How to Pick a Market Research Methodology

Marketing research consists of several possible methodologies, some primary and others secondary. Picking the one that best fits the research's financial budget and time constraints requires preparation and careful examination. Follow these steps to learn how to pick a market research methodology that works for you.

Instructions

1. Settle on whether secondary or primary research addresses each research objective. Primary research addresses a specific issue such as a focus group discussing an ad campaign. Secondary data consists of collected data such as sales figures for a specific product line.

2. Review the research budget and possible marketing research methodology costs. The more in-depth the research is the more costly it becomes.

3. Decide which methodology, focus group, mail survey, one-on-one interview, intercept, panel, online survey or telephone, to use for primary research. A telephone, online or mail survey provides a larger sample size, however telephone surveys are a more controlled methodology because respondent qualifications are easier to control than with mail or online surveys.

4. Use qualitative or exploratory research, focus groups and in-person interviews, when searching for answers to quantify. This data can't be projected to the population because it utilizes a smaller number of respondents.

5. Set study parameters that the research desires, for example, a larger margin of error and smaller base size are less costly for quantitative studies like telephone. Studies requiring hard to find participants such as young men in a retirement community are also more expensive because incidence is low. Utilize secondary research to save costs if the objectives deal with historical trends and not testing an unknown hypothesis.

Tips & Warnings

• Choose a methodology that saves time and money.

• Seek professional help from a market research firm specializing in a variety of methodologies.