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What is the difference between primary and secondary market research?
What are primary and secondary research?
What is primary market research?
What are the different types of secondary market research?
Primary market research is a methodology of determining the viability of the product or service based on data collected directly from the source — potential customers. Primary market research is done from scratch, rather than relying on the previously done research.
Jul 7, 2020 · Primary vs. Secondary Market Research: What’s the Difference? Market research can be classified as either primary or secondary research. The difference is quite simple, yet there is often confusion around this topic.
Primary research gives you recent data from known primary sources about the particular topic you care about, but it does take a little time to collect that data from scratch, rather than finding secondary data via an internet search or library visit.
Before you learn how to conduct primary market research, it’s important to understand the two different types: primary and secondary. The purpose of primary market research is to learn about your target market’s preferences and characteristics to better position your product or service to sell.
- Overview
- What is market research?
- What is primary data?
- What is secondary data?
- Differences between primary and secondary data
- Pros and cons of primary data
- Pros and cons of secondary data
- Example of market research
Market research provides valuable information that marketers can use to make decisions. Primary and secondary data are two common forms of information associated with market research, and although they differ, they are both useful to marketing professionals. If your company offers a new product or you want to expand your business, primary and secon...
Market research is the process of evaluating the prospects of a new product or service. By gathering information from target demographics, companies can predict whether a product or service may be successful. When a marketer wants more information to make important decisions about branding or product lineups, they use market research.Related: How T...
Primary data is information collected through original research. A marketer typically seeks primary data specifically for their objectives. The method used to collect primary data depends on the amount and type of data the company is interested in. Some companies choose to conduct the research themselves, while others may invest in research from an...
Secondary data is information collected from public sources such as websites, periodicals or other literature. When gathering secondary data, it's important to verify the reliability of a source before using its information. Beginning a research project with secondary research allows for an easy transition to primary research if a marketer wants to...
Sources
Secondary research often includes searching company websites and industry associations to find information on annual reports, investor presentations, market size and industry participants. Government data is also useful for secondary research as it covers a broad range of topics such as trade activity, patents, pricing, product shipments and economic trends.Primary data research often involves sending questionnaires or conducting focus groups to determine the spending habits of your target market group.
Collection methods
Collecting useful secondary information often requires searching for reliable and relevant sources and mostly involves large amounts of reading. Secondary data involves research others have completed, so this form of research often does not require interaction with others.Primary data research involves gathering data yourself. Conducting primary research typically involves gathering specific or exploratory data. Specific data is more exact and often includes quantifiable data such as numbers and figures. Exploratory research is more opinion-based, often including more open-ended interviews.Here are some methods you can use to collect primary data:
Cost
Depending on the level of information you want, secondary data research can widely vary in cost but is typically less expensive than primary data research.Commissioning custom research that provides detailed primary data can be expensive. This kind of research offers answers to specific questions and comprehensive intelligence for your marketing needs. A custom research project to produce primary data also usually takes about two months or longer to conduct.
Here are some positive aspects of primary data:
•The data is reliable. Primary data often involves conducting the research yourself or hiring a dependable research company. Because of this, you can avoid unreliable information from outside sources. Primary data can be more accurate and beneficial than secondary data.
•It's specific to your niche market. Using secondary data to find relevant information can be difficult. Conducting primary research, however, often returns the exact data you want.
•You own your primary data. You own the data you pursue with primary research, and you can choose to make that data publicly available, reserve it for your company only or sell it to other interested businesses.
•It gives you a competitive advantage. If you decide to save your primary data for yourself, it can give you an advantage over other companies that might not conduct primary research.
Here are some negative aspects of primary data:
Here are some positive aspects of secondary data:
•Starting with secondary data allows for an easy transition to primary data collection. Secondary data can be helpful for better understanding your market and developing a plan for conducting primary research.
•Finding secondary data is fairly inexpensive. Secondary data often doesn't require the lengthy process of gathering materials and distributing them, so it's not as costly as primary research.
•The research doesn't require much effort. Secondary research can be simple to conduct, and most marketers conduct it themselves without hiring outside help. Because secondary data research primarily involves information gathering, it's not as labor-intensive as primary research.
Here are some negative aspects of secondary data:
•The data may be outdated or inaccurate. Some sources of secondary data are reliable, but they require verification. Occasionally, a source that appears dependable may actually contain old or false information.
Here is an example of how a company might use market research properly:Go-Nuts Donuts, a small donut shop chain, wants to start developing vegan donuts. To better understand whether this would increase its client base and profits, its marketing team conducts market research. First, the Go-Nuts marketing team conducts secondary data research, such as searching online for news articles about other donut shops that introduced vegan items. They also may search for statistics on the number of people who follow a vegan diet in their city.The Go-Nuts marketing team then conducts primary data research by emailing questionnaires to the company's current client base to determine whether there would be any interest in the new products. They also gather a focus group to try the new donuts and offer their opinions. After Go-Nuts conducts this research, they now have the data to predict whether their new vegan menu would be successful.
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Mar 9, 2022 · What’s the difference between primary and secondary market research? Primary market research is done by collecting data yourself, often through surveys or interviews with your target market. Secondary research uses existing data that you can find online or in research reports and books.
Mar 26, 2024 · Explore the crucial differences between primary vs secondary research in our comprehensive guide. Learn when to use each method, their pros and cons, and best practices for garnering actionable insights. Perfect for marketers and researchers.
