How to choose: Market Intelligence Platform

Five steps to choose

1. Write down the two or three decisions the platform must support, and who will make them.
2. List the data types you need: companies, deals, rivals, reports or traffic. Mark the ones you need every week.
3. Ask each vendor to show a claim and the source behind it, live, on a question you choose.
4. Check exports, API access, seat limits and renewal terms in the draft contract before you sign.
5. Get a written quote for the full year, then compare it with the value of the decisions the tool supports.

Test it yourself: a pilot

Run a pilot with one real question from your team. Give two or three tools the same question, the same date range and the same deadline. Then score each answer on three things: whether every figure links to a source, whether the source says what the answer claims, and how long a person needs to check the result. Choose a question with a known answer, so the team can check the output quickly. Ask each vendor for a trial login before the pilot starts, and agree on the scoring sheet in advance.

Keep a simple log of the figures that failed a check. A tool that misses one number in ten needs closer review than one that misses none. Record the time each tool took, as well as its accuracy, so the cost of checking is visible in the decision. Share the results with the people who will use the tool daily, since they will notice gaps that a buyer misses. Hyperresearch can be one of the tools in the pilot. Its first Deep report is free, so you can test it on your own question before any decision.

Continue this reading path

• Resource directory
• Market Intelligence Platform

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