How to Do Market Research Before You Start Your Own Business

Before you start your own business, it's important to do your homework and conduct market research. By definition, market research is "the process of assessing the viability of a new product or service through the gathering and analyzing of data about potential customers." In other words, market research is all about understanding your target audience and what they want or need. 

There are a number of different ways to go about conducting market research. Here are a few methods you may want to consider:

1. Customer surveys
2. Competitor analysis
3. Focus groups
4. Social media listening
5. Google AdWords Keyword Planner 
…And more!

Market research is an essential part of starting your own business because it allows you to determine whether or not there is a demand for your product or service. If you're thinking about starting your own business, be sure to do your market research first! 

Customer Surveys: Customer surveys are one of the most commonly used methods of market research. Why? Because they allow you to directly ask your target audience questions about their needs, wants, and pain points. There are a few different ways to go about conducting customer surveys, but one of the most popular methods is using an online survey tool like SurveyMonkey or Typeform. 

Competitor Analysis: Another common method of conducting market research is competitor analysis. This involves taking a close look at what your competitors are doing—everything from their branding and marketing initiatives to their pricing models—and figuring out how you can improve upon it. When conducting competitor analysis, it's important to keep in mind that you should never copy your competitors exactly; rather, use their strategies as inspiration for how you can set yourself apart from the rest. 

Focus Groups: Focus groups are small groups of people who are brought together in person or online to discuss a particular topic or issue. When it comes to market research, focus groups can be extremely helpful in getting feedback about things like advertising campaigns, product concepts, or even packaging design.  Focus groups give you the opportunity to get real-time feedback from potential customers so that you can make changes on the fly based on what they say. 

Social Media Listening: Social media listening is all about paying attention to what people are saying about your brand on social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Not only does social media listening give you insights into how people feel about your brand, but it can also alert you to any negative sentiment so that you can address it quickly and efficiently.  In addition, social media listening can also help you keep tabs on what people are saying about your competitors—giving you a leg up in the market research department! 

​Google AdWords Keyword Planner: Last but not least is the Google AdWords Keyword Planner—a free tool that allows users to see how often certain keywords are being searched for on Google. This information can be extremely valuable when trying to determine which keywords to target in your marketing efforts. In addition to showing you how often keywords are being searched for, the Google AdWords Keyword Planner also provides insights into which keywords are most relevant to your business. 

There's no doubt about it—market research is essential if you want to start your own business. By definition, market research is "the process of assessing the viability of a new product or service through the gathering and analyzing of data about potential customers." In other words, market research is all about understanding your target audience and what they want or need. And there are a number of different ways to go about conducting market research, including customer surveys, competitor analysis, focus groups, social media listening, and more! So if you're thinking about starting your own business, be sure to do your market research first!

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