1. The purpose of consumer research
The purpose of consumer research is to help companies better understand and meet the needs of consumers, so as to improve the competitiveness and profitability of enterprises. Specifically, consumer research can help businesses achieve the following goals:
Identify and analyze target markets and target consumers to identify market opportunities and competitive advantages;
Evaluate and optimize market demand and potential, and set reasonable market size and share targets;
Understand consumers' purchase motivations, decision-making processes, purchase behaviors and usage behaviors, and design products and services that are more in line with consumers' needs and expectations;
Understand consumers' attitudes, perceptions, satisfaction and loyalty to brands, products and services, and establish and maintain a good brand image and reputation;
Understand consumer reactions and influences on the market environment, competitors, marketing activities, etc., and optimize the marketing mix and resource allocation;
Discover new needs, new trends, new problems, etc., and provide inspiration and direction for product innovation and market expansion.
To achieve these goals, consumer research needs to collect, analyze, and interpret a variety of information about consumers, including consumer characteristics, needs, cognitions, attitudes, motivations, behaviors, mental models, life trajectories, and more. This information can be divided from different perspectives and levels, for example, according to the role of consumers, they can be divided into audiences, buyers, users and communicators; According to the needs of consumers, they can be divided into functional needs, emotional needs and social needs; According to the behavior of consumers, it can be divided into pre-purchase behavior, purchase behavior and post-purchase behavior. Consumer research needs to choose appropriate information dimensions and classification methods according to different purposes and contexts, so as to obtain and use consumer information more effectively.
2. Methods of consumer research
The methods of consumer research can be divided into two categories: qualitative research and quantitative research. Qualitative research mainly explores the difficult to quantify aspects of consumers' psychology, motivation, attitude, and feelings through in-depth interviews, observations, case studies, etc., in order to obtain in-depth insights and insights of consumers. Quantitative research mainly collects and analyzes the quantitatively quantifiable aspects such as the number, frequency, proportion, and difference of consumers through questionnaires, experiments, mathematical statistics, etc., in order to verify the laws and trends of consumers. Qualitative and quantitative research have their own advantages and disadvantages, in general, qualitative research is better suited for finding problems and formulating hypotheses, and quantitative research is better for testing problems and validating hypotheses. Therefore, consumer research should flexibly select and combine qualitative and quantitative research methods according to different purposes and stages to achieve the best results.
When choosing and using a consumer research method, you also need to pay attention to the following:
The method of consumer research should match the purpose and object of consumer research, and should not blindly follow or imitate, but should be selected and adjusted according to the actual situation;
The methods of consumer research should be scientific and effective, not designed or implemented arbitrarily, and should follow certain principles and norms to ensure the reliability and validity of data;
The method of consumer research should be innovative and flexible, not conformist or static, but should be improved and innovated according to market changes and consumer feedback, so as to improve the sensitivity and usefulness of data.
3. The process of consumer research
The process of consumer research can be broken down into the following steps:
Determine the purpose and questions of the study: clarify the objectives and scope of the consumer research, put forward specific research questions and hypotheses, and provide guidance for the subsequent design and implementation of the study;
Design research programs and tools: select appropriate research methods and techniques, design research programs and tools, including research objects, research samples, research indicators, research content, research time, research budget, etc.;
Collect research data: Implement research activities in accordance with research protocols and tools, collect research data, including qualitative data and quantitative data, and pay attention to ensuring the integrity and accuracy of data;
Analyze research data: collate, summarize, analyze and interpret the collected research data, apply appropriate statistical methods and analysis models, draw research results and conclusions, and verify research hypotheses and problems;
Writing research reports: Present the research process and results in written form, write research reports, including research background, research objectives, research methods, research results, research conclusions, research recommendations, etc., and pay attention to the logic and readability of the report;
Submit the research report: Submit the research report to the relevant personnel or departments, communicate and exchange, obtain feedback and evaluation, and revise and improve it as needed.
Fourth, the results of consumer research
The results of consumer research refer to the consumer information and insights obtained through consumer research, as well as the marketing recommendations and solutions based on these information and insights. The results of consumer research should have the following characteristics:
Be relevant and relevant: The results of the consumer research should be closely related to the purpose and questions of the consumer research, and be able to effectively address or answer the objectives and questions of the consumer research, rather than being off-topic or irrelevant;
Valuable and practical: The results of consumer research should have a certain value and practicability, and be able to provide useful reference and support for the company's decision-making and action, rather than empty theories or suggestions that cannot be implemented;
Accuracy and credibility: The results of consumer research should have a certain degree of accuracy and credibility, and be able to reflect the real situation and opinions of consumers, rather than wrong data or subjective bias;
Innovative and inspiring: The results of consumer research should be innovative and inspiring, able to discover new needs, new trends, new problems, etc., and provide new ideas and directions for the innovation and development of enterprises.
In order to achieve these characteristics, the results of consumer research need to go through the following steps:
Data cleaning: check and process the collected data to remove invalid, duplicated, erroneous, and abnormal data to ensure the quality and consistency of the data;
Data integration: Integrate and transform data of different types, types and formats to form a unified data set, which is convenient for data analysis and utilization;
Data analysis: analyze and mine the integrated data, use appropriate statistical methods and analysis models, discover the rules and trends of data, and extract information and insights from data;
Data presentation: present and display the analyzed data, use appropriate charts and texts to express the meaning and conclusion of the data, and highlight the key points and highlights of the data;
Data application: apply and utilize the presented data, put forward marketing suggestions and plans according to the meaning and conclusion of the data, and provide support and guidance for the decision-making and action of the enterprise.
Conclusion
Consumer research is an important part of marketing, which can help enterprises understand and meet the needs of consumers, and improve the competitiveness and profitability of enterprises. Consumer research needs to summarize the essence and key points of consumer research from four aspects: purpose, method, process and results of consumer research, as well as some experiences and lessons that should be paid attention to in practice. The purpose of this article is to provide some reference and inspiration for those who are engaged in or preparing to engage in consumer research, and help them improve the quality and effectiveness of consumer research. Of course, consumer research is an ever-evolving and changing field, and with the changes in the market and the changes in consumers, consumer research also needs to be constantly updated and innovated to adapt to new needs and challenges. Therefore, consumer researchers should maintain the spirit of learning and exploration, constantly improve their professional level and ability, and contribute to the development and success of the enterprise.