I’ve been reading a lot of predictions for market research—the typical pontification we see at this time of the year. Some of it has been very inspiring, but too many just rehash the obvious.
Personally, I think there are a lot of interesting theories, a lot of long-term shifts taking place. But as for something we will truly experience in 2015? Something that will really change what we do, how we do it? It’s simple: video-based reports.
[Article synopsis]…Another hot topic in customer research is NPS (Net Promoter Score), based on self-reported likelihood to recommend as a measure of loyalty. However, as the author points out, respondents may give high recommendation scores at the same time they give low satisfaction scores, as satisfaction and recommendations are often driven by different factors. And haven’t we all seen cases where…
The results from the authors’ modeling shows that the inferences marketing researchers obtain from monitoring social media are dependent on where they “listen.” For example, Facebook tends to be more positive, and Twitter more negative in the opinions expressed, based on the dynamics stated in the above paragraph. Common approaches that either focus on a single social media venue or ignore differences across venues…
Using a philosophy of test and learn, Heinz looks to multiple information sources for research, including electronic-point-of-sale, Nielsen data, panel data, and social media and brand monitoring. One such panel, Heinz 57, is an online community of 300 consumers that the company uses as a source of customer feedback.
Love him or hate him, Edward Snowden is a catalyst for change. How did he do it? And what can we market researchers learn from it?
The Big Reveal Gets Big Attention
Snowden didn’t suggest that there might be an issue. He didn’t send out a 50 slide PowerPoint. He didn’t bury his key point on a slide with 4 other “results.” He…
What’s the most promising aspect of mobility in market research? Mobile ethnography—not pushing surveys to mobile devices.
Mobile Ethnography: Innovation in Progress
While there are only a few tools available so far, this area is developing quickly.
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Have you ever bought something because all of your friends had it? While we may be loath to admit it, our actions are swayed by friends, groups, and the public. Perhaps even more so than what we realize. Because of this reality, the authors of “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” argue that market researchers need to go beyond the individual to truly understand consumer behaviors. The authors state that two particular theories should be used more in research to explore the dynamics of influence.
On a survey, do you check “yes” the same amount as someone in India? Probably not! Cultural differences in multi-country surveys yield inaccurate results. Propensity to agree, untruthfulness, and survey “speeders” vary from country to country.
In the Sunday New York Times (January 20th, 2013 edition), Matthew E. May wrote about, “The Art of Adding Through Taking Away.” The article points to the strength of this wisdom through ancient proverb and more recently by quoting Jim Collins, who apparently observed that, “A great piece of art is composed not just of what is in the final piece, but equally important, what is not. It is the discipline to discard what does not fit…
In any market research survey, some participants will drop out, which is just the nature of the beast. The goal is to minimize this drop out rate so that we can meet our overall sample size goals, completely…
