Marketing research is the systematic design, collection, analysis, and reporting of data related to the specific marketing situation faced by an organization. It is a tool to support decision-making.
The process includes 1) Defining the problem and objectives of the research, 2) Developing a research plan (selecting methods), 3) Implementing the plan (collecting and analyzing data), and 4) Interpreting and reporting the results. Marketing research provides precise information on questions that cannot be answered with internal data or intelligence.
