A LevelBusinessAQARevision NotesManaging MarketingIdentifying, Anticipating & Understanding Customer NeedsSecondary Market Research

Secondary Market Research (AQA A Level Business): Revision Note

Syllabus Edition

First teaching 2026

First exams 2028

Exam code: 7132

Written by: Lisa Eades

Reviewed by: Bridgette Barrett

Updated on 25 June 2026

Secondary market research sources

Secondary research involves the collection, compilation and analysis of data that already exists

Sources of secondary research

Source	Explanation
Government publications	National governments and trading blocs such as the EU publish reports and statistics on the economy, demographics, industry trends and consumer behaviour
Academic institutions	Universities conduct studies and publish research papers that provide insights and data on specific industries, consumer behaviour and market trends For example, Stanford University is a globally significant research centre for engineering and medicine
Industry associations	Trade and industry associations provide detailed information about specific sectors, including market size, growth rates and industry benchmarks E.g. the International Organisation of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers conducts and collates research on production and sales statistics
Marketing research reports	Companies specialising in marketing research produce and sell in-depth reports on industries, markets and consumer trends E.g. Mintel is one of the leading private companies supplying marketing research information
Financial reports	Public limited companies publish annual reports that can provide valuable information about a company's performance, market position and future plans
Media sources	Newspapers, magazines and online forums publish opinion pieces and investigative reports that offer insights into market trends, consumer behaviour and industry developments E.g. the Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal

Case Study

Greenleaf Nutrition's use of secondary market research

Greenleaf Nutrition is a small supplement brand based in Bristol. Before launching a new range of plant-based protein products, founder Dan Okafor used secondary market research to assess whether the market was large enough to justify the investment.

Drawing on three freely available sources, he found:

Office for National Statistics (ONS) data - showing a 40% rise in the number of UK consumers following a plant-based diet over five years
A Mintel health and wellness report - identifying plant-based protein as the fastest-growing supplement category in the UK
Competitor annual reports - revealing that established brands were struggling to keep up with rising demand

Dan concluded that the market was growing rapidly and underserved at an affordable price point.

He launched the range without commissioning expensive primary research, saving over £8,000 while still making a well-informed, evidence-based decision that proved highly profitable within its first year

Advantages and disadvantages of secondary marketing research

Advantages	Disadvantages
Information is already available and is quicker to collect than primary research, thereby saving time	Information has been collected for other purposes, so it may lack relevance or may not be factually correct, e.g. Wikipedia
Information is often free (e.g. government websites and internet sources such as Statista) or cheap to collect, leading to lower costs compared to primary research	Can be expensive to purchase market-specific secondary data from specialist companies, e.g. Mintel reports
Suitable for a small business that lacks a large marketing budget and/or expertise	Information may be out of date, especially in dynamic markets

Influences on market research

Businesses do not always conduct market research in the same way
- The type, scale and method of research used will vary depending on the circumstances

Factors influencing how market research is conducted

Risk

The higher the risk attached to a business decision, the more thorough the market research is likely to be
- Launching a new product into an unfamiliar market carries significant financial risk - this justifies investing in detailed, expensive research
- A lower-risk decision, such as a minor change to packaging, may require only basic research
In general, the greater the potential consequences of getting a decision wrong, the more a business should invest in finding out the facts first

Cost

All market research has a cost - in terms of money, staff time and resources
Businesses must weigh the cost of research against the value of the information it provides
- Primary research (such as focus groups or large-scale surveys) tends to be more expensive than secondary research
- Smaller businesses with limited budgets may have to rely on cheaper methods, even if these provide less specific data
The cost of research should always be proportionate to the size and financial resources of the business

Time

Some research methods take considerably longer than others - in-depth interviews and product trials can take weeks or months to complete
If a business needs to make a quick decision
- For example, responding rapidly to a competitor's new product, it may not have time for extensive primary research
Time pressure often leads businesses towards secondary research, which can be accessed far more quickly
However, rushing research to meet a deadline can reduce the quality and reliability of the findings

Need for reliability

Businesses need data they can trust
- Unreliable research can lead to worse decisions than having no research at all
Reliability is affected by factors such as sample size, the design of questions and the honesty of respondents
- A larger, more representative sample produces more reliable results, but also increases cost and time
Businesses must balance the desire for highly reliable data against the practical constraints of budget and time available

Examiner Tips and Tricks

In exam questions on this topic, you may be asked to explain why a business chose a particular approach to market research. Always consider all four influences together - they interact with each other. For example, a business facing a high-risk decision (risk) may be willing to spend more (cost) and wait longer (time) to get highly reliable data (reliability). Apply your answer to the specific situation described in the case study

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