Company & Industry Information: Marketing & Demographics

Market research is used by businesses to make consumer-related decisions, such as whether to open a new store in a particular area, what product to produce, and even whether there is a market for the product at all. There are two types of reports:

• Consumer reports provide data on the consumer goods market, profile current and potential customers, evaluate the competitive landscape, and analyze economic trends. The data in them is often gathered by surveys or focus groups.
• Industry reports provide data on the manufacturing or production market for an industry, such as market size, market share, economic trends, and potential product or supply voids. They can be used to determine the market size and share of a particular company in an industry.

Demographics are characteristics of a group of people.  They include things such as race, age, marital status, educational attainment, and income levels. In the business world, demographics are used in a variety of ways.  Many time businesses compile demographic reports for marketing purposes; they want to get to know their customers so they can tailor their marketing efforts.  Knowing the age, sex and income of their customers, for example, can assist businesses in deciding which new products or services to offer.  Researching demographic information can also help businesses decide to which geographic areas they would like to expand.