One of the things you may not know about me is that I am a detail-oriented avid researcher. I research everything. I've always been curious about things and I've also found that a lot of people speak from hearsay as if the topic is fact, so I rarely take things at face value. During 2020 when the world felt somehow to be moving both faster and slower at the same time, I found myself fact-checking way more than is healthy. I think it was during this time that most of us felt an intense desire to move closer to nature because we longed for more simplicity and beauty in the world again. But as I've started helping others with growing their businesses, I've realized that research could be one of the missing pieces to your success.

One of the most important places to complete research is to see if there is a market for your products. I haven't seen anyone talking about this, mostly because the way to do it can be subjective. You can use different techniques or get varied results if completed in a different timeframe. But I think people tend to overcomplicate this or skip it altogether.
The main thing that matters is: Are people searching for your product?
You can check google trends to see the popularity over time for any keyword (I tend to choose the last year for the most accurate data, including seasonal information.) You can also sign up for free accounts through Everbee or eRank. Yes, you get more data with the paid versions, but depending on what kind of information you need, you can likely get by without it. You just want to know that a good number of people are actively looking for your product or one similar.
The other area where research can help you is to scout your competition. This isn't meant to be copying at all. I really like to use it for validation, that someone else is selling something similar and finding success with it. Every time I've had an idea that wasn't being done by someone else, I've learned why the hard way. Usually because my idea is too time-consuming, which equals not cost-effective. So it's really a barometer to make sure that there is enough demand for your product to be successful.
Research also makes your work have a little more depth to it.
“Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and prying with a purpose.” -Zora Neale Hurston
For instance, I'm working on my Partridge in a Pear Tree collection. And I wondered where the phrase came from. This is what AI came up with that summarizes most of what is out there:

"The partridge represents nurturing & self-sacrifice, often linked to parental love and protection, while the pear tree embodies knowledge, growth, and the life-giving aspects of relationships. This imagery reinforces the importance of giving and celebration among loved ones, highlighting the essence of gift-giving and familial bonds."
I'd love to stop here, drawing comparisons of where I am in my journey & how it uniquely ties to my story. But...
That's not what I did. I kept researching. I followed all the stories that worked hard to link the 12 Days of Christmas song to Jesus and a christian heritage, quickly moving past this part of the research phase because the historical data never supported it. I moved into the bird societies to see if partridges ever were in fact found in pear or any other type trees, which I determined that mostly they were not.
Then I came across Perdrix. It is a french word, pronounced as "pair-dree." Yes, it sounds just like "pear tree" if you sing it. It means partridge, frequently in the plural. hmm. maybe it was always supposed to be partridge in a perdrix. similar to a flock, possibly?
And just like that, I knew that I was going to write out the word perdrix somewhere in my collection. depth. interest. knowledge. I don't need to answer the official story of the meaning of the partridge in a pear tree, cause I'm not writing a textbook. But I gathered enough information for my collection to be a little more interesting, at least to me anyway.
I don't always love my intense need for more information, but in this context, it certainly made my project a bit more enjoyable. perdrix. It's kindof fun to say. :)
The point of this is, if you're not sure if there's a market for your product, then you may be wasting time, money, & effort on something that is doomed from the beginning. But some simple searches can gain you valuable data and possibly even helpful keywords to use when listing. I share more of my process inside the membership if you want step-by-step guidance.
Off to research some more print-on-demand products...
Warmest regards,

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