market research

Definition:
A branch of social science which uses scientific methods to collect information about all those factors which impinge upon the marketing of goods and services, and so includes the measurement and analysis of markets, the study of advertising effectiveness, distributive channels, competitive products and marketing policies and the whole field of consumer behaviour. In his Principles of Management, 2nd edn, E.F.L. Brech defines the objective of undertaking research, To reduce the areas of uncertainty surrounding business decisions'. The British Institute of Management defines marketing research as 'The objective gathering, recording and analysing of all facts about problems relating to the transfer and sale of goods and services from producer to consumer or user.' The last word in this definition emphasizes that marketing research is equally concerned with industrial goods, a point which is frequently overlooked in definitions which refer solely to consumers.

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