Pulse Testing and Market Research
Market research has its place, but sometimes I like to use quick, pulse-taking methods instead of investing the time and money into something formal.
Teleconference Customer Panel: Right now for my main client I run a monthly customer panel to get their insights upcoming Marketing campaigns. The set-up is easy, we ask for volunteers through our opt-in newsletters, and offer points towards free merchandise depending on how many panels they attend. We then e-mail them the creative or scripts and ask them for their observations.
The panels usually take about 45 minutes, and we try to limit the conversation to 6 participants. These panels may be informal and always taken with a grain of salt, but in every single one of them I always learned something interesting about my market. One of the main problems with Marketing is that you get so involved with your own product that you can’t imagine what it is like from an outside perspective. For example, in one panel we realized that the users had no idea what we were talking about for an entire brochure, until we gave them a simple example. That example made it to the final print run.
Online Surveys: I find that surveys help a lot in quick and dirty analysis. My favourite inexpensive and simple tool is Survey Monkey but I am sure there are other great ones available. Although it usually lacks the statistical samplings you would get in a formal survey, it can help with a basic litmus test. For example, a few years ago a marketing team I was on was tasked with creating inspirational posters for a large branch network. We sent out a survey with 42 words, asking how much each represented the heart of the company’s corporate and cultural values. In the end, the posters were celebrated as some of the best marketing pieces the company ever made.
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