Submitted by Don Doman.
After our first book was published my writing partners and I thought it might be fun to write a novel. We were four chapters into it when our publisher called. They requested that we write a book on Market Research. Neither Peg nor Dell wanted to write about the subject.
Many small business owners lose business investments because they don’t bother with market research.I asked, “Do you not want to write the book because it’s a daunting and boring subject?” They replied, “Yes.” I asked again, “Would you say that many small business owners lose business investments because they don’t bother to read about market research for those very same reasons?” They replied, “Yes.” My last question was, “Do you think that we know enough about market research and could write a book that would be interesting, easy to read, and helpful for those very same people?” They knew I had them. They didn’t even bother to answer.
We had a three book contract with a small business self-help book publisher. At the time I knew of no other book about market research that offered suggestions on using the internet for help (this was some time ago). Originally entitled Look Before You Leap: Market Research Made Easy it went through two of three editions and then was updated and simply called Market Research Made Easy and again went through three editions plus special printings in Malaysian, Polish, and Chinese. The 3rd Edition is no longer available from the publishers, but there are new copies still available from Amazon for as much as $190. I recently found a copy available on eBay for $27.17 including shipping from the U.K. For people starting out in business, the book still can save time and money.
The basics of market research are the foundation for any new business or any new product.Certain aspects of our market research process remain an integral part of our website construction and our Facebook marketing techniques. The basics of market research are the foundation for any new business or any new product. Even existing productions and services can stand a market research check up. As good as our advice is however, I wouldn’t recommend paying $190 for the book. And, no, we never got back to writing the novel.
