"Thank you VERY much for pulling together the summary for my new Home Décor business. The information provided was very detailed and insightful. Your efforts on our behalf will certainly help us as we enter a new business category.”
When is the best time to rely on hope?
There’s an old adage that research and advertising are the first things to get cut when things get bad. To us, that’s the equivalent of saying, “things are bad, so let’s wing it and hope for the best” – not the wisest of strategies. We believe that when things are bad, it’s time to really focus and make sure everything you do is exactly right because mistakes aren't less costly at any time.
That’s why we believe that research is both the best insurance (against failure) and assurance (of success).
We know retail sales are down. We know online shopping continues to trend up. Today, success can depend on consumers stumbling on your products online (if they were not specifically searching for them). And critically, the product has to be good; it has to earn 4 to 5 star ratings for others to also buy. In short, it’s now harder than ever to sell a product in and to sell it through at profitable volumes.
Research is a strong and vital sell-in tool. It quantitatively demonstrates to retailers that your product is better (more liked and in higher demand by consumers) than what they already have on their shelves. Consumer reviews now carry more weight in the purchase decision than any other influence. The consumer IS going to review you. Assure 5-star reviews by testing your products with consumers BEFORE you introduce them.
NOW is the time to assure your success. Use research to:
1) Help perfect your product
2) Assure 5 star ratings
3) Identify the most compelling selling features that motivate purchase for packaging, web descriptions and marketing
4) Sell it in to your distribution partners
This is not a time for guesswork or hope. This is a time to dot the i’s, cross the t’s and get it right by investing in your products (and your future) through research. If your chances of selling new products have fallen from selling-in ten new products to selling-in one new product, shouldn’t that product be the best it can possibly be?