Research File: Seeking, searching and sourcing information

It seems a bit strange to me now that I haven't covered this topic already given I try to regularly run a Research File on here! Yes, you've got it the theme this time is research, but research for what - for facts, opinions and information - anything that helps us to make educated decisions. Decision making is always vastly improved by relevant research beforehand and here even opinion and the assumptions of others can prove very useful to know. What follows are hints, tips and suggestions about how to go about your research. 

There are two main categories of information which are useful to anyone, regardless of whether you are running and enterprise, a member of staff or looking for work which are: factual general information and opinions. 

Factual Information

Factual information can include financial details about a company you are thinking of trading with, some of which the company itself is happy to divulge through annual reports, but some records are also held by Company's House for some legal structures which will also conveniently highlight how many directors a organisation has had and how often they have changed. If they change regularly one has to start asking why as it can be an early indicator of possible ongoing problems and instability or it might be part of it's policy to make such changes. 

Golden rule - try in as far as possible to avoid making assumptions when fact finding. 

Other sources of information can come from following the leads from their own websites. Check out their recommendations, check their 'satisfied customer' list and if it's a local company with no website, ask  the local community and ask for them to refer you to 3-5 happy clients of theirs if need be. Then assess those contacts and their connection with the company.

Facts are actually quite slippery things as few things in life are categorically provable with absolutely no shadow of doubt. The more independent the source of information is, the better. Remember just as you will need to be adept in presenting your facts in a favourable light to win over people, so too do others! Facts are always subject to interpretation and a clever accountant can easily disguise the bear bones of what is actually happening so - buyer beware.

General facts are fairly easy to find, especially if you happen to be a person that people like to talk to. All manner of interesting information can be gathered via private conversations and the name of the game is to get people to be straight with you preferably by supplying you with written evidence where possible. Social media can help you to nail down information that you require via news stories and all manner of articles but remember they are all marketing tools in themselves designed to engage with you to follow them. This blog site is just such an example - no point lying about it!

Most important of all is to be clear about what is a fact and what is hearsay and opinion. A bank statement has factual information, a person telling you they've made significant profits this fiscal year is not.

Opinion

Opinions give you the 'feel' for what will go down well. Aside from just asking individuals direct, you can gather information via surveys either conducted by yourself or by reading those run by others and published. However, be aware of who participants of surveys are and how big they are. Most surveys are limited to a few hundred people taking part in them so they might not be ideal or give a accurate picture of what you wish to know. Anyone who has conducted a survey will tell you that there is seldom a 100% return i.e. not everyone asked will take part. Surveys also vary in structure, some are detailed and ask for opinions while others are just a series of tick boxes so you will never accurately know the figures for people who dither between two options if the choices available are restricted. Remember too that certain personality types love doing surveys while other loathe them so I recommend that you take them largely with a pinch of salt unless they are asking directly for the participants to voice their views in their own words.

The opinions of others matters most when it comes to customers, clients and service users.  The best way to get that information will always be through normal channels of communication in written and verbal form. Don't forget though that colleagues and connections throughout the industry sector you are involved in are also extremely important, particularly when it comes to planning and development and in reaction to outside influences e.g. changes in the law.

Information research options

Most people in business are familiar with using computers these days and with browsing the Internet for things of interest to them, but how do you get the best results?
TOP TIP: Be clear about what you are searching for at the outset for the best results.

Suppose you want to look for a list of dentists. If you hook up to any search engine and type in the word 'dentist' you will find a mishmash of results from definitions of the word to dentist practices and job descriptions. It highlights the need for accuracy. The clearer the parameters for your search the better, the more detail for those parameters the better too. 
So if you want dentist practices in your area tap in 'dentist practices' followed by your county or town. Simple. However in business, you might want a full list with all the contact details of all those practices and that can take up a lot of man hours. This is why there are dedicated businesses who do nothing but research and will charge you a fee for supplying you with that information. It can be worth it too when their database records have contact details numbering thousands.

Hang on though, there is almost bound to be a directory of some things such as dentists in the UK somewhere... guess what you type! Alternatively you could also try some business and other advisory services e.g. Business Link as some of their database records might be free because it is public information. Regulatory bodies can also be helpful to approach. Remember though that some information is protected under the Data Protection Act 1998.

When it comes to products and suppliers, the number of price comparison sites springing up can make life easy but not all enterprises subscribe to them for a multitude of reasons, so be aware that you might be missing out on the best deal if you only rely on those sites. For some purchases that might not matter, but for others it could make a huge difference.

Be it suppliers, materials, contacts or customers the information is usually out there for you to find but weigh up how much you really need that information to be able to function with how much time (and money) it will take you to obtain it. When it comes to finding information be smart and think first about where it is most likely to be lurking and why it's in the public domain at all.

Never be fooled by what appears at the top of the list when using search engines. For many searches the first few listings are adverts because those companies are good at things called meta tags and other weird and wonderful back end Internet stuff. The largest organisations will always have the upper hand in investing to ensure they top of any search engine list that is relevant to them. They might be your top choice too, but then again they might not be. Handy to know if you are researching who does invest in such things!

Searching is one thing, finding exactly what you want is quite another. Best to write down your objective before you start if you want to avoid getting sidetracked or seduced into things which are not strictly relevant to your needs and  goals. Research is a process, from which careful decisions should be made, so it's best not to let the research results make the decisions for you. Spend time doing some analysis to use the information found to help guide you, not command you.  

Operations: Marketing for all - databases

I am tempted to start regular monthly posts on the theme of Marketing for All, but I am no expert in the field and there are plenty of organisations out there who are. Social media professionals are just one side to that. However, what I do intend to do is share the basic ground rules over the coming months just as I did with my Connecting You article. As and when I do, they will appear with the heading Marketing for All.

All these things are covered by a whole raft of business adviser services far more comprehensively than I could achieve as I haven't full knowledge. As business people we need to choose from the vast array of options out there on the basis of which suit us best. They need to suit our ethics and policies, our style and nature of work and perhaps most importantly our way of communicating. We simple can not learn or gain from people who we struggle to understand. Much depends on the vocabulary used in each case. As people, we are drawn to others who communicate as we do, on the same level - more so if they share the same sense of humour and way of thinking. It's a fact - why lie about it? It doesn't preclude trading with others too, does it?

So, to business...

The value of marketing
The reason marketing has turned into such a vast industry in it's own right is simple... we can not hope to sell our products and services if we don't tell people about them. From there it starts to become obvious that to cut back on networking, advertising and promotional activities is extremely unwise in times of economic crisis and yet it often becomes one of the first things to suffer. That's illogical and a false economy in my opinion.

Crucial to effective marketing are our databases not just of pre-existing clients and customers but of  all our suppliers and contacts as they may have contacts that could easily turn into new customers of ours. Remember my tweets, "Money only works when it is moving" and "One never knows who a person knows or may come to know". ...?
Databases are in effect our foundation stones from which we can build. If we don't look after them then the whole structure starts to be at risk of collapse. What happens in a recession though?

Recession dangers
When job losses occur the database foundation stones are at high risk of getting seriously damaged, so the knock on effect is that the whole structure of the organisation is also at high risk. When was the last time you checked out if every single contact on your database is still in the same position they were in a year or two years ago?

Administrative departments as well as marketing departments are generally the ones to look after the database of all contacts, but not exclusively. It follows then that when they are affected by job losses/redundancies then the pressure on those who are left to manage the database increases - more so when the drive is to increase and build upon that database of contacts (potential clients).

There are two essential ways to avert all this though.

1. Keep your database up to date as much as possible at all times by ensuring everyone lends a hand to ensure accurate records are kept.
2. Regular reviews of the database and, if applicable, overhauls.

What happens if you haven't done this though and then there are job losses. Sadly the database, (that foundation stone to your business) is all too often one of the last things to be considered when in the midst of major restructures due to a downsizing of staff. That leads to whoever is left with a major job on their hands to sort it out. Administrative structures should be, in my view one of the first things to consider when restructures of any kind are on the cards, be it for economising on staff or indeed for gearing up for new projects and thereby increasing staff including using contractor services.

Yep, that's one of the services I offer to help fix that on a short-term contract basis far more than data entry but I do that too on occasion for clients I have a particular passion for. Just as with anyone in business, my communication style and way of working might not be yours. That's fine, because I keep stating, I believe there is room for all and I feel, it would be dull indeed if we were all the same and worked in the same way anyway. We are human beings first and last, and as such we base our policies, structures and style of working according to our collected experiences in the work environment. It's how we arrive at them isn't it?

Logical decisions work best
There is no such thing as one style of logic being superior to another, there is just logic. Decisions on structure and methods of working are based on historical facts (one hopes) and not on random ideas from all and sundry. I, at my level do not expect to ever be privy to those facts unless they are things that those who contract me deem it is necessary for me to know to do my work more efficiently. I can ask for more information to help in that, but I think I would be unwise to demand it!

Facts are crucial. When we have facts (however limited they may be even for business leaders), the best we can do is not to then make assumptions from them, but to work with them at all times and go in search of more facts to help us develop further and indeed inform our decisions. Learning is a never ending activity, or should be in my opinion. Those at the top of an organisation should have the most facts about the sector they are trading in and are constantly adapting and honing initiatives as things change in the wider world. That is why they are leading! Assuming that no one has moved on from their positions over the last two years I feel is dangerous. Check - get the facts straight.

Assumptions are not good to make but sometimes we have to. I am by no means immune to making them myself, but it is prudent to to note them as being assumptions pending further facts as and when they become available. More facts might not ever materialise so the best we can do is follow our best instincts and be prepared with contingency plans to do a u-turn if need be. Hopefully u-turns will be exceptions and more commonly business professionals adapt and adjust.

I am aware that many have all this firmly under their belt, but some don't (particularly start-ups) and even highly experienced business professionals sometimes need a prompt to review things... I know I do!

But I digress... back to databases...

Five essentials to include on your database
What should be on the database? In a word - everything. However, that's impossible as there isn't the time or the manpower unless you happen to be a particularly large organisation with all the staffing and resources and gizmos etc there are going. The essentials then...

1. Full contact details
2. Trading history (if any)
3. All expressions of interest in products and services offered
4. Communication records (in case of any complaints/disputes or new ideas). Commonly this is done through cross referencing with separate archives via short notes of dates/times
5. Interests of all contacts (sadly often missed by start-ups but vital to record as they are leads to how you can develop not only new contacts but your own products and services)

So there you have it, my basic beginners guide to databases which I hope will help readers develop   and grow their enterprises from all the lovely new contacts they are gathering from making the most of their social networking activities. At some point I hope to do a follow-up on the social networking... the next stage. When I simply don't know at this point. However, if you need that now... why not contact the professionals in that field? There are plenty to choose from, find the one you feel most comfortable with, that suits your style and company ethos.

I am currently looking for more contacts for that social networking article so if that is your profession, I will be happy to mention the first ten organisations that get in touch, almost regardless of ethical differences. I am and wish to remain as impartial as possible but I own I am human and those who talk the same language as me will naturally end up being referred to slightly more often. That's the way of business isn't it? It doesn't mean that others are not better than those I mention or prefer, does it?

Final cautionary word
Never wise to assume a thing about others really... it nearly always leads to wasted time and energy better spent dealing with facts and in positive, proactive activities.

Happy hunting for what YOU need.