Speaker 1: Whether you're starting a new business, or adding a new product line, or pivoting your existing business, it's a risk. And we all hope we're getting it right. But how could we know if there is demand? Or if those ideas will turn into sale? Or if those sales will be profitable? The answer is market research. So in this video, I'm going to give you all the questions that you need to have answers to before you put your money and your time on the line. I'll show you the 7 best places to get those answers so you don't waste your time and money. And if you want to know a rookie mistake to avoid, stick around till the end. Hey everybody, welcome back and if you are new to my channel, we talk everything marketing and business to help you grow. So let's face it, there is no shortage of great business ideas that will cost you more to produce than they will ever create in revenue. Some ideas just look better on paper than they will do in your bank account. Doing your due diligence will save you time and money and a lot of headaches. Basically, market research is just knowing which questions to ask and where to find the answers. And most of the resources I'm going to share with you today are free. But they will require time and focus. And the answers to those questions will help you fast track your business idea to profitability. So first, let's cover the two kinds of questions your market research needs to cover. The first question relate to the target audience. So who are they? Where are they? What do they want? What problems are they trying to solve? And what is their pain and fears? The second set of questions relate to specific data points. So what is the size of the market? And what is the average transaction or pricing for what they want to sell? What are the demographics? And what is the current demand for it? I've created a free download worksheet with all these questions so you can add your answers in one place as you are gathering your information. There is a link in the description below. Just go ahead and download it. So here are the seven best places to find the answers you need to know that your business idea will work. The first place to find answers is with industry associations. One of the primary jobs of these associations is to provide members with helpful information. Including market research and industry trends. You should be able to get the answers you need for market size, pricing, demographics, demand, or location information. Sometimes these are free to members, but even if they're not, this could be valuable information that is well worth the money. And it's a great time-saving strategy for your research. Now my second place to find answers is Google search. Specifically looking for related articles, news, and videos for the industry. I would identify 8-10 articles on the subject from the top 20 results and read them and make a lot of notes. And I suspect you're going to get a few aha moments out of that. Same with videos listed on Google. Watch 3-5 of them and see what people selling similar products and services are saying about them. You'll see that the content that you're reading or watching is no more than a couple of years old. Anything beyond that might be outdated. The third place to find valuable answers is reading comments on Amazon and YouTube. Honestly, it's a goldmine for information. It's amazing the kind of information you're going to find here. People will literally tell you what their pain is, their fears, and the problems they're trying to solve. And we know that the key to successful marketing is tying the answers to how we position our products and services. And it's all right there in their words. The irony is that most brands and creators ignore those comments. Because they're just too busy. So block 20 minutes a day for the next 30 days to read comments. I guarantee you, you will learn a lot about what people want and need. The fourth place I would look is AnswerThePublic.com. This free resource aggregates all the questions that people ask on the internet right now. And you can filter it down to your specific product, service, or industry. Just enter a keyword and within 10 seconds, you'll have more questions on your subject than you need. And each question is a data point. Take 5 or 10 of those questions from AnswerThePublic and search for them on Google and YouTube. See what articles and videos are there about them. And specifically, read the comments. A question from AnswerThePublic will lead to a blog or a video that will lead you to a comment that will give you the answer you're looking for. The fifth best place for answers is Quora or Reddit. People are just happy to tell you what they think. Whether they're complaining or raving about something. The info you're looking for will be right there in the comments. This may be time consuming, but the time spent will be well worth it. And since it's your industry, it'll probably be interesting to you. One thing is for sure, it will give you an edge over your competition. The sixth best place to find answers is on Google Trends. First, it's free and second, it's awesome. I recently did market research there for a real estate agency. We searched for selling a home versus buying a home. And everything pointed to a hot buyer's market. So all their content and marketing efforts should be pointed in that direction right now. And the same is true for your industry. Find demand and market for that. And my seventh go-to place for market research is a well-run Facebook group. Find two or three groups that either address your topic or where your ideal customers are connecting. But don't be a troll or try to sell your stuff there. That's a great way to get kicked out of the group. Pay attention to what they're saying and ask questions in a socially appropriate way. Like, has anybody replaced their roof here recently? Or what are the best questions to ask before hiring an accountant? And see what people have to say. Or search the Facebook group with your specific keywords to see if there's already been a discussion about it. The important thing about market research is to find what people care about, where and how they're getting it, and what's frustrating or not working about it so you can sell them a better solution. And now, here is the mistake that you want to avoid. Doing market research is not a one-time thing. What happens too often is that people do their market research and get going. They get busy and never look back again. And if the plan is successful, they think they're geniuses. But here is the deal. Markets evolve. And so does the demand for your product. What was in high demand two years ago may be a commodity today. And the prices that you charge may have evolved too. If you want to stay ahead of your competition, review your market research every 18 to 24 months. Spend one to two days studying what's working and what's not. Try to poke holes in your assumptions about what they want and the problems they're trying to solve today. This will ensure that new businesses coming in to compete with you won't steal your lunch. So next, I would watch this video or this one below. Give me a thumbs up if you got value. Please make sure to subscribe and click the bell so you don't miss a thing. And that does it for today. Until next time, ciao.