Research tools

A clearer brief. More useful research.

Use this worksheet to agree what a market study must answer before you commission it or select a published report.

1. Start with the decision

What will this research help you decide? Name the decision owner, the available options, and the deadline. Replace ‘understand the market’ with a concrete choice, such as selecting one of three customer segments for a pilot.

2. Draw the market boundaries

Specify included and excluded products, services, customer types, geographies, channels, and business models. Define whether market size means supplier revenue, end-customer spending, transaction value, units, or installed base.

3. Make the period and units comparable

State the base year, historical period, and forecast horizon. Specify currency, current or constant prices, fiscal or calendar years, and whether data represent flows during a year or stocks at a point in time.

4. List the questions and evidence

For every question, state the evidence that would change your decision. Identify the needed sources, interview populations, sample limitations, and triangulation approach. Agree how conflicting estimates and unavailable data will be reported.

5. Agree the outputs

Specify the chapters, datasets, segment breakdowns, charts, formats, and presentation needs. Identify the people who will use the work and the permitted sharing under the license. Confirm whether source notes, assumptions, and a definitions sheet are included.

6. Set acceptance criteria

Agree the review dates, named approver, revision allowance, and completion criteria. Define what happens if a key source is unavailable. Separate essential deliverables from optional work and document changes to scope.

Ready to discuss the brief? Plan a custom research scope or Discuss research needs.