1.

Research Planning Template

Defining Problem, Decision outcomes & Business Goals
1a. What is the problem you are facing for which you feel the need for
consumer insight?
What are the different challenges you are facing? Can these be categorized or
clustered? Try and prioritize these problems.

1b. What decisions do you expect to make based on the insights generated
from this project?
What kind of business decisions? A Minimum Viable Product (MVP) offer
definition? Value Proposition definition/modification? Communication or
Promotion choices? Pricing decisions?

1c. What is your Big Audacious Goal (BAG) assuming you are able to solve
the problem?
What sort of business outcomes assuming the decision leads to success? Is this
matching the expectation(s) of the Sponsor(s) and other stakeholders? If you expect
conflict of interest, do include how you hope to resolve those differences?

© Mohan Krishnan, 2023-2024

 2a In order to achieve this, what is the key objective(s) of your consumer
research?
Improve or develop product/offer or Position your product/service right?

2b Proto-Persona definition: Who is the buyer/user/consumer you wish to

study for solving this identified problem? Is it possible to define and
break down into sub-groups? Identify what factors make these sub-
groups different? Do you think their needs may differ? Demographics
vary? Behaviour and attitudinal variations? Ability to buy?
Define as many segments as possible using as many variables you consider are
important for your potential insights.

2c. Can you stretch your imagination and think up new ways to challenge
yourself to subgroup users/consumers/customers?
For example, Underserved or overserved consumers, Profitable or unprofitable
customers, Outlier customer (e.g. extreme users) etc.,

© Mohan Krishnan, 2023-2024

 2d Do these users/consumers/customers get influenced by others? Would
you want to study them?
For example, a home buyer of AC may have a financial decision maker but depends
on his teenage son for decision on brand choice or his wife for need. In some cases,
the decision support may come from a person considered expert in that category
(e.g. Youtube blogger).

2e Are we aware of the channels these users/consumers/customers may use

for buying?
For example, a home buyer of AC may buy online or visit a single brand or multi-
brand retailer.

2f What is the existing/substitute/complementary market catering to these

consumers? Who are the competitors we need to study? What product or
offers do we need to study?

© Mohan Krishnan, 2023-2024

 3a What information do you already have (called secondary data) within the
organisation which may be useful to help (i) Appreciate the problem
better (ii) Develop Hypotheses as to why the problem is occurring (iii)
Provide pointers to where the solution may lie? These data may be
customer use/monitoring or purchase database, prior research learning,
CRM data, Prior Market research study etc.,

3b What sort of information about users/customers/consumers will we need

to collect to generate insights?
For example, it may be their consumption behaviour or their purchase behaviour or
the lifestyle and habits or the knowledge & beliefs or even their personalities and
inner motivations (e.g. aspirations, fears) we may want to study.
Note: We will make some preliminary attempt but we will build this section as we
progress in the project.

4a What kind of time, budget, resources we will need to plan the research?

______

© Mohan Krishnan, 2023-2024