Bureau West

My colleague Joe Sharlip just wrote an interesting piece about how friction uncovers insights when he conducts workshops with management teams to develop brand strategies.  This got me thinking: the same thing happens when conducting focus groups and other market research: some of the most valuable insights are uncovered when participants contradict themselves or disagree with each other.

Some examples:

• During a focus group, I asked a customer to explain to a non-customer what they like about the product being discussed.  When the customer described a specific feature of the product, the non-customer said, “when you put it that way, of course I’d be interested.”  We thus uncovered an important marketing angle for the product.

• I find that research participants tend to initially give “politically correct” answers to questions, but when given the opportunity, they will later contradict themselves and tell the truth.  For example, in an interview about retirement investing; the participant initially said he had put money aside for retirement every month for decades.  Later in the interview, when I mentioned “other people” who had difficulties saving consistently, he admitted to having the same challenge and we had a discussion about the barriers to saving on a regular basis.  That interview not only provided valuable information about the challenges of disciplined savings; it also gave us insight into some people’s attitudes that they should be saving and their embarrassment when they don’t.

In general, we always try to notice discrepancies, and then (politely) delve into them.  Do people say they love a commercial but they can’t remember the product being advertised?  Why is that?  Did people like a product at the beginning of the discussion and dislike it later (or vice versa)?  What made them change their minds?

To uncover insights about your customers, give us a call at 818-752-7210 or email info at bureauwest.com.

Sources: “Want to Uncover Hidden Brand Insights? Create Some FRICTION!” Mothership blog, 11/5/14; Bureau West research

“Content marketing” is a term we have been hearing increasingly over the past few years.  In a way, content marketing is something we should be doing already: it refers to the marketing tactic that provides valuable information to customers on an ongoing basis in order to ultimately increase sales.

One example of content marketing: this newsletter!  Its goal is to provide useful information to our clients and prospects, and at the same time, convey our expertise in marketing strategy and market research, so when our services are needed, it’s an easy decision to choose us.

But content marketing isn’t just for B2B marketing.  Take Intelligentsia Coffee’s Brew Guides (http://www.intelligentsiacoffee.com/brewing-guides).  The free guides include great photography and detailed instructions about how to brew the perfect cup of coffee, while at the same time, make their customers crave Intelligentsia coffee.  And of course, purchasing the coffee-making equipment is just a click away.

The above are just two examples; content marketing can be provided through a variety of channels, as long as it provides information of value; channels such as web pages, videos, podcasts and white papers.  And it doesn’t have to be online: books and magazines can also be forms of content marketing.

Scott Abel, content marketing expert and producer of Information Development World (www.informationdevelopmentworld.com) adds:

“Content marketing requires us to think of our prospects and our customers like a live theatre audience.  Your content should serve to dazzle, inform, and entertain them and leave them wanting more.”

One reason content marketing is becoming more and more important: nowadays, people have a great deal of information readily available to them in order to help them make their purchase decisions.  You need to provide the information about why customers should choose your products or services… and do it more effectively than your competitors.

To conduct research with your prospects to uncover the information they need to choose your company, give us a call at 818-752-7210. 

We help clients build beloved brands: brands to which customers feel an emotional connection.  Social media plays an important role assisting in the process.  However, don’t forget that social media is a tactic that should be used in support of the core brand message, promise and experience.  Millions of people now frequent social media sites to assist in brand buying decisions. Given the sheer volume of people who view social media sites, the power of this phenomenon cannot be ignored – but only when used properly!

Social media offers a company the opportunity to have a meaningful dialogue between the brand, its prospects and customers, and influence their buying decision in real time.   As you start down the road of social media, here are some tips to consider:

Create a Plan.  Take a disciplined approach to social media and put a plan in place as you would for any other part of your integrated strategy.  Start with research, define your audience and which segments are entrenched in social media. Probe if they’re on Facebook or following Twitter, discover their interests and how can you influence them.  Integrate traditional offline tactics like TV commercials into social media sites to further expand reach and frequency – and influence.

Remain True to the Core Brand Message.  Even though social media networks can feel very casual, do not abandon your brand identity.  The use of key messages delivered by your brand champions is integral to success.  They can be conversational and “real,” but still need to stick to your company’s message platform.

Handle Negative Feedback.  Putting the brand out there on social media networks introduces a new level of vulnerability. It opens the brand up to rants as well as raves.  In garnering honest feedback from your customers, you have to be willing to accept constructive – as well as destructive – criticism, and most important, publicly demonstrate your organization’s desire to take accountability and willingness to correct mistakes. (An example of such a mistake: DiGiorno’s use of the #WhyIStayed hashtag.  This Adweek article provides details about the mistake and the company’s reaction.)

Identify Social Media Brand Champions.   One of the top benefits of social media is the ability to personalize your company’s brand message; it connects a real name, face and person to your organization.  Choose the right brand champions who embody the core values and meaning of the brand, and live it every day in every way.  They are the best employees to handle both the good and potentially volatile conversations that can occur in social forums.

The bottom line?  Social media can’t replace your current brand marketing strategy; it is part of the toolbox that helps a company create a beloved brand.

Would you like to turn your employees into brand champions?  We’d love to send you our free white paper about internal marketing which explains how to do it.  Just email info at bureauwest.com or give me a call at 818-752-7210.

Sometimes clients wonder if focus groups are an effective way of learning what customers think.  After many (many!) years of conducting all kinds of research, including focus groups and interviews (both in-person and online), ethnographies, mobile research and surveys, I can authoritatively say, yes, traditional focus groups do indeed work!

I’ve had clients worry about the group dynamic in focus groups, or that “one person will dominate the conversation and take over the group.”  Of course, you need a skilled moderator to make sure that doesn’t happen.  But beyond that, it’s important to remember that group dynamics are an important part of customers’ decision processes.  People don’t make decisions in a vacuum – they discuss things with their friends, read reviews, overhear colleagues.  And yes, some of their friends might even have stronger opinions than others!

I’ve been asked if one-on-one interviews might be a better way to collect more accurate information, since the respondent isn’t influenced by others’ opinions.  In many cases, I feel that one-on-ones are actually less effective than focus groups.  There are several reasons for this:

• In a one-on-one interview, the “spotlight” is always on the respondent.  They tend to feel they need to sound logical and are less likely to admit to the emotional aspects of their decision-making (and those are the very aspects that have the most influence on their decisions).
• In focus groups, as soon as one person “lets their hair down,” others are willing to follow.  For example, once I asked moms about the food they give their children.  At first, everyone was only admitting to healthy food and plenty of vegetables.  Then one mom confided, when time is short, it’s so much easier to go with the McDonald’s Happy Meal.  That opened the floodgates, and almost everyone else in the group agreed that fast food is part of their routine!
• Unlike our clients, research participants don’t think about the research topic 24/7 and may not immediately remember all of their opinions and impressions about the topic.  Hearing others’ comments help people come up with ideas they may not have thought of otherwise.  There’s synergy in the group discussion.

How can you ensure your focus groups will be effective?

• Hire a professional moderator.  That may sound self-serving, but it’s true!  A professional knows how to handle the group dynamic most effectively.  He or she will be sensitive not just to what participants say, but also to their facial expressions and body language and know when to probe further.
• Make sure your professional research consultant has a deep understanding of your objectives and the background.  That will ensure they don’t miss opportunities to probe further when participants make a comment that may lead to important nuggets of information and can result in valuable insights.
• Work with your professional research consultant to develop the best discussion guide possible.  It’s usually most effective to include a mix of direct questions and indirect questioning techniques.  When asked a direct question, people provide the logical answer.  But we know that emotions, context and past experiences play a major role in people’s decisions.  There are many indirect techniques we use to go beyond the rational answers – techniques which work particularly well in focus groups.  For example, metaphorical techniques (“if x were a car, what kind of car would it be?”).  Or role-playing techniques (“what do people say about x?  And what do they really think about x?”).  Those are just two of many effective indirect questioning techniques we can use in focus groups.

To conduct the most effective focus groups to answer your research questions, give me a call at 818-752-7210 or email info at bureauwest.com