Market Research on a Dime

"Market Research on a Dime" by Tom Nardacci

Knowing how your customer or target audience perceives your business is the best way to tell if your message is coming across as you want it. The best way to find out is to ask, and there may be some simple ways to accomplish this.

Qualitative research like focus groups and in-depth interviews are excellent ways to probe complex issues and can help ensure that your later quantitative methods, like surveys, are fine-tuned and are asking the right questions.

While there is no substitute for professional researchers, sometimes you may not be able to afford them. You can survey customers, members, and staff easily by using online technology like Zoomerang (www.zoomerang.com) or Survey Monkey (www.surveymonkey.com).

Growing up, my grandparents owned a corner grocery store. When my grandfather ordered a new type of ice cream or candy he would call certain kids (like my sister) into the store to test them out and tell him what their opinion was. He asked kids who he thought would give an honest assessment. Not a very complicated method, but highly effective feedback.

Market research is too important to let costs stop you from doing it. In many instances you may not need the most complicated algorithm to find out what your customer thinks.