Similarly, it’s very important to perform strong market research. Certain analytical tools such as conjoint analysis can be valuable in understanding how your customers make their buying decisions. Other tools such as focus groups can horribly mislead a company. If, for example, you find that consumers prefer a particular soft drink formula over a competitor’s in a blind taste test, then you had better aim for that part of the market that’s either blind or makes their soft drink decision wearing a blindfold. However, for everyone else, the buying decision relies on visual cues, and a blind taste test predicts nothing about actual consumer behavior.