Market information
Market Information
Knowing your target market is extremely important
for all businesses. But when you are starting a
business in a country other than your origin, the
knowledge about the markets becomes even more
important.
No matter how good your product or service is, in
order to sell it you'll have to convince people they
want or need it.
Get a business idea
Learn the needs of your
customers
This means you have to find out what do your
customers want or need. You also need to study your
competitors in order to compete in the marketplace.
It is also useful to think about the market trends. Use
this knowledge to differentiate your service or
product from the ones offered by the competitors.
Find out who the
competitors are and
what they do
This section provides you information on the
essentials of markets: what do you need to know and
how and where you can find the information?
Rework on your business
idea to offer something
special to your customers
How can I find my target market? (1)
There is no single product or service that would fulfil the needs of all people.
As an entrepreneur you need to identify specific customers and try to satisfy
their needs.
1. Start by thinking about your product/service:
–
–
What it will be used for, who will use it, how much does it costs, how long does it last, and what is
unique about it etc.
This will give you the first idea who your customers might be.
2. Continue by researching demographic and psychographic information of your
potential customers:
–
–
Demographics include for example the age and gender, education, income levels and the ethnic
and religious background
Psychographics include for example personality, values, attitudes, interests, and lifestyles
(How to Find Your Target Market, eHow.com: http://goo.gl/n65X3; How to Determine Your Target Market for a New Product, eHow.com:
http://goo.gl/KP9lM; How to Determine If a Market Exists for a Product, eHow.com http://goo.gl/3sUCP)
0008016781N © photl.com
How can I find my target market? (2)
3. Next, assess your competitors:
–
–
Who are they? What kind of products they are offering? What kind of customer profiles they have? etc.
You can do a S.W.O.T.T. analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats, Trends) on your
business compared to the competitors
4. Based on this information write a description of your target audience.
–
You might find out that you have several customer types. Writing a separate description for each will
help you to focus on one target group at a time.
5. Before launching your business
officially, test your product out with
potential customers.
— Modify your products and services based
upon the feedback you receive.
(How to Determine If a Market Exists for a Product, eHow.com
http://goo.gl/3sUCP; How to Find Your Target Market, eHow.com:
http://goo.gl/n65X3); How to Determine Your Target Market for a
New Product, eHow.com: http://goo.gl/iPyBA)
How to do market research?
There are two types of market research:
1. Secondary market research
2. Primary market research
If you have money, you can hire
a marketing research company to do the
research for you
Tip: Students at local business
schools might do market feasibility
studies for course credit
Market research is a continuous
process. You need to continue
studying your customers and
modify your products based
upon feedback you receive, so
that you can keep up with the
competition and can respond to
the needs of the customers.
Alternatively, you can
do the market research by yourself
0002630842ZZ © photl.com
What is secondary market research?
It means analysing data that has already been collected by
someone else.
+ often quite cheap, materials can be
found free of charge online
+ a good starting point when you want
to analyse your target markets,
competitors and political, social and
economic factors
does not allow you to get first hand
knowledge of your customers and
their needs
© Ariel da Silva Parreira in Stockvault.net
© Ariel da Silva Parreira in Stockvault.net
Where do I find information on markets?
Secondary information you can exploit:
• Business magazines and newspapers provide
information on the economy and the effect it’s having
on different types of markets.
• National statistics offices offer
statistical information on economy,
population and trends
• Local authorities and Chambers of Commerce can
advise you with local information
• Market reports available free of charge from the web,
also market research companies sell them online
© SXC.hu / Jesper Noer
What is primary market research?
It is analysis of information that is directly collected from the
source, e.g. from your customers.
+ the information is likely the most valuable, because it is the most
current and the most specific
can be costly and time-consuming to gather this kind of data
It is advisable to use both
secondary and primary
market research to get a
comprehensive picture of
your markets.
0010820860P © photl.com
How do I conduct a primary market research?
The starting point for all market research should be
the objective of the research.
Also the type of data you need and
the amount of money you are able to spend
will determine which techniques you choose.
The most common techniques of
collecting the data include:
•
•
•
•
•
Interviews
Focus groups
Surveys
Observation
Field tests
(Understanding the Basics of Small Business Market Research, AllBusiness.com: http://goo.gl/xxIu9)
© Dreamstime.com /
Rob Bouwman
Tips for conducting the market research
•
•
•
•
•
Pay attention to the sample: make sure your target group is relevant to your needs
Reward your customers after having participated in your study, e.g. offer discount
coupons or organise a prize draw
Keep your research impartial, avoid using leading questions
Interpret results with care, you can use an outside person to analyse your data
Do not ignore criticism as it can be the most valuable data for you to develop your
service
(How to Conduct Market Research, eHow.com: http://goo.gl/BNvQA; Market research and market reports,
Business Link: http://goo.gl/xIrxe)
Where to find market research reports?
Euromonitor International (an independent company offering
market research reports subject to a charge):
http://www.euromonitor.com/
Enterprise Ireland (Irish government organisation responsible for
the development and growth of Irish enterprises in world
markets), Market Research Centre, Country reports
http://www.enterprise-ireland.com/en/ExportAssistance/Market-Research-Centre/Country-Reports.html
UK Trade & Investment (UKTI works with UK-based
businesses to ensure their success in international
markets), Country reports
http://www.ukti.gov.uk/export/countries.html
Video tutorials
Understanding your customers’ needs:
http://www.elearning.businesslink.gov.uk/starti
ngup/0138
Who is your competition?
http://bcove.me/7t7x7bkt
Researching your market:
http://bcove.me/wec8sngc
(source: www.businesslink.gov.uk)
Learning materials, tips and links
• Tips and tools for conducting market research:
http://www.inc.com/guides/biz_online/online-market-research.html
• How to conduct market research:
http://managementhelp.org/marketing/market-research.htm
• 21 market research tips:
http://www.sitepoint.com/market-research-tips/
• Survey monkey -tool: http://fi.surveymonkey.com/
This was the last slide of this topic.
You can continue to the next topic of
How to start up a business by returning to the start of the module
or to the start of Learning materials.
Please, click the following logos and visit us also on:
WEB
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission.
This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for
any use which may be made of the information contained therein.