Secondary (desk) research is the identification and analysis of information.

This information is either available in the public domain, or that already exists within your or your client’s organisation. 

An increasingly important part of this research method is the monitoring.

Desk research also involves integrating and cross-checking different sources of intelligence and working out the story behind the data. It’s valuable both as a cost-effective alternative to primary research and also to supplement and enhance primary research. It can be used for market monitoring, competitor analysis, sector profiling, PR and background information.

This course will help you to get the most out of desk research by introducing a range of useful market intelligence sources, explaining how to go about conducting desk research and how to analyse and validate findings.

The course combines theory with practical exercises.

Who would benefit

The courses offer an introduction to researchers new to desk research or can act as a refresher for more experienced researchers looking to fine tune their skills.

Objectives
  • Identify useful market intelligence sources
  • Understand how to conduct desk research
  • Understand how to analyse and validate findings
Learning outcomes
  • Know how to mine brand conversations and competitor intelligence
  • Be able to combine primary and secondary research effectively
  • Be able to identify the story in the data
Level

Introductory

Venue

MRS
The Old Trading House, 15 Northburgh Street,London,EC1V 0JR

Stephen has over 30 years’ experience in market research and consultancy. On the agency side Stephen has worked at Research International (in London and New York) and The Research Business (now Ipsos).
He has also worked on the client side and is a former Head of Research and Customer Insight at Shell UK, a position he held for a 5-year period. In partnership with Trevor Wilkinson, Stephen founded Purple Market Research in 2002. Purple provides both secondary research services and primary research (the latter utilising our data gathering centre, Prevision). Desk research is an important part of Stephen’s toolkit and he has conducted projects relying solely or partly on desk research in over 50 markets. Stephen is a Fellow of the Market Research Society (MRS) and he sat on the MRS Main Board for a 7-year period, stepping down recently. He is also a former Chairman of the Independent Consultants Group. He is a great supporter of monitoring and maintaining professional standards in the research industry. Stephen has an UG degree from the University of Manchester, the qualification being BSc (hons) Mathematics and Management Sciences.

Additional Information

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