Macro Market Analysis

An assessment of the large-scale forces that shape demand in a category: economy, regulation, technology and culture. It sets the ceiling and direction for every plan built on top of it.

ID: MK-T0101
Tactic: Market Intelligence
Sub-techniques: 5
Type: Concept
Level: Intermediate
Time: 1–2 days

Sub-techniques

ID	Name
MK-T0101.001	PESTLE Scan
MK-T0101.002	Category Growth Rate
MK-T0101.003	Seasonality Mapping
MK-T0101.004	Economic Sensitivity
MK-T0101.005	Geographic Demand Distribution

Procedure

List the 10–15 external factors most likely to move demand in the category.
Score each factor for direction (positive or negative) and magnitude (1–5).
Pull five years of search trend data for the category’s core terms to confirm growth and seasonality.
Summarize the three factors with the highest combined score as strategic assumptions.
Revisit the assumptions quarterly and flag any that have changed.

Common mistakes

Mistake	Mitigation
Collecting factors without scoring them	Every factor gets a direction and a magnitude
Treating the analysis as a one-time exercise	Review assumptions every quarter

Sub-technique details

MK-T0101.001

PESTLE Scan

Political, economic, social, technological, legal and environmental factors, each scored for its likely effect on demand over the next 12–24 months.

MK-T0101.002

Category Growth Rate

Year-over-year change in category spend or search demand, sourced from industry reports, public filings and search trend data.

MK-T0101.003

Seasonality Mapping

A month-by-month demand curve built from search trends and historical sales, used to time budgets and launches.

MK-T0101.004

Economic Sensitivity

How demand reacts to interest rates, employment, consumer confidence and business investment cycles.

MK-T0101.005

Geographic Demand Distribution

Where demand concentrates by region or metro area, used to set geographic targeting and expansion order.

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