Abstract:

The paper discusses a new market research data collection technique designed to become part of a combined product/market forecasting system. The market research described is particularly applicable to product planning in mature markets where repeat purchase accounts for an important percentage of the total market demand e.g. motor cars, office furniture. Having described the technique the paper illustrates its application using the hypothetical example of motor cars as the subject of a study. Strengths and weaknesses of the technique are summarised with the conclusion that SIMALTO and its analyses are a valuable addition to the product planning and marketing managers data base to aid decision making.