MARKETING RESEARCH
Marketing research in India is clearly at a point where it is set to become indispensable if the liberalization of the economy and expansion of consumer choice, which has become palpable in the recent years, is going to continue. With the opening of the Indian economy, the markets have gradually become buyers' markets. In India, market research is essentially used as a reactive tool, it is in the static stage; whereas, I feel that MR should serve as a proactive tool, helping corporations optimize their functioning by bringing research into all marketing efforts, by integrating it into the long and short term marketing strategies and by involving the operational staff who actually carry out the work that can use informed research results. Market research often ends up being used as an isolated tool that gives a narrow picture of the past without giving a holistic view and an insight into the future.
The need of the hour are MR professionals who are true managers - managers who have to facilitate a radical change in the way market research is looked upon today; very often as an activity done by a separate cell and an end in itself. I see myself, as an MR professional, using research as an actionable tool, incorporating cutting edge methodologies, getting the needed results while saving time and money. I want to turn it into a dynamic instrument, use it to feel the pulse of the market, make probabilistic predictions abut the market through sophisticated tools and ultimately get involved in product innovation and strategic planning.