Significance and Limitations of 1. Consumer Research

Consumer research refers to the collection, analysis and interpretation of consumer-related data and information to understand consumer needs, preferences, behavior and attitudes, so as to provide the basis and guidance for the marketing decisions of enterprises. The significance of consumer research is mainly reflected in the following aspects:

Help enterprises to identify and meet the needs of consumers, improve the quality and value of products and services, enhance competitive advantage and market share;

Help enterprises to understand and predict consumer behavior and attitudes, optimize marketing mix and resource allocation, improve marketing efficiency and effectiveness;

It is helpful for enterprises to find and grasp the new needs, new trends and new problems of consumers, and provide inspiration and direction for product innovation and market expansion.

However, traditional consumer research methods, such as questionnaires, telephone interviews, and concentrated group interviews, often have some limitations, mainly in the following aspects:

It is difficult to reach potential consumers. Traditional consumer research methods usually rely on existing customer databases or sample libraries, making it difficult to reach potential consumers who have not yet used or tried products and services, thus ignoring their needs and opinions;

It is difficult to get deep insights. Traditional consumer research methods usually use structured or semi-structured questionnaires or interviews, which are difficult to explore in-depth psychological factors such as consumers' motivation, emotions, and values, and thus difficult to reveal consumers' real needs and expectations;

It is difficult to stimulate the creativity of consumers. Traditional consumer research methods usually use one-way information transmission or feedback, which is difficult to stimulate consumers' active participation and creativity, and thus difficult to obtain new ideas and suggestions from consumers.

2. innovative consumer research skills

In order to overcome the limitations of traditional consumer research methods and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of consumer research, companies need to explore more innovative consumer research techniques. This article introduces four innovative consumer research techniques, namely: scenario simulation, co-creation, gamification and social media analysis. These four techniques provide new ideas and methods for consumer research from different angles, using different tools and platforms.

1. Scenario simulation method

Scenario simulation is a research technique that understands consumer needs, preferences, behaviors, and attitudes by designing and constructing a simulated environment that is similar to a real consumption scenario in which consumers experience and feedback. The advantages of the scenario simulation method are as follows:

You can reach potential consumers. Scenario simulation allows potential consumers who have not yet used or tried products and services to gain their needs and opinions by simulating experiences and experiencing the functionality and value of products and services;

Deep insights can be gained. Scenario simulation allows consumers to show their natural and real behaviors and reactions in real or similar consumption scenarios, thus revealing their deep-seated psychological factors such as motivation, emotion, and values;

It can stimulate consumer creativity. Scenario simulation allows consumers to interact and communicate with products and services in a simulated environment, thereby stimulating their active participation and creativity, and obtaining their new ideas and suggestions.

Scenario simulation application example: Champu Consulting conducted a consumer research project for an automobile manufacturer to understand consumer needs and expectations for new smart cars. Shangpu Consulting Company adopted the scenario simulation method and designed a simulated cockpit in which consumers can experience various functions of the new smart car, such as voice control, automatic driving, intelligent navigation, etc., and through video, audio, sensors, etc. Equipment, record and analyze consumer behavior and feedback. Through scenario simulation, Champ Consulting successfully captured consumer needs and expectations for new smart cars, such as safety, convenience, and comfort, and provided automakers with product optimization and marketing strategy recommendations.

2. Co-creation method

Co-creation refers to a research technique that allows consumers and companies to create value together by inviting consumers to participate in the design, development, testing, and improvement of products or services. The advantages of co-creation are mainly the following:

You can reach potential consumers. Co-creation allows potential consumers who have not yet used or tried products and services to experience the functions and values of products and services by participating in the design, development, testing and improvement of products or services, so as to obtain their needs and opinions;

You can get deep insights. The co-creation method allows consumers to communicate directly with the designers, developers, and marketers of the company, thereby revealing their deep-seated psychological factors such as motivation, emotion, and values;

Can stimulate the creativity of consumers. Co-creation allows consumers and businesses to co-create value, thereby stimulating their active participation and creativity, and accessing their new ideas and suggestions.

Application of the co-creation method: Champu Consulting conducted a consumer research project for a hotel chain brand to understand consumer needs and expectations for hotels. Shangpu Consulting Company adopted the co-creation method and invited some existing and potential customers of the hotel to participate in the creative proposal and evaluation of the hotel's room design, service process, marketing activities and so on. Through the co-creation method, Shangpu Consulting successfully obtained consumers' needs and expectations for hotels, such as comfort, personalization, experience, etc., and provided suggestions on product optimization and marketing strategies for hotel chain brands.

3. Gamification method

Gamification refers to the process of introducing the elements and mechanisms of the game, such as points, badges, leaderboards, challenges, rewards, etc., into the process of consumer research, so that consumers can experience and feedback in the game, so as to improve the interest and participation of consumer research. The advantages of gamification are mainly as follows:

You can reach potential consumers. Gamification can attract potential consumers who have not yet used or tried products and services by setting attractive game themes, scenes, characters, etc., and gain their needs and opinions by experiencing the functions and values of products and services through the game experience;

Deep insights can be gained. The gamification method can observe and analyze the behavior and performance of consumers in the game by setting different game tasks, difficulties, feedback, etc., so as to reveal their motivation, emotion, values and other deep-seated psychological factors;

Can stimulate the creativity of consumers. Gamification allows consumers to get their new ideas and suggestions by setting different game modes, rules, goals, etc., to think creatively and solve problems in the game.

An example of the application of the gamification method: Champu Consulting conducted a consumer research project for a fast food chain brand to understand consumer needs and expectations for fast food. Shangpu Consulting Company adopted the gamification method and designed a mobile phone-based game application, allowing consumers to play the role of the owner of a fast food restaurant in the game, and manage various affairs of the fast food restaurant, such as menu design, raw material procurement, service quality, and marketing Promotion, etc., and through points, badges, rankings, challenges, rewards and other game elements to improve consumer participation and interest. Through the gamification method, Champ Consulting successfully captured consumers' needs and expectations for fast food, such as health, diversity, and convenience, and provided suggestions on product optimization and marketing strategies for fast food chain brands.

4. Social Media Analysis

Social media analysis refers to a research technique that collects, analyzes and interprets the content posted by consumers on social media platforms, such as text, pictures, videos, audio, etc., to understand consumers' needs, preferences, behaviors and attitudes. The main advantages of social media analysis are as follows:

You can reach potential consumers. Social media analysis can reach potential consumers who have not yet used or tried products and services by using the wide coverage and high activity of social media platforms, and obtain their needs and opinions by analyzing their content;

You can get deep insights. Social media analysis can reveal consumers' real needs and expectations by using the diversified and enriched content of social media platforms to reveal consumers' deep-seated psychological factors such as motivation, emotion and values;

Can stimulate the creativity of consumers. Social media analytics can take advantage of the interactivity and sharing of social media platforms to allow consumers to communicate and communicate with businesses, thereby stimulating their active participation and creativity, and obtaining their new ideas and suggestions.

An example of the application of social media analytics: Champu Consulting conducted a consumer research project for a cosmetics brand to understand consumer needs and expectations for cosmetics. Shangpu Consulting uses social media analysis to collect consumer content about cosmetics published on social media platforms such as Weibo, WeChat, and Douyin, such as text, pictures, video, audio, etc., and through text analysis, Image recognition, emotional analysis and other technologies to analyze and explain consumer content. Through social media analysis, Shangpu Consulting successfully obtained consumers' needs and expectations for cosmetics, such as naturalness, personalization, beauty, etc., and provided suggestions on product optimization and marketing strategies for cosmetics brands.

3. Conclusion

Consumer research is an important part of marketing, which can help enterprises understand the needs, preferences, behaviors and attitudes of consumers, so as to formulate more effective product and service strategies. However, traditional consumer research methods, such as questionnaires, telephone interviews, and concentrated group interviews, often have some limitations, such as difficulty in reaching potential consumers, difficulty in obtaining deep insights, and difficulty in stimulating consumer creativity. Therefore, companies need to explore more innovative consumer research techniques, such as scenario simulation, co-creation, gamification and social media analysis. These four techniques provide new ideas and methods for consumer research from different angles, using different tools and platforms. Taking Shangpu Consulting Company as an example, this paper shows the application and effect of these four techniques in practical projects, in order to provide reference and reference for consumer research of other enterprises.