Marketing Research Tools There are several tools for primary and secondary marketing research. Each primary and secondary tool has a specific purpose, advantages and disadvantages. There are several ways to approach qualitative and quantitative research techniques within your market research strategies. Primary Research The collection of new market research data is called primary research and includes interviews and surveys (Muhmin, 2009). Interviews and surveys can be done in person via email or online. Primary marketing research tools are used to collect new data for a specific reason. Once a specific marketing target area is chosen, primary research techniques will be used to collect the original data. Once collected, the data will be organized and used in your market research strategy. Primary marketing research will provide a company with current information used to produce a product or service provided to customers. Primary research is an important tool, however it can be extremely expensive, so companies must determine that the cost will be beneficial to the company. Often primary research will be used alongside secondary research in your marketing strategy plan. Secondary Research Secondary research is a collection of research materials and data packages that have been researched from other sources (Muhmin, 2009). This information can be found through the Internet, company web pages, news articles, county and city auditors, and other various sources. Whether searching for secondary research on energy resources, geographic population, education, economics, crime statistics, or ethnic issues, Internet search engines will provide countless resources. Since internet searches are free and most...are paper based...often more expensive, but when a business needs specific information on a specific item, this may be their only choice. Secondary data is data collected from sources who have already conducted and paid for research. Often this search may not be as specific as needed, but the cost benefits may outweigh the need for a more specific search process. Typically the cost for secondary research is just the time it takes to track down and verify research from various sources, such as the Internet, journals, library resources, or university research papers. Works Cited Abdul-Muhmin, A. (2009, April 2). Market research. Retrieved from http://opencourseware.kfupm.edu.sa/colleges/cim/mktmgt/mkt345/files2-Lectures_Ch_01_Intro_to_Marketing_Research.pptBull, N. (2010, March 4). Conduct market research. Retrieved from http://ohioline.osu.edu/cd-fact/1252.html