How to Write a Market Research Brief: Template, Examples and Best Practice

Writing a market research brief can feel like a difficult task. You may know you need research, but not yet know the exact direction the project should take.  That is precisely why the brief matters.

Great market research starts with a great brief.

When the market research brief is vague, agencies are forced to guess. That can lead to research proposals with the wrong methodology, inflated costs, missed deadlines and findings that do not answer the real business question.

A strong market research brief does the opposite. It explains the decision you need to make, the knowledge gaps you need to close, the people you need to understand, and the outcomes the research must support.

This guide explains how to write a market research brief, what to include and avoid, and how to use our practical template to brief agencies more clearly.

 

 

What is a market research brief?

A market research brief is a short document that explains the business need, research objectives, target market, required deliverables, timing, budget and background information for a research project. It helps research agencies design the right methodology, provide accurate proposals and deliver insights that support better decisions.

You do not need to write a long brief. You need to write a clear one.

The purpose of a market research brief is not to prescribe the research design, but to provide the needed information for the researchers to design a research program that will best deliver what you need.

Providing a clear brief helps prevent misunderstandings between the client and research provider, ensuring the final output directly addresses your organisation’s needs.

 

Why a good market research brief matters

Providing a clear and concise market research brief increases the chances you will get the insights you need to make your project a success, on time and on budget.

A good market research brief also reduces risks.  By providing the needed information and giving the researcher the space to design the most appropriate research design, the brief reduces the risks that the research will face operational problems, budget overruns, or provide information that does not support the right decisions.

Great market research briefs go beyond explaining what is needed and inspire your agency to a clear market research proposal and deliver great work.

 

Written briefs versus reverse market research briefs

A written brief is always better than not having one.  By writing the brief, you become more focused on what you need.  A written brief also greatly reduces any misunderstandings.

However, if you are uncertain about what you need and want to explore broader options, start with a basic brief and then discuss or workshop ideas with your agency.  This is especially important if you have competing needs and critical resource constraints (budget and/or time).

 

Market research brief checklist: the 8 essential elements

There are eight elements you need to include in your market research brief.  Each of these elements provides guidance on what is needed and why.  They are common to all briefs, from small projects to complex multi-market studies.

The eight elements of a market research brief are . . .

 

1. Decision Context

Who are you, and what has led to your need for the research?

Although sometimes referred to as ‘Background Information’, Decision Context provides a more focused approach to providing what is needed rather than more general information.   A good agency will also conduct background research on your company to provide a broader context.

A simple way of thinking about what to write in this section is to answer these two questions:

1. What is your situation?
2. Why is the research needed?

 

Understanding the decision context helps the research consultant determine which methods and measures are most appropriate, and which context measures to include to explain behaviour at a more strategic level.  For example, knowing that your business had previously tried to launch similar offers will help you focus on avoiding the same issues.  A community study where a new industry has entered, or a major one has left, will need to be addressed in studies on council performance.

Critically, understanding the decision context will inform how we analyse the results to ensure they deliver actionable insights and recommendations.

Providing the Decision context also has another benefit.  It motivates agencies to understand and care about the issues you face.  Giving meaning provides a powerful human motivator for engaging with your project.

If you have detailed information, consider putting it in the appendix or sending it separately.

 

2. Business Objectives

What is your organisation trying to achieve?

The business objective is not the same as the research question. The business objective is what the organisation needs to achieve. The research question is what the study needs to uncover to support that outcome.

Understanding the business objective affects fundamental design choices in the research and how results are analysed.  Studies that need to evaluate a strategy will have fundamentally different design needs from those that need to provide insights to design a strategy.  Likewise, if you are trying to grow a business by acquiring new customers rather than retaining existing ones, a study needs to include measures of decision-making factors (psychological, economic, and contextual frameworks) that differ significantly.

Not including the objectives in a market research brief will result in the design having no focus.

What if you just want to better understand your market?  If your focus is on exploration rather than specific outcomes, that is the objective!  The research design would then need to define the scope of the term ‘market’.

 

Internal stakeholder alignment

Writing a market research brief will require stakeholder engagement, especially when more than one part of your organisation is affected.  Getting their involvement is essential to ensuring the scope of the study covers critical areas, helps align broader business objectives, and engages those who will be involved in implementation.

Warning!  When engaging with stakeholders, there is a high risk of scope creep.  This is when your project starts to become more about what others want than what you need.  When including external stakeholders, you also risk conflicts of interest, as they may have research that addresses what they want to achieve.

Scope creep leads to budget blowouts, timing blowouts, and superficial results spread across agendas.

 

3. Insight Objectives

What does the business need to understand?

Insight Objectives are your research objectives and follow directly from them; they are the knowledge gaps that need addressing.   Insight Objectives are often problem statements, and “A problem well stated is a problem half solved.” – Charles Kettering.

As a rule of thumb, keep to three or fewer Insight Objectives.  More areas indicate scope creep.

An example of an Insight Need is ‘Understanding the market potential for a new product’, ‘Determining likely impact of a campaign’, ‘Uncover what factors are driving decision-making/ brand choice/ sales decline’.

You may also want to include information needs that are related to your Insight Objectives.  For example, to understand market potential, you may want to know the available market size, the level of interest across price points, and repeat-purchase rates.  This information may be needed to address your internal business cases, simulations, governance or other requirements.

Where you have information that you would like to include that is not directly related to the Business Objectives, they are secondary.  Note these secondary needs in your brief and why they are included.  You may have corporate reporting and KPI tracking that requires updates.  Knowing this, the research design can ensure these are addressed without dominating the design, reporting, or costs.

 

Quantitative vs Qualitative Research

Your Insight Objectives will provide a clear indication of whether your research focuses on qualitative or quantitative methods, on secondary research, on workshops, or on a multimethod approach.

Market research briefs that focus on exploration and uncovering related to new products, communication, new communities, and markets will require a stronger qualitative research focus.  As well as studies on hard-to-reach, small groups, or high-value/ risk groups.   While research with an established understanding and clear information needs is likely to require a quantitative approach.

For more information on survey methods, see our articles on survey methods and sample size.

 

4. Target Market

Who needs to be researched?

Who you need to research is dependent on your Business Objectives and your Insights Needs.  Who you define as your target market may be a single group or multiple groups.

In research speak, your Target Market is the ‘sample frame’, and it determines whether your results will be generalisable and diagnostic.

A good target market definition is broad enough to include those whose views and behaviour are essential for obtaining meaningful, actionable insights, but not so broad as to include those who would not impact your business objectives or prevent you from finding the needed insights.

Below is an example of target market definitions for research to understand what drives their choices and usage.

• Weak: “Consumers.”
• Stronger: “People who have bought from the category within the past year and intend to purchase again in the coming year, and are decision-makers for the products chosen and use them”. This improved definition ensures the people involved in the research have recent experience with your category and influence sales.

Things to watch out for when defining your target market for market research.

• Defined too loosely. If you define your target market too loosely, you may end up including people in the research who can’t provide insightful information or are not really part of your market.
• Defined with too many restrictions. The more restrictions you include, the higher the costs and the less generalizable your results.  Critically, your restrictions may prevent researching the right people and lead to the wrong results.
• Not defined based on reality. Defining your target market based on an ideal or persona that is not based on prior research is likely to lead to research among the wrong people, assuming they actually exist!

 

As a general rule, define your target market broadly and ask the research agency for suggestions on definitions that align with your Business Objectives and Insight Objectives.

 

5. Deliverables and Timings

What outputs are required?

What are the project and decision deadlines?

Be clear about the outputs you need and when you need them. Deliverables can vary significantly depending on the audience, level of detail and how the research will be used. A board presentation, internal workshop, public-facing report and live dashboard all require different levels of design, analysis and reporting time.

If you are unsure of what you need, discuss how you intend to use the results with the research agency.  Eris Strategy can provide options that maximise the value you get from the project and increase and help ensure the insights are used to their full potential.

 

6. Budget

What budget guidance should be provided?

Be clear about what resources you have during the briefing.  Providing a budget does not mean giving the agency permission to spend the full amount. It helps the agency recommend a realistic design, explain trade-offs and provide options at different levels of depth, robustness and speed.

If you are unsure and do not want to commit to a cost, discuss options with the agency about what you need and the trade-offs.  Working with an agency over time could also help in finding ways to reduce costs over multiple projects.  For example, with one of our clients, we include pulse checks for their brands across studies.

 

7. Pitch Process and Timing

What should agencies know about selection and process?

When are you likely to decide and the project commence?

Be transparent.  Design and costing research is time-consuming.  Providing timings or assuring a client you have capacity is meaningless if you do not provide the right information.

If you are briefing multiple agencies, provide clear guidelines that should include:

• Give all agencies the same written brief
• Provide a way for agencies to ask questions.
• Clarify selection criteria
• Share deadlines
• Indicate if the budget is fixed or flexible

 

Timings can impact study design

For some categories, seasonality can significantly impact results and costs.  The agency can advise if this is likely and suggest alternatives.  Seasonality may affect how consumers think about your category or affect their availability.   For example, trying to interview parents or educators during the busy start/end periods of terms and holidays will mean fewer will have time, driving up costs and leading to the right people not being interviewed.

 

8. Background Information

What existing information should be shared?

Background Information is the ‘appendix’ for a market research brief.   Provide additional information that can help improve the quality of the responses and provide accurate cost estimates.

If you have commercially sensitive information that is important, you can indicate what is available and that it would be shared with the successful agency.  This information could include:

• Sales, operational or customer data
• Previous research
• Campaign performance and
• Product concepts
• Stimulus material
• customer journey maps

 

Common mistakes when writing a market research brief

By following this guideline for creating your market research brief and using the free template we provide, you can avoid many common mistakes.  Below are the six common mistakes made when preparing a research brief.

1) Starting with a methodology instead of a decision
Unless you have very specific needs to replicate a study, creating a brief around the methodology will increase the risk that you will not meet your objectives and will get information but no insights.

2) Not having clear Insight Objectives
Not having clear insight objectives leaves the research agency guessing what you need to make the right decisions, and can result in you not getting what you need.  If you don’t know what insight objectives will help address your business objectives, have a discussion with your research agency.

3) Including too many objectives
A brief with ten objectives usually produces shallow findings across too many areas.  It increases the chances that no objective is really answered.  Competing objectives that require different methodologies lead to incorrect results.

4) Defining the audience too narrowly
Overly restrictive sample definitions increase costs and may exclude the people who matter, and limit insights.

5) Leaving out budget guidance
Without budget parameters, agencies may either over-design or under-design the project, wasting time and preventing successful project delivery.

6) Confusing background information without decision context
Background information explains the organisation.  The Decision Context explains why the research is needed now and where critical factors need addressing.

 

Example of a market research brief

So what does a basic market research brief look like?

Below is a simple brief that illustrates each of the eight elements of a market research brief covered in this guide.  This example shows how each element also frames the others, providing a cohesive guide.

1) Decision Context. Widget & Co. is a mid-sized consumer goods company that has recently experienced a decline in sales, despite stable awareness and distribution.  Competitors have recently launched new ranges that we believe are attracting new consumers to the category and switching out customers.  We currently estimate 34% category penetration and 23% volume share.

2) Business Objectives. Widget & Co. is developing a strategy to return the business to sustainable growth and needs to understand whether to invest in new products, adjust pricing or reposition the brand.

3) Insight Objectives. The research needs to identify what is driving the sales decline, how customers perceive the brand relative to competitors, and which strategy is most likely to return the brand to growth.

4) Target Market. Recent category buyers are aged 25–64 and tend to be more female.  We would like the research to include both current customers and competitor customers, so that any change does not alienate our current buyer base.

5) Deliverables and Timings. A presentation and executive summary are required by mid-March to inform the next quarterly planning cycle.  We have a wide range of internal stakeholders and would like the agency to provide options for engaging these groups and better embedding the results in decision-making.

6) Budget. We do not have a fixed budget, but would consider options up to $X.  We would also consider other options that have clear trade-offs and benefits.

7) Pitch Process and Timings. This is a competitive pitch.  Proposals are due by X date, with agency selection expected by Y date.

8) Background Information. We will provide the selected agency with previous brand tracking results, sales data, customer feedback, and competitor information.

 

 

Final thought

A good market research brief does not start with a methodology. It starts with the decision the organisation needs to make.

Your brief needs to give direction without over-prescribing the answer.  It provides the information needed for the research agency to design the methodology, analysis framework, reporting, and deliverables that will support you in achieving your objectives.

Ultimately, a good market research brief both increases your chances of success and reduces the time an agency needs to provide you with the right brief.

Download our free market research brief template to get started, or contact Eris Strategy at engage@erisstrategy.com.au if you would like help clarifying your brief before approaching the market.