Notice how the title of this article is a statement, and not a question?

I always had the impression that conducting market research was a given for companies, especially so in Singapore. Then I had the pleasure of heading multiple front-end, client-facing meetings during my short stint as an Associate Consultant and learnt that my impression was completely wrong.

Well, there’s a reason as to why I only lasted a year in that client-facing job.

… No. I didn’t get fired.

The appraisal I received for that job was pretty good – just that I gave up trying to convince business owners who were too mired in their traditional mindset to accept change and transitioned to a back-end role instead.

Were you offended by the statement I just made? I’m sorry (not really). You might want to think of why you feel offended, though. Character-building, and what not.

In our day and age, I shouldn’t even have to write this article convincing organisations or companies to be doing market research. What Clement wants; however, Clement gets. Thus, I present to you this rage-fueled opinion piece as to why companies need to do market research.

Let’s Begin with an Analogy

Companies functioning on a strategy that isn’t backed up by credible market research is like asking a two-year-old child to assemble IKEA furniture with half a manual. Except that the manual is a recipe for how to cook Thanksgiving turkey in a bathtub and with a toaster. Did I mention? That manual is also in hieroglyphs.

If you got the bathtub and toaster joke, it’s nice to meet you, I wish I were a turkey. How’s therapy going? Not good? You’re seeing Tutankhamun in your dreams? That’d be the hieroglyphs in the manual, then.

Assume = Ass of U and Me

Even before brands dredge up whatever fanciful idea there is to sell, they must ascertain the need for the product or service they wish to put out in the market. Of course, we’re working off the assumption that the company can handle what they wish to do in the first place.

Anyone here watches Shark Tank? Admittedly, people watch Shark Tank because they want that good, sweet, delicious mama drama of the Sharks shouting down stupid business ideas that were – get this, it’s going to come as SUCH a surprise to you – ideated without proper market research.

Drama on Shark Tank aside, the baseline of it is clear.

Brands need to understand the potential of their product or service first. Without ascertaining this need, they are sure to flop right from the get-go. One good example of this – from Shark Tank – is the Sticky Note Holder. It’s a device that attaches to your device, so you can attach sticky notes… to the device attached to your device.

Perfect.

I quote verbatim from an article compiling the thirty worst Shark Tank pitches of all time from WatchMojo: “Mary Ellen Simonsen, the women pitching this wonderfully useless product, was asking the Sharks for half a million dollars in funding. Can you say delusional?”

That’s Still Not the End

To give you an extreme example of companies not knowing how to market to their target audience – it’s like a tractor company going from cubicle-to-cubicle of an office building, knocking on the partition of a nine-to-five office worker and insisting that said office worker buy a tractor, because they’ll definitely need it.

Why would they need a tractor? The tractor company doesn’t know why either, but the office worker definitely needs a tractor.

Well then, how does a brand go about strategising a marketing strategy for their specific target audience?

You already know the answer to this question – it’s market research.

The best part? It must be done regularly. You might be asking why, so let me tell you. Ten years ago, women my age thought that dresses over jeans were fashionable. Now? Not so much. And by “not so much”, I mean “not at all”.

The first step to market research is often to flesh out your target audience. Are they married? Are they single? How are their incomes like? Is gender going to come into play? All these aid with targeted marketing, which will streamline your budget into getting conversions rather than blasting it at uninterested parties.

For people who are going: “Everybody’s my target market!”, please stop. There’s a quote for this that has stuck with me since the beginning of my career, imparted to me by my ex-boss and mentor, and it’s “if you target everyone, you don’t target anyone”.

Exceptions to Every Rule

The sub-paragraph title is “Exceptions to Every Rule”, but to be honest, the magic behind every business out there can be explained. Especially so in our current day and age, where internet virality can both be a boon and a bane.

Let’s talk about the sale of customised birthday messages on TikTok from locally homegrown talent Mr. Steven Lim. One birthday message of his goes for S$100 a pop. In fact, I know of friends who’ve purchased birthday messages from him before. Some time back, it was S$50 for one.

Why is it working out so well for Steven Lim?

The only logical explanation that I can think of is that everyone went a little bit cuckoo over the course of COVID-19. We all needed some laughter and sunshine after perpetual days stuck in the house. What better way to do that than to entertain yourself with his antics?

Another example I can give you of similar success is Wishes from Africa. Their service isn’t a need – why would anyone need their service.

…Don’t look at me – I already know what I want for my birthday this year. I mean. It’s simple, it’s fun, and I get to keep the video forever. It’s going to put a smile on my face every single time I watch it.

That’s the beauty of market trends. Sometimes, they can be completely illogical, bucking the trend. People will still want them anyways.

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