Do you struggle with converting your audience to paying customers on social media?

Have you ever felt lost about what to post?

Is it challenging to get specific in your messaging?

If you answered “yes” to any of the above questions, it’s not because you suck at marketing. You just need to dive deeper to understand your ideal customer. That’s right, I’m talking about market research.

You may be rolling your eyes right about now because you think market research is boring, but hear me out because it’s actually a lot of fun!

You can spend time guessing what your ideal customer needs and changing up what your marketing strategy every month or you can talk to exactly who your business was created for and feel confident about what you’re putting out into the world.

When market research is done right it will strengthen your messaging, engage your audience, help you serve your people better with your products and services, feel more confident on discovery/sales calls, and ultimately grow your business.

*cue the Lizzo tunes* You’re about to feel good as hell!

Market research can be very time consuming, so you want to do it right. Here are my 5 best tips for conducting effective market research!

1. Have conversations face-to-face or on Zoom

Market research goes deeper than posing questions to Facebook groups. Let’s be honest, half the time the opinions you’re getting on Facebook are from people who aren’t even your ideal client. You really need to know that the person who is giving you answers is actually your ideal customer. A conversation will make that super clear to you. Meet at a coffee shop or schedule a Zoom call. Don’t be afraid to talk to people.

2. Talk with the right people

Make a list of the characteristics of your ideal customer and use that list when you ask for market research participants. Are they a mom? Are they an entrepreneur who makes at least $10K per month? Do they struggle with particular tasks? The more detailed you can get here, the better.

3. Ask open-ended questions that aren’t leading

Prepare questions ahead of time for your market research call. Having a list of questions will help guide the conversation and keep you on track. Use open-ended questions that allow your ideal customer to dive deeper about their journey and day-to-day life. Questions like, “What does your morning routine look like?” or “Tell me about how you create your content for social media.”, allow you to get more than a simple “yes” or “no”.

Another important note is to avoid leading questions. Try not to ask questions that include an emotion or lead to an answer that you’re desiring. For example, if I say, “What makes you overwhelmed by social media?”, I’m leading my ideal customer to automatically believe that they should be feeling overwhelmed when maybe that’s not how they really feel in the first place.

4. Ask follow-up questions to dive deep

Don’t be afraid to ask a follow-up question to an answer. Most times the best insight comes from follow-up questions. Ask about why they chose certain words or emotions or ask them to elaborate where it sparks your curiosity.

5. Pay attention to the details

Pay close attention to the words that your ideal customer uses. Why? Because when you use the words that your ideal customer uses in your marketing, it’s gold! It shows your ideal customer that you understand them and develops trust.

Now you’re ready to go out and conquer your market research calls!

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