Today, qualitative and quantitative marketing research is essential before a product or a project is launched. Marketing research originated from consumer product markets, where the final purchasers were far removed from the manufacturer and  it was necessary to get close to them to get their views on their products. These days research is done on new products to understand acceptability,  as well as on old products to ensure their long term continued existence.

Marketing research is essential in new product launch as any variables that affect sales need to be tested. But new product research requires a very different approach to researching existing products.

Through marketing research, we attempt to arrive at certain conclusions. As we deal with human behavior, there are many different behavior patterns, and it is very difficult to identify each and every one of these and quantify them. We use marketing research to reduce the area of uncertainty. Research findings attempt to quantify the unknown and make educated guesses.

Useful links:

http://upandrunning.bplans.com/2012/01/23/the-benefit-of-market-research/

Even a decade ago long established multinational companies were flourishing. They had a strong R&D department, patents, unique high quality products, no competition and money was flowing in. This was more prevalent in the large multinational chemical companies like Dow, Dupont & BASF.  But in this era, times have changed. Many specialty chemicals have become commodities, today, and now smaller, nimbler companies in Asia have come up copying and producing better products, and giving the customer a better value, creating intense competition for these MNC’s. These firms now face tremendous pressure in protecting margins and price in the midst of new competition from these smaller companies. Creating and developing a superior and unique product with a value proposition is an integral part of business strategy, but sustaining it for long term is much more difficult.

Today, the large chemical MNC’s are experiencing increasing instability in an industry where regulatory compliance, globalization, economic volatility, and consolidation are headlines. They need to adopt new measures to address these issues.

Taking into account core competencies along their whole value chain, chemical companies must effectively communicate their differential value to their customer base, otherwise their existence will be at stake.

James Anderson, James Narus, and Wouter Van Rossum, Harvard Business Review March 2006,  Customer Value Proposition in Business Markets

http://www.businessmarketingblog.org/top-iphone-apps-for-online-marketing/

I came across this blog by Vinny La Barbera which I believe makes an interesting point. A key marketing strategy for any business is getting into the mind of the customer. With technology evolving day-by-day, a business must market its products online, otherwise it will become obsolete. If people cannot find information that is of value to them regarding the products of the business online, they will switch to competitors that have already established their reputation on the internet.

Nowadays, it has become relatively easy for a company to market their business, sell to their potential and retain customers. Smartphones such as Apple’s iPhone, Samsung’s Galaxy tabs and Google’s Android, with their thousands of applications, enable firms to carry out marketing and advertising quite effectively. It has become quite a convenient way for businesses to communicate with prospective buyers, thus increasing sales. Applications such as Facebook allow businesses to make fan pages that keep potential buyers up-to-date about new and existing products, retailer stores, etc. There are also many twitter applications, that enable companies to post videos and pictures advertising products and engage in conversation with users through ‘tweets’. The Linked-In application has also become vastly popular for users who want to establish new business contacts.

What is the future for online marketing? With the ever-increasing advancements in technology, it is likely to be positive. Businesses must take advantage of the increasing use of technology by the younger generation, many of whom will be their target market in the near future, in order to promote their brand image.

Just in a matter of a few years, fast-food has become increasingly popular in Bangladesh. Is it because of increased globalization? Maybe. What is certain is that consumer preferences are changing. People want food that’s cheap, convenient, filling, and tasty – that’s exactly what fast-food is.

Wimpy was one of the first international fast-food franchises established in Bangladesh. Then came Pizza Hut, A&W, KFC and all the rest. Fast food restaurants are now spread all over Dhaka, the capital city as well as many other cities in the country. Competition between the restaurants is intense. During the month of Ramadan, Pizza Hut gives special all-you can eat offers for iftar which prove to be quite popular. Pizza Inn, a franchise recently introduced to Bangladesh, has started to copy this tactic. Consumers show an overall positive attitude towards these chains because of quick and efficient service, quality of food, low prices and cleanliness of environment. Consuming fast-food has become a growing trend amongst the upper class society, teenagers and adults alike.

What does this mean for society? As fast-food chains are becoming more and more numerous, it is a growing concern that this will lead to increased ill health and child obesity. It is a well-known fact that fast-foods are high on starch, sugar and fat – the more you eat, the more calories you gain, the higher chances you have of getting diabetes and heart disease.

http://www.wbiaus.org/2.%20Ayesha.pdf