At Kadence International, market researchers are at the heart of our team. In this series, we honour some of our colleagues, asking them about their experience working within the market research industry and what the future holds for the industry.
Name: Hide Hamano
Position: MD/Regional Account Director (Japan)
Kadence Office: Thailand
When did you join Kadence?
I joined Kadence’s Thailand office in 2016.
What does a typical day or week look like for you in your current role?
I am responsible for our office’s overall performance and projects that our Japanese office is involved in from the client-side.
I mainly focus on client communication and research proposals and presentations for clients. All my clients are Japanese companies that would like to enter a new market and grow their business in Thailand.
Tell us a little about your career so far. What was your first job or role?
How did you get started with market research? What other roles (in market research) have you had?
I began my career as a salesperson in the online survey industry in Japan and worked on several projects with many clients in various sectors. In 2016, I joined CMG to open the Thailand branch.
Why did you choose a career in market research?
I selected a career path in market research because I enjoy the process of collecting data and reading, sensing, and feeling that data, which can take different directions.
Stay ahead
Get regular insights
Keep up to date with the latest insights from our research as well as all our company news in our free monthly newsletter.
What is your favourite quote or the motto you live by?
Do everything to change what I can change, and accept whatever I cannot change.
What is the best thing about the culture at Kadence?
Every office has its own unique culture. I think this variety might be the best thing about the working culture at Kadence.
What are essential skills required to excel as a Market Researcher?
The most critical skills as a market researcher are the ability to read and interpret data. Market researchers should get excited by excel sheets and raw data.
What is unique about the market research field / and or consumers in your country/ region?
The Thailand market is unique and growing faster than some more developed markets. I deal with Japanese companies looking to expand their presence in Thailand, and I find that the Japanese are very traditional and like to stick with old successes and what has worked in the past. They try to make what has worked in Japan work in Thailand.
What is it about the field of market research you wish everyone knew?
Most people think of “online panels” when they think about market research. In its true sense, market research is a human management business.
What piece of advice would you give someone looking to start a career in market research?
Anyone looking to start a career in market research should be curious and proactive.
How have you seen consumer behaviour change in the past 2 – 3 years due to the pandemic? If so, what are your main observations?
The pandemic has turned most people into homebodies. Most people now tend to be too lazy and reluctant to go outside. Brands should look at expanding their delivery business in the new normal.
Tell us about a project you worked on (in market research) that you found particularly rewarding, exciting, or enlightening and why?
When we started tracking the results of our penetration study five years ago in the functional beverage market, there were not many functional and vitamin drinks consumers in the market.
These were considered beverages for higher-income and health-conscious people. But, every year, the market has been growing, and this beverage category has turned into a mass product. This study shows that changes in the market happen fast, and we need to develop and adjust products as early as we can.
How would market research evolve if you could time travel ten years?
The market research industry will change and evolve with new technologies, but at the same time, the client-side also has to change. So, while there might be some minor changes in data collection methodology and transcription and coding technology, market researchers will still need to have a “feel” for data. Technologies will not replace sensing and feeling.
What do you like to do in your free time when you are not working?
I enjoy cooking, fitness, running, and beer.
What is something you have accomplished in work or life that you are particularly proud of?
We grew over six years with our team’s support.
What is your all-time favourite food or cuisine?
I love Thai food, but my all-time favourite is Japanese food.
What is your all-time favourite travel or vacation spot, and why?
Japan is my favourite place to vacation because it has different seasons with different foods and climates.
How has Kadence’s remote work opportunity allowed you to achieve a work/life balance? We would love an example.
We have heavy traffic, especially in this part of the world, and commuting to and from the office takes up a lot of time. Work-from-home has been a great solution, and it has allowed us to be more efficient and productive.
What do you hope to achieve in your role?
I want to support Japanese companies as a bridge between the local Kadence team and clients.
Share
As organisations chart their growth and enter new markets, market research can assist them with these goals through data-driven insights. Market research plays a pivotal role in identifying market trends, uncovering competitive advantages, and discovering consumer intent and behaviours. This helps brands make better decisions based on data.
Therefore, market researchers are increasingly turning to technology to improve data collection methods, research processes, and consumer insights presentations. Technology allows researchers to reduce costs, boost productivity and increase efficiencies in all primary functions.
Machine learning and artificial intelligence are at the forefront of technological breakthroughs transforming the market research industry. These and other technologies allow more efficient and meaningful data collection and analysis.
Stay ahead
Get regular insights
Keep up to date with the latest insights from our research as well as all our company news in our free monthly newsletter.
Let’s take a closer look at the most important technological trends in market research.
Artificial Intelligence (A.I.)
Artificial intelligence (A.I.) is the ability of a computer or a computer-controlled robot to perform tasks usually done by humans and associated with intelligent beings. In market research, A.I. provides large amounts of unstructured data at scale.
A.I. is often used in conjunction with traditional methods with excellent outcomes in influencing marketing strategies, delivering service solutions, and uncovering consumer behaviour. It assists people in market research by automating tasks and increasing efficiencies, obtaining deep insights from a large amount of data, and enabling them to use natural language processing (N.L.P.) for better understanding.
Most people understand that traditional market research is about online surveys. A.I. allows surveys to be conducted via voice. For instance, brands are using voice survey tools to collect data that sounds more human. This is an incredible new development that allows users to provide feedback hands-free. For researchers, this is a qualitative approach that speaks volumes regarding the emotions behind the words. It captures the true sentiment of the participants.
2. Eye-tracking
Eye-tracking is a research methodology for measuring where a person looks, providing insight into their thinking.
It is now possible to record everything about how the eye interacts with everything in front of it. Using infrared light and high-resolution cameras, market researchers can track how eyes move in response to stimuli. They can, therefore, unlock real-time emotions and consumer reactions, obtaining insightful and quantifiable data behind consumer reactions and behaviour.
3. Real-time feedback
Real-time feedback is a type of qualitative market research methodology in which you receive live feedback from users or visitors on your website or app.
Mobile diaries allow brands to obtain “in-the-moment” real-time responses. They don’t have to recall their experiences from a few days or weeks ago; they can provide real-time feedback, for instance, while interacting with your app or product.
Most people always have their phones with them, not necessarily a traditional journal or diary.
4. Microdata
We hear and read about “big data,” but microdata is becoming increasingly crucial. Microdata is data about individual consumer activity.
Microdata is data on the characteristics of units of a population, like individuals, establishments, or households, collected by a census or survey.
A good understanding of individual consumer behaviour supports more targeted business decisions. So while big data is essential, certain decisions cannot be made using macro data methodologies.
5. Augmented Reality (A.R.)
According to Investopedia, “Augmented Reality (A.R.) is an enhanced version of the real physical world that is achieved through digital visual elements, sound, or other sensory stimuli delivered via technology.”
We partnered with Asahi on a pilot designed to explore the applications of augmented reality in package testing. The pilot was focused on one of Asahi’s flagship brands: Fuller’s London Pride. London Pride is already the capital’s number one ale. Still, as part of a strategic drive to bring the brand to more ale lovers nationally, Asahi wanted to test a new concept for the packaging against the existing bottle design.
Read the complete case study on how we ran an industry-leading pilot test on A.R. in market research to discover its applications to pack testing.
Virtual environments have provided brands and market researchers with a more accessible and less expensive way of product concept testing, feasibility analysis, and interpreting consumer behaviour regarding a new and developing product.
Brands use A.R. to help consumers view a product, like a piece of furniture in their surroundings. It provides the brand with feedback on how a product can work for customers. It is also far less expensive than a focus group or shipping the product to the consumer.
6. Internet of Things (IoT) and Wearables
Internet of Things (IoT) refers to a network of connected objects or devices that can collect and exchange data in real-time using embedded sensors. Cars, thermostats, lights, and window blinds, can all be connected to collect and exchange information over a network using sensors.
Internet of Things (IoT) devices are a goldmine of data with many facets of consumers’ everyday lives. Let’s say a company wanted to measure the activity levels of consumers in the new year. They will get rich data from a wearable device like a Fitbit or Apple watch (with the user’s permission).
7. Social targeting
Social media targeting is the ability to post or advertise certain content to specific audiences. These can be chosen by the person posting or the advertiser to include niche audiences based on demographics, interests, etc.
There are over 4.55 billion social media users worldwide, and that’s where most people congregate nowadays. Advertisers have leveraged the precise targeting of niche audiences to drive leads and sales.
Brands can target a specific section of the population based on age, gender, interests, behaviours, languages, and even the brands and products they currently use.
Market researchers can use social sampling to effectively target participants according to what they are looking for based on personal interests, location, and interests.
Surveying consumers virtually allows them to target specific niches of participants. Researchers can select participants who care about the product or service with precise targeting, resulting in higher response rates.
There are plenty of opportunities to adopt new technologies in market research so brands can get better insights faster. This enables brands to make better decisions based on rich data.
Technology makes it possible for market researchers to collect data quicker and more accurately and analyse it more effectively. However, they also need to sharpen their skills when using technology. In some cases, it is essential to complement traditional methods with technology. In either case, technology adoption will allow market researchers to spend less time on data collection and analysis and more time on the big picture problem-solving. This will bring more value to the brands and markets they serve.
Technology to enhance, not replace, the human component
While technology provides real-time, rich, and robust data and an efficient way to sift through vast amounts of data, it does not replace experience in interpretation. Technology should complement, accelerate, and enhance the market research methodologies, not replace them.
For instance, automation should be used to reduce the time between putting the survey in the field and retrieving the feedback and responses. But the automation should not replace the interpretation made by an experienced market researcher.
Market researchers know how to design surveys, ask the right questions, and interpret data. With the advances in technology, they can move from data collection to more big-picture thinking. In a world of automation and data, human beings remain unique in their ability to create and understand people.
Share
Consumer interest in Connected Technology is rising due to the accelerated digital shift to “at-home” trends during the pandemic. With an increasing number of people working, learning, shopping, exercising, and even monitoring their health from the comfort of their homes, the connected technology market is rife with opportunities for brands in a multitude of sectors.
From AI-enabled voice assistants that can be summoned on command to watches that have gone beyond telling time and have converted our wrists into smartphone holders and health monitoring devices, connected technologies are transforming the way we live, work, and play.
Stay ahead
Get regular insights
Keep up to date with the latest insights from our research as well as all our company news in our free monthly newsletter.
Market research and product testing are paramount for the successful launch of connected technology products.
With an increasing number of consumers and households jumping on the connected technology bandwagon, we are collecting more information and data than ever before, which has positive and negative implications for the market research industry.
Market research companies provide product testing services in various industries as they conduct research studies for a range of products before they are launched and help guide new product development. These companies put the products in the hands of the consumers who will be using the technology.
Product testing is a research methodology that allows brands to gather quantitative and qualitative information about a user’s potential behaviour, reactions, and preferences, like the taste, feel, and smell. For connected technology, often, a prototype is tested in the market before it goes into development.
What is connected technology?
Connected technology is products with built-in or embedded technology comprising sensors and processors to connect with their environment and other products.
Connected technology is tied with the Internet of Things (IoT). Watches are no longer used only to tell time; their function has extended to enable text messaging, phone calls, and fitness monitoring. Our homes are getting smarter; our cars go the extra mile to deliver convenience; our offices thrive remotely using real-life collaboration and project management tools.
Let’s look at some of the main areas where connected technology is unfurling, what the future has in store for consumers, and how brands can match this rapid growth.
How are people currently using connected technology?
Connected technology has seamlessly integrated into our daily lives and shows no signs of slowing down, and for good reason. The demand for connected technology that provides convenience, comfort, accessibility, and automation is at a historic high.
To understand the benefits and use of connected tech, let’s look at the main areas we use connected technology in our daily lives.
There’s no place like a smart home.
Smart homes are redefining our living spaces and becoming more innovative. According to Statista, the global smart home market is worth more than US$126 billion.
Consumers increasingly demand home automation when they purchase a home —and for a good reason. Home automation provides convenience, functionality, security, entertainment, and energy savings. The possibilities are endless.
For instance, lighting control network systems allow you to control the whole home or building remotely by your smartphone. Sensors turn lights on and off as we enter and exit rooms. Automated window treatments allow you to control a room’s ambient lighting and other aspects remotely. Smart homes also allow for remote access.
Smart appliances are making life easier for households. Smart Appliances as a segment includes all kinds of connected household appliances. Surveillance cameras and home security systems are getting more advanced. Baby and pet monitors allow people to monitor their babies and pets.
Consumers in Asia adopt devices more quickly than in North America and Europe, and South Korea leads the way with a 27 percent household penetration rate in 2022.
Smart homes are not just nice to have anymore. Homeowners are increasingly expecting smart home features, and builders and technology companies are taking note.
Smart homes are getting smarter and now go beyond just thermostats and light dimmers. Technology is becoming much more affordable and accessible, and some smart homes will make your jaw drop.
Consumers are much savvier and increasingly demand technology built into their homes. Even the lower to mid-range new home buyers expect certain smart home features to be part of the build. Therefore, every construction company needs to include these home features or risk falling behind their competitors.
How does the demand for Smart Homes impact brands in the market?
This new trend has many implications for the market. Builders will need to consider privacy and cybersecurity, adjust agreements, make sure devices can “talk” to each other, and have the ability to offer flexibility as new technologies are added in the future.
With the average household using 25 connected devices, there is considerable pressure to provide a connectivity network far beyond what a regular service provider can deliver.
The pandemic has also created a new generation of germophobes, and KB Homes, a home builder in the U.S., has launched MERV-13-rated air filters in their communities. Compared to lower-rated air filters, these high-grade residential air filters eliminate dust, pollen, mould, and certain bacteria and viruses for improved air quality.
Home appliance brands are not only thinking of innovations but also a way to upgrade features into existing smart products. The CES 2022 show in Las Vegas saw AI-powered laundry machines, hands-free faucets, healthier microwaves, next-level smart blinds, and smart bathing technology.
Connected technology is driving the automobile industry.
Connected technology is designed to connect to a smartphone to do more than play music or route phone calls through the car’s speaker. For instance, you can turn a connected vehicle on or off using a smartphone. It can allow the owner to use an app to control the car or share diagnostic data to remind you when an oil change is due, and so on.
Connected vehicles on the road connect to a network so all types and sizes of cars can “talk” to each other as they share vital information on safety, road conditions, traffic, and mobility.
These are just a few instances that barely scratch the surface of what connected vehicles can do.
A Statista report estimates the size of the global connected car fleet to increase more than threefold in the coming years. In 2021, there were about 84 million connected cars in the United States, and it is projected to exceed 305 million in 2035, making the United States the biggest market for connected vehicles.
Europe currently accounts for around 30 percent of the global connected car fleet. The E.U. is one of the regions with significant potential for connected services.
As of 2019, about half of the motorists in Europe said they were willing to switch car brands to access new connectivity features and services.
According to 1Mordor’s 2020 report: “The connected medical device market is expected to register a CAGR of 18.92% over the forecast period from 2022 to 2027.” The same report showed the Asia Pacific as the fastest growing market and North America as the largest market.
Connected tech in healthcare is also referred to as Connected Care. It may be defined as the real-time, electronic communication between a patient and a medical provider, using digital tools such as remote patient monitors, telehealth, wearable technology, secure messaging, and mobile apps, to name a few.
It is estimated that remote monitoring for healthcare could be worth USD 1.1 trillion by 2025.
Wearable technologies hold a significant share of this market, providing real-time data so health care providers can help patients remotely. They provide convenience and cost-effectiveness by reducing multiple visits to the doctor’s office. With cardiac-related devices expected to be worth USD 800 billion by 2030, there is a massive opportunity for healthcare brands in the cardiac segment for wearables.
These medical devices can be vulnerable to security breaches, impacting their safety and effectiveness because they are computer systems.
While there are data security risks involved, wearables can detect cardiac arrhythmia conditions causing stroke and allow neurologists to diagnose seizures remotely; the benefits of these products far outweigh any risks.
Connected tech encompasses your fur babies.
The pet humanization trend and growing concern amongst pet owners about the health and safety of their pets continues to drive the pet industry’s growth at a CAGR of 6.1 percent. You can now dress your pet in a Banana Republic sweater, insure them with MetLife, and get CBD supplements to calm them down.
This trend is now dovetailing into the pet wearable devices market. According to a recent global market research study, the global market for pet wearables is expected to reach USD 2,5 billion by 2024. Pets can wear these devices to help identify, track, control, and even for medical diagnosis and treatment. Furbo is one such pet wearable in the market that aids anxiety in dogs. A remote pet camera that alerts you when your dog is barking can take dog selfies, and owners can toss treats, all from their smartphones.
Connected technology is reshaping the fitness industry.
One of the first industries impacted adversely by the pandemic was gyms and fitness centres when they were forced to close their doors due to fears of spreading COVID-19. Stuck at home and with more time on hand than ever before, consumers made a beeline for at-home gym equipment. Peloton was at the forefront of this revolution and later bought Lululemon’s Mirror.
Peloton’s stock has reached highs and has plummeted in what seems like a roller coaster ride. When gyms closed during the pandemic, Peloton’s stock price and product sales were at an all-time high, increasing more than eightfold from March to December 2020.
An Atlantic article revealed the company had 2.3 million users paying about $40 a month to take classes on its “connected fitness” products by August 2021.
Google trends show a similar picture.
At-home Fitness Trends during the Pandemic
The global home-fitness equipment market will grow to $15.13 billion in 2022 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.6%. The at-home fitness market is expected to reach $21.84 billion by 2026.
What does this mean for fitness brands —both in-person gyms and online fitness platforms?
Brands providing fitness solutions inside and outside the home will need to commit to the new normal and an approach that fits consumers’ lifestyles.
Brands that want to become a part of their consumer’s fitness regimen will have to consider a hybrid approach. On-site fitness studios and solutions should utilize a more hybrid approach to keep consumers physically and digitally engaged and connected. They can do this by complimenting their in-person services with a mobile application. At the same time, brands with at-home gym equipment and tools should make data security a priority.
The intersection of retail and technology elevates the shopping experience —both in-store and online.
Not all businesses survived the pandemic and the recent, rapid shifts in consumer habits, but the ones that did are thriving. These retailers have been able to master the in-store shopping experience.
Retail technology provides an exciting opportunity to both consumers and retail brands. Connected technology is taking the shopping experience up several notches. While people still shop in these stores, a brand’s physical location is considered one of the many channels. Consumers interact with these stores digitally and will come to expect this from every brand.
From using virtual mirrors to try on clothes to pointing a piece of furniture on your cell phone and placing it in your home, Augmented Reality (A.R.) is changing how we shop and try products. Car shoppers can go into dealerships and customize cars with different colours or styles using their tablets or phones. They can use A.R. to try sunglasses from the comfort of their home.
Grocery stores may look the same as many years ago, but the experience has completely transformed. The distinction between online and offline has little relevance today in the grocery space. This is because today’s consumers do not want their shopping experience to be held back by the limitations of a single touchpoint. Today’s connected consumers expect an omnichannel shopping experience, including online ordering, curbside pickup, delivery, self-checkout, scan-and-go, and contactless payment options.
Supermarket brands need to have an omnichannel approach to meet customer expectations, including convenience, speed, and efficiency. For instance, while a customer is exploring store aisles physically, they should have the option to interact with the store digitally and even complete the transaction using the store’s mobile app.
Consumers’ data is recorded and stored to provide a personalized experience with product recommendations and deals. When consumers create an online account, their purchasing habits are used to tailor relevant deals, ads, and offers. In the absence of an online account, consumer data is tied to a loyalty card.
Technology also allows retailers to alert customers when stocks of the items they regularly purchase are low or when an item is back in stock. Alexa, Amazon’s voice assistant, will notify you based on your ordering history if you are running low on a particular product, tell you how much it is, and ask you if you would like it added to your cart.
Grocery delivery services became popular during the pandemic. Now that we can go back to a physical store, many consumers have become accustomed to using delivery apps like Instacart for their convenience, speed, and seamless service. You can also watch your groceries transported to your doorstep with the app’s live map view.
Sustainability is also coming into the picture with an increasing number of younger generations that prefer buying from eco-friendly companies. Zero, a Los Angeles-based startup, is an example of an eco-friendly brand that delivers groceries in sustainable packaging.
The future of retail is hybrid with an Omni-channel approach and connected experiences across touch-points.
As customers jump across several channels when they shop, retailers need to engage with where their customers are via digital channels.
Leveraging shopping behaviours, personalisation, user experience (UX), and integration will be critical for retail success. This will help retailers engage with their customers at various touchpoints —physical stores, sites, apps, and significantly improve the shopping experience.
Retailers also need to factor in social media networks, messaging apps, voice assistants, mobile devices, and other new channels to capture their customers’ attention and engage with them. Consumers expect incredibly personalized and relevant content.
Challenges in the connected technology space and how brands can use these as opportunities to grow
During the pandemic, the older, less tech-savvy generations also adapted to connected technology and enjoyed the benefits of staying connected with friends and family. Brands should no longer ignore this segment’s needs and may need to provide more in-depth onboarding help and tech support.
Now that people are back to in-person, they will continue using these devices and technologies in and out of the home, in the new normal. There will be a need for interconnectivity across the house, car, and mobile devices will be critical moving forward.
The industry faces many challenges, including data security, privacy concerns, continuous innovation and iteration, a massive load on the network and wifi issues, theft, loss, and damage.
Here are ways in which brands can overcome such challenges:
Provide extended warranty
Put customers first
Provide multiple customer-service options
Insurance against theft, loss, and damage
Provide on-demand tech support
Help with digital identity protection
Allow trade-in offers to swap your old device for a new one at a discount
Continuously upgrade technology
What does the future hold for connected technology?
In a digital-first world, physical fitness studios and stores are still appealing. Physical stores that embraced this reality are thriving. They have gone above and beyond to offer a hybrid approach and have elevated the in-store experience. There is also a preference for in-store shopping in older generations versus younger ones.
The pandemic played a massive role in speeding up the adoption of digital-first behaviors. Now that we know consumers expect a hybrid world where digital meets offline, brands can play a role in pushing innovation and further improving customer experiences across touchpoints and channels. With a goldmine of integrated customer data, they can offer a personalized and relevant experience in a hyper-connected consumer world.
How market research can aid brands in the connected technology space
For brands aiming to disrupt the market with the next “new” thing in connected technology, it is vital to know how consumers will respond to it before going to market. Market research can provide the valuable data, and insights brands need to take action.
Brands have several critical decisions regarding target markets and audiences, price, distribution channels, promotion, and product features. How can brands bring new product lines to market without proper knowledge? The good news is market research provides unique methodologies tailor-made to capture purposeful information to inform those decisions.
Market research allows brands to collect relevant information about market needs and customer preferences, impacting every aspect of the business, product, and brand. Backed by this information, brands understand the choices and behaviors of their potential customers. Therefore, their products can meet their customers’ needs and reduce the risk of an experience gap between the company and its products or services. The experience gap is essentially the gap between what the customers expect/ want and what the companies give them.
Market research is used for product testing and development. Effective market research uses a diverse population to test a given product and ensures it works for everyone in the target market. Brands also use market research for brand name testing, concept testing, messaging and campaign testing, branding, and logo testing, and pricing testing, to name a few.
For brands in the connected technology space that are often under high pressure to quickly produce and iterate high-quality products with an enhanced customer experience in a competitive market, the importance of market research cannot be overstated.
Brands in connected technology need to utilize a comprehensive testing strategy beyond traditional product and messaging testing. Market research can study the preferences and User Experience (UX) throughout all touchpoints within the customer journey.
For instance, connected technology brands can use market research to ensure customers are surveyed on current technologies and UX and online shopping cart abandonment. Likewise, the data from connected tech can (with permission) provide a goldmine of information about specific market segments, which can inform better decisions based on hard facts rather than gut feelings or assumptions.
For smart product companies, it is also essential to make sure all their products connect seamlessly to make their customers’ lives easier and more comfortable. Therefore, market research is utilized to make sure the product works and connects with other smart products to enhance the customer’s life.
Connected technology became popular before the pandemic. The pandemic only accelerated its adoption. The rise of connected consumers across the globe has led to connected technology trends across industries. As brands navigate the challenges of wifi capabilities and data privacy, they are continually innovating and iterating smart, connected products that are relevant and user-friendly.
We don’t need a crystal ball to make this prediction: the future belongs to a connected world.
Learn more about how Kadence International’s Marketing Research is driving growth for leading technology companies here.
Share
The significant strides in Artificial Intelligence (AI) are reinventing the market research industry by addressing cost and time issues. As for the process and application, AI makes market research less labourious, faster, and more accurate. Machine Learning reduces the time to complete projects from weeks and months to hours and days. Algorithms make the job less cumbersome and more cost-effective.
What is Text Analytics, and what are its uses?
One of the newest trends and developments in market research is Text Analytics. Text analytics is a qualitative research method used to uncover the whole story behind the data so organisations can make better, more informed decisions. It refers to the automated process of extracting and translating information, insights, patterns, and trends from large volumes of unstructured text and data. This is done through text analytics software that uses Machine Learning and Natural Language Processing (NLP) algorithms to pull valuable information and meaning from unstructured text.
This text and data consist of open-ended feedback in text form, like emails, survey responses, product reviews, call center notes, and social media posts.
Can you imagine how tedious and time-consuming it would be to pull information and deep insights from such voluminous, unstructured text at scale?
Text analytics helps market researchers examine large amounts of information and data in real-time to track consumers’ sentiments and detect potential brand reputation issues before they become serious.
Text analytics also helps diagnose product issues and provide more profound insights like identifying patterns or trends. It aids in comprehending a negative spike in the customer experience, assists in collating and interpreting customer conversations from various online sources, and helps monitor an advertising campaign’s messaging and how it is being received.
Brands increasingly use text analytics to offer actionable insights that inform sound decision-making. It also enables organisations to examine vast amounts of data at scale, increase efficiencies and reduce time, labour, and costs.
According to Mordor, “The global text analytics market was valued at USD 5.46 billion in 2020 and is expected to reach USD 14.84 billion by 2026 at a CAGR of 17.35 percent.”
Companies use text analysis to help improve their customer, employee, product, user, and brand experience. Many cloud-based applications use text analysis for predictive studies, cybercrime, business intelligence (BI), and fraud management, to name a few.
The Difference Between Text Mining and Text Analysis
It is essential not to confuse text mining with text analysis as they are similar in process and methodologies but have very different applications.
Text mining uses statistical methodologies to extract quantifiable information from unstructured text, used for applications like fraud detection and screening of job applicants.
Text analysis has a more business and experience management focus that uses similar methodologies as text mining but uses the information to uncover trends, patterns, and sentiment to sweeten customer, product, brand, or employee experience.
So how does text analysis measure sentiment in the absence of language and tone?
Market research companies use Natural Language Processing (NLP) to analyze sentiment from the text so they can decode the emotion, feeling, or context behind blocks of plain text. NLP uses language processing algorithms to evaluate sentiment without any bias.
Brand and Market Research applications of Text Analytics
Text analytics is used in the field of Experience Management (XM), and it is widely used in the following four main areas:
Customer Experience
Customer experience uses technology like Machine Learning to provide intelligence around the customer or user experience across all touchpoints. This allows brands to enhance the customer experience by making informed decisions based on the findings.
Product Experience
Text analysis provides feedback on the features that need improvement and those that need to be added in future updates. Product usage data and warranty information enable brands to invest in their customers’ most used and valued elements and features, reducing costs and boosting profits.
Brand Experience
Text analytics collates data from multiple online sources to identify conversations around the brand. It is also used to analyze how effective marketing campaigns are and how the brand messaging resonates with the target audience—other data points like campaign reach, spending, and customer acquisition impact Return On Investment (ROI). It helps measure the overall brand experience.
Employee Experience
Employee wellbeing and work-life balance issues have recently come to the forefront, and text analytics helps provide real-time reports and data around topics that concern employees. Employee attrition has always been a challenge for most organisations, and text analytics combines data around engagement scores to tackle employee attrition and boost employee retention and satisfaction.
Armed with good text analytics software and research methodology, brands can arm themselves with the ability to identify and monitor patterns and trends over time. Text analytics helps deliver insights to build a deeper understanding to win over target audiences.
Share
The Internet changed our lives forever. And now, the Internet of Things is transforming our lives yet again.
In recent years, we have seen several significant developments in technology. While these developments were already at play, the pandemic gave a big push and further accelerated the pace of adoption.
In today’s connected consumer world, the physical world meets the digital world, and these two worlds cooperatively interact. Big data, analytics, and mobile technologies allow objects and devices to share and collect data over an interconnected network and with little human intervention.
The benefits of using IoT are reduced costs, augmented productivity and efficiencies, and increased convenience. Ultimately, IoT is beneficial for brands and market researchers as it provides them with a wealth of information on consumer habits that they can utilise to increase their profitability.
Stay ahead
Get regular insights
Keep up to date with the latest insights from our research as well as all our company news in our free monthly newsletter.
Definition of the Internet of Things (IoT)
According to Oracle, “the Internet of Things (IoT) describes the network of physical objects—“things”—that are embedded with sensors, software, and other technologies to connect and exchange data with other devices and systems over the Internet.”
Simply, IoT is when the products we use every day connect to the Internet and each other.
Internet of Things (IoT) goes beyond consumer products and permeates many other industries.
In recent years, one of the most significant developments in the Industrial Revolution is Industry 4.0, and it all began in the manufacturing sector.
What is Industry 4.0?
Industry 4.0 focuses on interconnectivity, automation, machine learning, and real-time data in the manufacturing industry.
It allows manufacturers to maximise productionand improve distribution, transportation, and product development.
Industry 4.0 is the convergence of state-of-the-art manufacturing processes with the Internet of Things, which results in innovative, interconnected techniques that can communicate, analyze, and employ data to improve decision-making. This ultimately leads to optimizing, connecting, and automating operations.
Industry 4.0 was mostly restricted to the manufacturing industry in its early days but has expanded to benefit other sectors, like warehousing, logistics, and distribution.
Let’s delve into the opportunities for connected tech in other industries:
Healthcare
According to 1Mordor, “the connected medical device market is expected to register a CAGR of 18.92% over the forecast period from 2022 to 2027.” The same report showed the Asia Pacific region as the fastest growing market and North America as the largest market.
Connected tech in healthcare is known as Connected Care. It is defined as the real-time, electronic communication between a patient and a medical provider, using digital tools such as remote patient monitors, telehealth, wearable technology, secure messaging, and mobile apps, to name a few.
It is estimated remote monitoring for healthcare could be worth USD 1.1 trillion by 2025.
Wearable technologies hold a significant share of this market as they provide real-time data so health care providers can help patients in remote locations. They provide convenience and cost-effectiveness by reducing multiple visits to the doctor’s office. With cardiac-related devices expected to be worth USD 800 billion by 2030, there is a massive opportunity for healthcare brands in the cardiac segment for wearables.
COVID-19 has impacted and accelerated the growth of this market. The pandemic brought about new ways of interacting with doctors remotely due to the nature of the pandemic and pressure on health systems and infrastructure.
While there are data security risks involved, wearables can detect cardiac arrhythmia conditions causing stroke and allow neurologists to diagnose seizures from remote locations; the benefits of these products far outweigh any risks.
Agriculture
According to Statista, the global market size of smart agriculture is expected to grow to USD 34.1 billion by 2026.
Connected tech in farming utilises sensors installed in plots or livestock farms. They help collect data, such as soil moisture and plant vigor, which is used to monitor the health of the crop or herd.
With environmental factors in play, the growing demand for food, constraints on the supply side, and changing consumption patterns, agriculture faces enormous challenges. While we have seen massive improvements in equipment and technology in the past five decades, a digital transformation using connected tech will lead us closer to sustainable solutions.
However, digitization in agriculture faces obstacles. In many regions of the world, connectivity is an issue. In areas where connectivity exists, the adoption of digital tools has been relatively slow.
Therefore, we need to develop infrastructure to enable the use of connectivity. In areas where connectivity already exists, we must take the necessary steps to promote and encourage adoption.
In addition to offering more effective production methods, higher quality food, and more transparency for consumers, smart agriculture can create sustainable production methods that save water, which lessens the impact on the environment and reduces production costs.
Inventory & Supply Chain Management
IoT devices help companies provide enhanced inventory monitoring capabilities and location tracking, leading to increased storage and distribution efficiencies. Companies can figure out where goods are delayed during transportation.
With IoT data analytics at their fingertips, supply chain managers can plan better routes based on potential weather hazards, accidents, and road conditions.
Finance
IoT is the coolest kid on the finance block. It provides a network of internet-connected devices that collect and transmit data.
As banking goes digital, consumers enjoy more convenience in the usual banking processes. Banks can leverage technology to know the needs of their customers in real-time. IoT financial technology software can increasingly collect more data about transactions using built-in Artificial Intelligence (A.I.), enhancing efficiencies, security, and fraud protection.
Retail
IoT technologies help brands track products throughout their supply chain by utilizing GPS and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID). This allows brands to monitor and track where their products are at any given time and predict a more accurate delivery time.
In a world of connected consumers, where they expect brands to be intuitive and relevant, IoT helps brands make deeper connections with their consumers by identifying unique behaviours and having the ability to offer what consumers want —when they want it.
How the IoT is Impacting Market Research
As discussed above, IoT is important to both consumers and businesses in almost every industry.
So what does this goldmine of data mean for market research?
Big Data has daily implications for consumers, businesses, and market researchers. The application of data plays a massive role in market research surveys, and so do data processing and analysis. With market research becoming more digital in data collection and analysis, traditional methods are not enough anymore. Therefore, IoT helps market researchers stay abreast of consumer habits and behaviour.
Furthermore, IoT data is more accurate, reliable, and valuable to market researchers.
It is estimated that, by 2030, roughly 125 billion devices will be connected to the Internet and used daily. Moreover, 5G connections enable the usage of connected devices more than ever before. Since there is a growing market for IoT, wearables, and smart technology, consumer feedback is a critical resource to help brands adopt the most compelling business, sales, and marketing strategies to maximise their return on investment.
Ultimately, the winning brands will not be the ones with the best, most innovative technology but the ones that have the perfect combination of innovation and ongoing customer behaviour analysis. This is where the role of market research cannot be ignored.
Four Ways IoT Impacts Market ResearchTracking consumer behaviour
Tracking consumer behaviour IoT is a network of smart, connected devices that work through the Internet. The data is no longer just available on smartphones and computers but encompasses smart appliances, wearable technology, automobiles, and smart, interconnected devices. In a hyperconnected, digital-first world, the data provides a wealth of sights into consumer habits and behaviours.
Analyzing consumer behaviour The business world is changing at warp speed, with older forms of consumer engagement becoming obsolete. Companies need to move with digitally empowered consumers and adopt digital data collection and analysis. IoT is an invaluable and more accurate tool for monitoring a product’s performance and consumer behaviour, preference, and attitude toward a product. IoT can inform brands on how and where they can improve their product and message.
Predicting behaviour analysis to sell when consumers are ready IoT enables brands to know when consumers need something, benefiting brands and researchers. For instance, a smart car can predict when the oil change is due on a vehicle, carrying essential consumer data and information. This can be used to advertise locations that offer the service. Therefore, it boosts sales.
Offering tailored experiences By integrating data analytics into their operations, brands can offer more tailored experiences and obtain information on consumer behaviour. Market research is beneficial here. For instance, in 2013, Disney World introduced the MagicBand. These wearable devices collect a wealth of data from hotel bookings, restaurants, and popular rides. Disney World can enable tailored offers using this data on behaviour by utilizing predictive analytics.
Technology and consumer behaviour have drastically transformed in the last two decades. IoT provides data that can help market researchers understand consumers and their habits better than ever before, thereby enabling them to provide reports and analyses to brands that contain accurate, unbiased, action-oriented information free from human error.
Share
Deciding to enter a new international market is exciting for a brand. Perhaps your product or service has gained enough traction in your existing market that demand is growing organically. You have two options to create additional revenue streams, add more products, or expand into fresh markets.
Having your brand available in multiple overseas markets can also make commercial sense. Your company can benefit from having numerous currency streams and not be beholden to one economy. When the Global Financial Crisis occurred from 2007 to 2009, some economies such as Australia, India, China, and Indonesia were not adversely affected. Brands established in these markets felt fewer shocks from the recession as more robust markets bolstered weaker ones.
Most people would assume that the US dollar is the strongest currency globally. However, nine currencies (in 2022) are valued higher than the US dollar, including the Pound Sterling, the Euro, and Kuwaiti Dinar. Just like economic ups and downs, currencies also fluctuate, and by deriving income from multiple countries, your brand can withstand the ups and downs of money markets.
Population, particularly when it pertains to your target customer, is another reason to consider entering a new international market. Your current market may have a limited number of potential customers or be oversaturated with competitors, so entering a new market makes sense. Some markets like India and China have an abundance of potential buyers for your product or service.
While all these reasons make sense, entering a new market successfully needs careful consideration and research. You should research and evaluate the eight areas before leaping into a new international market, and build a market entry strategy first.
Keep up to date with the latest insights from our research as well as all our company news in our free monthly newsletter.
1) Behaviours of your target audience
Even if your product appeals to Gen Xers in your current market, it does not necessarily mean that it will have the same appeal in a foreign market. Even if the target audience is the same, it does not mean the target audience’s behaviours, wants, and needs will be the same. Even the slightest difference can potentially impact marketing messaging and product packaging.
2) Communication / Marketing Channels available
You may have a predictable marketing and sales model, but it may fall flat in other markets. In Japan, as an example, LinkedIn is not widely used because, culturally, Japanese people do not boast openly about their accomplishments, and the LinkedIn platform was built, in part, to promote career accomplishments. In Germany, LinkedIn is second to Xing. In many countries throughout Asia, WhatsApp and Youtube surpass Facebook and Instagram. In China, Facebook is not available, and WeChat is considered the Chinese version of Facebook.
Using existing marketing material may also be a challenge. While many brands take existing marketing campaigns and translate them into the local language, the marketing can often fall short or even come across as rude when the way locals prefer to communicate is not thoroughly researched and tested before launch.
3) Cultural and language differences
We are all influenced by the society in which we live. Even in markets that speak the same language, like USA and Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and England and Ireland, the cultural differences can vary.
Cultural differences can influence every part of local life, behaviours, and even tastes.
Fast-food chain Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) got off to a rocky start entering the Chinese market after it translated “finger-lickin’ good” into Chinese characters meaning “eat your fingers off.” It has abandoned the American market model and reflects China’s strong restaurant dining culture. KFC restaurants in China have larger eating areas to accommodate large families and groups. The menus are more prominent with more extensive and localized menu items, such as rice dishes and soy milk drinks. Side dishes like coleslaw and mashed potato proved to be unpopular and replaced with a palatable local fare, such as a salad of shredded carrot, fungus, and bamboo shoots.
Understanding cultural differences, including language and taste profiles, is a critical research phase before entering a market.
4) Regulations
Every country has its regulations, and companies cannot risk non-compliance. An international market may have laws and regulations you have never heard of before and, therefore, might be difficult for you or your team to wrap your head around.
Companies need to know the regulations and laws around shipping, borders, employment laws, taxes, and other business standards in a foreign country. Navigating a new land can be exhausting. An in-house lawyer or an outside consultancy with experience in this area can be beneficial and might be needed.
5) Payment methods
Payment methods can be vastly different overseas. Market research helps you identify what payment methods are used in the country you are entering and how you can support those payment methods in your business to grow your brand. If you are not using the popular modes of payment that people are accustomed to, you will lose massive growth opportunities.
In Indonesia, for example, eWallets are popular, and most people use digital payment methods, with eWallet transactions reaching 18.5 billion in 2021.
The Government of India launched the Digital India program to transform the country into a paperless, cashless society.
Therefore, these are important considerations when entering a foreign market.
6) Costs and Price Parity
In international trade, parity is the exchange rate between the currencies of the countries involved, and the purpose is to make the purchasing power of both currencies as close as possible. Market currency exchange rates allow you to adjust prices across countries.
The Big Mac Index is a measure of purchasing power parity. Invented by the Economist in 1986, its purpose is to show the concept of purchasing power parity and demonstrates how price needs to be adjusted based on currency exchange rates. Global franchises and multinational corporations widely use the Big Mac Index to understand how to compare the cost of essential goods between countries. The Starbucks Index is another index that allows companies to understand price differences using the price of a Starbucks latte.
Additionally, the cost of overheads may be very different in other countries. The real estate and rental market and the cost of utilities are a consideration, among other factors.
Developing a pricing strategy in an international market is a complex project requiring detailed planning. Companies have to deal with currency fluctuations, regulatory issues, and cultural nuances when pricing products and services for international markets. A thorough market research plan is paramount when expanding into an Internationa Market, and it will give a company insights into its pricing strategy.
7) Competitor landscape
It is critical to understand and analyze the competitive landscape when expanding into any market. Market research helps companies comprehend the potential competition in new, unchartered markets. This knowledge helps them make better decisions about how, when, and where to expand. It is a vital part of their business planning strategy. For instance, if a particular part of the country is already saturated with the given product or service, they can move their focus to a different part of the market.
Market research can be daunting in the domestic market and becomes even more difficult in international markets. Therefore, it is essential to work with a knowledgeable and experienced market research company to analyze the competition in-depth. This will inform and guide the future of the company in that market.
8) Market volume and potential growth
A product is as good as its market demand and potential growth. Market research will help you measure the opportunity so companies can understand how many potential customers their product or service will have in any given market.
It becomes more complex to measure the opportunity in an international market, given the differences in economic conditions, for instance, in developed versus developing countries.
These steps and considerations help show companies how to calculate market potential and help guide the process of international expansion. However, there might be many more things to consider when entering a new country. Several factors like the company’s growth stage, offering, industry, and business model will likely have unique considerations.
Entering an international market is not a simple process, and it is essential to do the legwork and thorough market research to inform a well-thought-out market entry framework.
Kadence Indonesian office has launched an innovative online survey platform called K-OINS (Kadence Online Insight System). With an increasing number of people moving online, there has been a need for a high-quality online survey, and K-OINS is the solution.
The K-OINS Platform can be used free by registering through its website or by downloading the app on Google Play Store. Currently, K-OINS is still under development for iOS users.
K-OINS rewards users for participating in market research surveys on their platform using “Koins,” which can be transferred to the user’s bank account or any preferred e-wallet with a minimum balance of IDR 50,000 free of any administration fee. The incentive doesn’t end here. Every registered K-OINS user also gets a referral code to be shared with new users for more “Koins.”
“With the current digital technology, innovations are carried out by almost all lines of business, and market research is no exception,” Febri Nugraha, Managing Director of Kadence International, said. “While there are many online survey platforms in the market, we continue to focus on providing the best service to our clients through our in-house online survey platform.”
According to Nugraha, K-OINS will allow the Kadence Indonesia market research team to monitor the survey results, support them in providing recommendations to clients, and help them adjust survey results in real-time.
“Additionally, we also complement the K-OINS platform with efficient UI and UX, eye-catching visuals, so that all our users can enjoy K-OINS,” he added.
According to Sebastian Mulia, Quantitative Director of Kadence Indonesia, the company released the K-OINS platform to positively impact the community and help people earn additional income.
“Launched in 2022, we have gone through various processes and research since we first started developing the K-OINS platform in 2019. We have collaborated with third parties, like agencies, to help media placement and boost awareness,” he said.
As the newest entrant in the online survey platform market, K-OINS has already conducted many studies with companies in Indonesia from various industries such as FMCGs, education, finance, automotive, and healthcare.
In the future, K-OINS will continue to innovate in the digital surveys space and will not be limited to online surveys. “Currently, we are doing some development to cover the needs from two perspectives —both from our clients as the party receiving input and the community as the party providing input,” Benediktus Timothy, Senior Manager of Operations, said.
For more information about K-OINS, please check K-OINS Instagram @koins_id or visit the website at https://k-oins.com
Stay ahead
Get regular insights
Keep up to date with the latest insights from our research as well as all our company news in our free monthly newsletter.
Share
Data is at the heart of all research, and marketing research is no exception. It is the eyes and ears for a brand’s marketing initiatives. The data you gather — and its quality — will make a massive difference to how successful your research is, how accurate your findings are, and the impact on your business goals and strategies.
As a result, data collection is arguably the most critical market research stage. It can make or break the rest of the process, so it’s vital to do everything you can to make this stage run smoothly and successfully.
In this article, we’ll take a deep dive into why data collection matters in marketing research, the different types of data you should focus on, and all the options available to you when it comes to collecting that data. Let’s start by defining what data collection means.
What is data collection in market research?
Data collection entails gathering all the necessary raw information for your market research. Some people also extend the definition to include analysing that data to extract valuable insights for your research objectives.
It is a detailed, planned search process for all relevant data made by a researcher for a hypothesis.
The most critical purpose of data collection in market research is to ensure that reliable data is collected for statistical analysis so brands can make decisions backed by rich data. Therefore, your data must be high-quality, relevant, and plentiful enough to draw meaningful insights.
Why data collection is so important?
Data collection is a critical step in the research process, often the primary step. You can analyse and store essential information about your existing and potential customers when you collect data. This process saves your organisation money and resources, as you can make data-driven decisions. Data collection also allows you to create a library or database of customers (and their information) for marketing to them in the future or retargeting them.
Three main uses of data collection in market research:
Data collection helps you make informed decisions and analyses, building complete and insightful market research reports that can drive future product launches, market-entry campaigns, marketing strategies, and more. Data collection is the foundational step for various activities that can lead to business growth.
Data collection allows you to build a database of information about your market for future use. While your primary goal might be to create a research report with a specific objective, the data can still be helpful for future activities.
Data collection allows you to target marketing and outreach more efficiently, thereby allowing your organisation to save money and do more with its resources.
The different types of data collection in marketing research
There are several different types of data to consider at this stage — let’s examine them more closely.
We can break down data into two main categories, which makes it easier to understand the types of data we want to focus on and helps us hone in on the research methods and channels that will be most useful.
Primary data
Primary data is collected directly by your researchers, specifically for your research purposes. This data is primarily collected from interviews, surveys, focus groups, and experiments. In other words, this data did not exist before your team collected it.
Secondary data
Secondary data refers to data that already existed before you started your research. Other researchers have already collected and compiled this data before. You can find this type of data in places like government reports, the analysis of other businesses, polls and surveys, and the work of NGOs. It’s typically cheaper and easier to obtain than your primary data, but it won’t be as relevant to your project.
Qualitative research
Qualitative research is usually the first step in data collection. It’s more textual than statistical and involves collecting non-numerical data like interview transcripts, video recordings, and survey responses.
Qualitative data is typically collected via first-hand observation through focus groups, interviews, and ethnography. It is a way of diving deep into ideas and concepts, allowing researchers to learn more about specific topics that may not be well understood.
Quantitative Research
Where qualitative research is relatively more text-based, quantitative research focuses on numbers and statistics. This data is expressed in charts, graphs, and tables and is typically used to test initial findings.
Methods used to collect quantitative data include more closed-ended survey questions, mobile surveys, and Likert scales. The main benefit of this type of data is that it allows researchers to make more broad generalisations and predictions, but it’s not well-suited for diving deep into particular questions.
Stay ahead
Get regular insights
Keep up to date with the latest insights from our research as well as all our company news in our free monthly newsletter.
How data collection in marketing research works
There are many steps involved in the data collection process. Some of these steps begin even before you start collecting data.
Prior steps
There are several steps you should take before your data collection begins, such as:
・ Make sure you have all the necessary permission to collect your data. Today, data privacy laws are stronger than ever, so researchers need to take extra care to comply with regulations and have the full consent of their subjects and participants. It’s best to work with a legal compliance team to draft all the required documents, forms, and contracts to share with your research participants from the very beginning.
・ Make sure you have the support of any company decision-makers and stakeholders. It may be helpful at this stage to prepare a preliminary report informing any higher-ups of your plans, goals, sources, and any methods you plan to use.
・ Try to predict and pre-empt any possible challenges or problems, such as privacy regulations, collection methods, infrastructure, or budget. Anticipating any issues now will help you avoid costly problems and make the whole process run more smoothly.
・ Put together a team of skilled and qualified researchers and analysts. Data collection can be a difficult task, and you need to have the right experience and skillsets on your team.
Decide on your data collection methods.
The next stage is to decide which data collection methods you will use to collect data for your marketing research report. You will likely employ various methods here, as each has unique pros and cons. Here are the main methods you should consider:
・ Surveys
There are many ways to conduct surveys — in-person, online, post, email, mobile message, others. Surveys differ in content and structure — from simple Likert scales with just five possible numerical responses to more qualitative open-ended questions.
・ Focus groups
Focus groups allow you to bring multiple participants together to discuss the subject of your research and share their opinions. This format can be a great way to brainstorm ideas, and people can often bring good ideas out of each other. To get the best results, everyone should get a chance to speak, and no one person should dominate the group.
・ Interviews
One-to-one interviews are the best ways to dive deep into a person’s opinions about your brand or a specific product. However, they can be time-consuming and may require much planning.
・Observation and experimental research
This type of data collection involves observing individuals as they interact with specific products or services. It helps get around certain biases that people might have in interviews and surveys and cut right through to their true thoughts. However, it isn’t easy and requires an expert touch to get it right.
Identify and prepare for common challenges with data collection.
During the data collection process, you’re likely to encounter several challenges. The good news is that you can avoid these challenges and mitigate any impacts on your research report with proper preparation.
Here’s what to look out for:
・Bad methodology results in poor quality data
A lot can go wrong with your data collection methods — badly identified participants, poorly designed questions, and choosing the wrong methods are just a few examples. This can result in poor quality data, leading to erroneous conclusions and an unsuccessful research report. Take the time to work with experienced researchers and build the right data collection strategy for your needs.
・Logistical challenges
You will also come across many logistical challenges. For instance, you’ll need a big venue to hold everyone if you’re running a focus group. If you want to conduct a stream of interviews, you’ll need to hire a space for a particular time. You may need to arrange transport, refreshments, and a wide range of other logistical demands. If you fail to plan this properly in advance, your team could find itself in a highly stressful situation.
・Using the proper channels
The channels you use to connect with your audience are consequential — what works well for one demographic might completely fail for another. If you choose the wrong media (like Twitter to send surveys to an older demographic), you could have a poor response rate and lack usable data.
Stay ahead
Get regular insights
Keep up to date with the latest insights from our research as well as all our company news in our free monthly newsletter.
How to collect data effectively
Get to know your audience.
You will need to have an intimate and deep understanding of your audience and the people you collect data from. This will ensure you target the right people, ask the appropriate questions, choose the correct methods and channels, and analyse the data in the proper contexts.
There are many ways to get to know your audience better in advance of data collection:
・ Use social media to spend time in the same spaces and groups as your audience members, chat with them, and find out who they are and what makes them tick.
・ Work with your sales and marketing teams — it’s their job to understand your audience, and they’ll have access to valuable insights.
・ Look at who is using your competitors’ brands and products.
Once you understand whom you target, it often helps create detailed user personas, outlining details about your typical audience members like their age groups, income brackets, and education levels. You can then use this information to tailor your data collection strategy to be relevant and valuable.
Prepare for the analysis of your data.
Collecting data is one thing, but you should always have an eye on the analysis of that data. This is where you extract insights and draw tangible value from the data — allowing you to make informed business decisions and create a valuable and applicable market research report.
When planning your collection methods and recording the results, always remember that someone will be analysing this data. Be organised, clear, and detailed, and work with your analysts to ensure they are aligned with your approach.
Use a wide range of methods and channels.
The best data collection relies on various tools and channels instead of focusing on just one or two. By combining a number of the approaches mentioned in this article, you will connect with a broader part of your market, gaining a better understanding of how different demographics feel and leading to a more valuable and insightful analysis.
For example, if you focus solely on digital channels like social media and online surveys, your responses may skew heavily towards younger people. Some in-person interviews, focus groups, and postal surveys help target a broader range of age groups and accurately reflect your market and their views.
Data collection is a critical part of market research. It serves many important purposes, and it is essential to get it right to create effective research reports and complete a vast range of different business objectives.
At Kadence, we help companies worldwide fine-tune their data collection, laying the foundations for informed and effective market research.
Contact us to learn more about how we can help you do the same.
Share
Data collection comes with a host of unique challenges, and one of the most significant considerations for researchers is the topic of ethics in market research. It is essential to think about the ethical implications of your market research — are you collecting data in the right way without infringing on other people’s right to privacy, security, and the control of their data?
Before you start your data collection work, you need to ensure everyone on the team is aligned and understands their ethical responsibilities. Failing to do this could result in legal woes, a damaged company reputation, and other serious problems.
This article will show you why ethics are so important in data collection, what you need to be aware of, and how to ensure your data collection always falls on the right side of what’s considered ethical.
What are ethics in data collection?
What exactly do we mean when we talk about ethical data collection? Let’s delve into the definition to clear any misconceptions and ensure the rest of the article makes sense.
Data collection ethics is all about the right and wrong in collecting, analysing, processing, and sharing data.
This article will focus on data collection for market research purposes. The data we’re talking about here mainly refers to the personal data of our research participants.
Ethics has been an essential consideration for as long as we’ve been collecting data. By understanding it, you can ensure that the data you collect and the research you produce is ethically sound, respects the rights of your subjects, and avoids landing you in legal trouble.
Why are ethical considerations so important for data collection?
There are several key guidelines market researchers have to follow so they can adhere to ethical norms when it comes to data collection, such as:
・If you prioritise ethics, it usually results in better research.
When you care about the truth, accuracy, and minimising errors, your findings will be more reliable and lead to more valuable conclusions, benefiting your business.
・If you take ethics seriously, it shows that your brand is trustworthy and has integrity.
Conversely, suppose you’re violating ethical norms with your research; this will reflect very poorly on your reputation and (among other things) make it tough to find future participants for market research.
・You want to stay on the right side of the law.
Today there are more data privacy regulations than ever before, like Europe’s GDPR and California’s CCPA. Unethical data collection can lead to legal trouble and harsh financial penalties.
Guidelines: How to ensure your data collection is ethical.
Follow the guidelines detailed below to ensure your data collection is ethical.
Always obtain the proper consent.
When you collect data for market research, you’re using the personal data of your participants. When someone answers survey questions, takes part in an interview or focus group, or participates in an experiment, the data they share with you is protected by law in many jurisdictions.
From an ethical standpoint, an individual’s data is their personal property. As a result, you have to ensure you have the right to collect and use that data. Make sure to draft a consent agreement that informs your participants about your research and clearly outlines how you intend to use their data. This refers to asking for informed consent — in other words, your participants should know what they’re consenting to instead of being asked to give a blanket agreement.
In short, always get explicit consent from your research subjects before you collect or use any of their data, and always make sure they are given all the facts upfront about how you will use it. This is one area to work with an experienced legal team.
Always be clear about privacy and confidentiality.
You should be clear from the beginning about how private and confidential your participant’s data will be. For example, when publishing a market research report, will you use the names of your subjects or provide any information that could be linked back to their identity? If so, it’s essential to let them know before you collect any data.
You also need to consider technical capabilities in this area. Are your systems secure enough, or are they vulnerable to hacks and data breaches? You can still be legally punished if you lose sensitive user data due to a cyberattack in many cases.
Personally identifiable information (PII) covers many different data types, like a person’s full name, address, credit card information, or identification number.
Avoid bias.
As an experienced researcher will tell you — it’s all too easy to rig research in your favour. Wording specific questions in a certain way, focusing on some areas over others, guiding your subject in a particular direction with verbal nudges and body language — all these things can impact the result of your research.
This isn’t just unethical; it also leads to less accurate data. Pushing your research subjects towards specific answers might fulfill short-term goals, but in the long-term, it leads to a poorer understanding of your market and a shaky foundation for future research. Ensure all your moderators and researchers are aware of this and trained to avoid even subconsciously leading people in a specific direction.
Stay ahead
Get regular insights
Keep up to date with the latest insights from our research as well as all our company news in our free monthly newsletter.
Nine ways to reduce bias in your market research
1. Minimise confirmation bias.
It’s common for teams to embark on a research project with a clear idea of what they want to discover. Maybe you want to know that all your participants love your planned products, your latest marketing campaign is destined for success, or a specific demographic is a big fan of your brand.
This can lead to confirmation bias, where researchers hone in on answers they like and gloss over ones that don’t support their favourite hypothesis, leading to skewed results that sound encouraging at first but ultimately don’t benefit the company. Be aware that your expected or desired outcome may not happen, and train your research teams to be level-headed and impartial.
2. Be aware of question order bias.
Question order bias is when the order of your questions can influence participants to give a specific answer or be more favourable to a particular idea. For example, if you ask the following questions:
What do you like about the new iPhone?
Can you give an example of a great tech company?
Here, the participant is already thinking about iPhones and Apple after the first question, and this could lead them to give a similar answer to question two, even if they might have said something else had the order of questions been different. Be aware of the order of your questions, and always try to word them as neutrally as possible.
3. Be transparent about your data collection methods.
When you publish your research, you should make your methodology available to anyone who wants to read it. Be clear about what data collection methods and sources you used, whom you spoke to (being careful to avoid sharing personally identifiable information), your goals, the sample size, how you selected participants, and more. This helps people check your findings’ accuracy and shows that you’re credible and professional.
If there are any limitations or anything you’re uncertain about, disclose this. Don’t state something as a clear fact when it isn’t. Certain parts of your findings might need future research to confirm them, and you should clearly state this.
4. Maintain integrity
It may seem obvious, but it’s paramount to collect data with honest intentions and hold yourself to these standards. If you collect data for reasons that might negatively impact others, this is unethical, even if your collection methods and other factors are legitimate.
Make sure the questions you ask are relevant to your research goals. Asking questions — particularly personal ones — about your subjects that don’t inform your research is unethical.
5. Don’t cause harm to your participants.
You should always identify and avoid anything in your research process that could cause harm to your subjects. This could be physical harm — for example, asking participants to sample food to which they may be allergic — or emotional trauma, like asking people to revisit uncomfortable memories or placing them in situations where they might not feel at ease.
Anything that could harm your participants in any way is unethical. Make sure they understand the process from the beginning, regularly check in on them, and be sure to disclose anything that could potentially cause problems.
6. Don’t waste people’s time.
Your participants are busy people. They don’t have vast amounts of time to dedicate to your research, and they’re helping you out by agreeing to take part. Be respectful of your participants’ time and don’t keep them waiting longer than necessary. Aim to keep your research process tightly organised and always inform people about delays and other time constraints as soon as possible.
7. Be aware of unexpected outcomes.
Even the most meticulously conducted research can sometimes have unexpected consequences. It can be deemed unlawful if individuals suffer harm due to your study.
As a result, you need to take extra care to anticipate and prevent any unexpected adverse outcomes from your research. You won’t know for sure until the study is published, but you can minimise the chances of unintended consequences by being cautious and diligent.
8. Correct errors.
It’s normal for research to contain one or two errors. In itself, that’s not unethical, nor does it necessarily mean your research isn’t valuable. However, it is imperative to correct the mistakes as quickly as possible and edit your research report to make this clear.
If you don’t correct errors when you become aware of them, this is unethical as you’re knowingly publishing misleading information.
9. Work with an experienced research team.
The best way to ensure your data collection is ethical is to work with a team of experts. Research professionals understand the ins and outs of data ethics, and they know what to do and what to avoid. They also have an in-depth and current understanding of the legal aspects of market research. At Kadence, we have years of experience helping companies worldwide conduct market research, and ethics is always a priority. Get in touch with us to find out more.
Share
Every market research report begins with data collection, and this stage of the process influences how everything else goes. If you collect high-quality data from relevant sources and use the proper channels, you’ll boost your chances of creating a clear, accurate, and valuable report.
Data collection is at the heart of market research. If you do data collection wrong, the result could be an essentially useless market research report, wasted money, and poorly informed business decisions. Therefore, you need to use the right data collection tools.
The methods you use to gather your data in the early days of the market research will majorly impact the quality of the data and the effectiveness of your research report. This article will look at the best data collection tools available for market research and why they’re so helpful.
Five essential data collection tools for Market Research
1. Surveys
Surveys are one of the most versatile and established ways of collecting data. They come in all shapes and sizes but typically follow the same rough pattern — a series of questions aimed at gathering opinions and experiences around a specific thing like a product, marketing campaign, or brand.
One of the best things about surveys is the number of channels they can be shared through:
In-person paper surveys
E-mail
Social media
Your website
Postal
Mobile message
In-app surveys
The list is almost endless. You’ve probably encountered the series of buttons in public toilets and areas like airports asking you to rate your experience quickly — that’s a fundamental type of survey aimed more at measuring customer satisfaction than market research.
Surveys can be designed in several ways. More qualitative surveys ask open-ended questions like, “What did you like about this product?” They encourage extended, detailed answers to allow deep dives into the data.
On the quantitative side, surveys may use a Likert scale — a series of points (for example, Strongly Disagree, Disagree, Neither Agree nor Disagree, Agree, Strongly Agree). These types of surveys are much more restrictive for the respondent but allow you to gather more numerical data to prove existing hypotheses and create charts and graphs.
2. Interviews
Like surveys, interviews are another way of gaining a deep and personal insight into an individual’s experiences and opinions on a topic. Interviews are incredibly qualitative and the only reliable way of getting an individual’s uninterrupted views on a topic in real-time. Interviews allow for the most profound and unfiltered responses of all the data collection methods listed here.
There are many ways to conduct an interview. Some methods are highly structured with a clear set of questions and the interviewer firmly guiding the conversation. Others can be more informal, with the interviewee free to talk about their experience at length without much input. Interviewers need to ensure they don’t nudge the respondent towards specific answers or encourage bias.
In the past, interviews could only be conducted face-to-face, introducing challenges around finding the time, space, and staff to carry them out. Today it’s possible to conduct interviews via phone call or video chat, making it much more manageable. However, these methods risk missing out on the body language cues and subtle gestures that can spark further questions.
3. Focus Groups
Focus groups bring multiple people together to discuss a particular topic (for example, a new product) and share their experiences and thoughts.
Focus groups can be helpful for several reasons — they help you gather multiple opinions at once, promote healthy discussion, and allow you to be more economical with your time and space. The best focus groups bring together people from diverse demographics and backgrounds.
It is vital to make sure one or two more assertive people don’t dominate your focus group. To prevent this, make sure to moderate the group effectively and allow everyone to have their say. At the same time, be mindful of people adapting their opinions to fit the overall group consensus.
4. Observation
Observation is a time-tested method of data collection that, when done right, allows researchers to gather large amounts of unbiased and unfiltered feedback. It works by giving the participant a series of questions or asking them to share their thoughts on something (like a product) in real-time.
During this process, the observer does not interfere with the participant. They watch closely and note the participant’s non-verbal reactions like facial expressions and body language. The idea is that participants’ verbal responses can be influenced by bias and tailored by the person. However, nonverbal behaviour is much less easy to control and may reflect a more honest reaction.
Observation can be an advantageous way of cutting to the root of what a person believes about a product. You should attain your participant’s full consent before the process begins. You should also be careful not to draw overly firm conclusions from the interpretation of their body language — which should be viewed as a guide.
5. Secondary sources
There are several options here, and depending on your market and research purposes, there may be a great deal of data already available. In addition to the primary methods discussed above, researchers can also look at data that others have already collected. Here are some examples of secondary data for market research:
Government reports. While these are not usually specific to any business needs, they can still be beneficial. Government surveys and reports contain data about income brackets, spending behaviour, customer attitudes, and more. Combined with other data collection activities, this can help you better understand your target market, build more accurate customer profiles, and improve your marketing, among other benefits.
NGO resources. Non-governmental organisations frequently research a range of subjects. Much of the data they collect is relevant to marketers for similar reasons as government reports.
Business reports. Other companies, industry groups, and market research organisations regularly create detailed research reports that you may be able to access and use. These often don’t come cheap, but they can provide valuable insights into your target market — essentially doing a lot of your work.
Stay ahead
Get regular insights
Keep up to date with the latest insights from our research as well as all our company news in our free monthly newsletter.
Data collection is one of the most important tasks you’ll carry out in your market research efforts. At Kadence, we help companies worldwide with every stage of the research process, including collecting and analysing precisely the correct data. Contact us to find out how we can help you do the same.
Share
Helping brands uncover valuable insights
We’ve been working with Kadence on a couple of strategic projects, which influenced our product roadmap roll-out within the region. Their work has been exceptional in providing me the insights that I need.
Senior Marketing Executive Arla Foods
Kadence’s reports give us the insight, conclusion and recommended execution needed to give us a different perspective, which provided us with an opportunity to relook at our go to market strategy in a different direction which we are now reaping the benefits from.
Sales & Marketing Bridgestone
Kadence helped us not only conduct a thorough and insightful piece of research, its interpretation of the data provided many useful and unexpected good-news stories that we were able to use in our communications and interactions with government bodies.
General Manager PR -Internal Communications & Government Affairs Mitsubishi
Kadence team is more like a partner to us. We have run a number of projects together and … the pro-activeness, out of the box thinking and delivering in spite of tight deadlines are some of the key reasons we always reach out to them.
Vital Strategies
Kadence were an excellent partner on this project; they took time to really understand our business challenges, and developed a research approach that would tackle the exam question from all directions. The impact of the work is still being felt now, several years later.
Customer Intelligence Director Wall Street Journal
Get In Touch
"(Required)" indicates required fields
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience. By clicking Accept, you consent to the use of all cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
Senior Marketing Executive
Sales & Marketing
General Manager PR -Internal Communications & Government Affairs
Vital Strategies
Customer Intelligence Director