Report contents guide
Market intelligence report contents guide
A useful sample should show exactly how a decision is framed, which evidence supports each conclusion, how estimates are calculated, and where uncertainty remains. This page exposes that report structure before you request a market-specific sample.
This page is a contents and evaluation guide, not a completed research excerpt. For a source-linked analytical example, see the worked finding on our homepage; request an available excerpt for your specific market separately.
Analytical coverage
See a worked findingWhat the report should contain
The exact section order can change with the decision. The evidence requirements should not.
| Report element | What a buyer should be able to inspect |
|---|---|
| Decision scope | The business decision, audience, geography, period, unit of analysis, inclusions, and exclusions. |
| Executive answer | A concise conclusion that states what the evidence supports, what remains uncertain, and what should happen next. |
| Claim and source ledger | A traceable record of each material claim, source, retrieval date, calculation, assumption, and limitation. |
| Market sizing model | Definitions, equations, units, base period, forecast period, inputs, scenario ranges, and sensitivity drivers. |
| Segmentation | Distinct customer, product, channel, use-case, geographic, or price segments with an explicit classification method. |
| Commercial economics, where included | Pricing assumptions, cost drivers, margins, and delivery or channel economics, with the available evidence and limitations. |
| Competitive landscape | Relevant companies, category boundaries, comparison criteria, evidence dates, and gaps that prevent a fair comparison. |
| Buyer evidence | Documented needs, pain points, procurement criteria, objections, adoption barriers, and evidence quality. |
| Scenarios and risks | What would change the conclusion, leading indicators to monitor, downside cases, and decision triggers. |
| Strategic options, where included | Market-entry choices, capability requirements, investment conditions, and the evidence needed to choose between alternatives. |
| Methodology and limitations | Research methods, source classes, validation steps, unresolved conflicts, confidence, and known blind spots. |
| Review and delivery | Named review responsibility, version date, revision history, available files, and the licensed use of the research. |
Procurement checklist
How to evaluate any report sample
- 1Can you reproduce the logic behind every material market number?
- 2Does the sample define the market before presenting a forecast?
- 3Are sources linked or named precisely enough to verify them?
- 4Are estimates separated from observed facts and management assumptions?
- 5Does the competitive set follow stated inclusion criteria?
- 6Are limitations and contradictory evidence visible, not buried?
- 7Does the report explain which decision each section supports?