Complete Guide to Quantitative Market Research Methods

Out of different research approaches, quantitative research is high-yielding, objective, and provides accurate insights into a business and its processes. Every quantitative market researcher must analyse a specific dataset using different methods and generate varying scenarios. These are then clubbed together to reach a conclusion and help in critical-problem solving and decision-making processes.

There are various methods by which one can process quantitative market research, but only a few are applicable for almost all scenarios. Plus, a market researcher cannot just choose any random technique as the input datasets might not be compatible with the purpose of the study. This is why knowing more about various research approaches will be fruitful in the long run.

What is quantitative market research?

What is Quantitative market research: It is dedicated to finding what customers think of the business, the key areas of business performance that score high and low, and many other attributes. As a result, it becomes easier for companies to gather datasets that will be further used in different analytical studies. Being a quantitative market researcher, you do need to ensure the chosen approach will yield meaningful results.

Why is quantitative market research important for businesses?

The first thing to understand is the benefits of conducting quantitative market research. This current era is all about big data, and businesses lack the confidence and expertise to deal with the same. As a result, they miss crucial insights about business performance, customer expectations, responses, etc. 

It can lead to severe consequences because the market is driven by customers, their association with a particular brand, and so on. The market has become hypercompetitive. So, if you want a competitive advantage over your competitors, you must conduct quantitative market research.

In the below section, we have listed some benefits you can enjoy as a quantitative market researcher after conducting the study.

1.    Bigger sample size: First, quantitative market research requires a bigger sample size. The dataset used is huge, which allows a researcher to produce accurate and precise results. Besides, the dataset can be further classified for in-depth studies, which will help the business gain deeper insights into various business processes and key performance indicators.

2.    Objective: Unlike qualitative market research, quantitative research is objective. It means the goal or purpose is clearly defined from the beginning of the study. Every quantitative market researcher sticks to the goal defined beforehand to ensure the results obtained are meaningful and can meet the objectives of the concerned study process.

3.    Resistant to biassing: One of the primary advantages of quantitative market research is that the process is unbiased. No internal or external factor can influence the results or the methods for the research. Therefore, the results are based on neutral grounds and portray the good and bad sides of the concerned business process.

4.    Better decision-making: it is quite difficult for business executives and leaders to make an appropriate decision based on assumptions and theories. Most often, such decisions result in failure rather than success. This is why most businesses rely on the results of quantitative market analysis. Usually, the outcomes are based on real-time factors without bias or external influence. As a result, a quantitative market researcher can utilise the datasets to produce outcomes that will finally help bring meaningful and positive business changes.

5.    Cost-effective process: there are many ways in which quantitative market research can save a lot of money for any business. To begin with, it doesn't require constant monitoring, which means recruitment of less staff or engagement of fewer software programs. Similarly, the datasets used for conducting the research do not always need processing and filtering. As a result, the overall budget can be reduced significantly, giving small and medium-scale businesses a more competitive advantage.

6.    Prioritises facts: No doubt every quantitative market researcher needs to prioritise points over feelings. If you study different research papers, you'll see that history, demographics, situations, and so many other feelings do not associate in any form with quantitative research methods. Instead, the processes are based on numbers, real-time facts, and statistics. This is why the results of any quantitative research method are considered to be the most accurate and precise.

7.    Requires little effort: conducting quantitative market research doesn't involve too much effort. This is one of the many reasons businesses rely more on this particular approach of studying markets and consumers than qualitative research. We aren't stating that qualitative research is of no importance, but it is just that quantitative research studies engage almost negligible human resources.

8.    Better for extensive data analysis: As we already discussed, this current era is everything about big data. But businesses do not have the resources or strategies to take action on such a massive volume of data collected from different sources and channels. People often overlook the section that needs to be prioritised and focus on meaningless research studies. This particular hassle can be eliminated with the help of quantitative market research.

9.    Scalable and flexible: Although the goals and purposes of a quantitative market research study are defined from the beginning, you can change them on the go. Every quantitative market researcher can scale the goals and purposes to meet the current requirements and produce results with appropriate meaning and purpose.

10.  No restriction on data collection: Last but not least, quantitative market research also provides the freedom to collect data in any volume and shape. There is no restriction or limitation on how datasets will be collected, the volume of the collected information, the participants, etc. This is one of the crucial advantages of quantitative market research that has helped businesses understand the market from a broader and more in-depth perspective.

Top methods for quantitative market research: A brief explanation

Every quantitative market researcher must understand the scope of different methods that can be implemented for conducting the studies. Depending on one or two methods might not fulfil the goals of that particular study and result in the collection of meaningless information. Keeping this in mind, we have discussed how most companies, like Insights Opinion, conduct quantitative market research.

Survey research

The first and foremost method a quantitative market researcher should know is survey research. It helps establish proper and seamless communication between a brand and the target customers. The best part is that the brand does not have any physical existence, like a service provided online. It helps businesses to understand how their product or service is performing in the market and whether it can meet expectations.

Survey research is usually conducted in the form of a questionnaire, where a quantitative market researcher prepares several questions based on the goals and purposes of the study. They are further divided into anonymous customers from where responses are collected in the form of datasets. These help businesses understand the customers' viewpoints, their experiences with the businesses, and their likes and dislikes.

Descriptive research

The descriptive method is one of the most valuable methods for conducting quantitative market research. It describes the events or situations related to a particular variable or topic. For example, if a product launch fails, descriptive research can define the conditions and problems that led to the failure of the launch. It is often used when businesses need to compare specific topics or variables based on existing criteria. No forthcoming trend is used to conduct descriptive research.

Observation is the best way to collect datasets that will be further used for the research study. Although it involves the formation of a hypothesis, the research situations are backed by datasets collected from real-time conditions and events. It provides a broader insight into any process or key performance indicator, allowing businesses to see the bigger picture rather than focusing on minor issues. Descriptive research can help a quantitative market researcher to predict future situations that might lead to failures and conflicts.

Correlational research

As the name sounds, correlational market research is conducted to find the relations between two or more variables belonging to the same genre or niche. It is usually done to verify the results of any hypothetical research situation or prediction. Usually, the variables included in the research study are fixed and cannot be modified or scaled on the go. 

This is why every quantitative market researcher needs to be clear and confident about the variables in the reset study. Also, the variables should have something in common to draw the relationships. No variable can be manipulated, ensuring businesses can gain insights into any business process performance, key indicators, etc. The results aren't usually inferred from positive and negative values, where each value indicates a certain association level between the fixed variables.

Experimental research

Experimental research is usually done when the impacts of the concerned study won’t be too much to handle. Besides, only an expert quantitative market researcher can conduct the experimental research method because it involves the manipulation of the variables included in the study so that the outcomes can be meaningful and understandable. It is one of the primary research techniques where logic plays a more crucial role than any hypothetical behaviour or situation.

For example, in a group of four or five variables, the market researcher can manipulate one variable to understand how the new group will impact the business process. The variable's original condition is restored if the impacts are not fruitful. Only after gaining assurance about the effects can market researchers implement the same techniques in real-time.

How can Insights Opinions help with quantitative market research?

Insights Opinion is one of the global leaders in conducting research studies of various types. It will help your business by offering accurate and precise quantitative research solutions. Every quantitative market researcher working for this company is skilled, trained, and has the experience required to work on big data. 

They understand how different approaches can influence the outcomes and provide different results. This is why they formulate a particular strategy to conduct market research similarly and provide actionable outcomes with maximum accuracy.

You can get the results based on different mathematical models, identify the KPIs for your business, and even get the correct estimation of the target market size and the audience. They will also give you a competitive advantage, making you stand out from your competitors.

Conclusion

As a quantitative market researcher, you must understand the importance of such a research study and the various real-time processes in which it can be implemented. Since there are specific challenges, you should devise a plan so that those challenges can be adequately addressed, and there shouldn't be any negative impact on the outcomes. If you want to know further about the real-time implementation of the four quantitative research methods discussed above, you can connect with Insights Opinion.