alterlab-market-research — independently scanned and version-tracked by SaferSkills.
SaferSkills independently audited alterlab-market-research (Agent Skill) and scored it 100/100 (green). The audit ran 55 deterministic rules across Security, Supply Chain, Maintenance, Transparency, and Community; it found 0 high-severity and 0 lower-severity findings. The full rule-by-rule trace and per-finding evidence are below. Free, methodology-open.
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Every scanned point with the score it earned and what moved between them.
First recorded scan — no prior version to compare against.
The primary manifest — the file an agent reads to learn what this artifact does.
Market research reports are comprehensive strategic documents that analyze industries, markets, and competitive landscapes to inform business decisions, investment strategies, and strategic planning. This skill generates professional-grade reports of 50+ pages with extensive visual content, modeled after deliverables from top consulting firms like McKinsey, BCG, Bain, Gartner, and Forrester.
Key Features:
Output Format: LaTeX with professional styling, compiled to PDF. Uses the market_research.sty style package for consistent, professional formatting.
This skill should be used when:
| Scenario | Use Instead |
|---|---|
| One focused, source-cited research question with no report or frameworks | alterlab-deep-research |
| Raw price, fundamentals, or macro data points from an API | alterlab-alpha-vantage / alterlab-fred |
| Company financials straight from SEC filings (10-K, XBRL) | alterlab-edgartools |
| A standalone infographic or one-page data story | alterlab-infographics |
| A grant proposal's significance/market section for NSF/NIH-style funders | alterlab-research-grants |
Every market size, CAGR, share, price, or forecast in the report must come from a source you retrieved and cite (analyst report, industry association, government statistics, company filing), with its year and geography. When no source supports a number, say so and show the estimate you built instead — label it as an estimate, give the assumptions and arithmetic (see the TAM/SAM/SOM templates in references/data_analysis_patterns.md), and never present it as a sourced figure. Where sources disagree, report the range and which source says what. The numbers in this skill's templates and examples are placeholders, not market data; do not carry them into a report.
Well-chosen visuals make a market research report far easier to navigate. Add figures where they clarify market structure, scale, competition, or risk — not as a quota. A handful of strong, accurate visuals beats a wall of decorative ones.
If a diagram or figure would aid comprehension, invoke the alterlab-scientific-schematics skill (diagrams/schematics) or the alterlab-generate-image skill (images). Figures are optional — add them only where they improve clarity.
Charts that encode numbers are plotted, not generated. Market-size trajectories, regional/segment breakdowns, share charts, and financial projections must be drawn from your sourced data table with alterlab-matplotlib or alterlab-plotly (and checked with alterlab-figure-qa), because image-generation models invent bar heights, labels, and axis values. Use the AI diagram/image skills only for conceptual visuals whose content you specify completely (framework diagrams, matrices with qualitative placement, timelines, cover art).
Diagrams/schematics work well for:
Generated images work well for:
For ready-to-use generation prompts mapped to each section, see references/visual_generation_guide.md.
The standard structure is front matter, eleven core chapters, and back matter. The per-page targets and framework assignments below drive the 50+ page length; the chosen frameworks (Porter, PESTLE, SWOT, TAM/SAM/SOM, BCG) are what distinguish this from a generic write-up.
| # | Section | Pages | Primary frameworks |
|---|---|---|---|
| — | Front matter (cover, ToC/LoF/LoT, executive summary) | ~5 | Market snapshot, investment thesis |
| 1 | Market Overview & Definition | 4-5 | Ecosystem / value-chain mapping |
| 2 | Market Size & Growth | 6-8 | TAM/SAM/SOM, CAGR |
| 3 | Industry Drivers & Trends | 5-6 | PESTLE, driver impact matrix |
| 4 | Competitive Landscape | 6-8 | Porter's Five Forces, positioning matrix, strategic groups |
| 5 | Customer Analysis & Segmentation | 4-5 | Segmentation matrix, customer journey |
| 6 | Technology & Innovation Landscape | 4-5 | TRL, hype cycle, roadmap |
| 7 | Regulatory & Policy Environment | 3-4 | Regulatory timeline |
| 8 | Risk Analysis | 3-4 | Risk heatmap, mitigation matrix |
| 9 | Strategic Opportunities & Recommendations | 4-5 | Opportunity / priority matrices, SWOT |
| 10 | Implementation Roadmap | 3-4 | Phased Gantt, milestone tracker |
| 11 | Investment Thesis & Financial Projections | 3-4 | Scenario analysis, projections |
| — | Back matter (methodology, data tables, company profiles, bibliography) | ~5 | — |
For the full section-by-section content requirements, required visuals, and data points per chapter, load references/report_structure_guide.md. For market-data sourcing in Chapter 2 (and throughout), use the research-lookup skill to pull market-research reports (Gartner, Forrester, IDC), industry-association data, government statistics, and company financials — cite each figure.
Step 1: Define Scope
Step 2: Conduct Deep Research
Use the companion research-lookup skill extensively to gather market data. Run focused queries across each dimension of the analysis, for example:
for [MARKET] industry? Include TAM, SAM, SOM estimates and CAGR projections"
is their market share and competitive positioning?"
industry over the next five to ten years?"
the [MARKET] industry?"
Step 3: Data Organization
sources/ folder with research notesStep 4: Apply Analysis Frameworks
For each framework, conduct structured analysis:
Step 5: Develop Insights
Step 6: Plan and Generate Visuals
Decide which figures genuinely aid the report, then generate them. Useful candidates and the kind of content each conveys:
If a diagram or figure would aid comprehension, invoke the alterlab-scientific-schematics skill (diagrams/schematics) or the alterlab-generate-image skill (images). Figures are optional — add them only where they improve clarity.
Step 7: Initialize Project Structure
Create the standard project structure:
writing_outputs/YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS_market_report_[topic]/
├── progress.md
├── drafts/
│ └── v1_market_report.tex
├── references/
│ └── references.bib
├── figures/
│ └── [all generated visuals]
├── sources/
│ └── [research notes]
└── final/Step 8: Write Report Using Template
Use the market_report_template.tex as a starting point. Write each section following the structure guide, ensuring:
Writing Guidelines:
Step 9: Compile LaTeX
cd writing_outputs/[project_folder]/drafts/
xelatex v1_market_report.tex
bibtex v1_market_report
xelatex v1_market_report.tex
xelatex v1_market_report.texStep 10: Quality Review
Run the full Checklist: 50+ Page Validation (below) covering structure, visuals, content quality, and technical correctness before declaring the report done.
Step 11: Peer Review
Use the peer-review skill to evaluate the report:
Summing the per-section page targets in the Report Structure table yields ~43 pages minimum and ~66 at target — comfortably clearing the 50+ page bar. If a draft falls short, expand appendix data tables, company profiles, and regional breakdowns rather than padding prose.
The market_research.sty package provides professional formatting. Include it in your document:
\documentclass[11pt,letterpaper]{report}
\usepackage{market_research}Use colored boxes to highlight key content:
Values in [brackets] are placeholders — fill each from a cited source (or a labelled estimate).
% Key insight box (blue)
\begin{keyinsightbox}[Key Finding]
The market is projected to grow at [X.X]\% CAGR through [YEAR] ([Source, year]).
\end{keyinsightbox}
% Market data box (green)
\begin{marketdatabox}[Market Snapshot]
\begin{itemize}
\item Market Size ([YEAR]): \$[XX.X]B ([Source])
\item Projected Size ([YEAR]): \$[XX.X]B ([Source])
\item CAGR: [X.X]\%
\end{itemize}
\end{marketdatabox}
% Risk box (orange/warning)
\begin{riskbox}[Critical Risk]
[Regulatory change] could affect [share or count, with source] of market participants.
\end{riskbox}
% Recommendation box (purple)
\begin{recommendationbox}[Strategic Recommendation]
Prioritize market entry in the Asia-Pacific region.
\end{recommendationbox}
% Callout box (gray)
\begin{calloutbox}[Definition]
TAM (Total Addressable Market) represents the total revenue opportunity.
\end{calloutbox}\begin{figure}[htbp]
\centering
\includegraphics[width=0.9\textwidth]{../figures/market_growth.png}
\caption{Market Growth Trajectory ([START]--[END]). Source: [named sources, retrieval year].}
\label{fig:market_growth}
\end{figure}\begin{table}[htbp]
\centering
\caption{Market Size by Region ([YEAR]). Source: [named sources].}
\begin{tabular}{@{}lrrr@{}}
\toprule
\textbf{Region} & \textbf{Size (USD)} & \textbf{Share} & \textbf{CAGR} \\
\midrule
North America & \$[X.X]B & [XX.X]\% & [X.X]\% \\
\rowcolor{tablealt} Europe & \$[X.X]B & [XX.X]\% & [X.X]\% \\
Asia-Pacific & \$[X.X]B & [XX.X]\% & [X.X]\% \\
\rowcolor{tablealt} Rest of World & \$[X.X]B & [XX.X]\% & [X.X]\% \\
\midrule
\textbf{Total} & \textbf{\$[XX.X]B} & \textbf{100\%} & \textbf{[X.X]\%} \\
\bottomrule
\end{tabular}
\label{tab:market_by_region}
\end{table}For complete formatting reference, see assets/FORMATTING_GUIDE.md.
This skill orchestrates several sibling skills:
Route elsewhere when the ask is narrower: a single source-cited research question → alterlab-deep-research; raw financial fundamentals from an API → alterlab-alpha-vantage.
Section-level prompts work best when they name the market, the frameworks, and the visuals, e.g.:
Before finalizing the report, verify:
Load these files for detailed guidance:
Problem: Report is under 50 pages
Problem: Visuals not rendering
Problem: Bibliography missing entries
Problem: Table/figure overflow
\resizebox or adjustbox package, reduce image width percentageProblem: Poor visual quality from generation
--doc-type report for the report quality threshold, and --iterations 2 (the scientific-schematics max) for an extra refinement passDisclose AI assistance in the report's methodology appendix, and keep the sources/ notes so every figure can be traced.
Part of the AlterLab Academic Skills suite.
~30 seconds. Free. No account. Every finding cites a rule and a line of evidence.