How to become a market researcher: Essential insights for career success

Good news if you’re interested in a career in market research. This fast-growing area touches every industry you can imagine and is in high demand. According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, market researchers can expect an 8% job growth over the next few years. 

For perspective, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports software developers will continue seeing a 17.9% growth. LinkedIn currently lists 78,129 market research jobs.

A career in market research could be for you if you’re interested in consumer behavior, have good communication skills and enjoy analyzing data.

In this article, I’ll share some insights on what a marketer researcher is, the responsibilities required and potential career paths.

According to Indeed, “The primary responsibility of market research analysts is to help businesses communicate as effectively as possible with their target consumers.”

Marketing 101 teaches the importance of understanding your target audience, but that’s easy to say and far more difficult to implement. That’s where the role of market research comes in. 

A market research analyst works with brands to track consumer preferences and behavior to make better business decisions faster. 

Market researchers analyze data and market trends to understand customer behavior. Researchers study survey responses, keywords and other information to add context to marketing initiatives. These insights can guide product innovations, ad campaigns, positioning and more.  

The role’s responsibility differs from company to company. However, the core of a market researcher’s job includes: 

• Data collection, such as surveys or analytics 

• Data modeling tools like erwin Data Modeler or MySQL 

• Analyzing the data and presenting findings

• Making data-driven recommendations 

According to Toptal, “Technological advancements have made the role of a market researcher more important to an organization. Firstly, markets are now more competitive in terms of entry and innovation; incumbents cannot just sit back post-launch and rest on their laurels without running the risk of being disrupted by new competitors. Secondly, the advent of more engaged interaction with customers via internet and mobile-based technologies offers companies a whole range of invaluable primary data collection methods to help hone their offerings.” 

Learn more about the way market research is changing with AI in Greenbook’s podcast with Ryan Barry, President at Zappi, and Stephan Gans, SVP Chief Insights Analytics Officer at PepsiCo. 

Market research roles come in many variations. A quick LinkedIn search finds roles with titles as varied as “Marketing Analyst” to “Brand Insights.” However, no matter the title, your role will include gathering and analyzing data. Analytical skills are a core requirement of any market research role, followed by the ability to make strategic recommendations. 

Market research analysts study customer segments, markets and campaigns. However, some analyst roles are more specialized than others.

Customer segmentation

Customer research is a big part of market research. Understanding customer demographics and behaviors allows you to spot changing market trends and identify why people become (and remain) customers. 

One way to do this is with survey panels. A market analyst can study the responses and make recommendations from survey panel research. They may compare those responses with other collected data to deepen their understanding of their target audience. 

Market analysis 

As brands create new products and services, they constantly evaluate their position in the market. How do they compare to the competition? Market analysts study the markets and make informed suggestions about potential new products and services, customer acquisition strategies and other important information. 

For example, McDonald’s uses AI market research tools that analyze their market to “test and learn” as they create new milkshake flavors and other products. 

Campaign optimization 

Designing effective ad campaigns is a multi-faceted process. Messaging, graphics and channels all impact how well a product sells. A market researcher with the right tools can test each campaign element at different stages before investing millions of dollars, reducing risk and increasing the likelihood of the ad landing with their consumer.

Depending on your organization, your tasks might combine the above or specialize in one area. We pulled these job descriptions from LinkedIn to give you a sense of available roles and what they involve.

Market research roles examples

Junior/Middle Market Analyst

Marketing Analyst

Researcher, Strategic Growth

Brand Insights Manager

Successful market researchers have a blend of technical and people skills. You need critical thinking skills and the ability to put business context to your research findings. 

Most market analysis roles require a Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, Economics or a related field. Some people enter the field with degrees in Psychology or Sociology.  

Successful market researchers enjoy quantitative research, such as market segmentation, sales data analysis and surveys. They become skilled at designing surveys, collecting data and research methodologies. Such data helps provide context for business decisions.

Some market analyst roles are more quantitative. These analysts develop the technical skills to run reports and model data. 

Here’s a Redditor with insights on their quantitative market research role:

For more of what’s needed to succeed in a market research career, check out our article on skills you need for the future: 

Every industry needs market researchers, including media, technical services and retail, but not every company structures their organization the same — this is especially true for market research or insights teams.

When considering a market research career, it’s helpful to understand how insights connect to strategic decision-making.

Because of this need, Zappi created the Connected Insights Framework, which helps people determine the role consumer insights plays in their organization and what that looks like. 

Some companies have a central research team that reports to marketing which is a shared or more connected insights state. This structure helps create consistency in data collection analysis and reporting for faster decision-making.

Other organizations have a more decentralized approach. These researchers work independently, often focusing on specialized research that isn’t shared across the organization. 

Other companies take a hybrid approach depending on needs.

According to the American Advertising Federation, the average senior market research role commands a salary of $109,691, which varies by state and industry. However, the Occupational Outlook Handbook pegs the average salary at $74,680 annually.

Over time, there is room to grow by taking more senior roles and adding technical skills like statistics and data visualization tools.

There are many potential career paths in market research. Here’s a few areas to explore if you’re just starting to look into these roles:

1. Consider your aptitudes and interests

Here’s one LinkedIn post that shows a few paths to consider in this growing field.

2. Find an entry-level role 

Here’s a Redditor asking about how to get into the field without significant experience and the answer they received: 

3. Learn how to conduct surveys

SurveyMonkey or Google forms are simple, low-cost ways to conduct surveys. Yet, there’s a skill to asking the right questions and analyzing the responses. Here’s a guided project in SurveyMonkey where you can practice to see if it’s something you’re interested in. 

4. Practice technical skills 

Market analysis requires some technical ability to collect and analyze relevant data. You might start with basic Google Analytics, but for more advanced analysis and visualization, you can use popular programs like: 

• Introduction to Relational Database and SQL

• Create a Brand Awareness Survey in Qualtrics

• Data Analysis using R

• Data Visualization with Tableau Specialization

5. Network 

Growing your market research career always involves upskilling and expanding your professional circles. The American Marketing Association (AMA), Market Research Society (MRS), Women in Research (WIRe) and Insights Career Network (ICN) offer great networking and learning opportunities.

Outside of your network, there are many online resources for finding a market research analyst position. Here are six sources.

1. Zappi 

2. Insights Career Network

3. Market Research Society

4. Indeed

5. LinkedIn

6. ZipRecruiter

Marketer researchers ultimately conduct consumer research that help brands stand out in crowded markets. 

The field is fast-growing and diverse. People can find market research roles that fit their work style whether they consider themselves people-oriented or are more at home in spreadsheets. Today’s AI-enabled market research tools provide plenty of data for research analysts to get deeper into the data and spend less time on menial tasks — which opens up even more exciting opportunities for those seeking a career in research.