Assignment 2: LASA 1: Product & Price

Running Head: MARKET RESEARCH AND TARGETING 0

Market research and targeting

Hakim Callahan

Argosy University

Market Research and Targeting

Introduction

Market research makes the gathering of information concerning the customer's needs and preferences easy for any given company or business. It involves gathering and analysis of information about a particular product or service that to be sold in the market. The analysis makes it possible for data interpretation hence the importance of the data is reached leading to making good marketing decisions (Blythe, 2009). The business owners are therefore able to examine whether the business is feasible before they commit any resources to venture. Market research helps in targeting of the market by making good market decisions.

Research Methods and Data Mining

There are five basic methods of market research that the Water Bottling Company may make use of to gather information. However, most organizations take advantage of either 2 or 3 of the methods. These methods include surveys, personal interviews, observation, field trips and focus groups. The company can make use of survey, interviews and field trips due to its nature. Data mining involves doing an examination on large databases so as to extract new information. It can be said to be a process of analyzing data from very different perspectives and summarizing into meaningful information which can help in increasing the revenue and cutting the cost (East, Singh, Wright, & Vanhuele, 2017). In this research, therefore, data mining will assist in summarizing data from different sources and make it useful information.

Market Research Process

The company will go through some steps before they get to whatever decision about the market. The steps in the market research are six including defining a problem, developing an approach to the problem described, designing a research formulation, doing field work, preparing data and doing the analysis, generating the report and lastly presenting it to the appropriate office dealing with marketing issues . The steps will help to define the task that the company aims at accomplishing by conducting a market research study. Every step is important in the process, and therefore the company should adhere to them all.

Consumer Behavior

Consumer behavior will help the company to do a study of individuals, groups or even organizations. It also will help the company to understand the process that those studied use to secure, select, use and also do a disposal of their products, services, experiences or even ideas so that they can satisfy their needs and wants.

B2C vs. B2B

These are two varied forms of commercial transactions. B2C which means business to consumer is a process where the company wills e able to sell their products directly to consumers while B2D which means business-to-business is a process that may help the company to sell their products or even services to other businesses. All these concerns the target market of the company for its products which is important before making market decisions and using substantial resources for a venture. The behavior of the consumer is therefore understood more through the two perspectives.

Consumer Decision Making Process

In most cases, decision making begins with a given problem. In this case, the consumer develops a need or a want hence the need to make amicable decisions as denoted by (Sethna & Blythe, 2016). In this case, the consumer identifies their needs and later collects information from the market to find out whether the product they need is available. They find different alternatives in the market which forces them to evaluate each. After the consumers a decision to use the product of the company, the last step becomes evaluating the decision also. It is important for the company to understand this process so that they can know what leads to a consumer buying their product.

Factors Affecting B2C and B2B consumer behavior

The behavior of the consumer for the company products is best to explain through the B2B AND B2C concepts, but as for the company, it is likely to use both forms as they apply in any, that is, direct to a consumer or to a business that will sell it to the direct consumer. The factors that are affecting these two forms when making purchases include emotional decisions. The B2C consumers tend to arrive at more emotional decisions which can easily be affected by the physiological, situational, sociological, demographic and motivational factors. On the contrary, the B2B customers do not purchase with the involvement of emotions. As for B2B, they have such factors as economic, organizational, interpersonal and individual that influences the decision they make on purchases.

Market Segmentation

Market segmentation is of great importance for most products. It provides an opportunity for the buyers to enjoy whatever the product is that is being sold to them (Quisic (Firm), 2005). As for the company, with our water, we will segment as well and offer smaller sizes of bottles of water to the customers. The act will help us as the company to be able to cater to the needs of those who would like to purchase by the gallon and consumers who may want smaller on the go bottle for convenience purposes.

Market Segmentation concepts

As I had earlier stated, some of the concepts which I would like to market would be of various sizes of waters gallons and probably expanding in the future so as to make flavored water and sparkling water. For the Water Bottling Company, the sizes I would like to market on include 8oz, 12oz, 20oz and also 1 gallon of a jug.

Segmentation Process

Defining the segmentation problem will take some time. Some of the strategies that that would apply to the company's product would be including questions about the proper bottle sizes of water that the customer prefers to all the others (Blythe, 2006). This will in making decision in the areas the company should sell and what sizes of water bottles should be sold as well as if there is needed to expand and start selling flavored water. The process would certainly help to determine whether the product will sell in some specific areas or not.

Segmentation Strategies

Strategies help in achieving the goal and objectives set. As one of the strategies in the company, I would recommend selling the 12oz to 20oz within the near stores and then all sizes within the grocery stores, that is, in either package of 6 or 24 bottles hence effective marketing since the strategies should be in line with the objectives stated in modules 1.

Target Marketing

` The target market of the company is to reach the consumers who are health conscious or those with children, and they want to avoid soft drinks. Besides, we will be using the undifferentiated kind of marketing because the company will be selling a similar product and that is whether to an individual or to another business for the purpose of reselling.

References

Blythe, J. (2006). Marketing. London: SAGE Publications.

Blythe, J. (2009). Key concepts in marketing. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE.

East, R., Singh, J., Wright, M., & Vanhuele, M. (2017). Consumer behaviour: Applications in marketing.

Quisic (Firm). (2005). Market segmentation, targeting & positioning: Developing a focus. New York: Insight Media.

Sethna, Z., & Blythe, J. (2016). Consumer behaviour.