When writing your #business plan, market research will help you to understand why customers will buy your product and who your competitors are. A well thought out market research studies show how cultural, societal and personal factors influence consumer behavior.
There are two types of market research, primary and secondary. Primary research studies customers directly, whereas secondary research studies information that others have gathered about customers.
Primary research can be done through telephone interview or online polls. Talk to your intended customers, get insights. You can also create online forms and share with your social media community. Asking specific and direct questions will generate astonishing results.
Secondary research might come from reports found on the websites of various organizations or blogs written about the industry. There are PDF files online detailing the specifics of each industry. You can also search for trade journals, newspaper articles, census data, magazines etc. For your plan, you can use either type of research or a combination of both.
Your market research must answer these basic questions
Who are your customers: You have to define them in terms of age, occupation, income, lifestyle, educational attainment, etc.
What are they buying: Describe their buying habits relating to your product or service, including how much they buy, their favorite products, the most popular features and the predominant price points.
Why do they buy? This is a very tricky question. In answering this, you have to delve into the customers’ head and attempt to decipher their reasons for choosing one product over the other. Answers will depend on the product and its uses.
What will make them buy from you? This question might seem difficult but you will be amazed at the detailed information that’s available about markets, sales figures and consumer buying motivations. This is the reason why you have to tap information sources to provide the answers to as many questions as you can because this will make your plan more convincing and increase your odds of success.
For startups, the best kind of market research is the one you do on your own. You can gather detailed research on customers, including their likes, dislikes and preferences, through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc.
You can even opt to send a Whatsapp or Blackberry Messenger broadcast message to contacts that fall within your target market, they will definitely give you favorable answers.
People are researching and making their opinions felt through their actions on the web, so you can gain a lot of #marketing insight by looking closely at what is going on.
For comparative purp
oses, you can look at companies serving your target market. Consider
- Companies of relative size
- Companies serving the same geographic area, which could be global depending on your business idea.
- Companies with a similar ownership structure. If your business has two partners, look for businesses run by a couple of partners and study their approach.
- Companies that are relatively new. While you can learn from long-standing businesses, they may be successful today because of their 25-year business history and reputation, you can also learn from new businesses that are learning to stay afloat.
Market research will open a lot of insights into dos and don’ts when solidifying your business idea. It will help you make realistic projections and illuminate your path.
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