primary and secondary sources of market research

Primary vs secondary market research: types, sources and examples

Jun 9th, 2021

Types of primary research

There are two main types of primary market research: quantitative and qualitative. Both types of research are vital for obtaining different kinds of information.

• Quantitative market research deals with numerical data rather than consumers’ feelings, opinions, and attitudes. The process implies collecting large amounts of statistical points using surveys, polls, and questionnaires. The mathematical, statistical, and computational methods allow for gathering the data that researchers can further analyze to determine the patterns and averages, form predictions, and make generalizations. The purpose of quantitative market research is to determine the problem and understand its prevalence. Quantitative market research can provide a very accurate result that helps companies develop a clear picture of their objectives and how to reach them.
• Qualitative market research focuses on collecting behavioral, observational, and non-numerical data like audio, text, or video to gain insights into consumer opinions, motivations, or experiences. Qualitative market research involves open-ended questions and a small sample consisting of six to ten respondents and allows for an in-depth discussion of the topics. The primary methods used for conducting qualitative market research include focus groups and interviews. 

Sources of primary research

Primary research sources are in-depth interviews, surveys, focus groups, social media monitoring, and questionnaires. Let’s discuss them in detail below:

• In-depth interviews are great for understanding how the customer group perceives a brand or product. In-depth interviews are interactive and usually have a flexible structure. These interviews are conducted by a trusted moderator who considers not just the respondent’s answers but also body language and general impression.
• Surveys help collect a large amount of information about the population’s characteristics and preferences. In the future, marketers can use this data to predict consumers’ behavior. 
• Focus groups are the interviews of selected participants involving the representatives of the target audience. The group participants are selected according to specific criteria, such as location, age, socioeconomic status, etc. 
• Questionnaires are research tool that includes a series of closed-ended or open-ended questions to obtain feedback from your customers. There are different types of questionnaires, such as computer, telephone, mail questionnaires.
• Hypothesis testing for existing products through A/B testing or multivariate testing allows for examining the price for different markets or different audiences, comparing web page design and conversion effectiveness, etc. Both methods have similar core mechanisms; however, multivariate testing compares a more significant number of variables and provides more information.
• MVP testing for new products is based on releasing a version of the product with a small number of first-priority features needed for early customers. Later, the customers can provide valuable feedback to improve the future versions of the product.
• Targeted social media monitoring helps determine the information about your company, your industry, and your competitors. This information involves all mentions of your brand, such as reviews, product questions, or service repair complaints.

Primary research allows for collecting data that has not been previously gathered, provides specific results that address the issues relevant for your company, and delivers up-to-date information. The other benefit of primary market research is the uniqueness of the data that competitors would not be able to access. Thus, you receive a competitive advantage. Due to the approaches of this method, you can research a small sample and then apply the results to the entire market. On the other hand, primary market research is often expensive, time-consuming, and requires face-to-face contact with customers. 

Secondary market research is a kind of market research that relies on using data from secondary sources, which was not previously prepared specifically for the goals of current research. In other words, in secondary research, marketers gather and analyze the previously collected data to serve a purpose other than the purpose of their research. The secondary information is often acquired from industry and trade associations, government agencies, media agencies, industry-focused newsletters, magazines, and newspapers. This type of research is usually more cost-effective and accessible than primary market research.

Types of secondary research

There are two types of secondary market research: secondary market research from internal sources and secondary market research from external sources.

• Internal data. Internal data can be found in the databases of the company and used for future reference purposes. A company’s internal data includes customer account information, product usage data, sales records, or previously prepared research reports. There are also records of previous advertising and marketing campaigns, departmental records, etc.
• External data.  External data is initially prepared by people outside the current company environment, such as data from competitors, journals and magazines, industry surveys, and market reports. 

Sources of secondary research

As well as with primary research, secondary research may also use lots of different sources of information. Below are some of the most widely used.

• Sales data is a valuable source of information for secondary market research. Every company collects data concerning everyday operations, delivered orders, invoices, and returned goods. This information is handy for marketers because it allows gathering insights into sales by territory, customer type, average sales by salesperson, prices, discounts, and other data.
• Financial data allows for estimating the efficiency of marketing operations. It includes the production costs, storing, transportation, and marketing costs. It can also supply insights into which products or services bring you more significant profits or drive your business into the red.
• Governmental and local statistical data. Many governmental, regional and municipal organizations collect data that businesses and non-profits can use for market research purposes. This information includes demographic data, economic data, trade statistics, and production statistics. For example, you can find volumes of US-focused data on data.gov , while for European Union statistics, you can explore the official site of Eurostat .
• Trade associations often provide free and paid reports to inform professionals about the situation in the economic sector.
• Specialized journals and media regularly publish news, research, press releases, and professional articles, which can be excellent sources of up-to-date secondary data.
• Commercial marketing research data is collected by specialized research organizations that resell it to other companies. The data gathered by these companies concerns the consumer population, attitudes, trends and behaviors, online and offline purchases. 
• Search engine results are a good source of free and commercially available data.
• Competitor research. You can acquire information about competitors from different sources, such as their websites, review sites, and media publications. This approach enables you to develop a profound understanding of how market participants and clients perceive a particular company.

Secondary market research is a perfect basis for primary research as it helps determine and predict the latter’s effectiveness and suitability. The information from government sources, libraries, and media is reliable, extensive, and covers many issues. The other advantages of secondary market research are low cost, time-effectiveness, and the opportunity to obtain a broad spectrum of free data in a shorter time than primary research. 

The disadvantages of secondary market research are the lack of quality and accuracy of data collected by a third party. The information provided by secondary research is not specific and not always recent enough. Besides, the data is available for many companies, so it deprives your company of a competitive advantage. 

Market research will help you reduce the risk of making business decisions and determine the pitfalls before launching the new product. We will provide several examples to demonstrate how companies can use market research to identify and solve business challenges in practice.

The world-famous coffee company conducts market research in many ways, including primary research methods, such as consumer feedback, in-store product testing, and social media monitoring. In 2008, Starbucks even created a specialized platform, My Starbucks Idea , where the customers can provide their ideas about new offerings or changes to the existing products.

The corporation also applies the social media monitoring method and collects feedback from different platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Reddit , to improve the products. Starbucks tests the new ideas in selected stores to understand the feasibility of making some changes before the official launch. 

The company applies secondary market research methods to shape the new product lines. Starbucks gathers data from the market research companies and analyzes the data from the stores. Due to the feedback on My Starbucks Idea and combined market research, Starbucks successfully launched dairy-free milk alternatives in European and US stores.

Primary research methods: consumer feedback, in-store product testing, social media monitoring.

Secondary research methods: social media monitoring, competitor monitoring, existing data from market research providers.

Ecommerce market research into new product launch

If you are going to launch an e-commerce platform or introduce a new product to the existing store, conducting market research may bring the needed transparency into this business decision prior to moving forward with it. Firstly, it is vital to determine the market size for the business or the product. Then you will need several pieces of information concerning statistics and trends in your industry, consumer behavior, and current demand for your product. 

To discover information about the industry size, trends, and growth rates, you can apply secondary market research methods and dig into the industry articles and search for information from marketing companies about the things people tend to buy online. The other helpful source will be market research reports.

The further step is to understand the needs of your potential customers, their socioeconomic and geographic conditions. The perfect way to get this information is to perform primary research and conduct customer surveys. You can start with specialized forums, Facebook groups, or other social media channels. 

For example, if you are launching an online clothing store, you can conduct the online survey using Google Forms, Google Surveys or TypeForm and target specific customer segments. You can include questions about age, location, income, favorite brands, and stores where these people typically buy clothes.

You can also use the form to inquire if some of the surveyed customers would be willing to participate in in-depth interviews. For in-depth interviews, prepare a list of open-ended questions, which can facilitate your discussion with each interviewee.

Primary research methods: customer surveys, questionnaires, in-depth interviews.

Secondary research methods: industry articles, competitor research, market research reports.

SaaS market research for new solution launch

Before the new SaaS product launch, you need to conduct market research and analysis to understand the competition and customer preferences and dislikes. First, you can make a list of existing players in the segment. You can monitor social media for mentions of each competitor to understand what their clients are saying about the solution, product features, and functionality, customer service to find opportunities, which a new product can explore on the market. In addition to social media, you can use specialized review platforms, such as Capterra or TrustRadius .

As the next step in analyzing your competitors, you can gather data about their online performance. With Ahrefs , you can get information on how your competitors rank on Google. SimilarWeb allows you to analyze your competitors’ websites and see engagement rate, traffic ranking, keyword ranking, and other audience metrics. Besides, you can conduct secondary market research and find research on businesses in your industry with the help of Google Scholar .

You can expand your market research by finding information about your potential customers. Continuing with the methods of secondary research, you can gather data about your target audience’s behavior. With the help of a business account on Facebook, you can collect information about the demographics, including gender, age, location, activity, purchases, and design customer personas.

If you’re building a unique product in the segment with low competition, you can explore Product Hunt to see if anyone has recently created similar products. Product hunt can show you if similar products have received positive feedback or ideas for improvement on top of how you envision your future solution.

As the final stage of your exploration, you can start developing the basics of your future solution to attract your potential audience. The simplest way to do it is by making a landing page, which describes your future product and allows visitors to subscribe to future releases and updates. This is how Dropbox started back in 2007. If this option is not sufficient for you, you can develop an MVP to provide users with initial functionality to test if they will be interested in signing up. Of course, this approach would give you the most significant volume of feedback, although it’s the most expensive one to undertake.

Primary research methods: product landing page, minimum viable product, Product Hunt launch.

Secondary research methods: social media monitoring, specialized industry-focused websites,  social media analytics tools.

You can perform market research at any stage of your business life cycle, starting from pre-launch. Primary market research allows for evaluating the competition within the market, understanding the competitors’ quality of service, and discovering their communication channels. With the help of secondary market research, you can analyze the existing surveys and studies concerning your industry, read newspaper reports, explore company reports data and government data. The overall market research usually consists of the following steps:

Step 1. Define the goals of the research

The first stage of comprehensive market research is to define the central problem and research objectives. You will also need to define the purpose of the study, what information is required, and find relevant background data. This step includes interviews with industry experts and discussions with the decision-makers.

Step 2. Secondary research 

At the second stage, you need to conduct secondary research and analyze all the secondary data sources on the target segment. The goal of this step is to compare the information and create a high-level overview. 

Step 3. Primary research

Once you have completed the secondary research and collected the available information, you can move to primary research. You need to start from the most cost-efficient methods of primary research that include paper questionnaires, online surveys, phone interviews, and face-to-face interviews. 

Social media is an excellent source for primary research. You have the opportunity to analyze the large amounts of data provided by different people on a variety of platforms. You can save money by selecting the students as focus groups or target audiences.

Step 4. The concluding stage of research

If you meet the research objectives by completing the previous steps, you can finalize the market research. In some cases, secondary research may already provide you enough information to complete the research. Other times, there is a lack of data in secondary sources, so you will have to conduct primary research.

Once you feel like you have gathered enough data to answer the initial research question, prepare a report, which will provide a summary of findings. Even if you’re doing it for your own purposes, putting it in writing helps build a comprehensive overview of the findings and research results. You can sometimes find out that you have new questions at this stage, which need to be researched using the same methodology. Or, hopefully, you’ve been able to answer all your questions - now comes the time to act on it!

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• Updated on July 7, 2020
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Primary vs. Secondary Market Research: What’s the Difference?

Market research can be classified as either primary or secondary research.  The difference is quite simple, yet there is often confusion around this topic.

In a nutshell, primary research is original research conducted by you (or someone you hire) to collect data specifically for your current objective.  You might conduct a survey, run an interview or a focus group, observe behavior, or do an experiment.   You are going to be the person who obtains this raw data directly and it will be collected specifically for your current research need. Conversely, secondary research involves searching for existing data that was originally collected by someone else .  You might look in journals, libraries, or go to online sources like the US census.  You will apply what you find to your personal research problem, but the data you are finding was not originally collected by you, nor was it obtained for the purpose you are using it for.  I hope that makes sense.  If not, read on for some examples and a little more detail.

Secondary Market Research Sometimes called “desk research” (because it can be done from behind a desk), this technique involves research and analysis of  existing  research and data; hence the name, “secondary research.”  Conducting secondary research may not be so glamorous, but it often makes a lot of sense of start here.  Why?  Well, for one thing, secondary research is  often free .  Second, data is  increasingly available  thanks to the Internet; the  US Census  and the  CDC  (health data), for example, are two great sources of data that has already been collected by someone else.  Your job as a secondary researcher is to seek out these sources, organize and apply the data to your specific project, whether it’s market sizing or segmentation or whatever it may be, and then summarize/visualize it in a way that makes sense to you and your audience.  So, that’s what secondary market research is all about.  The downside, of course, is that you may not be able to find secondary market research information specific enough (or recent enough) for your objectives.  If that’s the case, you’ll need to conduct your own primary research (hey, what a perfect segway!).

Sources of Secondary Data Secondary data comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes.  There are plenty of raw data sources like the US Census , Data.gov , the stock market , and countless others .  Internal company data like customer details, sales figures, employee timecards, etc. can also be considered secondary data.  Published articles, including peer-reviewed journals, newspapers, magazines, and even blog postings like this count as secondary data sources.  Don’t forget legal documents like patents and company annual filings.  Social media data is a new source of secondary data.  For example, the New York Times collected Twitter traffic during the 2009 Super Bowl and produced this stunning visualization of comments throughout the game.  Secondary data is all around us and is more accessible than even.  It is increasingly possible to obtain behavioral data from secondary sources, which can be more powerful and reliable than self-reported data (via surveys and focus groups).

Here’s one more incredible example of what can be done with secondary data–this time using publicly available blog posts.  The video below is a talk by Jonathan Harris of the “We Feel Fine” project.  If you have a moment, check it out.

Primary Market Research Primary research is research that is conducted by you, or someone you pay to do original research on your behalf.  In the case of primary research, you are generating your own data from scratch as opposed to finding other people’s data.  You might choose to gather this data by running a survey, interviewing people, observing behavior, or by using some other market research method .  Here’s a quick example that explains primary vs. secondary market research.

Both primary and secondary research can be either qualitative or quantitative  in nature.  I hope this tutorial on the differences between primary and secondary research has been helpful.  If I missed something or if you have something to add, please do so with a comment below.

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Primary vs Secondary Research: Differences, Methods, Sources, and More

Table of Contents

Primary vs Secondary Research – What’s the Difference?

In the search for knowledge and data to inform decisions, researchers and analysts rely on a blend of research sources. These sources are broadly categorized into primary and secondary research, each serving unique purposes and offering different insights into the subject matter at hand. But what exactly sets them apart?

Primary research is the process of gathering fresh data directly from its source. This approach offers real-time insights and specific information tailored to specific objectives set by stakeholders. Examples include surveys, interviews, and observational studies.

Secondary research , on the other hand, involves the analysis of existing data, most often collected and presented by others. This type of research is invaluable for understanding broader trends, providing context, or validating hypotheses. Common sources include scholarly articles, industry reports, and data compilations.

The crux of the difference lies in the origin of the information: primary research yields firsthand data which can be tailored to a specific business question, whilst secondary research synthesizes what's already out there. In essence, primary research listens directly to the voice of the subject, whereas secondary research hears it secondhand .

When to Use Primary and Secondary Research

Selecting the appropriate research method is pivotal and should be aligned with your research objectives. The choice between primary and secondary research is not merely procedural but strategic, influencing the depth and breadth of insights you can uncover.

Primary research shines when you need up-to-date, specific information directly relevant to your study. It's the go-to for fresh insights, understanding consumer behavior, or testing new theories. Its bespoke nature makes it indispensable for tailoring questions to get the exact answers you need.

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Secondary research is your first step into the research world. It helps set the stage by offering a broad understanding of the topic. Before diving into costly primary research, secondary research can validate the need for further investigation or provide a solid background to build upon. It's especially useful for identifying trends, benchmarking, and situating your research within the existing body of knowledge.

Combining both methods can significantly enhance your research. Starting with secondary research lays the groundwork and narrows the focus, whilst subsequent primary research delves deep into specific areas of interest, providing a well-rounded, comprehensive understanding of the topic.

Primary vs Secondary Research Methods

In the landscape of market research, the methodologies employed can significantly influence the insights and conclusions drawn. Let's delve deeper into the various methods underpinning both primary and secondary research, shedding light on their unique applications and the distinct insights they offer.

Primary Research Methods:

• Surveys: Surveys are a cornerstone of primary research, offering a quantitative approach to gathering data directly from the target audience. By employing structured questionnaires, researchers can collect a vast array of data ranging from customer preferences to behavioral patterns. This method is particularly valuable for acquiring statistically significant data that can inform decision-making processes and strategy development. The application of statistical approaches for analysing this data, such as key drivers analysis, MaxDiff or conjoint analysis can also further enhance any collected data.
• One on One Interviews: Interviews provide a qualitative depth to primary research, allowing for a nuanced exploration of participants' attitudes, experiences, and motivations. Conducted either face-to-face or remotely, interviews enable researchers to delve into the complexities of human behavior, offering rich insights that surveys alone may not uncover. This method is instrumental in exploring new areas of research or obtaining detailed information on specific topics.
• Focus Groups: Focus groups bring together a small, diverse group of participants to discuss and provide feedback on a particular subject, product, or idea. This interactive setting fosters a dynamic exchange of ideas, revealing consumers' perceptions, experiences, and preferences. Focus groups are invaluable for testing concepts, exploring market trends, and understanding the factors that influence consumer decisions.
• Ethnographic Studies: Ethnographic studies involve the systematic watching, recording, and analysis of behaviors and events in their natural setting. This method offers an unobtrusive way to gather authentic data on how people interact with products, services, or environments, providing insights that can lead to more user-centered design and marketing strategies.

Secondary Research Methods:

• Literature Reviews: Literature reviews involve the comprehensive examination of existing research and publications on a given topic. This method enables researchers to synthesize findings from a range of sources, providing a broad understanding of what is already known about a subject and identifying gaps in current knowledge.
• Meta-Analysis: Meta-analysis is a statistical technique that combines the results of multiple studies to arrive at a comprehensive conclusion. This method is particularly useful in secondary research for aggregating findings across different studies, offering a more robust understanding of the evidence on a particular topic.
• Content Analysis: Content analysis is a method for systematically analyzing texts, media, or other content to quantify patterns, themes, or biases . This approach allows researchers to assess the presence of certain words, concepts, or sentiments within a body of work, providing insights into trends, representations, and societal norms. This can be performed across a range of sources including social media, customer forums or review sites.
• Historical Research: Historical research involves the study of past events, trends, and behaviors through the examination of relevant documents and records. This method can provide context and understanding of current trends and inform future predictions, offering a unique perspective that enriches secondary research.

Each of these methods, whether primary or secondary, plays a crucial role in the mosaic of market research, offering distinct pathways to uncovering the insights necessary to drive informed decisions and strategies.

Primary vs Secondary Sources in Research

Both primary and secondary sources of research form the backbone of the insight generation process, when both are utilized in tandem it can provide the perfect steppingstone for the generation of real insights. Let’s explore how each category serves its unique purpose in the research ecosystem.

Primary Research Data Sources

Primary research data sources are the lifeblood of firsthand research, providing raw, unfiltered insights directly from the source. These include:

• Customer Satisfaction Survey Results: Direct feedback from customers about their satisfaction with a product or service. This data is invaluable for identifying strengths to build on and areas for improvement and typically renews each month or quarter so that metrics can be tracked over time.
• NPS Rating Scores from Customers: Net Promoter Score (NPS) provides a straightforward metric to gauge customer loyalty and satisfaction. This quantitative data can reveal much about customer sentiment and the likelihood of referrals.
• Ad-hoc Surveys: Ad-hoc surveys can be about any topic which requires investigation, they are typically one off surveys which zero in on one particular business objective. Ad-hoc projects are useful for situations such as investigating issues identified in other tracking surveys, new product development, ad testing, brand messaging, and many other kinds of projects.
• A Field Researcher’s Notes: Detailed observations from fieldwork can offer nuanced insights into user behaviors, interactions, and environmental factors that influence those interactions. These notes are a goldmine for understanding the context and complexities of user experiences.
• Recordings Made During Focus Groups: Audio or video recordings of focus group discussions capture the dynamics of conversation, including reactions, emotions, and the interplay of ideas. Analyzing these recordings can uncover nuanced consumer attitudes and perceptions that might not be evident in survey data alone.

These primary data sources are characterized by their immediacy and specificity, offering a direct line to the subject of study. They enable researchers to gather data that is specifically tailored to their research objectives, providing a solid foundation for insightful analysis and strategic decision-making.

Secondary Research Data Sources

In contrast, secondary research data sources offer a broader perspective, compiling and synthesizing information from various origins. These sources include:

• Books, Magazines, Scholarly Journals: Published works provide comprehensive overviews, detailed analyses, and theoretical frameworks that can inform research topics, offering depth and context that enriches primary data.
• Market Research Reports: These reports aggregate data and analyses on industry trends, consumer behavior, and market dynamics, providing a macro-level view that can guide primary research directions and validate findings.
• Government Reports: Official statistics and reports from government agencies offer authoritative data on a wide range of topics, from economic indicators to demographic trends, providing a reliable basis for secondary analysis.
• White Papers, Private Company Data: White papers and reports from businesses and consultancies offer insights into industry-specific research, best practices, and market analyses. These sources can be invaluable for understanding the competitive landscape and identifying emerging trends.

Secondary data sources serve as a compass, guiding researchers through the vast landscape of information to identify relevant trends, benchmark against existing data, and build upon the foundation of existing knowledge. They can significantly expedite the research process by leveraging the collective wisdom and research efforts of others.

By adeptly navigating both primary and secondary sources, researchers can construct a well-rounded research project that combines the depth of firsthand data with the breadth of existing knowledge. This holistic approach ensures a comprehensive understanding of the research topic, fostering informed decisions and strategic insights.

Examples of Primary and Secondary Research in Marketing

In the realm of marketing, both primary and secondary research methods play critical roles in understanding market dynamics, consumer behavior, and competitive landscapes. By comparing examples across both methodologies, we can appreciate their unique contributions to strategic decision-making.

Example 1: New Product Development

Primary Research: Direct Consumer Feedback through Surveys and Focus Groups

• Objective: To gauge consumer interest in a new product concept and identify preferred features.
• Process: Surveys distributed to a target demographic to collect quantitative data on consumer preferences, and focus groups conducted to dive deeper into consumer attitudes and desires.
• Insights: Direct insights into consumer needs, preferences for specific features, and willingness to pay. These insights help in refining product design and developing a targeted marketing strategy.

Secondary Research: Market Analysis Reports

• Objective: To understand the existing market landscape, including competitor products and market trends.
• Process: Analyzing published market analysis reports and industry studies to gather data on market size, growth trends, and competitive offerings.
• Insights: Provides a broader understanding of the market, helping to position the new product strategically against competitors and align it with current trends.

Example 2: Brand Positioning

Primary Research: Brand Perception Analysis through Surveys

• Objective: To understand how the brand is perceived by consumers and identify potential areas for repositioning.
• Process: Conducting surveys that ask consumers to describe the brand in their own words, rate it against various attributes, and compare it to competitors.
• Insights: Direct feedback on brand strengths and weaknesses from the consumer's perspective, offering actionable data for adjusting brand messaging and positioning.

Secondary Research: Social Media Sentiment Analysis

• Objective: To analyze public sentiment towards the brand and its competitors.
• Process: Utilizing software tools to analyze mentions, hashtags, and discussions related to the brand and its competitors across social media platforms.
• Insights: Offers an overview of public perception and emerging trends in consumer sentiment, which can validate findings from primary research or highlight areas needing further investigation.

Example 3: Market Expansion Strategy

Primary Research: Consumer Demand Studies in New Markets

• Objective: To assess demand and consumer preferences in a new geographic market.
• Process: Conducting surveys and interviews with potential consumers in the target market to understand their needs, preferences, and cultural nuances.
• Insights: Provides specific insights into the new market’s consumer behavior, preferences, and potential barriers to entry, guiding market entry strategies.

Secondary Research: Economic and Demographic Analysis

• Objective: To evaluate the economic viability and demographic appeal of the new market.
• Process: Reviewing existing economic reports, demographic data, and industry trends relevant to the target market.
• Insights: Offers a macro view of the market's potential, including economic conditions, demographic trends, and consumer spending patterns, which can complement insights gained from primary research.

By leveraging both primary and secondary research, marketers can form a comprehensive understanding of their market, consumers, and competitors, facilitating informed decision-making and strategic planning. Each method brings its strengths to the table, with primary research offering direct consumer insights and secondary research providing a broader context within which to interpret those insights.

What Are the Pros and Cons of Primary and Secondary Research?

When it comes to market research, both primary and secondary research offer unique advantages and face certain limitations. Understanding these can help researchers and businesses make informed decisions on which approach to utilize for their specific needs. Below is a comparative table highlighting the pros and cons of each research type.

Navigating the Pros and Cons

• Balance Your Research Needs: Consider starting with secondary research to gain a broad understanding of the subject matter, then delve into primary research for specific, targeted insights that are tailored to your precise needs.
• Resource Allocation: Evaluate your budget, time, and resource availability. Primary research can offer more specific and actionable data but requires more resources. Secondary research is more accessible but may lack the specificity or recency you need.
• Quality and Relevance: Assess the quality and relevance of available secondary sources before deciding if primary research is necessary. Sometimes, the existing data might suffice, especially for preliminary market understanding or trend analysis.
• Combining Both for Comprehensive Insights: Often, the most effective research strategy involves a combination of both primary and secondary research. This approach allows for a more comprehensive understanding of the market, leveraging the broad perspective provided by secondary sources and the depth and specificity of primary data.

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A guide to primary vs secondary market research: the differences and how to conduct them

What's the difference between primary vs secondary market research? Save your budget from inaccurate data using the best market research strategies.

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FAQs about primary and secondary research

It’s time to freshen up your research skills, marketers. Before you dive head first into another market research project for a new product, campaign or even an entirely new business, let’s set the record straight on how to do it the right way—so your decisions are all the more well-informed. 

Because market research comes with a long list of benefits—but only if you conduct it correctly. One wrong assumption or step skipped in your process could clutter or blur the data you’ll be using to base very important decisions on. 

If you do get it right, you’ll end up with information that helps you perfect your product and marketing, that convinces investors to bet their money on you and that shapes your business to be successful. And that’s what we’re going for.

So in this article, we’ll explain how you use primary and secondary market research. We’ll give it a clear definition, lay out how to do it, and we’ll point out some things to be careful of. 

Ready? Set… Research!

Primary vs secondary market research : what’s the difference?

Primary and secondary research is defined by the source and who collects the information. Primary research is new research you conduct yourself and data is collected right from the source, which is often consumers. Many brands use market research services or tools to gather their insights. For secondary market research you use insights conducted by others, like governments.

Primary research might be done by someone else and you might use it later on for your own insight, turning it into secondary research. 

Both primary research and secondary research can be qualitative or quantitative, and you can mix and match both to complete your research. In fact, this is often recommended, because it also allows you to compare your findings to what you read in secondary research, and it avoids double work—but more on that later.

Primary market research

Primary market research is research you carry out yourself and gather from the source of information, like consumers, sellers, suppliers or anyone else in the market. You—or your internal or external research team—collect data from these sources directly. You get raw data and interpret this yourself, and it will be collected specifically for your research needs. 

Benefits of primary research

There are three key benefits of conducting primary research:

• Primary research is the most relevant : if you have a super-specific question about how consumers in a specific segment shop for your product category, you’d be very lucky to find the answers in someone else’s research. With primary research, you determine which questions are asked and to whom, so it is incredibly relevant for your research goals.
• Primary research is up-to-date : a lot of markets are changing rapidly, and trends come and go. Primary research allows you to do research in a moment that matters to you. Take market research for e-commerce for instance: data from 2019 and 2020 will likely be starkly different due to the pandemic. Conducting your own primary research, in a timely and ideally continuous way, avoids pitfalls like this.
• Primary research gives you more ownership and control over data : can you trust a source? That’s always the question when using secondary research. With primary research, you have full transparency on how it was collected and you can make decisions based on it with confidence.

How to conduct primary market research

So, what’s the best way to collect data straight from the source, whether you’re brand tracking or copy testing ? There are several ways to go about this. You can mix and match the primary research methods below to gather data for your particular research project.  

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Probably the most used primary research method in market research is surveys. Nowadays, that’s mostly online surveys, but anyone who studied marketing before 2010 likely still remembers having to conduct surveys on paper in their local supermarket for a project.

The benefit of surveys, especially online, is that they are a relative low-cost method to reach a lot of people. And with platforms like Attest, you can also reach specific target audiences , all around the world—something that’d be really expensive and time-consuming without the internet.

Observation

How do people move in a shopping mall, or around a website? With observation, you can map out your target market behaviours and patterns that are harder to capture in surveys—because often people aren’t even aware of what they habitually do. Later on, you can supplement this information with surveys or information to put their behaviours into context.

Good market research is best used alongside other data and insights, to make sure you get a comprehensive picture of your consumers and market. 

Experiments

Another great way to gather information on behaviours is by conducting experiments. In the marketing world this is often done to determine what the right pricing strategy is.

Sometimes you might need super specific insights from your target customers and surveys just won’t give you the personal detail you need, and perhaps you have a lot of follow-up questions. Interviews with individuals should help you with this. 

In this case, it’s all the more important that you select the right people to talk to, because conducting and analysing interviews is a time-consuming and costly process.

Focus groups

From a focus group, you can get similar information that you’d get from interviews, but you might get something extra out of thanks to the interaction between small groups of participants. Again, it’s crucial that you carefully pick the people that will take part in this method. 

Secondary market research

Secondary research, also called desk research—because you can do it from your desk—is using research conducted by someone else. 

You’ll be using data which can come from a wide variety of sources—which makes it all the more important that you thoroughly vet those sources. 

Benefits of secondary research

• Secondary research is great for exploratory research : A big benefit of secondary research is that you can use it in the early stages of your research to test certain assumptions and hypotheses, before you invest time and money in using primary research methods to complete the research. You can use data that already exists to close the gaps in knowledge and determine the direction of your research.
• Secondary research can be more cost-effective : A Google search is free! Of course, you might stumble upon some reports or research that comes with a paywall, but often this is still a lot cheaper than having to conduct your own research (bear in mind though that because it’s not your own original research, it might not answer the specific queries you have at that time). 
• You have access to a world of information : If you know where to look and what keywords to use, you’ll be able to do a substantial part of your research using only data that’s already in the public domain. We’ll list some sources that we recommend using below, to give you a head start. Bookmark them for easy access! 
• You can save time on your primary research: It’s likely that a lot of information you’re looking for is already available and you might not need to ask your respondents unnecessary questions. At the same time, this will prevent you from duplicating information. Be careful to not use data too loosely though: make sure it is relevant and recent—otherwise it might still be wiser to do your own research.
• Secondary research is easy to conduct : It’s literally called desk research—so you won’t have to go anywhere, or hire someone else to do it. Secondary research comes with a warning sign though—don’t think it’s easy to find information and to interpret it the right way. At the end of the day, you are using data that was collected for a different purpose than your own, so you will always need to put it into perspective. 

How to conduct secondary research

What are some good places to go hunt for data when conducting secondary research? Of course, that depends on your market and research goals. We’ll list some good sources below to help you get started.

Research databases

If you’re using a regular search engine, you can find all kinds of articles that are presented as research, but ultimately aren’t. If you’re looking for more high-quality information with a little more background on how the research was conducted, we recommend research databases such as:

• Google Scholar 
• Science.gov
• ResearchGate

Other handy sources

You don’t necessarily have to comb through scientific papers to find valuable information for your market research. These sites give you great bite-sized data that’s easy tounderstand: 

• Google Trends

Government reports

Governments are prominent market research users. After all, governments need to know what’s really happening in their economies. They often publish research reports on certain industries and population segments. The benefit of using these as secondary sources is that they are relevant to specific countries and that you can often trust that government agencies know how to do their research—after all, they are using this information to base decisions for the entire country on.

Last but not least: don’t forget that books are also a valid source. Not when it comes to trends of course, but for theoretical frameworks, books are often a trustworthy option.  

There’s a time and place for everything: so when do you use primary research, and when is secondary research the right choice? Here we’ll explain instances when you may wish to choose one method of research over the other.

When to use secondary research data

Here are some scenarios in which secondary data is the right choice. Keep in mind, it all depends on the availability of the research: 

• When you are still determining the goal or roadmap of your research, and looking to fill gaps in knowledge
• When a recent and relevant research is available, and you can use parts of this as a base for your new research
• When you are looking for a low-cost way to find data that supports your assumptions.

When primary research fills the gaps

Unlike secondary research, primary research focuses solely on your topic and questions. This is necessary when:

• When you are following up on existing research
• When information from secondary research has proven to be false, outdated or incomplete
• When you are researching a new idea or product in a market that doesn’t exist yet or is still emerging.

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Here at Attest, we have market research for breakfast, lunch, and dinner—and then some in between. We’ve designed our platform to take the hassle out of collecting good-quality primary research. We help you select super-relevant respondents and our team is always on stand-by to help you create an effective, to-the-point survey. 

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Primary market research is done by collecting data yourself, often through surveys or interviews with your target market. Secondary research uses existing data that you can find online or in research reports and books.

You can conduct primary research using (online) surveys, focus groups, observations/experiments and interviews.

Secondary research methods are a great way to kick off your research in the exploration phase. Plus, with the access we have nowadays to data, a lot of double work can be prevented by using secondary market research.

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.

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Primary vs secondary research – what’s the difference.

14 min read Find out how primary and secondary research are different from each other, and how you can use them both in your own research program.

Primary vs secondary research: in a nutshell

The essential difference between primary and secondary research lies in who collects the data.

• Primary research definition

When you conduct primary research, you’re collecting data by doing your own surveys or observations.

• Secondary research definition:

In secondary research, you’re looking at existing data from other researchers, such as academic journals, government agencies or national statistics.

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When to use primary vs secondary research

Primary research and secondary research both offer value in helping you gather information.

Each research method can be used alone to good effect. But when you combine the two research methods, you have the ingredients for a highly effective market research strategy. Most research combines some element of both primary methods and secondary source consultation.

So assuming you’re planning to do both primary and secondary research – which comes first? Counterintuitive as it sounds, it’s more usual to start your research process with secondary research, then move on to primary research.

Secondary research can prepare you for collecting your own data in a primary research project. It can give you a broad overview of your research area, identify influences and trends, and may give you ideas and avenues to explore that you hadn’t previously considered.

Given that secondary research can be done quickly and inexpensively, it makes sense to start your primary research process with some kind of secondary research. Even if you’re expecting to find out what you need to know from a survey of your target market, taking a small amount of time to gather information from secondary sources is worth doing.

Primary research

Primary market research is original research carried out when a company needs timely, specific data about something that affects its success or potential longevity.

Primary research data collection might be carried out in-house by a business analyst or market research team within the company, or it may be outsourced to a specialist provider, such as an agency or consultancy. While outsourcing primary research involves a greater upfront expense, it’s less time consuming and can bring added benefits such as researcher expertise and a ‘fresh eyes’ perspective that avoids the risk of bias and partiality affecting the research data.

Primary research gives you recent data from known primary sources about the particular topic you care about, but it does take a little time to collect that data from scratch, rather than finding secondary data via an internet search or library visit.

Primary research involves two forms of data collection:

• Exploratory research This type of primary research is carried out to determine the nature of a problem that hasn’t yet been clearly defined. For example, a supermarket wants to improve its poor customer service and needs to understand the key drivers behind the customer experience issues. It might do this by interviewing employees and customers, or by running a survey program or focus groups.
• Conclusive research This form of primary research is carried out to solve a problem that the exploratory research – or other forms of primary data – has identified. For example, say the supermarket’s exploratory research found that employees weren’t happy. Conclusive research went deeper, revealing that the manager was rude, unreasonable, and difficult, making the employees unhappy and resulting in a poor employee experience which in turn led to less than excellent customer service. Thanks to the company’s choice to conduct primary research, a new manager was brought in, employees were happier and customer service improved.

Examples of primary research

All of the following are forms of primary research data.

• Customer satisfaction survey results
• Employee experience pulse survey results
• NPS rating scores from your customers
• A field researcher’s notes
• Data from weather stations in a local area
• Recordings made during focus groups

Primary research methods

There are a number of primary research methods to choose from, and they are already familiar to most people. The ones you choose will depend on your budget, your time constraints, your research goals and whether you’re looking for quantitative or qualitative data.

A survey can be carried out online, offline, face to face or via other media such as phone or SMS. It’s relatively cheap to do, since participants can self-administer the questionnaire in most cases. You can automate much of the process if you invest in good quality survey software.

Primary research interviews can be carried out face to face, over the phone or via video calling. They’re more time-consuming than surveys, and they require the time and expense of a skilled interviewer and a dedicated room, phone line or video calling setup. However, a personal interview can provide a very rich primary source of data based not only on the participant’s answers but also on the observations of the interviewer.

Focus groups

A focus group is an interview with multiple participants at the same time. It often takes the form of a discussion moderated by the researcher. As well as taking less time and resources than a series of one-to-one interviews, a focus group can benefit from the interactions between participants which bring out more ideas and opinions. However this can also lead to conversations going off on a tangent, which the moderator must be able to skilfully avoid by guiding the group back to the relevant topic.

Secondary research

Secondary research is research that has already been done by someone else prior to your own research study.

Secondary research is generally the best place to start any research project as it will reveal whether someone has already researched the same topic you’re interested in, or a similar topic that helps lay some of the groundwork for your research project.

Even if your preliminary secondary research doesn’t turn up a study similar to your own research goals, it will still give you a stronger knowledge base that you can use to strengthen and refine your research hypothesis. You may even find some gaps in the market you didn’t know about before.

The scope of secondary research resources is extremely broad. Here are just a few of the places you might look for relevant information.

Books and magazines

A public library can turn up a wealth of data in the form of books and magazines – and it doesn’t cost a penny to consult them.

Market research reports

Secondary research from professional research agencies can be highly valuable, as you can be confident the data collection methods and data analysis will be sound

Scholarly journals, often available in reference libraries

Peer-reviewed journals have been examined by experts from the relevant educational institutions, meaning there has been an extra layer of oversight and careful consideration of the data points before publication.

Government reports and studies

Public domain data, such as census data, can provide relevant information for your research project, not least in choosing the appropriate research population for a primary research method. If the information you need isn’t readily available, try contacting the relevant government agencies.

White papers

Businesses often produce white papers as a means of showcasing their expertise and value in their field. White papers can be helpful in secondary research methods, although they may not be as carefully vetted as academic papers or public records.

Trade or industry associations

Associations may have secondary data that goes back a long way and offers a general overview of a particular industry. This data collected over time can be very helpful in laying the foundations of your particular research project.

Private company data

Some businesses may offer their company data to those conducting research in return for fees or with explicit permissions. However, if a business has data that’s closely relevant to yours, it’s likely they are a competitor and may flat out refuse your request.

Learn more about secondary research

Examples of secondary research data

These are all forms of secondary research data in action:

• A newspaper report quoting statistics sourced by a journalist
• Facts from primary research articles quoted during a debate club meeting
• A blog post discussing new national figures on the economy
• A company consulting previous research published by a competitor

Secondary research methods

Literature reviews.

A core part of the secondary research process, involving data collection and constructing an argument around multiple sources. A literature review involves gathering information from a wide range of secondary sources on one topic and summarizing them in a report or in the introduction to primary research data.

Content analysis

This systematic approach is widely used in social science disciplines. It uses codes for themes, tropes or key phrases which are tallied up according to how often they occur in the secondary data. The results help researchers to draw conclusions from qualitative data.

Data analysis using digital tools

You can analyze large volumes of data using software that can recognize and categorize natural language. More advanced tools will even be able to identify relationships and semantic connections within the secondary research materials.

Comparing primary vs secondary research

We’ve established that both primary research and secondary research have benefits for your business, and that there are major differences in terms of the research process, the cost, the research skills involved and the types of data gathered. But is one of them better than the other?

The answer largely depends on your situation. Whether primary or secondary research wins out in your specific case depends on the particular topic you’re interested in and the resources you have available. The positive aspects of one method might be enough to sway you, or the drawbacks – such as a lack of credible evidence already published, as might be the case in very fast-moving industries – might make one method totally unsuitable.

Here’s an at-a-glance look at the features and characteristics of primary vs secondary research, illustrating some of the key differences between them.

What are the pros and cons of primary research?

Primary research provides original data and allows you to pinpoint the issues you’re interested in and collect data from your target market – with all the effort that entails.

Benefits of primary research:

• Tells you what you need to know, nothing irrelevant
• Yours exclusively – once acquired, you may be able to sell primary data or use it for marketing
• Teaches you more about your business
• Can help foster new working relationships and connections between silos
• Primary research methods can provide upskilling opportunities – employees gain new research skills

Limitations of primary research:

• Lacks context from other research on related subjects
• Can be expensive
• Results aren’t ready to use until the project is complete
• Any mistakes you make in in research design or implementation could compromise your data quality
• May not have lasting relevance – although it could fulfill a benchmarking function if things change

What are the pros and cons of secondary research?

Secondary research relies on secondary sources, which can be both an advantage and a drawback. After all, other people are doing the work, but they’re also setting the research parameters.

Benefits of secondary research:

• It’s often low cost or even free to access in the public domain
• Supplies a knowledge base for researchers to learn from
• Data is complete, has been analyzed and checked, saving you time and costs
• It’s ready to use as soon as you acquire it

Limitations of secondary research

• May not provide enough specific information
• Conducting a literature review in a well-researched subject area can become overwhelming
• No added value from publishing or re-selling your research data
• Results are inconclusive – you’ll only ever be interpreting data from another organization’s experience, not your own
• Details of the research methodology are unknown
• May be out of date – always check carefully the original research was conducted

Related resources

Business research methods 12 min read, qualitative research interviews 11 min read, market intelligence 10 min read, marketing insights 11 min read, ethnographic research 11 min read, qualitative vs quantitative research 13 min read, qualitative research questions 11 min read, request demo.

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• Primary vs. Secondary Sources | Difference & Examples

Primary vs. Secondary Sources | Difference & Examples

Published on June 20, 2018 by Raimo Streefkerk . Revised on May 31, 2023.

When you do research, you have to gather information and evidence from a variety of sources.

Primary sources provide raw information and first-hand evidence. Examples include interview transcripts, statistical data, and works of art. Primary research gives you direct access to the subject of your research.

Secondary sources provide second-hand information and commentary from other researchers. Examples include journal articles, reviews, and academic books . Thus, secondary research describes, interprets, or synthesizes primary sources.

Primary sources are more credible as evidence, but good research uses both primary and secondary sources.

Table of contents

What is a primary source, what is a secondary source, primary and secondary source examples, how to tell if a source is primary or secondary, primary vs secondary sources: which is better, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about primary and secondary sources.

A primary source is anything that gives you direct evidence about the people, events, or phenomena that you are researching. Primary sources will usually be the main objects of your analysis.

If you are researching the past, you cannot directly access it yourself, so you need primary sources that were produced at the time by participants or witnesses (e.g. letters, photographs, newspapers ).

If you are researching something current, your primary sources can either be qualitative or quantitative data that you collect yourself (e.g. through interviews , surveys , experiments ) or sources produced by people directly involved in the topic (e.g. official documents or media texts).

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A secondary source is anything that describes, interprets, evaluates, or analyzes information from primary sources. Common examples include:

• Books , articles and documentaries that synthesize information on a topic
• Synopses and descriptions of artistic works
• Encyclopedias and textbooks that summarize information and ideas
• Reviews and essays that evaluate or interpret something

When you cite a secondary source, it’s usually not to analyze it directly. Instead, you’ll probably test its arguments against new evidence or use its ideas to help formulate your own.

Examples of sources that can be primary or secondary

A secondary source can become a primary source depending on your research question . If the person, context, or technique that produced the source is the main focus of your research, it becomes a primary source.

Documentaries

If you are researching the causes of World War II, a recent documentary about the war is a secondary source . But if you are researching the filmmaking techniques used in historical documentaries, the documentary is a primary source .

Reviews and essays

If your paper is about the novels of Toni Morrison, a magazine review of one of her novels is a secondary source . But if your paper is about the critical reception of Toni Morrison’s work, the review is a primary source .

Newspaper articles

If your aim is to analyze the government’s economic policy, a newspaper article about a new policy is a secondary source . But if your aim is to analyze media coverage of economic issues, the newspaper article is a primary source .

To determine if something can be used as a primary or secondary source in your research, there are some simple questions you can ask yourself:

• Does this source come from someone directly involved in the events I’m studying (primary) or from another researcher (secondary)?
• Am I interested in evaluating the source itself (primary) or only using it for background information (secondary)?
• Does the source provide original information (primary) or does it comment upon information from other sources (secondary)?

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Most research uses both primary and secondary sources. They complement each other to help you build a convincing argument. Primary sources are more credible as evidence, but secondary sources show how your work relates to existing research. Tertiary sources are often used in the first, exploratory stage of research.

What do you use primary sources for?

Primary sources are the foundation of original research. They allow you to:

• Make new discoveries
• Provide credible evidence for your arguments
• Give authoritative information about your topic

If you don’t use any primary sources, your research may be considered unoriginal or unreliable.

What do you use secondary sources for?

Secondary sources are good for gaining a full overview of your topic and understanding how other researchers have approached it. They often synthesize a large number of primary sources that would be difficult and time-consuming to gather by yourself. They allow you to:

• Gain background information on the topic
• Support or contrast your arguments with other researchers’ ideas
• Gather information from primary sources that you can’t access directly (e.g. private letters or physical documents located elsewhere)

When you conduct a literature review or meta analysis, you can consult secondary sources to gain a thorough overview of your topic. If you want to mention a paper or study that you find cited in a secondary source, seek out the original source and cite it directly.

Remember that all primary and secondary sources must be cited to avoid plagiarism . You can use Scribbr’s free citation generator to do so!

If you want to know more about ChatGPT, AI tools , citation , and plagiarism , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

• ChatGPT vs human editor
• ChatGPT citations
• Is ChatGPT trustworthy?
• Using ChatGPT for your studies
• What is ChatGPT?
• Chicago style
• Paraphrasing

 Plagiarism

• Types of plagiarism
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• Academic integrity
• Consequences of plagiarism
• Common knowledge

Common examples of primary sources include interview transcripts , photographs, novels, paintings, films, historical documents, and official statistics.

Anything you directly analyze or use as first-hand evidence can be a primary source, including qualitative or quantitative data that you collected yourself.

Common examples of secondary sources include academic books, journal articles , reviews, essays , and textbooks.

Anything that summarizes, evaluates or interprets primary sources can be a secondary source. If a source gives you an overview of background information or presents another researcher’s ideas on your topic, it is probably a secondary source.

To determine if a source is primary or secondary, ask yourself:

• Was the source created by someone directly involved in the events you’re studying (primary), or by another researcher (secondary)?
• Does the source provide original information (primary), or does it summarize information from other sources (secondary)?
• Are you directly analyzing the source itself (primary), or only using it for background information (secondary)?

Some types of source are nearly always primary: works of art and literature, raw statistical data, official documents and records, and personal communications (e.g. letters, interviews ). If you use one of these in your research, it is probably a primary source.

Primary sources are often considered the most credible in terms of providing evidence for your argument, as they give you direct evidence of what you are researching. However, it’s up to you to ensure the information they provide is reliable and accurate.

Always make sure to properly cite your sources to avoid plagiarism .

A fictional movie is usually a primary source. A documentary can be either primary or secondary depending on the context.

If you are directly analyzing some aspect of the movie itself – for example, the cinematography, narrative techniques, or social context – the movie is a primary source.

If you use the movie for background information or analysis about your topic – for example, to learn about a historical event or a scientific discovery – the movie is a secondary source.

Whether it’s primary or secondary, always properly cite the movie in the citation style you are using. Learn how to create an MLA movie citation or an APA movie citation .

Articles in newspapers and magazines can be primary or secondary depending on the focus of your research.

In historical studies, old articles are used as primary sources that give direct evidence about the time period. In social and communication studies, articles are used as primary sources to analyze language and social relations (for example, by conducting content analysis or discourse analysis ).

If you are not analyzing the article itself, but only using it for background information or facts about your topic, then the article is a secondary source.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Streefkerk, R. (2023, May 31). Primary vs. Secondary Sources | Difference & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved April 11, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/working-with-sources/primary-and-secondary-sources/

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Primary market research vs. secondary market research

There are many differences between primary and secondary market research. This article will define what they are and will explain the types and sources of research associated with them.

Primary and secondary research types and sources 

Editor’s note: Deeksha Khanna is the senior associate of marketing at Torfac. This is an edited version of an article that originally appeared under the title “ Primary Vs Secondary Market Research: Types, Sources, and Examples .”

Market research is critical for businesses to learn about trends and consumer behaviors. It also helps organizations make critical decisions, identify new opportunities, identify competitors and improve their offerings. The achievement of business objectives is the primary criterion for successful market research. Key objectives include increasing the company’s market reputation, improving product performance and gauging customer reactions to price changes or new market developments.

What is primary market research?

Primary market research is a method for determining the viability of a product or service based on information gathered directly from the source – potential customers. Primary market research is conducted from the ground up, rather than relying on previously worked research.

In-person interviews, focus groups, surveys, product trials, product testing and direct observations are all standard methods of conducting primary market research. Marketers typically conduct primary research to address a specific issue that necessitates in-depth analysis.

The types of primary market research

Quantitative market research.

Rather than focusing on consumers’ feelings, opinions and attitudes, quantitative market research focuses on numerical data. The procedure entails gathering a large number of statistical points via surveys, polls and questionnaires. The mathematical, statistical and computational methods allow researchers to collect data that can then be analyzed to determine patterns and averages, make predictions and generalizations. The goal of quantitative market research is to identify and understand the problem. Quantitative market research can provide highly accurate results, allowing businesses to develop a clear picture of their goals and how to achieve them.

Qualitative market research

To gain insights into consumer opinions, motivations or experiences, qualitative market research collects behavioral, observational and non-numerical data such as audio, text or video. Open-ended questions and a small sample size of six to 10 respondents are used in qualitative market research, allowing for an in-depth discussion of the topics. Focus groups and interviews are the most common methods for conducting qualitative market research.

What are primary market research sources?

In-depth interviews, surveys, focus groups, social media monitoring and questionnaires are primary research sources.

In-depth interviews

In-depth interviews are excellent for learning how a specific customer group perceives a brand or product. In-depth interviews are usually interactive and have a flexible structure. A trusted moderator conducts these interviews, considering not only the respondent’s answers but also body language and overall impression.

Surveys aid in the collection of a large amount of information about the characteristics and preferences of the population. Marketers will be able to use this data in the future to predict consumer behavior.

Focus groups  

Focus groups are interviews with selected participants who represent the target audience. Participants in the group are chosen based on specific criteria such as location, age, socioeconomic status and so on.

Questionnaires

Questionnaires are a type of research tool that consists of a series of closed-ended or open-ended questions designed to elicit feedback from your customers. There are various types of questionnaires, including computer, telephone and mail questionnaires.

Hypothesis testing for existing products via A/B or multivariate testing allows for examining prices for different markets or audiences, comparing web page design and conversion effectiveness and so on. Although the core mechanisms of both methods are similar, multivariate testing compares a greater number of variables and provides more information.

Social media monitoring  

Targeted social media monitoring aids in the discovery of information about your company, industry and competitors. This data includes all mentions of your brand, such as product reviews, product questions or service repair complaints.

What is secondary market research?

Secondary market research is a type of market research that uses data from secondary sources that were not previously prepared specifically for the purposes of the current study. In other words, in secondary research, marketers collect and analyze previously collected data for purposes other than their research.  

Secondary data is frequently obtained from industry and trade associations, government agencies, media outlets, industry-specific newsletters, magazines and newspapers. This type of research is typically less expensive and more accessible than primary market research.

Types of secondary market research

Secondary market research is classified into two types: Internal secondary market research and external secondary market research.

Internal data : Internal data can be found in the company’s databases and used for future reference. Customer account information, product usage data, sales records and previously prepared research reports are examples of internal data. There are also previous advertising and marketing campaign records, departmental records and so on.

External data:  External data including   data from competitors, journals and magazines, industry surveys and market reports, is initially prepared by people outside the current company environment.

What are secondary market research sources?

Secondary research, like primary research, may draw on a variety of information sources. Some of the most common are listed below.

Secondary market research can benefit greatly from sales data. Every business collects data on daily operations, delivered orders, invoices and returned goods. This data is useful for marketers because it allows them to gain insights into sales by territory, customer type, average sales per salesperson, prices, discounts and other data.

Financial information can be used to estimate the efficiency of marketing operations. It includes the costs of manufacturing, storage, transportation and marketing. It can also provide insights into which products or services generate significant profits for you and which drive your business into the red.

Trade associations frequently publish free and paid reports to keep professionals up-to-date on economic developments. Specialized journals and media outlets publish news, research, press releases and professional articles on a regular basis, making them excellent sources of current secondary data.

Specialized research organizations collect commercial marketing research data and resell it to other businesses. These companies collect data on the consumer population, attitudes, trends and behaviors, as well as online and offline purchases. The results search engines are a good source of both free and commercially available data.

Competitor analysis. You can learn about competitors from a variety of sources, including their websites, review sites and media publications. This method allows you to gain a thorough understanding of how market participants and customers perceive a specific company.

Examples of primary and secondary market research

If you plan to launch an e-commerce platform or add a new product to an existing store, conducting market research may provide the necessary transparency into this business decision before proceeding. First and foremost, the market size for the business or product must be determined and you’ll also need a variety of data about statistics and trends in your industry, consumer behavior and current demand for your product.

Secondary market research methods, as well as digging into industry articles and searching for information from marketing companies about items people tend to buy online, can be used to discover information about the industry size, trends and growth rates. Market research reports will be another useful resource.

The next step is to understand your potential customers’ needs, as well as their socioeconomic and geographic circumstances. Primary research and customer surveys are the best ways to obtain this information. Begin by participating in specialized forums, Facebook groups or other social media channels. For example, if you are launching an online clothing store, you can use Google Forms, Google Surveys or TypeForm to conduct an online survey that targets specific customer segments. You can include questions about their age, location, income, favorite brands and stores where they typically shop for clothing. You can also use the form to see if any of the customers who were surveyed would be willing to participate in in-depth interviews. 

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» Primary vs Secondary Market Research: Types, Sources, and Examples

Market research is critical for businesses to learn about trends and consumer behavior. It also helps organisations make critical decisions, identify new opportunities, identify competitors, and improve their offerings. The achievement of business objectives is the primary criterion for successful market research. Key objectives include increasing the company’s market reputation, improving product performance, and gauging customer reactions to price changes or new market developments.

What exactly is primary research?

Primary market research is a method for determining the viability of a product or service based on information gathered directly from the source — potential customers. Primary market research is conducted from the ground up, rather than relying on previously worked research.

In-person interviews, focus groups, surveys, product trials, product testing, and direct observations are all standard methods of conducting primary market research. Marketers typically conduct primary research to address a specific issue that necessitates in-depth analysis.

Types of primary research

Quantitative market research:  Rather than focusing on consumers’ feelings, opinions, and attitudes, quantitative market research focuses on numerical data. The procedure entails gathering a large number of statistical points via surveys, polls, and questionnaires. The mathematical, statistical, and computational methods allow researchers to collect data that can then be analysed to determine patterns and averages, make predictions, and make generalisations. The goal of quantitative market research is to identify and understand the problem. Quantitative market research can provide highly accurate results, allowing businesses to develop a clear picture of their goals and how to achieve them.

Qualitative market research:  To gain insights into consumer opinions, motivations, or experiences, qualitative market research collects behavioral, observational, and non-numerical data such as audio, text, or video. Open-ended questions and a small sample size of six to ten respondents are used in qualitative market research, allowing for an in-depth discussion of the topics. Focus groups and interviews are the most common methods for conducting qualitative market research.

Primary research sources

In-depth interviews, surveys, focus groups, social media monitoring, and questionnaires are primary research sources. Let’s go over them in more detail below:

In-depth interviews are excellent for learning how a specific customer group perceives a brand or product. In-depth interviews are usually interactive and have a flexible structure. A trusted moderator conducts these interviews, taking into account not only the respondent’s answers but also body language and overall impression.

Surveys aid in the collection of a large amount of information about the characteristics and preferences of the population. Marketers will be able to use this data in the future to predict consumer behavior.

Focus groups are interviews with selected participants who represent the target audience. Participants in the group are chosen based on specific criteria such as location, age, socioeconomic status, and so on.

Questionnaires are a type of research tool that consists of a series of closed-ended or open-ended questions designed to elicit feedback from your customers. There are various types of questionnaires, including computer, telephone, and mail questionnaires.

Hypothesis testing for existing products via A/B or multivariate testing allows for examining prices for different markets or audiences, comparing web page design and conversion effectiveness, and so on. Although the core mechanisms of both methods are similar, multivariate testing compares a greater number of variables and provides more information.

Targeted social media monitoring aids in the discovery of information about your company, industry, and competitors. This data includes any and all mentions of your brand, such as product reviews, product questions, or service repair complaints.

What exactly is secondary research?

Secondary market research is a type of market research that uses data from secondary sources that were not previously prepared specifically for the purposes of the current study. In other words, in secondary research, marketers collect and analyse previously collected data for purposes other than their research. Secondary data is frequently obtained from industry and trade associations, government agencies, media outlets, industry-specific newsletters, magazines, and newspapers. This type of research is typically less expensive and more accessible than primary market research.

Secondary research types

Secondary market research is classified into two types: internal secondary market research and external secondary market research.

Internal Data : Internal data can be found in the company’s databases and used for future reference. Customer account information, product usage data, sales records, and previously prepared research reports are examples of internal data. There are also previous advertising and marketing campaign records, departmental records, and so on.

External data  such as data from competitors, journals and magazines, industry surveys, and market reports, is initially prepared by people outside the current company environment.

Secondary research sources

Secondary research, like primary research, may draw on a variety of information sources. Some of the most common are listed below.

Secondary market research can benefit greatly from sales data. Every business collects data on daily operations, delivered orders, invoices, and returned goods. This data is useful for marketers because it allows them to gain insights into sales by territory, customer type, average sales per salesperson, prices, discounts, and other data.

Financial information can be used to estimate the efficiency of marketing operations. It includes the costs of manufacturing, storage, transportation, and marketing. It can also provide insights into which products or services generate significant profits for you or drive your business into the red.

Trade associations frequently publish free and paid reports to keep professionals up to date on economic developments.

Specialized journals and media outlets publish news, research, press releases, and professional articles on a regular basis, making them excellent sources of current secondary data.

Specialized research organisations collect commercial marketing research data and resell it to other businesses. These companies collect data on the consumer population, attitudes, trends, and behaviors, as well as online and offline purchases.

The results search engines are a good source of both free and commercially available data.

Competitor analysis. You can learn about competitors from a variety of sources, including their websites, review sites, and media publications. This method allows you to gain a thorough understanding of how market participants and customers perceive a specific company.

Examples of primary and secondary research

If you plan to launch an e-commerce platform or add a new product to an existing store, conducting market research may provide the necessary transparency into this business decision before proceeding. First and foremost, the market size for the business or product must be determined. Then you’ll need a variety of data about statistics and trends in your industry, consumer behavior, and current demand for your product.

Secondary market research methods, as well as digging into industry articles and searching for information from marketing companies about the things people tend to buy online, can be used to discover information about the industry size, trends, and growth rates. Market research reports will be another useful resource.

The next step is to understand your potential customers’ needs, as well as their socioeconomic and geographic circumstances. Primary research and customer surveys are the best ways to obtain this information. Begin by participating in specialised forums, Facebook groups, or other social media channels.

For example, if you are launching an online clothing store, you can use Google Forms, Google Surveys, or TypeForm to conduct an online survey that targets specific customer segments. You can include questions about their age, location, income, favorite brands, and stores where they typically shop for clothing.

You can also use the form to see if any of the customers who were surveyed would be willing to participate in in-depth interviews. Prepare a list of open-ended questions for in-depth interviews to help you discuss with each interviewee.

Primary research methods: customer surveys, questionnaires, and in-depth interviews.

Secondary research methods: industry articles, competitor research, and market research reports.

Author –  Deeksha Khanna

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What are Primary and Secondary Sources

Primary sources  are original materials. They provide direct evidence or firsthand account of an event, experiment, person, company or object. Examples of primary sources include eyewitness accounts, interviews, autobiographies, drawings, statistical data, and journals articles reporting original research.

Secondary sources  describe, summarize, review, interpret, and analyze primary sources.  Examples of secondary sources include books and book chapters, newspapers, magazines, trade publications, and journals articles that describe and evaluate original research done by other people.

In business , primary sources provide information about what a company or industry says about itself. Examples include  annual reports ,  financial statements ,  press releases ,  interviews ,  speeches ,  blog entries  or  tweets . Secondary sources provide information about what others think about a company or industry. Examples include pre-packaged  company, industry or market reports , a rticles from newspapers, magazines and trade publications. I n the context of marketing research, secondary data sources refer to data sources that have been gathered by someone else for another purpose.

How do these support your analysis?

• Identify competitors and understand industry dynamics
• Provide background information on the company and its products/services
• Provide details on forces in the macro-environment (demographic, economic, socio-cultural, technological, political/legal)
• Provide data on the market (market size, market share, target markets)
• Provide real data (i.e. facts and statistics) to as you develop your marketing strategy and other aspects of your marketing plan.

Sources: Ohio Wesleyan University:  https://library.owu.edu/business-databases  and Brock University :  https://researchguides.library.brocku.ca/mbab5p05/intro

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The difference between primary and secondary market research

There’s little reason to leave decision-making to chance these days, with data available at every turn. Whether designing new physical or digital products, creating marketing campaigns, carrying out upgrades, or adding functionality to a website or application, we should make all our important decisions utilising qualified information.

To do that, we need to understand our market and know precisely who our ideal users are to explore their behaviours, desires, needs, and problems. Finding out about each of those essential elements requires a great deal of research.

Why do we need market research?

Hit and hope was the strategy of old, where designers and marketers made assumptions about who their most-likely customers were and what they wanted. Market research before the Internet wasn’t impossible, but it wasn’t anywhere near as accessible as it is today.

Technology and communication are a standard part of our daily lives, and the information those avenues provide is everywhere. As UX researchers, we know precisely how to explore all of those data opportunities, gathering the specific personalised information you need to create the best products your users and customers will be delighted to exploit.

Market research is essential for organisations to understand their target audience, consumer behaviour, buyer personas, user needs, desires, pain points, current trends, and more.

However, there’s no simple one-size-fits-all strategy, so we must consider various research methods to ensure success in defining and achieving our goals.

Examples of market research

With our business objectives and goals clearly defined, how do we gather the required information, and where will we find our ideal resource pools?

Market research consists of hundreds of opportunities, from our competitor analysis, customer feedback, market trends, pricing strategies, and consumer needs, to the possibilities for new developments.

Some of that information is readily available in the public domain; some will need to be gathered personally. However, it must all be relevant to your project and your ideal user.

How do you decide what you need and gather the data? It’s time to talk about the difference between primary market research and secondary market research.

Types of market research: primary vs secondary, qualitative vs quantitative

At first glance you’d be forgiven for believing that primary and secondary research types were merely stages of a pre-defined process; not so, in fact, in most schedules, researchers look to secondary market research before carrying out any of the typical primary research techniques.

What is primary market research?

Primary market research is custom market research gathered from primary data sources . It requires the business—or outside market research or UX research specialist employed especially for the task—to carry out a range of data collection methods directly from active or likely users or potential customers that fulfil their ideal user persona.

The methods used in primary research are developed from pre-defined goals to ask questions or monitor real and relevant participants that will deliver the information required for locating and solving specific problems.

Primary market research methods are exploratory by nature, looking into how a user may react or use a product and what their perceived problems are likely to include, stimulating the discussions and methods that provide the answers required to reach your goals and targets.

What is secondary market research?

Secondary market research is off-the-shelf market research . In this instance, the secondary stands for secondary sources of information .

This type of data was previously researched, gathered, and prepared to serve an alternative purpose, but is available to marketers and researchers in the public domain.

These readily available data sets and information typically come from industry and trade organisations, the government, media groups, and publications.

Internal and external secondary research

External data  describes the type of information attained from other companies and organisations already discussed; however, not all secondary research material comes from outside resources.

Internal data can be found in a business’s own resources. Whether from previously carried out interviews and testing or from internal customer accounts, usage, marketing and sales metrics, these types of internal information can reveal existing insights into new avenues of research.

Qualitative and quantitative research

Primary and secondary market research can be both qualitative and quantitative.

Quantitative research delivers easy-to-quantify numeric data , for example, percentages, rates, and statistical data sets from surveys, polls, and questionnaires.

Qualitative research uncovers users’ feelings, behaviours, and opinions , providing explanations of pain points and issues experienced resulting from open-ended questions and observations.

Primary vs secondary market research: what are the key differences?

As you can see already, there are clearly defined differences between the two methods and stages, but more specifically, we can categorise them as follows:

• Data sources – Typically, secondary research data comes from external agencies and organisations, whereas primary research data is gleaned directly from specific pre-identified ideal users.
• Collection methods – Collection comes from the acquisition or purchase of off-the-shelf data vs personal research through interviews, questionnaires, surveys, and observations.
• Cost  – Depending on the methods or suppliers of each research type, costs and budgets can differ significantly. Typically, secondary market research methods tend to be less expensive than primary data research and collection.
• Accuracy  – Depending on the age of the research and the organisation carrying it out, secondary research lends itself to be less reliable than the information you’ve gathered and quantified personally.
• Use  – Both types, primary and secondary research, provide valuable insights into your projects and campaigns, but from different viewpoints and process stages catering to alternative requirements and goals.

Examples of primary and secondary market research methods

Primary market research types:.

• In-depth interviews
• Focus groups
• Observations
• Questionnaires
• User testing/product testing/A/B testing
• MVP testing

Secondary market research types:

• Published reports
• Government studies
• Commercial marketing research data
• Trade studies
• Academic studies
• Industry magazines and publications, and trade journals
• Historical data
• Sales and financial data
• Industry trends
• Research reports
• Company reports and public records
• Census data
• Internet searches

Advantages and disadvantages of primary market research vs secondary market research

Advantages of primary market research options.

• Greater control over topic and budget
• Specific to goals and the most relevant
• Confidential
• Reliable and accurate data
• Specific to niche or hard-to-define markets
• Data ownership – providing options for ongoing use in alternative projects or sharing and selling your findings to other interested parties.

Advantages of secondary market research options

• Quick to conduct with faster results
• Readily available
• Often from public resources
• Defined market focus
• Valuable preparation for primary research stages

Disadvantages of primary market research options

• Can be costly
• Often time-consuming
• More complex in methodology and defining the ideal tools for each situation

Disadvantages of secondary market research options

• Less personalised and less specific results
• Non-confidential, with data available to competitors
• Buying insights and reports can become costly, with varying guarantees of valid and beneficial results
• Pre-interpreted results could deliver inaccurate information for your requirements

Primary and secondary marketing research schedule

1. define your goals.

As with all research models and methods, it’s imperative to set specific goals, so everyone knows precisely what the organisation needs to achieve from its new product, system, upgrade, or app. The best outcomes are designed to solve problems, and your research is no different. However, depending on the information you uncover during your research, you may need to reassess and realign your goals to deliver your optimum final results.

2. Action your relevant secondary research methods

Gather any or all publicly delivered and readily available data into your chosen market, competitors, product, and industry. The goal is to understand existing information and create an overview of the market situation to base deeper exploration.

3. Design and deliver your primary research

With defined goals and a broad overview of your project field of operation, you can decide the best methods and tools to uncover the specific data that only participants can deliver.

4. Draw your conclusions and decide on the next step

Your data may deliver all the answers you need to move into production, launch your promotion or product, or apply to investors. Alternatively, it may suggest that further research is necessary or highlight unforeseen issues and eventualities that need consideration before moving forwards.

Conclusions

Understanding how primary research vs secondary research marketing methods narrows down essential design decision-making, we can use the combination to form the plans that lead to success.

Whether you need to collect that data through interviews, questionnaires, or surveys, or if it’s numeric data found on census sites, in libraries, or commercial data centres, you now know the difference and how both should be utilised in your strategies.

If you would like to know more about product research using either primary or secondary methods, email us at  [email protected] .

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• Primary Data vs. Secondary Data: Market Research Methods

by Lee Steinbock , on October 25, 2022

Not only can you simply plug your search term into any web browser, but you will also get an almost innumerable number of results, many of which circularly source from one another. As such, how can you avoid bad data and ensure that you’re relying on the best information to make strategic decisions?

The experts here at Freedonia Custom Research (FCR) are here to help you navigate all of these data sources.

At the highest level, market research data can be split into primary and secondary data sources, although from a best practices perspective, secondary research should always be performed first.

What Is Secondary Data?

Secondary data is publicly available or relatively inexpensive to obtain and can be used as the foundation for any analysis or business decision — so long as you can feel comfortable regarding the source, something FCR can assist with.

Secondary Data Examples

Sources of secondary data include, but are not limited to, the following:

Company Websites

• Advantages — Public companies tend to have investor relations sections on their websites that are full of reports and other investor documents that can provide insights on both the company, as well as the industry overall.
• Disadvantages — Private companies are not required to report sales or other types of financial information, while public companies only have to report certain information, so if you are seeking information on a specific segment or product, details may be lacking.
• Applications  — Company websites can be used across a number of research workflows. Revenue information can be used for market sizing, as well as market share analyses, while investor information can offer insights on sales splits and expected sales.

Government Statistics

• Advantages — This data is widely available and easily accessible online. Topics range from product shipments and trade, to patents, pricing inflation, and building trends, to name a few.
• Disadvantages — Data is organized in very specific manner, meaning it is often not presented specifically as needed, so further manipulation/analysis tends to be required.
• Applications  — Government statistics tend to be utilized in market sizing exercises and the identification of market trends overall.

Industry Associations

• Advantages — These groups often share lots of valuable information on their websites — including industry overviews, industry participants, product and company news, and other details regarding industry trends.
• Disadvantages — Industry associations tend to compile industry data for their members, so access to this information is likely not available to everyone. Additionally, industry data typically only accounts for a certain share of overall activity. As such, further investigation as to the portion of the market represented is required.
• Applications  — Industry association data can be a great initial source of information when performing a market sizing analysis, as well as identification of industry trends. The information contained in these sources can also be used to identify key players in the market and areas of focus.

Published Market Research Reports

• Advantages — These reports, for a fee, can provide a great overview of an industry, including quantitative data you might not find elsewhere related to market size, growth rates, and industry participant market share.
• Disadvantages — Because they are targeting as broad an audience as possible, these reports tend to be rather broad, with relatively standard segmentation. For those interested in greater detail on certain product segments or geographies, these reports may not be the best option.
• Applications  — As noted, published market research often includes high-level quantitative information, which can assist in market size and share analyses. Depending on the report, details on major manufacturers involved in the industry may be available.

Trade Publications

• Advantages — Sources like periodicals and news articles, many of which are available online, are a great industry-specific source for in-depth product, industry, and competitor data. Oftentimes, these sources include commentary from leading executives about new technologies, industry trends, and future plans.
• Disadvantages — While certain periodicals are known for their data collection, the data from these organizations has similar disadvantages to those outlined above for industry associations. Quantitative details from newspaper articles tend to be derived from other secondary sources.
• Applications  — Information from trade publications can be used for both qualitative and quantitative analyses. While the information might not get you as far as you need — in either instance — it can serve as a strong starting point.

As noted, there are often limitations to relying solely on secondary sources, especially if you are interested in a niche product or a new technology. In these cases, the information may be outdated or not accurately reflect the industry situation as a whole. You might be asking a question that no one has tried to answer before. So what should you do now? Primary research.

What Is Primary Data?

A primary resource is information that is collected specifically for your purposes, directly from people who are involved in the industry that is being examined. Methods of primary data collection will vary based on the goals of the research and the level of detail being sought.

Primary Data Examples

Examples of primary data sources include:

Focus Groups

• Advantages — Focus groups allow companies to get very specific demographic end-user thoughts (qualitative data) on a new product or service that are still in the early stages of development.
• Disadvantages — Feedback comes from small groups, so unless multiple focus groups are conducted and responses are compared, there may be sampling error issues.
• Applications  — Focus groups can provide qualitative feedback on what end-users like, dislike, are confused by, or would do differently, in regard to the new offering.

In-Depth Interviews

• Advantages — In-depth interviews allow for the targeting of key industry experts who can offer both quantitative and qualitative details that can help provide clarity to your current analysis. Not only do these allow for conversation regarding the research objectives, but they often can result in new paths of examination that arise organically from the conversation.
• Disadvantages — The more detailed the information you are seeking, the fewer people there are that can provide the desired information. As such, not just anyone can perform in-depth interviews. They require significant contacts within the industry being studied, as well as extensive experience engaging experts on their level.
• Applications  — In-depth interviews present the opportunity to gather detailed qualitative and quantitative insights from leading industry players about their business, competitors, and the industry at large.

Social Media Monitoring

• Advantages — Social media monitoring shows that you don’t have to always participate in the conversation to learn from it.
• Disadvantages — Without engaging with the market, you are often left to draw inferences from the information that is uncovered. If you have questions about why a group is saying something, you’re left to wonder.
• Applications  — Social media monitoring allows for passive data gathering in the form of questions like: How much are people talking about your brand compared to competitive brands? Is what they’re saying positive or negative? Is the public clamoring for something the industry currently doesn’t provide? How are your competitors portraying themselves via social media, and what does that say about their strategy?
• Advantages — Surveys are a great way to collect significant amounts of representative quantitative data via primary research methods.
• Disadvantages — Whereas in-depth interviews are dynamic in nature, surveys are static, and don’t allow for follow-up or further probing as to the “why” someone does something. Additionally, the development of the questions used in a survey is critical to the success of the research, meaning that it’s more complex than simply saying, “This is what I want to know.”
• Applications  — Surveys can be used to describe a given population in terms of who they are, what they do, what they like, and if they’re happy, among many other characteristics.

Freedonia Custom Research Is Here to Help

Overwhelmed at how to put all of the pieces together? Here are a few ways that the FCR team can help, based on our long track record of conducting secondary and primary market research for corporations across a wide array of industries:

• Access to trusted secondary data — FCR has access to The Freedonia Group’s catalog of over 4,000 industry studies and focus reports, including Packaged Facts and Simba Information. This gives us a head start on secondary data collection on market sizing, growth, and competitive intelligence. Additionally, because of the Freedonia brand name, many industry participants are familiar with us and eager to share their perspectives.
• Long list of industry contacts — FCR has been in business for nearly 20 years, throughout which we have been conducting primary research with decision-makers and industry influencers we can reach out to for in-depth interviews and surveys. We know what sorts of questions to ask various constituent groups (such as manufacturers, distributors, end-users, industry associations, and regulatory bodies), and because we are an independent, third-party firm, you can trust that their answers will be candid and unbiased.
• Analytical experience — Not only do we know where and how to find all of the information that you are seeking, we also have the expertise to synthesize all of the information into meaningful and actionable insights for your business.

If you’d like to learn more about how Freedonia Custom Research can help you navigate a sea of data, please contact us at 440-684-9600 or request more information on our website .

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What is secondary market research?

Last updated

3 April 2024

Reviewed by

There are two main types of market research: primary and secondary. 

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• Primary market research

Primary research is research that is collected first-hand. Methods of obtaining primary market research include the following:

Interviews : Phone, online, or in-person interviews

Focus groups : Small groups that informally discuss an issue

Polls and surveys : Commonly sent to customers via email or social media sites

Observation : For example, observing how shoppers, drivers, children, or any other group of people behave in a certain situation

One of the main benefits of primary market research is that it's specific to the business or organization that collects it. For example, if you poll your customers, you get feedback from people who have bought your products. The downside of primary research is that it can be expensive and time-consuming to collect. 

• Secondary market research

Secondary research is research you obtain from another source rather than collecting it yourself. This is research that may be found online or in print. It may have been collected by businesses, governments, nonprofit organizations, or other sources.

• What are the main sources of secondary market research?

Common sources of secondary market research include the following:

Published data

Demographic data published online, such as on sites such as Statista and McKinsey, government sites such as the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor & Statistics, universities, and other sources. Publications such as magazines and academic and trade journals also publish valuable data.

Unsolicited customer feedback

This includes emails, social media posts, and reviews published on third-party sites such as Yelp, Facebook, Google, and elsewhere.

Previously collected data

Studies, focus groups , and other data collected in the past become secondary when you revisit it later.

Competitive research

Finding publicly available data on your competitors. For example, using a tool like Ahrefs or Semrush to get website SEO information. 

• What is the purpose of secondary market research?

Secondary market research supplements or complements primary research. It's also a viable alternative when you don't have the time or resources to do primary research. 

Why you should perform secondary market research

There are obvious advantages to doing primary market research. It's the most relevant and timely research you can do. However, there are also some compelling reasons to perform secondary market research. This type of research can be particularly useful for startups and newer organizations. 

A startup or new business doesn't have a large pool of customers to draw from. While they can do other types of primary research, such as focus groups, they’re limited when it comes to methods requiring feedback from customers or members. In this case, looking at existing data from competitors or more general demographic data can fill the gap.

Primary and secondary market research are complementary

Primary and secondary research aren’t mutually exclusive as both have value. Secondary research can back up your primary research. It can allow you to see if your competitors' research or data is similar. 

For example, suppose a company that creates fitness-related products and services wants to launch an app that helps people plan healthier meals. It would be helpful to conduct primary research, such as a focus group or user testing of a beta version. However, it could also help to study any existing research about competitor apps, such as the demographics of customers, most popular features, and how many customers upgrade from the free to the paid version. 

Primary research can give you crucial feedback on how users react to your app. However, secondary research backs this up by giving you general data on your market and KPIs that you can benchmark from.

When is the best time to do secondary market research?

Ideally, you should undertake secondary market research before primary research. It provides an overview of a target audience, demand for products, the competition, and the typical price points for similar products and services. 

• Secondary market research tools and strategies

Let's look at some guidelines for performing secondary market research.

Internal resources: analyzing data you already possess

Every company or organization has data that’s gathered as a byproduct of daily transactions or interactions. This includes feedback sent to you by customers or published on social media or review sites.

An example of a simple but important business metric is the return rates for products and services. Other data includes customer churn , comparing the popularity of different versions of a product, and tracking sales during different seasons. These are all metrics that most companies routinely collect. 

Companies can also look at data regarding their employees and the hiring process. Metrics such as employee turnover and the effectiveness of training programs can help to inform future policies. 

Qualitative vs quantitative research

Secondary research, like primary research, may include both quantitative and qualitative data . Metrics, such as sales figures and return rates, are quantitative. Qualitative feedback is equally worth studying. Examples of qualitative data include customer service calls and emails. 

Listening to or reading the words used by customers can provide insights into sentiments about your product and business. Factors such as tone of voice, emotions, and body language (e.g., in a video review) provide qualitative information.

External resources

You can also access resources that are outside your organization. In addition to publicly released data, either online or in print, you can work with market research companies that specialize in market research data. 

Social listening

Social media provides a rich and cost-free way to conduct market research. Studying social media posts, stories, groups, and pages is especially useful for gathering qualitative insights. You can research social media content for competitors and companies that are similar or adjacent to your own. 

• How to conduct secondary research

The following are the steps for conducting secondary research.

1. Identify and define the research topic

To collect the data you need , you must first identify the topic and reason you want this data. Ask yourself several questions:

What is your primary goal?

For example, a store or restaurant may be considering opening a second location in another city. They would do market research to determine whether there's sufficient demand for such a business in the proposed location. 

Who are your customers?

A company releasing a game might decide that their typical consumer is between the ages of 16 and 22. Identifying a buyer persona is a good starting point. A buyer persona identifies  ‘typical’ customer traits such as gender, age, location, profession, education, and other factors.

Who are your main competitors?

Studying the competition is always a critical factor in market research. 

2. Find research and existing data sources

For secondary research, you need to locate existing sources of data. You can search both internally and externally for research that matches your needs. Be open to researching any of the relevant sources, such as those listed above.

3. Begin searching and collecting the existing data

There is no shortage of data in the world today. The challenge is sifting through what you need, discarding what is not relevant, and placing it in the right categories. By selecting your parameters beforehand, you won't get distracted by data that isn't relevant. 

4. Analyze the data

Once you have the data you need, it's time to organize it, put it into the appropriate categories, and analyze it. 

Look for patterns and long-term trends

For example, if you're looking at numbers such as sales figures for a certain brand or product, look for trends over time. An isolated piece of data could just mean a temporary spike (or drop) in popularity. 

Verify the validity of the data

Checking your data is especially important with secondary market research as you're relying on data collected by others. Consider if the sources are reliable. Some websites and publications, for example, may be biased or untrustworthy. While social listening is valuable, it can be misleading if you aren't careful verifying the sources. For example, reviews can be fake to artificially pump a product. Whenever possible, check data against other sources. 

Be cautious of cognitive distortions when analyzing data

Researchers who are hoping for or expecting a certain result may fall victim to confirmation bias . One sign of this is prioritizing data confirming your biases and ignoring data contradicting them. 

• Examples of secondary market research

Here are a few examples of both internal and external secondary market research:

External secondary market research: studying your target audience

For this type of research, you need to identify your target audience or buyer persona . 

Publications, social media, journals, and interviews can provide useful qualitative data on many topics. For example, if you’re researching the shopping habits of millennials, you could look at data published by Retail Customer Experience , which reveals that 80% of millennial shoppers do most of their shopping online, up from 60% three years earlier. 

You may need more specific data, of course. Your target audience may be older or younger millennials (or members of other generations). 

Measuring the popularity of a product or trend

Another type of external secondary research involves studying consumer demand for a product based on current trends.

Suppose you have a chain of restaurants and you’re creating a new menu item, say a plant-based burger. As developing and releasing new products or services can be costly, it would be wise to do market research first. 

Primary research might include taste tests and polls of favorite flavors for a new food offering. However, you could learn a great deal from secondary research. This might consist of trends for people seeking meatless alternatives, for example. You could also research the competition by looking at the popularity and price points of similar items sold by other restaurants or competitors. 

Internal examples of secondary market research

Marketing Sherpa provides several insightful examples of both primary and secondary market research. One example of internal secondary research they mention is a virtual event company that created printable baby shower thank-you cards. The company knew from talking to customers that people preferred having a printable swipe as opposed to a virtual image on a screen. 

Another example from Marketing Sherpa explains how Intel organized its existing databases to conduct more efficient market research. Databases were organized based on criteria such as customer segment and geography. The data was compiled from customer interviews . Intel was able to create multiple versions of the database that different departments within the company could use.

• Advantages of secondary research

Easy to find

It’s generally much faster to access secondary research than to do primary research. Whether you’re using internal or external sources, there is an abundance of data available on many topics.

Much is available for free online. Even paying to access secondary data is usually less expensive than conducting primary research.

Helps you conduct more insightful primary research

If you plan to do your own research, doing preliminary secondary research can help you save time and avoid unnecessary work. For example, if you discover insufficient demand for a product from secondary research, you won't need to do primary research on it.

• Disadvantages of secondary research

Data may not be specific to your needs

By definition, secondary research has been done by others and may not apply directly to your organization. 

May be outdated

Trends change quickly in many industries. If you access data from a few years ago, it may no longer be accurate.

May not be accurate

When others collect data, it can be difficult to gauge its validity. You must be careful about verifying the sources and methods used to collect and analyze the data.

• Summary: what is the purpose of secondary research?

Secondary research is faster and less expensive to obtain than primary research. You can conduct a great deal of this type of research online.

You can do secondary research from both internal and external sources.

When analyzing data from external sources (e.g., websites, publications, social media), it's important to verify it. 

Secondary market research is often best done when you’re starting out on your research journey. It can guide you on what further research is worth pursuing.

Primary and secondary research complement one another to give you a more comprehensive view of your market and target audience.

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What Is Secondary Market Research?

Rev › Blog › Marketing › What Is Secondary Market Research?

Secondary market research refers to any data that comes from third-party sources.

But no matter which type of research you conduct, it can be a complicated undertaking. You need to consider the outcomes you want to achieve and plan your research methods upfront. Often, researchers find it helpful to start with broad concepts first, and then go more narrow. That’s why many researchers start with secondary market research first. But the best market research programs use a mix of both research approaches.

Keep in mind that primary research can be quite expensive. According to a recent study by  Vernon Research , market research surveys can cost between $15,000 and $50,000. Focus groups can cost $4,000 to $6,000 per group. Conducting secondary research can help you keep costs in check early on in the process.

Before your next research project, you need foundational knowledge of secondary research, including insight into the common secondary market research tools and techniques. This awareness will help you maximize the value of the data collected. Let’s dive in!

A Brief Overview of Secondary Market Research 

When you hear the words “primary” and “secondary,” what comes to mind? You may assume primary research is more valuable, or that you would do primary research first. The reality is, market researchers typically perform secondary research first. And both types of research are essential.

In short, secondary research is data and insights that you do not collect yourself . It can include quantitative and qualitative information. There are many types of secondary research sources, such as: 

• Published market studies
• Competitive information
• White papers
• Analyst reports
• Previous in-house studies 
• Prior internal focus groups
• Customer emails
• Customer surveys and feedback
• Recordings of internal and external meetings

By contrast, primary market research is research that you conduct yourself . You can customize your research approaches or target specific audiences to gather information. Primary research is also a useful tool to explore a hypothesis created through secondary research.

Why Perform Secondary Market Research?

You should perform secondary market research because it can give you critical insights into competitors, trends, and market size. You can use this information to guide decision-making and product positioning.

When designing studies, researchers want to know what relevant information already exists. Conducting a review of this research is an essential first step. This review will uncover secondary research sources that you can use to frame a new study. If you conduct secondary research, you may find that others have already examined your idea. You won’t want to waste resources researching the same topic. Instead, you may wish to refine your concept to study the issue at a deeper level.

Often, secondary market research sources are readily available. You may be able to gather information and draw meaningful conclusions in a short time. At times, an Internet search can be adequate. On other occasions, you may need to buy published reports from analysts or research firms. Also, you may have access to secondary research sources within your organization.

How Primary and Secondary Market Research Work Together

Consider this scenario. Imagine that you work for a company that wants to launch a new accounting solution for small businesses. You want to know how customers perceive your current solution portfolio. And you’ll also want insights on current global expenditures on accounting solutions. Plus, you need perspective on primary competitors and distribution channels. All of this information can be gathered through secondary market research.

In this example, secondary research can help make a smart business decision. You can gather information and decide if you should launch a new accounting product. If you choose to move ahead, primary research is a wise idea.

Primary research can tell you how people react to your design, product name, and messaging. You may use surveys or focus groups to refine your product and optimize your launch. Remember that you must abide by privacy-protection laws — such as the European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GPDR). You’ll need to ensure you have consent to collect data from research participants. Also, you’ll need to ensure that participants know how you’ll use their information.

As you can see, primary and secondary market research go hand-in-hand. Both approaches are necessary for a well-rounded research program.

Secondary Market Research Tools And Techniques

How can you perform secondary market research? First, you’ll need to gather secondary data from internal and external sources. Then you can determine the right approach to collect the data you need.

Here are the secondary market research sources marketing professionals should know.

Internal Sources

Internal sources are ones that exist within your company, such as:

• Feedback from customer support or sales professionals
• Emails from current customers
• Prior market studies completed by your company

Make the most of any data collected. Perhaps you will use this research to identify valuable new product features. Or you could find that your onboarding process needs some refinement. All the information collected can inform your product design and launch.

Qualitative Internal Sources

Many companies have qualitative internal sources that you can use in secondary research:

• Recordings of support calls that contain customers’ spoken-word feedback
• Previous focus groups conducted by your company
• Recordings of customer events or user forums

When it comes to gaining accurate insights from these recordings, you’ll need professional transcription services — they’re the easiest way to transform these recordings into written content that is easy to search through and pull information from.

External Sources

External sources exist outside your organization. These sources can include research firms and government organizations. Published articles, white papers, and studies fit into this category as well. While you can find free external data sources, some publications and reports do require purchase.

Qualitative External Sources

You can access many other qualitative external sources as well:

• Social media is a significant source of external secondary research — you may think that social media is a primary source since you control your feed’s content, but you cannot influence posts and comments people share about your company.
• Recordings of industry meetings or presentations in your research.
• Notes or journals detailing information collected by other researchers are also secondary sources.

Often, these qualitative sources provide critical insights that aren’t available through statistical research.

How to Maximize the Value of Your Secondary Market Research

Secondary research is often widely available. But you may need to take specific steps to extract meaning. This scenario is especially true when working with qualitative, spoken-word sources.

For example, companies may have huge volumes of customer feedback from support calls. Remember that message that lets you know calls may be recorded for quality assurance? Too often, businesses capture those calls but never transcribe those audio recordings, meaning they are losing out on valuable direct feedback from their customers.

Similarly, companies may record company meetings or customer events. Chances are, those recordings exist in an archive. They may contain a goldmine of product, industry, and customer insight. But without transcriptions of those recordings, all that intelligence is difficult to access.

When conducting external research, you may uncover high-value recordings as well. These sources may include event proceedings, lectures, and webinars. 

Why Transcription is Essential in Secondary Market Research

You should seek professional market research transcription services for any recordings. This approach saves you significant time and  improves the research process . Instead of needing to listen to recordings over and over, you can have accurate texts to review. Plus, you can make transcripts accessible to team members with ease. You can make your analysis and reporting much more efficient and meaningful.

With transcripts , you can also use keyword analysis techniques. These approaches are especially valuable when analyzing large volumes of customer feedback. You can search through transcripts to determine words that customers use often.

For example, you may find customers commenting often on “pricing,” “data input,” or “dashboards.” Then, you can explore those comment categories in more depth to identify themes. You can also assign sentiments, such as positive, negative, or neutral. 

With these steps, you can discern how customers feel about your company and products. Then, you can use that insight to improve products and increase customer engagement. 

Unlock the Power of Secondary Market Research

When conducting market research, it’s tempting to want to dive right into primary research. Study design can be fascinating. However, you need to perform secondary market research to ensure the best outcomes.

Secondary research provides important context for your primary analysis. You can go into any research project with clarity on industry and competitive trends. Also, you can use internal secondary data for perspective on customer expectations.

When conducting secondary market analysis, researchers often find many valuable recordings. But listening to recordings to capture insight is very time-consuming. It can take up to four hours to understand the content of one hour of audio.

Don’t waste precious time or risk missing enlightening points buried in audio recordings. Turn to Rev for transcription services of your secondary information collected in audio.

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What is Secondary Research? Types, Methods, Examples

Appinio Research · 20.09.2023 · 13min read

Have you ever wondered how researchers gather valuable insights without conducting new experiments or surveys? That's where secondary research steps in—a powerful approach that allows us to explore existing data and information others collect.

Whether you're a student, a professional, or someone seeking to make informed decisions, understanding the art of secondary research opens doors to a wealth of knowledge.

What is Secondary Research?

Secondary Research refers to the process of gathering and analyzing existing data, information, and knowledge that has been previously collected and compiled by others. This approach allows researchers to leverage available sources, such as articles, reports, and databases, to gain insights, validate hypotheses, and make informed decisions without collecting new data.

Benefits of Secondary Research

Secondary research offers a range of advantages that can significantly enhance your research process and the quality of your findings.

• Time and Cost Efficiency: Secondary research saves time and resources by utilizing existing data sources, eliminating the need for data collection from scratch.
• Wide Range of Data: Secondary research provides access to vast information from various sources, allowing for comprehensive analysis.
• Historical Perspective: Examining past research helps identify trends, changes, and long-term patterns that might not be immediately apparent.
• Reduced Bias: As data is collected by others, there's often less inherent bias than in conducting primary research, where biases might affect data collection.
• Support for Primary Research: Secondary research can lay the foundation for primary research by providing context and insights into gaps in existing knowledge.
• Comparative Analysis : By integrating data from multiple sources, you can conduct robust comparative analyses for more accurate conclusions.
• Benchmarking and Validation: Secondary research aids in benchmarking performance against industry standards and validating hypotheses.

Primary Research vs. Secondary Research

When it comes to research methodologies, primary and secondary research each have their distinct characteristics and advantages. Here's a brief comparison to help you understand the differences.

Primary Research

• Data Source: Involves collecting new data directly from original sources.
• Data Collection: Researchers design and conduct surveys, interviews, experiments, or observations.
• Time and Resources: Typically requires more time, effort, and resources due to data collection.
• Fresh Insights: Provides firsthand, up-to-date information tailored to specific research questions.
• Control: Researchers control the data collection process and can shape methodologies.

Secondary Research

• Data Source: Involves utilizing existing data and information collected by others.
• Data Collection: Researchers search, select, and analyze data from published sources, reports, and databases.
• Time and Resources: Generally more time-efficient and cost-effective as data is already available.
• Existing Knowledge: Utilizes data that has been previously compiled, often providing broader context.
• Less Control: Researchers have limited control over how data was collected originally, if any.

Choosing between primary and secondary research depends on your research objectives, available resources, and the depth of insights you require.

Types of Secondary Research

Secondary research encompasses various types of existing data sources that can provide valuable insights for your research endeavors. Understanding these types can help you choose the most relevant sources for your objectives.

Here are the primary types of secondary research:

Internal Sources

Internal sources consist of data generated within your organization or entity. These sources provide valuable insights into your own operations and performance.

• Company Records and Data: Internal reports, documents, and databases that house information about sales, operations, and customer interactions.
• Sales Reports and Customer Data: Analysis of past sales trends, customer demographics, and purchasing behavior.
• Financial Statements and Annual Reports: Financial data, such as balance sheets and income statements, offer insights into the organization's financial health.

External Sources

External sources encompass data collected and published by entities outside your organization.

These sources offer a broader perspective on various subjects.

• Published Literature and Journals: Scholarly articles, research papers, and academic studies available in journals or online databases.
• Market Research Reports: Reports from market research firms that provide insights into industry trends, consumer behavior, and market forecasts.
• Government and NGO Databases: Data collected and maintained by government agencies and non-governmental organizations, offering demographic, economic, and social information.
• Online Media and News Articles: News outlets and online publications that cover current events, trends, and societal developments.

Each type of secondary research source holds its value and relevance, depending on the nature of your research objectives. Combining these sources lets you understand the subject matter and make informed decisions.

How to Conduct Secondary Research?

Effective secondary research involves a thoughtful and systematic approach that enables you to extract valuable insights from existing data sources. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to navigate the process:

1. Define Your Research Objectives

Before delving into secondary research, clearly define what you aim to achieve. Identify the specific questions you want to answer, the insights you're seeking, and the scope of your research.

2. Identify Relevant Sources

Begin by identifying the most appropriate sources for your research. Consider the nature of your research objectives and the data type you require. Seek out sources such as academic journals, market research reports, official government databases, and reputable news outlets.

3. Evaluate Source Credibility

Ensuring the credibility of your sources is crucial. Evaluate the reliability of each source by assessing factors such as the author's expertise, the publication's reputation, and the objectivity of the information provided. Choose sources that align with your research goals and are free from bias.

4. Extract and Analyze Information

Once you've gathered your sources, carefully extract the relevant information. Take thorough notes, capturing key data points, insights, and any supporting evidence. As you accumulate information, start identifying patterns, trends, and connections across different sources.

5. Synthesize Findings

As you analyze the data, synthesize your findings to draw meaningful conclusions. Compare and contrast information from various sources to identify common themes and discrepancies. This synthesis process allows you to construct a coherent narrative that addresses your research objectives.

6. Address Limitations and Gaps

Acknowledge the limitations and potential gaps in your secondary research. Recognize that secondary data might have inherent biases or be outdated. Where necessary, address these limitations by cross-referencing information or finding additional sources to fill in gaps.

7. Contextualize Your Findings

Contextualization is crucial in deriving actionable insights from your secondary research. Consider the broader context within which the data was collected. How does the information relate to current trends, societal changes, or industry shifts? This contextual understanding enhances the relevance and applicability of your findings.

8. Cite Your Sources

Maintain academic integrity by properly citing the sources you've used for your secondary research. Accurate citations not only give credit to the original authors but also provide a clear trail for readers to access the information themselves.

9. Integrate Secondary and Primary Research (If Applicable)

In some cases, combining secondary and primary research can yield more robust insights. If you've also conducted primary research, consider integrating your secondary findings with your primary data to provide a well-rounded perspective on your research topic.

You can use a market research platform like Appinio to conduct primary research with real-time insights in minutes!

10. Communicate Your Findings

Finally, communicate your findings effectively. Whether it's in an academic paper, a business report, or any other format, present your insights clearly and concisely. Provide context for your conclusions and use visual aids like charts and graphs to enhance understanding.

Remember that conducting secondary research is not just about gathering information—it's about critically analyzing, interpreting, and deriving valuable insights from existing data. By following these steps, you'll navigate the process successfully and contribute to the body of knowledge in your field.

Secondary Research Examples

To better understand how secondary research is applied in various contexts, let's explore a few real-world examples that showcase its versatility and value.

Market Analysis and Trend Forecasting

Imagine you're a marketing strategist tasked with launching a new product in the smartphone industry. By conducting secondary research, you can:

• Access Market Reports: Utilize market research reports to understand consumer preferences, competitive landscape, and growth projections.
• Analyze Trends: Examine past sales data and industry reports to identify trends in smartphone features, design, and user preferences.
• Benchmark Competitors: Compare market share, customer satisfaction, and pricing strategies of key competitors to develop a strategic advantage.
• Forecast Demand: Use historical sales data and market growth predictions to estimate demand for your new product.

Academic Research and Literature Reviews

Suppose you're a student researching climate change's effects on marine ecosystems. Secondary research aids your academic endeavors by:

• Reviewing Existing Studies: Analyze peer-reviewed articles and scientific papers to understand the current state of knowledge on the topic.
• Identifying Knowledge Gaps: Identify areas where further research is needed based on what existing studies still need to cover.
• Comparing Methodologies: Compare research methodologies used by different studies to assess the strengths and limitations of their approaches.
• Synthesizing Insights: Synthesize findings from various studies to form a comprehensive overview of the topic's implications on marine life.

Competitive Landscape Assessment for Business Strategy

Consider you're a business owner looking to expand your restaurant chain to a new location. Secondary research aids your strategic decision-making by:

• Analyzing Demographics: Utilize demographic data from government databases to understand the local population's age, income, and preferences.
• Studying Local Trends: Examine restaurant industry reports to identify the types of cuisines and dining experiences currently popular in the area.
• Understanding Consumer Behavior: Analyze online reviews and social media discussions to gauge customer sentiment towards existing restaurants in the vicinity.
• Assessing Economic Conditions: Access economic reports to evaluate the local economy's stability and potential purchasing power.

These examples illustrate the practical applications of secondary research across various fields to provide a foundation for informed decision-making, deeper understanding, and innovation.

Secondary Research Limitations

While secondary research offers many benefits, it's essential to be aware of its limitations to ensure the validity and reliability of your findings.

• Data Quality and Validity: The accuracy and reliability of secondary data can vary, affecting the credibility of your research.
• Limited Contextual Information: Secondary sources might lack detailed contextual information, making it important to interpret findings within the appropriate context.
• Data Suitability: Existing data might not align perfectly with your research objectives, leading to compromises or incomplete insights.
• Outdated Information: Some sources might provide obsolete information that doesn't accurately reflect current trends or situations.
• Potential Bias: While secondary data is often less biased, biases might still exist in the original data sources, influencing your findings.
• Incompatibility of Data: Combining data from different sources might pose challenges due to variations in definitions, methodologies, or units of measurement.
• Lack of Control: Unlike primary research, you have no control over how data was collected or its quality, potentially affecting your analysis. Understanding these limitations will help you navigate secondary research effectively and make informed decisions based on a well-rounded understanding of its strengths and weaknesses.

Secondary research is a valuable tool that businesses can use to their advantage. By tapping into existing data and insights, companies can save time, resources, and effort that would otherwise be spent on primary research. This approach equips decision-makers with a broader understanding of market trends, consumer behaviors, and competitive landscapes. Additionally, benchmarking against industry standards and validating hypotheses empowers businesses to make informed choices that lead to growth and success.

As you navigate the world of secondary research, remember that it's not just about data retrieval—it's about strategic utilization. With a clear grasp of how to access, analyze, and interpret existing information, businesses can stay ahead of the curve, adapt to changing landscapes, and make decisions that are grounded in reliable knowledge.

How to Conduct Secondary Research in Minutes?

In the world of decision-making, having access to real-time consumer insights is no longer a luxury—it's a necessity. That's where Appinio comes in, revolutionizing how businesses gather valuable data for better decision-making. As a real-time market research platform, Appinio empowers companies to tap into the pulse of consumer opinions swiftly and seamlessly.

• Fast Insights: Say goodbye to lengthy research processes. With Appinio, you can transform questions into actionable insights in minutes.
• Data-Driven Decisions: Harness the power of real-time consumer insights to drive your business strategies, allowing you to make informed choices on the fly.
• Seamless Integration: Appinio handles the research and technical complexities, freeing you to focus on what truly matters: making rapid data-driven decisions that propel your business forward.

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Secondary Research Guide: Definition, Methods, Examples

Apr 3, 2024

8 min. read

The internet has vastly expanded our access to information, allowing us to learn almost anything about everything. But not all market research is created equal , and this secondary research guide explains why.

There are two key ways to do research. One is to test your own ideas, make your own observations, and collect your own data to derive conclusions. The other is to use secondary research — where someone else has done most of the heavy lifting for you. 

Here’s an overview of secondary research and the value it brings to data-driven businesses.

Secondary Research Definition: What Is Secondary Research?

Primary vs Secondary Market Research

What Are Secondary Research Methods?

Advantages of secondary research, disadvantages of secondary research, best practices for secondary research, how to conduct secondary research with meltwater.

Secondary research definition: The process of collecting information from existing sources and data that have already been analyzed by others.

Secondary research (aka desk research ) provides a foundation to help you understand a topic, with the goal of building on existing knowledge. They often cover the same information as primary sources, but they add a layer of analysis and explanation to them.

Users can choose from several secondary research types and sources, including:

• Journal articles
• Research papers

With secondary sources, users can draw insights, detect trends , and validate findings to jumpstart their research efforts.

Primary vs. Secondary Market Research

We’ve touched a little on primary research , but it’s essential to understand exactly how primary and secondary research are unique.

Think of primary research as the “thing” itself, and secondary research as the analysis of the “thing,” like these primary and secondary research examples:

• An expert gives an interview (primary research) and a marketer uses that interview to write an article (secondary research).
• A company conducts a consumer satisfaction survey (primary research) and a business analyst uses the survey data to write a market trend report (secondary research).
• A marketing team launches a new advertising campaign across various platforms (primary research) and a marketing research firm, like Meltwater for market research , compiles the campaign performance data to benchmark against industry standards (secondary research).

In other words, primary sources make original contributions to a topic or issue, while secondary sources analyze, synthesize, or interpret primary sources.

Both are necessary when optimizing a business, gaining a competitive edge , improving marketing, or understanding consumer trends that may impact your business.

Secondary research methods focus on analyzing existing data rather than collecting primary data . Common examples of secondary research methods include:

• Literature review . Researchers analyze and synthesize existing literature (e.g., white papers, research papers, articles) to find knowledge gaps and build on current findings.
• Content analysis . Researchers review media sources and published content to find meaningful patterns and trends.
• AI-powered secondary research . Platforms like Meltwater for market research analyze vast amounts of complex data and use AI technologies like natural language processing and machine learning to turn data into contextual insights.

Researchers today have access to more market research tools and technology than ever before, allowing them to streamline their efforts and improve their findings.

Want to see how Meltwater can complement your secondary market research efforts? Simply fill out the form at the bottom of this post, and we'll be in touch.

Conducting secondary research offers benefits in every job function and use case, from marketing to the C-suite. Here are a few advantages you can expect.

Cost and time efficiency

Using existing research saves you time and money compared to conducting primary research. Secondary data is readily available and easily accessible via libraries, free publications, or the Internet. This is particularly advantageous when you face time constraints or when a project requires a large amount of data and research.

Access to large datasets

Secondary data gives you access to larger data sets and sample sizes compared to what primary methods may produce. Larger sample sizes can improve the statistical power of the study and add more credibility to your findings.

Ability to analyze trends and patterns

Using larger sample sizes, researchers have more opportunities to find and analyze trends and patterns. The more data that supports a trend or pattern, the more trustworthy the trend becomes and the more useful for making decisions. 

Historical context

Using a combination of older and recent data allows researchers to gain historical context about patterns and trends. Learning what’s happened before can help decision-makers gain a better current understanding and improve how they approach a problem or project.

Basis for further research

Ideally, you’ll use secondary research to further other efforts . Secondary sources help to identify knowledge gaps, highlight areas for improvement, or conduct deeper investigations.

Tip: Learn how to use Meltwater as a research tool and how Meltwater uses AI.

Secondary research comes with a few drawbacks, though these aren’t necessarily deal breakers when deciding to use secondary sources.

Reliability concerns

Researchers don’t always know where the data comes from or how it’s collected, which can lead to reliability concerns. They don’t control the initial process, nor do they always know the original purpose for collecting the data, both of which can lead to skewed results.

Potential bias

The original data collectors may have a specific agenda when doing their primary research, which may lead to biased findings. Evaluating the credibility and integrity of secondary data sources can prove difficult.

Outdated information

Secondary sources may contain outdated information, especially when dealing with rapidly evolving trends or fields. Using outdated information can lead to inaccurate conclusions and widen knowledge gaps.

Limitations in customization

Relying on secondary data means being at the mercy of what’s already published. It doesn’t consider your specific use cases, which limits you as to how you can customize and use the data.

A lack of relevance

Secondary research rarely holds all the answers you need, at least from a single source. You typically need multiple secondary sources to piece together a narrative, and even then you might not find the specific information you need.

To make secondary market research your new best friend, you’ll need to think critically about its strengths and find ways to overcome its weaknesses. Let’s review some best practices to use secondary research to its fullest potential.

Identify credible sources for secondary research

To overcome the challenges of bias, accuracy, and reliability, choose secondary sources that have a demonstrated history of excellence . For example, an article published in a medical journal naturally has more credibility than a blog post on a little-known website.

Assess credibility based on peer reviews, author expertise, sampling techniques, publication reputation, and data collection methodologies. Cross-reference the data with other sources to gain a general consensus of truth.

The more credibility “factors” a source has, the more confidently you can rely on it. 

Evaluate the quality and relevance of secondary data

You can gauge the quality of the data by asking simple questions:

• How complete is the data? 
• How old is the data? 
• Is this data relevant to my needs?
• Does the data come from a known, trustworthy source?

It’s best to focus on data that aligns with your research objectives. Knowing the questions you want to answer and the outcomes you want to achieve ahead of time helps you focus only on data that offers meaningful insights.

Document your sources 

If you’re sharing secondary data with others, it’s essential to document your sources to gain others’ trust. They don’t have the benefit of being “in the trenches” with you during your research, and sharing your sources can add credibility to your findings and gain instant buy-in.

Secondary market research offers an efficient, cost-effective way to learn more about a topic or trend, providing a comprehensive understanding of the customer journey . Compared to primary research, users can gain broader insights, analyze trends and patterns, and gain a solid foundation for further exploration by using secondary sources.

Meltwater for market research speeds up the time to value in using secondary research with AI-powered insights, enhancing your understanding of the customer journey. Using natural language processing, machine learning, and trusted data science processes, Meltwater helps you find relevant data and automatically surfaces insights to help you understand its significance. Our solution identifies hidden connections between data points you might not know to look for and spells out what the data means, allowing you to make better decisions based on accurate conclusions. Learn more about Meltwater's power as a secondary research solution when you request a demo by filling out the form below:

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Secondary Market Research

Last updated 22 Mar 2021

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Secondary market research uses data that already exists and has been collected by someone else for another purpose.

Sources of secondary data can come from within the firm itself – this is known as internal secondary data. External secondary data, on the other hand, is data that has been published by other organisations

What are internal sources of secondary data?

Every department within an organisation will have its own records that represent a potential source of valuable data. For instance, records of past advertising campaigns within the marketing department can be compared with copies of invoices held in the sales department in order to judge their effectiveness and get ideas for future campaigns. Past sales figures can also be used to spot trends and forecast future figures.

The increasing availability and use of loyalty cards and big data has given businesses the chance to gather a wide range of valuable information on customer buying habits, allowing them to target promotional campaigns more effectively.

Internal sources of data should always be considered as a first line of enquiry for any investigation because they are usually the quickest, cheapest and most convenient source of information available. Internal data will also be exclusive to the organisation that generated it, so that rival firms will not have access to it.

However, internal data may be incomplete or out of date, and, if a project is new, there may be no relevant data at all. In such cases, an organisation may need to consider using external sources of secondary data.

What are external sources of secondary data?

There are several sources of existing data available from outside of the business that may be of value. These include:

• Commercial market research organisations – including MINTEL, Keynote and Euromonitor
• The Government – the much wider availability of open data from the government has significantly increased the availability of such data
• Competitors – company reports and websites are easily accessible and contain a limited amount of information
• Trade Publication
• The general media
• Secondary research
• Quantitative research
• Qualitative research
• Marketing research
• Primary research

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