4 Most Effective Studies Related To Brand Research

4 Most Effective Studies Related To Brand Research

Today we will take a look at four types of studies related to brand research that will not serve you with the previously described metrics but also facilitate you with an explanation of the performance of your brand.

These are not the only existing brand-related research studies by any means. However, our belief is that these are the most effective in that they will assist you in solving problems related to real business.

Measurement of the performance of your brand

What is the study called?

Brand health check, brand tracker, or brand performance research.

Why do you have the requirement for it and how often it should be repeated?

It is the most basic quantitative brand research study. It does the measurement of how your brand is and how are the competitors of it performing and how the key metrics used to change over time. For most brands, this kind of research is done at least once a year. However, in those sectors in which the performance of the brand is directly proportional to revenue, the research will be conducted more regularly (even on a monthly basis).

What does it use to measure?

Brand profile, brand familiarity, brand awareness, and purchase intent. If the sample is big enough for including a representative group of your present customers, you are also facilitated to make use of it for tracking Net Promoter Score (NPS).

Any Caveats?

A simple study related to brand tracking rarely serves you with answers that explain to you why the performance of your brand is at its current level or why it has got changed over time.

Understanding the performance of your brand

What is the study called?

Usage & Attitudes (U & A) research or it is simply a survey of the customer.

Why do you have the requirement for it and how often it should get repeated?

It is an in-depth quantitative research study which used to do the analysis of how your potential and/or your present customers are making use of services and products from your category, and what affects their attitudes. A U&A which is well designed can serve you with an explanation of why your brand performance is at the current level of it and why it has got changed, etc.

U&A studies are eligible in taking numerous forms and shapes which is dependent on the requirements of the clients, and, as a rule of thumb, these are carried out every two to three years.

What does it use to measure?

A U&A can be inclusive of all the KPIs which are measure by brand trackers in addition to a number of more detailed metrics, for example, declarative data on where people used to buy different products from your own category and how often, and how loyal they are being towards certain brands, and where (and if) they have seen your advertisements or what are their product frustrations. A U&A can also be inclusive of elements of research on price sensitivity and market sizing.

Any caveats?

Although you can do the measurement of almost anything with a U&A, it does not mean that you must. The survey should get designed in such a way that the results of the research serve you with more clarity than confusion. Unfortunately, often the opposite is true and most of the U&A studies do the contribution towards declarations and as such, in some of the cases, it might be far from true.

Exploration of the deeper roots of the problems of your brand

What is the study called?

Consumer home visits, anthropological study, ethnographic research, etc.

Why you have the requirement for it and how often it should be repeated?

It is a kind of in-depth qualitative research method, in which highly qualified and experienced anthropologists do observation of people in their natural environment. Ethnographic research can assist you to have a better understanding of the reasons behind the problems of your brand or category that can't be verbalized by your respondents.

There are some categories in which the declarations of the consumers are worth nothing as they are simply not true. The reason behind this is not that respondents lie but because of this thing that they don't remember properly, they simply don't know or they are not cared about why they behave in a certain manner.

Ethnographic research is generally conducted on an "as-required" basis and in very rare cases it takes the form of a cyclical study.

What does it use to measure?

With the help of ethnographic research, you can have a better understanding of how people used to behave in their homes, how they used to work, interact with other people, shop, or have fun, and what is the role of your brand in their lives.

Any caveats?

It is a qualitative study and the results of it can be tricky for presenting to senior executives who give preference to see hard data. It is also worth noting that there are some marketers who do the selection of conducting this kind of research by themselves without hiring any specialist agency. It is highly unadvisable as you will never get the same quality and depth of results as someone who has become highly trained in ethnographic observation.

Making an informed decision

What is the study called?

A/B test, concept testing.

Why you have the requirement for it and how often it should get repeated?

When you have the desire to introduce a new messaging, a new logo, a new brand strategy, etc., and you are having a few options for choosing them from. However, concepts can be tested in a qualitative study, for example: during focus groups. The results will in turn be more objective when the research is done as a quantitative survey.

So-called A/B tests are best for the testing of concepts. Each concept, logo, or message should be tested in a separate manner in different groups which are recruited by making use of the same demographic criteria.

Concept tests should be carried out when you are having a big decision to make and you are having the desire to avoid major mistakes (e.g., the introduction of messaging that will undermine the credibility of your brand or it is launching an ad that will not be associated with your product by the people).

Any caveats?

Concept test should never do the measurement of whether people like your new strategy, logo, or ad. It does not matter if they are doing this or not. What matters is whether the new idea, message, or logo strengthens your brand and enhances the purchase intent.

You should never forget that badly designed research has got the serious potential for killing the best ideas.

Today we have done the analysis of four types of brand research that have proved to be the most effective and, as a result of which these are most popular among seasoned brand marketers.