As a result of its online customer community, a company can get much more than basic product feedback. It gains deep insight into the needs of customers, and creates ever-greater customer loyalty by embracing customers as co-designers. Most importantly, the company goes directly to the source for product enhancements, pulling new innovations and ideas directly from the minds of the customers who use, buy, and recommend its products. This is the holy grail of customer-centered product design. Online customer communities can enable the connections, host the conversations, and facilitate the processes that make routine innovation possible. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

Today's technology offers ample opportunities to start conversations with and among customers, fans, foes, competitors, and the press—any person or group who cares to listen and, perhaps, act on the messages received. By some estimates, 85% of the information companies collect is not in a form that they can access or analyze—it is unstructured. The Gartner Group reports unstructured data doubles every three months while seven million web pages are published every day. This cacophony presents the one of the biggest challenges companies face today. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

General search engines like Google and Yahoo aren't designed for B2B companies, which is why so many experience disappointing results. Recent developments with smaller Vertical Search Engines (or VSEs) are providing a strong alternative. But, as with any growing industry, it's important to research and understand these alternatives before making the plunge. The advantages of vertical search will go a long way toward providing professionals with relevant business results while also helping advertisers and marketers target a very specific and relevant audience. Following these guidelines can help navigate this important industry trend. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

There is an entire industry devoted to helping companies determine customer satisfaction levels through surveys and analysis. But how much real value does knowledge of "satisfaction" contribute to helping you keep profitable customers? The answer, unfortunately, is "not much." Though surveys do serve a purpose (primarily showing trending: "Are we doing better or worse than last year?"), they don't tell the whole story. The following are three fundamental reasons why it's dangerous to rely on customer satisfaction surveys to help improve your customer experience. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

Online surveys are an increasingly common way to solicit feedback, but response rates are often quite low due to poor survey design, lengthy surveys, requests for personal information, or a lack of incentives for survey completion. So how do you ensure that people respond to your survey? Follow these seven simple rules of engagement. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

Long-term corporate success is linked to the ability to innovate, and Marketing should play a more central role. Who is better positioned to give insight into who will buy, how many they will buy, why they buy, and when specific markets will buy? It is time for marketing executives and professionals to step into a leadership role and lead the innovation charge! [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

In Aikido, martial arts students study and practice katas—pre-arranged movements that enable them to deal with an opponent successfully. The centuries-old art teaches practitioners to use the force of an opponent against the opponent. This strategy gives the student a definite advantage if they are attacked. In a similar way, what were considered strengths in Web 1.0 have become weaknesses in Web 2.0. Now, agility and intellect are critical. There are several things businesses need to pay attention to if they're going to thrive in this environment. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

For any online business, the goal of search engine marketing is to achieve high rankings in the major search engines for keyword phrases specific to the products or services offered. What's more, it's just as crucial to ensure that the keywords chosen are the ones most likely to convert to sale or action. Traffic is great - sales are even better! Here's where to start. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

You might be an expert when it comes to marketing to large businesses. But selling your products and services to smaller companies requires an entirely different strategy. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

There's new interest in solving an age-old corporate problem of how to measure customer satisfaction. Lukcily, there are new tools for doing so, too. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

Leading consumer-products companies are looking to rebrand, repackage and relaunch... often too frequently. Sometimes, the effort is merely putting a bandage on a deeper sore. It's far less painful to assess lagging sales in a superficial manner than it is to dig deeper into company practices, customer-service issues, and the actual product mix being offered—not to mention how customers are experiencing the brand and whether that brand is delivering on its promises. In fact, companies that really want to dig for the truth ought to seek answers to these questions... . [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

Part one of this three-part series examined the overall role the customer can (and should!) play in innovation. Here is a deeper look at five specific ways that Marketing can engage the customer in the innovation process, using examples from LEGO, a company that has used these techniques with clear and brilliant success. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

If you are adopting Net Promoter as part of your survey/metrics approach, there's a rich part of the findings that many who are implementing this approach don't consider: learning from your "Detractors." Here, Jeanne Bliss focuses on Detractors, and how to mine the gold by listening hard to their feedback to improve your organization and relationship with your customers. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

A wise but anonymous marketer once said that a market research report that gets described as "interesting" has failed. It's only when it's "useful" that it gets the pass mark. After all, what's the point of interesting research if it can't be put to use? The sad truth is that most market research is not very useful and more often than not ends up as a door stop for the marketing manager's office. Here's how to avoid that result. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

Consumers are beginning to take environmental impact into consideration in purchase decisions. Businesses that demonstrate environmental responsibility have the opportunity to contribute favorably to their images while aligning themselves with the preferences of their customers. To get the full value out of green practices over time, companies need to let the public know what they are doing and why it matters. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

How long will the Second Life media frenzy last? And if not for PR, what is the value of investing time and money with avatars when marketing budgets are under renewed pressure to deliver real returns from real consumers? Joel argues that there is more than meets the eye in Second Life. Indeed, there is genuine value to be extracted for brands that are willing to learn the dynamics of the "metaverse" and play by its rules. Get the full story. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

Here's to you! You just got deputized to handle demand generation. You're not sure if you should reach for the champagne, or the antacid... From this point on, you're a metric-driven marketer; your success is measured by the number of leads you generate. Just don't take your eyes off the end game: revenue. How can you avoid lead myopia? [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

Marketing within social networks and Virtual Worlds is becoming a viable means for reaching and influencing the attitudes and behavior of consumers in ways that was never before believed possible. In fact, marketers who have dabbled in Virtual Worlds recognize the enormous potential of the medium... but have ventured only far enough to reveal the tip of the iceberg. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

Sometimes the best laid plans go wrong because, in fact, they weren't the best laid plans. In this season of spring, when new life and fresh hope comes a-budding, author Jon Kranz offers a little... fertilizer. Herewith, a grumpy, glass-half-empty, downright surly look at all the ways marketers shoot themselves in the foot. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

Some very successful companies have made the transition from the Real World (RL) to a three-dimensional realm called Second Life (SL)—a virtual world where millions of dollars are spent. The rationale behind these transitions ranges from attracting press coverage to brand engagement with potential clients. Whatever the desired outcome, SL is truly a unique and cutting-edge business platform that facilitates virtual conferences, training, sales meetings, consumer research—and much more. So, what business model works best when transitioning to a virtual world? The short answer is—it's situational and depends on the desired outcome. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

Well-executed market segmentation quickly identify customer profiles that have a higher likelihood to buy. And once a company has identified that customer profile, it can use that information to target new customers with similar profiles. By targeting these prospects directly, marketers gain higher and quicker return on their marketing investments. The following real-life case study provides a good example how segmentation can improve your marketing and customer interaction as well as increase sales. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

This week, the Lenskold Group and MarketingProfs released results of our new survey on marketing accountability, measurements, and ROI. The 2007 Marketing ROI and Measurements Study focuses on the difference between companies using profitability metrics and those using traditional marketing metrics with no financial metrics. Among other findings, the research clearly shows that companies using profitability metrics for at least some of their marketing campaigns have an advantage in outgrowing competitors and earning the confidence of their CEOs and CFOs. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

These smartest and bravest professional service firms have discovered the risks and rewards of the client satisfaction survey done right. Here's how you can do the same. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

We've all been on the receiving end of far too many poorly constructed surveys that required too much time and energy simply to share our thoughts. Here's a top 12 list of how to conduct surveys without losing contact with your customer. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

An annual review of your brand can take several forms. The full-blown brand audit, in many cases, is complete overkill. Unless there are obvious signs that your brand is under performing, a quick checkup will likely suffice. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Market Research

AutoAnything.com, which sells custom-made automotive accessories and performance parts, designed its homepage almost a decade ago. But as e-commerce has become more competitive, the site needed a strategy. After testing different versions of landing pages, AutoAnything.com increased landing-page conversions by up to 12%.[Read the full story]
Marketing Case Studies: Market Research

Marketing executive and consultant Lewis Green wanted to re-establish his company in January 2004 after moving across the country. With no professional network in place, he figured the best way to promote his business would be a blog. His first attempt failed. But not his second.[Read the full story]
Marketing Case Studies: Market Research

By hiring an outside expert in lead optimization and leveraging its full range of data, San Francisco-based Objectivity increased turnout for its webinars an average of 10%. The quality of the leads is high as well: More than 30% of the leads typically score high enough to be handed off to sales.[Read the full story]
Marketing Case Studies: Market Research

Office supply chain OfficeMax also sells digital cameras and other products popular as holiday gifts—but its customers didn't think of it as a holiday-shopping destination. What's more, it was often confused with its chief rival. A wildly popularly web-based viral marketing campaign helped OfficeMax distinguish itself and encourage shoppers. [Read the full story]
Marketing Case Studies: Market Research

Need to learn about your customers without the big price tag of market research firms? This guide on do-it-yourself market research will help you get the information you need to position your business without emptying the corporate coffers. [Download] Marketing Downloads: Market Research

Let's face it, more small businesses fail than succeed. Make sure yours is one of the winners with this guide to getting your small business off the ground and solidly on the road to success. [Download] Marketing Downloads: Market Research

This comprehensive, step-by-step how-to guide will help you assess the position in the market of your product or firm, by identifying the product's Strengths and Weaknesses, by considering the potential Opportunities the product has in the marketingplace, and by assessing the potential Threats posed by either the competition or the marketplace. [Download] Marketing Downloads: Market Research

Set clear objectives and a realistic scope to online research projects. These are just two of the steps that this comprehensive, step-by-step planning guide will help you to accomplish to insure your online research results in the most relevant and useful information possible. [Download] Marketing Downloads: Market Research

Link directly to the raw (aggregate) data in this 2006 survey of the ways companies are incorporating the voice of the customer into their marketing, their product development, and their management. With access to the raw data, you can view the results, and even filter them to see how a subset of companies in your country or industry answered. In this way, you can interpret the data in the most meaningful way for your business. [Download] Marketing Downloads: Market Research

If you're a regular reader of Get to the Point, you've probably noticed we have a few favorite bloggers. Each approaches marketing from a different perspective, but what they share in common is an ability to articulate practical concepts that just might change the way... [Read the full story]
Marketing Quick Read: Market Research

Think about the last time you wanted to make a quick purchase and the person in front of you whipped out their checkbook. Did you wince as they began the slow process of filling in all the information? Did a mild profanity escape your lips... [Read the full story]
Marketing Quick Read: Market Research

We never tire of great blogging ideas, and Andy Sernovitz of the Damn! I Wish I'd Thought of That! blog applauds Jeremiah Owyang's enteprising efforts to let his readers choose how they want to read his content. "Jeremiah does a great weekly summary on his blog... [Read the full story]
Marketing Quick Read: Market Research

We're creatures of habit. We have daily routines. We like it when the barista at Starbucks has already started on our usual order when we reach the counter. Yet our tendency to get comfortable with the familiar can have a negative impact on the way... [Read the full story]
Marketing Quick Read: Market Research

Marketers choose to position a product on either a single feature or a combination of features. Which strategy you use can materially impact how consumers perceive the item's value and performance. Consider three different brands of toothpaste—one claims to whiten teeth, another claims to freshen... [Read the full story]
Marketing Quick Read: Market Research