Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists
Also called: Market Analyst, Market Research Analyst, Market Research Consultant, Market ResearcherResearch conditions in local, regional, national, or online markets. Gather information to determine potential sales of a product or service, or plan a marketing or advertising campaign. May gather information on competitors, prices, sales, and methods of marketing and distribution. May employ search marketing tactics, analyze web metrics, and develop recommendations to increase search engine ranking and visibility to target markets.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 12 of its 13 tasks, yet jobs are projected to grow 7.0% by 2035. In the most exposed occupations, the squeeze shows up first among early-career workers. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
BLS figures cover the broader occupation “Market research analysts and marketing specialists”, which includes this one and others.
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 5.0% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 7.9 hires for every 10 job openings in professional and business services, which employs about 41% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.7.9 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $59,530 | $46,330 to $79,690 | 8,390 |
| Alaska | $66,710 | $53,560 to $82,480 | 570 |
| Arizona | $71,940 | $49,980 to $97,800 | 15,850 |
| Arkansas | $65,430 | $47,730 to $102,420 | 6,250 |
| California | $94,700 | $65,290 to $134,630 | 119,070 |
| Colorado | $93,050 | $64,380 to $126,670 | 27,880 |
| Connecticut | $77,740 | $58,210 to $104,380 | 9,930 |
| Delaware | $101,270 | $78,040 to $135,880 | 3,570 |
| District of Columbia | $98,090 | $74,990 to $132,300 | 6,340 |
| Florida | $75,450 | $52,650 to $99,600 | 60,770 |
| Georgia | $75,850 | $51,440 to $107,260 | 27,810 |
| Guam | $42,240 | $36,310 to $56,830 | 80 |
| Hawaii | $59,390 | $42,040 to $79,390 | 1,610 |
| Idaho | $60,970 | $47,370 to $84,310 | 3,780 |
| Illinois | $79,120 | $60,210 to $104,800 | 40,560 |
| Indiana | $63,700 | $49,110 to $86,080 | 14,400 |
| Iowa | $66,390 | $50,010 to $85,680 | 8,880 |
| Kansas | $70,430 | $52,850 to $96,760 | 8,090 |
| Kentucky | $61,480 | $47,950 to $78,290 | 6,290 |
| Louisiana | $59,690 | $45,760 to $82,660 | 5,360 |
| Maine | $71,980 | $54,460 to $98,820 | 2,390 |
| Maryland | $76,370 | $57,040 to $100,340 | 13,570 |
| Massachusetts | $101,810 | $77,220 to $133,460 | 39,710 |
| Michigan | $66,780 | $49,990 to $97,820 | 24,220 |
| Minnesota | $87,510 | $63,850 to $123,720 | 21,280 |
| Mississippi | $56,640 | $42,840 to $73,980 | 2,620 |
| Missouri | $70,140 | $48,680 to $100,710 | 14,890 |
| Montana | $68,080 | $53,190 to $80,730 | 1,460 |
| Nebraska | $60,000 | $47,600 to $79,110 | 3,780 |
| Nevada | $71,840 | $51,320 to $95,680 | 5,780 |
| New Hampshire | $64,570 | $52,370 to $96,450 | 4,200 |
| New Jersey | $88,190 | $68,150 to $113,480 | 22,990 |
| New Mexico | $61,950 | $48,770 to $78,740 | 1,610 |
| New York | $98,580 | $72,600 to $129,430 | 80,500 |
| North Carolina | $78,410 | $58,430 to $109,810 | 30,700 |
| North Dakota | $61,580 | $48,880 to $79,880 | 1,550 |
| Ohio | $72,790 | $52,420 to $98,070 | 27,370 |
| Oklahoma | $61,940 | $45,370 to $82,750 | 6,620 |
| Oregon | $79,150 | $60,860 to $107,990 | 11,310 |
| Pennsylvania | $68,760 | $49,790 to $96,670 | 31,040 |
| Puerto Rico | $39,330 | $28,290 to $54,950 | 2,420 |
| Rhode Island | $86,240 | $63,270 to $103,340 | 3,210 |
| South Carolina | $69,440 | $51,410 to $100,020 | 11,920 |
| South Dakota | $63,490 | $52,150 to $88,360 | 1,530 |
| Tennessee | $69,790 | $51,820 to $96,520 | 13,040 |
| Texas | $72,520 | $52,060 to $98,320 | 63,350 |
| Utah | $62,630 | $46,010 to $85,450 | 14,510 |
| Vermont | $74,880 | $61,290 to $89,990 | 860 |
| Virgin Islands | $59,990 | $37,370 to $66,580 | 90 |
| Virginia | $76,980 | $56,930 to $105,620 | 25,610 |
| Washington | $95,120 | $67,590 to $139,560 | 24,460 |
| West Virginia | $52,340 | $38,250 to $69,550 | 1,650 |
| Wisconsin | $64,800 | $52,450 to $89,560 | 15,600 |
| Wyoming | $60,990 | $47,590 to $78,010 | 850 |
Nationally: $78,760. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 12 of its 13 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| AI alone | Prepare reports of findings, illustrating data graphically and translating complex findings into written text. | 0.05% |
| AI + software | Seek and provide information to help companies determine their position in the marketplace. | Not published |
| AI + software | Collect and analyze data on customer demographics, preferences, needs, and buying habits to identify potential markets and factors affecting product demand. | 0.02% |
| AI + software | Gather data on competitors and analyze their prices, sales, and method of marketing and distribution. | 0.09% |
| AI + software | Conduct research on consumer opinions and marketing strategies, collaborating with marketing professionals, statisticians, pollsters, and other professionals. | Not published |
| AI + software | Monitor industry statistics and follow trends in trade literature. | Not published |
See all 13 tasks
| Not much | Measure and assess customer and employee satisfaction. | Not published |
| AI alone | Devise and evaluate methods and procedures for collecting data, such as surveys, opinion polls, or questionnaires, or arrange to obtain existing data. | Not published |
| AI + software | Forecast and track marketing and sales trends, analyzing collected data. | 0.02% |
| AI + software | Direct trained survey interviewers. | Not published |
| AI + software | Measure the effectiveness of marketing, advertising, and communications programs and strategies. | Not published |
| AI alone | Develop and implement procedures for identifying advertising needs. | 0.01% |
| AI + software | Attend staff conferences to provide management with information and proposals concerning the promotion, distribution, design, and pricing of company products or services. | Not published |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 5 of the 13 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 13 tasks fall under 10 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #20 Present research or technical information
- #44 Gather data about operational or development activities
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Analyze market or industry conditions | |||
| Gather data about operational or development activities | |||
| Present research or technical information | |||
| Evaluate programs, practices, or processes | |||
| Research organizational behavior, processes, or performance | |||
| Monitor financial data or activities | |||
| Develop organizational policies, systems, or processes | |||
| Communicate with others about business strategies |
Show all 10 activities
| Develop business or marketing plans | |||
| Supervise personnel activities |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- A document or report27%
- An analysis or summary16%
- A plan or strategy14%
- An explanation or answer6%
- Advice or a recommendation6%
How they worked with Claude
63% of these conversations were about work. Anthropic Economic Index, May 2026.
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for market research analysts and marketing specialists specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 436,523 moves out
- 1 Marketing Managers Very high +6.9% 10%
- 2 Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products Very high -0.9% 6%
- 3 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 6%
- 4 Sales Managers High +4.5% 3%
- 5 General and Operations Managers High +5.0% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 372,675 moves in
- 1 Marketing Managers Very high +6.9% 8%
- 2 Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products Very high -0.9% 6%
- 3 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 4%
- 4 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 3%
- 5 Public Relations Specialists Very high +1.8% 3%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 1% less than high school
- 6% high school
- 11% some college
- 5% associate's
- 56% bachelor's
- 19% master's
- 1% professional degree
- 1% doctorate
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 5,221 people surveyed.
Median pay by highest degree full-time, year-round · Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation
16 programs, such as Consumer Merchandising/Retailing Management, Apparel and Textile Marketing Management and Business Analytics.
See all
- Consumer Merchandising/Retailing Management
- Apparel and Textile Marketing Management
- Business Analytics
- Applied Economics
- Marketing/Marketing Management, General
- Marketing Research
- International Marketing
- Digital Marketing
- Marketing, Other
- Apparel and Accessories Marketing Operations
- Tourism and Travel Services Marketing Operations
- Tourism Promotion Operations
- Vehicle and Vehicle Parts and Accessories Marketing Operations
- Business and Personal/Financial Services Marketing Operations
- Special Products Marketing Operations
- Hospitality and Recreation Marketing Operations
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
26.0% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| a certification | <0.5% | 5.8% |
| an educational certificate | <0.5% | 2.8% |
| a license | not published |
Share of jobs whose employer requires it. BLS doesn't say which credential. How to read this
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeship Finder ↗ DOL lists 1 registered apprenticeship in this occupation (Government Business Development Specialist). Apprenticeship.gov can't be linked to one occupation, so search for “Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists” there.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS · Brynjolfsson, Chandar and Chen, Stanford (Aug 2026)
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