No?

Then you need to do market research.

Market research isn’t hard. And it isn’t just for people who are trying to break into a new market with a new product. Business owners that have been in business for a while can definitely benefit from regular market research.

What are you researching?

If you are starting out with a new product, you need to know everything about that product. How long it has been around, who is currently promoting it, what your competitors are doing, how the public is reacting to it at the moment.

If you are picking up a product that has been around for a long time and there have been very few changes or enhancements to it – are the public now sick of it? Will there be a new version of the product to compete with this one on the market soon?

You need to know these things before starting out in order to avoid wasting your marketing efforts.

If you have been in business for a while, you need to ensure you don’t become stagnant. You need to research your market – what are your competitors doing, are your customers happy, can you value add?

Finding out what is happening in the market will ensure that you stay on top of your business and your marketing efforts are effective.

Information is the key to business success. Understanding your industry is the only way to stay ahead. The only way you will understand your industry fully is to do market research.

Market Research is for everyone. Make sure you target all your business efforts in the right direction – arm yourself with the right knowledge and you will be successful.

In this age of technology, no information is unreachable. The Internet is the biggest resource available, where typing keywords like “how to start franchise” and “franchising opportunities” can give you thousands of results.

Let’s have a look at the various avenues from where you can get the best information:

Online directories

Online franchising directories can be a great place to start with. A simple search will reveal the names of franchises, even some that you didn’t know existed. You can choose a category and base your searches on that. You can get the names of many companies who offer franchises and their track records as well.

Business magazines

Entrepreneur magazines carry lists of top franchises annually and this information can also be found on websites. This can help so you can zero in on the kind of franchising opportunities you want to go for.  Since the poll is impartial, it helps you to find out what actually is the best.

Conferences and seminars

There are many conferences that are held particularly for franchise business. You have great opportunities to network and can gain a deep insight into the workings and requirements of getting in franchising. You can find the information about such events from flyers, pamphlets and also The Internet.

Online business resources

There are many websites that provide all the information you need right from finding different franchising opportunities to how to set up and proceed. Go to Google and search for information on this subject and you will be really amazed at the options available.

Thoroughly research your interests and then sort through the myriad of options presented in to you to. Find what suits you the best. Once the choice is clear and finance is available; coupled with hard work, you can have a flourishing franchise business.

The Internet is filled with ads about making money with little effort – but can you believe them? You can find few good income opportunities by understanding the real worth of work from home.
Here are some incredible income- generating ideas that have all the characteristics of a successful venture.

Websites and blogs

A website or a blog can be a great source of income. The various ways through which a website or a blog can be used as a business is by selling the advertising space and by writing sponsored posts. You can also use Google’s AdSense where you are paid when someone’s clicks on an ad. But all these options work well when your website is popular and has high inbound traffic.

Direct Sales

It involves selling a client’s product and earning commission on that sale. You are a marketer and the parent company takes care of other formalities like shipping, customer service, and product development details.  This can be a huge income opportunity if you can master networking and marketing.

Affiliate marketing

If you have a website that is search engine optimized and you attract lot of visitors, then joining an affiliate program can be very profitable for you. Keep in mind the kind of audience you attract and choose the affiliate products that appeal to them and is in accordance to the subject matter of your site.

Franchising

Owning a franchise is one of the best income opportunities where you already have an established name and brand to attract people. It usually requires a little higher investment in terms of franchise fees and sometimes sharing the royalty on the profit.

Income opportunities will help you in streamlining your thought process. Research and take the time to find the opportunity that is right for you. Income opportunities are out there – waiting for you to find them!

The most important aspect of starting a business is to find the right opportunity that is best for you and has sustainability in the market.

Small business opportunities can be really successful if you are realistic about your approach. The question, however, remains – where to find such ideas?

Let’s have a look at different platforms that can direct you to small business opportunities:

• The Internet, as usual, tops the list because almost all business occurs on web these days. “Small business trends”, “small business ideas” or “small business opportunities” can bring excellent search results.
• To help people realize their dreams, the Australian government has a business resource in the form of a website . This site provides all the information you need right from business checklists to business advisors in your neighborhood. There are how-to guides that advise on the business structures, business names, how to get support and what business associations will help you. They even have a small business helpline to assist you.
• You can also look into small business directories. These can open a whole new world of options for you. You can explore different ideas and helpful resources before making your final decision.
• There are many online business communities like Flying Solo that can be your centre for networking and getting in touch with brilliant entrepreneurs. You may hit on a small business opportunity in the process.

A simple idea can turn your life around. Introspect, explore and analyze different small business opportunities and find the one that inspires you to go that extra mile.

Launching a product to a new market – you need to know where that market is, and why they want your product. Only then can you effectively market to them.

Benefits of Market Research

For current business owners you can increase your communication with customers – The public can see you are taking an active part in finding out their needs and wants. Show them you are aiming to fulfill these needs and wants. They are more likely to remember you in future and buy from you again.

Both new businesses and established businesses can identify opportunities – By speaking with the public in regards to their wants and needs, you will find other areas that you had not thought of, that you could fulfill.

Minimize risk - By researching before you start your business, you can see if your product/service will sell. If it is obvious from the research that no one would buy your product/service, then you can change direction before you start, and thus save yourself a lot of time and money.

Measure your progress – By conducting Market Research at the start of your business, and then following this up again at a later point, you will be able to see from the responses how successful you are, and if you could afford to branch out into new areas.

Getting Started
Before starting Market Research, it is important to understand what you want out of this research. Do you want to know if your product will sell? Do you want to see how many other products are out there? Do you want to know if people are planning to continue buying this product/service, or if the market is moving in a new direction? There is nothing more annoying for potential customers to be harassed by people with no real reason in mind.
People are generally happy to help others. If you explain that you are trying to find out how people would react to a new product on the market, or simply if they would like it, most people would be more than happy to give you their opinion.

How to do it?
There are many different ways to conduct Market Research. If you are running an online business naturally you would use online resources. One of the best ways of doing market research is to create a survey and have people fill it in for you. A popular online survey website is Survey Monkey. You can create a free survey, and then forward the URL to people, which will take them to the website to allow them to participate in the survey.

There are many arguments as to whether you should request people to fill in the survey, or request people to fill in the survey and offer a free gift. You can offer a free e-book, article or product in order to entice people to fill in the survey. It depends on your personal preference (obviously if you do not offer a free incentive the numbers may not be as great completing the survey, but then the persons completing the survey may be more ‘real’)

Promote your Research
When you have a survey, you can get your family and friends to fill this in, but you can also promote the survey on social media websites. Promote this on Facebook, Twitter, and various other social media websites. This will give you a wide range of opinions from a wide range of people – ideal for Market Research. You could also used paid campaigns such as google Adwords.

Analyze, Analyze, Analyze!
Once you have the information, it is essential that you do something with it. Firstly sort the information into categories. The easiest way is to do this is in a spreadsheet. You can filter people by demographic, or by the responses people gave you. Create a graph of the results. It is an easy way to see the density of the answers.
Finally, use this information to adjust your product/service, rethink the product/service all together, or charge ahead with promotion.

Market Research is essential for every business. Always take the opportunity to ask your customers opinions and use the feedback to your best advantage.

SEO
Search Engine Optimization, as always, is still the top market trend to be followed. Websites that put the effort into optimization get the benefit of being ranked higher and thus accessed more by interested visitors. You must remember that at all times, content is the king. Highly relevant and targeted content is always preferred and attracts huge traffic.

Email marketing
Email marketing is one field that is bound to help your business grow. Email service providers are continuously improving their lists through the integration of social media, search engines and other services. The low cost of email marketing is also a great and cheap way to attract new customers and reinvigorate old customers. Email marketing is a top market trend for 2010 to watch!

Content nesting

A new and emerging trend, content nesting means that the visitor does not have to click a number of links to reach individual websites; the content is presented through a single web page.
If you have videos on your site and they are not present on YouTube, people won’t try and look for your website – they would rather see you in the list on YouTube.

Video marketing
One of the number one top market trends for 2010. It is the next big thing in the world of internet marketing. People like to watch videos rather than just read content and the rising popularity of video streaming sites is live proof. Video marketing is cheap, widely accessible, interactive and can be shared easily all around.

Paid searches
Since search engines are the primary means of locating information – paid searches are as relevant in 2010 as they were in the previous years. The options are not limited to a few vendors – although you should choose wisely. Paid searches will get you highly qualified leads.

There are many market trends waiting to unfold in the coming years but always remember to test new ideas before making any major investments. Knowing what the Internet Marketing top market trends for 2010 are, is a crucial move for your business.

1. Identify the Industry:
This may sound very obvious, but before researching an industry it is important to know exactly which industry you are searching for. This can get a little complicated owing to the overlap between industries in modern times. For instance, banks overlap with financial firms, the computers industry overlaps with electronics, and gaming overlaps with computers and so on. First, define which industry you want to find and use keywords specific to that industry when searching industry databases.

2. Use Surveys and Reports for Industry Statistics:
There are multiple resources for industry research available on the internet alone. In addition, there are various publications of industry surveys and statistics purely for the purpose of research. For instance, Hoover’s Online publishes profiles of more than 200 different industries. Standard & Poor’s Industry Surveys are detailed surveys of more than 50 US industries.

3. Search for News Reports and Magazine Articles About the Industry:
These are excellent resources for gaining a deeper understanding of the industry and the trends related to it. While statistics can be misinterpreted, or not give you the true picture, articles and expert opinions will generally show you the industry as it is. Plus, hearing lots of different opinions can help you decide whether or not to set up a business in the industry, and your chances of success.

4. Visit Industry Websites:
Websites of individual firms as well as searchable online databases and there websites belonging to the industry as a whole can be an excellent resource for information about the industry, and industry research. For instance, IndustryLink.com has lots of links to industry websites. Business.com can also help you search and identify helpful industry websites.

5. Learn About Leading Firms in the Industry:
Identify the leaders in the industry and study their financial position, their customer base, market share etc. to understand fully exactly what it is that makes them successful, and if you are thinking of setting up a business, this would help you see exactly what kind of competition you are up against.

6. Use Business-to-Business Marketplaces:
Finally, use this one great resource that has recently come into being. B2B market places are basically online business communities that keep their members and visitors updated on all aspects of their industry, with the purpose of facilitating e-commerce. These will usually give you basic, understandable and relevant information about the industry.

Industry research is essential before starting any business. Take the time to check out your industry and find new information that you can use in your business.

Market Research Surveys

• Quantitative Approach: this deals with measurable quantities. For instance, questionnaires asking how many units of a certain product you consume per week, how much you would be willing to pay for a new product, how many people use a certain service and so on are all examples of quantitative surveys.

• Qualitative Approach: this deals with the analysis of things that cannot be associated with numbers, for instance the level of satisfaction of a customer, what improvements should be made to a product or service, or the best features of your business in customers’ view. Such questions require either verbal interviews or long answers in written questionnaires.

Sampling

Since you cannot interview all the members of your target market, you try to select a sample that is highly representative of the general views of the wider market segment that you are aiming at. There are two things to keep in mind while choosing your sample:
• Sample Size: The larger the size of your sample, the more valid your research results will be. Interviewing a very small sample would lead to too many variables in your research and hence affect its validity.
• Cost/Effort involved in reaching a representative sample: Since very large samples are difficult and expensive to reach, you often have to restrict yourself to smaller samples.

As the choice of the right sample is based on both these factors, this becomes something of a tradeoff. A larger sample size will give you greater accuracy, but will increase the cost and effort involved.

Some Tips to Carry Out Good Market Research Surveys

For Questionnaires:
• Keep the questionnaire anonymous, short and relevant to ensure that people give complete and truthful responses.
• Do not ask personal questions or anything that could offend the respondent.

For Interviews:
• Be careful of interviewer bias – do not introduce your own ideas. Let the interview openly state his/her views
• Do not ask leading questions. Make sure that your questions are completely neutral and you give no indication of what answer you want. This will ensure that the interviewee states his own true views.

Market Research Surveys are essential for every business. Take the time to do it correctly and your business will thank you for it.

Social Research has thousands of outlets!

In the context of businesses and the internet, social research is a method of learning about your target market. Social research uses social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Digg, or a blog to ask questions, to find out customer preferences, and to generally learn your target customers’ opinions about any aspect of your current or future business.

Benefits of Social Research:
Why go for social research as opposed to more conventional forms of research? Here are its advantages:

• It is easier, quicker and hardly costs you a cent: Most blogs and social media sites are free to join, and once you join them, you can search the groups or fan pages where your target market is most likely to be found. As a member, you will be allowed to post your own content free of cost. This is infinitely easier and much cheaper than designing and printing out questionnaires or forms and going out in the marketplace or door to door to get them filled.
• It helps you identify the target market and build a reputation before even launching your business: This is why carrying out social research before launching a business can be a great idea. The people on social networking sites get to know your idea, and if you present it in the right way, you can make it appear intriguing enough that they will want to buy from you when you actually do start. You get to know which people are most interested in your ideas, and you can with their permission use them as leads in marketing later on.

How to Carry Out Social Research:
There are several ways to do this. Here are some of the quickest and easiest ones:

• Use your Blog:
Simply post your questions on your blog, if you have one, and let people answer. If you don’t already have a business blog, this is a great reason to create one. This way your business can develop an online following, popularizing you among your target customers.
• LinkedIn:
LinkedIn has a separate section where you can ask questions and get responses. Sometimes the number of responses can go up in hundreds. Thus you learn a lot from different people’s opinions.
• Yahoo Answers:
As this is a website dedicating to posting and answering questions, you can not only ask people questions about upcoming business ventures, but also reply to existing questions by introducing your business idea or existing business websites.

Social research is one of the easiest and most effective ways of discovering the market for your product or service.

Let us now look at the two major categories of this type of market analysis:
Market analysis for a new product line/business:
In this case, analysis of the target market involves studying the needs of your potential customers, predicting which products are likely to be successful among them, and in how much quantity you should produce the product. Logic analysis, for instance, involves studying the target customers to identify an unsatisfied need, and launching your product accordingly, to fulfill that need. Also, the incomes and lifestyles of the customers are studied, based on which you decide the price, packaging and distribution of your products, or the corresponding aspects of any services you are providing. Finally, the competition is analyzed. For this, you basically look at other firms that are catering to your target market already, and look at their market shares, their brand image, pricing strategy and other things, and this helps you generate your own ideas on how to best enter the market.
Market analysis for an existing business/product line:
Some of these techniques overlap with the market analysis for a new business or product line, but the major difference is that instead of studying targeted customers, you are interested in your existing customers. You study brand loyalty and brand perception of your product among your customers, and also predict their response to any changes you might bring in your product, packaging or pricing strategy. Also, you study the competition, and devise strategies that might give you a competitive edge, increase your profitability, sales or ROI.

Market analysis tools:
There are a myriad market analysis software tools available on the internet, some free, some not. They usually take the form of spreadsheets with several fields that input a wide range of data, and then manipulate it and present a general analysis using graphical representation, or by listing data in a specific order (such as sales by week or time of day) depending on the data that is input. Also, marketing firms usually provide market analysis services along with their other services.