Market Research & Public Opinion Polling
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 3,800 market research and public opinion polling firms in the US gather, record, tabulate, analyze, and present marketing and public opinion data. Major market research service categories include research conducted over the Internet; research conducted by telephone; face-to-face methods; focus groups; and polling services. More specific types of services include audience measurement; custom research; syndicated research; advisory and consulting services; data collection; and data analytics.
Competition from Alternative Service Providers
Market research and public opinion polling firms face competition from a variety of sources, including strategy consulting firms, client in-house market research departments, publicly available information, and data providers, such as digital media measurement services and print and media firms.
Vulnerability to Economic Conditions
Demand for market research services is sensitive to economic conditions and typically drops during periods of uncertainty.
Industry size & Structure
The average market research firm operates out of a single location, employs fewer than 20 workers, and generates $7.6 million annually.
- The market research and public opinion polling industry consists of about 3,800 firms that employ 74,000 workers and generate $29 billion annually.
- The industry is concentrated at the top and fragmented at the bottom; the top 50 companies account for 58% of industry revenue.
- Large firms, which include Gartner, NPD, and Forrester Research, may have international operations.
Industry Forecast
Market Research & Public Opinion Polling Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Nov 12, 2024 - Polling Underestimated Support for Trump
- Pollsters accurately predicted a close presidential race, but many underestimated Trump’s support for the third time, according to The Wall Street Journal. The results were within the polling margins of error in battleground states – including Wisconsin, Georgia, and North Carolina. However, many surveys didn’t signal the significant gains Trump made compared to 2020. Polling tended to underestimate Trump’s rising popularity among college-educated voters and widening support in the suburbs. Some pollsters suggest they have struggled to reach and include the new voters Trump has added to the voting pool. However, polling accurately predicted Trump’s surging support among Black, Latino, and younger voters.
- The market research and public opinion polling industry is expected to see a slowdown in 2024 after posting solid gains in 2023. The industry’s year-over-year growth reached 6.8% in 2023 but is projected to fall to 4.7% in 2024, according to Inforum and the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc. Growth in the market research and public opinion polling industry is forecast to moderate to 4.3% in 2025, then post steady but flat average annual growth of about 4.4% through 2028, according to Inforum and the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc.
- Marketing and consumer insights professionals and researchers are eager to use artificial intelligence to learn more about consumers, according to a recent survey of insights professionals by consumer research platform Zappi and the American Marketing Association. More than a third of respondents strongly agreed that using AI is critical for gaining insights into consumer attitudes, and 57% believe it is essential for their company to use AI to leverage consumer data effectively. However, nearly 60% of professionals surveyed said their consumer insights projects lack systemic focus and are often done on an ad hoc basis using varied resources. The top headwinds facing effective consumer insights projects were budget limitations (40% of respondents), disconnected data (33%), and time constraints (28%).
- Market researchers are increasingly interested in using AI personas to replicate consumers' attitudes, according to Research Live. UK-based consumer research firm MMR Research recently conducted an experiment to test the company’s AI persona tool. The experiment aimed to learn if the personas delivered value and if they could be an effective tool for small and medium-sized businesses. The experiment compared 500 responses by actual consumers about their thoughts on a plant-based food product to the impressions of the AI personas. While the personas tended to provide lengthier answers, consumer responses offered better specifics about the product. Consumers tended to stress good flavor, while the persona thought being organic was the product’s most important aspect, despite only one actual respondent mentioning it. The experiment found that the personas could be prompted to better match the impressions of real consumers by asking the personas for additional feedback. The study found that firms can use personas to glean more insights from their customer data.
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