Latest Articles
Hey there…have you heard of me?
In consumer and B2B market research circles we are often asked to assess market awareness and/or familiarity with brands, products and spokespeople or causes. These two related, but separate constructs, represent the first steps on the pathway from prospect to customer. Awareness should be measured in two ways – unaided and aided. Unaided awareness is […]
Census Regions – What it means for Hispanic Sample
Census regions are probably the last thing you think about when procuring Hispanic sample. Language, acculturation, and country of origin are likely at the top of your list. However, census regions are linked to all of the above. The Hispanic population distribution in the U.S. is considerably different than the rest of the population. For […]
Sampling and Other Considerations for Mobile Research
In a prior post I highlighted an interesting statistic – for any given project market researchers can now expect up to 40% response on smartphones. This percentage will continue to increase. The question then becomes one of what do we know about mobile responders and can this be applied to our sampling plans? First and […]
Three keys for designing effective mobile surveys
At the recent MRA Corporate Researchers Conference the training organization Research Rockstar presented a course on designing device agnostic surveys. The trend is clear that more and more surveys are being taken on smartphones and tablets. Desktop computers still account for the majority of responses, but for any given project market researchers can now expect […]
Top 2 Box Score – Avoid the Pitfall
Recently when giving my desk a much needed cleaning I came across an article by Jerry Thomas with the firm Decision Analyst. His whitepaper focused on the use of the top two box score as a measure for conveying scores to survey scales. The top box score is the sum of percentages for the top […]
More from Research Access
“How To” Posts
All Hail the Humble Median
At the 2013 Inbound Marketing conference, Nate Silver said, “The average is still the most useful mathematical tool ever invented.” I agree that it is powerful, but I would argue that in fact it is the median that is the most useful mathematical tool ever invented. This lesson was brought home to me as I […]
How to Use Crowd Sourcing Tools to Enhance or Replace Focus Groups
Focus groups are probably the most important, yet most overlooked component of a market research plan. Having a group of people in a room where you can watch their body language and watch their subtle reaction to questions, topics and situations is priceless when it comes to deciding which directions you will take with your market […]
4 Ways To Use On-Demand Qualitative Research
As a marketing executive or brand manager you’re faced with decisions all day long that might affect the short- or long-term survival of your product or brand. Wouldn’t it be great to have on-demand qualitative research at your fingertips to help make those decisions? Here’s 4 ways you might use on-demand qualitative research to improve […]
Conjoint Analysis Myths
The use of conjoint analysis methods has increased over the years in different industries, and as Chris Chapman, from Google, indicated in his presentation at the 2013 Sawtooth Software Conference, this family of techniques has been successfully used to: Determine feature preference Predict market share Find unmet needs in product portfolios Determine likely response from […]
How to Increase Product Development Success with Ghetto Testing
In the movie Field of Dreams, Kevin Costner plays a farmer living in rural Iowa, who hears a voice while walking through his cornfield; “If you build it, he will come” (often misquoted “If you build it, they will come”) and sees a vision of a baseball field. Kevin’s character Ray Kinsella plows under his corn […]
The Mere Exposure Effect: Advertising to the Subconscious
A recent Adweek column bemoaned the absence of brand names from the first 29 seconds of many 30-second ads. It advised introducing the brand earlier and mentioning it more often, as the author explained that otherwise people forget the name of the brand. The author offered the right advice but for the wrong reasons. He […]
An Interview with Howard Fienberg About Sugging
One of the pleasures of volunteering on the Board of the Marketing Research Association (MRA) has been the opportunity to get to know Howard better. Howard Fienberg, PLC is the director of government affairs for the MRA and champions the needs of the industry to federal and state agencies and departments. I recently had the […]
Data Visualization Lesson 6: The Ultimate List of Dos and Don’ts
As part of this Research Access lesson series, we’ve explored best practices in the art and science of data visualization. Here, I round out that discussion with the ultimate list of dos and don’ts: Dos: Start with purpose. Before you select a data visualization tool, take a moment to put in words what you hope to show […]
Use Data Imputation When Modularizing Mobile Surveys
The Problem The market research industry is at a crossroads as client demands push survey length longer while respondents increasingly take survey from smartphones (see Brian Jones’ previous blog on mobile market research trends and best practices). Many advanced analytical techniques require ~15-25 minutes (or more) worth of questioning to function, but many smartphone survey […]
The Beginner’s Guide to No-Cost Market Research
I have a client I’ll call Sandy, who is starting a new business. She’s been running a successful non-profit organization for 4 years and she’s been freelance writing for at least a decade, but as she was moving into a more product-centered business, she was floundering. She scheduled a couple events that didn’t fill and […]
How To Use Humor To Increase Survey Response Rates
Why are surveys so humorless? Are we doing something so vital and critically important that we have to ask questions in such serious tones? We’re not performing surgery here; we are having a conversation with our customers via a survey (although I am sure even surgeons tell jokes to one another over the operating table). […]
