Problem:
Most of us would agree that Nabisco's Snackwell's cookies downfall can be attributed to not enough initial target market research. Target market research could have determined if Snackwell's cookies filled a real gap, would be a popular trend, and whether the marketing campaign would work. Doing only one or two does not work in the food business. For example, gaps could have been discovered in two ways. First a gap analysis method of researching target markets. Second was a method of attribute analysis that sought ways a cookie could be created especially for a user, for an occasion, or just physically different. For SnackWell's the gap was a user gap. Think about it...cookies for adults? Kids had theirs, but adults did not have cookies with the attributes they wanted, namely great taste, fat-free, and healthy.
Question: What type of marketing research would ensure that Snackwell's cookies filled a real gap, be a popular trend, and whether the marketing campaign would work?