Market Research

WHY IS IT DONE?

To find out about a market and the customers needs and wants. What do potential like and dislike. How much are they prepared to pay for? Competitors price.

WHAT IS IT?

It is the process of gathering and analysing information of customer needs and nature of market for a product.

HOW DO YOU USE IT?

Use the information to focus customer needs so to get them interested and beat competitors, not to waste money so just have what they want. Can be used to create new product, attempt to increase market share. To find place in market. identifies areas of opportunity, gap in market, identifies demand, change/ adapt location, competitors and their pricing strategies, current trends, sends message to banks/ lending orgs, usp ( unique selling point), target market.

Primary research = field research

-Primary research (field research) involves gathering information for the 1st time.

-Can be collected by firm (cheaper option)/ specialist research companies (expensive)

• More accurate
• Could be more time consuming
• not varied data
• more up to date
• reliable
• more specific
• no-one else has it

Secondary research= Desk research

-It is researching through secondary data e.g. newspapers, internet, gov publications, magazines

-It involves gathering and analysing data that has already been gathered, can be from within firm or obtained outside.

• Not always up to date or relevant
• Can be bias
• Easier to do
• Competitors can use it
• Less reliable
• Cheaper and Quicker
• Better for general trends

Sample- small number of people/ items which is meant to represent the target population

Confidence level- a measure of reliability of findings of primary research.

Linked to market research gathered, 2 forms of data.

QUALITATIVE- Gives an insight into the thought and opinions of people (concerned with the quality of opinions)

QUANTITATIVE- States statistical facts and numeric data, it is easier to do numerical analysis

Can be obtained from 2 different sources:

Outside

• government statistics
  
• commercial firms
• international publications
• the media

Inside

• existing research data
• past promotional data
• financial and stock and sales records
• customer database