Abstract:

Most research in telecommunications has focused on tests of technology, not tests of market demand. As a result, key issues such as the competitive frame, consumer needs not met by existing alternatives, and pricing have all gone largely ignored. The reason most commonly given is that consumers do not have real-world experience with these new services, and could not be expected to react knowledgeably for marketing research purposes. This paper challenges that view, and presents a process approach that systematically attacks unmet consumer needs and desired benefits from the most broad to the most narrow. At each stage, a demand forecast is made, with a decline in probable forecast error as spending on research increases. Two cases are presented which demonstrate that research can be designed to overcome the limitations imposed by lack of consumer experience. Key conclusions are drawn as to why both the process approach and the concatenated approach were so successful. Implications for future research are pointed out.