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Deep market research for effective marketing planning, the seven-step process SUFFIX uses

Deep market research is the systematic process of gathering and analyzing data about the market, competitors, and target audience. SUFFIX uses a seven-step process, from Background Analysis through Competitor Analysis, KPI setting, and Strategic Recommendation, so brands can make confident decisions about who to communicate with, how to do it, and through which methods. Without this structure, marketing planning becomes guesswork dressed up as strategy.

A market research process with clear structure

Market research with a clear structure helps brands get accurate, useful data. SUFFIX uses a process that consists of seven main steps.

Background Analysis: Gather foundational information like company data, brand, product, distinctive offerings, and business advantages. The goal is to understand the brand's context before going deeper in the following steps. Skipping this step is the most common reason later research findings feel disconnected from the actual business situation.

Market Analysis and Segmentation: Segment competitors into local competitors and global competitors to get a complete view of the market. The combination matters because local competitors usually drive day-to-day pricing pressure while global competitors set the long-term direction of the category.

Competitor Analysis: Analyze competitors in each market, divided into Direct Competitors (same products or services competing for the same customers) and Indirect Competitors (different products or services that satisfy the same need through different means). The distinction matters because fighting Direct Competitors requires a different approach from fighting Indirect Competitors who divert budget or customer need elsewhere. Brands that treat all competitors the same way usually misallocate their response.

Objective Setting: Identify the problem or goal, like increasing sales or expanding into new markets, and define KPIs like customer reach and brand awareness in the target group. Without explicit objectives, research findings have no anchor for what counts as actionable.

Market Research Methods: Use multiple research methods to collect data comprehensively. Online surveys for quantitative data, focus groups and interviews for deeper qualitative views, and social listening for analyzing opinions and reviews from social media. Combining methods gives a more honest picture of customer perception toward the brand and competitors than any single method can produce alone.

Data Analysis: Use tools like Google Analytics or Mandala Analytics for statistical analysis to identify market trends and behaviors. The right tooling depends on the data type and the team's analytical depth, but the principle is the same. Raw data without analysis is just files.

Interpretation and Reporting: Summarize and present research findings in an easy-to-understand format, with strategic recommendations that can actually be implemented. Adjusting marketing strategy or defining brand positioning. The reporting step is where most research projects either land or fail to land. Research findings that don't translate into clear recommendations end up filed and forgotten.

Market research that covers every step helps brands build accurate marketing plans across audience targeting, communication strategy development, and customer need response. The framework applies across every industry, but the depth needed varies by the stakes of the decision being made.

Use Case: Market Research for Cho Heng Rice Vermicelli Factory

Cho Heng Rice Vermicelli Factory, a producer of rice flour, glutinous rice flour, and other flour industry products, required comprehensive market insights to inform its pricing strategy and marketing communications.

The SUFFIX team started by studying the brand's overall picture and analyzing competitors at the local level primarily. Data collection split into two sides.

B2B side: Contact Distributors, Wholesalers, and Retailers through inquiry and conversation across every region of the country. The goal was to learn actual pricing used in each area, compare competitor products on shelves, and analyze competitor communication and advertising strategies on social media. Going to multiple regions in person revealed that product pricing in the market varied between regions, which was important data for developing pricing strategy adapted to each market. National rollouts that assume uniform pricing usually miss the regional dynamics that determine actual sell-through.

B2C side: Run online surveys distributed to people who use rice flour and glutinous rice flour for cooking, or people in the food industry, to understand Customer Perception toward the brand and competitors. The research found that the perception of the B2C group differed significantly from the B2B group, which led to developing communication strategy that was clearly separated for each group. Brands that use the same messaging for B2B and B2C audiences often discover that what convinces one audience confuses the other.

The data from this research helped the manufacturer see the overall market clearly, which was used to develop pricing strategy and marketing communication with precision.

FAQ

What is market research and when should a business do it?

Market research is the systematic process of gathering and analyzing data about the market, customers, and competitors. Businesses should do it when entering new markets, launching new products or services, adjusting communication strategy, or when marketing results aren't meeting targets and the team needs to identify the actual cause. Running market research as a one-time event before launch is common but underused. The strongest results come from teams that treat research as a continuous practice, with periodic deep dives layered on top of ongoing observation.

How are Direct Competitors and Indirect Competitors different?

Direct Competitors have the same products or services and compete for the same customer group directly, like rice flour brands competing against each other. Indirect Competitors have different products or services that can satisfy the same need, like wheat flour that some customers might choose instead. The distinction matters because it shapes the response. Direct competition usually requires differentiation on product or positioning. Indirect competition usually requires reframing the use case so customers see your category as the better fit for what they're actually trying to do.

How does social listening help market research?

Social listening collects sentiment data and Customer Perception in real time from social media, reviews, and communities, without waiting for a survey to be designed and distributed. The data reflects what customers actually think about the brand and competitors, which helps analyze strengths and weaknesses from the real user perspective rather than from internal assumptions. The trade-off is that social listening data can be noisy and skews toward whoever is loud online, so it works best as a complement to other methods, not a replacement.

How is B2B market research different from B2C market research?

B2B research usually emphasizes in-depth interviews with Distributors, Wholesalers, or organizational Buyers to understand procurement processes and business conditions. B2C research usually uses online surveys, focus groups, and social listening to understand individual consumer behavior and feelings. Both produce different insights and should be done in parallel when the business has both audience groups. Skipping one side because the other is easier to research is a common mistake that produces strategy gaps the team only discovers after launch.

Writer

Digital Marketer

Chatarin Inmuang