Data, data, everywhere

Often I am asked about what market research exists for our industry. That is such a huge question that I often struggle with providing a concise, yet comprehensive answer. There is, after all, a plethora of research information generated by my colleagues in academia that participate on the multi-state research group known as the Green Industry Research Consortium. Through the years, this talented team of economists and horticulturists has published several-hundred research papers and those publications reside on many of our websites. One such website is my own Ellison Chair website (ellisonchair.tamu.edu) but there are other very good ones maintained by my peers.

Besides academia and public entities, you may also want to consider private market research firms that focus on our industry. The following are some of the leading secondary sources that my colleagues and I sometimes have occasion to get our hands on. I say sometimes because several of these publications are quite expensive and quickly surpass the budget limitations of those of us in academia. Nonetheless, I will report on some of the ones I have reviewed firsthand, as well as those I have been told are quite decent. A quick Internet search is all that is needed to obtain a personal copy of these reports.

• The Annual National Gardening Survey. Bruce Butterfield has done a fantastic job with this annual gardening survey for a long time and it is worth the investment. It is comprehensive and has been conducted annually since 1973. The survey provides in-depth and up-to-date marketing information on industry trends, household participation, consumer profiles and retail sales.
   
• IBISWorld publishes several reports related to the green industry including (1) Farm, Lawn & Garden Equipment Wholesaling in the U.S., (2) Lawn & Outdoor Equipment Stores in the U.S., (3) Nursery & Garden Stores in the U.S., (4) Landscaping Services in the U.S., and (5) Hydroponic Growing Equipment Stores. These reports tend to be rather general in nature, providing a glimpse as to who the major players are in the industry.
   
• The Garden Media Group publishes Garden Trends Report that provides an overview of upcoming consumer trends. The firm’s track record is spot on in terms of identifying the latest consumer trends to which green industry firms should be responding.
   
• The Fredonia Group publishes Lawn and Garden Consumables Report that summarizes market environment factors, details industry structure, evaluates company market shares and profiles key industry players (e.g. Scotts Miracle-Gro, Central Garden & Pet and Spectrum Brands). This is one of the expensive reports (about $5,100) but I have been told it is fairly thorough.
   
• Standpoint (formally nQuery), a market research company for the home and garden industry, has released some excellent research on the outdoor living market and one of its latest is titled Outdoor Living — A New Landscape for Home & Garden Consumers. It is a comprehensive look at the outdoor living market as viewed from a consumer perspective.
   
• In its $2,140 study entitled The U.S. Lawn and Garden Market, 8th Edition, Packaged Facts presents a comprehensive and multifaceted analysis of the current L&G market. Along with detailing the many opportunities latent in the economic crisis, this study offers an in-depth examination of competitive issues and trends, including the impact of marketer attrition, management survival strategies, the slowing of globalization, potential dealer and independent retailer resurgence, growing influence of the green movement, regulatory/political developments, and responses to drought. Also addressed are possible breakdown scenarios involving supply shortages or similar economic discontinuities.
   
• Ironically, one can find the latest market trends and uncover sources of future market growth from an international market research firm, Euromonitor, in its Home and Garden industry in USA report (available for $1,900).
   
• First Research, another reputable market research firm, recently released Nursery & Floriculture Production Industry Profile that contains sections on trends & challenges, an industry forecast, a quarterly industry update, website & media links, business challenges and financial information.
   
• Hoovers publishes a garden center report entitled Garden Centers & Farm Supply Stores Report and a production sector report entitled Nursery & Floriculture Production Report. Both reports provide industry background information, a description of competitive dynamics, and financial information regarding the green industry.
   

That’s my short list of recommended reports. I am quite certain I have overlooked others that may be available, but those are the ones I have run across in my own experience. I’d welcome the feedback (charliehall@tamu.edu) on others that you find valuable.
 

Put the data to use

Now that I’ve identified some of the more popular market research reports, I’d like to turn my attention to some of the uses of this type of research. The first step toward gaining any actionable insights from these studies is to align market research with your desired outcomes. Organizationally, a way to facilitate this is to split the research initiatives for benchmarking business performance from the ones being used for transformational innovation. The next step is to give market research the right assignments. There are a number of jobs that market research can help you perform to advance the quest for profitable growth. The top ones include:

1. Identify potential customers. Who is going to use your product/service? How old are they? Are they male or female? Are they married, single or divorced? Do they have children? Where do they live? What is their level of education? This list goes on and on, of course, but you get the picture.

2. Understanding your existing customers. Why do customers choose your product over competitors? What do they value? Is it service, product quality or the prestige associated with consuming your product/service? Who influences their buying decision? What magazines do they read? What websites do they visit? What do they enjoy doing?

3. Set realistic targets. From the information you collect you’ll be able to set realistic targets for areas such as growth, sales and the introduction of new products/services.

4. Develop effective strategies. From your research you’ll be able to make informed marketing decisions about how to price your product/service, how to distribute your product/service, which media channels to use, or whether to develop a new product/service. It will also help you make an informed decision about starting, building, consolidating, diversifying or reducing business activity.

5. Examine and solve business problems. If you’ve identified a business problem, research will help you work out what is happening. For example, if your sales have fallen you might discover that brand awareness has also fallen, or that a new competitor has entered the market, or a substitute product has become available.

6. Prepare for business expansion. Research will help you identify areas for expansion and test the market’s readiness for a new product/service. You may want to open a new retail store and you need to find the right location; or you may want to chang to your distribution channels and need to determine how that will affect your customer base.

7. Identify business opportunities. Your research could identify new business opportunities. You may find an un-serviced or under-serviced market. You could identify changing market trends such as population shifts, increasing levels of education or leisure time, which bring new opportunities.

While it’s useful to use timely and accurate market research as part of your business, I would supply one additional word of caution. Just as “all politics is local,” one should also bear in mind that national trends are good to know, but trends affecting the trade area you are serving are even better.

Dr. Charlie Hall is a professor in the Department of Horticultural Sciences at the Texas A&M University and holder of the Ellison Chair in International Floriculture; charliehall@tamu.edu.