Posts Tagged ‘Market Research’
Thursday, May 9th, 2013
I rarely miss the world of academia after having jumped ship twelve years ago, but one thing I always appreciated was that teaching involved distilling ideas down to their simplest and most essential form. Students often led the way for me, asking questions that forced me to clarify, deepen, and condense. So it was again in Professor Alan Malter’s market research class for MBA students last month at the University of Illinois in Chicago.
My annual task is to offer a business-side view of market research. But this year I asked students to imagine that you, dear readers—Versta Research’s valued clients—were standing in front of them instead of me. What would they want to ask you about your work and about client-side research?
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Tags: best practices, insight, Market Research, research
Posted in Future Trends, Market Research, Topics in Marketing | No Comments »
Friday, April 26th, 2013
It is hard to find an appropriate use for Google Surveys, because, as we outlined in a review article last fall, its capabilities are limited. But last week we needed a quick incidence test of how many U.S. adults own a certain type of investment product. Google Surveys seemed perfect. It was not fast, by the way. It took five days to collect data from 200 respondents. Google says this is because we asked a screening question before asking about product ownership. Even so, this survey took longer than a standard omnibus.
But what struck me most about my trial run with Google Surveys was the Creepy Factor. It made me realize in a most uncomfortable way that Google tracks everything I do. I knew this already, and I follow ongoing discussions about online privacy. I have a personal g-mail account, a G+ page, and I use Google as the starting point for almost everything I do on the Internet. I know that they track everything I do. But it was never so creepy and apparent until I fielded a Google survey. How was it creepy? (more…)
Tags: ethics, Market Research, omnibus, Online Surveys, privacy, public opinion, Public Polls, survey technology
Posted in Data Collection, Future Trends, Market Research, Methods & Tools, Omnibus Surveys, Online Surveys, Public Polls | No Comments »
Thursday, April 4th, 2013
Some business managers and marketing executives mistakenly believe that “big data” will deliver better insight because of the sheer volume of data now at our disposal. Now we just need the statisticians, the computing power, and the analytics software to sift through it all, right? Not so. The truth is, for most purposes you don’t need a lot of data. You need a small random sample of data. (more…)
Tags: data, margin of error, Market Research, methods, Sampling
Posted in Data Analysis & Analytics, Data Collection, Future Trends, Market Research, Sampling | No Comments »
Thursday, March 28th, 2013
Or better yet, we might say “Why GOOD Research Takes So Long.” Our answer (before you feel inspired by the video embedded below) is that good research is creative and thoughtful and takes a great deal of intellectual energy at several crucial points:
- It puzzles over multiple ways (including data sources and methods) to get novel answers
- It thinks “behind” what managers are asking to figure out better questions that have unknown answers
- It experiments with new techniques of data collection that might not be standardized
- It toys with data and investigates multiple approaches for analysis
- It turns data into stories that get revised and refined so that managers see the answers in ways that matter
(more…)
Tags: innovation, Market Research, marketing
Posted in Market Research, New Products and Innovation, Topics in Marketing, Turning Data into Stories | No Comments »
Wednesday, March 6th, 2013
We are in the midst of a couple projects that require in-depth telephone interviews (IDIs) with senior executives for B2B research. With every new project, we start wondering whether new technologies and tools can make the work better. For IDIs, however, I am always struck by how perfectly our old tools work. If you ever struggle with figuring out how to record a telephone research interview in a super simple way that creates an audio file direct to your computer, here are a few “old” tools that work extremely well.
Dictation Buddy is a simple and small software package with no bells and whistles, but it works perfectly. It records voices cleanly, allows us to adjust the recording saturation, has easy play-back, and allows us to choose various file formats for saving. It is also an excellent tool for transcribing, allowing use of a foot pedal for playback. It costs less than $50. (more…)
Tags: ethics, Market Research, tools
Posted in Data Collection, Market Research, Methods & Tools, Resources and Recommendations | No Comments »
Thursday, February 28th, 2013
I was the kid who skipped recess to help grade quizzes; the graduate student who delayed getting a degree because it meant the end of school; the professor who told students that he was now in the 33rd grade and still loved school.
Even now I can’t resist reviewing great opportunities for more coursework and learning that can help Versta and its clients do smarter work.
A number of top universities offer condensed summer coursework and seminars on topics critical to market research. Knowledge and innovation in these areas advance quickly, so staying on top of this learning is essential. Here are some that we highly recommend: (more…)
Tags: innovation, Market Research, methods, statistics, Survey Design
Posted in Market Research, Methods & Tools, Resources and Recommendations, Sampling, Survey Design | No Comments »
Thursday, February 14th, 2013
“Mere color, unspoiled by meaning, and unallied with definite form, can speak to the soul in a thousand different ways,” wrote Oscar Wilde in The Critic as Artist.
That’s just the problem for market research and consumer behavior. Few design aspects of products, packages, brands, logos, advertising, and environments are more subjective than color. Which is why so many marketing decisions about color are based on the personal preferences of designers, decision makers, and their spouses (“What do you think of this color, dear?”) rather than on scientific knowledge of which colors are best for specific purposes.
But just in time for Valentine’s day (today!) here is a compelling new finding about the color RED and how it affects buying behavior: (more…)
Tags: Market Research, marketing, product marketing
Posted in Future Trends, Market Research, New Products and Innovation, Topics in Marketing | No Comments »
Thursday, February 7th, 2013
Infographic: Ten Ways to Improve Employee Engagement
Versta Research recently partnered with a consulting firm to complete an eight-month study about when and how employers have the strongest impact on worker satisfaction. The research found several critical moments in the life cycle of an employee—from the moment they begin considering employment to moment they leave for new opportunities—that dramatically shape how engaged, excited, and loyal they are to their employers.
What can employers do to gin up employee satisfaction and worker engagement? Here are ten key takeaways identified by Brilliant Ink, the consulting firm that commissioned the research:
1. Recognize that employee engagement starts before the first day.
- 82% of employees visit a company website when job hunting
- Only 32% find the information valuable
2. Create accurate first impressions.
- 89% say the interview process made them excited about working for their company
- 23% felt mislead by it—and those who did are more likely to be disengaged
3. Make the first day meaningful.
- 92% feel welcomed, but 43% say their first day on the job was disorganized or confusing
- Negative first day experiences = lower engagement
4. Acclimate employees to the company AND the job.
- 77% participate in new hire orientation programs, and those who do are more engaged
- Only 29% learn about their specific job during orientation, and those who do rate it the most valuable aspect
(more…)
Tags: Market Research, satisfaction research
Posted in Resources and Recommendations, Topics in Marketing | No Comments »
Thursday, January 24th, 2013
Statistics in the World's Languages
Who says that Olympic sports are the only way to bring nations and people together? In 2013, statistics will unite the world as governments, businesses, and not-for-profit organizations from 111 countries around the world work together via global seminars, conferences, and educational activities to celebrate and promote statistics.
The International Year of Statistics is the brainchild of the several national and international academic statistical groups. More than 1,400 organizations have signed on to offer programming and events that highlight the importance of statistics to their missions and publics. These organizations include the top universities in the United States, companies like Intel, SAS, and Pfizer, government agencies like the Census Bureau, the National Institutes of Health, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics—to name just a few. Versta Research has also joined as a participating organization. We plan to contribute via multiple training activities, and to offer related presentations to students and professional audiences during the year.
The goals of Statistics 2013 are to: (more…)
Tags: best practices, Market Research, methods, statistics
Posted in Market Research, Methods & Tools, Resources and Recommendations | No Comments »
Thursday, January 17th, 2013
I’m not sure if this cartoon is funny. Maybe I’m just not cynical enough (ha! my friends are laughing already!) But I can’t think of any managers or clients for whom I’ve worked that are like the pointy-haired boss in this episode. I have never been asked to provide tons of data that look so boring it will be ignored. On the contrary, most for whom I have worked worry about getting mountains of meaningless data because too often that is what research suppliers deliver.
What do managers and clients want—even those who are less-than-enthusiastic about market research because it has too often failed them in the past? Here’s my experience of what they want: (more…)
Tags: data, Market Research
Posted in Funnies, Market Research, Presenting Research, Turning Data into Stories | No Comments »
