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Forecasting Business Sales: Conducting Research to Estimate the Market Potential of a Product

Michael Sciabarrasi

Summary

Farmers selling in direct markets are often evaluating the best approach to expand sales. Should they add a new product, grow more of what they are already producing, or move into a totally different product line?

Answering these questions generally involves conducting market research. Hiring a marketing consultant to conduct this research could prove very expensive and may not provide the best answer. An alternative is to teach farmers how to make observations, gather needed information, and analyze the data to create sales forecasts.

Based on past workshops and available literature, we have designed a business sales forecast publication as a practical, common-sense guide to help farmers move step-by-step through the process of conducting their own market research. The aim is for farmers to estimate what portion of local direct market sales for a product they might reasonably expect to capture. This research will help farmers avoid costly mistakes and make better decisions by creating a road map that will take them beyond guessing or speculating about sales.

This presentation will discuss the approach we have used to help farmers forecast product sales. We will share the publication as well as other materials used at our workshops.

Details

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