Glossary of Marketing Terms

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Marketing Survey

Market survey is the survey research and unit of analysis of the market for a particular product/service which includes the investigation into customer inclinations.

What is a market survey?

Market surveys are a cornerstone of effective marketing. They act as a direct line to your target audience, allowing you to gather valuable information about their needs, preferences, and behaviors. This information empowers you to develop winning marketing strategies that resonate with your target market and ultimately drive business success.

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What is the purpose of market survey?

The primary purpose of a market survey is to gather information about your target market and their relationship with your product or service. This information can be used for various marketing objectives, such as:

  • Identifying customer needs and wants: Understanding what your target audience is looking for helps you tailor your product offerings and marketing messages to their specific desires.
  • Evaluating customer satisfaction: Market surveys can gauge customer satisfaction levels and identify areas for improvement in your product, service, or customer experience.
  • Assessing market potential and size: Surveys can help you estimate the size of your target market and understand the overall market landscape, allowing you to make informed decisions about product development and market entry.
  • Analyzing competitor landscape: By surveying your target audience about existing competitor products or services, you can gain insights into their strengths and weaknesses, allowing you to develop a competitive edge for your own offerings.

What is the importance of market survey?

In today's dynamic market environment, market surveys hold immense importance for businesses of all sizes. Here's why:

  • Reduced risk: By understanding your target market and their preferences, you can make data-driven decisions that reduce the risk of launching unsuccessful marketing campaigns or products that don't meet customer needs.
  • Improved ROI: Market research helps you allocate your marketing budget more effectively by identifying the channels and messages that resonate most with your target audience, leading to a better return on investment (ROI) for your marketing efforts.
  • Enhanced customer relationships: By understanding your customers' needs and wants, you can build stronger relationships through targeted communication and marketing strategies that cater to their specific preferences.
  • Identification of new opportunities: Market research can help uncover new market segments, emerging trends, and potential customer needs, allowing you to identify and capitalize on new business opportunities.

What are types of market surveys?

Choosing the right type of market research survey depends on the specific information you're looking to gather. Here are two main categories:

  • Primary market research: This involves collecting new data specific to your needs through surveys you design and distribute yourself. This allows you to gather highly targeted information directly from your target audience.
  • Secondary market research: This involves leveraging existing data collected by others, such as market research reports, industry publications, and government data sets. This offers a cost-effective way to gain a general understanding of the market landscape.

Within these categories, various survey formats can be used to gather both qualitative (descriptive, non-numerical) and quantitative (numerical) data:

  • Online surveys: Convenient and cost-effective for reaching a large audience. Can be distributed via email, social media, or embedded on your website.
  • Telephone surveys: Allow for more in-depth conversations and can be helpful for reaching a specific demographic.
  • In-Person surveys: Offer the highest level of personalization and control over the questioning process.
  • Mail surveys: May be less expensive than phone surveys but can have lower response rates.

What are the market survey best practices?

Best practices for effective market surveys:

  • Define your goals: Before you start crafting questions, clearly define what information you need. Are you looking to understand customer satisfaction with your current product or service? Identifying new market opportunities? Knowing your goals helps you design targeted questions that gather relevant data.
  • Target the right audience: Not everyone's opinion is equally valuable for your research. Market segmentation can help you identify distinct groups within your target market. Focus your survey on reaching the specific group whose insights are most relevant to your goals.
  • Keep it concise and clear: People are busy! Shorter surveys with clear, well-worded questions are more likely to be completed. Avoid technical jargon and confusing language.
  • Question structure matters: A mix of question formats can be beneficial. Use closed-ended questions with multiple choice answers to gather quantitative data (numerical). Open-ended questions allow for more detailed and qualitative (descriptive) responses, providing deeper insights into customer thoughts and feelings.
  • Minimize bias: Avoid leading questions that nudge respondents towards a particular answer. Phrase your questions neutrally to ensure you gather unbiased data.
  • Test your survey: Before launching your survey to a large audience, test it out with a small group to identify any confusing wording or unclear questions.
  • Incentivize participation: Offering a small reward, like a gift card or entry into a contest, can significantly increase response rates. Choose incentives that are appealing to your target audience.
  • Communicate effectively: Clearly explain the purpose of your survey and how the collected data will be used.Thank participants for their time and contribution.
  • Analyze and utilize results: Don't just collect data – analyze it effectively! Identify trends, patterns, and key insights that can inform your marketing strategies.

How to conduct a market survey?

To ensure your market survey yields valuable results, follow these best practices:

  • Define your objectives: Clearly define what information you need to gather before you design your survey.
  • Target the right audience: Ensure your survey reaches the people whose opinions and experiences are most relevant to your research goals. Market segmentation can help you identify distinct groups within your target market.
  • Keep it concise and clear: Shorter surveys with clear and well-worded questions are more likely to receive higher completion rates.
  • Offer incentives: Consider offering small rewards or incentives to encourage participation in your survey.
  • Maintain data quality: Ensure your survey is designed to gather accurate and reliable data.
  • Analyze and utilize results: Don't just collect data – analyze it effectively and use the insights to inform your marketing strategies.

How to create a successful reward program in marketing survey?

A well-designed reward program can significantly boost your survey's response rate. Here's how to create a successful program:

  • Tailor rewards to your audience: Consider what would motivate your target demographic. Tech-savvy millennials might appreciate a chance to win a new gadget, while busy professionals might value a discount on your product or service.
  • Offer the right incentive level: The reward should be enticing enough to encourage participation without breaking the bank. Small to moderate rewards are often most effective.
  • Clearly promote the reward: Communicate the reward program clearly within your survey invitation and throughout the survey itself. Let participants know what they have to gain for their time.
  • Deliver on your promise: Once someone completes your survey, ensure they receive the promised reward promptly. This builds trust and encourages participation in future surveys.

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