Knowing how your SMB target experiences your brand makes it possible to build on the marketing and sales programs that are working and strengthen those that aren’t.
Some companies shy away from brand tracking surveys because they think they are complex to create and cumbersome to manage. They don’t have to be. Here’s how to create an effective brand-tracking program.
1. Define your goals. No survey can do everything, so defining and prioritizing what you most want to learn will strengthen your program. Ask yourself how you will use the results – for example, to assess overall brand health, or a particular marketing campaign, or marketplace threats and opportunities.
2. Select your partner. An experienced market research partner will challenge you to clearly articulate the actionable learnings you want to gather. One with SMB experience will create a questionnaire that can deliver meaningful insights from this varied and challenging segment. They will also provide the survey application, conduct the fielding, and analyze the data to provide actionable insights.
3. Identify your audience. Your target audience should be your key buyers and purchase influencers. They may include customers, prospects, and even your competitors’ customers. Be as specific as possible when defining your target audience, such as their role, company size, location, and industry, and be sure your partner can survey enough respondents to get meaningful insights from all segments.
4. Select your tracking frequency. Once or twice annually is typical, but your ideal tracking frequency depends on several factors, including:
- The pace of change: If your category has ongoing rapid product innovations or active competitors, consider quarterly or monthly.
- Campaign frequency: Brand trackers that run before and after major marketing programs can help you assess their impact.
- Unanticipated events: For example, new competitors, mergers/acquisitions, regulatory changes, lawsuits, recalls, and labor strife may warrant a one-off brand tracker.
5. Review, revise, and repeat. Brand tracking requires ongoing monitoring and revision. Update your tracking study as needed to ensure it provides valuable brand insights.
Contact us to find out how we can create and run a brand tracker that keeps you current on market opportunities and threats, and maximizes the return on your SMB marketing and sales efforts.
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