Market Research Singapore Expertise — Assembled

Market research for the decision you need to make

We consult with you before you commission a project. We scope your needs, build a fast but realistic timeline, and provide senior management expertise from start to end. 600+ projects delivered since 2016 across Singapore and Southeast Asia.

Five ways we answer your question

Every methodology is chosen to fit the decision you're making. Most projects combine two or more approaches. All fieldwork is moderated by Felicia Hu, Managing Director.

Focus group discussions

6-10 participants per session. Moderated in English, Mandarin, and Hokkien. 2-hour sessions, in-person or virtual. Discussion guides developed through multiple iterations with your team. All sessions recorded and transcribed.

Brand perception Concept testing Customer journey Competitive positioning

In-depth interviews

One-on-one, 45-90 minutes. Ideal for sensitive topics where group dynamics suppress honesty. Healthcare decisions, wealth management, personal care routines, luxury purchases. Dyad and triad formats available. Segment-specific discussion guides for each audience.

Healthcare Luxury goods Financial services Brand loyalty

Product and concept testing

Central location testing across multiple outlets with 100+ consumers. Home-use studies with 28-day tracking. Sensory evaluation with ANOVA and JAR scoring. Packaging validation, shelf placement, and pricing research including Van Westendorp. Physical prototype evaluation for luxury goods.

CLT ANOVA JAR scoring Home-use Sensory evaluation

Mystery shopping

Structured mystery shopping programs for retail, hospitality, financial services, and F&B. We measure compliance against your brand standards, benchmark service quality across locations, and deliver scored evaluations with photographic evidence and verbatim transcripts.

Retail Hospitality Financial services Compliance auditing

Quantitative surveys

Online and field surveys powered by our 100,000-member panel. Quota sampling, brand equity measurement, customer satisfaction tracking, and NPS. We've fielded studies with 780+ respondents and run logic-based branching for complex segmentation needs. Mixed-methods designs combine survey data with qualitative depth from focus groups or in-depth interviews.

Online panel Brand equity NPS Tracking studies Mixed methods

600+ projects across six core industries

Nine years of completed client work. Many projects span multiple industries or combine several methodologies. Every count below is drawn from actual engagements in our archive.

What 600+ projects look like in practice

Anonymised examples from recent client engagements. Every project below was scoped, moderated, and presented by Felicia Hu.

Market Entry · Financial Services

A Fortune 500 insurer entering Singapore discovered their messaging was wrong before launch

A US-headquartered insurance group commissioned Assembled to understand how Singapore consumers evaluate life and health insurance products before committing to a local office. We ran six focus groups across income segments (mass market, mass affluent, HNWI) and 12 in-depth interviews with independent financial advisors. The research identified a gap between the client's product messaging, which emphasised coverage breadth, and what Singapore consumers actually prioritise, which turned out to be claims processing speed and digital self-service. The client restructured their go-to-market positioning before launch.

6 focus groups · 12 IDIs · 8 weeks
Product Testing · Food & Beverage

A global QSR chain tested three new menu items across four Singapore outlets with 480 consumers

A multinational restaurant brand needed consumer validation before adding three new items to their Singapore menu. We recruited 480 consumers through our panel and ran blinded central location tests across four outlets with structured scoring. Two of the three concepts passed the statistical threshold for launch. The third failed on texture with both Malay and Chinese respondents, was reformulated based on the verbatim feedback, and retested two months later with a separate consumer sample.

Central location testing · 480 respondents · 4 outlets
Healthcare · Specialist IDIs

15 specialist physicians recruited in 10 days for a pharmaceutical prescribing behaviour study

A pharmaceutical company needed to understand prescribing behaviour among Singapore-based endocrinologists and cardiologists for a chronic disease treatment. Most agencies struggle to recruit specialist physicians at all, let alone within a commercial timeline. We recruited 15 physicians for 90-minute in-depth interviews and completed recruitment in 10 days through our specialist panel segment of 4,800 healthcare professionals. The research mapped the decision tree from diagnosis through treatment selection, revealing that peer recommendation carried more weight than clinical trial data for this particular drug class.

15 specialist IDIs · 10-day recruitment · 6 weeks
Mystery Shopping · Banking

Service quality audit across 24 bank branches identified a compliance gap the client had missed for two years

A regional bank engaged Assembled to mystery shop 24 branches across Singapore over three waves. We designed a 65-point scorecard covering frontline service, product knowledge, regulatory compliance (including MAS fair dealing guidelines), and cross-selling behaviour. The second wave revealed that 40% of branches were not following the bank's own disclosure protocol for a specific insurance-linked product. The finding triggered an internal remediation programme and a fourth wave to verify correction.

24 branches · 3 waves · 65-point scorecard

How much does market research cost in Singapore?

All programmes include scoping consultation, research design, fieldwork, transcription, analysis, a strategic report, and a management presentation. Senior researchers involved at every stage. Fixed-fee quotes delivered within 48 hours.

Desk Research

SGD 3,500 starting from

Secondary analysis of published data, competitor mapping, regulatory landscape, and a written report with strategic recommendations. Typical turnaround is 2-3 weeks. Useful for market entry feasibility before committing to primary research.

Quantitative Survey

SGD 8,000 starting from

Questionnaire design, fieldwork across our proprietary 100,000-member Singapore panel, statistical analysis (cross-tabulations, significance testing), and a report with data visualisations. Sample sizes of 200-500 respondents are standard. Larger samples and specialist audiences quoted separately.

Focus Group Research

SGD 3,000 per group

Each group includes screener design, respondent recruitment from our panel, venue and refreshments, bilingual moderation by Felicia Hu, full audio and video recording, verbatim transcription, and a topline within one week. A standard 4-group programme starts from SGD 12,000 with a full strategic report and management presentation.

In-Depth Interviews

SGD 800 per interview

General population interviews start from SGD 800 per session. Specialist respondents (physicians, C-suite executives, HNWIs) start from SGD 1,200+. Programmes typically include 12-20 interviews over 2-3 weeks. Each interview runs 60-90 minutes with bilingual moderation.

Product & Concept Testing (CLT)

SGD 15,000 starting from

Venue sourcing, respondent recruitment (100+ consumers across segments), product or prototype handling, structured evaluation with statistical scoring (ANOVA, significance testing), and a strategic report. We have tested food products across multiple retail outlets, luxury goods prototypes in-hand, and skincare innovations across demographic segments.

Mystery Shopping

SGD 5,000 per wave

Scorecard design, evaluator recruitment and training from our 100,000-member panel, fieldwork with photographic evidence, and a gap analysis report with benchmarking. Multi-wave, multi-outlet, and multi-market programmes quoted separately.

Multi-Phase or Multi-Market Studies

SGD 15,000+ starting from

Complex programmes combining multiple methodologies across Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia. Pricing scales based on the number of markets, methodologies combined, audience complexity, and project duration. A single senior point of contact coordinates all logistics, recruitment, and reporting from Singapore. We have managed studies spanning up to 8 markets simultaneously.

All pricing is fixed-fee, quoted within 48 hours of a scoping conversation. No hourly rates. No agency layers. The person who scopes your project is the person moderating the sessions and presenting the findings. Request a quote or email felicia@assembled.sg directly.

Questions about market research in Singapore

How much does market research cost in Singapore?

Market research costs in Singapore range from SGD 3,500 for desk research to SGD 50,000+ for complex multi-phase projects. Focus group studies start at SGD 3,000 per group, with a standard 4-group programme starting from SGD 12,000. Quantitative surveys start at SGD 8,000. In-depth interviews start from SGD 800 per interview for general population and SGD 1,200+ for specialist respondents such as physicians and C-suite executives. Central location product testing starts at SGD 15,000. Mystery shopping starts from SGD 5,000 per wave. The main cost drivers are methodology, sample size, respondent type (general population versus specialist segments like HNWIs or healthcare professionals), number of markets, and project duration. All Assembled pricing is fixed-fee, quoted within 48 hours via our quote form.

How long does a market research project take?

Most projects run 4-8 weeks from brief to final report. Recruitment from our 100,000-member panel takes 1-2 weeks. Fieldwork runs 1-3 weeks depending on methodology. Analysis and reporting takes 1-2 weeks, with topline findings delivered within one week of fieldwork completion. Expedited timelines are available for time-sensitive product launches or competitive responses.

What is included in a market research project at Assembled?

All Assembled projects include a scoping consultation with Felicia Hu (Managing Director), research design and methodology, screener and discussion guide development, respondent recruitment from our proprietary 100,000-member panel, fieldwork with senior researcher involvement, full audio and video recording, verbatim transcription, analysis, a strategic report with data visualisations and verbatim quotes, and a management presentation. Fixed-fee pricing with no hidden costs. No junior hand-off between project stages.

What types of market research does Assembled offer?

Five core methodologies. Focus group discussions with 6-10 participants per session in English, Mandarin, and Hokkien. In-depth interviews for sensitive topics like healthcare, wealth management, and personal care. Product and concept testing including central location testing, home-use studies, sensory evaluation with ANOVA and JAR scoring, and pricing research. Mystery shopping for retail and hospitality service quality assessment. Quantitative surveys including online panels, field intercepts, and mixed methods.

Can you recruit hard-to-reach respondents in Singapore?

Yes. Our 100,000-member proprietary panel includes 3,200 high-net-worth individuals, 4,800 healthcare professionals, 1,900 C-suite executives, 12,400 premium consumers, and 8,600 insurance policyholders. Built through 9 years of actual project participation, not purchased from a list broker. Available within 1-2 weeks. Segment details are on our reviews page, where participants describe their experience.

Who moderates the focus groups?

Felicia Hu, Managing Director, personally moderates every focus group and in-depth interview session. The same person who scopes your project designs the methodology, leads the fieldwork, debriefs your team on emerging themes, and presents the final report. Her research team handles recruitment, logistics, participant care, and detailed analysis. No junior hand-off between project stages.

What industries does Assembled specialise in?

Financial services and insurance (~150 projects spanning product development, customer segmentation, and financial inclusion research). Food and beverage (~150 projects including sensory evaluation, concept testing, and menu optimisation). Healthcare and pharma (~115 projects across physician research, patient journey mapping, and medical device evaluation). Beauty and personal care (~90 projects). Technology and education (~70 projects). Luxury goods (~30 projects). Many projects span multiple industries.

How is Assembled different from other market research agencies in Singapore?

Three differences. First, senior involvement throughout. Felicia Hu, Managing Director and lead moderator, scopes, moderates, and presents every project personally. At global agencies, the partner who pitches is rarely the person running fieldwork. Second, our proprietary 100,000-member panel built over 10 years enables 1-2 week recruitment where competitors need 3-4 weeks. Third, Assembled is published by MRS Research Live (UK) and ESOMAR Research World (Global), the two bodies that set international research standards. 700+ five-star Google reviews.

Do you work with companies outside Singapore?

Yes. We conduct market entry research for companies from the US, Europe, China, Japan, and Korea. We have coordinated multi-country studies across up to 8 markets simultaneously. We serve as a local fieldwork partner for global agencies, and our panel covers 6 ASEAN markets.

Can I observe the focus groups or interviews?

Yes. Clients are welcome to observe all sessions, either in-person behind a one-way mirror or via live video stream for remote teams. All sessions are recorded with full audio and video. Transcripts are provided in English and Chinese where applicable. We also offer executive listening sessions where senior stakeholders can hear consumer voices directly from recorded highlights.

What happens after the research is complete?

Topline findings are delivered within one week of fieldwork completion so your team can act on early signals. The full report follows with verbatim quotes, data visualisation, segment analysis, and actionable recommendations. Deliverables are typically PowerPoint presentations with PDF versions, ranging from topline summaries to comprehensive 40+ page decks. Felicia presents findings directly to your team, including stakeholders who did not observe the sessions.

Can Assembled conduct market research outside Singapore?

Yes. Assembled operates across six Southeast Asian markets from Singapore. Multi-country studies span Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia with a single senior point of contact coordinating all logistics, recruitment, and reporting. We have coordinated studies across up to 8 markets simultaneously for companies entering the region from the US, Europe, China, Japan, and Korea.