Good market intelligence has always been vital to successful businesses, and never more than in the current demanding climate. Yet with ever more information available, how can managers balance the need to have the right intelligence against being swamped with information, while keeping research budgets lean?
We have worked with clients of all sizes in a wide range of sectors, and here are the ten things we think businesses really need to know about their markets:
1. What do they look like (size, structure etc)?
2. What are they doing (growing, static, shrinking, other dynamics)?
3. What are the key trends and influences?
4. Who are the key players (customers, competitors, influencers, gatekeepers etc)?
5. How big is your share and what’s happening to it?
6. What are your competitors’ shares and what are they doing?
7. What do customers want now and what will they want in the future?
8. Are any new players arriving (customers, competitors etc)?
9. Are there any new ways of doing things on the horizon that could affect your business?
10. How much of the above is already available and how much will you have to find out for yourself?
Although this list is not exhaustive, if you can answer all these questions you will have a sound knowledge and understanding of your market(s) and how the future is shaping up.
For more information on getting to know your market, contact us on enquiry@w-l-p.co.uk