MarketingProfs Know-How Exchange : which is the best way to know the american market

Posted by: mgoodman	Accepted Answer
5/27/2005 7:37 AM (CST)
The only way to learn the market is to jump in and start asking questions of the people who live it every day. Make your first priority a research mini-project in which you talk with people and find out what they need, how they make decisions, what their biggest challenges are, how they feel about outsourcing, what their experience has been (with outsourcing), etc. Don't try to sell them anything. Just ask high-gain questions and listen to their responses. Take detailed notes. Ask "why?" a lot. After you've spoken with 15-20 people, review your notes and analyze them for common threads. You'll probably be able to identify some fruitful approaches for your mission. Before you leave, you might want to develop your discussion guide -- the questions you'd use in the research -- and try it on a few people who have lived in the US or traveled extensively there on business. The technique is particularly effective when you use a consistent question list and memorize the questions, so it never looks like you're reading from a questionnaire. Good luck.

Posted by: manu.kaher*	Accepted Answer
5/31/2005 7:57 AM (CST)
Hi, US Market is huge and there are many segments attached to it and each segment has its own set of questions. So even before you try to understand the market decide which segment/ industry you would like to target and thn sit and think about the questions. It's right to say more relevant questions will get you the best information. Gud Luck

Posted by: Gabriel*	Accepted Answer
6/7/2005 12:35 AM (CST)
Hi, There is a great website, http://marketresearch.com/ which I have used in the past. You can purchase research reports on various markets in the USA for very reasonable prices. If you have a particular industry or market segment in mind, a quick glace at this site could prove very helpful. If you aren't sure about whether a report is right for you, just call them and they will read portions of reports to you to see if it's what you need. Good luck!

Posted by: carrie77	Moderator Response
6/12/2005 7:57 AM (CST)
Hello all. I am closing this question since it's more than 2 weeks old. We do this to reward the contributions of participants in a timely manner + to give increased visibility to the newer questions. Thanks for participating! Carrie (Production Editor)