SIS International is a desk research agency helping businesses assess markets, investigate competitors, and turn existing information into evidence for business decisions. We review relevant sources, examine their limitations, and connect the findings to your research objectives.
Whether you are comparing countries, reviewing an industry, or preparing a new study, start with what you need to decide. Then establish which questions existing evidence can answer and where further research would help.
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What does a desk research agency do?
A desk research agency collects, evaluates, and analyzes information that already exists. Also called secondary research, desktop research, or desk based research, this work can draw on published material and information your organization already holds.
The value comes from interpretation. A useful report explains what the evidence means, which sources support a conclusion, and what remains uncertain. However, finding a published number does not establish that it fits your market or decision.
For example, an industry estimate may include products, countries, or customer groups outside your scope. Before using it, examine those boundaries rather than treating the headline figure as your addressable market.
When to work with a desk research agency
Use desk research when existing evidence could resolve an important question or sharpen the scope of further investigation.
- Market exploration: Compare countries, categories, or customer segments before selecting priorities.
- Competitor assessment: Examine published offerings, positioning, channels, and business developments.
- Product planning: Investigate category trends, existing alternatives, and previously reported customer needs.
- Investment screening: Review the evidence behind market assumptions and identify questions for further diligence.
- Research planning: Establish what your team already knows before commissioning interviews or surveys.
However, secondary evidence may not answer questions about a specific customer experience or an unpublished purchasing decision. In those cases, your desk research agency should identify the gap and recommend an appropriate next step.
How a desk research agency conducts effective research
First, specify the decision the research will support. Define the product category, customer group, geography, and relevant period. Also agree on the required level of detail before collecting information.
Next, identify sources for each question and document the evidence consistently. Record the publisher, publication date, underlying data period, geography, and definitions so readers can trace important findings.
Then investigate differences between sources. For example, one estimate may describe manufacturer revenue while another measures retail spending. Rather than averaging them automatically, explain what each measures and whether either fits the research question.
Finally, connect the findings to the original decision. Separate documented facts, analytical estimates, and hypotheses that require testing. The following guide outlines the practical steps.
A step-by-step project workflow
| Research Step | Process & Methodology | Key Tools & Resources | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Define Research Objectives | First, your desk research agency defines the decision, research questions, scope, and intended outputs. Agree on the information your team needs before starting. | Research briefs, stakeholder requirements, decision criteria | MarketResearch.com |
| Identify Information Sources | Next, identify relevant existing evidence. Separate original publications from summaries and prioritize sources that fit the research question. | Internal records, official statistics, academic databases, trade publications | UC Berkeley Library |
| Create a Search Strategy | For desktop research, develop search terms, category definitions, and inclusion criteria. Also record important searches so the team can review coverage. | Search logs, Boolean operators, library databases, specialist search tools | EBSCO |
| Review Industry Reports | Examine geographic coverage, category boundaries, dates, and methods before using estimates from industry studies. | Industry associations, licensed reports, sector publications | IBISWorld |
| Analyze Official Data | Review demographic, economic, and trade information. However, check whether these market statistics use reporting categories that match your market. | National statistical offices, census publications, trade datasets | U.S. Census Bureau |
| Evaluate Financial Evidence | Compare reported performance using consistent periods and definitions. Distinguish company-wide revenue from the segment you need to assess. | Annual reports, public filings, financial databases | Bloomberg Professional |
| Monitor News and Developments | As part of secondary research, track launches, acquisitions, and other relevant developments. Also distinguish announcements from independently reported results. | Trade media, news archives, company announcements, alerts | Dow Jones Factiva |
| Evaluate Source Quality | Assess relevance, methods, dates, and potential bias. Then trace repeated claims to their original source. | Source checklists, methodology notes, citation trails | CUNY Library |
| Organize the Evidence | A desk research agency maintains a consistent record of sources, extracts, definitions, and access dates so readers can trace the analysis. | Evidence spreadsheets, Zotero, shared research folders | Zotero |
| Analyze and Synthesize | Compare findings, investigate contradictions, and explain how the evidence affects the decision. Avoid combining incompatible estimates. | Comparison matrices, scenario assumptions, trend analysis | Harvard Business Review |
| Document Limitations | Identify gaps in the secondary research, methodological constraints, and assumptions. Where necessary, recommend targeted primary research. | Gap assessments, source limitations, follow-up research questions | AAPOR |
| Prepare Decision-Focused Outputs | Finally, present conclusions, supporting evidence, and practical next steps. Make uncertainty visible alongside recommendations. | Executive summaries, sourced tables, charts, presentations | McKinsey |
Where to find useful evidence
A desk research agency selects sources around the question. No single database provides a complete view of every market.
Internal information may include sales records, previous studies, service logs, and existing customer feedback. However, these records describe the people and transactions your business captures; they may not represent the wider market.
Official statistics and public filings can provide economic, demographic, trade, and company information. For example, World Bank Open Data offers international indicators, while SEC EDGAR provides access to company filings.
Industry studies and white papers can supply specialist context. However, review their methods and commercial purpose. A sponsored paper can offer useful evidence without providing a neutral assessment of every alternative.
Company publications, trade media, and existing reviews can reveal product changes and reported experiences. Nevertheless, marketing claims and self-selected reviews require careful interpretation.
How a desk research agency checks source quality
Evaluate each important source against the intended use:
- Relevance: Does it cover the right category, location, audience, and period?
- Method: How did the publisher collect or estimate the information?
- Currency: When did the underlying activity occur, rather than simply when the page appeared?
- Independence: Does another source provide separate evidence or repeat the same claim?
- Comparability: Do the definitions and units support the proposed comparison?
- Limitations: What does the source omit, and could that change the conclusion?
Also distinguish observed results from forecasts when reviewing market statistics. A projected growth rate describes an expectation under particular assumptions; it is not an observed market outcome.
Several websites repeating one estimate represent one underlying source, not independent confirmation. Therefore, effective desk based research follows important claims back to the original evidence whenever possible.
Comparing competitors and market opportunities
Desk based research can organize evidence about competitors’ offerings, public prices, geographic coverage, and stated priorities. It can also identify developments worth investigating further.
However, public materials rarely reveal a complete commercial picture. Advertised prices may differ from negotiated contracts, while company-wide revenue may include unrelated activities.
Likewise, online reviews can suggest issues for investigation without establishing their frequency across all customers. Therefore, a desk research agency should compare like-for-like evidence and label missing information clearly.
Explore SIS International’s competitive intelligence capabilities or market entry support.
Benefits and practical limitations
Secondary research can help teams reuse existing knowledge, narrow competing hypotheses, and avoid commissioning work that duplicates available evidence. In addition, it can improve the questions a later study needs to answer.
However, accessible information is not necessarily suitable information. Specialist reports may require paid access, and conflicting market statistics can take substantial work to reconcile.
A desk research agency also cannot recover information that no source has collected or disclosed. Therefore, assess the evidence available before promising precision, speed, or a particular business outcome.
For example, an industry overview may support an initial market comparison without explaining why a specific customer rejected your product. A targeted interview study may help answer that separate question.
Working with SIS International’s desk research agency
SIS International offers market research and strategy services, with experience dating to 1984. Our desk research agency helps businesses organize relevant evidence around a defined commercial question.
Agree on deliverables before the project begins. Depending on scope, these may include:
- An executive summary addressing the research questions.
- A market overview or competitor comparison.
- Supporting tables with sources, dates, and definitions.
- Documented assumptions and evidence gaps.
- Recommendations for decisions or further research.
Also establish the countries, languages, source-access requirements, and review milestones for your desktop research project. These factors shape cost and timing, so share your deadline and intended use early.
Learn about SIS International’s research experience.
Frequently asked questions
Does the work rely only on free information?
No. Secondary research can include licensed databases, purchased reports, internal records, and public material. However, access and reuse permissions depend on the source.
Can existing evidence establish market size?
A desk research agency can support an estimate when suitable evidence exists. However, the result depends on category definitions, data coverage, and assumptions. A broad industry figure may not describe your reachable market.
How do new expert interviews fit into a project?
New interviews collect primary evidence. Reviewing an existing interview or transcript is secondary research. A combined project should distinguish the two activities.
How long does a project take?
Timing depends on scope, source availability, languages, and analytical complexity. A focused desktop research review differs from a multi-country assessment with inconsistent data. Agree on milestones after reviewing the brief.
What happens when sources disagree?
First, your desk research agency examines their definitions, methods, and dates. Then it determines which evidence fits the question. Where uncertainty remains, the report should present competing interpretations rather than force a single number.
Discuss your project with a desk research agency
Tell SIS International what you need to decide, which markets matter, and what information your team already holds. Include your deadline, budget range, and preferred deliverables.
Our desk research agency can discuss a scope that fits your objectives and the evidence available.
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About SIS International
SIS International offers quantitative, qualitative, and strategy research. We provide research findings and recommendations to support business decisions. Our capabilities include interviews, surveys, focus groups, and secondary research. Contact our team to discuss your next project.