The only thing businesses today can rely on is change. Trends are changing faster and faster, and it's getting harder to identify which ones will impact your business.
The most successful brands today are still only successful because they are able to predict future market trends. For this, you must stay informed of the latest "trends" in order to anticipate and implement the developments and innovations of the future.
In this article, we will list the main means available to identify trends in your market, in order to get ahead of your competitors.
8 Tips for Identifying Market Trends
1. Check out the research and other trending reports
To have an accurate picture of your sector and determine the direction it is taking, you must regularly inform yourself about the multitude of reports published about it, which are easily accessible to you. This will help you see how your sector will evolve and will determine the direction for the next few years.
Trend analysis can also give you early warning of changes that threaten your market. For example, detecting the global pandemic and the various confinements around the world in time could have encouraged a neighborhood merchant to set up a website, equipped with "Click and Collect" (or another applicable method) for him.. allowing you to continue working.
2. Follow influencers
As an entrepreneur, it is not uncommon to be pressed for time! We do not always have the necessary time to allow ourselves to read all the interesting articles concerning the sector of our respective companies.
So, how can we stay up to date? Social media is a wonderful tool for following influencers in your market and hearing their points of view.
Plus, it's always good to be active on social media, and expand your business using social media marketing to show that you want to stay on top of your business, to “stay in the conversation”.
3. Make the most of digital tools
If you're a little obsessed with "Big Data", you should be familiar with the wide variety of analytical tools available. This is great because you can let these tools do much of the work that will help you understand your overall market situation, clearly and quickly.
Data analytics can indeed help you uncover trends that are increasingly sought after by online consumers.
Google Trends, for example, provides a long-term view of specialty market trends. Also at Google, the Keyword Planner allows you to find the most popular keywords used by your target demographic, and a range of potential usage, as well as the bid level of those keywords within a future advertising campaign.
4. Pay attention to your consumers (or future customers)
It is always very beneficial to talk to your customers. After all, they are the ones who boil the pot, and they only ask that you listen to them in order to improve your offer to better meet their needs! Don't be afraid to chat with them and learn more about the pressure points your company can press on to help them meet their expectations.
Regular qualitative surveys of your existing customer base could provide you with valuable insights into possible changes in their behaviour and needs.
If you are a new firm, you can indeed conduct targeted market research.
5. Observe your competitors
Most successful businesses don't follow the crowd; they innovate to stand out.
This does not mean that you should not observe your competitors! This can give you an idea of their positioning in the market, and let you know if (and how) they are reacting to what could be considered an emerging trend.
Often, just looking at their website, customer reviews, and social media channels is enough to understand how you stack up against your competitors.
6. Create or join a “think tank”
As in politics, you can join a think tank to get advice and identify the next trends in your market.
To do this, get involved in your sector. Join professional associations, attend their events, take training, and participate in online communities. They gather united market professionals who can assist you in identifying trends. You can also create your own group by bringing together partners, suppliers, or customers.
Also, use LinkedIn to find experts or influencers and invite them to join you. Their intuitions will be useful to expand your knowledge of the market.
7. Analyze complementary sectors
To identify trends in your market, look to complementary products and services. You share a single target and they are not your competitors. For example, a packaging company must monitor trends in all markets concerned by the type of packaging planned: food, cosmetics, industry, etc.
If the analysis shows that consumers are increasingly traveling with their meals, it must strengthen the resistance of its packaging. If she discovers that buyers prefer larger formats for personal care products, in order to save money, she will have to create larger packaging.
A coffee machine manufacturer must collect information on the evolution of consumer preferences: growth of the pod or return of the traditional coffee maker? Do they prefer to repair their machine or replace it?
The goal? Produce machines, but also spare parts, according to market demand!
8. Identify what never changes… never!
This advice goes against the principle of trends, but as Lavoisier said: "Nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed!" ". This means that despite all the changes, consumer needs remain the same.
Human beings are motivated by a set of basic needs and desires that are stable over time: comfort, value, security, status, pleasure, etc. The new trends develop only another way to meet these requirements.
Thus, to identify trends, observe innovations in terms of products, services, and campaigns in all markets. Identify those that meet an absolute need in a new way.
These innovations change consumers, giving them new behaviours and new expectations face to face the world around them. Over time, they lead to a change in attitudes towards brands.
Beyond your competitors and complementary sectors, stay alert to trends in other markets.
FAQs
What is market trend analysis?
A market trend analysis involves evaluating past and current consumer behaviour, as well as prevailing industry patterns.
A trend can be defined as an assumed future development or general direction of the market. We distinguish 3 of them:
1. Short-term market trends
They last a few hours or days. This can be news events, social media hashtags, or trade dates like Black Friday.
2. Medium-term trends
Medium-term trends last between 2 and 8 weeks. These are, for example, events such as end-of-year celebrations or elections.
During these times, your competitors can launch events to mark the occasion. Some products and services will also sell more.
3. Long-term market trends
These trends last for years, even decades. These are big societal changes affecting your business.
Smartphones, Artificial Intelligence, the #metoo movement, or the growth of campaigns for inclusivity are examples of events that have caused long-term trends.
What are the different types of market trend research?
There are 4 types of market trend analysis.
1. Analysis of consumer trends
It focuses on trends within a target market, its segments, and buyer personae. You study how consumers appreciate new products.
This analysis involves the collection of key data on customers: their satisfaction, needs, opinions, preferences, buying behavior, etc.
2. Analysis of historical trends
Here, you study past trends in your market or in your niche. This analysis shows how these developed, as well as their impact on the present and the future. Historical data can go back several years or the last few days, weeks, and months.
3. Analysis of seasonal trends
This analysis consists of studying short-term trends or trends that take place over limited periods.
4. Analysis of geographical trends
This analysis makes it possible to compare trends between different geographical areas, whether they are located within the same country or in different territories. It helps you discover regional elements that lead to the appearance of these evolutions.
Why analyze market trends?
Trend analysis is an important step in market research. It helps you make strategic decisions in the future.
You have insights into customer behaviors, allowing you to meet their needs with data. Consumers are more likely to engage with your marketing campaigns and make purchases.
Also, trend analysis helps to get relevant insights into the overall scenario of a market. You can anticipate the strategies that will allow you to gain visibility, in the near or distant future.
Out tips
Your work does not stop at detecting market trends: on the contrary, this work has only just begun. Once identified, all you have to do is use these trends for your strategy and thus detect the changes to be made in your business. Prioritize your efforts and identify the most impactful trends.