Market Research: A Credible Tool for Small Business Advertising

Market research is a valuable tool that you can use for small business advertising. Before going public and reaching out to your target clients, it’s important to do your research first and fine tune your advertising collateral to what the market needs. Current market trends and issues can also be obtained by doing market research. To help you gather the data you need, here are some of the tools you can do when conducting your research:

Survey – These questionnaires are useful; not just in terms of getting your data for small business advertising, but also because it gives you a better view of your marketing demographics. However, the sample is crucial here. The bigger the sample, the more reliable your results will turn out to be. There are also different kinds of survey methods you can use. For product sampling, in-person surveys are done right after people have tried the product.

Telephone surveys are another method you can try, though it’s been more difficult to conduct these days because people have grown to be prejudiced against telemarketing. Online surveys can also be created, which is the digital version of the usual mailed survey forms. On both occasions, it’s important to get the right address of the person to whom you are sending the questionnaires.

Focus Group Discussions – This methodology is facilitated by a moderator who uses guide questions to start the talk. This is held at a specific location where videotaping is also made possible. Sometimes, those who use FGD even use two-way mirrors so facilitators can observe participants and their body language from behind the said mirrors. An FGD can only run from one to two hours at most, and it’s advisable to create at least three different groups to strengthen the credibility of data and also for points of comparison for the obtained results.

Field Trials – This can be done in partnership with particular establishments. Field trials involve setting up a booth where promodizers approach people to try the products for free. Aside from learning about the reaction of people with what the product can do, field trials also provide valuable insights when it comes to how the public receives your business. It can give you valuable references for modifying packaging, sales tactics or even your whole current marketing campaign.

Investing in market research prior to small business advertising is definitely worth it. It helps minimize investment risks in your business.