Real Market Research
I learned more from my 15 minute meeting yesterday with some store buyers than I learned in days of doing market research at the library.
And no, it wasn’t very encouraging news.
But it wasn’t all bad news, either.
Their quick, candid assessment was that my item might be too big (it’s a table top item), too expensive, and customers would have to store it between holidays. They are seeing a trend away from buying holiday decor pieces that have to be put away for the rest of the year. Their customers tend to buy smaller, less expensive holiday items. Mine was not something these buyers would stock in their stores. Not very encouraging,
They did say, however, that there probably was a niche market out there for customers who would pay the money for this product, and the success of selling it would depend on being able to find and tap into that market. It was just not their market.
The good part of all this information is that because they were so specific, it gives me a chance to re-think how I was going to make my item and how I was going to market to women in my target market. And of course the other part of the good news is that they may have saved me from spending a whole bunch of money developing an item that might have gone nowhere.
I have two more appointments with buyers coming up so I realize that yesterday’s was one opinion among three, but I value it highly, nevertheless. When I put the information from all three interviews together, I think I’ll have a good representative sample of store buyer opinions on my item – from the kind of stores where I thought I would see my item. As is so often the case, good research leads to more questions:
-Can I take my basic product idea and make it smaller, cheaper to buy, yet still unique?
-Should I keep the basic design, make it really high-quality, and shift my target market to more upscale customers?
-Is this an indication that I should abandon my business idea, or that I should adapt my idea?
As I meet with other buyers, the answers to these questions may become apparent. Surprisingly, I was not saddened by the reaction from these buyers, but felt incredibly grateful and relieved that I got that feedback now, rather than later. More than ever, I appreciate what Jill Johnson said about “minimizing my risk.”
I would love to get opinions from you readers – about how you decorate for seasons and holidays, or about what I’m learning from these buyer interviews.
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