still need people to brainstorm growth strategies and apply insights to business day-to-day. And yes, this even applies to the latest craze to rock the internet, ChatGPT.

Robot representing Content AI for Content Trends

Bottom line? AI is one of the most important market research industry trends to scale your business and reach your customers, but use it in tandem with strong talent.

Trend 2. Mobile app intelligence

With the average person opening a mobile app 11 times per day, and over 90% of mobile time now being spent on apps – there’s no doubt that apps can impact almost every business, in one way or another. The ability for organizations to monitor and track app intelligence is no longer a nice-to-have, but a must. The need for mobile app intelligence is rising across all industries, globally.

With the ability to see web and app traffic together, it’s easy to spot how consumer behaviors are changing: and it allows leaders and analysts to measure the impact of apps in their market. For those looking to rule in (or out) app investments, this provides the data needed to inform those decisions. With a complete view across the digital landscape, organizations can track how the new era of mobile-first consumers spend their time and money online.

With technology driving increased demand for apps and disruptive start-ups entering almost every sector, rapid market shifts are fast becoming the norm. App intelligence gives people the ability to spot emerging threats and take action when and where it’s needed. Without the complete picture, decisions around growth and strategy are only partially informed, which could impact outcomes further down the road.

Trend 3. Humanity in customer experience

Market research trends sometimes shift the type of data we collect from our customers. In 2023, it’s not enough to capture technical markers like age, location, and gender. Today’s customer expects a personalized customer experience, and you can’t give it to them without knowing psychographic data . What’s their attitude towards, well, everything? Are they introverted or extroverted? You also want to learn where their values lie and align yours with theirs.

After that, you use those deep personal insights to infuse more humanity into their experience. You might send a check-in email asking them if their last purchase helped them solve a problem. Or, you’ll refer to them by name when your chatbot addresses them online.

The result?

Bigger shopping carts, higher sales, and improved profit margins, according to 40% of executives surveyed by Forbes .

Trend 4. Social listening

Social listening tools have been around for a while. So, why is social listening one of the latest trends in the market research industry? One reason is the emergence of the Metaverse, which may plug your customers online even more.

Another key qualifier is real-time. Real-time social media competitive analysis will set you apart from the competition. You should always be aware if your customers attribute your content to a negative social issue, for example.

Find actionable insights from online conversations and monitor social engagement metrics . Keep track of brand mentions of course, but also common search terms and phrases. Reminders and alerts will help you stay on top of the ever-awake social media landscape.

Trend 5. Inclusive research

ESG (environmental, social, and governance) is becoming a must for businesses, with government provisions of ESG growing to 74%. But the important part is the return – environment, social criteria, and ethical governance considerations add up to 63% in equity returns . One way to promote stronger social consideration is through more inclusivity in hiring and research.

Market research inclusivity is one of the latest trends in the market research industry. The truth is, old ways of market research didn’t adequately capture a diverse audience. You can’t use the same panel provider every time and expect diverse results. Nor can you ask the same survey questions and use the same demographic markers to categorize your audience.

Inclusive research requires curiosity.

Who are your unique visitors ?
Which groups seem omitted from your analysis?
How can you uncover more diverse audiences with your current tactics?

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Trend 6. Monitoring adjacent markets

You might not expect new trends in market research to include consideration of an entirely new market altogether. But COVID-19 showed us the importance of a business’s quick ability to pivot, and you can’t do that if you don’t understand adjacent markets.

Pro Tip: Similarweb has the freshest data available to show you real market trends in almost real time so you can see what’s happening before your competitors.

Similarweb keyword data showing COVID-19 words trending.

Consider this: A world event destroys your business. Your target audience can’t afford your product anymore, or they don’t need it. How do you recover? Maybe you focus on a new, niche audience . Or, you figure out how you can change your product offering to better meet your current customer needs.

Uber is a great example of a business that included adjacent markets in its research. While traditional ridesharing became less common throughout the pandemic, the adjacent food delivery market boomed – and Uber took full advantage.

Lesson to learn? When you conduct your market research, squeeze in time and budget to learn about customers in adjacent markets – it could save your business

Trend 7. Market-tech audits

How many platforms do you use to conduct market research? Martech continues to emerge with new companies offering the latest innovations – but that doesn’t warrant jumping on all of them.

A market-tech audit is one of the most essential trends in market research today. The last two years have made it so easy to adopt multiple techniques and software to no avail – it’s time for an audit.

Think about which solutions overlap in function. Are you doubling the work and struggling to cut out redundancies throughout your research? Is the tech you invested in to find efficiencies actually slowing down your workflow?

Dissect every solution and focus on ones that provide robust data analytics.

Trend 8. Consumer and brand value alignment

The latest generation of customers (Gen Z) cares about your brand identity and business values.

Today, customers want to invest in businesses with values aligned with their own. If your target audience values environmental sustainability, you better demonstrate that in your brand values and policies.

How sustainability is seen in marketing.

A fancy mission statement isn’t sufficient. Customers will catch on quickly if your outward appearance doesn’t match your daily operations. One way to keep up with this market research trend is with social listening. Keep track of how your brand values are being discussed on social media – maybe there’s room for some revision, or a renewal of vows, if you will.

The result? Customer loyalty overdrive.

Trend 9. Automation and efficiency

Companies can find more efficiencies by hopping on market research trends of AI and market tech audits, of course. But there’s more to automation than those two tools. AI helps you sift through more information to find insights, sure. But where else can you find efficiency?

One way is to cater to the mobile-first generation with shorter, smarter surveys. The average person doesn’t have the capacity or interest to sit through a 30-question questionnaire. Find your mobile audience and give them the shortest, yet richest survey possible. You’ll find more efficiency if you narrow down your data to the most important.

Back to AI. Market research isn’t all exciting insights and analysis. A lot of it is tedious – collecting research, organizing and categorizing information, sending follow-up emails, and much more. The latest trends in market research demand that you automate these time-consuming tasks. Free up your time to do more meaningful work.

Market research trends: in summary

The latest trends in the market research industry echo slowly-building trends from the last couple of years as well as introduce completely new ways of conducting market research.

Here’s the truth: market research has never been so exciting! Implementing AI, inclusivity, social listening, and humanity within strategies will take your market research to new levels. But without keeping track of market research trends, you can’t use any of it to your advantage.

The solution? Leverage market research trends to propel your business forward. You’ll find new customers and show your current ones that they’re important.

by Liz March

Digital Research Specialist

Liz March has 15 years of experience in content creation. She enjoys the outdoors, F1, and reading, and is pursuing a BSc in Environmental Science.

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231+ Fresh & Unique Marketing Research Topics for Students

Marketing is a big and constantly changing field that offers many chances for research and learning. Whether you are a marketing student, a researcher looking deeply into how consumers behave, or a professional wanting to stay ahead, finding a unique and relevant research topic can be tough.

This complete list aims to provide you with 231+ fresh and thought-provoking marketing research topics that cover a wide range of areas, from digital marketing and branding to consumer psychology and market trends.

With these topics, you’ll have the chance to add to the field’s knowledge, discover new insights, and possibly shape the future of marketing plans and practices.

Why is Choosing a Unique Marketing Research Topic Important?

Table of Contents

Let’s discuss why choosing unique marketing research topics is very essential.

Being Different and New

Picking a fresh and brand-new topic for your marketing research is important for several reasons. First, it lets you explore areas that haven’t been examined before and discover new things that haven’t been found yet.

This can give your business an advantage by providing new ideas and ways to solve marketing problems. Second, a unique topic shows that you are creative and think innovatively, which can be highly valued by clients, teammates, and the whole industry.

Getting People Interested

A unique and fascinating research topic is much more likely to grab people’s attention and interest them. Whether you’re sharing your findings with people at your company or outside clients, a fresh and thought-provoking topic will encourage people to get involved and participate.

People are naturally drawn to new ideas and viewpoints, making your research more likely to be discussed, shared, and possibly even cited by others in the field. This increased buzz and interest can further raise your brand or organization’s visibility and credibility.

In short, choosing a unique marketing research topic matters because it allows you to be different and new, showcase your creative thinking, and boost the engagement and interest of your audience in your work.

Recommended Readings: “ Top 202+ Behaviorism Research Topics | Explore Insightful Ideas “.

231+ Unique Marketing Research Topics for Students

Understanding How People Buy Things

How famous people on social media affect what people buy.
Why do people sometimes buy things without planning to?
How much do people care about buying from the same brand?
How feelings affect what people decide to buy.
How different cultures affect what people buy online.
How men and women like to shop online differently.
How the way a product is packaged changes what people think of it.
What people think about products that are good for the environment.
How family and friends affect what people buy.
How does the price of something make people feel about it?
How much do celebrities influence what people buy?
How well do rewards programs keep people buying from the same company?
How bringing back old memories in marketing affects what people buy.
How a brand’s personality affects what people want to buy.
Why do people sometimes stop buying from a brand they liked before?
How online reviews change what people decide to buy.
How groups of people like the same brand affect what each other buys.
What people think about companies collecting their personal information.
How putting products in movies or TV shows changes what people buy.
How much do personalizing ads affect what people buy?

Sorting People Into Groups

Finding out what small groups of people want to buy.
How dividing up areas by where they are changes marketing.
How different lifestyles change what people want to buy.
How people from different ages buy things differently.
What people from different cultures like to buy.
How people’s lifestyles and beliefs affect what they buy.
How online ads change depending on how people act online.
Finding small groups of people who want to buy specific things.
Finding new groups of people to sell things to.
How technology helps group people by what they like.

Making New Products

Finding out what people want in new products.
How a product’s design changes what people think of it.
How people feel about trying new products.
How people help make new products.
How do we make packaging that’s good for the environment?
How much do people want things that connect to their home’s internet?
How making products easy to use makes people like them more.
How people feel about things like smartwatches.
How much do people like products that use computers to help them?
How making things with a 3D printer can make them special.

Making Brands People Like

How well changing a brand’s name helps people like it more.
How telling stories about a brand makes people like it more.
Making new types of things with the same brand makes people like it more.
How people feel about expensive brands compared to cheap ones.
How much do people like brands that seem real?
How much do people like a brand if it feels special?
How much saying a brand is the best at something makes people like it.
How much money are people willing to spend on brands they like?
How much do groups of people who like the same brand help each other?
How much do people care about brands that do bad things?

Telling People About Things

How well do ads on different things like TV or the internet work?
How people feel about ads that look like regular things online.
How many jokes in ads make people remember them?
How well famous people in ads help sell things.
How much things regular people make help sell things.
How doing surprising things helps sell things.
How much do ads use computer pictures to help sell things?
How much does paying for events help people like a brand?
How much does being part of a big event make people like a brand?
How many videos online help sell things?

Using the Internet to Sell Things

How much do ads on social media help people remember brands?
How do people feel about ads that seem just for them?
How well sending emails to people helps sell things.
How much does being easy to find on the internet help sell things?
How well famous people on social media help sell things.
How much do people care about their privacy online?
How many ads on phones help people buy things?
How much stuff online that’s interesting helps sell things.
How well talking to computers helps people like a brand.

Selling Things in Other Countries

How different places like different ads.
How well can companies sell the same thing in different places?
How knowing about different cultures helps sell things.
How politics and money change selling stuff in different places.
How people feel about brands from different countries.
How can knowing where something comes from change if people buy it?
How well using a place’s name to sell things works.
How many ads that talk about where something’s from help sell it?
How well ads with people from different places help sell things.
How much can big companies sell things in new places?

Selling Things in Stores

How well selling things online stops people from going to stores.
How people feel about shopping in stores versus online.
How making stores fun changes what people buy.
How well making stores work with the internet helps sell things.
Putting things in stores where people can see them changes what people buy.
How the way stores feel changes what people buy.
How well does letting people order online and pick up in stores work?
How well using computers to show off things in stores works.
How well stores can help the environment.

Being Fair and Good

How do people feel about companies that are good to people and the earth?
How does helping people or the earth help people like a brand?
How well ads that give some money to good things help sell things.
How much do people care about ads that say things are good for the earth?
Making things that are good for the earth helps sell them.
How much do people care about companies doing what’s right?
How much do people like it when ads lie to them?
How well laws help make sure companies are fair.
How well companies can be honest with people.
How much do people care about brands that help with important things?

Making Plans to Sell Things

How well do different ways of setting prices work in other places?
How dividing people up into groups helps sell things.
How well coming up with new ideas works for companies.
How well do finding small groups of people to sell things work?
How well making deals with other companies works for making more money.
How well doing surprising things helps sell things in small groups.
How well making people feel like they’re getting a deal helps sell things.
How well does making things that are normal work?
How well selling new things first works.

Using Computers to Learn About People

How well looking at what people do on the internet helps sell things.
How well can computers guess what people will buy?
How much big sets of information help companies sell things?
How well using computers helps make selling things easier.
How well computers can guess what people want.
How well testing two different things helps make selling things better.
How well showing people information helps sell things better.
Knowing how much people will buy helps make companies more money.
How well sending people things just for them helps sell things.
How well can computers tell if people like something?

Talking to People About Things

How well telling stories in ads helps sell things.
How well using different ways of talking about a brand helps sell things.
How well showing the same things in different places helps sell them.
How well making big events helps sell things.
How well people tell other people about things helps sell things.
How well ads that look like normal things help sell things.
How well making people laugh in ads helps sell things.
How well doing things that help people in ads helps sell things.
How well reminding people of the past in ads helps sell things.
How well asking people to talk about brands helps sell things.

Selling Things That Are Services

How well people think companies do what they say they will.
How well do people’s feelings about using a service affect if they like it?
How well making things right when they go wrong keeps people happy.
How well letting people use computers to help themselves works.
How well training people to do their jobs well helps companies.
How well giving people rewards for buying things helps companies.
How well-asking people what they think helps make things better.
How well making sure things keep working helps keep people happy.
Giving people promises about how good a thing is helps sell it.
How well changing a service to fit what people need helps companies.

Selling Things to Other Companies

How well finding the right company to buy things from works.
How well keeping good relationships with companies keeps them buying.
How well using the internet to sell things to other companies works.
How well making interesting things to read about helps companies sell things.
How well trusting each other helps companies keep buying.
How well using computers to make things easier to sell works.
How well finding out what companies want to buy helps sell things.
How many rules about buying things help companies keep good relationships?
How well using social media to sell things to other companies works.
How well being a leader in an industry helps sell things.

New Ideas in Marketing

How well talking to computers helps people search for things online.
How well does using fake people to sell things online work?
How well does a new kind of computer help sell things?
How well does faster internet help sell things online?
How well making computer pictures look real helps sell things.
How well using computers to help sell things personally works.
How well making things look real in computer pictures helps sell things.
How well letting computers pretend to be people helps sell things.
How well can computers guess how people feel online?
How well people like talking to computers to buy things.

Selling Things in Special Places

How people feel about buying things in stores that sell clothes.
How well people like buying stuff from car companies.
How people think about buying things that are good for their health.
How well hotels and travel companies sell things.
How well food companies sell things.
How well people like buying new gadgets.
How well things that people think are very special sell.
How well movies and TV shows get people to buy things.
How people feel about buying medicine and seeing doctors.
How well do people like buying things that have to do with money?

Selling Things in Places That Are Getting More Money

How well small groups of people in places where they’re getting more money buy things.
Making things cheaper helps people who don’t have much money buy them.
How well phones and computers help people buy things in places where they’re getting more money.
How well knowing about other cultures helps companies sell things.
How well are people in places where they’re getting more money, like things from other places?
How well selling things far away from big cities works.
How well giving small amounts of money helps sell things.
How well giving money to small businesses helps sell things.
How well are people in places where they’re getting more money, like things from good companies?

Marketing School

How well doing things helps people learn about marketing.
How students feel about learning marketing.
How well learning about real companies helps people learn about marketing.
How well using different ways to teach marketing helps students learn.
How well using games helps students learn about marketing.
How students feel about learning about being fair in marketing.
How well students learn when they help each other.
How well working in companies helps students learn.
How well learning about other places helps students learn.
How well giving tests helps people learn about marketing.

Marketing and People

How well marketing makes people believe certain things.
How marketing makes people feel about how they look.
How people think about what’s in ads.
How marketing to kids affects what they want.
How ads show different kinds of people.
How marketing affects what people think about the environment.
How well marketing shows companies care about important things.
How much do people trust ads?
How marketing makes people feel about companies that help with important things.
How much do people care about companies being good?

Marketing and Computers

How well talking to computers helps companies help people.
How well computers can pretend to be real.
How well using computers to show where things are works.
How well using computers to show things in 3D works.
How well using computers to guess what people want works.
How well using computers to show things in real life works.
How well keeping people’s information safe online works.
How well computers can guess what people like.
How much people like computers they can talk to.

Marketing and the Earth

How much do people like packaging that’s good for the earth?
How marketing about helping the earth changes what people buy.
How much do people care about companies doing good things?
How much do people care about things being good for the earth?
How much do people care about buying things that help the earth?
How much do people care about companies that do good things?
How much do people care about companies doing good things for the earth?
How much do people trust companies that talk about helping the earth?
How much do people trust companies that say they help the earth?
How much do people care about companies making new things that help the earth?

Marketing and Other Places

How well companies sell things in different places.
How much do people like things from other places?
How much do people care about companies being good in different places?
How much do politics and money change how companies sell things in different places?
How much do people care about things from other places?
How much people care about where things come from.
How well talking to people from different places works.
How well big companies sell stuff in new places.
How much do people like hearing about things from different places?
How much do big companies selling things in different places help them?

Marketing and New Ideas

How well using computers to talk to people helps sell things.
How well making new things helps companies sell things.
How much do people help make new things?
How much do people like new things?
How much do new things help companies sell things?
How many new ways of thinking help companies sell things?
How much do people like trying new things?
How much does changing things help companies sell things?
How much do people help companies make new things?
How much do companies change things to make them better?

These topics cover a wide range of areas within the marketing field and should provide ample opportunities for students to conduct meaningful research.

Challenges in Marketing Research

Marketing research is truly important, but it often involves hurdles that must be overcome to obtain accurate and useful insights.

Challenges in Marketing Research:

Getting truthful and balanced information from the people you want to learn about.
Ensure that data gathering and looking at the data are fair and unbiased.
Dealing with small budgets and limited time can restrict the research size.
Keeping up with how quickly consumer likes and market trends change.
Keep data private and follow all the relevant rules.
Understanding complicated data and turning it into insights to take action on.
Overcoming people getting tired of giving responses and low numbers responding.
Navigating different cultures and languages in worldwide or diverse markets.
Combining multiple sources of data and methods for a complete understanding.
Getting buy-in and support from stakeholders to put research findings into action.

By recognizing these hurdles and working to overcome them, organizations can improve the effectiveness of their marketing research efforts and make data-driven decisions that lead to success.

Tips for Conducting Effective Marketing Research

Doing detailed and insightful marketing research is important for making good business decisions and staying ahead of others.

Tips for Conducting Effective Marketing Research:

Decide on clear goals for your research from the very start.
Figure out who your target market and audience is for the research.
Choose the best research methods (surveys, discussion groups, interviews).
Develop a well-planned and fair research approach.
Gather information from reliable and relevant sources.
Look at the data objectively and find patterns and new insights.
Double-check your findings through more research or testing if needed.
Present what you learned clearly and compellingly.
Use the insights to guide your marketing plans and decisions.
Keep an eye on things and adapt your approach based on changing market trends.

By following these tips, you can do marketing research that provides valuable insights, drives new ideas, and ultimately helps your business succeed.

Closing Up

Marketing is a changing and growing field that gives many chances to learn and explore. The topics shared in this blog cover many different areas of marketing, like how people buy things, branding ideas, digital marketing, and global market trends .

Whether you’re a student looking for ideas for your next paper or someone curious to know more about marketing, these topics offer a wide variety of possibilities.

Ultimately, the key to successful marketing research is your ability to ask smart questions, gather important information, and examine it carefully. This will help you increase your knowledge and find new solutions in this constantly shifting world.

What makes a good marketing research topic?

A good marketing research topic is one that is original, relevant to your field of study, and offers opportunities for innovation and exploration.

How can I ensure my topic is unique?

Ensure your topic is unique by conducting a thorough literature review to identify gaps in existing research and proposing a novel approach or perspective to address these gaps.

Is it better to focus on a specific industry or keep it general?

Both approaches have their merits. Focusing on a specific industry allows for deeper insights and specialization, while a general approach

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Marketing Research is essential for any business that wants to understand its customers, competitors, and market trends. Marketing Research Topics are the specific questions that guide the collection and analysis of data to provide insights and recommendations for various marketing decisions.

These topics cover a wide range of areas, such as product development, pricing, promotion, distribution, customer satisfaction, loyalty, segmentation, branding, and more. In this blog, we will discuss some of the top Marketing Research Topics that can help marketers achieve their goals and gain an edge over their competitors.

Table of Contents

1) Best Marketing Research Topics list

a) Digital Marketing Topics

b) Content Marketing Topics

c) Strategic Marketing Problems

d) Social Media Marketing Research Topics

e) Exceptional Marketing Research Topics

f) Unique Marketing Research Topics

g) Premium Marketing Research Topics

h) Interesting Marketing Research Ideas.

i) Current Marketing Research Topics

j) Impressive Marketing Research Topics

2) Conclusion

Best Marketing Research Topics list

Here, we explore various Marketing Research Topics to uncover insights and strategies for informed decision-making and business success.

1) Digital Marketing Research Topics

Listed below are some of the best Digital Marketing Research topics:

a) Digital Marketing's influence on brand recognition

b) Social Media's function in Digital Marketing

c) Efficiency of digital advertising

d) Mobile technology's influence on Digital Marketing

e) Search engine optimisation's role in Digital Marketing

f) Utilisation of Big Data in Digital Marketing

g) Digital Marketing's impact on customer engagement

h) Content Marketing's position in Digital Marketing

i) Effectiveness of strategies in Digital Marketing

j) Digital Marketing's impact on shopping behaviour

k) Artificial intelligence's role in Digital Marketing

l) Video usage in Digital Marketing

m) Digital Marketing's impact on Sales

n) Influencer Marketing's role in Digital Marketing

o) Email Marketing's effectiveness

p) Digital Marketing's impact on customer loyalty

q) Social Media analytics in Digital Marketing

r) Integration of Voice Search in Digital Marketing

s) Digital Marketing's Effect on Return on Investment (ROI)

t) Automation's Role in Digital Marketing

2) Content Marketing Research Topics

Listed below are the top Content Marketing topics:

a) Building brand identity through Content Marketing

b) The social media landscape in Content Marketing strategies

c) Evaluating the impact of content advertising effectiveness

d) Mobile technology's influence on Content Marketing strategies

e) Search engine optimisation's significance in Content Marketing

f) Harnessing Big Data for informed Content Marketing decisions

g) Customer engagement strategies in Content Marketing

h) The crucial role of Content Marketing in digital strategies

i) Assessing the effectiveness of Content Marketing strategies

j) Content Marketing's influence on consumer shopping patterns

k) Artificial intelligence: A catalyst in Content Marketing innovation

l) Video content strategies for effective Content Marketing

m) Driving sales through strategic Content Marketing

n) Influencer collaboration's impact on Content Marketing success

o) Email marketing: A pillar of effective content distribution

p) Fostering customer loyalty through tailored content experiences

q) Social media analytics for informed Content Marketing insights

r) Integrating voice search into Content Marketing strategies

s) Measuring Content Marketing ROI: A comprehensive analysis

t) The role of automation in optimising Content Marketing effort

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3) Strategic Marketing Research Topics

Here’s a list of Strategic Marketing Research Topics:

a) Strategic Marketing Research's influence on brand positioning

b) The role of market segmentation in Strategic Marketing Research

c) Evaluating the effectiveness of competitive analysis in Strategic Marketing

d) Technological innovations and their impact on strategic Marketing Research

e) Consumer behaviour studies: Informing strategic marketing decision-making

f) Strategic Marketing Research in the era of Big Data analytics

g) Customer journey mapping: A strategic approach in Marketing Research

h) The positioning of brand equity in Strategic Marketing Research

i) Assessing the effectiveness of pricing strategies in Strategic Marketing

j) The impact of environmental scanning on strategic Marketing Research

k) Artificial Intelligence's integration in strategic Marketing Research

l) Utilising surveys and feedback loops in strategic Marketing Research

m) Strategic Marketing Research's influence on market penetration

n) Stakeholder analysis: A key component of strategic Marketing Research

o) Email surveys and their role in strategic Marketing Research

p) Building customer retention strategies through strategic Marketing

q) Social Media monitoring in strategic Marketing Research

r) The integration of Voice of the Customer (VOC) in Strategic Marketing

s) Assessing ROI in strategic Marketing Research initiatives

t) The role of automation in enhancing Strategic Marketing Research.

4) Social Media Marketing Research Topics

Here’s a list of Social Media Marketing Research Topics:

a) Exploring Social Media's impact on brand recognition

b) The role and function of Social Media in Digital Marketing

c) Measuring the effectiveness of Social Media advertising

d) Influence of mobile technology on Social Media Marketing

e) Optimising Social Media presence through SEO strategies

f) Leveraging Big Data for insights into Social Media Marketing

g) Enhancing customer engagement through Social Media Marketing

h) Positioning Content Marketing within Social Media strategies

i) Evaluating the effectiveness of Social Media Marketing strategies

j) Understanding Social Media's influence on consumer shopping behaviour

k) The integration of Artificial Intelligence in Social Media Marketing

l) Utilising video content for effective Social Media Marketing

m) Analysing the impact of Social Media Marketing on sales

n) Role and impact of Influencer Marketing in Social Media

o) Effectiveness of Email Marketing in Social Media context

p) Fostering customer loyalty through Social Media Marketing

q) Utilising Social Media analytics for strategic insights

r) Integrating voice search in Social Media Marketing strategies

s) Measuring Social Media Marketing's Return on Investment (ROI)

t) The role of automation in Social Media Marketing

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5) Exceptional Marketing Research Topics

Given below are Research Topics for Exceptional Marketing:

a) Offshore marketing and evaluating optimal distribution strategies for new companies

b) Marketing distribution channels and potential mistakes to avoid

c) Examination of online shopping in China, discussing its influence and opportunities

d) Explanation of the concept of Artificial Intelligence in marketing

e) Discussion of the components of a competitive marketing strategy

f) Impact assessment of augmented reality on the marketing experience

g) Pricing and positioning strategies for marketing effectiveness

h) Description of the role of Social Media in lead generation

i) Development and execution of investment banking in developing markets

j) Impact analysis of European financial supervision on cross-border financial investment

k) Consumer purchase decision and the influence of e-marketing

l) Customer buying behaviour and the role of sensory marketing

m) Gender influence on business startups

n) Analysis of the significance of leadership and culture in organisational change

o) Case study of Nike, evaluating the role of CSR

p) Analysis of the use of Omni-channel tracking in marketing

q) Comparison of Augmented Reality (AR) and Immerse Technologies in Marketing

r) Comparison of the use of User-Generated Content and Content Mapping in Marketing

s) Application of Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) in marketing

t) Pros and cons of using Predictive Analytics and Browser Push Notifications in marketing

6) Unique Marketing Research Topics

Here’s a list of unique Marketing Research Topics:

a) Analysing the impact of cultural shifts on consumer behaviour

b) Unveiling the power of neuro-marketing in understanding consumer choices

c) The role of augmented reality in enhancing market research

d) Green marketing: sustainability as a critical factor in consumer preferences

e) Cross-cultural marketing: navigating diverse global markets

f) The influence of gamification on market research strategies

g) Ethical considerations in contemporary market research practices

h) Examining the role of blockchain in revolutionising marketing data security

i) VOC analysis: Strategies for effective implementation

j) The impact of virtual events on market research dynamics

k) Harnessing the potential of chatbots in gathering customer insights

l) Understanding the psychology of brand loyalty in changing market landscapes

m) Market research in the age of privacy concerns: navigating regulatory challenges

n) Evaluating the effectiveness of experiential Marketing Research

o) Innovations in mobile market research: adapting to the smartphone era

p) The intersection of market research and artificial intelligence

q) Measuring emotional engagement in Marketing Research

r) The role of predictive analytics in anticipating market trends

7) Premium Marketing Research Topics

Here, we discuss the premium Marketing Research Topics in the contemporary world:

a) Crafting an exclusive brand experience: Beyond digital channels

b) Strategic utilisation of luxury influencers in marketing

c) Innovative approaches to premium Content Marketing

d) Augmented reality in premium branding strategies

e) Customised user journeys: Personalisation in Premium Marketing

f) Blockchain technology in ensuring brand authenticity for premium products

g) Neuro-Marketing: Understanding the premium consumer's mind

h) Exclusive partnerships and collaborations in premium branding

i) Data privacy and security concerns in premium customer relationships

j) Sustainability as a premium brand value: Strategies and challenges

k) The role of experiential marketing in premium product launches

l) Psychological pricing strategies for premium goods

m) Virtual reality experiences for premium brand engagement

n) Ultra-personalisation: Tailoring premium services to individual needs

o) Emerging trends in premium customer retention strategies

p) Cultivating a sense of exclusivity: Membership programs in premium marketing

q) The impact of limited-edition releases on premium brand image

r) Luxury branding in the digital age: balancing tradition and innovation

s) Premium market positioning: Differentiating in a crowded landscape

t) Strategies for niche market penetration in premium sectors

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8) Interesting Marketing Research Ideas

Discussed below are a few interesting Marketing Research ideas:

a) Utilising pillar content for sales growth: An exploration of effective strategies

b) Examining the roles of Mobile Marketing in driving business success

c) The intersection of internet security and its implications for online marketing

d) Determining the optimal social media platform for marketing baby products

e) The role of social media in business survival and growth

f) The importance of competitor analysis in shaping brand marketing strategies

g) Political campaigns as a factor in brand marketing dynamics

h) Assessing the viability of centralised marketing for international brands

i) Exploring brand salience and its impact on in-store branding

j) Social class distinctions and their influence on company service perception

k) Exploring commonly used methods for predicting consumer behaviour

l) Investigating the influence of advertising during economic recession periods

m) Strategies employed in the marketing landscape of the fashion industry

n) In-depth exploration of targeted marketing using paid search engine ads

o) Assessing the impact of television advertisements on consumer moods

9) Relevant Marketing Research Topics

Here’s a list of relevant Marketing Research Topics:

a) Impact of Covid-19 on the marketing initiatives of the organisation

b) Effect of the Covid-19 emergence on business communities

c) Influence of the Covid-19 emergence on marketing operations

d) Examination of the impact of brand promotion and celebrity usage on ROI

e) Analysis of how lockdown situations impact an organisation's PR activities

f) Significance of the marketing mix on organisational performance

g) Discussion on the importance of STP analysis for any business entity

h) Analysis of the impact of Covid-19 and subsequent lockdown on the hospitality sector

i) Effects of Covid-19 and subsequent lockdown on the aviation industry

j) Importance of an environmental audit for formulating effective marketing strategies

k) Impact of Covid-19 and the subsequent lockdown on the service sector

l) Exploration of the impact of Covid-19 and the subsequent lockdown on the sports industry

m) "Just Do It" - one of the most successful environmentally conscious advertising taglines

n) Examination of the successful marketing strategies of Apple, Southwest Airlines, and Budweiser

o) Importance of personalisation in marketing

10) Impressive Marketing Research Topics

Listed below are some of the impressive Marketing Research Topics:

a) Impact of consumers' implicit and explicit knowledge on their purchasing behaviour

b) Implementation of centralised global marketing

c) Integration of IoT, wearables, or smart devices for automated customer service

d) Definition and application of e-CRM in marketing

e) Interconnection between brand awareness and repeat purchases

f) Establishing a company's brand image through Guest Blogging

g) Strategies for managing marketing and company reputation effectively

h) Examination of Corporate Social Responsibility as a marketing tactic

i) Optimal social media approaches to enhance customer engagement

j) Analysis of social media marketing's influence on customer behaviour

k) Relationship dynamics between influencer marketing and lifestyle branding

l) Technologies pivotal in improving customers' online decision-making processes

m) Exploring efficient marketing strategies to mend a damaged reputation

n) Human Resource Management and the motivational factors crucial for future leaders

o) Influence and importance of performance management in large and diverse organisations

Conclusion

Marketing Research Topics vary from how Digital Marketing influences what we buy to whether traditional methods still work. You can also explore Social Media's role, how online ads perform, and the impact of loyalty programs. Other areas include product placement, celebrity endorsements, and how pricing affects what consumers choose. Regardless of the topic, thorough and organised research is crucial for accurate and reliable findings.

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370+ Best Marketing Research Topics & Ideas for Students to Consider

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Ever had that brain-freezing moment where you're staring at a blank page, desperately hunting for that perfect marketing research topic? We've all been there. Welcome to your new cheat-sheet – a collection of unique, compelling, and downright cool marketing research paper topics.

This isn't your standard list. We've gone beyond the beaten track, exploring the wild frontier of marketing, from neuromarketing mysteries to influencer insights. We've broken it down into digestible sections, so you can dive straight into your area of interest or academic level. Go ahead, check out these marketing research topics for papers and dissertations to make your next project shine!

What Are Marketing Research Topics?

In its simplest form, marketing is all about telling a compelling story to your audience. It's how businesses communicate the value of their products or services to customers, intending to promote and sell them. Yet, it's not just about selling. Marketing also involves understanding customer needs, crafting solutions to meet these needs, and building relationships that result in customer loyalty.

Now, when it comes to marketing research topics, you'll find an expansive universe of possibilities, each as diverse as the next. You might explore how to position your product to maximize impact or delve into the powerful online strategies that can make your brand viral. Or, you could examine the psychology behind consumer behavior, understanding what drives people to buy one product over another.

These are just a handful of the abundant marketing topics you can encounter. Now let’s see what branches they are divided into.

Branches of Marketing Topics

Before you choose any marketing research topic idea, let’s figure out the main branches of this field. Here are the buckets they fall into:

Strategic marketing: This is the art of planning with a long-term view. Topics here could cover competitive positioning, market segmentation, or establishing a unique selling proposition.
Digital marketing: This direction is all about reaching customers online. You might explore search engine optimization, email marketing campaigns, or the effectiveness of different digital advertising strategies.
Social media marketing: This branch leverages social platforms to engage customers. Marketing topics here could revolve around the role of influencers, the power of user-generated content, or the impact of social media on brand perception.
Content marketing: This revolves around creating valuable content for customers. Here, you could delve into the importance of storytelling, how to create compelling blog posts, or the effectiveness of video marketing.
Consumer behavior: This branch focuses on understanding what drives consumers. You might examine factors influencing buying decisions, the psychology of consumer choice, or trends in consumer behavior.

How to Choose a Marketing Research Topic?

Choosing the right marketing research paper topic is crucial for a couple of reasons. Firstly, a good topic can keep you motivated throughout your study. It can be the difference between seeing your research as a chore or an adventure. Secondly, a well-chosen topic can contribute to the field, spark discussions, or even influence marketing strategies.

So, what makes a marketing research topic good? Most importantly, it should be an area of interest that excites you and piques your curiosity. Researching something you don't care about won't bring out your best work. Also, make sure the topic is relevant – check if it fits into the current research landscape or challenges existing knowledge. Last but not least, ask yourself if the topic is manageable within the scope of your assignment and resources.

With these criteria in mind, let's see how to select the right marketing research topic. Below are some valuable suggestions from our thesis writing service :

Begin research Get familiar with the field by reading up on the latest publications and material. Note down all ideas for later reference.
Identify your interest area Start by asking yourself what aspect of marketing excites you most. Is it the psychology of consumer behavior, the analytics of digital marketing, or the creative aspects of content marketing?
Examine current trends Stay updated with the latest developments in the marketing field. Read industry reports, blogs, or news to identify hot topics or emerging trends.
Find a gap Look for questions that haven't been sufficiently answered or areas that need more exploration. This could be a unique perspective on an existing topic or an entirely new question.
Consider practicality Make sure your topic is feasible to research. Do you have access to the necessary resources, data, or tools?

Remember, choosing the right topic is a journey, one that requires time, exploration, and sometimes, a bit of trial and error. Don't rush it, savor the process, and you'll end up with a great topic. But in case you are stuck, we developed a list of potential research topics in marketing – all worth attention.

List of Marketing Research Topics & Ideas

We've collated a captivating list of marketing research paper topics, perfect for igniting your curiosity and sure to impress your professors. Remember to align your chosen topic with your course requirements to ensure it's the perfect fit. Let's dive in!

Engaging Gen Z through social media marketing.
Challenges and opportunities in influencer marketing.
Ethical boundaries in digital advertising.
Rise of voice search: Impact on SEO.
Sustainable marketing: Beyond a trend?
Navigating cultural differences in international marketing.
AI and personalization in digital marketing.
Consumer behavior in online vs. offline shopping.
Impact of viral marketing on brand awareness.
Neuromarketing: Exploring the consumer's mind.
The role of AR and VR in enhancing consumer experience.
Branding in the age of social movements.
Efficacy of content marketing in B2B sectors.
Emotional marketing: Manipulation or genuine connection?
Privacy concerns in data-driven marketing.

Good Marketing Research Topics

Eager to dive deeper into the world of marketing? Here are more fresh and exciting marketing project topics. Each is poised to offer intriguing insights and comes with plenty of data to fuel your arguments. Get ready to explore!

Measuring the impact of customer reviews on sales.
Gamification as a marketing strategy: Pros and cons.
How color psychology influences branding?
Experiential marketing: A new customer engagement strategy.
How does social responsibility improve brand image?
Celebrity endorsements: Effective or outdated?
Ethical implications of neuromarketing.
Green marketing: Just a trend or a sustainable strategy?
Impact of humorous advertising on brand recall.
Local SEO strategies for small businesses.
How storytelling boosts content marketing success?
Role of AI in predicting consumer behavior.
Effects of scarcity tactics in e-commerce.
Mobile marketing trends shaping the future.
Impact of data privacy regulations on digital marketing.

Interesting Marketing Research Topics

Looking for a theme to add a dash of intrigue to your research? Explore this list of market research topics guaranteed to spark curiosity and foster insightful discussions.

Using virtual reality for product demonstrations.
Impact of emotional appeals in advertising.
How does nostalgia influence consumer choices?
Role of chatbots in improving customer service.
Leveraging user-generated content for brand promotion.
Social media's role in crisis management.
Role of big data in personalized advertising.
Is there a backlash against intrusive online ads?
Psychology behind successful loyalty programs.
Impact of culture on global advertising strategies.
Influencers vs. celebrity endorsements: Which is more effective?
Ethical implications of predictive analytics in targeting consumers.
Effectiveness of cause marketing in boosting sales.
Role of augmented reality in enhancing shopping experiences.
Strategies for improving online customer engagement.

Best Marketing Research Topics

What sets outstanding marketing research projects apart? They should be relevant, intriguing, and offer new insights. With that in mind, we've compiled the best research topics in marketing that tick all these boxes. Ready to make your research truly outstanding? Dive in!

Influence of virtual reality on consumer experiences.
Power of storytelling in brand building.
How does sustainability shape consumer choices?
Impact of memes on online brand promotion.
Role of blockchain in ensuring ad transparency.
Emotional intelligence in customer service: Is it crucial?
Does user-generated content boost trust in brands?
Social media's impact on body image: A concern for advertisers?
Role of data analytics in shaping promotional strategies.
Ethics in advertising: How far can shock tactics go?
Evolving consumer expectations in the era of personalization .
What drives the success of viral ads?
How does color influence brand recognition ?
Impact of artificial intelligence on consumer data collection.
Strategies to counter negative publicity on social media.

New Research Topics in Marketing

As an ever-evolving field, marketing constantly introduces new areas to investigate. It's vital to keep abreast of the latest trends to discover untapped research topics. To help you stay ahead of the curve, here are brand new marketing research topic ideas, each one reflecting innovations in the field.

Role of voice assistants in shaping buyer behavior.
Exploring the ethics of using AI in advertising.
Omnichannel retailing: A shift in consumer shopping experience?
Role of podcasts in influencing consumer behavior.
How does virtual reality reshape shopping experiences?
Personalization vs. privacy: A growing concern in digital advertising?
Use of drone technology for product delivery.
Impact of artificial intelligence on customer segmentation.
Role of WhatsApp chatbots in e-commerce: Do they enhance customer satisfaction?
How does mobile payment influence consumer buying behavior?
Influencer marketing in the age of fake followers.
The rise of shoppable posts in social media.
Exploring the potential of augmented reality in product visualization.
How do data breaches affect brand trust?
Impact of social media algorithms on content visibility.

Controversial Topics in Marketing

Struggling to come up with an interesting research topic on marketing? Consider exploring controversial marketing ideas. These themes can help you to spark heated debates and draw attention from your tutor. Below are a few fantastic controversial marketing topics to write about.

And don't forget, you can pick a topic and entrust it to a professional essay writer online . Our experts can conduct thorough research and deliver top-quality work, no matter how complex the subject. Take your pick and let our professionals do the heavy lifting for you!

Has the rise of ad-blockers signified failure in digital advertising?
Deceptive marketing tactics: Where is the line drawn?
Does native advertising compromise journalistic integrity?
Ethical dilemmas of data mining in personalized marketing.
Use of sexual imagery in advertising: Effective or exploitative?
Neuromarketing: Intriguing science or manipulative strategy?
Are shock tactics in advertising crossing the line?
Role of consumerism in environmental degradation.
Negative impacts of beauty standards perpetuated by ads.
Is manipulation an inherent part of marketing?
Stereotypes in advertising : Harmless categorizing or dangerous bias?
Social media marketing to children: Ethical or exploitative?
Are privacy concerns leading to a decline in personalized advertising?
Does influencer marketing promote unrealistic lifestyle expectations?
Is greenwashing a consequence of sustainability trends in marketing?

Marketing Topics & Ideas for Students

Are you searching for marketing topic ideas tailored to your academic level? You're in the right place! In the following sections, you'll discover multiple marketing essay topics and research ideas organized according to various levels of study. Scroll down, find your academic level, and start exploring!

Marketing Research Topics for College Students

College is a time for exploration and growth, and what better way to study this niche than with some thought-provoking marketing research ideas for college students? Take a look at these titles suitable for a college-level understanding, yet engaging enough to fuel your curiosity.

Subliminal advertising : Myth or reality?
Impact of music in retail environments on consumer behavior.
The role of humor in successful ad campaigns.
Exploring the 'Fear of Missing Out' (FOMO) effect in event marketing.
Push vs. pull marketing strategies : Which works better?
Marketing campaigns that changed public opinion.
Celebrity scandals: A death knell for brand image?
Influence of packaging design on purchase decisions.
The role of color psychology in food marketing.
Impact of customer relationship management (CRM) on customer loyalty.
Are loyalty programs effective in retaining customers?
The role of social proof in online sales.
How cultural factors influence buying decisions.
Word-of-mouth marketing in the digital age.
The effect of customer service quality on brand loyalty.

Marketing Research Topics for University Students

As a university student, you're expected to tackle more complex tasks. So, we've curated a list of advanced marketing research ideas, perfect for a university level understanding.

How globalization shapes brand strategies.
Is corporate social responsibility just a trend or a necessity?
The influence of economic downturns on consumer behavior.
Emotional connections: Are they key in fostering customer loyalty?
Understanding the ' Halo Effect ' in brand perceptions.
Lessons learned from cross-cultural promotional blunders.
Exploring the psychology behind pricing strategies.
The role of neurolinguistic programming in persuasive messaging.
How sensory experiences enhance customer interactions.
Nudging consumer behavior: Is it ethical?
The impact of data analytics on strategic decision-making.
Unraveling the gender stereotypes present in commercials.
Assessing the effectiveness of ambush promotional strategies.
How does ethical branding improve a company's image?
Tracing the evolution and impact of guerrilla promotional strategies.

Marketing Research Topics by Category

As promised, we've meticulously organized an array of marketing topics for a research paper into specific categories for your convenience. Whether you're interested in digital marketing, consumer behavior, or any other subfield, just scroll down. Below, you'll find our comprehensive collection, each with a selection of field-specific marketing research paper ideas.

Digital Marketing Research Topics

Digital marketing revolves around promoting and selling products or services using digital platforms. As this domain continues to grow, it opens up a multitude of unique research avenues. Let's uncover some digital marketing topics to discuss:

Role of artificial intelligence in customer segmentation.
Does video content really boost online engagement?
Potential of augmented reality for product visualization .
Understanding consumer trust in online reviews.
Effectiveness of mobile apps in customer retention.
Future of email promotion in social media era.
Role of SEO in driving organic traffic.
Impact of page loading speed on bounce rates.
Online sales: Does free shipping enhance conversion rates?
Influencer collaboration vs paid advertising : What offers better ROI?
Impact of personalization on e-commerce conversion rates.
Importance of responsive design in user experience.
Is social proof essential for online sales conversion?
Podcasts as a promotional tool: How effective are they?
Evolution of privacy laws and its impact on online data collection.

Strategic Marketing Research Problems Topics

Global brand strategies with setting goals, deciding on actions to achieve these goals, and mobilizing resources to execute the actions. It requires a thorough understanding of market trends, competitive landscapes, and consumer behavior. Take a glance at these topics in marketing that explore various problems and challenges in this subfield:

Impact of poor internal communication on marketing strategy.
Aligning brand identity with customer perceptions.
Challenges in establishing a global brand strategy .
Role of competitive intelligence in shaping business strategy.
Impact of poor customer service on brand loyalty.
Mergers and acquisitions.
Role of organizational culture in strategy implementation.
Navigating the risks of product diversification.
Coping with increased price competition in saturated markets .
Impact of supply chain disruptions on product availability.
Overcoming barriers in implementing green business practices.
Strategies for maintaining brand relevance in fast-paced markets.
How does a changing regulatory environment impact strategy formulation?
Importance of innovation in maintaining a competitive edge.
Balancing profit margins and customer satisfaction in pricing strategy.

Social Media Marketing Research Paper Topics

It’s hard to imagine our life without social media. It has revolutionized the way we communicate and interact with one another. In this regard, there are a bunch of research topics on marketing for students who need to write a social media essay or paper.

The rise of TikTok: Understanding its business appeal.
How does Instagram's 'Shop Now' feature affect consumer behavior?
The role of LinkedIn in B2B lead generation.
Assessing the influence of Twitter's character limit on message effectiveness.
Exploring Facebook's 'Reactions' and their impact on brand engagement.
Potential of Pinterest for visual brand storytelling.
Snapchat's 'Story' feature: A boon for experiential branding?
The impact of YouTube influencers on purchase decisions.
Understanding the role of social listening in reputation management.
Virality on social platforms: A calculated strategy or pure luck?
Live streams as a tool for real-time audience engagement.
The ethics of social media data mining.
User-generated content: An untapped branding tool?
Role of social platforms in crisis communication.
Analyzing the popularity of unboxing videos on social media.

>> More ideas: Social Media Research Paper Topics

Content Marketing Research Topic Ideas

Content marketing is all about creating, publishing, and distributing content for a targeted audience. It's about storytelling, providing valuable information, and building relationships with customers. Here are some fascinating content marketing topics for research:

Evaluating the impact of blog posts on SEO.
Long-form vs short-form content: What's more engaging?
Infographics: A tool for simplifying complex information.
Podcasts: A rising star in information dissemination?
Understanding the role of eBooks in lead generation.
Is interactive content the future of customer engagement?
Webinars: Are they still relevant in the age of short videos?
White papers: Their influence on decision-making in B2B.
How does user-generated content shape brand perception?
The rise and role of meme culture in content strategy.
Storytelling in branding: Fad or fundamental?
Exploring the trend of episodic content in audience retention.
Role of content curation in demonstrating industry thought leadership.
Using case studies as social proof in conversion strategy.
The impact of voice search on content creation.

Marketing Research Topics in Consumer Behavior

Consumer behavior explores how individuals, groups, and organizations select, use, and dispose of goods, services, or ideas. It seeks to understand the decision-making processes and what influences them. Consider these topics of marketing and consumer behavior:

Environmental concerns and their role in purchase decisions.
Family influence on children's brand preferences.
Celebrity endorsements and their impact on consumer trust.
Psychological triggers and implications of impulse buying.
Loyalty programs and their influence on repeat purchases .
Brand image and its effect on product evaluation.
Role nostalgia plays in purchase decisions.
Psychology behind buying 'limited edition' items.
Color and its impact on consumer perceptions and behaviors.
Music's influence on shopper mood and behavior in stores.
'Made locally' label's effect on consumer choice.
Fear of missing out (FOMO) in online buying.
Customer reviews and their impact on online shopping behavior.
Social media's influence on body image and related product choices.
Paradox of choice: More selection leading to less satisfaction?

B2B Marketing Project Topics

Business-to-business (B2B) marketing focuses on selling products or services to other organizations. This subfield offers a range of topics related to marketing research. Take a look at some of our suggestions:

Impact of digital transformation on business sales.
LinkedIn's role in lead generation for businesses.
Efficacy of email marketing in business transactions.
Chatbots: Enhancing customer service in business marketing?
Necessity of personalization in business marketing.
Influence of webinars in generating leads for businesses.
Understanding influencer marketing in a business context.
Ethical issues in data collection for business marketing.
A deep-dive into account-based marketing strategies .
Role of predictive analytics in business marketing.
Marketing strategies designed for small businesses.
Overcoming challenges in business branding.
Efficacy of content marketing in a business context.
Implications of GDPR on business marketing.
Emerging trends in business marketing.

>> View more: Business Topics to Write About

International Marketing Research Topics

International marketing focuses on understanding and responding to global opportunities. It requires a more extensive research approach with an eye towards cultural, political, and economic developments outside the home country. Explore these international market research ideas for papers:

Cultural nuances and their impact on advertising strategies.
Cross-border e-commerce: Growth and challenges.
Exploring the role of localization in global branding.
Understanding tariff wars and their impact on marketing strategies.
Influence of political climate on international marketing decisions.
International public relations: A comparative study.
Social media and its role in global product launches.
A study of emerging markets and their attractiveness for marketers.
International consumer behavior: Similarities and differences.
Localization vs. standardization in global marketing.
Case study: Successful global rebranding campaigns.
Impact of Brexit on European marketing strategies.
Green marketing practices across the globe.
International market segmentation and targeting strategies.
International marketing ethics: A cross-cultural analysis.

Real Estate Marketing Research Topics

Real estate marketing involves understanding and responding to the needs of potential buyers, sellers, and investors in the property market. Go through these project topics in marketing related to real estate research:

Marketing luxury apartments: Challenges and solutions.
Selling residential properties in a buyer's market.
How social media influences property buying decisions.
Effectively marketing rental properties in competitive markets.
Marketing strategies for eco-friendly homes.
Role staging plays in promoting properties.
Drones: The new trend in real estate showcasing.
Advertising strategies in rapidly urbanizing areas.
Promoting properties through influencer partnerships.
Customer reviews' impact on online property listings.
Neighborhood branding's influence on real estate sales.
Online vs offline property promotion: A comparative study.
Comparing marketing strategies: Luxury versus budget properties.
Marketing properties during economic downturns.
Digital marketing best practices for property agents.

Marketing Research Paper Topics in Distribution

The world of distribution is multi-layered and complex, intertwined with other key areas like logistics, supply chain management, and marketing. It's about ensuring products get into the hands of customers efficiently. Investigate this exciting area with these research topics in marketing field.

Impact on sales: Direct vs indirect distribution methods.
Influencing factors in selecting distribution channels.
E-commerce's revolutionizing role in product distribution.
Case study: Successful distribution strategies in retail.
Drones and future delivery systems: A feasibility study.
Role big data plays in optimizing distribution channels.
How sustainable practices influence distribution strategies.
Importance customer convenience plays in distribution planning.
Overcoming distribution challenges in rural areas.
Examining the relationship: Distribution strategies and market share.
AI's role in streamlining distribution processes.
Omnichannel distribution: A necessity or a luxury?
Importance distribution planning plays in new product launches.
Distribution's role in creating a competitive advantage.
Changes in distribution strategies due to the pandemic.

Neuromarketing Research Topics

Neuromarketing focuses on how psychological, cognitive, and emotional processes affect consumer behavior. It combines neuroscience with traditional marketing research for a deeper understanding of decision-making processes. Here are some interesting neuromarketing topics:

Influence of colors on consumer decision making.
How product placement impacts buying behavior.
Emotional triggers in advertising: An analysis.
Consumer responses to sensory branding .
Impacting purchase decisions with visual illusions.
Role of auditory cues in product preference.
Influence of olfactory cues on consumer behavior.
Celebrity endorsements and neural responses.
Comparing digital vs. physical shopping experiences: A neuromarketing perspective.
Effects of negative emotion on impulse buying .
Role neurolinguistics plays in shaping consumer opinions.
Neuromarketing strategies for personalized advertising.
Video vs. image ads: A comparative neuromarketing study.
Assessing effectiveness of humor in ads: A neuroscientific approach.
How storytelling in marketing sways the consumer's brain.

>> View more: Psychology Paper Topics

Influencer Marketing Topics for Research

Influencer marketing blends social media and advertising. It's an evolving field, ripe for research. We invite you to check these compelling research paper topics about marketing and influencers:

Measuring return on investment in influencer marketing.
How micro-influencers impact small business growth.
Authenticity versus promotion: Striking a balance.
Ethics in influencer marketing: A critical review.
Power social media influencers hold over consumer behavior.
Video blogging and brand visibility.
Effect of influencer-led contests on audience engagement.
Does influencer reputation affect brand perception?
Celebrity versus non-celebrity influencers: Who wins?
Impact of influencer gender on audience engagement.
Fashion influencers and their role in brand awareness.
Fitness influencers: Inspiring or creating pressure?
Role influencers play in promoting sustainable products.
Influencers and crisis management: A case study approach.
Influencer partnerships: Temporary boost or long-term gain?

Ethical Marketing Research Paper Topics

Ethical marketing revolves around the principles of honesty, fairness, and responsibility in advertising practices. With an increasing emphasis on business ethics, research in this area can yield insightful findings. Consider these awesome research paper topics related to marketing and ethics:

Honesty in advertising: A lost art?
Exploring fairness in competitive marketing practices.
Corporate social responsibility: Marketing strategy or ethical obligation?
Greenwashing: Misleading environmental claims in advertising.
Privacy and data collection: An ethical debate.
Ethical implications in children's advertising.
Body positivity and marketing: Strides and stumbles.
Cultural sensitivity in international marketing campaigns .
Animal rights and marketing: Exploring ethical considerations.
Influence of ethical claims on consumer perception.
False advertising: Consequences and solutions.
Ethical dimensions in influencer partnerships.
Human rights issues in marketing.
Health claims in food advertising: Fact or fiction?
Role of ethics in pharmaceutical marketing.

Integrated Marketing Communication Research Topics

Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) blends different promotional tools to deliver clear, consistent, and compelling messages. IMC is crucial for brands to create unified customer experiences. Here are original, attention-grabbing integrated marketing communication topics for research :

Role of social media in IMC strategy.
IMC impact on customer loyalty.
Public relations in an IMC context.
Online-offline IMC strategies: A comparative study.
Influencer endorsements in IMC: Effectiveness assessment.
IMC in non-profit organizations: An exploratory study.
Impact of IMC on brand equity.
Event sponsorship in IMC plans.
IMC strategy for launching new products.
Role of IMC in crisis management.
Digital transformation and its influence on IMC.
IMC in enhancing customer relationships.
AI and IMC: A synergy exploration.
IMC for sustainable product marketing.
Evaluating IMC success: Metrics and measurement methods.

Marketing Analytics Research Topics

Marketing analytics employs data and metrics to measure the success of marketing initiatives, enabling informed business decisions. Here are groundbreaking topics that offer intriguing insights into marketing analytics:

Social media data: A gold mine for marketers?
Predictive analytics in customer retention strategies.
Quantifying influencer marketing: Metrics that matter.
Role of big data in personalized branding.
Real-time analytics in optimizing marketing campaigns.
Analytics in content marketing: Determining success.
AI-powered marketing analytics: Boon or bane?
Sentiment analysis in brand perception.
Location-based analytics in mobile branding.
Web analytics: Decoding customer online behavior.
Customer segmentation through data analytics.
ROI calculation in digital marketing.
Analyzing customer journey with cross-channel analytics.
Leveraging analytics for email marketing.
Voice search analytics: Future brand promotion tool?

Sport Marketing Topics to Write About

Sport marketing involves promoting teams, games, and related products to fans and broader audiences. It's an exciting field, mixing passion, business, and competition. Explore these sports marketing related topics if you are interested in this field:

Social media's role in popularizing sport events.
Fan engagement in a digital age.
Impact of athlete endorsements on brand perception.
Sustainability initiatives in the sports world.
Leveraging virtual reality for improved fan experiences.
Esports' influence on traditional sports promotion.
Strategy shifts for supporting women's sports leagues.
Analyzing the dynamics of sports sponsorship deals.
Successful merchandising tactics for sports teams.
Team performance and its influence on merchandise sales.
Sports events as a tool for promoting tourism.
Accessibility in sports venues: Implications for fan inclusion.
Personal branding strategies for athletes.
Controversy's role in athlete endorsements.
Mobile trends shaping the sports industry.

Extra Marketing Research Paper Topics

Couldn't find a fitting topic in marketing? Don’t worry! We added some more ideas to choose from. Below are some additional topics you might like. Let’s continue your research on marketing topics together.

Marketing Presentation Topics

Presentations on marketing concepts can illuminate the strategies behind successful advertising campaigns, brand positioning, and customer engagement. These unique and original topics will provide an interesting spin on conventional marketing subjects:

Humanizing artificial intelligence in customer relations.
Role of silent films in modern advertising.
Using quantum computing to optimize marketing efforts.
Neural networks in predicting consumer behavior.
Astral marketing: Leveraging astrology in branding.
Biophilic elements in retail space design.
Gamification in non-gaming brand experiences.
Marketing possibilities in metaverse.
Cybersecurity's influence on digital consumer trust.
Marketing potential of brain-computer interfaces.
Implementing circular economy principles in product promotion.
Micro-moments: Capitalizing on instant decision making.
Haptic technology's potential in experiential marketing.
Role of digital twins in customer profiling.
Impact of space tourism on brand partnerships.

Marketing Thesis Topics

Are you about to write a thesis or dissertation? Consider these pro-level marketing topics for thesis and dissertations:

Emotional algorithms: Predicting consumer behavior through AI.
Phygital retail : Blending physical and digital shopping experiences.
Impact of blockchain technology on consumer trust in digital marketing.
Sensory branding in virtual reality environments.
Leveraging neuromorphic engineering for personalized marketing.
Ethical implications of using deepfake technology in advertising.
Quantum computing's potential impact on big data analytics.
The role of immersive technology in shaping luxury brand experiences.
Micro-personalization: Exploring marketing's hyper-customized future.
Bio-adaptive marketing: The next frontier in personalization?
Implications of facial recognition technology on privacy and marketing ethics.
Exploring the marketing potential of Internet of Behaviors (IoB) .
Edge computing's influence on real-time marketing strategies.
Use of augmented intelligence in predicting consumer life cycle.
Leveraging satellite technology for geolocation-based marketing.

Bottom Line on Marketing Topics for Research Papers

The marketing research paper topics and ideas attached above provide a great starting point for your project. But don't be afraid to address other angles related to the subject. Whatever you choose to study, make sure you draw clear connections between your sources and your argument. And if you need any help with writing or research, remember to contact our professional academic assistants.

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100 best marketing research topics for all.

Because of the many aspects of marketing, choosing marketing topics to write about may put one in a dicey situation. This article provides some hot topics in marketing that will help you select an area of focus and select relevant topics from that niche. From marketing research topics for college students to social issues in marketing, we have got you covered! So sit down and relax as we take you through the list of marketing research topics our professional writers prepared just for you!

Marketing Thesis Topics

Are you in need of well-thought-out marketing thesis topics and marketing dissertation topics? Then you’re in the right place! This list of marketing paper topics presented will give you a distinct thesis/dissertation.

Analysis and determination of consumer buying behavior for Coca-Cola
A study on famous well-marketed brands that got away with selling substandard quality products
A study showing the impact of advertising on consumer behavior
Brand advertising and political campaigns: a possible interwoven impact?
A review of the outcomes of advertising in a recession
Exhaustive research on how brands exploit impulsive buying
A study of how celebrity endorsements on ROI affect CPG brands
A survey of the impact of augmented reality on marketing experiences
Critical research on how AI will help make better marketing decisions
A study of the perspective and reception of Americans to targeted ads based on their browser history

Current Marketing Issues

There are numerous marketing issues around the world today. These global marketing issues threaten the survival of many businesses and the economy at large. Here is a list of current marketing issues!

A decline in organic reach on social media platforms
Difficulty in building a well-recognized brand name
Getting readers to see content
Understanding marketing results
Marketing budgets included by BREXIT
Optimizing business for voice search
Bridging the technology gap
Ensuring compliance with GDPR
Overdependence of potential customers on amazon
The effect of COVID-19 on the global economy

Marketing Research Topics

Getting marketing topics for research has been made considerably more comfortable with this list of marketing research paper topics. Ready to explore the marketing research topics we have, let’s delve right in!

Exploring how organizations use corporate social responsibility (CSR) to reinforce brand equity
The effect of social media on buying choices
Online purchasing: a study of the product characteristics buyers look for
An exploration of the differences in marketing strategies across cultures
Manipulation tactics: how brands can get more customers
A study of how customer loyalty is affected by brand image
Analyzing how TV advertising affects the top of mind awareness
Do people appreciate being click baited into sponsored posts?
A study on how to make customers purchase goods and services in the luxury category

Digital Marketing Blog Topics

Digital marketing remains a very important aspect of marketing in the world today. Here are some very juicy digital marketing topics you can write a great blog on!

10 insightful differences between paid search and organic search
Tips for promoting content on Pinterest
SEO tactics to avoid like the plague
How to increase your followers on social media
Best tips to help you grow your paid social ROAS
Why should you follow your competitors on social media?
Dos and don’ts of social media marketing
How to create content your audience will be eager to share

Marketing Essay Topics

What is the most effective form of marketing?
Internet marketing trends to expect in the future
What important brand attributes lead to an increase in customer loyalty?
A look into marketing approaches that broke through strong market monopoly
The impact of social media on consumer buying behavior
Comparison of advertising versus building brand equity
Rebuilding trust in influencer marketing
How to generate leads effectively

Content Marketing Topics

10 biggest graphic design mistakes companies make in their marketing pieces
How to create captivating e-newsletters that people will pay attention to
Repurposing marketing content for small businesses
Working more micro-content into marketing efforts
Multi-step versus one-step content marketing campaigns
The five Cs when creating content marketing copy
Creating compelling content marketing campaigns in 10 steps
Content marketing: how to generate more leads and close sales

Strategic Marketing Problems

There are many marketing problems in companies and businesses that threaten to cripple the advancement of the industry. Here is a list of some marketing problems you may be willing to proffer solutions to.

Inability to explain products or services delivered
Not clearly defining a company’s market segment
Lack of innovating commercial department
Lack of business visibility
Missing links between sales and marketing departments
Lack of marketing plan
Lack of personal branding, brand image, and professional reputation
Thinking the company or business can survive without marketing

Marketing Blog Topics

Facebook advertising: pros and cons
10 benefits of inbound marketing
The most frustrating problems faced in inbound marketing
How to generate subscribers for your blog faster than ever!
10 benefits of content marketing lead magnets
Five video content marketing myths you must discard
30 social media campaign ideas from big brands

Controversial Marketing Topics

Does google give preferential treatment to big brands?
Does social media affect SEO ranking?
Are grey SEO techniques safe?
Are YouTube videos more engaging than TV ads?
Are building e-mail lists still one of the best ways to sell?
Will immersion marketing through VR technology to be accepted?

Sport Marketing Research Topics

Sports marketing continues to remain a significant source of revenue. Hence, research in this area will continue to stay relevant. Here are some sport marketing topics you could consider working on.

How the extraordinary content offered by intelligent chatbots can help sports teams strengthen fan loyalty
Emerging opportunities in sports marketing and how to capitalize on them
How to effectively capitalize on the wearables market
Should more women and children get into sports?
Should seniors be allowed to participate in some games?

Marketing Presentation Topics

Mastering in-house SEO
The path to gaining and building customers trust
Brand awareness versus ROI
Effectively personalizing customer communications
The best SEO strategies that increase site traffic

International Marketing Topics

Marketing connects the global world, and this is why it is essential to marketing development. Here are some international marketing topics to consider!

The effect of globalization on consumer behavior
How do international brands compare to local brands?
Do international brands always have advantages over a local brand?
Creating brand awareness by utilizing global event marketing
How to market products on an international level

Marketing Plan Topics

The importance of a marketing plan to the success of a business or product launch
Building a tactical marketing plan
How is a marketing strategy different from a marketing plan?
Indispensable parts in writing a marketing plan

Ethical Issues In Marketing

Targeted Ads based on browser history
Immersion marketing through virtual reality
The exploitation of impulsive buying
Click baiting into sponsored posts

Affiliate Marketing Topics

How to find profitable niches in affiliate marketing
How to get readers interested in what you market
How to build a personal website: the ultimate guide

Congratulations! We hope you have been able to guide you in choosing your desired topic in marketing successfully. Alo, you can check out our business topics. We wish you the best in your research!

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.

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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Top 11 Market Research Trends in 2024 to Keep an Eye Out for

Market research is a continually evolving sector that has helped brands, organizations, individual researchers, the market research industry, and academicians stay above the curve. Research functions only grew in a global economy that took a significant hit in 2020.

If anything, focusing on conducting smarter, more efficient, and impactful research has been on the rise. No longer has research stayed primitive with long boring surveys sent to thousands of respondents hoping for a response. Market research has evolved because the importance of insightful data is now evident to everyone.

From transactional data to customer data, position metrics to consumer research, and opinion research to academic research, differentiating between the right data and noise has become extremely important.

Therefore, conducting smarter research is now the need of the hour. In a mostly open-ended ecosystem, it is tough to get a consensus. Still, surprisingly enough, most researchers, brands, and facilitators of research agree on emerging trends to keep an eye out for in 2023 and beyond.

LEARN ABOUT: Market research vs marketing research

We have listed the research trends that we think will be the most defining factors for the global market research market in 2023 and beyond.

Top 11 Market Research Trends in 2023 to Keep an Eye Out for

Data can be construed differently by different people. What’s unchallengeable is that there is now a technological advancement in collecting and analyzing data.

Social media plays a vital role in gathering sentiments; there is an advancement in psychological, economic, and scientific knowledge in data collection. These factors have led to market research evolution, and 2023 will see a marked shift in collecting transactional data.

In no particular order you should keep an eye out for these research trends in 2023 and beyond to fortify your decision-making ability.

Smarter, shorter surveys

This trend gets talked about a lot, but the truth is that most researchers and research tools do not allow the ability to conduct smarter surveys. However, at the turn of 2020 and beyond, collecting the right data with good survey response rates and honest feedback is becoming increasingly important.

Capturing transactional data at the point of experience with a smart, short, and efficient survey helps with better data collection and consumer insights. Negating demographic data collection when that information is already available and using smarter research questions at the point of experience will help reduce survey fatigue and collect data that matters.

For example, to collect choice-based data that is a cornerstone of most research projects, adding an anchored MaxDiff question in your choice-based scaling will allow you to get deeper insights without having to conduct multiple follow-up studies.

Similarly, deploying omnichannel surveys at various touchpoints helps you collect the correct transactional data without compromising data quality.

DIY in-house research

For a long time, research has been considered a complex and labor-intensive process requiring extreme special qualifications to get right. In 2023, there will be a marked shift towards DIY in-house research with smarter research tools .

Simple to understand and deploy platforms without the need for complex scripting and powerful research questions is the way forward.

Conducting market research tools is the ability to collect quantitative and qualitative data with the bonus of having a good respondent base in one location. Gone are the days when each component required going to different platforms.

This will make the management of market research easier for all the stakeholders. DIY research and do-it-together (DIT) research, where the research tool provider chips with specialized research service

Longitudinal tracking

One of the biggest market research trends going into 2023 and beyond will be longitudinal studies and tracking. For far too long, research has relied on broken-down respondent sets that do not help gather a macro-level view of data and insights.

With the help of community management platforms , longitudinal research helps track behavior changes and derive market research industry trends in between external and internal factors on research and insights.

LEARN ABOUT: Market research industry

Not just that, longitudinal tracking also helps with quicker and faster turnaround research from members who matter the most to you and insights you can trust and co-create with. Having a ready set of opt-in research-ready respondents can help with ongoing monitoring studies and expedite your experience transformation initiatives.

Online qualitative research

One market research trend that has been a definite by-product impact of COVID-19 is online qualitative research. With limitations on in-person focus groups and other qualitative research methods, migrating this model online for continued tracking is the only option.

LEARN ABOUT: Qualitative Interview

But now that online focus groups are making an in-road in research models for research managers globally, there is a definite shift in understanding its value and importance. From using the right tool to manage data collection to gamification and digital rewards, moving your offline focus groups online has multiple benefits.

The ability to moderate video discussions while collecting data from a diverse target audience limited by geographical boundaries is a huge bonus.

Quality data collection

In a recent live video I did with the VP of Products at QuestionPro, Anup Surendran, we spoke about how hyper-personalization will help with better-quality data and insights. Going into 2023 and beyond, with the increase in the number of surveys a person is expected to respond to, standing out and collecting quality data will be challenging.

Personalizing data collection at the point of experience with intercept studies and smarter shorter surveys helps with data collection.

High-quality survey data reduces the time to market and aids insights management at costs that don’t cost an arm and a leg. Putting together studies that aid with high-frequency research and non-intrusive hyper-personalization will see higher levels of success going into 2023 and beyond.

Instant responses

Heading to a meeting and want some quick insights? Cannot choose between two names for a new product line and want quick responses?

Who wouldn’t like immediate insights from a group of respondents when you are stuck somewhere? In 2023, there will be a marked shift towards high-cadence, high-frequency studies with very high turnaround times.

Small surveys or polls that are set up and deployed within minutes and answers and analysis within minutes are the future of market research. Using a smart product that allows you to tap into a pre-defined and mobile-ready respondent population, the scope for quick turnaround studies is very high.

Using your existing technology stack and internal communication tools, and CRM, the use cases would be limitless if you could create and push out studies that offer you responses representing a larger population.

We at QuestionPro are building a mechanism that provides you with quick turnaround response times for short studies using our proprietary global panel of respondents to help you go from perceptions to decisions within minutes.

Non-intrusive transactional studies

The biggest pet peeve of people not wanting to participate in research studies and respond to surveys is the many pointless questions and many such surveys.

But what if you could gather customer delight with a customer experience platform that leverages non-intrusive transactional studies that are highly engaging, short, and compelling to respond to?

There will be a marked shift towards smarter customer engagement and monitoring studies that do not require respondents to fill in pointless surveys that include demographic data and repetitive information and can help manage customer satisfaction and legitimate NPS scores.

With the help of smart intercept studies, scores from across various touchpoints help draw a better understanding of customer delight and help show vectors and factors that could lead to customer churn.

Emotive surveys

One of the biggest trends in market research that I am most excited about is the added use of technology to capture respondent behavior and data with various factors like facial recognition and contactless surveys .

Surveys that help you capture customer insights where respondents do not have to interact with an external device and sentiments directly are captured just by facial and visual cues will be extremely important going into 2023 and beyond.

A simple question, for example, at a point of experience where facial recognition captures respondent sentiments will go a long way in offering mature insights for brands.

Crowdsourced research

Crowdsourcing in market research helps solve problems at scale with lower costs and makes it to our top 11 market research trends to keep an eye out for 2023. Since crowdsourcing uses the quali-quant method, the insights you can get from a diverse audience base are tremendous.

Not only can it help solve problems, but it also helps to get an idea of a more extensive and varied population. The only drawback of this method is that for a brand to effectively leverage this model, there has to be an advantage of scale, which increases crowdsourcing’s success and feasibility.

Social listening

Due to a large social media footprint, it is becoming increasingly important to listen to social media’s happening and derive sentiments from conversations. Since social media is highly emotive, there is a broader scope to get to the root of ideas, complaints, purchase behavior, macro, and micro trends, etc.

Using social listening, you can isolate the data you care about and look for short-term indicators around consumer research. This is the future of ethnographic research. While social listening doesn’t make sense for all market researchers and brands, if done well, it can help to identify actionable vectors at a very early stage.

AI-assisted data collection

Two common themes arose from market research in 2020 – personalization and convenience. Using AI-assisted data collection helps in advancing research for brands and researchers. The right data going to the right stakeholders in real time define the success metrics of market research.

By limiting human interactions but increasing milestones and points of experience-based smart research, there is greater success in collecting the right data. This helps focus on deriving insights from the data and not on the data collection itself.

For long-form data and open-ended data, AI-based research and sentiment analysis help derive insights from text-based data without intervening and manually interpreting it.

How QuestionPro helps in market research trends?

QuestionPro is a comprehensive online survey and market research platform that provides a variety of features and tools to help organizations remain ahead of market research trends. Here’s how QuestionPro can assist you:

Advanced survey creation

QuestionPro makes developing surveys with skip logic, several question kinds, and advanced customization easy. This flexibility lets researchers build surveys that follow market research trends and best practices.

Mobile-friendly surveys

QuestionPro lets researchers design mobile surveys. Given the rising trend of mobile survey participation, this assures a smooth and easy survey experience for respondents.

Automated survey distribution

QuestionPro distributes surveys via email, social media, and embedded surveys. These distribution choices help researchers to contact more respondents through digital media.

Advanced analytics and reporting

QuestionPro has comprehensive analytics and reporting tools that allow researchers to examine survey data and provide actionable insights. Researchers can use trend analysis, cross-tabulations, and statistical analysis tools to find patterns, trends, and correlations in data.

2023 will be a huge year for market research, and we are excited to play a pivotal role in making research easy and accessible to everyone. What market research trends are you looking forward to, and are you keeping an eye out for going into 2023 and beyond?

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Frequently Asking Questions (FAQ)

By examining market trend data, investors can have a better understanding of how various assets have performed over time and make more informed decisions about where to put their money.

Artificial intelligence is the market research trend. It saves time and money and may increase data quality. In fact, 31% of researchers and brands believe an automated data quality solution can alleviate multiple business difficulties.

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27 Case Study Examples Every Marketer Should See

Updated: September 05, 2024

Published: August 13, 2018

Putting together a compelling case study is one of the most powerful strategies for showcasing your product and attracting future customers. But it's not easy to create case studies that your audience can’t wait to read.

In this post, I’ll go over the definition of a case study and the best examples to inspire you.

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What is a case study?

Marketing case study examples, digital marketing case study examples.

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A case study is a detailed story of something your company did. It includes a beginning — often discussing a challenge, an explanation of what happened next, and a resolution that explains how the company solved or improved on something.

A case study proves how your product has helped other companies by demonstrating real-life results. Not only that, but marketing case studies with solutions typically contain quotes from the customer.

This means that they’re not just ads where you praise your own product. Rather, other companies are praising your company — and there’s no stronger marketing material than a verbal recommendation or testimonial.

A great case study also has research and stats to back up points made about a project's results.

There are several ways to use case studies in your marketing strategy.

From featuring them on your website to including them in a sales presentation, a case study is a strong, persuasive tool that shows customers why they should work with you — straight from another customer.

Writing one from scratch is hard, though, which is why we’ve created a collection of case study templates for you to get started.

There’s no better way to generate more leads than by writing case studies . However, without case study examples from which to draw inspiration, it can be difficult to write impactful studies that convince visitors to submit a form.

To help you create an attractive and high-converting case study, we've put together a list of some of our favorites. This list includes famous case studies in marketing, technology, and business.

These studies can show you how to frame your company's offers in a way that is useful to your audience. So, look, and let these examples inspire your next brilliant case study design.

These marketing case studies with solutions show the value proposition of each product. They also show how each company benefited in both the short and long term using quantitative data.

In other words, you don’t get just nice statements, like “this company helped us a lot.” You see actual change within the firm through numbers and figures.

You can put your learnings into action with HubSpot's Free Case Study Templates . Available as custom designs and text-based documents, you can upload these templates to your CMS or send them to prospects as you see fit.

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Written by Mary Kate Miller | June 1, 2021

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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.”

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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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The Ultimate Guide to Market Research: Types, Benefits, and Real-World Examples

Ryan Fratzke

Partner & Executive Strategist

Today's consumers hold a lot of power when making purchase decisions. With a quick inquiry in a search engine or search bar within a social media platform, they can access genuine reviews from their peers without relying on sales reps.

Considering this shift in consumer behavior, adjusting your marketing strategy so it caters to the modern-day buying process is essential . To achieve this, you must thoroughly understand your target audience, the market you operate in, and the factors influencing their decision-making.

This is where market research can be leveraged so you stay current with your audience and industry.

Article Overview

In this article, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know about how to conduct market research, including:

Why market research is essential for understanding your target audience, the market you operate in, and factors influencing decision-making
What are the different types of market research, such as primary and secondary market research
How to collect information about your customers and target market to determine the success of a new or existing product, improve your brand, and communicate your company's value
Real-world examples of companies leveraging market research

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What is market research?

Market research is a necessary process that involves collecting and documenting information about your target market and customers. This helps you determine the success of a new product, improve an existing one, or understand how your brand is perceived. You can then turn this research into profits by developing marketing strategies and campaigns to effectively communicate your company's value .

While market research can provide insights into various aspects of an industry, it is not a crystal ball that can predict everything about your customers. Market researchers typically explore multiple areas of the market, which can take several weeks or even months to get a complete picture of the business landscape.

Even by researching just one of those areas, you can gain better insights into who your buyers are and what unique value proposition you can offer them that no other business currently provides.

Of course, you can simply use your industry experience and existing customer insights to make sound judgment calls. However, it's important to note that market research provides additional benefits beyond these strategies. There are two things to consider:

Your competitors also have experienced individuals in the industry and a customer base. Your immediate resources may equal those of your competition's immediate resources. Seeking a larger sample size for answers can provide a better edge.
Your brand's customers do not represent the entire market's attitudes, only those who are attracted to your brand.

The market research services industry is experiencing rapid growth , indicating a strong interest in market research as we enter 2024. The market is expected to grow from approximately $75 billion in 2021 to $90.79 billion in 2025, with a compound annual growth rate of 5%.

Your competitors have highly skilled individuals within the industry, meaning your available personnel resources are likely similar to those of your competitors. So what are you going to do to get ahead?

You’re going to do thorough market research, which is why seeking answers from a larger sample size is essential. Remember that your customers represent only a portion of the market already attracted to your brand, and their attitudes may not necessarily reflect those of the entire market. You could be leaving money on the table by leaving out untapped customers .

Why do market research?

Market research helps you meet your buyers where they are. Understanding your buyer's problems, pain points, and desired outcomes is invaluable as our world becomes increasingly noisy and demanding. This knowledge will help you tailor your product or service to appeal to them naturally.

What’s even better is when you're ready to grow your business, market research can also guide you in developing an effective market expansion strategy.

Market research provides valuable insights into factors that impact your profits and can help you to :

Identify where your target audience and current customers are conducting their product or service research
Determine which competitors your target audience looks to for information, options, or purchases
Keep up with the latest trends in your industry and understand what your buyers are interested in
Understand who makes up your market and what challenges they are facing
Determine what influences purchases and conversions among your target audience
Analyze consumer attitudes about a particular topic, pain, product, or brand
Assess the demand for the business initiatives you're investing in
Identify unaddressed or underserved customer needs that can be turned into selling opportunities
Understand consumer attitudes about pricing for your product or service.

Market research provides valuable information from a larger sample size of your target audience, enabling you to obtain accurate consumer attitudes. By eliminating any bias or assumptions you have about your target audience, you can make better business decisions based on the bigger picture.

As you delve deeper into your market research, you will come across two types of research: primary and secondary market research . Simply put, think of two umbrellas beneath market research - one for primary and one for secondary research. In the next section, we will discuss the difference between these two types of research. That way, if you work with a market who wants to use them, you’ll be ready with an understanding of how they can each benefit your business.

Primary vs. Secondary Research

Both primary and secondary research are conducted to collect actionable information on your product. That information can then be divided into two types: qualitative and quantitative research. Qualitative research focuses on public opinion and aims to determine how the market feels about the products currently available. On the other hand, quantitative research seeks to identify relevant trends in the data gathered from public records.

Let's take a closer look at these two types.

Primary Research

Primary research involves gathering first-hand information about your market and its customers. It can be leveraged to segment your market and create focused buyer personas . Generally, primary market research can be categorized into exploratory and specific studies.

Exploratory Primary Research

This type of primary market research is not focused on measuring customer trends; instead, it is focused on identifying potential problems worth addressing as a team. It is usually conducted as an initial step before any specific research is done and may involve conducting open-ended interviews or surveys with a small group of people.

Specific Primary Research

After conducting exploratory research, businesses may conduct specific primary research to explore issues or opportunities they have identified as necessary. Specific research involves targeting a smaller or more precise audience segment and asking questions aimed at solving a suspected problem. Specific primary research reveals problems that are unique to your audience so you can then offer a unique (and valuable) solution.

Secondary Research

Secondary research refers to collecting and analyzing data that has already been published or made available in public records. This may include market statistics, trend reports, sales data, and industry content you already can access. Secondary research really shines when you go to your competitors . The most commonly used sources of secondary market research include:

Public sources
Commercial sources
Internal sources

Public Sources

When conducting secondary market research, the first and most accessible sources of information are usually free . That’s right–these public sources are free and at your fingertips so there’s no reason for you to not be checking them out and leveraging them for your own gain.

One of the most common types of public sources is government statistics. According to Entrepreneur, two examples of public market data in the United States are the U.S. Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor & Statistics. These sources offer helpful information about the state of various industries nationwide including:

Commercial Sources

Research agencies such as Pew, Fratzke, Gartner, or Forrester often provide market reports containing industry insights from their own in-depth studies . These reports usually come at a cost if you want to download and obtain the information, but these agencies are experts at what they do, so the research is most likely valuable.

Internal Sources

Internal sources of market data can include average revenue per sale, customer retention rates, and other data on the health of old and new accounts. They are often overlooked when it comes to conducting market research because of how specific the data is; however, these sources can be valuable as they provide information on the organization's historical data.

By analyzing this information, you can gain insights into what your customers want now . In addition to these broad categories, there are various ways to conduct market research. Let’s talk about them.

Types of Market Research

Interviews (in-person or remote)

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.

Interviews can be conducted face-to-face or virtually, allowing for a natural conversation flow while observing the interviewee's body language. By asking questions about themselves, the interviewee can help you create buyer personas , which are made by using information about the ideal customer, such as:

Family size
Challenges faced at work or in life

And other aspects of their lifestyle. This buyer profile can shape your entire marketing strategy , from the features you add to your product to the content you publish on your website. Your target audience will feel that the marketing was made just for them and will be drawn to your product or service.

Focus groups are market research involving a few carefully selected individuals who can test your product, watch a demonstration, offer feedback, and answer specific questions. This research can inspire ideas for product differentiation or highlight the unique features of your product or brand that set it apart from others in the market. This is a great market research option to gain specific feedback, which you can use to improve your services .

Product/Service Use Research

Product or service usage research provides valuable insights into how and why your target audience uses your product or service. This research can help in various ways including:

Identifying specific features of your offering that appeal to your audience.
Allowing you to assess the usability of your product or service for your target audience.

According to a report published in 2020, usability testing was rated the most effective method for discovering user insights, with a score of 8.7 out of 10. In comparison, digital analytics scored 7.7, and user surveys scored 6.4.

Observation-based research is a process that involves observing how your target audience members use your product or service. The way that you intended your product or service to be used may not be the actual way that it is used. Observation-based research helps you understand what works well in terms of customer experience (CX) and user experience (UX), what problems they face, and which aspects of your product or service can be improved to make it easier for them to use.

To better understand how your potential customers make purchasing decisions in your industry, it is essential to know who they are. This is where buyer persona research comes in handy. Buyer or marketing personas are fictional yet generalized representations of your ideal customers. They give you someone to whom you want your marketing efforts to empathize and move, even though they don’t really exist.

Gathering survey data and additional research to correctly identify your buyer personas will help you to visualize your audience so you can streamline your communications and inform marketing strategy . Key characteristics to include in a buyer persona are:

Job title(s)
Family size
Major challenges

Market segmentation research enables you to classify your target audience into various groups or segments based on specific and defining characteristics. This method allows you to understand their needs, pain points, expectations, and goals more effectively.

Pricing research can provide valuable insights about the prices of similar products or services in your market. It can help you understand what your target audience expects to pay for your offerings and what would be a reasonable price for you to set. Correct pricing is important because if you set it too high, consumers will go to your cheaper competitor; but if you set it too low, your consumers may become suspicious of your product or service and still end up with your competitor. This information allows you to develop a solid pricing strategy aligning with your business goals and objectives.

Competitive Analysis

Competitive analyses are incredibly valuable as they provide a deep understanding of your market and industry competition. Through these analyses, you can gain insights like:

What works well in your industry
What your target audience is already interested in regarding products like yours
Which competitors you should work to keep up with and surpass
How you can differentiate yourself from the competition

Understanding customer satisfaction and loyalty is crucial to encouraging repeat business and identifying what drives customers to return (such as loyalty programs, rewards, and exceptional customer service). Researching this area will help you determine the most effective methods to keep your customers coming back again and again. If you have a CRM system, consider further utilizing automated customer feedback surveys to improve your understanding of their needs and preferences.

Brand awareness research helps you understand the level of familiarity your target audience has with your brand. It provides insights into your audience members' perceptions and associations when they think about your business.This type of research reveals what they believe your brand represents. This information is valuable for developing effective marketing strategies, improving your brand's reputation, and increasing customer loyalty .

To improve your marketing campaigns, you need to research by analyzing the success of your past campaigns among your target audience and current customers. This requires experimentation and thoroughly examining the elements that resonate with your audience. By doing so, you can identify the aspects of your campaigns that matter most to your audience and use them as a guide for future campaigns.

Now that you understand the different market research categories and types let's look at how to conduct your market research. Using our expertise and experience, we’ve created a step-by-step guide to conducting market research.

How to Do Market Research (Detailed Roadmap)

Define the problem or objective of the research.
Determine the type of data needed.
Identify the sources of data.
Collect the data.
Analyze the data.
Interpret the results.
Report the findings.
Take action based on the findings.

1. Define the problem or objective of the research

Defining the problem or objective of the research is the first step in conducting market research. This involves identifying the specific issue that the research is trying to address. It is essential to be clear and specific about the research problem or objective, as it will guide the entire research process.

2. Determine the type of data needed

After defining the research problem or objective, the next step is determining the data type needed to address the issue. This involves deciding whether to collect primary or secondary data. Primary data is collected directly from the source, while secondary data is collected from existing sources such as government reports or market research studies.

3. Identify the sources of data

Once the data type has been determined, the next step is identifying the data sources. This involves identifying potential sources of primary and secondary data that can be used to address the research problem or objective. Primary data sources can include surveys, focus groups, and interviews, while secondary data sources can include government reports, industry publications, and academic journals.

4. Collect the data

After identifying the data sources, the next step is to collect the data. This involves designing and implementing a data collection plan consistent with the research problem or objective. The data collection plan should specify the methods and procedures for collecting data, sample size, and sampling method.

5. Analyze the data

Once the data has been collected, the next step is to analyze the data. This involves organizing, summarizing, and interpreting the data to identify patterns, relationships, and trends. The research problem or objective should guide the data analysis process and be conducted using appropriate statistical methods and software.

6. Interpret the results

After analyzing the data, the next step is to interpret the results. This involves drawing conclusions from the data analysis and using the results to address the research problem or objective. It is essential to analyze the results objectively and to avoid making assumptions or drawing conclusions that are not supported by the data.

7. Report the findings

Try identifying common themes to create a story and action items.To make the process easier, use your favorite presentation software to create a report, as it will make it easy to add quotes, diagrams, or call clips.

Feel free to add your flair, but the following outline should help you craft a clear summary:

Background: What are your goals, and why did you conduct this study?
Participants: Who you talked to? A table works well to break groups down by persona and customer/prospect.
Executive Summary: What were the most exciting things you learned? What do you plan to do about it?
Key Findings: Identify the key findings using data visualizations and emphasize key points.
Recommendations + Action Plan: Your analysis will uncover actionable insights to fuel strategies and campaigns you can run to get your brand in front of buyers earlier and more effectively. Provide your list of priorities, action items , a timeline, and its impact on your business.

8. Take action based on the findings

The final step in conducting market research is to take action based on the findings. This involves using the results to make informed decisions about the marketing strategy, product development, or other business decisions. It is important to use the findings to drive action and to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the action taken continuously.

How to Prepare for Market Research Projects

Identify a persona group to engage, prepare research questions for your market research participants, list your primary competitors.

The idea is to use your persona as a reference point for understanding and reaching out to your industry's audience members. Your business might cater to more than one persona, and that's completely acceptable! However, you must be mindful of each persona while strategizing and planning your content and campaigns.

How to Identify the Right People to Engage for Market Research

When selecting a group on which to conduct market research , it is essential to consider individuals with the same characteristics as your target audience.

If you need to research multiple target audiences, recruit separate groups for each one. Select people who have recently interacted with you by looking through social media for post interactions or seeing if they’ve made recent purchases from you.

If you are planning to conduct an evaluation, it is recommended that you focus on people who have completed it within the last six months. However, if you have a longer sales cycle or a specific market, you can extend the period up to a year. It is crucial to ask detailed questions during the evaluation, so the participants' experience must be fresh.

Gather a mix of participants

If you want to expand your customer base, you’re going to want to get viewpoints of your product or service from every angle. Consider getting this mix by recruiting individuals who have already purchased your product, those who have bought a competitor's product, and those who haven't purchased anything. While targeting your existing customers may be the easiest option, gathering information from non-customers can help you gain a more balanced market perspective .

We recommend taking the following steps to select a mix of participants:

Create a list of customers who made a recent purchase . This is usually the most accessible group to recruit. If you have a CRM system with list segmentation capabilities, run a report of deals that closed within the past six months and filter it for the characteristics you're looking for. Otherwise, work with your sales team to get them a list of appropriate accounts.
Create a list of customers who were in an active evaluation but didn't make a purchase. You should get a mix of buyers who either purchased from a competitor or decided not to purchase. Again, you can obtain this list from your CRM or your Sales team's system to track deals.
Use social media to call for participants. Try reaching out to people who follow you on social media but decided not to buy from you. Some may be willing to talk to you and explain why they did not purchase your product.
Leverage your network . Spread the word that you're conducting a study to your coworkers, former colleagues, and LinkedIn connections. Even if your direct connections don't qualify, some will likely have a coworker, friend, or family member who does.
Choose an incentive to motivate participants to spend time on your study. If you're on a tight budget , you can reward participants for free by giving them exclusive access to content.

Related Resources:

Digital Marketing Strategy: Keep It Simple
5 Marketing Predictions for the Looming Recession
Recession Proof Marketing Strategies for Your Business
Marketing Operations Framework - The Five Ps
Biggest Marketing Challenges Leaders Face
Digital Marketing Benchmarks & KPIs - How To Compare Your Performance

Preparation is key when conducting research in hopes of gaining productive and informative conversations. This involves creating a discussion guide, whether it is for a focus group, an online survey, or a phone interview. The guide should help you cover all the relevant topics and manage your time efficiently.

The discussion guide should be in an outline format, with an allocated time and open-ended questions for each section. All the questions must be open-ended, as asking closed questions may lead the interviewee to respond with a simple "yes" or "no" answer. You may need more detailed answers to make informed decisions, so be sure to ask follow-up questions as necessary. Also leave out any leading questions as they may unintentionally influence the interviewee's response, skewing your research results.

It's essential to identify your competitors accurately and you may even have some hidden in plain sight. There are some instances where your company's business division might compete with your main product or service, even though that company's brand might have a different focus. Take a look at Apple: the company is known primarily for its laptops and mobile devices, but Apple Music competes with Spotify over its music streaming service.

From a content perspective, you might compete with a blog, YouTube channel, or similar publication for inbound website visitors — even though their products don't overlap with yours. An example of this is when a toothpaste company might compete with publications like Health.com or Prevention on specific blog topics related to health and hygiene, even though the magazines don't sell oral care products.

Here are a few ways to build your competitor list:

Check your industry quadrant on G2 Crowd: This is a significant first step for secondary market research in some industries. G2 Crowd aggregates user ratings and social data to create "quadrants" that show companies as contenders, leaders, niche players, or high performers in their respective industries. G2 Crowd specializes in digital content, IT services, HR, e-commerce, and related business services.
Download a market report: Companies like Forrester and Gartner offer free and gated market forecasts yearly on the vendors leading their industry. On Forrester's website, for example, you can select "Latest Research" from the navigation bar and browse Forrester's latest material using a variety of criteria to narrow your search. These reports are good assets to save on your computer.
Use social media : Social networks can be excellent company directories if you use the search bar correctly. On LinkedIn, for example, select the search bar and enter the name of the industry you're pursuing. Then, under "More," select "Companies" to narrow your results to the businesses that include this or a similar industry term on their LinkedIn profile.

Identifying Content Competitors

Search engines can be beneficial when it comes to secondary market research . To identify the online publications competing with your business, start with the overarching industry term you identified earlier, and then come up with more specific industry terms that are related to your company . For example, if you run a catering business, you might consider yourself a "food service" company, as well as a vendor in "event catering," "cake catering," "baked goods," and so on.

Once you have this list, follow these steps:

Google it: Running a search on Google for the industry terms that describe your company can be very beneficial. You may come across a mix of product developers, blogs, magazines, and other websites.
Compare your search results against your buyer persona: Remember the persona you created during the primary research stage? You can use it to evaluate whether a publication you found through Google could steal website traffic from you. If the website's content aligns with what your buyer persona would want to see, it is a potential competitor and should be added to your list of competitors.

After a series of similar Google searches for the industry terms you identify with, look for repetition in the website domains that have come up.

When searching, examine the first two or three pages of results. These websites are considered reputable sources of content in your industry and should be monitored closely as you create your collection of videos, reports, web pages, and blog posts.

Make faster, smarter decisions with market research.

Market Research Examples

Mcdonald's focus on customer feedback and profiling.

McDonald's invests in developing a detailed consumer profile to attract and retain customers, including parents of young children who appreciate the family-friendly atmosphere and menus. The brand seeks feedback from customers through surveys and questionnaires in stores, social media, and its mobile app. It also monitors customer feedback on digital channels.

Nike's Extensive Research and Collaboration for Running Shoes Development

Nike invests heavily in creating running shoes that cater to the needs of its customers, which it determines through extensive market research and customer surveys. The brand goes to great lengths to understand its customers' preferences, such as the type of running surface, the distance they run, and their running style, to develop shoes that meet their specific needs.

In addition to customer surveys, Nike also collaborates with athletes to develop shoes that cater to their specific requirements. This research helps Nike improve its existing running shoe models and innovate new ones, ensuring that the brand stays ahead of the competition.

Disney employs focus groups that specifically cater to children to test out their new characters and ideas.

The Walt Disney Company invests millions of dollars in creating captivating stories tested for their effectiveness with children, the intended audience. Disney executives hold focus groups with preschoolers and kindergartners several times a year to gather their opinions and feedback on TV episodes, Disney characters, and more.

This market research strategy is effective because children are the ultimate audience that Disney aims to please. The collected feedback helps the company improve existing content to meet the preferences of its audience and ensure continued success as a multi-billion dollar enterprise.

KFC tested its meatless product in specific markets before launching it nationwide.

In 2019, KFC began developing and testing a meatless version of its famous chicken. However, instead of immediately launching the product nationwide, they decided to test it in select stores in the Atlanta, Georgia area.

This is an innovative and practical approach to market research, as it allows the company to determine the product's sales performance on a smaller scale before committing too many resources to it. If the meatless chicken fails to gain popularity in Georgia, KFC can make the necessary changes to the product before introducing it to the broader market.

Yamaha conducted a survey to determine whether to use knobs or sliding faders on the Montage keyboard.

Yamaha is a Japanese corporation that produces various products, from motorcycles to golf cars to musical instruments. When it began developing its new Montage keyboard, the team was unsure whether to use knobs or sliding faders on the product.

To address this dilemma, Yamaha used Qualtrics to send a survey to their customers. Within just a few hours , they received 400 responses. By using survey feedback, Yamaha ensured that it was designing a product that would perfectly meet the preferences of its audiences.

The Body Shop used social listening to determine how to reposition brand campaigns based on customer feedback.

The Body Shop is a well-known brand that offers ethically sourced and natural products. They take pride in their core value of sustainability. The Body Shop team tracked conversations to understand the sustainability subtopics that were most important to their audiences.

They found that their customers cared a lot about refills. Based on this information, the Body Shop team confidently relaunched their Refill Program across 400 stores globally in 2021, with plans to add another 400 in 2022. Market research confirmed that their refill concept was on the right track and also highlighted the need for increased efforts to demonstrate how much the Body Shop cares about its customers' values .

VideoTranscript

The takeaway.

Fratzke Consulting offers a comprehensive suite of market research services to help brands gain valuable insights into their target market, competitors, and industry trends. Our expert team utilizes various primary and secondary research methods to gather accurate and unbiased data, including surveys, competitive research, and industry reports. With Fratzke Consulting, you'll have the tools to succeed in today's rapidly evolving business landscape.

Interested in learning more? Book a free audit consultation today.

Ryan Fratzke is a Partner and Executive Strategist at Fratzke, specializing in transforming mid-size businesses into human-centered brands through storytelling, strategy, culture, and technology.

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Market research is the systematic process of gathering, analyzing and interpreting information about a specific market or industry.

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?

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.

Business intelligence insight graphic with hand showing a lightbulb with $ sign in it

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.

Product Image Advanced Search CRMConnected

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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Seversk, Tomsk Oblast, Russia

Seversk is a small city located in Tomsk Oblast, Russia. As of 2021, it has a population of approximately 108,000 people. The city was founded in the late 1950s as a closed city, with restricted access to outsiders due to its important role in the Soviet Union's nuclear weapons program. Today, Seversk is no longer a closed city, but it remains an important center for nuclear research and production.

In terms of crime rates, Seversk is generally considered a safe city. According to official statistics, the overall crime rate in the city has been decreasing over the past few years. However, like any city, Seversk is not completely free from crime. The most common types of crime reported in the city are property crimes, such as theft and burglary. Violent crimes, such as assault and homicide, are relatively rare.

While Seversk is generally a safe city, there are still some areas that are considered more dangerous than others. In particular, visitors should exercise caution when traveling to the outskirts of the city or to areas that are not well-lit at night. Additionally, visitors should be aware of their surroundings and avoid carrying large sums of money or valuables with them.

The best time to be out in Seversk is during the day, when there are more people around and the streets are well-lit. Visitors should also be cautious when using public transportation, particularly at night. Taxis are generally a safe and reliable option for getting around the city.

One of the most important safety tips for visitors to Seversk is to be aware of the weather. The city experiences long, cold winters with temperatures often dropping below freezing. Visitors should dress warmly and be prepared for the weather conditions, particularly if they are planning to spend time outdoors.

Another important aspect of safety in Seversk is understanding the habits and customs of the people who live there. Russians are generally hospitable and friendly, but visitors should be aware of cultural differences and be respectful of local customs. For example, it is considered impolite to refuse food or drink that is offered to you by a host. Visitors should also be aware that smoking is allowed in many public places in Russia, including bars and restaurants.

In terms of history crime records, Seversk has a relatively low crime rate compared to other cities in Russia. However, there have been some high-profile crimes in the city over the years. In 2007, a former employee of a nuclear facility in Seversk was arrested for attempting to sell radioactive material on the black market. More recently, in 2018, a man was arrested in Seversk for attempting to build an explosive device.

Overall, Seversk is a safe and welcoming city for visitors. While there is some crime, particularly property crime, visitors who exercise caution and are aware of their surroundings should have a trouble-free stay. Visitors should be prepared for the cold weather and respectful of local customs, and should exercise caution when traveling to areas that are not well-lit or less populated. Taxis are generally a safe and reliable option for getting around the city, and visitors should be aware of the weather and dress accordingly.

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Location Seversk, Tomsk Oblast
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