customer research process

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Home Market Research

Consumer Research: Examples, Process and Scope

What is Consumer Research?

Consumer research is a part of market research in which inclination, motivation and purchase behavior of the targeted customers are identified. Consumer research helps businesses or organizations understand customer psychology and create detailed purchasing behavior profiles.

It uses research techniques to provide systematic information about what customers need. Using this information brands can make changes in their products and services, making them more customer-centric thereby increasing customer satisfaction. This will in turn help to boost business.

LEARN ABOUT: Market research vs marketing research

An organization that has an in-depth understanding about the customer decision-making process, is most likely to design a product, put a certain price tag to it, establish distribution centers and promote a product based on consumer research insights such that it produces increased consumer interest and purchases.

For example, A consumer electronics company wants to understand, thought process of a consumer when purchasing an electronic device, which can help a company to launch new products, manage the supply of the stock, etc. Carrying out a Consumer electronics survey can be useful to understand the market demand, understand the flaws in their product and also find out research problems in the various processes that influence the purchase of their goods. A consumer electronics survey can be helpful to gather information about the shopping experiences of consumers when purchasing electronics. which can enable a company to make well-informed and wise decisions regarding their products and services.

LEARN ABOUT:  Test Market Demand

Consumer Research Objectives

When a brand is developing a new product, consumer research is conducted to understand what consumers want or need in a product, what attributes are missing and what are they looking for? An efficient survey software really makes it easy for organizations to conduct efficient research.

Consumer research is conducted to improve brand equity. A brand needs to know what consumers think when buying a product or service offered by a brand. Every good business idea needs efficient consumer research for it to be successful. Consumer insights are essential to determine brand positioning among consumers.

Consumer research is conducted to boost sales. The objective of consumer research is to look into various territories of consumer psychology and understand their buying pattern, what kind of packaging they like and other similar attributes that help brands to sell their products and services better.

LEARN ABOUT: Brand health

Consumer Research Model

According to a study conducted, till a decade ago, researchers thought differently about the consumer psychology, where little or no emphasis was put on emotions, mood or the situation that could influence a customer’s buying decision.

Many believed marketing was applied economics. Consumers always took decisions based on statistics and math and evaluated goods and services rationally and then selected items from those brands that gave them the highest customer satisfaction at the lowest cost.

However, this is no longer the situation. Consumers are very well aware of brands and their competitors. A loyal customer is the one who would not only return to repeatedly purchase from a brand but also, recommend his/her family and friends to buy from the same brand even if the prices are slightly higher but provides an exceptional customer service for products purchased or services offered.

Here is where the Net Promoter Score (NPS) helps brands identify brand loyalty and customer satisfaction with their consumers. Net Promoter Score consumer survey uses a single question that is sent to customers to identify their brand loyalty and level of customer satisfaction. Response to this question is measured on a scale between 0-10 and based on this consumers can be identified as:

Detractors: Who have given a score between 0-6.

Passives: Who have given a score between 7-8.

Promoters: Who have given a score between 9-10.

Consumer market research is based on two types of research method:

1. Qualitative Consumer Research

Qualitative research  is descriptive in nature, It’s a method that uses open-ended questions , to gain meaningful insights from respondents and heavily relies on the following market research methods:

Focus Groups: Focus groups as the name suggests is a small group of highly validated subject experts who come together to analyze a product or service. Focus group comprises of 6-10 respondents. A moderator is assigned to the focus group, who helps facilitate discussions among the members to draw meaningful insights

One-to-one Interview: This is a more conversational method, where the researcher asks open-ended questions to collect data from the respondents. This method heavily depends on the expertise of the researcher. How much the researcher is able to probe with relevant questions to get maximum insights. This is a time-consuming method and can take more than one attempt to gain the desired insights.

LEARN ABOUT: Qualitative Interview

Content/ Text Analysis: Text analysis is a qualitative research method where researchers analyze social life by decoding words and images from the documents available. Researchers analyze the context in which the images are used and draw conclusions from them. Social media is an example of text analysis. In the last decade or so, inferences are drawn based on consumer behavior on social media.

Learn More: How to conduct Qualitative Research  

2.Quantitative Consumer Research

In the age of technology and information, meaningful data is more precious than platinum. Billion dollar companies have risen and fallen on how well they have been able to collect and analyze data, to draw validated insights.

Quantitative research is all about numbers and statistics. An evolved consumer who purchases regularly can vouch for how customer-centric businesses have become today. It’s all about customer satisfaction , to gain loyal customers. With just one questions companies are able to collect data, that has the power to make or break a company. Net Promoter Score question , “On a scale from 0-10 how likely are you to recommend our brand to your family or friends?”

How organic word-of-mouth is influencing consumer behavior and how they need to spend less on advertising and invest their time and resources to make sure they provide exceptional customer service.

LEARN ABOUT: Behavioral Targeting

Online surveys , questionnaires , and polls are the preferred data collection tools. Data that is obtained from consumers is then statistically, mathematically and numerically evaluated to understand consumer preference.

Learn more: How to carry out Quantitative Research

Consumer Research Process

The process of consumer research started as an extension of the process of market research . As the findings of market research is used to improve the decision-making capacity of an organization or business, similar is with consumer research.

LEARN ABOUT:  Market research industry

The consumer research process can be broken down into the following steps:

• Develop research objectives: The first step to the consumer research process is to clearly define the research objective, the purpose of research, why is the research being conducted, to understand what? A clear statement of purpose can help emphasize the purpose.
• Collect Secondary data: Collect secondary data first, it helps in understanding if research has been conducted earlier and if there are any pieces of evidence related to the subject matter that can be used by an organization to make informed decisions regarding consumers.
• Primary Research: In primary research organizations or businesses collect their own data or employ a third party to collect data on their behalf. This research makes use of various data collection methods ( qualitative and quantitative ) that helps researchers collect data first hand.

LEARN ABOUT: Best Data Collection Tools

• Collect and analyze data: Data is collected and analyzed and inference is drawn to understand consumer behavior and purchase pattern.
• Prepare report: Finally, a report is prepared for all the findings by analyzing data collected so that organizations are able to make informed decisions and think of all probabilities related to consumer behavior. By putting the study into practice, organizations can become customer-centric and manufacture products or render services that will help them achieve excellent customer satisfaction.

LEARN ABOUT: market research trends

After Consumer Research Process

Once you have been able to successfully carry out the consumer research process , investigate and break paradigms. What consumers need should be a part of market research design and should be carried out regularly. Consumer research provides more in-depth information about the needs, wants, expectations and behavior analytics of clients.  

By identifying this information successfully, strategies that are used to attract consumers can be made better and businesses can make a profit by knowing what consumers want exactly. It is also important to understand and know thoroughly the buying behavior of consumers to know their attitude towards brands and products.

The identification of consumer needs, as well as their preferences, allows a business to adapt to new business and develop a detailed marketing plan that will surely work. The following pointers can help. Completing this process will help you:

• Attract more customers  
• Set the best price for your products  
• Create the right marketing message  
• Increase the quantity that satisfies the demand of its clients  
• Increase the frequency of visits to their clients  
• Increase your sales  
• Reduce costs  
• Refine your approach to the customer service process .

LEARN ABOUT: Behavioral Research

Consumer Research Methods

Consumers are the reason for a business to run and flourish. Gathering enough information about consumers is never going to hurt any business, in fact, it will only add up to the information a business would need to associate with its consumers and manufacture products that will help their business refine and grow.

Following are consumer research methods that ensure you are in tandem with the consumers and understand their needs:

The studies of customer satisfaction

One can determine the degree of satisfaction of consumers in relation to the quality of products through:

• Informal methods such as conversations with staff about products and services according to the dashboards.   
• Past and present questionnaires/ surveys that consumers might have filled that identify their needs.   

T he investigation of the consumer decision process

It is very interesting to know the consumer’s needs, what motivates them to buy, and how is the decision-making process carried out, though:

• Deploying relevant surveys and receiving responses from a target intended audience .

Proof of concept

Businesses can test how well accepted their marketing ideas are by:

• The use of surveys to find out if current or potential consumer see your products as a rational and useful benefit.  
• Conducting personal interviews or focus group sessions with clients to understand how they respond to marketing ideas.

Knowing your market position

You can find out how your current and potential consumers see your products, and how they compare it with your competitors by:

• Sales figures talk louder than any other aspect, once you get to know the comparison in the sales figures it is easy to understand your market position within the market segment.
• Attitudes of consumers while making a purchase also helps in understanding the market hold.      

Branding tests and user experience

You can determine how your customers feel with their brands and product names by:

• The use of focus groups and surveys designed to assess emotional responses to your products and brands.  
• The participation of researchers to study the performance of their brand in the market through existing and available brand measurement research.   

Price changes

You can investigate how your customers accept or not the price changes by using formulas that measure the revenue – multiplying the number of items you sold, by the price of each item. These tests allow you to calculate if your total income increases or decreases after making the price changes by:

• Calculation of changes in the quantities of products demanded by their customers, together with changes in the price of the product.   
• Measure the impact of the price on the demand of the product according to the needs of the client.   

Social media monitoring

Another way to measure feedback and your customer service is by controlling your commitment to social media and feedback. Social networks (especially Facebook) are becoming a common element of the commercialization of many businesses and are increasingly used by their customers to provide information on customer needs, service experiences, share and file customer complaints . It can also be used to run surveys and test concepts. If handled well, it can be one of the most powerful research tools of the client management . I also recommend reading: How to conduct market research through social networks.

Customer Research Questions

Asking the right question is the most important part of conducting research. Moreover, if it’s consumer research, questions should be asked in a manner to gather maximum insights from consumers. Here are some consumer research questions for your next research:

• Who in your household takes purchasing decisions?
• Where do you go looking for ______________ (product)?
• How long does it take you to make a buying decision?
• How far are you willing to travel to buy ___________(product)?
• What features do you look for when you purchase ____________ (product)?
• What motivates you to buy_____________ (product)?

See more consumer research survey questions:

Customer satisfaction surveys

Voice of customer surveys

Product surveys

Service evaluation surveys

Mortgage Survey Questions

Importance of Consumer Research

Launching a product or offering new services can be quite an exciting time for a brand. However, there are a lot of aspects that need to be taken into consideration while a band has something new to offer to consumers.

LEARN ABOUT: User Experience Research

Here is where consumer research plays a pivotal role. The importance of consumer research cannot be emphasized more. Following points summarizes the importance of consumer research:

• To understand market readiness: However good a product or service may be, consumers have to be ready to accept it. Creating a product requires investments which in return expect ROI from product or service purchases. However, if a market is mature enough to accept this utility, it has a low chance of succeeding by tapping into market potential . Therefore, before launching a product or service, organizations need to conduct consumer research, to understand if people are ready to spend on the utility it provides.
• Identify target consumers: By conducting consumer research, brands and organizations can understand their target market based on geographic segmentation and know who exactly is interested in buying their products. According to the data or feedback received from the consumer, research brands can even customize their marketing and branding approach to better appeal to the specific consumer segment.

LEARN ABOUT: Marketing Insight

• Product/Service updates through feedback: Conducting consumer research, provides valuable feedback from consumers about the attributes and features of products and services. This feedback enables organizations to understand consumer perception and provide a more suitable solution based on actual market needs which helps them tweak their offering to perfection.

Explore more: 300 + FREE survey templates to use for your research

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• What is customer research?

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Designing products that both delight customers and solve their problems is essential in a competitive landscape!

But how do you identify what your customers want and need, let alone who your customers really are?

Customer research enables you to learn more about your customers, understand their motivations, and get to grips with their behavior on a deeper level. You can use all this knowledge to create truly user-centric products.

Customer research is how you understand your customers—their needs, pain points, and demographics.

It also allows you to dive into key aspects of customers’ motivations and behaviors. It’s about learning how customers act and what will encourage them to take certain actions.

This is important when developing products. Deeply understanding your customers helps you deliver products that are easy to use, satisfying, and better at solving problems.

You’ll keep designing products that fall short if you don’t know your customers well and can’t see things from their point of view.

• What’s the difference between customer research, market research, and user research

You may have heard the terms customer research, market research, and user research. They might sound similar and have some related functions, but they are distinct types of research.

Market research is generally conducted in the early stages of product creation. Its role is to generate an understanding of the whole market, including what people need and want from products. This type of research typically identifies market readiness, size, competition, and demographics.

While market research is broad, customer research is more specific. It’s a process by which data and information collected during market research are analyzed, grouped, and evaluated. You can think of it as an extension of market research, though some organizations may perform these functions simultaneously.

The focus of user research is generally on understanding what is and isn’t working with current products and where helpful innovation can occur.

• Types of customer research

Primary and secondary research are some of the main types of customer research.

Quantitative and qualitative data are two types of data.

It’s helpful to know the difference between these groups to ensure you collect the right data and information for your project.

Primary vs. secondary research

Primary research is data collected directly by the organization from customers. It is obtained through research methods like surveys, focus groups, or analytics.

The advantage of primary research is having the power to obtain the data that’s most relevant for you. Knowing exactly what data has been collected and how to collate that information into meaningful insights is also more simple.

Secondary research is data collected by external sources, such as research groups, governments, and other companies. You can use it to discover more about customers.

Using data collected by other sources gives you less control, but it can save you money.

Ideally, a combination of both primary and secondary research will help you build a true picture of who your customers are.

Qualitative vs. quantitative data

You also need to understand which type of data will be most helpful for the relevant project.

Qualitative data is obtained directly from users, usually through methods such as in-depth interviews, focus groups, usability testing, and field studies.

This type of data can help designers understand why users do things and gain insights into how to solve their issues.

Quantitative data consists of numeral value measurements gained indirectly from users.

This type of data usually involves measurements like how much, how many, and how many times. Surveys, metrics, and user tests are some of the methods through which it can be collated.

• The best customer research methods

The best customer research method will be the one that’s most relevant and useful for your project. So, what works for one product may not be the best match for another. 

Before deciding on a customer research method, asking the following questions can be helpful:

What do we most need to know about our customers?

What do we not know about our customers?

Are we satisfied that our product has a market?

Do we truly understand our competitors?

Do we deeply understand our target market?

Is our product solving a real-world issue for people? Do we have data to back that up?

Is this product the best possible solution for our customers?

These questions can act as a starting point to discover knowledge gaps. They can also help your team choose the research methods that can plug any of these holes.

Customer surveys

Surveys involve asking customers a series of targeted questions. They’re a popular research method because they can be conducted in several ways, such as with an online questionnaire, phone call, or email.

Surveys can help organizations quickly discover large amounts of useful information. They are also relatively inexpensive, as many free templates are available online.

Keep in mind that a survey is only as good as its questions. Ensure that you’re asking questions that will help you discover the most relevant and helpful data about your customers.

Surveys that follow best practices include the following:

Open-ended questions to get the most information from customers

Consistent ranking scales to avoid ambiguity

Questions that are relevant to the team’s end goal

A short series of questions to avoid overwhelming participants

Customer interviews

Interviewing customers is one of the most straightforward and helpful ways to discover their views, wants, and needs.

Customer interviews include a team member or neutral party having a discussion with a customer. They offer the chance to discover new insights that might not otherwise have been uncovered.

This technique won’t enable you to gather quantitative data, but you will gain new insights into how your customers think and perceive products.

Here are some best practices to follow when conducting customer interviews:

Clarify answers. If there’s any ambiguity in what a customer said, make sure you follow up with further questions to aid true understanding.

Challenge your assumptions. Don’t bring any assumptions to the table. Instead, ask customers how they really think and feel. Having a neutral moderator can help remove any bias the team may bring.

Keep things open. Asking open-ended questions and offering a safe space to share answers are essential steps. Doing so will help you gain real thoughts, not hear what participants think they should say.

The benefit of real data should never be overlooked when it comes to customers. People might say they act in certain ways, but their behavior can show otherwise.

Analytics (in a product dashboard or other data collection method, for example) will reveal a great deal of information about customer behavior. It can help streamline your business, remove areas of friction, and improve the overall customer experience .

Metrics like heat maps, time spent, click tracking, and number of sessions can help you build a picture of your customer’s behavior.

Are customers failing to complete their payment information? Are people landing on your page and immediately clicking away? Is a particular aspect of your experience retaining your customers’ attention? These are just a few useful questions you can ask as you go through your analytics.

Focus groups

Focus groups are a well-known and popular research method. They help teams discover a large amount of information in a short time period.

In a focus group, a small number of people—usually eight or fewer—gather together to discuss products, pain points, preferences, and how they might engage with products.

Focus groups are run by a moderator or a person from the organization who can act neutrally. The moderator will set out a series of questions or topics for the group to discuss.

The benefits of focus groups include the following:

Gaining insights into how users perceive your product

Spontaneous responses you may not have discovered otherwise

Information about key problems and pain points

An understanding of what your users want from a solution

However, focus groups also present some challenges. Louder voices in a group may sway others to agree with the consensus rather than share their real opinions. To combat this, offer all members of the group a safe space to share their thoughts. Encourage varying responses.

Competitor analysis

Competitor analysis helps you dive into what the market is currently offering. It shows what competitors are doing well and what could be done better. This helps you create new products that solve your customers’ problems more effectively.

The following are best practices for conducting competitor analysis

Be clear on who your competitors are

Identify your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses

Clarify who holds the largest market share and why

Analyze online presence, reviews, and product information

Speak to competitors’ customers

Competitor analysis isn’t just about discovering information about your competitors; another goal is to turn information into action. You’ll ideally want to improve on what a competitor currently offers and provide a product that’s more satisfying for customers.

• How to conduct customer research

The following key steps will enable you to conduct useful customer research.

Set clear objectives

There’s a broad range of data and information that can be collected with customer research. However, not all of it will be relevant to your specific project. 

That’s why setting clear objectives from the outset is critical. All methods and data should lead back to these objectives.

Use multiple methods

One research method is unlikely to gather enough information for your project. And no one method is perfect.

Conducting multiple forms of research ensures you discover more about your customers and that your team gathers enough helpful data.

Find the right people

Your research won’t be effective if you’re talking to the wrong customer group. But how do you find the right people?

If you already have a product, it would be enormously beneficial to speak to your current customers . They have proven that they’re in your target audience.

Forums, advertising, local groups, and organizations are good ways to identify potential customers to participate.

Let’s say you’re designing a dog-sitting app. In this case, you’ll need to speak to dog owners who would like more flexibility to travel. You could find these people in online groups, through a local meeting, or even at a park that’s popular for dog walking.

Consider incentives

It’s also worth considering incentives. These can encourage the right people to get on board. For example, you might offer participants the chance to win a voucher or give them a small amount of cash to participate.

Ensure any incentives are meaningful for your target audience.

Develop meaningful insights

Collecting a range of data and information from multiple methods is helpful. However, it’s ultimately meaningless if that data isn’t collated into useful insights .

Ensure that data is accurately grouped and represented clearly and concisely so that the entire business can benefit from the learnings. You might need to hire a data analyst.

• Surprise and delight your customers

Keeping customers at the center of what you do is the only way to create products that are helpful for people.

All products should help customers, whether that’s by solving a problem, making their life a little bit easier, or entertaining them in some way. Customers should want to use your product and enjoy the process.

By researching your customers, you can truly understand how they feel , where their pain points are, how they behave in real-life situations, and what solutions would please them. Ultimately, all this helps you better serve your customers.

Should you be using a customer insights hub?

Do you want to discover previous customer research faster?

Do you share your customer research findings with others?

Do you analyze customer research data?

Start for free today, add your research, and get to key insights faster

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Customer Research

What is customer research.

Customer research is conducted so as to identify customer segments, needs, and behaviors. It can be carried out as part of market research, user research, or design research. Even so, it always focuses on researching current or potential customers of a specific brand or product in order to identify unmet customer needs and/or opportunities for business growth.

Customer research can focus on simple demographics of an existing or potential customer group (such as age, gender, and income level). Indeed, these considerations are vital determinants of a product’s target audience. However, such research also often seeks to understand various behaviors and motivators —factors which place a product’s use and potential on a higher level of study. Thus, the goal of such research is to expose clear details about who is—or will be—using a product as well as the reasons behind their doing so and how they go about using it (including the contextual areas of “where” and “when”). Customer research may be conducted via a variety of quantitative and qualitative methods such as interviews, surveys, focus groups, and ethnographic field studies. It also commonly involves doing desk research of online reviews, forums, and social media to explore what customers are saying about a product.

While customer research is usually conducted as part of a design project, it is also often conducted in other departments of an organization. In some cases, customer research is part of marketing—for instance, to ensure that marketing campaigns have the right focus. In other cases, it can be carried out as part of concept development or ideation so as to identify opportunities for future products, services, or features. In any case, such research is an essential ingredient in keeping the end users in clear sight long before the end of any design phase.

Literature on Customer Research

Here’s the entire UX literature on Customer Research by the Interaction Design Foundation, collated in one place:

Learn more about Customer Research

Take a deep dive into Customer Research with our course User Research – Methods and Best Practices .

How do you plan to design a product or service that your users will love , if you don't know what they want in the first place? As a user experience designer, you shouldn't leave it to chance to design something outstanding; you should make the effort to understand your users and build on that knowledge from the outset. User research is the way to do this, and it can therefore be thought of as the largest part of user experience design .

In fact, user research is often the first step of a UX design process—after all, you cannot begin to design a product or service without first understanding what your users want! As you gain the skills required, and learn about the best practices in user research, you’ll get first-hand knowledge of your users and be able to design the optimal product—one that’s truly relevant for your users and, subsequently, outperforms your competitors’ .

This course will give you insights into the most essential qualitative research methods around and will teach you how to put them into practice in your design work. You’ll also have the opportunity to embark on three practical projects where you can apply what you’ve learned to carry out user research in the real world . You’ll learn details about how to plan user research projects and fit them into your own work processes in a way that maximizes the impact your research can have on your designs. On top of that, you’ll gain practice with different methods that will help you analyze the results of your research and communicate your findings to your clients and stakeholders—workshops, user journeys and personas, just to name a few!

By the end of the course, you’ll have not only a Course Certificate but also three case studies to add to your portfolio. And remember, a portfolio with engaging case studies is invaluable if you are looking to break into a career in UX design or user research!

We believe you should learn from the best, so we’ve gathered a team of experts to help teach this course alongside our own course instructors. That means you’ll meet a new instructor in each of the lessons on research methods who is an expert in their field—we hope you enjoy what they have in store for you!

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Customer Research: Types of Customer Research, Methods, and Best Practices.

In the ever-evolving landscape of business, understanding your customers is the key to success. Customer research, a systematic process of gathering and analyzing information about customers, plays a pivotal role in making informed business decisions and developing effective strategies. In this comprehensive guide, we delve into the types of customer research, the methodologies involved, and best practices for optimal results.

Comprehensive Guide to Customer Research: Types, Methods, and Best Practices

What is customer research.

Customer research involves the systematic exploration of customer behaviors, needs, preferences, and experiences. It combines qualitative and quantitative studies to gain insights into the target audience, facilitating informed decision-making and the development of strategies to meet customer expectations. The essential components of customer research include:

1. Research Objectives

Clearly defining research objectives is paramount. It involves determining the specific information or insights the organization aims to gather, ensuring the collected data aligns with organizational needs.

2. Target Audience Definition

Identifying the target audience is crucial, representing the group the research focuses on. This audience should mirror the organization’s customer base or intended market.

3. Research Methodology

Choosing appropriate research methods is vital. Whether surveys, interviews, focus groups, or data analytics, the methods should align with objectives, providing desired depth and breadth of insights.

4. Data Collection

Conducting data collection activities is core to customer research. Proper techniques, such as surveys, interviews, or data analysis, ensure the accuracy and reliability of gathered information.

5. Data Analysis

Organizing, categorizing, and interpreting collected data is essential. From quantitative techniques to qualitative research, the goal is to derive actionable insights that inform decision-making.

6. Findings and Insights

Effectively communicating research findings involves summarizing and presenting results. Visualizations, reports, and dashboards convey information clearly and understandably.

7. Recommendations

Based on findings, practical and actionable recommendations guide business decisions, whether for product improvements, marketing strategies, or customer experience enhancements.

8. Iteration and Continuous Improvement

Customer research is an iterative process. Regularly incorporating insights into strategies ensures organizations remain responsive to customer expectations and market changes.

Types of Customer Research

Understanding the various types of customer research is crucial for tailoring approaches to specific objectives. Some common types include:

1. Customer Satisfaction Research

Definition:.

Customer satisfaction research revolves around measuring and analyzing how satisfied customers are with a product or service. It helps in identifying areas for improvement and gauges overall customer contentment.

Key Elements:

• Surveys and Feedback Forms: Use structured surveys or feedback forms to quantify satisfaction levels.
• Net Promoter Score (NPS): Measures the likelihood of customers recommending a product or service.

Implementation:

Regularly conduct surveys and analyze feedback to gauge customer sentiment, focusing on enhancing areas with lower satisfaction.

2. Customer Needs and Preferences Research

This type of research aims to uncover the underlying needs, desires, and preferences of customers. It provides insights into what customers are looking for in a product or service.

• In-depth Interviews: Engage in one-on-one interviews to delve into the motivations and preferences of customers.
• Observational Studies: Observe customer behavior in real-life scenarios to identify unmet needs.

Conduct qualitative research through interviews and observational studies to gain a deep understanding of customer needs, informing product development.

3. Customer Experience (CX) Research

CX research focuses on understanding and optimizing the overall customer journey, identifying pain points, and ensuring a seamless and satisfying experience.

• Customer Journey Mapping: Visualize the entire customer experience, from initial interaction to post-purchase.
• Usability Testing: Evaluate the ease with which customers navigate through products or services.

Create detailed customer journey maps, conduct usability tests, and analyze customer interactions to enhance overall experience.

4. Brand Perception Research

This research assesses how customers perceive a brand, including awareness, image, associations, and loyalty. It helps in shaping and maintaining a positive brand identity.

• Brand Surveys: Measure brand awareness, associations, and loyalty.
• Competitor Analysis: Understand how the brand compares to competitors.

Regularly conduct brand perception surveys and analyze competitor strategies to maintain a positive brand image.

5. Customer Segmentation Research

Customer segmentation involves categorizing customers based on shared characteristics, behaviors, or needs. It enables targeted marketing strategies.

• Demographic Segmentation: Grouping customers based on age, gender, income, etc.
• Behavioral Segmentation: Segmenting based on purchasing behavior or product usage.

Analyze customer data to identify commonalities, enabling personalized marketing strategies for different segments.

6. Competitive Research

Competitive research involves analyzing competitors’ strategies, products, and customer experiences to identify opportunities for differentiation.

• Competitor Product Analysis: Evaluate features, pricing, and positioning of competitors’ products.
• Social Media Monitoring: Track customer sentiments regarding competitors on social media.

Regularly monitor competitors, analyze product offerings, and gather customer feedback to identify areas for improvement and differentiation.

7. Customer Journey Mapping

Customer journey mapping visualizes the end-to-end customer experience, identifying touchpoints, emotions, and areas for improvement.

• Customer Touchpoints: Identify and analyze all the touchpoints a customer has with the brand.
• Emotion Analysis: Understand customer emotions at each stage of the journey.

Create detailed customer journey maps, incorporating feedback from various touchpoints to enhance the overall journey.

These types of customer research provide organizations with a holistic view of their customers, enabling them to make informed decisions, improve products and services, and stay ahead in a competitive market. Each type serves a unique purpose, and a combination of these approaches ensures a comprehensive understanding of customer behaviors and preferences.

How to Conduct Customer Research: 10 Key Steps

Conducting effective customer research involves a systematic approach:

1. Define Research Objectives

Clearly define specific objectives to guide the research process and focus on relevant questions.

2. Identify Target Audience

Determine the specific target audience or customer segment that aligns with research goals.

3. Choose Research Methods

Select appropriate research methods and techniques, considering advantages, limitations, and resource requirements.

4. Develop Research Instruments

Design clear, concise research instruments such as survey questionnaires or interview guides.

5. Recruit Participants

Recruit participants matching the target audience criteria through various channels, ensuring communication clarity.

6. Conduct Data Collection

Implement chosen research methods, maintaining ethical guidelines, privacy, and data confidentiality.

7. Analyze Data

Use appropriate analysis techniques, whether quantitative or qualitative, ensuring rigor and alignment with research objectives.

8. Interpret Findings

Analyze patterns, trends, and relationships in data to gain insights into customer behaviors, preferences, or needs.

9. Communicate Results

Present findings clearly through reports, presentations, or visualizations, tailored to the target audience.

10. Apply Insights

Apply insights to inform business decisions, enhancing product development, marketing, and customer experiences.

Customer research is iterative; monitor outcomes, conduct follow-up research, and stay responsive to evolving customer needs.

Examples of Customer Research Questions

Crafting effective customer research questions is essential. Examples include:

• What factors influenced your decision to purchase our product/service?
• How did you first hear about our company?
• What specific features or aspects of our product/service do you find most valuable?
• What improvements or enhancements would you like to see in our product/service?
• How likely are you to recommend our product/service to others? Why?
• What obstacles or challenges did you encounter when using our product/service?
• How does our product/service compare to competitors in the market?
• How satisfied are you with the level of customer support you received?
• What are your expectations for pricing and value in relation to our product/service?
• How frequently do you use our product/service, and for what purposes?

Tailoring questions to the industry or service being researched ensures gathering relevant information.

Best Practices for Customer Research

Following best practices is essential for accurate and valuable insights:

1. Clearly Define Research Objectives

Identify specific goals and objectives to guide research, focusing on relevant questions and areas of investigation.

2. Use a Mix of Qualitative and Quantitative Methods

Combine qualitative and quantitative research methods for a comprehensive understanding of customers.

3. Identify Your Target Audience

Clearly define the characteristics and demographics of the target audience for accurate representation.

4. Create Unbiased and Neutral Questions

Formulate clear, unbiased, and neutral questions to avoid leading or influencing participant responses.

5. Use a Variety of Data Collection Methods

Explore various data collection methods, including surveys, interviews, focus groups, and social media listening.

6. Engage With Customers at Different Touchpoints

Interact with customers at different stages, from pre-purchase to post-purchase, to understand the entire customer journey.

7. Maintain Confidentiality and Anonymity

Assure participants of confidentiality and anonymity to encourage honest and unbiased feedback.

8. Analyze and Interpret Data Systematically

Systematically analyze data using appropriate techniques, identifying patterns and key insights.

9. Continuously Iterate and Improve

Regularly revisit research objectives, update methods, and gather feedback for continuous improvement.

10. Communicate Findings and Take Action

Present research findings to stakeholders, using insights to inform strategic decisions, product development, and marketing.

By following these best practices, organizations can conduct effective customer research, gaining valuable insights into customer behaviors and preferences.

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Empowering Businesses Globally: A Comprehensive Guide to Customer Research by Arensic

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A complete guide to customer research — with templates

What makes your product great? What problems does it solve? People will look to you — the product manager — as the expert on these questions. But you know that the answers are not based solely on your own opinions and experience. The most important input often comes from somewhere else: customers.

Understanding customers is integral to developing a lovable product . As a product manager, you will want to explore everything from your users' demographics to their inner motivations and struggles. This process of sussing out their needs and challenges is called customer research.

Conducting customer research is complex and dynamic work, where your curiosity is a tremendous asset. To plan, gather, and analyze feedback, product managers use a wide variety of methods — qualitative, quantitative, and a mix of both. You can take a highly sophisticated approach to this, but many times effective customer research entails talking to customers and using simple tools or templates to analyze their feedback.

In this guide, you will learn the fundamentals of conducting primary research so you can better understand the folks you are trying to help. You can try seven customer research templates to help you experiment with different methods and save time in the research process.

Engage a community and analyze feedback in Aha! Ideas. Start a free trial .

With Aha! Ideas , you can host live empathy sessions with your customers to learn more about their need and preferences.

Why should you do customer research?

Customer research is an essential component of product strategy — alongside competitor analysis , market research, and overall business needs. The insights you glean from meeting and surveying customers help to shape your strategic initiatives , ensuring that your team is poised to deliver what people really want from your product.

A key reason to perform customer research is to gain new perspectives on your product. Your customers may tell you things you never realized — hidden problems, unique ways of completing tasks, and even alternate use cases. What you believe matters most about your product may not even be on your customers' radar.

Let's say your product has a reporting feature with low usage . Your team decides to give the reporting interface a major upgrade. You spend the time and resources to build these updates — only to scratch your head when there is no uptick in usage. What went wrong?

If you breezed past talking to your customers, it is possible that the interface was not the factor keeping them from engaging. Maybe they prefer to use a separate reporting tool — in which case, an integration capability would have been a much more valuable feature to build.

Customer research helps you avoid spending time solving proble ms that do not exist — and highlights the ones that are real and deserving of your attention. This way, you know where to focus your efforts for the best chance of making your customers happy and meeting business goals.

How much customer feedback is the right amount?

The short answer? It depends. Your specific goals, the scope of your research, and the stage of your product's development all play a role. Here are some things to keep in mind when determining the right amount of customer feedback to collect:

Understand your goals Are you looking to validate a new product idea or improve an existing product? Do you need to better understand customer pain points or gather usability insights? These answers will shape your product development goals and dictate the depth and breadth of feedback required.

Define your sample size Consider the size of your target audience and customer base. In some cases, a smaller sample size can provide valuable insights, especially if you are conducting in-depth qualitative research . For quantitative research, a larger sample size might be necessary to ensure statistical relevancy.

Ensure diversity of perspective Aim for variety in your feedback pool. Different demographic groups, usage patterns, and customer segments can provide a more comprehensive understanding of customer needs and preferences.

Include a mix of feedback channels Analyzing feedback from different channels can provide unique perspectives and insights. Experiment with a variety of feedback methods and channels — such as releasing surveys, conducting interviews , and reviewing your social media and customer support interactions.

Consider resource constraints Think about the time, budget, and staff you have available for collecting and analyzing feedback. Balance the scope of your research with what you can realistically manage.

Remember, customer feedback is often collected in iterations. Start with a small group of users for early insights, then expand your feedback pool as you make improvements. Each iteration helps you refine your product and strategy.

And while quantity matters, the quality of feedback is crucial. Sometimes a few detailed, insightful responses can be more valuable than a large number of superficial ones.

Primary vs. secondary customer research

Product managers will use both primary and secondary customer research to gather information. Briefly, the difference is:

Primary customer research refers to gathering your own data and feedback firsthand via interviews, focus groups, surveys, and other methods.

Secondary customer research refers to findings gleaned from external sources like analyst reports and third-party surveys.

Both types can be valuable, but when it comes to your goals as a product manager, primary research is superior. While secondary research will help you understand demographics and broader trends, primary research allows you to drill down into the details of your specific product and target audience.

Your customers' own experiences are invaluable and one of the surest signals to creating a lovable product. For this guide, we will focus on the fundamentals of conducting primary research.

How do product managers gather customer feedback?

How do product managers come up with new ideas for a product?

How to conduct customer research

On a basic level, customer research entails reaching out to current or potential customers and gathering feedback from them via direct conversations or more indirect methods (like online surveys). Advanced tools such as product analytics and idea management software can certainly augment your approach — but are not necessary to get started.

Follow these steps to conduct your own primary customer research:

1. Define your objective Outline your research goals and determine what it is you really want to learn. For example, your objective could be to learn broadly about your customers' business goals or gain a deeper understanding of their experience with a specific feature set.

2. Decide which customers to contact Your objectives will help you decide who to speak with — especially if your product caters to a diverse group of customers. Think about current and potential customers and form a list of people to reach out to.

3. Prepare If you are leading an interview or focus group, meet with your product teammates to prepare your questions. Keep in mind you may need to coordinate with other team members who want to sit in on discussions. If you are conducting a survey, build it — then decide how and when to distribute it.

4. Start your research Conduct your interviews or hit "send" on your survey When talking directly with customers, remember to listen more than you speak. Ask meaningful follow-up questions to encourage deeper thinking and discussion.

5. Analyze, summarize, and share your findings Look for trends in the feedback you received. What did customers agree on? What were the most popular ideas or recurring pain points? Find common threads and share the findings with your team. Together, you can discuss and prioritize the customer ideas that support your overall goals — and promote those ideas to your product roadmap .

6. Repeat Customer research is an ongoing part of product management. You will need to collect feedback from many customers to make informed product decisions. And with every new product launch or major release, you may need to start fresh with a new objective and customer set.

Because it is ongoing, it helps to keep all of your customer research organized. You want to be clear on how your findings will inform the features you develop. For example, the Research tab in Aha! helps you collect whiteboards, interview notes, and ideas right on feature cards.

Editor's note: Although the video below still shows core functionality within Aha! software, some of the interface might be out of date. View our knowledge base for the most updated insights into Aha! software.

Related: 35+ customer questions for product innovation

Get started with customer research templates

Customer research templates offer a simple way to start discovering who your audience really is and what matters to them. Using templates helps you add much-needed structure to your customer research process. Below, you will find an assortment of templates to try — from planning to interviews, surveys, and summarizing your findings.

Aha! software customer interview template

Customer research planning template, customer interview notes template.

Customer survey template

Customer feedback poll template

Customer focus group discussion template, customer research presentation template.

This customer interview template is a great one to start with. It is a guided template with helpful prompts and instructions in each section. This makes it simple to plan your conversations with customers so you can get the most out of each interview. It is available in Aha! software — which gives you a central place to document and organize your findings.

Start using this template now

This planning template helps you define your objectives, identify which customers to talk to, and prepare for your research session. It includes sections for customer profiles (personas, segments, and companies) to add context to your research group.

An interview template will keep your notes organized during conversations with customers. It will also help you guide the flow of the interview and note any takeaways or action items to proceed with after the session ends. Feel free to customize the discussion questions to match your objective.

Customer research survey template

Customer surveys allow you to gather insights from more people in less time — with the added benefit of built-in reporting via online survey tools. This template will help you learn how to design an effective customer research survey and plan the demographic, use case, and customer satisfaction questions that you want to ask. It includes a blend of question types for both fixed and open-ended responses.

Polls offer a simple way to incorporate a quantitative component into your qualitative research. For example, you can quickly gauge the group's opinion on an idea by inserting a poll in an online focus group or empathy session . This template will help you jot down ideas for future polls.

Similar to the customer interview template, this focus group template will help you structure your session. It emphasizes a well-planned agenda over note-taking — encouraging you to be present in the discussion when you are facilitating a focus group. You can always record the focus group session to revisit later and take detailed notes.

After you have conducted your research, showcase your findings. Sharing results with your team makes customer research even more impactful — customer opinions matter at every level of the business and every stage of the product development process . This template will help you convey your top takeaways in a presentation.

Customer research has long been a core tenet of product management — and will continue to be. Templates like these will help you streamline your research process so you can focus on interacting with your audience and distilling insights from what they share.

When you are ready for a more comprehensive solution beyond simple templates, give idea management software like Aha! Ideas a try. With Aha! Ideas, you can crowdsource feedback via ideas portals, engage your community with empathy sessions, and analyze trends at the individual, organization, and segment levels. This helps you prioritize customer feedback with ease and promote the ideas that support your business goals directly to your product roadmap. (Note that you can use Aha! Ideas as a standalone tool, but many of its features are also available on Aha! Roadmaps . This makes it a great choice for teams seeking an all-encompassing product development solution.)

Discover exactly what your customers want. Start a free Aha! Ideas trial today.

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Customer Research Methods: How to know your customer better

If you fancy yourself as a curious, customer-centric business owner who wants to create, make, and ship products people love, then performing great customer research (AKA UX research) should absolutely be part of your business plan.

Aside from testimonials , customer research gleaned straight from your customer base gives you a clearer picture of the people you’re serving, helps you build more relevant products, improve brand experiences, and ultimately, helps you have more empathy for your customer.

That’s a pretty important element in running a successful eCommerce business if we do say so at Sendle! While customer research can be time intensive and complex, it bears fruit and can greatly benefit your business long-term.

Be there for your audience every step of the customer journey through customer research.

What is customer research?

Customer research is simply the process of collecting data from the people using (or potentially using) your products or services to gain feedback and improve their customer experience .

By collecting this data—the customer’s ‘voice’—you’ll be better placed to make more customer-centric business decisions.

What are the main types of customer research?

There are many different ways you can capture the voice of your customer through research. Read on to know which types of customer research you think would better suit your business.

Here are the methods we’re going to jump into a little later:

• Customer interview
• Guerilla research
• Focus groups
• User testing

Quantitative vs qualitative research

As you can see, some customer research methods might be more accessible than others, depending on your business’ stage of maturity, budget, and time resources.

The method you decide to use will also depend on the type of data you want to collect. Would you like answers to the ‘what’ of a problem or dive a bit deeper into the ‘why’?

• Quantitative research : This looks at a larger sample size of your customers. This type of research will gather data points in numerical form, which will help you identify patterns or interesting trends for you to sink your teeth into later. This is why, if you can, it’s best to use a quantitative research method first.
• Qualitative research : This goes a little deeper into behaviors and needs, why a customer thinks a certain way, and how they think your product or business could change. You’re more likely to get a smaller sample size, but you do get a better understanding of your customers’ values, motivations, opinions, and preferences.

An example of how quantitative and qualitative data from customer research can improve a business process: Say you look at some returns data collected by your eCommerce store’s customer service team based in North Dakota.

The numbers (quantitative data) show you that people ordering your products from California have been returning your product more often than any other state.

You ponder, ‘why is this?’ so you decide to peel back some layers by undertaking phone interviews with customers in that area to learn more about their preferences and behaviors (qualitative data).

Lo and behold, the product doesn’t work well in the warmer climate, which is why they are returning your products frequently.

End result: You can begin the process of adapting your product or messaging around its uses.

Why is customer research important?

Conducting regular customer research streamlines the often fluffy process of putting your customer at the center of everything you do within your business. And we think it should be part of any eCommerce store’s user experience .

By integrating a regular customer research practice in your work, you’ll:

• Automatically shift the way you’re working into one that’s human-centered;
• Make sure the products you’re creating and selling hit the mark with the people you want to use them;
• Collect that all-important social proof via customer testimonials;
• Refine your target market, audience, and brand positioning;
• Test any assumptions that you have or ideas you’d like to implement in the future—getting feedback before making big decisions and spending lots of cashola; and
• Discover hidden behaviors, motivations, and needs that your customers have (and find new ways to attract more like them).

What customer research method is right for your business?

There are loads of ways you can gather the data you need to put customers front and center of your business.

As mentioned earlier though, the kind of research method you choose will depend on a few things like time, resources, and budgets.

To make it easier for you (we’re cool like that), we’ve broken down a few of the simplest and cheapest customer research methods as well as ones that require a bigger investment in time and resources. So you can adapt and apply the perfect research method to your business, no matter what stage it’s at.

1. Send out a survey

Do you have an email list? You got the makings of a survey, my friend! This simple, effective, and cheap quantitative method can be used by any type of business to enhance customer experience.

A great example of a survey is the Sendle Small Business Survey , where we ask our partners relevant questions to give us a better insight on their eCommerce experience and how Sendle can improve it.

And while you’re at it, why not join the Sendle mail list? Get exclusive access to our latest small business tips and newsletters for all things eCommerce and sustainability!

We recommend using an easy online platform like Typeform or Google Forms to create the survey because you probably have access to these tools already.

You’ll likely get responses from customers who are already fans of your brand, but you could offer incentives to get a bigger range of customers answering (like a discount code or free product upon submitting survey answers).

Tips for putting together survey questions:

• Give a brief description on why you’re doing this survey and what kinds of questions you’ll be asking (you can even put a timeframe estimate on how long it’ll take them)!
• Assure your customers that their data would be treated as confidential and will only be used for research purposes.
• Let the customer know there are no wrong answers and you’re looking for true and honest feedback.
• Ask about specific elements of your business, or specific ideas you’d like feedback on—like pricing—rather than lofty big-picture things (this way, you’ll get solid stats back)!
• Try doing some multiple choice or tick-box style answers, to save the customer time (and you’ll get definitive answers).

The trick to successful surveys is doing them regularly (at least once a year or at different stages of a customer journey), so you can keep track of changes across your business and measure your progress and customer satisfaction. We’ll cover how to take action on your results a little later.

2. Have a chat with your customers

Having a conversation with your customers is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to gather qualitative data about how they perceive your business and interact with your product (not to mention, a good way to build rapport and relationships)!

It can be free, though you may need to incentivize your customers to participate.

Simply book in a 30-45 minute call with a sample size of your customers and let the conversation flow! Okay… maybe there’s a little more preparation than that.

Tips for getting the most out of your 1:1 customer interviews:

• Prepare discussion questions in advance to keep you on track (for example, ask them how they’re using the product at home), but also go with the flow when the topic journeys into something they’re passionate about.
• Use a tool like Calendly , Acuity Scheduling , or Hubspot for scheduling interview times.
• Use video or audio recording for the calls so you can revisit later (Google Meet or Zoom) – just make sure you get the customers’ consent to recording first!
• Set expectations: explain to the customer the purpose of the interview.
• Ask open, not closed questions (for example, focusing on ‘how’ and ‘why’ rather than things with a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer).
• Try not to ask leading questions (this is when you’re setting up the answer for the customer before they’ve had a chance to respond).
• Leave your biases and preconceived ideas about your customers behind. Let them surprise you!

3. Guerilla research

This qualitative method is quick, low-cost, and a great way to nab insights from everyday human beings/potential customers.

While it might be a little more difficult to do now (guerilla research is done in-person, and we, ah, are in the middle of a pandemic)... some of the best research can come from asking randoms at your local coffee shop to give you feedback on concept products.

Pro tip : Buy them a coffee to say thanks!

Guerilla research can also be referred to as ‘intercept interviews’—where you literally intercept the types of people you want to hear from.

For example, if you’re keen to learn about people’s fitness behaviors, you can intercept them as they’re hopping off the treadmill at the gym.

Another pro tip : Maybe don’t intercept them while they’re benching 200 lbs.

Here are the tips to do guerilla research right (and so you don’t get arrested):

• Start with a goal in mind: What do you want to learn?
• Come up with a few questions you want to get answers to.
• What will these learnings be used for?
• Find the right people. Pick the right type of location, do a quick screener if you’d like a more specific type of person to speak to; otherwise, feel free to just naturally have a chat with someone you intercept without much extra planning or diving into the fact that it’s research.

4. Focus groups

Focus groups are not only a fun way to gain insights, but also a chance to build better customer relationships

Focus groups are great for capturing big ideas while getting to know your customers. However, they often require a bit more planning and resources, since it’s all about gathering a group of people together at the same time.

The value of the focus group is that there is an element of brainstorming and bouncing ideas off one another, which leads to fruitful conversations and swapping of perspectives that wouldn’t otherwise happen.

Tips for running focus groups:

• Develop a hypothesis for what you think you’ll find throughout this research phase or what you’re testing.
• Be a little pickier with the types of people you’re recruiting—make sure there’s a diversity of backgrounds and thoughts. You can also gather people from different stages of the consumer journey so that they, too, can learn about your products or services from each other.
• It’s nice to start off with some sort of activity to help participants ease into a more creative mindset, to think outside the box, and to break the ice. You can find one that’s right for you by doing a quick Google search.
• You’ll be collecting feedback in the moment, so a great idea is to have your customers engage with and talk about your physical product so you can capture their real-time responses.

5. Run user testing on your website and ordering process

If you’re a little more tech-savvy, have a decent-size research budget, and want to nail the user experience from first site visit through to ordering and beyond, (might we remind you of this post on eCommerce user experience ?) you may be interested in running user testing on your site to gather both quantitative and qualitative data.

It’s a great way to identify any gaps in user behavior or feature requests that you would have otherwise missed, or finding problems in your order flow, and it’s also helpful for future marketing and targeting initiatives.

Tips for setting up user testing:

• Use analytics tools like Google Analytics , or screen recordings and heat maps to gather quantitative data ( Hotjar is a handy one).
• When we’re allowed to be in the same room as other people again, you could sit with customers in person, and get them to show you how they use your site while talking out loud about their process for purchasing your products, placing an order, and contacting customer support (you can also walk through the consumer journey online via video recording software like Loom ).

The customer research process in 4 steps

Step 1: Define your goals

• New customer acquisition
• Customer retention
• Brand awareness
• Expand geographically
• New product ideas

Step 2: Make a plan

• What do you already know about your customers?
• What questions do you want answered?
• What will the impact be?
• What research method will you use?
• What is your timeline?
• What resources do you need?
• What metric will you be measuring?

Step 3: Conduct the research

• Make sure you have prepared questions
• Set up the tools
• Find the people

Step 4: Action the findings

• Synthesize the data
• Identify patterns
• Make changes to your business

How to process customer research data

So you’ve got all the good bits of data to know your customers better and now you’re ready to rumble. Where to next?

The official term is to ‘synthesize’ it into a summary of findings, which will include action items for what should be changed in your product and business offerings (like customer experience, brand, platform uses, etc).

It’s a big job, so make sure you give yourself plenty of time to weed through the results and organize the information into patterns that make sense to you.

Our favorite way to do this at Sendle is called Affinity Mapping . This is where you are encouraged to use sticky notes (a UXer’s dream) with ideas and data insights, then look for connections (cluster ideas that are related to one another).

Then, create themes and groups, as well as a statement about what you learned from each group.

From there you can build diagrams, write out insight statements, or anything that helps you to further make sense of the findings.

Once you’ve done that, take some more time to think about the implications for each element of your business.

If you don’t have sticky notes and a big whiteboard, you can also do this virtually using a tool like Miro , or a spreadsheet, or even your Notes app.

Successful research is done on a regular and ongoing basis—which is why the metric you’re measuring is so important to define!

For example, if you’re looking to increase customer satisfaction, the metric might be reviews or ratings. If you’re looking at increasing sales, your metric might be order volumes. If you realize your target market is younger and tech-savvy, you could try marketing on Tiktok .

Enhance customer experience by monitoring your performance

When the time comes to make updates to your business process based on your customer research findings, you should monitor performance to see if anything changes.

Keep an eye out for any patterns in your business, like customer types, or sales stats, or purchasing behaviors.

You don’t need a lot of resources to conduct good customer research: all you need is a customer-first mindset, a curiosity about people and their behaviors, and being open to new and exciting ways to improve your business and products. With how fast consumer trends change, it’s important to keep innovating with research-backed data.

That being said, one of the best innovations you can make for your business is going green! Not only is it a deciding factor for consumers now , it’s also a great way to be both sustainable and profitable.

And Sendle makes it so easy! With every package you ship via Sendle, we offset its carbon emission through environmental projects around the world. As a 100% carbon neutral shipping company made especially for small businesses, your parcels—and the planet!—is safe with us.

You might also like to read

Parcel perfect mother's day: 9 bulk shipping hacks for small businesses, how shipping can boost your sales, recent posts, get small biz tips in your inbox. join us, ship on the bright side..

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16.01.2024 6 mins read

Customer experience (CX) is arguably the most critical differentiator for brands today. With the current cost of living increases and economic uncertainty, people are getting more selective with where and with whom they spend their money. Typically, price and quality are very structured, leaving little room for influence. CX, however, offers incredible opportunities. As a result, the CX delivered will determine the winners and losers on the retail battleground.

One of the keys to great CX is understanding as much as possible about the people who use or could use your product/service. This means knowing more than just their current shopping habits; it means also deeply understanding the role your product plays in people's lives and what are the areas of opportunity and improvement.

The main challenge is how to get your hands on such insights. What is the best way to undercover and analyse this information rather than simply making assumptions based on brand bias or leadership hunches?

The solution is research. It is investing time and money into gathering the data that you can then use to make informed, data-backed decisions. However, research is a broad term with multiple implications and interpretations.

Before we explore the value and benefits of research, let’s first look at some key research essentials.

For business purposes, typically, there are 3 subjects and 3 types of research.

* The term "user" is typically used in digital product design and technology, while the term "consumer" is associated with physical products like food, clothing and retail. However, it can also apply to digital products involving financial transactions.

As shown above, research is a broad term. Therefore the correct type of research must be conducted to have the best outcome. 

Having worked in research, I often see people mentioning (and using) market and user research interchangeably.  

They are, in fact, two very different areas.

Market research is like looking at a big map to find where people live and what they like buying. User research is like knocking on specific doors in those cities to talk to people directly and watch them use a certain product. It helps to understand every individual’s needs, learning why they buy a certain product and how they use it.

Imagine you want to design a new car. Market research tells you which cities need cars, while user research tells you what features and comforts people want inside the vehicle. It's important to distinguish them because combining both ensures you create a car that sells well and also satisfies customers.

 “Combining both market and user research ensures you build a car that sells and satisfies customers.”

But it is also essential for the business to know the difference because you want to be sure that you are requesting the correct information you need to make your decision.

Customer research gauges customer satisfaction with a brand or product and uncovers factors that contribute to brand loyalty. But, if you consider the customer a complete entity, they are so much more than that. In truth, the customer is the buyer studied by market research and the user studied by user research.

Customer research is like combining market and user research. It's about studying the map, talking to people, and even driving around to see how they behave daily. Customer research examines the big picture and individual experiences to help businesses make better decisions.

The purpose is to understand what customers need, how they behave, and what they like or dislike. It guides businesses in creating products or services that meet customer expectations.

Begin by defining clear goals for your research. Determine the decision you must make and what information you need to come to that decision.

For example:

Establish how you will gather your information. 

There are 2 ways:

#1 Primary research - collect data directly from customers- internally or through an agency 

#2 Secondary research - collect the data from completing desktop research. 

The information you want to gather will determine which option you choose. My rule is don’t research just for the sake of it; if the data already exists, then use it. Sometimes, desktop research is sufficient for what you want to do. However, sometimes, it isn’t and can’t offer the value that talking to your customers can.  

“Don’t conduct research just for the sake of it.”

Primary research is the kind of research we do here at All human. 

If you go ahead with option 1, then you will have to decide on methodology and approach:

UX research methods answer a wide range of questions. You will most likely need the help of a specialist researcher here, but broadly speaking, there are 3 dimensions:

• Attitudinal (what people say) vs. behavioural (what people do).
• Qualitative (why and how to solve it) vs. quantitative (how many/how much).
• Context of use (phase of the product development process).

Source: The Nielsen Norman Group

As illustrated above , each method is assigned according to the intended outcome. This is why it is so important to formulate precise research questions at the beginning of the project, as they determine all of the other phases. 

“User research is only as effective as the questions you ask.”

This is what it will look like when applied to the earlier example of the kinds of questions brands will want to research.

Think of it like cooking a meal. Once you've gathered the ingredients (data), you analyze them to see what flavours (insights) emerge. Then, you use these insights to create a tasty dish (action plan) that satisfies your customers.

At All human, we believe that the research is as effective as the quality of our communication about it, therefore, we typically will present the findings in the form of high-quality presentations with storytelling and data visualisation techniques. If we are under time constraints, we’ll go for a more agile approach, and our designers will implement the changes as we learn from the research. This can be very beneficial to clients as it means they are seeing the impact and, ideally, positive outcomes very quickly. 

“Your research is only as effective as the quality of your communication about it.”

Source: Example of a slide All human used in a presentation to illustrate the insights we collected from research we completed on the CX of shopping online

Gathering and interpreting the data is just one part of the process. The second part is taking the insights gleaned and applying them. This is where you can realise the actual value and potential of research. It’s also where you will need the professionals and the people with the necessary skills to implement the actions. For example, designers can take the learning and incorporate them into the design of a product or app.

There are lots- which is good. One of the better-known examples is Netflix. In the competitive streaming world, Netflix was facing a huge challenge: keeping and gaining subscribers. Through user research, they discovered that viewers were feeling overwhelmed by content choices and wanted the content to be curated with recommendations based on their preferences. Netflix revamped its interface, adding features such as Candela, top picks for you and improved search, resulting in better retention, higher engagement, and increased revenue. 

Proper research, which offers the most commercial value, is done consistently and focuses on understanding and meeting customer needs as the core of everything. This should not be confused with occasionally surveying customers to confirm your ideas and impress colleagues with an "I told you so" moment. That isn't actual consumer research; it's called confirmation bias and is not beneficial to your business.

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• Guide to consumer research

An Introductory Guide to Consumer Research And How to Conduct One

Consumer research is used across industries in order to gain key insights into consumer behavior and needs. In this article, we will explore the key aspects of consumer research, namely what it is and how to do it. 

What Is Consumer Research? 

Consumer research is research undertaken to gain an idea of customers' preferences, attitudes, motivations, and buying behaviors. This information can enable you to categorize customers into groups or segments, and tailor marketing efforts (or other aspects of the business, such as product development) to those who are most likely to spend their money on your product or service. 

Research can take many different forms - such as surveys, questionnaires, and interviews. All of which enable you to gain answers to questions that your business is struggling to find through other means. 

For example, most businesses have some kind of customer service department. Through consumer research, you can find out what methods of customer service are most preferred by your customers and invest more in these methods resulting in greater customer satisfaction.   

Consumer research enables you to group customers into customer segments. A customer segment is simply a collection of individuals with similar consumer data - possibly in terms of the personal demographics such as age, gender, or location, or it could be that their spending habits, AOV , and preferences are similar. 

These customer segments can be targeted in different ways, enabling you to maximize revenue from each individual.

2 Types of Consumer Research

There are two basic types of research, both of which apply to consumer research. 

Quantitative Research

Quantitative research produces quantifiable data. This means that it can be considered directly in numbers and percentages and, as a result, is usually easier to analyze. 

For example, perhaps you want to evaluate your quality assurance strategies . In order to gain quantitative data for this, you might ask yes/no questions or ask customers to rank statements on a scale from 1 to 10, such as “I frequently come across bugs in X software”. 10 would indicate all the time, and 1 would be never. The responses can then be added together to create a percentage. 

Qualitative Research

Qualitative research is often more in-depth, and questions enable responders to explore their answers in full detail. In 2021, 67% of researchers agreed that online or virtual qualitative research is helpful to consumer research. Qualitative research enables a much deeper understanding of the customer experience and opinion but is harder to analyze. 

For example, returning to our example of experiencing bugs in software, a qualitative researcher may approach this question as follows: 

Q: How often do you experience bugs when using our software? Explain in detail when and where this occurs. 

A: I only experience bugs when using the accounting tool of the application. Whenever I try to export a report of my accounts, the app glitches and deletes my data. 

This answer provides specific examples to the researcher and would make solving the problem much simpler. This is reflected in how business practices and software development intersect, as business needs are shaping new technology, a response that is driven through research. 

However, if you are dealing with hundreds of responses, getting through them all can be challenging. 

3 Benefits of Consumer Research 

1. provides valuable market insight.

Consumer research provides insights that you cannot get from analytics alone, as it gives you insight into the thoughts and feelings of the consumers. These insights are extremely valuable, as if you know how to use customer analytics , you can apply these skills to implementing the data gathered from your consumer research. 

2. Improve Marketing and Business Decisions 

Once you have gained these insights, consumer research can actually be used to inform your marketing and business decisions and can even help the creation of brand marketing reports . For example, your research could suggest that your business lacks organization across its teams. This could lead to your business investing in WFM tools and ultimately revolutionizing its reputation. 

3. Assists in Determining Market Position

Another benefit of consumer research is that it can provide insights into where your business sits within the market. You can find out whether you are preferred to your competition or vice versa, and why. It helps your business define its market position and make adjustments to improve this or solidify its brand identity. 

5 Methods of Consumer Research 

There are many different methods of conducting customer research. In this section, we will go through some of the key options available. 

Interviews are a great way to conduct consumer research. The nature of spoken conversation often enables previously unconsidered ideas to come up naturally and opens up opportunities for discussions that reveal deeper insights. Furthermore, if you have access to software offering a free video call online , these interviews no longer need to be done in person. 

• Focus Groups

Interviews can be conducted in focus groups where a select group of individuals discuss and offer their opinions on a matter together. These individuals might be from the same customer sectors or may represent different perspectives. How you choose to structure these is up to you. 

• One-on-one Interviews

Alternatively, you may prefer to approach these with one-on-one interviews. This form of interview can often lead to a more in-depth conversation but, for logical reasons, are less time-efficient and can miss out on the group dynamic spurring new ideas. 

Surveys are a written alternative to interviews and do not require a researcher to be present at the time of research. They can also be sent to a much larger group of respondents (meaning a more detailed set of data) and can be a combination of quantitative and qualitative responses. 

Analytics is nothing new to anyone working in marketing, and it can be an excellent tool for conducting consumer research. Analytics will provide quantitative insights into consumer behavior, such as conversion rates and average sale values, and can contribute to consumer research. 

Review Mining

Review mining can be a great way to gain consumer insights, and it doesn’t involve actively pursuing new research. 

Previous reviews can often provide a mixture of quantitative and qualitative research through written descriptions and “star” system reviews. However, this method limits you to what is already available, and these reviews may not specifically target areas you are keen to research. 

Secondary Research

Secondary research refers to looking at previously created research in your industry. Lots of this can be accessed online, and even if this isn’t the method you primarily choose to use, it can be a great starting point to guide your own research. 

5 Steps to Conduct Consumer Research

1. set smart research goals and objectives.

SMART goals should be set before any business pursuit. Standing for specific, measurable, agreed, realistic, and time-bounded, these goals can help guide your research and avoid going off topic.

2. Determine the Research Methodology and Audience

As previously mentioned, there are several different methods of conducting consumer research. Choosing from the list above (and you are not limited to only one method), you should cover both quantitative and qualitative data for the best insight. 

Develop a Buyer Persona

Develop a buyer persona in order to determine who your audience will be for the research. Buyer personas can be seen somewhat like “characters” in a story. They have certain wants, motivations, and behavior patterns. They make up your customer segments and who the research will target. 

3. Conduct Research and Compile Data Findings

Put the research into action: send out surveys, schedule interviews, review your google analytics. Put all your findings into a spreadsheet, and begin to group responses logically. With qualitative data, it may be useful to identify “themes” in responses and categorize them according to these. 

Once data is compiled, it is recommended to present it in a visually effective report , including charts or graphs depending on the content. 

4. Analyze and Interpret Data Results

Take your data and consider what the information is telling you. Are you seeing frequent negative responses in one area? Do customers feel like you are overpricing your service? Interpret the data and come to conclusions as to what your business may need to do. 

5. Take Action in Response to the Findings

Put your findings into action! If you are seeing consistent weaknesses in one area, this is a great time to bring the team together and brainstorm ideas to work around this and improve your business. When you implement changes that benefit the customers, you will see results coming back around to you in the form of increased engagement. 

Key Takeaway

Consumer research is a brilliant way to ensure the success of any business. Enabling you to see how your customers view your company and gain key insights into how your business can improve. Provided your research has clear goals and gathers in-depth data, there is no reason your research shouldn’t be a raging success! 

Grace Lau is the Director of Growth Content at Dialpad , an AI-powered cloud communication platform that fosters better team collaboration and boosts lead generation strategies . She has over 10 years of experience in content writing and strategy. Currently, she is responsible for leading branded and editorial content strategies, partnering with SEO and Ops teams to build and nurture content. Here is her LinkedIn .

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What is Customer Satisfaction Research? Definition, Importance and Process

By Nick Jain

Published on: September 8, 2023

Table of Contents

What is Customer Satisfaction Research?

Importance of customer satisfaction research, process of customer satisfaction research.

Customer Satisfaction Research is defined as a systematic process of collecting, analyzing, and interpreting feedback and data from customers to assess their level of satisfaction with a product, service, or overall experience provided by a company. This research aims to measure and understand customers’ perceptions, expectations, and sentiments regarding their interactions with a business. The primary goal of customer satisfaction research is to identify areas where a company can improve its offerings and customer service to enhance customer loyalty, retention, and overall business success.

Key components of customer satisfaction research include:

• Data Collection: Gathering feedback and data from customers can be done through various methods, including surveys, interviews, focus groups , online reviews analysis, and social media monitoring. The choice of data collection method depends on the research objectives and the nature of the business.
• Measurement: Customer satisfaction is typically measured on a scale, often ranging from highly satisfied to highly dissatisfied. Common scales include Likert scales (e.g., 1 to 5 or 1 to 7), Net Promoter Score (NPS), or a simple yes/no response to a satisfaction question.
• Analysis: After collecting data, researchers analyze it to identify trends, patterns, and correlations. This analysis helps in understanding the factors that influence customer satisfaction, as well as areas where improvements are needed.
• Action Planning: Based on the insights gained from the research, businesses develop action plans to address areas of dissatisfaction or improvement. These plans may involve changes to products, services, customer support, or other aspects of the customer experience.
• Continuous Monitoring: Customer satisfaction research is an ongoing process. Companies regularly collect and analyze customer feedback to ensure that improvements are effective and that satisfaction levels are consistently high.

Customer satisfaction research serves several essential purposes for businesses:

• Identifying Weaknesses: It helps businesses pinpoint specific areas or touchpoints where customers are dissatisfied, allowing for targeted improvements.
• Enhancing Customer Loyalty: Satisfied customers are more likely to remain loyal and continue doing business with a company. Research helps in understanding what drives customer loyalty.
• Reputation Management: Positive customer experiences can lead to positive word-of-mouth, while negative experiences can harm a company’s reputation. Research helps in managing and improving brand perception.
• Competitive Advantage: Businesses can use customer satisfaction research to outperform competitors by providing superior products and services that align with customer expectations.
• Innovation: Customer feedback often contains valuable ideas for innovation and product development, which can drive growth and market differentiation.

Customer satisfaction research is a systematic approach to understanding and improving customer experiences. It plays a crucial role in helping businesses meet customer expectations, enhance loyalty, and ultimately achieve long-term success in a competitive market.

The importance of customer satisfaction research cannot be overstated in today’s business environment. It serves as a vital tool for companies to understand, measure, and enhance their customers’ contentment and overall experience. Here are some key reasons why customer satisfaction research is of utmost importance:

1. Customer Retention: Satisfied customers are more likely to remain loyal and continue doing business with a company. Customer satisfaction research helps in identifying areas where improvements are needed to retain existing customers, reducing churn rates, and preserving valuable revenue streams.

2. Repeat Business: Happy customers are more likely to make repeat purchases and engage in ongoing business relationships. Understanding what satisfies your customers can lead to increased sales and higher customer lifetime value.

3. Positive Word-of-Mouth: Satisfied customers often become brand advocates. They are more likely to recommend your products or services to others, leading to positive word-of-mouth marketing. This organic promotion can attract new customers at a reduced acquisition cost.

4. Enhanced Brand Reputation: High levels of customer satisfaction contribute to a positive brand reputation. When customers consistently have positive experiences with your business, your brand becomes associated with quality, reliability, and trustworthiness.

5. Competitive Advantage: In a competitive marketplace, delivering exceptional customer experiences can set your business apart from rivals. Customer satisfaction research helps you identify areas where you can outperform your competition and gain a competitive edge.

6. Reduced Customer Service Costs: By addressing common pain points and improving customer satisfaction, you can reduce the number of support inquiries and complaints. This can lead to lower customer service costs and improved operational efficiency.

7. Innovation and Product Development: Customer feedback collected through research often contains valuable insights and ideas for innovation and product development. Understanding customer needs and preferences can guide the creation of new offerings that align with market demands.

8. Data-Driven Decision Making: Customer satisfaction research provides data and metrics that can guide strategic decision-making. It allows businesses to make informed choices about product improvements, marketing strategies, and resource allocation.

9. Risk Mitigation: Identifying and addressing customer dissatisfaction early can help mitigate the risk of negative public relations incidents, customer defection, or legal issues resulting from customer complaints.

10. Employee Engagement: Satisfied customers often coincide with engaged and motivated employees. Employees who see the positive impact of their work on customer satisfaction are more likely to be enthusiastic and committed to their roles.

11. Long-Term Business Sustainability: Maintaining high levels of customer satisfaction contributes to the long-term sustainability and growth of a business. It helps create a stable customer base that provides ongoing revenue.

12. Customer-Centric Culture: Customer satisfaction research fosters a customer-centric culture within a company, where employees are encouraged to prioritize customer needs and continuously seek ways to improve the customer experience.

Customer satisfaction research is a powerful tool for businesses to gauge customer sentiment, identify areas for improvement, and ultimately enhance customer loyalty and profitability. In an era where customer expectations are continually evolving, understanding and meeting those expectations is essential for long-term success. By actively investing in customer satisfaction research, businesses can adapt and thrive in an ever-changing marketplace.

Learn more: What is Customer Research?

The process of conducting customer satisfaction research involves several key steps to gather, analyze, and act upon feedback and data from customers. Here is a step-by-step guide to conducting customer satisfaction research:

1. Define Research Objectives

Clearly define the goals and objectives of your customer satisfaction research. What specific aspects of customer satisfaction do you want to measure or improve? Are you focused on overall satisfaction, product satisfaction, service satisfaction, or a combination of these?

2. Select Research Methods

Choose the appropriate research methods that align with your objectives. Common methods include surveys, interviews, focus groups , online reviews analysis, social media monitoring, and feedback forms. Consider the advantages and limitations of each method and select the one(s) that best suit your needs.

3. Identify Your Target Audience

Define your target audience or customer segment for the research. Ensure that your sample group is representative of your customer base to obtain accurate insights.

4. Create Research Instruments

Develop the research instruments, such as survey questionnaires, interview scripts, or discussion guides. Make certain that your queries are precise, impartial, and closely linked to your research goals.

5. Data Collection

Implement your chosen research methods to collect data from customers. This may involve distributing surveys, conducting interviews or focus groups , monitoring online reviews and social media mentions, or providing feedback forms at various touchpoints.

6. Analyze Data

Once data is collected, analyze it systematically. Look for trends, patterns, and correlations in the responses. Use statistical analysis techniques to draw meaningful insights from the data.

7. Interpret Findings

Analyze the discoveries within the framework of your research objectives. What do the data and insights reveal about customer satisfaction levels and the factors influencing them? Recognize the strengths and shortcomings in your offerings.

8. Segmentation

Segment your data based on various criteria (e.g., demographics, purchase history, customer loyalty) to uncover specific trends within different customer groups. This allows for more targeted action plans.

9. Benchmarking

Compare your customer satisfaction metrics to industry benchmarks or your own historical data to gauge your performance relative to others or your past performance.

10. Action Planning

Develop actionable strategies and plans based on the insights gained from the research . Pinpoint precise areas requiring enhancement and establish their priority. Develop a plan for addressing these concerns.

11. Implementation

Put your action plans into practice. Implement changes, whether they involve product improvements, service enhancements, or process optimizations. Ensure that relevant teams are aligned and committed to executing these changes.

12. Monitoring and Feedback Loop

Continuously monitor the impact of your improvements. Collect ongoing customer feedback through surveys or other channels to assess whether the changes are positively affecting customer satisfaction.

13. Communication

Share the results of your customer satisfaction research with key stakeholders within your organization. Transparency and collaboration are essential for garnering support and resources for improvement initiatives.

14. Iterate and Repeat

Customer satisfaction research should be an ongoing process. Regularly repeat the research to track changes in customer sentiment and satisfaction levels. Use the feedback loop to iterate and refine your strategies.

15. Celebrate Success

Acknowledge and celebrate successes and improvements in customer satisfaction. Recognize the efforts of teams involved in the process to maintain motivation and commitment to ongoing improvement.

By following these steps in the customer satisfaction research process, businesses can continuously enhance the customer experience, improve customer loyalty, and ultimately achieve long-term success in the marketplace.

Learn more: What is Customer Feedback Analysis?

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17 Ways to Conduct Customer Research Right Now & Collect Valuable Feedback

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Enjoy reading this blog post written by our experts or partners.

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Whether you’re marketing a brand new startup or a seasoned veteran, there’s no substitute for real customer feedback and research.

After all, you can’t market anything effectively if you don’t know who you’re selling to.

Customer research is such a crucial part of marketing that, when we asked survey respondents how important they considered customer research to be, nearly 93% rated it as “Very Important” or “Crucially Important.”

“Marketers need to conduct customer research at the very least annually. In order to sell to someone, you need to know their needs,” said Tim Brown of Hook Agency .

Brown’s comment got us thinking—if customer research is so important, how often are people doing it? When we asked those same marketers that question, we got some varied responses. But crucially, the majority skewed toward more often, with over 25% reporting quarterly customer research efforts and nearly 20% reporting they conduct customer research daily .

So what are marketers actually doing to conduct that customer research? When we asked our respondents about that, there were 4 clear winners that more than half of the marketers we spoke with reported using:

• Customer interviews
• Email surveys
• Analytics analysis
• Online research

But we also heard about many other creative ways to conduct customer research that we hadn’t thought of before.

On that note, here are the 20 customer research methods marketers shared with us.

1. Leverage Existing Customer Reviews

Brian Jensen of Congruent Digital recommended turning to a familiar source for customer research: online reviews. “We used a tool called Apify to crawl and return all of our client’s reviews into a database. We then put into a text analysis tool to find the top keywords and phrases (attributes) customers used in their reviews.”

Jensen says they used this data to help improve the client’s messaging.

“Once we had the data and knew by occurrences what their customers enjoyed most about their experience, we updated ads and landing pages to better identify with the needs and expectations of prospects.”

2. Spend a Day in Your Customer’s Office

Phil Strazzulla of SelectSoftware shared another customer research method we hadn’t heard about before. Strazzulla recommended spending a full day, in-office with your customer, saying “This allows me to have informal conversations with the key stakeholders I need to market to in order to better understand their challenges, goals, language, and personalities.”

“Simply reach out to a potential or current customer and ask if you can work from their space for a day,” Strazzulla explained. “And have as much free time as you can to walk around and talk to people in the office about what they do and how you can help them with your product.”

3. Turn to Data Analytics

Analytics analysis was one of the top 4 answers we heard—but it’s a broad term, so we were interested to learn more about what marketers do with analytics.

“When we do customer and product research, we start by understanding how customers are using the tool by looking at their data and usage, and then benchmarking it with their industry,” said Supratim Da Dam of CallPage . “This allows us to have a solid idea of how our customers are deploying our solution, the gaps, successes, blockers, and more.”

Robert Baillieul of Lombardi Publishing uses Twitter Analytics to identify topics and pains that resonate with their customers. “Anything that consistently generates engagement rates north of 5% indicates a huge pain point for your customer—sometimes issues they would never admit to out loud. You can then turn these insights into new products, services, or content.”

“We get data from many tools we’re using (email marketing, website analytics, social media, and more),” explained Jonathan Aufray of Growth Hackers . “With the help of a great data analyst and a tool like Google Data Studio, we can quickly analyze our customers.”

Vira Vielmann of Seventh Scout says they turn to social media analytics most often. “We typically utilize social media analytics to learn more about the audience engaging with us. This gives us an amazing insight into their demographics and interests. They also let us know what topics and posts are doing well and which aren’t performing the best, so we can adjust our strategy and editorial calendars as needed.”  

4. Collect Customer Survey Responses

“My favorite way to get customer research is to send out an email survey,” James Pollard of The Advisor Coach said. “I keep it short (about five or six questions) and only ask them the questions that will have the biggest impact on my business.”

Based on the marketers we spoke with, there are more benefits to this type of research to learn the voice of customer than you may expect.

“When you really pay attention to the way that people share information with you,” Amber Vilhauer of NGNG Enterprises said, “you’ll notice your audience using specific verbiage and wording that you can bake into your website. Often times the way that you would describe your services is very different than the way that a customer or prospect would describe those services.”

“Ultimately, people want good products that will serve them well,” Mr. SR of Semi-Retire Plan explained, “so they do have an interest in giving you helpful information to improve your —especially if they’re an existing customer who already has an affinity for your brand.”

That said, marketing consultant Farheen Gill suggests giving customers a little added incentive. “Include them in the last phase of your welcome email journeys, but also offer giveaways for other surveys you need to run throughout the year (i.e. ‘Respond today to be entered into a drawing for a $50 gift card’).”

“What’s important,” said Andrea Loubier of Mailbird , “is that you dig deep with your surveys. Asking generic questions isn’t going to get you very far. Make sure your multiple-choice questions offer diverse answers and don’t be afraid to ask the hard questions. You may be shocked at just how much your customers are willing to share.”

Louis Watton of Shiply suggested another tip for getting insightful, honest answers. “One creative approach we’ve used in customer research is not letting interviewees know the company conducting the research at first.”

Explaining, Watton added, “Often we’ve found that customers will hold back on criticism if they know you work for that company. The most valuable insights and potential improvements we’ve learned have come from asking broader questions about the industry, which allows them to talk freely without worrying about insulting anyone.”

“We launch every new survey or questionnaire with a video,” said Charles Musselwhite of FunLovingCouples . “We don’t ask any more than 12 questions at a time, and we always add in a weird and obscure question or two to keep people on their toes and engaged.”

5. Watch Customers Use Your Product

Samuel Wheeler of Inseev Interactive offered up another top-notch tip, recommending marketers actually watch customers using the product, navigating the website, interacting with content, and more.

“It’s a great idea to ask users to narrate their thought process as they navigate the page and ask them to actually take an action (purchase or form submission). In addition to asking the users to talk through their decision-making process.”

“It’s a great way to get both quantitative and qualitative data,“ Wheeler added.

If you need to understand how customers are using your product to gather feedback, one tool you should consider for customer feedback is Usersnap. This helpful tool allows product managers, software engineers, designers, and marketers to instantly collect information from users on-site through screen captures, screen recordings, surveys, feature requests, menu buttons, in-app forms, visual drawings, and bug reports.

Another  feedback tool  you might consider to crowdsource customer feedback and feature requests is UseResponse. This tool allows you to create feedback communities where customers can post their feedback, while others can comment and upvote it.

Pro Tip: Here Is Your Go-To Dashboard For Measuring the Performance of Your Customer Support Team

No matter your role in customer support – agent, manager, or VP – your core focus is to ensure that customers’ issues, complaints, and information requests are always dealt with promptly and efficiently. But to stay on track, you may have to spend hours manually compiling data from different tools into a comprehensive report. Now you can quickly monitor and analyze your customer service performance data from Intercom in a single dashboard that monitors fundamental metrics, such as:

• New conversations . Track the total number of new conversations your customer support team handles daily, weekly, monthly, or within the specified date range.
• Open conversations by team member . View the total number of conversations in your support inbox that are still open and find out which team members are handling them.
• Leads . Track the number of leads generated by your customer support team within a specified date range. Dig deeper to learn the nature of the messages that help convert visitors to leads, and use your insights to improve future conversations.
• Users by tag name . View the total number of conversations your customer support team has handled over time and see how your team members tagged those messages in Intercom. Using tags makes it easier for anyone monitoring the dashboard to learn more about customer needs, interests, and issues.

Now you can benefit from the experience of our customer support experts, who have put together a plug-and-play Databox template that contains all the essential metrics for monitoring and analyzing the performance of your customer support reps. It’s simple to implement and start using as a standalone dashboard or in customer service reports, and best of all, it’s free!

You can easily set it up in just a few clicks – no coding required.

To set up the dashboard, follow these 3 simple steps:

Step 1: Get the template 

Step 2: Connect your Intercom account with Databox. 

Step 3: Watch your dashboard populate in seconds.

6. Leverage Publicly Available Data

We talk a lot about gathering and analyzing data these days, but one thing marketers often forget about is the wealth of existing data that are publicly available online. “A lot of people overlook the incredible amount of data that the government and nonprofits collect that can be useful for customer research,” said Jeromy Sonne of Reverb Agency .

“The most creative approach I’ve used to learn more about my customers is public records, which give me additional information about the customer’s location, demographics, behavioral specialties,” added Emily Andrews of RecordsFinder . “Public records have a big database, which helps me to understand how better I can sell my clients’ goods or services.”

Carmine Mastropierro of Mastro Commerce told us about a hybrid customer research process: “One approach I’ve used to learn more about my customers is a mix of online research and market research tools.”

“Studying industry reports,” Mastropierro explained, “allowed me to get a broad overview of who my customers are and how they behave. Then, Google Analytics and other online tools helped me narrow down demographics, interests, and other behaviors to refine my audience.

7. Use Facebook Audience Insights

Casey Hill of Bonjoro also recommended pulling customer data from where it’s readily available already. In Hill’s case, that’s Facebook’s Audience Insights tool.

“It’s a free tool through Facebook,” Hill explained, “and it will give you information on any intended audience.” According to Hill, Audience Insights can help marketers answer questions like:

• What kind of jobs do customers have?
• When are they active online?
• What pages do they follow?

“It’s an incredible tool for customer research that many people aren’t aware exists.”

8. Have a One-on-One Conversation

“I find that doing a 30-minute video call beats every other type of research,” said Corey Haines of Hey Marketers . “With the right questions in hand and a friendly conversational tone, so much can be uncovered that you would never know otherwise.”

Sarah McIntyre of Bright Inbound Marketing agreed with Haines, saying, “Actually talking with people is critically important to understand, not just what they think about your product or service, but how they found you, what the sales process was like, who else they were considering, why they chose you. Unless you actually ask, you’ll be running your marketing based on assumptions.”

According to Renee Bauer, Hello Marketing Agency abides by a similar strategy for customer research. “We do regular NPS surveys for a client, and we ask responders to let us know if they are willing to participate in a one-on-one interview. These interviews serve as a helpful supplement to persona research, and provide actionable information for our client about what’s important to their current customers and how they need to improve their service.”

“Face to face encounters in a more social setting (as opposed to an interview or focus group) will give you the most honest, instinctive, and digestible feedback,” said Kyle Turk of Keynote Search.

“Online feedback methods, although they still provide great feedback, allows the user to spend too much time thinking of a response, and the ability to manipulate their responses. It also really only captures your promoters and detractors. The core customer group that is neutral about your product or service will not engage in the feedback, leaving a large gap in data.”

Anna Kaine of ESM Inbound echoed Turk, noting that “picking up the phone for a talk with customers is always more personal and genuine than just sending out a questionnaire—because you can really probe and show you’re listening. It’s a far more human experience.”

“We are clear and open about the focus of the calls, and they’re always happy to help us – after all, it’s in their best interests for us to focus closer on their pain points,” Kaine added.

Paige Arnof-Fenn of Mavens & Moguls recommended make a tour of customer interviews. “Go on a Listening Tour. Ask a few smart, open-ended questions, then sit back and take notice. Start listening with no strings attached and you’ll be amazed at what you find.”

Ever Increasing Circles ’ Alistair Dodds seconded Arnof-Fenn’s last point, adding, “We’ve found out things that I don’t think would have ever come up in an office or business environment. And it’s helped us to really focus in on how to get the client to their real objective.”

9. Conduct Research With Google

It’s no surprise that the king, queen, and jester of online research is, of course, Google. But the marketers we spoke with noted so many novel ways to use Google search for customer research, including:

• Reading competitors’ customer reviews on Google My Business
• Researching the way customers speak about your product and industry
• Tailoring content toward real customer pain points and questions

“Google is an excellent resource to learn more about your customers, without the use of expensive tools,” said Ben Johnston of Sagefrog Marketing Group . “If you’re in a competitive space, look at your competition’s Google My Business profiles and read the reviews of satisfied and unsatisfied customers to learn what real customers like or don’t like about your direct competition.

Roman Zhyvitsk of Travel SEO Agency touted the importance of using Google to better understand how your customers speak about (and search for) your business. “When you sell your products or services online, it is highly important to know what search phrases people use to find it. Very often it is not as obvious as you might think.”

Johnston also noted how Google can help with ensuring content resonates with your customers, saying, “You can refine your content ideas to actually engage with your customer base by looking at ‘People Also Ask’ or ‘People Also Search For.’ That’s a direct insight into what kinds of questions your customer base is asking and what they’re interested in.”

Set Up Google Alerts for Customers and Prospects

In addition to conducting manual customer research on Google, Carlos Puig of BUNCH shared another pro tip: Google Alerts.

“Right after signing a contract with a new customer, I strongly recommend setting up a Google Alert for the name of the company and the names of the people you closed the deal with. Google will keep pushing relevant information that will help you understand the situation of your client and detect potential upsells.”

10. Ask Customers to Rate Your UX

Much of the advice we heard focused on overall customer information. But Victor Antiu of Sleek Bill says they focus on the micro aspects of customer experiences, too.

“Throughout the app, we marked micro-conversions. When the user finishes one (for example creates and sends an invoice), we show a small rating bar and based on the score he gives us, we either show him a small survey to find out what was hard, or we thank him and ask what we can improve.”

“It’s a similar system to what Skype and Booking.com do,” Antiu explained. “It’s a simple way to find pain points or issues in various funnels.”

11. Use Social Listening

“Social media is probably the best tool that you could use to understand the thought process of your client,” said Harry Gandia of Igniting Movement . “Social media can help a marketer discover what their target audience is thinking in real-time. Not many other mediums can offer that. And it’s totally free.”

Many of the marketers we spoke with invoked one form of social listening or another. After all, social media is where customers hang out—regardless of who your customers are.

Find Their Online Groups and Hangouts

“One approach we use to learn more about our customers,” Kelsey Miller of Pepperland Marketing explained, “is to find the online groups, forums, and communities that they frequent. This can be in the form of Facebook groups, Reddit threads, industry-specific forums, hashtags, and so on. This is helpful in understanding how these people interact with each other, the questions they are asking, the challenges they are facing, and so much more.”

Alexandra Sheehan of Coach Content recommends turning to Facebook Groups specifically. “I love joining Facebook groups that my audience is likely to be a part of and just observing their behavior. This shows you what really makes them tick. The things that annoy them, their true pain points, their sense of humor, little nuances like that.”

“ Find out where your customers are hanging out online,” advised Vinoth AJ of Apoyo Corp , adding, “One proven method is Quora. All we have to do is type a topic and it will display all questions related to that topic. Go ahead and read all the questions related to your market.”

Create Your Own Group

While many marketers recommend going where the customers are, there’s also some benefit to taking the Field of Dreams approach.

“By far the best way to learn more about our customers has been to create a dedicated Facebook group around our products,” said Jonathan Chan of Insane Growth . “Not only does this give us the ability to foster a real sense of community around our brand, but we have routine access to the most highly-engaged members of our audience.”

Jack Paxtone of VYPER echoed Chan, explaining, “Hosting a forum either on our website or on Reddit turned out to be a great way to build a database of feedback from our clients, while also engaging with them to build a strong relationship for our brand.”

“The Vyper Facebook Group is currently our most popular platform for getting to know our customers,” Paxtone added. “We can freely interact with each other, understand their likes and dislikes, and also request valuable feedback when we are beta testing new products and services.”

Jarrod Miller-Dean of Housecall Pro added, “We utilize community outreach in our private Facebook group. For example, by posing a question in the group and asking members for their help and response.”

12. Use Heatmap Tools to Understand How Customers See Your Website

Customer research is about more than just who your customers are. It’s also about understanding how they interact with your brand and your product. That’s why Sneh Ratna Choudhary of Beaconstac recommended using a heat mapping tool to better understand and optimize their website for the customers visiting.

“We’ve been using Hotjar to understand the exact pain points of users to implement a human-centered design.”

“For instance,” Choudhary explained, “our free QR Code Generator tool was receiving visitors, but there weren’t any real conversions. We looked at Hotjar videos only to find out that we had way too many CTAs to begin with. Upon realizing this, we scaled down our CTA to include only 3 major CTAs and our visitor-to-trial conversion rate is currently hovering at 15.6%.”

13. Keep It Informal

For some, customer research can feel like a weighty, formal undertaking—but it doesn’t have to be, and many of the marketers we heard from reminded us of that.

“So many business owners and entrepreneurs think that market research is this big, complicated thing,” Carla Williams Johnson of Carli Communications pointed out. “And, while you can conduct structured surveys and questionnaires, you can also simply ask your customers directly what they think of an idea that you may have.”

“Sometimes that direct, informal approach can give you the best feedback,” Johnson added.

Liz Courtney of BBMG took that idea to the next level, saying, “To get more realistic and meaningful insight into consumers’ needs, aspirations and behavior, we try to connect with them on their own turf. Visiting them in their homes, going shopping with them, or chatting with them in pairs with a friend rather than forcing them into unnatural settings like sterile focus groups or relying only on multiple-choice surveys.”

14. Tap Your Network for Feedback

Kathleen Marrero of First Fig Marketing & Consulting emphasized the effect an existing relationship can have on the kind of customer research and feedback you end up with, suggesting your network is a great place to start.

“I have found the best way to learn more about potential customers is to open up a friendly dialogue with connections I have on social media platforms. I have reached out to numerous connections on sites like LinkedIn and asked for a real, honest conversation about whatever space I am gathering information within, the good and bad and any other information that would help me better serve the community.”

“I have found that people are very willing to offer insight if there is no sales pitch,” Marrero added.

15. Leverage Your Email Subscribers

“Reaching out to email subscribers to ask what’s bothering them is one of the most effective ways to learn more about customers,” said Priscilla Tan of Content Kapow .

“Two weeks ago,” Tan shared, “I was struggling to write a blog post. I didn’t know which topics to focus on. Rather than going with my gut, I asked my subscribers. I gave them 3 options and picked the one with the most number of votes. Not only did it help with topic development, but it also helped me to dig deeper into the pain points they’re facing at work.”

16. Offer a Beta Version of Your Product in Exchange for Feedback

One common thread throughout the responses we heard was that, while customers do have an incentive to help you create a better product for them, that isn’t always enough to entice feedback or survey responses.

To combat that problem, Carsten Schaefer of Crowdy.ai suggested offering a beta or paired-down version of your product in exchange.

“We launched a beta for 100 days before going live with our product. We gave our beta users all the features completely free in exchange for one thing: feedback about our product and how they used it for their business,” Schaefer explained. “It has brought us incredible insights which we used in the final iteration of the product.”

17. Learn from Live Chat and Support Interactions

If there’s one painfully overlooked source of customer research, it’s the support team. Few other teams within a business have the kind of direct contact with customers that customer support pros see every day.

Zack Naylor of Aurelius said, “I make it a point to answer every single live chat we get on our website for product questions and requests. Often what happens is that I get to learn a lot about potential customers from what they’re looking for and end up being able to schedule a live call to dive deeper and learn more.”

Get to Know Your Customers

Customers are the lifeblood of every successful business, and finding business traction and growth depends on your ability to get to know and understand your customers.

Whether you’re ready to go big with a large, organized customer survey or simply want to chat one-on-one with a few customers, you’ll emerge better equipped to serve their needs and grow the business.

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8 Key Stages in the Consumer Research Strategy

July 8 2022

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What Is Consumer Insights Research And Why It's Important For Any Brand?

Consumer research process and steps, how does peekage run market research, how to optimize the process of conducting consumer research.

If you want to catch and keep your consumer's attention , you really need to peruse the options available on your menu and give them something smart based on their preferences.

Your marketing strategy should not be based on your hunch but solid verifiable facts. In order to grow as a business, you need to know how your products & services are performing with your target audiences, how those consumers are responding to your campaigns, and how these customers feel about your brand.

Customer research can provide you with the missing information.

In today's consumer-centric world, research is key to personalization of products & services, and consistently delivering an excellent experience to your customers comes with a number of benefits, such as:

• Increased purchase frequency
• Higher average order values
• Better referrals and cheaper acquisitions

Additionally, acquiring insights on consumer needs gives you a strategic position over the race on delivering customers what they want -more personalized products and experiences. This way you stay ahead of your competitors and remain in line with consumers' needs.

At its core, consumer research focuses on understanding your consumers by exploring their attitudes, needs, motivations, and behavior as they relate to your brand & products. This helps you to better identify, understand, investigate and hold your customers.

It's nothing unexpected that the majority of professional advertisers make their strategic decisions after a phase of extensive consumer research process.

Read also: Differences Between Market Research and Consumer Insights Research

Consumer insights research is the process of recognizing the inclinations, attitudes, inspirations, and purchasing behavior of the targeted consumers. Utilizing consumer research strategies on this data, shared characteristics among consumer groups are distinguished and classified into client segments and buyer personas. This information then used to make promoting campaigns focusing on a particular fragment or persona.

Consumer research is the key to enhancing your products & services and effectively advertising to clients who want to do commercial enterprise with you. Interviews, surveys, and other consumer research techniques are your dearest companions with regards to aiding your organization reliably to increment its income year on year.

Consumer research strategy is the procedure of gathering facts to first identify the target audiences and afterward focus on their inclinations, insights, attitudes, and shopping drivers for an item, service, or brand.

The main purposes of consumer research are:

• Formalize the ideal customer personas
• Upgrade brand positioning 
• Discover new or similar consumers
• Get feedback on current products & services
• Mapping the customer decision-making procedure

Customer research is a part of market research that uses research techniques to provide actionable information about what clients need. Utilizing this data businesses can make changes in their items and services, making them more client-centric thereby expanding consumer loyalty.

Consumer research helps brands understand consumer psychology and create purchasing behavior profiles for them.

A business that has an in-depth comprehension of the client decision-making process is most likely to design an item, decide on a certain price for it, establish a distribution path and promote a product based on customer research insights such that it produces increased consumer satisfaction and loyalty.

The ultimate goal of consumer research is to make a more profound understanding of your target client. You need to know what they care about and what impacts them to make purchasing decisions. This helps you to target them with more customized and significant brand experiences.

Consumers are now inundated with various options & choices and they have boundless data about these products readily available. In fact, they have power over their choices and want only the best.

So how do you make an unforgettable customer experience? By research!

By identifying the needs and inclinations of your clients, you can develop effective methods and strategies to use in your marketing plan. This will help you:

• Leverage your brand positioning compared to the competitors
• Help empower your marketing and product strategy
• Exclude weak points and lessen redundancies
• Remain in line with client opinion ahead of new product launches
• Draw in more clients
• Set the optimized price for your products
• Produce the proper marketing message
• Increase how much your clients spend
• Increase how frequently your clients spend
• Increase your sales
• Decrease your costs
• Refine your approach to customer support.

Now that you know what consumer research is and you understand its importance in developing your business, let's take a closer look at how it's done; the process & steps of conducting consumer insight research.

Also read: How Consumer Insights Help Your Business Grow

The consumer research process began as an extension of the market research process. Just as the results of market research are used to further develop the decision-making potential of a brand or business, so is consumer research.

Consumer research is a sequential procedure. It must be well organized, tied together by the proper method, and upheld by supporting facilities and tools. Without these considerations, you may get into research chaos.

Therefore, you need a framework for conducting consumer research. The consumer research process can be divided into the following steps:

1. Develop research goals

Developing research goals is actually answering the question; "why is the research being conducted? to find out what?" A statement of consumer research objectives can help emphasize the purpose.

2. Define your research personas

A target consumer addresses the specific client segments and ideal buyer personas you wish to analyze.

3. Select your research methods and tools

Before you jump into the research phase, you should create a supporting "foundation". That is to distinguish your key method for gathering information and data.

Consumer data comes in two structures:

Quantitative - data, in the form of numbers

Quantitative consumer research includes extracting facts and statistics from customer opinions. By posing questions like, "how many", "how often", or "how likely", you can record customer needs and inclinations as specific numbers.

Utilizing a qualitative research method, you can gather information around measures such as duration, price, amount, length, etc. You can then utilize this information to shape your product's marketing.

Qualitative - non-numerical data that describe and characterize

A qualitative consumer research strategy gathers the conversational voice of customers (VOC), making sense of the inspirations behind customer behaviors. Open-ended questions, conversations, and observations can help us answer the whats, whys, and hows of consumers' decisions. Furthermore, develop a better comprehension of the consumers' attitudes, beliefs, and values.

Also read: Seven Consumer Research Methods; 2022 Version

4. Collect secondary data

Secondary research tries to interpret your audience's behaviors by utilizing internal and external data. CRM or social media analytics, and different kinds of BI tools come to use here. Utilizing external information such as trend reports, market statistics, and public polls can also help obtain a more accurate image of your target clients.

Secondary research is a strong method to analyze the competition, understand your actual position in the market, and discover new secondary consumers.

Collect secondary data as the earliest stage of your research, it helps finding out if the research has been conducted before and if there is any information that can be used by your business to make informed decisions regarding customers.

Secondary research adds additional background information to your brand strategy. By discovering what your competitors do and finding out what other factors and variables affect the demand on the market, you can refine your brand differentiation on the market.

Thus, as part of customer research, you need to assess the competition. Specifically, collect data about:

• Competition market positioning
• Brand differentiators
• Macro market trends
• Niche market trends

5. Primary research

Primary research can be an exploratory and explicit phase of your consumer research. In the principal case, you are projecting a wider net to comprehend the general customer opinion and market trends. Exploratory research is helpful for consumer segmentation and buyer persona development.

Explicit consumer research plans put the magnifying lens on distinguished areas of interest like brand preference or product usability. For this situation, it's a good idea to work with a specific consumer segment and ask questions related to a specific issue.

In primary research brands or businesses collect their own information or employ a third party to gather information for them. This kind of research utilizes different data collection methods (qualitative and quantitative).

6. Collect and analyze information

Data is gathered and analyzed and inference is drawn to comprehend client behavior and purchase pattern.

7. Prepare a report

At the final stages of your consumer research process, a report is prepared based on all the findings by analyzing information collected so that businesses are able to make informed decisions and think of all probabilities related to customer behavior. By incorporating the study, businesses can become more customer-centric and provide products or services that will help them achieve customer satisfaction.

8. Put consumer research to action

The ultimate objective of consumer research is to illuminate your actions. There are numerous excellent ways of utilizing customer research information:

• Refine your brand positioning and brand statement
• Develop strategies for engaging with secondary clients
• Foster new creative and collateral for advertisement campaigns
• Refine your advertisement targeting to lessen promotion waste
• Expand into new markets with more confidence

Utilizing its app-based platform, Peekage conducts market research by product sampling .

Clients share their information through the application and then the Peekage team discovers the right users to test your product or services and provide you feedback. This strategy is the most efficient way to invest the market research budget and gain actionable insights from your target market.

Read Also: Ultimate guide: product sampling strategies, methods & techniques

By providing proper consumer research insight, strategies that are utilized to draw in customers can be improved and brands can make a profit by knowing what customers need exactly. It is also important to understand the buying behavior of customers to know their attitude towards businesses and products.

Artificial intelligence helped advertisers & marketers with accomplishing precise targeting, effective optimizations, better analysis, and so much more. However, before these items come into play, understanding the customer is on top of any advertiser's list.

Optimizing consumer research can really make the entire procedure more effective, saving businesses tons of time assembling and analyzing data that is of little worth. 

There are 4 different ways AI can optimize the consumer research process. 

Recruitment Efficiency 

Your customer base is expanded. Panel recruitment parameters that expanded properly in one place may not function admirably in an alternate situation. And with steadily developing markets, checking only a couple of fundamental parameters like age, ethnicity, and education is hard enough for a team of staff to work on for weeks or even months. 

businesses need niche parameters. For example, interests, work profiles, income level, language proficiency, and more to draw significant insights that give them an upper hand in the market. This kind of information uncovers sweet spots in the target clients that have a high chance of a conversion.

Panel Relevancy Map

Words usually can't do a picture justice. In advertising, this image is worth thousands of hours of man work. In fact, we are discussing the times when advertisers analyze various segments and try to find similar client bases that can be clustered together. AI can do this in a matter of seconds, if not real-time. It analyzes millions of psychographic and demographic elements alongside other incidental factors and makes a relevancy map. This helps the advertiser with building panels of relevant clients based on the targeting variables that the research requests.

Statistically Accurate Panel

You can simply not include all of your clients for research purposes. Yes, you can do it by taking a representative sample of your consumer's society. This means your panel will contain at least one or more clients from each segment of your overall target client. This way you have a panel that is statistically the most accurate representation of your clients.

Engagement Efficiency 

While a statistically accurate panel is of importance, the research can only be called effective and successful if the optimal number of consumers take part in the research. Here, the AI helps the advertiser get the maximum number of research respondents at the minimum cost. Engagement patterns help the AI to rank the quality of client segments. The higher the engagement with the research, the higher the quality of the client. 

Research that creates impact

In fact, finding out what the client is thinking is technically impossible. businesses can still be very accurate by using the agility and scalability of AI. Making accurate and reliable client panels, running AI-led agile research, and developing strategies based on them is the guaranteed plan for successful consumer research.

Consumer research is a significant endeavor; however, the payoffs are extravagant too. Learning who your consumers are, how they think, and what prompts them to buy your products or services is essential to improving your market presence, growing brand value, and of course income numbers.

Utilizing the above eight steps, you can figure out how to coax clarity out of the tumultuous pile of analytics data and spoken customer insights. Keep in mind: a clear and optimal research method, succinct hypothesis, and supporting tools are the frameworks you need to run effective consumer research.

What customers need should be a part of market research and ought to be carried out routinely. Consumer research provides you with in-depth data about the needs, wants, expectations, and behavior of consumers.

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Customer Research: 5 Ways to Read Your Target Customers’ Minds

The following is a guest post by Priscilla Tan , a freelance content marketer for SaaS and Tech companies that care about making small businesses successful. Certified by SmartBlogger, her works have been spotlighted on places like Forbes, Inc Magazine, and CNBC Make It.

Did this happen to you?

You spent brutal months building your product solely based on your gut.

In a bid to keep your head in the game, you assured yourself, repeatedly, that success is just around the corner.

And yet, when you released your product to the public… it tanked. Sure, you had a few sign-ups, but no one stuck around.

As you slumped your shoulders in defeat, you questioned yourself, what went wrong?

You tweeted for help, hoping to find comfort. And you did. In fact, your tweet even went a little viral.

Founders, developers, and marketers in the SaaS space flocked in to share similar experiences. You read every single one of them, nodding your head along to their demoralizing tales.

Then… horror struck.

It hit you: you built your product based on false assumptions. And so did they.

Just as you were about to close Twitter, you stumbled on this tweet and it straight up punched you in the gut:

And there it is, the guilty culprit of unsuccessful products : the lack of customer research.

What is customer research?

Customer research is different from market research. It’s the heart of your business.

It involves asking your customers questions on an ongoing basis, so you can better understand their actual needs and better predict at what they will do.

To quote Roy Olende in the Buffer blog , it helps you close the gap between what you know and what you think you know.

Customer research is a big deal

Companies that actively conduct customer research enjoy a 55 percent higher retention rate and grow their annual revenue by 48.2 percent than those that don’t.

Customer research helps you figure out if there’s demand for your product or features before you build.

Without it, you target the wrong marketing channels, build a misaligned content strategy , and write a blog post no one reads — and that’s only the best-case scenario.

The worst-case scenario? You build a product no one wants.

What you’ll learn in this article

You’ll discover the 5 ways to read your target customers’ minds and dive into their specific pain points, desired outcomes, and use cases through asking questions and mining reviews.

Before you do that, take a look at the 6 categories below. ( Customer Camp founder, Katelyn Bourgoin, introduced them in her stellar webinar with Forget The Funnel .)

These 6 categories will guide you along as you highlight and save evidence for further analysis:

• Jobs-to-be-done
• Pains with current solutions
• Desired gains or outcomes
• Buying objections/criteria
• User stories
• Swipeable quotes or ideas

If you’re scratching your head, don’t worry! These are several real-life examples peppered in this article to help you in this process.

Let’s begin.

How to do customer research: the 5 ways to read your target customers’ minds

1. attend q&a-focused events.

Rand Fishkin is a fan of this strategy.

In his book, Lost & Founder: A Painfully Honest Field Guide to the Startup World , the founder of SparkToro and previously co-founder of Moz and Inbound.org (now Growth.org), advocates attending events as they “offer a wide range of experiential cases from which you can gain perspective and insight.”

He’s right.

Events are the best places to be at when you want to better understand the crux of their problems.

Your target customers are attending events to learn from established experts and their peers, so they can solve the problems they face in their businesses.

Here’s how you can start.

Visit event listing sites (e.g. Peatix , Eventbrite , Facebook Events ) and take note of the agenda and learning outcomes. These give you clues at what your target customers care about.

If you’re using Facebook Events, check out the ‘Going’ and ‘Maybe’ list to learn more about the attendees’ background.

Here’s what you want to do: focus on events with Q&A sessions and networking opportunities. Why? Because both put the spotlight on your prospects.

Jot down the most repeatedly asked questions during Q&As.

For example, take a look at the questions below:

• “Are carousel ads better than single image ads?”
• “Where can I find more examples besides AdEspresso?”
• “I have a brand new Facebook page. Should I go for CPM or CPC?”
• “What’s the best audience size?”
• “What’s a custom audience?”

If you notice questions like these constantly popping up during Q&As, this tells you two things: your target customers care about Facebook Ads and need more help in this area.

With insight like this, you can create new content, like a beginner’s guide on Facebook ads. Or add new features to your product.

When you network, avoid asking leading questions (e.g. ‘ You like your iPhone and use it a lot, right ?’).

Instead, ask open-ended questions . A simple one like “What brings you to this event?” helps you uncover unexpected information on your target customers.

Not a fan of events? Webinars work too.

2. Ask questions in your sales demo

You’re not only selling your product in your demo. You’re identifying your prospect’s pain.

Here’s this strategy in action by a SaaS startup.

Referral Rock is a referral marketing software based in Washington, D.C.. In an interview with Indie Hackers , Josh Ho, the founder and CEO, shared his frustration with using text chat for customer support.

One day, Ho got so impatient with the slow-going process of the “single-threaded nature of the conversation” that he asked his customers if they wanted to do video calls so he could help them faster and more effectively.

This subtle change transformed his business for good. Referral Rock soon quadrupled its trial-to-paid conversions and grew into a $70K/month startup.

Why did it work? Ho began to understand what his users were looking for when they shared their struggles and suggestions. Talking to users directly accelerated Referral Rock’s growth.

Consider Ho’s strategy the next time you conduct a sales demo for your target customers. Before you do that, set up a form on your website for customers to schedule a 15 to 30-minute demo call .

As you head into the call, focus on the customer’s needs. Identify their pain and then qualify if your product is a fit to solve it (e.g. ask questions like “What kind of solutions did you try?”, “Why did it not work?”).

Tip: give these customers a heads-up the demos are being recorded. You want to transcribe the video to see how they phrase their words. This is incredibly powerful if you’re looking to rework your copy, like your sales or product’s feature page.

Don’t do sales demos? There are several alternatives. Go through your chat logs or support requests and talk to your sales team to figure out your customers’ questions and objections.

Pro tip: your sales team’s direct feedback can also help shape your bottom of the funnel content .

3. Ask this question in your welcome email

Welcome emails are 86 percent more effective than standard newsletters — they’re another no-brainer if you’re looking for an easy way to reach directly to your customers.

Here’s an example by Forget The Funnel . Forget The Funnel is a SaaS marketing workshop and training community founded by marketing veterans, Georgiana Laudi and Claire Suellentrop .

Notice the red box with the question: “ What was going on that led you to sign up today ?”

It’s an effective open-ended question that elicits a specific response.

Note: you can also use this question in your email subscription thank you page or customer messaging platform to get the most out of your subscribers and website visitors.

Include this question in your welcome email and embed a link to Typeform or Google Forms , so you can easily conduct further analysis .

This strategy may involve new customers, but that doesn’t mean you can’t use it for your target customers. For example, you can use these new responses in your sales copy to attract similar audiences.

What worked for your new customers will likely work for prospects.

4. Hunt on online peer review sites

Your target customers are using your competitors’ products and similar solutions like books, videos, and podcasts.

Start with review sites like Amazon , iTunes , Product Hunt , and G2 Crowd .

Let’s explore how this plays out in real life.

Say, you run a SaaS marketing software for small business owners. You could mine reviews of competitors like Hubspot and Autopilot , but don’t stop there.

You could also search for book reviews on Amazon. Or watch videos on YouTube and go through the comments. Or even look for the most followed question on Quora .

When you’re on sites like Amazon and YouTube, take note of the ‘Helpful’ or ‘Thumbs up’ button. The more helpful or thumbs up a review or comment has, the more you should pay attention to it.

Are you skeptical about this customer research strategy? Here’s a success story that might change your mind.

When Copyhackers founder, Joanna Wiebe, was working on a web copy for a rehab center, she picked 6 books on Amazon that covered the subject matter.

As Joanna was mining the reviews, she came across a quote that grabbed her attention, so much so that she knew she had a winner and turned it into the rehab center’s new headline:

The result of ‘If you think you need rehab, you do’?

It brought in 400% more clicks .

One last tip on mining reviews: take note of the language tone. If you notice reviews are written in a playful tone, you probably don’t want to use stuffy, formal language in your product messaging.

5. Spy in community-focused Facebook groups

Fret not, you don’t even need to go through the pain of starting a Facebook group.

Your action: pick a Facebook group where your target customers hang out.

Facebook groups that screen members (i.e. require answers for entry questions) and enforce community rules are great signs. Both signal a strong, engaging community with zero spam.

Let’s imagine you own a project management software and your target customers are project managers working in the SaaS space.

In this case, you want to join groups like SaaS Products & Marketing and SaaS Growth Hacks .

Go through the new posts every day.

If the posts aren’t within your niche and you require more data, type your keyword (in this case, ‘project management’) into the search box on the right-hand menu.

Play around with the filters. Sort results by top posts or select a new location.

As you go through the posts, jot down the most noteworthy questions and comments. Long threads are a goldmine for digging user stories and swipeable quotes.

Don’t be afraid to chime in if you require clarification. A question like “Hey [Name]. I’m curious to know more. What do you mean by [insert comment]?” could give you a new perspective on your product.

Tip: choose the most recent year to gather the most relevant, timely data.

Final words: do and apply customer research

Most companies fall into the trap of gathering and analyzing data from customer research, but not do anything about it. Don’t be one of them.

As you gather these important data on your target customers, organize them in the 6 categories shared above.

The results from your data can be applied in almost all areas of your business.

You can edit your headline in your homepage and a/b test it. Or add new features to your product. Or send relevant emails in your nurturing campaign. Or even update your FAQs page to address potential objections.

However and whenever you conduct your research, you want to make sure to use it.

If you feel overwhelmed, take a leaf out of Bourgoin’s book — start small. Block off 10 minutes a day in your calendar every morning.

If you’re new and time-strapped, pick your best channel and focus on that.

Over time, as you conduct research and implement actions based on the data you gathered, you’ll not only gain laser-sharp information on your customers.

You’ll also produce better content, enjoy higher conversions, and build an enduring business.

Which of these 5 customer research ways will you try in your business today? Do you have questions? Let us know in the comments below!

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Ben Mulholland

Ben Mulholland is an Editor at Process Street , and winds down with a casual article or two on Mulholland Writing . Find him on Twitter here .

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Consumer Behavior Research

Exploring the Depths of Consumer Insights for Strategic Business Growth

In an era where understanding consumer behavior is more than a competitive edge, it’s a survival imperative, NielsenIQ (NIQ) and GfK emerge as pivotal allies. This expertise is essential for businesses in B2C commerce, retail, and beyond, aiming to navigate the complex consumer landscape for informed, strategic decision-making.

Definition and Importance of Consumer Behavior Research

Consumer behavior research is the study of how individuals make decisions to spend their resources on consumption-related items. It involves understanding the what, why, when, and how of consumer purchases. This field is crucial for businesses as it sheds light on consumer preferences, buying patterns, and decision-making processes. By understanding these aspects, companies can tailor their products and marketing strategies effectively, ensuring alignment with consumer needs and market trends, ultimately leading to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Overview of the Impact of Consumer Behavior Research on Marketing Strategies

The insights from consumer behavior research are instrumental in shaping targeted marketing strategies. By understanding consumer motivations and behaviors, businesses can create more relevant and engaging marketing messages, leading to improved customer engagement and retention. This research helps in segmenting the market, identifying potential customers, and understanding the factors that drive consumer decisions. It also aids in predicting future trends, enabling companies to stay ahead of the curve. Effective use of consumer behavior research can lead to the development of products and services that meet the evolving needs of consumers, thereby enhancing brand loyalty and market share.

Consumer and shopper insights

Understand consumer and shopper behavior, demographics, and loyalty with modern, representative consumer panels and customer survey capabilities.

Understanding Consumer Behavior

These diverse influences combine to form unique consumer profiles, which businesses must understand to effectively target their marketing efforts..

Factors Influencing Consumer Behavior

Consumer behavior is influenced by a complex interplay of psychological, social, cultural, and personal factors. Psychological factors include perceptions, attitudes, and motivation, which guide consumers’ emotional and cognitive responses. Social factors encompass family, friends, and societal norms that shape buying habits through peer influence and social trends. Cultural factors involve the broader societal beliefs, values, and customs that dictate consumer behavior in a particular region. Personal factors such as age, occupation, lifestyle, and economic status also significantly impact consumer choices. These diverse influences combine to form unique consumer profiles, which businesses must understand to effectively target their marketing efforts.

The Role of Consumer Behavior in Decision Making

Consumer behavior plays a critical role in the decision-making process. It involves understanding how consumers decide upon their needs and wants, choose among products and brands, and determine their purchase methods. This knowledge is vital for businesses to design and position their offerings in a way that resonates with the target audience. Understanding consumer behavior helps in predicting how consumers will respond to marketing messages and product features, enabling businesses to tailor their strategies to meet consumer needs effectively. It also assists in identifying opportunities for new product development and market expansion.

Consumer Behavior Theories and Models

Consumer behavior theories and models provide frameworks for understanding and predicting consumer actions. The Stimulus-Response Model, for instance, illustrates how marketing stimuli and environmental factors influence consumer responses. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs explains consumer motivation in terms of fulfilling basic to complex needs. The Theory of Reasoned Action and the Theory of Planned Behavior focus on the relationship between attitudes, intentions, and behaviors. The Consumer Decision Model outlines the cognitive process involving need recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision, and post-purchase behavior. These models help businesses in developing strategies that align with consumer psychology and behavioral patterns. They also assist in segmenting the market and targeting consumers with personalized marketing approaches, enhancing the effectiveness of marketing campaigns and product offerings.

Research Methods in Consumer Behavior Research

Customer analytics is vital for businesses across various sectors, including FMCG, sales, and e-commerce. It enables companies to create personalized experiences, improve customer engagement, and boost retention, ultimately leading to increased revenue. By understanding consumer behavior through data analysis, businesses can make informed decisions that resonate with their target audience.

Quantitative Research Methods

Quantitative research methods in consumer behavior research involve structured techniques like surveys and questionnaires to collect numerical data. These methods are useful for gauging consumer attitudes, preferences, and behaviors across larger populations. Statistical analysis of this data helps in identifying trends, testing hypotheses, and making generalizations about consumer behavior. Quantitative research is valuable for businesses as it provides measurable and comparable insights that can guide strategic decision-making. It helps in understanding the magnitude of consumer responses to various marketing stimuli and in assessing the potential market size for new products or services.

Qualitative Research Methods

Qualitative research methods in consumer behavior focus on understanding the deeper motivations, thoughts, and feelings of consumers. Techniques like in-depth interviews, focus groups, and observational studies provide rich, detailed insights that are not typically captured through quantitative methods. This approach is crucial for exploring the underlying reasons behind consumer choices, preferences, and attitudes. Qualitative research helps businesses in gaining a deeper understanding of consumer experiences, emotions, and perceptions, which can be invaluable in developing more effective marketing strategies, product designs, and customer service approaches. It allows companies to explore new ideas and concepts with consumers, gaining insights that can lead to innovation and differentiation in the market.

Experimental Research in Consumer Behavior

Experimental research in consumer behavior involves manipulating one or more variables to observe the effect on another variable, typically consumer behavior or attitudes. This method is used to establish cause-and-effect relationships, providing insights into how changes in product features, pricing, or marketing strategies might influence consumer behavior. Controlled experiments, often conducted in laboratory settings or as field experiments, allow researchers to isolate the effects of specific variables. This type of research is particularly valuable for testing new products, pricing strategies, and marketing messages before full-scale implementation. It helps businesses in making informed decisions based on empirical evidence, reducing the risks associated with new initiatives.

Factors Affecting Consumer Behavior

Psychological factors.

Psychological factors play a significant role in shaping consumer behavior. These include individual motivations, perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs. Motivation drives consumers to fulfill their needs and desires, influencing their buying decisions. Perception, how consumers interpret information, can significantly impact their choices, as it shapes their understanding of products and brands. Attitudes and beliefs, formed through experiences and social influences, guide consumer preferences and loyalty. Understanding these psychological factors is crucial for businesses as they influence how consumers view and interact with products and services. By aligning marketing strategies with consumer psychology, businesses can more effectively influence purchasing decisions and build stronger customer relationships.

Social Factors

Social factors significantly influence consumer behavior, encompassing the impact of society, family, and peer groups. Family members and friends can influence buying decisions through recommendations or shared experiences. Social groups, including social networks and communities, also play a role in shaping consumer preferences and behaviors. The influence of social media has become particularly significant, as it not only connects consumers but also serves as a platform for sharing opinions and experiences about products and services. Understanding these social dynamics is important for businesses as they can leverage social influences through targeted marketing strategies, influencer partnerships, and social media campaigns. Recognizing the power of social factors can help businesses in building brand awareness and loyalty among consumer groups.

Cultural Factors

Cultural factors are deeply ingrained elements that influence consumer behavior, including values, beliefs, customs, and traditions. These factors vary across different regions and societies, affecting how consumers perceive and interact with products and services. Cultural influences can determine consumer preferences, buying habits, and brand perceptions. For instance, color symbolism, dietary preferences, and language can all vary significantly between cultures, impacting marketing strategies and product development. Businesses must understand and respect these cultural nuances to effectively cater to diverse consumer markets. Adapting products and marketing messages to align with cultural values and norms can significantly enhance a brand’s appeal and acceptance in different markets.

Personal Factors

Personal factors, including age, gender, occupation, lifestyle, and economic status, also significantly influence consumer behavior. These factors determine individual needs, preferences, and purchasing power. For example, younger consumers may prioritize trendy and innovative products, while older consumers might value functionality and durability. Lifestyle choices, such as health consciousness or environmental awareness, can also drive consumer preferences and choices. Economic factors, such as income and economic conditions, influence consumers’ ability to purchase and their sensitivity to price changes. Understanding these personal factors is crucial for businesses to segment their market effectively and tailor their products and marketing strategies to meet the specific needs of different consumer groups.

Consumer Purchase Decision Making

Stages of the consumer purchase decision-making process.

The consumer purchase decision-making process typically involves several key stages: problem recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision, and post-purchase behavior.

In the problem recognition stage, consumers identify a need or desire.

During the information search, they seek out information about products or services that can fulfill their need. In the evaluation stage, consumers compare different options based on attributes such as price, quality, and brand reputation.

The purchase decision involves choosing a product and making the purchase. Finally, in the post-purchase stage, consumers evaluate their satisfaction with the purchase, which can influence future buying decisions and brand loyalty.

Understanding these stages is essential for businesses to effectively influence consumers at each step, from raising awareness to ensuring post-purchase satisfaction.

Influences on Consumer Purchase Decisions

Consumer purchase decisions are influenced by a multitude of factors, including product attributes, brand reputation, marketing messages, social influences, and personal preferences. Product features such as quality, price, and usability are key determinants of consumer choices. Brand reputation, built over time through consistent quality and marketing efforts, also significantly impacts purchase decisions. Marketing messages and advertising play a crucial role in shaping consumer perceptions and driving demand. Social influences, including recommendations from family and friends, as well as online reviews and influencer endorsements, can sway consumer decisions. Personal factors such as individual needs, preferences, and financial constraints also play a critical role. Businesses must consider these diverse influences when developing products and crafting marketing strategies to effectively appeal to their target audience.

Impulse Buying Behavior

Impulse buying behavior refers to unplanned purchases made by consumers, often driven by emotional factors rather than rational decision-making. This type of behavior is typically triggered by external stimuli such as attractive product displays, promotional offers, or persuasive sales tactics. Emotional responses, such as excitement or the desire for instant gratification, also play a significant role in impulse buying. Retailers often leverage this behavior by strategically placing impulse items near checkout areas or using limited-time offers to create a sense of urgency. Understanding the triggers of impulse buying can help businesses in designing marketing strategies and store layouts that encourage such purchases, potentially increasing sales and customer engagement.

Online Shopping and Consumer Behavior

Impact of online shopping on consumer behavior.

The rise of online shopping has significantly impacted consumer behavior, offering convenience, a wider selection of products, and often competitive pricing. Online shopping has changed the way consumers research products, compare prices, and make purchasing decisions. The ease of access to a vast array of products and the ability to shop at any time have increased the frequency and diversity of purchases. Online reviews and ratings have also become important factors in the decision-making process, as consumers increasingly rely on the opinions of others. Additionally, the personalized shopping experiences offered by many online retailers, through targeted recommendations and tailored marketing messages, have further influenced consumer buying habits. Understanding these shifts in consumer behavior is crucial for businesses to adapt their strategies for the digital marketplace, ensuring they meet the evolving needs and expectations of online shoppers.

Factors Influencing Online Buying Behavior

Several factors influence online buying behavior, including website usability, product variety, pricing, customer reviews, and the overall shopping experience. A user-friendly website with easy navigation and a seamless checkout process is crucial for attracting and retaining online shoppers. A diverse product range and competitive pricing are also key factors in attracting consumers. Customer reviews and ratings significantly impact purchase decisions, as they provide social proof and reduce perceived risk. The overall shopping experience, including customer service, delivery options, and return policies, also plays a vital role in influencing online buying behavior. Security and privacy concerns are additional considerations, as consumers are increasingly aware of data protection and online fraud. Businesses must address these factors to create a compelling online shopping experience that meets consumer expectations and drives online sales.

Comparison of Online and Offline Consumer Behavior

Online and offline consumer behaviors exhibit distinct differences, influenced by the unique aspects of each shopping environment. Online shopping offers convenience, a broader selection, and often more competitive pricing, leading to different purchasing patterns compared to offline shopping. Consumers tend to spend more time researching and comparing products online, while offline shopping is often driven by immediate needs and sensory experiences. The tactile experience and instant gratification of offline shopping are not replicable online, but the online environment offers personalized recommendations and a wealth of product information. Offline shopping also provides opportunities for personal interaction and immediate problem resolution, which can enhance customer satisfaction. Understanding these differences is crucial for businesses to tailor their strategies for each channel, ensuring a cohesive and complementary shopping experience that meets the needs and preferences of consumers in both online and offline environments.

Consumer Satisfaction and Loyalty

Importance of customer satisfaction in consumer behavior research.

Customer satisfaction is a critical component of consumer behavior research, as it directly impacts repeat purchases and brand loyalty. Satisfied customers are more likely to become repeat buyers, recommend the brand to others, and provide positive reviews. Customer satisfaction is influenced by various factors, including product quality, customer service, and overall shopping experience. Understanding and measuring customer satisfaction helps businesses identify areas for improvement, enhance customer experiences, and build long-term relationships with consumers. High levels of customer satisfaction lead to increased customer loyalty, which is essential for business growth and sustainability.

Factors Influencing Customer Satisfaction

Customer satisfaction is influenced by a range of factors, including product quality, price, service quality, brand image, and customer expectations. Product quality is a primary determinant of satisfaction, as consumers expect products to perform as advertised. Price also plays a role, as consumers evaluate the value they receive relative to the cost. Service quality, encompassing customer service interactions and the overall shopping experience, significantly impacts satisfaction levels. A positive, helpful, and efficient service experience can enhance satisfaction, while negative experiences can lead to dissatisfaction. Brand image, shaped by marketing communications and past experiences, influences consumer expectations and perceptions. Meeting or exceeding these expectations is key to achieving high levels of customer satisfaction. Additionally, personal factors such as individual needs, preferences, and past experiences also influence satisfaction. Businesses must consider these diverse factors to effectively meet consumer needs and enhance satisfaction levels.

Relationship Between Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty

The relationship between customer satisfaction and loyalty is strong and direct. Satisfied customers are more likely to develop a sense of loyalty to a brand, leading to repeat purchases and positive word-of-mouth recommendations. Loyalty is not just about repeat buying; it also involves an emotional connection and a preference for the brand over competitors. Satisfied customers are also more likely to be forgiving of minor issues and are less sensitive to price changes. Conversely, dissatisfied customers are more likely to switch to competitors and share negative experiences with others. Building customer loyalty requires consistently meeting or exceeding customer expectations, providing high-quality products and services, and maintaining positive customer relationships. Loyal customers are valuable assets to businesses, as they tend to have a higher lifetime value, lower acquisition costs, and can become brand advocates, promoting the brand through their networks.

Consumer Research and Marketing Strategies

Utilizing consumer research to develop effective marketing programs.

Consumer research is a vital tool for developing effective marketing programs. By understanding consumer needs, preferences, and behaviors, businesses can create targeted marketing strategies that resonate with their audience. Consumer research helps in identifying market segments, understanding consumer pain points, and uncovering opportunities for product development or enhancement. It also provides insights into the most effective channels and messages for reaching the target audience. Utilizing consumer research in marketing program development ensures that strategies are data-driven and customer-centric, increasing the likelihood of success. It enables businesses to tailor their marketing efforts to the specific needs and preferences of different consumer segments, improving engagement and response rates. Additionally, ongoing consumer research allows businesses to adapt their marketing strategies in response to changing consumer trends and market conditions, ensuring continued relevance and effectiveness.

Targeting Specific Consumer Segments Based on Research Findings

Targeting specific consumer segments based on research findings is a key strategy for effective marketing. Consumer research provides detailed insights into different consumer groups, including their demographics, psychographics, behaviors, and preferences. By analyzing this data, businesses can identify distinct segments within their target market, each with unique needs and characteristics. Targeting these segments with tailored marketing messages and product offerings increases the relevance and appeal of the brand to each group. For example, a segment characterized by health-conscious consumers would respond more positively to marketing messages emphasizing the health benefits of a product. Segment-specific targeting allows businesses to allocate marketing resources more efficiently, focusing on the most promising segments with the highest potential for conversion and loyalty. It also enhances the customer experience by providing consumers with products and marketing messages that are more closely aligned with their individual needs and preferences.

Adapting Marketing Strategies to Consumer Behavior Trends

Adapting marketing strategies to consumer behavior trends is essential for businesses to stay relevant and competitive. Consumer behavior is constantly evolving, influenced by factors such as technological advancements, cultural shifts, and economic changes. By staying attuned to these trends, businesses can anticipate changes in consumer needs and preferences, and adjust their marketing strategies accordingly. This may involve adopting new marketing channels, such as social media or influencer marketing, to reach consumers where they are most active. It could also mean developing new products or services that align with emerging consumer trends, such as sustainability or personalization. Adapting marketing strategies to consumer behavior trends requires a proactive approach, with ongoing research and analysis to identify emerging patterns. Businesses that successfully adapt to these trends can capture new market opportunities, enhance customer engagement, and maintain a competitive edge.

Case Studies in Consumer Behavior Research

Analysis of real-life examples and their implications.

Real-life case studies in consumer behavior research provide valuable insights into the practical application of theoretical concepts and the effectiveness of different marketing strategies. For example, a case study in the automotive industry might analyze how consumer preferences for eco-friendly vehicles have influenced car manufacturers’ product development and marketing strategies. In the retail sector, a case study could examine the impact of online shopping on brick-and-mortar stores and how these businesses have adapted to the digital era. These case studies offer concrete examples of how businesses have successfully navigated changes in consumer behavior, providing lessons and strategies that can be applied in other contexts. They also highlight the importance of consumer research in identifying market trends, understanding consumer needs, and developing effective marketing strategies. By analyzing real-life examples, businesses can gain a deeper understanding of consumer behavior, learn from the successes and challenges of others, and apply these insights to their own strategies.

Examination of Successful Marketing Campaigns Based on Consumer Behavior Research

Examining successful marketing campaigns that are based on consumer behavior research can provide valuable insights into effective marketing practices. These case studies demonstrate how a deep understanding of consumer needs, preferences, and behaviors can be leveraged to create impactful marketing campaigns. For instance, a campaign that effectively uses consumer data to personalize messages and offers can result in higher engagement and conversion rates. Another example might be a campaign that taps into current consumer trends, such as sustainability or wellness, to resonate with the target audience. Analyzing these successful campaigns can reveal key strategies and tactics that businesses can adopt, such as the use of specific channels, messaging techniques, or promotional offers. These case studies also highlight the importance of data-driven decision-making in marketing, showing how consumer research can inform and guide successful marketing initiatives.

Motivating Consumers and New Product Adoption

Strategies to motivate consumers to adopt new products.

Motivating consumers to adopt new products is a critical challenge for businesses. Effective strategies for encouraging new product adoption include leveraging social proof, offering free trials or samples, and creating educational content. Social proof, such as customer testimonials or influencer endorsements, can reduce perceived risk and increase consumer confidence in trying a new product. Free trials or samples allow consumers to experience the product firsthand, reducing barriers to adoption. Educational content, such as how-to guides or product demonstrations, can help consumers understand the value and benefits of the new product. Additionally, businesses can use targeted marketing campaigns to reach early adopters and innovators who are more likely to try new products and spread the word to others. Creating a sense of urgency or exclusivity around the new product, through limited-time offers or exclusive access, can also motivate consumers to adopt the product more quickly.

Innovations in Consumer Behavior Research for New Product Development

Innovations in consumer behavior research are playing a crucial role in new product development. Advanced analytics and data mining techniques allow businesses to analyze large datasets and uncover deep insights into consumer needs and preferences. Social listening tools enable companies to monitor social media and online conversations, gaining real-time insights into consumer opinions and trends. Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies are being used to test consumer reactions to new products in simulated environments, providing valuable feedback before market launch. Behavioral economics principles, such as understanding cognitive biases and decision-making processes, are also being applied to better predict consumer responses to new products. These innovations in consumer behavior research provide businesses with more accurate and comprehensive data, enabling them to develop products that are closely aligned with consumer needs and preferences, increasing the likelihood of market success.

Social Media and Consumer Behavior

Influence of social media on consumer behavior.

Social media has a profound influence on consumer behavior, shaping how consumers discover, research, and share information about products and services. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter serve as important channels for brand communication and engagement. Consumers use social media to seek recommendations, read reviews, and gather opinions from their networks, which significantly influences their purchasing decisions. Brands leverage social media for targeted advertising, influencer partnerships, and content marketing, creating opportunities for direct interaction and engagement with consumers. Social media also facilitates the spread of trends and viral content, quickly influencing consumer preferences and behaviors. The interactive and dynamic nature of social media means that consumer opinions and trends can rapidly change, requiring businesses to be agile and responsive in their social media strategies. Understanding the influence of social media on consumer behavior is essential for businesses to effectively engage with their audience and influence purchasing decisions.

Role of Social Media in Shaping Consumer Perceptions and Purchase Decisions

Recap of the importance of consumer behavior research.

Consumer behavior research is essential for businesses seeking to understand and effectively respond to the evolving needs and preferences of their target audience. It provides valuable insights into why consumers make certain choices, what influences their purchasing decisions, and how they interact with brands. This research is crucial for developing effective marketing strategies, creating products that meet consumer needs, and enhancing the overall customer experience. By staying informed about consumer behavior trends and applying these insights, businesses can improve customer engagement, increase brand loyalty, and drive growth. In today’s competitive marketplace, a deep understanding of consumer behavior is a key differentiator, enabling businesses to create more personalized, relevant, and impactful marketing initiatives.

Future Directions and Emerging Trends in Consumer Behavior Research

The future of consumer behavior research is marked by rapid advancements in technology and data analytics, leading to more sophisticated and nuanced understanding of consumer preferences and behaviors. Emerging trends include the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to analyze consumer data, providing deeper and more predictive insights. The integration of biometric data, such as eye tracking and facial recognition, offers new ways to understand consumer responses to marketing stimuli. The growing importance of sustainability and ethical considerations is also influencing consumer behavior, leading to increased demand for eco-friendly and socially responsible products. Additionally, the rise of the experience economy is shifting focus from product features to customer experiences, requiring businesses to create more immersive and engaging customer interactions. Staying abreast of these trends and continuously innovating in consumer behavior research will be crucial for businesses to remain relevant and competitive in the changing market landscape.

How NIQ and GfK Can Help

In the complex world of consumer behavior, NIQ and GfK offer the expertise and tools necessary to navigate this landscape effectively. With comprehensive solutions like:

• NielsenIQ’s Homescan : Track, diagnose, and analyze consumer behavior from more than 250,000 households across 25 countries.
• Consumer analytics : Go deeper and create more clarity around shopper behavior with custom surveys and segmentation.
• Consumption moments : Reveal the true motivations behind customer consumption behavior and usage to guide product innovation and marketing strategy.
• gfknewron marke t : Create the right opportunities with gfknewron market
• gfknewron predict : Plan your future using the world’s most comprehensive sales tracking data for Tech & Durables.
• gfknewron Consumer : Understand your consumers’ behavior to redefine your success

By leveraging these tools, businesses can gain a competitive edge, adapting to market changes and consumer trends with agility and precision.

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Have you ever wondered what goes into making a really successful product or campaign? The answer is consumer research.

Consumer research is a technique used by marketers and product developers to understand the needs, wants and behaviour of their target audiences. It involves collecting data about customers, analyzing it and using it to create strategies that will yield the most successful results.

Whether you are a marketer planning an advertising campaign or a product developer creating a new product, understanding your customers is essential for success. Consumer research can give you detailed insights into your customers’ behavior, preferences and motivations, which can be used to make better decisions about how to serve them in the most effective way possible.

In this article, we will provide an overview of what consumer research is and how it works. We will also discuss how businesses can benefit from using consumer research in their marketing and product development efforts.

What Is Consumer Research?

Consumer research is a process used to understand the behavior of consumers and their preferences. It helps businesses get an accurate understanding of their target audience. This research focuses on understanding why people choose certain products and services, what drives their decisions and how they feel about different aspects of a product or service.

The research process includes analyzing customer data, conducting interviews, collecting survey responses and observing consumer behaviour. This allows businesses to identify issues in their target markets, uncover new opportunities and measure customer satisfaction with products or services.

Overall, consumer research is an essential tool for gaining insights into the market trends, customer needs and preferences that allow businesses to understand their existing customers better while identifying new customers they can acquire. By conducting this type of research, they can ensure that they are providing the right solutions to meet the demands of their target audience.

Types of Consumer Research

Consumer research is a broad term encompassing a variety of techniques used to glean information about buyers and the marketplace. Depending on the data being sought, there are several different types of consumer research that can be employed.

Surveys: Surveys are one of the most popular methods for gathering consumer data. Surveys typically consist of a series of questions posed to participants, which can be administered online, in person or by phone. The responses from these surveys can provide valuable insights into consumer attitudes, preferences and behaviours.

Focus Groups: Focus groups typically feature moderated discussions with a small number of participants about a particular product or service. This type of research allows organizations to gain feedback on products or services before they reach the market and get a better understanding of how users perceive and interact with their offerings.

Observation Studies: Observation studies involve watching participants use products or services in real-world environments and recording their activities. This allows researchers to observe how people use products in different contexts and gain insights into user experience.

Overall, consumer research is an important tool for understanding buying behaviour and driving successful marketing initiatives. By using the right techniques for gathering data, companies can gain valuable insight into their target audience’s needs and preferences, helping them make informed decisions about their product offerings and marketing strategies.

The Consumer Research Process

Consumer research is the process of gathering, analyzing and using consumer data to make decisions about how to best serve the needs and interests of customers.

The consumer research process typically involves five steps:

• Defining the research objectives
• Developing a research plan
• Collecting data
• Analyzing the data
• Developing conclusions and recommendations

At each step, specialists in consumer research methods use quantitative and qualitative methodologies to gain insights into consumer behaviours, attitudes, needs and preferences. This data can be used to develop strategies for marketing campaigns, product development initiatives and other activities that help companies meet their goals of providing products and services that resonate with their customers.

Benefits of Consumer Research

Consumer research is an invaluable tool for organizations striving to gain insights into the opinions and behaviours of their target audience. By using consumer research, businesses can discover what their customers want, how they make decisions, and how they view the organization’s products or services.

The benefits of opting to conduct consumer research are numerous. Here are just a few:

Improved Product Development

Conducting consumer research enables organizations to find out what their customers desire in a product or service, enabling them to create offerings that meet these exact needs. This helps to reduce the risk involved with launching new products by ensuring they are tailored to meet customer demands.

Enhanced Marketing Efforts

By learning more about target audiences, marketers can use this information to devise more effective marketing strategies. This could include developing more personalized messaging that resonates with customers and attracts them to your business.

Increased Customer Retention Rates

Insights gleaned from consumer research can help organizations identify any customer pain points and work towards creating better experiences for their clients. This leads to higher customer satisfaction and loyalty rates, resulting in increased customer retention rates over time.

Challenges With Conducting Consumer Research

Conducting consumer research can be a tricky business. Despite its fundamental importance in improving the customer experience, there are many common challenges that make it more difficult for organizations to get the data they need.

Among the most typical challenges with consumer research are:

Data collection – Gathering data from consumers can be time-consuming and expensive, especially in a global context. It involves designing surveys, questionnaires or other research tools, managing sample selection, and conducting field research.

Data accuracy – It’s difficult to ensure the accuracy of data collected through consumer research, as responses may be affected by various external factors such as moods or personal opinions.

Data analysis – Analyzing large amounts of data collected through consumer research takes specialized skills and knowledge in order to draw meaningful insights from it.

Data implementation – Once the data has been collected and analyzed, it is necessary to implement the insights across all departments within an organization in order to make strategic changes based on customer feedback. This requires close collaboration between departments and a clear understanding of how different teams can leverage the information for their benefit.

These challenges demonstrate why consumer research is not only necessary but also complex; without it, organizations will struggle to understand their customers’ needs and develop effective strategies for growth and success.

Best Practices for Effective Consumer Research

Consumer research is an invaluable tool for any business looking to stay competitive and grow. There are strategies you can use to ensure that your consumer research is effective:

Choose Your Methodology Carefully

When conducting consumer research, it’s important to choose the correct methodology for your project. Different methods may be more effective in different situations and industries, so take the time to plan and select the most appropriate one for your goals.

Gather Data From Multiple Sources

To gain a complete picture of how consumers think and feel about your product or service, you need to collect data from multiple sources. This includes online surveys, focus groups, interviews, and observation.

Keep Up With Emerging Trends

Technology is constantly evolving, so it’s important to keep up with emerging trends in consumer research. Utilizing new tools such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning can help you gain insight into customer behaviour faster than ever before.

Analyze The Data Accurately

Once you have gathered all the data, it’s essential that you analyze it accurately. Use data visualization software or statistical analysis tools to quickly spot patterns or trends in the data that could be useful for your business decision-making process.

In summary, consumer research is a critical part of any business strategy. It can help companies identify and target the right consumers, understand their behaviour, and develop effective marketing campaigns. From identifying the needs and wants of customers to determining the best ways to communicate with them, consumer research is an essential component for any business that wants to remain competitive and successful. Additionally, companies can use consumer research to assess their current strategies, as well as to acquire their customers’ overall level of satisfaction. Through these insights, businesses are able to provide a better overall customer experience and drive profitable growth.

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Marketing research process guide

The Kodak camera should tell you all you need to know about the critical importance of doing effective market research.

For decades, Kodak was synonymous with photography, dominating the market. Just about everyone had a Kodak camera or used Kodak film. Yet Kodak made an all-but-fatal mistake of not keeping up with market trends and fast-evolving consumer preferences. In doing so, Kodak completely missed the move to digital photography. Today, photography has evolved into the digital age—namely, transforming smartphones into high-quality cameras.

Doing market research but not sure where to start?

Get a better understanding of survey design, sampling, and analysis from survey experts.

Market research surveys help you identify, understand, and ultimately engage with your target customers. It also provides vital insight into the broader market landscape, your competitors, and trends affecting your industry and consumers.

Yet the process can be intimidating. Where do you start? What is the quickest and most effective path to success? How can you be sure that your research will be accurate and generate actionable insights?

Success can be found by gaining a greater understanding of marketing research and then following an effective marketing research process to achieve your goals.

What is marketing research?

Marketing research encompasses a range of activities aimed at gathering information and data to help your company better understand its target market. Once you capture market research data, you can then leverage it  to introduce or upgrade products, improve the customer experience, craft a sharper marketing position, or help guide business decisions.  

Need help identifying your target market ? We’re here to help. 

The marketing research process focuses on collecting insights from your target audience, such as their opinions and attitudes that would help you evaluate current products, services, or test concepts aimed at improving them. It can also gauge customer perceptions about your company. This is best known as brand tracking . 

Benefits of marketing research

Good marketing research has myriad benefits. At its core, marketing research replaces assumptions and go-with-your gut decision-making with data-driven insights to inform smarter strategy and tactics.

The overarching benefit of marketing research is to gain a deep understanding of your customers or prospects so you can take actions that will resonate with them to build greater customer loyalty, increase engagement and ultimately, grow your business. 

Data captured from surveys, interviews and other methods reveal customer behaviors that indicate why they buy particular products or take certain actions. Typically, most products are designed to solve a customer’s problem. The marketing research process gets to the root of those problems, paving the way to develop new products, services and support that connect with customers and help solve their challenges.

Try this additional resource: How to identify and reach your target market with surveys

A common focus of marketing research is concept testing: the process of determining if a new product will be a hit with customers. 

Based on analysis of the data and information captured, your company can develop and execute on a plan to more effectively launch a new product or service, or refine their branding and marketing position.

Examples of the marketing research process

Dove Soap early 2000s “Campaign for real beauty” offers a gorgeous example of effective marketing research delivering game-changing results. Relying on their internal research and insights from a global study "The real truth about beauty report," that found only 2% of respondents claimed to be beautiful.

The subsequent campaign aimed to redefine beauty, moving away from using professional models in their marketing to show women that they are naturally beautiful. The thinking was that if customers could see themselves in Dove's advertising, they would feel a deeper affinity for the company and its products.

The campaign was not only a huge win for Dove, but also a catalyst for marketing with “real people” for a wide range of consumer products and services.

Of course, there is a bottom line benefit to marketing research as well. Marketing research saves time and money on wasted efforts by quantifying what customers want, how much they like the product, and if they intend to use it. And, if done right, it can help drive increased sales and profitability.

Learn how to test products, packaging, messaging, concepts, and more. Market Research Solutions makes it easy. 

The marketing research process

The marketing research process follows a series of sequential steps that allow you to focus your efforts on understanding and addressing customer challenges. 

Market research is only as good as the information it collects. That’s why it’s critical to follow a step-by-step process that all leads to gathering quality data that is accurate and actionable. The following six steps offer the roadmap to success:

1.   Define the problem. Focus on the core customer challenge to solve.

2.   Develop your research plan. Create a roadmap that includes identifying your target audience , as well as determining what research tools to use, and the timeline and resources for the project.

3.   Gather your information . Whether you use surveys, interviews or other methods, you will gather and organize your data. You can rely on qualitative and/or quantitative data to help you get started.

4.   Analyze your data. Review the data for meaningful insights and home in on key points that will help inform your marketing campaigns and strategies.

5.   Develop a strategy. Determine how your business can shape your future products and services with the marketing research you’ve just done.

6.   Take action. Plan those next steps, which may include new product development, further concept testing, a new product launch, or fresh marketing campaign.

Savvy shortcut: SurveyMonkey’s market research resources offer a one-stop shop for key information, tools, and resources to expedite your market research efforts.  

Step 1:  Define the problem

When it comes to executing an effective marketing research process it’s wise to begin with the end in mind. In short, what do you aim to accomplish through your research? Clearly understanding the outcome you're aiming for will help you identify and frame the specific customer problems you want to study and solve. Ultimately, you want to take a deep dive into the challenges and desires of your target customers so you can design products and position services that fully meet their needs and craft supporting messaging that resonates deeply with them.  

If you frame your problem too broadly, you will get vague answers. Too narrow and you may not understand enough. Determine the scope of what you want to study and what conclusions you hope to arrive at.

Think about what decisions will be made based on your research. Are you testing a concept that will affect the packaging of your product? Are you gathering information for a new product that will fill a market gap? Ask good questions and they will help to clarify your outcome.

Brainstorming is a valuable way to arrive at your research problem. Your team can create lots of potential research questions and narrow them down to which ones best address your study.

Deeper dive: SurveyMonkey’s market research survey templates offer a shortcut to developing effective surveys to get the information you need to make better decisions about your products and services

Step 2:  Develop your research plan

The next step is to develop a plan of action that will drive toward the outcomes you are seeking and provide a roadmap to keep you on track.

The initial phase of this planning focuses on choosing your data sources – where you will get the information and insights you are looking for. At the core of this effort is effectively identifying your target audience. This is essential because you want to be sure that the feedback and data you gather comes from the people who are most relevant to what you are researching. SurveyMonkey can make sure you survey who you want when you want to with powerful and easy-to-use audience targeting tools .

If you conduct primary research, you will gather quantitative and qualitative data about your target audience. This approach includes:

• Surveys that produce quick results directly from your target audience. SurveyMonkey offers a wide range of market research surveys that can be tailored to meet your specific needs.
• Interviews with customers and prospects will provide deep insights, but take longer to conduct. You may use one-on-one interviews or a focus group to collect direct feedback. You will need to design an appropriate questionnaire.

You may also want to conduct secondary research that collects data from existing sources. This research is valuable and keeps you from spending extra time and money on information that is readily available.

Next, select your marketing research methods . Depending on your research problem, you’ll need to conduct different research methods. Here are several to consider:

• Observation : Will you be collecting data by observing your target audience’s behavior? Will you conduct interviews to capture data or use focus groups?  Will it be in an uncontrolled environment like a store or a controlled environment like a lab or conference room?
• Survey : Does it make sense to conduct a survey, or series of surveys, to capture audience feedback?
• Time : Will you collect data at one point in time, or a longitudinal study that takes place over a longer time period?
• Behavior or experimental: Will you be observing actual consumer behaviors or setting up an experiment to see how they react to a new product or idea?
• Sampling : How large does your sample size need to be to be relevant to your study?
• Contact methods:  How will you contact research participants? In their homes, and office, or virtual interviews?

Going global? SurveyMonkey can help you quickly identify survey participants from your target audience in up to 130 countries around the globe .  

Step 3: Collect your information

Now it is time to execute your research plan. A logical place to start is often with secondary research to find out what existing data is available from reputable sources that directly relate to your research question. The benefits of this are two-fold. Through the process of reviewing secondary research you gain a deeper understanding of what you are studying. Additionally, you help ensure that you are not duplicating research so you can focus your primary research on capturing fresh insights and data.

Unless your topic is brand new and there is no existing data, previous in-house or industry research, academic journals, and experts in your field may provide valuable information that contributes to your research.

Your primary research will then begin as you survey, interview, and observe your research participants. Depending on your research plan, you will have a combination of qualitative and quantitative data to analyze to substantiate your research question. 

It is important to be vigilant about any potential researcher biases that may exist. If you and your team have preconceived notions about how research participants will react to your questions, you will have to put them aside to ensure your data is collected according to your research plan.

Step 4: Analyze your data

After your primary and secondary data is collected, you're now ready to shift to the most meaningful phase of the process—analysis. Typically, researchers use several statistical methods to analyze their data, including advanced decision models and predictive analytics. Averages, statistical regression, spreadsheets and charts may all be part of your analysis.

Setting aside assumptions about what you think the data means allows for data-driven patterns and trends to emerge that should lead to actionable insights.  Depending on the research tools you use, analytics and reporting, like those included in online surveys, will supply ready-to-use information.

Your goal is to discover what your data says about your target audience’s behavior patterns, attitudes and preferences. You may find that your data proves or disproves your original research question. It’s important to remain open to both outcomes. Never fall victim to the temptation to alter the data to prove you are right. Not only is that unethical, it could lead to actions that actually run counter to your company’s goal, leading to disappointing, even disastrous, results.

Your data should be tabulated and ready for the next phase where you present your findings to your company or research sponsor for their review.

Step 5: Develop a strategy

Depending on who paid for or sponsored the study, you will have to create a formal research report that outlines your initial question, target audience, research methods, data collection methods, audience demographics, and finally your conclusion. You will want to clearly state if you proved or disproved your research question and outline your conclusions.

Your study conclusions may outline opportunities (or challenges) for your company or research sponsor. For instance, does your audience like the new packaging you tested and will they pay the proposed price you asked them in your survey? Can the company move to the next stage of product development, or did you research uncover different features that are more important to customers?

You may present your findings to company leadership, or small groups of relevant colleagues throughout your organization. Beyond reporting results, effective presentations often include actionable recommendations based on your findings. 

Step 6: Take action

Your research findings should serve as a guide to specific actions your company can take to improve business results or deepen customer relationships. If your concept testing was successful, it may be time to move to the product development phase. If your updated branding and logo received negative reviews, it’s time to go back to the drawing board or make some major tweaks. If your marketing messaging struck a powerful chord with your target audience, it likely makes sense to find ways to infuse that message into marketing materials and other content.

There are numerous other ways to use your research. Updating buyer personas, or developing new marketing strategies and advertising campaigns might be the next phase. Your research is a valuable first step in helping companies spend their resources on products and services that increase their revenue.

Types of marketing research

Your research plan will include one or more types of marketing research. The intention of each of these marketing research types is to identify, collect, analyze, and present specific solutions that your target audience perceives as a problem.

There are four types of marketing research that are designed to help you collect data that is appropriate for your audience.

Exploratory research

Have a fresh idea that no one has researched before? That’s the goal of exploratory research -- to collect information about a problem and insights about how to solve the problem. As a researcher, you will use secondary data that currently exists to provide insights about your goal.

You’ll need to remain open to what you discover. The data you collect may indicate new ways to restructure your research problem or look at it from a different perspective. As you clarify your concept, collect insights, structure potential problem statements, and discard impractical ideas, you’ll eventually arrive at a research problem that you can investigate. The goal is to collect more information about a topic, not pose or substantiate a solution.

Descriptive research

Descriptive research tests the research question to discover if it is accurate or inaccurate. This method measures how often and to what extent variables in the study are correlated.

This approach works if you are asking who would buy the product being tested, how the products are used, and who are the competitors. You can collect data through observations, surveys, or interviews. 

Because the researcher records the data, bias can occur.  As opposed to a survey that is directly filled out by the respondent, the data can be skewed if the researcher records a response that they personally prefer. 

Causal research

Causal research looks at the cause-and-effect relationship between variables. If one variable changes, the researcher can record the impact on another variable. Causal research can answer “what if” questions that include price changes, packaging changes, adding or removing product changes and more.

This approach is repeatable and can be replicated outside of a single research study. A potential downside to this approach is perceiving that cause-and-effect occurred, when in reality it was mere coincidences. In addition, if the two variables are closely linked, it can be hard to determine which variables contribute to the cause or effect.

Predictive research

As the name implies, researchers are looking for what will happen in the future. They may study future sales growth, user adoption, and market size based on data collected about product preferences and customer demographics.

Predictive research taps into demographics, brand preferences and other marketing data, often combining it with Big Data. The outcome is information that can predict purchasing trends, product volume, competitor insights and other datasets that aid in business decisions for marketing, sales, and finance. Predictive research can help companies decide where to spend their resources most efficiently.

Marketing research examples

Take pulse on customer satisfaction.

As a marketing leader, you can be challenged to make sure customers are satisfied. But how do you continually collect data to prove, or disprove, that customers are happy?

Customer satisfaction doesn’t just apply to individual products, it can also be an indication of how the market feels about an entire company. Customer satisfaction surveys can help marketing departments make product improvements that retain customers or winback those who have churned.

Solid data for startups

Startups have great ideas that they want to capitalize on. But how do they know if there is a substantial market for their product or service?

Bridgecare wanted to find out if there was a market for their childcare financing idea. Was it just gut instinct or was there an untapped market for parents of children who were going into debt to pay for childcare?

This company conducted a survey that tapped into parents across the US to validate the business concept. Within 24 hours, the company concept was validated by a large audience, leading to a new business idea that investors supported.

Finding a market for product line expansion

You’re a small company with a successful product - mattresses. But how do customers feel about additional products, like pillows, that seem like a natural fit to the existing product line?  Is it just an assumption or is there market potential?

You’ll need the right target market to see if your idea will work . Using surveys helped this company refine their original product idea, creating a better pillow based on feedback from survey participants. The company owner found that they cut their product development time in half by using online surveys, saving time, money, and frustration.

Using surveys for marketing research

Surveys can be the cornerstone of effective marketing research as they offer a quick, cost-effective way to collect a large variety of data. Whether you use short questions, open or closed-ended questions, surveys often are the most efficient way to gather credible insights from your target population.

Survey reports typically include analytics and charts that are easily interpreted and incorporated into your report. Depending on the focus of your survey, a ready-made test bank can be used to reach your ideal customer audience within hours. Online surveys are a widely used, credible way to get feedback about important topics that help you perform concept testing, product or packaging testing.

Clearly, if you want to avoid a “Kodak moment,” you should include market research as an ongoing tool to guide more informed, data-driven decision-making. By following an established process, you can be assured that the actions your company is taking are in lockstep with the needs and desires of your customers. 

SurveyMonkey offers reliable, detailed survey test question banks for every market research need. From product and packaging testing to logo design, we give you immediate access to the survey respondents that match your target audience demographics. Get their insights immediately to save time, money, and lower the risk of an expensive mistake.

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Types of market research: Methods and examples

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Here at GWI we publish a steady stream of blogs, reports, and other resources that dig deep into specific market research topics.

But what about the folks who’d appreciate a more general overview of market research that explains the big picture? Don’t they deserve some love too?

Of course they do. That’s why we’ve created this overview guide focusing on types of market research and examples. With so many market research companies to choose from, having a solid general understanding of how this sector works is essential for any brand or business that wants to pick the right market research partner.

So with that in mind, let’s start at the very beginning and get clear on…

Market research definition

At the risk of stating the slightly obvious, market research is the gathering and analyzing of data on consumers, competitors, distributors, and markets. As such it’s not quite the same as consumer research , but there’s significant overlap.

Market research matters because it can help you take the guesswork out of getting through to audiences. By studying consumers and gathering information on their likes, dislikes, and so on, brands can make evidence-based decisions instead of relying on instinct or experience. 

What is market research?

Market research is the organized gathering of information about target markets and consumers’ needs and preferences. It’s an important component of business strategy and a major factor in maintaining competitiveness.

If a business wants to know – really know – what sort of products or services consumers want to buy, along with where, when, and how those products and services should be marketed, it just makes sense to ask the prospective audience. 

Without the certainty that market research brings, a business is basically hoping for the best. And while we salute their optimism, that’s not exactly a reliable strategy for success.

What are the types of market research?

Primary research .

Primary research is a type of market research you either conduct yourself or hire someone to do on your behalf.

A classic example of primary research involves going directly to a source – typically customers or prospective customers in your target market – to ask questions and gather information about a product or service. Interviewing methods include in-person, online surveys, phone calls, and focus groups.

The big advantage of primary research is that it’s directly focused on your objectives, so the outcome will be conclusive, detailed insights – particularly into customer views – making it the gold standard.

The disadvantages are it can be time-consuming and potentially costly, plus there’s a risk of survey bias creeping in, in the sense that research samples may not be representative of the wider group.

Secondary research 

Primary market research means you collect the data your business needs, whereas the types of market research known as secondary market research use information that’s already been gathered for other purposes but can still be valuable. Examples include published market studies, white papers, analyst reports, customer emails, and customer surveys/feedback.

For many small businesses with limited budgets, secondary market research is their first choice because it’s easier to acquire and far more affordable than primary research.

Secondary research can still answer specific business questions, but with limitations. The data collected from that audience may not match your targeted audience exactly, resulting in skewed outcomes. 

A big benefit of secondary market research is helping lay the groundwork and get you ready to carry out primary market research by making sure you’re focused on what matters most.

Qualitative research

Qualitative research is one of the two fundamental types of market research. Qualitative research is about people and their opinions. Typically conducted by asking questions either one-on-one or in groups, qualitative research can help you define problems and learn about customers’ opinions, values, and beliefs.

Classic examples of qualitative research are long-answer questions like “Why do you think this product is better than competitive products? Why do you think it’s not?”, or “How would you improve this new service to make it more appealing?”

Because qualitative research generally involves smaller sample sizes than its close cousin quantitative research, it gives you an anecdotal overview of your subject, rather than highly detailed information that can help predict future performance.

Qualitative research is particularly useful if you’re developing a new product, service, website or ad campaign and want to get some feedback before you commit a large budget to it.

Quantitative research

If qualitative research is all about opinions, quantitative research is all about numbers, using math to uncover insights about your audience. 

Typical quantitative research questions are things like, “What’s the market size for this product?” or “How long are visitors staying on this website?”. Clearly the answers to both will be numerical.

Quantitative research usually involves questionnaires. Respondents are asked to complete the survey, which marketers use to understand consumer needs, and create strategies and marketing plans.

Importantly, because quantitative research is math-based, it’s statistically valid, which means you’re in a good position to use it to predict the future direction of your business.

Consumer research 

As its name implies, consumer research gathers information about consumers’ lifestyles, behaviors, needs and preferences, usually in relation to a particular product or service. It can include both quantitative and qualitative studies.

Examples of consumer research in action include finding ways to improve consumer perception of a product, or creating buyer personas and market segments, which help you successfully market your product to different types of customers.

Understanding consumer trends , driven by consumer research, helps businesses understand customer psychology and create detailed purchasing behavior profiles. The result helps brands improve their products and services by making them more customer-centric, increasing customer satisfaction, and boosting bottom line in the process.

Product research 

Product research gives a new product (or indeed service, we don’t judge) its best chance of success, or helps an existing product improve or increase market share.

It’s common sense: by finding out what consumers want and adjusting your offering accordingly, you gain a competitive edge. It can be the difference between a product being a roaring success or an abject failure.

Examples of product research include finding ways to develop goods with a higher value, or identifying exactly where innovation effort should be focused. 

Product research goes hand-in-hand with other strands of market research, helping you make informed decisions about what consumers want, and what you can offer them.

Brand research  

Brand research is the process of gathering feedback from your current, prospective, and even past customers to understand how your brand is perceived by the market.

It covers things like brand awareness, brand perceptions, customer advocacy, advertising effectiveness, purchase channels, audience profiling, and whether or not the brand is a top consideration for consumers.

The result helps take the guesswork out of your messaging and brand strategy. Like all types of market research, it gives marketing leaders the data they need to make better choices based on fact rather than opinion or intuition.

Market research methods 

So far we’ve reviewed various different types of market research, now let’s look at market research methods, in other words the practical ways you can uncover those all-important insights.

Consumer research platform 

A consumer research platform like GWI is a smart way to find on-demand market research insights in seconds.

In a world of fluid markets and changing attitudes, a detailed understanding of your consumers, developed using the right research platform, enables you to stop guessing and start knowing.

As well as providing certainty, consumer research platforms massively accelerate speed to insight. Got a question? Just jump on your consumer research platform and find the answer – job done.

The ability to mine data for answers like this is empowering – suddenly you’re in the driving seat with a world of possibilities ahead of you. Compared to the most obvious alternative – commissioning third party research that could take weeks to arrive – the right consumer research platform is basically a magic wand.

Admittedly we’re biased, but GWI delivers all this and more. Take our platform for a quick spin and see for yourself.

And the downside of using a consumer research platform? Well, no data set, however fresh or thorough, can answer every question. If you need really niche insights then your best bet is custom market research , where you can ask any question you like, tailored to your exact needs.

Face-to-face interviews 

Despite the rise in popularity of online surveys , face-to-face survey interviewing – using mobile devices or even the classic paper survey – is still a popular data collection method.

In terms of advantages, face-to-face interviews help with accurate screening, in the sense the interviewee can’t easily give misleading answers about, say, their age. The interviewer can also make a note of emotions and non-verbal cues. 

On the other hand, face-to-face interviews can be costly, while the quality of data you get back often depends on the ability of the interviewer. Also, the size of the sample is limited to the size of your interviewing staff, the area in which the interviews are conducted, and the number of qualified respondents within that area.

Social listening 

Social listening is a powerful solution for brands who want to keep an ear to the ground, gathering unfiltered thoughts and opinions from consumers who are posting on social media. 

Many social listening tools store data for up to a couple of years, great for trend analysis that needs to compare current and past conversations.

Social listening isn’t limited to text. Images, videos, and emojis often help us better understand what consumers are thinking, saying, and doing better than more traditional research methods. 

Perhaps the biggest downside is there are no guarantees with social listening, and you never know what you will (or won’t) find. It can also be tricky to gauge sentiment accurately if the language used is open to misinterpretation, for example if a social media user describes something as “sick”.

There’s also a potential problem around what people say vs. what they actually do. Tweeting about the gym is a good deal easier than actually going. The wider problem – and this may shock you – is that not every single thing people write on social media is necessarily true, which means social listening can easily deliver unreliable results.

Public domain data 

Public domain data comes from think tanks and government statistics or research centers like the UK’s National Office for Statistics or the United States Census Bureau and the National Institute of Statistical Sciences. Other sources are things like research journals, news media, and academic material.

Its advantages for market research are it’s cheap (or even free), quick to access, and easily available. Public domain datasets can be huge, so potentially very rich.

On the flip side, the data can be out of date, it certainly isn’t exclusive to you, and the collection methodology can leave much to be desired. But used carefully, public domain data can be a useful source of secondary market research.

Telephone interviews 

You know the drill – you get a call from a researcher who asks you questions about a particular topic and wants to hear your opinions. Some even pay or offer other rewards for your time.

Telephone surveys are great for reaching niche groups of consumers within a specific geographic area or connected to a particular brand, or who aren’t very active in online channels. They’re not well-suited for gathering data from broad population groups, simply because of the time and labor involved.

How to use market research 

Data isn’t an end in itself; instead it’s a springboard to make other stuff happen. So once you’ve drawn conclusions from your research, it’s time to think of what you’ll actually do based on your findings.

While it’s impossible for us to give a definitive list (every use case is different), here are some suggestions to get you started.

Leverage it . Think about ways to expand the use – and value – of research data and insights, for example by using research to support business goals and functions, like sales, market share or product design.

Integrate it . Expand the value of your research data by integrating it with other data sources, internal and external. Integrating data like this can broaden your perspective and help you draw deeper insights for more confident decision-making.

Justify it . Enlist colleagues from areas that’ll benefit from the insights that research provides – that could be product management, product development, customer service, marketing, sales or many others – and build a business case for using research.

How to choose the right type of market research 

Broadly speaking, choosing the right research method depends on knowing the type of data you need to collect. To dig into ideas and opinions, choose qualitative; to do some testing, it’s quantitative you want.

There are also a bunch of practical considerations, not least cost. If a particular approach sounds great but costs the earth then clearly it’s not ideal for any brand on a budget.

Then there’s how you intend to use the actual research, your level of expertise with research data, whether you need access to historical data or just a snapshot of today, and so on.

The point is, different methods suit different situations. When choosing, you’ll want to consider what you want to achieve, what data you’ll need, the pros and cons of each method, the costs of conducting the research, and the cost of analyzing the results. 

Market research examples

Independent agency Bright/Shift used GWI consumer insights to shape a high-impact go-to-market strategy for their sustainable furniture client, generating £41K in revenue in the first month. Here’s how they made the magic happen .

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Consumer Research – Introduction, Steps, Process

Consumer research just like market research follows a series of steps for better decision making. Consumer research is carried out to understand how customers respond to various sales offers and advertising appeals , changes in consumer perceptions and attitude and forecasting future needs, taste & preferences of a consumer.

Consumer research helps a marketer to frame appropriate strategies, face thriving competition and select the most suitable target market for the product. Marketers aim to understand the underlying motives, satisfaction and changing needs of the consumers through consumer research, as consumers have become more intelligent and aware in evaluating and purchasing products/services.   

Steps in Conducting a Consumer Research:

Defining the problem and formulating research objectives –  

A consumer research may be conducted to determine the following:

• Attitude of people towards a product/service
• Change in taste & preferences, likes and dislikes
• Market share and market demand of a product
• Buyers characteristics and influences
• Profitable Promotional campaigns and techniques
• Reasons for poor performance or decline in sales of a product etc.

The first step in conducting a consumer research involves: identifying the research problem , setting the objectives of research and formulating a working hypothesis. It is important to clearly define the problem and set specific objectives according to which an appropriate research design (exploratory, descriptive or experimental) is selected and adhered with. The research may be qualitative or quantitative in nature.   

Collecting and evaluating secondary data –

The second step in consumer research involves looking for appropriate information related to the research through secondary sources like internal data of the company e.g. sales reports, financial statements, performance reports etc. or external data like government and industrial publications, commercial sources, past books, case studies, journals etc.

The secondary data is evaluated for its reliability, adequacy and suitability before it is used. If the secondary data is not sufficient for the research a primary data is collected through questionnaires , interviews, experiments, observation etc. 

Collecting Primary Data –

The researcher collects the primary data through various methods when secondary data is insufficient. Primary research helps a researcher to know:

• Consumer`s awareness about a product
• Intentions of consumers
• Needs and motives of consumers
• Purchase Behaviour of consumers

Methods of collecting primary data – Questionnaire , Observation, Survey, Interview, Experimentation

Analyzing the data –

When all the data has been properly collected, compiled and tabulated, the researcher analyses the data through various statistical tools like:

• Percentages
• Measures of Central Tendencies – Mean, Median, Mode
• Measures of Dispersion – Mean deviation, Standard Deviation
• Chi-square Test
• Regression Analysis
• Multivariate Analysis

Preparing a report – When all the conclusions have been drawn and all inferences have been made, a research report is prepared and presented. The report consists of:

• The summary of findings
• Research Methodology
• Sampling Techniques used
• Primary and Secondary data
• List of Tables
• Recommendations and Suggestions
• Appendices and Bibliography

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A complete guide to customer journey analytics.

13 min read Customer journey analytics can help you to nail down exactly why your customers behave the way they do and tie your customer experience efforts to financial outcomes. Learn how to use customer journey analytics for improved CX with our ultimate guide.

What is customer journey analytics?

Customer Journey Analytics is the process of understanding the impact of every interaction a customer has with your business.

Often, customer journey analytics starts with a customer journey map , which is presented as a graph, flow chart, or other visual that documents each stage of the relationship between a customer and a brand.

However, instead of just charting their customer journey on a map, customer journey analytics takes a further step to analyze what effect each interaction has on your customers’ decisions.

Further information is overlaid to help analyze how each interaction drives customers toward the end goal.

Customer journey analytics can include analysis of:

• Customer needs
• Emotional highs and lows
• Key metrics per step in the journey
• Customer satisfaction scores , customer effort scores , and other survey results

Customer journey analytics can help you to direct your customers’ attention and resolve any pain points that stop them from taking desired actions. It helps you to augment your customer experience and develop a customer journey that not only gets customers to where you want them to go, but helps them connect to the journey itself.

Learn the analytics and ROI on customer journey management in our free course. 

Customer journey analytics vs. customer journey mapping

Many brands have a broad sense of their customer journey but haven’t optimized it by creating a comprehensive customer journey map or analyzing what affects their customers’ experience.

Customer journey analytics and customer journey mapping are complementary but different processes. Here are the main ways in which they are distinct, and how they work together.

What is customer journey mapping?

Customer journey mapping is the process of laying out the end-to-end journey in a clear way. Creating a map of every touchpoint your customer will experience means you can see what steps your customers take to reach the end goal of a purchase, signup, or other action.

Often, journey maps are documented at the process level. For example, an insurance provider would map the claims process, and a bank would document the new account process.

Some common components of customer journey maps include:

• The process being evaluated
• The stages of the journey
• Critical customer interactions and touchpoints
• Representative customer quotes
• Key customer expectations
• Metrics like satisfaction score, mention volume, NPS
• Trends in topics related to this part of the journey

Our ultimate guide to customer journey mapping can help you to draft your first customer journey map or optimize one you have already.

How do you use customer journey analytics with customer journey mapping?

As we’ve already explained, customer journey analytics is the process of gathering as much information as you can from every part of the journey and analyzing the journey for pain points and successes.

Understanding which parts of the journey function as planned and which obstacles are in the way of your customers’ progress means you can take action to ensure they complete their journey as you intend.

Benefits of customer journey analytics

There are several benefits to completing customer journey analytics. From better understanding your customers’ behavior to a better ROI for your customer experience , customer journey analytics gives you better insights and a more informed strategy for improvement.

Your brand becomes more customer-centric

Understanding the customer journey allows your company to be more customer-centric . It allows you to closely evaluate the activities, expectations, thoughts, and feelings of your customers . You learn what they like and dislike, how to move them through your buying cycle, and how to satisfy and retain them . When journey mapping is complemented with customer journey analytics it helps you understand the priority for your customer experience initiatives.

Your business becomes more unified

In addition, with the right focus, customer journey mapping and customer journey analytics break down internal silos. They empower you to streamline services across departments. Not only that, but they help to align everyone by providing a common understanding of the customer experience. Employees get greater visibility into what happens upstream and downstream of their interactions with customers, letting everybody provide a more consistent, high-quality experience.

You can find track issues as they happen

With a sophisticated customer journey analytics platform, you can pinpoint issues in real-time. You can test new approaches and see their influence on your customer experience and bottom line with analytics that update as quickly as you need them.

You see direct and indirect feedback in one place

Explicit feedback – for example, the information you gather through surveys – is easier to pinpoint to specific interactions customers have with your brand. The customer has an experience and directly after, you request input.

Implicit feedback is more complex to understand. This type of data might include operational data such as sales numbers, or it might cover social mentions, what your customers say on the phone to your care center, third-party reviews, and more.

Understanding how your audience thinks, feels, and acts in response to customer interactions without directly asking them might seem impossible, but with tools such as conversation analytics , you’re able to link your customer journey to this type of customer data.

See how Qualtrics CustomerXM enables customer journey analytics

An example of using customer journey analytics

Customer journey analytics can be used to understand the impact of sub-journeys limited to single processes – such as opening a new account – or the entire digital customer journey .

Below is an example of how you can use customer journey analytics to chart the success of each journey.

Resolving a customer satisfaction issue for a specific sub-journey

Let’s take a printer business that provides hardware to its customers. The brand has realized that the repair sub-journey is currently leading to low Net Promoter Scores (NPS) and a higher cost to serve per customer.

The journey

First, the brand needs to chart the customer journey. It looks like the below:

• A customer has an issue with their printing device
• They call the customer care center to schedule a repair
• The service agents arrive at their place of residence
• The repair is made

However, there are other ways this journey might unfold. For example:

• The service agents arrive at their place of residence but the customer is not present
• The repair cannot occur, so the customer has to call again to reschedule the repair
• The repair is made at a later date when the customer is present

The analysis

Overlaying the NPS scores on this latter journey, the company realizes that the NPS score drops when the customer has to reschedule the repair. Asking the customer to go through the same process once again to rebook their appointment is causing customers to feel less satisfied with their experience.

Using natural language processing (NLU), the team can also see that there is a more negative sentiment expressed in the open text question they have added to the NPS survey. With the additional calls to the care center, the cost to serve each customer also increases.

The resulting action  

The brand decides it’s best to provide other means to customers to book their appointments at a time to suit them. Offering customers a self-service booking system that they can access via their mobile on an app or through the website gives the customers more control over when their appointment occurs. Adding a facility to reschedule any booked appointments for a more convenient time and accentuating this with push or text notifications when the repair team is on their way can help to see if this reduces the instances of missed repairs and reduces the impact on the customer care center .

With customer journey analytics in place, the brand team can see if this improves NPS scores at the same points in the customer journey, and measure in financial terms the impact of actions taken for improved customer experience .

How to use customer journey analytics

Customer journey analytics provides the insight you need to successfully manage your customer’s journey. From lowering customer churn to helping you predict customer behavior, putting a customer journey analytics solution in place will help you to leverage your customer behavioral data for financial success.

But how do you start using customer journey analytics? Below is the outline of the actions you’ll need to take.

1. Map your customer journeys and aggregate data

First, you need to create a customer journey and aggregate the customer data that you already have. Good customer journey analytics tools will be able to do this for you, cutting down the time your team needs to spend sourcing data from third-party locations, customer service chat logs, and survey results.

Competent customer journey analytics software will also be able to track data in real-time, allowing you to build a comprehensive map that reacts to current customer behavior . It should also be able to draw data from numerous sources, helping you to break down traditional business silos and understanding customer interactions from all business angles: sales, marketing, and more.

Learn the five competencies for customer journey mapping

2. Analyze your customer behavior and data

Once you have your customer journeys mapped out and your data collected, you can link specific interactions to particular customer behavior, survey results, social media comments , and more. You’ll need a customer journey analytics solution to be able to link all of this data together in an efficient way.

3. Take action informed by data-led insights

Customer journey analytics provides you with the ability to see cause and effect, as well as providing you with concrete steps to change specific interactions or the entire customer journey. When customers react badly to specific processes or interactions, you can test how changes in your customer journeys affect their future decisions.

Not only that, but you can coordinate your teams across your business to work on customer satisfaction with their experience, based on the data you’ve analyzed. For example, if customers are led to purchase through your marketing but aren’t happy with their purchase, they will deal with your marketing , sales, and customer care teams. Understanding what specifically caused a problem for them means you can inform each team of actions they can take to improve.

How customer journey analytics can improve your customer experience

Brands often hit a wall when trying to measure customer experience . Charting your customers’ often nebulous sentiment and which actions have an impact on customer experience can be difficult without the right tools to hand.

Understanding the return on investment for specific actions taken for customer experience is difficult for a number of reasons:

• Data is siloed or overwhelming
• Business departments work separately with a lack of oversight
• Actions aren’t based on data
• There isn’t a way to track the impact of actions on customer experience

Qualtrics CustomerXM allows you to see the value of customer journeys with rich data analysis, provided through conversational analytics . With natural language understanding, Qualtrics is able to provide you unrivaled insights into customer emotions, sentiment, and more to paint a complete picture of friction points and their rationale. Powered by feedback from multiple areas of your business, you are able to create a plan of action with a tangible effect on your customer experience and business outcomes.

With a deeper understanding of customer behavior, your brand is able to not only understand the return on investment of your actions but develop a customer experience that delivers results. Extending your customer lifetime value , increasing customer satisfaction, and reducing customer churn becomes easier when you understand the triggers for the behavior.

Learn how to take action on customer journey management with our free online course

Related resources

Customer Journey

How to Create a Customer Journey Map 22 min read

B2b customer journey 13 min read, customer interactions 11 min read, consumer decision journey 14 min read, customer journey orchestration 12 min read, customer journey management 14 min read, customer journey stages 12 min read, request demo.

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How to Build A Sales Process That Lands Deals Every Time

Learn the right steps from research to close, and hone the strategies that boost win rates.

Jeffrey Steen

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Business growth expert Tiffani Bova said it best: “How you sell matters. What your process is matters.”

Think of your sales process like a map. It shows you how to get from point A in the sale (finding your prospect) to point Z (closing the deal), highlighting necessary steps along the way. Without it, you get lost, fumble, or stall out.

The best sales processes make selling easy by helping you optimize sales conversations, delivering the right value at the right time. As these conversations unfold, you learn more about your prospects and how you can make their jobs — and lives — easier with your solutions.

Sound complicated? Don’t worry, we’ll unpack it for you.

What you’ll learn:

What is the sales process, why is a sales process important, what are the most important sales process steps, sales process example, what are common sales process mistakes and how do you avoid them, how do you continually improve your sales process, what’s the difference between a sales process and a sales methodology, drive pipe faster with a single source of truth.

Discover how Sales Cloud uses data and AI to help you manage your pipeline, build relationships, and close deals fast.

A sales process is a series of steps that move a sales rep from product and market research all the way through to a closed deal — and beyond. The number of steps in the sales process may change depending on the type of industry you’re in, what product you’re selling, and who your prospect is, but typically include four key stages: research, prospecting, sales call and close, and relationship-building/upsells.

Having a documented sales process helps you know when and how to move a deal through the stages of a  sales pipeline , increasing the chances of closing. Without this process, you might push your product before the prospect is ready for a solution, or wait too long for fear of being pushy or aggressive. In both cases, the prospect is likely to look elsewhere.

When you have a clear sales process, you know how to deliver tailored solutions and value to the prospect at the right time, keeping the sales conversation going until they are ready to buy.

While you may need to adjust or add steps based on the product you’re selling, the typical sales process flows from early-stage product research through sales conversations, the close, and relationship nurturing that leads to upsells and cross-sells.

1. Build product knowledge

Today, clients expect sales reps to know every detail about the product they’re selling. This streamlines communication and accelerates the sales cycle, while giving reps the knowledge and confidence they need to handle objections.

The best way to learn about your products is by reviewing product demos, press releases, and documentation, and then using this knowledge in your sales conversations. Ask developers and product managers questions about functionality, use cases, and potential pitfalls. Take notes highlighting the standout features and the problems they solve for customers.

2. Research your ideal prospect

Many companies create a  buyer persona  that outlines the demographics, psychographics (needs, wants, and behaviors), and communication preferences of their ideal prospect. It’s important to review this carefully and think about how the product you’re selling addresses prospects’ pain points.

If you don’t have access to a buyer persona, spend time researching your target market. Here are key questions to guide your research:

• What buyer data do I already have that can help me outline the ideal prospect?
• What unique needs does my product or service address, and who has these needs?
• What are the characteristics of prospects targeted by my competitors?
• Where do my ideal prospects live, and how do they engage with businesses like mine?

There are many tools you can use to gather this information, but it’s best to start by collecting insights from your company’s  CRM . If it has built-in analytics, you can see where past sales came from and the basic demographic information or business details of buyers. You can also collect information on buying habits, including the average purchase frequency of buyers, which products are most popular, and average revenue per sale.

Then, add institutional knowledge to any CRM data you collect. Talk to tenured sales reps and managers about the customers they’ve worked with and get intel on their behaviors, communication patterns, needs, and pain points.

To round out your research, use a  generative AI tool  to learn about your competition’s marketing, pricing, service, and sales tactics. What strategies bring in the most business for your competitors and how can you make use of them to find prospects?

3. Begin prospecting and lead generation

Prospecting  is the process of finding individuals or businesses that are good candidates for a sale.

Start by asking fellow reps or industry connections for referrals or looking at online portals and communities for viable prospects. Search for product or industry keywords on broad-scope engagement platforms like LinkedIn, then move to trusted, niche sites that prospects commonly use for product research.

If you need additional help, search Google using keywords related to your product or business and look for relevant sites where potential prospects are engaging via comments or forums. This also allows you to collect information about their needs and pain points. When you identify a prospect you’d like to pursue, find them on LinkedIn or ZoomInfo, and collect any available contact details.

You can supplement these efforts with inbound lead-generation campaigns. While traditional prospecting is outbound, requiring outreach to those who might be interested in your product, lead generation campaigns pull interested contacts into your pipeline via display ads, paid search ads, and social media ads. Work with your marketing teams to create these campaigns and target audiences that match your buyer persona.

Lastly, use your CRM and  AI tools  to streamline the prospecting process. You can use automated workflows and intelligent digital assistants to conduct research across the web and score prospects to see which are the most likely to convert.

4. Qualify leads

Not all prospects are created equal. Before you can make a pitch, you need to verify that your product is a good match for the prospects you’ve identified. This requires a qualification call.

The qualification call collects basic information about need, budget, timeline, and authority that allows you to identify prospects most likely to buy. During the call, you should focus on the following key questions:

• What does the prospect need and does your product provide the right solution?
• Do they plan to make a product purchase soon? If so, when?
• How much do they have to spend on your product?
• Who has the authority to make the purchase and do you have their contact information?

Cynthia Barnes , founder of the National Association of Women Sales Professionals (NAWSP), recommends framing this as a checklist that can guide conversation rather than a list of very direct questions. “Don’t make it feel like an interrogation,” she said. “Treat your prospect like you would your best friend.”

Once you’ve qualified a prospect in an initial call, set up another meeting to further understand what they need and how you might meet that need (known as a discovery call). Keep in mind that 95% of buyers make purchase decisions based on emotion, so understanding a prospect’s emotional levers is key.

Below are some probing questions that can guide this discussion:

• What pain points or problems do you have right now?
• How have these problems affected your day-to-day work or life?
• What’s preventing you from finding lasting solutions?
• If you implemented solutions that didn’t work, why didn’t they work?
• What would an ideal solution look like?

Remember this is not an inquisition. Keep the conversation free-flowing and natural. Once you have answers to the questions above, you can move forward with identifying products that will solve their problems. If a prospect doesn’t identify a problem that can be solved with your product, remove them from your list.

5. Lead a sales call

It’s finally time to schedule a  sales call  and present your pitch. This is an opportunity to present your product as a solution to your prospect’s problems.

Tailor your pitch to your prospect and discuss solutions, not product features. This customized approach makes the prospect feel valued, rather than being sold to.

Write out potential objections and draft responses to them ahead of your presentation. Be careful not to go into full defense mode when you hear objections. Ask for additional details and context to ensure you understand the root of the problem.

Barnes suggests combining your prepared responses with the “feel, felt, found” formula: “I understand how you feel. Others have felt the same way about [our product]. However, they have found that [our product] is worth the money/time/energy because [reason].” (Check out our  objection-handling-tips  for more guidance.)

If you need some coaching guidance, be sure to bring in  AI-powered coaching tools  that can analyze your conversations and provide feedback or guidance — ideally in real time.

Once you’ve finished your presentation, suggest a timeline for the next steps. This should include any follow-up calls and a proposed deadline for the sale to close.

6. Follow up and close the deal

Immediately after the sales call, follow up with the prospect, summarizing your conversation and reiterating next steps. If additional information was requested, send this with your  follow-up message .

The prospect may respond with additional questions about your product. Answer these right away and urge them to make a purchase decision by the date specified during the sales call. You can make this easy by sending a PDF contract with an electronic signature (e-sign) field.

7. Nurture the relationship and upsell

If all goes well, your prospect is now a customer. Congratulations! But the sales process isn’t over yet. Satisfied customers provide a huge opportunity for cross-selling and upselling. As  Alex Turnbull , CEO and Founder of Groove, noted, “Upselling isn’t just a sales tactic — it’s a customer happiness tactic that can help you build deeper relationships with customers by delivering more value.”

Barnes’ formula of threes makes this easy:

• 3 days after the sale , check in to make sure the client is satisfied.
• 3 weeks after the sale , check in to see if the client has any questions or product issues.
• 3 months after the sale , check in to confirm satisfaction with the product and service, then ask for a referral.

The upsell can be woven into each of these messages. “Leave breadcrumbs,” Barnes recommends. “Offer a simple ‘by the way’ that suggests other products and services that might meet their needs.” If they’re satisfied with the initial sales experience, they’re likely to come to you for solutions first.

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To see the sales process in action, let’s take a look at how home manufacturer HomesRUs finds customers and closes deals efficiently.

Background:  Construction company HomesRUs launched in 2020, with a simple goal: to sell affordable homes in the Chicagoland area to young families. Their homes typically take three months to build, and early estimates show they will cost between $200,000 and $500,000.

With construction on their first homes underway, HomesRUs onboards an eager young rep, Emily, to start selling. Unfortunately, there’s no sales process in place and Emily doesn’t know much about the company. Emily has experience selling, however, so starts building out the process she needs to land her first sales.

Company and product research:  On her first day, Emily meets with the construction lead and the CFO. She asks specific questions about how the homes are designed, what materials are used in the building process, where the homes will be built, and how the company determines initial pricing. She learns that one of the company’s key differentiators is its American-made materials.

Prospect research:  With a better understanding of the company and its product, Emily then sits down to map out what she knows about her ideal prospect. She wants to target young families, and given mortgage rates, aims for those with a household income of about $100,000. She also reaches out to a couple of local real estate agents to ask about their client base — specifically, what they look for in a new home, what their challenges are, and where they typically look for homes.

Prospecting:  Emily now knows enough to start looking for prospects. She joins some local real estate community groups, real estate-related Reddit threads, and LinkedIn groups used by her target buyer. She also plans a few real estate “get to know you” events at local clothing and home goods stores where she knows her ideal buyer likes to shop.

Qualification and discovery:  With a few prospects in hand from searches and events, Emily reaches out. She starts by offering free packets of information on the local real estate market and the home-buying process — must-have information for new homeowners. She then asks for a quick call to talk about what her prospects are looking for and how she can help. She learns some of them are targeting homes at a much lower price point, so removes them from her prospecting list.

Sales call:  For her best-fit prospects, Emily suggests meeting in person to tour one of the model homes and talk through features, price, availability, and timing. To make the home more alluring, she makes sure it’s staged with freshly baked cookies in the kitchen (chocolate chip, of course). After several successful walk-throughs, only one of her prospects is keen to move ahead right away. The others have some concerns about price and ask for more time to think about the opportunity.

Follow up:  A day after her home tours, Emily follows up with each one of her best-fit prospects to let them know what the next steps are, including home inspection and the loan application. For those who were on the fence about a purchase, she lets them know she’ll follow up in a few months to see how they feel about moving ahead.

Close:  Lucky for Emily, her most engaged prospect agrees to buy. Yay! She sets up the home inspection and helps the customer file all of the paperwork for the loan and purchase. As a thank you, she sends the buyer a gift basket filled with goodies for their new home.

Nurture:  Emily sends the new homeowners an email a few weeks after the sale to check in. She makes sure the home meets their expectations and they haven’t seen any design or structural issues. She also checks to ensure all the final steps of the sale — loan paperwork, and so on — were wrapped up without issue. When she hears how happy the customer is, she asks for a referral, offering a $1,000 incentive for every new customer they bring to HomesRUs.

Not every sales process will look the one Emily and HomesRUs use, of course, but the basic flow is the same. Make sure you have ample information to find the right buyer, then deliver value throughout the process to make the close easy.

Below are some of the most common mistakes that derail the sales process — and advice on how to avoid them.

1. Poor preparation

Research is key to successful sales. When done correctly, it allows you to speak confidently about what you’re selling and what problems it solves. When done poorly — or not at all — prospects lose confidence in your product and business.

Take the time to understand both what you’re selling and your target audience before you ever make a sales call. Not only will you avoid embarrassing fumbles, but you’ll be able to address unique problems and value propositions in your prospect communications.

2. No needs analysis (discovery) call

Many reps think a qualifying call is sufficient background to pick out the best prospects on their list. In most cases, however, this call is very high level and doesn’t adequately paint the picture of a prospect’s needs.

Barnes calls this out as a common issue with new reps and recommends a separate call for discovery. “Take the time to hear about [your prospects’] pain points in-depth. Only when you fully understand these pain points can you offer a solution.”

3. Making a sales pitch before qualifying leads

Many eager salespeople are so focused on  quotas  and commissions they forget the qualifying and discovery calls and launch straight into the sales pitch. The result is often a dead end — the unvetted prospect has little interest, insufficient budget, or is not empowered to make buying decisions.

Take the time to learn about your prospect’s alignment with your products before a sales call and you’ll dramatically increase your chances of closing a deal.

4. Highlighting product features, not value

It’s common for reps to lead a sales call touting product features. The problem is, prospects aren’t looking for features. They’re looking for solutions and value.

As Executive Sales Coach Jay Abraham advises, “Sell the benefit, not the company or the product. People buy results, not features.”

5. Being unempathetic

Laser-focused on closing deals, reps can come across as pushy. Nobody wants to make a buying decision under pressure.

Don’t think of your prospect as a potential client. Think of them as a friend. Listen to their problems with empathy. It builds trust and loyalty, which make a purchase decision easier.

6. Talking too much

Constant talking is often cited as the number-one mistake salespeople make. It alienates prospects and scuttles once-promising deals. In fact,  many studies  have demonstrated the negative impact of talking more than listening during sales calls. The takeaway is the same: Reps who consistently close deals listen more than they talk.

The golden ratio is hard to pin down, but many experts recommend a 60/40 split in favor of listening. This gives reps enough time to share value-based insights while making sure the prospect is heard.

7. Being unprepared for objections

There are countless potential  objections  to a sale: cost, bad timing, insufficient need, lack of product functionality, and so on. While these will vary depending on the prospect, they’re often easy to anticipate. Unfortunately, many reps struggle to close sales due to common objections they don’t know how to overcome.

The best solution is to map out all likely prospect objections before you make your pitch. Then, use Barnes’ “feel, felt, found” formula along with your product and prospect research to prepare empathetic and impactful responses.

8. Making sales calls too long

In the era of  virtual selling , sales leader and consultant  Larry Long Jr.  notes reps struggle to keep calls short enough to retain prospects’ attention. The result, he says, is poor engagement and waning product interest.

Fortunately, the solution is easy: Keep your calls (in-person or virtual) to 30 minutes max. This forces you to avoid tangents and focus on sales-critical information.

9. Waiting too long to follow up

“The longer you wait to follow up with a prospect after a sales call,” cautions Barnes, “the colder the sale becomes.” Lazy or distracted reps sometimes leave days between the sales call and their follow-up email. By that point, the interest generated in the product has faded, making the close far more difficult.

Avoid this pitfall by sending follow-up messages immediately after your sales call. And keep following up — “until they tell you to stop,” Barnes advises.

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Building a sales process isn’t a “one and done” effort. According to longtime consultant and sales coach  Scott Leese , you should revisit your process every six months to ensure there are no bottlenecks, inefficiencies, or dated guidance. A lot of this work is the responsibility of sales managers or sales operations leads, but reps should feel empowered to provide feedback on goal metrics, target buyer personas, their tech stack, and possible process bottlenecks.

Here’s how to get started:

1. Examine your performance against goal metrics

Several steps in the sales process have performance metrics associated with them to ensure you keep deals flowing and, ultimately, hit sales goals. The most commonly tracked ones are: the number of prospects added to each rep’s  pipeline  in a given period, the number of sales calls made, the number of deals won, and, to a lesser extent, the number of upsells and cross-sells.

During your biannual review, identify how your performance compares to goal metrics. If there are certain areas where you’re falling behind, take a close look at the messaging and process in that area. Determine potential areas for improvement by asking:

• Is the product messaging I’m using dated or inaccurate?
• Does my outreach seem out of touch?
• Am I taking too long to complete tasks?
• Are there obstacles to completing tasks in this step?

When you have identified possible areas for improvement, flag them with your manager or sales ops lead for review. Make sure you map out a plan for updating your sales process to address problem areas, with next steps and action items clearly outlined. Aim to complete these action items one to two weeks after your review.

2. Review your target buyer persona

Your ideal prospect will likely change as the market and your products change. Pull up your  buyer persona  (created in step 2) and make sure that it makes sense for your current prospecting efforts. You can use the questions you asked when creating your buyer persona to see if it still fits:

• What are the characteristics and challenges of prospects targeted by my competitors?
• Where do my ideal prospects live and how do they engage with businesses like mine?

If your answers don’t align with the buyer persona as it stands, bring it to the attention of your sales ops team or sales leader and ask them to consider making updates.

3. Re-evaluate your tech stack

According to the  State of Sales Report , almost two-thirds of sales reps report being overwhelmed by too many tools. This can lead to a lot of time wasted on redundant data entry, and increases the chances for human error.

To avoid these pitfalls, audit your sales tools. Do they require a lot of data entry that takes you away from critical sales conversations? Are there some you would consider unnecessary or unhelpful? ( Here’s a helpful guide  for completing a comprehensive audit.)

It’s also important to examine naming conventions and language used in your technology. When systems are set up piecemeal or by different teams, there can be language differences that cause confusion. Is there a consistent taxonomy used across all reps and pipelines for stages and deal records in your CRM, or is naming different for different team members? Are you confused by labels, tags, or instructions?

If you’re seeing productivity obstacles here, surface them with your manager or sales ops team. Wherever possible, use concrete examples to show how these issues are negatively impacting your sales.

4. Identify possible process bottlenecks

Part of the benefit of sales process reviews is identifying areas to improve overall efficiency, Leese says. Don’t be afraid to dig into the roots of your process to see what needs to be uprooted. It’s possible that long-standing steps are actually dragging down performance.

Start by looking at the numbers. Pull up your  CRM analytics tool  to look at three key metrics, which gauge prospect engagement in each sales process step: average time in each step, average number of prospects in one step at the same time, and overall win rate.

First question to ask: How do these metrics compare to the previous six months? If performance is up, you’re making strides toward greater efficiency. If performance is down, look for the root cause by asking:

• Do you have clear exit criteria in place for each step of the sales process?
• Where are prospects getting stuck?
• Based on where prospects stall in the sales process, are there unnecessary steps?
• Is your sales process missing a critical step, like discovery or qualification?
• Do you need additional or better resources to successfully complete each step?

When you have a better sense of problem areas in your sales process, you can bring them to the attention of your sales operations lead. As always, bring evidence to support your conclusion and recommend a potential change to address the problems you uncovered.

5. Ask for enablement updates

While  enablement  program maintenance is the purview of sales ops leaders, reps can ask their managers for additional or updated enablement at any time — especially after the biannual sales process review. Changes should be updated in training materials, and these changes should be communicated to the entire team. The more up-to-date your enablement is, the easier it will be for you to sell — and hit those sales targets.

As a final note, it’s worth understanding the difference between the sales process and sales methodology. They are frequently used interchangeably, but are two distinct concepts. Think of the sales process as the “what” of the sales equation — the steps necessary to close a deal and nurture a new client or prospect relationship. A sales methodology is the “how” — how a rep executes each step in the process and engages a prospect or customer. When you put the right “what” and the “how” together, you increase your chances of successfully closing a sale.

Popular sales methodologies include:

Challenger Selling

Challenger-focused sales reps are all about pulling prospects into their world, instead of the other way around. They quickly identify painful problems and offer product solutions, encouraging prospects to make buying decisions quickly.

Trigger or signal-based selling

This more recent methodology looks for signs of customer need in data trends, then addresses this need with product or service solutions. The prevalence of customer behavior data — especially in the digital age — has made signal-based selling popular.

Value-based selling

Many methodologies lean heavily on value-first engagement and a customer-centric sales approach, including  The Sandler Selling System ,  SPIN Selling , and  N.E.A.T. Selling . Central to these approaches is an emphasis on keeping solutions simple and ensuring that reps take the time to become go-to, trusted advisors for their prospects.

360-degree selling

This holistic approach is focused on long-term relationship-building. At Salesforce, we call it the Customer 360 methodology. Paired with clear operational standards, C360 highlights four key elements of engagement across the customer journey: listening to prospects, building prospect trust, partnering during and after customer success (the implementation of a solution), and co-building plans with clients to deliver long-term value and success.

Set yourself up for sales process success

While knowing the steps of a sales process is important to winning deals, so is practicing the techniques in each step. Work with other reps to practice your sales conversations and follow-up to make sure you feel comfortable — and don’t forget to make note of tactics that work and ones that don’t as you work through each sale so you can improve for future deals.

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As a business and marketing writer for 15 years, Jeffrey specializes in skill-up content at Salesforce. His work touches on everything from sales fundamentals to employee coaching, leadership best practices, and growth strategies.

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Dreams Might Help You Process Bad Experiences

By Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, May 16, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- A good night’s sleep helps clear the cobwebs from your mind, and researchers now think they’ve figured out how dreaming helps.

A night spent dreaming appears to help people better process extreme events in their lives, as well as clear daily mundane things from their memory, according to results published recently in the journal Scientific Reports .

Dreaming prioritizes the processing of emotionally charged memories, and then diminishes their severity, researchers found.

“We discovered that people who report dreaming show greater emotional memory processing, suggesting that dreams help us work through our emotional experiences,” said researcher Sara Mednick , a professor of cognitive sciences at the University of California, Irvine (UCI).

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“This is significant because we know that dreams can reflect our waking experiences, but this is the first evidence that they play an active role in transforming our responses to our waking experiences by prioritizing negative memories over neutral memories and reducing our next-day emotional response to them,” Mednick said in a UCI news release.

For the study, 125 women in their mid-30s were asked in the evening to view a series of images depicting negative experiences -- like a car accident -- as well as neutral images like a field of grass. They rated each image on the intensity of feeling it sparked.

The women then went to sleep , either at home or in a sleep lab private bedroom. All wore a ring that monitored their sleep-wake patterns.

The next day, they jotted down what dreams they had in a sleep diary, and rated the overall mood of their dreams.

Two hours after waking, the women were given a follow-up test involving the images shown the previous night, to measure how many they recalled and their reaction to them.

“Different than typical sleep diary studies that collect data over weeks to see if daytime experiences appear in dreams, we used a single-night study focused on emotionally charged material and asked if the subject’s ability to recall their dream was associated with a change in memory and emotional response,” said lead researcher Jing Zhang , a postdoctoral research fellow at Harvard Medical School.

Patients who reported dreaming had better recall of the images and were less reactive to the negative images, a pattern that didn’t occur in people who didn’t remember dreaming, results show.

What’s more, the more positive the dream, the more positively a person rated negative images the next day.

“This research gives us new insight into the active role dreams play in how we naturally process our day-to-day experiences and might lead to interventions that increase dreaming in order to help people work through hard life experiences,” Mednick said.

More information

The Sleep Foundation has more about dreams .

SOURCE: University of California-Irvine, news release, May 13, 2024

Copyright © 2024 HealthDay . All rights reserved.

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On Questionnaires and Briefings: Explaining the GigaOm Policy Change

A stitch in time saves nine, they say, and so can receiving information in the right order.

We at GigaOm are constantly looking to make our research processes more efficient and more effective. Vendors often tell us what it’s like to work with us—we welcome these interactions and look to address every comment (so thank you for these!). We spent a good part of 2023 on driving far-reaching improvements in our processes, and we’re building on that in the knowledge that better efficiency leads to higher quality research at lower cost, as well as happier analysts and vendors!

That’s why we’re making a small yet necessary change to our briefings process. Historically, we’ve asked vendors to complete a questionnaire and/or schedule a briefing call, and we haven’t specified the order these should take place. The small tweak is to request that vendors first complete a questionnaire, THEN participate in a call to clarify details.

In practice, this means we will enforce receiving a completed questionnaire 24 hours before a scheduled briefing call. Should we not receive it within this timeframe, we will reschedule the briefing so the questionnaire can be completed and reviewed prior to the call. Analysts need time to review vendor responses before a briefing, so getting the questionnaire five minutes before won’t cut it.

As well as fostering efficiency on both sides, the broader reasons for this change are founded in our engineering-led evaluation approach, which reflects how an end-user organization might conduct an RFP process. What we do is to set out a number of decision criteria we expect products to possess, then ask for evidence to show these features are in fact present.

Briefings are actually an inefficient mechanism for delivering that information; the questionnaire is far better at giving us what we need to know to assess whether and how a product delivers on our criteria. Briefings should supplement the questionnaire, giving analysts an opportunity to ask follow-up questions about vendor responses which will cut down on unnecessary back-and-forth during fact check.

Briefings also have their own distractions. Keep in mind that we care less about market positioning and more about product capability. General briefings (outside of the research cycle) are a great place to set out strategy, have the logo slide, run through case studies, and all that. We love those general briefings, but the research cycle is the wrong moment for the big tent stuff (which often exists as a prerecorded video that we’d be happy to review, just not as part of a report briefing call).

I’ve often told vendors we’re not looking for all the bling during briefings. In the best cases, our engineers engage with your engineers about the key features of your products. We don’t need trained spokespeople as much as an honest conversation about functionality and use cases—10 minutes on a video call can clarify something that reams of marketing material, and user documentation cannot. Hence the change.

This shouldn’t add any extra time to the process—the opposite, in fact, as briefings are more productive when the questionnaire is already in place. We can reduce costly errors, decrease back-and-forth clarifications, and minimize misinterpretation (with the consequent potential backlash on AR, “how did you let them write that?”).

So, there you have it. We’ll be rolling out this change in early June for our September reports, so nothing will happen in a rush. Any questions or concerns, please do let us know—we’re constantly adjusting timeframes based on national holidays, industry conferences, and competitor cycles, and we welcome all input on events that might impact delivery.

We are looking at other ways we can improve efficiency, notably simplifying or reformatting the questionnaire, so watch this space for details—and we welcome any thoughts you may have! We also understand that logistics can be tough: we are all juggling time, resources, and people to enable research to happen.

We absolutely recognize the symbiosis between analysts and vendors, and we thoroughly appreciate the efforts made by AR teams on our behalf, to enable these interactions to happen—from familiarization with GigaOm and explaining our value, through negotiating the minefield of operational logistics! Our door is always open if you need anyone to help support your endeavors, as we work toward a win-win for all.

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HBM3e Production Surge Expected to Make Up 35% of Advanced Process Wafer Input by End of 2024, Says TrendForce

TrendForce reports that the three largest DRAM suppliers are increasing wafer input for advanced processes. Following a rise in memory contract prices, companies have boosted their capital investments, with capacity expansion focusing on the second half of this year. It is expected that wafer input for 1alpha nm and above processes will account for approximately 40% of total DRAM wafer input by the end of the year.

HBM production will be prioritized due to its profitability and increasing demand. However, limited yields of around 50–60% and a wafer area 60% larger than DRAM products mean a higher proportion of wafer input is required. Based on the TSV capacity of each company, HBM is expected to account for 35% of advanced process wafer input by the end of this year, with the remaining wafer capacity used for LPDDR5(X) and DDR5 products.

Regarding the latest developments in HBM, TrendForce indicates that HBM3e will become the market mainstream this year, with shipments concentrated in the second half of the year. Currently, SK hynix remains the primary supplier, along with Micron, both utilizing 1beta nm processes and already shipping to NVIDIA. Samsung, using a 1alpha nm process, is expected to complete qualification in the second quarter and begin deliveries mid-year.

Growing demand for DDR5 and LPDDF5(X) to consume more advanced process capacity

In addition to the increasing proportion of HBM demand, the growing content per unit in PCs, servers, and smartphones is driving up the consumption of advanced process capacity each quarter. Servers, in particular, are seeing the highest capacity increase—primarily driven by AI servers with content of 1.75 TB per unit. With the mass production of new platforms like Intel’s Sapphire Rapids and AMD’s Genoa, which require DDR5 memory, DDR5 penetration is expected to exceed 50% by the end of the year.

Meanwhile, as HBM3e shipments are expected to be concentrated in the second half of the year—coinciding with the peak season for memory demand—market demand for DDR5 and LPDDR5(X) is also expected to increase. However, due to financial losses experienced in 2023, manufacturers are being cautious with their capacity expansion plans. Overall, with a higher proportion of wafer input allocated to HBM production, the output of advanced processes will be limited. Consequently, capacity allocation in the second half of the year will be crucial in determining whether supply can meet demand.

Potential DRAM supply shortage due to HBM capacity prioritization 

The increased focus on HBM production could lead to a DRAM supply shortage if there isn’t sufficient expansion of advanced process capacities. Currently, new factory plans are as follows: Samsung expects existing facilities to be fully utilized by the end of 2024. The new P4L plant is slated for completion in 2025, and the Line 15 facility will undergo a process transition from 1Y nm to 1beta nm and above. The capacity of SK hynix’s M16 plant is expected to expand next year, while the M15X plant is also planned for completion in 2025, with mass production starting at the end of next year. Micron’s facility in Taiwan will return to full capacity next year, with future expansions focused on the US. The Boise facility is expected to be completed in 2025, with equipment installations following and mass production planned for 2026.

TrendForce notes that while new factories are scheduled for completion in 2025, the exact timelines for mass production are still uncertain and depend on the profitability of 2024. This reliance on future profits to fund further equipment purchases reinforces the manufacturers’ commitment to maintaining memory price increases this year. Additionally, NVIDIA’s GB200, set to ramp up production in 2025, will feature HBM3e 192/384 GB, potentially doubling HBM output. With HBM4 development on the horizon, if there isn’t significant investment in expanding capacity, the prioritization of HBM could lead to insufficient DRAM supply due to capacity constraints.

For more information on reports and market data from TrendForce’s Department of Semiconductor Research, please click  here , or email the Sales Department at  [email protected]

For additional insights from TrendForce analysts on the latest tech industry news, trends, and forecasts, please visit  https://www.trendforce.com/news/

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