Secondary Market Research (CIE IGCSE Business)

• Secondary research involves the collection, compilation, and analysis of data that already exists

Diagram of Secondary Research Sources

Businesses can consult a wide range of secondary sources to gather market research data

• Government Publications: National governments and trading blocs such as the EU publish reports and statistics on topics such as the economy, demographics, industry trends and consumer behaviour
   
• Academic Institutions: Universities and research institutions conduct studies and publish research papers which provide valuable insights and data on specific industries, consumer behaviour and market trends
  • E.g. Stanford University is a globally significant research centre for engineering and medicine
     
• Industry Associations: Trade associations and industry-specific organisations provide detailed information about specific sectors, including market size, growth rates and industry benchmarks
  • E.g. The International Organisation of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers conducts and collates research on production and sales statistics
     
• Specialist Market Research Reports: Companies specialising in market research produce and sell in-depth reports on various industries, markets and consumer trends
  
  • E.g. Mintel is one of the leading private companies supplying market research information
     
• Financial Reports: Public limited companies are required to publish annual reports which can provide valuable information about a company's performance, market position and future plans
  
  
• Online Databases: There are various online databases and research platforms that provide access to a wide range of secondary market research 
  • E.g. Statista and Euromonitor International make a large volume of data on international commerce available
    
    
• Media Sources: Newspapers, magazines and online publications often contain articles, opinion pieces and investigative reports that can offer insights into market trends, consumer behaviour and industry developments
  
  • E.g. The Financial Times and the Wall Street Journal

Choosing the most appropriate sources 

• Businesses must weigh up the reliability of secondary market research and aspects such as cost, relevance and availability of data when making a decision on which secondary data to use
  
  

Advantages & Disadvantages of Secondary Market Research

Advantages	Disadvantages
Information is already available and so may be quicker to collect than primary research thereby saving time   Information is often free (e.g. government websites and internet sources such as Statista) and cheaper to collect, leading to lower costs compared to primary research   Suitable for a small business that lacks a large marketing budget and/or expertise	Information has been collected for other purposes and so may be difficult to analyse, may lack relevance or may not be factually correct, e.g. Wikipedia   Can be expensive to purchase market specific secondary data from specialist companies, e.g. MINTEL reports   Information may be out-of-date, especially in dynamic markets

• Gathering and analysing reliable data is critical to a business
  • It supports decision-making and reduces risk
  • It helps businesses to set realistic objectives and manage performance 
    
    

• The reliability and accuracy of market research depend upon a large number of factors, including
  • How questions are phrased in questionnaires or other tools used to conduct surveys
  • How carefully the sample is selected
    • Including its size, types of respondent chosen and how closely these reflect the intended target market
      
      
  • Who conducts the research including their experience, research skills and source (primary or secondary?)
  • Potential for Bias when conducting research or analysing results
  • When and where the research is conducted
    • Customer tastes, fashions, economic conditions and technology change, giving data a relatively short period of usefulness 
    • Customers in different geographic areas can have very different opinions