Marketing researchers plan and design research projects, conduct interviews and other fact-gathering operations, and tabulate and analyze the resulting material.
The information a marketing researcher provides may help a company to decide on brand names, product and packaging design, company locations, and the type of advertising to use.
A marketing research director designs a research project after studying a company's sales records, its competitors, and the consumer market that uses the type of product or service the company offers. He or she then calls on members of the marketing research staff to implement the project.
A statistician will determine a sample group of consumers to be studied. A senior analyst or project director might design a questionnaire or a mail or telephone survey for field interviewers to use. Coders and tabulators synthesize the results, which are reviewed by a research analyst who studies the results and makes recommendations based on the findings.
Advertising researchers specialize in studying the effects of advertising. They pretest commercials, test-market new products, and analyze the appropriateness of the various media (radio, television, newspapers, magazines, or direct mail) for a particular product or advertiser. Beginners in this field start by coding and tabulating data. They move on to interviewing and writing reports and may move up to jobs as research assistants as they gain experience.
Many opportunities for part-time work exist in marketing research. Coding, tabulating, interviewing, and making telephone surveys are jobs for which research organizations often hire people who can work odd hours or during peak workloads. High school and college students and homemakers will find this a good field for summer jobs or for weekend or evening work.
Related jobs are advertising account executive, advertising manager, advertising worker, mathematician, statistician, and psychologist.
Places of Employment and Working Conditions
Most market researchers are employed by manufacturers, advertising agencies, and market research firms. The largest corporations are in Chicago and New York City, but job opportunities exist in almost every large city.
The usual workweek is 40 hours, but those conducting interviews and surveys are likely to have evening and weekend work. Market researchers often work under pressure and may be called upon to work overtime to meet deadlines. Although this is basically an office job, travel is a necessary part of the work in the information-gathering stages. The travel may be local or far afield depending on the scope and design of the research project.
Qualification, Education and Training
Assertiveness, analyzing skills, and communication skills are very important. High school courses should include English, mathematics, and public speaking. Summer or part-time jobs coding or taking surveys are good experience.
A college degree is required for just about all of the full-time jobs in marketing research. A bachelor's degree in liberal arts, business administration, marketing, economics, or mathematics is necessary for most trainee positions. Courses in English, marketing economics, statistics, psychology, sociology, and political science should be included. Knowledge of data processing is of increasing importance as the use of computers for sales forecasting, distribution, and cost analysis is growing.
Advanced degrees are becoming more and more important for jobs beyond the entry level and for promotion. Job applicants with a combination background-for example, a bachelor's degree in statistics and a master's degree in marketing or business administration-have a good chance of being hired at the management level right out of college. Industrial marketing firms prefer those with a bachelor's degree in a related field, such as engineering, plus a master's degree in a marketing-related field.
Potential and Advancement
Job opportunities will be good in this field, as the growth in population and continued emphasis on advertising will result in more marketing jobs. Those with advanced degrees in marketing will be the most in demand.
Promotion is slower in this field than in most others requiring similar training; the pay scale for beginners, however, is better than that in many fields. Once a marketing research worker reaches the research assistant level, promotion is possible to junior analyst, then to senior analyst or project director. Top jobs, such as marketing research director, are few and require many years of experience plus good management skills.
Many experienced marketing researchers go into business for themselves doing independent marketing surveys or acting as marketing consultants.
Income
In 2011 market research analysts earned a median annual salary of $60,250. Median weekly wages were $28.97.
Related Jobs
Related jobs include survey researcher, operations research analyst, market research analyst, financial manager, financial analyst, economist, cost estimator, budget analyst, administrative services manager, accountant, and auditor.
