Strategy and Planning for Consumer Research: Expert Guidance and Framework

Definition and Purpose of 1. Consumer Research

Consumer research is a research activity that provides a basis for business decisions by collecting, analyzing and interpreting consumer information to understand consumer needs, preferences, behaviors, attitudes, and satisfaction. Consumer research can be conducted on potential consumers, existing consumers, or competitors' consumers, consumer information can be quantitative or qualitative, consumer research methods can be active or passive, and consumer research scenarios can be online or offline.

The purpose of consumer research is to help companies better understand market demand, optimize product design, formulate marketing strategies, and enhance competitiveness. Specifically, consumer research can help companies achieve the following goals:

Identify and divide market segmentation: Through consumer research, companies can understand the characteristics, needs, behaviors and values of consumers, so as to divide consumers into different market segments and provide a basis for targeted product development and marketing.

Evaluate and predict market potential: Through consumer research, companies can understand consumers' willingness to buy, ability to buy, frequency of purchase and volume of purchase, so as to assess and predict the size, growth and change of the market, and provide reference for market entry and expansion.

Optimize and innovate product functions: Through consumer research, companies can understand consumer expectations, satisfaction, loyalty and feedback on products, thereby optimizing and innovating product functions, performance, quality and appearance, and providing direction for product differentiation and continuous improvement.

Formulate and adjust marketing strategies: Through consumer research, companies can understand the consumer's purchase process, purchase decisions, purchase channels and purchase motivations, so as to formulate and adjust product pricing, promotion, distribution and positioning, for the improvement and optimization of marketing effectiveness Provide the basis.

Enhance and maintain brand image: through consumer research, enterprises can understand consumers' cognition, attitude, emotion and behavior of the brand, so as to enhance and maintain brand awareness, reputation, loyalty and reputation, and provide support for brand building and management.

Steps and framework for 2. consumer research

The process and methodology of consumer research is not static and requires flexible strategies and planning based on different purposes, objects, scenarios and resources. However, the basic steps and framework of consumer research can be summarized in the following four aspects:

Identify research objectives: identify the themes, issues, assumptions and expected results of the research, as well as the purpose and value of the research.

Design the research plan: select the appropriate research methods, samples, tools and indicators, as well as the time, place and budget of the research.

Implementation of research activities: collect, record and sort out data according to the research plan.

Analysis of research results: the use of statistical analysis, text analysis, chart display and other methods, the data are summarized, interpreted and inferred, to obtain the research.Conclusionand recommendations.

Below we will detail the steps and framework for consumer research, taking into account the customer service case of Champ Consulting.

Shangpu Consulting Company is a well-known independent third-party research and investment and financing consulting agency in China, dedicated to providing professional solutions for corporate strategic decision-making. Shangpu Consulting provides industry research, market segmentation and user behavior research, channel model research, competitor research, market entry research, consumer research, investment decision evaluation, ipo market segmentation research, fund-raising project feasibility study, business financing plan and other segmentation consulting services.

Case 1: Market segmentation and user behavior research of a home appliance company

A home appliance company is a leading provider of smart home solutions in China, with a number of well-known home appliance brands, covering air conditioners, refrigerators, washing machines, TVs, water heaters and other categories. Through consumer research, the company hopes to understand the user needs, purchasing behavior and usage habits of different market segments, as well as the competitive advantages and disadvantages of different brands, so as to provide a basis for product development and marketing strategies.

Champ Consulting provides the following consumer research services to the company:

Determine the research objectives: the theme of the research is market segmentation and user behavior research, the research question is what is the user demand, purchase behavior and usage habits of different market segments? What are the competitive advantages and disadvantages of different brands? The hypothesis of the research is that there are significant differences in user demand, purchase behavior and usage habits in different market segments, and the competitive advantages and disadvantages of different brands can be measured by user cognition, satisfaction and loyalty.

Analysis and research results: Shangpu Consulting Company used SPSS, Excel, Power BI and other software to carry out statistical analysis, text analysis and chart display of the collected data, and obtained the following research.Conclusionand recommendations:

Market segmentation: According to the user's age, income, education, family structure, residence and other characteristics, the market is divided into four market segments, namely: high-end elite market, middle and high-end family market, middle and low-end young market and low-end rural market. The percentage, characteristics and needs of users in each market segment are as follows:

Market segmentation User proportion User characteristics User demand

10% of the high-end elite market is between 35 and 50 years old, with high income, high education, stable family structure, living in first-tier cities or overseas, focusing on brand, quality, performance and design, pursuing intelligence, personalization and environmental protection, and willing Pay a high price for high-end products

25% of the mid-to-high-end family market is between 30-45 years old, with high income and high education. The family structure is mainly three or four. Living in first-tier or second-tier cities pays attention to brand, quality, function and appearance, and pursues comfort, Convenience and energy saving, willing to pay a reasonable price for mid-to-high-end products

35% of the middle and low-end young market is between 25 and 35 years old, with medium and low income and low education. The family structure is mainly single or two. Living in second-tier or third-tier cities pays attention to function, cost performance and fashion, pursues practicality, intelligence and entertainment, and is willing to pay low prices for middle and low-end products.

30% of the low-end rural market is over 40 years old, with low income and low education. The family structure is mainly four or five people. Living in the third tier cities or in rural areas, they pay attention to basic functions, durability and price, pursue satisfaction, safety and saving, and are willing to pay the lowest price for low-end products

User behavior: According to the user's purchase process, purchase decision, purchase channel and purchase motivation, the following user behavior analysis is obtained:

Purchase process: Users in the high-end elite market and the middle and high-end home market have a long purchase process, which generally needs to go through the following stages: perception of demand, collection of information, evaluation of choices, purchase decisions and post-purchase evaluation. The purchase process of users in the low-end young market and the low-end rural market is relatively short, and generally only needs to go through the following stages: perceived demand, purchase decision and post-purchase evaluation.

Purchase decision: the purchase decision of users in the high-end elite market and the middle and high-end family market is affected by many aspects, including personal factors (such as personality, lifestyle, values, etc.), social factors (such as family, friends, social class, etc.), psychological factors (such as motivation, attitude, belief, etc.) and situational factors (such as time, place, occasion, etc.). The purchase decisions of users in the low-end young market and the low-end rural market are less affected, mainly by personal factors and situational factors.

Purchase channels: There are many purchase channels for users in the high-end elite market and the middle and high-end home market, including online channels (such as official websites, e-commerce platforms, social media, etc.) and offline channels (such as specialty stores, chain stores, supermarkets, etc.). Users in the low-end young market and the low-end rural market have fewer purchase channels, mainly online channels (e. g. e-commerce platforms, social media, etc.).

Purchase motivation: the purchase motivation of users in the high-end elite market and the middle and high-end family market is more complex, including functional motivation (such as improving efficiency, saving time, etc.), emotional motivation (such as self-satisfaction, expressing personality, etc.), social motivation (such as recognition, sense of belonging, etc.) and cognitive motivation (such as learning new knowledge, exploring and innovating, etc.). The purchase motivation of users in the low-end young market and the low-end rural market is relatively simple, mainly functional motivation (such as meeting basic needs, saving costs, etc.).

Brand competition: According to the user's cognition, satisfaction and loyalty to different brands, the following brand competition analysis is obtained:

Brand awareness: users in the high-end elite market and the middle and high-end family market have a higher awareness of different brands, can distinguish the characteristics, advantages and disadvantages of different brands, and have a strong sensitivity to the image, word-of-mouth and reputation of the brand. Users in the low-end young market and the low-end rural market have a low awareness of different brands, it is difficult to distinguish the differences between different brands, and have a weak sensitivity to the image, reputation and reputation of the brand.

Brand satisfaction: users in the high-end elite market and the middle and high-end home market have low satisfaction with different brands, have higher requirements for product functions, performance, quality and design, and have strong response to product defects, failures and problems. Users in the low-end young market and the low-end rural market have higher satisfaction with different brands, have lower requirements for product functions, performance, quality and design, and have weaker responses to product defects, failures and problems.

Brand loyalty: users in the high-end elite market and the middle and high-end family market have high loyalty to different brands, have strong preference and trust in their favorite brands, and have strong resistance and exclusion to other brands. Users in the middle and low-end young market and the low-end rural market have low loyalty to different brands, have weak preference and trust in their favorite brands, and have weak resistance and exclusion to other brands.

Based on the above analysis, Champ Consulting has made the following recommendations for the company:

For different market segments, develop different product strategies and marketing strategies to meet different user needs and purchase motivations.

For different purchase channels, develop different channel strategies and promotion strategies to adapt to different purchase processes and purchase decisions.

Enhance different brand strategies and image strategies to enhance different brand awareness, satisfaction and loyalty.

Case 2: Consumer Satisfaction Survey of an Automobile Company

An automobile company is a leading automobile manufacturer in China, with a number of well-known automobile brands, and its products cover cars, SUVs, MPVs, new energy and other categories. Through consumer research, the company hopes to understand consumers' satisfaction, loyalty and willingness to recommend their products, as well as the main factors affecting consumer satisfaction, so as to provide a basis for product improvement and service improvement.

Champ Consulting provides the following consumer research services to the company:

Determine the survey objective: the subject of the survey is the consumer satisfaction survey, and the question of the survey is the consumer's satisfaction, loyalty and willingness to recommend the company's products? What are the main factors affecting consumer satisfaction? The hypothesis of the survey is that the consumer's satisfaction, loyalty and willingness to recommend the company's products are related to the product's function, performance, quality, design, price, service and other aspects. The expected results of the survey are ratings, rankings and recommendations for improvement.

Design the research plan: select the appropriate research methods, samples, tools and indicators, as well as the time, place and budget of the research.

Research method: using the method of questionnaire survey, through online and offline way, to consumers to distribute research questionnaires, collect consumer feedback and evaluation.

Research sample: according to the sales data of the enterprise, according to the product category, brand, model, region and other dimensions, a certain proportion of consumers are selected as the research sample to ensure the representativeness and effectiveness of the sample.

Research tools: design research questionnaire, including basic consumer information (such as age, gender, income, education, etc.), consumer satisfaction with the product, loyalty and willingness to recommend (such as very dissatisfied, dissatisfied, average, satisfied, very satisfied, etc.), Consumer evaluation of product function, performance, quality, design, price, service, etc. (such as very unimportant, unimportant, general, important, very important, etc.), consumer descriptions of the advantages, disadvantages and suggestions for improvement of the product, etc.

Research indicators: According to the content of the survey questionnaire, set research indicators, including consumer satisfaction index (CSI), consumer loyalty index (CLI), consumer willingness to recommend index (NPS), consumer satisfaction factor weight (W), etc.

Research time: choose to conduct research after the product sales season of the enterprise, so as to ensure that consumers have certain experience and evaluation basis for the product.

Research location: select the main sales area of the enterprise to conduct research to ensure the matching of the geographical distribution and market share of consumers.

Research budget: according to the scale, scope, methods and tools of the research, the budget of the research, including labor costs, material costs, incentive costs, etc.

Implementation of research activities: collect, record and sort out data according to the research plan.

Data collection: Through online and offline methods, survey questionnaires are distributed to consumers to encourage consumers to actively participate in the survey, provide true, effective and complete feedback and evaluation, and give consumers certain rewards, such as coupons and gift cards, Lucky draw opportunities, etc.

Data recording: Through spreadsheets, databases, cloud platforms, etc., the collected data is recorded to ensure the accuracy, integrity and security of the data.

Data collation: The recorded data is collated through data cleaning, data conversion, data verification, etc. to ensure the validity, consistency, and availability of the data.

Analysis of research results: the use of statistical analysis, text analysis, chart display and other methods, the data are summarized, interpreted and inferred, to obtain the research.Conclusionand recommendations.

Statistical analysis: use descriptive statistics, inferential statistics, correlation analysis, regression analysis and other methods to quantitatively analyze the data, calculate the consumer satisfaction index (CSI), consumer loyalty index (CLI), consumer recommend intention index (NPS), consumer satisfaction factor weight (W) and other indicators, and compare the differences of different product categories, brands, models, regions and other dimensions, test the research hypotheses and questions.

Text analysis: Using word frequency analysis, theme analysis, sentiment analysis, text mining and other methods, the data is qualitatively analyzed to extract the advantages, disadvantages and suggestions for improvement of the product.Keywords, themes and emotions, and summarize consumer evaluations and opinions.

Chart display: Using histogram, pie chart, line chart, scatter chart, radar chart and other methods, the data is visually displayed to visually present the rating, ranking and influencing factors of consumer satisfaction, highlighting the differences and problems of consumer satisfaction.

Based on the above analysis, Champu Consulting has proposed the following research for the companyConclusionand recommendations:

ResearchConclusion: The company's products have shown certain advantages in terms of consumer satisfaction, loyalty and willingness to recommend, but there are also some shortcomings. Specifically, the consumer satisfaction index (CSI) was 78.5 points, higher than the industry average (75.3 points), but lower than the industry leading level (82.1 points); the consumer loyalty index (CLI) was 76.2 points, higher than the industry average (73.5 points), but lower than the industry leading level (80.3 points); the consumer recommend intention index (NPS) was 72.8 points, it is higher than the industry average (70.2 points), but lower than the industry leading level (77.6 points). The main factors affecting consumer satisfaction are product function, performance, quality, design, price and service. Among them, product function, performance and quality are the core factors of consumer satisfaction, accounting for 60.3 of the weight (W) of consumer satisfaction factors. Product design, price and service are auxiliary factors of consumer satisfaction, accounting for 39.7 of the weight (W) of consumer satisfaction factors. The advantages of consumers to products are mainly powerful functions, stable performance, reliable quality, fashionable design, reasonable price, considerate service, etc.; the disadvantages of consumers to products are mainly single function, inefficient performance, poor quality, outdated design, high price, poor service, etc.; Consumers' suggestions for product improvement are mainly to increase functions, improve performance, ensure quality, update design, reduce prices, improve services, etc.

Research suggestion: the enterprise should formulate corresponding product improvement and service improvement measures according to the rating, ranking and influencing factors of consumer satisfaction, so as to improve consumer satisfaction, loyalty and recommend willingness. Specifically, the company should:

Strengthen the function, performance and quality of products, as the core factors of consumer satisfaction, enhance the core competitiveness of products, and meet the basic needs and expectations of consumers.

Optimize product design, price and service, as an auxiliary factor of consumer satisfaction, increase the added value of the product, and meet the advanced needs and desires of consumers.

Pay attention to the evaluation and opinions of consumers, as the feedback information of consumer satisfaction, adjust the advantages and disadvantages of products in time, and meet the changing needs and preferences of consumers.