Making assumptions about your customers, market, rivals, or processes when running a business

may waste time, money, and effort.

To make successful decisions to help your firm expand and manage its resources properly, you
must devote part of your resources to market research and marketing research.

These two terms appear to be synonymous with a difference of just three letters, but they are not.
Market research should not be confused with marketing research. Market research often covers
market-related research, whereas marketing research includes marketing-related research
activities.

Even though tons of resources talk about market research vs. marketing research, there still seems
to be an underlying confusion about the two in terms of their application.

This is why, in this blog, we’re going to throw light on the similarities & differences between
market research & marketing research. Let’s start with the basics.

What Is Market Research?

Market research establishes the feasibility of a new service or product via direct customer study.
Market research enables a firm to identify its target market and obtain comments and other
customer input on their interest in a product or service.

Market research examines the market for a certain commodity or service to determine how the
audience will react to it.

It may involve obtaining information for market segmentation and product differentiation, which can
be used to customize advertising efforts or identify which attributes are viewed as important by the
customer.

To finish the market research process, a company must do several tasks. It must collect data
depending on the market sector under consideration. The generated data must be analyzed and
interpreted by the company to evaluate the presence of any patterns or important data points that
may be used in the decision-making process.

Market research enables businesses to understand their product’s demand and feasibility and how
it may perform in the real world.

Market research is performed using primary or secondary information, providing distinct insights
into a company’s product. Market research is an important part of a company’s research and
development (R&D) stage and its success and growth.

Here’s an example of a typical market research procedure:

1. A problem is discovered.
2. Determine who will carry out the research (in-house or an external agency)
3. Select relevant market research methods.
4. Collect information
5. Data organization, interpretation, and analysis
6. Please report your results.
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What Is Marketing Research?

Marketing research systematically collects, records, and analyzes qualitative and quantitative data
about marketing goods and services concerns. The purpose is to discover and analyze how
changing marketing mix elements affect customer behavior.

This includes defining the data needed to solve these concerns, establishing the strategy for
gathering information, managing, and implementing the data collection process.

After reviewing the acquired data, the conclusions, findings, and consequences are transmitted to
those with authority to act on them. The goal of marketing research (MR) is to offer management
knowledge that is relevant, accurate, trustworthy, valid, and up to date.

Marketing research must deliver good information because of the competitive marketing climate
and the ever-increasing expenses associated with bad decision-making. Sound judgments are not
made purely on gut instinct, intuition, or even pure logic.

Following is an example of a typical marketing process:

1. Determine the problem, consider alternatives, and establish research objectives.

2. Make a research plan.
3. Gather research information
4. Gather audience information
5. Data organization and analysis
6. Showcase your results
7. Make data-driven judgments

Explore: Voxco’s Market Research Hub

Marketing Research vs. Market Research

Market research and marketing research are frequently used interchangeably; in some cases, they
are, particularly for those outside the sector. However, the two names are not interchangeable in
the business.

Because they are similar, the names are frequently used interchangeably. They are both
fundamental parts of marketing, which implies they occur before selling the product or service.
Marketing research entails investigating new goods, distribution channels, and product
development. Depending on the setting, it can also involve promotion research, pricing, advertising,
and public relations. It has a considerably broader reach and may thus be utilized to determine a
marketing plan.

Marketing Research is also far more technical, systematic, scientific, and objective than Market
research.

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Differences Between Market Research

and Marketing Research
We understand that these terms might be used interchangeably, but they have distinct meanings.

Let’s go straight into the differences between market research and marketing research. The
distinction between market research and marketing research is easily discernible on the following
grounds:

1. Market research is the study of customers and the market, whereas marketing research is the
study of all aspects of marketing.
2. Market research is reliant, whereas marketing research is autonomous.
3. Marketing research has a much broader reach since it involves doing product research and
customer preferences, whereas market research just involves gathering market information.
4. Market research investigates the market success of a product or service, whereas marketing
research collects data for marketing intelligence activities and decision-making.
5. Market research is focused on answering particular questions, whereas marketing research is
more general and utilized to solve various marketing challenges.

Learn how Apple leveraged Market research to deliver

exceptional experiences, which helped them engage
customers globally.

Read Case Study

Similarities Between Market Research
and Marketing Research
Now that we’ve established the distinction between these two, let’s look at some of their
commonalities:

1. Both are important to the success of a business.

2. Both types of research generate useful data.
3. Surveys, focus groups, questionnaires, and interviews are examples of quantitative and
qualitative tools and approaches that may be used to acquire information.
4. Effective for making judgments on the type and quality of items and services given to clients,
appropriate company sites, the best advertising, and the most efficient distribution methods
and networks.
Related: Market Research Mistakes to Avoid

So, Is Marketing Research and Market

Research the Same?
No, they’re not.

Following the preceding debate, it is well-understood that marketing research is a broader word
than market research. In reality, market research is a subset of marketing research.

Both of these researches use quantitative and qualitative procedures to collect information, such as
focus groups, surveys (telephonic or face-to-face communication), interviews, and questionnaires.

Whatever research you undertake, you must follow the whole research technique to get a
conclusion that will assist your organization. If your results result in a solution to your issue
statement, you can choose the next actions for your company.

If you failed to find an answer to the research question, this does not imply that your study was
flawed. That is, maybe, because the issue was much more complex than imagined. You just need
to ask additional questions and keep researching until a solution is found.