If you're planning to extend your business presence to new markets or aim to add new products or services, it's recommended to start with secondary research. This type of research is based on the information garnered from studies that had been undertaken by chambers of commerce and government agencies, trade associations, and other market research organizations.

Assimilating data through secondary research is by far the most commonly used research method. The process entails gathering information from either the originator or some distributor of primary research. This implies that in most cases the existing data is accessed to draw new conclusions. Such information is usually sourced from a third-party means such as marketing research reports that have previously been made, white papers of consultancy firm, data published in magazines and newspapers. Thus broadly speaking any information drawn from previously gathered data from any diverse source, internal or external to market, fall under the ambit of secondary research.

As aforesaid, secondary research information can be sourced from a number of means, some of the common ones being research firms' sites, whose business is dependent on conducting primary research for customers to be able to compile and sell comprehensive syndicated reports. A majority of them have ready data, available as press releases, reports or executive summaries. Annual reports of companies operating in the sector, also give relevant primary research information. The Federal government also serves as another increasingly beneficial source of secondary data, with more than 100 different government agencies readily publishing important data.

Published information from surveys, books, and magazines can be applied to the issue under scrutiny. For example the retail sales figures of previous few years bears a strong correlation to the current sales figures. Thus an analysis of figures for recent years can help to confirm or disprove market trends and the assumptions thereby helping to chalk out a better marketing strategy.

Compared to primary research there are several benefits associated with secondary approach, including easy accessibility and incurring low costs on small business. However, there are also considerable disadvantages that may limit the worth of the research, including the fact that the information may not be always relevant to the marketer's need, results may not have any applicability because of imperfect or unsystematic research design.

However, undeniably secondary research lays the foundation for a useful and constructive market research report which a relevant industry insight to business owners and investors for strategically targeting unexplored markets.

RNCOS is an industry leader in the field of online business research. We specialize in industry research on various business verticals. To read our reports, please visit us at http://www.rncos.com/Report.htm or email us at info@rncos.com