5 Steps to Conduct effective market research
Effective marketing is pivotal to the success of every business organization. It aids in making strategic decisions in order to choose a direction for products and services of businesses. As such, conducting proper market research is essential in smooth execution of marketing strategies. Furthermore, market research is a fairly inexpensive process which can ultimately result in profitable marketing decisions. Here are 5 steps to conduct effective market research:
Identify the Problem or Opportunity
The primary step pertains to identifying the issue about which the research will be conducted. Researchers should initially identify the underlying problem or potential opportunities of businesses. This will aid in deducing the relevant information to be sought and the process of acquiring them. This information will generally aid in defining the ideal target market and buyer persona. The information can be acquired through questions about demographics, profession, brand preference and price affordability of potential buyers. Additional variables or causes of the problem can be inquired as per the necessity.
Develop Market Research Plan
After pinning down the problems or opportunities, the next phase involves developing a market research plan. There are several ways of developing a research plan. A couple of them are as follows:
One-to-One Interview – Individual interviews are the most effective ways to extract buyer information as real time interactions are bound to yield productive results. Interviewees can comprise existing customers of business or new focus groups. However, this method can be time-consuming and costly to execute.
Random Survey – Random samples can be chosen from the general population to answer a set of questions in a time efficient manner. However, total reliability on this method can result in inaccuracy of data.
Additionally, secondary research can be done based on prior research of identical nature.
Collect Relevant Data & Information
The collected data should include a composition of qualitative and quantitative data. Qualitative data can be obtained through “Why” questions. For instance, why does a customer like a specific product from a restaurant’s menu? Such questions are exploratory in nature and open-ended until further research is done. Quantitative data can be obtained through “how much” or “how many” questions. For instance, how much time does it take for you to reach our business location? Questions along this line will extract definitive and conclusive data from customers. Additionally, questions designed to influence answers must be avoided. For instance, “You think the price of a certain product should be raised, correct?”
Analysis of Data & Information
The collected data must be analyzed in a meaningful manner to make sense. The conclusive information must be drawn from a group of questions that signify a certain trend. While doing so, prior hypothesis or assumption of trends must not influence the conclusion. As such, newer marketing decisions can be made based on updated information.
Implement Into Action
This is the final phase where you convert the conclusive information into meaningful strategy and put that into action. Develop marketing campaigns based on the conclusion drawn from research and evaluate the end result to ensure its effectiveness.
The business environment of today is constantly changing with problems arising every once in a while. The market research process should be continuously performed in order to devise newer strategies and cope with the changes. All in all, following the aforementioned steps can effectively allow business owners to execute quality marketing strategies.
