Stories and Experiences of Consumer Research: Share Your Consumer Research Journey

What is consumer research?

Consumer research, as the name implies, is the consumer research and research activities. It is an important part of marketing and an important basis for strategic decision-making. Through consumer research, companies can understand consumer needs, preferences, behaviors and concepts, so as to formulate effective products and marketing strategies to enhance market competitiveness and brand influence.

What is the purpose of consumer research?

The purpose of consumer research can be understood from two levels: one is from the perspective of enterprises, and the other is from the perspective of consumers.

From the perspective of enterprises, the purpose of consumer research is to solve the market problems faced by enterprises, or to find market opportunities. For example, a business may want to know:

the size, structure, trends and changes in the market;

characteristics, classification, distribution and variation of consumers;

consumer demand, motivation, attitude, satisfaction and loyalty;

The consumer's purchase process, decision-making factors, purchase frequency and purchase amount;

Consumers' use process, use experience, use effect and use problem;

Consumer perception, evaluation and feedback on products, brands, advertisements and promotions;

Consumers' perception, evaluation and choice of competitors;

Consumer opinions, suggestions, complaints and expectations.

From the consumer's point of view, the purpose of consumer research is to let the voice of consumers be heard, let the needs of consumers be met, and let the interests of consumers be protected. For example, consumers may want:

express their needs, preferences, feelings and ideas;

Get more product information, comparison and selection;

Get better product quality, performance and functionality;

Get better product prices, discounts and giveaways;

Get more convenient product purchase, use and maintenance;

Get more intimate product service, support and guarantee;

Get more product experience, interaction and participation;

Get more product feedback, reviews and rewards.

What are the principles of consumer research?

Consumer research is a professional work, which needs to follow certain principles and norms to ensure the quality and effect of the research. According to different perspectives, the principles of consumer research can be summarized as follows:

Goal-oriented: Consumer research should have a clear goal, that is, what problems to solve, or what opportunities to find. Objectives should be specific, clear, quantifiable and achievable, so as to design research plans, formulate research plans, implement research activities, analyze research data and propose research.Conclusionand recommendations.

Objective truth: consumer research should objectively reflect the real situation of consumers, rather than the subjective ideas of enterprises or the false expression of consumers. In order to ensure objective truth, consumer research should choose the appropriate research methods, the use of scientific sampling techniques, the development of reasonable research questionnaires, take effective research measures to avoid a variety of research errors and deviations.

Systematic and comprehensive: Consumer research should systematically cover all aspects of consumers and comprehensively reflect all levels of consumers. In order to ensure that the system is comprehensive, consumer research should combine consumer behavior and concepts, the past and present of consumers, the individual and group of consumers, the internal and external of consumers, the general and special of consumers, and the quantification and quality of consumers.

Continuous update: Consumer research should continuously track changes in consumers and update consumer information to adapt to changes in the market and meet the needs of enterprises. In order to ensure continuous updating, consumer research should be conducted regularly, consumer databases should be established, consumer indicators should be monitored, consumer trends should be analyzed, and the future of consumers should be predicted.

What are the methods of consumer research?

The methods of consumer research can be classified from different angles. For example, according to the way of research, it can be divided into active research and passive research. According to the scope of research, it can be divided into qualitative research and quantitative research. According to the content of the research, it can be divided into descriptive research and causal research. According to the time of the research, it can be divided into cross-sectional research and vertical research. According to the object of research, can be divided into first-hand research and second-hand research and so on.

Here, we use research as an example to introduce two commonly used consumer research methods: active research and passive research.

Active research means that companies actively issue research invitations to consumers and collect consumer feedback and opinions through various channels and forms. The advantage of active research is that it can obtain the required information, control the progress and quality of the research, and improve the efficiency and effect of the research. The disadvantage of active research is that it may cause consumer resentment and rejection, resulting in distortion and failure of research, and increasing the cost and risk of research. Common forms of active research are:

Questionnaire survey: by designing a series of questions, issuing or sending questionnaires to consumers, allowing consumers to fill in or answer, and then collecting and analyzing questionnaire data to obtain survey results. The questionnaire can be in paper or electronic form, and can be conducted by mail, telephone, Internet, face-to-face, etc. The advantage of questionnaire survey is that it can quickly obtain a large amount of data, facilitate quantitative and statistical analysis, and is suitable for quantitative research. The shortcomings of the questionnaire survey are that there may be sampling errors, low recovery rates, untrue answers, and unreasonable question design, which affect the effectiveness of the survey and require attention to control the quality of the survey.

In-depth interviews: Through one-on-one dialogues with consumers, we can deeply understand consumers' thoughts, feelings, experiences and stories, explore consumers' motivations, attitudes, concepts and values, and then organize and summarize the interview content to obtain research results. In-depth interviews can take the form of face-to-face or phone calls, and can be conducted through open-ended or semi-structured questions. The advantage of in-depth interviews is that they provide a wealth of data, a deep understanding of the consumer's inner and background, and are suitable for qualitative research. The disadvantages of in-depth interviews are that there may be subjective influence of the interviewer, long interview time, high interview cost, and difficult analysis of interview data, which requires attention to control the efficiency and objectivity of the interview.

Focus group: by inviting a group of consumers (usually 6-12 people) to participate in the discussion of a topic, observing and recording the communication and interaction of consumers, discovering the common and differences of consumers, revealing the needs and problems of consumers, and then summarizing and analyzing the contents of the discussion to obtain the research results. Focus groups can take the form of face-to-face or video, and can lead the discussion with one or more questions. The advantage of focus groups is that they can stimulate consumers' thinking and creativity, capture consumers' emotions and experiences, and are suitable for exploratory and innovative research. The disadvantage of focus groups is that there may be group influence, discussion deviation, discussion difficult to control, discussion data difficult to organize and other issues, need to pay attention to control the quality and direction of the discussion.

Passive research means that companies passively obtain research information from consumers, and collect consumer behavior and feedback through various channels and forms. The advantage of passive research is that it can reduce consumer interference and resistance, improve the authenticity and effectiveness of research, and reduce the cost and risk of research. The disadvantage of passive research is that it may lack the initiative and participation of consumers, which affects the depth and breadth of the research. It is necessary to pay attention to the content and methods of supplementary research. Common forms of passive research are:

Observation method: by observing the purchase and use behavior of consumers, recording consumers' actions and expressions, analyzing consumers' habits and preferences, and obtaining research results. The observation method may be direct or indirect, and may be carried out by manual or instrumental means. The advantage of the observation method is that it can intuitively reflect the real behavior of consumers, avoid the oral deviation of consumers, and is suitable for descriptive and causal research. The disadvantage of the observation method is that there may be subjective influence of the observer, the scope of observation is limited, the observation data is difficult to interpret and other problems, the need to pay attention to control the objectivity and comprehensiveness of the observation.

Experimental method: By conducting a series of experiments on consumers, controlling the variables and conditions of the experiments, testing the reactions and results of consumers, and obtaining research results. The experimental method can be used in a laboratory or field environment, and can be performed by different stimuli or tasks. The advantage of the experimental method is that it can accurately measure consumer influences, verify consumer causality, and apply to causal and predictive research. The disadvantages of the experimental method are that there may be human interference in the experiment, poor representation of the experiment, low operability of the experiment, and the effectiveness and feasibility of the control experiment need to be paid attention.

Data mining: by extracting and analyzing consumer-related information from a large amount of consumer data, discovering consumer patterns and patterns, and obtaining research results. Data mining can employ statistical or machine learning techniques and can be done through different data sources or platforms. The advantage of data mining is that it can use the vast amount of consumer data to reveal the hidden and potential characteristics of consumers, which is suitable for descriptive and predictive research. The disadvantage of data mining is that there may be problems such as poor data quality, data privacy leakage, and difficulty in data interpretation. It is necessary to pay attention to control the reliability and legitimacy of the data.

What is the process of consumer research?

The process of consumer research can be divided into the following steps according to different stages and tasks:

Determine research objectives: identify research issues or opportunities, define the purpose and scope of the research, and develop research objectives and indicators.

Design the research plan: select the methods and techniques of the research, determine the objects and samples of the research, prepare the questionnaire or guide of the research, and budget the cost and time of the research.

Perform research activities: organize research personnel and resources, implement research operations and procedures, collect research data and information, and supervise the progress and quality of research.

Analyze research data: organize and clean the research data, use statistical or analytical tools, describe and interpret the research data, and obtain the results and findings of the research.

Propose researchConclusion: Summarize and summarize the results of the research, refine and highlight the key points of the research, and propose the research.Conclusionand recommendations, writing research reports and presentations.

What are some examples of consumer research?

Consumer research cases can be based on different industries and scenarios, citing the following examples:

Food industry: Champ Consulting provides consumer research services for a well-known biscuit brand to help it understand consumer demand and preferences for biscuits, as well as brand awareness and evaluation. Champ Consulting used questionnaires and in-depth interviews to investigate the target and loyal consumers of biscuits, respectively. The survey results show that consumers' demand for biscuits mainly includes the following points: good taste, nutrition and health, variety, beautiful packaging and reasonable price. Consumers' cognition and evaluation of the brand mainly include the following points: high brand awareness, cordial brand image, good brand reputation, many brand activities and high brand loyalty. According to the research results, Shangpu Consulting Company put forward the following suggestions for biscuit brands: strengthen product innovation and differentiation, improve product quality and function, expand product online and offline channels, increase product publicity and promotion, and cultivate products Loyal users and word-of-mouth communication.

Apparel industry: Shangpu Consulting provides consumer research services for an emerging apparel brand to help it understand consumer needs and preferences for apparel, as well as brand awareness and evaluation. Champ Consulting used focus groups and data mining methods to investigate potential and existing consumers of clothing, respectively. The survey results show that consumers' demand for clothing mainly includes the following points: fashionable style, comfortable texture, color matching, appropriate size and moderate price. Consumers' cognition and evaluation of the brand are mainly as follows: brand personality, brand design, brand service, brand social activity, brand loyalty is low. According to the research results, Shangpu Consulting Company puts forward the following suggestions for clothing brands: strengthen the positioning and core value of the brand, highlight the characteristics and advantages of the brand, optimize the service and experience of the brand, enhance the social interaction and interaction of the brand, and enhance the loyalty and reputation of the brand.

Education: Shangpu Consulting provides consumer research services to a leading online education platform to help it understand consumer needs and preferences for online education, as well as awareness and evaluation of the platform. Champ Consulting used an experimental and observational approach to investigate the target and actual consumers of online education, respectively. The survey results show that consumers' demand for online education mainly includes the following points: rich content, high quality, various forms, good effect and reasonable price. Consumers' cognition and evaluation of the platform are mainly as follows: the platform is powerful, the platform interface is friendly, the platform is simple to operate, the platform feedback is timely, and the platform satisfaction is high. Based on the survey results, Shangpu Consulting Company put forward the following suggestions for the online education platform: expand the content and courses of the platform, improve the quality and level of the platform, enrich the form and interaction of the platform, increase the effect and evaluation of the platform, and adjust the price and strategy of the platform.