Market Research Made Easy

You don’t have to spend a fortune on intense, consumer-oriented market research to be a success in the B2B marketing space. All you really need to do is set a manageable framework for research, collect the data, dedicate the time to putting everything into context and then act on your findings.

You’ll be surprised at your “return” on the investment.

Set the framework
The biggest problem companies run into when considering market research is related to organization. There are so many options available when it comes to collecting and analyzing data that marketing managers unfamiliar with research are quickly and easily overwhelmed.

Rather than looking at all of the options and their related costs, I suggest clients start on the other end of the project and identify the questions they have about their clients, markets or competitors and determine the value of knowing the answers. Be as specific as possible.

Once the scope of the research has been determined, clients need to decide how much of this they want to take on themselves and how much they want to delegate to an outside expert. The cost of an expert is relatively easy to determine (they’ll give you an estimate or proposal), but the cost of conducting research with in-house personnel is more difficult. You have to consider not only the actual costs incurred related to your in-house persons’ salary, benefits and overhead but you also need to consider the opportunities lost because of the in-house person’s commitment to the research project.

It’s surprising how, once an honest assessment of costs is done, an outside expert is preferred.

Whether it’s provided by an outside expert or determined by an in-house committee, a framework for the research needs to be determined. This means an action plan has to be set with clear objectives, detailed tactics, deadlines and budgets. Remember, every tactic has a cost associated with it – either in hard dollars or time required or both. Be sure to document this and continue whittling away at the scope of work until you feel comfortable the scope can be met given the cost and time required.

From that point forward, all that’s required is implementation.

Collect the data
This is usually the most expensive part of the process. Data collection can consist of everything from conducting focus groups in remote locations to distributing surveys by e-mail. Secondary research may require site visits or trips to research libraries. We do a lot of phone interviewing, finding the one-on-one interaction with people who fit in our clients’ target to be very helpful.

Data collection typically takes the most time. But if it’s done well (and usually conducted or supervised by the person responsible for the analysis and recommendations), the data collected can often provide additional insights that go far beyond the scope of work.

One thing to keep in mind (and it will help you save money): Data collected for previous/other research projects may hold some of the critical information you require. Make sure you have a complete understanding of what information is readily available from this and similar in-house sources.

Put it into context
Although data collection can be the most expensive part of the process, it’s the analysis (where data is turned into information) that adds the value. Conducting analysis in-house is tough, especially for small and mid-sized companies. Why is that? Because objectivity is paramount.

Research specialists can be retained on a freelance basis to evaluate data and provide insights. But beware, if you’re considering a specialist for this phase of the project, you need to make sure the specialist you select is involved in setting the framework for the data collection and after action. That way, you’ll be able to tap into the entire range of knowledge and expertise offered by the expert.

One of the things we do that helps put everything into context is we review our preliminary findings with media representatives we trust. Trust is meant in both senses: journalists we trust to have their finger on the pulse of the industry and journalists we trust to not blab our findings before we’re ready. (You can find more about partnering with the media in the Media Advisor blog.)

The last step in this analysis phase is to help tie the research and its findings to the day-to-day operations and long-term vision of the company/brand. These recommendations are intended to have a definitive impact on the company and its brand(s). And even if the client doesn’t want to act on all (or any) of the recommendations, they should (in the very least) trigger an informed debate that will help the company improve and the brand increase in value.

Act on your findings
The last, and most important, step in this whole process involves putting knowledge into action.

It’s not enough to just know what’s happening. By creating action plans that leverage that knowledge, a client is able to make informed decisions on business strategy, market development, customer management and a wide range of other issues that have a direct impact on the bottom line.

Action is important. Measurement of that action (and what results) is also important. The results of those actions can become the initial data required for another round of market research and business activity that fosters’ the clients’ agenda and business mission.

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