The Business-to-Business (B2B) market is different in fundamental ways from the Business-to-Consumer (B2C) sector. Typically, B2C transactions occur through an intermediary, such as a retailer or agent, while B2B refers to transactions that take place between businesses and are generally upstream from consumer transactions. This blog post will discuss the eight key criteria that distinguish B2B markets with implications that directly affect market research.

Many organizations will reach a point in which they get stuck, or are unable to progress any further in accomplishing their business goals. So, it is important that organizations recognize the benefits that can come from purchasing or conducting market research. While sometimes difficult to draw a direct line between market research and ROI, its role in helping organizations reach their goals is a critical enough reason for ensuring your organization conducts adequate market research.

You can’t read marketing blogs these days without hearing about “data-driven decisions.”  Marketers are expected to have transitioned from the “Don Draper” era (in which gut feel and instinct ruled) to the “Data-driven” era (in which analytics, benchmarks, and consumer feedback should be in heavy supply).

The good news is this appetite for feedback is driving more online surveys being run across every organization. The bad news is most professionals don’t know the best practices for conducting a survey.  Seemingly minor mistakes can throw an entire dataset into question. Below are some common mistakes I’ve seen survey rookies make, and how to fix them.

Customer loyalty programs are one of the fastest growing marketing techniques among various different industries. American Airlines was one of the first companies to launch a successful loyalty program in 1981, and since then, loyalty programs have only increased in popularity and diversity. Because such programs are so common, not to mention the number of types of loyalty programs to choose from, it is important that you use market research to help you understand which program works best for your organization.

Market research, while critical to the overall success of an organization, is viewed by many as a big-ticket item when it comes to budget. But, although quality research doesn't always come cheap, its importance, not just for your marketing department, but for your entire organization is paramount. The benefits far outweigh the cost. You have to look at it from the mindset of an "investment" versus simply money spent. Most organizations understand that a complete lack of market research, or even just an inadequate amount, can put your organization at risk, yet some still struggle to jump the hurdle in allocating the resources necessary to their market research efforts. If we look at it from this perspective, perhaps it is most effective to consider the value market research holds across multiple departments within an organization. In doing so, you can more easily understand the value you are getting for your dollar.

As a professional in the market research and competitive intelligence industry, there have been many occasions where I would go looking for information requested by a client only to find that it is just not there. In most cases, the request is simply too specific for syndicated research to handle, but sometimes it's more surprising than that. Sometimes, whole industries are not well represented and that can be more puzzling. So, here is a brief list of common reasons you just can’t find syndicated reports about what you are looking for.

It can be very difficult to establish a criteria for measuring and judging brand awareness and, therefore, judging the efficacy of a marketing campaign. Unlike other measurements, such as website traffic, organic searches, or conversion, awareness is a much more intangible measurement, difficult to quantify and evaluate in a meaningful and objective way. Nevertheless, it can be done. One important tool for doing this can be market research.

There is an old adage in business that goes something like: "If you have two managers that always agree then one of them is redundant." Thankfully, this is not employed in most companies today, and it is not a school of thought I agree with or endorse for a couple of reasons.  

In the past few years, many organizations have adopted technologies into their business models in hopes to increase efficiency, become more flexible, and to transform their current business functions. Market research, too, has adopted new techniques and methodologies in order to keep up with the evolving markets and extend its reach. In a recent blog, The Top 20 Emerging Methods in Market Research, industry expert Greenbook Blog uses data from surveys conducted in September 2014 to determine the emerging trends that are expected to be used in the upcoming years by market researchers.

Market research is imperative when it comes to any organization – new or established. You need it to understand your target market and increase sales. Highly effective organizations understand the importance of market research continually taking place. As smallbusiness.gov puts it, organizations conduct market research for numerous reasons throughout various stages of development, all of which are equally important.