Market research is essential for any business. It helps them to progress their ideas and move forwards in their industry. It does this by allowing them to understand their consumer base from the outset and reduce many risks.
To truly understand your market you should learn about the demand for your product, the size of the market you intend to target, any economic indicators, the location of where your customers live, market saturation and pricing. To understand these things, you need to conduct market research. This essential research is conducted using either existing sources of information or by going directly to the consumer.
If you’re wanting to work in a marketing role, or any other role that requires marketing analysis, there are plenty of online courses that you can take to develop your market research and analysis techniques. Suitable for all levels, I have spent the time researching the best online communication tutorials out there. So, if you’re looking to progress your communication skills, there will be an online course out there for you!
1. Marketing Analytics: The Full Marketing Research Masterclass (Udemy)
- Level: Beginner
- Completion time: 3h 20m
- Cost: $39.99
- Certification: No
- Number of people who have completed the course: 3,498
- Course rating: 4.0/5 (out 0f 416 ratings)
If you want to become a marketing analytics and strategy expert, but you have little previous experience in the field, then this course is for you!
Suitable for complete beginners, you will learn how to use Google tools, such as Google Trends, Google Shopping Insights and consumer Barometers to do data-driven market research. After, you will take a look at how to analyze your competitor’s, master the skill of reverse-engineering and how to use emotion-based selling through the means-end theory and a concept called “Laddering”. By the end, you will know how to successfully prepare, conduct and analyze qualitative and quantitative research and apply your findings to a whole array of daily workplace problems.
2. Market Research and Consumer Behaviour (Coursera)
- Level: Beginner
- Completion time: Approx 6h
- Cost: Enroll for Free
- Certification: Yes
- Number of people who have completed the course: 98,567
- Course rating: 4.4/5 (4,268)
Offered by ie business school, this course will help you to begin your marketing quest! In just 6 hours, this course will provide you with all the necessary groundwork and foundations to become an absolute marketing wiz.
Separated into two sections, you will first learn how to conduct market research correctly. You will be expertly guided through how to design a research plan, how to analyze the data gathered and how to accurately interpret this data and communicate the results of a survey. In the second part of the course, you will focus on the consumer decision-making process. In this section, you will learn how to adopt a true “consumer focus” by analyzing how consumers make decisions and what happens in their heads (and their hearts) during different decision making processes! You’ll walk away from this course equipped with the knowledge required to understand that state of your product and approach the market with the upmost confidence.
3. Conducting Market Research Online (The Chartered Institute of Marketing)
- Level: Intermediate
- Completion time: 1 day
- Cost: $365
- Certification: Yes
- Number of people who have completed the course: N/A
- Course rating: N/A
This course is suitable for those in relevant roles who are looking to progress their knowledge in market research specifically. It will help you to judge when an online survey represents the optimal choice and provide expert guidance on the steps that will improve the outcome to deliver on the objectives of the project.
After just a day of work, you should walk away with the ability to use an online survey in a speedy and cost-effective manner. You will be able to work of a clearly designed research brief, ensure that your chosen sample is appropriate, ask the right questions and ensure that actionable insights are delivered.
4. Marketing Research: support your marketing decisions (Udemy)
- Level: Beginner to Intermediate
- Completion time: 11h 4m
- Cost: $99.99
- Certification: No
- Number of people who have completed the course: 3,339
- Course rating: 4.5/5 (out of 802 ratings)
As a Udemy bestseller this course will teach you all about market research through a practical step by step guide. It is a suitable course for anyone who plans to undertake a research project and wants to understand each phase individually.
After this course you will be able to answer key questions such as how to deal with customers in a world of multi-device and multi-tasking. You will know about analytics and what they are telling you about how customers are using your website. Finally, you will get to learn about a customers concerns with their privacy and their social media use.
You will walk away from the class with a structured and systematic approach to building a picture which can support business decisions. As a result, you will understand your market and be able to save yourself a fortune in the future!
5. Marketing Strategy Specialization (Coursera)
- Level: Beginner
- Completion time: Approx. 6 months at 3 hours/week
- Cost: Enroll for Free
- Certification: Yes
- Number of people who have completed the course: 47,234
- Course rating: 4.4/5 (out of 3,187 ratings)
Designed for complete beginners, this course will help you to develop your marketing strategy and learn the fundamentals of market research, positioning, the marketing mix and campaign planning. You’ll cover the famous four Ps of marketing: product, price, promotion and place. These 4 p’s will make you better at market researching!
Offered by a professional business school, you will cover the concepts and tools needed to successfully develop a marketing strategy for a business, product or service. This course will allow you to understand consumers and the main marketing techniques that will grab their attention. After, you will learn how to correctly segment, target and position your product to achieve success. You will also learn the four critical areas in marketing,
6. Marketing Analytics (Future Learn)
- Level: All levels
- Completion time: Approx. 10h
- Cost: Free (pay to upgrade)
- Certification: Yes
- Number of people who have completed the course: 41,953
- Course rating: 4.7/5 (out 0f 49 reviews)
In this course you will learn the basics of marketing analytics. As a result, you will understand how to use data to ensure that your marketing is effective.
In only 10 hours, you will cover the marketing process, metrics for measuring brand assets, customer lifetime value, marketing experiments and regression basics. You will leave this course with all the tools to measure the effectiveness of your brand and customer assets, as well as being able to interpret regression analysis, calculate customer lifetime value. On top of all this, you’ll also be able to design experiments as ways to evaluate and optimize marketing campaigns.
7. Market Research Specialization (Coursera)
- Level: Intermediate
- Completion time: Approx. 4 months at 4 hours/week
- Cost: Enroll for free
- Certification: Yes
- Number of people who have completed the course: 32,251
- Course rating: 4.5/5 (out 0f 843 reviews)
Offered by the University of California, this Coursera course will teach you how to initiate research projects for your businesses exact needs.
You will take a look at how to conduct research through multiple modes and datasets, how to analyze research data, how to manage suppliers performing specialized research and how to deliver recommendations from the research. By the end of the 4 months, you should be able to create and scope a research proposal, conduct desk research, design and implement a survey, develop insights and create data visualizations in excel. These newfound skills will help you to market research like a pro and find solutions for all types of business solutions.
Conclusion
So, there you have it… the 7 best market analysis and research courses that are available online. These online classes are best suited to anyone who is wanting to develop their ability to understand the market that their business aims to dominate.
Having excellent market research and analysis skills will aid you hundreds of careers, as these skills will allow you to understand the nature of any product and/or business. Specific careers where market analysis skills are particularly helpful include:
- Accountant
- Actuary
- Human Resources
- Internet Marketer
- Lawyer
- Marketing Assistant
- Marketing Manager
- Public Relations Specialist
- Sales Associate
- Sales Manager
- Warehouse Manager
To gather the market research and analysis skills that will make you a success in lots of careers, there are plenty of online courses available for you. There are free courses that take as little as an hour to complete, and there are more expensive courses that much longer to complete! Some courses are suitable for those with no previous marketing experience. Whereas other courses are better suited for those who have worked in marketing for years, but are just looking to refresh their skills.
Either way, the online classes in this list are the best of the best. So, which course you decide take depends on your experience, funds and spare time. Do you have a huge amount of money to spend on your skill development? Do you have a lot of spare time, or are you just looking for a quick, but effective, skill top up?
