Initial market research

[Gloucestershire_Graduate]

I have quite a unique idea, and want to do some research into the market to see if there is a demand for it.

I have thought about setting up a questionnaire on Survey Monkey and posting it here for responses. However, how can I get some information on if my idea is viable, without giving too much away (in fear that the idea will be stolen!). I'd like to essentially find out if there is a demand for the service.

Thanks.

[which_08]

Having a unique idea is great , but deciding how you will get it out there is the hard part. I have 2 clients with unique ideas , One can detect if whiplash actually exists , and another , That can help colour blind people see real colours. Now do you know what the product is no ? . but i have told you what it does are you going to copy it no ? .. my advice is to share the benefits of your idea if possible and you will find your responses will increase rapidly.

[testudo]

A unique idea is great but the question you really need to be asking is whether is solves a problem people currently have. What job does the product/service do and does this overcome people's problems? If you analyse it in this way, try and do secondary market research around the existing solutions available for that problem. Look to see what demand there is, whether people are talking about it already. Look for forums, blogs, books, magazines etc. At least that way you know there is interest in the general area. Try to do as much desktop based research as you can before the survey so you can really get the right questions posed.


Your biggest problem with a survey is getting enough people to answer it to give you any real hard facts. When you do go down this route, post in on forums where your target audience go.

Good luck. And I do agree with the previous comment that you need to share at least some element of it.

Yvette

[mrsapedia]

I have quite a unique idea, and want to do some research into the market to see if there is a demand for it.
A quick and dirty method is to get an estimate for the number of searches performed in search engines for the subject area. Of course, some subjects don't lend themselves to internet search, but maybe yours does. If it does, there are some free keyword research tools out there like the Google Keywords Tool (Adwords), and Keyword Discovery.

[mobyme]

We have a UK survey panel consisting of 1860 people.
It is pretty unique in survey terms and should not be confused with run of the mill on-line surveys which can give totally skewed results unless you are using some controlled form of data verification.
You can choose panel participants by demographics and generational cohorts to suit your purposes. We can also offer double blinds for further accuracy.
We can enter into a NDA with you to protect your intellectual property if that is something which concerns you.
It would normally cost approximately £750.00 plus VAT to use the panel and survey results would usually take between 21-28 days.
If you would like to take advantage of the panel please PM me. It may be useful to add that if the survey was taken as a part of any web project placed with us. , there is a flat fee of £400 plus VAT.
Please let me know if we can be of service.