Planning Affordable Market Research

Before you can make a strong case for your business in a written plan, you need to be up to speed on the market you’re entering, the challenges you’ll face, and the characteristics and needs of your customers. Who, after all, will be buying your products? You will, of course, need to invest some time and money in market research, although it can be low-cost and done in phases to save capital.

Most of all, you need to identify the customers who are your best targets and then listen to what they want or need, tracking reactions to your quality and price, service and delivery, image and brand—everything, in short, that influences their purchasing decisions. Based on what you learn, you might want to rethink your concept or refine your choices before writing the plan.