Primary Research: A more controlled, accurate outcome of Data Collection
Primary Research: Why exactly?
In a first step of research often data is collected by scrutinizing multiple published sources like journals, reports, press releases, financial documents, Govt data etc. The process is comparatively simple and less costly. However, this Online Data Research many times is not able to bring out the details about the consumer preference. For example, from an existing set of data you may know that a group of people in a certain locality has certain set of income and lifestyle and they can afford your product but you will still not know for sure whether they need your product or will buy it at what price or what type of packaging may attract most of them. There comes the need of Primary Research.
The process of Primary Research involves going directly to a source – usually Customers and Prospective Customers in your target market – to ask questions and gather information. Primary Research employs more direct Primary Data Collection Methods to collect data like – Interviews (telephone or face-to-face), Surveys (online, mail or on field), Questionnaires (online or mail), Focus groups, Visits to competitors’ locations and so on.
The researches in these cases are often aimed at either being Exploratory or specific. In an Exploratory Research you are trying to gather information about something that you have no idea on. Hence the research is general and open-ended, and typically involves lengthy interviews with an individual or small group. In a specific type of research, you have some idea about the data and you are trying to narrow down on a decision making. Hence these are more precise, structured, formal interviews. While Exploratory Researches are useful in identifying a problem or market gap, specific researches are useful in identifying the right solution for that problem.
Primary Research: Is it for me?
Primary Research Methods are comparatively costlier option, and an Exploratory Research is often required to be followed up with a specific research thereby adding on to the overall cost even further. So why will anyone opt for a Primary Research at all?
The basic answer to that is Secondary Research doesn’t provide all the answers. But other than that too, Primary Research has multiple benefits over a Secondary Research. The most crucial of them include the following:
Data Accuracy
The researcher in this case has more control on the Data Quality, monitoring mechanisms etc. Hence the output is more controlled and accurate, and the researcher can always be more confident about the authenticity of the data samples.
Data is recent and Objective
The research is often woven around a specific issue. Hence the data collected is often a direct reflection of what has been asked. So, there is very little chance of a misunderstanding or misanalysing a data collected for some other purposes. Also, since the research happens recently one can be assured that there is no change of stance from the respondents end due to a change in any external factors.
Ownership
Primary Research gives the researcher total ownership and control of the Research Data. This gives such an organization an edge over competitors relying on Secondary Data.