creative writing 4th class

• Grades 6-12
• School Leaders

FREE Book Bracket Template. For March and Beyond!

101 Exciting 4th Grade Writing Prompts for 2023 (Free Printable!)

Use them for journal writing, essay topics, and more!

Fourth grade is a time for students to continue to hone their writing chops as they put to use the skills they’ve learned and gain confidence in their abilities. We’ve collected this list of fourth grade writing prompts—including opinion, persuasive, informational, and narrative—to spur your students’ imaginations and get them writing!

You can get 50 of these fourth grade writing prompts in a free PowerPoint slideshow bundle! They make it easy to share these writing ideas with your students.  Grab your free PowerPoint bundle by submitting your email here .

• Persuasive and Opinion Writing Prompts
• Descriptive and Expository Writing Prompts
• Narrative and Personal Writing Prompts
• Creative Writing Prompts
• Current Events Writing Prompts

Persuasive and Opinion 4th Grade Writing Prompts

Would you rather be good at sports or good in school? Why?

Would you rather have lots of money or lots of friends? Why?

What is your favorite subject in school? Why?

Are fourth graders ready to stay home alone? Why or why not?

Name two characters from different books that you think might be good friends. Why?

Which is more important for success, skill or luck?

Should kids be paid an allowance to do chores around the house? Why or why not?

Why are classroom rules important?

If you had a time machine, what era of history would you visit?

Why is math important?

Why is science important?

Should fourth graders have cell phones? Why or why not?

If you could open a store, what type of store would it be and why?

Which would you rather read: a scary story that gives you goosebumps or a funny story that cracks you up? Why?

What is the hardest thing about being a fourth grader?

If I were the ruler of the world, the first law I would pass would be … because …

If you found a backpack filled with dollar bills, what would you do?

Is it ever OK to tell secrets? Why or why not?

What animal makes the best pet? Why?

Is it better to spend an hour a day reading or an hour a day exercising? Why?

Descriptive and Expository 4th Grade Writing Prompts

If you had a YouTube channel, what would you talk about?

What’s the best book you’ve read recently? What was it all about?

If you won a million dollars, how would you spend the money?

Describe what you think of as perfect weather.

Describe how to build a birdhouse step by step.

Write five rules for staying organized.

What is the worst book you ever read?

Describe the physical appearance of someone in your family in detail.

Imagine you are in a hot-air balloon above your house. Describe everything you can see.

Describe how to play your favorite board game.

There’s an old saying: “The squeaky wheel gets the grease.” What do you think this saying means?

Describe your perfect day.

One of your little cousins is very nervous about starting kindergarten. What would you tell them to make them feel better?

Imagine you are an adult and describe your dream job.

Explain your morning routine in detail, from waking up to arriving at school.

Describe the perfect meal, including what you’d eat and where you’d dine.

Share what you do on a typical non-school day.

Explain the right way to do one of your household chores, like making your bed or cleaning your room.

Describe your favorite room at home in detail.

How do you prepare for a big test? Describe the ways you study or practice.

Narrative and Personal 4th Grade Writing Prompts

Share one of the stories your family has told you about when you were a baby.

What is the funniest thing that has ever happened to you?

Write about an adult you look up to.

What’s the nicest thing anybody has ever done for you?

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Write about a time you felt like quitting but didn’t. How did you keep yourself going?

Do you like nonfiction books or fiction books better? Why?

What makes your family unique?

What would you say is your greatest strength? Greatest weakness?

Are you a patient person? Why or why not?

What is something you’ve never done that you would like to try?

What is the weirdest thing that has ever happened to you?

Write about a time you tried something new and how you felt before, during, and after.

What is your earliest memory?

What’s your favorite holiday? What makes it so special?

Write about a time when you felt proud of yourself.

Tell the story of your favorite field trip of all time.

If you could relive any day in your life, what would it be? Would you want it to be the same or different?

What holiday is important to your family? Describe how you celebrate it together.

What’s the best gift you’ve ever gotten? How did it make you feel?

Creative 4th Grade Writing Prompts

If you met an alien, what three questions would you ask them?

Pretend you drank a magic potion that made you as tiny as an ant. Where would you go and what would you do?

Pretend you ate a magic pill that made you as tall as a redwood tree. Where would you go and what would you do?

Write a story that includes these five words: keys, spaghetti, uncle, jellyfish, spaceship.

What would the world be like if dinosaurs still existed?

If you could invent something new the world really needs, what would it be? How would it work?

Retell a classic story, making the villain the hero instead.

Imagine that one day you woke up and found everyone in the world could no longer talk. What would happen next?

Write a new chapter of your favorite book, with yourself as a new character.

Imagine you woke up one morning with a superpower, like invisibility or the ability to fly. Describe your experiences learning how to use that power.

Use these words to start a story: “When I opened the box that came in the mail, I never expected to find …”

Describe a world where it rains fruit juice and snows M&Ms.

Come up with the most ridiculous excuse possible for why you are unable to turn in your homework today.

Describe a world where all the adults are robots, but kids are still human kids.

Imagine a conversation between yourself and a talking animal.

Describe the kind of creature you’d create if you were a mad scientist. Would it be scary and mean? Nice and friendly?

Invent a new kind of candy. Give it a name, and write a commercial jingle for it.

Write about a day where kids are in charge instead of grown-ups.

Imagine you’re lost in a haunted wood, and tell the story of your escape.

Tell a story that ends with these words: “… and that’s how we all learned to fly.”

Describe a night in the life of the tooth fairy.

Current Events 4th Grade Writing Prompts

If you made a time capsule for this year, what would you put in it?

Describe something that you saw in the news recently and how it made you feel.

Tell about an event that happened recently at your school or in your town.

What do you think is one of the world’s biggest problems right now, and how would you solve it?

Read a news story about something happening in another country and summarize it.

Write a news article about something important that happened to you this week.

Create a poem about something in the local news right now.

Write a letter to the editor about a current issue, explaining your opinion.

Find a “good news” story, and share why it makes you happy.

What living famous person do you most admire and why?

What do you think kids today can do about climate change and global warming?

Learn about an endangered animal, and describe what we can do to help it.

What does the word “racism” mean to you?

What is one thing you would do to make your school or town a better place?

Choose an upcoming sports event, and explain who you think will win.

Describe a current fashion trend or something that’s very popular in your school right now, and how you feel about it.

What can we do to help people with different opinions get along with one another better?

Interview a grown-up you know, and write a news article about them.

What do you think is the best new song right now? The worst? Why?

Describe an event that’s happening in the world right now that you don’t understand. What questions would you ask a grown-up about it?

How do you use writing prompts with your students? Come share your ideas and ask for advice in the We Are Teachers HELPLINE group on Facebook .

Also check out 57 awesome 4th grade books you’ll want to share with students ..

You Might Also Like

40 Nobel Prize Winners Kids Should Know

Marie Curie, Albert Einstein, Malala Yousafzai, Toni Morrison, and more! Continue Reading

Copyright © 2023. All rights reserved. 5335 Gate Parkway, Jacksonville, FL 32256

Question and Answer forum for K12 Students

Creative Writing Topics For Class 4 Format, Examples, Exercises

Creative writing topics for grade 4 worksheets.

Creative writing is an important aspect of the English Grammar curriculum for class 4. It is an opportunity for students to express themselves through their writing and to develop their imagination and creativity. In this article, we will discuss some creative writing topics for class 4, the format, and provide examples to help guide students.

Format Of Creative Writing Topics For Grade 4:

The format of creative writing is flexible, allowing students to explore different styles and formats based on their interests and creativity. However, a basic structure can be followed to help students organize their writing:

1. Introduction: The introduction should grab the reader’s attention and introduce the topic or theme of the writing. It can be a sentence or two that sets the scene or introduces a character.

2. Body: The body of the writing should contain the main content and story of the writing. This can be broken down into paragraphs or sections that build upon the introduction and develop the plot or characters.

3. Conclusion: The conclusion should wrap up the writing and leave the reader with a sense of closure. It can be a summary of the story or a final thought or message for the reader.

Also Read: Diary Writing For Class 8

Topics For Creative Writing Topics For Grade 4:

1. A day in the life of a superhero 2. A magical adventure in a forest 3. A journey to the center of the Earth 4. A visit to a planet in outer space 5. A secret is hidden in a haunted house 6. A day at the beach 7. A surprise party for a friend 8. An imaginary creature and its adventures 9. A Day in the Life of a talking animal 10. A time travel adventure to the past or future

Examples Of Creative Writing Topics For Grade 4:

1. A Day in the Life of a Superhero:

Today was just another day for my superhero alter ego. I woke up early, put on my trusty suit, and headed out to save the world. The first task of the day was to stop a robbery in progress. I swooped in and caught the criminals before they could get away with the loot. Next, I had to stop a runaway train from crashing into the city. With my super strength, I was able to stop the train just in time. By the end of the day, I was exhausted, but I knew that I had made the world a little bit safer.

2. A Magical Adventure in a Forest:

One sunny day, my friends and I decided to explore the forest behind our neighborhood. As we wandered deeper into the woods, we stumbled upon a magical clearing filled with talking animals and shimmering trees. We soon discovered that the forest was under threat from an evil sorcerer who wanted to destroy the magical creatures and take over the forest. With the help of our new animal friends, we set out on a quest to stop the sorcerer and save the forest. It was a wild adventure, but we were able to defeat the sorcerer and restore peace to the forest.

3. A Journey to the Center of the Earth:

My journey to the center of the Earth began when I discovered a secret passage in my backyard. I followed the tunnel deep underground and eventually found myself in a mysterious underground world. As I explored this strange new world, I encountered all sorts of amazing creatures, from giant underground rivers to glowing crystals. But my journey was not without danger. I had to dodge falling rocks and avoid getting lost in the labyrinthine tunnels. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, I reached the center of the Earth and gazed in wonder at the molten core.

4. A Visit to a Planet in Outer Space:

One day, I was taking a walk when a spaceship landed right in front of me. The door opened, and a friendly alien invited me aboard. We blasted off into space and traveled to his home planet, which was filled with strange creatures and plants. I was amazed at how different everything was compared to Earth. The alien showed me around the planet and even introduced me to his family. We played games and shared food, and I felt like I had made new friends. But soon, it was time to head back to Earth. As we said our goodbyes and the spaceship lifted off, I realized that this would be a day I would never forget.

5. A Secret Hidden in a Haunted House:

I had always been curious about the old abandoned house on the corner of my street. One day, I decided to explore it. As I stepped inside, I felt a chill run down my spine. The house was spooky and dark, and I could hear strange noises coming from the shadows. But then, I noticed a glimmer of light coming from a crack in the wall. I pushed aside the old wallpaper and discovered a secret room. Inside the room, I found an old diary that belonged to the previous owner of the house. As I read through the diary, I realized that there was a treasure hidden somewhere in the house. I set out to find the treasure and eventually discovered it hidden in a secret compartment behind the fireplace. It was an amazing adventure that I would never forget.

6. A Day at the Beach:

The sun was shining bright, and the waves were crashing against the shore. It was the perfect day for a trip to the beach. I spent the day building sandcastles, collecting seashells, and splashing in the ocean. The salty sea breeze filled my nostrils, and the warm sand tickled my toes. As the sun began to set, I sat on the beach and watched the colors of the sky change from blue to orange to pink. It was a beautiful moment that I wished could last forever.

7. A Surprise Party for a Friend:

My best friend’s birthday was coming up, and I wanted to plan a surprise party. I gathered all of our friends and decorated the backyard with balloons and streamers. When my friend arrived, we yelled, “Surprise!” and she was overjoyed. We played games, ate cake, and danced to our favorite songs. It was a perfect party that brought us all closer together.

8. An Imaginary Creature and Its Adventures:

My imagination had always been wild, but today, it was especially active. I imagined a creature with wings, a horn, and rainbow-colored fur. This creature, which I named Rainbow, had all sorts of adventures. We flew through the clouds, explored ancient ruins, and even met a talking tree. It was an exciting and magical journey that allowed me to explore my creativity.

9. A Day in the Life of a Talking Animal:

What if animals could talk? I imagined a world where my pet dog, Charlie, could talk. I wrote about a day in his life, from waking up and begging for breakfast to chasing squirrels in the park. Charlie had a lot to say and had all sorts of adventures. It was a fun and entertaining way to explore what it would be like if animals could communicate with us.

10. A Time Travel Adventure to the Past or Future:

What if we could travel through time? I imagined a time machine that could take me anywhere I wanted to go. I wrote about traveling to the future and seeing what the world would be like in 100 years. I saw flying cars, robots doing chores, and people living on Mars. It was a fascinating adventure that made me think about what the future might hold. Alternatively, I could write about traveling back in time and witnessing historical events, such as the signing of the Declaration of Independence or the first moon landing.

Recommended Reading: Creative Writing Topics For Class 4

Conclusion On Creative Writing Topics For Grade 4:

Creative writing is an important skill for students in class 4 to develop. By encouraging them to use their imagination and write creatively, they can improve their writing skills and develop their creativity. The topics mentioned above are just a few examples of the many possibilities for creative writing. Students can explore a variety of genres, including fantasy, adventure, mystery, and more. By writing creatively, students can express themselves in a unique way and explore different perspectives and ideas.

When writing creatively, it is important to remember to use descriptive language to help readers visualize the scenes and characters. Using sensory details, such as sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and feelings, can help bring the story to life. It is also important to develop characters with unique personalities and backgrounds, as well as create a well-structured plot that builds suspense and keeps the reader engaged.

Creative writing is an excellent way for students in class 4 to develop their writing skills and explore their creativity. By providing them with interesting and engaging topics, teachers can encourage students to use their imagination and express themselves in a unique and creative way. Whether it’s exploring new worlds, solving mysteries, or simply describing a day at the beach, creative writing can provide a fun and rewarding experience for students of all ages.

• Math for Kids
• Parenting Resources
• ELA for Kids
• Teaching Resources

10 Best Math Intervention Strategies for Struggling Students

How to Teach Division to Kids in 11 Easy Steps

How to Teach Place Value in 9 Easy Steps

8 Math Division Tricks: Making Division Fun & Accessible

10 Best Strategies for Solving Math Word Problems

When Do Kids Start Preschool: Age & Readiness Skills

Kindergarten Readiness Checklist: A Guide for Parents

How to Choose Best School For Your Kid: 12 Best Tips

Why Kids Get Bored at School: 10 Tips to Keep Them Interested

11 Best Writing Apps for Kids

6 Effective Ways to Improve Writing Skills

40 Four Letter Words That Start With A

What Are the Stages of Spelling Development: Ultimate Guide

48 Rhyming Words for Kindergarten Kids

How to Teach Vowels to Kids: A Step-by-Step Guide

15 Best Innovative Tech Tools for Teachers

What is Teachers Professional Development: Strategies & More

11 Best Ways to Create a Positive Learning Environment for Kids

How to Encourage Creativity in the Classroom – 9 Best Tips

25 Best Websites for Teachers

100 Fun Writing Prompts for 4th Grade: Journal Prompts

• Journal Writing Prompts
• Descriptive Writing Prompts 
• Fiction Writing Prompts 
• Opinion Writing Prompts
• Funny Writing Prompts 
• Informative Essay Writing Prompts
• Animal Writing Prompts 
• Poetry Writing Prompts 
• Narrative Essay Writing
• Emotion Writing Prompts 

Writing help stimulates and organize thoughts in children. They make them better off expressing whatever they have in their mind and feel a little less burdensome.

But, how do we inspire young children to write?

Writing Prompts are a perfect genesis for developing writing habits in kids. They brew creativity, vocabulary, a sense of expression and so much more in them.

Without much ado, let’s get straight to the list of 4th grade writing prompts.

SplashLearn: Most Comprehensive Learning Program for PreK-5

SplashLearn inspires lifelong curiosity with its game-based PreK-5 learning program loved by over 40 million children. With over 4,000 fun games and activities, it’s the perfect balance of learning and play for your little one.

Here are more learning resources for your 4th grader to aid to their learning!

100 Fun Writing Prompts for 4th Grade

10 Journal Writing Prompts

It is important to develop self-expression in kids, which can be made possible through regular journaling. For kids as young as 4th graders, journalling can boost the flow of ideas and spark reflective communication in them. Refer to the list of 4th grade journal prompts and get your students on a writing fling. 

1. What is a secret dream of yours? What can you do now to reach it later in your life?

2. What kind of a friend do you think you are? List three things where you can improve and become a better friend.

3. What is one thing that your teacher does that you don’t like? How would you like her to do that instead?

4. What is your favorite thing about being in the class?

5. Recount the best picnic you had with friends. Where did you go? What part did you enjoy the most?

6. Make a list of 30 things that you love about your life.

7. Who is your inspiration and why?

8. If you are allowed to make a single wish, what would it be?

9. Write about your favorite hobbies

10. Write about the best gift you have received. What made you love it so much?

10 Descriptive Writing Prompts 

Somewhat similar to 4th-grade journal writing prompts, Descriptive prompts can be a great tap into creativity. When you want to keep your students busy with writing in a way that builds a love of details in them, here are the writing topics for 4th graders that you shouldn’t miss.

1. Write about 3 places that would like to travel to. Why and with whom?

2. Imagine your new classmate starts school today. What would you do to welcome them?

3. Describe a mistake you made and what you learned from it.

4. Your uncle overseas wants to know about your city. Write a letter to him describing your city- the famous monuments, eateries, parks, and more.

5. If you get to become a teacher for a day, which subjects will you teach and why?

6. Who inspires you in the family, and why?

7. Share your experience about a time when something unexpected happened.

8. Describe your favorite classmate. What is one more thing(s) that you would want to learn from him/her?

9. What is your favorite outfit? Why and where would you wear it?

10. You have found a lucky object. Share the little details about it.

10 Fiction Writing Prompts 

What is life without fantasy and fiction? Precisely, nothing. Fiction is a powerful tool to pen down the flow of ideas without having to follow a particular format. It not only fuels creativity but improves writing skills and concentration. So, if you are planning to assay your student’s imaginative power, use these writing prompts for 4th grade.

1. Last night, you traveled into space. What did you see?

2. Put yourselves in the shoes of a mad scientist who just discovered a fruit. How does it look it? Narrate its journey from the innovative lab to the market.

3. In your favorite fairy tale, a prince decides to be a villain instead of a hero. Write the chain of events that unfold.

4. One day, you wake up to see that your elder brother has been turned into a horse by an evil witch. Build a story around the scenario.

5. On a lonely stormy night…Continue the story.

6. You have acquired a superpower to turn invisible whenever you like. Narrate the events of how and where you would use this superpower.

7. You were transported into the last story you read. Where are you? How would the story change with your presence?

8. Imagine you got a chance to climb up the ladder to the clouds. Write what you see there.

9. You woke up to find out that you have grown wings. How would your life change?

10. “Do not be angry” I told myself. But, as I looked down… Complete a story.

10 Opinion Writing Prompts

Supporting critical thinking and vision, Opinion writing prompts can be instrumental in shaping the thought process in young minds. More often than not, even the senior students are not aware of how many strong opinions they hold. Therefore, it becomes crucial to let kids practice how to present their arguments in their development years. Here’s a list of opinion writing prompts for 4th grade to kickstart their writing journey.

1. Should recess time be longer in schools? Why, or why not?

2. Should 4th graders receive pocket money from their parents? Why, or why not?

3. Share the best pizza eatery in your town. Why do you think it’s the best?

4. With the annual function coming up, your school wants to invite a famous personality to deliver an inspirational speech or presentation. Who do you think will be the best fit?

5. Would you rather be a class topper, a fine artist, or an excellent sportsperson?

6. Do you think smoking should be banned? Why, or why not?

7. Share your opinion on students bringing a cell phone to school.

8. Should everyone exercise every day? Share your opinion.

9. If you were to plan the school lunch menu, what will you include?

10. Is homework a good practice for learning? What do you think?

10 Funny Writing Prompts 

Do you see your kids getting bored of writing on general topics? Don’t worry, refer to our list of fun writing prompts for 4th grade! Funny Writing Prompts are a great icebreaker to stir up the imagination and interest in students. Moreover, teachers can let students read aloud their fun stories in class. Get ready for a giggle-packed writing period with writing prompts for 4th grade!

1. Your homework was eaten by a dog. Write a story to convince your teacher.

2. Write a story using 5 words: funny, bird, sleep, guitar and pajamas.

3. Imagine you woke up and saw a giant sleeping next to you. Narrate the story.

4. Create a story where chocolate cake is the main character.

5. The rabbit jumped on the moon and the dish ran away with the spoon. Build a humorous story.

6. Imagine your best friend cannot stop sneezing and farting throughout the day. What do you think the day would look like to him?

7. Imagine someone cast a spell on your mother. She could talk nothing but only meow. How would your life change? What can you do to break the spell?

8. Everyone around you turns into a robot. How would you spend your day?

9. What would happen if you ate a cookie and became a dwarf? Narrate the scenario.

10. I never thought my cat would laugh… Continue the story.

10 Informative Essay Writing Prompts

The essence of Informative Writing prompts lies in how well students can convey particulars about an object, a personality, or an event to the readers. As much as they improve their writing skills, the prompts compel the young minds to think critically, and fetch cues from their memory and learning.

Check out the writing ideas for 4th grade kids on the list to make your work a little easier!

1. Write the importance of water in our lives. How can we save water?

2. What are traditions? Which one do you like the most and hate the most in your family?

3. Imagine you are a city tour guide. What are the best places to visit in your city?

4. What is the most interesting book you have ever read? Write a book review.

5. Write a ‘how to play’ guide for your favorite game.

6. Recollect the times you were in quarantine. Write an interesting story about how you overcame tough times.

7. How should we take care of our younger siblings?

8. You are at a farm with your family. Write all that you see around you.

9. Imagine you just experienced an earthquake. What was the first thing you did? Narrate the details.

10. You have become a store manager for a day. Write about all the responsibilities and tasks that you undertook throughout the day.

10 Animal Writing Prompts 

We all agree that animals fit naturally into our stories. That’s because humans share an unbreakable bond with animals. So, why not have a writing session that features animals? This will surely infuse some excitement and divergent thinking in the classroom . Here’s some animal creative writing prompt for 4th graders!

1. Write some interesting facts that you know about animals.

2. How would it be if you woke up doing ‘meow meow’ one morning? Write a story.

3. Imagine dinosaurs taking over the world. What do they make humans do?

4. What if you are in a forest and a lion starts talking to you? What would the conversation be like?

5. If you were allowed to pet 5 animals, which one will you choose and why?

6. ‘A camel was walking in the desert but suddenly…’ Construct an interesting story.

7. Write a story about the friendship of a pigeon and squirrel living on the same tree.

8. Imagine you are swimming in the Indian Ocean and a shark arrives. What will you do?

9. Is the zoo a good place for animals? Why, or why not?

10. If you could have a superpower to turn into any animal, which animal would you become to save a girl who’s been kidnapped? Why?

10 Poetry Writing Prompts 

In a world where classic literature has been lost under social media slang, poetry is still a breath of fresh air. Moreover, poems for kids can be really helpful in improving creative writing skills. They not only learn the real rules of literature and grammar but find joy in expressing themselves. Jump into the poetic world with these 4th grade writing prompts.

1. Write poetry about your first day in 4th grade.

2. Write a haiku about your favorite ice cream.

3. ‘Silvery sweet sound’… Continue the poem.

4. ‘There was once a wise man who told me’. Write a limerick using this line.

5. ‘I met a funny little man…’ Write an interesting poem.

6. Write poetry about Mother Earth.

7. ‘When the winter snow begins to fade…’ Continue the poem.

8. ‘The story is strange, as you will see, The weirdest thing ever happened to me.’’ Write a poem to describe the weirdest scenario you have been in.

9. ‘I woke up one morning with a mermaid tale’. Write a poem.

10. ‘Snow slips down swiftly’. Write a haiku.

10 Narrative Essay Writing

One of the widely practiced 4th grade writing prompts, Narrative writing is all about expressions and stories. It encompasses the beginning, middle, and end of a narrative. Whether it’s a personal incident or a fact or a fiction, it’s sure to spark a joy of creativity in young ones. Here are some ideas that you can use as 4th grade narrative writing prompts.

1. Suppose you become a school principal for a day. Write about what changes you will make in the school.

2. You have to describe your family members to someone who has never met them before. How will you do it?

3. If you had a chance to keep an extra chair at the dining table tonight, whom would you invite and why?

4. What is your favorite memory from 3rd grade? Share details about it.

5. What is one thing that makes you feel sad? How do you overcome this sadness?

6. Write about your favorite holiday meal.

7. When did you score poorly on a test? What did your parents say?

8. Write about your experience at a summer camp. Would you go this year again?

9. If given a chance to visit another planet, where would you go and why?

10. This year my goals are… Write about what all you want to achieve by the end of the year.

10 Emotion Writing Prompts 

Just as adults need an outlet to express their bubbling emotions, so do kids! Journalling is a powerful tool, facilitating reflection and critical thought. While journalling might be a difficult step for most kids, writing prompts can support their creative outlet. It can aid them in expanding their own ideas, articulating their feelings, and boosting their confidence. Look at some interesting fourth grade journal prompts that kids will love!

1. Write a letter to your 15-year-old self.

2. What are 10 things you and your best friend are good at?

3. Describe your favorite time of the year. What activities do you do during this time? Who do you spend it with?

4. Imagine you found a genie who promises to grant you 3 wishes. What wishes would you make?

5. Write about a time you felt a strong emotion- be it happiness, sadness, anger, etc. What made you feel that way? What did you do to control it?

6. Suppose it is your mother’s birthday next week. How can you make it memorable for her? What planning will you do?

7. Do you know about your strengths and weaknesses? Write 5 each.

8. You have to thank 10 people today. Who will be on your list? How will you be thankful to them?

9. When someone compliments you, how do you respond to it?

10. Write about all the times you have felt happy in the last week.

12 Ways To Help 4th Graders With Writing

When it comes to giving a creative push to 4th graders, there can be nothing better than writing prompts. Since young students face more hurdles in following a structural approach to writing, prompts can help kids relieve that pressure. Consequently, they can enjoy flexibility in writing, allowing more room for creativity and imagination.

While kids may benefit immensely from writing prompts, it cannot be made possible without a mentor’s encouragement and support. Here are some of the creative ideas around 4th grade writing prompts that you can explore with kids:

• Encourage recollecting past experiences to stir up the writing process
• Give them friendly instructions
• Talk through building imaginary scenarios
• Respond actively to their communication and prompts
• Curating problem prompts and discussing the probable solutions
• Sharing classic tales or retelling them to fit the current scenario
• Jotting down facts to build creative prompts
• Emphasizing on development of opinionated argument
• Inspiring to write in a variety of styles
• Providing comprehensive support to build the writer’s confidence
• Highlighting authentic grammar rules and spelling
• Use of digital tools to create prompts

The above list is not exhaustive, and there’s always enough room for creativity.

To ease things for you, here are three steps you can consider while using writing prompts:

Step #1: Introduce the statement or topic to the students to steer the creative writing ship

Step #2: Encourage students to make a personal connection with the prompt given, and brainstorm the key points with them

Step #3: Convey the purpose of the writing assignment- an essay, a paragraph, or any other form of writing. Instruct the students using sufficient information to better equip them with writing cues.

Summing Up…

Young kids need support to build writing skills as much as adults do. Writing prompts can be a perfect anchor to get set kids on a writing spree. We hope the above 4th grade writing prompts can serve the enjoyment and purpose of your class! Good Luck!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How can i improve my child’s writing skills using elementary prompts.

It is imperative to build focus in kids as young as 4th graders. Unfocused writing can become troublesome for them in the future. To improve focus, emphasize using basic prompts that encompass their favorite things- toy, place, picnic memory, cup, etc. Make a list of all that they like and ask them to write small details about them. Let them practice these as much as they want. This way, sticking to a single topic, will surely help them stay clear and focused until they start with longer essays.

How do I keep a tab on my child’s progress in writing?

Writing prompts are in themselves a great tool to help teachers and parents measure the progress of the kid. The best way to see whether the kid has improved or not is to let them practice with the elementary prompts daily. You must skim through them, and politely pinpoint the grammatical or punctuation errors. 

However, do not be too harsh on them while communicating their mistakes to them. Remember, all good things take time! Moreover, do not compare your child’s progress to any other child. All children have different capacities and speeds to grasp things. Target steady growth!

How can I make writing prompts a fun activity for the class?

There are endless possibilities to creatively support the use of 4th grade journal prompts. You can divide the students into small groups and pin a challenge of writing prompts between them. Furthermore, teachers can make use of attractive resources like flashcards, worksheets, etc. to add a spark of enthusiasm and fun to the class. 

Since little appreciation and kind words go a long way, you can keep exciting rewards for the kids who perform exceptionally. There’s so much that you can do to unleash the creative side of your 4th graders.

15 Best Reading Fluency Activities for Early Learners

15 Best End of School Year Activities for Kids of All Grade

15 Best Empathy Activities for Kids to Foster Kindness

Most Popular

15 Best Report Card Comments Samples

101 Best Riddles for Kids (With Explanation)

40 Best Good Vibes Quotes to Brighten Your Day

Recent posts.

60 Best Tricky Questions for Kids [With Answers]

11 Best Math Websites for Teachers in 2024

Math & ela | prek to grade 5, kids see fun., you see real learning outcomes..

Watch your kids fall in love with math & reading through our scientifically designed curriculum.

Parents, try for free Teachers, use for free

• Games for Kids
• Worksheets for Kids
• Math Worksheets
• ELA Worksheets
• Math Vocabulary
• Number Games
• Addition Games
• Subtraction Games
• Multiplication Games
• Division Games
• Addition Worksheets
• Subtraction Worksheets
• Multiplication Worksheets
• Division Worksheets
• Times Tables Worksheets
• Reading Games
• Writing Games
• Phonics Games
• Sight Words Games
• Letter Tracing Games
• Reading Worksheets
• Writing Worksheets
• Phonics Worksheets
• Sight Words Worksheets
• Letter Tracing Worksheets
• Prime Number
• Order of Operations
• Long multiplication
• Place value
• Parallelogram
• SplashLearn Success Stories
• SplashLearn Apps
• [email protected]

© Copyright - SplashLearn

Make study-time fun with 14,000+ games & activities, 450+ lesson plans, and more—free forever.

Parents, Try for Free Teachers, Use for Free

30 Fun And Creative 4th Grade Writing Prompts

Fourth grade students have a fantastic imagination and can be very creative given the chance. When it comes to writing, sometimes 4th grade students need a little push in the right direction. Below you’ll find 30 fun and creative 4th grade writing prompts that are guaranteed to inspire creativity and elicit students personal thoughts and feelings. You’ll also find a printable PDF of these writing prompts so you can easily print and distribute them to your fourth grade students.

4th Grade Writing Prompts

• What superpower would you have if you could choose one?
• What is your favorite season and why?
• Write a story about a time when you were really scared.
• What will the world be like in 100 years?
• If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be?
• What is your favorite book and why?
• What would you do if you won a million dollars?
• Write a story about a time when you faced a challenge.
• What are some things that make you happy?
• If you had a magic wand and could create any invention, what would you make?
• What do you think is the most important invention of all time, and why?
• Who is your hero, and why?
• What things are you passionate about?
• How can we solve the problem of bullying in schools?
• Explain what it means to have courage.
• What does it mean to be responsible?
• Why is it important to be honest?
• What would you do if you had a time machine?
• Have you ever volunteered for something?
• Who do you look up to the most?
• Write about a time when you have had to overcome fear.
• What would you do if you had a magic lamp with a genie inside?
• Write a story about going on an adventure with your best friend.
• If you had a magic carpet and could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
• Imagine you are a wild animal. Write about your daily routine.
• Write about someone important to you and explain why they are special.
• If you could invent anything, what would it be, and how would it work?
• Write about a time when something made you really angry.
• Imagine you are a toy in a toyshop. What do you get up to when the store is closed?
• If a magic frog gave you one wish, what would you wish for?

Download And Print

Download and print these writing prompts for 4th graders.

I hope these writing prompts help your 4th grade students discover just how much they love writing! If you want more topics, check out these related articles: Fun Adventure Writing Prompts and Story Ideas Fun Fantasy Writing Prompts For Kids Quick Writing Prompts

From Ideas to Words: 66 Writing Prompts for Fourth Graders

By: Author Paul Jenkins

Posted on September 5, 2023

Categories Writing

You’re here because you’ve got a fourth grader who’s itching to write, right? Great!

In this article, we’ll explore exciting writing prompts that’ll stretch their imagination.

You’ll discover tips on making writing fun and ways you can support your young author.

Let’s jump in and spark that creative flame together!

Key Takeaways

• Writing prompts for fourth graders enhance communication skills, boost creativity, promote penmanship, and improve language skills through peer editing.
• Narrative prompts encourage sharing personal experiences, ‘what if’ scenarios spark creativity, informational prompts relate to current studies at school, and opinion-based prompts develop argumentative skills.
• Encouraging creative writing in fourth graders can be done by inspiring creativity through storytelling techniques, introducing peer reviewing for constructive feedback, using storybooks as a source of inspiration, and encouraging experimentation with dialogue, suspense, and flashbacks.
• Fun and engaging writing prompts for fourth graders include interactive storytelling with prompt illustrations, imagining talking with animals and sketching a scene with a bird, a magical door appearing in their room and sketching the fantastical world behind it, and discovering a new planet and creating an illustration with unique inhabitants. These prompts promote creative thinking, writing, and artistic skills.

66 Writing Prompts for Fourth Graders

Here are 66 writing prompt ideas for 4th grade students:

• Write about your favorite childhood toy and why it was special to you.
• Describe your ideal treehouse. What would it look like and have inside it?
• Who is your hero? Write about what makes them heroic.
• If you could have any superpower, what would you choose and why?
• What is your favorite season? Describe what you enjoy about it.
• What is the most amazing animal you can think of? Write about what makes it so amazing.
• Imagine you woke up one morning with a mermaid tail. Describe what your day would be like.
• What do you want to be when you grow up and why?
• What would happen if there were no rules for one day?
• What is the best gift you’ve ever given or received? Why was it meaningful?
• Write a story about a magic bicycle that takes you on an adventure.
• If you could visit any time period in history, which would you choose and why?
• Describe your perfect birthday party.
• What are three words that describe you? Explain why you chose each word.
• What is your favorite thing to do outside? Describe why you enjoy it.
• Write about an act of kindness you did for someone. How did it make you and the other person feel?
• If you could have dinner with anyone from history, who would you choose and what would you talk about?
• Describe your favorite family tradition or holiday celebration.
• What is one goal you have for this school year?
• Imagine you could fly. Describe what you would see from up in the air.
• What is your favorite thing about yourself and why?
• Describe a time you felt brave or courageous.
• What makes a good friend? Write about the qualities of a good friend.
• Describe your favorite meal or favorite food. What do you love about it?
• If you were principal for a day, what changes would you make in your school?
• Write a story ending this way: “And that’s when I learned to always…”.
• Imagine you switched places with your parent or guardian for a day. Describe what your day would be like.
• Describe your perfect vacation. Where would you go and what would you do?
• Write about an experience that taught you a lesson. What did you learn?
• Imagine you find a magic lamp with a genie inside who grants you three wishes. What would you wish for and why?
• What is your favorite thing to do on a rainy day? Describe why you like it.
• Who is your favorite book or movie character? Write about them.
• What is one of your talents or skills? How did you develop this ability?
• What does being a good citizen mean to you?
• Describe one of the happiest or best moments in your life so far.
• Write about a time you felt scared. What happened and how did you handle it?
• Explain three steps for how to make or do something you know well.
• What is your favorite holiday? Describe how your family celebrates this holiday.
• Write a story titled “The Surprise in the Attic”.
• What is your favorite thing to do with your family? Describe why you enjoy it.
• What is your favorite animal and why?
• Imagine you could be anyone else for one day. Who would you be and why?
• Describe what the world would look like if everything was a certain color.
• What is the best advice someone has ever given you? Who gave you the advice and why was it meaningful?
• How can kids help protect the environment?
• Describe one of your role models or someone you really admire. Explain why you look up to this person.
• Write about a time you felt proud of yourself. What did you accomplish?
• What does the word “hero” mean to you?
• If you had $100 to donate to charity, which charity would you choose and why?
• Write a story titled “The Mystery of the Missing Lunch”.
• What makes you laugh? Describe something that you find funny or humorous.
• What is your favorite book and why? Describe the characters, setting, and plot.
• What do you want to be remembered for?
• If you could make one rule that everyone in the world had to follow, what rule would you create? Explain your choice.
• Describe your ideal birthday cake or dessert. Be as detailed as possible.
• What is the hardest thing you’ve ever done? Why was it challenging?
• Imagine you discovered a new planet. Describe what it looks like and what you would name it.
• What does the word “courage” mean to you?
• Describe how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich to someone who has never seen one before.
• What makes someone a good friend? Describe qualities you think are important in friendship.
• Write about a time you felt disappointed or discouraged. What happened and how did you manage those feelings?
• Describe your favorite season (fall, winter, spring, summer). What makes that time of year special?
• If you were in charge of planning a class party, what would you do to make sure everyone has fun?
• Explain how to play your favorite sport or game. Describe the objects needed, players, and rules.
• If you could take any animal from the zoo home as a pet, which would you choose and why?
• What is one goal you’d like to achieve next school year? Explain why this goal is important to you.

Understanding the Importance of Writing for Fourth Graders

It’s crucial for fourth graders to understand the importance of writing as it’ll enhance their communication skills and boost their creativity. Not only is writing a fundamental way to express ideas, but it’s also a tool for promoting penmanship. When you write, your letters get neater and easier to read!

Engaging in peer editing has its benefits too. You learn from your friends’ work and they learn from yours. It can be fun spotting each other’s mistakes and helping correct them. It strengthens friendship bonds while improving your language skills together!

Types of Writing Prompts Suitable for Fourth Graders

You’re probably wondering what types of creative challenges are suitable for a nine or ten-year-old, aren’t you? Well, when it comes to prompt selection and grading criteria, here’s a simple guide:

• Narrative Prompts
• Encourage them to share personal experiences.
• Challenging them with ‘what if’ scenarios sparks creativity.
• Informational Prompts
• Ask your kids to write about something they’ve learned.
• Assign topics related to their current studies at school.
• Opinion-based Prompts
• Let them express their thoughts on specific subjects.
• This helps in developing argumentative skills.

How to Encourage Creative Writing in Fourth Graders

Don’t underestimate the power of a good storybook, as it can inspire the creative genius in your young ones. Encourage them to try out different storytelling techniques they find interesting. They could experiment with dialogue, suspense, or flashbacks. Let their imagination run wild!

Next, introduce peer reviewing in a fun way. Have them swap stories with friends and give feedback to each other. This approach helps them learn how to constructively critique and accept criticism for improvement.

Fun and Engaging Writing Prompts for Fourth Graders

Let’s explore some exciting and interactive ideas that will stimulate your young one’s creativity and love for storytelling.

Interactive Storytelling is an inventive method to engage fourth graders. They can visualize the narrative through Prompt Illustrations.

You can use these prompts:

• ‘Imagine if you could talk with animals. What would they say?’
• Draw a scene where you’re conversing with a bird.
• ‘A magical door appears in your room, where does it lead?’
• Sketch the fantastical world behind the door.
• ‘What if you discovered a new planet?’
• Create an illustration of this new planet with its unique inhabitants.

Each prompt encourages creative thinking and writing while incorporating art. It will not only make learning fun but also nurture their imaginative skills.

The Role of Parents in Enhancing Writing Skills

You play a vital role in your child’s educational journey, especially when it comes to enhancing their writing skills.

Let’s delve into how you can get more involved in their homework, inspire creative writing, and build vocabulary together.

Parental Involvement in Homework

Having your parents involved in your homework can really help you understand the material better. It’s not just about getting the answers right, but about parent-child bonding and establishing good homework routines.

So, here’s how it works:

• Parental guidance:
• They’ll clarify concepts
• Provide examples
• Help you practice
• Bonding time:
• Homework becomes family time
• You learn more about each other
• Share thoughts and ideas
• Routine setting:
• Consistent timing to do assignments
• Balancing schoolwork with playtime
• Learning discipline and responsibility

Encouraging Creative Writing

Encouraging your imagination to run wild, creative storytelling can be a fun and engaging way to improve literacy skills. By incorporating technology, you’ll find numerous platforms that provide interactive writing prompts for your fourth grader. Think about virtual storybooks or online games centered on storytelling techniques; they make the process enjoyable while enhancing their creativity.

You can also try apps that give a whole new dimension to story construction. They’re not just about typing words; they offer features like adding images, animations, and sounds! It’s all about blending traditional storytelling with modern tools.

Building Vocabulary Together

Building vocabulary together isn’t just educational, it’s also a great way to bond with your child. By playing Word Games and engaging in Vocabulary Challenges, you’re not only helping them learn new words but also developing their thinking skills.

Here are three fun ways to do this:

• Scrabble : This classic game is perfect for 4th graders as it encourages word formation. Get creative by introducing bonus points for certain categories of words. Challenge each other with spelling and pronunciation tests.
• Crossword Puzzles : These are great for enhancing vocabulary and problem-solving skills. Choose age-appropriate puzzles. Cooperate to fill the puzzle faster!
• Charades with Words : A twist on traditional charades; guess the word based on acted clues! Make sure words aren’t too hard!

Teaching Resources for Fourth Grade Writing Prompts

You’ll find a wide array of teaching resources designed specifically for fourth grade writing prompts. These materials are carefully crafted to assist in prompt categorization, which is crucial in organizing your lessons easier. It’s also helpful for students as they can focus on one theme at a time, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of each topic.

Another unique feature you’ll appreciate is prompt personalization. This allows you the freedom to tweak prompts according to your class’ interests and learning levels. By doing so, you’re not only making writing tasks more appealing but also promoting active participation among your learners.

Tips on Making Writing an Enjoyable Activity for Fourth Graders

Making the task of penning down thoughts a fun activity for your pupils can be quite a game-changer in their academic journey. Here are some ways to make writing more enjoyable:

• Interactive storytelling: Use visual aids, props, and interactive elements to bring stories to life. This could include acting out scenes from the story and using digital tools for creating illustrations.
• Peer reviews: Encourage students to share their work and provide feedback to each other. This could involve setting up small group discussions and having one-on-one peer editing sessions.

So, you’re all set to help your fourth grader thrive in writing! Remember, encouraging creativity is key. Use fun prompts, offer support, and make it enjoyable.

With these resources and tips at hand, boosting their skills will be a breeze.

Let’s make learning exciting for them together!

Grade 4 Writing Prompts

25 inspiring fourth grade writing prompts.

Get your child's imagination flowing with these wonderful, Grade 4 writing prompts!

Story starters

“if i was…”, general prompts.

• I awoke from my dream and…
• Samantha looked out of her window and saw…
• There was a bright flashing light in the distance…
• I was frozen to the spot, afraid to move because…
• James didn’t realize it yet, but…
• If I was president…
• If I was a teacher…
• If I was an astronaut…
• If I was an engineer…
• If I was an adventurer…
• Has technology improved the world?
• Should students be allowed to choose what to study?
• Should violent video games be banned?
• Can you buy happiness with money?
• How can we slow down global warming?
• How will people travel in 100 years?
• Describe the perfect robot. What features does it have and what can they do?
• Invent a new game and write instructions for it.
• Invent a new tasty smoothie!
• Describe the home of the future.
• If you had one million dollars, how would you spend it?
• What would it be like to live with an elephant?
• What job would you like to have when you are older, and why?
• If you could have a super power, what would it be?
• What would be in your ideal meal? Use all of your senses to describe it in detail.

How Night Zookeeper can help

Night Zookeeper makes writing fantastically fun for children aged six to twelve!

Our language arts program for kids can help to improve your child's skills while keeping them engaged, focused, and entertained! Our extensive range of writing activities provide children with thousands of creative writing prompts, interactive lessons, and challenges to ensure steady progression. We also offer personalized feedback from real teachers on all the work submitted on the program.

Sign up today and get a 7-day FREE trial!

More writing prompts & activities

• Grade 4 Picture Writing Prompts
• Grade 4 Writing Activities
• Elementary Writing Prompts
• Elementary Writing Activities
• Creative Writing Prompts for Kids

Related content

• Elementary Language Arts
• Elementary Writing Curriculum
• Language Arts Resources

Make Reading & Writing Fantastically Fun!

• Award-winning reading & writing program for kids
• Improves spelling, grammar, punctuation & vocabulary
• Over 1,000 different learning games and activities

50 Exclusive 4th Grade Writing Prompts That Are Printable For Free

• February 20, 2024

Table of Contents Hide

• What Are The Benefits of 4th-Grade Writing Prompts?

Narrative Writing Prompts:

Persuasive writing prompts:, descriptive writing prompts:, informative writing prompts:, bonus prompts:, how to use 4th grade writing prompts in the classroom, we also recommend.

Writing is an essential skill that students need to develop at a young age. By providing them with interesting writing prompts, you can encourage creativity, critical thinking, and language development.

Are you looking for engaging and creative writing prompts for your 4th-grade students? Look no further! We have compiled a list of 50 exclusive writing prompts that are not only fun and exciting but also printable for free.

Whether you are a teacher looking for new writing prompts for your classroom or a parent wanting to support your child’s writing development, these 50 exclusive prompts will inspire and motivate young writers to express themselves and hone their writing skills. So, grab a pencil and paper, and let the creative writing begin!

What Are The Benefits of 4th-Grade Writing Prompts ?

Writing prompts offer a treasure trove of benefits for 4th graders, both in terms of academic development and personal growth. Here are some key advantages:

For the learner:

• Boost creativity and imagination: Spark out-of-the-box thinking and encourage unique storytelling concepts.
• Develop essential writing skills: Hone grammar, vocabulary, and sentence structure in a fun and engaging way.
• Increase confidence in writing: Provide achievable challenges and opportunities to showcase creativity.
• Foster critical thinking and argumentation: Prompt persuasive prompts that encourage logical reasoning and expressing opinions.
• Cultivate curiosity and exploration: Spark interest in various subjects and motivate research and learning.
• Promote self-expression and emotional exploration: Give children a platform to share feelings and explore different perspectives.

SEE ALSO: 15 Different Types of Tones in Writing: Must-Know Guide for All Writers

For the parent/teacher:

• Free and readily available: No need to break the bank or scour the internet for new prompts.
• Printable and convenient: Easily access and use them in various settings, classrooms, or family time.
• Diverse and engaging: Offer a variety of genres and topics to cater to different interests and learning styles.
• Spark discussion and collaboration: Use them as starting points for family storytelling nights or classroom activities.
• Support curriculum alignment: Easily find prompts that complement specific lessons or learning objectives.
• Reduce screen time: Offer an alternative to passive entertainment and encourage creative expression.

50 Exclusive 4th Grade Writing Prompts

Writing helps stimulate and organize thoughts in 4th-grade children. They make them better off expressing whatever they have in their mind and feel a little less burdensome.

Let’s take a look at the different writing prompts for 4th-grade students:

Related Post: 107+ Creative Writing Prompts For Middle School Students

• You wake up one morning to find your pet has superpowers! What happens next?
• You discover a hidden door in your attic that leads to a secret world. Describe what you find there.
• You and your best friend shrink down to the size of ants. What adventures do you have?
• You find a genie in a bottle. What are your three wishes?
• You are the main character in your favorite book. What happens when the story takes an unexpected turn?
• You find a magic notebook that writes your wildest dreams into reality. What chaos ensues?
• Your school suddenly announces a time travel field trip. Where and when do you go?
• You discover a talking animal hiding in your backyard. What secrets does it reveal?
• You’re chosen to compete in a wacky intergalactic talent show. How do you wow the judges?
• You wake up to find everyone in your family has switched bodies! How do you get things back to normal?
• Should schools have a longer recess? Why or why not?
• What is the best way to spend a summer vacation?
• Convince your parents to let you get a pet.
• What is your favorite book? Write a review to convince others to read it.
• You are running for class president. Write a speech to persuade your classmates to vote for you.
• Why should homework be abolished? Or, is it actually beneficial?
• Is technology making kids smarter or lazier? Argue your side.
• Convince your teacher to let you have a classroom pet.
• You believe your school mascot is outdated and needs an upgrade. Propose a new one.
• Would you rather have superpowers or win the lottery? Defend your choice.
• Describe your favorite place in the world in as much detail as possible.
• Imagine you are a cloud. Describe what you see as you float across the sky.
• You are lost in a forest. Use your senses to describe what you see, hear, smell, taste, and touch.
• Create a portrait of your best friend using only words.
• Describe a delicious meal in detail, making your reader’s mouth water.
• Describe the feeling of your favorite childhood memory in vivid detail.
• You are a tiny raindrop on a journey down a windowpane. Describe your adventure.
• Create a character based solely on their laugh. Describe them and their personality.
• Imagine you can taste emotions. Describe the taste of happiness, sadness, and anger.
• You are exploring a mysterious cave. Describe what you see, hear, and feel with suspense.
• Research a famous person you admire and write a biography about them.
• How do bees make honey? Explain the process clearly and concisely.
• Write a report about your favorite animal. Include interesting facts about its habitat, diet, and behavior.
• Create a travel brochure for your dream vacation destination.
• Explain the rules of your favorite game to someone who has never played it before.
• Research a natural disaster and explain how it forms and its impact.
• How do airplanes fly? Explain the science behind it in a way kids can understand.
• Write a step-by-step guide on how to bake your favorite dessert.
• Research a historical event and present it as a news report.
• Explain the importance of recycling and reducing waste.

Read Also: 140 Exclusive Writing Prompts For Adults

• Write a poem about your favorite season.
• Create a comic strip about a funny experience you had.
• Write a song about your hopes and dreams.
• Design a new invention that would make the world a better place.
• Write a letter to your future self. What advice would you give yourself?
• Write a limerick about a silly creature you invent.
• Create a puzzle based on your favorite book or movie.
• Design a board game with unique rules and challenges.
• Write a script for a short play starring your classmates.
• Compose a haiku poem about a beautiful natural scene.

Are you interested in learning how to write proposals? Read our article on Proposal Writing: 7 Steps to Writing the Perfect Proposal

Here’s how to utilize 4th Grade Writing Prompts in the Classroom

• Encourage Creativity : Writing prompts are designed to spark creativity. Encourage students to let their imagination soar by using the prompts as a launchpad for inventive and original ideas.
• Developing Writing Skills : Prompts serve as excellent tools to enhance specific writing skills. Teachers can tailor prompts to focus on areas like descriptive writing, narrative storytelling, persuasive arguments, or informative essays.
• Promoting Critical Thinking : Some prompts are crafted to provoke critical thinking. Encourage students to analyze the prompt, consider different perspectives, and develop well-reasoned responses.
• Incorporate Varied Genres : Writing prompts offer the opportunity to explore different genres of writing. From fiction to non-fiction, poetry to opinion pieces, prompts can introduce students to a diverse array of writing styles.
• Individualized Learning : Recognize that each student is unique. Tailor prompts to accommodate various learning styles, interests, and abilities. This individualized approach fosters a more engaging and personalized writing experience.

Tips for Teachers and Parents

• Provide Positive Feedback : Offer constructive and positive feedback on responses to writing prompts. Encouragement fosters a positive attitude towards writing.
• Facilitate Peer Reviews : Incorporate peer review sessions where students can share and receive feedback on their prompt responses. This promotes collaborative learning and a sense of community.
• Regular Integration : Consistency is key. Regularly integrate writing prompts into lesson plans or home activities to make writing a routine practice.

Incorporating 4th-grade writing prompts into the learning journey is a dynamic and effective approach to enhancing writing skills. By encouraging creativity, developing specific writing abilities, and fostering critical thinking, these prompts play a pivotal role in shaping young writers. Whether in the classroom or at home, embracing the versatility of writing prompts contributes to a well-rounded and engaging writing education for 4th-grade students.

• What Is A Contraction In Writing? Definition, How To Use, and Examples
• What is UX Writing? Job Descriptions, Skills, Salary.
• Types Of Freelance Writing | Descriptions And Jobs
• 10 Tips on How to Increase Readability Score While Writing

Related Posts

Writersgig review 2024: worth it for beginners  .

• March 20, 2024

50 Exclusive 5th Grade Writing Prompts That Are Printable For Free

• February 28, 2024

How to Preview a Submitted Content on WritersGig

• February 16, 2024

• Try for free

4th Grade Creative Writing Worksheets

• Most Popular
• Most Recent

• Photography
• Film + Video
• Culture + Lifestyle
• Exhibits + Events
• Prescriptions
• Photographers
• Designers/Architects
• Organizations/Mags
• Museums/Galleries
• ANNOUNCEMENTS
• COLLECTIONS
• EXHIBITIONS
• 30/30 WOMEN
• CONTRIBUTORS
• SUBMISSIONS
• 30/30 WOMEN PHOTOGRAPHERS

I was born and raised in a working-class city, Elektrostal, Moscow region. I received a higher education in television in Moscow. I studied to be a documentary photographer. My vision of the aesthetics of the frame was significantly influenced by the aesthetics of my city – the endless forests and swamps of the Moscow region with endless factories, typical architecture and a meagre color palette. In this harsh world, people live and work, raise children, grow geranium, throw parties and live trouble, run a ski cross. They are the main characters of my photo projects.

I study a person in a variety of circumstances. We blog with friends with stories of such people. We are citizen journalists. In my works, I touch upon the topics of homelessness, people’s attitude to their bodies, sexual objectification, women’s work, alienation and living conditions of different people. The opportunity to communicate with my characters gives me a sense of belonging and modernity of life.

My photos create the effect of presence, invisible observation of people. I don’t interfere with what’s going on, I’m taking the place of an outside observer. I’m a participant in exhibitions in Rome (Loosenart Gallery), Collaborated with the Russian Geographical Community.

30 Under 30 Women Photographers 2021

• --> --> Mark Rothko Artist / Painter Featured Profile Mark Rothko was born Marcus Rothkowitz on September 25, 1903, in Dvinsk, Russia. In 1913 his family left Russia and settled in Portland, Oregon. Rothko attended Yale University, New Haven, on a scholarship from 1921 to 1923. (more…) Show Post > See Full Profile >
• --> --> Mame-Diarra Niang: Self As A Forgotten Monument Nov 16, 2023 – Jul 7, 2024 Zeitz MOCAA Cape Town, South Africa Self as a Forgotten Monument is the first museum solo exhibition by Mame-Diarra Niang presented by Zeitz MOCAA . Organised as a survey of the artist’s practice over the past decade, the project brings together significant bodies of work in dialogue in a spatial choreography. Niang’s prolific practice is characterised by an exploratory, abstract and subversive approach to lens-based media working across photography, moving image and immersive audio-visual installation. (more…) Show Post >
• --> --> Boris Mikhailov Photographer Featured Profile Ukrainian born Boris Mikhailov is one of the leading photographers from the former Soviet Union. For over 30 years, he has explored the position of the individual within the historical mechanisms of public ideology, touching on such subjects as Ukraine under Soviet rule (more…) Show Post > See Full Profile >
• --> --> Grey Crawford. Chroma, 1978–85, Vol 1 Publication Beam Editions International In 1978 Grey Crawford created a body of colour photographic work that was so radical in its aesthetic and technique that few people to this day understand how it was made. Chroma documents late 70s Los Angeles in a period of radical urban transformation. Scenes of vernacular architecture, demolition sites and everyday places are contrasted with graphic forms that float on the surface and sit within the image. (more…) Show Post >
• --> --> Nasan Tur: Hunted May 26, 2023 – Apr 1, 2024 Berlinische Galerie Berlin, Germany Nasan Tur explores the political and social conditions that define our times. His works are experimental arrangements that draw attention to ideologies, social norms and behavioural codes and expand our options for individual action. To this end, he examines statements, gestures and images found in the media or in the public space and distils them into miniatures reflecting current social crises and discourse. (more…) Show Post >
• --> --> Joan Jonas: Good Night Good Morning Mar 17 – Jul 6, 2024 MoMA New York, USA “I didn’t see a major difference between a poem, a sculpture, a film, or a dance,” Joan Jonas has said. For more than five decades, Jonas’s multidisciplinary work has bridged and redefined boundaries between performance, video, drawing, sculpture, and installation. The most comprehensive retrospective of the artist’s work in the United States, Joan Jonas: Good Night Good Morning traces the full breadth of her career (more…) Show Post >
• --> --> Dorothea Lange Photographer Featured Profile Born Dorothea Nutzhorn on May 26, 1895 in Hoboken, New Jersey, Lange had a difficult childhood, contracting polio when she was seven. The illness left her right leg and foot weakened and she walked with a noticeable limp for the rest of her life. (more…) Show Post > See Full Profile >
• --> --> Boros Collection / Bunker Berlin #4 Ongoing Sammlung Boros / Boros Collection Berlin, Germany We have rarely been as aware of the vulnerability of our physical bodies as in recent years. As a society, we are constantly upgrading our bodies through artificial enhancements to immunize ourselves against infections and maximize our performance. (more…) Show Post > See Full Article >
• --> --> Anonymous Was A Woman Environmental Art Grants Deadline Apr 16, 2024 New York Foundation for the Arts / NYFA New York, USA The AWAW EAG will support environmental art projects that inspire thought, action, and ethical engagement. Projects should not only point at problems, but aim to engage an environmental issue at some scale. Proposals should illustrate thorough consideration of a project’s ecological and social ethics. Projects that explore interdependence, relationships, and systems through Indigenous and ancestral practices are encouraged to apply. (more…) Show Post >

• photography
• film + video
• culture + lifestyle
• exhibits + events
• prescriptions
• photographers
• designers/architects
• organizations/mags
• museums/galleries

Free Printable Creative Writing Worksheets for 4th Class

Creative Writing: Discover a world of imagination with our free printable Reading & Writing worksheets for Class 4 students. Enhance their skills and inspire young minds through these fun activities.

Explore Creative Writing Worksheets by Grades

• kindergarten

Explore Other Subject Worksheets for class 4

• Social studies
• Social emotional
• Foreign language
• Reading & Writing

Explore printable Creative Writing worksheets for 4th Class

Creative Writing worksheets for Class 4 are an essential tool for teachers who want to engage their students in the exciting world of reading and writing. These worksheets provide a structured and fun way for students to develop their skills in writing fiction, while also improving their reading comprehension and vocabulary. With a variety of activities, such as story prompts, character development exercises, and descriptive writing tasks, these worksheets are designed to cater to the diverse needs and interests of Class 4 students. Teachers can use these resources to create a dynamic and interactive learning environment, where students can explore their creativity and develop a strong foundation in reading and writing.

Quizizz is an innovative platform that offers a wide range of educational resources, including Creative Writing worksheets for Class 4, to help teachers create engaging and interactive lessons for their students. With Quizizz, teachers can access a vast library of reading and writing materials, as well as quizzes, games, and other activities that can be easily integrated into their lesson plans. The platform also allows teachers to track student progress and provide personalized feedback, ensuring that each student receives the support they need to excel in their fiction writing endeavors. By incorporating Quizizz into their teaching strategies, educators can create a dynamic and stimulating learning environment where Class 4 students can develop their reading and writing skills while having fun.

how to do market research for new product

Market research for new product development in 6 steps.

Market research for new product development will help you understand your users' needs, as well as potential risks and market opportunities.

What is market research in new product development?

Why do market research for new product development, the importance of market research in product development, choose the correct type of market research, how to conduct market research for a new product , examples of market research for new products, what product development idea have you been dallying off.

Picture this: you’ve got a great idea for a new product, or for improving your current product or service. At least, you think it’s great. When you explain it to others, they raise their eyebrows.

While you are incredibly enthusiastic about the product, they have critical questions about consumer trends , the market , and those latest developments in the world. Ouch.

‘My gut told me to go for’ won’t convince a lot of investors to invest in your idea. Plus, your designers, marketers and engineers will work in a much more confident way if they know that what they’re working on has a chance to succeed. The only way to give them that confidence, is through market research. And one of the most valuable types of research is that which you’ve carried out among your target consumers. This research provides you with proprietary data (also known as zero-party data ).

In this article, we’ll explore why consumer research is so important when you’re developing a new product or want to change something you’re currently already selling. We’ll take you through five crucial steps and give you some valuable tips along the way.

Market research for new product development can focus on different areas. You can research market viability, the demand for the product you have in mind, the features your target group is looking for, or the best way to position, price, communicate and market your product to your target audience. You take into account your competitors, market developments, and important trends. And whether you’re running market research for a startup or a massive brand, it’s an essential step to make sure your new products hit the mark. This can be a difficult task, leading many to consult US market research companies .

Market research for new product development is all about identifying opportunities and finding out if it’s worth bringing your product idea to life. And if so, how to do that in the best way.

It’s about more than what the competition is doing, and if your target audience would be willing to spend money on you. You can also dive into market trends to identify the best ways to market your product.

You can use market research to fine-tune your product development and the relevant aspects around it. Based on how your audience is developing, what price and type of message would grab their attention? What kind of marketing tactics are likely to work, and what channels dominate your market?

Consumer research is about understanding all the aspects of your market. You can approach it as a big puzzle, and once you have all the pieces in place, you can proudly present a solid plan or research to your investors and team, to help them understand why your product development idea is worth working on.

To get the best consumer insights, send a survey with our concept testing template . And for a sector-specific lowdown, find out all about the food product development process .

Market research for your new product development strategy helps you minimise risks and prepares you for a successful product launch. You get to know your market and audience in a way that helps you create not just the perfect product concept, but also the right messaging and marketing around it—something that will actually resonate with your audience.

Market research is used to base your decisions on facts, not just ideas and hunches – however good you might be at guessing games. Before spending time and money on a product idea, you get a good idea of how likely it is to be a success. This will also help you plan how much time and money you’ll actually need.

Investors and stakeholders will also want to see market research if you want to launch a new idea: they want some kind of security that the product will actually sell. Even though market research isn’t a crystal ball and doesn’t exactly predict the future, when it’s done right it can definitely give you a clear picture of how your product concept will be welcomed into the market.

Market research is not only important to verify if your completely new product idea is worth the work. You can also use it to optimise existing products, by keeping a close eye on how competitors are changing their products. You might even read online reviews on products similar to yours and see that customers are asking for specific features. This is also market research.

This also goes for adding new products to a line to supplement your current assortment, or if you want to start an entirely new adventure with your breakthrough product idea.

Market research for product development, whether new or existing, is all about listening to what is happening in the market. Step outside of your organisation and ask the people who pay for your products how you would make them even happier, or find out what trends you can jump onto now, so you can become a frontrunner in the future.

Product development shouldn’t just be done in-house, with your designers and developers closely looking at the product. It’s easy to get tunnel vision and build a product that’s more focused on what you can and want to deliver, and less on what the customer wants.

Market research done right forces you to step out of that bubble and not just look at how you can make the product shinier, faster and stronger, but how you can give it the right place in the market . Because product development is also developing a marketing and sales strategy . It’s having a customer journey and experience ready to put the product in and turn your customers into fans. All you need to do, is go talk to them!

Moreover, market research helps you determine what the marketing mix should look like, since developing a new product is never just about a product.

Turn customers into fans with market research tools

Compare the top market research tools of 2022, including details on their features and the best ways to use each tool.

Let’s get back to basics: what types of market research are there? We often lose ourselves in the wide variety of tools out there that give you data – but what kind of data is available, and how relevant is it to you?

It’s important to understand where data is coming from and how complete it is. How can you supplement it with additional research to get the full picture? Let’s look at the types of research you can – and should! – combine.

Quantitative market research

Don’t let the saying ‘quality over quantity’ fool you for this one—if you’re trying to make money, quantity certainly does matter. Quantitative research focuses on things you can measure .

How many people are interested in your type of product? What are they willing to spend, on average? Has that number been growing, been steady or are they willing to pay less and less? And if the latter is the case, is the group growing in size at least?

You can also gather information on how happy people are about a product or service. What’s lacking in this type of information is the motives behind it. For that, you need qualitative market research .

Qualitative market research

Qualitative research gives context to the numbers . Yes, people are increasingly interested in product X – but why is that? What were they looking at before, and what made them make the switch? Was it a change in price, a recommendation from a friend, something they saw in the news?

Now, it’s nearly impossible to gather qualitative data for all the quantitative data you measure. That’s why it’s incredibly important that you get that qualitative data from a hyper-relevant part of your target group. Don’t send out surveys to gather quantitative data from a specific part of your target group, and then ask another part to explain those numbers. That wouldn’t be helpful at all.

Qualitative data often comes from focus groups . You could find a focus group in the people that you survey, or by interviewing existing customers that fit the profile you’re studying. This will help you get a real-life picture of consumer needs and consumer problems. The best person to ask is the one you’re trying to fit into a buyer’s persona.

How is qualitative market research important for your product development process? It’ll help you understand the needs of your target market better. You conduct research that will steer your product idea generation in the right direction, gathered by real consumer insights and consumer feedback.

Of course, you can’t come to your market consumer in the initial stages of the process and ask them to design the product for you. You’ll gather the base information you have through quantitative methods and online new product development surveys , so you can ask focused concept testing questions to your focus group.

Primary market research

Primary market research is collecting raw data directly from your target customers or market by doing your own research. It simply means you only use data you yourself have collected,  from things like surveys and focus groups – no trend reports from third parties.

This is important for product development research , because you can’t base your decisions and product development process on someone else’s findings for different product and target group entirely.

Anything you directly collect from your market, whether it’s through focus groups, surveys, interviews or product research is primary data.

Inform your product development with our JTBD template

Get up and running with your next product development project and learn what customers really need with our jobs-to-be-done (JTBD) template.

Secondary market research

Secondary research can be done using existing data . The fact that it’s not brand-new information, doesn’t mean that it doesn’t hold valuable insights. You just need to collect the right information and connect that to information that’s relevant for your case specifically.

Secondary research can be done to identify business risks, for instance by looking at market developments. Competitor research is also a valuable form of secondary research. Through competitor research you’ll get a real understanding of the other options your potential customers have – a good starting point for any new product development strategy.

What parts of market research can you not skip over when your goal is using it for product development research? We’ve divided it up into five bite-sized steps that will give you a solid framework to work within.

Step 1. Exploratory research

Basically, this is researching what you specifically want to research. It’s completely normal not to immediately know what your research goal is, or how you’ll get there. That’s where exploratory research comes in.

You start by gathering secondary data on all kinds of aspects. Find things that stand out, developments that you hadn’t thought about and things you want to know more about.

With that information, you can start defining what’s most relevant for you in this stage. Where are your knowledge gaps, and how do you make sure you get the relevant data to make wise business decisions?

This is not necessarily about gathering as much data as you can – you want to keep it manageable and relevant. Find out what questions you can’t answer straight away, and focus your exploratory research on that.

Step 3. Define research objectives

After your exploratory research, you can start pinpointing what you really need to know to move forward in your product development process.

Will you be focussing on customer needs, or how to get a competitive advantage? Will the market analysis focus on product demand and pricing, or is there still a lot of ground to cover in the physical product and usage habits?

It’s important to have a clear idea of what you’ll be researching. Ask yourself: what actionable insights do I need to win in this market segment? Make your objectives as concrete as you can, so your answers will be focused and you can confidently use them to base your next step on.

Step 4. Define the scope of the research

Of course, market research is a way to minimise risk. But there’s always a risk if you’re venturing out with a new product. You can never get a 100 percent guarantee of what will happen, until you launch your product.

That’s why it’s important to define a scope around your objectives. It can also help you to decide where you can use secondary data, and where you definitely need primary data.

Step 5. Decide on market research tools or partners

Are you going to focus on the product or business as usual while a research agency does the heavy lifting? Or do you want to keep everything in-house? In that case, you’re going to be in charge of deciding what market research tools you use. And the possibilities are nearly endless…

There’s a tool for every part of research, but it’s important that you use tools that are easy to work with, and collect all the data you want, so you don’t need to glue it all together from different tools. Especially if you’re going to talk directly to your consumers, you want to use a tool that’s as easy and pleasant to use for them as it is for you.

Of course, we have some suggestions. Check out our article on the 6 best—tried and tested—market research tools out there. And if you’re leaning towards agencies in the UK, here’s our rundown of the top market research agencies in London . And here are the top market research companies in the US .

Or, if you’d prefer to focus on sending out insightful customer insights surveys, see our list of the top 11 Qualtrics alternatives .

Step 6. Concept testing

As interesting as the market itself may be, this specific research is still about your product development idea. Is the idea you have in mind good enough to enter the market, or do you need input to fine-tune it?

That’s where concept testing comes in. With concept testing, you create an MVP that you can show to your focus groups. You find out what they think about it. What features do they miss and love? What would they pay for this? How easy is it to use?

But, like we said, you’re not just developing a product. You are also developing the marketing and communication around it, and that also needs to be tested thoroughly. That’s why you can also target your market research at your marketing for the new or improved product, by creating mock-ups and testing messaging with your focus group. 

How are brands you love using Attest to do market research around product development? Let’s tale a look at US farming cooperative,  Organic Valley . They save time and money by using quantitive analysis for new product development.

‘For a lot of our day-to-day work we had been using other tools that weren’t necessarily user-friendly, easy to use or intuitive. We were looking for a tool with a fairly rapid turnaround and I wanted my team to be able to use it themselves, I didn’t want to have to go out and hire somebody else,’ says Tripp Hughes, Organic Valley’s Senior Director of Consumer Strategy. He saw a need for a tool that his team could use, without having to go through excessive training.

After seeing Attest demoed at a conference, Hughes brought in some of his peers to take a look. They now use it for market analysis, concept ideation and testing, creative testing, and messaging testing.

Hughes estimates that being able to make quick initial learnings through Attest saves Organic Valley between 10 to 20 times what it would cost to make the discoveries later down the line.

‘The impact is coming in reduced time and improved next-round thinking that we’re taking into focus groups where we’ve got a high-cost factor. If we don’t go in with the right materials and the right framework, we’re wasting money. And so Attest has helped us do a lot of the front-end work that then we’re able to go and build on.’

Read more about how Organic Valley is developing awesome products with insights from Attest in this case study.

We get it – taking risks is scary. But developing new products is exciting, and could lift your business to the next level. And while doing product development research, you could find a lot more inspiration about other improvements you can make in your business.

If you’re looking for a tool that brings you closer to your target audience and helps you find hyper relevant results, try Attest.

Ask the right questions for NPD

Learn which product development survey questions you should ask to discover what customers value most, from pricing to features.

Customer Research Lead 

Nick joined Attest in 2021, with more than 10 years' experience in market research and consumer insights on both agency and brand sides. As part of the Customer Research Team team, Nick takes a hands-on role supporting customers uncover insights and opportunities for growth.

Related articles

How to write concept testing survey questions that get real insights, new product development, evive nutrition brand manager amaël proulx on taking the states by storm, direct-to-consumer, 12 top storytelling marketing examples: how brands tell stories, subscribe to our newsletter.

Fill in your email and we’ll drop fresh insights and events info into your inbox each week.

* I agree to receive communications from Attest. Privacy Policy .

You're now subscribed to our mailing list to receive exciting news, reports, and other updates!

Thank you for registering. Please keep an eye on your emails for further information.

Market Research: A How-To Guide and Template

Discover the different types of market research, how to conduct your own market research, and use a free template to help you along the way.

MARKET RESEARCH KIT

5 Research and Planning Templates + a Free Guide on How to Use Them in Your Market Research

Updated: 02/21/24

Published: 02/21/24

Today's consumers have a lot of power. As a business, you must have a deep understanding of who your buyers are and what influences their purchase decisions.

Enter: Market Research.

Whether you're new to market research or not, I created this guide to help you conduct a thorough study of your market, target audience, competition, and more. Let’s dive in.

Table of Contents

What is market research?

Primary vs. secondary research, types of market research, how to do market research, market research report template, market research examples.

Market research is the process of gathering information about your target market and customers to verify the success of a new product, help your team iterate on an existing product, or understand brand perception to ensure your team is effectively communicating your company's value effectively.

Market research can answer various questions about the state of an industry. But if you ask me, it's hardly a crystal ball that marketers can rely on for insights on their customers.

Market researchers investigate several areas of the market, and it can take weeks or even months to paint an accurate picture of the business landscape.

However, researching just one of those areas can make you more intuitive to who your buyers are and how to deliver value that no other business is offering them right now.

How? Consider these two things:

• Your competitors also have experienced individuals in the industry and a customer base. It‘s very possible that your immediate resources are, in many ways, equal to those of your competition’s immediate resources. Seeking a larger sample size for answers can provide a better edge.
• Your customers don't represent the attitudes of an entire market. They represent the attitudes of the part of the market that is already drawn to your brand.

The market research services market is growing rapidly, which signifies a strong interest in market research as we enter 2024. The market is expected to grow from roughly $75 billion in 2021 to $90.79 billion in 2025 .

Free Market Research Kit

• SWOT Analysis Template
• Survey Template
• Focus Group Template

You're all set!

Click this link to access this resource at any time.

Why do market research?

Market research allows you to meet your buyer where they are.

As our world becomes louder and demands more of our attention, this proves invaluable.

By understanding your buyer's problems, pain points, and desired solutions, you can aptly craft your product or service to naturally appeal to them.

Market research also provides insight into the following:

• Where your target audience and current customers conduct their product or service research
• Which of your competitors your target audience looks to for information, options, or purchases
• What's trending in your industry and in the eyes of your buyer
• Who makes up your market and what their challenges are
• What influences purchases and conversions among your target audience
• Consumer attitudes about a particular topic, pain, product, or brand
• Whether there‘s demand for the business initiatives you’re investing in
• Unaddressed or underserved customer needs that can be flipped into selling opportunity
• Attitudes about pricing for a particular product or service

Ultimately, market research allows you to get information from a larger sample size of your target audience, eliminating bias and assumptions so that you can get to the heart of consumer attitudes.

As a result, you can make better business decisions.

To give you an idea of how extensive market research can get , consider that it can either be qualitative or quantitative in nature — depending on the studies you conduct and what you're trying to learn about your industry.

Qualitative research is concerned with public opinion, and explores how the market feels about the products currently available in that market.

Quantitative research is concerned with data, and looks for relevant trends in the information that's gathered from public records.

That said, there are two main types of market research that your business can conduct to collect actionable information on your products: primary research and secondary research.

Primary Research

Primary research is the pursuit of first-hand information about your market and the customers within your market.

It's useful when segmenting your market and establishing your buyer personas.

Primary market research tends to fall into one of two buckets:

• Exploratory Primary Research: This kind of primary market research normally takes place as a first step — before any specific research has been performed — and may involve open-ended interviews or surveys with small numbers of people.
• Specific Primary Research: This type of research often follows exploratory research. In specific research, you take a smaller or more precise segment of your audience and ask questions aimed at solving a suspected problem.

Secondary Research

Secondary research is all the data and public records you have at your disposal to draw conclusions from (e.g. trend reports, market statistics, industry content, and sales data you already have on your business).

Secondary research is particularly useful for analyzing your competitors . The main buckets your secondary market research will fall into include:

• Public Sources: These sources are your first and most-accessible layer of material when conducting secondary market research. They're often free to find and review — like government statistics (e.g., from the U.S. Census Bureau ).
• Commercial Sources: These sources often come in the form of pay-to-access market reports, consisting of industry insight compiled by a research agency like Pew , Gartner , or Forrester .
• Internal Sources: This is the market data your organization already has like average revenue per sale, customer retention rates, and other historical data that can help you draw conclusions on buyer needs.

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

1. Interviews

Interviews allow for face-to-face discussions so you can allow for a natural flow of conversation. Your interviewees can answer questions about themselves to help you design your buyer personas and shape your entire marketing strategy.

2. Focus Groups

Focus groups provide you with a handful of carefully-selected people that can test out your product and provide feedback. This type of market research can give you ideas for product differentiation.

3. Product/Service Use Research

Product or service use research offers insight into how and why your audience uses your product or service. This type of market research also gives you an idea of the product or service's usability for your target audience.

4. Observation-Based Research

Observation-based research allows you to sit back and watch the ways in which your target audience members go about using your product or service, what works well in terms of UX , and which aspects of it could be improved.

5. Buyer Persona Research

Buyer persona research gives you a realistic look at who makes up your target audience, what their challenges are, why they want your product or service, and what they need from your business or brand.

6. Market Segmentation Research

Market segmentation research allows you to categorize your target audience into different groups (or segments) based on specific and defining characteristics. This way, you can determine effective ways to meet their needs.

7. Pricing Research

Pricing research helps you define your pricing strategy . It gives you an idea of what similar products or services in your market sell for and what your target audience is willing to pay.

8. Competitive Analysis

Competitive analyses give you a deep understanding of the competition in your market and industry. You can learn about what's doing well in your industry and how you can separate yourself from the competition .

9. Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty Research

Customer satisfaction and loyalty research gives you a look into how you can get current customers to return for more business and what will motivate them to do so (e.g., loyalty programs , rewards, remarkable customer service).

10. Brand Awareness Research

Brand awareness research tells you what your target audience knows about and recognizes from your brand. It tells you about the associations people make when they think about your business.

11. Campaign Research

Campaign research entails looking into your past campaigns and analyzing their success among your target audience and current customers. The goal is to use these learnings to inform future campaigns.

• Define your buyer persona.
• Identify a persona group to engage.
• Prepare research questions for your market research participants.
• List your primary competitors.
• Summarize your findings.

1. Define your buyer persona.

You have to understand who your customers are and how customers in your industry make buying decisions.

This is where your buyer personas come in handy. Buyer personas — sometimes referred to as marketing personas — are fictional, generalized representations of your ideal customers.

Use a free tool to create a buyer persona that your entire company can use to market, sell, and serve better.

Some key characteristics you should be keen on including in your buyer persona are:

• Job title(s)
• Family size
• Major challenges

The idea is to use your persona(s) as a guideline for how to effectively reach and learn about the real audience members in your industry.

To get started with creating your personas, check out these free templates , as well as this helpful tool.

2. Identify a persona group to engage.

Now that you know who your buyer personas are, use that information to help you identify a group to engage to conduct your market research with.

This should be a representative sample of your target customers so you can better understand their actual characteristics, challenges, and buying habits.

How to Identify the Right People to Engage for Market Research

When choosing who to engage for your market research, you should:

• Aim for 10 participants per buyer persona. I recommend focusing on one persona at a time.
• Select people who have recently interacted with you. Focus on behaviors within the past six months (or up to a year).
• Gather a mix of participants. Recruit people who have purchased your product, purchased a competitor's product, and decided not to purchase anything at all.
• Provide an incentive. Motivate someone to spend 30-45 minutes on you and your study. On a tight budget? You can reward participants for free by giving them exclusive access to content.

Free Focus Group Kit

3. prepare research questions for your market research participants..

The best way to make sure you get the most out of your conversations is to be prepared.

You should always create a discussion guide to make sure you use your time wisely. Your discussion guide should be in an outline format, with a time allotment and open-ended questions for each section.

Wait, all open-ended questions?

Yes — this is a golden rule of market research. You never want to “lead the witness” by asking yes and no questions, as that puts you at risk of unintentionally swaying their thoughts by leading with your own hypothesis.

Asking open-ended questions also helps you avoid one-word answers (which aren't very helpful for you).

Example Outline of a 30-Minute Survey

Here's a general outline for a 30-minute survey for one B2B buyer.

Want to make it a digital survey? Use HubSpot's free online form builder .

Background Information (5 minutes)

Ask the buyer to give you a little background information (their title, how long they've been with the company, and so on). Then, ask a fun/easy question to warm things up (first concert attended, favorite restaurant in town, etc.).

Here are some key background questions to ask your target audience:

• Describe how your team is structured.
• Tell me about your personal job responsibilities.
• What are the team's goals and how do you measure them?
• What has been your biggest challenge in the past year?

Now, make a transition to acknowledge the specific purchase or interaction they made that led to you including them in the study. The next three stages of the buyer's journey will focus specifically on that purchase.

Awareness (5 minutes)

Here, you want to understand how they first realized they had a problem that needed to be solved without getting into whether or not they knew about your brand yet.

• Think back to when you first realized you needed a [name the product/service category, but not yours specifically]. What challenges were you facing at the time?
• How did you know that something in this category could help you?
• How familiar were you with different options on the market?

Consideration (10 minutes)

Now you want to get very specific about how and where the buyer researched potential solutions. Plan to interject to ask for more details.

• What was the first thing you did to research potential solutions? How helpful was this source?
• Where did you go to find more information?

If they don't come up organically, ask about search engines, websites visited, people consulted, and so on. Probe, as appropriate, with some of the following questions:

• How did you find that source?
• How did you use vendor websites?
• What words specifically did you search on Google?
• How helpful was it? How could it be better?
• Who provided the most (and least) helpful information? What did that look like?
• Tell me about your experiences with the sales people from each vendor.

Decision (10 minutes)

• Which of the sources you described above was the most influential in driving your decision?
• What, if any, criteria did you establish to compare the alternatives?
• What vendors made it to the short list and what were the pros/cons of each?
• Who else was involved in the final decision? What role did each of these people play?
• What factors ultimately influenced your final purchasing decision?

Here, you want to wrap up and understand what could have been better for the buyer.

• Ask them what their ideal buying process would look like. How would it differ from what they experienced?
• Allow time for further questions on their end.
• Don't forget to thank them for their time and confirm their address to send a thank-you note or incentive.

4. List your primary competitors.

List your primary competitors — keep in mind listing the competition isn't always as simple as Company X versus Company Y.

Sometimes, a division of a company might compete with your main product or service, even though that company's brand might put more effort in another area.

For example, Apple is known for its laptops and mobile devices but Apple Music competes with Spotify over its music streaming service.

From a content standpoint, you might compete with a blog, YouTube channel, or similar publication for inbound website visitors — even though their products don't overlap with yours at all.

For example, a toothpaste company might compete with magazines like Health.com or Prevention on certain blog topics related to health and hygiene even though the magazines don't actually sell oral care products.

Identifying Industry Competitors

To identify competitors whose products or services overlap with yours, determine which industry or industries you're pursuing.

Start high-level, using terms like education, construction, media & entertainment, food service, healthcare, retail, financial services, telecommunications, and agriculture.

You can build your list the following ways:

• Review your industry quadrant on G2 Crowd. G2 Crowd aggregates user ratings and social data to create “quadrants,” where you can see companies plotted as contenders, leaders, niche, and high performers in their respective industries.
• Download a market report. Companies like Forrester and Gartner offer both free and gated market forecasts every year on the vendors who are leading their industry.
• Search using social media. Social networks make great company directories. 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.

Identifying Content Competitors

Search engines are your best friends in this area of secondary market research.

To find the online publications with which you compete, take the overarching industry term you identified in the section above, and come up with a handful of more specific industry terms your company identifies with.

A catering business, for example, might generally be a “food service” company, but also consider itself a vendor in “event catering,” “cake catering,” or “baked goods.” Once you have this list, do the following:

• Google it. Don't underestimate the value in seeing which websites come up when you run a search on Google for the industry terms that describe your company. You might find a mix of product developers, blogs, magazines, and more.
• Compare your search results against your buyer persona. If the content the website publishes seems like the stuff your buyer persona would want to see, it's a potential competitor, and should be added to your list of competitors.

5. Summarize your findings.

Feeling overwhelmed by the notes you took? We suggest looking for common themes that will help you tell a story and create a list of action items.

To make the process easier, try using your favorite presentation software to make a report, as it will make it easy to add in quotes, diagrams, or call clips.

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

• Background: Your goals and why you conducted this study.
• Participants: Who you talked to. A table works well so you can break groups down by persona and customer/prospect.
• Executive Summary : What were the most interesting things you learned? What do you plan to do about it?
• Awareness: Describe the common triggers that lead someone to enter into an evaluation. (Quotes can be very powerful.)
• Consideration: Provide the main themes you uncovered, as well as the detailed sources buyers use when conducting their evaluation.
• Decision: Paint the picture of how a decision is really made by including the people at the center of influence and any product features or information that can make or break a deal.
• Action Plan: Your analysis probably uncovered a few campaigns you can run to get your brand in front of buyers earlier and/or more effectively. Provide your list of priorities, a timeline, and the impact it will have on your business.

Within a market research kit, there are a number of critical pieces of information for your business‘s success. Let’s take a look at these elements.

Pro Tip: Upon downloading HubSpot's free Market Research Kit , you'll receive editable templates for each of the given parts of the kit, instructions on how to use the kit, and a mock presentation that you can edit and customize.

Download HubSpot's free, editable market research report template here.

1. Five Forces Analysis Template

Use Porter's Five Forces Model to understand an industry by analyzing five different criteria and how high the power, threat, or rivalry in each area is — here are the five criteria:

• Competitive rivalry
• Threat of new entrants
• Threat of substitution
• Buyer power
• Supplier power

Download a free, editable Five Forces Analysis template here.

2. SWOT Analysis Template

A SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis looks at your internal strengths and weaknesses, and your external opportunities and threats within the market.

A SWOT analysis highlights direct areas of opportunity your company can continue, build, focus on, and work to overcome.

Download a free, editable SWOT Analysis template here.

3. Market Survey Template

Market surveys help you uncover important information about your buyer personas , target audience, current customers, market, and competition.

Surveys should contain a variety of question types, like multiple choice, rankings, and open-ended responses.

Here are some categories of questions you should ask via survey:

• Demographic questions
• Business questions
• Competitor questions
• Industry questions
• Brand questions
• Product questions

Download a free, editable Market Survey template here.

4. Focus Group Template

Focus groups are an opportunity to collect in-depth, qualitative data from your real customers or members of your target audience.

You should ask your focus group participants open-ended questions. While doing so, keep these tips top of mind:

• Set a limit for the number of questions you‘re asking (after all, they’re open-ended).
• Provide participants with a prototype or demonstration.
• Ask participants how they feel about your price.
• Ask participants about your competition.
• Offer participants time at the end of the session for final comments, questions, or concerns.

Download a free, editable Focus Group template here.

1. TikTok uses in-app research surveys to better understand consumer viewing preferences and ad experiences.

If you’re a TikTok enthusiast (like me), then you’ve probably been served a survey or two while you scroll through your For You feed.

TikTok has strategically started using in-app market research surveys to help improve the viewer experiences.

I’ve received two different types of surveys so far.

The first type typically follows a video or an ad and asks how I felt about the video I just viewed. There are options like “I don’t like this ad,” “I enjoyed watching this video,” or “This content is appropriate.”

The other type of survey I’ve gotten asks if I’ve recently seen a sponsored video or ad from a particular brand. For example, “Did you see any promotional content from the Dove Self Esteem Project in the past two days on TikTok?

TikTok can then use this information to tweak my algorithm to match my preferences or to serve ads that are more in line with my buying behaviors.

2. Taco Bell tests new products in select markets before launching nationwide.

Taco Bell is known for their innovative, consumer-driven menu items. In fact, just last year, they gave Taco Bell rewards members exclusive access to vote on the newest round of hot sauce sayings .

This popular fast-food chain puts a lot of menu decisions in the hands of their target market. Taco Bell lovers ultimately determine which new menu items stay on the menu through voting and, ultimately, their purchase behaviors.

(Let’s all collectively agree that the Cheez-It Crunchwrap deserves a permanent spot.)

Often, this process of releasing a new item is done regionally before a nationwide launch. This is a form of market research — soft launching products in smaller markets to determine how well it sells before dedicating too many resources to it.

The way Taco Bell uses this information is pretty straightforward. If the product is not successful, it’s unlikely to be released on a national scale.

3. The Body Shop used social listening to determine how they should reposition brand campaigns to respond to what their customers cared most about.

The Body Shop has long been known for offering ethically sourced and natural products, and proudly touts “sustainability” as a core value.

To dive deeper into the sustainability subtopics that meant the most to their audiences, the team at The Body Shop tracked conversations and ultimately found their audiences cared a lot about refills.

Using this information helped the Body Shop team feel confident when relaunching their Refill Program across 400 stores globally in 2022 .

Market research proved they were on the right track with their refill concept, and demonstrated increased efforts were needed to show Body Shop customers that the Body Shop cared about their customers' values.

Conduct Market Research to Grow Better

Conducting market research can be a very eye-opening experience. Even if you think you know your buyers pretty well, completing the study will likely uncover new channels and messaging tips to help improve your interactions.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in March 2016 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

Don't forget to share this post!

Related articles.

SWOT Analysis: How To Do One [With Template & Examples]

20+ Tools & Resources for Conducting Market Research

What's a Competitive Analysis & How Do You Conduct One?

TAM SAM SOM: What Do They Mean & How Do You Calculate Them?

How to Run a Competitor Analysis [Free Guide]

5 Challenges Marketers Face in Understanding Audiences [New Data + Market Researcher Tips]

Causal Research: The Complete Guide

Total Addressable Market (TAM): What It Is & How You Can Calculate It

What Is Market Share & How Do You Calculate It?

3 Ways Data Privacy Changes Benefit Marketers [New Data]

Free Guide & Templates to Help Your Market Research

Marketing software that helps you drive revenue, save time and resources, and measure and optimize your investments — all on one easy-to-use platform

Send us an email

How to do market research: The complete guide for your brand

Written by by Jacqueline Zote

Published on  April 13, 2023

Reading time  10 minutes

Blindly putting out content or products and hoping for the best is a thing of the past. Not only is it a waste of time and energy, but you’re wasting valuable marketing dollars in the process. Now you have a wealth of tools and data at your disposal, allowing you to develop data-driven marketing strategies . That’s where market research comes in, allowing you to uncover valuable insights to inform your business decisions.

Conducting market research not only helps you better understand how to sell to customers but also stand out from your competition. In this guide, we break down everything you need to know about market research and how doing your homework can help you grow your business.

Table of contents:

Why is market research important, types of market research, where to conduct market research.

• Steps for conducting market research
• Tools to use for market research

Market research is the process of gathering information surrounding your business opportunities. It identifies key information to better understand your audience. This includes insights related to customer personas and even trends shaping your industry.

Taking time out of your schedule to conduct research is crucial for your brand health. Here are some of the key benefits of market research:

Understand your customers’ motivations and pain points

Most marketers are out of touch with what their customers want. Moreover, these marketers are missing key information on what products their audience wants to buy.

Simply put, you can’t run a business if you don’t know what motivates your customers.

And spoiler alert: Your customers’ wants and needs change. Your customers’ behaviors today might be night and day from what they were a few years ago.

Market research holds the key to understanding your customers better. It helps you uncover their key pain points and motivations and understand how they shape their interests and behavior.

Figure out how to position your brand

Positioning is becoming increasingly important as more and more brands enter the marketplace. Market research enables you to spot opportunities to define yourself against your competitors.

Maybe you’re able to emphasize a lower price point. Perhaps your product has a feature that’s one of a kind. Finding those opportunities goes hand in hand with researching your market.

Maintain a strong pulse on your industry at large

Today’s marketing world evolves at a rate that’s difficult to keep up with.

Fresh products. Up-and-coming brands. New marketing tools. Consumers get bombarded with sales messages from all angles. This can be confusing and overwhelming.

By monitoring market trends, you can figure out the best tactics for reaching your target audience.

Not everyone conducts market research for the same reason. While some may want to understand their audience better, others may want to see how their competitors are doing. As such, there are different types of market research you can conduct depending on your goal.

Interview-based market research allows for one-on-one interactions. This helps the conversation to flow naturally, making it easier to add context. Whether this takes place in person or virtually, it enables you to gather more in-depth qualitative data.

• Buyer persona research

Buyer persona research lets you take a closer look at the people who make up your target audience. You can discover the needs, challenges and pain points of each buyer persona to understand what they need from your business. This will then allow you to craft products or campaigns to resonate better with each persona.

• Pricing research

In this type of research, brands compare similar products or services with a particular focus on pricing. They look at how much those products or services typically sell for so they can get more competitive with their pricing strategy.

Competitive analysis research

Competitor analysis gives you a realistic understanding of where you stand in the market and how your competitors are doing. You can use this analysis to find out what’s working in your industry and which competitors to watch out for. It even gives you an idea of how well those competitors are meeting consumer needs.

Depending on the competitor analysis tool you use, you can get as granular as you need with your research. For instance, Sprout Social lets you analyze your competitors’ social strategies. You can see what types of content they’re posting and even benchmark your growth against theirs.

Brand awareness research

Conducting brand awareness research allows you to assess your brand’s standing in the market. It tells you how well-known your brand is among your target audience and what they associate with it. This can help you gauge people’s sentiments toward your brand and whether you need to rebrand or reposition.

If you don’t know where to start with your research, you’re in the right place.

There’s no shortage of market research methods out there. In this section, we’ve highlighted research channels for small and big businesses alike.

Considering that Google sees a staggering 8.5 billion searches each day, there’s perhaps no better place to start.

A quick Google search is a potential goldmine for all sorts of questions to kick off your market research. Who’s ranking for keywords related to your industry? Which products and pieces of content are the hottest right now? Who’s running ads related to your business?

For example, Google Product Listing Ads can help highlight all of the above for B2C brands.

The same applies to B2B brands looking to keep tabs on who’s running industry-related ads and ranking for keyword terms too.

There’s no denying that email represents both an aggressive and effective marketing channel for marketers today. Case in point, 44% of online shoppers consider email as the most influential channel in their buying decisions.

Looking through industry and competitor emails is a brilliant way to learn more about your market. For example, what types of offers and deals are your competitors running? How often are they sending emails?

Email is also invaluable for gathering information directly from your customers. This survey message from Asana is a great example of how to pick your customers’ brains to figure out how you can improve your quality of service.

Industry journals, reports and blogs

Don’t neglect the importance of big-picture market research when it comes to tactics and marketing channels to explore. Look to marketing resources such as reports and blogs as well as industry journals

Keeping your ear to the ground on new trends and technologies is a smart move for any business. Sites such as Statista, Marketing Charts, AdWeek and Emarketer are treasure troves of up-to-date data and news for marketers.

And of course, there’s the  Sprout Insights blog . And invaluable resources like The Sprout Social Index™  can keep you updated on the latest social trends.

Social media

If you want to learn more about your target market, look no further than social media. Social offers a place to discover what your customers want to see in future products or which brands are killin’ it. In fact, social media is become more important for businesses than ever with the level of data available.

It represents a massive repository of real-time data and insights that are instantly accessible. Brand monitoring and social listening are effective ways to conduct social media research . You can even be more direct with your approach. Ask questions directly or even poll your audience to understand their needs and preferences.

The 5 steps for how to do market research

Now that we’ve covered the why and where, it’s time to get into the practical aspects of market research. Here are five essential steps on how to do market research effectively.

Step 1: Identify your research topic

First off, what are you researching about? What do you want to find out? Narrow down on a specific research topic so you can start with a clear idea of what to look for.

For example, you may want to learn more about how well your product features are satisfying the needs of existing users. This might potentially lead to feature updates and improvements. Or it might even result in new feature introductions.

Similarly, your research topic may be related to your product or service launch or customer experience. Or you may want to conduct research for an upcoming marketing campaign.

Step 2: Choose a buyer persona to engage

If you’re planning to focus your research on a specific type of audience, decide which buyer persona you want to engage. This persona group will serve as a representative sample of your target audience.

Engaging a specific group of audience lets you streamline your research efforts. As such, it can be a much more effective and organized approach than researching thousands (if not millions) of individuals.

You may be directing your research toward existing users of your product. To get even more granular, you may want to focus on users who have been familiar with the product for at least a year, for example.

Step 3: Start collecting data

The next step is one of the most critical as it involves collecting the data you need for your research. Before you begin, make sure you’ve chosen the right research methods that will uncover the type of data you need. This largely depends on your research topic and goals.

Remember that you don’t necessarily have to stick to one research method. You may use a combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches. So for example, you could use interviews to supplement the data from your surveys. Or you may stick to insights from your social listening efforts.

To keep things consistent, let’s look at this in the context of the example from earlier. Perhaps you can send out a survey to your existing users asking them a bunch of questions. This might include questions like which features they use the most and how often they use them. You can get them to choose an answer from one to five and collect quantitative data.

Plus, for qualitative insights, you could even include a few open-ended questions with the option to write their answers. For instance, you might ask them if there’s any improvement they wish to see in your product.

Step 4: Analyze results

Once you have all the data you need, it’s time to analyze it keeping your research topic in mind. This involves trying to interpret the data to look for a wider meaning, particularly in relation to your research goal.

So let’s say a large percentage of responses were four or five in the satisfaction rating. This means your existing users are mostly satisfied with your current product features. On the other hand, if the responses were mostly ones and twos, you may look for opportunities to improve. The responses to your open-ended questions can give you further context as to why people are disappointed.

Step 5: Make decisions for your business

Now it’s time to take your findings and turn them into actionable insights for your business. In this final step, you need to decide how you want to move forward with your new market insight.

What did you find in your research that would require action? How can you put those findings to good use?

The market research tools you should be using

To wrap things up, let’s talk about the various tools available to conduct speedy, in-depth market research. These tools are essential for conducting market research faster and more efficiently.

Social listening and analytics

Social analytics tools like Sprout can help you keep track of engagement across social media. This goes beyond your own engagement data but also includes that of your competitors. Considering how quickly social media moves, using a third-party analytics tool is ideal. It allows you to make sense of your social data at a glance and ensure that you’re never missing out on important trends.

Email marketing research tools

Keeping track of brand emails is a good idea for any brand looking to stand out in its audience’s inbox.

Tools such as MailCharts ,  Really Good Emails  and  Milled  can show you how different brands run their email campaigns.

Meanwhile, tools like  Owletter  allow you to monitor metrics such as frequency and send-timing. These metrics can help you understand email marketing strategies among competing brands.

Content marketing research

If you’re looking to conduct research on content marketing, tools such as  BuzzSumo  can be of great help. This tool shows you the top-performing industry content based on keywords. Here you can see relevant industry sites and influencers as well as which brands in your industry are scoring the most buzz. It shows you exactly which pieces of content are ranking well in terms of engagements and shares and on which social networks.

SEO and keyword tracking

Monitoring industry keywords is a great way to uncover competitors. It can also help you discover opportunities to advertise your products via organic search. Tools such as  Ahrefs  provide a comprehensive keyword report to help you see how your search efforts stack up against the competition.

Competitor comparison template

For the sake of organizing your market research, consider creating a competitive matrix. The idea is to highlight how you stack up side-by-side against others in your market. Use a  social media competitive analysis template  to track your competitors’ social presence. That way, you can easily compare tactics, messaging and performance. Once you understand your strengths and weaknesses next to your competitors, you’ll find opportunities as well.

Customer persona creator

Finally, customer personas represent a place where all of your market research comes together. You’d need to create a profile of your ideal customer that you can easily refer to. Tools like  Xtensio  can help in outlining your customer motivations and demographics as you zero in on your target market.

Build a solid market research strategy

Having a deeper understanding of the market gives you leverage in a sea of competitors. Use the steps and market research tools we shared above to build an effective market research strategy.

But keep in mind that the accuracy of your research findings depends on the quality of data collected. Turn to Sprout’s social media analytics tools to uncover heaps of high-quality data across social networks.

• Leveling Up
• Marketing Disciplines

The 43 best marketing resources we recommend in 2024

Executing a successful demand generation strategy [with examples]

How customer relationship marketing on social media drives revenue

• Other Platforms

SMS marketing 101: What is SMS Marketing (+ examples)

• Now on slide

Build and grow stronger relationships on social

Sprout Social helps you understand and reach your audience, engage your community and measure performance with the only all-in-one social media management platform built for connection.

How To Do Market Research For New Product Development

Market research for new product development can be overwhelming.

It’s easy to get lost in a mountain of market reports with thousands of data points…. yet get no clear insights on which product is best for your brand.

Instead of aimlessly searching for new product ideas and sifting through endless market reports, this post will walk you through a simple step-by-step process that outlines:

• How to quickly find relevant new product ideas.
• Specific data and metrics you need to analyze each product opportunity (and how to find these metrics).
• How to use market research data to assess a product opportunity.

What Is Market Research For New Product Development?

Market research for new product development is the process of evaluating the demand, growth, and gaps in a market for a particular product (typically a physical product sold in a retail setting or direct to consumer).

These insights help you understand which products your target market wants, which ones are most profitable, and the key characteristics customers like and dislike about competitors' products.

With this data, you can more accurately predict which product will perform best for your business.

Types Of Market Research For New Product Development

There are four types of market research typically used for researching and developing products: 

• Qualitative research
• Quantitative research

Primary research

Secondary research, quantitative research.

Examples of quantitative data you might collect during the product market research process include:

• Market size and growth rates
• Pricing data
• Sales forecasts
• Website traffic data
• Market share of the top competitors

Quantitative data is helpful for benchmarking and is often the main type of research used to quickly gauge the potential of market opportunities.

Quantitative data can be fact-checked, but accuracy still varies depending on factors like sample size and data collection methods.

Qualitative Research

Qualitative research is data based on subjective opinions.

An example of qualitative data is customer feedback.

This data is helpful for product market research, as you can better understand customer pain points and what they like and dislike about what's already out there.

Some examples of qualitative research methods include:

• Interviews with potential customers
• Customer reviews
• Questionnaires and surveys
• Discussion analysis (monitoring conversations on social media, in forums, etc.)
• Feedback from focus groups

Primary research is data collected by you or your company.

Here are some examples of primary research:

• Results from a survey you conducted
• A report from sales data your team analyzed
• Customer interviews conducted by your team

The advantage of primary market research is that it's proprietary data your company owns. So your competitors won't have access to it. You can also tailor the data to answer your specific questions about the market.

The downside of primary research is that it’s expensive and time-consuming. You'll have to conduct the research, clean the data, and analyze it yourself.

You can hire a market research firm to help, but this will make it even more costly.

Secondary research is data collected and published by other third-party sources, like an industry publication or government agency.

Here are some examples of secondary research:

• Free and paid market reports published by a source like Grand View Research or MarketResearch.com .
• Statistics published by a source like The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics or the U.S. Energy Information Administration .
• Data in the Census Business Builder .

Secondary research is usually cheaper than primary research, so it's great for the early stages of product market research when you're narrowing down your list of product ideas.

For example, if you're interested in the padel market, search "padel market forecast" to find free industry reports. You can look at statistics like compounding annual growth rate and market size to quickly gauge if the padel market is worth exploring in more detail.

The drawback of secondary research is that the data quality may vary as you can't control data quality.

So research how each provider collects and cleans the data they publish.

Step By Step Process To Conduct Market Research For Product Development

​​In this step-by-step market research process for new product development, you'll learn how to find, validate, and develop a great product.

Step 1: Research And Identify Trending Products

Many people browse social media and Amazon to find trending product ideas.

But emerging products, by definition, aren't easy to find.

You might spend hours browsing these platforms to find a few promising product ideas. And even the most diligent product researchers might still overlook the best emerging product ideas.

One solution to find great product ideas faster is to use a product research tool.

However, each tool contains different product ideas.

So the tool you choose significantly impacts the product ideas you find.

For example, many product research tools only show products that have grown significantly in the past few weeks. These are often fads, and demand may die out when you’re ready to launch your product.

Other product research tools show you products that are currently trending. Yet this isn't helpful if you want to launch a product before demand peaks.

Or, the product research tool might simply overlook the best product ideas. This is common with product research tools relying on human analysts to find product ideas, as even the best analysts may overlook a great product idea.

To solve these problems, we built our own product research tool, Exploding Topics.

It has a unique trend identification and qualification method that uses AI and ML to scan millions of data points across sources like YouTube, Amazon, Spotify, Google Search, and Reddit. This ensures it consistently spots emerging product ideas. Then, we use Google Search volume data to ensure the topic has a steady compounding growth trajectory.

This process allows Exploding Topics to consistently identify emerging products with long-term growth potential.

It's also easy to use.

When you open the Trending Products dashboard, you'll see a list of trending products. You can filter the database by category (fitness, fashion, beauty, gaming, pets, etc.), BSR, monthly sales, price, revenue, and reviews.

The graph next to the product information also represents the keyword's Google Search volume trend so that you can gauge its growth trajectory:

When you see a product that interests you, click on it for more details, like a forecast of its growth trend for the coming year.

Further down the product page is a list of the Top Sellers for that product on Amazon.

You’ll also see related trending products and topics. You can also click on any of those products for more detailed information.

To track a product, click "Track Topic" and add it to a Project.

Projects are folders that live inside the Trend Tracking dashboard, and Exploding Topics updates each topic's growth trend in real time.

This makes it easy to gauge product growth at a glance so that you never have to worry about managing a product idea spreadsheet.

You can try Exploding Topics Pro for $1 to start researching product ideas.

Step 2: Analyze The Market For Each Product Idea

Your product is much more likely to succeed if it’s part of a growing market.

An easy way to quickly analyze a market’s general growth trajectory is to look at a market forecast.

Sources like Grand View Research , Globe Newswire , and Market.us usually offer free market reports with forecast data.

To find these reports, Google the product keyword and "market report:"

Next, identify the brands with the largest market share and analyze their growth trajectory.

If the market leaders are growing rapidly, the market is probably also expanding.

There are two ways to easily gauge a brand's growth.

1. Check the brand’s Google Search volume trend .

You can find a brand's Google Search volume trend by typing the brand name into Google Trends or the Trends Search feature in Exploding Topics.

You can also click "Track Topic" and add it to a Project to monitor growth.

2. Employee headcount

A company is probably growing if it has steadily increased employee headcount over the past few years.

You can find employee headcount data by typing the brand name into LinkedIn and scrolling down to the bottom of the company page:

Funding data is also a great indicator of a market's growth trajectory.

Investors spend a lot of time and resources assessing market growth, so a lot of funding activity is a good sign the market is growing.

Paid tools like CB Insights and Pitchbook offer detailed funding data for most industries. You can also search "funding" and the industry name to find press releases, funding reports, and other relevant investment news.

Step 3: Conduct Customer Research

Once you find a trending product in a growing market, the next step is figuring out how to create the best product possible.

First, identify what customers like and dislike about existing products. Then, create a product that incorporates the elements customers like about existing products and solves the pain points they experience.

The easiest way to conduct customer research is to analyze customer reviews.

Amazon is the best resource to find verified reviews. As you're reading through the reviews, make notes on:

• Target Audience Demographics : Who is buying the product? (gender, age, location, etc.).
• Use Case : What problem did they purchase the product to solve?
• Praise : What do they like about the product?
• Pain Points : What do they like about the product?

For example, from the review below, you can tell that customers value soft material, accurate color descriptions, and expensive aesthetics. You can also see that customers want a more durable product.

Reading through reviews can help you better understand your target customers, but most people don't have time to read thousands of customer reviews.

So you can also copy and paste customer reviews into ChatGPT and ask it to extract insights on audience demographics, product use cases, likes, and dislikes.

Here's a prompt you can use to analyze the reviews. (In this screenshot, all of the reviews are pasted in quotes following the prompt):

Here’s a snippet of the response it generated:

You can also find Reddit or Facebook groups of your target audience.

For example, if you're considering selling infant vitamins, you could join these Facebook groups for moms:

After joining the group, you can ask members about the product you're researching. Here are some specific questions you can ask:

• Why did they purchase the product?
• How did they select the brand they purchased from?
• What do they like/dislike about the product?

You can also ask respondents if they would consider getting on a quick call. One-on-one interviews let you ask more follow-up questions to better understand the audience.

Talking to prospects is also a great way to build up some demand for your product and even recruit a group of beta testers.

If you already have an audience, ask them about your new product idea.

For example, this creator asked her TikTok followers what they thought of her sleepwear product idea.

Then, she documented the product development process and gathered feedback from her followers to craft a product they want.

For example, after designing a few concepts with the manufacturer, she created another video of the initial product designs and asked her audience for feedback.

Her product launch went on to be a major success and she sold out in a matter of hours.

Step 4: Pre-Sell Your Product And Gather Initial Feedback

The best way to validate market demand for your product concept is to see if people will buy it.

So design a few product samples and then run a pre-order sale.

If nobody buys the product, you'll avoid wasting thousands of dollars developing tens or hundreds of products that nobody wants.

And if your pre-order sale is successful, you can use that revenue to fund product development.

For example, Nebia ran a pre-order sale for its bidets to validate the product concept.

There are a few different ways you can generate pre-orders.

If you already have an audience, you can create a social media post or email your list and announce the pre-order sale.

This post is a great example of a pre-order sale video. The influencer explains how the product works, its benefits, and how it solves common pain points.

If you don't have an audience, you can work with an influencer to create a pre-order video for you.

You can also run Facebook or Instagram ads to a landing page to generate pre-orders. Facebook has a step-by-step guide explaining how to set up and run ads for pre-order sales.

Another option is to run a pre-order sale on Kickstarter.

Nebia is a great example of an ecommerce brand that validated its product idea on Kickstarter.

The Kickstarter community will also give you initial feedback on the product before you launch it to the public. Kickstarter users also know they're beta testers, so they tend to be more forgiving if the initial product concept isn't perfect.

You can also ask some Kickstarter buyers to record video reviews of the product for your public product launch.

Step 5: Launch Your New Product And Gather Feedback

After launching your product, gather feedback from your audience to continue iterating on the original product.

If you have a social media following, you can ask your audience what they like and dislike about the product.

You can also email your list offering a discount or coupon to complete a product survey.

Survey tools like Pollfish and SurveyMonkey make it easy to create and send a product survey.

In the survey, ask specific questions about the product. For example, if you’re selling athletic clothing, you could ask them to rate the product fit, material quality, durability, style, color, and other specific factors.

If you leave the questions too open ended, people will give you generic feedback that might not be very helpful for improving the product.

Start The New Product Market Research Process Today

A solid product market research process takes the guesswork out of product launches by giving you the data you need to identify and design the best product for your audience.

It will also give you more confidence on launch day, as you'll have solid evidence of strong demand for your product.

To get started with the first step of the product market research process, use Exploding Topics to browse thousands of emerging trending products today.

Find Thousands of Trending Topics With Our Platform

How to Do Market Research for a New Product or Business

Ryan Taylor

Nov 26, 2019.

Marketing , Productivity

Rev › Blog › Marketing › How to Do Market Research for a New Product or Business

No Olympic diver jumps into the water without preparing beforehand. For best results, they need to approach it with a plan of action. And the only way that can happen is if they familiarize themselves with the water. They need to know how they’re going to interact with it first.

This simple sports analogy explains why companies need market research before any major product launch or business plan. The water below is the market. The practice sessions are research.

You might have the perfect move to test out in your next diving attempt, but if you don’t put enough practice, you’ll end up hitting the water flat on your face. Likewise, your great product or business idea could have merit on its own. But if you don’t know how it’ll interact with your target market, it could die unnoticed at best or cause a backlash at worst.

Conducting market research can save you from that fate by identifying your strengths and weaknesses. It can give you room to tweak and optimize before jumping straight into the unknown. 

You can use it to answer specific questions or gather data about a single topic. Here’s an example of the types of market research:

• Competitor analysis: Researching how competitive your product or service is compared to others in the market or market analysis in general as it relates to your competitors.
• Consumer insights: Studying consumer behavior in your target market, such as purchasing habits, barriers in the buyer’s journey, etc.
• Product testing and development: Finding out how certain product features perform in the market and what value users gain from them.
• Customer satisfaction: Researching satisfaction levels among your customers regarding your company or others in the market and identifying needs.  

Based on the area you want to investigate, there are different methods that may be more appropriate. Some of these methods are:

Focus groups

• Phone interviews
• Email surveys
• 1-on-1 sessions
• Collecting data from secondary sources

You can use a combination of methods or focus on a select few. For instance, if you’re looking into your product’s usability, it makes sense to interview your users to get in-depth feedback. It also helps to look at existing market research on the topic to inform you further.

Primary vs Secondary research

Generally, there are two stages of market research: primary and secondary. Categorizing your objectives into either one can help speed up the process by identifying the best tools and methods you’ll need for each type of research.

• Firsthand research that can employ methods like focus groups, surveys, and interviews.
• The goal is to uncover direct information and feedback from sources that might not be readily available elsewhere to apply to your product or service.
• Secondhand research that includes collecting and studying previously conducted research via scholarly articles, whitepapers, publicly available statistics, as well as internal marketing, sales, or research data.
• The goal is to get an overall view of market trends and consumer behavior that could be useful for your product or service.

Depending on what type of research you’re performing, there may be different tools you can use to make the process as efficient as possible.

What is your goal for conducting market research?

You know market research can help you test the waters. But if you go into it with only a vague notion of what you want to achieve, it won’t be very effective. Why? Because with very few exceptions, most products, marketing plans, and business strategies target a select audience rather than anyone and their aunt.

As basic as it sounds, the first step you need to take before doing market research is to define a set of objectives. This could mean anything from learning more about a key demographic’s buying habits to finding out what consumers like most about your product.

While market research is broadly about gathering information, knowing precisely which information you need to improve your business plan or product will help you conduct the research more efficiently.

Some examples of market research objectives

• Finding out what your competitors are doing successfully that you’re not to find specific areas of improvement
• Collecting market data related to your industry, product, or target demographics to make sure you’re in line with current and future trends 
• Gathering information on consumer behavior to hone in on features, price points, or marketing strategies that work best

What is the best way to find your target market?

Finding your ideal target market is crucial for the next step of the market research –– reaching out to current and potential customers.

Identifying your target market requires a thorough understanding of your product or service offerings and their uses. If your research is about an existing line of products, you probably already have customer data that can lead you to uncover trends and patterns.

Here are some questions to ask that can narrow down your target market:

• Which age demographic makes the most frequent and/or highest-value purchases? 
• Does your repeat/most loyal customer base consist of single or multi-family households? Is there a certain income level that’s the most prevalent?
• Which job titles seem to appear most often among your customers? Is there a connection to your product/service and the job/industry?

If you don’t have previous customer data, you can reverse-engineer based on your product or service to determine who might benefit most from your offering.

Demographics vs Personas

Once you’ve nailed down the basic demographic data, you can move onto creating a detailed customer persona. Without this step, you might be stuck with a very large demographic that will only give you a very generalized understanding of their perception or relationship with your product. 

The target market for your research should be neither too broad nor too narrow. To find out which of your current or potential customers you could get useful feedback from, start with the key demographic data, then specify further using surveys to get more detailed information about their wants/needs and interests.

Key demographics

• Biographical data such as age, gender, income, location, job title, and family size

Customer persona

• Detailed information about specific interests, hobbies, needs, and challenges that your product or service can solve

For example, a target demographic might be young women between the ages of 18-35 who live in bigger cities with an income between $40,000 – $60,000. A customer persona expands further, e.g. those in the above demographic who need reliable public transportation; they prefer ride-sharing services despite higher costs if it means getting somewhere faster.  Having a detailed buyer persona is not only effective for conducting market research but for reaching key benchmarks and driving revenue. A  2016 Cintell study  on the topic revealed that companies who reach or exceed their revenue goals are twice as likely to work with customer personas, while 70% of those who missed these marks did not conduct  qualitative persona interviews .

What’s the most effective method for data analysis?

Whether you collect data from  focus groups , email surveys, phone or in-person interviews, or secondary sources available online, data collection and analysis can often be a very time-consuming process.

First, you’ll need to go through numerous sources and peruse through copious amounts of interviews and documents, then extract the most relevant bits to present a solid report. There’s an invariable amount of paperwork that can result in a very tedious process. 

To save yourself this headache, the best way to streamline this process is by using the right  market research tools  like scheduling software, voice recording apps, and transcription services.

How to save time and achieve higher data accuracy 

There’s one tool we think is indispensable for market research––transcription services. While many tools can ease administrative processes, transcriptions are invaluable when it comes to data analysis. 

Think about it. Once you’ve gathered all the information you need through focus groups, user interviews, and phone surveys, distilling that data is critical to generate your market research report. Even a large volume of data is useless if you can’t analyze the information properly.  

Unfortunately, a lot of things can get lost in translation if you’re not prepared. Jotting down scribbled notes while trying to focus on what the interviewee is telling you, or trying to decipher what’s being said over an unstable phone connection can result in misinformation or misinterpretation. What’s more, poring through audios and notes can be an extremely time-consuming process.

This is why transcription is a necessary tool to ensure the  highest accuracy and speed . It also saves a lot of headaches during the interview process because you can rest easy knowing you’ll have an accurate transcription to work from later. This lets you to focus on the interview at hand rather than trying to make clean notes.

How to do qualitative analysis with transcriptions

Unlike statistical data that you can easily quantify, interview transcripts are trickier to interpret. The data points may not be immediately apparent because you’re working with a large volume of subjective opinions and feedback. 

The process of going through this data is called qualitative analysis .

Here’s a step-by-step guide (you can read more about it here ):

• Read the transcripts: It’s important to look out for bias and eliminate those pieces during this stage.
• Annotate the transcripts: This is a useful way to organize the data. Make annotations on the transcripts for keywords or ideas so it’s easy to refer back later.
• Conceptualize the data: By this point, you’ll have identified some running themes in the data. Categorize the information according to these themes to compile into a final report.
• Segment the data: Make connections between your categories to form a cohesive report.
• Analyze the segments: Now review these segments thoroughly in order to summarize the results.
• Write the results: Using all the data segments, write a final interpretation of the results in an objective tone, backed by both qualitative and quantitative research data.

Transcription is essential to market research analysis

Rev’s  transcription services  allow you to do your work without worrying about lost or inaccurate information. Whether you’re conducting a focus group or a phone survey, contact us today to get started on your market research.

Related Content

Latest article.

How to Analyze Focus Group Data

Most popular.

Differences in Focus Groups & In-Depth Interviews for a Successful Market Research

Featured article.

How to Use Automatic Transcription as a Marketing Professional

Everybody’s favorite speech-to-text blog.

We combine AI and a huge community of freelancers to make speech-to-text greatness every day. Wanna hear more about it?

How to Do Market Research: The Complete Guide

Learn how to do market research with this step-by-step guide, complete with templates, tools and real-world examples.

Access best-in-class company data

Get trusted first-party funding data, revenue data and firmographics

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.

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

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 

• 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
• 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.

• 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.

Related Articles

• Entrepreneurs
• 15 min read

What Is Competitive Analysis and How to Do It Effectively

Rebecca Strehlow, Copywriter at Crunchbase

17 Best Sales Intelligence Tools for 2024

• Market research
• 10 min read

How to Do Market Research for a Startup: Tips for Success

Jaclyn Robinson, Senior Manager of Content Marketing at Crunchbase

Search less. Close more.

Grow your revenue with Crunchbase, the all-in-one prospecting solution. Start your free trial.

• Business Essentials
• Leadership & Management
• Credential of Leadership, Impact, and Management in Business (CLIMB)
• Entrepreneurship & Innovation
• *New* Digital Transformation
• Finance & Accounting
• Business in Society
• For Organizations
• Support Portal
• Media Coverage
• Founding Donors
• Leadership Team

• Harvard Business School →
• HBS Online →
• Business Insights →

Business Insights

Harvard Business School Online's Business Insights Blog provides the career insights you need to achieve your goals and gain confidence in your business skills.

• Career Development
• Communication
• Decision-Making
• Earning Your MBA
• Negotiation
• News & Events
• Productivity
• Staff Spotlight
• Student Profiles
• Work-Life Balance
• Alternative Investments
• Business Analytics
• Business Strategy
• Business and Climate Change
• Design Thinking and Innovation
• Digital Marketing Strategy
• Disruptive Strategy
• Economics for Managers
• Entrepreneurship Essentials
• Financial Accounting
• Global Business
• Launching Tech Ventures
• Leadership Principles
• Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability
• Leading with Finance
• Management Essentials
• Negotiation Mastery
• Organizational Leadership
• Power and Influence for Positive Impact
• Strategy Execution
• Sustainable Business Strategy
• Sustainable Investing
• Winning with Digital Platforms

How to Conduct Market Research for a Startup

• 17 Mar 2022

With every innovative product idea comes the pressing question: “Will people want to buy it?”

As an entrepreneur with a big idea, what’s the best way to determine how potential customers will react to your product? Conducting market research can provide the data needed to decide whether your product fits your target market.

Before launching a new venture, you should understand market research. Here’s how to conduct market research for a startup and why it’s important.

Access your free e-book today.

What Is Market Research?

Market research is the process of gathering information about customers and the market as a whole to determine a product or service’s viability. Market research includes interviews, surveys, focus groups, and industry data analyses.

The goal of market research is to better understand potential customers, how well your product or service fits their needs, and how it compares to competitors’ offerings.

There are two types of research you can conduct: primary and secondary.

• Primary research requires collecting data to learn about your specific customers or target market segment. It’s useful for creating buyer personas, segmenting your market, and improving your product to cater to customers’ needs .
• Secondary research is conducted using data you didn’t collect yourself. Industry reports, public databases, and other companies’ proprietary data can be used to gain insights into your target market segment and industry.

Why Is Market Research Important for Entrepreneurs?

Before launching your venture, it’s wise to conduct market research to ensure your product or service will be well received. Feedback from people who fall into your target demographics can be invaluable as you iterate on and improve your product.

Performing market research can also help you determine a pricing strategy by gauging customers’ willingness to pay for your product. Additionally, it can improve the user experience by revealing what features matter most to potential customers.

When assessing which startups to fund, investors place heavy importance on thorough market research that indicates promising potential. Providing tangible proof that your product fulfills a market need and demonstrating you’ve taken the time to iterate on and improve it signal that your startup could be a worthwhile investment.

Related: How to Talk to Potential Investors: 5 Tips

How to Do Market Research for a Startup

1. form hypotheses.

What questions do you aim to answer through market research? Using those questions, you can make predictions called hypotheses . Defining your hypotheses upfront can help guide your approach to selecting subjects, researching questions, and testing designs.

An example question you may ask is: “How much are people in my target demographic willing to pay for the current version of my product?” Your hypothesis could be: “If my product contains all its current features, customers will be willing to pay $500 for it.”

Another example question you may ask is: “What’s the user’s biggest pain point, and is my product meeting their needs?” Your hypothesis could be: “I believe the user’s biggest pain point is needing an easy, unintimidating way to learn basic car maintenance, and I predict that my product meets that need.”

You can and should test multiple hypotheses, but try to select no more than a few per test, so the research stays focused.

Related: A Beginner’s Guide to Hypothesis Testing in Business

2. Select the Type of Research Needed to Test Hypotheses

Once you’ve formed your hypotheses, determine which type of research to conduct.

If your hypotheses focus on determining your startup’s place in the broader market, start with secondary research. This can include using existing data to determine market size, how much of that market your startup could reasonably own, who your biggest competitors are, and how your brand and product compare to theirs.

If your hypotheses require primary research, decide which data collection method best fits your needs. These can include one-on-one interviews, surveys, focus groups, and polls. Primary research allows you to gather insights into customer satisfaction and loyalty, brand awareness and perception, and real-time product usability.

3. Identify Target Demographics and Recruit Subjects

To gather meaningful insights, you need to understand your target demographic. Do you aim to cater to working parents, young athletes, or pet owners? Determine the type of person who can benefit from your product.

If you conduct primary research, you need to recruit subjects. This can be done in several ways, including:

• Word of mouth: The simplest but least reliable way to recruit participants is by word of mouth. Ask people you know to refer others to be research subjects, then screen them to confirm they fit your target demographic.
• Promoting the study on social media: Many social media platforms enable you to show an ad to people who fall into specific demographic categories or have certain interests. This allows you to get the word out to a large number of people who qualify.
• Hiring a third-party market research company: Some companies provide full market research services and recruit participants and conduct research on your behalf.

However you recruit subjects, ensure they take a screener survey beforehand, which allows you to determine whether they fit the specific demographic you want to study or have a trait that eliminates them from the research pool. It also provides demographic data—such as age and race—that enables you to select a diverse subset of your target demographic.

In addition, you can offer compensation to boost participation, such as money, meal vouchers, gift cards, or early access to your product. Make it clear that compensation is in appreciation for subjects’ time and honest feedback.

4. Conduct the Research

Once you’ve determined the type of research and target demographic necessary to test your hypotheses, conduct your research. To reduce bias, enlist someone unfamiliar with your hypotheses to perform interviews or lead focus groups.

Ask questions based on your audience and hypotheses. For instance, if you’re aiming to test existing customers’ purchase motivations, you may ask: “What challenge were you trying to solve when you first bought the product?”

If examining brand perception, your audience should consist of potential customers who don’t yet know your brand. Present them with a list of competitor logos—with yours in the mix—and ask them to rank the brands by perceived reliability.

While the questions you ask are vehicles to prove or disprove hypotheses, ensure they don’t lead subjects in one direction. To craft unbiased research questions , use neutral language and vary the order of options in multiple-choice questions. This can keep subjects from selecting the same option each time if they sense the third option is always mapped to a certain outcome. It also helps account for primacy bias (the tendency to select the first option in a list) and recency bias (the tendency to select the final option in a list).

Once you’ve collected data, ensure it’s organized efficiently and securely so you can protect subjects’ identities .

Related: 3 Examples of Bad Survey Questions and How to Fix Them

5. Gather Insights and Determine Action Items

After you’ve organized your data, analyze it to extract actionable insights. While some of the data will be qualitative rather than quantitative, you can detect patterns in responses to make it quantifiable. For instance, noting that 15 of 20 subjects mentioned feeling overwhelmed when attempting to assemble your product.

Once you’ve analyzed the data and communicated emerging trends using data visualizations , outline action items.

If the majority of users in your target demographic reported feeling overwhelmed while assembling your product, action items might include:

• Creating different versions of assembly instructions to test with other groups, varying diagrams and instructional language
• Researching instruction manual best practices

Each round of market research can offer more information about how your product is perceived and experienced by potential users.

Market Research as an Ongoing Endeavor

While it’s useful to conduct market research before launching your product, you should revisit your hypotheses and form new ones over the course of building your venture.

By conducting market research with each version of your product, you can gradually improve it and ensure it continues to fit target customers’ needs.

Are you interested in bolstering your entrepreneurship skills? Explore our four-week online course Entrepreneurship Essentials and our other entrepreneurship and innovation courses to learn to speak the language of the startup world.

About the Author

Advisory boards aren’t only for executives. join the logrocket content advisory board today →.

• Product Management
• Solve User-Reported Issues
• Find Issues Faster
• Optimize Conversion and Adoption

A guide to conducting market research

Assumptions only get you so far when it comes to developing a product and growing your business. Market research can provide you with crucial insights into what your audience and customers need from you. Armed with this data, you can differentiate your product from your competitors and work towards winning your market.

In this article, you will learn what market research is, the four approaches to it, and the steps you need to take to make more informed product decisions.

Market research is the process of gathering information about potential and current customers and your target audience. The data can reveal the viability of a new product idea based on customer needs and wants. Market research is an essential part of developing products and services that are desirable to consumers.

Market research is also used to:

• Evaluate customer attitude toward a newly released product or feature
• Discover customer pain points
• Understand brand perception
• Develop product differentiation
• Craft a marketing strategy that resonates with the target audience
• Find opportunities for product improvement
• Test your assumptions about your product or audience
• Create a competitive advantage

Market research is a critical part of research and development (R&D) . Bad market research can lead to making decisions based on assumptions, emotional reasoning, and other guesswork. Ultimately, market research is the only way to make informed decisions about what you need to develop for your product.

What are the 4 ways to do market research?

Market research falls into two categories: Primary and secondary. Primary research is gathered by the company, while secondary research comes from outside sources. Both of these options provide valuable information on your target audience.

For this article, let’s focus on primary research. There are four methods you can use to collect primary data for your market research:

Interviews are face-to-face meetings with an individual. This can be one of the most insightful market research methods since there is no interaction with outside influences that may affect the opinion of the interviewee. It allows an interviewer to ask deeper questions, while also providing a chance to observe body language.

Surveys are a useful method for collecting data quickly. Surveys can appear on the company website or app and ask questions directly to consumers. You can have multiple choice, scales, or yes and no questions to gain several types of data points. It’s also a relatively easy and cost-effective method to deploy.

Focus groups are a tricky method of market research. Participants of a focus group make up the company’s target audience. When done well, they can provide insights into a group’s perceptions of a company’s products, advertising, or competitors. However, it requires a trained moderator to ensure participation from all members of the focus group and prevent a minority party from leading the conversation.

Customer observation

Customer observation is a powerful way to gain an understanding of how customers are interacting with your product. You can learn a lot from how they react to the product, what obstacles they encounter, and what questions they have while using it.

While you can observe in person, you could also use tools like a heat map to conduct customer observation. Alternatively, you can also ask participants to test out a competitor’s product to see how they engage with the product.

While interviews, surveys, focus groups, and customer observations are the 4 most common types of market research, companies can also use these other methods to do their research, including:

• Market segmentation research

Competitive analysis

• SWOT analysis
• Customer satisfaction and loyalty research
• Brand research
• Campaign results

A step-by-step guide to conducting market research

Market research can seem like a large and daunting project. To help you break it down into manageable tasks, here is a basic step-by-step guide to conducting market research.

1. Determine the market research goal

Begin by determining what you want to learn from the market research. You’ll get the best results when you can clearly define the problem or question. Once you have defined your market research goal, then you can choose which market research method would work best.

Over 200k developers and product managers use LogRocket to create better digital experiences

Let’s explore this example throughout the guide: Your company wants to know if your product is satisfying the needs of your current customers

2. Identify what persona group to engage

If you don’t know who your customers are, then you should create buyer personas before you move further along in the market research process.

The next step is to identify which buyer persona or persona groups have the information you need to answer your market research goal. Choosing the right personas to participate is necessary to avoid wasting resources.

Example: You want to collect data from active users. You may also receive valuable insights from users who use your product infrequently or didn’t purchase the product

3. Prepare questions and collect data

At this stage, you can determine which research methods are best for collecting data. You’ll also form the right questions to ask. All questions should be open-ended to give participants the chance to share their opinions freely without feeling judged or influenced by the moderator.

Preparing questions in advance helps you stay focused on the market research. However, if you’re conducting interviews or focus groups, then it’s important to stay flexible and ask deeper questions based on how the conversation is going. You should consider these core principles while interviewing an individual or a group:

• Don’t ask leading questions — A leading question is when moderator bias appears and steers the participant toward a certain answer. For example, “Did you think the new product feature was great?” is leading. An objective question is “Did the new product feature solve your problem?”
• Don’t ask loaded questions — Loaded questions have a built-in assumption the participant may disagree with and limits replies. For example, “Why are we better than our competitor?” is loaded because it assumes the participant thinks your company is better than your competition. An objective question might be, “How do you feel about our competitor?”

Once the methods and questions are determined, you can start to collect your data.

Example: To collect data from current users, a pop-up survey will appear when a user logs into their account. It has a scale of 1-10 and asks “How satisfied are you with our product?” Once a user answers, they have the option to provide a short answer on what the product could do better

4. Analyze data

When analyzing data, you should look for themes or patterns in responses. You can also utilize data visualization tools to help detect any trends. Once you have analyzed your data, you can create a report based on the findings. It may include items like:

• What are the main problems participants faced while using a product
• What participants consider when choosing a product
• What feature was a deal breaker or clincher

Most importantly, your report should include an action plan on how to resolve issues discovered in the market research. This could involve creating more useful user guides, creating or modifying a new feature, or a more efficient onboarding process.

Example: Results from the survey showed that unhappy customers frequently didn’t know where to go to get help on using the product. An action plan is created to develop how-to tutorials

5. Implement changes

The market research report is presented to executives, and they need to decide on the best way to move forward. It may involve approving the action plan or finding alternative solutions. The good news is that they are going to make a data-based decision because they have accurate information on their customers and target audience.

Once a plan is approved, product managers or other departments can begin working on implementing changes.

Example: Executives approve an action plan to develop how-to tutorials. A knowledge base is created for users filled with written and video tutorials on how to use product features

6. Test results

Market research is not a one-time-only project. It should be continually conducted to provide insights into your product, industry, trends, and other factors that could affect your business. The market research process will help you maintain a competitive advantage while ensuring every iteration of your product is meeting the needs of your target audience.

Key takeaways

Market research is more than something you do to confirm if there is customer interest in your product idea. It’s there to support you for nearly every important pillar of your business, including product development, marketing, and business growth. Continuously conducting market research will help your company stay in touch with your customers and emerging trends.

Market research can be as simple as a one-question survey to 30-minute interviews with your target market. Regardless of the method, you stand to glean valuable insights that you can turn into a data-informed action plan.

Featured image source: IconScout

LogRocket generates product insights that lead to meaningful action

Get your teams on the same page — try LogRocket today.

Share this:

• Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
• #customer experience
• #market analysis

Stop guessing about your digital experience with LogRocket

Recent posts:.

Leader Spotlight: Scholarships as a performance marketing channel, with Jelena Stajić

Jelena Stajić discusses ScholarshipOwl’s transition from purely being a scholarship platform for students to adding a B2B component.

An overview of the 8D problem-solving method

The 8D problem-solving method is designed to address and resolve problems by identifying, correcting, and eliminating recurring issues.

Leader Spotlight: Closing the gap to education equity, with Carly Fuller

Carly Fuller discusses her work at EdisonLearning to bridge the gap in education equity via accessibility, courses, certifications, and more.

An introduction to dynamic reteaming

Heidi Helfand’s book Dynamic Reteaming advocates that teams follow repeating cycles of birth, adolescence, maturity, and disruption.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Brand new two-day live summit with 20+ ecommerce trailblazers..

• Skip to primary navigation
• Skip to main content

A magazine for young entrepreneurs

The best advice in entrepreneurship

Subscribe for exclusive access, the complete guide to market research: what it is, why you need it, and how to do it.

Written by Mary Kate Miller | June 1, 2021

Comments -->

Get real-time frameworks, tools, and inspiration to start and build your business. Subscribe here

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.

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.”

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.

Related Posts

Create Viral Infographics That Boost Your Organic Traffic

How to Create a Video Sales Letter (Tips and Tricks from a 7-Figure Copywriter)

How to Write a Sales Email That Converts in 2024

What Is a Media Kit: How to Make One in 2024 (With Examples)

Namestorming: How to Choose a Brand Name in 20 Minutes or Less

10 Ways to Increase Brand Awareness without Increasing Your Budget

What Is a Content Creator? A Deep Dive Into This Evolving Industry

Content Creator vs Influencer: What’s the Difference?

How Much Do YouTube Ads Cost? A Beginner’s Pricing Breakdown

How to Get Podcast Sponsors Before Airing an Episode

How Founders Can Overcome Their Sales Fears with AJ Cassata

How to Grow Your YouTube Channel & Gain Subscribers Quickly

How to Write Good Instagram Captions That Hook Your Audience

Discovering the Best CRM for Consultants

10 Instagram Growth Hacks For More Engaged Followers (Without Running Ads)

FREE TRAINING FROM LEGIT FOUNDERS

Actionable Strategies for Starting & Growing Any Business.

Market Research Techniques: A Comprehensive Guide for Product Managers

The Role of Market Research in Product Management

The goals of market research, identifying customer needs, assessing market opportunities, analyzing competitors, market research techniques and tools, surveys and questionnaires, focus groups, observational research, secondary research, analyzing and interpreting market research data, quantitative data analysis, qualitative data analysis, applying market research findings to product strategy, product development, pricing strategy, positioning and messaging, related courses.

How To Accelerate Market Research With AI

In just 3h, master AI for market research customer research, and competitor research with the exact toolset that frees 40% of research time

Product Marketing for High Growth Tech Products

Develop the mindset and skills to help you execute an effective marketing strategy for your disruptive high growth tech product

Create unique positioning for your product

One of it's kind practical course to nail your product positioning and all what comes with it: landing pages, pitch decks and GTM strategy

Data Mastery for Product Managers

Make better decisions and build more impactful products by mastering your data. Learn data model, experiment, ML fundamental in 3 weeks 🔥

New Product Positioning and Go to Market Strategy

Target the right buyers for your new product. Reach them through the right channels. Convince them with differentiated positioning messages.

Understanding your Customers - Product Discovery Fundamentals

Understand your customers' pain points and iterate on your early-stage idea or prototype to create products people love. ❤️

You might also like

Creating an Effective Product Roadmap

How to Get a Product Manager Job: Ultimate 2023 Guide

The Product Manager Role: Responsibilities, Skills, and Salary

Product Dependency Management: Strategies for Streamlining Development

Be the first to know what's new on maven.

Integrations

• Case Studies
• State of Competitive Intelligence
• Partner Directory
• In the News
• Crayon Academy

Crayon Competitive Intelligence blog

3 ways to use market research for product development.

Right off the bat, let’s make sure we’re on the same page in terms of definitions.

In its simplest form, a market consists of buyers and sellers. Technically, we could also include suppliers, partners, regulators—but that’s an unnecessary level of complexity for this blog post.

Market research , therefore, is the process of gathering information about the buyers and sellers within a given market. Meanwhile, product development is the process of conceptualizing, creating, and launching a product. It begins with ideation, and it … well, it never really ends . The “final” stage of product development is iteration.

Simply put, it’s extraordinarily difficult to launch a successful product without conducting some form of market research. At a minimum, you need to know what drives your prospects, who you’re competing with, and how those competitors position themselves to your shared audience.

Cool? Cool. Now, let’s discuss three ways your company (or business unit) can use market research throughout the process of conceptualizing, creating, and launching a new product:

• To generate your initial ideas (conceptualizing)
• To work out the kinks before you launch (creating)
• To optimize your messaging (launching)

1. Generate your initial ideas (conceptualizing)

Some products are happy accidents. In the mid-20th century, a Canadian engineer named John Hopps “serendipitously observed that an electrical impulse would cause the heart to contract and that repetitive stimuli would allow this to occur over a prolonged time.”

The pacemaker was born .

It’s a remarkable story. But, alas, we can’t all be John Hopps; we can’t all rely on serendipity. What you can rely on is data. Specifically, you can use primary and secondary data to identify pain points —which, in turn, can spark initial ideas for new products.

As an example, let’s say you work for an education solutions company that’s known for helping teachers with math instruction. This specialization has served the brand well up until this point, but the time has come to branch out—and you’ve been tasked with leading the effort to develop the company’s new breakthrough product.

In this case, you could gather primary data by surveying teachers and administrators at the schools that already use your company’s existing solutions. Outside of math, in what subject are students finding the most difficulty? What specific roadblocks make this subject so difficult? Do students tend to respond particularly well to certain methods of instruction, such as animated videos or hands-on activities? Answers to questions like these can help build the foundation of your team’s early brainstorms.

Of course, it’s often wise to supplement primary data with secondary data. In the education world—and many other industries—government websites are gold mines of free information. Here in the U.S., the Department of Education has dedicated an entire section of their website to data and statistics. By synthesizing third-party quantitative research with your own qualitative research, you and your team can get a strong sense of what students are struggling with—and use that as a launchpad for early ideation.

The takeaway

Although you probably don’t work for an education solutions company like the hypothetical one we’ve described, the point remains: Identifying pain points helps to jumpstart the product development process, and your team can do it by (1) interviewing customers and (2) diving into data that other organizations have already gathered.

Competitive best practice

For each of your initial ideas, do a quick Google search to get a sense of what your future competitive landscape may look like. Is it a crowded space? How are existing sellers differentiated from one another? Is there a lot of hype surrounding this industry? The sooner you adopt a competitive mindset, the better.

2. Work out the kinks before you launch (creating)

Let’s fast forward. At this point in the product development process, you and your team have settled on a problem that needs to be solved and begun working on a potential solution.

Once again, an example is useful here. Say you work for a pet supplies company. One of the company’s most lucrative product lines is a variety of cat litters, and through your initial market research, you’ve identified a major pain point: Disposing of used cat litter is a hassle—and it often feels unsanitary. As such, your team has created a prototype of a device that purports to enable quick, clean, and odorless disposal.

Although you know for a fact that litter disposal is a pain point amongst your target audience, you do not know for a fact that consumers will find success with your new product. And that’s where prototype testing comes in.

Prototype testing is the process of observing people as they use your prototype and collecting their feedback on the user experience. The goal, of course, is to identify any issues that need to be remedied before moving forward in the development process. Ultimately, prototype testing enables you to learn more about your prospects’ tendencies and preferences and, in turn, create the best solution possible. Oh—and it saves your company a lot of money in the long run.

Sticking with our example of the litter disposal device, issues that may be identified through prototype testing include:

• Unintuitive design
• Insufficient odor protection
• Lack of durability

Different types of companies practice prototype testing in different ways; using a cat litter disposal device and using an email marketing tool are two very different experiences. In general, however, it’s critical to choose the right audience. As product design expert Caitlin Goodale says , “you want a diverse group of testers [that reflect] the different personas within your product—as well as people who are not currently users but might become them.”

Although you’re probably not in the cat litter business, the point remains: Knowing what to solve is one thing; knowing how to solve it is another. Working out the kinks prior to launch day is an essential step towards creating a successful product, and your team can do it by observing people as they engage with early iterations.

If public customer reviews are available in your industry, make sure to check them out; at this stage, negative reviews are particularly valuable. Do you see any flaws across each of your competitor’s products? Any defects that drive buyers in this market crazy? If so, pay special attention to these details when testing your prototype. For example, if several competitors have gotten complaints about durability, you’d better make sure you’re testing all the different ways your prototype could potentially suffer damage.

3. Optimize your messaging (launching)

Let’s fast forward one more time. At this point in the product development process, you and your team are putting the finishing touches on a product that’s ready to launch .

This time, let’s say your company is known for selling technical content management software to manufacturers. In the earliest stages of product development, you learned that translating documentation into different languages is a major pain point. After months of building, testing, and tweaking, your team is just about ready to introduce your translation solution to the world.

Although you know for a fact that your new product is a viable solution to the translation problem, you do not know for a fact that prospects will be drawn to it. And that’s where message testing comes in.

To be clear, message testing—the process of determining which marketing messages are most effective amongst your target audience—is not strictly a pre-launch exercise. In fact, message testing can and should take place well after a product has been brought to market. For the purposes of this blog post, however, we’ll focus on pre-launch message testing.

Pre-launch message testing entails the collection of qualitative feedback from both internal stakeholders—your colleagues—and external stakeholders—your customers. Whereas the former group is intimately familiar with your brand’s overarching identity and story, the latter group is intimately familiar with the challenges that your new product purports to address.

Issues that may be identified through pre-launch message testing include:

• Misalignment with your company’s brand promise
• Unclear value proposition
• Insufficient differentiation from other solutions

Again, message testing can and should be conducted throughout the product life cycle. But pre-launch testing in particular is important because it gives your new product a better chance of succeeding right out of the gate—which, in turn, boosts employee morale, improves brand authority, and enables immediate feedback collection.

Chances are your company has nothing to do with translation, but it doesn’t matter: Even the strongest of products cannot survive lackluster marketing. Optimizing your messaging prior to launch day makes immediate success all the more attainable, and your team can do it by tapping the minds of colleagues and customers alike.

If the product you’re launching is not the first of its kind, take note of how your competitors position and promote their alternatives. And if the product you’re launching is the first of its kind—but your company has competitors within other business units—you should still take note of your competitors’ marketing strategies. Even if they don’t offer direct alternatives to your new product, they’re probably still on your prospects’ radars in some capacity.

Using real-time market data to optimize product development

Want access to competitive intelligence as soon as you start conceptualizing a new product? Want a centralized repository of every customer review across your industry? Want side-by-side snapshots of changes to your competitors’ positioning and messaging?

That’s only scratching the surface of what’s offered by Crayon—the award-winning competitive intelligence platform that enables you to track, analyze, and act on everything happening outside the four walls of your business. Request a demo today , and start competing like you mean it.

See why Gong, Mastercard, and ZoomInfo trust Crayon to help them win more competitive deals.

Related Blog Posts

Popular Posts

Product Market Research: 8 Essential Steps & Real-Life Examples

~90% of companies state that they listen to the voice of their customers while developing new products. 1 One of the efficient ways to hear from customers is to conduct market research . Product market research stands as a beacon, guiding businesses in creating products that resonate with their target customers. This article dives into the essential steps of conducting effective product market research, explores various methods, and brings to light real-life examples of successful product market research.

Essential steps for conducting product market research

1- evaluating company assets and product development possibilities.

Before diving into market research, it’s imperative for a business to take stock of its internal capabilities and how these align with potential product development opportunities. This initial step is a foundational one, requiring a thorough assessment of the company’s resources, strengths, and limitations.

For example, a tech company with a strong background in software development might explore avenues in the latest app technologies, whereas a retail business with a robust supply chain might consider expanding its product line.

Here is a strategic map to help your company prioritize its investments and innovation efforts based on the current and future significance of different competencies (see figure below).

Source: McKinsey 2

2- Deciding on the target markets

Once you evaluate the strengths and capabilities of your company, you can decide on the target market and audience. This involves defining the specific group of customers for whom the product is intended. Understanding the demographics, psychological factors, pain points, and needs of this target market is essential for tailoring the research.

For those interested, here is our article on retail market research trends and some real-life examples .

3- Crafting informed research questions

The next step is to prepare the questions that you wish to hear from your target audience. The foundation of successful product market research is in formulating insightful and targeted questions. This step is particularly crucial when designing surveys, as the quality of questions directly impacts the relevance and usefulness of the data collected.

Check out our comprehensive article on the best practices of conducting market research .

4- Choosing the right market research vendors

The selection of a market research vendor can significantly influence the outcomes. Businesses need to ensure that the vendor’s expertise aligns with their specific research needs, especially in constructing and administering effective surveys.

If you are looking for a market research software , check out our vendor deep dive.

You can also check out our data-driven list of market research tools .

5- Finding the right survey sharing channels 

This involves determining where and how to distribute the surveys to reach the target audience effectively. Channels might include online platforms, email, social media, in-person venues, or a combination of these, depending on where the target market is most accessible. Bear in mind that market research or survey tools can also handle this process.

6- Determining data collection methods

Selecting the most appropriate tools and techniques for gathering and interpreting market data is as crucial as determining your questions, target market, and audience. Although there are various methods, surveys, due to their adaptability and broad reach, often become the method of choice for businesses seeking comprehensive and direct consumer feedback.

7- Analyzing and interpreting results

The data obtained, particularly from surveys, should be meticulously analyzed to extract meaningful insights. This step transforms raw data into actionable intelligence about consumer preferences and market trends.

If you are looking for a survey analysis tool , check out our vendor benchmark.

8- Communicating market research findings

Effectively presenting the research findings to stakeholders is a critical part of conducting market research itself. The insights, especially those derived from surveys, should be communicated clearly to inform strategic decisions.

Product market research methods

Product market research process can be broadly categorized into two main types: primary and secondary research.

Primary market research involves gathering fresh data directly from sources. This method is proactive and tailored to specific research needs. The primary objective is to collect data that is relevant, in-depth, and directly related to the research question. Methods used in primary market research include:

• Online Surveys : Surveys are pivotal in product market research. They provide direct insights from the target audience, are cost-effective, and can be scaled to reach a broad demographic. Besides, they are useful for conducting both qualitative research and quantitative research. The richness and validity of the data garnered from well-designed surveys are unparalleled in gauging consumer sentiment and preferences. 
• Individual interviews : These offer nuanced understandings of consumer attitudes, supplementing the quantitative data from surveys with qualitative depth. Companies can also understand how to attract potential customers through these individual meetings.
• Focus groups: This refers to gathering a group of people to discuss and react to something, such as a product or campaign. It’s particularly beneficial for understanding reactions and attitudes, and more useful for exploratory research.

Secondary research uses data that already exists and has been collected by other initiatives. It’s often quicker and less expensive than primary research. This method includes:

• Public sources : Publicly available data like government reports and industry analyses offer a contextual backdrop for primary data and competitive analysis.
• Social media channels: Social media platforms (e.g., Instagram, X, LinkedIn) are a rich source of secondary market research data. They provide real-time insights into customer sentiment, emerging trends, brand perceptions, and competitor activities.

Product market research real-life examples

Source: Zoom 3

Zoom Docs, announced at Zoomtopia 2023, is a testament to Zoom’s market research-driven product development. 4 Addressing the complexities of hybrid work, Zoom Docs integrates AI-enhanced document and collaboration tools within Zoom’s ecosystem, aligning with the identified needs for more streamlined and efficient workplace solutions. This innovation, as a park of Zoom’s marketing strategy, is set for release in 2024, and it reflects Zoom’s commitment to evolving its services in response to changing work dynamics.

Warby Parker

Warby Parker, founded in 2010, revolutionized the eyewear market with a direct-to-consumer model that undercut traditional optical boutiques. 5 Their innovative Home Try-On program allowed customers to test frames at home, addressing common pain points in buying glasses online. This consumer-centric approach, combined with their expansion into physical retail locations and the integration of an AR Virtual Try-On feature, showcases Warby Parker’s commitment to evolving with market trends and consumer needs, offering a broad range of stylish, affordable eyewear options.

Lush Cosmetics

Lush Cosmetics, driven by market research and a commitment to environmental sustainability, has innovatively tailored its product development strategy. 6 Emphasizing on eco-friendly practices, Lush’s products predominantly use fresh, vegetarian ingredients, with a large vegan selection. Their unique approach extends to packaging, focusing on reducing waste through ‘Naked’ products like solid shampoo bars and reusable packaging options, including knot-wraps made from recycled materials. This strategy, reflecting consumer preferences for ethical and sustainable products, has significantly strengthened Lush’s brand value and appeal in the cosmetics industry.

If you need help in market research, we can help:

External Links

• 1. “ Digital Product Development 2025 “. PwC. Retrieved December 25,2023.
• 2. “ A capabilities strategy for successful product development “. McKinsey. July 13, 2017. Retrieved December 25,2023.
• 3. “ Zoom Docs “. Zoom. October 3, 2023. Retrieved December 25,2023.
• 4. “ Zoom Docs “. Zoom. October 3, 2023. Retrieved December 25,2023.
• 5. “ How does Warby Parker work? Here’s a step-by-step guide to ordering new prescription glasses. ” Mashable. September 6, 2023. Retrieved December 25,2023.
• 6. “ Lush Cosmetics Gets Naked “. Packaging World. November 14, 2019. Retrieved December 25,2023.

Next to Read

Healthcare market research: 10+ trends & real-life examples in '24, top 5 pollfish alternatives & competitors in 2024, customer feedback analysis guide in 2024.

Your email address will not be published. All fields are required.

Related research

Retail Market Research: Benefits, Trends & 5 Real-Life Examples

11 Online Survey Challenges in 2024

Learn / Guides / Product research basics

Back to guides

Product research: the key to building a product people will love

You want to build a long-term vision for your product, and work on something that your users will buy and love—but can you really do that if you don’t understand your customers?

Probably not.

Enter product research, the key to leading your business to success through data-backed insights and smart, customer-centric product decisions.

But how can you make sure your product research is effective, and that it will benefit your customers and business? Keep reading to find out!

Last updated

Reading time.

Need to understand your users?

Hotjar gives you the tools you need to lead user-driven product research and development processes.

Product research: what it is and why it matters

Product research is a vital first step before introducing new features, a new product, or entering a different stage of the product lifecycle. It enhances your understanding of what the customer wants so you can make user-led product decisions and address customer needs.

What is product research? 

Product research is the process of gathering information about your product's purpose, development direction, and which solutions you should offer to create customer delight. Product research is conducted through surveying and studying users to identify their needs and understand what they demand from your product, and usually happens at these stages in the product lifecycle:

Before launch : to understand which initiatives you should include and prioritize based on customer needs, and to develop a product-market fit.

Testing and feedback: to understand how the customer perceives new iterations, learn what they like or don’t like, and how you can improve the product to delight them.

Soft launch: to analyze how effective and useful your Minimum Viable Product (MVP) is among a segment of customers, and identify changes to make before releasing the full product to market.

Post-launch: to study customers' reactions and behavior after launch for continuous discovery , analyze customer satisfaction, and identify potential bugs or improvement areas.

Why product research matters for product teams

If you don't know what your customers want from your product, even your most brilliant idea risks failure. Here's how product research helps you align your product ideas with customer needs:

Understand user needs and pain points: your product needs to solve the customer's most pressing issues, but how can it do that if you don't know what issues they’re having? Product research helps you gather data and behavioral insights to understand your users’ problems and build the solutions they need.

Align user needs with business goals: understanding customers' needs and how they align with your product and business goals helps you plan a product roadmap that'll serve both the users and your company.

Higher scope for innovation and accuracy: when you have clarity about what your customers need, you can find innovative ways to solve their problems and build a product they'll love.

Gain a competitive edge: researching your competitors will help you understand how to differentiate your product and uncover gaps in the market, which can help you decide what features to build.

Simpler and more impactful prioritization: with product research, your entire team is clear on how to prioritize initiatives to achieve customer delight , making it easier for you to manage your product backlog .

Why and how product research can vary across product teams 

Product research validates your ideas and gives you a better understanding of your user throughout the product development process. But the responsibility to conduct product research doesn’t fall solely on the product manager— people across departments should also be conducting product research.  

Since product research isn't a single, standard process, the purpose and level of contribution can vary at different stages of the product lifecycle and across roles and departments:

1. Product managers

A product manager's primary goals are to understand user needs, learn business goals, and determine market requirements to create a product vision and roadmap. 

They also use product analytics to validate ideas around iterations and product features—all of which require extensive product research. 

A product manager’s main research aims are to ensure that product development decisions are data-informed and customer-centric, and address users' needs to build a great product. 

Common research methods include interviews, surveys, competitor studies, and analyzing user behavior and product experience insights.

2. Product designers

Product designers need to empathize with users to create an intuitive product experience that users will enjoy. 

During product research, designers might observe customers in real-time to note their reactions, responses, and behaviors around different elements of the product's design. For example, they might observe how users interact with the UI to identify product elements or features that seem to slow down or confuse individual users.  

Product designers use these insights to improve the user experience ( UX ) and create a seamless product experience ( PX ) for easy navigation and usage. 

Their research methods include customer feedback forms and behavior tools (like heatmaps and session recordings) to understand where users are facing issues and how design changes can fix them.

3. Researchers

Researchers study user behavior, needs, and motivations to translate insights into new and better product opportunities and better-informed product decisions. 

Researchers constantly conduct product research to monitor trends over time and see how user behavior patterns are changing in response to product iterations—and how to improve them.

But, here’s the catch: this data is not readily available. So, researchers use a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods like surveys, feedback forms, and customer interviews to get recurring data.

4. Product research by lifecycle stage

Product research processes, methods, and findings will change as your product reaches new stages of development:

If you're developing new features for an existing product , you want to understand the customer's current needs, how they've changed over time, and their reaction to recent iterations. This helps you understand which initiatives and ideas you should prioritize and introduce next.

When you're developing a completely new product, product research will be different. Here you don't have historical information about user response and behavior patterns from your previous developments, so you need to perform in-depth product research to understand your target customer's needs and pain points.

4 elements of successful product research

Product research is necessary to avoid misguided product development decisions, identify potential issues with your product, and get an in-depth insight into your customer's mind. This research helps you create a well-thought-out strategy for building a product customers love.

But you need to take some proactive steps to make your research successful:

1. Use accurate and unbiased data collection methods

The primary goal of your research is to collect accurate data that tells you about how your customers experience your product—what they like or don't like, what they want or need, and what issues they encounter.

But your research won't be useful or actionable if you use unreliable data collection methods .

The best way to ensure the data you collect is accurate and unbiased is to use reliable methods like surveys, customer interviews , and tools that provide consistent real-time product experience insights (like Hotjar!). 

Only with accurate data can you be confident in making truly customer-centric decisions to build the best product.

Pro tip: use Hotjar Heatmaps and Session Recordings to study customers' behavior patterns on your site. These tools give you an unbiased look at how your customers scroll, click, move, and navigate your website, which can help you identify potential issues and improvement areas.

For example, if you use heatmaps and notice that users aren’t scrolling down your home screen to where you’ve included testimonials and product use-cases, you can use this information in your research to place them further up the page.

2. Conduct thorough competitive and comparative analysis

Product research isn't just relevant for studying customers and their needs—it's also key to understanding your competitors and where you stand in the market. 

Conduct a thorough analysis of your competitors' products, audience, and processes. This will help you analyze what's working for your audience, what gaps you can fill, and how to create a better, more efficient product for your customers.

You can complement your research efforts by carrying comparative analysis of what you're missing out on. Study your competitors and identify which features they’re providing that you’re not and what makes them unique. This will tell you where you’re lacking and help you create an optimization plan for better results and customer satisfaction.

For example, if you understand how your competitors are launching features—and how their customers are responding to them—you can use those insights to develop and introduce your next feature, and build a better product that delights your customers and stands apart from the crowd.

3. Leverage existing research material

Marketplace and trade reports—analysis reports by institutions and organizations in your industry—give you valuable insight into product processes used by companies over the years and indicate how consumer trends have changed.

This goes beyond your first-hand information and adds a historical touch to your research, so you can discover new product opportunities by taking inspiration from what’s worked before (or learn from what hasn't).

For example, you may come across an innovative way to collect customer feedback or an efficient way to test product features that might not have crossed your mind. You can explore this idea with the help of historical data.

4. Segment results based on business goals

Your product research is irrelevant if you can’t use it to make more effective decisions and product improvements. 

Enter segmentation, which is when you categorize your research findings based on business goals, so information doesn't get mixed up or lost in translation. You can also document your findings so product team members can refer to them from time to time for guided decisions.

Segmentation can also help you align your short-term and long-term goals to make the research more valuable for use in the future.

For example, you may want to study your customers' major pain points around a specific feature, at first—but later, when you're introducing a suite of new products, you might want to look at the issues your previous product didn’t solve, potential initiatives that can complement your new products, or gaps in your past marketing strategy. This will help you better address these areas for your new product.

How to measure the success of your product research

Measuring the success of your product research isn't exactly straightforward: tangible product results come much later when you receive feedback for the product, so it’s challenging to gauge the effectiveness of your research process in the beginning.

You can get some clarity around how research is translating into benefits for your users and business by attaching Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to your product during the initial stages.

It's important to know what success means to you before starting product research. Be clear on the question you are trying to answer first.

Much like a scientific experiment, you should identify the aims and objectives and develop a hypothesis to test. Design your research methodology around the hypothesis.

You might choose a survey, a literature review, or something else. The results, once analyzed, should illustrate a statistical significance in your findings to prove or disprove your hypothesis—a true measure of research success.

Here's a list of questions you should answer to determine the success of your product research:

Do you understand the major triggers and pain points of your customer?

Have you analyzed your products in comparison to competitors and identified gaps?

Have you converted your research into data points and findings?

Have you used the research report to introduce modifications in your product roadmap or created a new one from scratch?

Did this research give you a good idea of what the customer wants from your product?

Do you understand which initiatives you need to prioritize?

How you answer these questions will tell you whether you have sufficient information or need to change your product research strategy and collect additional data.

Ultimately though, the best measure of product research success is the knowledge you gain about your customers—and how you use that knowledge to build a product they'll love.

3 ways Hotjar can assist your product research for better results and efficiency

1. use recordings and heatmaps after releasing features to get user behavior insights.

One of the most direct ways to get feedback and insights about your customers' needs, pain points, and responses to product features is to understand their behavior in context as they experience your product.

Heatmaps give you insight into the elements of your page that drive the most clicks and conversions while highlighting things you can optimize for better results. These findings can be used in your research to identify potential areas for improvement.

Session Recordings give you a play-by-play of individual user activity in your product to show you their navigation path, mouse scrolls, and clicks. Real-time behavior patterns tell you what the customer is struggling with presently , so you can improve product design, navigation, and experience.

2. Leverage surveys to get validation and feedback

If you want to know exactly what your customers are thinking and let voice of the customer (VoC) data guide your product strategy, use qualitative tools like Hotjar's Incoming Feedback widget and Surveys.

Try placing surveys and feedback widgets on high-traffic visitor points of your product to get direct, unbiased, and genuine feedback from the customer at the best time: when they’re experiencing your site. This helps you understand user needs more intuitively so you can validate ideas and features.

3. Use Hotjar integrations to prioritize features and get buy-in for ideas

Product research is a comprehensive process, and it’s challenging to do it regularly. However, the process becomes more efficient when stakeholders and team members have access to customer feedback as soon as it’s available.

Hotjar integrates with tools like Slack and Zapier to help you seamlessly communicate with stakeholders and get buy-in for your ideas then and there, so you can move forward with your product improvements.

Final thoughts

Product research lies at the very core of product management. If research isn't conducted throughout the entire development process, you risk misalignment and a resulting product that doesn't meet users' needs.

You need to understand what users need right now to build a truly user-centric product—and product research can help you achieve just that.

Use Hotjar's qualitative and quantitative product insights tools to organize your product research efforts and really understand how your customers experience your product.

FAQs about product research

What’s the difference between product research and market research.

The primary difference is that product research involves studying the product (customer needs, feedback, pain points, issues) while market research involves analyzing the market (competitors, consumers, demand).

How do you conduct product research?

Define your product and its vision

Identify your target customer

Understand your customer's needs and pain points

Conduct research using qualitative and quantitative methods

Convert the research into data findings and insights

Use the analysis to guide your product strategy

How can using product research tools help?

Product research tools help you identify consumer trends, study user patterns, and analyze user behavior for data collection. Some useful product research tools are Hotjar, Zendesk, Product Plan, Jira, and ProductBoard.

What's new?

Prototype Testing

Live Website Testing

Feedback Surveys

Interview Studies

Card Sorting

Tree Testing

In-Product Prompts

Participant Management

Automated Reports

Templates Gallery

Choose from our library of pre-built mazes to copy, customize, and share with your own users

Browse all templates

Financial Services

Tech & Software

Product Designers

Product Managers

User Researchers

By use case

Concept & Idea Validation

Wireframe & Usability Test

Content & Copy Testing

Feedback & Satisfaction

Content Hub

Educational resources for product, research and design teams

Explore all resources

Question Bank

Research Maturity Model

Guides & Reports

Help Center

Future of User Research Report

The Optimal Path Podcast

Maze Guides | Resources Hub

Product Research: The Building Blocks of a User-Centered Solution

0% complete

Product research is a foundational step in building user-centric products. It allows you to understand customer needs, preferences, and market trends, informing the development of successful solutions to user problems. Read on for the ultimate guide to product research, including methods, processes, and best practices—plus our favorite tips from the industry’s leading experts.

Product research 101: Definition, methods, and best practices

You may only build new products once, but you iterate on them continuously. The ongoing evolution of a product’s user experience (UX), informed by user insights, is pivotal to staying ahead of competitors and giving your users exactly what they need. In chapter one of this guide, we’ll explore what product research is, give an overview of key methods (and when to use them), plus best practices to follow.

What is product research?

Product research is any research you conduct to better inform your product and understand your user and market. Unlike user research , product research goes beyond evaluating the user experience and includes market analysis, pricing, feature prioritization, and assessing business viability.

Product research is a broader term than UX research—you can conduct research on the user, the interaction, the market, or your business strategy.

Matthieu Dixte , Product Researcher at Maze

It helps you understand the world you are bringing your product into, and what your users expect to do with a product like yours—so you can use their insights to influence development and design decisions.

Product research can be conducted in multiple ways, such as talking directly to users in focus groups or user interviews , or through product experimentation, usability tests and competitive analysis.

Other research terms you might come across

Ultimately, all research falls under the 'product research' banner if it influences the final product. For some product teams, ‘user research’ and ‘product research’ may be interchangeable. But there are some subtle differences between various research terms that it can be helpful to know. Here are the distinctions between key terms you might hear, explained by Maze's Product Researcher, Matthieu Dixte:

• Market research: Discover who is leading the market, who your direct and indirect competitors are, and what similar products are available to your users at what price
• User research: Understand the user, including their needs, pain points, likes and dislikes, and characteristics—both as a consumer and user of your product
• User experience (UX) research : Learn how your user perceives and interacts with your product—where they click, which paths they follow, and where they search for information on-page
• Product discovery : Uncover what your users’ needs and problems are, validate ideas for potential solutions before development, and apply user insights to your product strategy
• Continuous product discovery : Adapt the mindset of an ever-evolving product and user; conduct research continuously throughout the product lifecycle and ensure all decisions are informed by user insights

For example, let’s say you’re thinking of developing and launching a note-taking app for teenagers. You’d need to conduct market research to see if there are any similar products in high demand to gauge if your tool is something customers want. In parallel, you should run user research to discover who your user persona would be and what their pain points are.

You also have to do product discovery to identify the best way to build and design your potential product to make it appealing for teens. And, if you want to know how your users will feel about your product compared to other options, you need product research .

Lastly, run UX research tests on your mobile and web app to gather feedback, and improve the experience. You should continue to talk with users regularly after launch by adopting a continuous product discovery mindset (and ensure you’re always updating and offering the right product).

Talk to more users without needing to grow your product team

Recruit and test users from Maze’s high-quality panel to get more eyes on your product, without increasing payroll.

Why is product research important?

Are we making the right assumptions? Is this product what users really need? Can they use it effectively?

Research answers all those questions. But product research goes a step further by placing those answers in the context of your niche and the market. It empowers your team—not only to create unbiased, user-centric products—but also to create best-selling products that are based on a robust business strategy and deep understanding of the market.

Product research will also help you:

Head in the right direction

Conducting types of product research like competitive analysis gives you inside information on what your users value in a similar product—and what they’re missing. It ensures you’re heading in the right direction by only working on aspects of your product you know will succeed. This helps you speed time-to-market, reduce the cost of fixing future mistakes, and achieve higher goals.

Product research allows you to “define the total addressable market and north star metric, based on the customer segments that found your idea and product valuable. We would fail at achieving product-market fit without doing customer research,” explains Prerna Kaul , Product Lead for Alexa AI at Amazon.

Make the right decisions at the right time

User data can inform your decisions and help you prioritize them according to the goals of the business. “Make choices regarding the evolution of your product and find the right balance between what you want to deliver to improve the user experience, and the benefits it’ll bring to your company,” advises Matthieu. Without product research, you’re building products in the dark with no idea whether your target audience will like or buy them—which could mean wasted resources and sinking revenue.

Get stakeholder buy-in

You’ve probably found yourself explaining multiple times to stakeholders why you need to prioritize one feature over another. Conducting product research enables you to “clearly articulate the customer value proposition to leadership, tech, and science counterparts,” says Prerna. Having quantitative and qualitative user insights provides reassurance to stakeholders and speeds up sign-off—while ensuring the wider organization is aligned on your product ideas.

In short, product research provides you evidence you need to start evangelizing research among your organization, and get the whole team on board.

Understand the position your users hold in the market

User research is about getting to know your target audience and building ideal customer profiles, but product research is about discovering where your potential customers are located in the market and which trending products to take note of. If your audience is already using a similar product, this means finding out: Which one? Why? Are they willing to switch to a different product? What would it take for you to get them to switch?

“Analyzing the market lets you determine which areas could be ripe for disruption or creation. By analyzing existing products and doing conceptual thinking you can build a picture of how you can get your product to gain traction in the market and offer something new, nuanced, or better than the current options,” says Nick Simpson , Head of UX at Airteam.

Challenge your assumptions and anticipate problems

When Prerna worked at Walmart Labs, her team introduced a feature for users to scan products in the Scan and Go app. “We initially believed that all of our inventory was available in a common database and accessible through the app. However, during research and user testing, we identified that some rare products were not in the online database,” she explains.

This caused test users to drop off the app, so her team had to take a step back and prioritize fixing inventory issues before launching the product. Without conducting product research, you can be left guessing at the cause of user problems, or wondering why they prefer a particular product. Research offers your team a chance to challenge what you think you know, and pre-empt what you don’t.

Product tip 💡

You can use Maze to conduct multiple tests on your product through development, such as Five-Second Tests or Content and Copy Testing , or get insights on your live product through Live Website Testing .

Product research methods

There are many different product research and UX research methods , all of which offer different kinds of data and insight, depending on your objectives. If you’re looking to conduct product research to better understand your users, market, or competitors, here are eight product research methods you should consider to help you build winning products.

1. Customer interviews

Interviews can take place at any take of the product development process and consist of direct conversations with current or potential customers. You may choose to conduct interviews with a market panel during concept testing and idea screening to validate your ideas, or you may want to speak to current users after the product goes live to gather post-launch feedback. Interviews are a varied and flexible product research method.

During customer interviews, you should ask open and unbiased research questions to gather insights about customer needs, preferences, and experiences regarding their pain points, your product, and competitors.

2. Voice of customer (VoC) analysis

Gauge what current and potential customers are saying about your products or competitor products online. You can do this using VoC tools , by reviewing what people post on social media, looking at Google Trends, or reading reviews on websites like G2.

You should conduct customer voice analysis continuously throughout the lifecycle as it can help you gain a competitive advantage. “Review what’s publicly published, check feature requests, and ask sales, customer success, or support teams for feedback coming from the user,” adds Matthieu.

For example, if a competitor gets acquired by a bigger firm and users start to complain about them removing a feature, you can use the opportunity to develop a similar functionality or improve the one you have. You can also make it more visible on-page and get the sales and marketing teams to use the information to advertise your product.

3. Diary studies

Diary studies involve users self-reporting behaviors, habits, and experiences over a period of time. This is often used during the discovery phase with a competitor product, or later down the line with a prototype. By observing how users feel prior to, during, and after using your (or a competitor) product—and their experience throughout—you can gather valuable, in-the-moment insights within a real life context.

You can conduct diary studies on paper, video, or online on a mobile app or a dedicated platform.

Data from diary research can turn into new product ideas, new features, or inform your current project. For instance, if you have a social media scheduling tool and you identify that users open a time zone calculator when they’re scheduling posts, you instantly have a new feature idea, to add a widget with different time zones.

Learn more about the types of diary study and how to conduct diary research here.

4. Competitive analysis

Analyze competitors' products and strategies to identify what works for them and identify any gaps in the market. The idea behind competitive product analysis is to explore your competitor’s products in-depth, sign up for an account, use them for a while, and take notes of top features, UX, and price points. You can run competitive analysis during the discovery, concept validation , or prototyping stages with direct and indirect competitors, or aspirational businesses.

Matthieu Dixte, Product Researcher at Maze, notes the value of competitive analysis is in understanding your users perspective: “We conduct a lot of competitive analysis at Maze because it's really important for us to understand if the market is mature regarding a particular topic—and to identify the current ground covered. This helps us understand the pros and cons our customers perceive when they choose between our product or another tool.”

Surveys can be a great way to get feedback or gather user sentiment relating to existing products or future concepts. You can also use them to dig deeper into the data gathered during other tests, and understand user issues and preferences in context.

For example, if you ran an A/B test and discovered that certain copy was causing potential users to churn, you could follow-up with a survey with targeted questions around their demographics, preferences, and personal views. This would help add qualitative insights to your quantitative data, and help understand what your users are looking for from your product.

Remember, you can create surveys at any stage of the product development to collect data from users in small or large volumes. You can use different types of surveys and survey principles to validate or debunk hypotheses, prioritize features, and identify your target market. For example, you could ask questions about your product, competitors, and prices or even your customer’s preferences and market trends.

Surveys can have a high drop-out rate, harming the validity of your data. Check out our survey design guide to discover the industry’s top secrets to an engaging survey which keeps users hooked.

6. Usability testing

Since conducting product research is also about understanding how well your customers navigate through your product and if they find it usable, you can run usability or prototype tests . Usability testing evaluates the usability of your product by asking test participants to complete tasks on your tool and seeing how they interact with it.

While typically conducted as a pre-launch check, usability testing is now widely understood as a building block of continuous research. Conducting regular usability tests is crucial to staying familiar with users, taking the pulse of your product, and ensuring every new product decision is informed with real data.

Conduct usability tests on a product research tool like Maze and record your participant’s audio, video, and screen with Clips . This offers you a mix of quantitative and qualitative data to learn why participants take certain actions to complete test tasks.

7. Fake door testing

The fake door testing method, also called the ‘painted door method’, is a way to validate whether your customers would be interested in a particular feature. “It works by faking a feature that is not actually available and implementing a tracker to know how many people click on it,” explains Matthieu.

When people click on the feature, they see a message explaining it’s not available at the moment. If the click-rate is high, you can assume there’s interest in the feature and conduct further research to identify how to design and develop it.

While it’s a quick way to gauge interest, fake door testing runs the risk of frustrating users, so if you’re using this method on a live product, you should be cautious and set a short testing period to avoid creating false expectations in your users.

8. Focus groups

Focus groups are when you gather a group of users to try your product and discuss their thoughts on the design, UX, usability, or price. You’ll offer them prompts or ask a series of user research questions to spark conversation, then observe and take notes.

This can be an expensive or admin-heavy method, as you need to rent a space, find participants who are willing to attend, and compensate them for their time. However, you can also conduct focus groups remotely through video conferencing tools. These groups are a good way of generating new product ideas or gaining deep insight in a short space of time, as you can hear directly from your users and adjust your questioning to follow up on important topics or opinions which participants mention.

When to perform product research

Source: 2023 Continuous Product Discovery Report

According to our 2023 Continuous Product Discovery Report , most teams conduct research at problem discovery (59%) and problem validation (57%), with only 36% researching post-launch.

The consensus is that product teams don’t think that’s enough—78% think they could research more often: which means there’s a big opportunity for you to implement regular research at all stages of the product research process .

Here’s when to conduct research on your product:

• At problem discovery stage to outline a hypothesis based on user insights
• During problem validation to prove your hypothesis
• During solution generation and concept development to see if you’re moving in the right direction
• As you’re screening different ideas for prioritization to identify the ones your users value most
• At solution definition and once you have your initial design to test early wireframes
• After developing a prototype to see assess usability and direction
• During validation and testing to review changes made to previous prototypes
• After development, and post-launch to get feedback and plan your future steps
• Before launching a new feature or doing product optimization to gauge users’ perceptions

Best practices for effective product research

If you only have time to consider one best practice for product research, we’ll keep it short. Just start.

Any research is better than none, and there’s a wealth of knowledge out there waiting to be discovered. If you don’t use it, your competitors will.

Now, here are six other best practices to help you improve your results and get the best insights possible:

1. Conduct research continuously

Your product is never done, at least not while the market, your customers, and technology are evolving. So, for your users to keep choosing you, you need to grow with them, adapt to trends, and keep iterating on your product. The right way to make product iterations is by conducting continuous product research, having frequent communication with your users, and actively listening to the market.

Did you know that user-centric organizations achieve 2.3x better business outcomes? 📊

By putting customers' needs front and center, research-mature organizations are driving better customer satisfaction (1.9x), customer retention (2.4), and increased revenue (4.2x). Learn more in our Research Maturity Report .

2. Focus on the business problem when presenting to stakeholders

It’s easy to get so involved in the product that you forget to mention how it helps the business when presenting research findings. To get stakeholders on board and to build great products that are profitable, always keep the business needs in mind. There’s no product without business success, so always align with your stakeholders and bring it back to team KPIs and business metrics. To convey your story, it’s a good rule of thumb to start each cross-team meeting by presenting the business problem, then sharing how adding a certain feature decision will help you solve it, before getting into the data that backs this up.

3. Embrace your curiosity

One of the biggest mistakes you can make in product research is letting cognitive biases take over the process. Work in teams and ask questions out of curiosity—consider research a way to disprove your hypothesis or challenge your assumptions, rather than a way to prove them right. As Prerna Kaul, Product Lead for Alexa AI at Amazon explains, you often gain more insight from an answer you don’t want to hear. “A huge trust-buster is when researchers sell an idea to customers and reinforce their pre-existing beliefs.” Doing so makes the user tell you what you want to hear but not what you need to know. It’s better to know that you have the wrong assumptions early on and build products that solve the right problem.

It’s non-negotiable to ensure that you are solving the right problem for the customer. Your solution is a painkiller, not a vitamin.

Prerna Kaul , Product Lead for Alexa AI at Amazon

4. Focus on the end goal rather than specific features

When you work closely with a product you’re passionate about, it’s only natural to think of all the possibilities, and minute details and features of the product. However, it’s crucial to understand that, while you might be the one making the internal decisions, the user will have the final call. Getting hung up on specific features will get you frustrated if users disagree, or lead you to make biased choices. To overcome this, you can write a research statement explaining the big problem you’re trying to achieve with the product. Come back to this before and after each decision, to keep your choices grounded in what’s best for the user.

“We always ask: Are we solving the right problem by creating this product? Is it going to have a measurable benefit to people?” says Nick Simpson, Head of UX at Airteam. “Then, we try to answer those questions through research methods to determine whether this investment will be worth it, to both business and users.” By thinking of the overall end goal at all stages, you get to build profitable products and features that really respond to that intention.

5. Take notes of everything

This one might go without saying, but it’s crucial to keep track of everything. Not just to inform future research and remind yourself where decisions came from, but to democratize research and bring the entire organization into your research process .

Set up a centralized research repository that anyone can access, and share it with your wider organization. Within the product team, keep a record of all user insights, even if they sound impossible to achieve at first. “These ‘futuristic’ thoughts or ideas are the ones that can either inform future iterations of the product or that you can creatively turn into something more feasible to design and build,” explains Nick. Keeping an organized information bank enables everyone on the team to get to know the user, the market, and why you’ve made certain decisions in the past.

6. Combine user feedback with data

While your users should be at the center of your business, don’t rely solely on their comments without checking other data. In reality, not everything people say is exactly what they do . Research participants can be influenced by any number of factors, mostly unconscious, so it’s important to use qualitative and quantitative data to reinforce each other.

For example, the users you interviewed might tell you they love a certain feature, but when you contrast those comments with heatmap data and time on page, you see that only a small percentage of your customers actually use it. Consider what research can be conducted to ascertain why this is, how you can improve those metrics, or whether it’s more helpful to refocus efforts on a different feature with a higher profit margin.

Keep learning about product research

In this chapter, we’ve covered a lot about product research:

• What product research is (and what it’s not)
• How researching your product is beneficial to your business
• The different methods you can use to conduct product research
• When to conduct product research
• Best practices for your research

Now, it’s time to kickstart your product research process in the next chapter. We’ll also talk about how to conduct product experiments and competitive analysis, so stay tuned.

Product research process

• Product management
• Product research

How product managers should do market research

Why do customers buy your product? The simple answer is they have a problem to solve. But a deeper explanation exists beyond the benefits and features of what you offer. You must understand who your customers are, what they really care about, and why they choose your product over another if you want to ensure long-term success.

This is something product managers know well. In fact, it is part of the job. Product managers are responsible for determining what target customers need and value to build a product they will love. This process is called product discovery . And it begins with research.

Market research involves gathering and analyzing information about the overall market environment, prospective customers, and competitors for your product or service. For product managers, this helps you formulate a nuanced worldview of the opportunities and threats that exist for your offering. Think of it like studying a habitat — you are exploring the elements that could affect your product's ability to thrive. Like any habitat, conditions can be variable. You will want to keep learning and observing as markets are constantly shifting (especially in the tech industry).

While research is a core product management task, the entire cross-functional product team needs to understand the market — each representative will zero in on different aspects to help your product succeed. This guide will give you an overview of what market research entails and how to get started conducting your own.

Vision, market research, user feedback — manage it all in Aha! Roadmaps. Try it free .

Why is market research important.

Understanding the market is an important part of crafting your product strategy — along with defining what you want to achieve and how you plan to get there . Market research brings external factors into consideration.

This is important because market research is critical to finding product-market fit . You need to deeply understand your market position, audience, and any alternative solutions if you want your product to succeed. This matters whether you are launching a new product, enhancing an existing offering, or entering a new market.

In other words — intuition alone is not enough. Even if you have a clear product vision and substantial industry experience, conducting regular market research often uncovers new and unexpected ways to improve your product. This can also improve your resilience as an organization.

Of course, there will always be external forces you cannot control. But if you have a deep understanding of the market environment and customer values, you will be in a better position to adapt to challenging situations.

Plus, market research enables all members of the core product team to make more informed decisions. The following are only a few examples of many, but market research helps:

Product management — Empathize with customers and understand their needs to better prioritize upcoming product work.

UX design — Make design choices that reflect how customers want to use modern products.

Engineering — Stay up-to-date with technologies used by competitors.

Product marketing — Update product positioning to resonate with what customers want to hear.

Related: How do product managers work with other teams?

What are the components of market research?

For product development purposes, you will want to explore three core components of market research — the overall market landscape, competitive analysis, and customer research.

Overall market landscape

Examining the market as a whole is a good place to start. Typically this piece of market research looks at macro-level industry characteristics and customer behavior. Below is a list of different factors to consider when researching the market landscape.

A PESTLE analysis — which stands for political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental — can be a helpful exercise to get your team thinking about the broader market and where your product will fit into it. Give it a try in Aha! software with this whiteboard template:

Start using this template now

Researching competitors involves looking at established players in the market and alternative solutions used by prospective customers. By assessing competitor strengths and weaknesses, you can learn how to differentiate your product.

Read more: A guide to competitive analysis

Customer research

Customer research drives product innovation by enabling you to glean insights directly from your target audience. This helps product teams build empathy for the problems customers want to solve. It can also reveal your customers' true feelings about your product.

Read more: A guide to customer research

How to do market research as a product manager

The market research process will vary in complexity depending on the scale and extent of your plans. Launching a brand new offering often calls for a comprehensive analysis of the entire market — in other scenarios, like enhancing established products, a lightweight look at the current competition could suffice. But in general there are four essential steps for conducting successful market research:

Define your objectives. In order to collect the right data, you must first establish what you are trying to learn. Clarify the focus of your market research by listing out the questions you have about a problem or opportunity, then distill this into a goal statement.

Plan and conduct research. Figuring out where to find the information you need. You can employ a mix of primary and secondary sources — primary includes interviews, surveys, and focus groups while secondary includes sources like industry publications, trade associations, and market reports.

Analyze and share the results. Once you have gathered your data, review it closely to uncover trends and other insights. Summarize your findings and make them accessible to your team. You might even create a presentation to showcase what you discovered.

Plan next steps. Market research should inform action. Use your newfound learnings to build customer personas , form a well-rounded product strategy, or prioritize product decisions that will deliver more value to the market.

Many product managers expedite their research and analysis by using pre-built templates. If you want to get started fast, download one of our customizable research templates or the SWOT analysis whiteboard template . This framework is helpful both for identifying what to research and organizing your findings for discussion after research is complete.

Start using this template now

Market research is not a one-time endeavor. It is something to continually invest in as conditions change and your product grows. But the insights you gain as a product manager should more than make up for the effort that conducting market research requires. When you are able to paint a full picture of the market, you will have more clarity on how your product fits into it.

FAQs about how to do market research

What does a market research analyst do?

A market research analyst gathers and analyzes data about market trends, consumer preferences, and competitive landscapes — helping businesses make informed decisions. This role is crucial for organizations looking to understand their target audience, assess demand for products or services, and develop effective marketing and business strategies.

How can product managers define their target market?

Product managers can define their target market through research, analysis, and a deep understanding of their potential customers. This entails conducting market research, creating customer personas, gathering direct and indirect feedback from prospective customers, and analyzing competitors.

What's the difference between primary and secondary research?

Primary research involves gathering new data directly from your target audience through surveys, interviews, or empathy sessions . Secondary research includes analyzing existing data collected from other sources such as reports, publications, or studies.

What questions should a product manager ask when conducting market research?

Understanding your market is core to deciding what you want to deliver and the value it will bring. Here are some essential questions to get you started:

What problems do potential customers face and how can your product help?

Who are the target customers and what do they need?

Who are your competitors and how can you stand out ?

What market trends and opportunities can you leverage?

What is the right price and value proposition for your product?

How can customers easily access and buy your product?

What might prevent customers from adopting your product, and how can you overcome those barriers?

How can you gather and use customer feedback for improvements?

• What is a business model?
• What is customer experience?
• What is the Complete Product Experience (CPE)?
• What is a customer journey map?
• What is product-led growth?
• What are the types of business transformation?
• What is enterprise transformation?
• What is digital transformation?
• What is the role of product management in enterprise transformation?
• What is a Minimum Viable Product (MVP)?
• What is a Minimum Lovable Product (MLP)?
• What is product vision?
• How to set product strategy
• What is product-market fit?
• What is product differentiation?
• How to position your product
• How to price your product
• What are product goals and initiatives?
• How to set product goals
• How to set product initiatives
• What is product value?
• What is value-based product development?
• Introduction to marketing strategy
• Introduction to marketing templates
• What is a marketing strategy?
• How to set marketing goals
• Marketing vs. advertising
• What is a creative brief?
• How to define buyer personas
• Understanding the buyer's journey
• What is competitive differentiation?
• 10Ps marketing matrix
• 2x2 prioritization matrix
• Business model
• Customer journey map
• Decision log
• Decision tree
• Fit gap analysis
• Gap analysis
• Lean canvas
• Marketing strategy
• Opportunity canvas
• Porter's 5 forces
• Pricing and packaging research
• Pricing plan chart
• Pricing strategies (Kotler)
• Product positioning
• Product vision
• Segment profile
• SMART goals
• Strategic roadmap
• Strategy mountain
• Value proposition
• VMOST analysis
• Working backwards
• Collections: Business model
• Collections: SWOT
• Collections: Objectives and key results (OKR)
• Collections: Product positioning
• Collections: Market positioning
• Collections: Marketing strategy
• Collections: Marketing messaging
• What is product discovery?
• How to define customer personas
• How to research competitors
• How to gather customer feedback
• Asking the right questions to drive innovation
• Approaches table
• Customer empathy map
• Customer interview

Customer research plan

• PESTLE analysis
• Problem framing
• Product comparison chart
• Pros and cons
• Target audience
• Collections: Customer research
• Collections: Competitor analysis
• Collections: Marketing competitor analysis
• How to brainstorm product ideas
• Brainstorming techniques for product builders
• Why product teams need an internal knowledge hub
• Why product teams need virtual whiteboarding software
• What is idea management?
• 4 steps for product ideation
• How to estimate the value of new product ideas
• How to prioritize product ideas
• What is idea management software?
• Introduction to marketing idea management
• How to gather marketing feedback from teammates
• Brainstorming new marketing ideas
• How to estimate the value of new marketing ideas
• Brainstorming meeting
• Brainstorming session
• Concept map
• Data flow diagram
• Fishbone diagram
• Ideas portal guide
• Jobs to be done
• Process flow diagram
• Proof of concept
• Sticky note pack
• User story map
• Workflow diagram
• Roadmapping: Your starter guide
• Business roadmap
• Features roadmap
• Innovation roadmap
• Marketing roadmap
• Product roadmap
• Product portfolio roadmap
• Project roadmap
• Strategy roadmap
• Technology roadmap
• How to choose a product roadmap tool
• What to include on your product roadmap
• How to visualize data on your product roadmap
• What milestones should be included on a roadmap?
• How often should roadmap planning happen?
• How to build a roadmap for a new product
• How to build an annual product roadmap
• How to build a brilliant roadmap
• How to customize the right roadmap for your audience
• How to build an agile roadmap
• Product roadmap examples
• How to report on progress against your roadmap
• How to communicate your product roadmap to customers
• What is a content marketing roadmap?
• What is a digital marketing roadmap?
• What is an integrated marketing roadmap?
• What is a go-to-market roadmap?
• What is a portfolio marketing roadmap?
• How to choose a marketing roadmap tool
• Epics roadmap
• Now, Next, Later roadmap
• Portfolio roadmap
• Release roadmap
• Collections: Product roadmap
• Collections: Product roadmap presentation
• Collections: Marketing roadmap
• What is product planning?
• How to diagram product use cases
• How product managers use Gantt charts
• How to use a digital whiteboard for product planning
• Introduction to release management
• How to plan product releases across teams
• What is a product backlog?
• Product backlog vs. release backlog vs. sprint backlog
• How to refine the product backlog
• Capacity planning for product managers
• What is requirements management?
• What is a market requirements document (MRD)?
• How to manage your product requirements document (PRD)
• What is a product feature?
• What is user story mapping?
• How to prioritize product features
• Common product prioritization frameworks
• JTBD prioritization framework
• Introduction to marketing plans
• What is a marketing plan?
• How to create a marketing plan
• What is a digital marketing plan?
• What is a content marketing plan?
• Why is content marketing important?
• What is a social media plan?
• How to create a marketing budget
• 2023 monthly calendar
• 2024 monthly calendar
• Feature requirement
• Kanban board
• Market requirements document
• Problem statement
• Product requirements document
• SAFe® Program board
• Stakeholder analysis
• Stakeholder map
• Timeline diagram
• Collections: Product development process
• Collections: MRD
• Collections: PRD
• Collections: Gantt chart
• Collections: User story
• Collections: User story mapping
• Collections: Feature definition checklist
• Collections: Feature prioritization templates
• Collections: Marketing plan templates
• Collections: Marketing calendar templates
• Product design basics
• What is user experience design?
• What is the role of a UX designer?
• What is the role of a UX manager?
• How to use a wireframe in product management
• Wireframe vs. mockup vs. prototype
• Analytics dashboard wireframe
• Product homepage wireframe
• Signup wireframe
• Collections: Creative brief
• Common product development methodologies
• Common agile development methodologies
• What is agile product management?
• What is agile software development?
• What is agile project management?
• What is the role of a software engineer?
• What is waterfall product management?
• What is agile transformation?
• Agile vs. lean
• Agile vs. waterfall
• What is an agile roadmap?
• What is an agile retrospective?
• Best practices of agile development teams
• What is a burndown chart?
• What is issue tracking?
• What is unit testing?
• Introduction to agile metrics
• Agile glossary
• What is kanban?
• How development teams implement kanban
• How is kanban used by product managers?
• How to set up a kanban board
• Kanban vs. scrum
• What is scrum?
• What are scrum roles?
• What is a scrum master?
• What is the role of a product manager in scrum?
• What is a sprint?
• What is a sprint planning meeting?
• What is a daily standup?
• What is a sprint review?
• Product release vs. sprint in scrum
• Themes, epics, stories, and tasks
• How to implement scrum
• How to choose a scrum certification
• What is the Scaled Agile Framework®?
• What is the role of a product manager in SAFe®?
• SAFe® PI planning
• SAFe® PI retrospective
• SAFe® Sprint planning
• Sprint planning
• Sprint retrospective
• Sprint retrospective meeting
• UML class diagram
• Collections: Sprint retrospective
• How to test your product before launch
• What is a go-to-market strategy?
• How to write excellent release notes
• How to plan a marketing launch
• Product launch plan
• Product updates
• Release notes
• Collections: Product launch checklist
• Collections: Marketing launch checklist
• How to make data-driven product decisions
• How to measure product value
• What is product analytics?
• What are product metrics?
• What is a product?
• What is product development?
• What is product management?
• What is the role of a product manager?
• What is portfolio product management?
• What is product operations?
• What are the stages of product development?
• What is the product lifecycle?
• What is a product management maturity model?
• What is product development software?
• How to create internal product documentation
• What to include in an internal product documentation hub
• Internal vs. external product documentation
• How to build a product knowledge base
• Introduction to marketing methods
• What is agile marketing?
• What is digital marketing?
• What is product marketing?
• What is social media marketing?
• What is B2B marketing?
• Collections: Product management
• How to structure your product team meeting
• 15 tips for running effective product team meetings
• Daily standup meeting
• Meeting agenda
• Meeting notes
• Product backlog refinement meeting
• Product feature kickoff meeting
• Product operations meeting
• Product strategy meeting
• Sprint planning meeting
• What are the types of product managers?
• 10 skills to succeed as a product manager
• Common product management job titles
• What does a product manager do each day?
• What is the role of a product operations manager?
• How to become a product manager
• How to prepare for a product manager interview
• Interview questions for product managers
• Typical salary for product managers
• Tips for new product managers
• How to choose a product management certification
• Introduction to marketing
• What are some marketing job titles?
• What is the role of a marketing manager?
• What is the role of a product marketing manager?
• How are marketing teams organized?
• Which tools do marketers use?
• Interview questions for marketing managers
• Typical salary for marketing managers
• How to make a career switch into marketing
• Job interview
• Negotiating an offer
• Product manager resume
• Collections: Product manager resume
• How to structure your product development team
• Best practices for managing a product development team
• Which tools do product managers use?
• How to streamline your product management tools
• Tips for effective collaboration between product managers and engineers
• How do product managers work with other teams?
• How product managers achieve stakeholder alignment
• Creative brief
• Marketing calendar
• Organizational chart
• Presentation slides
• Process improvement
• Collections: Product management meeting
• Collections: Diagrams, flowcharts for product teams
• Collections: Whiteboarding
• Collections: Templates to run product meetings
• Product development definitions
• Marketing definitions

Popular templates

See how your product stacks up against competitors.

Clarify research goals and select your methods.

Personas template

Distill the most impactful attributes and behaviors of your users.

• Privacy policy
• Terms of service
• Search Search Please fill out this field.
• How It Works
• Primary vs. Secondary
• How to Conduct Research

The Bottom Line

• Marketing Essentials

How to Do Market Research, Types, and Example

Joules Garcia / Investopedia

Market research examines consumer behavior and trends in the economy to help a business develop and fine-tune its business idea and strategy. It helps a business understand its target market by gathering and analyzing data.

Market research is the process of evaluating the viability of a new service or product through research conducted directly with potential customers. It allows a company to define its target market and get opinions and other feedback from consumers about their interest in a product or service.

Research may be conducted in-house or by a third party that specializes in market research. It can be done through surveys and focus groups, among other ways. Test subjects are usually compensated with product samples or a small stipend for their time.

Key Takeaways

• Companies conduct market research before introducing new products to determine their appeal to potential customers.
• Tools include focus groups, telephone interviews, and questionnaires.
• The results of market research inform the final design of the product and determine how it will be positioned in the marketplace.
• Market research usually combines primary information, gathered directly from consumers, and secondary information, which is data available from external sources.

Market Research

How market research works.

Market research is used to determine the viability of a new product or service. The results may be used to revise the product design and fine-tune the strategy for introducing it to the public. This can include information gathered for the purpose of determining market segmentation . It also informs product differentiation , which is used to tailor advertising.

A business engages in various tasks to complete the market research process. It gathers information based on the market sector being targeted by the product. This information is then analyzed and relevant data points are interpreted to draw conclusions about how the product may be optimally designed and marketed to the market segment for which it is intended.

It is a critical component in the research and development (R&D) phase of a new product or service introduction. Market research can be conducted in many different ways, including surveys, product testing, interviews, and focus groups.

Market research is a critical tool that companies use to understand what consumers want, develop products that those consumers will use, and maintain a competitive advantage over other companies in their industry.

Primary Market Research vs. Secondary Market Research

Market research usually consists of a combination of:

• Primary research, gathered by the company or by an outside company that it hires
• Secondary research, which draws on external sources of data

Primary research generally falls into two categories: exploratory and specific research.

• Exploratory research is less structured and functions via open-ended questions. The questions may be posed in a focus group setting, telephone interviews, or questionnaires. It results in questions or issues that the company needs to address about a product that it has under development.
• Specific research delves more deeply into the problems or issues identified in exploratory research.

All market research is informed by the findings of other researchers about the needs and wants of consumers. Today, much of this research can be found online.

Secondary research can include population information from government census data , trade association research reports , polling results, and research from other businesses operating in the same market sector.

History of Market Research

Formal market research began in Germany during the 1920s. In the United States, it soon took off with the advent of the Golden Age of Radio.

Companies that created advertisements for this new entertainment medium began to look at the demographics of the audiences who listened to each of the radio plays, music programs, and comedy skits that were presented.

They had once tried to reach the widest possible audience by placing their messages on billboards or in the most popular magazines. With radio programming, they had the chance to target rural or urban consumers, teenagers or families, and judge the results by the sales numbers that followed.

Types of Market Research

Face-to-face interviews.

From their earliest days, market research companies would interview people on the street about the newspapers and magazines that they read regularly and ask whether they recalled any of the ads or brands that were published in them. Data collected from these interviews were compared to the circulation of the publication to determine the effectiveness of those ads.

Market research and surveys were adapted from these early techniques.

To get a strong understanding of your market, it’s essential to understand demand, market size, economic indicators, location, market saturation, and pricing.

A focus group is a small number of representative consumers chosen to try a product or watch an advertisement.

Afterward, the group is asked for feedback on their perceptions of the product, the company’s brand, or competing products. The company then takes that information and makes decisions about what to do with the product or service, whether that's releasing it, making changes, or abandoning it altogether.

Phone Research

The man-on-the-street interview technique soon gave way to the telephone interview. A telephone interviewer could collect information in a more efficient and cost-effective fashion.

Telephone research was a preferred tactic of market researchers for many years. It has become much more difficult in recent years as landline phone service dwindles and is replaced by less accessible mobile phones.

Survey Research

As an alternative to focus groups, surveys represent a cost-effective way to determine consumer attitudes without having to interview anyone in person. Consumers are sent surveys in the mail, usually with a coupon or voucher to incentivize participation. These surveys help determine how consumers feel about the product, brand, and price point.

Online Market Research

With people spending more time online, market research activities have shifted online as well. Data collection still uses a survey-style form. But instead of companies actively seeking participants by finding them on the street or cold calling them on the phone, people can choose to sign up, take surveys, and offer opinions when they have time.

This makes the process far less intrusive and less rushed, since people can participate on their own time and of their own volition.

How to Conduct Market Research

The first step to effective market research is to determine the goals of the study. Each study should seek to answer a clear, well-defined problem. For example, a company might seek to identify consumer preferences, brand recognition, or the comparative effectiveness of different types of ad campaigns.

After that, the next step is to determine who will be included in the research. Market research is an expensive process, and a company cannot waste resources collecting unnecessary data. The firm should decide in advance which types of consumers will be included in the research, and how the data will be collected. They should also account for the probability of statistical errors or sampling bias .

The next step is to collect the data and analyze the results. If the two previous steps have been completed accurately, this should be straightforward. The researchers will collect the results of their study, keeping track of the ages, gender, and other relevant data of each respondent. This is then analyzed in a marketing report that explains the results of their research.

The last step is for company executives to use their market research to make business decisions. Depending on the results of their research, they may choose to target a different group of consumers, or they may change their price point or some product features.

The results of these changes may eventually be measured in further market research, and the process will begin all over again.

Benefits of Market Research

Market research is essential for developing brand loyalty and customer satisfaction. Since it is unlikely for a product to appeal equally to every consumer, a strong market research program can help identify the key demographics and market segments that are most likely to use a given product.

Market research is also important for developing a company’s advertising efforts. For example, if a company’s market research determines that its consumers are more likely to use Facebook than X (formerly Twitter), it can then target its advertisements to one platform instead of another. Or, if they determine that their target market is value-sensitive rather than price-sensitive, they can work on improving the product rather than reducing their prices.

Market research only works when subjects are honest and open to participating.

Example of Market Research

Many companies use market research to test new products or get information from consumers about what kinds of products or services they need and don’t currently have.

For example, a company that’s considering starting a business might conduct market research to test the viability of its product or service. If the market research confirms consumer interest, the business can proceed confidently with its business plan . If not, the company can use the results of the market research to make adjustments to the product to bring it in line with customer desires.

What Are the Main Types of Market Research?

The main types of market research are primary research and secondary research. Primary research includes focus groups, polls, and surveys. Secondary research includes academic articles, infographics, and white papers.

Qualitative research gives insights into how customers feel and think. Quantitative research uses data and statistics such as website views, social media engagement, and subscriber numbers.

What Is Online Market Research?

Online market research uses the same strategies and techniques as traditional primary and secondary market research, but it is conducted on the Internet. Potential customers may be asked to participate in a survey or give feedback on a product. The responses may help the researchers create a profile of the likely customer for a new product.

What Are Paid Market Research Surveys?

Paid market research involves rewarding individuals who agree to participate in a study. They may be offered a small payment for their time or a discount coupon in return for filling out a questionnaire or participating in a focus group.

What Is a Market Study?

A market study is an analysis of consumer demand for a product or service. It looks at all of the factors that influence demand for a product or service. These include the product’s price, location, competition, and substitutes as well as general economic factors that could influence the new product’s adoption, for better or worse.

Market research is a key component of a company’s research and development (R&D) stage. It helps companies understand in advance the viability of a new product that they have in development and to see how it might perform in the real world.

Britannica Money. “ Market Research .”

U.S. Small Business Administration. “ Market Research and Competitive Analysis .”

• How to Start a Business: A Comprehensive Guide and Essential Steps 1 of 25
• How to Do Market Research, Types, and Example 2 of 25
• Marketing Strategy: What It Is, How It Works, and How to Create One 3 of 25
• Marketing in Business: Strategies and Types Explained 4 of 25
• What Is a Marketing Plan? Types and How to Write One 5 of 25
• Business Development: Definition, Strategies, Steps & Skills 6 of 25
• Business Plan: What It Is, What's Included, and How to Write One 7 of 25
• Small Business Development Center (SBDC): Meaning, Types, Impact 8 of 25
• How to Write a Business Plan for a Loan 9 of 25
• Business Startup Costs: It’s in the Details 10 of 25
• Startup Capital Definition, Types, and Risks 11 of 25
• Bootstrapping Definition, Strategies, and Pros/Cons 12 of 25
• Crowdfunding: What It Is, How It Works, and Popular Websites 13 of 25
• Starting a Business with No Money: How to Begin 14 of 25
• A Comprehensive Guide to Establishing Business Credit 15 of 25
• Equity Financing: What It Is, How It Works, Pros and Cons 16 of 25
• Best Startup Business Loans 17 of 25
• Sole Proprietorship: What It Is, Pros and Cons, and Differences From an LLC 18 of 25
• Partnership: Definition, How It Works, Taxation, and Types 19 of 25
• What Is an LLC? Limited Liability Company Structure and Benefits Defined 20 of 25
• Corporation: What It Is and How to Form One 21 of 25
• Starting a Small Business: Your Complete How-to Guide 22 of 25
• Starting an Online Business: A Step-by-Step Guide 23 of 25
• How to Start Your Own Bookkeeping Business: Essential Tips 24 of 25
• How to Start a Successful Dropshipping Business: A Comprehensive Guide 25 of 25

• Terms of Service
• Editorial Policy
• Privacy Policy
• Your Privacy Choices

Industries Overview

Latest articles, gen zers fixate on wealth because of social media, but need banks’ help to know where they stand, meta, alphabet acquisitions on the decline as antitrust scrutiny ramps up, the digital ad industry’s overreliance on cookies could create a crisis, how marketers can prepare for ai’s impact on creative work, digital retailers want to use ai to get hyperpersonal in 2024, why beyond is bringing retail brands back from the dead, disney+ and hulu ctv ad inventory will be available via google and the trade desk, social shopping, gen z dualities, and creators on the big screen: 3 shoptalk takeaways, pets, membership perks, and smaller-format stores: three predictions for how walmart can continue to expand, shein and amazon are trying to stay one step ahead of the competition, about emarketer, guide to influencer marketing: trends, tactics, and kpis.

What marketers need to know about its growth and stability

Powerful data and analysis on nearly every digital topic

Want more research .

Sign up for the EMARKETER Daily Newsletter

For many, being a social media influencer has transformed from a side gig into a multimillion dollar business. Creators now have more say in the sponsored content they create for brands as well as the earnings they receive. And as creators continue to prove themselves as influential brand advocates, marketers are tapping these influencers for content beyond social feeds, including TV, out-of-home, and other digital media.  

Influencers have also proven resilient amid economic uncertainty and an increasingly crowded space. Influencer marketing spend rose roughly 3.5 times faster in 2023 than social ad spending, according to EMARKETER’s July 2023 forecast. 

In this guide, we explore the current state of influencer marketing, and why marketers, social platforms, and media companies should adjust their strategies as the power of the creator economy grows. 

• Want to learn more about influencer marketing and other marketing trends?  Sign up for the EMARKETER Daily newsletter.

What is the creator economy?

The creator economy , also called the influencer economy, is the interconnected ecosystem of creators, audiences, digital platforms, marketers, and agencies and/or vendors. The creator economy, as defined by EMARKETER’s Creator Economy Explainer report , enables creators to generate revenues in the form of money, goods, or services through their content, usually delivered via social media platforms. Meanwhile, marketers can partner with creators to build awareness for their brands.

Because interaction among stakeholders is constantly evolving, revenue data is sparse. A March 2023 estimate from Citigroup values the creator economy at $65.2 billion in 2023. By 2024, that figure is expected to reach $74.0 billion. 

What is influencer marketing?

Influencer marketing involves a celebrity, content creator, subject matter expert, or public figure endorsing a brand’s product or service to drive social proof. 

The market is rapidly expanding as influencer types have increased, with influencers filling every conceivable niche and sub-niche interest. 

Here are the types of influencers, based on follower count and focuses:

• Mega-influencers: Often celebrity influencers, those accounts with more than 1 million followers 
• Macro-influencers: Influencers with a follower count of 100,000 to 999,999
• Mid-tier influencers: Influencers with a follower count of 20,000 to 99,999
• Micro-influencers: Followers ranging between 5,000 to 19,999 
• Nano-influencers: A community of 1,000 to 4,999 followers 
• Kidfluencers: Gen Alphas with social followings that often review toys and games 
• Gaming influencers: Esport and video game players who discuss game strategy and livestream while in-game 
• Virtual influencers: Computer-generated avatars like Noonoouri, a fashion model and digital-only popstar 

The pandemic sped up changes in influencer marketing that were already underway, such as the trend toward “unfiltered” or less-scripted content, the rise of TikTok, and the popularity of “everyday influencers” with genuine and relatable personalities like Elyse Myers. 

Industries like financial services that hadn’t invested in influencer marketing earlier are also learning to navigate the space. And as ecommerce and social media converge, influencers will become increasingly vital intermediaries, helping to connect brands with consumers on social media. 

Creators vs. influencers: What’s the difference? 

Creators create content. Influencers are creators if the content they develop can sway the purchase decisions of a population regardless of whether they are being paid to promote a product. The term refers to a wide group of people from celebrities to loyal customers. Creators are influencers if their content affects purchase decisions. 

Who is a creator? 

Everyone has the potential to be a content creator thanks to how the term is defined. Adobe estimates there could be up to 303 million creators worldwide. For context, that figure is close to the US population at the start of 2023, per the US Census Bureau. 

Most content creators worldwide are under 41, but there are creators of all ages, including Gen Xers and baby boomers, per Adobe. 

Creators over 60 years old, dubbed “granfluencers,” have found popularity on social media due to their cross-generational appeal. 

For example, Nonna Pia, a TikTok account with 4 million followers, features a grandmother who cooks classic Italian dishes while her grandson narrates. Similarly, the Instagram account “Excuse My Grandma” follows a grandmother-granddaughter duo as they discuss generational differences in dating, fashion, and more. 

Creator categories

Although there is an account for every interest and target audience—from foraging to chiropractic medicine—lifestyle, fashion, and beauty are among the top creator categories.

While broad, these top categories overlap with many other industries, including travel, health, entertainment, food and drink, and art. Cross-category appeal is ideal for brand marketers looking to expand their reach to find like-minded audience demographics. 

Areas that have seen recent growth in creator focus include:

Collegiate sports

A 2021 NCAA policy change allows college athletes to be compensated for their name, image, and likeness. College athletes already command large audiences and regularly create content on social media, per August 2022 data from Curastory.  

B2B professionals 

Industry professionals are increasingly building audiences by sharing B2B content online. For example, a “ LinkedInfluencer ” is an influencer on B2B social platform LinkedIn. 

Nearly 1 in 4 people in the US are on LinkedIn, according to EMARKETER’s May 2023 forecast, as both the creator economy and B2B ad spending grow. As buyers get younger and B2B marketing becomes increasingly digital, authenticity and experience will matter more in marketing. 

Financial services

In the financial sector, “ finfluencers ” use their social media platform to share videos that cover personal experiences, tips, and advice about investing, budgeting, financial trends, and the economy. 

Finfluencers are capitalizing on a widespread lack of financial literacy. However, the quality of the content is controversial because some creators do not have a professional background in finance. Despite concerns, 60% of investors ages 18 to 35 use social media as a source of investment information, according to a Finra Investor Education Foundation report.  

The generational response 

Younger shoppers are more likely to use social media . About 129.5 million US Gen Zers and millennials will use social media in 2024, per a May 2023 EMARKETER forecast. 

Younger shoppers are also more likely to follow and buy from accounts run by influencers. A Q2 2022 Klarna survey found that over 40% of Gen Zers and millennials worldwide follow influencers , compared with one-quarter of Gen Xers and less than 10% of baby boomers. 

Millennials

Often considered a millennial concept, influencer culture is embraced by this extremely active social media user base. Close to 70 million US millennials will use social media next year, per EMARKETER’s May 2023 forecast. 

Millennials look to trusted influencers for product recommendations, reviews, and as a discovery point for new brands. 

They’re also willing to purchase what they see being promoted by their favorite influencers on social media. Over half (54.1%) of US social network users ages 25 to 34 will make a purchase on a social platform in 2024, per September 2023 EMARKETER data. 

In 2024, 60.7 million US Gen Zers will use social media, according to EMARKETER’s May 2023 forecast. And while that growth is expected to continue through 2027, Gen Z will remain slightly behind millennial users.  

Gen Zers, however, are not as sold on following influencers as their older peers. Less than half (48.6%) use social media to view creator/influencer content, according to a July 2023 EMARKETER survey’s findings. 

Where influencers do have an outsize influence over Gen Z is women’s beauty and wellness. Close to 80% of Gen Z women rank creators as their most trusted source for beauty recommendations, a survey conducted by LTK found. 

Those recommendations are also turning into online and offline sales. Eighty-three percent of Gen Z women shop for creators’ product suggestions online, and 82% shop for those items in-store.  

Influencing by “de-influencing” 

While the majority of influencers promote what to buy, some influencers are turning to platforms like TikTok to tell their followers what not to buy. As of January 2024, #deinfluencing videos on TikTok have roughly 1.3 billion views, up considerably from 208 million in February 2023. 

Seen as a method to combat overconsumption in a tight economy, deinfluencing videos often offer economical alternatives to expensive products or discuss the pitfalls of fast-fashion shopping hauls. 

Creators also use de-influencing videos to share critical commentary to distance themselves from brand controversies and post honest reviews of products that don’t meet expectations. Doing so can help reinforce creator trust through authenticity and transparency. 

Influencer marketing spend 

In 2024, advertisers will spend $5.89 billion on influencer marketing, a 14.7% increase YoY, according to EMARKETER’s July 2023 forecast, which excludes paid media. 

US influencer marketing spend grew more than three times faster than social ad spending in 2023, and it will remain ahead through 2025, according to a July 2023 EMARKETER forecast. 

Social platforms are reliant on creators, not the other way around, as creators’ options extend and include owned channels like blogs, podcasts, and newsletters.

A number of well-known creators, such as YouTuber MrBeast and podcaster Alex Cooper, have launched their own audio and video networks.

Although not every creator has a strong enough brand or following to create a successful media business , the growing success of these ventures should signal to brand marketers and entertainment companies that creators can offer much more than an outlet to generate hype or hawk goods. 

Where influencers post sponsored content

Creators utilize a number of social media platforms. 

To be impactful, influencer content should be engaging, entertaining, and educational, and marketers should work with credible creators who have built trust with their communities. 

US marketers will allocate over $1 billion to sponsored content on each of the top four influencer marketing platforms in 2024, according to EMARKETER’s July 2023 forecast. When it comes to influencer monetization , Instagram posts were the top format that creators worldwide were paid by brands to create in December 2022, per a Later and Mavrck December 2022 survey. Here’s a look at the top social media marketing platforms for influencers.

Instagram remains the top platform for sponsored content, per a June 2023 report from Mavrck. About 98% of US creators share brand content via Instagram feed posts, Instagram Stories, and Instagram Reels, while 69.1% go live on the platform. 

As of June 2023, more creators worldwide report being paid to create Reels (98.0%) compared with TikTok videos (89.6%). 

Creator monetization: In May 2023, Meta began testing a new payout model for Ads on Reels. The monetization program pays creators based on the performance of the Reel, rather than the earnings of the Reel ad, per TechCrunch. 

As TikTok’s popularity rises, brand opportunities for paid content is likely to increase as well. 

Influencer marketing spending growth on TikTok has grown 27.8%, compared with 12.7% on Instagram, according to EMARKETER’s July 2023 forecast.

In 2024, over half of marketers (54.0%) will use TikTok specifically for influencer marketing, with $1.25 billion in US influencer marketing spend going to the platform, per the same EMARKETER forecast.

Creator monetization: If an influencer promotes a brand’s product on TikTok Shop, the social app’s ecommerce tool, they can earn a commission through product sales. For both brands and influencers, TikTok Shop holds a lot of promise and room for growth. In 2024, we expect 40.7 million TikTok users to make a purchase on the app. 

YouTube, like Instagram and TikTok, has a solid hold on influencer marketing. YouTube is the top platform for US adults to follow influencers, according to March 2023 CivicScience data. 

EMARKETER forecasts that in 2024, US marketers will spend $1.07 billion on influencer content for YouTube. 

Similar to Instagram Reels, YouTube has been emphasizing Shorts as a cost-effective option for marketers.

Livestreaming is also leveraged by YouTube to connect influencers—and, ultimately, the brands they partner with—to followers. One-fourth (25.0%) of internet users say they watch creator- or influencer-led livestreams on YouTube, making it the most popular livestreaming app, ahead of TikTok (18.7%), Facebook (17.4%), and Instagram (14.0%), per an April 2023 survey by The Influencer Marketing Factory. 

Creator monetization: YouTube attracts and retains creators in a number of ways. The platform offers a way to connect creator, artist, and brand stores to their YouTube channel, enabling users to more easily find and purchase featured products. YouTube also has affiliate shopping capabilities for creators interested in revenue opportunities. 

Other platforms with influencer marketing potential include Facebook, Twitch, and to a lesser extent, Snapchat and X, the social media company formerly known as Twitter. 

Despite its waning popularity among users, especially youths, Facebook is still expected to see $1.00 billion in influencer marketing spending next year, per an EMARKETER forecast. 

Popular with the esports gaming community, livestreaming app Twitch recently launched a number of features for creators. In July 2023, Twitch announced its Discovery Feed, made up of livestream clips and ad features that help creators share their content from other platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, and Reddit. 

Snap has struggled with ad monetization and commands a fraction of influencer marketing spend compared with larger platforms. In 2023, Snap crossed $40 million in influencer marketing spending, and is expected to see growth of 3.4% in 2024.  

In October 2023, Snap released Creator Collab Campaigns, a suite of tools to facilitate brand-creator partnerships on the platform. Previously, Snap’s primary focus was helping creators monetize directly on the platform through programs like ad revenue sharing. 

X (formerly Twitter)

X saw total US ad revenues decline by 54.9% in 2023 after Elon Musk’s 2022 purchase, according to EMARKETER’s October 2023 forecast, which means it is not an attractive platform for influencer marketing. 

The aforementioned June 2023 Mavrck survey found that 45.9% of US creators shared promoted tweets, while a December 2022 Later and Mavrck survey found that 8.3% of creators worldwide have been paid by a brand to post on X. 

Influencer marketing strategy

An influencer marketing strategy allows a brand to further its reach and tap new audiences, but narrowing down the right creator to work with requires an understanding of the landscape and what type of partnership will best serve the brand’s objectives.  

Influencer marketing hubs: As influencer marketing took off, agencies dedicated to influencers sprang up to help brands manage the opportunity and vice versa. 

Acting as a directory, influencer marketing hubs organize creator profiles by follower count per social platform, audience demographics, location, services offered, the price of partnership, and their interests (e.g., fashion, travel, home improvement, etc.), to take the guesswork out of selecting an influencer to partner with.  

In addition to facilitating brand-creator relationships and identifying new talent, influencer hubs create campaign narratives, determine KPIs, and amplify influencer-led social campaigns, among other responsibilities. 

For creators, working with an influencer marketing agency can be beneficial to scale and manage their own business. As influencer campaigns become more complex, an agency can manage payment, negotiate contracts, handle data analytics and reporting, and oversee other business functions.

Influencer marketing campaigns: An influencer marketing campaign is one that leverages the influence the creator has over their followers. 

When in a paid partnership with a brand, the influencer campaign’s objective is to increase awareness, engagement, and, ultimately, sales. In comparison, an unsponsored campaign, while achieving the same objectives to various degrees, can be seen as more trustworthy and authentic by the influencer’s community.  

Influencer campaigns fall into two categories: 

• User-generated content (UGC) is organic content shared by a social media influencer to promote a brand or product without direct input from the featured brand. The influencer is not paid for UGC posts, and is often not as polished as content created with brand involvement. UGC posts range from product reviews, recommendations, tutorials, and personal experiences with a given good or service.
• Influencer-generated content is a collaboration between a creator and partner brand. These campaigns follow a brand’s creative guidelines—including tone of voice, talking points, aesthetics, and frequency of posts—to produce content fitting for that creator’s audience. As more influencers become trusted partners, brands have loosened the reins, allowing talent to tap into their own creativity for campaigns. Like UGC, influencer-led campaigns are more authentic and engaging, and may prove more effective for the brand involved. 

Influencer posts: When paid for by a brand partner, an influencer post is a type of native advertising. When unpaid with no brand involvement, the post is considered UGC. 

Most commonly seen on social media platforms, formats include Instagram photos with captions, short-form videos on TikTok, and long-form video content posted to YouTube. Influencers can also post written content on blogging platforms like Substack. Influencers will often promote their posts across various platforms to increase reach, engagement, and effectiveness. 

While format is an important aspect of influencer marketing, the post’s creative should be at the forefront. According to EMARKETER’s Influencer Monetization 2023 report, the “three E’s” of influencer marketing should be remembered when creating posts. 

“Regardless of the format, each piece of content should be engaging, entertaining, and educational to drive the most impact,” according to EMARKETER analyst Jasmine Enberg. Brands should also trust creators’ input on creative and format decisions because they know what will resonate best with their audience, Enberg continued.   

Product launches: Influencers are an ideal way for a brand to launch new products. 

When introducing a new product, brands can expand their reach by working with influencers with a similar following as the brand’s target audience. A kitchenware brand, for instance, may work with a popular food influencer to introduce a new range of pots to show off the products, its attributes, and how to buy. 

As influencers become brands in their own right, many have launched their own product lines.

Thanks to an engaged and well-known audience, some influencers are able to develop products that align with the interests of the community they’ve built across their social media footprint. 

For example, beauty vlogger and influencer Huda Kattan launched her own line of false eyelashes in 2013 after her community expressed an interest. Kattan then expanded the line into a full range of cosmetics. Huda Beauty, named after Kattan’s YouTube channel and blog, is now sold D2C and at Sephora. 

Creators with large followings have launched food and beverage products, fitness programs, clothing lines, restaurants, and more to capitalize on their popularity and the value and willingness of their followers to support their businesses. Venturing into their own products also helps creators diversify their revenues and avoid alienating their audiences with too much sponsored content. 

Collaboration: Similar to leveraging an influencer’s help to launch a new product, brands also partner with their stable of creators for product collaborations. 

Often developed as a one-off or limited-edition product, brand-influencer collaborations can be a great source of product innovation. 

In March 2023, Chipotle added two new limited-edition menu items to its quesadilla lineup, the “Keithadilla” and the “Fajita Quesadilla Hack,” which were developed and popularized by TikTok creators Keith Lee and Aleix Frost. 

For some influencers, a brand collaboration may be a jumping-off point to developing their own product lines if the collaborative effort was deemed successful. 

Common influencer marketing KPIs

These metrics are a good way for brands to measure their return on investment for influencer marketing campaigns: 

• Facebook engagement rates (subscribers only): Engagement rate is defined as measurable interactions on social media posts, including likes, comments, favorites, retweets, shares, replies, and reactions, and is calculated based on all these interactions divided by total follower count.  
• Facebook posts per week  
• Instagram affiliate engagement rate : The percentage of an affiliate influencer’s audience that interacts with an affiliate influencer’s campaign or post on Instagram; this includes likes, comments, and shares.
• Instagram affiliate impression per follower rate : The number of affiliate-generated views that a specific post or piece of content received over a specific period of time on Instagram. 
• Instagram affiliate reach : The percentage of followers and viewers from an affiliate influencer’s audience that is exposed to the affiliate influencer’s Instagram. 
• Instagram affiliate view rate : The percentage of an affiliate influencer’s audience that views an affiliate influencers’ campaign or post on Instagram. 
• Instagram engagement rates : Engagement rate is defined as measurable interactions on social media posts, including likes, comments, favorites, retweets, shares, replies, and reactions, and is calculated based on all these interactions divided by total follower count.
• Instagram posts per week
• Social affiliate clicks : The clicks generated by social influencer efforts, including generating traffic or leads (through affiliate links) to the company’s website.
• Social affiliate conversion rate : The percentage of clicks generated by social influencer efforts, including generating traffic or leads (through affiliate links) to the company’s website that also result in completed orders or purchases.
• Social affiliate engagement rate : The percentage of an affiliate influencer’s audience that interacts with an affiliate influencer’s campaign or post on a social media platform; this includes likes, comments, and shares.
• Social affiliate orders : The orders generated by social influencer efforts, including generating traffic or leads (through affiliate links) to the company’s website.
• Social affiliate sales : The sales or revenues generated by social influencer efforts, including generating traffic or leads (through affiliate links) to the company’s website.
• Social affiliate view rate : The percentage of an affiliate influencer’s audience that views an affiliate influencer’s campaign or post on a social media platform.
• TikTok affiliate engagement rate : The percentage of an affiliate influencer’s audience that interacts with an affiliate influencer’s campaign or post on TikTok; this includes likes, comments, and shares.
• TikTok affiliate view rate : The percentage of an affiliate influencer’s audience that views an affiliate influencer’s campaign or post on TikTok.
• X (formerly Twitter) tweets per week

Want more marketing insights?

Sign up for EMARKETER Daily, our free newsletter.

By clicking “Sign Up”, you agree to receive emails from EMARKETER (e.g. FYIs, partner content, webinars, and other offers) and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . You can opt-out at any time.

Thank you for signing up for our newsletter!

Editor's Picks

Guide to ad agencies and holding companies: What they are and how they support marketing and advertising

Guide to Gen Z: What matters to this generation and what it means for marketers

Guide to Netflix for marketers and advertisers

Industries →, advertising & marketing.

• Social Media
• Content Marketing
• Email Marketing
• Browse All →
• Value-Based Care
• Digital Therapeutics
• Online Pharmacy

Ecommerce & Retail

• Ecommerce Sales
• Retail Sales
• Social Commerce
• Connected Devices
• Artificial Intelligence (AI)
• Wealth Management

More Industries

• Real Estate
• Customer Experience
• Small Business (SMB)

Geographies

• Asia-Pacific
• Central & Eastern Europe
• Latin America
• Middle East & Africa
• North America
• Western Europe
• Data Partnerships

Media Services

• Advertising & Sponsorship Opportunities

Free Content

• Newsletters

Contact Us →

Worldwide hq.

One Liberty Plaza 9th Floor New York, NY 10006 1-800-405-0844

Sales Inquiries

1-800-405-0844 [email protected]

Follow Polygon online:

• Follow Polygon on Facebook
• Follow Polygon on Youtube
• Follow Polygon on Instagram

Site search

• What to Watch
• What to Play
• PlayStation
• All Entertainment
• Modern Warfare 3
• FF7 Rebirth
• Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Buyer’s Guides
• Galaxy Brains
• All Podcasts

Filed under:

• Genshin Impact guides

Potion event recipes and market news list for Genshin Impact

How to make the best potions for the ‘Alchemical Ascension’ event

Share this story

• Share this on Facebook
• Share this on Reddit
• Share All sharing options

Share All sharing options for: Potion event recipes and market news list for Genshin Impact

“ Alchemical Ascension ” is the keystone event of Genshin Impact version 4.5, prompting you to mix herbs together to make potions that follow news trends.

Completing the event will also reward a plethora of goodies: furniture, Primogems, a Crown of Insight, and a special weapon that you can only get from this event. The weapon, “ Dialogues of the Desert Sages ,” is a polearm that benefits healers, like Mika and Yaoyao. Again, you can only get this weapon (and its refinement material) from this event, so make sure to grab it before it’s gone.

As usual with Genshin events, “Alchemical Ascension” is split into three parts that are time-gated. Phase one started on March 14, phase two started on March 16, and phase three started on March 18.

You may be worried about messing up your potions early on, but don’t fret too much. As the event progresses, you’ll eventually be able to keep making potions and spamming cycles infinitely, so you can just keep making potions and earning revenue with no worry.

Regardless, we explain how to become a potion expert, potion recipes, and how market news works below.

How to make potions in Genshin Impact’s ‘Alchemical Ascension’ event

As of the first part of the event, you have 10 cycles to make potions. You can only make one potion per cycle and you can end the cycle by talking to Lisa. Throughout different cycles, the market news will tell you what people are into, and thus what potions will sell better.

Each potion is made up of different ingredients . You unlock more as you level up and you can grow them in pots at the potion making area. Each ingredient correlates to a specific efficacy : strength, constitution, dexterity, charisma, wisdom, or balanced. They also each have a different characteristic : endurance, warm, steadying, fragrant, healing, strengthening, relaxing, perception, focus, or technique.

The goal is to place the ingredients, like a puzzle, on to the grid in a way that creates a potion with specific stats and characteristics, leaving as few gaps open as possible.

As you place pieces, you can see how your potion will turn out on the left side of the screen. Hovering over the ingredient on the right side will also say what it adds to the potion. You’ll just need to keep adding the correlating plants until you get the desired result.

After selling the potions, you can buy upgrades (like a better cauldron or more planting pots) from a woman nearby. Your plants will also upgrade as they get used, unlocking more shapes to use during the puzzle portion of the event. You will also unlock the ability to combine ingredients to level them up, which we do recommend doing before you hit Sucrose’s expert exam, since this will let you craft better potions.

After cycle 10, you’ll be able to purchase bigger upgrades for your shop, like the ability to sell more potions at once. After you unlock enough slots, you ideally just want to stock your shop with high-level potions that cover all the different efficacies and characteristics. This way, you won’t really even have to pay attention to the market news to get rich.

You will eventually be able to buy out the shop’s upgrades completely, so after doing this, you can invest money into enhancing your potions at the cauldron.

Market news requirements, explained

Every couple of cycles, a new newspaper will get delivered to you, talking about the latest trends. As expected, we have to analyze these trends to make potions that suit whatever trend is occurring. However, the game doesn’t directly tell you which efficacy or characteristics are needed per trend — you kind of just have to guess. But you don’t actually, because we list out all the news and their related demands below, along with what cycle they appear in.

Note that in cycles eight through 10, you will get two random trends out of the four we list. From cycles 11 to 22, you’ll get a random group of two from the list every few cycles. From cycle 23 onward, the market news will be randomized from the marked entries below, and they will eventually begin to repeat.

There also appears to be some elements of RNG with what traits get associated per trend, according to both our experience and a few other guides . Each trend can have up to three traits, so if our table has more than three, you’ll have to guess and check. Have no fear, though, as the market news screen will confirm which efficacies and characteristics you got right. As mentioned above, though, you don’t have to stress about getting all the potions perfectly, as you’ll have an unlimited amount of cycles to play though in the end.

Genshin Impact ‘Alchemical Ascension’ market news efficacy and characteristics

Special customers and orders.

Starting in cycle eight, you’ll get some special orders from visiting NPCs. Some may have just straight up requests, whereas Sucrose may appear with more specific requirements to pass a potion-making exam. Everyone’s requests are the same across the board, so there’s no need to worry about an RNG element to get in your way. However, Sucrose’s potions may have different puzzle boards, with the blocking squares in different locations.

Beidou’s potion request

Beidou wants a constitution potion with relaxing characteristics. You can make this by using Calla Lilies and Dandelions . You can use mushrooms and berries to fill in any extra gaps to get those extra points, but don’t use too many. You don’t want their characteristics (endurance and warm, respectively) to overtake the relaxing characteristic.

Sucrose’s beginner alchemy exam

Sucrose wants an intermediate potion with a constitution efficacy. We used tons of Calla Lilies and Sweet Flowers to pass her test.

Diona’s potion request

Just like Beidou, Diona will eventually show up asking for a potion. She wants one with a wisdom efficacy or one that has steadying characteristics. You can use Qingxin or Windwheel Asters for the wisdom effect or Calla Lilies for the steadying effect.

Sucrose’s intermediate alchemy exam

The second time around, Sucrose will want an intermediate potion that has both strength and dexterity efficacies. We specifically used Jueyen Chilis and Horsetails to pass her test, but you can also use Flaming Flowers, Mist Flowers, and Dandelions.

Diluc’s potion request

Diluc wants a potion with both Constitution and Wisdom efficacy or one with Focus and Relaxing characteristics. You can use Calla Lillies , Sweet Flowers , Violetgrass , Qingxin , Windwheel Asters , or Lumidouce Bells if you’re focusing on the efficacies. If you’re focusing on the characteristics, you can use Berries , Zaytun Peaches , or Dandelions to help with that.

Sucrose’s advanced alchemy exam

For your third exam, Sucrose will ask for an advanced potion that has Wisdom . This shouldn’t be too hard, but to complete the optional objectives (that reward coins), you’ll want to make sure that you fill in as many squares as possible, use five different ingredients, and make sure the potion has the Fragrant characteristic.

We used a mix of Lumidouce Bells , Windwheel Asters , and Qingxin for the Wisdom efficacy, and threw in three Sumeru Roses to give it the Fragrant characteristic. We also used Berries and Mushrooms to fill in the gaps.

Gorou’s potion request

Gorou just wants something that either has a Strength efficacy or an Endurance characteristic. By this point, you should have a ton of potions in your inventory that can probably fulfill his needs.

If you don’t, you can brew one by using Jueyen Chilis , Flaming Flowers , and Mist Flowers .

Sucrose’s expert alchemy exam

Sucrose’s final exam will require you to make an expert potion with a Charisma efficacy. You’ll also want to have Perception and Steadying characteristics to get that additional coin bonus.

We flooded our board with Sumeru Roses , Glaze Lilies , and Marcottes to get the Charisma stat. The Glaze Lilies added Perception, but we threw in some Calla Lilies for the Steadying stat.

Note that if you’re not getting an expert potion from using these ingredients, you may need to level up your ingredients more . Our main Charisma ingredients were all maxed level to make an expert potion.

Traveling merchant distribution strategies

Starting in the third phase of the event, you’ll unlock Atefeh, a traveling merchant who will sell your potions in Sumeru. You’ll need to give her potions that meet her required efficacies and also pick a specific distribution strategy. You can also unlock a Liyue merchant named Deyou by purchasing the “sales expansion contract” in the NPC shop for 600,000 coins.

Both of these merchants will request random efficacies, which you should be able to fulfill from what you just have in your inventory. However, both of the merchants have individual correct distribution strategies. For Atefeh, you want to use “ Akademiya Certification ” and “ Celebrity Endorsement .” For Deyou, use “ Free Sample Delivery ” and “ Hundred-Fold Guarantee .” Using these will net you the highest bonuses per sale.

The next level of puzzles.

Take a break from your day by playing a puzzle or two! We’ve got SpellTower, Typeshift, crosswords, and more.

Sign up for the newsletter Patch Notes

A weekly roundup of the best things from Polygon

Just one more thing!

Please check your email to find a confirmation email, and follow the steps to confirm your humanity.

Oops. Something went wrong. Please enter a valid email and try again.

Loading comments...

‘Prey for the Pack’ quest walkthrough in Dragon’s Dogma 2

‘Oxcart Courier’ quest walkthrough in Dragon’s Dogma 2

What vocation to pick in Dragon’s Dogma 2

How to unlock the Warfarer vocation in Dragon’s Dogma 2

How to unlock the Magick Archer vocation in Dragon’s Dogma 2

Should you buy the Ornate Box in Dragon’s Dogma 2?

Good manufacturing practice.

This content applies to human and veterinary medicines.

Any manufacturer of medicines intended for the EU market, no matter where in the world it is located, must comply with GMP.

GMP requires that medicines:

• are of consistent high quality;
• are appropriate for their intended use;
• meet the requirements of the marketing authorisation or clinical trial authorisation.

Also on this topic

• EudraGMDP database
• Guidance on good manufacturing practice and good distribution practice: Questions and answers

GMP/GDP Inspectors Working Group

• Mutual recognition agreements (MRA)
• International collaboration on GMP inspections
• Joint Audit Programme

Regulatory expectations and GMP certificates following the-COVID-19 public health emergency

EMA, the European Commission and Heads of Medicines Agencies (HMA) have phased out the extraordinary regulatory flexibilities for medicines put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic to help address regulatory and supply challenges arising from the pandemic .

This follows the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency declared by WHO in May 2023.

On-site GMP and GDP inspections have restarted after being postponed or carried out remotely during the pandemic.

However, a considerable number of postponed inspections still need to be carried out.

The validity of GMP and GDP certificates was extended until the end of 2023. The GMP/GDP Inspectors Working Group has decided to continue the extension of the validity date until 2024 or the conclusion of the next on-site inspection, whichever comes first, except where clarifying remarks in the document state otherwise. 

Meanwhile, competent authorities will perform risk-based supervision of sites, either by on-site inspections or distant assessments , and based on the outcome may continue to issue, withdraw or restrict GMP and GDP certificates, as appropriate.

The inspections will be prioritised based on risk, so that the highest priority manufacturers, such as manufacturers of sterile product and biological products , and wholesale distributors are inspected first. In addition, inspections will be prioritised depending on the date of the last inspection.

Questions about the validity date of a GMP or GDP certificate should be addressed to the competent authority that issued the certificate. 

It is incumbent upon manufacturers , importers and distributors to continue complying with GMP and GDP as appropriate. 

Supervisory authorities will remain vigilant to ensure the quality of medicines that are made available to patients in the EEA.

Inspections (including distant assessments) may be carried out at any time. In case of serious non-compliance , appropriate regulatory actions will be triggered.

The guidance was agreed by the GMP/GDP Inspectors Working Group  coordinated by EMA. It will be updated when there is additional information available.

The Agency has a coordinating role for GMP inspections of manufacturing sites for medicines whose marketing authorisation in the EU is submitted through the centralised procedure or as part of a referral procedure.

The Agency also plays a key role in coordinating and harmonising GMP activities at an EU level. It is involved in:

• coordinating the preparation of new and revised guidance on GMP;
• ensuring common interpretation of EU GMP requirements and related technical issues;
• developing EU-wide procedures on GMP inspections and related activities;
• facilitating cooperation between Member States for inspections of manufacturers in third countries.

Marketing authorisation holders and applicants need to use EMA's IRIS system  to communicate with EMA on  GMP inspections  requested by the Agency’s scientific committees.

Using IRIS for GMP inspections improves efficiency by harmonising and automating processes and re-using master data held by EMA. It also simplifies retrieving and reporting data.

More information on the use of EMA's IRIS system:

• IRIS system

Guidance for applicants/MAHs involved in GMP, GCP and GVP inspections coordinated by EMA

IRIS guide for applicants - How to create and submit scientific applications, for industry and individual applicants

Legal framework and guidance

These legal instruments lay down the principles and guidelines of GMP in the EU:

• Regulation No. 1252/2014  applying to active substances for human use;
• Directive 2001/83/EC  and Directive (EU) 2017/1572 , applying to medicines for human use;
• Directive 91/412/EEC  and Regulation (EU) 2019/6 applying to medicines for veterinary use.
• Directive 2001/20/EC and Regulation (EU) 536/2014 applying to Investigational medicinal products.

The EU GMP guidelines provide interpretation of these principles and guidelines, supplemented by a series of annexes that modify or augment the detailed guidelines for certain types of product, or provide more specific guidance on a particular topic.

The GMP / Good Distribution Practice (GDP) Inspectors Working Group provides additional interpretation of the EU GMP guidelines in the form of questions and answers (Q&As) .

Annex 1: Manufacture of Sterile Medicinal Products was revised in August 2022. It comes into operation on 25 August 2023 except for point 8.123 which is postponed until 25 August 2024.

Manufacturing authorisation

Manufacturers and importers located in the European Economic Area (EEA) must hold an authorisation issued by the national competent authority of the Member State where they carry out these activities.

They must comply with EU GMP to obtain a manufacturing or import authorisation. They can ensure that they meet all their legal obligations by following the EU GMP guidelines.

Importers are responsible to ensure that the third country manufacturer they are importing from comply with GMP.

Marketing authorisation applicants are responsible to ensure that the proposed manufacturing sites included in the marketing authorisation application comply with GMP. For more information, see section 5.2 Inspections of the Pre-authorisation guidance .

Registration of manufacturers of active substances

Manufacturers of active substances intended for the manufacture of human medicines for the EU market must register with the national competent authority of the Member State where they are located.

Active substance manufacturers must comply with GMP. In addition, the manufacturer of the finished product is obliged to ensure that the active substances they use have been manufactured in compliance with GMP.

Importers of active substances intended for the EU market are also required to register. In addition, each consignment needs to be accompanied by a confirmation by the competent authority of the country where it is produced that it conforms to GMP standards equivalent to those in the EU, unless a waiver applies.

Responsibility for inspections

In the EU, national competent authorities are responsible for inspecting manufacturing sites located within their own territories.

Manufacturing sites outside the EU are inspected by the national competent authority of the Member State where the EU importer is located, unless a mutual recognition agreement (MRA) is in place between the EU and the country concerned. If an MRA applies, the authorities mutually rely on each other's inspections.

If products are imported directly into more than one Member State from a manufacturing site outside the EU, there may be more than one national competent authority responsible for inspecting it. EMA facilitates cooperation between the authorities concerned in supervising the site.

EU competent authorities plan routine inspections following a risk-based approach, or if there is suspicion of non-compliance.

EudraGMDP is a publicly accessible EU database which contains manufacturing and import authorisations, registration of active substance manufacturers, GMP certificates and non-compliance statements.

After inspecting a manufacturing site, EU competent authorities issue a GMP certificate or a non-compliance statement, which is entered in the EudraGMDP database.

EMA chairs and provides the secretariat for the GMP/GDP Inspectors Working Group of senior inspectors appointed by all the EEA competent authorities. It meets at EMA four times a year.

The European Commission and observers from EU accession countries, mutual recognition partner authorities, the European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines and HealthCare and the World Health Organization also attend the working group's meetings.

The group provides a forum for harmonisation and discussion of common issues, such as:

• updates or amendments to the EU GMP guidelines;
• the compilation of Union procedures;
• harmonised interpretation of GMP and related requirements.

Compilation of Union procedures

EMA maintains a compilation of GMP and good distribution practice (GDP) inspection-related procedures and forms agreed by all Member States. This facilitates cooperation between EU Member States and supports harmonisation and exchange of inspection-related information.

It covers the basis for national procedures that form part of the national inspectorates' quality systems:

Compilation of Union procedures on inspections and exchange of information

EMA published the Word and PDF versions of some of the templates for the convenience of inspectorates

The forms and templates should be downloaded and saved first before being completed, using for example “Save target as” function. To report any technical issues with the form, please use the  EMA Service Desk  portal.

• Rapid alert notification of a quality defect / recall
• Follow-up and non-urgent information for quality defects
• Good-manufacturing-practice inspection report - Community format

Revision of template for serious GMP non-compliance

EMA's GMP/GDP Inspectors Working Group is discussing actions required after an inspection concludes that a manufacturing site does not comply with GMP, specifically where this can lead to a shortage of critical medicines . EMA has held a public consultation on an updated template for GMP non-compliance statement in 2018:

• Public consultation concerning the European Union template for good manufacturing practice (GMP) non-compliance statement

Inspections for pharmaceutical starting materials

Plasma master file (pmf) inspections.

For products derived from blood or blood plasma, EMA is responsible for coordinating inspections of the blood establishments in which collection, testing, processing, storage and distribution is carried out under the PMF certification procedure.

For more information on the PMF certification procedure, see Plasma master files .

Vaccine antigen master file (VAMF) inspections

EMA is responsible for coordinating inspections of vaccine antigen manufacturing sites under the VAMF certification procedure.

For more information on the VAMF certification procedure, see Vaccine antigens .

• Mutual recognition agreements

The EU has signed mutual recognition agreements on GMP inspections with regulatory authorities outside the EU. This allows EU authorities and their counterparts to:

• rely on each other's GMP inspections;
• waive batch testing of products on entry into their territories;
• share information on inspections and quality defects.
• The scope of each agreement differs.

More information

• GMP/GDP inspectors working group
• Questions and answers: Good manufacturing practice
• International collaboration

Related content

• Good distribution practice
• Medicine shortages

Related EU legislation

• Regulation No. 1252/2014
• Directive 2003/94/EC
• Directive 91/412/EEC

Publications

• PDA Journal: GMP oversight of medicines manufacturers in the EU

Contact point

• Regulatory and procedural guidance

Share this page

How useful do you find this page.

Market research for new product development can focus on different areas. You can research market viability, the demand for the product you have in mind, the features your target group is looking for, or the best way to position, price, communicate and market your product to your target audience. You take into account your competitors, market ...

Download HubSpot's free, editable market research report template here. 1. Five Forces Analysis Template. Use Porter's Five Forces Model to understand an industry by analyzing five different criteria and how high the power, threat, or rivalry in each area is — here are the five criteria: Competitive rivalry.

Fresh products. Up-and-coming brands. New marketing tools. Consumers get bombarded with sales messages from all angles. This can be confusing and overwhelming. By monitoring market trends, you can figure out the best tactics for reaching your target audience. Types of market research. Not everyone conducts market research for the same reason.

Step 1: Research And Identify Trending Products. Many people browse social media and Amazon to find trending product ideas. But emerging products, by definition, aren't easy to find. You might spend hours browsing these platforms to find a few promising product ideas.

The following four steps and practical examples will give you a solid market research plan for understanding who your users are and what they want from a company like yours. 1. Create simple user personas. A user persona is a semi-fictional character based on psychographic and demographic data from people who use websites and products similar ...

Here's an example of the types of market research: Competitor analysis: Researching how competitive your product or service is compared to others in the market or market analysis in general as it relates to your competitors. Consumer insights: Studying consumer behavior in your target market, such as purchasing habits, barriers in the buyer ...

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.

Schedule regular user and customer interviews. Use product experience insights tools like Hotjar to give you a steady stream of user feedback through Surveys and Feedback widgets. 8. Turn research into action. The final step in any product research process is to organize your research and turn insights into action.

4. Conduct the Research. Once you've determined the type of research and target demographic necessary to test your hypotheses, conduct your research. To reduce bias, enlist someone unfamiliar with your hypotheses to perform interviews or lead focus groups. Ask questions based on your audience and hypotheses.

Entering a market with a product is like starting a new game. Since you're new to the game, you don't know the rules, and you don't know who you're playing against. This is exactly where market research comes in. Market research allows you to discover the rules of the marketing game by understanding your target audience.

Market research is the process of gathering information about potential and current customers and your target audience. The data can reveal the viability of a new product idea based on customer needs and wants. Market research is an essential part of developing products and services that are desirable to consumers. Market research is also used to:

Market research is a vital step for any entrepreneur who wants to launch a new product idea. It helps you understand your target customers, their needs, preferences, and pain points, as well as ...

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 can provide valuable insights into customer price sensitivity, competitor pricing strategies, and overall market trends, helping product managers set the optimal price for their products. Analyzing price elasticity, willingness-to-pay, and competitor pricing can help you determine your product's most effective pricing strategy.

Cool. Now, let's discuss three ways your company (or business unit) can use market research throughout the process of conceptualizing, creating, and launching a new product: To generate your initial ideas (conceptualizing) To work out the kinks before you launch (creating) To optimize your messaging (launching) 1.

Step 1: Exploratory Research. First things first, you'll need to do some exploratory research. This is the preliminary research that helps you find a direction to go in. To get started, think about the pain point you will solve for your customers. Ask yourself questions like:

1- Evaluating company assets and product development possibilities. Before diving into market research, it's imperative for a business to take stock of its internal capabilities and how these align with potential product development opportunities. This initial step is a foundational one, requiring a thorough assessment of the company's ...

A product manager's main research aims are to ensure that product development decisions are data-informed and customer-centric, and address users' needs to build a great product. Common research methods include interviews, surveys, competitor studies, and analyzing user behavior and product experience insights. 2. Product designers.

Product research is a foundational step in building user-centric products. It allows you to understand customer needs, preferences, and market trends, informing the development of successful solutions to user problems. Read on for the ultimate guide to product research, including methods, processes, and best practices—plus our favorite tips ...

Market research involves gathering and analyzing information about the overall market environment, prospective customers, and competitors for your product or service. For product managers, this helps you formulate a nuanced worldview of the opportunities and threats that exist for your offering. Think of it like studying a habitat — you are ...

Market research is the process of assessing the viability of a new good or service through research conducted directly with the consumer which allows a company to ...

8. Determine Product Weight And Size. After you've decided on your selling price, you'll need to determine your product's weight and size. To do this, you'll need to consider the following: The weight of the product: This will affect shipping costs. The dimensions of the product: This will affect packaging costs.

The research guided our decision not to acquire the product. Here are some best practices I have learned throughout my 20 years of creating and implementing growth strategies fueled by marketing ...

Product launches: Influencers are an ideal way for a brand to launch new products. When introducing a new product, brands can expand their reach by working with influencers with a similar following as the brand's target audience. A kitchenware brand, for instance, may work with a popular food influencer to introduce a new range of pots to ...

Market news requirements, explained. Every couple of cycles, a new newspaper will get delivered to you, talking about the latest trends. As expected, we have to analyze these trends to make ...

Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include: global economic conditions; our reliance on third parties to manufacture, assemble, package and test our products; the impact of technological development and competition; development of new products and technologies or enhancements to our existing product and ...

The Agency has a coordinating role for GMP inspections of manufacturing sites for medicines whose marketing authorisation in the EU is submitted through the centralised procedure or as part of a referral procedure.. The Agency also plays a key role in coordinating and harmonising GMP activities at an EU level. It is involved in: