GM, Howard Johnson Broke Cardinal Rule

University research: There are university professors who are conducting research in numerable fields, so they are a good source of information on various industries and how to improve a client's competitive position.

Trade associations: Many trade associations conduct surveys, which provide insights into how buyers think. If a trade association doesn't have a survey, it will usually conduct one for a fee.

Greenfieldonline.com: This is a service that provides pools of individuals that will match practically any client profile. It guarantees a minimum of 500 responses, which is more than sufficient to get a credible amount of data.

How many companies that have a high demand for their products or services go out of business? The only time this happens is maybe right now, when investment capital is hard to come by, but in a normal market, never. Listen to your clients and your chances of failure are next to nil.