Launching a new product can be challenging. The tight competition makes it difficult for new products and services to penetrate. Regardless of the market structure, businesses face choices that affect viability. Observing their peers’ moves and customer perceptions is crucial in marketing.
Market research has always helped reach and capture customers. These were proven effective in understanding the competition and market demand better. Interviews focus groups, and surveys are often used to conduct research. So we will discuss how to market a new product using primary research.
How to Start Your Market Research
Research is pivotal in proving an existing and new concept in any discipline. Whether it is primary or secondary research, you can gather valuable information. In marketing, primary research is often used to assess customer perceptions. Products and services are changing so are consumer behavior and your competitors’ strategies.
Let us assume you are doing primary research. Here are some tips for conducting it the right way.
Assess the Level of Competition
Understanding the level of competition helps you assess the market supply and demand. It begins with determining the competitors of the product you want to offer. It will give you a glimpse of how easy or hard it is to go head-to-head with them.
From there, you can focus on product differentiation. You may focus on those selling the most. It is vital to observe the type and effectiveness of existing products and services. Knowing how the customers respond can provide a hint about the market demand. From product quality to brand loyalty, it will help you on how you can make your product different.
Know Your Target Market
Every product or service is offered to different customers across all demographics. Bracketing age and gender are essential in assessing how products are perceived. Knowing the employment status is also important. For example, you are launching new kitchen equipment. You cannot just focus on women today. Working moms and househusbands are no longer unusual.
You may opt to market everyday products since you don’t have to segment consumers. But you will spend a lot of time and effort increasing its appeal to the market. Make yourself different from the rest of your peers. Note that all your peers are doing the same thing, so it is not as easy as one, two, and three.
Determining your target market is an excellent start to ensuring information accuracy. They are the ones who will rate the quality of your product. Market research enables you to do product validation to assess products. It also provides ideas to enhance the existing ones.
Quantitative or Qualitative Research
Before your survey, you must choose between quantitative and qualitative research. It will help you identify your target respondents from a population. It will guide you in preparing your questionnaire and assessing customer responses.
Qualitative research appears more straightforward than quantitative research. It is because responses are free-form, in general. You do not have to go through statistical analysis, especially if you hate numbers. Yet, it can be prone to research biases since you can hardly quantify the responses. There are ways to assess it and reduce potential errors and biases like coding.
Meanwhile, Quantitative Research appears complex since it involves numerical analysis. But researchers are more inclined to use it because of its accuracy. Here are several ways to market your product through quantitative research:
Prepare Your Questionnaire
Whether quantitative or qualitative research, having a prepared questionnaire is essential. You can make your own or look for similar ones on the internet. Make sure that it has a disclaimer that allows you to use it anytime. Otherwise, you will have to inform the one who made it.
In quantitative research, Likert Scale questionnaires are often used. These make the quantification of responses more straightforward. In qualitative research, free-text answers per question are typically assessed. In an interview, having a set of questions will help you manage the flow of conversation.
Physical or Online
Now that we are still in the pandemic, marketing can be challenging and costly. More people are allowed to go out in the new normal compared to the previous year. Yet, the fear and safety measures make it hard to do actual surveys in the malls or supermarkets. As such, online surveys are now a popular trend.
Online stores and online marketing are almost everywhere. The pandemic drives its growth further as more businesses adapted to online transactions. SEO marketing is crucial as more people are engaged in social media platforms. Now that we are in the advent of the IoT era, digital marketing may proliferate soon.
External Aspects to Consider Before Marketing a New or Modified Product
You already have a grasp of market research. But there are still aspects to consider before testing or launching your new product. The process may be tedious and costly, but a well-researched one will generate returns. Here are the aspects to consider before marketing and selling products:
Industry Trends
Your goal is to be unique and remarkable to get ahead of your peers. But, as a newcomer, it will not hurt to observe the practices of other businesses and even apply them to yours. With digital transformation, you may increase brand awareness and watch your peers. Your business may have a social media page and website to increase market engagement. Also, check how your peers move to market new and existing products. You may wish to mix it with yours to create a modified strategy.
Macroeconomic Changes
Keep track of macroeconomic indicators, especially inflation and interest rates. Inflation affects your capacity to produce and market your products. It increases your costs and expenses and decreases the purchasing power of customers. You can cover your expenses and ensure affordability by setting a reasonable price. Likewise, you have to watch out for interest rates, especially if you plan to borrow from banks.
Stable Finances
You have to know if you have adequate resources to sustain your business and launch new products. Are your existing products generating revenues? Whether or not, you have to determine if it is logical to modify them or create new ones. Doing so will increase your costs and expenses. Without enough means, you may have to borrow. That is why you have to maintain stable finances, given the transitions in the global economy.
Get Ready to Market Your Products
With appropriate research methods and tools, marketing a new product is possible. It gives you a clue about how it will perform in the market. Keep in mind that it does not always guarantee high demand and viability. However, the information can guide you in the right direction.
