Purpose and significance of 1. consumer research

Consumer research is an activity that helps companies solve marketing problems and make decisions by collecting, analyzing and interpreting consumer-related information. The purpose of consumer research mainly has the following aspects:

Understand the size, structure, trends and changes of the market to assess the potential and opportunities of the market;

Understand the characteristics, needs, preferences, behaviors and satisfaction of consumers to identify target markets and market segments;

Understand the strategy, strengths, weaknesses and performance of competitors to develop competitive strategies and differentiation advantages;

Understand the features, functions, prices, channels and promotions of products or services to design and improve the marketing mix of products or services;

Understand consumer perceptions, attitudes, intentions and feedback on products or services to evaluate and monitor marketing effectiveness and efficiency.

The significance of consumer research is that it can provide valuable market information for enterprises, help enterprises better understand the market and consumers, so as to formulate more reasonable and effective market strategies, improve market competitiveness and profitability.

The process and method of 2. consumer research.

The process of consumer research generally includes the following steps:

Determine the research objectives and problems: clarify the purpose, scope, content and problems of the research, so as to determine the direction and focus of the research;

Design research programs and tools: select appropriate research methods, samples, data sources, data collection methods and data analysis methods, as well as design research tools, such as questionnaires, interview guides, observation tables, etc;

Implementation of data collection and processing: in accordance with the research plan and tools, data collection, entry, cleaning, sorting and coding, in order to carry out data analysis and interpretation;

Data analysis and interpretation: the use of statistical analysis, qualitative analysis, model building and other methods, the data analysis and reconciliation.interpretation, in order to draw the results and conclusions of the investigation;

Writing research reports and recommendations: according to the results and conclusions of the research, writing research reports, describing the purpose, methods, process, results and conclusions of the research, as well as the proposed.Suggestions and opinions of the research.

The methods of consumer research are divided into two main categories: qualitative research and quantitative research. Qualitative research refers to a research method that collects and analyzes non-numerical information such as consumers' words, behaviors, and emotions through unstructured or semi-structured methods to reveal consumers' deep motivations, attitudes, feelings, and opinions. The common methods of qualitative research are:

Focus group discussion: A research method that invites 6-12 consumers with certain common characteristics to discuss a topic freely under the guidance of a moderator. Focus group discussions can gather diverse and in-depth opinions from consumers, as well as observe the interaction and influence between consumers;

In-depth interviews: A research method that refers to unstructured or semi-structured face-to-face or phone interviews with individual consumers. In-depth interviews can collect personalized and detailed information of consumers, as well as explore the psychological process and logical relationship of consumers;

Project technology: refers to a research method that allows consumers to express their views and feelings on a topic by completing certain projects or tasks, such as painting, puzzles, role playing, etc. Project technology can collect the hidden and potential information of consumers, and stimulate the creativity and imagination of consumers;

Participatory observation: refers to a research method that observes and records consumer behavior, environment, situation, etc. through direct participation in the daily life of consumers. Participatory observation can collect real and natural information of consumers, as well as understand the consumer's life background and cultural connotation.

Quantitative research refers to a research method that collects and analyzes numerical information such as the number, frequency and proportion of consumers in a structured way to describe and infer the characteristics, behaviors and attitudes of consumers. The common methods of quantitative research are:

Questionnaire: refers to a research method that collects answers on a topic from a certain number and type of consumers through the design of a standardized questionnaire. Questionnaire survey can collect extensive and systematic information of consumers, as well as carry out statistical analysis and inference of data;

Experimental method: refers to a research method that observes and measures the response of consumers by controlling and changing certain variables. The experimental method can collect objective and reliable information of consumers and determine the causal relationship between variables;

Test market: A research method of testing the marketing mix of a product or service in a representative region or city to assess its market performance and consumer feedback. The test market is able to collect actual and dynamic information about consumers, as well as predict the market potential and risks of the product or service;

Secondary data analysis: refers to a research method that collects and analyzes existing data, such as government statistics, industry report data, internal data, etc., to understand the market and consumers. Secondary data analysis can collect comprehensive and authoritative information of consumers, as well as save time and cost of data collection.

Team Building and Optimization of 3. Consumer Research

The team building and optimization of consumer research refers to an activity that improves the collaboration and innovation ability of the research team by rationally configuring and managing the personnel, resources, tasks and relationships of the research team. The team building and optimization of consumer research mainly includes the following aspects:

The composition and division of labor of the research team: according to the objectives and problems of the research, determine the size, structure, roles and responsibilities of the research team, in order to achieve the specialization and diversification of the research team. The composition and division of labor of the research team should consider the following factors:

Members of the research team should have relevant knowledge, skills, experience and qualities to ensure the quality and effectiveness of the research;

Members of the research team should have different backgrounds, perspectives, styles and interests to promote innovation and diversity in research;

Members of the research team should clarify their roles and responsibilities, such as team leaders, data analysts, questionnaire designers, interviewers, observers, etc., in order to achieve the division of labor and collaboration of research;

Members of the research team should flexibly adjust their roles and responsibilities according to the stage and task of the research to adapt to the changes and needs of the research.

Communication and collaboration of the research team: an activity that enhances the consensus and trust of the research team by effectively communicating and coordinating the information, opinions, suggestions and decisions of the research team. The communication and collaboration of the research team should follow the following principles:

The communication of the research team shall be timely, accurate, clear and complete to avoid delay, distortion, ambiguity and lack of information;

The communication of the research team should be open, honest, respectful and friendly to promote the sharing, understanding, acceptance and feedback of information;

The communication of the research team should be diverse, frequent, two-way and interactive to increase the richness, update, balance and effectiveness of information;

The cooperation of research team should have the same goal, shared responsibility, benefit sharing and win-win results, so as to realize the coordination and optimization of research.

Motivation and evaluation of the research team: refers to an activity that improves the motivation and performance of the research team by reasonably setting and implementing the objectives, standards, rewards and punishments and feedback of the research team. The motivation and evaluation of the research team should pay attention to the following issues:

The objectives of the research team should be quantifiable, achievable, comparable and adjustable to facilitate the planning and implementation of the research team;

The standards of the research team should be fair, reasonable, transparent and consistent, so as to facilitate the monitoring and comparison of the research team;

The rewards and punishments of the research team should be timely, appropriate, open and motivating, so as to facilitate the recognition and improvement of the research team;

Feedback from the research team should be positive, constructive, specific and continuous in order to facilitate the learning and development of the research team.

4. Shangpu Consulting's Consumer Research Case

Shangpu Consulting Company is a professional marketing consulting company with rich consumer research experience and excellent consumer research team. The success stories of Shangpu Consulting in consumer research are:

Conduct consumer research for an international fast food chain brand to understand consumer needs and preferences in the Chinese market, as well as competitors' strategies and performance. Shangpu Consulting uses a hybrid research approach that combines qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis to obtain comprehensive and in-depth market information. The research team of Shangpu Consulting Company is composed of different professionals, including market analysts, questionnaire designers, interviewers, observers, etc., who are responsible for different research tasks and links. The research results of Shangpu Consulting Company provided valuable market insights and marketing suggestions for the fast food brand, helped it formulate differentiated and localized market strategies for the Chinese market, and improved its competitiveness and profitability in the Chinese market. ability.

Conduct consumer research for a domestic appliance manufacturer to evaluate the market potential and consumer feedback of its newly launched smart refrigerator. Champ Consulting adopted a test market research method, selected several representative cities, and experimented with the marketing mix of the smart refrigerator to observe and measure consumer purchase and use behavior. Through effective communication and collaboration, the research team of Shangpu Consulting collected and analyzed data from the test market in a timely manner to arrive at the results of the research andConclusion. The research report from Shangpu Consulting provided the appliance manufacturer with useful market information and consumer opinions, helped it optimize its smart refrigerator marketing mix, and predicted its market risks and opportunities.

5. epilogue

Consumer research is an important part of marketing, which can help enterprises understand the needs, preferences, behavior and satisfaction of consumers, so as to formulate effective market strategies. The quality and effect of consumer research depends to a large extent on the organization and management of the research team. This paper discusses how to establish and optimize the team of consumer research from the aspects of the purpose, process, method and tool of consumer research, so as to improve the efficiency and effect of the research. Taking Shangpu Consulting Company as an example, this paper introduces its successful experience and cases in consumer research, which provides reference and reference for other enterprises.