Why Invest in Market Research?

"If the market is large and growing, we can become millionaires if we just show up and only get 5% market share, right?"

Wrong.

Learn from Another's Misfortune

One of our?B2B marketing agency clients?(who shall remain nameless) exhibited this “show up and win” mentality. They launched a series of new products without once asking their customers what they wanted or their distribution channel partners if they would sell these new products instead of the existing products they had sold for years.

The result: even in an exponentially growing market, they could only win <1% of the overall market. Why?

Even if the product were in tune with the customer requirements that would generate the most sales (it wasn’t because they didn’t talk to any customers or channel partners before launch), even great products don’t always “win” even if they are the “best” (see Betamax vs. VHS).

You also need well-conceived pricing, a conflict-free channel to sell through, and a campaign of effective promotions. After all, your competitors have established market share for a reason and will not go quietly. Therefore, you need:

• Clear differentiation of your product and how it solves the problems of your target markets, which is a B2B brand storytelling fundamental
• A reason for your channel partners to get behind your product (and brand)
• Pricing that makes sense and is worth it
• Promoting your products where your target market educates themselves on new solutions

Getting the 4 Ps of Marketing Right

All of the above is the 4 Ps of Marketing: product, pricing, placement, and promotions, and the way to learn how to get them right is through market research.

Market research is best conducted during the marketing feasibility stage of your product development process, which is prior to designing and engineering the product.

It's critical to interview customers across each segment of your target market. There are usually 3 to 4 key segments in each target market: 80% of what customers want in each segment is the same, but 20% is different. Therefore, you need to understand the unique requirements of each segment by interviewing people in each one.

Oh yeah: your customers need to love your product because it solves their problems, and the only way to discover that is… now you’re getting the hang of this.

Market Research Consultation

If you’re ready to see how market research can impact sales, contact us. We can also advise you on B2B marketing services, including content marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), digital marketing, and, if you're a manufacturer, best practices in industrial and manufacturing marketing.