Primary Research
Original data gathered directly from the market — interviews, surveys, or discussions with industry participants, executives, or subject-matter experts.
Common terms used across our reports and in market research generally. For how we apply these in practice, see our research methodology.
CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate)
The smoothed year-over-year growth rate a market would need to go from its starting value to its ending value over a period, assuming steady compounding. Used to summarize a forecast period as a single, comparable figure.
TAM (Total Addressable Market)
The total revenue opportunity available for a product or service if every potential customer in that market were captured, with no competitive or operational constraints.
SAM (Serviceable Addressable Market)
The portion of the TAM that a specific business could realistically reach given its target segment, geography, and business model.
SOM (Serviceable Obtainable Market)
The share of the SAM a business could realistically capture in the near term, accounting for competition, distribution reach, and execution capacity.
Base Year
The most recent complete year for which actual (not forecasted) market data is used as the foundation for a report's estimates and projections.
Historical Period
The range of past years analyzed to establish trends, growth patterns, and a baseline before projecting the market forward.
Forecast Period
The future range of years for which a report projects market size, growth, and trends, built on the historical period and base-year data.
Market Research
The systematic collection and analysis of information about a market, its customers, and its competitive environment, used to support business decisions.
Secondary Research
Analysis built on existing published sources — company filings, government data, trade publications, and industry databases — rather than newly collected data.
Qualitative Research
Research focused on understanding motivations, perceptions, and context — typically gathered through interviews, expert discussions, or open-ended questions rather than numeric data.
Quantitative Research
Research based on numeric, measurable data — market sizes, growth rates, survey statistics — that can be aggregated and analyzed statistically.
Data Triangulation
Cross-checking a market estimate against multiple independent data sources or methods to confirm it holds up rather than relying on a single input.
Sample Size
The number of data points, respondents, or sources a research finding is based on — larger, well-chosen samples generally produce more reliable estimates.
Margin of Error
The range within which the true value is expected to fall around a reported estimate, reflecting the natural uncertainty in any sampled or modeled figure.
Market Sizing
The process of estimating the current or future monetary value of a market, typically produced by reconciling a top-down and a bottom-up calculation.
Top-Down Approach
A market-sizing method that starts from a broad, known figure (e.g., total industry revenue) and narrows it down using relevant share estimates to reach the target market's size.
Bottom-Up Approach
A market-sizing method that builds up from granular data — unit volumes, pricing, or individual company revenues — to arrive at a total market estimate.
Market Segmentation
Dividing a market into distinct groups — by product type, application, end-user, or region — so that size, growth, and trends can be analyzed at a more useful level of detail.
Market Penetration
The extent to which a product or service has been adopted by its potential customer base within a given market, often expressed as a percentage.
Market Dynamics
The combined set of drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges that shape how a market grows or contracts over the forecast period.
Market Drivers
The factors — such as rising demand, new technology, or favorable regulation — that push a market's growth forward.
Market Restraints
The factors — such as high costs, regulatory hurdles, or supply constraints — that slow or limit a market's growth.
Market Opportunities
Emerging conditions — new applications, underserved regions, or shifting customer needs — that a market's participants could capitalize on for growth.
Market Challenges
Obstacles participants in a market face beyond simple restraints — such as intense competition, pricing pressure, or execution difficulty — that can limit success even where demand exists.
Competitive Landscape
An overview of the major companies operating in a market, their relative positioning, strategies, and market share.
Key Players
The companies identified in a report as having the most significant presence, revenue, or influence within a given market.
Benchmarking
Comparing a company's performance, pricing, or capabilities against competitors or industry standards to identify gaps or advantages.
Porter's Five Forces
A framework for assessing a market's competitive intensity across five factors: competitive rivalry, supplier power, buyer power, threat of substitutes, and threat of new entrants.
SWOT Analysis
A framework assessing a company or market's internal Strengths and Weaknesses alongside external Opportunities and Threats.
PESTEL Analysis
A framework for scanning the external Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental, and Legal factors that can affect a market.
Value Chain Analysis
A breakdown of the sequential stages — from raw materials or inputs through manufacturing, distribution, and end use — through which value is added within an industry.
Supply Chain Analysis
An examination of how raw materials, components, and finished goods move from suppliers to end customers within a market, including key intermediaries and dependencies.
Regional Analysis
A breakdown of a market's size, growth, and trends by geography — such as North America, Europe, or Asia-Pacific — rather than only at the global level.
Syndicated Research
A pre-built research report covering a specific market, produced once and sold to multiple clients — as opposed to research commissioned for one company alone.
Custom Research
A research engagement scoped and produced specifically for one client's question, market definition, or decision — not resold to other buyers.
Sample Report
A shortened excerpt of a full report — typically the table of contents plus select data points — provided so a buyer can evaluate scope and depth before purchasing.
Single User License
A report license restricted to one named individual — the most common choice when only one person needs direct access to the report.
Multi User License
A report license covering a small team or department, allowing several named individuals at one organization direct access to the same report.
Enterprise User License
A report license allowing organization-wide access, intended for when a report needs to be shared broadly across teams, offices, or business units.
Have a term-specific question?
If you need a definition clarified for a specific report or engagement, our research team can help.
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