In the 2013 GRIT report, online insight communities sat at the top of the list for emerging technologies that market research clients actually want to use, beating out mobile surveys, social media mining, and text analytics for the honor. (A summary of this is illustrated nicely in an infographic.)

There are many ways to predict which of several concepts will “win” in a retail environment.  In another blog, I describe some of the methods we employ to conduct a best-practice experimental design for testing concepts, packaging options, advertising copy, or anything else where several discrete choices exist. 

As we discussed in part 1 in this blog series (Market Research ROI: 5 Questions to Make Your MR Pay Off), market research, like any investment in information, should demonstrate a clear return on investment (ROI).  

Concept testing is nearly always part of a new product launch initiative—an important part, to be sure—but not the end all be all. When done correctly, product or concept testing can provide incredibly helpful insights into what your customers want.  Proper testing can anticipate what customers are likely to purchase, whether it happens to be some version of the new product or the same old one in a new, shiny wrapper.  Concept testing is a foundation that you can build on with the rest of the product development you’re doing. Here are five fundamentals to keep in mind when you next embark on product and concept testing research.

How to grow and profit during another economic downturn Recessionary times are tumultuous times. Change abounds. Brands disappear. Consumers awaken to new patterns of thinking and buying. As a result, the market-aware, research-driven companies are best positioned to take advantage of the chaos and change.