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Category: Customer Insights

Changing Market Research Perceptions, One eBook At A Time

Announcing, “Think Outside The Survey”, a new eBook from Research Rockstar.
Today, some business professionals dismiss market research. Thanks, in part, to popular books like Predictably Irrational, they have learned that self-reported behaviors and attitudes can be unreliable. But the problem isn’t that all market research methods deal with these realities poorly—the problem is that many people assume market researchers rely exclusively on surveys and focus groups. And while these are great methodologies useful in many situations, they are among the most susceptible to the deficiencies of self-reported behaviors and attitudes.

Market Research Strategy Trends in the Fortune 500

Fortune 500 researchers often juggle the need to deliver fresh customer insights with the mandate to minimize research costs. How do they do it? By cutting costs where they can,… Continue reading Market Research Strategy Trends in the Fortune 500

Online Survey Design: No Free Dinner

When bad surveys are circulated, the company that sent them out becomes less trusted. The “consumer” becomes an unhappy customer, and may even tell others about their bad experience—with surveys in general or with the specific company.

How to Use Facebook Polls for Fun and Profit

Typically when we think about market research surveys, we think of questionnaires that have 20, 30, or even more questions. Getting qualified people to complete these questionnaires has become a serious challenge. One alternative is the single-question poll. After all, you’re much more likely to get high response and low dropout rates if you can simply say, “Hi, we have a single question we’d like your opinion on”, rather than requesting a novel’s worth of responses.

Facebook is making polling insanely easy these days…

The Future of Market Research: Here’s What’s Out

The results point to some important changes for the way market research is sold, conducted and reported. No surprise there—we all know that the rate of change in our industry is swift these days.

Market Research Online Communities: 3 Key Questions

In a recent blog post, the folks at PluggedIn pose the question, “Can your company’s culture support a continuous MROC?” The authors wisely suggest that before investing in such a program, you carefully consider A) Do your really need it, and B) will your colleagues use it?

I’d like to expand this list of questions, by adding one more:

Customer Satisfaction Research & Anonymity

To be frank, my opinion on this topic has changed in just the past year or two. Before then, I was an ardent believer that all research must by anonymous—no matter what. I felt that any direct follow-up would show research participants that their survey responses could result in unexpected communications—and even if “helpful”, this experience could still impact future willingness to participate in research.

Size Matters: Is your market research right-sized?

Small market research projects have less risk. They get done quickly. Results get shared while they are still fresh. And conclusions can be communicated within the attention span of a busy recipient, so they actually get used.

Market Research Decentralization: Power to the People

A decentralization approach has the potential to boost research credibility AND also address the issue of rogue, unsanctioned, DIY research. We all know there are plenty of bad questionnaires going out these days (though many come from “professionals,” too). Clearly, more non-researchers WANT to do research. They want fresh insights. They want involvement in the process. So let them! With some intelligent policies, access to resources, and training, we can have the best of both worlds: quality research and greater research ROI.

Market Research Results: Dare to Share

If your company invests in market research that generates fresh customer insights, should you hold it tightly, or should you share it?

There are some obvious cases where you hold it tightly. Data that is specific to proprietary product ideas is a good example. But other cases aren’t so clear-cut.