Page 98 - The EDIT | Q1 2017

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Thoughtleader
on staff asking questions — because that’s the age when our ability to ask questions peaks. Almost all 4 year olds actively ask questions — but by the age of 18, only 1 in 4 does. (see chart below)
Lucky for us, there are more easy and interactive ways to ask questions than ever before. The latest GRIT (Greenbook Research Industry Trends) Report lists the following as the top 4 emerging research methodologies used in the Asia-Pacific region:
1. 74%Mobilesurveys
Important because so many surveys are done on a smartphone these days (see side box for more information on this).
2. 60%Onlinecommunities
This could be an ongoing research panel or a 3-day online forum where people discuss a topic at length
3. 47%Textanalytics
Very useful for processing mountains of open- ended consumer feedback from surveys, NPS or social media.
4. 44%Socialmediaanalytics
Some see this as “free research” but it can be very labour intensive sifting through social posts. However the sheer diversity of ideas about your brand or category on social media can lead to fresh thinking.
Embrace what people share with you
Some marketers doubt the ability of consumers (aka people like you and me) to be able to accurately
articulate how they think and feel — and why
they behave the way they do. Yes it’s true that
the majority of our thinking and actions are subconscious and on auto-pilot... but when you stop a person and actively ask them why they chose that beer or bought that car, in most cases they’ll be able to walk you through their thinking. Consumers today are educated, brand and marketing savvy, and they do their research. Paired with a skilled researcher, together the two can unearth a lot of answers beneficial to brands.
That’s why it’s alarming how little time some brands spend listening to consumers. Too many briefs are still full of assumptions about the consumer or category. Obviously time and budget for conducting research is often an issue — but a good rule of thumb is this: spend 3% of the media budget on research that either helps inform the campaign direction or measure its impact.
Finding “a better way” to insights
With “a better way” as PHD’s mantra, it’s imperative that everyone seeks a better way to do research.
The old ways are not necessarily broken — but they are no longer the only solution. There are massive changes and opportunities emerging in the world
of research as outlined above. There’s no need to deride focus groups or surveys too much as they still offer great value, but it’s important they aren’t the default option anymore.
Instead we recommend experimenting with new ways of asking questions — because if you’re asking the same questions in the same style of survey as your competitors, then you’ve lost any competitive advantage. Perhaps apply the 70/20/10% rule that has become so popular in recent years: Maintain 70%ofyourresearchastraditionalstylesthatyou know offer value and are used by the business for benchmarking (ex: brand tracking, focus groups, surveys), but then spend 20% of your time/budget on more progressive techniques like ethnography, social media monitoring, mobile diaries... and 10% on truly creative and experimental methodologies
(I once had people write a haiku poem about their favourite paper towel brand — which really forces them to distil their feelings down to a few words).
THE EDIT ISSUE 05 | Q1 2017