Market Research
11/3/17
Keeping it constant: 3 things to keep in mind with your trackers
When conducting a program evaluation or customer tracker (e.g., brand, satisfaction, etc.), we are often collecting input at two different points in time and then measuring the difference. While the concept is straightforward, the challenge is keeping everything as consistent as possible so we can say that the actual change is NOT a result of […]
By David KennedyRead More
10/30/17
The Four Cornerstones of Survey Measurement: Part 1
Part One: Precision and Accuracy Years ago, I worked in an environmental lab where I measured the amount of silt in water samples by forcing the water through a filter, drying the filters in an oven, then weighing the filters on a calibrated scale. I followed very specific procedures to ensure the results were precise, […]
By Matt BruceRead More
10/2/17
Human Experience (HX) Research
About a year ago, I stumbled upon a TEDx Talk by Tricia Wang titled “The Human Insights Missing from Big Data”. She eloquently unfurls a story about her experience working at Nokia around the time smartphones were becoming a formidable emergent market. Over the course of several months, Tricia Wang conducted ethnographic research with around […]
By Molly HaganRead More
9/22/17
When Data Collection Changes the Experience
One of the ongoing issues in any research that involves people is whether the data collection process is changing the respondents’ experience. That is, sometimes when you measure an attitude or a behavior, you may inadvertently change the attitude or behavior. For example, asking questions in a certain way may change how people would have […]
By Kate DarwentRead More
9/18/17
Feeding your market’s desire to participate in surveys
I got an online survey the other day from a public organization, and they wanted to know … something. It doesn’t really matter for the purposes of this post. I like to participate in surveys for a variety of reasons. First, I’m naturally curious about what’s being asked, and why. Maybe I can learn something. […]
By Kevin RainesRead More
8/31/17
Tuft & Needle: Incredible Mattresses. Incredible research?
If you have ever received a proposal from Corona Insights regarding customer research, you may have seen this line: “We believe that surveying customers shouldn’t lower customer satisfaction.” We take the respondent’s experience into account, from the development of our approach through the implementation of the research (e.g., survey design, participant invites, etc.), even in […]
By David KennedyRead More
8/29/17
Based on my experience…
Born from a conversation I had with a coworker earlier this week, I wanted to talk about research methodology and design and how a client relying solely on what they know – their own experience and expertise – might result in subpar research. Quantitative and qualitative methods have different strengths and weaknesses, many of which […]
By Greg HornbackRead More
8/21/17
Phenomenology: One way to Understand the Lived Experience
How do workers experience returning to work after an on-the-job injury? How does a single-mother experience taking her child to the doctor? What is a tourist’s experience on his first visit to Colorado? These research questions could all be answered by phenomenology, a research approach that describes the lived experience. While not a specific method […]
By Matt BruceRead More
8/8/17
Hey, did you hear that joke about naturally occurring data going to a bar?
There we were cresting a pass along Highway 40 in route to Steamboat Springs. I found myself scanning the beautiful terrain while engrossed in a conversation about one of my favorite research topics – naturally occurring data. Call it research purist meets strategist for the knockout round. As a consultant who leads data-driven strategy processes […]
By Karla RainesRead More
8/4/17
Understanding customer satisfaction requires understanding the customer experience
When people think of doing market research on a new idea, many think it works like this: The problem with this mentality is that humans are notoriously awful at forecasting their own behavior. It’s easy to say “Sure, I would buy that!” in when clicking a button while taking a survey or when sitting in […]
By Matt HerndonRead More