3 Myths About Market Research
Tips to Start Market Research to Drive Sales
The concept of market research is often misunderstood or, worse, ignored.
Let’s break down the myths of market research for professional services and provide some tips that can turn market research into sales revenue.
Myth: Market Research doesn’t drive top-line revenue.
Many believe that market research doesn’t contribute directly to sales. It is often one of the first line items to be cut when budgets tighten.
The best sales professionals will tell you that market research is critical to closing the deal. Skilled sales teams use research to:
Target customers with precision.
Knowing the right type of buyer improves a seller’s hit rate. That means more wins and less time pursuing unlikely leads.
Get ahead of competitors.
Competitive insights provide a roadmap to win. It gives perspective on the playing field — strengths and weaknesses — and how to counter during the sales process.
Inform and impress the customer.
Great B2B sales professionals educate potential customers with insights a customer may not have thought about. It could be an upcoming trend, a startling statistic, or an outside-in perspective on an industry. Sharing market research provides value to the customer while increasing your seller’s trust and credibility.
Myth: Market research is only for high-profile new initiatives, not for business as usual.
Market research is a critical phase of product development and entering a new market. It is the foundation of innovation.
It also is a lifeline for your day-to-day business. The biggest mistake a company or service provider can make is not to continue to study the market, competitors, trends, and how their customers are interacting with their product or service.
This happens to companies as they hit peak maturity. The operation is running well. Current clients are reliable. The staff becomes complacent. Leadership assumes that every year revenue will increase.
And then, something happens.
It could be a competitor with an innovative idea gaining market share. A catalyst that forces a quick change in consumer behavior. Or, perceptions of your product or brand become stale.
What happens next? Without the market research to stay ahead of change, companies start losing clients, cutting prices, further cutting costs, and eventually find themselves closed like Blockbuster Video, Circuit City, or Borders Books.
Myth: We know our customers best. We don’t need to do market research.
Companies know a lot about their customers these days. Data is easily accessible with a few clicks.
Anyone can send a survey via email, SMS, at the register, or the bottom of a two-foot-long CVS receipt.
The issue is that this type of data doesn’t give you the full picture of ‘why’ a person may choose your brand, and how they use your product. It doesn’t allow open and honest feedback.
Companies should be conducting primary qualitative research in addition to other methods. The voice of the customer will surprise you. They may give you ideas that never would be generated from the inside. That authenticity can be actioned for further innovation, product improvements, and new markets.
Get your customers in a room, on a zoom, or take them out for coffee. Ask them the questions that can’t be answered by a check box. You will uncover secrets that could change your business.
Plus, customer quotes make the best marketing messaging.
