What is the difference between consumer and business-to-business research?

The most fundamental division of markets is between those involving members of the general public and people buying or specifying on behalf of another organisation such as a business.

In consumer markets, the number of potential buyers of a product is often a significant proportion of a total population running into millions. Techniques used to research these markets include quantitative methods based on rigorous sampling as well as qualitative techniques that explore complex consumer perceptions and motivations. Consumer markets can be further sub-divided between fmcgs (fast moving consumer goods – food and similar frequent purchases) and other markets – media, travel and leisure, financial, consumer durables etc.

Business-to-business market research employs the same techniques but in different ways. Many business-to-business markets are characterised by a much smaller population to survey, many times measured in hundreds or thousands rather than the consumer millions. What is more, the business-to-business markets are frequently very variable, made up of companies in different industries and with huge differences in size. A researcher may be looking at the market for office equipment and face a sample that could include General Motors and a 'mom and pop organisation' providing some form of services to the local community.

Within the businesses there are often complex groups involved in influencing the buying decision (the DMU or decision making unit). The obvious groups, such as procurement, place the orders but technical and production departments may set a specification and financial departments impose budgets.

In these complex business-to-business markets with smaller and more varied populations and with tangled decision making units, we need different research methods. Sample sizes are smaller in number and the researcher may be leaning as much on judgment and interpretation as on the rigor of the method.