Careers in Marketing Research

Marketing research can be defined as the systematic collection, recording, and analysis of data related to marketing products and services. Marketing research, as the name suggests, consists of processes related to marketing. Every manager of a business firm wants appropriate information that can generate awareness of his/her product or service among the public. For this purpose, a marketing researcher gathers information by systematic analysis of the scenario in the market. There are two parts of marketing research - Consumer marketing research and Business-to-Business (B2B) marketing research. Marketing research involves identification, collection, analysis, and dissemination of information. In this globalized and highly competitive world, the need of marketing researchers has increased tremendously. Many institutes in India offer courses in marketing research.

Course Details
A number of institutions conduct courses in marketing research in the field of management. These courses are offered at the undergraduate level - Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) and postgraduate level - Master of Business Administration (MBA). Some other institutes in India also offer specialized courses, such as Master of Marketing Research (MMR). The eligibility for UG courses is a pass in 10+2 examination in any stream, from any recognized Board. For PG courses, candidates must have completed graduation in the relevant field, from any recognized University.

Career Prospects
After completing their courses, students can join in any small or big business organizations and work in the marketing research department as operational supervisor, junior analyst, analyst, senior analyst, statistician/data processing specialist, field work director, project manager, assistant director of research, research director, vice president of marketing research etc, based on experience and competency.

Top Colleges Offering UG/PG/Other Courses
A number of prominent management institutes in India are offering courses in marketing research. For example, IIMs (Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Kolkata, Indore and Lucknow), Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies (Mumbai), SP Jain Institute of Management & Research (Mumbai), and Management Development Institute (Gurgaon) offer courses in marketing research.

Remuneration
The remuneration of beginners in marketing research might seem to be low, but it increases as they gain experience in the field. Experienced marketing researchers can expect anywhere between Rs. 21,000 and Rs. 30,000 per month.