In July, I attended the Quirk’s Event at the Javits Center in New York City. Unfortunately, one of the building’s escalators was not working. The convention center had positioned an employee at the top of the escalators to encourage everyone to use it regardless. The employee kept repeating, “If you want to move, you must take steps forward.” And that struck me as a good metaphor for market research and also for life in general. After all, you can’t stay still, so if you don’t move forward, you go backward!
The words “taking the first step to move forward” have indeed guided Research Results over our more than 30 years in the business. We started as a tab shop, then evolved to a full-on data processing house, then added programming, then sample, and then data visualization (and are currently working on some AI innovations next) We always take the first step – or the next step – needed to move forward. We foster a creative and consultative culture with our employees and our clients. And since no two customers want or need the same assistance, that culture helps us ensure we continue to find a way to make solutions happen.
Here are just a few of our latest innovations:
- For a fast-food restaurant client, we simulated the entire mobile ordering process with a conjoint layered behind it. This was so they could tell how consumers were interacting with the new menu and making ordering decisions. .
- For a cable company, we created a “buy-flow” that simulated the entire online checkout/bundling process to see where they were losing customers.
- We’ve created a new way to test grocery store shelves without bringing respondents to a central location.
- Recognizing that participants hate and refuse to answer grid questions, we created a “flying card sort” that gets the same information but that participants actually enjoy!
The rate of change in the market research industry is phenomenal. New technologies, new companies, new experiences, and new capabilities combine to demand great flexibility from practitioners. There are no nine-to-five, weekday-only jobs. We will all have to dig deep to find the chutzpah to keep moving forward.
As I attended the Quirks Event, which focused on our industry’s innovation and change and how we respond, I even considered that the Quirks Brothers had perhaps disabled that escalator and positioned that employee with his guiding words to serve as the entrance to the conference. But, no, that couldn’t be … or could it?
Let Research Results help you take the first step! Contact Ellen Pieper, Chief Client Officer, [Ellen_Pieper@researchresults.com, or 919-368-5819] today.