Business and Financial Operations · Holland code ECI

Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists

Research conditions in local, regional, national, or online markets. Gather information to determine potential sales of a product or service, or plan a marketing or advertising campaign. May gather information on competitors, prices, sales, and methods of marketing and distribution. May employ search marketing tactics, analyze web metrics, and develop recommendations to increase search engine ranking and visibility to target markets.

Also called: Market Analyst, Market Research Analyst, Market Research Consultant, Market Researcher, Business Development Specialist, Communications Consultant, Communications Specialist, Content Strategist.

O*NET 13-1161.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $78,760; Middle half earn $58,350 to $108,310. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 4 of 5; Considerable preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.
US employment outlook, 2024 to 2034: +7% · Much faster than average; 941,700 jobs in 2024, projected 1,004,700. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, which groups this with similar roles as "Market research analysts".

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Prepare reports of findings, illustrating data graphically and translating complex findings into written text.
Seek and provide information to help companies determine their position in the marketplace.
Conduct research on consumer opinions and marketing strategies, collaborating with marketing professionals, statisticians, pollsters, and other professionals.
Collect and analyze data on customer demographics, preferences, needs, and buying habits to identify potential markets and factors affecting product demand.
Devise and evaluate methods and procedures for collecting data, such as surveys, opinion polls, or questionnaires, or arrange to obtain existing data.
Gather data on competitors and analyze their prices, sales, and method of marketing and distribution.
Measure and assess customer and employee satisfaction.
Monitor industry statistics and follow trends in trade literature.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Reading Comprehension4.0 / 5
Active Listening4.0 / 5
Writing4.0 / 5
Critical Thinking4.0 / 5
Speaking3.9 / 5
Active Learning3.8 / 5

Knowledge areas

English Language4.2 / 5
Sales and Marketing3.6 / 5
Administration and Management3.4 / 5
Customer and Personal Service3.4 / 5
Administrative3.0 / 5
Mathematics3.0 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic1
Investigative60
Artistic26
Social25
Enterprising75
Conventional60

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

tourism policy director · DE Führungskraft für Tourismus · FR responsable de la promotion touristique
marketing assistant · DE Marketingassistent/Marketingassistentin · FR assistant marketing/assistante marketing
market research analyst · DE Marktforschungsanalyst/Marktforschungsanalystin · FR chargé d’études de marché/chargée d’études de marché
network marketer · DE Netzwerk-Marketingexperte/Netzwerk-Marketingexpertin · FR agent de commercialisation en réseau
pricing specialist · DE Spezialist für Preiskalkulation/Spezialistin für Preiskalkulation · FR analyste prix
advertising specialist · DE Werbespezialist/Werbespezialistin · FR spécialiste en publicité

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Market research interviewers (7214)7,400 employed
Advertising and marketing associate professionals (3554)211,800 employed
Charitable organisation managers and directors (1135)48,600 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Professionals”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Professionals, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€61,714
Germany	€59,529
Ireland	€56,877
Austria	€55,374
Netherlands	€53,595
Sweden	€43,567
France	€41,515
Spain	€35,735
Italy	€33,649
Portugal	€26,072
Poland	€14,380

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the higher third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of +1.43. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (13-1161).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

Take the career interests test