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Example research essay topic: Product Or Service Strengths And Weaknesses - 1,156 words

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Market research is the cost effective collection and analysis of information about the customer and market to support better business decisions. The key to market research is obtaining useful information, both perceptual and factual. Its important to know what the customer knows, (awareness and familiarity), what the customer thinks and values (opinions and beliefs), what the customer feels (attitudes and emotions), what the customer does and is likely to do (usage and behavior), and what drives and motivates the customer to buy. Whether a business is looking to develop new opportunities or to expand their existing base, market research is vital in that it cannot be obtained from any other source. Why Do Market Research? The customer base is never static.

Markets shrink, grow and segment constantly requiring frequent adjustments by the successful enterprise. The primary benefit of market research is to help business understand the customer. Through usage and attitude studies a business can better understand customer needs and their reaction to a product or service. Just as important is an understanding of customer reaction to a competitors product or service. Market research attempts to assess a range of intangibles about customer preferences, purchasing patterns and contentment, thereby helping to better focus resources. There is a marked difference between price and value.

Market research tells the business what motivates the customer to buy. Knowing the answer helps the firm set the price for its product or service. While some customers look only at price, others consider dependability and value. Market research is needed to test and develop new products and services.

Is the product or service needed? Information for innovative new products is rarely available except through market research. Businesses discover where the most lucrative areas for their new product or service are, and what the most effective launch programs are. The most famous last words inside any firm are: "We don't have any real competition. " According to The Digital Economy: - Of the companies on the 1979 list (of Fortune 500 companies), 40 % no longer exist as corporate entities. - Most medium- or large-sized companies in North America introduce more than one new product per day.

Last year Sony introduced 5000 new products. Even something as seemingly stable and low-tech as beer requires innovation; 90 % of Miller's revenues come from beers that didn't exist 24 months ago. - Product life cycles are cratering. In 1990, automobiles took six years from concept to production. Today they take two years. - Hewlett-Packard's Computer Systems Organization chief Wim Roelandts says that most of HP's revenues come from products that didnt exist a year ago... (The Digital Economy, 2001) Gaining insight into the competition through competitor analysis provides insight into strengths and weaknesses of rivals and identifies potential emerging competition.

Competitor analysis allows a business to learn from the mistakes of others especially when introducing a new product as well as improve upon their successes. Questions answered include: How many similar firms exist? What are the competitors market share and sales volume? What attracts customers to the business and product or service? Internally, market research can boost an organizations performance by helping with self-assessment, and improving internal communications. An organization can monitor unit morale in this way.

The goal of market research is to access the market by determining who the customer is, what the customer wants, where and when they want it and what motivates them to buy. Who the customer is includes trends, such as population shifts, the local and / or national economic environment, lifestyles, age, income, occupation, and family status. Market research works because by talking to a relatively few people a business can find out about a much larger universe of people. The universe could be anything from the entire population to one of an infinite number of sub-groups. If the sample is representative of the group the business is interested in, and if the right questions are asked, market research is the most cost-effective way of finding out what a business wants to know.

Market knowledge answers the key question about the degree of success of the current marketing strategy in relation to the return on investment by answering several other questions. Can, and will, the customer buy the products and services offered, where theyre being offered at the time theyre being offered? Are prices consistent with perceived value? Its not always the lowest price that attracts customers.

Maybe doubling the price actually increases sales. Are promotional programs appealing to the customer and effective? How does the overall operation compare with the competition? Market research may suggest that the only way to answer these questions is by launching a product or service and see what happens. Market research can help determine the strengths and weaknesses of the various methods of reaching the customer.

An examination of the salespeople, distributors, direct mail methods, dealerships, telemarketing, trade shows, Internet, vending machine and giveaways are a few of the distribution methods a marketing research effort would look at. Because the potential markets of a large enterprise can be so extensive and encompass so many groups the most effective way to undertake market research for these firms is to contract with a professional researcher. However, smaller businesses hold an advantage as they are closer to their customers and react more quickly to changes in customer buying habits and changes in the local economy. (web) Conducting Market Research Basic market research need not be expensive. In some cases the information a business needs is already available through one of several sources of secondary data. Trade associations keep customer analysis peculiar to a firms expertise. Local Chamber of Commerce offices, media computer services, industry publications and even the public library are good sources of information.

Demographic data can be researched through the Census Bureau. Employees are one of the best sources of information about customers because they work more directly, hear the praise and complaints that never make it to upper management and are more aware of product requests. It all adds up to a good customer profile. Company data, sales records, and complaints can give a good idea of customer demographic information, where they live, what they buy and at what time. Much of this information can then be cross-referenced against advertising, promotions and sales events. Keeping an eye on the competition through price monitoring, advertising placements, and sales events can help point out market needs.

Perhaps no one else is offering a particular product or service. The two basic types of marketing research are quantitative and qualitative. Usually involving surveys, quantitative research answers questions that start with "how many" or "how much. " Qualitative research studies rely on observation and unstructured conversations addressing issues that deal with "why" or "how. " The marketing research process consists of a planned, systematic gathering of market information to assist in managerial decision making-consisting of the following steps. 1. Define the Purpose and Objectives of the Research...


Free research essays on topics related to: market research, products and services, sources of information, strengths and weaknesses, product or service

Research essay sample on Product Or Service Strengths And Weaknesses

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