Organizations that do market research on a regular basis are positioned better to stay in touch with their customers or clientele. Bob Waterman wrote in The Renewal Factor that excellent organizations "...have made curiosity an institutional attribute. They seek a different mirror, something that tells them that the world has changed and that, in the harsh light of the new reality, they aren't as beautiful as they once were. The mirror also tells them that unless they change, they're in for a crisis." Organizations that view their product or service from the customer's perspective, are more likely to avoid the crisis.

    Nevertheless, crisis (or at least big problems) are common, even among successful organizations. In his book, Managing the Non-profit Organization: Principles and Practices, Peter Drucker writes, "Problems of success have ruined more organizations than has failure." He observes that public organizations (like universities) are especially prone to this problem. Drucker writes; "Non-profits are prone to become inward-looking. People are so convinced that they are doing the right thing, and are so committed to their cause, that they see the institution as an end in itself." Drucker believes that public organizations are particularly prone to looking inward. He writes in Innovation and Entrepreneurship; Practices and Principles, "most innovations in public-service institutions are imposed on them either by outsiders or by catastrophe." Bob Waterman concludes that, "the starting point for change and renewal is staying in touch." Marketing is the process of staying in touch.

WHAT IS MARKET RESEARCH?

    Marketing is not simply selling. Philip Kotler, in Strategic Marketing for Non-Profit Institutions, states "many institutions...confuse marketing with either hard selling or advertising. The most important tasks in marketing have to do with studying the market, segmenting it, targeting the groups you want to service, positioning yourself in the market, and creating a service that meets needs out there." Marketing starts with the needs of the customer. Kotler continues, "the contrast between marketing and selling is whether you start with customers, or consumers, or groups you want to serve well - that's marketing. If you start with a set of products you have, and want to push them out into any market you can find, that's selling."

    When most of us think of marketing, we think of convincing the public that our product or service has value. We talk about public relations and advertising. Marketing starts from the perspective of the customer. While we may think we know what our clientele think of us, the experts provide reason for doubt. Arbrecht and Zemke wrote in their book, Service America, "...how you are perceived by the customer and how the customer actually perceives you can often be a great distance apart. It is not enough just to give good service; the customer must perceive the fact that he or she is getting good service." So market research provides a glimpse of the perceived valueof our products and/or service, from the perspective of the customer. Albrecht and Zemke conclude, "market research plays a crucial role in enabling an organization to change and develop with its customers. In a nutshell market research tells the service company how it is perceived by its customers and what its possibilities may be." Marketing starts with listening to the customer.

HOW DO WE GET STARTED?

    First, you have to believe there is need for market research. This attitude must begin at the top of the organization. Drucker warns that, "marketing doesn't get anywhere in an organization without the head of the organization getting interested in it, understanding it, and wishing to disseminate its logic and wisdom to the staff and people connected with the institution." The leadership must believe market research has value, but that's not enough. Drucker reminds us that "marketing in a non-profit organization becomes effective when the organization is very clear about what it wants to accomplish, has motivated everyone in the organization to agree to that goal and to see the worthwhileness of that goal, and when the organization has taken the steps to implement this vision..." Market research starts from within the organization. First, we have to really want to know what our customers think. We have to care.