Market research firms gather and analyze data about customers, competitors, distributors, and other actors and forces in the marketplace. A large portion of the work performed by most market research firms is commissioned by specific companies for particular purposes. However, some firms also routinely collect a wide spectrum of data and then attempt to sell some or all of it to companies that may benefit from such information. For example, the A.C. Nielsen Co. in the United States specializes in supplying marketing data about consumer television viewing habits, and Information Resources, Inc. (IRI), has an extensive database regarding consumer supermarket purchases.

Marketing research may be quantitative, qualitative, or a combination of both. Quantitative research is numerically oriented, requires significant attention to the measurement of market phenomena, and often involves statistical analysis. For example, when a restaurant asks its customers to rate different aspects of its service on a scale from 1 (good) to 10 (poor), this provides quantitative information that may be analyzed statistically. Qualitative research focuses on descriptive words and symbols and usually involves observing consumers in a marketing setting or questioning them about their product or service consumption experiences. For example, a marketing researcher may stop a consumer who has purchased a particular type of detergent and ask why that detergent was chosen. Qualitative and quantitative research each provides different insights into consumer behaviour, and research results are ordinarily more useful when the two methods are combined.

Market research can be thought of as the application of scientific method to the solution of marketing problems. It involves studying people as buyers, sellers, and consumers, examining their attitudes, preferences, habits, and purchasing power. Market research is also concerned with the channels of distribution, with promotion and pricing, and with the design of the products and services to be marketed.

As a product moves from producer to consumer, it must often travel long distances. Many products consumed in the United States have been manufactured in another area of the world, such as Asia or Mexico. In addition, if the channel of distribution includes several firms, the product must be moved a number of times before it becomes accessible to consumers. A basic home appliance begins as a raw material (iron ore at a steel mill, for example) that is transported from a processing plant to a manufacturing facility.

Transportation firms assist marketers in moving products from one point in a channel to the next. An important matter of negotiation between companies working together in a channel is whether the sender or receiver of goods is responsible for transportation. Movement of products usually involves significant cost, risk, and time management. Thus, when firms consider a transportation option, they carefully weigh its dependability and price, frequency of operation, and accessibility. A firm that has its own transportation capabilities is known as a private carrier. There are also contract carriers, which are independent transportation firms that can be hired by companies on a long- or short-term basis. A common carrier provides services to any and all companies between predetermined points on a scheduled basis. The U.S. Postal Service is a common carrier, as are FedEx and the Amtrak railway system.

Because products are not usually sold or shipped as soon as they are produced or delivered, firms require storage facilities. Two types of warehouses meet this need: storage warehouses hold goods for longer periods of time, and distribution warehouses serve as way stations for goods as they pass from one location to the next. Like the other marketing functions, warehouses can be wholly owned by firms, or space can be rented as needed. Although companies have more control over wholly owned facilities, warehouses of this sort can tie up capital and firm resources. Operations within warehouses usually require inspecting goods, tracking inventories, repackaging goods, shipping, and invoicing.

Although the basic principles of marketing apply to all industries, the ways in which these principles are best applied can differ considerably based on the kind of product or service sold, the kind of buying behaviour associated with the purchase, and the sector (government, consumer goods, services, etc.).

This market consists of federal, state, and local governmental units that purchase or rent goods to fulfill their functions and responsibilities to the public. Government agencies purchase a wide range of products and services, including helicopters, paintings, office furniture, clothing, alcohol, and fuel. Most of the agencies manage a significant portion of their own purchasing.

One prominent sector of the government market is the federal civilian buying establishment. In the United States this establishment consists of six categories: departments (e.g., the Department of Commerce), administration (e.g., the General Services Administration), agencies (e.g., the Federal Aviation Administration), boards (e.g., the Railroad Retirement Board), commissions (e.g., the Federal Communications Commission), and the executive office (e.g., the Office of Management and Budget). In addition there are several miscellaneous civilian buying establishments, such as, for example, the Tennessee Valley Authority.

Another governmental purchasing sector is the federal military buying establishment, represented in the United States by the Department of Defense, which purchases primarily through the Defense Logistics Agency and the army, navy, and air force. The Defense Logistics Agency operates distribution centres that specialize in construction, electronics, fuel, personnel support, and industrial and general supplies.

Government purchasing procedures fall into two categories: the open bid and the negotiated contract. Under open-bid buying, the government disseminates very specific information about the products and services required and requests bids from suppliers. Contracts generally are awarded to the lowest bidder. In negotiated-contract buying, a government agency negotiates directly with one or more companies regarding a specific project or supply need. In most cases, contracts are negotiated for complex projects that involve major research-and-development costs and in matters where there is little effective competition.

Consumer goods can be classified according to consumer shopping habits.

Convenience goods are those that the customer purchases frequently, immediately, and with minimum effort. Soaps and newspapers are considered convenience goods, as are common staples like ketchup or pasta. Convenience-goods purchasing is usually based on habitual behaviour, where the consumer will routinely purchase a particular product. Some convenience goods, however, may be purchased impulsively, involving no habit, planning, or search effort. These goods, usually displayed near the cash register in a store in order to encourage quick choice and purchase, include candy, razors, and batteries. A slightly different type of convenience product is the emergency good, which is purchased when there is an urgent need. Such goods include umbrellas and snow shovels, and these are usually distributed at a wide variety of outlets so that they will be readily available when necessary.

A second type of product is the shopping good, which usually requires a more involved selection process than convenience goods. A consumer usually compares a variety of attributes, including suitability, quality, price, and style. Homogeneous shopping goods are those that are similar in quality but different enough in other attributes (such as price, brand image, or style) to justify a search process. These products might include automobile tires or a stereo or television system. Homogeneous shopping goods are often sold strongly on price.

With heterogeneous shopping goods, product features become more important to the consumer than price. Such is often the case with the purchase of major appliances, clothing, furniture, and high-tech equipment. In this situation, the item purchased must be a certain size or colour and must perform very specific functions that cannot be fulfilled by all items offered by every supplier. With goods of this sort, the seller has to carry a wide assortment to satisfy individual tastes and must have well-trained salespeople to provide both information and advice to consumers.

Specialty goods have particularly unique characteristics and brand identifications for which a significant group of buyers is willing to make a special purchasing effort. Examples include specific brands of fancy products, luxury cars, professional photographic equipment, and high-fashion clothing. For instance, consumers who favour merchandise produced by a certain shoe manufacturer or furniture maker will, if necessary, travel considerable distances in order to purchase that particular brand. In specialty-goods markets, sellers do not encourage comparisons between options; buyers invest time to reach dealers carrying the product desired, and these dealers therefore do not necessarily need to be conveniently located.

Finally, an unsought good is one that a consumer does not know about—or knows about but does not normally think of buying. New products, such as new frozen-food concepts or new smartphones, are unsought until consumers learn about them through word-of-mouth influence or advertising. In addition, the need for unsought goods may not seem urgent to the consumer, and purchase is often deferred. This is frequently the case with life insurance, preventive car maintenance, and cemetery plots. Because of this, unsought goods require significant marketing efforts, and some of the more sophisticated selling techniques have been developed from the challenge to sell unsought goods.