| Detail | For this role |
|---|---|
| Department | Marketing |
| Level | Mid level |
| Reports to | Market Research Manager |
| Direct reports | None |
| Experience | 2 to 5 years in market research or insights |
Market Research Analyst job description template
Copy this job description, replace the text in square brackets and post it on your careers page or a job portal.
Job title: Market Research Analyst
Department: Marketing
Reports to: Market Research Manager
Location: [City], [office, branch or site]
About the role
A Market Research Analyst studies markets, customers and competitors to guide business and marketing decisions. They design surveys, run interviews and focus groups, analyse data and secondary research, and turn the findings into clear reports and recommendations. The role sits in the marketing, strategy or insights team. A good one asks the right questions, uses sound methods so the data can be trusted, and delivers insights that actually change what the business does, not just charts that sit in a folder.
Key responsibilities
- Define research questions with stakeholders and design the right study to answer them.
- Design surveys, discussion guides and sampling plans for primary research.
- Run or commission surveys, interviews, focus groups and field studies.
- Gather and review secondary research on the market, category and competitors.
- Clean, analyse and interpret both quantitative and qualitative research data.
- Turn findings into clear reports with insights and recommendations.
- Present research findings to marketing, product and leadership teams clearly.
- Track market trends, competitor moves and consumer shifts over time.
- Recommend actions the business can take from the findings.
- Maintain research data, reports and a shared knowledge bank.
Requirements
- Bachelor's or master's degree in statistics, economics, marketing or psychology
- Knowledge of research methods and analysis tools
- A market research certification is an advantage
- 2 to 5 years in market research or insights
KRAs and KPIs for a Market Research Analyst
Key result areas for the appraisal form, each with a KPI you can measure every month or quarter.
| Key result area | How to measure it |
|---|---|
| Insight quality | Research leads to decisions or actions on most projects, not just reports |
| Method rigour | Studies use sound sampling and method, with reliable, defensible data |
| On time delivery | Research reports delivered by the agreed date for most projects |
| Accuracy | Findings hold up on review, with no major errors in analysis |
| Stakeholder use | Teams act on research recommendations across the period |
| Cost control | Research delivered within the approved budget per project |
Skills and tools
Tools used day to day: SPSS or R, MS Excel, Survey tools such as SurveyMonkey, Google Analytics, PowerPoint.
Reporting line and career path
Next roles: Market Research Manager, Insights Lead
Interview questions for a Market Research Analyst
- How would you design research to find out why a product's sales are falling?
- How do you decide between a survey and focus groups for a question?
- How do you make sure your sample actually represents the market?
- How do you turn a pile of survey data into a clear recommendation?
- A finding contradicts what leadership believes. How do you present it?
- How do you check that your analysis is not misleading?
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What does a market research analyst do?
A market research analyst studies markets, customers and competitors to guide decisions. They design surveys, run interviews and focus groups, analyse data and secondary research, and turn findings into clear reports and recommendations. Their job is to answer business questions with reliable data and deliver insights that change what the business does.
What is the difference between a market research analyst and a marketing analyst?
A market research analyst studies the market, customers and competitors, often through surveys and interviews, to answer why questions. A marketing analyst focuses on the brand's own marketing data, campaigns, channels and ROI, to answer how well questions. Research explores the market; marketing analytics measures the marketing.
What qualifications do you need to be a market research analyst?
Most market research analysts in India have a degree in statistics, economics, marketing or psychology, and know research methods and analysis tools like SPSS, R or Excel. Strong analytical and report-writing skills matter most. A research certification helps, but the ability to design sound studies and draw clear insights is what employers value.