Desk Research / Literature Reviews
Desk Research / Literature Reviews

Desk research, also known as secondary research, is undertaken as a means of ensuring we are extracting maximum insight and value from all existing sources of knowledge and information – including sources that our clients are both currently aware and unaware of.
Desk Research and literature reviews are offered by Mustard as standalone research services, or to complement broader studies (to inform design and focus).
- It is most effective in contextualising programmes of research by summarising existing knowledge of a wide range of issues, including market size, structure and trends, key players and competitors, primary customers / beneficiaries, market opportunities and threats.
- Desk research also highlights gaps in knowledge. As such, it can be an extremely valuable initial phase of research projects – ensuring primary research is appropriately targeted.
- Key to effective desk research is the sourcing of high quality and reliable secondary data. The Mustard team is skilled in collating ‘Internal’ (i.e. client provided) and ‘External’ (i.e. published) information, including policy and strategy documents, industry / sector press and periodicals, research reports and data / statistics.
- Our thematic approach to reviewing information ensures that we are able to offer our clients clear and structured secondary desk research insight, presented in an accessible and audience focused language.

Mustard has extensive experience of conducting desk research for a broad range of public and private sector clients. We have recently been using desk research within the “immersion” stages of exploratory qualitative projects and to inform questionnaire design.
How desk research / stakeholder consultation helped our client shape the future of the call centre
A strategic piece of multi-country exploratory research was conducted on behalf of the UK’s leading market player in Call Tracking and Intelligence.
Discover how desk research can make a difference to your business
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