Market researchers gather and synthesize information about consumer behavior.
Market researchers, also known as market research analysts or marketing analysts, are professionals who collect and interpret data about what people think and how they behave. These professionals pull together information using focus groups, electronic databases, mail responses, and telephone and online surveys. Based on the Bureau of Labor Statistics' "Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition," the average annual wage for market research analysts in the U.S. was $67,500 in May 2009.
Industry
According to a December 2010 PayScale report, market research analysts' salaries differ across sectors. Market research analysts working in market research firms earned average salaries ranging between $38,280 and $52,320 per year. Professionals working in marketing, advertising and media agencies earned average salaries of $37,493 to $60,935 per year. Average salaries for market researchers working in information technology firms fell between $34,392 and $48,834 annually. Employees in the health care industry earned average annual wages of $41,600 to $53,083 per year.
Time Frame
Work experience is important not only for building expertise within the market opinion research field, but also for increasing earning potential. Market research analysts with one to four years' experience make significantly less than their counterparts with 20 years of experience or more. Professionals with less than four years of experience made on average $39,310 to $52,267 per year, according to PayScale, while those at entry level, with less than a year's experience, average $32,466 to $46,243. However, market research analysts with at least 20 years of work experience made average salaries ranging from $50,000 to $78,000 annually.
Gender
PayScale reveals that male and female market research analysts earn similar, yet slightly different annual wages. For example, male professionals earned average salaries ranging between $40,524 and $55,032 per year. On the other hand, female market researchers earned average salaries that ranged between $39,412 and $54,649 per year.
Size
The size of an employee's organization has little correlation with salary potential, according to PayScale's report. For example, companies with 2,000 to fewer than 5,000 employees paid market research analysts average salaries that ranged from $45,179 to $61,042 per year. However, market researchers who worked at companies with almost 20,000 employees made average salaries ranging from $40,841 to $55,000 per year. Likewise, a market research analyst working at a company with 50 to just under 200 employees earned an average salary ranging between $39,050 and $58,958 per year.
Location
Some U.S. cities have greater salary potential than others for market researchers. PayScale shows that market research analysts working in Boston earned the highest average salaries at $53,513 to $73,598 per year. San Francisco market research analysts earned the second-highest salaries, making on average between $44,621 and $64,324 per year. Workers in Chicago earned average annual wages ranging between $38,445 and $50,346. Market research analysts in New York City earned average annual wages of $41,927 to $54,754 annually.
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