Doing accurate foodservice investigation and research requires an in-depth understanding of the underlying complexities of the food service industry. Many companies, such as Brizo, provide excellent data that allows businesses to gain a better understanding of the industry as well as targeted research for the foodservice market. Doing effective research is the key to staying ahead of the competition, mastering sales prospecting, enhancing marketing performance, increasing operational efficiency, and making informed decisions.
In this article, we will discuss the top 10 things you should consider when conducting custom research in the foodservice market. In each of the points, we will explain the best practices to ensure you have the right data and insights to make the most informed decisions.
1. Establish Your Goals
One of thefirst steps in starting your research is to establish your goals and objectives. Whether you are researching the trends in a particular region, gaining insights about food purchasing behavior, or analyzing a particular sector in the food service market, setting goals and objectives is essential to setting the direction of your research. Clearly articulating your goals and objectives up front will not only help with data accuracy, but it will also help streamline the research process.
2. Identify Your Target Audience
Knowing who your target audience is for conducting custom research is key for a successful execution. Understanding who you want to target will help you narrow down the data and focus on the most accurate and useful insights. For example, if you are targeting audiences in the United States, you might need to tailor your data to reflect the tastes and preferences of the market.
3. Analyze Market Competitors
Competition in the food service market is fierce and conducting research to understand and stay ahead of them is essential. You can do this by researching your competitors’ products, pricing strategies, target audience, operational processes, customer loyalty programs, and more. Such research can provide valuable insights for you to stay competitive and come up with new and creative ideas to differentiate yourself.
4. Gather Relevant Data
Once you have identified your research objectives, target audience, and competitors, the next step is to find relevant data. Accurate and up-to-date data is the key to making informed decisions and staying ahead of the competition. You can find data from many sources, such as industry publications, surveys, proprietary databases, and online resources. It is also important to choose the right type of data for your research, such as the menu data and restaurant tech coverage from Brizo.
5. Utilize Data Enrichment
Data enrichment is an asset in conducting foodservice custom research. This process involves taking the data you collected and enhancing it with more comprehensive insights and more accurate information to make the most informed decisions. This process can help you uncover hidden trends and uncover valuable insights.
6. Monitor Foodservice Regulations & Guidelines
Staying up to date on food service regulations is essential to conducting custom research. Regulations often change from region to region, and keeping track of them can help you understand the food service market better. Knowing the regulations in the markets you are researching can help you narrow down the data and uncover trends and insights that may not have been obvious from the start.
7. Identify Industry Trends & Developments
Monitoring industry trends and developments is a key component to conducting custom research in the food service market. Knowing what the current trends are enables you to stay ahead of the competition and come up with creative solutions that will keep you ahead of the game. By monitoring trends, you can gain invaluable insights to make better decisions.
8. Update Your Knowledgebase
It is important to stay up to date with the latest research and to update your knowledgebase on the market. This is a key part of conducting custom research in the food service market. Keeping up to date with the latest findings can help you make better decisions and provide actionable insights.
9. Analyze The Quality Of Results
Analyzing the quality of results is vital for conducting effective custom research. You should aim to use the most reliable sources of data and the most accurate insights. Taking the time to ensure the data is correct is essential for making informed decisions.
10. Evaluate Your Results
Once you have conducted your research, the last step is to evaluate your results. This is an important part of the process, as it allows you to understand the effectiveness of your research. Evaluating your results enables you to understand the impact your research has had and make changes to further improve the results.
