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.