DIY research is better when you need firsthand local judgment, have a narrow question, or want to inspect the source yourself. spotr is better when repeated public-signal collection and evidence organization are the bottleneck.
| Job | spotr | Do it yourself |
|---|---|---|
| Define the business question | Helps frame a call, while the owner remains responsible for the decision. | Better when the owner knows the local context and can state the question directly. |
| Inspect a government source | Provides source context where its coverage supports the question. | Better when the source is unusual, disputed, or needs human interpretation. |
| Repeat the same public scan | Better for a recurring brief that keeps observations and limits together. | Works when the scan is small and the owner can keep it consistent. |
| Talk to guests and staff | Does not replace firsthand conversations. | Better. The owner sees context that a public page cannot provide. |
| Decide what to change | Drafts a call for approval. | Better because the owner knows capacity, values, and constraints. |
The SBA's market-research guidance supports using both customer understanding and competitive analysis. Use public sources such as the Austin open data portal when they fit the question, and keep the source and access date. Choose DIY when the judgment is the work. Choose spotr when repeated collection is the work.
Sources
- spotr product page (accessed 2026-10-14)
- U.S. Small Business Administration market research (accessed 2026-10-14)
- Austin open data portal (accessed 2026-10-14)