Building a brand without proper research is like doing it all, except blindly. And with a slingshot on a stick. Because research puts you in your hands the most effective weapon in the world — in both military and business contexts. It's information.
Recherche
Research is nothing more than the process of collecting, analyzing and interpreting information in order to gain knowledge and understand a given field in depth. This is crucial — because a good strategy (and good decisions!) arise on facts, and not on the curved reality of subjective ideas. Because although it is a shame to admit - it is quite natural that many people perceive their companies as their own children: through rose-colored glasses. In the context of brand building, research involves examining:
- customers,
- competition,
- the market (environment),
- and the brand itself - if it already exists.
Customer research
Customer research provides invaluable insight into their needs, expectations, motivations, opinions, purchasing behaviors, and even preferred communication channels. It is firmly embedded in psychology and the way decisions are made (we wrote more about them in the article: The product is not everything. Why do you need branding?, and the conclusions drawn on the basis of the resultant information translate into direct sales. But not in the form of shallow commercial transactions — but built on loyalty and trust, long-term relationships.
The basic division of consumer research is distinguished by:
- Customer segmentation research (when it is not known who exactly is the target audience),
- Target group research (using qualitative and quantitative research).
The most important conclusion at the end of this stage of research is honest and objective consumer insight — found, not invented!
Szymon Kordylewicz
Consumer Insight — the discovery and deep understanding of the hidden motivations, needs, desires and behaviors of consumers (based on aspirations and fears) that goes far beyond the obvious demographics. It is an expression of deep empathy and the ability to empathize with the perspective of clients, based on hard data provided in the course of research.
Competition research
Who is the brand's competition? What place does it occupy in the market? What are its disadvantages, advantages, landscaped areas? To get a good understanding of their actions, you need to study widely — from the perception map (visual identification, the way of communicating), through the percentage of brand awareness in the minds of customers, to hard data. Interestingly, today, with the help of publicly available programs, it is possible to measure website traffic or budget estimates, which competition is devoted to advertising in specific channels.
At this stage, not only the current competition stands out - but also the one to which we would like to be compared in the future.
-> The information collected in the course of the competition research allows to identify market niches and opportunities that can become a competitive advantage of the brand.
Market research (environment)
If you are entering the market with something new, you must not only clearly define the category to which your product or service belongs (and if there is no such category - create it), but also take a close look at it. After all, a brand without context does not exist! But remember that the context is not only its competition—but also its surroundings. Therefore, market research identifies a whole range of external factors related to a given category: standards and trends, new technologies, changes in lifestyle or social expectations.
In the market study, the following stand out:
- Analysis of parity points — that is, characteristics or values of brands that have been accepted as the market standard in a given category. It is a sentiment and associations recognized as the status quo. An example? Yogurts in plastic cups, air conditioning in the car, or furniture produced within a maximum of 4 weeks from the order. If, as a manufacturer or service provider, you fall below this standard, you will also automatically fall out of the market.
- Analysis of differentiating points (differentiation) — i.e. those that your competition has already come up with and which are their differentiators. An example? Automatically opening tailgate, personalized coffee at Starbucks or the aesthetic design of Apple products. This is also the place where market analysis softly passes into competition analysis, it becomes entangled.
As you may have noticed — with the development of technology and over the years, points of differentiation can become standard (or vice versa). Milk in glass bottles (today perceived as more prestigious than that in a carton) is returning to showrooms, and niche electric cars are once becoming the norm.
Market research allows you to gain not only a competitive advantage - but also to see opportunities for innovation or the development of completely new products and services.
Szymon Kordylewicz
Brand research
But how is it — to examine yourself? Yes!
After all, how you see a brand as its owner—and how customers (or your employees) perceive it can vary greatly. And surprise you just as much! If the brand already exists on the market, the audit of the current image and the cultural audit of the organization is the final stage, closing the research process. Recognition of all points of contact of the brand, channels of arrival, monitoring of the Internet and even focus conversations with employees - all this makes the decisions that are made based on such a structured strategy are correct and the business is moving in the desired direction. Research is the foundation of an effective brand strategy — and consequently, business success. Breaking the barrier of guesswork and basing actions on the facts it provides is the key to gaining a competitive advantage and hitting the heart of the consumer's needs shield.
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