Marketing research is an important part of any brand’s strategy. It helps you understand your market, customers, and competition in a way that will inform your business decisions. This can help improve the success of your marketing campaigns and business as a whole.
However, I used to hate doing it. I found it boring and uninspiring, with a low value for my time spent doing it. But once I started digging deeper into why marketing research was so valuable, I learned to love it here’s why:
| Takeaways |
|---|
| Embracing marketing research can alleviate worries and lead to valuable insights. |
| A shift in perspective from apprehension to appreciation can enhance the research process. |
| Learning from challenges and mistakes in marketing research contributes to personal growth. |
| Developing a systematic approach to marketing research can make the process more manageable. |
| The journey of learning to love marketing research involves adapting to changing methodologies and technologies. |
Do a Competitive Analysis
When you’re starting, it can be difficult to know what keywords are best to target. You want to focus on the right ones, but also want to make sure they’re not too competitive. Fortunately, some tools can help you do this!
SEMrush is a great place to start your research as it has tons of information on competitive analysis and keyword research.
This tool allows you to see what your competitors are doing in their advertising campaigns, which will allow you to know how much traffic they get per month so that you can decide when it’s worth going after certain keywords (and how much they cost).
If SEMrush doesn’t give enough information about search volume then Moz’s Keyword Explorer should be next on your list.
Since it’ll give more details about each keyword including estimated monthly searches as well as whether or not those searches are seasonal or not (which would affect how often someone might search for something).
Once all this data has been collected from various sources such as Google Analytics or SEMrush.
This will provide things like estimated clicks per day based upon historical performance – then the next step is determining which ones look promising enough where there isn’t too much competition yet still have enough potential demand.
“Navigating the realm of marketing research requires both artistry and systematic methodology. Explore the fusion of creativity and technique in our comprehensive guide to The Art and Science of Marketing Research, where insights and imagination converge.
Check Your Search Console
The Search Console is a great place to start. You can use the Search Console to find your competitors’ keywords and search queries, as well as their backlinks and organic traffic.
In addition, you can find similar websites that are ranking higher than yours for certain keywords/phrases/keyword combinations.
A good way to locate what people are searching for is by using Google’s Keyword Planner tool (it’s free!).
This tool lets you narrow down your search through different categories so that you can see how many people are searching for a particular phrase or keyword at any given time of the year and during different days of the week or month.
Look On Social Media
Social media is a great place to find what people are saying about your brand.
When it comes to social media monitoring tools, I like Hootsuite or SproutSocial for their easy-to-use dashboards that give me a bird’s eye view of all the blogs, forums, and social networks where my company gets talked about.
In addition, Google Analytics can help you measure the traffic coming into your site from various social networks;
This will allow you to prioritize which sites are bringing in more visits than others and therefore need more attention from you in terms of community management and influencer outreach. Using analytics data will help guide most of the decisions we’ll talk about next!
Check Discussion Boards And Forums
There are several places where you can go to find out what people are saying. The first step is to search for your company name, product name, and industry. This can be done using the following:
Google Alerts: Create an alert for your brand or product name and get notified when it appears in a news article.
Social Media Monitoring Tools: Use these tools to keep track of conversations about you on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
You can also use them if you want to monitor competitor brands’ activities as well as general industry trends (e.g., “marketing research” or “CRM”).
Forums/Discussion Boards: Search through forums such as Reddit that allow users to post questions and comments about products/services within specific industries (e.g., CRM).
While marketing research can sometimes be perceived as time-consuming, understanding its true value can be enlightening. Dive into the discourse on Why Market Research Can Be a Waste of Time to uncover the underlying insights behind the journey.
Use The Think, See, Do Approach
Think about what you want to achieve. A lot of times we go into a project without really knowing what it is that we want to accomplish. This is a problem because if we don’t know our objective, how can we know when we’ve reached it?
In addition, if you don’t know what your goal is then how will you know if your methods are working or not? It’s like trying to write a book but not knowing the ending it will be hard for your readers (or in this case future clients) to connect with it.
See what’s working for others in your industry/field and use those ideas as inspiration for a new approach that might work better than whatever you’re currently doing.
There’s no reason why creativity has to come only from within you can take inspiration from everywhere!
If two people were having the same problem and one person came up with an amazing solution while the other just gave up on trying anything new at all…who do you think would be more successful?
Use Keyword Research To Understand Conversational Language And Intents
Keyword research is a great way to understand the language people use to talk about your product, whether they’re searching for it or they have a question that needs answering.
For example, if you’re a dog walker, you could use keyword research to see how people are talking about dog walking and what they want from their dog walker.
You might find that some people search “dog walking near me”, while others search “how often should I walk my dog?”
This tells you that there are two different kinds of searches: those who want to find out where nearby services are (or who just want someone else to do the work) and those who are looking for guidance on how often they should be taking their pup on walks.
Gaining wisdom from personal experiences is the cornerstone of growth in the realm of marketing research. Delve into our reflections on What I Have Learned About Marketing Research to glean insights from real-world encounters.
Use GPT-3 AI To Generate Content Ideas
You can use GPT-3 to generate content ideas based on your keywords. You have to connect your account with the tool and then give it some time to learn about your business and industry.
After that, GPT-3 will be able to provide you with a list of relevant content topics as well as suggest relevant keywords and phrases.
The tool also has an interesting function called “competitor analysis”. This means that if there are other companies in the same niche as yours.
GPT-3 will help you find out what sort of content they publish, allowing you to come up with better ideas for similar topics or create more targeted campaigns.
Leverage Google’s Schema Structured Data Testing Tool To Make Sure You Are Serving Content As Expected
Once you have a good idea of what schema structured data is, it’s time to dive into the more technical aspects of implementation. The first thing you should do is make sure that your XML site map and JSON-LD code are set up correctly.
To do this, you’ll want to use Google’s Schema Structured Data Testing Tool. This tool will allow you to see whether or not your website’s content is being displayed in search results as expected and if not, how much traffic may be lost because of it!
For example, let’s say we wanted to improve our visibility in search results by using schema structured data on our blog post pages.
When we utilize this tool, we can see that there aren’t any problems with the way our content displays with any major engines (i.e., there aren’t any errors).
However, when using Bing for example which does support schema markup we find out that some elements are displaying incorrectly:
- Our author information isn’t showing up at all in reference lists but appears correctly on other pages such as About Us or Contact Us;
- Our company name isn’t appearing anywhere within reference lists either despite being linked elsewhere throughout each page;
Segmentation lies at the heart of effective marketing strategies, enabling precise targeting and resonance. Discover the essence of strategic segmentation in our exploration of The Importance of Market Segmentation, where tailored approaches meet the diverse landscape of consumer needs.
Check Your Organic Visibility Over Time Using SEO Monitoring Tools
This is the perfect way to keep track of your organic visibility over time.
SEO monitoring tools are designed to show you the performance of your site over time, as well as the performance of your competitors and keywords. With this information, you can analyze what’s working for you and why and then replicate those strategies in other areas of your business.
The best part? You don’t have to be a tech guru or even have any coding knowledge whatsoever!
Find And Fix Indexation Issues With The “Coverage” Report In Search Console
“Coverage” is the amount of your site that’s been crawled and indexed by Google. It’s important to know what percentage of your content is indexed because if it’s too low, you might not be getting all of the SEO benefits you deserve.
To get started, navigate to Search Console in Google Analytics where you’ll see a new report named “Index coverage.” This report shows you how much of your site has been indexed by Google and why some pages aren’t being found in search results (if they’re not indexing at all).
The first step I recommend taking when looking at this report is checking “Accessibility errors,” which are issues like broken links or missing meta descriptions that could cause problems with crawling and indexation.
You can use this section as a way to visually identify any issues on the page that might explain why some pages aren’t being found in the search:
Keep Track Of Keyword Rankings With A SERP Tracker
SERP trackers are a great way to keep track of your keyword rankings over time. If you’re using an SEO tool like SEMrush or SpyFu, likely, you’ll already have access to a SERP tracker within the platform. But if not (or if you’d rather use a different one), here are some options:
Mention
This is my go-to tool for tracking keyword rankings and mentions because it has a sleek design and provides great insights into what’s working in your content strategy.
Mention also lets you set up alerts so that when keywords reach certain thresholds, the tool will send an email with all the relevant information.
Moz
Moz offers two paid plans for its SERP tracker one for $99 per month and one for $499 per month but both include unlimited results per search engine query (unlike other services).
The free version of Moz gives advertisers three keywords per day without any additional limits on what data they can see.
So if there’s something specific happening at your company or industry level that merits further investigation, there’s no better place to start than here!
Crafting compelling opinion polls can fuel engagement and yield valuable insights. Learn the art of creating opinion polls that resonate in our guide on How to Write an Opinion Poll That Will Get You Shared Every Time, and harness the power of interactive research tools.
Create A Brand Tracker To Measure Brand Conversations Over Time In The News And On Social Media
To measure the impact of your efforts, you’ll want to create a brand tracker. A brand tracker is a list of all of the things people are saying about your brand that can be measured over time.
It’s also important because you can use it as an early warning system for potential problems with your company or product.
You can create one by:
Using tools like Google News and Google Trends to find news stories. If a lot of people are talking about something negative about your company or product, that may indicate an issue that needs further exploration!
Use tools like Google Alerts, Google News, and Google News Archive in tandem with keywords related to the topics you’re interested in tracking (i.e., “brand name” or “product name”).
Conclusion
We have talked about a lot of different tools and approaches in this article, and it can be a lot to take in. However, I want to encourage you not to get overwhelmed.
The most important thing is that you start looking at your data daily so that you can make informed decisions about what content needs to be created next, or how existing content can be improved. Once you have the habit of doing this consistently, the rest will fall into place.
Further Reading
Explore these additional resources for related insights and perspectives:
Navigating Recessions: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Challenges: Discover strategies to embrace challenges during economic downturns and turn them into opportunities.
The Tenure Track Journey: Embracing the Faculty Life: Gain insights into the experiences of an academic navigating the tenure track and finding fulfillment in the faculty life.
Harnessing Challenges: Lessons from Embracing the Unknown: Explore how confronting the unknown can lead to personal and professional growth, and learn from real-world experiences.
FAQs
How did you overcome the challenges of a recession?
Embracing challenges during a recession involved reevaluating strategies, identifying new opportunities, and adapting to changing circumstances. This approach enabled me to navigate uncertainty effectively.
What insights can I gain from embracing the tenure track faculty life?
Embracing the tenure track faculty life offers a unique perspective on academia, research, and personal growth. It involves a balance between research, teaching, and community engagement, contributing to a fulfilling academic journey.
How can confronting the unknown lead to personal growth?
Confronting the unknown can push individuals beyond their comfort zones, fostering adaptability, resilience, and new skills. Embracing uncertainty often leads to valuable experiences and self-discovery.
How do challenges during a recession shape professional development?
Challenges during a recession can stimulate creativity and innovation as individuals seek alternative approaches to achieve their goals. These experiences can lead to a broader skill set and enhanced problem-solving abilities.
What strategies can help turn challenges into opportunities?
Viewing challenges as opportunities involves reframing perspectives, identifying hidden potentials, and leveraging one’s strengths to address the evolving landscape. This mindset shift can lead to transformative outcomes.
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.
