Editor's note: Brian Fletcher is vice president at Insights in Marketing LLC, a Wilmette, Ill., research company. He can be reached at info@insightsinmarketing.com. This article appeared in the March 25, 2013, edition of Quirk's e-newsletter. 

 

As a marketing research consultant, my finger constantly rests on the pulse of the consumer but sometimes it is still a challenge for my team and me to take the pulse of our own industry. Better put: We're great at studying buyers; studying the firms that study buyers is more complex.  

 

So to better understand the MR industry, Insights in Marketing LLC set out to research the researchers and devise a list of the top six marketing research trends we foresee gaining momentum in 2013. Want to know how to navigate them? Read on.

 

1. Psychology 101

Understanding the psychology behind decisions will increase in importance.

 

We're realizing more and more that consumers are creatures of habit. In fact, habits and routines run more than 45 percent of consumers' daily lives1. Marketers and researchers have the power to capture these unconscious and habitual behaviors; but first, they must develop a deeper understanding of who their consumer is and what drives him/her.

 

Men, women and children are more than their demographics and want to be treated as such. In 2013, marketers and researchers will rely less on category or brand segmentations based on age, life stage and attitudes, which often fall short of deep consumer understanding. According to an Insights in Marketing LLC study conducted in the fall of 2012, only 9 percent of women and 14 percent of men feel that marketers are marketing effectively to them personally2. Marketers and market researchers alike must dive deeper into the consumer mind and understand the psychological and behavioral drivers to connect and win. 

 

2. Strengthening bonds between retailers and researchers

Industry insiders on both fronts know that research pays off.

 

From consumers to manufacturers to retailers, research is key in today's marketplace. Retail giants such as Amazon.com and Walmart can make or break a product - and manufacturers know it. To gain a competitive advantage, more and more manufacturers are relying on in-store and online shopper research.

 

They're certainly not alone. The retailers themselves rely on research to provide consumer insights. Today, 56 percent of consumers are more likely to try new stores than they were five years ago3. Armed with that knowledge, retailers are clamoring to make an impact and forge emotional connections to attract and retain consumers. An effective partnership can provide retailers with the consumer connection they crave and give manufacturers the pop on the shelf that they desire.

 

This kind of collaboration is a proven strategy for several large CPG companies. According to a study from the Grocery Manufacturers Association, McKinsey & Co., and Nielsen, successful consumer packaged goods companies are more likely to view retailer collaboration as a strategic priority: "Tellingly, winning CPG companies are five times more likely than their lower-performing peers to invest in customer collaboration, or joint manufacturer-retailer initiatives with shared accountability and targets, which go above and beyond the normal course of business." 

 

In addition to maximizing revenues, this form of collaboration distinguishes both the product and the retailer in the consumer's eyes. 

 

3. Balancing speed with quality

The battle between doing it right versus doing it right now continues to intensify.

 

We're seeing more business strategy and long-term planning take a backseat to short-term thinking. It's understandable: Senior executives, managers and analysts are being asked to do things quicker and on a tighter budget. Inevitably, that leads to the sacrifice of quality, long-term decisions and systematic approaches.

 

Focusing strictly on meeting deadlines won't work long-term for researchers and often isn't in the ultimate best interest of the client. Instead, research partners must strike a balance between quality of insight and speed. Those who can find that balance will succeed.

 

4. Focusing your focus groups

"More" and "meaningful" aren't the same when talking to consumers.

 

More isn't always better when it comes to consumer conversations and data. One tool that we're seeing shrink in participant size is focus groups. This critical research instrument will remain important because it inspires rich dialogue and in-depth exploration of the why behind consumer behavior. But size really does matter.

 

We are seeing clients increasingly ask for groups smaller in size - usually only four or five people - so they can dig deeper, expand the conversation and really look under the hood without spreading the moderator too thin. These numbers allow diverse thought and a smaller risk of groupthink.

 

This smaller group size is particularly preferred within the food and beverage industry and on foundational projects, such as strategy and positioning work. Tighter focus groups help explore strategic directions in depth but many still prefer larger groups when tweaking existing positioning and concepts.

  

5. Digging even deeper with hybrid research

Hybrid research will expand in both adoption and meaning.

 

Researchers know that if they want depth, they must dig. More and more are replacing single-methodology research plans with a combination of research methodologies and tools. With hybrid research, the lines between qualitative and quantitative are blurring and the client is realizing that with this change comes a wealth of information, including both hard data and consumer insights. In addition, we have seen and will continue to see the acceleration of layered qualitative approaches to achieve more meaningful insights. As a result of the shift, expect to see more creative research strategy.

  

6. Keeping it simple - and actionable

The need to inspire action is key in choosing a research partner.

 

In 2012, Insights in Marketing conducted a client survey asking about the most important criteria for choosing a research partner. Delivery of relevant, actionable insights was most important and understanding and responding to client needs was next in line. It's critical to keep those answers in mind in all that we do.

 

This brings to mind the trend toward storytelling in marketing research deliverables. As already discussed, clients are short on time and long on information. Because of that, they expect their research partners to step up and deliver information in a simple, easy-to-digest manner. The researcher's job isn't just to gather and analyze data; it's to inspire action from insight whether through infographics, storybooks, video, etc. It's only going to get more competitive for researchers out there. But those who can best meet client needs and inspire action through simple, impactful deliverables will come out ahead.

 

References

1 Wood, W. & Neal, D. (2009). The habitual consumer. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 19, 579-592. Citation comes from p. 579.; Professor John-Dylan Haynes at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences (Leipzig, Germany)

 

2 2012 Insights in Marketing LLC, i-on-Women proprietary research

 

3 "The Case for CPG-Retail Partnerships," Corporate Executive Board Web site blog