name: apify-market-research
description: Analyze market conditions, geographic opportunities, pricing, consumer behavior, and product validation across Google Maps, Facebook, Instagram, Booking.com, and TripAdvisor.

Market Research

Conduct market research using Apify Actors to extract data from multiple platforms.

Prerequisites

(No need to check it upfront)

• .env file with APIFY_TOKEN
• Node.js 20.6+ (for native --env-file support)
• mcpc CLI tool (for fetching Actor schemas)

Workflow

Copy this checklist and track progress:

Task Progress:
- [ ] Step 1: Identify market research type (select Actor)
- [ ] Step 2: Fetch Actor schema via mcpc
- [ ] Step 3: Ask user preferences (format, filename)
- [ ] Step 4: Run the analysis script
- [ ] Step 5: Summarize findings

Step 1: Identify Market Research Type

Select the appropriate Actor based on research needs:

Step 2: Fetch Actor Schema

Fetch the Actor's input schema and details dynamically using mcpc:

export $(grep APIFY_TOKEN .env | xargs) && mcpc --json mcp.apify.com --header "Authorization: Bearer $APIFY_TOKEN" tools-call fetch-actor-details actor:="ACTOR_ID" | jq -r ".content"

Replace ACTOR_ID with the selected Actor (e.g., compass/crawler-google-places).

This returns:
- Actor description and README
- Required and optional input parameters
- Output fields (if available)

Step 3: Ask User Preferences

Before running, ask:
1. Output format:
- Quick answer - Display top few results in chat (no file saved)
- CSV - Full export with all fields
- JSON - Full export in JSON format
2. Number of results: Based on character of use case

Step 4: Run the Script

Quick answer (display in chat, no file):

node --env-file=.env ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/reference/scripts/run_actor.js \
  --actor "ACTOR_ID" \
  --input 'JSON_INPUT'

CSV:

node --env-file=.env ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/reference/scripts/run_actor.js \
  --actor "ACTOR_ID" \
  --input 'JSON_INPUT' \
  --output YYYY-MM-DD_OUTPUT_FILE.csv \
  --format csv

JSON:

node --env-file=.env ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/reference/scripts/run_actor.js \
  --actor "ACTOR_ID" \
  --input 'JSON_INPUT' \
  --output YYYY-MM-DD_OUTPUT_FILE.json \
  --format json

Step 5: Summarize Findings

After completion, report:
- Number of results found
- File location and name
- Key market insights
- Suggested next steps (deeper analysis, validation)

Error Handling

APIFY_TOKEN not found - Ask user to create .env with APIFY_TOKEN=your_token
mcpc not found - Ask user to install npm install -g @apify/mcpc
Actor not found - Check Actor ID spelling
Run FAILED - Ask user to check Apify console link in error output
Timeout - Reduce input size or increase --timeout