For B2B marketers, market research analysis should populate the proverbial black book, comprise the Knowledge, form the notes on the marketing hymn sheet…in reality, it doesn’t.
However given a greater understanding of research and how it can be conducted online, with or without an agency, at exhibitions and to what end, might persuade more B2B marketers to consider this more seriously and holistically. The following 10 points cover all aspects of market research from the basics to the brand and from budget to brief.
The first step towards a successful market research campaign is having a clear picture of the endgame ie. the knowledge you hope to gain. The next fundamental step is knowing who you wish to do the research on is it customers, prospects, suppliers or channel partners? Richard Bush, MD of Base One, comments, this is one of the biggest challenges in market research because of the complexity of the decision-making process you have to make sure this is very accurate.
These cover the cold, hard commercial points that are absolutely imperative touch points before any action is taken or budget invested, but it might also be worth taking a minute to consider worst case scenario results what if brand recall is abysmal or what if customers prefer the competition? Simon Moody, director of Millward Brown, comments, From the very beginning the company must be prepared to take on board what they learn about themselves.
Deciding whether or not to use a market research agency depends on the objectives. If it’s for PR purposes (see point seven) using an agency is crucial. Bruce Townsend, marketing manager of software developer Actinic, comments, A third party helps with PR coverage as it gives credibility. The press won’t look at it otherwise.
If the brief has complex objectives such as assessing market potential or identifying new prospects an agency will produce the best results. Davina O’Donoghue, board director of Evo Research, comments, When it comes to evaluating a new idea or anything that might suffer from bias or an internal struggle, it’s best to use an outsider and an expert.
One of the key reservations about using an agency is cost. Talent management agency Getfeedback recently carried out market research on its target segments. Carrie Bedingfield, head of marketing, comments: I suspect it was a £15k project, squeezed into a £5k budget through worksharing. Part of FreshMinds’ [the research agency’s] appeal was that they were prepared to work flexibly in this way we needed a spanner from them, they didn’t make us buy the whole toolbox. Townsend of Actinic has carried out annual research on the SME ecommerce sector since 2001 and has always used an agency. However, in an effort to minimise costs he recently decided to take the analysis stage of the project inhouse.
Opinions vary on the proportion of marketing budget that should go towards market reseach. Nick Hague, director of B2B International, comments, the research budget should be around five per cent of the total marketing budget, no less ideally it should be more like 10 per cent. However, Townsend of Actinic Software states that market research comprises just 2.5 per cent of his budget.
According to Hague, B2B International’s research projects vary from £10,000 to £200,000 budgets. For £10,000, a company can carry out UK-based focus groups on easy-to-get respondents ie. plumbers or electricians (professionals and high-level management are more expensive) at £3500 per group though he recommends three groups to get accurate feedback. Design of the discussion guide, recruitment of participants, venue, incentives, analysis, presentation and delivery of results is part of the package.
Obviously a £10k research budget is prohibitive for some companies although they still need the same insight and information. Bedingfield of Getfeedback comments, Obviously the scale is constrained by the budget, but the quality need not suffer. Limitations of scale force both the client and the agency to consider methodology very carefully and to be innovative in how data is collected.
In principal, market research is expensive but there are areas that can be handled inhouse (see point eight) and merging professional results with amateur assessments can provide practitioners with a sound knowledge base without vast investment.
Jonathan Shingleton, chairman of BPRI Group, summarises how best to write a brief for a market research agency:
Outline the main objectives ie. where is insight needed?
Make available any relevant previous research
Explain any unusual issues that the agency needs to be aware of
Identify your key audience and/or markets
Indicate how the findings should be presented ie. statistics, verbal presentation etc.
Once these boxes are ticked it’s important to consider the commercial value of the research. Bedingfield of Getfeedback advises: When defining the brief ask:
1. How are we going to make this spend back?
2. Which data will transform our business and how?
The commercial value should drive every part of the project, from design work to decision-making in project. Every member of the team should understand what the commercial value is.
Like appointing any agency PR, design, digital or research it’s best to work with them throughout the project rather than just throw a brief their way and disappear. The client must be involved at the consulting stage it’s best practice to involve key stakeholders at this point ie. those who have requested or will work with the research.
Designing the questionnaire, interview or survey is another crucial stage which requires client-side insight. Carrying out the focus group is, traditionally, where marketers get involved as this is the main event, but what precedes and proceeds matters equally. The final, analytical stage ie. transforming the raw data into an insightful report is generally when the client disappears. ‘Let them go on with it’ takes precedence.
However, O’Donoghue of EVO Research, states that this is when she really wants client involvement. We encourage clients to get involved in the analysis stage because a nuance or an idea might be lost on us but will be picked up by someone who’s known the target audience for years. This way you get to magnify areas that might otherwise be overlooked.
Desk research ie. the collection of secondary data published reports and statistics should lay the foundation of all market research projects as it provides background knowledge and leads. The Internet, libraries, trade bodies and magazines are important sources for this information.
Thereafter, it’s a case of using qualitative ‘Qual’ and/or quantitative ‘Quan’ research. Qual is used as an exploratory tool where the emphasis is on understanding/finding the issues rather than simple measurement. It requires more in-depth probing and is conducted on smaller numbers eg. focus groups, panels and depth/one-to-one interviews. Quan is concerned with measurement of a market ie. size, segments and brand share. It takes a larger sample and seeks numerical measures through CATI/WATI (computer/web-assisted telephone interviewing) interviews and questionnaires.
O’Donoghue of EVO Research advises, Qual, and then Quan is the right way to go particularly if you’re dealing with an issue you don’t know very much about, for example if it’s a new product or a new market sector. Get the Qual right then establish the best questions to ask which you can feed into the Quan part of the project, she adds.
Jo Stroud, head of marketing at BI, agrees, Quan is ideal for a repeat survey, something that’s ongoing eg. a brand tracing survey. A good rule of thumb is if the subject is complicated or attitudinal Qual is best as it will uncover the issues. O’Donoghue states that one-to-one interviews work best in B2B generally but that group discussions are preferable if the idea is abstract or embryonic.
Richard bush of Base One offers some tips on conducting a focus group:
Wait until the end of the session to identify the company carrying out the research.
Warm-up with general discussion on current issues effecting the industry.
Focus on key areas.
Use emotional and open-ended questions that will trigger a more insightful response.
Good research can expand a company’s column inches but this won’t happen automatically it must be cultivated from the beginning with PR in mind. In August 2004 Sage carried out the Business Heartbeat Survey with the primary aim of generating press coverage. It focused on businesses of all sizes and surveyed their attitudes towards general issues like skills, development, HR and bureaucracy.
It found that 28 per cent of entrepreneurs would think twice about setting up business given the chance again and that businesses in the North were more optimistic and likely to increase turnover (than those in the South). These findings were picked up in the Daily Telegraph and the Observer.
Nick Rappolt, partner at Sage’s PR agency Credo Communications, offers some tips for making research PR-savvy:
Work backwards ie. what will the press pick up on?
Look for the human angle.
Find comparisons ie. between North and South, men and women.
Focus on a general/contentious issue such as red tape or skills.
While it’s advisable to outsource certain types of research others can be carried out inhouse. Customer satisfaction surveys can be easily carried out without an agency either on the telephone or via an online survey.
O’Donoghue of Evo Research advises clients to draw very clear parameters between what happens inhouse and what’s outsourced: The client might focus on immersing in the target market for example the marketing team might spend a day with the audience this can stimulate thinking.
To make this all the more effective it’s best to perform it methodically (ie. every six months) as this makes the results comparable and it will highlight trends in the market.
The web has provided a more sophisticated platform for researchers. For example, questionnaires can be tailored online to every individual respondent or bespoke websites can be set up for global brand testing.
Technology such as PDAs (personal digital assistants) and Opinionmeters can be used at exhibitions as cost-effective ways of gauging market research. Jo Stroud of BI comments, This is making use of the existing event, there’s no additional expense of setting up a focus group or a panel.
The Opinionmeter is a standalone, computerised device that allows respondents to anonymously input their feedback at point-of-service, for example on site or at an exhibition. Richard Gamble, director of Customer Research Technology (Opinometer provider), comments, The Opinometer can give a short, sharp hit when you don’t want to go into any great depth it’s quick data. Richard Bush of Base One counters, The drawback is that the one in 10 person who’ll stop and do it is self-selecting. Getting the right person within your target group is slim though for a general measure of brand recall this is okay.
Gamble’s tips on what not to do with an Opinionmeter:
Don’t dress up with loads of marketing paraphernalia
Don’t ask for personal details people are more willing to cooperate if they trust that it’s genuine research rather than a backdoor data capture.
Historically, the focus in B2B has been on the functional, rational elements of research this is where it has contrasted most with the consumer sector. Simon Moody of Millward Brown states that this is changing, that more B2B companies are waking up to the value of emotional and brand research. He comments, B2B research needs to understand brand attitudes opposed to just measuring reach. It’s important that these soft measures are part of the B2B mix this has been ignored for too long.
Moody’s tips for emotional research:
- Ask ‘Is it a brand for me?’
- Ask ‘Is it a brand I hear a lot about?’
- Ask ‘Is it a brand I relate to?’
There are lots of grey areas in market research eg. using it for PR or to explore the brand and these can be as fruitful as its traditional, monochrome purposes. However, the golden rule with all market research is that its findings are exploited. Conducting research for research’s sake is even more foolish than ignoring it altogether in the first place.
The second golden rule is that certain types of research are best carried out methodically; ie. brand recall, customer satisfaction etc. Townsend of Actinic Research who carries out market research on a six-monthly basis sagely explains his foremost reason for scheduling: it actually happens. Which leads to the third golden rule: common sense implement this as much as possible and the results, as well as the budget, should be satisfactory.
