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What software do market analysts use?

Hi everyone,
I want to invest my winter break into learning a new skill.

What softwares do market research analysts use?
I know they would use some VBAs and will vary depending on the firm and market they are in, but what would you recommend me to learn over the next three weeks?
What online resources could I use?
What kind of university classes to take to prepare myself becoming a market research analyst?

I'm currently working on SQL languages as a start, but want to ask for some advice.

Happy new year!

#computer-software #software #e-learning #statistics #research #market-research #data-analysis #analytics #business-analysis #marketing #vba #databases

marketing computer-software research software statistics business-analysis data-analysis analytics databases e-learning market-research vba
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Ross’s Answer

Danny, it's good that you are spending your winter break to learn a new skill -- that is very productive.


You are right that each firm will have their own choice of software or way of doing things, so it would be wise to have some general skills that you can use in most kinds of analytical work. Even within AT&T, we don't use the same things in all departments -- in my previous AT&T role I used some Access/VBA and Cognos/EBP; now I use more SAS and Tableau)!


However, there are some several things that I find ubiquitous:


Excel (or a spreadsheet program)

SQL (or a way to extract data from databases)

Powerpoint/Word (or a program where you show your findings)

BONUS: Tableau/PowerBI/Microstratgy (or a program that allows you to generate faster insights)


If you are spending some time working on SQL, keep at it -- it is the foundation of most of the more advanced tools out there, and if you can get to an intermediate-level understanding of it, everything else will be MUCH easier to understand. To augment this self-study, I would recommend taking a Statistics, or Applied Statistics/Research Methods class so that you have a way to apply what you have learned.


I know you are eager to learn lots, but focus on doing a project (whether it's in the context of college coursework or not) and applying what you have learned so that you have the general experience of what being a market analyst does in real life. At the end of the day, you will have more time to learn specific tools when you graduate (some companies have training) -- but you have to have an understanding of the basics, and the tenacity to execute analytical projects to be successful.


Good luck.

Ross recommends the following next steps:

Find a practice dataset to practice your SQL on.
Create a list of questions that your dataset may be able to answer; then use your analytical skills to answer them
Present your work to a teacher or mentor for review.
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Joe’s Answer

Hi Danny. I am not a market analyst, but there are strong trends toward platforms that can leverage statistics well. Might I recommend getting some Udemy, Coursera or Udacity courses in RStatistics or Python. Python has a module called SciKitLearn that can facilitate Machine Learning algorithms to help find strategic opportunities in market analysis.

Joe recommends the following next steps:

Download Python (version 2 or version 3).
Find a good online tutorial (I like sololearn) and start dabbling.
Enjoy the learning process by thinking up a particular study you'd like to try and see what you can pull together on your own. This self-initiative perspective will go well on your resumes and set you on a trajectory to show yourself as a self-starter.
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Dana’s Answer

Based on my experience, I would recommend that you focus on SQL and then, R and/or Python

Dana recommends the following next steps:

There are plenty of classes you can take on Coursera
Practice by starting a project
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yizhou’s Answer

For the past experience and the knowledge I have learnt, google analytics is an very important tool to use.
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Yubing’s Answer

Marketing analytics itself is a quite broad concept and has been used in multiple industries and areas. The tool itself varies as well.

Depending on what you would like to do in Marketing Analytics, here are some examples:
- Database query: SQL
- BI and reporting: Power BI / Tableau / Business Object / Micro Strategy
- Data Analysis: Excel
- Statistical Analysis: SPSS / SAS / Python / R
- Web analytics: Adobe / Google Analytics

SQL could a good start.
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Yael’s Answer

Excel mostly but if you have access to resources like Power BI (Microsoft Product) or Tableau (best data viz tool out there) then those are much better to present insightful data
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Karthikeyan’s Answer

Hi Danny,

It actually depends on which area you want to do the Market Research.
In general,

+ Excel and Power point will help you to get started.
+ Basic SQL or VBA will be required based on where the data source is available.
+ BI solutions will like PowerBI/Tableau will help in presenting the data insights

Personally to me, how well a person can interpret the data and come up with the insights is more important than software is used for it.
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bridget’s Answer

Hi Danny, this may sound silly, but are you well versed in Excel? Have you explored Power BI? Interesting article on the importance of EXCEL no matter the tool used to gather the intelligence. http://www.zdnet.com/article/youve-been-using-excel-wrong-all-along-and-thats-ok/
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Caitlin’s Answer

Hi Danny! I've had experience in multiple applications. While it varies depending on companies & your role, look into some certifications or trainings in:
- Microsoft Suite (excel)
- Adobe Analytics
- Google Analytics
- PowerBI
- Tableau

Also, some basic knowledge of backend coding could help. Check out software like R and Python. I know a ton of people who have experience in SQL also. For some of the backend coding or even just to better understand the web analytics you gain from adobe or google, download the Omnibug feature on chrome so you can track what's firing off on webpage's coding.
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