A market research project can range from simple questionnaires to an intensive online study that involves more than one hundred individuals participating. In order to facilitate the project, we asked students from all over the country to complete questionnaires about their purchasing preferences and demographics. We then compiled the data and contacted all of the survey sites within twenty-four hours of the completion of each questionnaire. Within an hour, we received all of the responses we were seeking and began our market research study. As the days went by, we refined our questionnaire so that we could track the response rate and trends for particular items or for the entire year.
Each week, we released a portion of the survey results to the online community. We received feedback from the survey participants and posted the results on our website. Students who took the time to participate were very generous with their time and gave valuable feedback to our study. From these results, we created several marketing materials that we used in our presentations at conferences and through other promotions.
One of the more interesting findings was that those who participated in our study had a strong interest in using the Internet. This was evident in the surveys that were submitted. These participants expressed an interest in online marketing and the use of the Internet. Surprisingly, many did not use the Internet for shopping. It appears that this group of consumers is more willing to use the Internet for non-commerce purchases.
As we were conducting this study, we noticed that there was a distinct difference between the crowd sites that we studied and the crowd sites that other students and marketers use. The crowd sites that we studied were not oriented towards building a community. Their focus was on building online traffic and obtaining high search engine rankings. These sites focused more on getting as many links as possible and did little to no promoting. On the contrary, the marketers that we work with are very involved and do a great deal of promoting.
When you use the Internet as a tool for your business, you will definitely need a site. You will also need to have content to post on your site. If you are just starting out in Internet marketing, then your primary focus may be creating traffic. Many beginning marketers focus so much on generating traffic to their site that they forget to focus on building an informative site.
It is imperative that when you are first starting up a business that you understand how to market on the Internet. We suggest that you not only learn how to market on the Internet, but you must also learn how to brand your business on the Internet. Branding consists of having your website, email signature, and social networking profiles all representing your business. Without this type of marketing, you will have a difficult time attracting new customers to your company.
If you want to take my networks by storm, then you need to be familiar with all of your options, including social network sites. By doing this, you will be able to reach a tremendous number of people and expand your business exponentially. Take the extra time to build a solid network now.