Think about your favorite client or a regular at your business... What do you know about their preferences? Do they always come for the same thing? Shop for others? Have they ever made a off-hand negative comment about their experience?
Target market analysis is a very important part of market research. These days it seems covert and impersonal when done by online companies like Google or though reward programs at retailers. Whatever happened to leveraging the front line?
Every day your front line employees are servicing regulars and viewing shopper trends first hand. Why is it that their insights are never valued? I could tell you in five minutes the favorite products of all of my regulars and why. I could tell you what they wish was improved. I could tell you personal information about other products they use.
I believe that when marketers have a theory about a new business opportunity the first line of defense for testing that idea should be front line staff. They could gather information on your current customer base in the most gentle and inconspicuous manner. A simple poll, completed online by salepeople, front line managers and account specialists would be a very efficient way to scrap long-shot ideas without alerting ones consumer base.
No comments:
Post a Comment