Your Business Coach in Atlanta, GA Talks about Market Research
How to Do Market Research: A Quick and Easy Guide
You think you have a viable business idea and a product (or service) bound to make it big in the market. So, before anyone beats you to it and steal your golden opportunity, you decided to put everything into motion.
But, wait. Are you sure you’re in the right direction? Well, you cannot be sure unless you conducted your market research.
Why Bother with Market Research?
There are several good reasons why you shouldn’t take this step lightly.
If you’re just starting out, market research can help you identify which products and services will be profitable.
If you’re already in the business, it can give you an insight whether you are able to meet your customers’ needs and expectations. Moreover, it can also help you determine which areas need further improvement.
Basically, market research can help you identify the following information:
- Your target market, their challenges and needs, and what influences them to convert or make a purchase
- Where your potential and existing customers conduct their product research
- Direct and indirect competitors
- Industry trends
How to Do Market Research: An Ultra-Simplified Guide
- Define your buyer persona. Know who your target market is and develop your buyer persona by attributing their distinguishing characteristics (age, gender, location, job, family size, income, major challenges, etc.). It’s also possible to have multiple buyer personas.
- Engage with the right people. Focus on people who represent your buyer persona. Try reaching out to customers who recently made a purchase and those who chose to buy products from your competitors. Call for participants on social media and engage your own network as well. Mix them up well.
- Prepare questions. Create a discussion guide and use open-ended questions to get more thoughtful insights from participants.
- Identify the competition. Know who you are competing with. It also helps to identify your content competitors (websites and online publications that your audience might be interested in) since they can potentially steal traffic from you.
- Summarize your findings and create an action plan.
That’s your quick and easy guide to conducting a market research. It may look simple but don’t be deceived: it can eat up a lot of your precious time. If you feel you’re not up to it or want to focus on other equally important aspects of your business, we can help. Contact me, your seasoned business coach in Atlanta, GA, for a complimentary marketing strategy session and let us take care of these things for you while you do what you do best.