Why You Need Consumer Research in Marketing

Consumer research in marketing has many benefits. It aids in proper planning, tells us about emerging trends, develop communication and helps us in gauging our brand image.

Comprehensive research is an important component of any successful venture. In marketing this research is centered mainly on consumers, since they are the driving force of any sales campaign. Understanding the consumer is the key to any successful marketing campaign.

Consumer research in marketing has multiple benefits. It comes into play during every step of marketing, from the planning to the execution and evaluation of a campaign.

Develop communication: Communication in the modern era has become both easy and complicated. Contact with the consumer is often multi-faceted from the traditional print media to social media. The challenge lies in creating a communication module that includes all Medias in an engaging, effective and relevant way.

Consumer research gives you a better idea of your average consumer’s demographics age, interests and income. This helps in creating more effective communication, aligning the product with consumer wants and desires.

Understand trends: The market never remains static. New inventions, social norms and conditions change the market all the time. The modern society is changing at a rapid pace and thanks to social media, this change spreads at an unprecedented rate. What this means is that you have an extremely aware market that is changing all the time.

Consumer research here acts as a bridge between you and the consumers, giving you a near accurate picture of changing trends. This can be used for better communication, marketing and even product development.

Aid in planning: No good marketing campaign can be carried out without thorough planning and a good plan requires relevant, reliable and comprehensive data. This is why consumer research in marketing is so necessary. Good research gives you the most accurate picture of your consumer –– his or her wants, desires, income, age, preferences, family background and other relevant details.

Avoid risks: There is always an element of risk in any market. Consumer tastes may change, competition may come up with a winner or something may go wrong on your side. Consumer research is the best way to safeguard yourself against any dangers. Research tells you about changing trends, a possible rise of a competitor or even the changing demographics of your market. Once you have this data, you can take relevant steps to counter these.

Gauge your brand: Branding is one of the most essential parts of any marketing campaign. Companies spend millions in establishing and then maintaining their brand image. But how successful is your brand? Is your brand instantly recognisable? Is there any negativity associated with your brand? Where does your brand stand vis-a-vis the competition? These are the issues that consumer research can find out.

Finding new markets: In marketing we often develop a tunnel vision. We design a product with a certain consumer base in mind, concentrating all our marketing efforts on this very section. However, the same product can find application in other sectors. Consumer research in marketing focuses on who is buying your product and through this it often brings forward new buyers and markets.

Ref: - http://www.articlesbase.com/marketing-tips-articles/why-you-need-consumer-research-in-marketing-7456928.html