For example, a customer satisfaction research design meant to provide inputs to executive bonus calculations will be different than one designed primarily to inform organizational performance goals. In fact, any consultant or sales person who tells you their approach is the only legitimate one is only interested in sales—not insights.
I feel for Market Research Managers in charge of Brand Awareness trackers. It’s not as easy as it used to be. As the number of means by which brand awareness and familiarity are influenced increases, our ability to measure their impact becomes more difficult. Sure, you can still efficiently measure absolute awareness levels, but how useful is that if you don’t know what is driving them?
The market researcher who clings to conventional surveys and focus groups like a life raft on a turbulent sea is going to drown. Those who judiciously add various social media and ethnographic-based methods along with some of the other fabulous new qualitative research tools out there will be able to navigate through the storm—and best help clients choose the methods (or mix) for their unique needs.
Talking to competitors’ customers is a great form of market research and it is surprisingly feasible in many markets.
Have you found yourself needing to forecast a new product’s adoption potential? Sales volume by region for the next 3 years? How about the potential upside of a new distribution… Continue reading In Uncertain Times, Embrace Scenario Planning
Do you need a little help identifying places where potential savings may exist in your market research budget? If so, here are some great questions to ask.
Has your market research budget been cut? If so, one of the programs most often impacted is Customer Satisfaction tracking. For firms accustomed to tracking on a continuous or quarterly basis, cutting back on this program is often a necessary, though unfortunate, reality.
Q: Our market research budget has been slashed. The greatest impact is on our Customer Satisfaction tracker, which we had to reduce from once a quarter, to once a year.… Continue reading When Market Research Budgets are Cut, Leverage Your Customer Advisory Council
Market Research is a big investment: taking the time and money to do it right. So how can you make that go/no go decision with confidence? Complete these 4 easy tasks and you’ll be in good shape.
These days, keeping employees motivated is no small task. Between workplace financial concerns, and ones at home, people become discouraged, even apathetic. So now is a great time to think… Continue reading Igniting Employee Passion Through Deep Customer Insights
