Toptal is the best place to fast-track your search for the most skilled, experienced freelance market researchers. Toptal utilizes a stringent screening process, and only about 3% of its total applicants make the cut. This degree of vetting ensures that you are choosing from only the highest caliber of world-class professionals. No-risk trials are a testament to the confidence that Toptal has in its network of top talent.
Guide to Hiring Freelance Market Research Analysts
According to recent findings from the Insights Association, a professional association geared toward research marketing, the market research field grew over 6.5% in 2021.
Hire a market research analyst by limiting your search to candidates with proven experience. Not every consultant offering these services has the experience you need. Analysts’ core competencies and strengths can vary significantly. Likewise, every business's needs are unique. This guide can get you started on finding the ideal candidate to help your business with market research.
What Does a Market Research Analyst Do?
A market research freelancer performs in-depth research geared toward managing resources and marketing functions. Businesses often work with market research analysts to create marketing campaigns, understand their competition, or analyze data to inform business development strategies.
1. Craft Winning Marketing Campaigns
Companies have to manage their marketing budgets with the utmost care. Hiring a market research consultant enables you to make strategic decisions using meaningful, actionable data. Without data-driven analyses, it can be challenging for companies to plan initiatives that successfully engage an optimal number of their target demographics.
Companies commonly make the mistake of trying to connect with as many people as they possibly can rather than honing in on their target audiences. Market research analysts can help you make sense of data about your existing and potential customers as well as the marketplace so that you can target the right messages to the right people in the most effective ways, giving you the best possible return on your investment.
Drawing insights from seasoned marketing analysts equips your company with a roadmap to engage your target demographics effectively and affordably. An analyst can impart a wealth of useful input about your customer base:
- Income
- Spending habits
- Shopping interests
- How much they are willing to pay for specific products or services
- Which companies they currently make purchases from
Knowing your customer enables you to create well-defined customer personas and connect with them better. It could also help you identify crucial benchmarks in your company’s customer service provision.
2. Size Up Competition
Market research consultants also advise companies about the market conditions and their competitors. Knowing the number and location of competing companies enables you to gauge whether a particular product or service field is oversaturated or whether there is a sizable gap that might represent a great opportunity.
In addition, a consultant can give you an overview and assessment of your competitors’ marketing activities, in the form of a competitive analysis. Learning from other companies’ successes and shortfalls equips you to shape your marketing communications constructively.
3. Create Development Strategies
A market research analyst helps companies plan for growth strategically by studying the demand for their products or services. This input is useful for more than just planning ad campaigns. When companies know how many potential customers are out there, they can forecast sales and earnings with reliable bases.
Market analyses are especially useful for new ventures as well as companies that are seeking to ramp up their operations. This level of due diligence shows current stakeholders and potential investors or lenders that you are taking the right steps to achieve growth.
Why Hire a Dedicated Market Research Analyst?
A dedicated market research analyst have critical thinking that makes them able to render credible and illustrative insights. Anyone can make broad generalizations about consumer and market trends or industry developments, but a professional analyst can generate comprehensive reports about key factors driving growth in your target market. Furthermore, hiring a consultant could offer assistance to help you achieve a specific objective, reach a new milestone in your company’s growth trajectory, or navigate around new challenges.
Should I Hire a Market Research Freelancer?
According to CareerProfiles.Info, only about 5% of marketing research analysts in the US are self-employed. This segment represents one of the highest tiers of talent in the marketing industry. Freelance market researchers tend to have niche-oriented skills, so hiring a marketing analyst on a contract basis can give you the specialized insights you’re looking for. This hiring option allows you to utilize professional analyses without adding an entire position onto your operating budget.
What Skills To Look For in a Market Research Analyst
To excel in the role of a market research professionals, individuals need diverse and adaptable skill sets. In particular, you need someone who is detail-oriented and has excellent organizational skills. In this field, people need a strong understanding of statistical analysis, so it can be advantageous to hire someone whose educational background includes statistics.
Consider these key attributes in your search for the right market research analyst for your company:
- Fluent in statistical analysis
- Qualitative and quantitative data modeling
- Exceptional communication and presentation skills
- Critical reasoning
- Familiarity with data privacy compliance
The tools that marketing analysts use to carry out their work are continually evolving. While it is generally preferable to hire someone who is proficient with current modeling and analysis tools, experience using a specific platform should not necessarily be among your most essential list of criteria. Nevertheless, proficiency with multiple data analysis tools shows that a candidate has a good grasp of how to use some of the most popular market research resources:
- Tableau
- SpyFu
- Typeform
- BrandMentions
- Claritas MyBestSegments
Professional certifications or a membership in a professional association such as the American Marketing Association may offer welcome reassurance about an individual’s know-how and experience. In addition, make it a point to check out reviews or testimonials from a market research consultant’s prior clients.
How Much Does It Cost To Hire Market Research Analysts?
According to 2021 findings from the National Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median salary for a market research analyst is $63,920 a year, and the median hourly rate is $30.63. In general, hiring an analyst with advanced or specialized experience will be more costly than hiring an individual with general skills or experience. As per usual, the experience defines how much do market research analysts make.
Tips for Writing a Marketing Research Analyst Job Description
Whenever you are hiring someone for either a contract, part-time, or full-time position, it is imperative that you convey your expectations clearly in a comprehensive job description. Consider your practical needs discerningly when you write a job description. You may find it helpful to read a sample marketing research analyst job description for reference, but avoid copying and pasting other companies’ job descriptions verbatim.
A great job description should not only list your criteria for candidates but also provide an accurate summary of specific functions that an individual will be responsible for. If you are writing a job description for a project-specific placement, be sure to describe the scope of the project in detail.
How To Find Market Research Analysts for Hire
Before you begin your search, consider what you hope to get from a marketing analyst’s insights. Give thought to particular skills you are looking for as well as any time-sensitive constraints on project-based needs.
In evaluating a specific platform for freelance services, be attentive to the qualifications of their candidate pool. Consider whether recruiters will play a role in matching you or whether you have to find a match yourself. In addition, consider whether you will need to pay fees in addition to the compensation that you will pay to a market research analyst. Ideally, you should use a user-friendly platform with an intuitive layout and convenient options to request help.
With so many options for finding market research analysts, this endeavor may seem a little overwhelming. Use this guide as a resource to streamline your search for the right market research advisor to support you and your team.
