Category: Market research

Psychometric tests are playing an increasingly important role in recruitment processes. Their popularity stems from their ability to explore a candidate’s qualities in different ways. There are two main types of psychometric tests: a personality test will assess personality and behavioural traits, whereas aptitude tests focus on cognitive ability. Psychometric tests...

I can hardly believe I’m writing this post already, a whole 52 weeks after I began my placement year position as a Marketing and Research Assistant here at Research by Design. Although the phrase ‘time flies’ is a bit of a cliché, it seems entirely appropriate when thinking I am...

With religion in decline here in the UK, engaging young people in faith has never been more important for the Christian community. Young people are the future, and with just 5% of young people currently in church (Scripture Union, 2017), the future is looking bleak for the Christian faith. Questions...

Over the years, companies have adapted their approach when developing new products to meet expectations from consumers. Rather than simply being shown and persuaded to purchase a new product, many individuals now expect greater levels of interaction with brands and welcome the chance to input into a product’s development. Consumers...

Understanding and managing the word-of-mouth (WOM) behaviours of customers is critically important to organisations. According to Nielsen (2007), WOM is “the most powerful selling tool”. Recommendations are therefore highly sought after. Net Promoter Score offers a simple way for organisations to measure this behaviour. It has become extremely popular and...

We’ve all been in that situation, sat watching a presentation crammed full of text in long, confusing sentences leaving our brains tired and eyes heavy. Whilst presentations are a very useful tool, the way in which they are visually presented is key  to their success. Presentations allow your business to;...

Like many other things in life, you get out of a research project what you put into it. The time you spend at the beginning of a project, thinking about exactly what you want to get from the research, is crucial and will reap you rewards when the end results are...

Market research is viewed as an essential part of any organisation to help them fully understand and connect with their target audience, ultimately driving their success. As with any sector, there was a time when market research was unheard of or only used by very few people, so where did...

Market research plays a key part in establishing and maintaining strong organisations who keep their customers at the heart of everything they do. Considering this, why is it that some companies do not embrace market research? Here are some of the most common myths frequently surrounding the industry. 1. Market research...

The internet and use of social media have fast become part of the everyday lives of our society. Many people check their accounts before even getting out of bed in the morning and before they’ve even made that integral first cup of coffee. Social networking has become one of the...

Many membership organisations grapple with how to encourage more of their members to engage or interact with them. This is a challenge we hear again and again from the organisations we work with – most evidence of members interacting with their professional association comes from an ‘engaged minority’ and the...

As a nation, we are moving towards a much greater recognition and understanding of mental health. With many people now using the internet to form networks, friendships and attachments, it is unsurprising that questions are being asked about real world loneliness. In response to this, researchers from Manchester, Exeter and Brunel...

What's in the box? Back in 2001 Nestlé spent £3 million in marketing to ease the transition from KitKat’s foil and paper wrapper to flow-wrap because they knew the packaging was a key part of having a KitKat. It’s been nearly two decades, but I can still remember sliding my thumb...

The dangers of the herd mentality – the tendency for individuals to be influenced by their peers – are well documented. Phenomena such as stock market bubbles, ‘keeping up with the Joneses’, and Black Friday madness are all understood to result from this quirk of human nature. Social influence in...

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Working in the market research industry means having a huge love for data! Being so close with data and reporting statistics to our clients often makes us question statistics when we see them reported. As researchers, we can’t help but ask questions such as: · Who was interviewed and by whom?· How were...

When thinking about New Year’s resolutions, we at Research by Design felt it was the perfect time to determine the focus of our key priorities for 2018.      To continue researching and understanding member engagement and how this can be leveraged to deliver value to membership organisations.    To help support clients who want...

Social influencers, content creators, bloggers, vloggers or digital talentists – whatever you want to refer to them as – these individuals have proven to be invaluable to the marketing industry. However, promoting products through social influencers isn’t always plain sailing, and can leave these big names in the firing line. Below...

Getting an appointment with a doctor these days can be rather challenging. Not only are GP practices struggling with an ever-increasing number of patients and a growing elderly population requiring more medical care, they are also experiencing challenges with recruiting and retaining GPs in the profession.  I saw an advert recently...

Engaging with audiences via different platforms Here at Research by Design we are always keen to ensure our methods of reaching different audiences are best suited to the needs of the project and the needs of that particular audience. In the past, we have recognised that when trying to reach busy professionals,...

Online discussion groups are quick and convenient methods of collecting qualitative data. They are a modern and innovative alternative to traditional face-to-face group discussions (focus groups, mini groups, etc…) that require physical presence from participants at an agreed meeting place.  There are 3 main types of online discussion groups:  Online Focus Groups...

Conformity is a type of social influence that elicits a change in belief or behaviour to fit in. We’ve all shown examples of conforming, whether that be agreeing with our friends that we also LOVE the new Beyoncé album (even though we secretly can’t stand it) or agreeing with our...

Lack of a regional presence seems to be a reoccurring theme that comes up time and time again in our research with membership organisations. Many membership organisations, as well as big businesses and institutions, have their main headquarters based in the UK’s capital city - London. There is no surprise there,...

So just how good are Research by Design? Results from our customer satisfaction survey from 2016 reveal that our clients describe us as a professional, knowledgeable and approachable agency. 96% of clients said that we are ‘very good’ or ‘good’ at understanding their research needs and responding to client requests. As well...

More and more often we hear on TV or radio about the differences between Gen X and Millennials, about their preferences related to device usage behaviour, or about their attitude regarding a social or political event.  These two groups are differentiated by the year that they are born, but it is...

Market researchers conduct research to help companies better understand the markets in which they work. Market researchers explore almost every aspect of the marketing process; conducting research into product development, researching into sales figures and product placement - how the product is actually displayed or made available to the consumer. They...

As we enter another busy phase of qualitative research here at Research by Design, it’s really encouraging to see how much emphasis our clients are putting in the strength of insight delivered by qualitative research. Quantitative and qualitative research are a powerful combination, each able to bring different levels of insights...

I’ve had several conversations recently with people who have lamented that new graduates aren’t drawn to their sector. “No one leaves university wanting to work in [insert profession here]” is a familiar phrase to many. It’s often been said of market research too, with many researchers falling into the profession...

The West Midlands Business Desk has just announced Marketing Birmingham’s release of Birmingham’s visitor numbers for 2014 – up 9.4% on 2013. I’m pleased and disappointed at the same time! My positivity comes from the increased buzz in the city, and the ‘wow’s and ‘amazing’ comments I’m hearing as visitors arrive...

With the return of The Apprentice this week, we can expect to see this year’s hopefuls setting out to prove to Lord Sugar that they can design great products, generate new ideas and create innovative marketing strategies. For those of us who are less familiar with the formula, this is how...