If conducting market research surveys has been on your radar screen for weeks, months or even years and you aren’t sure whether it’s time to pull the proverbial trigger, here are 4 signs that moving forward with your intention is the right move for your business and bottom-line at this time:
You’re getting crowded out by your competition.
Unless you’re the government or you enjoy an artificial or natural monopoly, then you know that some competition is avoidable. What’s more, you may even view it as healthy, because it gives you an opportunity to exploit weaknesses in your competitors, and in the bigger picture, it helps keep your staff focused (sometimes “we can do better because we’re the best!” is not as compelling as “if we don’t do better, we’re going to get eaten alive and we’ll all be out of a job!”).
However, if you’re getting crowded out by your competition — despite the fact that you have an excellent product line, and your current customers are happy — then market research surveys will help you go behind the scenes and see what is really going on in the minds and hearts of your target customers, and discover what motivates them to choose competitors vs. you.
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You want to ensure your product launch is successful.
You may believe that your latest product or product idea is a “sure winner” — but does that necessarily mean it will gain immediate (or any) traction in your marketplace? Not necessarily.
Unfortunately, business history is full of product launches that were DOA, including this notorious list that spotlights everything from Microsoft Zune, to the HP Touchpad, to Google’s ill-fated attempt to cash in on the “Second Life” craze with Google Lively (born July 2008, died November 2008).
Market research surveys aren’t a magic wand or a crystal ball that guarantees enthusiastic marketplace adoption, but they can certainly help you get an informed sense of what the road ahead will look like — so that you can either make important product/pricing adjustments, or perhaps even decide to delay launch.
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You’re not getting enough ROI from your marketing and advertising spend.
While word-of-mouth referrals are welcome and usually lead to profitable new customers, most businesses need to invest in marketing and advertising — both online and offline.
However, you’ve crunched the numbers and have determined that you’re not getting enough — or any — ROI from your spend, then market research surveys can help you understand why; and more importantly: what you need to change to get top-of-mind of the people you need to reach.
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You’re experiencing above-average customer service problems or customer churn.
Even companies that boast the best customer service (Amazon, UPS, Marriot, etc.), have customer service problems to deal with, and they experience customer churn as well.
However, if your business is experiencing above-average issues and problems, and many of your customers are one-and-done — which is especially problematic if you sell SaaS solutions and need long-term customer loyalty to cover your up-front costs and generate profit — then market research surveys can help you understand why.
For example, many of your customers may want self-support options, while others may be receiving mixed messages between sales and service teams. Market research surveys help you get to the root issue(s), and make critical adjustments that make your customers happier — and your bottom-line bigger.
Learn More
At Communications For Research, we provide end-to-end market research survey solutions for our clients, including survey design, participant selection, delivery, data analysis, testing, and reporting. Our in-depth expertise is in market research, but we speak the language of business and understand that our clients need actionable intelligence and strategic recommendations to make smarter, faster and more profitable decisions.
To learn more, download our FREE eBook “The Insider’s Guide to Successfully Using Market Research Surveys” to learn the best ways to design & distribute your survey.
