Do you have market research projects waiting on the outcome of the election? Many eyes were on Denver this week when President Obama and Governor Romney met for the first of the presidential debates. Business decision makers from the U.S. and abroad were hoping to get their first glimpse into the future White House occupants, and with good reason. There are a host of policy alternatives at play in this election that will affect the course of industries from healthcare to energy, transportation to construction, and telecom to agriculture.
Change, we don’t like it. In fact, we not only fear it. Many of us dread it. It doesn’t matter what it is. Whether it’s changing small things like the route we drive to work or our toothpaste, it stresses us out and makes us anxious.
The candidates offer two wildly different proposals for how to reignite the economy. So where does that leave those in the business sector? With possible policy changes coming, researchers are hearing a lot of anxiety about whether now is the time to be exploring and expanding.
Do we wait and see, or dive in, business as usual?
Let’s take a look at a couple of different opinions.
One school of thought is that the presidential election will indeed make a difference in many industries over time, but the outcome will have very little effect on most businesses in the short to midterm.
For example, pharmaceutical companies want to know where healthcare reform is going, but for the next few years, doctors will continue to prescribe drugs for the same reasons as yesterday. Homeowners may be anxious about financing trends, but regardless, they’re still going to add on that new nursery due to the birth of their twins.
There is merit in caution but putting off market research really means that necessary business decisions are not being made, which in turn means opportunities lost.
Or…all hell is going to break loose in 5 weeks, so brace yourself.
Either way, here’s the hard truth. There’s only one thing in life we can count on… and that’s change.
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