Some great tools for doing research
We are creatures of habit, especially when it comes to buying behavior. We know the location of our favorite products in the store, and we trust that theyll work year after year. In fact, research shows people buy the same 150 items, which accounts for 85% of household needs.
People dont like change. Its a battle to get someone to switch to an unknown brand.
When a client wants to launch a new product, get into a different market, or open a new store location, the odds are stacked against him. Consider this: Only 3% of consumer packaged goods exceed the sales goal benchmark of a successful launch.
In part, we can blame lack of research for why there are so many unsuccessful product launches and ill-conceived new feature additions. Founders and brand managers know it will be successful, they run on their instincts, not the facts.
Finding out if a product will be successful beyond the initial curiosity is just good business. With market research, you determine if the opportunity exists, how to position the product or service, or what consumers opinions are after the launch.
If youre sensitive to the high costs of failure and need to gather facts and opinions to predict whether your new product, feature, or location will be successful, start by investing in market research using these tools and resources.
Think With Google: Marketers Almanac
Wish you had information on how consumer behavior changes in relation to the seasons, holidays, and other special events? Think With Googles Marketer's Almanac offers interesting insights on how people browse and buy.
American Fact Finder
American Fact Finder is a resource for searching U.S. census data. You can filter by age, income, year, race, and location.
County Business Patterns
County Business Patterns provides information on the areas of the country with large numbers of certain types of businesses.
Business Dynamics Statistics
Business Dynamics Statistics takes census data and allows you see economic data on job creation, startups and shutdowns, business openings, expansions, and closures.
FedStats
FedStats provides an up-to-date forum for finding data released by federal agencies, including agriculture, education, transportation, and energy.
Nielsen MyBestSegments
Nielsens MyBestSegments provides researchers with tools to understand an areas demographic information and lifestyle habits. You can find out which areas would be most receptive to a campaign or launch, which competitors are located nearby, and trends in the area that have shifted.
SurveyMonkey
SurveyMonkey is a powerful tool for creating in-depth surveys that will help you understand the market and consumer preferences.
Typeform
Typeform shows viewers one form field at a time, and you can include multiple choice image options. Its an easy-to-use, mobile-optimized form-builder thats great for gathering feedback.
Survata
Survata is another form-building option, but you can determine a target audience. It also employs people who will review your survey questions, so even if you are not a trained market researcher, you can get quality, actionable answers.
Loop11
Loop11 is a usability testing service that allows you to test even your competitors websites, any webpage, basically. You can create a form and recruit people to take the test through your own website or by using a partner service, such as Cint.
Userlytics
Userlytics provides a platform for doing user testing of mobile apps, videos, display ads, and more. It performs both a webcam and a screen recording, and you can compare the user answers with their reactions on video to understand how people are really interacting with your creative.
Temper
Sometimes you need a no-frills test to take the pulse of consumers. Temper allows you to add a question, grab a snippet of code, and pop it onto your website. The smiley face, meh face, and frown face make it easy for viewers to make a snap judgment.
I have used many of these tools for gathering data for my campaigns, another quite useful tools include Google Trends and Facebook audience insight.
What other tools do you use for research?
People dont like change. Its a battle to get someone to switch to an unknown brand.
When a client wants to launch a new product, get into a different market, or open a new store location, the odds are stacked against him. Consider this: Only 3% of consumer packaged goods exceed the sales goal benchmark of a successful launch.
In part, we can blame lack of research for why there are so many unsuccessful product launches and ill-conceived new feature additions. Founders and brand managers know it will be successful, they run on their instincts, not the facts.
Finding out if a product will be successful beyond the initial curiosity is just good business. With market research, you determine if the opportunity exists, how to position the product or service, or what consumers opinions are after the launch.
If youre sensitive to the high costs of failure and need to gather facts and opinions to predict whether your new product, feature, or location will be successful, start by investing in market research using these tools and resources.
Think With Google: Marketers Almanac
Wish you had information on how consumer behavior changes in relation to the seasons, holidays, and other special events? Think With Googles Marketer's Almanac offers interesting insights on how people browse and buy.
American Fact Finder
American Fact Finder is a resource for searching U.S. census data. You can filter by age, income, year, race, and location.
County Business Patterns
County Business Patterns provides information on the areas of the country with large numbers of certain types of businesses.
Business Dynamics Statistics
Business Dynamics Statistics takes census data and allows you see economic data on job creation, startups and shutdowns, business openings, expansions, and closures.
FedStats
FedStats provides an up-to-date forum for finding data released by federal agencies, including agriculture, education, transportation, and energy.
Nielsen MyBestSegments
Nielsens MyBestSegments provides researchers with tools to understand an areas demographic information and lifestyle habits. You can find out which areas would be most receptive to a campaign or launch, which competitors are located nearby, and trends in the area that have shifted.
SurveyMonkey
SurveyMonkey is a powerful tool for creating in-depth surveys that will help you understand the market and consumer preferences.
Typeform
Typeform shows viewers one form field at a time, and you can include multiple choice image options. Its an easy-to-use, mobile-optimized form-builder thats great for gathering feedback.
Survata
Survata is another form-building option, but you can determine a target audience. It also employs people who will review your survey questions, so even if you are not a trained market researcher, you can get quality, actionable answers.
Loop11
Loop11 is a usability testing service that allows you to test even your competitors websites, any webpage, basically. You can create a form and recruit people to take the test through your own website or by using a partner service, such as Cint.
Userlytics
Userlytics provides a platform for doing user testing of mobile apps, videos, display ads, and more. It performs both a webcam and a screen recording, and you can compare the user answers with their reactions on video to understand how people are really interacting with your creative.
Temper
Sometimes you need a no-frills test to take the pulse of consumers. Temper allows you to add a question, grab a snippet of code, and pop it onto your website. The smiley face, meh face, and frown face make it easy for viewers to make a snap judgment.
I have used many of these tools for gathering data for my campaigns, another quite useful tools include Google Trends and Facebook audience insight.
What other tools do you use for research?