A market analysis provides information about industries, customers, competitors, and other market variables. You can also determine the relationship between supply and demand for a specific product or service. Based on these insights, you can make more informed decisions about possible marketing strategies.
How suitable is your offer for a certain market? A market analysis will answer these important questions. Every market participant – whether companies, founders, or private customers – can carry out a market analysis. In any case, it serves as a basis for decision-making. Information is collected and evaluated from suppliers and buyers in order to make purchase or sales decisions. Furthermore, you can evaluate your current market or view new markets.
Market analysis is a large part of market research and an important component of a business plan. In this plan, business founders document their business idea in writing. During the course of the market analysis, a specific market is taken into account. With the help of the results displayed, companies can identify the opportunities and risks of that particular market. The target group forms the basis of the market analysis.
In order to carry out a market analysis you will require reliable information. Generally speaking, small companies tend to carry out the necessary research for their market analysis themselves. Larger companies, on the other hand, often commission market research institutes to do it for them. A market analysis can be carried out using various methods of data collection. A distinction is made between primary and secondary research.
With primary research, experts from a target market are interviewed in order to collect new data. The advantage of this is that it is still your own research purpose in focus. This way, you can collect the data you need for your market analysis. In contrast to this, secondary research uses existing data records from previous surveys. This can be collected both internally and externally. By opting for secondary research you can save both time and money because you don’t have to conduct costly interviews and evaluation. Sources for representative data are, for example, the Federal Statistical System, professional chambers, annual reports of other companies, or trade journals.
The bigger the company, the broader your market analysis should be.
Market research means the systematic investigation of a specific market, as such research provides information on the basis of which you can select a suitable marketing instrument. In contrast to market research, market analysis focuses on a specific market on a given date. The aim of market analysis is to identify the most important characteristics of a market and to determine the market structure at a certain point in time.
The market structure describes the structure of a certain market. It focuses on the interaction between suppliers and consumers and can be determined on the basis of various criteria. These criteria depend on different characteristics of a market. These include the size and value as well as the number of suppliers, the buying behaviour of consumers, or growth forecasts.
If you want your business plan to be successful, you will need to carry out a market analysis. A comprehensive market analysis forms the basis of the development of a marketing strategy and concrete marketing measures.
Further reasons for conducting a market analysis:
An effective market analysis will include an accurate description of the target market and thorough market research. It conveys a holistic picture of a specific market. A market analysis consists of five different areas in which information is collected and analysed.
At the beginning, define your market and differentiate it from other markets. Depending on the product or service, your market can be defined using various criteria. In order to carry out segment-specific analyses, the target market must be divided into different segments based on certain characteristics. Such characteristics can be socio-demographic (age, sex, income) or regional (states, cities).
The following questions should be covered in the market description:
Find out as much specific information as possible about your target market:
When determining the size of your market you should use data that is as accurate and up-to-date as possible. This part of the market analysis is about determining and evaluating the actual turnover or sales volume of a product or service in a specific market. Based on these figures you can make forecasts about the market development and derive the attractiveness of the market from this. The market development includes market growth and growth rates.
What are suitable sources for procuring information?
The following administrative bodies and internet sites provide free input for your market analysis:
The competitive analysis considers individual factors that are important for a market. Here, the essential characteristics of a market are analyzed and described. The “Five Forces Framework” is an established tool for analyzing competition, especially in the consulting industry. The management theorist, Michael E. Porter, shows which factors are important for the analysis of both the market and the competition:
In the competitive analysis you should get to know not only your customers, but also your competitors and possible competitive advantages:
The analysis of the customer industry identifies the industries that achieve the highest sales or turnover. In doing so, you should again refer to your defined market. You can then analyze the structure and attractiveness of the industries with regard to the various sales aspects. As a result of your analysis you can identify the target groups and their various industries and you can determine customer requirements and customer behavior. Based on the results, you can, for example, develop suitable marketing strategies for your business.
The following questions should be answered:
A market analysis does not only reveal the past and current state of a market, but also the trend of its future development. For this purpose, the potential analysis highlights potential employees, market entry barriers, success factors, as well as current developments and trends. A forecast of the market development is particularly important for your sales planning and for possible investors.
With the help of a market analysis, businesses can gain valuable information about a certain market. If you are setting up a business, want to investigate your current market, or simply look at new markets, a market analysis helps you to identeify and assess the opportunities and risks of a market. On the basis of a market analysis, you can develop concrete marketing strategies and successfully implement your business idea.
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