Market Research and Marketing Research Essay

Research is the process of gathering, processing and analyzing information on markets. The scope of such research is limited to the study of markets and does not include studies on the brand or product to be marketed. Market research is a subset of marketing research. Marketing Research is the process of gathering, processing and analyzing information for the purpose of marketing a product. It includes, but is not limited to market research. Marketing research extends to other areas of marketing activity like: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Studies on consumer behavior Brand and positioning research Research on product and packaging Research on communication strategies and advertising channels and their effectiveness Studies on sales promotion strategies and effects of discounts and sales promotion strategies on customer buying and consumption habits 6. Brand perception studies 1 Difference between Qualitative vs. Quantitative 2 Importance of Marketing Research The importance of marketing research in management extends to intelligent decision making, maximizing profits, increasing the sales, minimizing the risks and ascertaining whether a new product will be profitable in a given market at a given time. What is Marketing Research? This research can be defined as the process of gathering recording and analyzing the data related to certain products and services. This need for market research is derived from the concept that only by understanding the needs and wants of the target audience and by effectively meeting them, you will be able to achieve the organizational goals and surpass the competition n the specific market. Thus, arises the need to collect data about the customers, competitors, and other forces in the marketplace. This data in turn is collected and analyzed to make relevant marketing decisions, be it in relation to setting up a business, developing a product, creating a brand or coming up with an advertising campaign. What is t he Importance of Marketing Research? To Make Marketing Decisions: This research helps the marketers to make a decision about the product or service. Sometimes a marketer might believe that the new product or service is useful for the customers. However, research may show that customers do not need a product or are meeting their needs with a certain competitor product and so on. Similarly good research strives to provide options for the successful introduction of new products and services. This makes the market entry of a new product or service less risky. Survive the Competition: Marketing research helps in ascertaining and understanding competitor information such as their identity, marketing network, customer focus and scale of operations. This helps in surviving and in certain cases, even leaving behind the competition. Moreover, with market research you can also help understand the under-served consumer segments and consumer needs that have not 3 been met. Helps to Decide Target Markets: Research helps provide customer information in terms of their location, age, buying behavior and gender. This helps the marketers zero in on the target markets and customers for their products and services. Maximize Profits: Apart from profit maximizing steps such as item optimization, customer profitability analysis, and price elasticity, marketing research allows you to find out methods that can help you maximize profits. For example, a product’s price elasticity research can help you ascertain the impact of an increased price on the sales and the profits of a product. This emphasis on profitability also helps the company’s focus to shift from maximizing sales to increasing the profits of a company. This helps the company survive in the long run and maximize its profits. Increasing the Sales: Increasing the sales of your products or services helps a company in maximizing its profits. By understanding the customer’s needs, wants and attitude towards the products and determining whether your products fit the bill, marketers can increase their sales. This helps in not only increasing the sales to the target customers and people already using the product but also converting the non users into customers for the product. With an understanding of the customer, competitors, products and the overall industry needs, this research can equip the management with the power to make better decisions. However, the importance of marketing research is limited to just being a marketing tool that helps you make an informed decision. So rather than basing all your management decisions on a customer survey, use this tool as a guide and supplement it with intelligent decision making.