The Market Research Analyst’s Approach to the Decision Making Process – Business Research Paper
As a market research analyst, the first step in my decision making process would be to analyze the situation. The problem is that my company has just created a new type of packaging product that improves the shelf life of food products, but the product development department does not know what to do with this novel product. The product could potentially be marketed to consumers and businesses, in
which case it would be a convenience product (consumer) or a packaging/supply product (business). The problem is not only what to do with this new product, but who to market to and how to market it.
Before performing any research on the potential market, I would test the product as extensively as possible to make sure that it is a quality product.
The most important thing when selling a product is quality, and if they product is not up to company standards, I would throw the idea out, or perform research to make the product the best it could be. If the product was up to the company’s standards of quality, I would then move on to researching the market. After testing the product’s quality, I would also identify what the potential uses for the product are.
Once I have identified my problem and thoroughly tested my product, I would perform as much research as possible. First, I would research my competition’s product development to determine if anyone else in the industry has created this new form of packaging as well. If they had created the product, I would research their product development and marketing strategies. If they had not created the product, I would research for other new and innovative technologies that could be potential competitors with my new product.
After performing research on my competition, I would focus on the potential consumers for this product. For this particular type of product, I would use focus group research as my primary research tool for usage of this product. I would use the product in several different ways and test the reactions of the consumers to determine which would be best to market. In order to select people to participate in the focus group, I would choose people from many diverse demographic groups to determine whether the responses to the product would be similar in people from different age groups, education levels or ethnicities. After the focus groups are completed, I would follow up with a consumer survey to get the participants reactions to the product. Using this information gained from performing the focus groups and consumer surveys, I would be able to determine the potential consumer markets for this product. I would also have to take into consideration my potential customers, including existing customers and unrealized customers.
Once the consumer research has been completed, I would focus on the business market. Is there a need/desire for a product like this to be sold to other companies? Since the demand for industrial products is derived from the demand for consumer products, I would assume that there is a desire for business to use this product as well (given that based on consumer research, this product is something that consumers would be interested in using in their homes).
When all the testing and researching is completed, it still must be decided what to do with this product, and in order to do so, the options must be considered. First, using my research on consumer and business responses to this new product, I could sell the product. If I am a producer of food products, it would make sense to market the new packaging product as well as sell more of my own food products. For example, if I sell dairy products, I would market my food products as usual, but I would emphasize the fact that my company is using new and advanced packaging technology that will keep the consumer’s food fresher for longer.
If I do not sell food products, one of my options is to license my new product to permit another company to use the new technology. If I choose to license the packaging technology, it would limit my involvement greatly. Of course, I would determine the advantages and disadvantages of this form of business and weigh them against my other options.
Another option for my new product is to form a joint venture with another company (regardless of whether I sell food products). In this case, I have a very useful product that my company would be contributing to the venture, so I would have to choose carefully before determining that this is where I want my new product to go. There are so many potential uses for packaging technology, and surely there would be great potential from food producers to get their hands on this product. I think this would be my last choice in deciding what to do with this product, but I need to weigh my advantages and disadvantages and determine what the risks are in going into this form of business.
Once I have determined what my options are, the risks and advantages of each must be compared. Using this information, in addition to my research gathered, it will be easier to decide what to do with this product.
In order to develop successful new products, there are three activities that must be completed: first, to uncover unmet needs and problems, second, to develop a competitively advantaged product, and third, to shepherd products through the firm. The first step in this process has already been identified: the new packaging technology increases the shelf life of food products, and that is the “unmet need or problem.” Developing a competitively advantaged product is much more complex. This step of the process involves: (1) input from customers, (2) input from marketing about what competition is doing about the need, (3) manufacturing input about what is being done to satisfy the need, (4) engineering input about additional technology that is available, (5) R and D input about new ways of addressing the need, and (6) financial input regarding costs. I have already received customer input by performing the focus groups and consumer surveys, but I do need to complete every other step before I can move forward in deciding what to do with this technology. It is important to consult with every department so that I can once again identify my risks and my advantages in each step of this process, before I can decide what to do with my product.
Once i have consulted with each department and decided how to market this product, the objectives for selling the product must be established.