Launching a new brand in an established industry is easy. Doing it successfully however is a whole different story. The beauty landscape is evolving rapidly with indie DTC and experiential marketing taking charge in changing not just the way we shop but impacts the whole customer journey. Good ideas are conceived every day, yet so many fail because they were never properly introduced to the market. If you want to launch a product successfully, you need to know what is selling, where, why, and for how much.
Understanding who you’re customers are and what influences their purchase decisions is one of the most essential areas of not just marketing, but business in general. Thanks to social media consumers are making more informed decisions than ever before and have not only perceived expectations of what the product should be, but also how it compares to other options on the market.
The buying process forms the foundation of all marketing and sales activities. Knowing what motivates someone to buy a product, but also where they get their information and who influences their purchase, means you can tailor all your marketing efforts, and even packaging or sales channels to maximize success. Conducting thorough market research is essential in order to gain valuable insights into who your target customers are, helping ensure that the product will hit the “right buttons” or “pain points”, and that the product itself addresses the true desires of the consumer.
Market research is the process of gathering information about your business’s buyers personas, target audience, and customers to determine how viable and successful your product or service would be among these people. – Hubspot
Sometimes it’s hard to pinpoint specifically what makes a brand or a certain product so liked and well-received because when it comes to beauty purchases, practical product features often come second. It’s not (just) about the actual benefits of using the product. Social and psychological factors are the ones making the greatest impact on our purchasing decisions.
Market research often reveals counter-intuitive facts about the current situation in the market, even when you’re certain you are already well acquainted with your audience’s needs and desires. Getting a better understanding of the market and your competition helps to devise your unique value proposition and your go-to-market strategy, as well as how, when, and where to target potential customers.
Primary market research is focused on the firsthand information on your market and potential customers. It’s the first step in defining your buyer personas and market segmentation. This research will form the basis of all other steps in your business plan, including your marketing strategy. Direct communication through online channels and social media made the initial market research broader, faster, and much more affordable than ever before. Through social listening and analytics, it’s easier to gain insights into customer behavior.
Even when you strongly believe your product or service is unique and unlike anything else in the market, there’s no such thing as having no competitors at all. Think of what consumers have been buying or might consider purchasing instead of what you’re offering.
Conducting secondary market research, particularly focusing on your competitors and the overall trends in the market is the crucial next step. All the research you might possibly need is already out there, and many are sharing that valuable information for free online. Perusing trend reports and industry news, as well as available sales data and statistics often reveals underlying consumer needs, making it easier for you to address them specifically. It’s not about copying what works but noticing where the gaps in the market are and how to take advantage of them.
You don’t need to be first to launch in order to be an industry leader. You need to fit right in the gap in the market.
In order to get maximum results with minimal cost, it’s crucial to focus on the prospects that are most likely to buy from you, and market research gives you an understanding of how to position your product in the market in a way that will resonate with your target audience.
In the beauty industry loyalty is hard to come by, hence having a good overall understanding of the market and a precisely definite audience gives you direction in your marketing, facilitates consistency in your messaging, and allows you to reach your customers in the simplest, quickest, and most effective way possible.
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MABE’s brand development consultancy services support new and developing beauty and lifestyle brands with sustainable content creation, brand messaging, values and culture, social influencer marketing, and recruitment outreach in addition to promoting a brand’s efforts in reaching new audiences.
