Consumer Research

Market Research

A process of outlining required information, designing the method for collecting information, managing data collection, analyzing results, and reporting findings to marketers.

Consumer Research

Research that helps analyze and predict consumer needs, understand consumer decision-making, and design products that provide value to consumers.

Screener Questionnaire

A short initial set of probing questions used to determine whether a potential participant fits the target market.

Qualitative Research

An in-depth exploration of what consumers think, feel, or do and why.

Quantitative Research

A method of collecting numerical data that can be statistically analyzed.

Focus Groups

A qualitative method in which a group discusses their perceptions and attitudes toward a product, service, concept, advertisement, or packaging.

In-Depth Interviews

Intensive individual interviews using open-ended, flexible questions and probing to explore personal opinions.

Projective Techniques

Qualitative techniques in which respondents respond to ambiguous stimuli, allowing hidden emotions and internal conflicts to be projected.

Word Association Test

Respondents are given a word or stimulus and asked to immediately state the first word that comes to mind, revealing underlying associations, feelings, and perceptions.

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

Respondents are shown an ambiguous picture and asked to create a story about it, revealing their needs, motives, emotions, and attitudes.

Sentence Completion

Respondents are given an incomplete sentence and asked to complete it, revealing their attitudes, beliefs, and feelings.

Picture/Cartoon/Story Completion

Respondents are shown an incomplete picture, cartoon, or story and asked to complete it.

Role Play

Respondents act out a particular situation or assume another person's role to reveal how they might think, feel, or behave in that situation.

Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique (ZMET)

A qualitative technique in which respondents select images representing their thoughts and explain the meanings or metaphors behind them to uncover unconscious thoughts and feelings about a brand or product.

Brand Personification

A projective technique in which consumers describe a brand as if it were a living person, including its human traits, gender, age, social orientation, and flaws.

Brand Obituary

A projective technique in which a fictional obituary is written for a company or product to test its long-term viability and uncover hidden weaknesses.

Survey Research

A quantitative research method in which information is collected by asking respondents a standardized set of questions to measure attitudes, preferences, behaviour, awareness, and intentions.

Correlational Research

Research that examines whether two or more variables are related and measures the strength and direction of their relationship.

Experiment

Used to determine cause-and-effect relationships by manipulating one variable and observing its effect on another while controlling other factors.

Causal Research

Research designed to determine whether one variable causes a change in another variable, usually through experiments.

Test Marketing

A field experiment in which a product is introduced in a limited market before a wider launch to assess consumer response, sales potential, and marketing effectiveness.

Laboratory Experiments

Experiments conducted in a controlled environment where researchers manipulate variables and control external factors.

Customer Satisfaction Research

Research that measures how satisfied customers are with a company's products, services, or overall experience.

Customer Satisfaction Surveys

Surveys in which customers directly rate their satisfaction with products or services, often using numerical rating scales.

Mystery Shoppers

Trained individuals who act as normal customers and evaluate the actual customer experience.

Complaint Analysis

The systematic analysis of customer complaints to identify recurring problems and weaknesses in products, services, or processes.

Exploratory Research

Research conducted to explore a problem before entering new markets, developing new products, investigating unexpected market changes, or refining value propositions.

Secondary Data

Existing information about the market and consumers that is collected before conducting primary research.

Self-Report Surveys

A research method in which consumers directly report their own attitudes, perceptions, preferences, or behaviour through standardized questions.