As a start-up, how should I perform market research for an original plastic sign (unregistered TM)?

Since it is original I can't really assume off any other signs, even those to the same market as many signs targeted to any market don't go. Because it is unregistered I can't ask others about the sign. Don't suggest family or friends, that is too small and virtually a non-market based on age (for many).





Once I register the TM, this won't be an issue, I can research based on my sales and then will be able to ask anyhow but I won't need to as I wouldn't otherwise have to order. I only order based on customer orders in bulk.





While it seems like there is no market research (I know about the market just not how it will sell) so many insist on it so I just thought I'd ask. Thanx for your help.

As a start-up, how should I perform market research for an original plastic sign (unregistered TM)?
I appreciate your concern for using a small sample size to draw quantitive solutions. You are exactly right. Friends and family are usually not representative of the market.





I don't fully understand the situation. It sounds like you have a sign and a business. You are contemplating using a new sign. You are holding back from using the new sign until the registration of the TM is complete with the USPTO.





If this is the case, you should read about trademarks and their use at www.uspto.gov. You can trademark anything simply by using it and putting the (TM) symbol on that which you are trademarking. Keep some form of documentation about when the (TM) went into commercial use. Something like the receipt with a date for the installation of the sign.





As you suggested, the best market research would be actual use with a method to test the success of the new sign versus the old one. Depending on the business this may or may not be feasible. For online businesses where a new sign is merely a piece of creative for electronic delivery, trying new signs is feasible. If your sign is a physical sign that requires local government approval before an expensive installation then you will need to conduct some other research. If so, then you should put the new sign to use on a brochure and document the date of first use of the brochure. Confidently show the new brochure with a (TM) mark to your prospective customers. If there are enough customers that you can contact, perform quantitive research. However, for most b-to-b businesses which yours seems to be there just aren't enough prospective customers to really perform reliable quantitive research. In that case, buy a book on qualitative market research methods.





Continue to pursue a registered trademark with the USPTO. Upon notice of approval, you can and should convert the (TM) symbol on that which is trademarked to a "circle R" which denotes a registered trademark.





In practice many companies release products, logos, and other intellectual property with only a self proclaimed trademark. Of course, they continue to seek registration to guarantee unique use of the intellectual property.





Of course, you should also perform a search for the trademark. You can easily do one yourself at www.uspto.gov. The only tricky part will be understanding the relevant classes. For instance, two trademarked names can be registered separately by two different companies so long as they are in different classes. If "Frankie's" is a registered trademark for a hot dog manufacturer then "Frankie's" could also be used as a registered trademark for a book publisher. You can find a definition of classes also in www.uspto.gov.





Good luck with the new sign.





-- Follow up pursuant to the additional information --





The basics of quantitive research are:


Define and isolate the test variable.


Establish a test group and a control group.


Conduct the test


Interpret results.





I'm still not exactly sure what your business is or what the sign is, but that's okay. Let's just work with the danger sign example your presented. So lets say you want to know how many people will purchase your new sign which is an alternative, or possibly an augmentation, to the danger sign.





Purchase habits are difficult to understand in simulated environments. The best scenario is that you have a distribution channel available and can try marketing a pilot product through that channel. If the test channel selection is representative of the larger market then you can extrapolate the results to the larger market. That's easy, but probably not your situation.





I'm guessing that you either don't have the existing distribution channel and/or you don't have the capital to build a test run of products. Therefore, you will have to try simulating the purchase environment and interpret the consumer's purchase habits.





I recommend first doing some research about how do the signs on teens' doors get acquired. Find out if they are gifts, purchased by mom/dad upon teen's request, purchased by the teen directly? Or maybe they're not purchased but acquired in some other way (street signs are often stolen and wind up on bedroom doors.)





Now you will know how the existing signs are being purchased. Next you want to figure out what alternatives were at play for the consumer when deciding to acquire the specific sign. Did they go to the store looking for a sign and then choose from many? Were they impulse buys?





Now that you know these things about the acquiring consumer, you will have to find those consumers while they are in the situation when they would acquire the sign. Alternatively, you can find those consumers and then artificially place them in that situation. For instance, you might simply explain the situation or write it down on paper and ask the consumer to read it.





Now the hard part, find a large group of those consumers. Most of the time and money involved in market research is ultimately spent building up inventory of test subjects. Yes, the most valuable asset at a market research firm is the pool of prospective respondants or the methods available to create new pools (random digit dialing, feet on the street with questionnaires, etc.) You'll have to be both creative and industrious to do this inexpensively yet effectively. If done poorly the results will be questioned and discredited by those who you need the results for most. In you case, you might want to use the results to convince an investor to put up the money to have thousands of signs built in advance. Or you might want to convince a major retailer to buy thousands of these signs because demand will be enormous.





Anyway, once you have isolated the prosepective consumers, show some of them your sign. Show some of them the 'danger' sign. Then after interviewing hundreds of people you can draw some quantitive conclusions.





Make sure that you ask questions or observe actions so that you can understand the demand. In addition to how many signs will you sell through a given distribution channel, you may also want to know how many signs that you sell will be cannibilistic sales from the danger sign or other alternatives? How many will be expanding the market? In other words, if they didn't buy your sign would they have bought the danger sign or no sign at all?





You should buy a book on Quantitive Market Research. There are lots of them. The subject matter is one that many, many academics and practioners have spent lots of time trying to understand. Every business uses market research and most prefer to gather quantitive results rathen than merely qualitive. Understanding the topic will be valuable throughout your life while practicing business of most any kind.





Also, allow me to enter dangerous territory. You responded to one of my other answers which resonated with me. Try reading Genesis chapter 12 again. You will recognize the stories because you apparently read them before. Then try reading Genesis chapter 20. I think there is a story there about Abimelech that might be unfamiliar to you. I'm not evangelizing any particular religious perspective, rather I find biblical history interesting. Prior to graduate work in marketing/market research/statistics, I received a degree in theology from a Jesuit university.