How to conduct mobile app market research? Full expert guide

So, you’ve decided to build a mobile app. 

You’ve got a brilliant idea and you’re dying to get down to work. 

But, did you conduct market research first?

Building a mobile app without doing proper market research is like building a house without laying out the foundations first. 

In-depth market research is essential for the success of your app.

In this article we’ll show you why and walk you through all the steps to successful market research.

Let’s dive in!

What is mobile app market research?

Mobile app market research is the process of gathering and analyzing information about a market you want to target with your app.

Market research is a key part of product discovery and will help you find opportunities in your target market.

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Most importantly, it will help you identify your target audience, i.e. the people who are likely to buy and use your mobile app.

This will help you validate your idea, position your product, and get to a product-market fit.

And once you’re done with market research, you’ll know:

• The size and growth dynamics of your target market
• How your competitors position their products
• Which features you should prioritize
• How you can position your product

And that’s exactly what you need to know to build a successful app.

Types of market research

Next, we’ll cover the different types of mobile app market research.

Primary and secondary market research

Mobile app market research can be broadly categorized into 2 main categories – primary and secondary market research.

Here’s a quick explainer of their differences:

source: Qualtrics

Primary market research is research you do yourself and involves collecting original data directly from your potential users.

It includes methods like:

• Surveys
• User interviews
• Focus groups
• Questionnaires
• Observation-based research

Secondary market research, on the other hand, is when you use and analyze data collected by other sources.

This includes:

• Company reports
• Industry reports
• Whitepapers
• Government-collected data

Using both types is essential for successful mobile app market research.

Primary research gives you firsthand, specific information about your target audience and their needs.

And secondary research helps you understand (and take advantage of!) industry trends and dynamics in your target market.

Qualitative and quantitative market research

Other than primary and secondary research, you can also differentiate between qualitative and quantitative market research.

So, what’s the difference between the two?

In the simplest terms, qualitative research deals with non-numerical data while quantitative deals with numbers and statistics.

Of course, there’s a lot more to it than that – here’s a detailed overview of the differences between the two:

Qualitative market research is all about understanding your target users’ behavior and preferences.

And it gives you detailed insights into their motivations and pain points, which will help you find ways your app can solve them.

It includes research methods like:

• User interviews
• Focus groups
• Observational studies

On the other hand, quantitative market research is about collecting and analyzing numerical data to identify patterns in user behavior.

It gives you measurable statistical data you can use to make data-driven decisions about your app.

Some top qualitative methods you should use are:

• Surveys
• Questionnaires
• Polls
• Review scores

You need to use both types if you want a comprehensive understanding of your target audience and target market.

And that’s the only way to build an app that can succeed in the market.

Why is app market research so important?

First of all, the app industry is huge. 

In 2023 alone, users downloaded more than 257 billion apps and games.

And, on average, a 1000 new apps are added every day to both the App Store and Google Play.

source: Statista

You don’t want to rush in there without a plan or strategy, right?

This happened to the taxi app Hailo.

Hyped up from their success in the United Kingdom, they tried to break in to the U.S. market.

However, they made a fatal mistake – they didn’t properly research the characteristics of the U.S. market.

source: Apptunix

You shouldn’t make the same mistake – that’s where market research comes in.

Market research will give you valuable inputs, like:

• Your audience’s pain points
• Industry trends 
• The psychology of your potential users 
• Your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses

Next, we’ll show you exactly how to do market research for your mobile app.

4 key steps to conduct mobile app market research

Here, we’ll guide you through the 4 key steps you need to follow for successful market research.

1. Prepare for your market research

Good preparation is half the battle won.

Grab a piece of paper (or open a Google doc) and write down these questions:

• Who is your target audience?
• Is it a wide customer base or a more niche one?
• What is the goal of your app?
• Which user problems does your app solve?

Also, try to imagine the day-to-day issues your users come across.

Make sure you always have your users’ pain points on your mind and how your app can solve them.

This is especially important if you’re building fintech or health apps because the user’s well-being depends on them. 

Next, you need to sketch out your app’s business model:

• Will your app be free or will you go with a “try before they buy” approach?
• Do you want to monetize it with in-app advertising or in-app purchases?
• Do you want to go with a paid model?

As you can see, you have plenty of business models to choose from.

It may feel overwhelming, but when you’re done with the research, you’ll be able to successfully monetize your app.

Also, you should do a SWOT analysis of your app – SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.

It’s a popular technique that’ll give you a bird’s eye view of your app and will serve as a good roadmap.

Finally, you should write all this down and later compare it with findings from your research. 

2. Conduct the research using these methods

Next, let’s dive headlong into research – we’ve selected a few top research methods you should use during market research.

Surveys

One of the primary market research methods you should use are surveys.

Here, you give a series of questions to a predefined group of people to gain valuable information. 

Surveys are a highly effective and easy way to step into your potential users’ shoes.

Give users open-ended questions at the beginning and narrow them as you go.

But, don’t go too narrow. Those questions aren’t useful because they won’t give you conclusive answers. 

Your surveys should be tailored to your target audience and you need to make sure you send them out to the right people.

So, don’t rely on feedback from friends or coworkers – they’ll be very biased and skew your research results.

You can easily create surveys with tools like:

• SurveyMonkey
• Typeform
• Google Forms
• Formstack
• JotForm

But, make sure they’re not too long – the sweet spot is 7-10 questions and 10-14 minutes to complete it.

Also, you should give users an incentive to complete the survey.

This can be exclusive access to your app, a discount or something else with added value.

Social media listening

Nowadays, people live on social media – 62% of the global population uses some form of social media.

So, it should be no surprise that social media is a treasure trove for market research – which is where social media listening comes in.

Monitoring relevant social media content is essential in conducting market research.

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It will help you gain insight into how users communicate with your competitors and their pain points.

So, if you’re developing a gaming app, check out relevant Discord servers or if you’re working on a fitness app, check out fitness groups on Facebook.

You should also use social listening tools like:

• BuzzSumo
• Brand24
• Sprout Social
• Meltwater
• Brandwatch

Social media listening isn’t just perfect for analyzing your target audience, but your competitors, too – we’ll touch on that later.

Collecting relevant data

Market research is pointless without relevant data.

That’s why your sources should have trustworthy, fresh and relevant data.

Luckily, collecting that data is much easier with online tools like:

• Sensor Tower
• Statista
• Business of Apps
• Google Trends

Sensor Tower is a digital intelligence and analytics tool with a treasure trove of data about a wide variety of markets.

Statista is a platform with a lot of up-to-date data and statistics about various industries and countries.

Business of Apps is an excellent source of not only app data but also news, podcasts and insights related to the app industry.

Finally, even a simple and free tool like Google Trends can be helpful during market research.

source: Google Trends

It’s a great tool for comparing search trends all around the world.

So, if you’re wondering which countries are the best user base for your app, you can find that out with just a few clicks.

And if you don’t have time to browse around, you can subscribe and get data about trending topics and searches.

3. Analyze your competitors

We’ve all heard the saying “keep your friends close and your enemies closer”.

And the same goes for market research – this is where competitive analysis comes in.

It will help you get a clear picture of industry trends and consumer behavior.

First, you need to determine who your competitors are – since they’re already operating in your niche so it shouldn’t be difficult to find them.

Then, you need to gather as much information as you can and find answers to these questions:

• Are they privately or publicly owned? 
• What’s their business model? 
• Who are their users?
• What problems does their app solve for users? 
• What are their app’s features? 
• How much revenue and profit did they make last year? 
• What’s their marketing strategy?

Tools like Apptopia or Determ will make collecting this data much easier.

Then, you need to analyze your findings, identify any gaps in their business model, and find out how your app can be better than theirs.

Also, it’s useful to do a SWOT analysis of your competitors.

This way, the differences between your app and your competitors’ product will be crystal clear. 

Also, don’t focus just on direct competitors, or ones similar or the same as you.

Widen your horizons and do an analysis of various companies – big and small.

You’ll gain lots of valuable insights from their approach to business, users or competitors. 

4. Apply the results to your mobile app

Wait, there’s still work to do. 

Take all your findings, compare them with your notes and incorporate them into your app. 

If something doesn’t add up, or you realize you’ll have to make some changes, don’t feel bad – it’s a normal part of the app development process.

And it’s better to find mistakes in the initial stages of development than later on.

So, what should you do next?

Group your findings in a spreadsheet and make sure you include:

• Your buyer persona 
• Competitive analysis
• Industry trends and general overview
• Your price model

Along with your findings, make sure to include all the relevant data you’ve collected from outside sources. 

Then, compare them to the notes you took before the beginning of your research.

You can compare the findings on your customers with your own description of the ideal user and ask:

• Are there any gaps?
• Do their preferences align with your business plan?
• Does your app solve their pain points?

For example, if you’ve found that your potential users only download free apps, you won’t decide on a paid model.

And if you’re satisfied with the results, congratulations! You’ve completed your market research.

How to conduct market research for your mobile app: summary

Effective market research is the key to building a successful mobile app – it gives you the information you need to make informed decisions about your app’s development.

With that in mind, here’s a summary of the key steps you need to follow to conduct mobile app market research:

• Prepare for your market research
• Conduct the research using these methods: surveys, social media listening, collecting relevant data
• Analyze your competitors
• Apply the results to your mobile app

So, there you have it – now you’ve got everything you need to successfully do market research for your mobile app.

Important tips for conducting mobile app market research

We asked our product manager, Boris Plavljanic, to share his most important tips for mobile app market research.

And here’s what he had to say:

1. Identify your target audience

Identify your app’s intended users and understand their demographic details, behaviors, preferences, and the challenges they face. This will allow you to tailor the app’s features and your marketing efforts and effectively address their needs.

Boris Plavljanic, Product manager at DECODE

Getting this one right is key if you want to build an app that can actually meet your users’ needs – and it’s key for its long-term success.

2. Analyze your competitors

Check out the top apps in your niche. Look at their strengths, weaknesses, the feedback they get, and their unique features. Doing this can reveal market gaps and highlight opportunities for you to stand out.

Boris Plavljanic, Product manager at DECODE

Standing out from your competition is the best way to establish yourself in your target market. And you can’t do that without analyzing your competitors first.

3. Get direct feedback from potential users

Use surveys and questionnaires to get direct feedback from potential users and ask them about their preferences, challenges, and the features they want. Also, you should talk to small groups of potential users or do individual interviews to get deeper insights.

Boris Plavljanic, Product manager at DECODE

Getting direct feedback from your target audience is the only way to build a truly user-friendly app and succeed in a crowded market.

Mobile app market research: FAQs

Need market research for your app?

So, you have a great app idea but don’t have the time for in-depth market research and product discovery?

Luckily, you’re in the right place.

We can help you do in-depth market research for your app, validate your idea, and then build your app from scratch.

If you want to learn more, check out our product discovery process and feel free to reach out – we’ll set up a quick call to discuss your needs in more detail.