Research from your own records.
WHAT YOU ALREADY HOLD
Sales records Support conversations Website behaviour Enquiries that did not convert Reasons customers left
WHY IT IS UNDERUSED
It is not labelled as research.
WHAT SALES RECORDS REVEAL
Who buys What they buy together How often they return What they spend
WHAT TO ANALYSE
Which customers are most valuable What they have in common Which products bring people in Which customers leave quickly
WHY THAT LAST ONE
It reveals who you should not pursue.
WHAT SUPPORT CONVERSATIONS REVEAL
What confuses people What is missing What they expected
WHAT TO DO WITH THEM
Categorise, and count.
WHAT ENQUIRIES THAT DID NOT CONVERT REVEAL
Where your offer does not fit, and what the obstacle was.
WHAT TO DO
Ask a sample of them.
WHAT WEBSITE BEHAVIOUR REVEALS
What people look for Where they leave What they search for and do not find
WHY SEARCH TERMS MATTER MOST
They are questions stated in the customer's own words.
WHAT TO DO WITH THEM
Answer them, and consider whether to offer what is sought.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
A habit of reviewing this periodically.
WHAT TO AVOID
Collecting data nobody examines.