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Market Research for EntrepreNorth: #1 - Intro

Published October 26, 2018 by Mark Bodnar

These next few posts are intended for the participants in the EntrepreNorth program supported by SFU Radius, but they may prove useful for any entrepreneur who is at an early stage in their market planning.

My aim with these posts is try to give shape and direction to what can often be a nebulous and confusing process: secondary market research. Along the way, I hope to touch on some big-picture questions:

•   What is secondary research, and why should you bother doing it?
•   Who are the key publishers of the sorts of information you need, especially if you are hoping to find free information?
•   How can we evaluate, discuss, and use information that is, by definition, imperfect?

Throughout this short series, I will be linking over to posts that I wrote a few months ago to support another Radius cohort earlier this year: Trampoline.

The Trampoline program's new entrepreneurs from across Canada were developing different approaches to reduce barriers to experiencing Canada’s outdoor environment. Although their goals may have been different from those of our EntrepreNors (EntrepreNorth participants), the process and structure of their research adventure are very similar. They, too, needed to know how to best frame their questions, predict publishers, and evaluate imperfect information.

This next series of posts will only scratch the surface. Please do read all of the 12 Trampoline posts for deeper context!

OK, so now that you know the destination, let’s get started by talking about the role of research in a world where personal experience is so important. Read on!

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EntrepreNorth-2018