7 of the Best Market Research Tools To Use in 2024

Knowing what to look for in your market research tool is a great starting point, but sometimes you might not even know where to start. Based on the collaborative experiences of our classically-trained researchers, below is a list of some major players that check the boxes when it comes to rigorous, insightful, online market research tools. Some allow you to create your own online surveys, while others collate data that already exists to present it in a way that’s useful for your particular business situation.

Whatever your market research needs are, chances are you’ll be able to solve those needs with one of the tools below. 

Table of Contents: 

• Importance of market research 
  
• Benefits of leveraging marketing research tools
• Features to look out for when selecting market research tools
• quantilope
• Google Trends
• Statista
• Pew Research Center
• Google Keyword Tool
• Social Mention 
• Tableau
• Emerging technologies in market research
• Final tips for approaching market research with the help of tools
• Conducting market research with quantilope

Importance of market research

Market research should form the foundation of any business. Of course, you need to have a great product or service, a clear strategy, effective distribution, and committed staff, but the best way to grow your brand is to focus on consumer needs uncovered through market research.

Understanding your market - what your customers like, what they need, and what makes them buy one product over another - is the key to creating an offer that is relevant.
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Benefits of leveraging marketing research tools

Market research tools provide businesses with hands-on insight into elements such as their core audience, potential new customers, missing customer needs, competitive threats, and new opportunities. They can help with a variety of business objectives from new product improvements, target audience profiling, competitive landscaping, marketing strategy, pricing, and so on - depending on your unique needs. 

By leveraging tools that provide real-time data analytics and automated trending, businesses can make strategic decisions that they feel confident are aligned with actual market demand and customer preferences - ultimately leading to long-term success. 
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Features to look out for when selecting market research tools

Searching for a market research tool can be overwhelming - with so many research agencies and platforms offering different features and capabilities. To help in your search, narrow contenders down those that offer the following features: 

• Real-time data access
  Without real-time access to your data, you're left relying on other teams to extract, clean, and send insights over - which could take weeks. You don't have that kind of time when it comes to making real-time decisions that keep you ahead of (or in line with) competitors. All researchers should have the ability to be hands-on with their own insights, slicing and dicing findings as often as they need; even if it's just to monitor the progression of fieldwork.
• Advanced methods
  Advanced methods separate surface level insights from those that go more in depth to uncover the 'why'. These are methods like MaxDiff analysis which can prioritize long-list items through tradeoff decisions, Segmentation which can automatically group your target audience into actionable sectors based on their needs, TURF analysis which allows businesses to prioritize features or products that maximize audience reach without duplication, and Conjoint analysis which helps brands finalize individual elements of a larger initiative (such as a new product offering, messaging approach, or service details).
• Panel choice 
  Researchers should have their choice in who they reach with their insights study, not limited to a particular panel provider or audience source. Look for research tools that are panel agnostic (i.e. allow you to choose from any panel source such as third-party vendors or your own list of contacts).  
• AI features  
  Artificial Intelligence continues to expand its capabilities in all industries - market research included. The use of AI in market research allows teams to do more, with less. This includes helping brands quickly generate question text or answer option inputs, generate inspiring chart titles or descriptions at a glance, and summarize entire reports or dashboards in just seconds. Compare this to more traditional ways of working - requiring teams to comb through data files, pull out relevant insights, manually chart the findings, and try to come up with the best possible headlines for stakeholders. AI not only speeds up these processes, but also provides a new perspective to come up with actionable insights for even the most complex data. 

Below are 7 research tools to consider when in need of in-depth data-backed market insights for your business strategy: 

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1. quantilope

• Best market research tool for: real-time, automated, advanced method insights with an AI co-pilot 

• The feature we love: largest suite of advanced research methodologies over any platform

Using the past experiences and knowledge from a team of classically-trained researchers, quantilope's platform is built by those who know the frustrations of traditional research - long turnaround times, complex questionnaires, version control issues, lack of flexibility, and so on. 

quantilope's fully automated online survey platform brings market research data to life for users of any skill set. Its intuitive survey builder allows for full customization, while customizable survey templates are also available as an option for questionnaire creation. Whichever route you take (building from scratch or starting with a template) you’re sure to easily capture valuable insights from your target market through the use of built-in guardrails, automated advanced methods, and several AI features and tools through the use of the platform's AI co-pilot, quinn. 

quantilope‘s suite of 12 automated research methodologies is designed to address a variety of advanced research needs. Whether you want to fine-tune your product development using Conjoint Analysis, use a MaxDiff analysis to determine which factors potential customers consider most important in products or communication, conduct a brand tracking study over a duration of time, monitor and track general market trends, or research any other area of your customer experience, quantilope has a solution. 

Besides its quantitative methodologies, quantilope also offers a qualitative video research solution: inColor. Questions for respondents are asked through the form of video, and responses are received through video as well - creating a deep sense of authenticity in your research through consumers‘ own words and mannerisms. quantilope inColor provides the perfect format for shareable, engaging consumer insight videos - with the ability to compile clips into showreels. Additionally, facial emotion, sentiment analysis, and keyword trend analysis create an even deeper understanding of consumer insights.

Whether using quantilope’s quantitative or qualitative survey options, responses are available in real-time. This means you can get started right away on creating your showreel video clips, or start building your quantitative dashboard with insights updating automatically as additional data comes in.

And whether you choose to leverage quantilope’s team of certified research experts or take a DIY approach, quantilope allows you to conduct a survey in a matter of days and quickly access the information needed to put consumer feedback into action.

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2. Google Trends

• Best market research tool for: exploring how online activity reflects behavioral and social trends

• The feature we love: pleasing user experience with visual representations of trends based on searched-for terms 

Google Trends - as the name implies -crawls its own Google search engine and social media platforms for trends or mentions of particular terms. Say you have a business selling flowers and you’d like to know the time of year that people are most likely to purchase flowers. Typing the search term ‘flowers’ into Google Trends will give you a wealth of online behavioral information, including:

• The frequency of search team ’flowers’ vs. Google’s total search volume during a set period
• The location of users typing the term in (with the option to limit your search to specific locations)
• How global and local events affect online search activity for the term (i.e. if there is a shift in weather patterns like a drought, people may search how to best care for their flowers)
• Comparisons between different search terms in the category (i.e. lilies vs. roses)
• The context of search terms (e.g. flower care, flower watering, flower meanings/symbols)

Google Trends uses line graphs to illustrate trends over time and gives the terms a score out of 100 based on interest in the term. Google Trends is free, quick, and very visual, providing accessible insights into how internet users are searching over time.

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3. Statista

• Best market research tool for: making the most of existing data sources 

• The feature we love: creative data presentation, including industry forecasts and ready-made reports

Statista is a paid service that specializes in secondary research - in other words, using data that already exists and packaging it into a digestible format tailored to business areas and research needs. Statista obtains its data from reliable sources online and uses straightforward, customizable data visualization to present its findings. Some of its advantages include:

• A huge array of metrics to choose from
• Data from over 150 countries 

• Outlook reports that forecast how industries will develop
• A variety of ready-made reports across business areas including digital trends, politics and society, and specific companies and brands
  
  

In addition to its data-gathering capacity, Statista also has a tailored research function, so you can launch your own online surveys based on your business's unique needs.

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4. Pew Research Center

• Best market research tool for: understanding how broader social trends tie in with consumer behavior

• The feature we love: fascinating online articles about society in the past, present, and future

The Pew Center is a non-profit organization that specializes in research and data analysis in many spheres including US politics, opinion polling, social and demographic information and trends, news and media, science, religion, and technology (including social media, online privacy, and more).

Pew’s research is thorough and highly usable, and its website contains some fascinating articles that provide a window into how humans think and behave, on subjects like ‘The Metaverse in 2040’ and ‘10 Facts about Americans and Twitter.’ Wherever your business interests lie, you’re likely to discover thoughtful information on this site.

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5. Google Keyword Tool

• Best market research tool for: understanding the words people use when searching for online content

• The feature we love: keyword search volumes and how keywords differ by devices used

Google‘s Keyword Tool is one of the best for keyword research. Knowing which keywords your customers use when searching online can be extremely valuable when planning your marketing strategy, sales tactics, or launching a new product. Keywords provide consumer language so you can reflect that in your communications. Plus the tool can also indicate which keywords you should include for SEO - ensuring your offer appears high in the list of online search results.

Google Keyword Planner shows keyword search volume, how competitive keywords are, and the relationships between keywords - all valuable information for content marketers. You can filter results by various criteria, including by a language or geographical area, and by those searched only on mobile (or other) devices. In short, it tells you how your target audience is searching for specific content to inform your marketing campaigns, all with a user-friendly interface.

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6. Social Mention

• Best market research tool for: exploring how social media reflects and shapes brand perceptions

• The feature we love: keyword monitoring across major platforms 

Social Mention is a free service with a focus on how social media creates and impacts brand awareness and perceptions. It monitors over one hundred social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and more, to establish how many times a keyword or brand has been mentioned. Social Mention keeps tabs on the types of mentions - whether positive or negative, counts how many people are talking about your brand (or competitive brands) in real-time, and produces an overview of brand perceptions. Alerts can be set up to update the user on keyword mentions as well.

Social Mention is a great research platform for providing context on which brands or keywords are being talked about and the platforms where they get the most attention through social media monitoring. This competitor analysis helps businesses direct their brand activity to certain channels. 

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7. Tableau

• Best market research tool for: connecting and visualizing existing data sets

• The feature we love: Data Cloud, allowing users to integrate data from any source  
  
  

Tableau’s premise is that there’s a lot of data out there and it could be presented better. It is a business intelligence service that focuses on using analytics for clear, accessible data visualization that better informs business decisions.

Tableau takes data from plenty of formats including PDFs, Excel, Text, Python, R, Hadoop, and SAS, and other market research tools like Salesforce. Its interactive dashboard displays the data using graphs, tables, charts, and heat maps. Data can be shared across teams, making for easy collaboration. Tableau is a sophisticated market research tool that sits at the higher price end of paid-for services.

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Emerging technologies in market research

It's an exciting time to work in market research. Aside from the rapidly-expanding AI tools in the industry, there's also virtual reality and augmented reality, machine-learning tools, automation, and other immersive/interactive ways of bringing a new layer to traditional market research. 

These emerging and expanding technologies help create a more detailed understanding of businesses' research objectives - whether that's to understand consumers, launch successful new products, develop impactful marketing campaigns, or predict behavior patterns for future strategies. These kinds of tools can do far more than humans can alone (or at the very least, much faster). As a result, business leaders feel confident and empowered to make informed decisions. 
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Final tips for approaching market research with the help of tools

Though there are many emerging technologies and tools that make it such an exciting time to work in insights, it's fair that some traditional researchers might worry about what this means for them. Below are some final takeaway tips for any researcher or research team thinking about switching up their research tool this year (or beyond). 

1. Use automation, AI, and machine-learning tools as a collaborative partner, not a replacement. These technologies and tools are incredible resources to speed up and streamline a market research process, but nothing can replace human insight and intervention. Use these tools as a way to inspire your starting process that you then further customize and make your own; such as using an automated platform to instantly collect and chart findings so you can dedicate your valuable time to actually crafting unique takeaways. 
2. Iterate. Research platforms and tools make it easier to get more done faster, so use that to your advantage. Once you've collected data, don't stop there. Use those insights to run either another wave of the same study for trended insights, or to inspire a new type of study that dives into a particular finding in more depth.  While iteration isn't so simple (or affordable) with traditional means of research, it's a key feature of modern-day market research tools. 
3. Leverage advanced methodologies. Market research platforms like quantilope no longer require you to be an expert in behavioral science or statistics in order to leverage advanced and complex insights. With features like pre-programmed survey templates and drag & drop modules, research platforms are empowering users of any skillset to generate impact for their business through rich and actionable findings. 

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Conducting market research with quantilope

There are many online tools on the market, with a variety of different capabilities. For real-time, automated, advanced insights around your business or consumers, quantilope's variety of methods and solutions can help you achieve your research objectives - and fast, especially with the help of the platform's AI co-pilot, quinn. 

To learn more about how quantilope‘s Consumer Intelligence Platform can help with your market research goals, big or small, get in touch below!