The Business Dictionary defines market forces as “Forces of demand and supply representing the aggregate influence of self-interested buyers and sellers on price and quantity of the goods and services offered in a market.” In general, excess demand causes prices and quantity of supply to rise, and excess supply causes them to fall.
Understanding and using marketing trends that impact your business can be a daunting but necessary task. The Market Force Diagram Tool helps provide the analytical foundation for your market positioning. It will also help you to quickly and clearly communicate trends in your market. You can customize this chart when seeking funding or doing an investor pitch. To develop this diagram, you need to have researched information about what is going on in your market.
First find articles from respected sources that talk about significant trends or issues affecting your market and subsequently your business. These issues or trends may be positive or negative, but they should lead you to a positive impact for your business model. Look for articles that relate to your customers’ pain. What is happening that is evidence of your customers’ need for your business?
Use the most significant articles to represent forces on your diagram. If you know your industry well, you may start with the headings then research to find supporting data.
Finally, summarize each article with a heading – in other words a title, a phrase or a point that leaves no doubt why:
- Now is the right time in the market for your business.
- Your product or service is even more important than before.
- Growth is inevitable.
Be sure to reference the source of the information if at all possible. Numbers are powerful. If the article contained statistics include the most important ones in the posts below the heading. Magazines need to be recognized names and preferably industry resources. If a statement is more general, make sure it is one that can be appreciated and understood by a variety of audiences. In other words, it should be fairly obvious, and you are just providing insight into why it is critical to your business. Use the arrows (as illustrated in the template) creatively to help tell your story. Green arrows can indicate positive trends, and red arrows can represent issues or problems for your customers that magnify their need for your solution.
