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Market research: primary and secondary, quantitative and qualitative

Edexcel IAL Business · WBS11 Marketing and people

Market research is how a business finds out about its customers and market. This lesson covers why firms research, the difference between primary and secondary data and between quantitative and qualitative data, and the main methods of each.

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Why businesses do market research

Market research is collecting and analysing information about customers, competitors and the market. The specification gives three uses:

To identify and anticipate customer needs and wants, so products meet them.
To quantify likely demand: how many people will buy, at what price, so the firm can plan output, staff and finance.
To gain insight into consumer behaviour: why, when, where and how people buy.

Research reduces risk, but it costs time and money and never removes uncertainty.

Types of data

Primary data (field research): new data collected first-hand by or for the business for its own purpose.
Secondary data (desk research): data that already exists, collected by someone else for another purpose.
Quantitative data: numerical data that can be measured and analysed statistically ('62% of respondents prefer...'). The January 2022 mark scheme defined it as information that relates to numbers or amounts.
Qualitative data: data about opinions, feelings and reasons ('customers said the packaging looks cheap'). It explains why, but is harder to analyse and may be biased by the researcher.

	Primary	Secondary
Cost	Often high	Often low or free
Speed	Slow to collect	Quick to obtain
Relevance	Tailored to the firm's question	May not fit the question exactly
Up to date	Yes	May be out of date
Exclusive	Yes, rivals do not have it	Available to rivals too

Primary methods

Surveys / questionnaires (online, post, street): can reach many people and give quantitative data with closed questions; risk of low response and poorly designed questions.
Focus groups / consumer panels: a small group discusses a product in depth (focus group), or a panel is asked repeatedly over time (consumer panel). Rich qualitative data, but small, possibly unrepresentative groups, and a dominant member may sway others.
Face-to-face / telephone interviews: the interviewer can explain questions and probe answers. The October 2024 series scheme credited seeing body language and facial expressions and using visual aids (showing products) as advantages. Costly and interviewer bias is possible.
Product trials / test marketing: launching a product in a limited area or to a small group before a full launch, to measure real buying behaviour and fix problems. Rivals may see and copy it.

Secondary methods

Websites / social media: competitor sites, reviews, social media comments and trends. Quick and cheap, but accuracy varies.
Newspapers / magazines / TV / radio: news about markets, trends and rivals.
Reports: market research agency reports (often expensive), government statistics (for example ONS retail sales), trade association reports.
Databases: internal sales records and loyalty card data, and external databases.

The January 2022 mark scheme credited the speed and low cost of secondary research, and noted the limitation that data may be irrelevant, inaccurate or out of date.

Worked example

A start-up wants to open a vegan cafe in a city. Suggest one primary and one secondary research method and explain the value of each.

Primary: a street and online survey of local people about how often they eat out and what they would pay; quantifies likely demand.
Secondary: government population data and reports on vegan food trends; quick, cheap view of the size and growth of the market.
Combine: use secondary data to size the market and primary data to test the specific idea in that location.

Answer: Use cheap secondary data first to judge the market, then targeted primary research to test the idea locally.

Key idea: Primary = new, first-hand, tailored but costly. Secondary = existing, cheap and quick but may be out of date or irrelevant. Quantitative = numbers; qualitative = opinions and reasons.

Check yourself

Which is an example of primary market research?
- Reading a government report on household spending
- Studying a competitor's website
- A focus group run by the business to test a new flavour
- Analysing a newspaper article on market trends
Show answer
A focus group run by the business to test a new flavour. The firm collects new data first-hand.
Which is an example of qualitative data?
- Customers said the new design felt 'cheap and flimsy'
- 45% of customers bought the product again
- Sales rose by 12,000 units
- The average customer spends $18 per visit
Show answer
Customers said the new design felt 'cheap and flimsy'. Opinions and feelings, not numbers.
Define the term 'quantitative data'.
Show answer
Data that is numerical, relating to numbers or amounts, so it can be measured and analysed statistically.. Pearson's January 2022 scheme: information relating to numbers or amounts.
What is the main purpose of test marketing?
- To collect secondary data cheaply
- To measure real buying behaviour in a limited area before a full launch
- To stop rivals finding out about a product
- To set the final price by law
Show answer
To measure real buying behaviour in a limited area before a full launch. It reduces the risk of a costly full launch.
Explain one advantage for a new business of using secondary market research.
Show answer
Secondary research is quick and cheap to obtain because the data already exists, so a new business with limited funds can learn about the market before spending heavily.. Low cost and speed: useful when money and time are short.
Which is an advantage of face-to-face interviews credited in the October 2024 series mark scheme?
- They are the cheapest method of research
- The interviewer can observe body language and show the product
- They always give a large random sample
- They remove all bias
Show answer
The interviewer can observe body language and show the product. Body language and visual aids were credited advantages.
What is the main limitation of secondary data?
- It is always more expensive than primary data
- Only the firm can access it
- It can only be qualitative
- It may be out of date or not relevant to the firm's specific question
Show answer
It may be out of date or not relevant to the firm's specific question. It was collected for another purpose, perhaps some time ago.

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Last updated 8 November 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.