Tag: Consumer

This year, Research by Design was one of the official partners for the annual Membership Excellence conference held in London which proved to be a successful day of many insightful talks from across the membership sector. One talk, delivered by Laura Chamberlain of Warwick University, raised a particularly thought-provoking point...

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...

Tesco has announced it is making even more changes to the popular Clubcard loyalty scheme to focus more on rewarding customer loyalty rather than just using it as another marketing tool. CEO Dave Lewis explains that Tesco is aiming to further increase its brand perception and engagement to compete with...

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...

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...

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...

We were approached by Grand Central to evaluate their forthcoming launch materials. We took a total of 16 consumers on a behind the scenes tour of the new Grand Central shopping centre as part of a unique research project we have recently undertaken. The  focus group conversation started broad with the...

Many of us would agree that trying to get an appointment with a local GP can be challenging.  The national media have not been shy in painting a picture of an overstretched primary care sector, highlighting a national shortage of GPs, doctors turning their backs on the profession and junior...

 Results show more and more consumers agree, “now is a good time for people to make major purchases such as furniture or electrical goods.” This has translated into substantial increases in both the UK Consumer Confidence Index* (+6 pts) and the Major Purchasing Index (+14 pts) to 7 and 16...

Recent research by Verve has found that consumers are deliberately giving false information to brands, such as fake addresses, date of births and email addresses, concluding this is devaluing the databases brands work hard to collate. The study, which surveyed more than 2,400 consumers, found that six in ten consumers intentionally...

Brands of today are continuously faced with having to adapt to the changing needs and trends of society. These days it seems it is simply not enough for brands to provide a quality product or service at a price consumers are willing to pay. A recent article from Marketing Week...

Recent research by Aimia identified a strand of consumer described as ‘high volume sensitive’ who will quickly switch off from brands who bombard them with non-specific, high volume marketing communications including texts and emails.  In a separate, but related study commissioned by the Internet Advertising Bureau UK, over a third of...

Putting the customer at the heart of everything, how do you gather feedback from the people who matter the most?  Through our recent work evaluating levels of satisfaction of those working within NHS buildings, we learned of the “Friends and Family Test” – a single-question survey asking patients whether they would...

Last Thursday evening the Market Research Society's Midlands group ran a free event in which presenters from One-MS and Mattesson’s shared their research and experience of marketing to Generation Z. We, the audience, had a great evening being introduced to this group and I ended the night feeling excited about the...

When I discovered Tesco had teamed up with Unilever to trial iBeacon technology in 270 of its ‘Express’ stores, with offers for Magnum’s latest Black and Pink ice-creams, I found myself strangely sceptical of the idea. Here’s how it works: Transmitters detect nearby smartphones. If the relevant retailer’s app has been...

A recent article from Marketing Week discussed how Macmillan Cancer Research is using direct, targeted adverts to increase fundraising for the charity, using; 'social pressure… showing how many people are donating on that day in [your] location.’ In a world where we’re constantly connecting and sharing more than ever, where...

With the news released today that Aldi has overtaken Tesco in the Brandz100 ‘Most Valuable Global Retail Brands’ through its 22% growth, an interesting shift has clearly been highlighted in the behaviours of today’s consumers and their relationships with today’s leading brands. (Source Brand Republic)  With its main competitor Lidl seeing an incredible...

I think there’s a general consensus that content is king. Whether it be audial, visual or in text form the relevance of the content delivered is critical in engaging the desired audience. I read an article published recently by the CIM on Linkedin about ‘the future of Digital Marketing’. The comments...

If you don’t know the hit ‘Video killed the radio star’ – it’s a nostalgic track by the Buggles, about the changes in technology in the 1960’s and the emergence of TV as a popular entertain source, taking over from radio. Zip to 2015 and video is more prominent than ever....

Travelling back from a client meeting yesterday on the train, I suffered the modern day curse of phone battery failure.  How could I possibly operate successfully without my phone for the remainder of my journey!? This got me thinking that whilst mobile research offers some considerable advantages for ‘in the moment’...

RbD works with a number of brands that support and sell to the nation’s tradespeople and thought it might be fun to understand which trades were the most trusted by homeowners.  In a study compromising 500 consumers, the electrician was found to be the most trusted tradesperson, followed by decorators and...

Discount retailers, either in the grocery sector or single-price-point category, were one of the big winners during the recession. Now, as we enter a new period where shoppers are less hard-pressed, how will discount brands find a point of difference and continue to persuade shoppers to choose their offer?  Understanding consumer...

These days you can compare and read online reviews on almost everything before you buy; from hammocks to hoovers, holidays to cars and credit cards to make up… the list goes on. According to a recent article by Wallblog “72% of customers us(e) social media to research a company or product before making...

The retail industry is advancing fast. The fact that many consumers now prefer to shop online means their expectations of the in-store experience are even higher and should match, if not exceed, the technological advancements they enjoy online. Such technologies have emerged in this sector to ensure the in-store experience is...