Any company that is preparing to put together a marketing plan should pay close attention to the importance of market research. In order to get comprehensive and useful marketing information, a small business owner should look into hiring experienced data collection companies. A marketing plan that is not based on accurate market research data will not have much of a chance of being successful. To appreciate the value of investing in marketing data, the management team of any company first needs to understand what kind of data is being supplied and how it is useful.

– Consumer Tendencies

Data collection companies survey people on a regular basis to determine the tendencies of a company\’s target market. A target audience is often identified by the results gathered from consumer surveys. A cross-section of several different types of consumers is questioned about a product and their responses are recorded as response data.

If a company is planning on releasing a product, then this kind of marketing data can tell the company which kinds of customers would be interested in the product. Important demographic information such as age, gender, income and geographic location are noted and used to break the data down into target groups.

The surveys will also ask what improvements or changes should be made to the products to make them more appealing. In some cases, this kind of feedback will help change the color of a product or have features added before it goes to market.

– Advertising Mediums

Market research can help determine the best advertising medium to use to reach the target audience. During consumer surveys, the market research company will ask what kinds of entertainment the subjects prefer. The data is then used to determine which mediums will be used for the upcoming marketing campaign. For example, if 60 percent of the consumers in a target audience indicate that they get most of their new product information from the Internet, then the Internet will be the focus for that particular marketing campaign.

– Pricing

Perceived value of a product can be an extremely powerful marketing tool for companies. If the company wants to charge $10 for the product but the consumer research indicates that consumers perceive the product to be worth $15, then that could affect the pricing when the product does get released.

Price structure can also be determined by market research data. If a company intends to create a novice, intermediate and professional level of product so that it can charge more for the more advanced features, then the target audience will be presented with this price structure to see what they think. If the price structure seems unappealing to the target audience, then it may affect how the company approaches the final price structure used when the product is released.

Market research is extremely important to many different aspects of a marketing plan. In order for a company to develop accurate sales projections and budget numbers, it first needs to know the consumer tendencies of its target market.

For more information on quantitative project management and qualitative project management, visit the Winning Research Groups.

For more information on quantitative project management and qualitative project management, visit the Winning Research Groups. http://www.winningresearchgroups.com/

Author Bio: For more information on quantitative project management and qualitative project management, visit the Winning Research Groups.

Category: Marketing
Keywords: market research,surveys,data collection,focus groups,marketing,business,services,consultation,b2b,