How to write a market research brief
A market research brief is like a roadmap, providing guidance on the best route to take to reach a desired destination. Writing a market research brief is an important step in creating your market research strategy. It helps to ensure that the research is conducted in a systematic and organized manner, and that the results are meaningful and actionable.
A market research brief provides the foundation building blocks for your business roadmap, brand or research strategy or product development pathway. That means you must spend time considering the best brief for the research.
Here are some tips for writing a market research brief:
- Define the purpose of the research: Before you begin writing the brief, it is important to clearly define the purpose of the research. This will help to ensure that the research is focused and that the results are relevant to the objectives of the research. It is also a good idea to include relevant background information and context to help the research agency define the best research design to fit your needs.
- Identify the target audience: It is important to identify the target audience for the research. This will help to ensure that the research is conducted in a way that is relevant to the target audience. Perhaps defining the target audience is your brief. In that case provide hypotheses for who you wish to target or jump on the phone to discuss.
- Outline the research objectives: Write clear objectives. This will help to ensure that the research is conducted in a way that is focused and that the results are relevant to the objectives. Consider adding a business and/or marketing objective along with the research objectives for greater clarity.
- Identify the research methods: Which methods (e.g. qualitative research, quantitative research, online research, focus groups or surveys) will be used to collect the data. Thinking about this ahead of the brief will help to ensure that the research is designed in a way that is appropriate for the objectives of the research. If you are uncertain, just write down if you feel you need hard numbers for decision making (quant) or deeper insights into the why question (qual – focus groups or interviews)
- Set a timeline: Set a timeline for the completion of the research. This will help to ensure that the research is conducted in a timely manner and that the results are available when needed. It will also help the agency define what is realistic and can be achieved and what can not.
- Establish a budget: Establish a budget for the research. This will help to ensure that the research is conducted in a way that is cost-effective and that the results are meaningful. It is tempting to just let the agency define this for you, but it is much if you have clarity around the amount of budget you can attain or have set aside to help the agency find a budget option for you if you need that. It is a fallacy to think that not offering a budget will keep agencies ‘honest’, rather, realistic budgets are a critical driver of design choices.
- Outline the deliverables: Outline the deliverables that will be provided at the end of the research. What do you want to do with the research, who will be using the research? Do you need an executive summary for the board or in-depth analysis? Providing clarity on this will help to ensure that the research results are constructed in a way that is meaningful for your business and that the results are actionable.
Takeaways
Creating your business roadmap or strategy requires good market research specifications. Good market research relies on a strong brief. By following these tips, you can ensure that your market research brief is comprehensive and that the research is conducted in a way that is meaningful and actionable.
Want to find out more? Please do not hesitate to contact our team of market research experts here at Ruby Cha Cha who are happy to answer your questions and provide you with a template to you help guide your market research brief