The Effects Of Analysis Paralysis – It Could Destroy Your Market Research Efforts

Posted on February 11, 2009
Filed Under Market Research | Leave a Comment

Whenever you try to formulate your marketing plan, a crucial step in identifying your potential target audience is market research as this allows you to know how you should speak to them and when you should do so. The amount of information you seem to need would appear to be infinite, and this thought alone can seem daunting. Even though you may want to take the time to gather as much relevant information as possible before you make launch, you should take a step back. The sheer volume of information available to you can simply make the task of gathering them and sorting them an exhaustive endeavor, which if you spend too much time on could delay your project indefinitely.

This kind of habit where you over-think and obsess over market research is referred to as “analysis paralysis”. The moment you start using up too much your time in analyzing the effects of market segmentation, objectives, positioning, and targets, it is likely to stall your marketing efforts. Yes, market research is a very important aspect of the marketing process, however you have to stay focused your objectives and not over-analyze as it will lead you to lose track of where you should be. The primary reason for analysis paralysis is the fear of failure. You want to have everything honed perfectly before you even act; and you simply doubt the strength of your ideas so you have to continue researching in order to support ideas.

The remedy to paralysis analysis is very simple : act on what you have. With the information and knowledge you have already complete from your market analysis, you have to implement it. Even if it’s not perfect. Begin with something, even if it’s small and then you can tweak it as you go along. The beauty of the marketing is that the elements of a project are never carved in stone. If a part or whole element doesn’t work the way you planned it, then you can simply change or adjust it until it does. What is important is that you have performed the action of taking what you have learned from you market research and applied it to your project.

Obviously the solution seems so simple but sometimes you need to have someone guiding you and letting you know that you are not focusing enough on your planned actions. But where would you find someone or a group of people who can help you?

Well there is another solution, join a community of experts that do just that, and also teach you and even push you so that you succeed in eliminating analysis paralysis and actually start moving your business in the right direction. Where? Well I can only think of one place – PortalFeeder!

Keep reading the next installments of this blog and you will find out what Portal Feeder is all about and how it can turn your business around.