The intersection of market research and branding strategy
.webp)
Businesses often make mistakes when they assume that market research can only be applied to derive data-based insights — that its core existence is to find target audiences or make better-informed decisions.
As the B2B marketing industry is going towards a more personalized horizon — experts have already started applying their old-age (as well as new) tactics to segments nobody could have thought of!
2023 will be all about integrating sales, marketing, and customer experience into one single function — and branding research will become an integral part of it.
Today, we will be discussing branding strategy, brand research, and how market research can boost it.
What is market research?
It is the process of gathering, analyzing, and interpreting any information about a product, service, or market and its potential customer base. It delves into the psychology, characteristics, spending behaviors, location, needs, preferences, and context of the business’s target market, the industry, and the competitors to watch out for.
What is a branding strategy?
Branding strategy is the overarching plan for creating, building, and maintaining a strong and distinctive brand identity. A successful branding strategy encompasses all aspects of a business’s marketing efforts, from product development and packaging design to advertising and customer service — including the target audience, the competition, and the company’s overall mission and values. A well-executed branding strategy helps to differentiate a business from its competitors, build customer loyalty, and drive growth.
What is brand research?
Positioning and branding are like the setting of your customer terrain. And brand research determines how well you set it up for success. You answer questions like who you are, what the market looks like, what your context is, who your audience is, and what they require of you.
How can market research fix your branding strategy?
Let’s accept — the industry is going vast and competitive, and surviving amidst this demands a lot!
Businesses are constantly seeking new and innovative ways to differentiate themselves from the competition.
The intersection of market research and branding strategy is crucial for businesses looking to build strong and successful identities. Market research provides valuable insights into consumer needs, behaviors, and preferences, which can be used to inform branding and marketing efforts. By utilizing market research to guide their branding strategy, businesses can create marketing messages that resonate with their target audience and establish a distinct and memorable brand identity.
Here are some of the mantras from our experts who believe brands must chant while applying market research to their brand strategy:
Understand consumer needs and behaviors
Target dissatisfied customers or make the happy ones happier. Market research helps identify unaddressed customer psychology.
By understanding consumer needs and behaviors, businesses can create products and services that meet their customers’ needs, improve customer satisfaction, and increase brand loyalty.
Create a distinct and unique brand position
Your brand message is best when it is simple, clear, and direct. Market research helps understand the competitive landscape and identify opportunities for differentiation — thus enabling brands to create a distinct and unique brand position.
Know your strengths (and weaknesses)
With the integration of branding strategy and market research, brands can measure the success of their branding efforts — allowing them to evaluate the impact of their branding initiatives on consumer behavior and make data-driven decisions to improve their brand and customer experience.
Market research can be used to track key metrics such as brand awareness, brand loyalty, and customer satisfaction, providing valuable insights into the effectiveness of branding efforts. With this data, businesses can understand what strategies are working and what needs to be adjusted to drive better results.
Understand the competition and market trends
Market research can help brands identify key players in their industry, understand what sets them apart, and determine what makes them successful. This information can be used to improve their branding efforts — thus positioning themselves in a way that sets them apart from their competitors.
Understanding market trends is also crucial for businesses looking to stay ahead of the curve and remain relevant in today’s fast-paced market.
Grab opportunities and minimize risks
What’s appealing to your consumers is a humanized image of your brand. Market research clarifies your target audience and channels where you can find them. Finding synergistic partnerships to create profitable upgrades and more compelling campaigns can address your target community’s needs.
At the same time, you get to understand the inadequacies of data and its misinterpretation — thus getting time to manage crises with ease.
Advertise with budget and brilliance
Nobody has enough resources at all times. Especially small and medium brands.
Knowing when, where, and how to advertise with a limited budget also needs good market research. Not being able to market and advertise is the bane of many firms with dynamic insights.
Set doable goals and make good decisions
The viability of your goal and action objectives needs a subtle evaluation of your branding strategy. Market research helps you refine your strategies and help you make more informed decisions.
Overcoming challenges in integrating market research and branding strategy
While applying market research to branding and positioning has its own benefits — it certainly doesn’t come without challenges. One of the most common challenges that brands face is a lack of resources — both in terms of time and money — to conduct comprehensive market research.
Another challenge is getting different departments within a company to work together and collaborate effectively.
The best solution to this could be partnering with a market research firm that’s well-equipped with real-time data and can help brands find relevant market segments to work with.
Other than this, businesses must adopt best practices, some of which include:
- creating a customer-centric mindset
- collaborating across departments
- investing in technology and tools, and
- frequently monitoring and improving the customer experience.
In today’s decentralized world, everyone has access to real-time information. If you allow your customers to hold onto their perspective while validating your USPs, know that you’ve won your audience from your competitor.
If reading this was helpful to you, you may also like reading: