Let’s be honest: if you’re a solopreneur, small team, or creative founder, no one’s giving you six weeks to complete each step in a “bulletproof market research guide.” You’ve got campaigns to launch, emails to write, products to push out, and probably a half-eaten lunch somewhere under your laptop.
Sadly, if you skip market research entirely, your strategy’s going to feel like throwing spaghetti at the wall.
This guide isn’t about writing a report for investors. It’s about giving yourself just enough insight to make fast, strategic moves, without losing your mind (or your timeline).
The Simplest 4-Step Market Research Guide
So here’s my quick and dirty market research process. Just four areas, and no need to waste time on anything unnecessary.
#1 Brand Snapshot: Know What You’re Working With
Before you look at them, look at you. Get clear on:
- What’s the story behind this brand?
- What values drive your tone, visuals, and decisions?
- What makes you not like the others?
How to do it fast:
- Jot down 3–5 brand values.
- Write your “why” in one paragraph (or 2 messy bullet points — done is better than perfect).
- Ask: If this brand were a person at a party, what would they be saying? What would they never say?
This step is 30% gut and 70% clarity. Don’t overthink it. Just stop pretending you’re Apple if you sell cozy, handmade candles on Etsy.
#2 SWOT, But Make It Speedy
This isn’t a corporate audit. This is about knowing what’s working, what’s broken, what’s worth chasing, and what might blindside you.
How to do it fast:
Draw a quick 2×2 grid (or use the sticky notes app on your desktop).
Ask yourself (or your team):
- Strengths: What are we better at than others in our space?
- Weaknesses: Where do we consistently drop the ball?
- Opportunities: What trends, gaps, or untapped segments could we leverage?
- Threats: Who or what could mess this up for us?
Be brutally honest. This step is only useful if you’re willing to admit what’s not working.
Then circle the top 1–2 in each quadrant — those are your first levers.
#3 Market Pulse: Check the Temperature
What do people actually care about right now? What’s trending, tanking, or being talked about?
How to do it fast:
- Google Trends: See if your topic or product niche is rising, falling, or flatlined.
- Answer the Public or AlsoAsked.com: Type in a topic and get a flood of real search queries (aka, what people actually want to know).
- Exploding Topics: Quick way to catch trending keywords before they hit the mainstream.
- Reddit or Quora: Search your topic. See what rants, questions, or language real people use. Bonus: harvest language for messaging.
You’re searching for patterns, not perfection. Two or three insights can shape an entire campaign. Screenshot what stands out to you.
#4 Competitive Snap: Know Who (and What) You’re Up Against
Don’t obsess over your competitors. Just know enough to steal like a strategist — or zag where they’re all zigging.
How to do it fast:
Pick 3–5 competitors — direct or adjacent.
Check their:
- Home page headlines (what’s their hook?)
- Latest blog posts or social content (what topics are they riding?)
- Offer structure (what’s included? what’s emphasized?)
Ask:
- What are they leaning into?
- What are they not addressing?
- Where are we clearly different — and better?
Don’t get stuck here. 20–30 minutes max. You’re not here to copy. You’re here to contrast.
What’s Next? Use What You Find (Fast)
Research is only as good as what you do with it. Add your notes to your campaign doc, email brief, or content calendar. Pull key insights into your messaging. Adjust headlines. Refine hooks. Trash what’s not working.
This quick & dirty market research guide gives you the raw clarity you’ll need to build out a smart strategy and a marketing plan that doesn’t waste time.
→ Start with the Easy Marketing Strategy Framework.
→ Then plug it into this Streamlined Marketing Plan Template.
You’re not trying to get a PhD in “Market Analysis.” You’re just trying to sound like you actually get your people — and show up sharper than everyone else shouting into the void.