How To Conduct Demographic Research

OverviewCountless startups enter the market every year.However, very few are able to sustain themselves for long, let al

Overview

Countless startups enter the market every year.

However, very few are able to sustain themselves for long, let alone register profits.

Do you know that lack of demographic research is one of the key reasons why only a handful of startups succeed?

If you want your business to grow, you need to understand the demographics of your target audience, so you know the pain points you need to address.

Don’t worry. It’s not that complex, and we’ll help you get there!

What is Demographic Research?

In simple demography is the study of people – their personal, social, and economic information.

From identifying the target market to selecting a sample size and designing a perfect questionnaire, there is a systematic process to conducting demographic research.

Here’s a five-step guideline that will ease it for you and help you gain valuable feedback for your business.

1. Define Your Purpose

Before starting, you have to define the purpose of conducting demographic research.

Sometimes, an organization will unknowingly collect tons of data and be unaware of how to use it.

Defining a purpose helps you to target a specific dataset and collect valuable insights.

Determine the information type you require and how that information will affect your marketing decisions.

Suppose you are a company that sells toys. Naturally, you need data on kids. This is just the basic step. Build on from here.

2. Identify Your Target Audience

Various demographic groups exist in the market.

You have to shortlist the best group that will yield you the most profit.

For example, if you are selling health insurance, you may face the struggle of choosing from a wide range of audiences.

The best one would be those that are more inclined to purchase a health plan, for instance, the elderly.

You can further analyze your product by setting up an adequate price, considering the income of your target population.

3. Search Relevant Data Sources

A larger sample may help you to gain insights from a larger market, which is highly preferable. However, collecting such huge datasets is not easy.

Hence, you need to be smart about how you find, collect, and organize data.

Several market research companies collect valuable demographic data, and you can get it at a low cost.

Similarly, you can use various databases like PEW research, Passport, US census, and consumer expenditure surveys which are publicly available information about demographics.

These valuable datasets will give you information about various population segments that can help you select your best target audience and their preferences.

4. Do Own Surveys

Sometimes, the public databases might not contain the information you’re looking for.

Therefore, your best bet would be to design your questionnaire survey.

You can either send out the survey over the Internet or personally interview each person.

It can be time-consuming, but you will acquire the deep customer insights you’re looking for.

Also, try to incentivize people because it will encourage them to give honest answers.

5. Use Best Practices For Your Survey

There are many ways to create a survey.

Selecting the best methods can get you the maximum results.

Some of the ways to improvise your survey include:

Add a mix of close and open-ended questions
Don’t ask personal questions at the beginning of the survey, and keep them optional as well
Try to include a blank space after each question so that people can express their feelings if the options don’t reflect their views
You can briefly state the purpose of the survey in the form