A useful tool for analysing your potential market prior to commencing business is to examine the performance of those alreading operating in the market - your competitors.

Conducting telephone-based market research can help you obtain a complete picture of customer satisfaction and your competitors' performance.

If you are going to spend money understanding customer needs and satisfaction you must ensure:

• your research is timely in order to measure satisfaction while the experience is still fresh in the customer's mind
• you ask the right questions and carry out in-depth analysis to gain as much information as possible
• you improve your performance in areas the customer sees as relevant.

Case study John Blade is about to set up a lawnmowing firm called Green Grass Mowing Pty Ltd. He has an addressable marketplace of approximately 15 kilometres around his home office location. John decides a little judicious observational market research will provide some very useful one on one information on his competitors. So he and some of his friends conduct some market research by ringing up the opposition to ascertain their competitiveness across the board. He classifies his findings under the following headings. Phone pick up speed. Did/did not return call. Phone manner. Estimate given. Further details and comments.

The information gained is then used in a SWOT analysis. For further information on SWOT analysis see the topic 'Identifying business opportunities' .