How market research is done. Market research of the market. Competition level "0"

Hello dear colleague! Today's article will focus on marketing analysis. After all, such an analysis determines the success of absolutely any organization or individual entrepreneur. Marketing defines the relationship of an enterprise or individual entrepreneur from external environment by studying and conducting marketing analysis aimed at identifying the competitive positions of the enterprise (IP) and its potential in the relevant market. Therefore, in this article we will take a closer look at what marketing analysis is and how it is carried out.

7. Selection of the most effective methods and forms of product sales, development of the marketing strategy of the enterprise

Thus, we have identified 7 main tasks of marketing analysis, having solved which, it will be possible to see a complete picture of the company's activities, both its internal and external sides.

3. Types of marketing analysis

Marketing Analysis can be of several types, differ both in the methods and forms of conducting, and in the vastness of the analyzed information.

Market analysis of the market - the most common type of marketing analysis. Study of trends and market processes. Analysis of economic, geographic, legislative, demographic and other market factors makes it possible to forecast market development, develop a competitive strategy and implement market segmentation, identify the most acceptable market niche.

Competitor marketing analysis allows you to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the enterprise. Develop competent marketing strategy.

Analysis of the marketing strategy of the enterprise ... Analysis of the existing marketing activities the enterprise allows you to make its adjustment, direct the organization's activities in a profitable direction. Often, an ineffective marketing strategy of an enterprise is one of the factors of its unprofitableness.

Research of the internal environment of the enterprise sets as its task the comparison of internal and external processes in order to bring their work to a single harmonious mechanism.

Study target audience and the target consumer ... This type of marketing analysis allows you to see a clear and understandable portrait of the consumer of your goods or services, and, therefore, to competently think over the marketing strategy of the enterprise, select possible bonuses and think over an approach. If there are many types of consumers or the group is large enough, then they are divided into segments that unite features.

Marketing analysis of intermediaries will allow you to see potential partners of your company and calculate affiliate program for further expansion.

Analysis of the internal marketing environment of the enterprise - this type is aimed at studying the real competitiveness of the enterprise.

So, we have reviewed the main types of marketing analysis, let's move on to the methods.

4. Methods of marketing analysis

Method of analysis of marketing activities of the organization Is a way of studying, measuring and generalizing processes, phenomena and influences of external and internal factors on the activities of the organization in a market economy.

The choice of the method of marketing analysis is a very serious moment that depends directly on the goal and objectives of the research as a whole.

In this paragraph of the article, we will consider the methods of marketing analysis, based on its types.

So, we examined the main types of marketing analysis and the methods attached to them.

Since this article carries more informational characterrather than practical, we will not go into detail on each method.

5. Conclusions

At the end of this topic, I would like to say that such science as marketing and marketing analysis tools play a key role in building a long-term and profitable business.

Marketing analysis is applicable both at the stage of business planning and at any other stage of an existing one.

And finally, I suggest you watch a short video about conducting marketing research:

This concludes my article. I hope that the material presented in it was useful to you. I wish you good luck and see you in the following articles.

Often readers ask me the question: how much does it cost to develop a competent business plan? And, often, having learned the size of the amount (about 50-120 thousand rubles), they abandon the idea of \u200b\u200bordering the creation of a document to order, preferring either to sketch out the milestones of their future actions to organize a business for themselves, or to act according to the situation, not only without having a clear idea about what market analysis is, but even what exactly they will do in a week, a month, a year.

The amount for many aspiring entrepreneurs, especially now, when economic forecasts for 2016 are very disappointing, really turns out to be unaffordable. It is for such categories of businessmen that I decided to create a series of articles on how you can write a business plan yourself.

Continuing to cover the topic of writing a business plan, which was started in these articles: "How to write a cover page of a business plan", "Description of a company in a business plan", "Description of services and products in a business plan", I present to the readers the following topic - "Market analysis in a business plan." You can get acquainted with the full structure of the document at this link.

What is this section about

It often happens that, having burst into flames with the idea of \u200b\u200bcreating a business, many novice businessmen simply have no idea about the niche of the business world in which they are trying to occupy. While the study of the target consumer market, analysis of its directions, conditions for entering this market for a new company, the situation in general, trends for development, and many other factors affecting the successful operation of a company require careful study.

Of course, for a professional marketer, this part of creating a business plan will not cause any particular difficulties, but what should a person who has a vague idea of \u200b\u200bthe very specifics of the business do? Correctly! Search necessary materials independently, and try to collect the big picture from what was found. Therefore, I decided to include in the article as much as possible illustrative examplesoccurring in real life, for a better understanding of the issue.

Market Description

In this subsection, you need to provide as much of the current information as possible about the situation in the market in which you are going to work, show what the main trends are present in this industry, what is the picture of its development in the short and long term.

If a business plan is being prepared for investment in credit institutions or from individuals, you need to explain to your potential investors your ultimate goals organization of the company, not only to show the scale of the market that you are going to conquer (it can be a separate region, the country as a whole, or interaction with foreign partners), but also in the following sections to justify the reality of your plans. If you are writing a document for personal use, such a market analysis will help you see the real picture of the market, and assess your strengths and capabilities in implementing your plans.

It is necessary to analyze the state of the market today, show the dynamics of prices over the past few years (usually this is a 5-year period), give the opinion of authoritative, recognized experts about the possibility of developing this area. Describe in detail how your product or service will fit into the overall market structure, what impact future changes in this market will have on your business, and what measures will be taken in this regard to maintain stable work companies.

Writing example
The ____ market for the production of ____ goods and / or the provision of ____ services is currently one of the most actively developing and most promising industries working in this direction. At the end of ____, the market volume amounted to ____ rubles, which is ____% more than in the previous year. Detailed dynamics of prices on the market for the last 5 years is presented in Table #_ of Appendix #_.
Research and analysis of the sales market conducted by marketing companies, independent analytical centers, reflected in the reports of companies already operating in this area, enterprises conducting similar activities, show that in the next __ years a significant increase in the existing market is predicted by __%. According to moderate estimates of specialists, the minimum volume of the industry will be ____ rubles.

How much detail should you write about the state of the market? After all, such a study can take more than one hundred typewritten pages! Here you need to take into account that the volume of such analysis directly depends on the level of your future enterprise, its size and expected prospects.

However, even if your entrepreneurial activity will cover only one small urban area, such a large-scale assessment of the industry will give significant "weight" to your business plan in the eyes of investors, will show them the seriousness of your intentions, will allow them to see the prospects for the development of your company, which, by the way, may have a positive effect on the possibility of increasing investments , or further cooperation in this regard.

But there is nothing terrible even in the event that when planning a business that does not require substantial financial "injections", or if it is simply impossible to find accurate and detailed data on the industry in question (this can be know-how, or a highly specialized direction), a thorough analysis will not be carried out. Sometimes you can do with your own "calculations", personal assessment of the market and forecast for the future. Of course, supported by some kind of logical rationale.

Writing example
Proceeding from the fact that the product / service offered by the Company is offered on the market relatively recently (no more than ___ years), and the sales market is at the stage of formation, it is very difficult to assess its real growth volumes for the next ___ years. Although, already today it can be argued that this industry is expecting a rapid rise.
This fact is confirmed by the annual increase in sales by __%, and the number of products produced and sold annually by __ units. You can also note an increase in attention to this industry. large companies, such as ____, ____, which in turn may indicate that the prospects for market development are very high.

Be sure to consider the specific features of your chosen business industry - what are the conditions for entering this market, is there a seasonality factor, you can give examples of other companies' initiatives in this area. Expand the specific goals of your business choice, if any. The most important thing in determining your "place" in the future market segment, your share in the total volume of sales, production, etc. - objectivity. Be realistic and write real facts in your business plan and not your dreams. As often as possible bring expert assessments and the results of multilateral studies.

Research of consumers of offered products

Researching the target audience your product is intended to consume is one of the most important steps in writing a business plan. First of all, you need to indicate for which market your product is intended - consumer (i.e. for final consumption after purchase), or industrial (for further use in production or resale).

Exit to consumer market It implies a study of the target audience of clients, their social category, gender, age, marital status, education level, income level, place of residence, nature of work, passion, buying behavior, and many other factors.

Writing example
The target audience of consumers of the product manufactured by the Company is women and men aged from __ to __ years, married / unmarried, with / without children, with a secondary / higher education, with an income level from __ to __ rubles per month / year full-time / part-time, unemployed / retired / students living in cities with a population of ____ people / rural areas / hobbies for ____.

Describe the behavior of buyers when purchasing your products, indicate what exactly they are guided by when choosing a product / service, if not specifically your product, then similar in features. If you have information about conducting market research in this area, tests on specially selected groups of people, please include them in your analysis. Here you can also add customer reviews of the proposed product, or similar products / services.

Methods for promoting products on the market

Actually, everything is clear here from the subtitle. In this section, you should show the ways in which you will promote your product in the market. One of the points that you should pay close attention to is the company's pricing strategy. First of all, it is the cost of the proposed product that affects the level of its sales, and, accordingly, the amount of profit.

Moreover, the business plan should contain all calculations for the formation of the price of a product, an analysis of prices for similar products from competitors, the possibility of price fluctuations upward or downward, the reasons for such situations.

Writing example
When setting the price for products, the following were taken into account: the cost of production of one unit, the cost of moving along the supply chain, the cost of a similar product from competitors.
When establishing the average market value for the products sold, the company will reach the planned profit in __ days / months / years. But since our product has additional unique parameters (list), it became possible to set a price per unit of production __% higher than the average price in the market.
The results of the survey conducted among potential buyers showed that there is a fairly high demand for such a product, and the majority consider the proposed cost acceptable, and are ready to purchase products at that price.

If you have already drawn up a price list for the offered products, be sure to attach it to your business plan. Use in the description the most effective existing sales scheme - an offer of a product or service:

To the right people - your target audience
At the right time - based on the employment of the same target audience
In the right place - based on the place of residence of the target audience
In the required quantity
At a reasonable price for you and for them
As much as possible with minimal costs for you

In addition to the pricing policy, indicate the tools with which you are going to make your product known to consumers, the scheme of its distribution, ways to stimulate sales, the possibility of service, warranty, and post-warranty service, the possibility of feedback with customers.

In addition to describing these methods, justify their effectiveness in relation to the products offered, why you chose them, and not any others, consider the use of "traditional" advertising in the media, the Internet, the possibility of holding various promotions, establishing discounts, taking part in exhibitions, etc. etc.

Competitor analysis

Researching competitors in the same industry, or related areas Is an essential part of any business plan. Competitor analysis The business plan should be as detailed and clear as possible. Divide competitors into direct and indirect. Indicate their position in this segment market share, share in the overall picture of sales, income level, advertising methods, equipment and technologies used, human resources - in general, everything that can be learned.

Analysis of the sales market and competitors, analysis of the company's position in the market should reflect all the strengths and weaknesses of competitors to determine how to effectively deal with them. In the same section, indicate your advantages in comparison with competitors in the sales market, justify why the consumer will choose your product.

Leading global brands invest large sums in marketing research, the results of which largely influence the adoption of key management decisions. The cost of such research starts from 60,000 rubles and more - cosmic sums, especially for small businesses. However, knowing how to analyze the market, you will be able to mine key information yourself.

Kinds

First of all, you need to clearly define goals. The subject of your research depends on what kind of information you want to get. The main structural components of the market analyzed by the entrepreneur are:

market state (capacity, market conditions, trends, reaction to new products);
the share of different companies in the market, their opportunities and prospects;
target segments, their behavioral features and product requirements, demand level;
price level and rate of return in the industry;
free niches in which to do business;
competitors, their strengths and weaknesses.

Speaking about how to analyze the market correctly, it is worth emphasizing that a specific, understandable goal allows you to reduce costs, not waste time processing useless information and immediately choose the most effective methods research.

General outline of market analysis

Comprehensive marketing research is usually carried out at the stage of starting or expanding a business. Its goal is to collect as detailed and comprehensive information as possible about a specific niche. How to analyze the market?

Stage 1: Collect basic information

The "starting point" in conducting a comprehensive analysis is Market Research (in fact, the study of the market and its prospects). Ideally, you need to analyze information from the past 3-5 years.

The key indicator here is market capacity. Speaking in simple words, this is the amount of goods that consumers can buy for a certain period of time - a month or a year. For calculations, the formula is used:

V \u003d A × N

where: V - market size, A - target audience size (thousand people), N - product consumption rate for the period.

Based on this indicator, they calculate what the maximum level of sales a company can achieve in a given region.

The next criterion to look at is the level of demand. It is important to take into account the dynamics of the market, whether it is developing or, on the contrary, shrinking. In the first case, it is necessary to determine its potential and growth boundaries, and at the stage of stagnation - to understand how long this will continue.

In addition, they study the factors affecting the market, the share of key competitors in the total sales volume, and methods of selling products.

Based on the data obtained, it is necessary to identify the main trends and directions of development, as well as to analyze the market prospects - what consumers choose now and how their preferences may change in the foreseeable future.

Tip: You can find up-to-date statistics and research results of selected markets at the international and national levels in industry journals and economic reports.

Stage 2: Identifying target segments

So, we know the size of the analyzed market as a whole. Now it is necessary to determine which groups of consumers bring the company the main profit, what unites them. For audience segmentation, different criteria are used - gender, age, profession, income level, social status, interests, etc. Depending on the priorities, the significance of individual factors may differ.

To decide which segments to target in the first place, they additionally analyze:

the volume of each segment (the number of potential customers);
geographic location;
availability different groups consumers;
estimated cost of time and finance to start activities.

A competent choice of target audience in the future will save an entrepreneur from extra costs and will allow you to direct resources to attract the most "profitable" buyers.

Stage 2: Examination of external factors

Any market is constantly exposed to outside influences. Modern marketers identify 6 types of external factors that affect organizations:

political (government policy in the areas of transport, employment, education, etc., taxes);
economic (inflation rate, loan interest rate);
social (population size, worldview, level of education);
technological;
legal (laws governing the creation and operation of enterprises);
ecological.

Some tendencies appear slowly, they are easy to predict - for example, back in the 70s, the problems of protection began to be discussed in society environment, and now eco-friendly business has become a global trend. At the same time, the economic situation can change at any minute, and it is simply impossible to say with certainty what will happen in 3-5-10 years.

Stage 4: Analysis of competitors

Speaking about how to learn how to analyze the market, special attention should be paid to the study of enterprises that are already operating in the industry. First of all, you need to learn as much as possible about the companies themselves and their capabilities:

technologies used in the production of goods and services;
availability of patents and unique technological advantages;
staff qualification level;
access to limited, rare resources;
the possibility of obtaining additional investment.

The next step is to study the products and services of competitors. You need to evaluate it "through the eyes of the consumer", taking into account both rational and emotional factors.

It remains to systematize the data and objectively compare the main market players. For convenience, we suggest using a simple template.

By filling out the table, you will get a basic understanding of the main market players and their activities, as well as be able to compare their performance with your own.

Step 5: Price Analysis

To see the full picture, it is necessary to break down all market players into price segments - economy, premium, etc. It is also important to understand the price structure (cost price, promotion and advertising costs, margin) and approximately calculate the profit from each sale.

One of the most responsible actions at the stage of preparation for opening your small business (as well as at all stages of business activity) is the analysis of the product sales market. A lot of books and articles are devoted to this issue, but this issue is so important that it will not be superfluous to consider it again. Moreover, I already promised in the previous article to dwell on this topic.

Market analysis - ways and methods.

There are many ways to test your chosen market niche. First of all, find out who in the markets of your region produces or sells similar goods or services, who is your potential competitor. Make a list of these competitors as broad as possible. Well, then you need to collect detailed information about them.

Let's consider how to do this in case you are planning to produce any product. First of all, you need to find out as much information as possible about the consumers of the products.

First of all, use the Internet. Now many manufacturers and retail outlets have their own websites and you can find a lot of information on them. Naturally, not all, but a lot can be caught.

Well, then, to search for information, "connect your legs." You can sell the product of your small business in three directions: to retail outlets (stores or chains), directly to customers directly from production, and as components or semi-finished products for other industries.

If the product is intended to be sold in retail chains, you should travel around retail outlets, see how it is implemented this product or its analogues, talk to sellers, try to get the information you are interested in from them. Especially try to figure out (at least approximately) how much product they can take from you. Make a list of potential consumers of the product, find out their addresses and phone numbers. Think what additional services you can offer the consumer to promote your product on the market more quickly. Based on this, make a decision how much product you will produce at the initial period of your activity.

Pay special attention to how the product is sold in retail chains, and try to find out at what price retail chains buy this product from the manufacturer. Most likely, you will not be able to obtain this information from trade workers - they will hide it or deliberately underestimate it. But it's easy to find out, knowing at what price a similar product is sold by retail chains. Typically, the trade markup for various products is 30-50%. Subtracting it from the price in the store, you will approximately get the price you are interested in.

We make a list of prospective clients.

At the same time, make up your opinion about these outlets. Which ones are easier to contact, how many products they sell, how they serve the customer, and finally, which ones you just like and which you don't. The more information you collect, the better your market analysis is, the less you will accomplish both at this stage and in the future.

I want to give an example from my own experience. When I started furniture production, the Internet did not smell yet. All information had to be obtained through personal contacts. I hung up a map of the region in which I planned to sell products and pinned the data on outlets with pins. Then, in the process of work, these data were replenished and analyzed. Further, it was very clearly seen with whom my business works, with whom it plans to work and with whom it does not want to work.

If your product is intended for use as a complete set for other industries, negotiate with prospective consumers and, after agreeing on his desire to work with you, determine in advance the possible volume of supplies and the price at which the consumer will take it. It is advisable to sign some kind of document, for example, a protocol of intentions.

If your products will be any services or work on individual orders, conduct an analysis of the market for these services, also try to find out the prices for such services in existing businesses, the quality of these services or manufactured products. Think about what you can offer, what new services, prices and quality that will attract customers to you.

We collect information on similar small businesses.

At the same time, it is necessary to collect as much information as possible on the manufacturers of a similar product. I have already mentioned the Internet. Visit the sites of competitors, sometimes you can find quite a lot of information about the manufactured products, even price lists.

The problem may be that many small businesses have not made changes in years, and you are using outdated information. You need to be careful and choose only "fresh" information.

You can call a competing firm and, posing as a client (for example, the owner of a new store), ask for the information you need. There are also restrictions here - they will not tell you everything that you need to know, or maybe they will not tell you anything at all, they will invite you to come to them and get everything you need on the spot. But it's better for you too.

Come up with a legend for yourself with which you will visit, with which you can get maximum information and even get acquainted with their production. First of all, get price lists, find out about the systems of discounts and incentives, the process of payment for goods, whether they give goods for sale. The more information you collect, the easier it will be for you to make decisions about your business, the fewer mistakes you will make.

Analyze all the information you have obtained about competitors and identify the flaws that their product has, flaws in the manufacturing process, in pricing, in the quality of customer service, etc. Determine what you can do better and use it when starting your small business and in your future work.

Pay special attention to the quality of service, the accuracy of order fulfillment, the presence of failures in the lead time of competitors. Most of the shortcomings lie here. It is difficult, especially at the start-up stage, to produce a product of a higher quality than that of competitors. But in the service, the quality of customer service, they can be bypassed.

An example from my own experience.

I will give an example from own experience... One of my first businesses was carpentry. One of the directions was the production of wooden frames for upholstered furniture, which were supplied directly to manufacturers of upholstered furniture. I started this production in the conditions of the existing market, very close. It was impossible to compete in the quality and prices of products.

But one day, when I was buying a sofa in a store, I did not receive it on time, and then received it very late. The explanation was rather trivial: the manufacturer's delivery time was missed. In my presence, the seller called the manufacturer of sofas, who scolded the supplier of the frames with good obscenities and promised some kind of gift for missing the deadline. I was interested in this question, I found out that other manufacturers of frames do not differ in particular punctuality and began own production... I can boast that playing, first of all, on this weakness of competitors, I was able to very quickly take a leading position in this market.

New ways to test the market.

I would like to say a few words about a relatively new way of testing the market. This method originated with the advent of the Internet, and is mainly used by online stores. But it can also be used in offline business. To test the demand for a product, you must advertise its sale. Ads can be given on the site, if there is one, on social networks, and finally, just in the press.

When you receive orders by phone, come up with a legend that all the goods are already sold out and you will have to wait until a new batch of goods arrives. Then, when a sufficient number of buyers appear, order the product and start selling regularly. I have not tried this method of probing the market myself, perhaps it works. But, as it seems to me, you can seriously harm your reputation and incur significant material losses already at the stage of opening a small business.

Conclusion.

I want to emphasize once again that a thorough analysis of the market before opening your small business is of great importance at all stages of the future life of your business. And, if you are not hungry for material losses, treat this with maximum attention. Big business allocates huge funds for market analysis. In a small business, you have to do everything yourself, especially in the absence of funds.

Market research is one of the key factors in business development. Most businesses, firms and private companies formulate an action strategy based on research findings. Recently, the demand for forecasting current market trends has increased significantly. In this regard, various techniques and methods of data analysis began to be developed. One of them is called market research, which will be the subject of this article.

Concept

Marketing research market is a process of constant and continuous collection of information about behavioral factors, demand, motivation of the subjects of market relations that operate in a certain segment, as well as its analysis.

Many people often confuse the concepts of "marketing research" and "marketing market research". In the first case, as a result of the experiments carried out, it is possible to obtain generalized data that relate not only to the market of products and services, but also to other economic segments. In the second case, research pursues more specific goals.

Objectives

Market research has an important target orientation. Their main task is to find new opportunities for a specific enterprise, define a free niche, identify competitors and develop specific recommendations for effective implementation product or service. The research focus is as follows:

Search. It consists in collecting information that will help to give reliable estimates and predictions.
Descriptive. The factors that will be investigated are selected in advance, and their influence on the general state of the market is described.
Causal. Checking cause and effect relationships.
Test. As a result of the research, the most acceptable decisions are made and tested in real conditions.
Predictive. Summarizing all the results obtained in the course of the study, it is possible to predict the further state of the investigated unit.

Tasks

Market research is a long and multi-layered process, the main task of which is to determine the possible volume of sales of goods, services and products, as well as to assess the level of demand for a specific product or service. This information is obtained by determining:

The entire market capacity.
Its part in the total capacity.
Demand analysis. It is necessary to determine the level of customer loyalty.
Analysis of the proposal, the main purpose of which is to identify competitors.
Sales opportunities. An important task is to analyze the distribution channels for a product or service.

Theory and practice

In general, the tasks of marketing research are divided into two types: methodological support of activities and market research. Methodological support consists in determining the subject and object of research, as well as collecting data and choosing the methods of the research itself. Market conditions are based on the definition of dynamics, properties, opportunities, prospects and patterns of development.

Methods

Market research methods refer to special techniques, operations or campaigns that are designed to theoretically and practically investigate the marketing environment in which a particular organization operates. Market research methods are fundamental and applied. Fundamental methods show the general picture of the market under study and some individual characteristics. While applied research the position of the enterprise in the selected market segment. Each method differs in the collection and processing of information. In general, the techniques can work with primary or secondary information. The latter has nothing to do with the research that is being carried out here and now. It has been collected and analyzed for a long time, but it is well suited for making certain conclusions and predictions.

Primary information is collected during ongoing research. Depending on the method used to collect data, they can be divided into three types:

High quality. They consist in collecting practical material. That is, the group conducting the research observes what is happening, interprets and analyzes the data obtained. Qualitative methods include focus groups, in-depth interviews, and protocol analysis.
Quantitative. Usually, surveys are referred to as quantitative research. They imply the use of closed questions and their further processing. Polls can be conducted in a variety of ways. Most often they use telephone polls, street, apartment, postal.
Mixed. Mixed research includes a variety of tests and the work of mystery shoppers. Recently, if there is a need to bring to the market new Productuse locations.

For quality

Market research and analysis is impossible without quantitative and quality analyzes. Qualitative methods used to determine consumer preferences and predict behavior patterns when launching a new product or service. To do this, apply:

Focus group. This is an analytical market research conducted among a small group of potential consumers. The focus group leader creates a specific scenario according to which the discussion is held. The main advantage of this technique is the ability to study the personal opinion of each consumer. And an informal atmosphere contributes to obtaining more reliable information.

Protocol analysis is often used to research the market for a product. The essence of this method is that researchers simulate the process of acquiring goods (most often expensive: real estate, car, appliances), and the consumer describes his thoughts and actions.
An in-depth interview consists of a survey of one of the consumers. The main difference from a survey is that all questions are open-ended, that is, a person does not choose an answer option, but talks about his attitude to a product or service. In the process of such an interview, it is easy to study the train of thought of a potential consumer, as well as determine his attitude to aspects of the material under study. Service market research is often carried out using in-depth interviews. The only drawback of this method is the need for a highly qualified specialist who not only understands the topic, but is also a good psychologist.

For quantity

Market research also occurs using quantitative methods, which express a specific problem in quantitative indicators. In this way, the opinion of a huge number of people is studied, which makes it possible to apply a statistical assessment of information. Basically quantitative methods practice when it becomes necessary to determine the market size, brand awareness, consumer attitude, etc.

Quantitative methods are divided into:

Mass polls. They consist in the analysis of the respondents' answers to the questionnaire questions. Such polls differ by the place of conduct, the method of communication (telephone, Internet, mail), subjects (legal entity, FL or experts), and the type of sample.
Personal interviews. In contrast to a mass survey, an interview provides more reliable information. The interviewer can ask the same questions as in the questionnaire, but does not offer answer options.

Retail audit

There is another effective method of market research - audit retail... It is difficult to classify this method as qualitative, quantitative or mixed, therefore it is often defined separately. The essence of the methodology is to assess the market and its products by collecting publicly available information. That is, the researchers analyze pricing policy, commodity units, advertising campaigns... In short, all aspects that reflect the characteristics of the market or its individual segment can be attributed to a retail audit. Conducting market research in this way allows you to quickly identify an unoccupied niche and identify the main competitors.

Mixed techniques

Mixed methods are based on basic aspects of quantitative and qualitative research methods. These include the following methods:

Locations. A group of consumers who are not research experts is recruited for research. They are asked to test a certain product and, along the way, answer the questionnaire. This method is very costly, but it allows you to adequately assess the product, its relevance and quality, which is important when introducing a new product to the market.

Home testing. Consumers are provided with a product that they use in the natural environment for this product, that is, at home, in nature, at sea. Using the product for its intended purpose, consumers must record the answers in special questionnaires.
Mystery shopper. Marketing research of the service market has long mastered this method. It is used to determine the level of quality of service. This technique allows us to assess the level of sales decline due to subjective factors of the sellers, which include rudeness and lack of professionalism.

Research stages

The distortions of the final results directly depend on the violation of the stages of the study. This can lead to the adoption of the wrong management strategy and development line, so it is worth considering the sequence of research:

Problems and goals. It is necessary to determine the main problems of the research, and on their basis formulate the pursued goals. Targets are exploratory, descriptive, and experimental. The former help to find the reason for the decline in sales and take the company to a new stage of development. The latter provide basic indicators of the market or its segment. Still others show a causal relationship between the actions of the company's management and the level of sales.
Sources of information. Based on the goals set, you need to choose research methods.

Collection of information. According to the selected research methods, the necessary information is collected.
Analysis. Having received the necessary information, the researcher must analyze it, translate it into figures and make certain predictions or draw conclusions.
Decision. Based on the data obtained, the management of the company makes an appropriate management decision, which will lead to the development and expansion of the company.

Data analysis

All data obtained as a result of marketing research of the market must be analyzed accordingly. The essence of the analysis is to convert the information received into meaningful facts. This procedure consists of two stages:

At the first stage, all received data is entered into a computer, checked for errors, encoded and displayed in the form of a matrix.
The second stage consists in the statistical analysis of the obtained values. After receiving statistical data, researchers give their comments and recommendations. Based on all the materials, conclusions and forecasts are made

As you can see, marketing research of the market is a laborious and costly process, but only thanks to it companies can choose the right course of development and delight consumers with the necessary goods and services.