Practical Market Research for Your Digital Marketing Career

If you see someone selling you a product only based on their gut, you’re probably going to run away. They’re not doing appropriate research, you don’t have any reference for that product, and there’s no growth estimation. That’s why it is so important to conduct market research. 

As a digital marketer, you probably think that market research isn’t your job but the duty of a data scientist or analyst instead. However, having this skill puts you a step above everyone else. In this guide, we will explore some of the reasons you should learn market research in your journey of becoming a digital marketer. 

What is Market Research?

Market research is the process of investigating potential customers to determine the best way to offer a company’s products. They must evaluate the target audience’s tastes, interests, dislikes, and purchasing habits. This is done by collecting data from websites, surveys, and the company’s databases. 

Market research involves investigating competitors, what they offer, what customers like about them, etc. Market research is also used for evaluating how the customers respond to advertising and whether they change their interests with time.

The purpose of all this is to provide better services or products based on the customers’ desires. It is an exhausting process that takes time and effort, but will reduce costs in the long run. 

Types of Market Research

The two types of market research are primary and secondary. There must be a combination of both techniques to succeed. Primary research consists of everything you investigate on your own, including surveys, polls, and observation. 

Secondary research is more about collecting data from existing reliable sources. You can find this in governmental organization sites, company databases, sales records, and historical data from your customers. 

Secondary research is easier because it’s already available online. It doesn’t require a lot of effort or research costs. However, primary research provides a deeper and more accurate analysis of your target audience and product. 

How to Apply Market Research Techniques for Digital Marketing

Market research is a great ally in terms of digital marketing. It helps you understand your potential customers’ behaviors, interests, and habits, and you can find out how your product would do in that particular industry. Here are some of the things you can do with market research to improve your digital marketing strategies:

• Identify your target audience. One of the things you could do with market research is understand how your potential customers behave and segment your audience. Then, you can divide that crowd into target groups based on their interests, dislikes, and purchasing habits.
• Competitor research. You can anonymously investigate your competitors. The internet allows you to see their online activity. This will help you improve your strategies. An example of this technique is SEO research. You can see your competitors’ keywords, trends, and backlinks. 
• Get to know your product.  With market research, you can also check the performance of your product by evaluating the product experience. You can do this with direct observation, surveys, and using online data. You can check the traffic on your website, users’ journeys, etc. This will give you insights into the quality of your product and how you can improve it. It’s also a good idea to include videos while doing market research, as they enable you to view exactly what other people think.

Conclusion: The Current Market Research Scope

Digital marketing research improves conversion rates and product or service quality. We no longer use paper or wait for feedback calls or letters. Market research is more instantaneous now. You can collect data from social media polls, website databases, and users' comments. 

Social media has become the best review site for customers. Instead of seeing this as a threat, we must see it as a handy tool to improve our products. Customers rely on their peers’ reviews more than what the company offers. That’s why you should use this in your favor to promote your products. 

Technology has optimized marketing research, but it still requires a human touch and analytical skills to provide meaning to raw data.