This article was featured in the latest edition of the Baldwinsville Messenger Our Town edition. It was written by our Communications Coordinator Lori Lichorobiec of Research & Marketing Strategies (RMS).

As the holiday shopping season approaches, momentum is high as eager shoppers gear up to take advantage of the holiday sales and be the first in line to purchase new products released this season.

From the Infinity game console from Disney® to the latest iPhone 5S from Apple®, there are literally hundreds of new products released just in time for the holidays and there is bound to be something for everyone on your holiday shopping list.

Chances are even better in finding that “perfect gift” because market research was involved.  Many of the new products you see on store shelves this holiday season are on display thanks to opinions from people just like you.

It’s called consumer feedback and it’s a market research term that describes the action or activity of gathering information about  target market needs and preferences.  Consumer feedback can provide valuable insights to a business when it introduces a new product or service; helping to determine things like features, flavors or styles that consumers want.  Central New York ‘s unique demographic composition is an excellent source for providing companies with target market consumer feedback,  in particular when it comes to needing diversity for  new products and concept testing.

From surveys and written comment forms, customer roundtables and in-depth interviews, to focus groups and mystery shopping, companies can employ market research techniques to gauge a better understanding of how a product will be received in the marketplace and more importantly, what their potential and existing customers “want” from that particular product.

Baldwinsville based RMS – Research & Marketing Strategies offers new product, concept and service testing as well as a host of other consumer feedback services to businesses all designed to provide critical customer and marketplace intelligence.

“Focus groups, mystery shopping and surveys are all seen as important tools for acquiring marketplace feedback particularly for companies researching new products or services,” said RMS President Mark Dengler.  “In today’s economy it is especially important for companies to be sure they are investing their resources wisely.  Companies are willing to pay for this consumer information, recognizing the significant cost if product or service misses its mark”.

This holiday season RMS is encouraging all CNY residents to sign-up to become a member of its research panel. It is free to join and panel members have the opportunity to get paid for their opinions. Panels are popular in market research because they can bridge the gap between a population that is reluctant to cooperate with random surveys and organizations that need to know their perceptions and attitudes.  A research panel is made up of individuals who have expressed a willingness to participate in customer feedback sessions whether it is online, in person or via telephone.  Individuals become members of the panel after completing a simple profile questionnaire.  Things like demographics and lifestyle characteristics are collected which provides basis for future survey participation.

“Every project requires unique and specific criteria.  Having a large pool of people who want to participate in a focus group or survey provides timely feedback for our clients,” according to Sandy Baker, Director of Business Development for RMS.

It’s simple to sign-up, go to www.RMSresults.com and click on the Join Our Panel box in the upper right had corner. You will be asked a few profile questions and you are done. As soon as a project comes up that matches, you may be contacted and asked to participate. This may also be a study where participants will get paid.

Questions about our NY Research panel? Contact us at 1-888-567-5422.