Abstract:

This paper takes as its thesis the argument that the dynamic changes taking place in agricultural markets and marketing offer agricultural market research a chance to enhance its worth and standing through the provision of advanced marketing aids developed in the world of fast moving consumer goods. It warns, however, of the dangers of adapting such techniques to agriculture without sufficient understanding of the special characteristics which affect each of our markets. In doing so, the paper takes a number of case studies involving decision-models, pricing models and product positioning techniques and investigates for each the special circumstances which need to be borne in mind for their adaptation whilst at the same time, highlighting their potential for widening our vision and understanding of the markets concerned.