Market Research Fast & Dirty

Arguably, the most unglamorous part of marketing is doing market research.  I hear the complaining and the excuses often.  I personally, just don’t understand it.  In the 21^st century, nearly everything you need to manage your business is at your fingertips instantaneously.  So why on earth are people still complaining about market research?

If you know what you are looking for, you’ll discover that online data information gathering through various data mines, social platforms and information portals offer widely available content.  Here’s the kicker – it’s free!If you’re thinking, what’s the point of doing market research when you’re already in business, then you haven’t been to one of my workshops.  I am a champion for taking daily actions toward market research for 3 key reasons:

Reason #1- Use market research to evaluate market conditions

Simply put, “market conditions” is what’s happening in your industry at any given moment.  Market conditions can change hourly for some industries.  Some industries have quarterly or seasonal changes, while others are driven by consumer behavior and can fluctuate depending on several factors.  If you’re unsure how to determine your market conditions, request a consult with me and we can chat about it.

Keeping a pulse check (a word I use in my consulting firm) on your industry’s market conditions can help you:

-          Create a realistic overview of your competitive environment

-          Better understand the business challenges you might be facing

-          Gain insight into what your sustainable competitive advantage really is

Reason #2- Market research can help you define (or re-define) your market segments

Simply put, “market segments” are the categories of customers mostly likely to buy your services and/or products.  Segments are typically determined by how customers in that segment (or group) use your services and/or product.

Generally speaking, simple market research that focuses on market segmentation can help you:

-          Better define your primary, secondary and tertiary customer groups

-          Refine how you present your service and/or product as a solution for each customer type

-          Customize your marketing efforts based on the buying behaviors of each customer group

Reason #3- Market research can help you create realistic sales goals

Make sure your sales expectations are realistic giving your industry, the market conditions and the customer segments you have identified.  Too often, business professionals think that if something has a 1 in a million chance, they are the one.  Is that realistic? Probably not. It’s OK to have stretch goals, but having a realistic expectation of what you can earn is key.  Not to mention it will keep you from over-extending yourself and your resources.

Keep this in mind  . . .

There are only 10 marketing strategies, regardless of the size of your business and the size of your budget. These are covered in Module 4 of the Marketing With Ease™ System.  Choose the combination of marketing strategies that make sense for your types of customer segments.  Too often, business professionals chase after the newest trend, (what I call “squirrels”) and don’t take into consideration whether it’s appropriate for existing and potential customers.

Market research is a key component in determining sales goals.  By achieving smaller, more manageable sales goals (instead of constantly stretching for those pie in the sky goals), you will pump up your momentum. Momentum is the fuel you need to stay the course and see the results you really desire come to fruition.

Why not start some market research right now? You’re already online aren’t you?