Overview
Do you fully understand what is most important to your customers: their likes, needs, wants and challenges? As an insights-driven market research firm, we make sure our clients get the data they need to make smart business decisions that will help grow their business. We also have the expertise to ensure that your market research efforts are targeted and successful.
Partnering with us, you get our 20 years of experience so you can:
- Determine the best type of market research to answer the questions you have
- Decide who to target
- Find participants
- Maximize participation
- Design effective research tools (surveys, interview guides, etc.)
- Provide an objective analysis of results
We will scope out research that meets your objectives and fits your budget in the these areas:
WIN/LOSS RESEARCH
PRODUCT RESEARCH
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION RESEARCH
It all starts with understanding your objectives
After an initial consultation call to understand your objectives, we can craft a proposal with recommendations on how to achieve your objectives and the associated costs. Often you will have several options to choose from which are driven by number of respondents, what deliverables you need, etc.
Then we can create a customized project plan that specifies team members and their roles as well as a concrete timeline for the project, including key milestones. And then your project is launched!
Analysis is Our “Special Sauce”
Analysis of research data we gather is the greatest value we bring to your project. As an outside resource, we have a thorough understanding of the impact of customer insight on essential organizational decisions and processes. We take an objective view of the data and provide prioritized recommendations to address customers’ issues throughout your company.
The Insight Advantage has the expertise to ensure that your market research efforts are targeted and successful. We use the following market research tools:
In-depth interviews (IDIs) (phone and in-person)
There is nothing as effective as a one-on-one conversation to provide rich insights about what a customer is thinking, what their experience has been, and how they make purchase decisions. We love engaging with our clients’ customers and feel great when people thank US for the conversation!
When in-depth interviews are effective:
- When there is more that you don’t know than what you do know
- To get at the “why” behind your customers’ opinions/mindset/actions
In-depth interviews are the only tool to use when doing research with high level executives.
Online surveys
When you need to gather input from a large number of customers in order to make a decision, online surveys are the way to go. The results of an online survey depend very little on the number of customers you are surveying, however your level of confidence in the results increases with larger numbers of responses.
When online surveys are effective:
- When multiple choice and rating types of responses are enough
- To get at the “what” and “how many” behind your customers’ opinions/mindset/actions
- When you want to explore the differences between customer groups
Online surveys are a good tool to use when you want to explore what, if any, differences exist between customer segments. We can produce analysis of the results by company size, gender, household income, etc.
Focus groups (in-person and online)
A focus group is often the first research tool that comes to mind when companies need to do research, but focus groups are only appropriate in very specific situations. They are perfect when a group dynamic will help you get you the information you need. Focus groups are also a great choice for situations where you want a lot of creative “outside the box” thinking via brainstorming.
When focus groups are effective:
- When looking for creative feedback from a small number of customers
- When the number of ideas is more important than the number of customers you get input from
Focus groups are not the right tool to use when you are trying to understand customers’ motivations, buying criteria, or buying behavior since those things are based on individual opinions/mindsets that could be unduly influenced by other members of the group.
The Dangers of DIY Research
We’ve seen way too many “surveys gone bad” and want to keep our clients from falling into the DIY survey trap. Just because there are cool survey tools out there, doesn’t mean that you should use them.
