You're launching a new product. How can you predict consumer preferences to outshine your competitors?

Those are the basics of user research, but other differentiators include: rapid prototyping with user acceptance testing, agile project management, and lean approaches with MVPs. The point is about getting something out there for your users to give you feedback on.

Consider Allbirds’ Tree Dasher running shoes as an example... They probably started off with doing some market research to identify a strong demand for sustainable, high-performance footwear. This was probably followed up with tracking trends in eco-friendly materials which led to their use of eucalyptus fiber. Social listening/monitoring probably revealed a keen interest in transparency and sustainability, shaping their messaging. They would have definitely analyzed competitors like Nike and Adidas and found a gap for high-performance, eco-friendly options. Feedback from early testers most likely helped refine the Tree Dasher’s design for exceptional comfort and performance, ensuring its success in the market.

Survey research can be used to estimate the market interest. Product concepts are defined using feedback on current products from customers as well as focus groups or methods that ask for rating or ranking of features. This analysis provides input to determine the important features. The features then define the concepts. In the survey, the concepts are described for the respondents and then the respondents can indicate their level of interest. Those concepts that score high can then go on to further market testing in the field. The surveying can describe the demographics of the interested markets, so they can be sized for viability. Further market testing takes into marketing and operational factors.

Market Research is one of the key inputs to informing product development. It's best when it mixes quantitative and qualitative research methodology to enable emotional and data-driven insights.

Stay informed about disruptive technologies, shifting preferences, and regulatory changes to develop contingency plans and mitigate potential risks to your product's success.

Trend analysis is useful particularly when entering new spaces with a 0-1 product. Performing trend analyses on each component of the product can help to understand strength and weaknesses of various areas within a product before going to market

Two things can be done: 1) Primary research: Talk to users , use multiple methods of gathering insight from them and do this throughout. 2) Secondary research : Use data that is already available through third party sources, papers etc.

As more brands and people take to social media for awareness and consumption respectively, social listening is an important pieces of product marketing, to gain the latest insights on trends and product market fit. A dashboard with key social metrics that's continuously monitored helps to achieve this

Let's add continuous monitoring and adaptation, ie: Tracking Key Metrics: Monitor sales figures, customer reviews, social media engagement, and other relevant metrics to evaluate the success of your product launch and identify areas for improvement. Staying Agile: Be prepared to adapt your product and marketing strategies based on real-time feedback and market changes to stay ahead of your competitors.