At GY&K we rely on a number of strategic partnerships and collaborations to provide marketing solutions that drive results for our clients. This is the first in a series of posts highlighting these partners and their specialties.
Today we would like to introduce Lou Davis, VP of Sales and Marketing for Market Street Research (MSR). Their firm specializes in conducting customized marketing research and political polling for hundreds of businesses and organizations throughout the United States including Cleveland Clinic, Johns Hopkins, Citizens Bank, Sara Lee and many more. At GY&K, we have worked with MSR to identify actionable opportunities for a number of clients. Recently we connected with Lou to chat about the world of market research.
GY&K: Why should every company invest in some form of market research?
Lou: Every company shouldn’t invest in Market Research! I know, that statement flies in the face of our best interest, but it’s true. The ROI calculation we use is pretty simple: “what’s the cost of making the wrong decision?” If the risks are low, then maybe investing in research doesn’t make sense for you. But, if you’re planning a marketing or advertising campaign, considering a new product or service offering, or need to measure the efficacy of your previous marketing efforts and gain direction for how to most effectively move forward, then research is a must.
GY&K: If it’s been a few years since an organization has done any formal research, where should they begin?
Lou: The only way to begin thinking about a research project is to understand what decisions you’re looking to make, and to work backward from there in designing an approach to answer those specific questions. Good research provides clear recommendations for action with regard to how to most effectively achieve your goals. If research isn’t initiated from this perspective, it’s bound to be a wasted effort.
GY&K: We’re seeing a big shift in the marketing world due to technology. How has this impacted the field of market research?
Lou: The market research world has also been impacted dramatically by technological advancements. There are a number of newly developed online research tools that we are utilizing to gain insight from both consumers and professionals that leverage the reach and cost-efficiencies the web provides. Not only are web surveying tools becoming more robust, there’s a whole range of new qualitative research tools we are using to engage targeted respondents. For example, we are using online focus groups a lot these days – especially when the individuals we are looking to include in the research are geographically spread out, or if they are busy professionals – such as physicians, bankers, lawyers, etc. – that are typically very hard to get into a focus group facility at the same time to conduct an in-person focus group. Online focus groups happen over the course of three to five days, can include 30, 60 or even 100 people, and benefit from social network-inspired interfaces and functionality, allowing participants to build profiles, interact with other participants, and use text, pictures, music and video to express their feelings or thoughts on the topics being covered by the Moderator within the context of the groups. These tools also allow for real-time interaction, and even can allow participants to mark-up (with a paint-box tool set) copy and creative expressions presented to them, so as to gain very explicit direction and suggestions from them on how to make these marketing and communications materials more effective. Beyond these functions, we can also use the online focus group to gain both qualitative and quantitative insight by incorporating survey tools within the context of the group setting (and with groups that contain 30-100 people, this can be very useful and projectable data).
GY&K: We’ve all seen traditional focus groups on TV and in the movies. Do you still conduct focus groups and, if so, why are they a worthwhile investment?
Lou: Absolutely! Even though the aforementioned online focus group tools are new and sexy, in some instances, nothing beats getting a homogeneous group of people around the table and, under the direction of a skilled Moderator, having an in-depth discussion about a topic. This is especially true when the topic is highly charged, sensitive or emotional in nature. For example, we would still use in-person focus groups when we are doing research around topics that call for hearing from mothers who have children with special needs, individuals with certain kinds of diseases, or care-takers of people at the end stage of life. We also opt for traditional groups when non-verbal reactions to products, ideas or materials are important to capture, or if hearing and seeing people engage on a topic face-to-face is essential to understanding the issue(s) being studied. Furthermore, if the subjects of a research study are those who typically don’t have access to a web-enabled computer, or for whom reading and writing skills are lacking, we would definitely need to get them around a table (as was the case when we conducted focus groups with school-aged children for the New York City Public School System).
GY&K: Alright, let’s switch gears for a second. We’re big fans of Northampton, MA where MSR is based. If someone is visiting for one night, tell us where they should eat and where they can catch some live music.
Lou: Noho (as many of us who live here refer to Northampton as) has a ton of restaurants that range from American Contemporary to Middle Eastern to Classic French to Korean. One of my favorites is an Argentinean steak house called Caminito, which can be found dug into the hillside on Old South St., directly across the street from one of the best ice cream shops in the WORLD, Herrell’s Ice Cream. I also really love Chez Albert, a quaint little French bistro down the road in Amherst center (about 8 miles away). With regard to live music, there’s no better a venue to catch either a new, up-and-coming artist or one of your favorite performers from the ’70s on a solo revival tour than at the Iron Horse on Center Street. The place has been around since I was a kid, and it’s a Noho institution. Just make sure to get there early, as the best seats are taken on a first-come, first served basis. Have fun, and give me a buzz if you’d like a guided tour!
