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#MarketingTitbits – Market Research, Instagram Guide, Internet Facts

research-instagram-internet1. How to do market research on a small budget
Ever wondered how to carry out market research on a small budget? When launching a new product or service, companies must understand their customers’ needs and wants, and this is achieved through research and development. Companies such as Unilever and Coca-Cola spend millions each year on their R&D; however, Marketing Week have shared six ways on how to keep those costs down.

According to Jane Frost, CEO at the Market Research Community, brands should always opt for quality over quantity. With this in mind, read on for tips on how to keep those market research costs down – Click here.

2. A marketer’s guide to Instagram video

Instagram, without a doubt, brings out the visual appeal of brands across the world. No matter what the industry, a brand can find its place on Instagram and create some really eye-catching, innovative content.

Brands such as Red Bull rely on Instagram to promote their product through original content. For Red Bull it’s a simple case of reflecting its association with extreme sports through the sharing of relevant video clips. As well as originality, playing to the emotions is also a successful way of grasping a consumer’s attention. Clips from Save the Children prompted an emotional response from consumers, making it one of the most shared clips on Instagram to date.

Click here for Instagram marketing tips.

3. 10 facts, and clever observations, about the internet that will blow your mind

When thinking about how far the Internet has come in the last 20 years, it’s mind-blowing. Consider, for instance, that it took the telephone 75 years to reach 50 million users around the world, whereas it only took the Internet 4 years, as well as the Angry Birds app just 35 days (thanks to the Internet).

Not blown away by that impressive fact? There are 3.2 billion Internet users worldwide, accounting for almost 44% of the global population. As well as that, 950 million households worldwide own a television, but twice as many people access the Internet from a handheld device. After this incredible evolution of technology over such a brief period of time, what will life look like in just a few short years?

To read 10 mind-blowing facts about the Internet, click here.

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TLC Business Speaking at Wired Wessex – 27th October

Wired Wessex in October
How to do Proper Market Research – It’s Essential!
Thursday, October 27th
6 – 8 pm
Winchester Discovery Centre Performance Hall, Jewry Street, Winchester
Cost:  £10 at the doorIt is not sexy but market research might just be the missing piece of your marketing puzzle. SMEs have been historically poor at undertaking research prior to undertaking marketing campaigns. All too often, assumptions rather than facts are used to inform SME’s marketing decisions.

In a challenging economic climate, it is as important as ever for SMEs to generate a return on every marketing activity they invest in. Without research many businesses are effectively just gambling with their marketing spend.

To push the odds in your favour, effective market research will remove the guess work, giving your marketing a clear focus and most importantly, a real chance of generating a desirable ROI.

To reserve your place click here.

 

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Download our market research talk for Wired Wessex

TLC Business director, Josh Spencer, gave a talk on the importance of Market Research, to business owners and students at Winchester’s Discovery Centre last Thursday 28th October. The presentation outlined why market research is so crucial for a business and provided attendees with tips and advice on how to go about it most effectively.
You can download the slides here.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

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Paul the psychic Octopus and Marketing for SMEs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rv3ZeoHICQ0
We’re sure you’ve all heard of the remarkable tale of Paul the clairvoyant octopus, who correctly predicted the winner in all 8 of the matches he was prompted to, at this year’s World Cup.

Whilst his feat is certainly unlikely and many seem convinced of his psychic abilities, the cynic in us here, feels fairly confident that it was merely coincidence.

But what has psychic Paul the octopus got to do with marketing, I hear you ask?

All too often, SMEs leave their marketing success to chance. They might as well let psychic Paul loose with their marketing budget and see what happens. Would you feel confident in putting your marketing fate into the ‘tentacles’ of a clairvoyant Octopus, regardless of his past success at predicting the future?

If the answer is yes, then good luck to you. If it works, you’ll have a great press release on your hands! However, for those of us that would like a more stable foundation on which to make our marketing decisions, there is no substitute for proper marketing planning and preparation.

We keep shouting about it and that is because we believe that investing time, energy and money (sometimes) in this area will reap significant rewards down the marketing road. SMEs are notoriously keen to shun planning and preparation, in favour of pursuing ad hoc business interests. This attitude is a major factor in why many businesses are finding their marketing does not deliver the return on investment they expect and their business needs.

So what can you do about it?

3 crucial areas that you need to know about before you embark on any marketing campaign are:

  1.  What is your market? Not what you think it is, but actually research who your service / products appeal to? You may be surprised at some of the market segments that are interested in what you do.
  2. What are your customers / potential customers’ needs? Why are they buying / would they buy your products or services? What needs are you satisfying?
  3. Who are your competitors and what are they doing? Again, not just those you are immediately aware of. You need to research a bit further, consider your indirect competitors too.

Only once you have this information as minimum, should you consider formulating a marketing plan.

It has been proven that there is a direct link between the long-run profitability of a business and its ability to get a clear understanding of its customers’ needs. It makes sense really, if you know what someone wants and why they want it, it should be fairly straightforward to offer a service or product that meets that need.

The crucial next step is giving them a reason to get it from you. Here’s where knowing what your competitors are up to becomes vital. Armed with this information, you are in an ideal situation to position your company’s offering in a unique and competitive way that creates a compelling case for why your customers / prospects should use you.

As the old adage goes, fail to plan and plan to fail. This can certainly apply to marketing. A bit of planning and preparation will significantly push the odds of marketing success in your favour, giving you facts and figures on which to make your marketing decisions rather than the whim of a psychic octopus called Paul in a German aquarium.

Free Marketing MOT for Hampshire Businesses
As part of our quest to get SMEs planning their marketing more, TLC Business allocate a limited number of free marketing MOTs to businesses based in Hampshire that want to improve their marketing’s performance. Many businesses have benefitted from one already so don’t delay and book your MOT today. Visit our marketing MOT page for more information.

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