Research is putting the thrust back in to decision making

It is great when we read the paper to see a good ol’ fashion price war almost upon us.  In a recent Australian Financial Review (5th May, 2012), there was an article saying that 2013 will be the year of price warring between QANTAS and Virgin Australia.  The thrust of the article was that next year QANTAS will be targeting the leisure market by providing more capacity and availability of flights for travellers.  On the other side was Virgin Australia who also announced a stream of…

Selling Vodka to Chinamen

Research is a wonderful tool.  Wonderful because if I was a premium wine producer in France, I would know to take my trade northwards and if I was a producer in Russian Vodka, I would know to make an about face and head to China with my trade.  Research by the World Health Organisation in 2011 suggests that there is a northward convergence in traditional drinking habits (Report on Alcohol and Health 2011). Beverage companies must therefore re-examine consumer preferences if they are…

Why Research for Rebranding

Brands should be evolved over time to maintain their relevance, no matter how big or small your company is. Rebranding may become a necessity, when two companies merge to operate under one brand.  Recent examples of company mergers such as law firms Norton Rose with Deacons Lawyers, Primus Telecom with M2 Telecommunications, beg the question of how they will be “known” or branded in the future.  Aside from mergers, groups of companies may simply choose to rebrand to a new, central…

Loyalty Cards - A treasure trove of consumer data

Coles have just announced one of the biggest mail outs in Australian history with almost every household in the country about to receive a Coles loyalty card. Whilst the biggest driver for Coles to send out the loyalty cards would be to increase customer loyalty to claw back market share from Woolworths, it also has the potential to generate dollars through providing data on their consumer’s shopping behaviour and preferences.

Loyalty card data can paint a picture of the consumer…

Research and Moneyball

I watched the movie Moneyball last night.  The movie is about a struggling Oakland A’s baseball team and how they had to find ways to be competitive with teams that had budgets 3 or 4 times larger  than theirs.

As I watched the movie, it struck me that this is a situation that many organisations face. How can you possibly beat competitors that spend 3 or 4 times what you can?

Billie Beane the General Manager of the Oakland A’s provides the answer. You need to think differently,…

The Right Message at The Right Time

Consumers are being bombarded with multiple messages every day of their lives. Television, Radio, Outdoor, Press and the traditional media are now being overtaken by mobile media. The market research industry has also been impacted by this trend.  Indeed, 48% of market research in Australia is now conducted on-line.

This proliferation of clutter certainly has implications for the content of messages and market research. Advertising and messaging needs to be more impactful than ever…

Understanding what consumers want….most

It is easy to rattle off a list of the factors that are important to consumers and thus influence their levels of satisfaction, loyalty and spend: low prices, quality or range of product/services, customer service, convenience of location, the list goes on. 

However, simply knowing what is important is not enough to affect company profits. Many companies do not have the financial resources to provide all desired attributes at the desired level; for example, companies offering the…

Improve your Profitability using Behavioural Science

Many Australian retailers are struggling to maintain their turnover and profit margins. We constantly hear that the Internet, global competition and the Aussie dollar are conspiring to depress the Australian retail sector. In essence there are rational reasons why retail spending has been in decline.

There is no doubt that customer purchasing behaviour is not only influenced by rational thought. Behavioural science examines how customer’s perceptions of an interaction are…

Out of the Picture

More than just a play on words, the above title (which is borrowed from the media) really speaks to the current plight of Kodak. Just recently it has been reported that Kodak has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as it tries to restructure, boost cash and importantly, stay in business. These next two years will really determine how the company operates (if at all) into the future.

On face value, this story seems like any other story about disruptive technologies changing…

Market Research: Denial is not a river in Egypt

One of the most challenging moments for market researchers and consultants can be when a client says “I don’t believe the research finding, our company is not that bad.” After taking in a few deep breaths to calmyourself, how do you deal with this type of reaction from a client? Much of the current literature on Market Research and Research Consulting offers little assistance in this area. Practitioners rather learn through experience that a balanced approach is needed where…