Editor’s note: Vince Migliore is a market research consultant, doing business as AccuStat, Santa Clara, Calif.

Even large firms nowadays don’t have an in-house research department, choosing rather to farm out this function to vendors. But how much do you know about these research firms? What kinds of questions should you ask to find out more about the company that’s processing your data? The following is a list of 10 industry secrets, including tips on how to handle them.

Very often there is no need at all for primary research. Much of the information you require is readily available from secondary sources. It’s usually free, or can be purchased for a fraction of the cost of conducting a survey.

An example: a small software company was enjoying rapid growth for its product in a narrow niche market with only four other competitors. The company was a success even without a thorough understanding of its position in the industry, and it wanted to get market share and growth trend information. It was prepared to spend over $20,000 for a telephone survey. Instead, we downloaded the sales and investor information of the four competitors from the Web, gathered data from the library, and made a call to an industry analyst for a major stock brokerage firm. The result: we had just about everything we needed for less than 10 hours of work.

The fix: Do your homework! In the Information Age, just about anything you need to know is available if you know where to look. Start by surfing the Internet. Get in touch with a good research librarian - they are worth their weight in gold. Many firms, such as DataQuest, Standard & Poors, or Dun & Bradstreet have huge resources that you can tap into for a relatively small fee. (Mention of firms and brand names should not be construed as an endorsement of their products or services.)

The whole idea of conducting market research is to gather data that is re...