Market research, the backbone of all business decisions

Last week we discussed that with the shift in color on the leaves comes the time to address how to overcome resistance to change in your organization. Our most recent TEC Senior Managers’ Program lent insight into just that by understanding how to lead your employees through organizational changes.

How do organizations decide what changes are necessary in the first place? Just like with any decision we make in our daily lives, the process begins with gathering all relevant information, weighing the pros and cons and analyzing where opportunities and risks lie. Once that is complete, an educated decision can be made.

When making decisions on behalf of an organization, the variables and stakes are greater. So how do you begin to gather and stay current with all the pertinent information when it involves an entire organization or industry? Market research. Conducting regular, and specific, market research is vital to the growth and success of your business.

As stated in an article on The Business Plan website, without market research, it’s like packing for a trip without checking the weather conditions at your destination. The article also shares specific decisions that market research helps, including:

-    Whether or not to enter a market
-    Whether or not to launch a new product
-    Whether to continue with a service based on customer satisfaction
-    Compare the sales performance of your product to your competitors

For the full list, click here.

How have you used market research to make a critical business decision? Do you put more weight on some aspects of market research than others?