Market intelligence and market entry strategies

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Entering a new arena without any contextual knowledge can often lead to expensive errors. Fundamental to success, then, is a comprehensive analysis and research of your intended market. Your polar findings will be either an overwhelming or underwhelming response to a product or service, and it’s probably better to know this before parting with reluctant sums of money.

Organisations must accept that differences in values, customs, languages and currencies will mean that some products will only suit certain countries.

Your product must possess characteristics that make it acceptable for the market – these may be features like size, shape, design, performance and even colour. Your product or service must adapt, refine, alter, acclimatise, tailor and fashion itself to a market, not rely on some fatalistic hope of simply “fitting in.” Products are more pliable than people.

The potential market size, degree and type of competition, price, promotional differences, product differences as well as barriers to trade have to be analysed alongside the cost-effectiveness of various types of transport. The organisation then has to assess the scale of the investment and consider both short- and long-term targets for an adequate return.

 

Food Trade Affairs helps businesses to identify their target markets and analyse competitors. The end result is a market strategy that works. Good market research entails finding out what actually drives a market – and how to get the best out of it.

 

What is market research?

Market research involves finding out about things you need to know such as import duties, regulations, distribution channels, market size and growth, competition, demographics and local production – so you can assess market opportunities and the costs of capturing them.

The most valuable element of market research is information about ‘market feel’. How will your product or service compete in the environment where you will be doing business?

 

What is ‘market feel’ and how do I get it?

Market feel is a first-hand appreciation of how buyers operate, the dynamics of business meetings, what your competitors are doing and potential obstacles to market entry.

Sound market research will encompass intelligence from people who are streetwise and can convey market knowledge in a practical fashion. This includes descriptions of the types of buyers you will meet, how they negotiate, cultural factors in business dealings and a flavour of the market environment.

Narrow the focus to your product or service and here the process becomes much more specific. You may think ‘but my product or service is different’ and this is where commissioned research is so valuable. This is when you start to present your product and service to overseas buyers and get their reaction.

At this stage of the market research process you should pay particular attention to how your competitors operate. You can gain responses by sending product data or samples to overseas buyers – but their reaction to ‘cold mail’ will usually be passive unless your product really excites them.

 

Contact us today to see how we can help you achieve the research insights you need to reach your objectives.