PERFORMING

EXPLORATORY
RESEARCH

HOW-TO GUIDE

1 PERFORMING EXPLORATORY RESEARCH HOW-TO GUIDE

 Performing Exploratory Research
HOW-TO GUIDE

Among many other reasons, market research problems may arise due to an ongoing problem
in your business or a new development in the market. Exploratory research is the ideal way to
begin any market research effort by clarifying your market research problem and hypothesizing the
potential causes for a marketing problem.

This guide is designed to help you understand the purpose of exploratory research, define the key
types of exploratory research methods, and suggest an action plan for a successful exploratory
research study.

Download the Demand Metric Exploratory Research Plan Template to help you create
a plan for your upcoming exploratory research initiative.

What is Exploratory Research?

Exploratory research is used when a problem has been identified, but the root cause of that problem
is still unclear. For example, sales on your new product, Software A, dropped 50% in the 3rd quarter.
In this case, you could use exploratory research to determine possible causes for the drop in sales.

The purpose of exploratory research is to get insights into the problem, not to discover a conclu-
sive solution. For this reason, it is done at the beginning of the research process. Exploratory
research is small scale and flexible because this portion of the research process is mainly based
on discovery, which can lead to a potentially larger scale investigation into the perceived problem.

What Does Exploratory Research Attempt To Do?

Clarify Research Problem(s) – refine and define the identified research problem in more detail.
Educate Researcher(s) – learn more about the problem and its potential causes.
Develop a Research Plan – lead the researcher to research methods that may yield a solution
to the problem.
Formulate One or More Hypotheses – allow researchers to theorize and predict possible
explanations for the problem.

2 PERFORMING EXPLORATORY RESEARCH HOW-TO GUIDE

Key Exploratory Research Methods
Exploratory research is often done based on the intuition of the researcher(s). Since the premise
of this type of research is to explore possibilities and discover information, the consensus among
researchers is to implement any and all research methods that will lead to a possible explanation
of the identified problem.

Although creativity is characteristic of this stage of the research process, below are a handful of
research methods commonly used for exploratory research:

Literature Search – review previous writings related to your problem to discover earlier data
findings and gain further insight into the market research problem. Almost all market research
studies begin with this method.
Pro: This is the easiest and most cost-effective way to gather information on your problem.
Con: Delving too deep into previous records could create biases on later research.

In-Depth Interview – conduct one-on-one sessions with individuals close to the problem at
hand to gain detailed, individual opinions on the research problem.
Pro: The individual perspectives of these respondents will provide you with primary data
sources to the suggested problem.
Con: A series of interviews can become expensive as you calculate preparation, employee
time, location space, and interviewer costs.

Focus Group – organize a small group discussion with a facilitator (moderator) to obtain perspec-
tives on your problem. This is the most commonly used method in market research.
Pro: The group discussion allows respondents to bounce ideas off each other and build off
of each other’s responses, which can sometimes lead to grander ideas on a topic.
Con: The group environment could lead respondents to answer differently than they would
in a one-on-one discussion based on the “peer pressure” nature of this method.

Case Analysis – study each instance of the problem individually to learn if the problem is actually
recurring or unique. This is the most general and applicable method of analytical thinking.
Pro: By analyzing each case, you may be able to resolve the problem without any additional
investigation.
Con: This method cannot solve the potential problem. It can simply analyze the instances of
the problem on a case-by-case basis.

Bottom Line
If you are planning a market research initiative, begin with an exploratory research study. At a
minimum, you will gain insight into your identified problem that will be beneficial for further research.
You may even be able to resolve a market research problem without investing too much time or
funding into a large-scale research project. In short, exploratory research will keep you from chasing
and investing in a research problem that may have a simple answer and/or solution.

3 PERFORMING EXPLORATORY RESEARCH HOW-TO GUIDE

 Action Plan
STEP 1 - Identify your Research Problem

Identify your Use the Market Research

1 Research
Problem Problem Template

Identify your research problem.

2 Download

Conduct a
3 Literature Review
Market Research Problem Template

VIEW RESOURCE
Conduct
4 Additional
Research

Formulate
5 One or More
Hypotheses

Conclude
6 your Formal
Research Effort

4 PERFORMING EXPLORATORY RESEARCH HOW-TO GUIDE

 Action Plan
STEP 2 - Download

Identify your
Access the Exploratory
1 Research
Research Plan Template
Problem

Download our Exploratory

2 Download Research Plan Template

to prepare and manage an
exploratory research study.

Conduct a
3 Literature Review

Exploratory Research Plan Template

Conduct
4 Additional
VIEW RESOURCE
Research

Formulate
5 One or More
Hypotheses

Conclude
6 your Formal
Research Effort

5 PERFORMING EXPLORATORY RESEARCH HOW-TO GUIDE

 Action Plan
STEP 3 - Conduct a Literature Review

Identify your
Keep Learning and
1 Research
Exploring the Problem
Problem

Conduct a Literature Review

to learn more about the
2 Download
identified problem that will be
explored.

Conduct a MARKET RESEARCH

3
Playbook & Toolkit

Literature
Review

Follow this simple step-by-step guide to build an efficient market research process,
a comprehensive market research report and an engaging presentation.

Conduct
4 Additional Market Research Playbook
Research
VIEW RESOURCE

Formulate
5 One or More
Hypotheses

Conclude
6 your Formal
Research Effort

6 PERFORMING EXPLORATORY RESEARCH HOW-TO GUIDE

 Action Plan
STEP 4 - Conduct Additional Research

Identify your
In-Depth Interviews & Case
1 Research
Analysis Assist Research
Problem

Review our Facilitating

Insightful Focus Groups
2 Download How-To Guide, and conduct
in-depth interviews and case
analysis to assist you with your
follow-up research.

Conduct a
3 Literature Review

Conduct
4 Additional
Research
Facilitating Insightful Focus Groups

VIEW RESOURCE

Formulate
5 One or More
Hypotheses

Conclude
6 your Formal
Research Effort

7 PERFORMING EXPLORATORY RESEARCH HOW-TO GUIDE

 Action Plan
STEP 5 - Formulate One or More Hypotheses

Identify your
The Hypothesis Testing Tool
1 Research
Supports Your Research
Problem

Utilize the information you

gathered from your literature
2 Download review and additional research
to develop a hypothesis (or
hypotheses) for the causes of
your research problem.

Conduct a
3 Literature Review

Conduct
4 Additional Hypothesis Testing Tool
Research
VIEW RESOURCE

Formulate
5 One or More
Hypotheses

Conclude
6 your Formal
Research Effort

8 PERFORMING EXPLORATORY RESEARCH HOW-TO GUIDE

 Action Plan
STEP 6 - Conclude Your Formal Research Effort

Identify your
Use the Market Research
1 Research
Report Template for
Problem
Conclusions

2 Download Conclude your formal

research effort.

Conduct a
3 Literature Review

Market Research Report Template

Conduct
4 Additional VIEW RESOURCE
Research

Formulate
5 One or More
Hypotheses

Conclude
6 your Formal
Research Effort

9 PERFORMING EXPLORATORY RESEARCH HOW-TO GUIDE

 About ANA

The ANA (Association of National Advertisers) makes a difference for

individuals, brands, and the industry by driving growth, advancing the
interests of marketers and promoting and protecting the well-being of the
marketing community.

Founded in 1910, the ANA provides leadership that advances marketing

excellence and shapes the future of the industry. The ANA’s membership
includes more than 1,000 companies with 15,000 brands that collectively
spend or support more than $400 billion in marketing and advertising annu-
ally. The membership is comprised of more than 750 client-side marketers
and 300 associate members, which include leading agencies, law firms,
suppliers, consultants, and vendors.

Further enriching the ecosystem is the work of the nonprofit ANA

Educational Foundation (AEF), which has the mission of enhancing the
understanding of advertising and marketing within the academic and
marketing communities.
Demand Metric helps Marketing teams get stuff done with practical tools,
training, and a simple, modern platform for managing work.

Our analysts identify best practices from fast-growing companies and build
Playbooks & Toolkits, Guides & Reports, Training Courses, and Project
Templates to help you optimize your processes, add structure to your depart-
ment, and get your team punching above their weight class.

Manage your work visually with our easy-to-use platform, built for small
marketing teams by design. See what your team is working on at a glance
so you can spend less time managing projects and more time knocking
stuff off your list.

Through strategic partnerships with the AMA, ANA, and AIPMM, our
1,000+ time-saving tools & resources have become the industry standard.
Don’t start from scratch!

Sign up for a free trial at: www.demandmetric.com

LEARN MORE

© Demand Metric Research Corporation.

All Rights Reserved.