Market Research & Analysis

Expert market research skill — from market sizing and competitive analysis through consumer research and professional consulting-grade reports with LaTeX formatting and visual generation.

Quick Start

Choose your workflow:

Market Sizing — TAM/SAM/SOM calculations
Competitive Analysis — Landscape mapping and positioning
Consumer Research — Surveys, interviews, behavior analysis
Professional Report — 50+ page consulting-style report with LaTeX + visuals

Market Sizing (TAM → SAM → SOM)

Step 1: Define Scope

Product/service being analyzed
Geography (target regions)
Customer segment (who specifically)
Time frame (current year or 5-year projection)

Step 2: Calculate TAM (Top-Down)

TAM = Total market demand at 100% market share
= (Total potential customer base) × (avg contract value)

Data sources: Gartner, Forrester, IBISWorld, government statistics, trade associations

Step 3: Calculate SAM

SAM = Portion of TAM you can realistically serve
Apply filters: geographic constraints, product limitations, customer size constraints
Typically 5-20% of TAM

Step 4: Calculate SOM

SOM = Realistic near-term market share (1-3 years)
Conservative benchmarks:
  Year 1: 0.1-0.5% of SAM
  Year 2: 0.5-2% of SAM
  Year 3: 1-5% of SAM

Step 5: Bottom-Up Validation

Bottom-up = (realistic target customers) × (conversion rate) × (ACV)
If top-down SOM / bottom-up > 3x → revisit top-down assumptions

Competitive Landscape Analysis

Competitor Categories

| Type | Definition | Example | |------|------------|---------| | Direct | Same product, same customer | Asana vs Monday.com | | Indirect | Different product, same problem | Asana vs Excel | | Substitute | Alternative way to address need | Asana vs consultants | | Potential | Could enter market easily | Microsoft, Google |

Competitive Intelligence Sources

Company websites (pricing, features, positioning)
App store reviews (G2, Capterra — look for "appears X times" keywords)
Crunchbase (funding, valuation, growth trajectory)
Job postings (what they're investing in)
LinkedIn (employee count trends, key hires)
Gartner Magic Quadrant (market positioning)

Positioning Map Template

Create a 2D matrix:

X-axis: Price (Low → High)
Y-axis: Feature complexity / target segment (Simple → Advanced)

Plot all competitors. Look for gaps — unserved or underserved quadrants = market opportunity.

Core Analysis Frameworks

Porter's Five Forces (rate each High / Medium / Low)

Threat of New Entrants — Barriers to entry, capital requirements, brand loyalty
Supplier Power — Concentration, switching costs, substitute inputs
Buyer Power — Concentration, price sensitivity, switching costs
Threat of Substitutes — Alternatives, switching costs, price/performance tradeoff
Competitive Rivalry — Number of competitors, industry growth, differentiation

PESTLE Analysis

| Dimension | Key Questions | |-----------|---------------| | Political | Regulatory environment, trade policies | | Economic | Growth rates, inflation, currency risks | | Social | Demographics, consumer behavior shifts | | Technological | Disruptive technologies, R&D activity | | Legal | Compliance requirements, IP landscape | | Environmental | Sustainability trends, regulations |

SWOT + BCG Matrix

For competitive landscape: map competitors on BCG Matrix (market growth vs market share) to identify Stars, Cash Cows, Question Marks, Dogs.

Consumer Research

Survey Design

Van Westendorp Pricing: Ask customers 4 questions to find optimal price point:

At what price is this too expensive to consider?
At what price is this so cheap you doubt the quality?
At what price does this start to feel expensive (but not off the table)?
At what price is this a great value/bargain?

Plot cumulative % — OPP (Optimal Price Point) = intersection of "too expensive" and "too cheap."

Anti-pattern: Never use leading questions ("Don't you think our innovative product..."). Always include negative response options.

Interview Framework

For qualitative research:

Define clear research objectives first
Minimum 5-10 interviews for directional insight, 15-20 for patterns
Focus on jobs to be done and pain points, not feature preferences
Capture verbatim language — exact phrases are more valuable than summaries

Quality Checklist

[ ] Research objectives clearly defined and measurable
[ ] Sample is representative of target market
[ ] Mix of qualitative (why) and quantitative (how many) methods
[ ] No leading or biased questions
[ ] Insights are actionable, not just "interesting facts"
[ ] Limitations acknowledged

Professional Market Research Reports

Generates consulting-grade reports (50+ pages) modeled on McKinsey, BCG, Gartner deliverables.

Report Structure (~66 pages target)

Front Matter (~5 pages): Cover page · Table of Contents · Executive Summary (investment thesis, key findings, top 5 recommendations)

Core Analysis (~35 pages):

| Chapter | Pages | Key Frameworks | |---------|-------|----------------| | Market Overview & Definition | 4-5 | Industry structure | | Market Size & Growth | 6-8 | TAM/SAM/SOM, regional breakdown | | Industry Drivers & Trends | 5-6 | PESTLE, driver impact matrix | | Competitive Landscape | 6-8 | Porter's Five Forces, positioning matrix | | Customer Analysis | 4-5 | Segmentation, customer journey | | Technology & Innovation | 4-5 | Technology roadmap, adoption curve | | Regulatory & Policy | 3-4 | Regulatory timeline | | Risk Analysis | 3-4 | Risk heatmap, mitigation matrix |

Strategic Recommendations (~10 pages): Opportunity matrix · Implementation roadmap · Investment thesis

Back Matter (~5 pages): Methodology · Data tables · Company profiles · Bibliography

Visual Generation (generate 6 priority visuals first)

# Batch generate all core visuals
python scripts/generate_market_visuals.py \
  --topic "[MARKET NAME]" --output-dir figures/

| Priority | Visual | Tool | |----------|--------|------| | 1 | Market growth trajectory | scientific-schematics | | 2 | TAM/SAM/SOM concentric circles | scientific-schematics | | 3 | Porter's Five Forces | scientific-schematics | | 4 | Competitive positioning matrix (2×2) | scientific-schematics | | 5 | Risk heatmap | scientific-schematics | | 6 | Executive summary infographic | generate-image |

LaTeX Compilation

# Initialize project structure
writing_outputs/YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS_market_report_[topic]/
├── drafts/v1_market_report.tex  ← use assets/market_report_template.tex as base
├── figures/
├── references/references.bib
└── final/

# Compile
cd drafts/
xelatex v1_market_report.tex && bibtex v1_market_report
xelatex v1_market_report.tex && xelatex v1_market_report.tex

Use \usepackage{market_research} (from assets/market_research.sty).

Colored box environments:

\begin{keyinsightbox}[Key Finding]...\end{keyinsightbox}       % blue
\begin{marketdatabox}[Market Snapshot]...\end{marketdatabox}   % green
\begin{riskbox}[Critical Risk]...\end{riskbox}                 % orange
\begin{recommendationbox}[Recommendation]...\end{recommendationbox} % purple

See assets/FORMATTING_GUIDE.md for complete LaTeX reference. See assets/market_report_template.tex for the full report template.

Report Quality Standards

Data: No older than 2 years; all statistics attributed; projections state assumptions
Writing: Specific numbers over vague qualifiers; insights first, then data; active voice
Visuals: 300 DPI minimum; colorblind-friendly palette; all axes/legends labeled; sources in captions
Length: 50+ pages — if under, expand appendix data tables and add regional breakdowns

Pre-Submission Checklist

[ ] Cover page, ToC, List of Figures, Executive Summary
[ ] All 11 chapters present (no placeholder sections)
[ ] 6 core visuals generated and rendering
[ ] All statistics sourced; projections include assumptions
[ ] PDF compiles without errors; cross-references work
[ ] Page count >50

References & Assets

scripts/generate_market_visuals.py — Batch visual generation for reports
assets/market_research.sty — LaTeX style package
assets/market_report_template.tex — Full report template
assets/FORMATTING_GUIDE.md — Complete LaTeX formatting reference
references/report_structure_guide.md — Detailed chapter-by-chapter guidance
references/data_analysis_patterns.md — Analysis patterns and common calculations
references/visual_generation_guide.md — Visual creation workflows

Related Skills

product-strategy-and-marketing — Market opportunity within product strategy
go-to-market-strategy — Applying market research to launch planning
pricing-strategy — Using market research for pricing decisions