1.8.7Segment

Market Research & Consumer Insights

Market research firms conducting consumer surveys, focus groups, concept testing, and market sizing studies.

4
Verticals

Overview

Market Research & Consumer Insights firms run consumer surveys, focus groups, concept testing, and market-sizing studies, and increasingly sell continuous syndicated data and insights platforms. The market spans the global measurement and insights leaders (Nielsen, Gartner, Kantar, Ipsos) and a deep base of specialist research agencies.

It is a consolidating, data-asset-driven business where syndicated data and analytics platforms command the highest value and recurring revenue. Demand is steady, and the sector has seen major take-private and consolidation activity as buyers pursue proprietary measurement assets.

Market snapshot

Market size
~$25.2B
Growth
~4.9%CAGR (2017–22, nominal)
Companies
~3,747 firms
Firms by employee count

86.5% of firms have fewer than 20 employees: 3,240 micro-businesses, below most mandates.

The investable universe507 firms with 20+ employees
20–99
30961%
100–499
12024%
500+
7815%

The buyable core of this sector — and the code (541910) also sweeps in survey research and polling, so the Survey & Polling segment below is a slice of this figure, not an addition to it. Value concentrates in the firms that sell continuous syndicated data on subscription (Nielsen, Gartner, Kantar) rather than one-off custom studies; that recurring-data asset is what take-private buyers have been paying up for.

NAICS 541910. U.S. Census Bureau — 2022 Statistics of U.S. Businesses; U.S. Census Bureau — 2022 Economic Census.

Business model & economics

Revenue model

Custom project research plus syndicated data subscriptions

Key economics

Revenue per firm
$6,712,439
Revenue per employee
$285,589
Employees per firm
22.4
Recurring revenue
Moderate–High

syndicated data and insights platforms recur

EBITDA margin
15–30%
Capex intensity
Low

Characteristics

  • Balanced cost base — payroll is 34% of revenue, leaving room to scale margin without cutting staff
  • Moderate strategic-buyer pool — 78 firms exceed 500 employees; a scaled asset has buyers, but not many
  • Syndicated data and platforms carry the highest value and recurrence.
  • Proprietary measurement assets are the competitive moat.
  • Steady demand with major take-private and consolidation activity.

NAICS 541910. U.S. Census Bureau — 2022 Statistics of U.S. Businesses; U.S. Census Bureau — 2022 Economic Census.

Geographic concentration

AlabamaAlaskaArizonaColoradoFloridaGeorgiaIndianaKansasMaineMinnesotaNew JerseyNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOklahomaPennsylvaniaSouth DakotaTexasWyomingMissouriWest VirginiaIllinoisNew MexicoArkansasCaliforniaDelawareHawaiiIowaKentuckyMarylandMichiganMississippiMontanaNew HampshireNew YorkOhioOregonTennesseeUtahVirginiaWashingtonWisconsinNebraskaSouth CarolinaIdahoNevadaVermontLouisianaRhode IslandMassachusettsConnecticutDistrict of Columbia

Market research over-indexes in Washington, D.C. (federal and public-opinion research) and the Northeast corridor — Connecticut and Massachusetts, long-standing homes of consumer-insights and syndicated-data firms. The pattern reflects where the institutional buyers of research sit: government, and the consumer-brand and financial establishments of the Northeast.

District of ColumbiaConnecticutMassachusetts

NAICS 541910. U.S. Census Bureau — 2022 Statistics of U.S. Businesses (firms by state). Concentration shown by location quotient.

M&A deal context

Deal activityHigh

Who’s acquiring

  • Data & measurement consolidators
  • PE-backed insights platforms
  • Strategics acquiring syndicated data

What’s driving deals

  • Buyers pursuing proprietary measurement and syndicated-data assets.
  • Take-private and consolidation among measurement leaders.
  • Shift from custom projects to recurring data platforms.

Verticals in this segment

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