Market research is a crucial element for any organisation, regardless of their industry. It helps companies evaluate existing trends, build foresight into the future and formulate strategies that will help them communicate with their consumer base. Research tools have been developing and improving over time, andhelp companies with their market analysis, improve upon their existing strategies and track consumer behaviour. This is why the market research services industry has been valued at over $73 billion (Statista) in 2019, and its market share is expected to grow exponentially in the following years.
The best market research tools should ideally help your organisation understand your target audience better, understand their spending trends, and evaluate consumer behaviour accurately. There are multiple market research tools available for use – both free and paid – for companies to research and understand their users. They can be categorised into different categories based on the purpose they serve. Market analysis tools can be survey-based, SEO-based, and focused on helping companies understand the data they have collected better, and more.
So how do you identify the best market research tools that you can use, from the ones available in the market today? We have compiled a list of the top market research tools for 2022 to help you choose the right one for your business.
Best Market Research Tools for 2022
Google Trends
Google Trends is ideal for users who want to expand their organisation’s SEO efforts and build a strong online presence. The tool helps companies create content that will rank on the SERPs (Search Engine Result Pages), which is key to directing more traffic to their website and increasing their visibility. According to recent studies, SEO efforts generate 70% (Hubspot) more leads for organisations than PPC efforts.
Users can get detailed insights on what topics are trending so that they can tailor their content and maximise their content marketing initiatives. It shows comparative results so that the SEO team can see which keywords and topics are trending more than the others, how difficult it will be to rank for them, and more. Another valuable feature of Google Trends is that companies can use it to do competitor analysis which will showcase what their industry competitors are ranking for and where they lack – crucial information that can help companies stay ahead of their peers.
Pricing Structure
Google Trends is completely free to use for all. There are no subscription or payment plans required. All users have to do is visit the website and they can use the tool to its full capacity.
SurveyMonkey
SurveyMonkey is perhaps the most popular offering in terms of understanding your current and prospective customer base. The platform helps companies create detailed, customised and advanced surveys that they can use to interact with their audience, get valuable feedback from users for their offerings. Organisations can also create opinion polls that can help with understanding the pain points of their customer base, what they prefer and don’t. Despite the variety of options in templates, users can also use SurveyMonkey to create surveys from scratch. It is also optimised for mobile usage, which is another added bonus since the number of mobile internet users are increasing everyday.
Pricing Structure
The pricing options for SurveyMonkey are fairly flexible:
- Basic: Available for free
- Standard: Available at $99 per month
- Advantage: Available at $32 per month, billed annually
- Premier: Available at $119 per month, billed annually
- Team Advantage: Available at $25 per month per user, billed annually
Statista
Statista is one of the most widely used market research tools for data management. The platform can be used across various industries and allows users to create reports and graphs so users can have easy and informed access to their data. It gets updated very regularly, and on its own so that users do not have to put in added manual efforts to access the most recent data. Companies can use these insights to create user personas, improve their consumer experience, and tailor their marketing strategies to optimise their effectiveness.
Pricing Structure
- Basic: Available for free
- Single: Available for $39 per month, billed annually
- Project: Available for $1,950 per month
Tableau
Tableau is one of the other powerful market analysis tools that helps its users with their data visualisation. The platform breaks down complex data that companies have collected over time into manageable and easy-to-understand graphs and visuals. It collects data from multiple sources that users might use, and it allows them to upload it to an interactive dashboard. Users can create customised tables, charts and graphs to communicate their data. It can be shared across team members in the company so they can use it to optimise their marketing efforts.
Pricing Structure
Tableau offers a free plan that can be accessed by users in a limited capacity. Besides the free plan, Tableau also offers different pricing options for users based on their structure. They are divided into three main categories, listed below:
Tableau for Teams and Organisations:
- Tableau Creator: Available at $70
- Tableau Explorer: Available at $42
- Tableau Viewer: Available at $15
Tableau for Individuals
- Available at $70 per user per month, billed annually
Tableau for Embedded Analytics
- Interested users will have to contact the vendor to know more about their pricing options
Typeform
Typeform is a cloud-based market research tool that allows its users to conduct surveys, create feedback forms, and more to optimise their user insights efforts. Companies can use the tool to gather data in a more interactive and engaging manner so that they can understand their existing user base and potential consumers better. Users can use the tool to easily customise their surveys so they can tailor it to meet their requirements. Typeform allows individuals to create surveys with graphics, images, short quizzes, and more – it offers a diverse range in terms of survey creation so that those who answer it are also active participants and companies can gather more accurate data. Users can then analyse the data they have collected as well as useTypeform to see the results of their efforts.
Pricing Structure
- Basic: Available for free use
- Essentials: Available for $30 per month
- Professional: Available for $35 per month
- Premium: Available for $50 per month
Qualaroo
Qualaroo is another survey creation and data management platform that offers easy creation and customisation of surveys for users. The market research tool is a popular choice for 2022 because it gives users the option to use their collected data and generate actionable insights as well. This data can be used to create strong user personas that can create more effective marketing strategies by helping them improve their scope of targeting, track consumer behaviour, and more. Users can also create a map that tracks the customer journey for their product or service, determine where the target audience for their surveys is, and generate instant feedback to enable live-tracking. More than 90% (Think With Google) of all marketers globally agree that creating a strong map to track consumer journey and continuous tracking of consumer behaviour is imperative for the success of their marketing efforts.
Pricing Structure
Qualaroo offers a free trial for 15 days where companies can use the tool to access their features to see if it is the right fit for them. Their pricing structure is as follows:
- Essentials: Available at $80 per month, billed annually
- Premium: Available at $160 per month, billed annually
- Enterprise: Pricing options are customised based on organisational needs. Contact the vendor for more detailed information
Read Also: #5 Reasons Why Market Research is Essential
Qualtrics
Qualtrics is a customer experience management tool that uses artificial intelligence to manage and improve their users’ experiences. Optimising user and customer experience is crucial to a brand’s success today. It allows companies to complete high-end and extensive market research at a fast pace, making it a popular market research tool for 2022. The AI-powered platform allows its users to get detailed insights that can help companies build thoughtful and consumer-centric marketing strategies that work. Some of the features that Qualtrics provides its users include a complete market trends analysis, conjoint analysis, A/B testing, online panel management, ad testing and brand tracking.
Pricing Structure
The market research tool does not showcase its complete pricing structure, but companies can request a free demo to see what their requirements are and if the tool is suitable for their needs. There is a free version available with limited features, and the standard plans available start from $1,500 a year.
Final Thoughts
Determining the best market research tools is completely dependent on the organisation’s requirements. The importance of using research tools is prominent today because of the increasing competition in every industry and niche, no matter how small or refined it may be. Organisations need to choose the right market research services and employ them so that they can excel in terms of offerings, increase their revenue and increase their overall business value.
