For all you startup shop owners out there...

[ncsvoboda7]

Just a quick topic on market research.

 

I am interested to see what resources you startup shop owners used to conduct the market research for your startup???

 

Also interested in what info you guys were looking for and found??

 

Thanks!

[ATLAuto]

I could talk for a long time on this. However, in summary, we looked at two key criteria for choosing our location:

- Daily traffic count

- Area demographics

 

You can get the daily traffic count online through the DOT websites. Or your real estate agent can get it for you. In a city, you want at least 30k cars going by your shop daily.

 

You can get demographics through a number of paid sources or from your real estate agent (ask for a Costar report). You are looking for high median household incomes. Opening your shop in a good neighborhood will eliminate a LOT of the problems that guys in this forum are complaining about.

 

Let me know if you want to get into specifics.

[xrac]

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[ncsvoboda7]

What brought you guys to exactly 30k or greater in traffic counts. The only problem I see with that is we are not the only ones that realize traffic count is important. Since others realize that obviously real estate costs are going to be much higher.

 

What I'm wondering is does the increase in real estate costs overcome the increase in sales due to traffic count or is 30k that sweet spot?

[ATLAuto]

To get customers in your front door as a startup, there are 3 methods that come to mind:

- Get a great location with a lot of visibility

- Market like crazy

- Wait for word of mouth to do it for you

 

Waiting for word of mouth to work takes a looooong time. Additionally, I would argue that in the city, word of mouth is less valued than in a small town.

 

So, you are left with the first two methods. Both cost money. A great location is expensive. Marketing is expensive. Both work. If you don't have a great location, expect to spend a lot on marketing to make up for it.

 

Is 30k the magic number? No. It is the minimum number. I looked at minimum traffic across various industries to get this number. Go to the IHOP or Meineke webpages and look under "start a franchise." It will show you minimum stats for choosing a location. Or just buy into a franchise, and they'll do all that hard work for you.

 

http://www.ihop.com/about-ihop/franchise-opportunities/usa#05

http://www.meineke.com/about/

[ncsvoboda7]

I like your creativity in finding a base traffic count that was a good call.

 

Also I just wanted to add that these real estate websites like trulia especially or realitor.com or zillow.com offer lots of free demographic info for areas of town.

 

Also I think there are a l of cheap marketing avenues out there that I think are a lot of time discounted such as social media, face to face meetings with fleets or car lots etc.

[mmotley]

Something to remember about how many cars drive by, how fast they are going. 30k going by at 75 mph isn't gonna do you much. 20k cars going by when your location is at an intersection and the speed limit is 30 mph or 40 mph is way better. Just FYI

[ncsvoboda7]

Makes a lot of sense I'm also sure that ease of access off of that road must be an important factor as well.

[FROGFINDER]

I have found that just being 1000 feet off the main drag , not hidden but behind commercial on main drag with residental behind you, creates a nicer atmosphere.

[ncsvoboda7]

What other factors did you guys find to be most important through your market research, we got location and customer base/median income of those customers. What about some of the cold hard facts like how much I can expect my customer to spend in a year with us? Or how many customers should I even expect to come through my door? I'm interested in the answers to these questions as well as how you found them as I'm sure they are slightly different here.