Market survey template: questions to understand your buyers before you build

Most market surveys fail because they ask what people say they would do rather than what they actually do. The gap between stated preferences and real behavior is well-documented. A good market survey accounts for this by mixing behavioral questions (what do you currently buy, how much do you spend) with attitudinal ones (what matters to you, what frustrates you).

This template covers the core questions for understanding a target market, with guidance on segmentation and connecting survey data to business decisions.

Market survey questions

Market behavior

1. How often do you purchase products or services in [category]? | Multiple choice (Weekly, Monthly, A few times a year, Rarely, Never) | Required
2. Approximately how much do you spend per purchase in [category]? | Multiple choice (price ranges, customized per market) | Required
3. Where do you typically purchase [category] products or services? | Multi-select checkboxes (Online, In-store, Direct from brand, Marketplace/aggregator, Other) | Required

Brand and product preferences

4. Which brands do you currently use or prefer in [category]? (Select all that apply) | Multi-select checkboxes (customized list + "Other" with text field) | Required
5. What made you choose your current [product/provider]? | Multi-select checkboxes (Price, Quality, Brand reputation, Recommendation, Convenience, Features, Customer support, Other) | Required
6. How satisfied are you with your current [product/provider]? | Rating scale (1-5) | Required

Decision factors

7. What factors most influence your purchasing decisions in [category]? (Rank the top 3) | Ranking (Price, Quality, Brand reputation, Reviews/ratings, Ease of use, Customer support, Features, Recommendations from peers) | Required
8. Where do you discover new products or services in [category]? | Multi-select checkboxes (Search engines, Social media, Friends/family, Online reviews, Industry publications, Ads, Events/conferences, Other) | Required

Unmet needs

9. What is the biggest challenge you face with [category] products or services? | Open text | Required
10. Is there anything missing from the options currently available in the market? | Open text | Optional
11. How satisfied are you with the options currently available? | Rating scale (1-5) | Required

Willingness to switch

12. How likely are you to try a new brand if it addressed your needs better? | Rating scale (1-5) | Required
13. What would a new product need to offer for you to switch from your current provider? | Open text | Optional

Optional demographics

14. What best describes your role? | Multiple choice (customized) | Optional
15. What is your company size? | Multiple choice (1-10, 11-50, 51-200, 201-1000, 1000+) | Optional

Market research survey: a more focused variant

If you are evaluating demand for a specific product idea (rather than understanding a broad market), use these questions instead of or in addition to the general template above.

1. What is your biggest challenge related to [specific problem]? | Open text | Required
2. How do you currently solve this problem? | Multiple choice (Existing tool/product, Manual process, Workaround, I don't address it, Other) | Required
3. How satisfied are you with your current solution? | Rating scale (1-5) | Required
4. What features would an ideal solution need? (Select all that apply) | Multi-select checkboxes (customized) | Required
5. How much would you pay monthly for a solution that solved [problem]? | Multiple choice (price ranges) | Required
6. How likely are you to switch from your current solution if a better one existed? | Rating scale (1-5) | Required

How to distribute a market survey

Market surveys often need to reach people outside your existing customer base. That changes the distribution approach:

• Social media distribution. Posting in relevant communities (LinkedIn groups, Reddit, industry forums) can work for niche markets, but responses are self-selected and may not be representative.
• Email to prospects and leads. If you have a list of people who have interacted with your brand but not purchased, they are a valuable survey audience.
• In-product surveys. If you already have users and want to understand their broader market behavior, in-app surveys or website surveys work well.

For more on channels and tactics, see survey distribution methods.

Analyzing market survey data

Segment by buyer persona. If you surveyed a broad audience, group respondents by characteristics that matter for your business (company size, role, purchase frequency, spend level). Different segments may have very different needs and preferences.

Map the competitive landscape. Questions 4, 5, and 6 tell you which competitors are most popular, why people chose them, and how satisfied they are. Low satisfaction with existing options + high willingness to switch (question 12) = market opportunity.

Quantify unmet needs. Group the open-ended responses from questions 9, 10, and 13 into themes. The most frequently mentioned unmet needs are your strongest signals for product positioning.

Price sensitivity analysis. Question 2 (current spend) and question 5 from the research variant (willingness to pay) together tell you what the market expects to pay and where your pricing should land.