Fourth Common Pitfall In Using Customer Intercepts, In-Store Interviews, And Online Surveys To Test New Product And Service Concepts – And How To Avoid It

Deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and online surveys to test new concepts is often a key step in new product or service development. If not done right, it can produce useless or (even worse) misleading results.

Earlier we had made you aware of the dangers of “inadequate concept specification”, “missing or bad pricing”, "surveying the wrong population" and how they can be avoided.

Presented below is the fourth common pitfall associated with this type of research – and how you can avoid it.

Fourth Common Pitfall: Ignoring key drivers

Problem:  The main objective of most concept tests is to assess purchase intent. To save money and minimize respondent burden, many researchers stop there. However, this information is of limited value if you don’t know why intent is high or low. In fact, understanding a concept’s strengths and weaknesses is sometimes more useful than estimating overall interest.

Solution:  Include questions in the customer intercept, in-store interview, or online survey about concept characteristics. These may be broad or specific, and may be functional or emotional. Then use an appropriate analytical technique to determine the relative importance (impact on overall interest) of these characteristics.

Original Blog

Interested in learning more? Call us at 1-800-549-7170 or send us an email for a free 30-minute consultation on this topic.

Gold Research Inc. has extensive experience in deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and mobile surveys for concept testing, marketing testing, satisfaction research, shopper insights, mystery shopping, and journey mapping or path-to-purchase research. We can also act as an extension of your research team in helping with data processing, analysis, report development, and survey programming. 

www.goldresearchinc.com

Third Common Pitfall In Using Customer Intercepts, In-Store Interviews, And Online Surveys To Test New Product And Service Concepts – And How To Avoid It

Deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and online surveys to test new concepts is often a key step in new product or service development. If not done right, it can produce useless or (even worse) misleading results.

Earlier we had made you aware of the dangers of “inadequate concept specification”, “missing or bad pricing”, and how they can be avoided.

Presented below is the third common pitfall associated with this type of research – and how you can avoid it.

Third Common Pitfall:  Surveying the wrong population

Problem:  Most new products or services are intended for a certain target population. If your sample is too broadly defined, your customer intercept, in-store interview, or online survey results will be distorted by the inclusion of opinions from people who you’re not interested in. If your sample is too narrowly defined, your store intercept or on-site survey results will be distorted by the exclusion of opinions from people who you are (or should be) interested in.

Solution:  Take the time up front to define your target audience in terms of demographics, category behavior, or other characteristics. This definition can then be implemented in the customer intercept, in-store interview, or online survey through sample specifications and/or screening questions. Quotas or weighting may also be needed.

Original Blog

Interested in learning more? Call us at 1-800-549-7170 or send us an email for a free 30-minute consultation on this topic.

Gold Research Inc. has extensive experience in deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and mobile surveys for concept testing, marketing testing, satisfaction research, shopper insights, mystery shopping, and journey mapping or path-to-purchase research. We can also act as an extension of your research team in helping with data processing, analysis, report development, and survey programming. 

www.goldresearchinc.com

Second Common Pitfall In Using Customer Intercepts, In-Store Interviews, And Online Surveys To Test New Product And Service Concepts – And How To Avoid It

Deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and online surveys to test new concepts is often a key step in new product or service development. If not done right, it can produce useless or (even worse) misleading results.

Earlier we had made you aware of the danger of “inadequate concept specification” and how it can be avoided.  

Presented below is the second common pitfall associated with this type of research – and how you can avoid it.

Second Common Pitfall: Missing or bad pricing

Problem:  A special case of inadequate specification is missing or bad pricing. Using a customer intercept, in-store interview, or an online survey to ask purchase intent when price is unknown isn’t really meaningful, while asking purchase intent when price is unrealistically high or low yields distorted results.

Solution:  Conduct some form of pricing research if you (or your client) can’t provide reasonable prices. Alternatively, use the concept test for other purposes (prioritizing a list of options, assessing characteristics or perceptions, etc.).

Original Blog

Interested in learning more? Call us at 1-800-549-7170 or send us an email for a free 30-minute consultation on this topic.

Gold Research Inc. has extensive experience in deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and mobile surveys for concept testing, marketing testing, satisfaction research, shopper insights, mystery shopping, and journey mapping or path-to-purchase research. We can also act as an extension of your research team in helping with data processing, analysis, report development, and survey programming. 

www.goldresearchinc.com

First Blunder In Using Customer Intercepts, In-Store Interviews, And Online Surveys To Measure Customer Loyalty – And How To Avoid It

Most businesses want to know how satisfied their customers are, and what can be done to make them even more satisfied. However, if not done right, then the customer intercepts, in-store interviews,and online surveys used to measure customer satisfaction and loyalty can produce useless or (even worse) misleading results.

In this ongoing series, we’ll present four common blunders even the most experienced researchers sometimes make and how to avoid them.

First Blunder: No frame of reference

Problem:  Too often customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and online surveys don’t go beyond overall and detailed (attribute) ratings of the client’s business. This means that researchers have little context for interpreting the results and can’t answer key questions.

Solution: Design your customer intercept, in-store interview, or online survey to provide a frame of reference. Consider adding questions about your performance compared to expectations and/or competitors. Conducting a companion survey of employees (especially sales) with similar questions can also be useful.

Original Blog

Interested in learning more? Call us at 1-800-549-7170 or send us an email for a free 30-minute consultation on this topic.

Gold Research Inc. has extensive experience in deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and mobile surveys for concept testing, marketing testing, satisfaction research, shopper insights, mystery shopping, and journey mapping or path-to-purchase research. We can also act as an extension of your research team in helping with data processing, analysis, report development, and survey programming. 

www.goldresearchinc.com

First Common Pitfall In Using Customer Intercepts, In-Store Interviews, And Online Surveys To Test New Product And Service Concepts – And How To Avoid It

Deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and online surveys to test new concepts is often a key step in new product or service development. If not done right, it can produce useless or (even worse) misleading results.

In this ongoing series, we’ll share with you six common (and deadly) pitfalls associated with this type of research – and how you can easily avoid them.

First Common Pitfall:  Inadequate concept specification

Problem:  Researchers often use customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and online surveys to test ideas which are not fully specified. When this happens, respondents have trouble answering purchase intent or other overall interest questions. Alternatively, respondents may interpret what’s meant to be the same concept in many different ways, so their answers aren’t comparable.

Solution: Think like a respondent – what would they need to know about the concept in order to make a simulated purchase decision? If you (or your client) can’t provide this information, then the concept may not be ready for testing.

Original Blog

Interested in learning more? Call us at 1-800-549-7170 or send us an email for a free 30-minute consultation on this topic.

Gold Research Inc. has extensive experience in deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and mobile surveys for concept testing, marketing testing, satisfaction research, shopper insights, mystery shopping, and journey mapping or path-to-purchase research. We can also act as an extension of your research team in helping with data processing, analysis, report development, and survey programming. 

www.goldresearchinc.com

First Common Mistake In Reporting Insights From Store Intercepts, On-Site Surveys – And How To Avoid It

Organizations invest a lot of time and money in conducting market research. Objectives are outlined, questionnaires are developed, and data are collected, processed, and analyzed. However, when it comes time to presenting insights, research reports often fall short. Poor reporting can cast doubt on the entire process and diminish executive confidence in the insights gathered. While there is no single “best” way to prepare a report, there are pitfalls to avoid and principles to follow.

In this series, we’ll present common costly mistakes in reporting insights – and how to avoid them.

First Common Mistake: No Story

Problem:  Too many reports simply present the results of each survey question. This makes it hard to see the big picture and to determine what should be done, potentially wasting good research.

Solution: Tell a story, and use your findings to substantiate this story. Provide insights, not just data. Consider leveraging info-graphics to present your insights in a story format.

Example: While developing a report, we were tasked with reporting on the Asian population in the US. Instead of just listing percentages, we created the info-graphic shown below, which does a good job presenting the data and clearly highlights states with the highest percentages.

Original Blog

Interested in learning more? Call us at 1-800-549-7170 or send us an email for a free 30-minute consultation on this topic.

Gold Research Inc. has extensive experience in deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and mobile surveys for concept testing, marketing testing, satisfaction research, shopper insights, mystery shopping, and journey mapping or path-to-purchase research. We can also act as an extension of your research team in helping with data processing, analysis, report development, and survey programming. 

www.goldresearchinc.com

Second Common Mistake In Reporting Insights From Store Intercepts, On-Site Surveys – And How To Avoid It

Organizations invest a lot of time and money in conducting market research. Objectives are outlined, questionnaires are developed, and data are collected, processed, and analyzed. However, when it comes time to presenting insights, research reports often fall short. Poor reporting can cast doubt on the entire process and diminish executive confidence in the insights gathered. While there is no single “best” way to prepare a report, there are pitfalls to avoid and principles to follow.

Earlier we had made you aware of the pitfalls of “no story” and how you can avoid this mistake.

Presented below is the second common mistake researchers make in reporting insights – and how you can avoid it.

Second Common Mistake: Information Overload

Problem:  A related problem is information overload. Many researchers feel obligated to include every question – and every possible breakout of that question – in their report. When this happens, the audience may lose interest and/or get side-tracked (pages may also become too dense to be easily read and understood).

Solution: Focus on findings rather than just data. Tell the audience what you think is important for them to know, instead of reporting all available information (this does NOT mean that you should leave out any “bad” news). Provide a complete set of tabulations/statistics in an appendix or an accompanying document for reference purposes.

Example: In the “Before” slide below, the researcher has laid out all findings on a single slide. While it presents potentially valuable data, it is too overwhelming for the reader to understand and digest easily. In comparison, the “After” slide succinctly and clearly shows the key findings without the earlier “information overload”.

Orginal blog

Interested in learning more? Call us at 1-800-549-7170 or send us an email for a free 30-minute consultation on this topic.

Gold Research Inc. has extensive experience in deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and mobile surveys for concept testing, marketing testing, satisfaction research, shopper insights, mystery shopping, and journey mapping or path-to-purchase research. We can also act as an extension of your research team in helping with data processing, analysis, report development, and survey programming. 

www.goldresearchinc.com

Third Common Mistake In Reporting Insights From Store Intercepts, On-Site Surveys – And How To Avoid It

Organizations invest a lot of time and money in conducting market research. Objectives are outlined, questionnaires are developed, and data are collected, processed, and analyzed. However, when it comes time to presenting insights, research reports often fall short. Poor reporting can cast doubt on the entire process and diminish executive confidence in the insights gathered. While there is no single “best” way to prepare a report, there are pitfalls to avoid and principles to follow.

Earlier we had made you aware of the pitfalls of “no story”, "information overload" and how you can avoid these mistakes.

Presented below is the third common mistake researchers make in reporting insights – and how you can avoid it.

Third Common Mistake: Not User Friendly

Problem:  Many researchers fail to take into account their audience and other circumstances they face. As a result, their reports may be too long (or too short), too technical (or not technical enough), or otherwise not appropriate.

Solution: Planning and attention to detail are vital to reporting, as with all other aspects of a research project. Before starting your report, try to find out the size, level, and expertise of your audience. Try to also find out how much they already know about your project, how much detail they’re likely to want, and whether they’re likely to prefer info-graphics over charts or tables. This knowledge can help you optimize your deliverable(s).

Example: A client wanted us to present findings (such as those presented in the “Before” slide below) in a format that could be easily understood by an audience comprised largely of non-researchers. As shown in the “After” slide, the use of engaging info-graphics accomplished this objective.

Original Blog

Interested in learning more? Call us at 1-800-549-7170 or send us an email for a free 30-minute consultation on this topic.

Gold Research Inc. has extensive experience in deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and mobile surveys for concept testing, marketing testing, satisfaction research, shopper insights, mystery shopping, and journey mapping or path-to-purchase research. We can also act as an extension of your research team in helping with data processing, analysis, report development, and survey programming. 

www.goldresearchinc.com

Fourth Common Mistake In Reporting Insights From Store Intercepts, On-Site Surveys – And How To Avoid It

Organizations invest a lot of time and money in conducting market research. Objectives are outlined, questionnaires are developed, and data are collected, processed, and analyzed. However, when it comes time to presenting insights, research reports often fall short. Poor reporting can cast doubt on the entire process and diminish executive confidence in the insights gathered. While there is no single “best” way to prepare a report, there are pitfalls to avoid and principles to follow.

Earlier we had made you aware of the pitfalls of “no story”, "information overload", "not user friendly" and how you can avoid these mistakes.

Presented below is the fourth common mistake researchers make in reporting insights – and how you can avoid it.

Fourth Common Mistake: Not Visually Engaging

Problem:  Many reports fail to take advantage of the functionality of PowerPoint and aren’t visually engaging. If your audience isn’t engaged, your message may not get through.

Solution: Utilize the full array of tools at your disposal (colors, fonts, images, shapes, logos, etc.) to make slides – whether they contain text, tables, and/or charts - as easy as possible to read and understand, and to make sure the main point of each slide is obvious. Involving a graphic artist is often a good idea. However, don’t go overboard; you don’t want to end up with a report that’s all sizzle and no steak.

Example: Graphs, like those in the “Before” slide below, which look dull do not engage viewers. In comparison, graphs like those in the “After” slide command attention and draw the viewer.

Original Blog

Interested in learning more? Call us at 1-800-549-7170 or send us an email for a free 30-minute consultation on this topic.

Gold Research Inc. has extensive experience in deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and mobile surveys for concept testing, marketing testing, satisfaction research, shopper insights, mystery shopping, and journey mapping or path-to-purchase research. We can also act as an extension of your research team in helping with data processing, analysis, report development, and survey programming. 

www.goldresearchinc.com

Fifth Common Mistake In Reporting Insights From Store Intercepts, On-Site Surveys – And How To Avoid It

Organizations invest a lot of time and money in conducting market research. Objectives are outlined, questionnaires are developed, and data are collected, processed, and analyzed. However, when it comes time to presenting insights, research reports often fall short. Poor reporting can cast doubt on the entire process and diminish executive confidence in the insights gathered. While there is no single “best” way to prepare a report, there are pitfalls to avoid and principles to follow.

Earlier we had made you aware of the pitfalls of “no story”, "information overload", "not user friendly", "not visually engaging" and how you can avoid these mistakes.

Presented below is the fifth common mistake researchers make in reporting insights – and how you can avoid it.

Fifth Common Mistake: Not Spending Enough Time

Problem:  Too many researchers don’t spend enough time preparing their reports. A report shouldn’t be an afterthought – it’s often the only tangible “product” of your efforts, and can have a big influence on the perceived value of those efforts.

Solution: Build enough time into your schedule for the preparation of a good report. If prior activities take longer than planned, try to manage your project – and your client – so this window doesn’t get squeezed. Thoroughly checking your text and numbers, while often tedious and time-consuming, is critical (running a spell check isn’t enough, especially with PowerPoint). If you need help, seek assistance from colleagues or consider hiring research specialists who specialize in report development and can serve as an extension of your team during crunch times.

Example: A leading manufacturer of consumer and business products had invested in collecting important data but was suddenly short staffed and unable to devote the required time for analysis. Instead of putting together a half-baked report, this client engaged Gold Research, Inc. for results compilation. This resulted in the client receiving a quality report that presented insights and key findings in a format that could be easily understood and disseminated. An added bonus was that this effort not only saved the client valuable time but also cost 50% less than what the client would have spent doing the work in-house.

Original Blog

Interested in learning more? Call us at 1-800-549-7170 or send us an email for a free 30-minute consultation on this topic.

Gold Research Inc. has extensive experience in deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and mobile surveys for concept testing, marketing testing, satisfaction research, shopper insights, mystery shopping, and journey mapping or path-to-purchase research. We can also act as an extension of your research team in helping with data processing, analysis, report development, and survey programming. 

www.goldresearchinc.com

Fourth Common Mistake In Reporting Insights From Store Intercepts, On-Site Surveys – And How To Avoid It

Organizations invest a lot of time and money in conducting market research. Objectives are outlined, questionnaires are developed, and data are collected, processed, and analyzed. However, when it comes time to presenting insights, research reports often fall short. Poor reporting can cast doubt on the entire process and diminish executive confidence in the insights gathered. While there is no single “best” way to prepare a report, there are pitfalls to avoid and principles to follow.

Earlier we had made you aware of the pitfalls of “no story”, "information overload", "not user friendly" and how you can avoid these mistakes.

Presented below is the fourth common mistake researchers make in reporting insights – and how you can avoid it.

Orginal Blog

Interested in learning more? Call us at 1-800-549-7170 or send us an email for a free 30-minute consultation on this topic.

Gold Research Inc. has extensive experience in deploying customer intercepts, in-store interviews, and mobile surveys for concept testing, marketing testing, satisfaction research, shopper insights, mystery shopping, and journey mapping or path-to-purchase research. We can also act as an extension of your research team in helping with data processing, analysis, report development, and survey programming. 

www.goldresearchinc.com