Characteristics of failed businesses include lack of sufficient funding, lack of planning and lack of a vision of where and how owners want the business to grow and succeed. Statistics show only one in three new business start-ups survive beyond the first two years. Those with sufficient financing and a clear direction enjoy a much greater chance for success. Another important missing piece of the business success puzzle is marketing research.
Have you reached a plateau or stumbling block in your business and are not sure how to get past it to move to the next level? Some very basic marketing research can help get you back on track and refocused on your next level of success. Market research does not have to cost thousands of dollars.
Where Can You Begin Your Marketing Research?
Much marketing research can be done in-house by you and your staff, or by an independent contractor. You already have an excellent group from which to seek input: your existing client base. They have already done business with you, so they have experienced what it is like to deal with you. If they have also dealt with some of your competitors – better yet.
Who are your most favored clients or customers? Why are they among your elite client base? It’s likely they are the same ones responsible for the majority of your revenues and profit. Do they possess other positive characteristics that you would look for in new clients? Are they loyal to your company and willing to pay more for quality products and services? Which client types would you like to have more of, or less of?
You Already Have Marketing Research Data.
A great deal of marketing research information should be contained within your company records. All it takes is committing some time and personnel to review and analyze that data. This basic exercise will give you a clear idea of who your best customers are, and why you would want more like them to help you move forward. Next step is to determine where you can find more of those ideal customers.
See – marketing research doesn’t have to be overly costly or complex. It just takes commitment to do the work it takes to look at your existing customers. Analyze what it is that makes others like them ideal targets for your marketing.
Take time to do some marketing research into your competitors too. What are they doing different from your firm? How successful are they? Are they looking for the same customers as you or have they targeted another niche? With the results of your marketing research, you will have information in hand for planning strategies to grow your firm.
