Research Tools for Actionable Consumer Insights

As pioneers in online qualitative research, we are constantly evaluating the newest research techniques to inform our insights-based approach to branding. Tried and true methodologies like laddering interviews and focus groups are being reinvented online. And new software is being introduced everyday to make talking to consumers in real time, where they live and shop, easier and more natural. Here are some of our favorite methodologies.

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	Laddering for Decision-Mapping Research Understanding how consumers make decisions is the first step toward influencing those decisions. Our online tool for conducting and analyzing laddering interviews quantitatively identifies the hierarchy of features, benefits and values that drive brand differentiation and choice.
	Iterative Quant / Qual Studies and Communities One of the biggest costs of online research is screening and recruiting the right respondents. Rather than tap these respondents just once, we use surveys to also recruit respondents for follow up studies that explore the 'why's' behind their answers. We can even recruit short term 'pop up' communities to explore a topic in depth with a group of 40-50 consumers over ten days.
	Millennial Super Consumer Community Who knows better how to reach a Millennial than another Millennial? To get fast, meaningful input we maintain a private, ongoing community of Gen Y marketers and marketing students. This group offers a wealth of insights on the culture, behavior and values of their generation and ideas for how to engage their peers.
	Dynamic Real Time Web Surveys Brand Resonance Scanning is an exciting new approach to monitoring consumer response in real time across extremely large online samples. Each respondent is delivered one question at a time across their personal web footprint, and results are aggregated on the back end and appended with consumer profile information.
	Cultural Mapping and Ethnographic Research Blogs, video journals, web chats, video chats and more can help brands go deeper into the lives of customers to reveal unmet needs, cultural connection points and brand themes. We partner with leading ethnographic research firms scenarioDNA and Outlaw Consulting for the latest techniques and methods for identifying and engaging.
	Online Focus Groups Two of the biggest issues with focus groups are lack of focus and dominating respondents. Our approach to online groups of 10-12 respondents ensures we hear from everyone simultaneously. We manage our own recruiting to ensure each group is well-selected and homogenous. Here's an overview of our approach to online focus groups.
	Brand Audits, Brand Measurement and Strategic Development Used in the MBA Brand Strategy class at the University of Notre Dame, 'Brand Strategy Toolkit' provides a general description of the process of conducting a brand audit and developing a brand strategy. (PDF)

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Using these tools, we tailor qualitative and quantitative research specifically to meet each individual client's needs. To learn more about how Brand Amplitude® can put these tools to work for your organization, please contact our team today!