11 Simple Tips for More Effective Market Research

By Brett Farmiloe

Through market research, you can learn critical information about the buying habits, preferences, and opinions of your customers, as well as necessary business intelligence that helps your company make informed decisions. From having conversations with existing clients to researching other brands for new ideas, here are 11 ways to conduct effective market research.

1. Define a suitable technique to gather data

"When conducting market research, selecting the right data-gathering technique for your needs is essential. There are a variety of channels available, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. For example, combining operational data (O-data) with experience data (X-data) can give you a well-rounded picture of what is working and what is not. However, it is also essential to consider the cost and resources required to collect this information.

"In some cases, using a less comprehensive but more affordable method may be more practical. Ultimately, the goal is to gather the insights you need to make informed decisions about your business without stretching your resources too thin."

—Michael Sena, Senacea

2. Conduct an in-depth competitor analysis

"When doing market research, a significant step to take is conducting an in-depth competitor analysis. This includes looking at reviews to determine what the competitor is doing right or wrong, evaluating brand awareness, and even going as far as testing the competitor’s products.

"Competitor analysis is a strategic step to take when your company isn’t moving as fast as you’d like it to. All of these actions can help spark ideas to improve your product, see what hasn’t been working while comparing your product to the competitors, and learn how to diversify your product to the market."

—Sanem Ahearn, Colorescience

3. Talk to people outside of your circle

"Whenever I go into a new local market, I make friends with the bartenders, baristas, taxi/Lyft/Uber drivers, clean teams, and folks who sit on their porches in the evening—the people who are around outside of nine-to-five hours and who hear everything. Encourage others to do the same to challenge their assumptions. It's always my first step after the initial studies and it often sends me back to the drawing board to redo the quant research!"

—David Romako, Bright Brothers Strategy Group

4. Decide whether or not to outsource

"Decide whether you want to hire another company to do your market research for you or if you wish to do it on your own. Doing it on your own may take more time, yet less money; outsourcing may take less time, but more money. Look at your financial situation and reviews of market research companies to determine the best decision for you."

—Miles Beckett, Flossy

5. Use the trial and error method

"Sometimes, the only way to learn is by doing. Figuring out which tactics and strategies are going to fare best for your products, services, and industry at a given time requires a fair amount of trial and error. When conducting market research, the most important thing to realize is that you can’t manage what you don’t measure. When doing market research, brands must figure out ways to test their ideas. From there, they must look for trends that indicate success and move their efforts in the right direction."

—Stephanie Venn-Watson, fatty15

More articles from AllBusiness.com:

• Introduction to Market Research
• Get Inside Your Customers’ Heads—Here’s How to Conduct a Focus Group
• Driving Growth With Core Values and Core Purpose
• 4 Ways Market Research Can Benefit Your Business
• Top 10 Market Research Mistakes

6. Have a conversation with existing clients

"I think we can sometimes lose awareness that a primary reason for having our products and services is to create solutions for customers and clients. If while doing market research, we don't have a 'conversation' (e.g., poll, interview, focus group, etc.), then we may be missing our entire purpose."

—Gresham Harkless Jr., Blue 16 Media

7. Research adjacent brands for new ideas

"Look at the direct competition and “adjacent” brands—these are businesses that have different products, but similar consumers. For example, if you are a makeup brand, it's helpful to look at successful launches and campaigns for hair-care or skin-care brands—or even fashion brands. Thinking outside the box can help you develop new ideas and branch out of your usual comfort zone."

—Marilyn Zubak, Snif

8. Define and consistently return to your purpose

"One of the most important aspects of market research is to not only define the actual purpose of the research, but to continually refer to your purpose as you progress through the research steps. I say this because it can be all too easy to get overwhelmed with data or fixate on a certain method of data gathering because it suits your preferences. But if it doesn't align with the core market research purpose (and its requirements), then your data may not be as aligned as you need it to be."

—Dawn Wood, Woodyatt Curtains

9. Test your service design on real people

"I'm a huge fan of Steve Blank's 'lean methodologies,' and one crucial step in doing market research from a startup perspective is getting out of the building and testing your service design or prototype with real people. This effectively identifies any kinks in the UI or UX of the product or service that you are doing the market research for. You can apply this principle in a macro sense to other types of market research if you want to get more qualitative data for your research."

—Tyler Hull, Modern Exterior

10. Base your decisions on data and feedback

"In my opinion, this is a crucial part of any market research project, as incorporating assumptions into the process is one of the most perilous mistakes that can be made. Observing trends and making hasty assumptions about their causes is surprisingly simple. That's a surefire way to fail. We need to stop making decisions based on hearsay and start basing them on data, studies, feedback, and trends."

—Nely Mihaylova, Unagi Scooters

11. Clearly present your data

"In order to make the most of market research, it is essential to present the data in an engaging and easy-to-understand way. This can be achieved through the use of charts, graphs, and other visual aids. It is also important to clearly explain the implications of the data and how it can inform decisions about marketing strategy and product development. By taking the time to present the data well, companies can ensure that they are getting the most out of their market research efforts."

—Ludovic Chung-Sao, Zen Soundproof

RELATED: Best Practices for Conducting Market Research