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Market Research Before undertaking any research you need to be clear about what you want to find out. Here are some of the questions you might want your market research to answer: What are your products/services? Is there a demand for your product/service? What is the Euro size of your markets? You need to assess the profitability of the sector which you intend to enter. What is your sales and distribution setup? What geographic area will you sell to? How critical is location to your business? Profile your prospective customers – look at population, demographics, income levels,
Study your competitors – who are they, how many are there, what are their strengths/ weaknesses? If you are able to answer these, and perhaps other questions satisfactorily, you should be in a position to estimate the amount of sales you are likely to achieve. The key question is will these sales be sufficient to allow you to operate a viable business? Successful marketing requires timely and relevant market information. An inexpensive research program, based on questionnaires given to current or prospective customers, can often uncover dissatisfaction or possible new products or arrives.
Market research will also identify trends that affect sales and profitability. Population shifts, legal developments, and the local economic situation should be monitored to quickly identify problems and opportunities. It is also important to keep up with competitors’ market strategies. Conducting your market research: Identity and define the problem – Defining objectives is highly important to a marketing campaign. A lot of time can be wasted performing market research on the wrong problem. Analyses the situation – An analysis of the situation is an informal survey of what information is available in the problem area.
It will help you priorities the information you need. It is important to carry out secondary research before primary research, as an expensive primary research survey may be commissioned to provide information already available from secondary sources. Sources of information include: Government agencies such as Enterprise Ireland (www. Enterprise-Ireland. Com), Shannon Development (wry. Shannon-deep. IEEE), Г??dareГs an Chelating (wry. Dares. IEEE), www. Basis. IEEE, www. Riling. IEEE City and County Enterprise Boards (www. Interpersonal. ), Chambers of Commerce or Specialist Trade Associations Local libraries, business magazines and Journals, census information, banks, etc. Pre-study field research – to ensure that you are seeking relevant information. Focus on facts, revert to your list of questions and see if you are answering them. Collecting interesting but irrelevant information is time-wasting Data collection method – concept and test your questionnaire. Make sure that the questions are understandable and will give useful answers 5. Field research – Asking the questions. It is important to select a varied sample group.
Do not base market research only on the opinion of friends and family. You may not get honest opinions. 6. Data processing – Analyses and interpret the information received 7. Reporting – Presenting the information. Research findings and conclusions should be acted upon and should form a basis for the marketing plan 2. Marketing Strategy A marketing strategy identifies customer groups which a particular business can better serve than its target competitors, and tailors product offerings, prices, distribution, promotional efforts, and services toward those market segments.
Ideally, the strategy should address unmet customer needs that offer adequate potential profitability. A good strategy helps a business focus on the target markets it can serve best. Getting your new products/services to market effectively and efficiently is the key to market penetration, sales growth and profitability. This requires detailed market planning including product launch and sales strategies and should be included within your business plan. A SOOT analysis is a structured approach to evaluating the strategic position of a business by identifying its strengths, nakedness, opportunities and threats.
It provides a simple method of synthesizing the results of the marketing audit. Once a SOOT analysis has been completed, thought can be given as to how to turn competitive weaknesses into strengths and threats into opportunities. Be realistic – do not select options which are not likely to be viable or which might be impossible to achieve. Your marketing plan should be based on the latest market intelligence and research, should detail your company’s competitive position and consider both the opportunities and risks in the marketplace.
You need to highlight your attributes: how can your company differentiate itself from the competition? Your marketing plan should also establish the most effective marketing actions required to achieve your objectives and goals. 3. Identify your Target Market Owners of small businesses usually have limited resources to spend on marketing. Concentrating their efforts on one or a few key market segments – target marketing – gets the most return from small investments. There are various methods used to segment a market: 1 . Geographical segmentation – Specializing in serving the needs of customers in a reticular geographical area.
For example, a convenience store may send advertisements only to people living within one-half mile of the store. Customer segmentation – Identifying those most likely to buy the product or service, (based on age, gender, education, occupation, income, status, values, attitudes and lifestyle, etc. ) and targeting those groups. By targeting a specific market, strategies for designing, pricing, distributing, promoting, positioning, and improving your product, service or idea are made easier, more effective, and more cost-effective. 4.
Marketing Mix Every marketing program contains four key components which are combined into an overall marketing program: Products and Services Price Promotion Place Products and Services – Defining the product or service you offer is a critical first step to marketing your business. Product strategies may include concentrating on a narrow product line, developing a highly specialized product or service, or providing a product-service package containing unusually high-quality service Price – The right price is crucial for maximizing total revenue.
Generally, higher rises mean lower volume and vice-versa, however, small businesses can often command higher prices because of their personalized service. Successful businesses maximize their profits by matching their pricing with the value customers put on their products or services. The price you charge will determine your margins and your own salary. Price is closely connected with the credibility and quality of your product or service. You should constantly survey the competition to monitor their prices. Once you have established your price, it is very difficult to increase it without going customers.
Promotion – Promotion strategies include advertising, personal selling, sales promotions, public relations, on-line marketing and direct customer interaction. Good salesmanship is essential for small businesses because of their limited ability to spend on advertising. Good telephone book advertising is also important. Direct mail is an effective, low-cost medium available to small business. Other methods of promotion include advertisements in regional newspapers, brochures, posters, participation in trade exhibitions, markets, etc.
Place – The physical criteria required for the successful operation of any business needs to be determined well in advance. How much space is needed? Consider your requirements: an office will need desks, phones, photo-copier, fax machine, reception, etc. A factory/work-shop may need to consider transport, loading/dispatch areas, electrical needs, weight of machinery, environmental issues, health & safety issues, etc. Is planning permission required? Will you buy or lease? What are the insurance costs? It is vital that you consult a solicitor before signing documents or cake verbal agreements on property.