Market Intelligence: Choosing the Right Tool for the Task
Duncan Chapple
Analyst Relations lead for Elisa IndustriQ & Elisa Polystar @ SageCircle | Research Associate @ UEBS | LBS MBA | INSEADer
Data-driven decision making requires market research, but which analyst firm or research approach fits your needs? A recent conversation with Paul Santilli , a leader of the Strategic Consortium of Intelligence Professionals (SCIP) , helped me clarify my thoughts about this.
Collectors vs. Researchers
Market research firms broadly fall along a spectrum with two extremes:
Each serves different purposes. For example, collectors excel at providing initial market sizing for emerging sectors where limited data exists. Their structured methodologies help outline basic market parameters. On the other hand, researchers and analysts dive deeper through primary research, offering nuanced insights based on direct market engagement.
Time Horizons Matter
In today's world, said Paul, five-year projections are much less useful than they used to. The pace of change - from pandemics to geopolitical events - makes long-term forecasts increasingly unreliable. Instead, I argues that businesses need to focus on:
Validation Through Multiple Sources
No single research source provides complete market understanding. Paul and I both recommend using multiple providers: Getting the same or similar information from different sources validates that you're on the right track; different reviews suggest there are different segments or scenarios to uncover.
Key considerations when selecting research partners:
Quality Indicators
It's quite an understatement to say that research quality varies significantly. Watch for:
Making Research Work for You
Think of research providers like restaurants - each serves different needs. You wouldn't order a steak at a fast-food chain (sorry, Denny's ). Similarly, match your research needs to providers' core capabilities. Success requires:
The market research industry continues evolving with AI and new methodologies. But the fundamentals remain: choose the right tool for your specific task, validate through multiple sources, and maintain realistic expectations about what different providers can deliver.
#MarketResearch #BusinessStrategy #MarketIntelligence #DataAnalytics #BusinessDecisions
Analyst Relations | Competitive Intelligence | Strategy | Marketing
2 天前Duncan - interesting perspective as always … a couple of thoughts: - multiple views are important but buying just one report can be challenging - due to budget constraints - always thought it was a good idea to find a “conservative” estimate and an “aggressive” estimate and then model between the two to get a series of points. You can present based on best case/worst case scenarios. That said finding the two views is a challenge onto itself. - I have never been a fan of consolidators … specially when their forecasts are greater than 5 years out. More importantly I would laugh when I saw estimates from 4-5 different consolidators that listed the same 7-8 year time horizon and the same magnitude of the market. I maintained there was 1 consolidator and 10 distributors - each with its own name. One way I would describe this situation was to explain the quality of food in college dormitories and how it was due to outsourcing and consolidation. The food was prepared in a large kitchen at a converted strategic Air Force base. Each morning the food would be loaded onto planes waiting for take off and then delivered to 100s of colleges across the country at the same time. Hmmm maybe not to far from the truth ??