The Importance of Market Research in Graphic Design & Marketing

The way businesses market to their customers today is incredibly different than even just a decade ago. With the power of social media and the development of AI, marketing has gotten both easier and harder. Businesses can access the whole world within a matter of seconds. But a business only has seconds to make it count.

This is where market research and graphic design interlock. Underestimating the importance of market research in graphic design and marketing could be a massive blow to a business. Here is why it’s so important.

Your Brand is a Persona

There is an important question when a business considers what its brand is. “Do people want to be friends with your brand or partners?” In other words, when we pick our friends or who we are associated with, it comes down to multiple factors.

• Location – Physical location determines who you are meeting. The online world has changed this a bit, but the in-person connection still matters too.
• Common Interests – Food, style, music, and so many other attributes can bond people.
• Morals – The values that move your target audience will be important for your audience to feel represented in your company. This is more true today than it used to be.

With all of these things, your brand becomes a figure or persona that has personality traits. It rings true more than ever that people shop and buy from brands they resonate with.

Who Does Your Brand Want to Reach?

The services or products you are selling will determine who your best target audience is. Sometimes with enough market research, companies are surprised to learn that those who love their product were not the original intended audience.

Or, as many smart businesses do, they update their product, services, and brand to keep expanding their reach and grow with their audience. This is where market research and graphic design blend.

Using Market Research To Shape Your Visual Brand

Today’s average attention span of a human is 8.25 seconds. This means that whatever your brand is posting visually, you have a short window of time to impress your customer. And therefore, your business has to give an impression visually that the audience will like.

Example: 

You are selling a model airplane to young boys (or their parents.) But in order for the parents to buy it then, it needs to appeal to the mind of a young boy. This could be themes that resonate with them, like bold colors or orange, blue, green, etc., or superhero themes.

The boys probably won’t appeal to a brand that uses sophisticated words and the clean lines of a shabby-chic website.

In other words, would that little boy be interested in being your brand’s best friend?

Use Graphic Design to Help Your Market Research

Learning about what your audience responds to visually can help shape your brand immensely. So, bouncing back and forth and constantly updating your brand with the information is a key part of the improvement and connecting with your audience.

Connection is what turns first-time customers into loyal fans for life.

Staying Up-To-Date

Technology continues to change the game of marketing. That’s why staying up to date with your market research is key and that includes how you market as well. Benefits of performance-based marketing not only include strong visual components to it but also tell you exactly just how well your visuals are working.

For example, the company will only pay once the marketing goal is accomplished. This is a pre-determined agreement between who the company is and whom they are marketing with. With a successful visual and the right ad placement, the goal should be achievable.

This is how quality market research and great graphic design can set a company up for ultimate success.