Market Research

An essential part of the business planning process is Market Research. Market Research is not just important section of business planning; it is also has its own importance in business because it is one of the best key of success. This may include:

Look At The Market

It is your first duty to Look and Research that how big is the Market? What Type of consumers are we aiming to attract? What is the spending pattern of the target customers? Are there any other Market parts we could adapt the Product to meet? For instance, putting lemon juice into small-cartons to tap into the packed lunch Market.

Your Competitors

You must have to find answer these questions. Who are the key Competitors? How can you differentiate your Product from your Competitor’s Product? Where are they located? How have their sales been changing recently? What prices do they charge? Where do they sell their Products or services?

Look At The Product

Look at the Product. It may mean some test Marketing on a focus group or representative group of customers & seeing what their reaction is, but it is best to test your Product that what is situation of your Product in the Market.

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Price

We may need to test how sensitive customers are to price changes (how elastic is the price?).

Distribution

What are the most appropriate shops, malls or outlets to sell the Product in? What are their price expectations?

Promotions

Promotion is also main part of your sell if you are proposing any promotions or other advertising then it may be worth Research to see what the reaction of consumers will be to these promotions.

Types of Market Research

There are following main Types of Market Research.

First is desk Research (or secondary Research) & second is field Research (primary Research).
Desk Research is Research using secondary data. This is data that has already been found by someone and published. This may mean:

1. Using government published statistics - perhaps from the office for national statistics or from international organizations.

2. Using existing Market Research information from specialist Market Research companies.

3. Using sales figures from Competitors (if they can be acquired), together with pricing & Product information, perhaps from their promotional information.

4. Trade associations - many trade associations gather data from all firms in a particular sector & publish the data.

5. Internet - many web sites offer information & much government published data can be accessed for free through their web sites.

Field Research is Research that collects primary data. This is data or information that does not already exist. It can be collected through:
Customer questionnaires
Focus group
Direct mail surveys
Web-based surveys
Customer interviews

However, results do have to be treated with caution where the sample can not be controlled, as the sample may not be representative of the population you are trying to reach.

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