(.)

Marketing Research

According to the American Marketing Association, marketing research is the systematic gathering, recording, and analyzing of data about problems relating to the marketing of goods and services.

Every small business owner-manager must ask the following questions to devise effective marketing strategies:

Who are my customers and potential customers?
What kind of people are they?
Where do they live?
Can and will they buy?
Am I offering the kinds of goods or services they want - at the best place, at the best time and in the right amounts?
Are my prices consistent with what buyers view as the product's value?
Are my promotional programs working?
What do customers think of my business?
How does my business compare with my competitors?

Marketing research is not a perfect science. It deals with people and their constantly changing feelings and behaviors, which are influenced by countless subjective factors. To conduct marketing research you must gather facts and opinions in an orderly, objective way to find out what people want to buy, not just what you want to sell them.

Rich's Recommended Web Sites

Client X Client

Client X Client is dedicated to helping businesses make decisions that maximize customer value. Services include consulting, system development, customer experience analysis and customer operations value optimization.

http://www.clientxclient.com/

MarketResearch.com

MarketResearch.com is an aggregator of global business intelligence representing the most comprehensive collection of published market research analysis available on-demand.

By continuously updating research from over 350 of the leading research firms and consultancies worldwide, MarketResearch online provides the most relevant, current and credible research available. Our Research Specialists bring an unbiased approach to identifying the information business professionals need to make effective strategic decisions.

http://www.marketresearch.com/

U.S. Small Business Administration

http://www.sba.gov/starting_business/marketing/research.html

Rich's Recommended Reading List

The Focus Group by Jane Farley Templeton

Buy these books from Amazon.com

Have a question about this topic?

Then please just email me your question! If the answer is short & sweet, I will pop you back an answer. If the question requires further research, I will look into it and post the reply on my blog, AskRichBohn.com, to share with others. As always, you can email me at rich@sellmorenow.com !

Marketing Research

Rich's Recommended Web Sites

Client X Client