DIY Market Research For The Beginner

All small business owners know the importance of marketing even if they are not sure how or what needs to be done. If they are in the start up stage of their small business they may feel that they cannot pay the cost of a marketing consultant.

Why not try some DIY marketing research first until you start to get into gear?

No matter what your mission statement says, the purpose of your business is to profitably get customers and keep them.

With out customers there is no business. To get and keep customers you must be able to answer this question: "If I were the customer, why would I do business with me?" That is the kernel of all market research. It is surely the most important question you can ask of your business.

Knowing the customer, knowing the marketplace, knowing the competition, knowing your product/service, if you were the customer, why would you do business or buy from yourself?

You must be able to answer the question honestly and factually. If you can, answer in dollar terms. For example, " If I were the customer I would do business with me because my services can improve his profits by 30% or $1,000 each week".

But whatever when you know the answer to that one single question you have a foundation for pricing, advertising, selling, negotiating, and doing business.

It is not easy to answer this simple question. The answer requires knowing who your customer is, which is not always obvious. The answer requires an understanding of your customers profile; Her concerns; her ability to pay; Commitments to other methods; Tolerance to risk; Cultural barriers; Mindsets: And confusions. The answer requires an accurate knowledge of the economic and "feel good" values your customer will get in your product.

The answer is the blueprint for product innovation, for advertising headlines, for market segmentation, for marketing and distribution strategy.  the answer is the blueprint for allocating investment, for hiring the right people, for selecting the best locations.

If you were the customer and you can state in ten words or less why you would buy from yourself, maybe the customer will listen to you.

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