Market research pricing: a proposal built around your question

What determines the cost of a study

• Scope and number of questions: Every extra topic lengthens the questionnaire or discussion guide, which adds fieldwork and analysis time. A focused brief is the simplest way to keep a project lean.
• Method: Desk research, online surveys, telephone and face-to-face interviews, focus groups and mystery shopping differ in how much interviewer time, recruitment, venue use and travel they require.
• Sample size: More respondents give more precision, but each additional interview adds less than the one before; the real driver is usually how many subgroups you want to read separately.
• Access to the target group and incidence: Reaching the general public online is quick. Finding recent buyers of a niche product, or senior B2B decision-makers, takes far more screening, incentives and recruitment effort.
• Number of markets and languages: Each country adds translation, local recruitment and checks that every question means the same thing in every language.
• Timeline: A tight deadline can require parallel fieldwork teams or additional sample sources, while a flexible schedule lets fieldwork run at its natural pace.
• Format of results: A topline summary, a full report, a dashboard, a presentation workshop and respondent-level data files each involve a different amount of work.

What every proposal contains

• Objective: the decision the study supports and the questions it will answer, agreed in plain language
• Methodology: the methods we recommend, why they fit and what they will not be able to tell you
• Sample: the target group, sample size, quotas and how respondents are recruited
• Timeline: a week-by-week schedule from kick-off to final presentation
• Team and roles: who leads the project and who handles design, fieldwork and analysis, with a single point of contact for you
• Deliverables: the report format, tables, presentation and data files you will receive
• Quote and terms: the price for the scope described, payment terms and how changes to the scope are handled

Why are there no prices on the site?

A single price would be wrong for most projects. "A customer survey" can mean a short online questionnaire sent to your own customer list or a nationally representative sample interviewed by telephone in three languages, and the work behind the two is not comparable. A published rate card would push a supplier either to overcharge for simple jobs or to cut corners on complex ones to stay within a headline figure.

We prefer to read your brief, suggest the leanest method that answers the question and quote for exactly that. If your budget is fixed, tell us in the form: we will design the study around it and explain plainly what you gain or lose at each level of scope, including when a smaller study would not give you a reliable answer.

What happens after you send it

1. We read your brief and, if something is unclear, contact you by phone or email before preparing the proposal.
2. You receive a written proposal with method, sample, timeline, deliverables and quote, usually within one working day.
3. We refine the scope with you, adding or removing a market, a subgroup or a deliverable, until it matches your decision and your budget.
4. Once you approve the proposal, we sign the agreement and, if you need one, a non-disclosure agreement.
5. The project starts with a kick-off call, followed by the questionnaire or research plan for your approval.

Frequently asked questions

Is the proposal free?

Yes. Preparing a proposal costs you nothing and does not commit you to anything. It sets out the method, sample, timeline and quote, so you can compare it with other offers or take it to your management team. If you decide not to go ahead, we simply close the request, and the details you sent are used for nothing other than that reply.

Can I ask for several options?

Yes, and it is often useful. A common approach is a core option that answers the main question, plus one or two alternatives: a smaller sample with fewer subgroups, an additional country, or a qualitative stage before the survey. Each option shows what it adds or removes in precision, timing and deliverables, so the trade-off is visible before you choose.

What if my budget is limited?

Tell us your budget in the request. We will design the strongest study that fits it and explain the compromises, such as desk research first, an online survey instead of telephone interviews, fewer subgroups or one market instead of two. Sometimes the honest answer is that a smaller study cannot answer the question reliably, and we will say so rather than sell you numbers you cannot act on.

How do payment and the contract work?

Every project runs under a written agreement that records the scope, deliverables, timeline and payment terms set out in the approved proposal. The payment schedule depends on the size and length of the project and is stated before you commit. Work outside the agreed scope is never added to the invoice unless you have approved the change in writing first.

Do you sign a non-disclosure agreement?

Yes. We can sign your NDA or provide our own before you share a detailed brief. Your identity as the client, your plans and your results are treated as confidential in any case: respondents are not told who commissioned the study unless you want them to be, and your results are not reused for anyone else. Personal data is processed in line with the GDPR.

Can the scope change once the project has started?

Yes, within limits. Adding a question before fieldwork starts is usually straightforward, whereas changing the target group or the method mid-fieldwork can mean repeating part of the work. We assess each change request, tell you how it affects the timeline and the quote, and go ahead only once you approve. Extra analysis after fieldwork, such as new cuts of the data, rarely needs new interviews.