What to Research and Why

Customer research has four dimensions, and each one tells you something different. Company research tells you what the organization does, how it makes money, and where it is headed. Industry research tells you what external forces are shaping their decisions. Person research tells you who you are meeting and what they care about. Timing research tells you why this conversation is happening now — what changed that made them take the meeting.

1. Company What they do, how they make money, how big they are, who their customers are, what they have been saying publicly. This is the factual foundation. It takes 10 minutes and prevents you from asking questions the "About Us" page already answers.
2. Industry What trends are shaping their market? Are they in a growing or contracting sector? What regulatory changes are on the horizon? Industry context makes your solutions relevant to their specific reality, not generic.
3. Person Who are you meeting? What is their role, their background, their career trajectory? What have they published or spoken about? Understanding the person lets you tailor the conversation to what they care about — not just what their company needs.
4. Timing Why now? Did they just raise a funding round? Did they lose a key executive? Did a competitor launch something that threatens them? Timing context tells you the urgency behind the meeting and helps you prioritize what to discuss.