The head of the Competitiveness Business Unit at the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Commission, Kareem Guiste, says micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) should create demand for their goods and services through research.
“Entrepreneurs can create demand by taking the time to interrogate and understand the market to see if there is an appetite for a product or service. This allows the business owner to dissect the needs of the clients they want to serve and provide them with alternative solutions to the needs they have observed,” said Guiste, as he addressed the Jamaica Business Development Corporation’s (JBDC) Virtual Biz Zone Webinar.
The webinar last week, was the first of the agency’s Research and Innovation Series held under the theme “Using Research to Identify New Markets”.
“The risk of generating any business is the risk of the unknown. Uncovering the unknown requires investment and interrogation,” Guiste said, noting that many entrepreneurs might be intimidated by the idea of research.
But he encouraged participants that research does not always have to be formal and arduous, adding “the grassroots small business owner can conduct informal research by simply observing, asking questions to the right people, and recording responses”.
Guiste underscored the importance of Caribbean small business owners becoming proactive instead of reactive in their businesses.
“Research can often be a valuable non-cash method of growing your business because it causes you to become aware and subsequently understand the market. Research is a low-hanging fruit for improving your business and it should not intimidate entrepreneurs.”
Guiste said there are key questions and considerations entrepreneurs must ask themselves.
“Is there are a demand for my product and is it possible for me to create demand for it? Have I adequately taken the opportunity to assess market needs and do I know who my clients are? These questions can begin to stir the entrepreneur’s mind to see how they can get their brand into new markets.
“Entrepreneurs must appreciate what research can do for their business. It has the capacity to open new markets and allow them to build demand for their product.” Guiste encouraged participants to “Read more, learn more and be deliberate about observing your current market and the ones you are interested in exploring,” Guiste said.
The JBDC Virtual Biz Zone webinars are geared toward stimulating entrepreneurs within the MSME sector. The second in the two-part series on Research and Innovation will cover the topic of Innovation: Funding new Business/Product on Tuesday, May 17.
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