How to do a market research? We often hear about it but we never quite know how to go about it or how to do it. That’s pretty good timing since that’s exactly what we’re going to talk about today 😁. To help you know what we’re going to talk about today, here’s today’s menu:
- The definition of market research.
- How to do market research.
- Why do it.
- The different examples.
Market research definition
A market research is an in-depth analysis 🥸 of a specific market or industry to gather information about the needs, consumer preferences and competition. You should know that this is an essential process to understand the trends in a given market and know the viability 🫀 of a product or service. This market analysis is very different from a business plan but you can understand everything in the article below. Whether you are a micro-entrepreneur or still in a company, it is crucial to do your market research in the following cases:
- Setting up a new product or service.
- Launching an activity.
- Improvement of the position on the market.
This market research can include surveys, interviews, data studies and other data collection methods to get a complete picture of the target market 🎯. The results of market research can be used to help businesses make informed decisions 💡 about products, pricing, advertising, and sales strategies.
How do you do market research?
In order to put together a good market research study, you are going to need to put together the following different elements:
- Define the objectives 🎢 of your market research.
- Research information about your market.
- Conduct demand analyses.
- Setting up the offer.
- Knowing your environment.
It is important to note that market research does not end with the presentation of the results and that it is necessary to monitor market trends and update the data regularly to ensure that the company’s decisions are always aligned with market trends.
#Step 1: Define your objectives
Market research objectives are the key elements 🗝️ that determine the direction and effort of your research. They describe what you want to accomplish through the analysis of the data and information collected on the target market.
Objectives can vary by company, product or service, but some of the more common objectives associated with market research include:
- Understanding market trends and potential business opportunities.
- Identify market segments and target consumers.
- Evaluate competition and the company’s position in the market.
- Determine 💡 consumer needs and expectations.
- Measure the potential acceptance of a product or service.
- Analyze consumer reactions to price and product features.
- Assess the feasibility of a new product or service.
- Determine the most appropriate 📩 distribution channels.
- Determine the most effective marketing strategies to reach target consumers.
- Provide information that can be used to develop business plans and marketing strategies.
In summary, the objectives of market research help inform strategic decisions and guide product development, marketing and sales efforts. Companies can use the results to improve their products, services and business strategies, thereby maximizing their potential for growth and success in the target market.
It is important to clearly define the goals you want to achieve. This may include questions such as “What is the target market for our product?” or “What is the market share of our current business?”
#2 Research market information
The second very important part of your market research is information research. This involves collecting data and information about the target market 🎯 in order to fulfill the defined objectives. The sources of information may vary depending on the company, product or service. But they will include secondary data which includes:
- Sources such as market research reports, government publications, online databases, journal articles ..
Next, we’ll focus on the surveys you’re going to set up with consumers, you’ll need to collect info such as:
- Opinions.
- Attitudes.
- The behavior of your consumers.
In your search for information, you will also have interviews with market experts, you will have to collect :
- Business opportunities.
- Your prospects for development.
In your search for information about the market, you will have to collect primary data such as: – The market’s potential for growth
- Field observations 👀.
- Your consumer survey results.
- Customer interviews.
To complete the elements of your research, you’re going to need business data that includes:
- Financial performance.
- Sales.
- Pricing by companies or your direct or indirect competitors already in the target market.
It is important to combine different sources of information to get a complete picture of the market. Also note that you should check the reliability and quality of the information sources used to avoid errors and biases. Through this research, you will be able to understand the trends, opportunities, challenges and expectations of the market.
#3 Demand analysis
In fact, here we will mainly analyze the demand for the product you want to introduce or the new line you want to release. You will need this step in order to understand the needs and expectations of consumers. This will allow you to determine the size of the potential market for a product or service, as well as to understand the trends and preferences of everyone. To do this, you need to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. Regarding qualitative data, you will be able to use :
- Interviews 😘 with consumers.
- Focus groups (which you can find for example on LinkedIn).
- Surveys that you are going to put forward to find out the pain points as well as the needs of your potential customers.
Regarding quantitative data, you’ll retrieve:
- The sales volume of a product or service.
- Expenditures.
- Demographic data.
Of course, you can’t analyze demand without studying the competition. By studying your rivals, you will become aware of the opportunities that may exist in the market. The analysis of the demand is not done in “one shot”. It requires continuous work that will help you determine the most effective marketing and sales strategies to reach your targets.
#4 Your proposal offer
This is where you will know if your project is viable or not. You will need to determine several elements such as:
- Your capacity 🫁 for production.
- The manufacturing costs.
- The cost 💰 of labor (if there is any).
- The costs of raw materials.
Looking at your supply will help you determine the optimal amount of products or services you can produce and sell, based on the volume of demand. You can use econometric models to determine optimal selling prices based on demand and competition. This is called sustainability because if your costs are much higher than your sales, you will not be able to grow your business.
#5 The Environment
Your environment will include political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal factors. This is called the PESTEL method. 
These factors directly influence consumer buying habits and business decisions. For your market research to be effective, it is important to understand the current environment and trends that may impact different targets. By analyzing the market with the PESTEL, you can get very interesting information about for example:
- Inflation rates.
- Political trends.
- Different regulations (concerning environmental protection, health or safety).
- Changes or developments in the technological field.
- Etc…
You should not hesitate to check your environment regularly to know what is going on. Everything can change concerning the consumers’ habits. Look at how our environment changed when we were under the yoke of the pandemic.
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Why do market research?
It is particularly interesting to do market research when you are an entrepreneur and/or starting a business. Studying the market will allow you to develop your activity or to launch a new product or service. Thanks to this study, you will understand the trends, the competition, the buying habits…
Finally, you will have all the necessary elements for the good start of your product/service or to set up a new product range. You probably think you can do it on the nose 👃? Maybe, but you might have to shut down your business sooner than you thought. Understanding your users is going to help you guide your marketing strategy, be aware of risks, reduce your questioning and be able to test new ideas.
When you spend a little time doing your market research, you will gather data. This data will allow you to know the size and growth of the market, to discover opportunities and thus help you determine if your product is viable or not. It also allows you to know if the competition is strong 💪 or not and, therefore, be able to stand out and ask yourself what you could do more compared to them.
But that’s not all as you’ll have the opportunity to deepen your strategy by asking yourself what are the most effective channels to communicate with your customers.
Examples of market research
You still don’t know how to do a market research? No problem, we’ve explained what market research is, now let’s talk about examples. To make the distinction, we will make an example for a new business (a delicatessen), and then we will make an example to set up a range in an existing business.
Market study of a delicatessen
In this example, in order to know if we can start a delicatessen business, we will have to think about several elements. The first step is to define our objectives, so we will try to understand the market trends and the various opportunities that we could take advantage of. If we refer to the data that we can find on the Internet, we can know that the delicatessen market is doing well. One realizes that this type of market brought in between 7 and 9 billion euros 💰 in 2020.
France hosts about 5300 high-end grocery stores and the “Made in France” is constantly increasing.
Objectives of the market research for grocery 📜
- Understanding the market trends.
- Targeting the customer.
- Knowing the consumption habits.
The market 🥕
- More and more people and especially the younger generations are attracted to different delicatessens (we are talking about 84% of 20-35 year olds here).
- The new generations are more inclined to eat better and take better quality products.
- In France, 36% of them are specialized in salted products.
- The French prefer local shops.
The demand 🙏
- Many French people want and turn to local shops.
- No preference on whether these grocery stores are independent or franchised.
Proposal offer 💡
- Products will be distributed on site in the different departments of the grocery store.
- More emphasis will be placed on high-end savory products by using specific caterers.
- Implementation of a click-and-collect system in order to facilitate access to products and relieve congestion in the grocery store.
The environment 🌴
- Political: A decrease in purchasing power could be envisaged with inflation and therefore impact sales.
- Economic: The consumption of delicatessen products has increased well in France. By positioning ourselves on a high-end market, we will be able to reach a clientele already less affected by inflation.
- Social: Aperitifs and cookies are known to be “creators” of social links. The little pies are very popular during aperitifs with friends and children like sweet things.
- Technological: More and more craftsmen and caterers are making products for delicatessens. The machines are more and more efficient.
- Environmental: The industry is not the most exemplary regarding the respect of the environment. Indeed, we can find a lot of packaging to preserve the products.
- Legal: Verification of hygiene, authorized coloring agents in the manufacture of cookies and all edible products.
Of course, we have only gone over the different elements. It is up to you to really develop them so that your market research is as complete as possible.
How to do a real estate market study?
The real estate industry is vast, but as an agent, you have decided to open up to a new region or a new type of rental? Do you want to get into luxury real estate? Let’s find out right now.
Goals of market research in real estate 🏣
- Set up a new sales line in real estate.
- Know what type of customer would be interested.
Market 🥕
- Very present in Paris with 3,500 transactions over 2 million euros.
The demand 🙏
- Many cities in France have been impacted by luxury real estate. La Rochelle is experiencing an increase of 80%
The offer of proposal 💡
- Specialize in one city in France.
- Propose only exceptional properties.
- Propose old luxury buildings (with cachet).
Environment 🌴
- Political: Sector that has a great influence on the French government. There are economic stakes.
- Economic: In order to buy, the French must have purchasing power (this is not an issue for luxury real estate). We must take into account the inflation.
- Social: We must take into account the various demographic data. Real estate must not take into account religion…
- Technological : We must keep in mind that the costs and the quality of the real estate in France are important. The quality of the materials is a guarantee of quality with the customers.
- Environmental: One must be careful about where one sells since the climatic conditions can change a land radically, one must also take into account the reduction of energy consumption.
- Legal: Respect of the contracts.
Sample market study PDF
So that you can take this market study with you at any time, you can download a
How to do a market research? We often hear about it but we never quite know how to go about it or how to do it. That’s pretty good timing since that’s exactly what we’re going to talk about today 😁. To help you know what we’re going to talk about today, here’s today’s menu:
- The definition of market research.
- How to do market research.
- Why do it.
- The different examples.
Market research definition
A market research is an in-depth analysis 🥸 of a specific market or industry to gather information about the needs, consumer preferences and competition. You should know that this is an essential process to understand the trends in a given market and know the viability 🫀 of a product or service. This market analysis is very different from a business plan but you can understand everything in the article below. Whether you are a micro-entrepreneur or still in a company, it is crucial to do your market research in the following cases:
- Setting up a new product or service.
- Launching an activity.
- Improvement of the position on the market.
This market research can include surveys, interviews, data studies and other data collection methods to get a complete picture of the target market 🎯. The results of market research can be used to help businesses make informed decisions 💡 about products, pricing, advertising, and sales strategies.
How do you do market research?
In order to put together a good market research study, you are going to need to put together the following different elements:
- Define the objectives 🎢 of your market research.
- Research information about your market.
- Conduct demand analyses.
- Setting up the offer.
- Knowing your environment.
It is important to note that market research does not end with the presentation of the results and that it is necessary to monitor market trends and update the data regularly to ensure that the company’s decisions are always aligned with market trends.
#Step 1: Define your objectives
Market research objectives are the key elements 🗝️ that determine the direction and effort of your research. They describe what you want to accomplish through the analysis of the data and information collected on the target market.
Objectives can vary by company, product or service, but some of the more common objectives associated with market research include:
- Understanding market trends and potential business opportunities.
- Identify market segments and target consumers.
- Evaluate competition and the company’s position in the market.
- Determine 💡 consumer needs and expectations.
- Measure the potential acceptance of a product or service.
- Analyze consumer reactions to price and product features.
- Assess the feasibility of a new product or service.
- Determine the most appropriate 📩 distribution channels.
- Determine the most effective marketing strategies to reach target consumers.
- Provide information that can be used to develop business plans and marketing strategies.
In summary, the objectives of market research help inform strategic decisions and guide product development, marketing and sales efforts. Companies can use the results to improve their products, services and business strategies, thereby maximizing their potential for growth and success in the target market.
It is important to clearly define the goals you want to achieve. This may include questions such as “What is the target market for our product?” or “What is the market share of our current business?”
#2 Research market information
The second very important part of your market research is information research. This involves collecting data and information about the target market 🎯 in order to fulfill the defined objectives. The sources of information may vary depending on the company, product or service. But they will include secondary data which includes:
- Sources such as market research reports, government publications, online databases, journal articles ..
Next, we’ll focus on the surveys you’re going to set up with consumers, you’ll need to collect info such as:
- Opinions.
- Attitudes.
- The behavior of your consumers.
In your search for information, you will also have interviews with market experts, you will have to collect :
- Business opportunities.
- Your prospects for development.
In your search for information about the market, you will have to collect primary data such as: – The market’s potential for growth
- Field observations 👀.
- Your consumer survey results.
- Customer interviews.
To complete the elements of your research, you’re going to need business data that includes:
- Financial performance.
- Sales.
- Pricing by companies or your direct or indirect competitors already in the target market.
It is important to combine different sources of information to get a complete picture of the market. Also note that you should check the reliability and quality of the information sources used to avoid errors and biases. Through this research, you will be able to understand the trends, opportunities, challenges and expectations of the market.
#3 Demand analysis
In fact, here we will mainly analyze the demand for the product you want to introduce or the new line you want to release. You will need this step in order to understand the needs and expectations of consumers. This will allow you to determine the size of the potential market for a product or service, as well as to understand the trends and preferences of everyone. To do this, you need to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. Regarding qualitative data, you will be able to use :
- Interviews 😘 with consumers.
- Focus groups (which you can find for example on LinkedIn).
- Surveys that you are going to put forward to find out the pain points as well as the needs of your potential customers.
Regarding quantitative data, you’ll retrieve:
- The sales volume of a product or service.
- Expenditures.
- Demographic data.
Of course, you can’t analyze demand without studying the competition. By studying your rivals, you will become aware of the opportunities that may exist in the market. The analysis of the demand is not done in “one shot”. It requires continuous work that will help you determine the most effective marketing and sales strategies to reach your targets.
#4 Your proposal offer
This is where you will know if your project is viable or not. You will need to determine several elements such as:
- Your capacity 🫁 for production.
- The manufacturing costs.
- The cost 💰 of labor (if there is any).
- The costs of raw materials.
Looking at your supply will help you determine the optimal amount of products or services you can produce and sell, based on the volume of demand. You can use econometric models to determine optimal selling prices based on demand and competition. This is called sustainability because if your costs are much higher than your sales, you will not be able to grow your business.
#5 The Environment
Your environment will include political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal factors. This is called the PESTEL method.
These factors directly influence consumer buying habits and business decisions. For your market research to be effective, it is important to understand the current environment and trends that may impact different targets. By analyzing the market with the PESTEL, you can get very interesting information about for example:
- Inflation rates.
- Political trends.
- Different regulations (concerning environmental protection, health or safety).
- Changes or developments in the technological field.
- Etc…
You should not hesitate to check your environment regularly to know what is going on. Everything can change concerning the consumers’ habits. Look at how our environment changed when we were under the yoke of the pandemic.
Why do market research?
It is particularly interesting to do market research when you are an entrepreneur and/or starting a business. Studying the market will allow you to develop your activity or to launch a new product or service. Thanks to this study, you will understand the trends, the competition, the buying habits…
Finally, you will have all the necessary elements for the good start of your product/service or to set up a new product range. You probably think you can do it on the nose 👃? Maybe, but you might have to shut down your business sooner than you thought. Understanding your users is going to help you guide your marketing strategy, be aware of risks, reduce your questioning and be able to test new ideas.
When you spend a little time doing your market research, you will gather data. This data will allow you to know the size and growth of the market, to discover opportunities and thus help you determine if your product is viable or not. It also allows you to know if the competition is strong 💪 or not and, therefore, be able to stand out and ask yourself what you could do more compared to them.
But that’s not all as you’ll have the opportunity to deepen your strategy by asking yourself what are the most effective channels to communicate with your customers.
Examples of market research
You still don’t know how to do a market research? No problem, we’ve explained what market research is, now let’s talk about examples. To make the distinction, we will make an example for a new business (a delicatessen), and then we will make an example to set up a range in an existing business.
Market study of a delicatessen
In this example, in order to know if we can start a delicatessen business, we will have to think about several elements. The first step is to define our objectives, so we will try to understand the market trends and the various opportunities that we could take advantage of. If we refer to the data that we can find on the Internet, we can know that the delicatessen market is doing well. One realizes that this type of market brought in between 7 and 9 billion euros 💰 in 2020.
France hosts about 5300 high-end grocery stores and the “Made in France” is constantly increasing.
Objectives of the market research for grocery 📜
- Understanding the market trends.
- Targeting the customer.
- Knowing the consumption habits.
The market 🥕
- More and more people and especially the younger generations are attracted to different delicatessens (we are talking about 84% of 20-35 year olds here).
- The new generations are more inclined to eat better and take better quality products.
- In France, 36% of them are specialized in salted products.
- The French prefer local shops.
The demand 🙏
- Many French people want and turn to local shops.
- No preference on whether these grocery stores are independent or franchised.
Proposal offer 💡
- Products will be distributed on site in the different departments of the grocery store.
- More emphasis will be placed on high-end savory products by using specific caterers.
- Implementation of a click-and-collect system in order to facilitate access to products and relieve congestion in the grocery store.
The environment 🌴
- Political: A decrease in purchasing power could be envisaged with inflation and therefore impact sales.
- Economic: The consumption of delicatessen products has increased well in France. By positioning ourselves on a high-end market, we will be able to reach a clientele already less affected by inflation.
- Social: Aperitifs and cookies are known to be “creators” of social links. The little pies are very popular during aperitifs with friends and children like sweet things.
- Technological: More and more craftsmen and caterers are making products for delicatessens. The machines are more and more efficient.
- Environmental: The industry is not the most exemplary regarding the respect of the environment. Indeed, we can find a lot of packaging to preserve the products.
- Legal: Verification of hygiene, authorized coloring agents in the manufacture of cookies and all edible products.
Of course, we have only gone over the different elements. It is up to you to really develop them so that your market research is as complete as possible.
How to do a real estate market study?
The real estate industry is vast, but as an agent, you have decided to open up to a new region or a new type of rental? Do you want to get into luxury real estate? Let’s find out right now.
Goals of market research in real estate 🏣
- Set up a new sales line in real estate.
- Know what type of customer would be interested.
Market 🥕
- Very present in Paris with 3,500 transactions over 2 million euros.
The demand 🙏
- Many cities in France have been impacted by luxury real estate. La Rochelle is experiencing an increase of 80%
The offer of proposal 💡
- Specialize in one city in France.
- Propose only exceptional properties.
- Propose old luxury buildings (with cachet).
Environment 🌴
- Political: Sector that has a great influence on the French government. There are economic stakes.
- Economic: In order to buy, the French must have purchasing power (this is not an issue for luxury real estate). We must take into account the inflation.
- Social: We must take into account the various demographic data. Real estate must not take into account religion…
- Technological : We must keep in mind that the costs and the quality of the real estate in France are important. The quality of the materials is a guarantee of quality with the customers.
- Environmental: One must be careful about where one sells since the climatic conditions can change a land radically, one must also take into account the reduction of energy consumption.
- Legal: Respect of the contracts.
Sample market study PDF
So that you can take this market study with you at any time, you can download a PDF of everything we said about the market study.
The recap of the article
Whether you are starting a new business or simply want to launch a new line, conducting market research is essential. Thanks to a market study, you will be able to start knowing :
- Your typology 🦖 of customer.
- The projected turnover.
- Your sector of activity.
- The costs 💰 that you have to pay..
In any case, you now have information on :
- The definition of market research.
- How to do a market research.
- Why to do it.
- The examples.
FAQ of the article
We are almost at the end of this topic but there may still be things we can teach you.
The SWOT
We told you about PESTEL but there is also the SWOT that you can use to perform analysis on your micro-environment. You will have the opportunity to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of your project (or even your company).
- Strengths 💪 are going to be mostly about the internal strengths of the company (the talent, resources, and competitive advantages you have).
- Weaknesses are about your company’s internal shortcomings such as lack of talent, inefficient processes and resources that are limited.
- Opportunities are your external advantages such as market trends, new technologies, and your opportunities for expansion (into other countries, for example).
- Threats ❌ are external factors that can harm the company. This refers to competition, regulations and economic events that are out of your control.
How do you do market research for free?
You absolutely do not need to pay to do your market research. In fact, you can simply use a Google Doc 📄 in order to set up all the necessary elements for your study. But that’s not all since you can use Google Trends, launch surveys through Google Forms and ask for information on forums or LinkedIn discussion groups.
You are now ready and you know how to do a market research.
about the market study.
The recap of the article
Whether you are starting a new business or simply want to launch a new line, conducting market research is essential. Thanks to a market study, you will be able to start knowing :
- Your typology 🦖 of customer.
- The projected turnover.
- Your sector of activity.
- The costs 💰 that you have to pay..
In any case, you now have information on :
- The definition of market research.
- How to do a market research.
- Why to do it.
- The examples.
FAQ of the article
We are almost at the end of this topic but there may still be things we can teach you.
The SWOT
We told you about PESTEL but there is also the SWOT that you can use to perform analysis on your micro-environment. You will have the opportunity to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of your project (or even your company).
- Strengths 💪 are going to be mostly about the internal strengths of the company (the talent, resources, and competitive advantages you have).
- Weaknesses are about your company’s internal shortcomings such as lack of talent, inefficient processes and resources that are limited.
- Opportunities are your external advantages such as market trends, new technologies, and your opportunities for expansion (into other countries, for example).
- Threats ❌ are external factors that can harm the company. This refers to competition, regulations and economic events that are out of your control.
How do you do market research for free?
You absolutely do not need to pay to do your market research. In fact, you can simply use a Google Doc 📄 in order to set up all the necessary elements for your study. But that’s not all since you can use Google Trends, launch surveys through Google Forms and ask for information on forums or LinkedIn discussion groups.
You are now ready and you know how to do a market research.
