Post job

What is a marketing researcher and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
Quoted experts
Jason Garrett Ph.D.,
Dr. Anne Paulet Ph.D.

If you have a knack for numbers and enjoy doing research, a career in marketing research might be the vocation for you. Market researchers do just that, they research, gather and analyze data on consumers and business competitors, and they also study market conditions to examine potential sales of a product or a service. Companies hire marketing researchers to find out about what products and services customers want, and what they're willing to pay for them. A position in this field usually entails working in an office setting during a regular workweek.

A marketing researcher also monitors and predicts market trends, analyzes the effectiveness and profitability of marketing practices using statistics, and prepares consumer reports for upper management and clients. Individuals in this field are skilled in gathering data, in doing research, and the research that they do helps companies to determine markets and pricing for particular products and services, by providing data on consumer demographics, buying habits, and preferences.

Marketing researchers gather much of their information from questionnaires, interviews, focus groups, surveys, and opinion polls. Market researchers should be familiar with computers, and statistical software that can generate graphs and charts, and other visual representations of data. Although an advanced degree is not necessarily required in this field, most market researchers have at least a bachelor's degree in economics, marketing, communications, or business. The median income for a market researcher is about $64,000 per year, and US job growth by 2026 is forecast at 18%.

What general advice would you give to a marketing researcher?

Jason Garrett Ph.D.Jason Garrett Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Dean for the McAfee School of Business and Professor of Marketing, Union University

Be a leader in the ethical use of data to improve society. Economics is the theory set of most business disciplines. In it, you have found one of the most versatile degrees in business. I encourage economics students to use their broad knowledge and analytics skills to solve the data related problems of our age. Most organizations have far more data than they ever have. Few realize even a fraction of the benefit or the ethical considerations of properly using that data to improve society.
ScoreMarketing ResearcherUS Average
Salary
4.5

Avg. Salary $57,377

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
4.9

Growth rate 19%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
3.0
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.13%

Asian 14.32%

Black or African American 4.75%

Hispanic or Latino 11.30%

Unknown 4.89%

White 64.60%

Gender

female 55.63%

male 44.38%

Age - 34
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 34
Stress level
4.9

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level
8.2

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance
4.6

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Marketing researcher career paths

Key steps to become a marketing researcher

  1. Explore marketing researcher education requirements

    Most common marketing researcher degrees

    Bachelor's

    72.0 %

    Master's

    9.8 %

    Associate

    8.6 %
  2. Start to develop specific marketing researcher skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Integrated Marketing14.13%
    Market Research13.06%
    Facebook10.06%
    Research Findings7.58%
    Primary Research6.17%
  3. Complete relevant marketing researcher training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New marketing researchers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a marketing researcher based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real marketing researcher resumes.
  4. Research marketing researcher duties and responsibilities

    • Manage a team of marketing professionals delivering customize program communications throughout the distribution channel including POS and consumer materials.
    • Used strategic techniques to code survey results, run frequencies, and check for error using SPSS
    • Perform behavioral observations and data collections using SPSS data entry.
    • Coordinate web-base marketing campaigns including copywriting, proofreading and collaborating with designers to insure all materials are in-line with brand standards.
  5. Get marketing researcher experience

    Generally, it takes 4-6 years to become a marketing researcher. The most common roles before becoming a marketing researcher include internship, marketing internship team lead and cashier.
  6. Prepare your marketing researcher resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your marketing researcher resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a marketing researcher resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable marketing researcher resume templates

    Build a professional marketing researcher resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your marketing researcher resume.
    Marketing Researcher Resume
    Marketing Researcher Resume
    Marketing Researcher Resume
    Marketing Researcher Resume
    Marketing Researcher Resume
    Marketing Researcher Resume
    Marketing Researcher Resume
    Marketing Researcher Resume
    Marketing Researcher Resume
  7. Apply for marketing researcher jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a marketing researcher job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first marketing researcher job

Zippi

Are you a marketing researcher?

Share your story for a free salary report.

Average marketing researcher salary

The average marketing researcher salary in the United States is $57,377 per year or $28 per hour. Marketing researcher salaries range between $28,000 and $116,000 per year.

Average marketing researcher salary
$57,377 Yearly
$27.59 hourly

What am I worth?

salary-calculator

How do marketing researchers rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Marketing researcher reviews

profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Aug 2023
Pros

If you have a computer and internet access, you have the equipment necessary to start an internet research business. There are no time constraints since the internet is always available. If you have a background in a research-based field such as journalism or library science, you will more easily be able to market your value to potential clients. Your business can be home-based or mobile. If working from home, you also should be able to deduct expenses for your home office when filing your taxes. You can expand your knowledge as you work. You can target broadly or specialize in specific areas such as market research, genealogy research, statistical research, etc. Your researching speed will increase as you become more familiar with online search tools and resources.

Cons

You may find it difficult to sell the value of your services to clients if you are unable to convince them that your background and experience have provided you with skills that go beyond run-of-the-mill internet searches. Establishing the business likely will require extensive networking, marketing, and self-promotion to build a client base. You have to be able to objectively evaluate information since not all information found on the internet is accurate. You need to have the skills and knowledge to go beyond basic Google or Bing searches. There are billions of pages of data that popular search engines don't reach, and you need to know how to find that data to be valuable to your clients. You have to be especially careful to avoid plagiarism and know how to cite your sources when gathering information online. You need to understand the different search operators and how to use them to find what you're looking for. You need to know what questions to ask your clients to get a clear understanding of what information they need.


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Aug 2021
Pros

I juss have a passion to work as a market researcher I also did marketing

Cons

To be rejected


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Jul 2020
Cons

Fundamental Economics


Working as a marketing researcher? Share your experience anonymously.
Overall rating*
Career growth
Work/Life balance
Pay/Salary

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Browse business and financial jobs