You know the saying, “we study history to not repeat the mistakes of the past?” It’s kind of like that with market research.
Communication strategies are not just pulled out of thin air. They’re based on information about consumers’ needs and preferences. How that information is gathered can differ—surveys, interviews, competitor analysis, etc.
The important thing is you actually do it. The best part of market research is you always, always, always go back to what the research tells you. Your strategy and the recommendations within are based on what the market actually needs or can support. Here are the basic types of market research.
Primary
Let’s break it down now. Primary research is meant to gather firsthand information on a business’ market and customers. The info is collected through focus groups, online surveys, phone interviews, and more. These are meant to better understand the challenges potential customers face and if there is any brand awareness associated with your company. This type of research is especially useful when building audience/buyer personas. We just recently conducted a survey to gather information for an upcoming product launch. We needed to better understand selling points, feasible price points and creative that would resonate with potential customers.
The results are now being used in finalizing product positioning and messaging for a soft launch.
Secondary
Secondary research is data a business has at their disposal to draw conclusions from and to identify trends. The data can be obtained through public, commercial or internal sources. This includes sales reports (internal—your own business info), digital and web reports/analytics (internal), government data (public—U.S. Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor & Statistics), market reports (commercial—Pew, Gartner, or Forrester) and more. While the process to collect and analyze market research can be a bit overwhelming, it is an integral part of any marketing strategy.
If you’re interested in learning more, we’re always available for a Zoom happy hour or coffee chat.
