Global Market Research the Multifaceted Nature of

Global Market Research The multifaceted nature of global market research makes the diverse nature of business strategies' analytics, intelligence and market data needs accomplishable with significant accuracy and insight. The use of a diverse set of tools can just as effectively define in which location and with what specific menu items a U.S.-based retail franchise needs to combine to succeed in Brazil for example.

Global market research strategies can also define the optimal series of decisions for changing the packaging of their flagship packaged product, Macaroni and Cheese in Asian nations. Online learning companies including many traditional colleges and universities are using global market research techniques to better understand how they can attract more graduate students for MBA programs specifically designed for potential students located in India. Analyzing the Potential for Global Market Research Starting with the U.S.

retail franchise looking to open a new location in Brazil, the multifaceted nature of global market research methodologies, tools and techniques become evident in this example. The most critical aspect of creating an economic feasibility analysis for any foreign retail location is thoroughly understanding the demographics, psychographics' and socioeconomic factors that drive the purchase cycles for the product of interest (Hand, Dunkelberg, Sineath, 29). Through global market research techniques, the U.S.

retail franchise will be able to isolate down to the specific tract, perhaps[s down to the block level in a large urban area, matching on the ideal attributes of their preferred prospective customers. Using primary research including customer surveys throughout these census tracks, the franchise company will be able to determine what the price elasticity of this specific area and also get a list of the most preferred items to have on a given menu.

Often franchisers will have several locations they are comparing against one another, looking for the most economically attractive, in addition to those that fit their preferred menu items. When a comparison of retail locations is completed using this approach, franchisers often call it a portfolio approach of retail planning, as it integrates the customer-based, financial and supply chain implications into a common decision framework (Mahajan, Sharma, Srinivas, 24). A second example is how effectively packaging research is getting in terms of re-aligning specific products to the individual needs.

When Kraft chooses to customize their flagship product, Macaroni & Cheese, for the Asian market, the company begins with a series of psychographic studies that capture how specific groups perceive their brand. This brand audit then serves as the foundation for defining the specific positioning of packaging that is highly valued in a specific market segment as defined by the marketer (Ampuero, 107).

One of the implications of packaging decisions in foreign markets are the potential supply chain improvements that can be attained over time, which is an area that Kraft and other Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) manufacturers have excelled at (Rundh, 677). By combining packaging testing and validation techniques for a given foreign market and factoring in the supply chain efficiencies, Kraft will be able to have a highly valued package for the Asian market while also attaining supply chain efficiencies at the same time.

A third example of how international market research can be seen in how effectively online colleges and universities, in addition to those with traditional learning approaches today, are embracing online leaning to expand their student base. The use of online learning is becoming so pervasive that it is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 20% or more through 2016 (Little, 137).

In order to understand how best to architect an e-learning program at the graduate level for Potential students in India, secondary research of demand for these programs can be relatively easily accomplished using the Web. The next phase is to complete a series of studies in the Indian regions that would have the greatest concentration of students. This would include the major urban areas where many potential students already have undergraduate degrees, yet are also working to help support their families and looking to get their own lives started.

The need for understanding the economics of e-learning in addition to knowing how these pricing variations can be made more affordable for potential students is critical to opening up new.