Marketing Insight: discover "point of conflict"

2013, desserts in the Japanese domestic market size to break the two trillion yen, seen how huge dessert market demand. Walked into a convenience store, you'll see shelves filled with all kinds of desserts, it is extraordinarily rare.

But if you are a dessert manufacturer, entered the convenience store would you choose it? You have a full grasp of their own Sales communication skills dessert can win in the competitive market do?

If you hesitated, this is normal. Understand the marketing people know, just a huge market demand does not necessarily make products hot. President Chain Store want dessert hot, in fact, to grasp the true "needs."

For example, someone should eat cut-packing "Swiss roll." Swiss roll cake is then rolled into a folder cream bar, Lawson Japan Chain Store and 7-11 are sold, one of about 150 yen or so.

The first thing worth noting: Chain Store Swiss roll is "one" is. Unlike the original "whole style" product patterns. In addition, the characteristics of Swiss roll is "can eat with a spoon" and even on Lawson Swiss-reel on which is written "Available spoon to eat."

Two things worth noting that the reason is that manufacturers of concern to the market "real" demand.

Fall into the Sales team management skills to share trap surface needs careful

Definition of requirements, is simply "the things customers want." Any goods and services to be sold, we must grasp the demand! And understand the needs of the fastest way is to ask the customer directly. Q. Let's say so:

Q: What are your requirements for Swiss roll?

Customers see this issue is likely to be the following answers.

● "I hope some additional flavors."

● "we hope more delicious cake."

● "I hope the price is cheaper."

● "I hope a smaller amount."

"Voice of the customer" which is the "demand." But think about it, anyone can easily ask this need, and further said that: you do not need to ask these customers, but also know everybody wants "more delicious" "cheaper" "amount more or less." These are the "demand" but also level too "superficial."

If you want to order merchandise based on customer demand plan, be sure to pay attention to when the market is not yet mature, as long as the product needs to grasp the surface usually will succeed. Since the market is not mature, there is no need to spend too much effort into a Ten winning absolute auction dead end, just like the rapid introduction of new products.

But the encounter mature markets, demand for light control surface is difficult to succeed. The company introduced a lot of new products based on the same surface demands, will only make the market flooded with the same product, no expertise and no difference.

Dessert is a large mature markets, the growth speed is not fast, the Japanese market in 2008 after the dessert just keeps slight ups and downs, so to conquer new territories in the dessert market can not rely on "the surface of demand", but also to identify "hidden demand" to add products.

Hidden demand, is the "real" business opportunities

"Hidden demand" how to find it? Marketing books say that the TDC's new marketing report a success market will want to observe customer behavior, conduct community survey to gather information in order to infer "hidden demand."

△ Groups Questionnaire: please customers to see samples, ask the customer comments.

△ observe the behavior: observe consumers in the purchase of health stores and their own usage.

In particular, "observed customer behavior" is to find the "hidden needs" class methods. So, we have to observe the behavior of consumers to buy Swiss roll, thereby to find "hidden demand."

The results observed buy Swiss roll as follows:

● go to the supermarket or bakery will buy a whole

● President Chain Store to buy their own weight can eat

● eat in the car feel a lot of trouble

● have to use a whole cake knife cut eat slowly

● If a whole cake did not eat for a fridge

● After eating to wash knives and dishes

Probably that's all. But we must pay special attention to which of the behavior? In fact, these behaviors can also be Marketing - invest more advertising one dollar of national divided roughly into three categories:

● To Buy

● Eat

● Preservation Act

The first "Buy" includes a supermarket, bakery and President Chain Store, there is no place in need of special attention, at most, is to buy one or buy one.

Then look at "eat" and "preservation law," at first glance is normal behavior, but taking into account the previously mentioned trend of Chain Store coffee seems to be able to find some clues.

Wash the knife to cut the cake and say, move on and "time-saving trend," contradict each other. Japan recently, these trends.

● After the trend: one just finished

● Simple trend: what should be simple

● car trend: You can eat in the car

Trends and behavior in conflict? Congratulations on your real needs

You find it? These customer behavior with just a slight conflict! It is:

● leftovers in the fridge, in violation of "eating trend."

● specially take a knife to cut the cake, "when the provincial trend" violation

● eat in the car a lot of trouble, in violation of "the trend of the car."

Further down one inquiry, to find "hidden needs of customers" from these unfashionable places, you get the following answer:

● "a little less weight will not eat leftover"

● "do not want to use a knife and a plate."

● "can easily eat in the car."

how is it? You are not different from those found in front of "taste" other "needs" "price", "weight" is? Because "observed behavior" could be found "hidden demand." Although the surface needs also mentioned "weight", but the emphasis is on the needs of the hidden reason to change the weight, that is, "do not want to be a little less so leftovers."

Discussion then come back, "a Swiss roll filled with" the real question is this:

Q: Why would the Swiss roll filled with a hot?

The answer is definitely not a simple market growth, demand for surface or superficial, but to master the three previously mentioned 10 tips for writing op-eds hidden needs.

When we go to investigate the reasons seen selling merchandise sold, in addition to President Chain Store coffee "trend", as well as so-called "hidden demand."

Perhaps you see here has been found, "correctly grasp the needs of macroscopic and microscopic demand" is definitely better than "Analyze competition" is more important. Because changing social trends, changing demand, the market around ten years can be said beyond recognition.

Just look at the things around us, before and after ten years it has been greatly improved. President Chain Store started selling from coffee, donuts and even sell, a decade ago, there is no such thing. So the point is to grasp the pulse of society, than other companies earlier shot.