Archive for the ‘Trends’ Category

Positive Outlook for Industrial Companies

Good news this month for many of our clients! According to a new report, Trends in Industrial Marketing 2010: How Manufacturers are Marketing Today – incidentally published by one of our clients, GlobalSpec – 70% of sales and marketing professionals in the industrial sector expect their companies to increase sales this year, compared with a mere 16% in 2009. However, the online survey of 464 respondents found that only 31% had an increased marketing budget.

For 42% of sales and marketing professionals questioned, customer acquisition is their primary goal this year. One-third is focusing on lead generation and 13% specified branding as their main aim.

More than two-thirds (68%) plan to increase spending on social media. The same percentage intends to increase their spend on online video this year. Conversely, a quarter plans to decrease spend on trade magazine advertising and 24% will decrease use of printed directories.

Posted in Industrial Research, Marketing, Marketing Strategy, Social Networking, Surveys, Trends |
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Marketers and the Recession

 
The Marketer, the official magazine of The Chartered Institute of Marketing, has reported how the recent recession forced many marketers to change their product and service offerings.

Following the spring wave of its Marketing Trends Survey, the CIM has revealed that 57% of marketers surveyed claim their business has had to adapt its product or service due to the economic climate. This is an increase of 11% in 12 months.

And, disappointingly, optimism about the state of the UK economy has fallen since the previous wave of the survey. Six months earlier, 51% of those surveyed expected the economy to become stronger in the coming year; this figure has now fallen to 43%. Seventeen percent actually predict that the economy will deteriorate.

On a slightly more positive note, however, almost half (48%) of marketers questioned expect a better year ahead for their own businesses.

• Read our white paper on Marketing Strategies in a Recession by clicking here.

Posted in Business, Economic Crisis, Economic Recovery, Trends |
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Business Confidence In London Is Growing

The findings of a survey into the confidence of business owners in London have just been released.  Conducted for Business Link in London by business-to-business market research and intelligence consultancy B2B International, the research highlights how the effect of the economic environment varies significantly by type of business, location and personal characteristics of owners.

The survey, commissioned to examine how to meet the business needs of a diverse marketplace, is the first of its kind and the ‘Diverse Business Confidence Index’ has been created to represent minority groups including women, ethnic/faith groups, the elderly, the disabled, and those of a particular sexual orientation.

B2B International director Nick Hague, in charge of the survey, says the survey uncovered perceived discrimination and prejudice in the business world.  “This diverse business confidence index for BLIL is a great step in finding out how business owners are coping during the recession.  Companies in the industry sectors of recruitment, property and construction have been hardest hit during the economic downturn, whilst least affected are in the health and beauty sector.  As a bonus to developing such a robust index, we also gained real insight into diversity issues in business which may be mirrored across the country, not just across Greater London.”

London’s SMEs Defy Recession

As London’s small businesses bear the brunt of the recession many are still looking to grow, according to Business Link in London’s new Diverse Business Confidence Index (the Index). The first of its kind, the Index surveyed over 3,000 small businesses in London and found that 84 per cent are planning on expanding and growing their business over the coming year. Nearly two thirds of entrepreneurs surveyed said that the recession is still affecting their business with 39 per cent saying the recession has significantly impacted overall budgets and expenditure.

Patrick Elliott, chief executive of Business Link in London, said: “This Index gives a significant insight into how London’s small businesses are impacted by, and responding to, the recession. These results are an encouraging sign in these turbulent times – but they don’t come as a surprise to us.  We regularly survey our clients on how they’re managing through the recession and we’re seeing a clear trend emerge of a sector that is refusing to get bogged down in the doom and gloom. But what’s telling from this index is that this confidence is across the board – many entrepreneurs across regional, industry, and demographic groups are responding to the recession by aggressively seeking out new market opportunities.”

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: “It is extremely heartening and will inspire confidence in the strength of the capital’s economy that so many of London’s small and medium sized firms are planning to expand in the coming year. Making up nearly 99 per cent of our business sector, they create half of all the capital’s jobs and are therefore critical to its success. I will continue to do all I can to support these firms and ensure they get all the help they need to get through the downturn – they will, after all, be our spring board to economic growth and prosperity when the upturn comes.”

Maintaining and generating sales was identified as the single biggest challenge facing all businesses.  However, three quarters of those surveyed remain optimistic about their business over the next twelve months. Of those who are planning to grow, most planned to drive this through diversifying their business operation – 43 per cent plan to enter new markets, and 35 per cent are looking to develop new products and services.

Start-ups were more likely to have difficulties with accessing funding while established businesses tended to have more difficulties with generating new business.  A quarter of all pre-starts cited the falling value of the pound as the biggest impact and nearly half are revisiting their business plan projections as a result of the recession. However, despite being most affected by the recession, start-ups were the most optimistic about their business prospects with 89 per cent planning on growing their business over the next twelve months.

For more information on the Diverse Business Confidence Index please click here.

If you are a London business owner and would like to take part in future waves of the Diverse Business Confidence Index then please e-mail dbci@b2binternational.com and include your name, company name and London borough where your business is based.

Posted in Business, Business Confidence Index, Diversity, Economic Downturn, London, Recession, SMEs, Trends |
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Trend Setters

In her first contribution to the Thursday Night Insight series, Research Executive Bianca Boey looks at why market trends can often give us a good indication of future behaviour.

‘Recession’, ‘Credit Crunch’, ‘House Price Crash’.  These are all terms that have become a regular part of our vocabulary in reflection of our current economic situation.  The global economy is declining daily and affecting everyone and everything within its reach.  You can not turn on the television or leave your house without being bombarded in some way by reminders of our economic crisis, whether it is hearing about another company going bust or news of MPs misusing expenses to have their moats cleared whilst the rest of the nation is struggling to get by.

So, imagine my surprise when I went out last weekend and was faced with a setting where the recession did not even seem to exist.  I had entered a modern day Shangri-La where I was surrounded by Armani, Gucci and Prada!  This magical place that I had stumbled upon is the trendy village of Alderley Edge, one point of Cheshire’s ‘Golden Triangle’ which consists of Alderley Edge, Wilmslow and Prestbury.  Just down the road from B2B International’s Manchester offices, the ‘Golden Triangle’ is home to many Manchester United and City football players as well as various celebrities and wealthy businessmen.  There are more millionaires per square mile here than anywhere else in Britain and women flock from all over the North in the hope of ‘bagging’ a footballer (I know what you are thinking and no, that is not the reason that I was there…) and being accepted in to this recession-free society.

As I sipped my modest glass of Pinot Grigio and watched the scantily clad girls with bleached blonde hair pouting from behind a bottle of Cristal whilst keeping an eagle eye out for the presence of any footballers, I found myself asking, what exactly is shielding the ‘Golden Triangle’ from the credit crunch?

Yes the area is idyllic, surrounded by countryside, boasting results-topping schools and filled with history and culture, but does this explain why it has remained so unscathed?  Apart from the clear presence of affluence in the area, I can not answer the question of why this haven is able to turn its expensively reconstructed nose up at our current downturn and also at other economic crises in the past.  If we look further back to the last house price crash in the late 1980s/early 1990s, we can see that the ‘Golden Triangle’ yet again fared this crisis well, with property value here remaining high whilst elsewhere in Britain houses were slipping in to negative equity.  Maybe the question I should be asking is not why this has happened, but how can we utilise this knowledge?

Ok, I admit that it would be rather flippant of me to suggest that we all cope with the house price crash by jumping in to our Bentleys and taking our spare million to the ‘Golden Triangle’ to purchase a house next door to Cristiano Ronaldo.  Obviously, unless you are one of the few incredibly wealthy members of society, this is not possible!  However, if we consider the implications of this in a wider sense, we can see the importance of being aware of and analysing both past and current trends before making any significant decisions or predicting future developments.  The house prices in the ‘Golden Triangle’ maintained value in the past crisis and so far they have continued on in this way in the current crisis.  This clearly suggests that in a similar future situation house prices here will continue to remain steady and therefore we can predict that this is one of the safest places in the UK to invest in property.  This theory applies in the business world as well, and it is vital for companies to research and become aware of market trends and changes in order to release the right products, at the right time, in the right place and market them in the best way possible.

I know that I will definitely be making sure that I have done my research into past and current market trends before making any important investments or decisions in the future – unless, of course, I do succeed in ‘bagging’ myself a footballer!

Posted in Bianca Boey, Credit Crunch, Market Research, Recession, Thursday Night Insight, Trends |
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Increasing Sales In Challenging Times, part 2 of 3

Following on from yesterday’s blog post, the second part of Julia Cupman’s 3-part feature on increasing sales in challenging times continues by looking at some of the questions a market entry or market assessment study should help to answer:

There is an obvious requirement for market knowledge and market insight prior to devising a market expansion strategy.  Market research and intelligence should be used to determine the precise nature of the opportunity, the size of the opportunity, and the routes to market.  Many companies turn to market research providers to do this as they are independent and, therefore, unlikely to prejudice the findings.  They also have the expertise in conducting market assessment and market entry research.

Entering a new market is undoubtedly a daunting task.  The following list of questions should assist marketers and their colleagues to explore, scope and define the opportunity in expanding into a new market.

1.  What are the high-level factors surrounding the target market?  Factors such as the country’s GDP, compound annual growth rate and inflation rate should be noted as they could potentially affect demand.  Other factors, such as the industrial production growth rate, the state of the country’s infrastructure, the overall business climate and the cultural norms associated with business should also be covered in the research as they could affect the decision to enter the market and could influence the nature of the strategy.

2. What is the purchasing process surrounding the product/service concerned?  It is necessary to understand who is involved in the purchasing decision and how these decision-makers can best be reached.

3. What are the market’s requirements in purchasing the product/service concerned?  Understanding the market’s requirements is crucial in determining whether the company’s product/service is appropriate for the market.  Key factors influencing the decision should be explored so that the company’s offering can be tailored to suit local demand and to satisfy the market’s needs and wants.  The research should also uncover the market’s unmet needs, offering potential opportunities to be exploited.

4. What are the challenges?  An understanding of the main challenges faced by buyers and sellers will provide insight into problems and pressures faced in the market from both demand and supply perspectives.

5. What are the trends?  It is crucial to understand the nature of the demand for the product/service concerned in order to ascertain whether a company’s products are suited to this new market.  Current and future demand should be explored in terms of how demand is predicted to change in the short, medium and long terms.  The research should provide a clear indication of the trends per market segment, per type of product or service, and per geographical region, as well as trends in international collaboration, mergers and acquisitions.

6. What are the influences on the market?  The political, economic, socio-cultural, technological, legislative and environmental forces on the market should be examined in order to obtain a thorough understanding of the business environment, and to understand who is influencing the market and what power they have.

This article concludes tomorrow.

Posted in Business Development, Market Assesment, Market Intelligence, Market Research, New Markets, Recession, Trends |
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