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Successful software development requires informed decisions, guided by market research. Before investing time and resources, developers must understand if there's a demand for their software, identify desired features, and assess user willingness to pay. Engage with a diverse sample to gather unbiased insights, while keeping ethics in mind—avoid influencing opinions or selling through the research process. Properly framing questions is crucial to uncovering valuable information about competition and user expectations. Equip yourself with the right data to enhance your competitive edge.
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if we don’t find out people’s opinions in advance, we’re guaranteed to find out afterwards; and by then we’ve spent our own and other people’s money
Take all initial criticisms and rephrase them as positive suggestions >> much easier to creatively build up an idea >> backed up by solid support • You have to put the right questions to the right people in the right way
Market research, can give you a competitive edge >> the majority of software developers still rush out
Before you even think of investing any serious money or time, you need to be able to answer the following: • Is there a demand for this software? • What features do users want? • How many want them? • What do they expect to pay? • What’s the state of competition? • Where do people expect to buy it?
Who to Ask Who exactly are “the right people?”
How Many People Must You Survey? • The only way to be sure you are asking the right people is to ask a larger sample.
The Ethics • Don’t try to influence your respondent’s opinion. • Don’t sell. • Don’t build canvassing lists to target sell from. • Don’t gather information to which you have no right.
Framing the Questionnaire • How you phrase a question is crucial • What Might You Charge?
Sales Potential • Asking, “Would you buy the product as described?” might make the research company feel that they have done something to answer their client’s question • “How much better is what has just been described than what is available at present?” • “What additional benefits would be needed to interest you in purchasing a program of this kind?” • “How much money would a program like this have to save your company in its first 18 months for you to strongly advocate its purchase?”
Competition • Why not ask the market researcher group about potential competition? • cast your net wide by asking: Are you aware of any similar products? If there is a clear known leader, add “other than X?”