DIY market research with surveys
Contracting experts to conduct market research for your company could cost you thousands of or even millions of dollars.
CEO of Bluedot Data Intelligence, Larren Peart said getting market research done by professionals at his company could cost as little as $150,000 today, a big drop when compared to the $1 to $2-million it would have cost in previous years. He said the discount comes as a result of new technology.
However, he said there are free tools to help small businesses get answers on their own, citing surveys as one which has allowed companies to collect both qualitative and quantitative data.
“That qualitative allows you to probe a little bit more while you use the quantitative side to get numbers or hard figures; find out what your market share was. You can use google forms, free tools like survey monkey, survey gizmo etc,” said Peart.
In formulating a survey, the Blue Dot boss said the objectives should first be outlined before getting started. He added that a survey consisting of between 15-20 questions should be enough for a micro, small and medium sized enterprise (MSME) to get the answers needed.
According to Peart an explanation of why the survey is being done should always be given as people are more willing to participate when they understand the reason behind the market research. He said incentives could also be added to attract participation.
As for the structure of the questions, Peart said its always good to start off with demographic information including gender, age, sex which will help with customer targeting. He added that the survey should also aim to collect lifestyle or psychographic information to understand personalities and capture what people do on a daily basis.
After those questions have been established, Peart said others can now be added around the previously outlined objectives. He said questions should be general to ensure there’s no bias in the results.
Peart said surveys are good tools as they help businesses to understand consumption occasions as well as the dynamic between the consumer and the customer.
“For example if your mother or wife buys you stocks or beer, they are the customers but you’re the consumer and then how you market and target those two groups is completely different because the motivation for your wife buying the beer is completely different from why you are drinking the beer…so understanding the dynamic, occasion, frequency, all of that is important,” he said.
He noted that surveys also present the opportunity to ask several questions just to reach one insight. For example, to analyze a respondent’s income bracket, he said a series of questions could be asked such as age- which can be used to determine status dependent on the scenario, schooling, where they live, the area of work, what type of vehicle they drive, etc.
For more information on market research you can reach out to Blue Dot on all socials @bluedotinsights or via email at thedot@bluedotinsights.com
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