Because of the constantly evolving business environment, it can be difficult to keep up with the pace of all the changes. When it comes to market research, the entire concept of marketing has changed due to technological advancements and the emergence of social media. So, as a business leader, you must make sure your marketing teams are using all of their resources efficiently.
Here are six tips business operators should keep in mind during the research process:
- Remember Research Is an Ongoing Process. Research is usually conducted to gain knowledge on consumers and their wants and needs. With the ever-changing society we live in, consumers' needs are also going to continue to change. If you want to keep up, you need to utilize research to find and analyze trends and patterns, but, don’t forget, in order to understand those trends and patterns, you need to watch them regularly. Continuing to monitor both the behavior of your consumers and your competitors will allow you to manage your business in a positive way.
- Don’t Ignore Opportunity Costs. Just as there are opportunity costs in business decisions, there are also opportunity costs in research. The benefits your company could have received by taking an alternative action or conducting new research might have more potential than the benefits you currently have by doing no research at all.
- Steer Clear of Research Method Shortsightedness. You will have many different research method options because no one method is going to work for all research projects. When you set out to answer your own research objectives, don’t limit yourself to only one method. Sometimes, multiple courses of action are needed such as a survey, focus group and reviewing secondary data.
- Outline Your Objectives Before Starting Research. Defining your objectives is the first step in guiding successful market research. Along with that, listing questions you want to answer through the research you plan on conducting will allow you and your team to stay on task. When you conduct your research, keeping your main objectives and questions in the back of your head will ensure that the project is not a waste of your time and money.
- Study Your Customers. You cannot understand your customers simply by tracking their purchases. Humans are both cognitive and emotional beings, and their actions and emotions need to be measured to fully understand their behavior. When you do research for your company, study customers' emotional drivers and their rational thoughts. If you can understand your customer in all aspects, you can create a better marketing strategy.
- Share Research Results with Employees. Once you complete your market research and gain useful knowledge, the next step is simple. Share it! Information that will benefit your company needs to be communicated with all your employees, especially if the new data is going to require strategy changes. Publicizing your research within your company can also show your teams the benefits of market research.
As you continue to research strategies to expand your company, just remember that these steps can give you a guideline to be resourceful and effective with the data you collect. For more information on using market research for your business, download our free white paper.
Thanks for reading!
Caitlin Stewart
Marketing Intern,
MarketResearch.com
