Happy Holidays!
We extend our warmest wishes for the Holiday Season to our clients, vendors, colleagues, and friends!

We extend our warmest wishes for the Holiday Season to our clients, vendors, colleagues, and friends!
I am diligent about keeping my inbox at zero. It’s a personal accomplishment of mine, one that brings me a sense of joy. I love looking at the blank screen with all my email folders lined up nicely on the side, quietly awaiting the next incoming blitz of messages. If I were to describe the feeling of Zen it brings in mere words, it would go something like this: The noise has ceased, I have accomplished all my tasks, I am up to date.
Imagine my surprise when the world recently upended itself over COVID-19 and my email inbox was flooded with emails from all the food, clothing, furniture, bedding, makeup, pet supply, carpet cleaner, technology, and home appliance brand from which I’ve ever purchased a product (and this list I’ve shared is by far incomplete, it stretches on and on and on).
Did it feel comforting to have my favorite bedding company check in on me to let me know they’ll be there for me over these long weeks of social distancing? Hmm, maybe, a nap did sound good as stress over the state of the world mounted. What about that Australian-based company I purchased pool floaties from a few years ago? Did I care that they cared? I must admit, it felt good to know my health and wellbeing was on top of their radar too, even from half a world away. Did seeing all these emails increase my anxiety? Not at all, my anxiety was already through the roof. Was I annoyed at the deluge of messages? Since I regularly “Marie Kondo” my inbox, then honestly, yes. But that’s when I decided to look deeper and ask: What exactly were the ultimate intentions of these emails? What did they hope to accomplish?
Luckily I was not the only one mesmerized by the litany of “we care” communications and curious to dig into their language, message, and meaning. A “Moneybox” article over at Slate tackled the issue with a funny round up of relevant tweets about the email blitz. Adweek also got into the game by analyzing the language used in these emails. They even delivered a delightful word cloud demonstrating the most frequently used terms.
Overall, industry experts felt it important to look at the timeline of these emails to understand their full intent. Initial rounds were from a reactionary place, addressing the sense of financial disruption everyone feared and wanted to prevent. Next up was a vital informational angle: Here is what we are doing to make sure you are safe. These emails were perhaps most important, especially for small businesses who hope to keep their customer base around with curbside pickup and extra careful sanitation of their retail space.
Most recently, emails and advertising have shifted to a more heartfelt “we care” tone that feels like a warm cup of coffee on a cold day or a hug from a friend. As the impact of COVID-19 continues to evolve, brand communications will have to shift and alter in many ways. It’s important to remember that no matter what the circumstances, we exist in an age where consumers are demanding more from brands—especially as we have ample time to sit and think about what the company represents, what they offer, and their role in our lives. A noted trend among Gen-Z (who now make up 40% of consumers) is a desire to see real people with real problems. In other words, now more than ever transparency and authenticity are key for brands seeking to maintain a relationship with consumers and even go the extra mile to offer support.
What do you think about the deluge of COVID-19 communications from brands? Share your reaction with W5 in the comments below.
In “Where we fit” we explore the shifting role of people in the marketplace. In this post we discuss how assumptions about gig workers can drive decisions that do not represent real workers’ experiences.
The explosion of the gig economy, from Uber to Door Dash to TaskRabbit, has solidified in people’s minds the idea of a “gig worker”—an intrepid entrepreneur with grit, hustle, and a car. Gig workers love the flexibility of setting their own hours and being their own bosses. Gig workers fit this part-time gig work in on the side—a “side-hustle”—and use their leftover time to pursue their dreams of whatever their real career will turn out to be. We have heard a lot about the gig worker.
The main problem with the “gig worker” concept is that in practice it serves more as a convenient employer category than as an actual lived experience. The statements about “setting your own schedule” or “being your own boss” align almost exactly with the legal conditions required to be classified an “independent contractor,” but they do not match with what many of these workers say they want.
We recently conducted research with workers for a service company that uses the gig model to recruit and place workers in homes. They hypothesized that messaging leaning into the traditional gig economy themes would resonate with their current workers and help attract potential new workers. When we talked to workers, however, we found something very different.
Though we expected to hear about flexibility and independence, instead we heard about the challenges of relying on gig work as stable employment. We heard about unpredictability and insecurity around missing work. We heard about the need to be able to take a paid day off every now and then. We heard about healthcare. In short, we heard about all the benefits offered to “employees” at a traditional “nine to five” that are absent when it comes to “independent contractors.”
Even if gig work is a side hustle for some, for others it is the most accessible way to quickly get an entry-level job. This can be especially true of jobs that demand a high level of professionalism, such as a long-term in-home service. These workers are not interested in flexibility as much as sustainability. They want to see themselves as professionals with skills, not workers with gigs.
Concepts like “gig worker” can provide colorful imagery but cannot be taken for granted when it comes to understanding what real people want and experience. Only by talking to people can we identify and challenge ideas that do not match reality and develop ideas that authentically represent people’s experiences.
As the saying goes there are plenty of fish in the sea. Same is true for marketing research firms. With over 40 thousand marketing research firms in the US alone, it is easy for brands to get lost in the endless swarm claiming to have answers to every marketing mystery known to man.
From Fortune 500s to agencies to everything in between W5 has guided countless brands alongside their insights journey for almost two decades. During this time, we’ve come to understand our clients’ journey normally begins before or shortly after drafting the RFP. They are forced to ask: “Who can I trust to conduct this research?”
The process of selecting a research partner is never easy. It requires time, patience, and a thorough evaluation of one’s research needs. Just to be clear research vendors and research partners are not synonymous. Research vendors are merely sellers of research and can be intermittently interchanged as new research needs emerge. Research partners are steadfast throughout the insights journey—acting as an extension of your team. Below are just a few benefits of the partner route:
So, how does one go about selecting a research partner? Most importantly, how does one select the right research partner? See our latest infographic below, detailing tips and best practice recommendations.
Tomorrow, June 1 marks our seventeenth year since opening the doors of W5 at our first office in Charleston, SC. We’ve since moved to our current headquarters in Durham, NC, watched the economy go up…then down…then up again, worked with hundreds of brands and agencies, and hired the brightest minds in our industry. Through all this the one element that has remained consistent, in addition to our name, is our independence.
Influenced by the entrepreneurial spirit of our founders, W5 prides itself on our ability to grow on our own terms. Independence keeps W5 agile, flexible, and able to adapt quickly to changing business environments. Our lack of corporate hierarchy is advantageous for us, and our clients, allowing W5 to put efforts towards solving clients’ needs as opposed to appeasing shareholders.
Independence means we can do all this while remaining 100% true to ourselves.
Clients who work with W5 understand this unique advantage and see the value of our independence in the work we deliver. As stated by Managing Partner Jeremy Crisp of independent agency NAIL Communications, “being independent makes for better work, happier staff, and repeat business from clients whose trust is critical to our growth.”
Perhaps most importantly is the people fiercely independent companies attract, often those who value empowerment, accountability, and entrepreneurism. It brings together a tight-knit group of brilliant individuals bound by a common curiosity to understand human behavior and what makes people tick. Basically, the profile of any W5er.
Thank you to our clients, partners, employees, and vendors who enabled us to chart our own path and maintain autonomy for the past seventeen years. We are excited to see what the next seventeen years have in store…
Cheers!
Attitude & Usage Research: Gauge your competitive positioning within the marketplace to strengthen current and future campaigns. Click to learn more.
A leading producer of fruit-based foods and their advertising agency sought to understand consumers’ attitudes, purchasing behaviors, consumption, and preferences in the category. Insights into the marketing category, the client’s brand, and touchpoints were desired to inform growth strategies and creative development.
APPROACH
W5 leveraged past consumer segmentation and category behavior research conducted for the client to identify appropriate consumers for the robust survey. W5 collaborated closely with the client and agency to develop an in-depth online survey exploring consumers’ category engagement.
RESULTS
Study insights highlighted consumers’ category priorities, how the client’s product areas fit in, and the brand’s positioning in the marketplace. SWOT Analysis featuring strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats was conducted, founded upon a rich array of category insights. Opportunities emerged for branding, marketing, packaging, and product innovation, showcasing the long-term value of a comprehensive category data set in guiding future direction. The client gained comprehensive insight into the category and the advertising agency received clear direction for future branding and creative development.
There has been a familiar buzz around the W5 office lately. The wildly popular HBO series Game of Thrones is airing their final episodes, and we here at W5 are full of opinions. Though one won’t get into discussing who should or shouldn’t sit on the Iron Throne. Let’s talk about the importance of detail, a trait arguably missing from this season, highlighted by the appearance of a modern paper coffee cup in the middle of a grand feast.
Game of Thrones is the brainchild of author George R.R. Martin from his book series A Song of Ice and Fire. Martin spent decades meticulously crafting his story centered in the complex and textured realm called Westeros. The books had been the show’s backbone up until three seasons ago, when they ran out of content. Tasked with blazing their own path, the showrunners have been playing loose with the storytelling and character development. Many fans are starting to see the strings.
Continuity is King
Continuity is how people make sense of the world. Simply, 1 + 1 must always equal 2, if not, then why does anything matter? When telling a story, the audience should be invested in the presentation and able to sequentially navigate the moments. A glaring issue in the path may cause the audience’s confidence in the story to spiral. Much like in research, if there is a hole or error in the data, the entire presentation becomes suspect. The goal is to keep the audience’s attention, deliver your message, and cover all your bases.
“Does Daenerys take 2% or almond milk in her Earl Grey? Inquiring minds want to know!”
Pointing Fingers
Projects of this magnitude rely on the minds and talents of many people, there is not a single person at fault, but teams of professionals. Despite the number of eyes on screen and off the cup went unnoticed. Even the Script Supervisor who is solely responsible for continuity missed this pesky paper cup. Had the editor or post team noticed, they could have simply removed or covered it up digitally.
The lapse in judgement is a great reminder about the importance of teamwork and looking beyond one’s specialized focus. If you see something, say something. Having specialists does not guarantee flawlessness. Imagine, the audio engineer noticed the cup before rolling, but decided not to say anything because “It’s not my job, surely the director, set design, or even craft services will notice.”
There is Only One Thing We Say to Errors: Not Today
We are only human; mistakes will happen and there is the proof resting around 17:50 in episode “The Last of the Starks.” May this blimp be a reminder to always have your work reviewed by many eyes before going out. Reviewers may catch obvious mistakes that go overlooked. If the message you are trying to get across is important, it’s worth a second, third, or fifth look.
For its 19th year, Coachella enlisted its first black female headliner—Beyoncé to slay the stage and perform for over 100,000 music festival attendees and millions of streaming viewers. One year later, Beyoncé reminds us her work ethic is unmatched, dropping her new Netflix original, Homecoming, featuring her groundbreaking Coachella performance in addition to some behind-the-scenes clips. In these brief, but powerful moments, viewers get an authentic lens into Beyoncé’s life, thoughts, and challenges—as a woman, minority, mother, and professional. Her journey and determination are universally inspirational. However, as a woman of color, Homecoming served as a much-needed source of empowerment. Here are a few inspirational takeaways following Beyoncé’s Homecoming:
You Can Have It All
Throughout Homecoming, Beyoncé speaks to the tactful balance of work and motherhood. For many working moms, I can imagine a sense of camaraderie as she details her experience. In one behind-the-scenes clip, we see new mom Beyoncé as she tries to cope with her new body—covering her post-partum pooch while struggling to catch her breath during rehearsal. A strikingly different view compared to the picture-perfect mother we’re used to seeing. She acknowledged the challenges she had to overcome, working before she was mentally or physically ready. At one point she confesses, “My mind was not there. My mind wanted to be with my children.” Unfortunately, her words are not uncommon. As seen in our blog post on Women’s Day, only 12 percent of women in the private sector have access to any sort of paid maternity leave and 25 percent of women are forced to return to work within two weeks of giving birth to support their families. Nevertheless, Beyoncé exemplifies the phrase power through, as she still manages to successfully complete six months of rigorous rehearsals, abide by a strict low-calorie diet, manage over 200 dancers and performers—all while tending to her three young children. Beyoncé showed us that with #girlpower and ample determination, you can have it all.
Know Your Worth
Unfortunately, the pay discrepancy among men and women in the US is still prevalent. Those most affected by the pay gap are black and Hispanic women—earning 67% to 58% of what men earn. In a recent McKinsey report, data shows the promotion rate to manager is the lowest for black women compared to any race and gender. For every 100 men promoted to manager, just 60 black women are promoted. However, there is hope and reason to be inspired. Beyoncé, and her $500 million net-worth, provides a winning model for success as she reportedly walked away from her Coachella performance with an $8 million check. Wow! However, her brilliance shines through when evaluating the streams of income following the event. Attaining a $60 million partnership with Netflix, selling her live performance tracks to all major streaming platforms, and releasing new Homecoming-branded apparel, Beyoncé creates additional opportunities to pay herself. Ranked as the fastest growing subgroup of entrepreneurs in the US, it appears women of color are taking notes and taking action to create additional streams of revenue that may mitigate potential pay discrepancies. The quest to equal pay is still ongoing, but Beyoncé illustrates the importance of knowing your true worth, even if that means cultivating your own additional generators of revenue.
Stay True To Yourself
Beyoncé’s mother, Tina Knowles-Lawson, shared her initial concerns about her daughter’s Coachella performance—worried the audience would not “get” it. Following the controversy of the Super Bowl, her concerns were valid. Beyoncé responded, “I have worked very hard to get to the point where I have a true voice, and at this point in my life and my career, I have a responsibility to do what’s best for the world and not what is most popular.” Oftentimes, I see women of color undergo the unique experience of working in a space as both a race and gender minority. With women of color representing only 4% of C- level positions in the US (falling behind white men 68% and white women 19%), adapting and blending in majority white spaces is sometimes less intimidating than remaining individualist. However, Beyoncé embodies what is means to stay true to oneself by fueling confidence and empowerment for those who need it. Giving an unapologetic ode to black culture, body inclusivity, and female strength Beyoncé took a professional risk and remained steadfast in who she is and what she believes. Brava!
I’ve lived in large cities including New York City and Boston, as well as smaller but densely populated places like Worcester, MA, Charleston, SC, and Durham, NC. I feel comfortable in places where I can walk to dinner or a movie―call me an ‘urbanite.’
As we all know, living in cities, especially larger ones, is financially challenging nowadays. I’ve juggled roommates and was lucky enough to eventually share the financial burden with my girlfriend, then fiancé, now wife, along the way. We went from co-renters, to signing a lease, then a mortgage, and now home ownership. This, for many, has been the traditional path. But that’s starting to change, as schedules, commitments, and overall attitudes evolve about what cohabitating means in today’s world.
Cohabitation is quickly morphing into Co-living in many urban settings. With co-living you don’t really know the people with whom you’re sharing your home space. With cohabitating, one usually goes through an interview for a room in someone’s place to see if there’s a fit; with co-living, the arrangement is more transactional, with one renting a private room in a quasi-dorm-like setting, where common spaces such as kitchens, living areas, and laundry are shared.
Co-living is quickly evolving from its pragmatic roots in high-rent cities with newly arriving college grads and people who’ve yet settled into a community into more permanent digs. Common is a firm that currently operates in a half-dozen U.S. cities, often with multiple locations in each. Its mantra is “private rooms within beautiful shared suites in friendly homes.” Everything is inclusive, including modern furniture, household staples, even weekly cleaning―all one needs is to fill out a form online and lay down a deposit.
While many of Common’s homes are located within traditional “hipster-centric” up-and-coming locales, which makes sense given the demo/psychographic for such living and current mass rehabilitation of such neighborhoods, co-living is quickly evolving beyond typical millennial nomads traversing the gig economy. Co-living personal spaces are getting larger, and even family friendly, as the Millennial cohort ages.
The Collective, a U.K.-based pioneer in the space currently operates the world’s largest purpose-built co-living development in the world, has already set up shop in Manhattan’s Murray Hill. A non-descript New York neighborhood, it is arguably one of the more mundane areas of greater Manhattan. And that’s the point, it’s a place in which to live, not “live it up.” Units are up to three bedrooms, family friendly, and possess some of the amenities of traditional co-living such as shared rooms and services, but also offer more personal autonomy for those seeking co-living as a service, as opposed to a lifestyle. On deck is a much more ambitious nearly half-billion dollar multi-purpose co-living project slated for Broadway Triangle, in Brooklyn replete with workshops, seminars, and performances alongside a restaurant, bar, and art gallery.
Kin, of both the U.K. and Australia, is doing much the same in smaller U.K. and Down Under markets, but nevertheless allows for private bathrooms and kitchens―with the assumption couples and families may need a bit more personal space.
While cost savings are initially the main driver piquing consumer interest, I believe the real benefits reflect human behavior and overall well-being. Kin promotes co-living as “contributing to a more well-intentioned life,” where meaningful relationships are cultivated through “shared experience at home.” The Collective seeks to “build a world that’s more alive, more together, and more collaborative.” All in all, the theory is that by bringing people closer together, with exposure to new people and ideas, they are inspired to do more with what they learn.
It all makes sense to me. While co-living may not appeal to everyone, it’s an emerging lifestyle taking hold in today’s larger cities. If the economic, social, and psychic benefits continue to play out, the practice may grow beyond tier one cities, and take hold with other demographics with similarly rapid shifting needs, i.e., a Boomer alternative to Florida living, or even newly arrived peoples from other countries seeking to reside in the U.S.
Whatever evolves, the effects on consumer behaviors will be great as food, transportation, entertainment, and learning behaviors are likely to be altered. Even the concept of what constitutes familial units may need to be redefined, ever so porous as they may become. For a marketing researcher who focuses on better understanding consumer behavior, interesting times are ahead!
In recent years, shopper insights teams and agency partners have worked to adapt to shifting retail patterns, namely the rise of online shopping driven by its increased speed and convenience.
While the convenience of online shopping hasn’t worn off, perhaps the novelty has.
A recent PwC study showed that 82% want more human interaction in the future. Also, 73% of all people point to customer experience as an important factor in purchasing decisions. (Link)
Agencies and brands will need to focus on more than just visual merchandising to deliver a brand experience at retail. They will have to meet the elevated expectations of speed and convenience while delivering on a customer experience that is human and elevates the brand and product.
How do you get there? What are the first steps you can take to solving for this?
(1) Explore best practice brand experiences across categories
(2) Understand the thresholds for automation, speed of service, and convenience in your category… in other words when does the lack of a fulfilling customer and brand experience lead to diminishing returns on convenience factors or worse, simply refusing purchase?
Alltop – Market Research
BrandSavant
Code Switch
Cool Infographics
Design Observer
Designing for Humans
Grant McCracken
The Green Book Blog
Harvard Business Review
Herd – Mark Earls
Influxinsights
Joel Rubison on Marketing Research
JWT Intelligence
Kottke
The LoveStats Blog
Noah Brier
Pew Research Center
PSFK
Russell Davies
Smart Mobs – Howard Rheingold
The Survey Geek
Think Insights
Vovici Listening Post
W5 can support your team to identify market opportunities and leverage strengths to create meaningful differentiation. Whitespace Innovation initiatives combine primary research to understand current consumer perceptions as well as strategic initiatives to brainstorm future opportunity.
W5 will often leverage unconventional research approaches to elicit compelling ideas for how your brand can innovate within the category.
W5’s Whitespace Innovation projects can help you:
Playbooks tell a visually compelling story, distilling research findings for the highest possible impact across your organization. W5 develops Playbooks to simplify and communicate research learnings into an action plan that is entertaining, easily digestible, and understood by all.
These deliverables distill traditional detailed research reports into engaging narratives, stirring conversation and hypotheses.
Research Playbooks can help you:
Research Activation Workshops are interactive sessions that encourage your team to understand and then apply research findings to strategic initiatives. These sessions use research engagements as the springboard for internal collaboration and engagement.
W5’s ideation facilitators start with a presentation of findings and then use creative exercises to elicit new ideas from participants. Each engagement ends with a prioritized list of action items to explore in the short and long term.
Research Activation Workshops can help you:
Personas are tools for understanding and empathizing with consumers, clients, or end-users. They present a complex marketplace as a series of archetypes with names, faces, and perceptions, offering a shared foundation for teams in all parts of your organization to understand what your customer wants and needs.
Personas allow designers, marketers, product developers, and other internal teams to empathize with consumers and understand their needs in an easy-to-understand manner leading to smarter products and services.
Personas can help your organization:
W5 can review existing primary and secondary research to develop a custom report centralizing understanding of your brand to springboard further strategic thinking. This provides your team with a cohesive understanding of the market and brand performance, adding richness and important context to research results.
Often organizations have a repository of research reports that are not acted upon. W5 uses these data points to summarize and tell an otherwise buried story. Resulting reports are eminently more readable and actionable.
Meta-Analysis approaches can help you:
W5’s strategy practice works closely with qualitative and quantitative researchers and client teams to transform Consumer Journey research into engaging and lively visuals.
This collaboration combines research analysis with the design and visualization process. W5 produces detailed Journey Maps that clearly plot major touchpoints, key moments of truth, journey barriers, and the emotional steps of purchasing a product or service.
W5 can help your team:
W5 works with you to create Interactive Presentations for sharing research across your diverse internal audiences. These presentations distill reports into key themes and ideas presented alongside charts, video, images, and quotes.
These deliverables are more dynamic versions of traditional research reporting by leveraging illustrative tools to tell a more compelling story.
W5 can develop Interactive Presentations that help you:
In creative problem solving, the quality of a solution depends on the ability to generate creative and strategically sound ideas. W5’s Ideation Workshops use creative activities, lateral thinking, and brainstorming to inspire new ideas and solutions.
Our facilitators cater discussions to your organizational goals ensuring tangible strategic actions that can be applied immediately following the session.
Ideation and Co-Creation Sessions can help you:
W5 produces and edits research videos that illuminate consumers’ lives through stories and scenes, with a goal of encouraging consumer empathy and understanding translating into better products, communication, and stronger brand equity.
W5 also produces short films that summarize findings in the voice of the consumer. These 3-5minute stories encapsulate research findings and provide an easy way to understand your consumers’ mindset.
W5’s video deliverables can help you:
W5 can create a complete picture of the competitive landscape, highlighting current category trends and alerting you to future developments. W5 leverages multiple methodologies to assess the Category Landscape, including social media synthesis, online trend analysis, expert interviews, and primary marketing research.
W5 can help you:
Artifacts and Installations include any method of communicating research findings that goes beyond the standard research report. These elements challenge expectations through novel presentations and unexpected media.
W5 creates deliverables that can take many forms, custom designed to integrate into internal spaces and attract stakeholder attention.
Incorporating these deliverables can help you:
The marketplace is constantly evolving and there are times in every industry when it is necessary to assess your pricing strategy. Price Sensitivity research is valuable in gaining perspective into the optimal price-value balance. W5 typically uses the Van Westendorp pricing model to efficiently evaluate client pricing.
The Van Westendorp technique applies four simple questions regarding a product or service, requiring survey respondents to rate each price in context with product/service offerings and perceived benefits. This method yields clear and intuitive data that identifies the range of acceptable price points, providing a solid basis to assess pricing strategy.
Understanding consumers’ price sensitivity can help you:
For more in-depth information on pricing analyses, W5 recommends Conjoint Analysis.
A Brand Health Assessment includes evaluation of consumer awareness, consideration, and engagement with a brand to generate insights on market positioning. Through a quantitative survey featuring validated brand metrics plus custom questioning, the “health” of the brand is measured and compared to key competitors.
Through a W5 Brand Health Assessment you gain perspective into your consumers’ relationships with the brand beyond awareness, to explore their past, present, and future experiences with the brand.
Brand Health Assessment can help you:
Brand Equity is focused on consumers’ perceived value of a brand, beyond just their opinions of products or services. To understand brand value, an exploration of brand equity includes more than an assessment of current brand health and image. A forward-looking perspective is necessary to guide business strategy.
W5 Brand Equity Explorations include brand health (i.e., awareness, consideration, engagement) and brand perceptions (i.e., overall image, brand performance on valued attributes, etc.) but also the call-to-action of the brand. The call-to-action assessment often includes personal (i.e., consumer research, purchasing) and social (i.e., recommendation, social media advocacy) aspects.
Brand Equity research can help you:
Product Development is rarely a straight line and can present stops and starts throughout the process. Product Development research can be leveraged to evaluate initial renderings or ideas, test prototypes, optimize features and benefits, test products in natural contexts, and gauge related communications.
W5 works with clients to employ both online and in-person approaches. In-person approaches are appropriate for hands-on elements or testing functionality and form factor, while online approaches can help narrow options and gauge overall reactions to attributes, design, and messaging.
Product Development research can help you:
Audience Identification and Profiling research paints a detailed picture of a core market―their demographics, basic category behaviors and attitudes, psychographics underlying those behaviors and attitudes, and opinions of the marketplace. This method is a critical step when introducing a new brand or product and can be a cost-efficient alternative to a segmentation.
Beyond basic statistical profiling, W5 explores the relationship of consumer lifestyles, life stages, beliefs, and habits to define their potential engagement with the brand and/or product. Audience Identification and Profiling is best used to identify a target audience for a product, service, or message. This strategic market insight will help you:
Attitudes and Usage (A&U or AAU) research answers essential questions of “what?,” “where?,” “why?,” and “how?” around consumers’ decision making within and across market categories. W5 A&U studies provide a robust and reliable snapshot of consumer sentiment and behaviors at a moment in time but can also be conducted to inform future strategy. They are a valuable tool for market hypotheses, exploring brand and product appeal and opportunity, and identifying the impact of recent or forthcoming marketplace changes.
Attitudes and Usage research can help you:
Product and Positioning Concept Testing provides insight on how a product, service, or branding can cut through competitor offerings to fit consumers’ needs and desires. Thorough and strategic testing of proposed concepts will ensure success by identifying consumers’ rationale for specific likes and dislikes.
There are many ways to accomplish a concept test―monadic testing, paired comparison, proto-monadic evaluation, concept screening, etc.―however, not all techniques are applicable in every situation. W5 builds a custom approach based on the number of concepts, depth of presentation, selected audiences, and needs for comparative insight. A strategically designed research study will reveal resonant winners and relative losers and can help you:
The Message Testing process begins with creative stimuli and copy and ends with a refined message. Quantitative research plays an important role to ensure message effectiveness by eliciting consumer feedback on appeal, relevance, and call-to-action.
W5’s approach to Message Testing provides multiple viewpoints on stimuli through a proto-monadic survey design where copy variations are assessed independently and randomly before comparative questions are asked. The result is dual perspectives on clarity, appeal, relevance, and call-to-action of each stimulus providing context and support for winning concepts.
The goal of Message and Copy Testing is to illuminate the best path forward for marketing and advertising. Armed with this insight, you are better positioned to:
The identification of different consumer groups in the market is a powerful tool for identifying target audience characteristics beyond basic demographics and category behaviors. W5 views Segmentation as the study of consumers’ responses to specific attitudinal, behavioral, psychographic, and category- and brand-related questions. During analysis, consumers with similar attitudes and thought processes are bundled together to create an audience ‘segment.’
Segmentation is beneficial for those seeking a reliable understanding of consumers based on stable, real-world criteria. W5 leverages a mix of applied approaches to ensure resulting segments are actionable and capable of informing product/service refinement, brand positioning, and communications strategies.
W5’s approach to custom, strategic segmentation research will:
Read our White Paper on Segmentation
Read our Case Study on Segmentation
Conjoint Analysis explores the value consumers place on your products or services and their features. Through a series of conjoint (two or more parallel) questions in an online survey, consumers evaluate different sets of attributes (and the various attribute options, or levels) and make “trade-offs” between services or features. Response across scenarios generates a robust data set processed using sophisticated modeling techniques. W5 can then gauge your consumers’ priorities, identify optimal bundles with market relevance, and explore demand and price sensitivity related to variations in marketplace offerings.
Conjoint Analysis can help you:
Strategic Tracking research monitors a brand’s perception and strength over time through industry-specific metrics. Through a periodic or continuously-fielded quantitative survey, consumer insights are measured and compared to track changes and guide decisions based on past activity and predictions for future activity. Strategic Tracking supports decision making by examining market changes from one measured period to another.
W5’s approach to Strategic Tracking goes beyond measuring brand and advertising awareness to explore an evolving marketplace, bringing depth and context to consumer behavior and attitudes. Strategic Tracking research reveals understanding of the relative health of your brand and scratches below the surface to determine its fit in the marketplace.
This in-depth ‘state-of-the-brand’ understanding can help you:
Read our White Paper on Strategic Tracking
Read our Case Study on Strategic Tracking
Shopper Insights reveal how consumers interact with products and brands within retail environments, both online and in-store. It focuses on every aspect of the shopping experience, from store selection to purchase decision. W5 views shopper insights as a nuanced and complex study of the retail environment, in-store behaviors, in-aisle decisions, and messaging.
Understanding shopper needs and motivations can transform your approach to products, packaging, displays, promotions, experiences, and interpersonal interactions for both brick-and-mortar and online/mobile shopping. W5 leverages a mix of ethnographic techniques to capture insights throughout the consumer journey.
Exploring Shopper Insights can help you:
Online Discussions are comprised of relatively new qualitative research tools that can provide broader access to participants (over both time and geographic areas) without limiting the quality or type of feedback.
These conversations can take place as Bulletin Boards, Online Journals/Diaries, or webcam-enabled IDIs or Focus Groups. The online platform incorporates rich response and reaction tools that allow participants to communicate via text, simple surveys, images, or video. This enables W5 to employ an activity-based approach to asking research questions where participants not only tell you, but show you how they behave and think.
Clients can also be more involved by observing responses in real-time, suggesting follow-up questions as they happen, contributing to an ongoing discussion among observers, and tagging responses to highlight in reporting.
Online discussions can help you:
Mobile Ethnography is one of the most flexible research tools available, allowing W5 to connect with a wide array of participants spread across time zones and geography via a smartphone app or mobile platform.
Mobile Ethnography allows researchers to virtually accompany consumers in their natural environment. Throughout the process, W5 integrates mobile-enabled activities to increase consumer engagement and generate insight. This may include exploring product usage, daily rituals, shopping experiences, etc. by capturing media and providing feedback in real-time.
Mobile Ethnography is an efficient and minimally invasive way for consumers to share their thoughts and experiences―a multi-sensory landscape of a consumer’s world that can help you:
Before your brand messaging meets the market, qualitative research can provide valuable feedback to ensure relevance. Message Development research can be conducted throughout the process to develop initial ideas, test individual ideas/campaign concepts, or evaluate campaign material or concepts for consistency.
W5 uses both online and in-person approaches to evaluate messaging. In-person approaches benefit from a flexible forum for developing ideas or exploring initial reactions, while online approaches can incorporate evaluation tools such as heat mapping that identify positive and negative associations with specific elements.
Message Development research can help you:
In-Depth Interviewing (IDI) is an intimate conversation between a moderator and an individual or small group of participants. It is a preferred approach when research topics are sensitive or more detailed feedback is needed.
Semi-structured, the approach allows conversations to flow naturally, with the spirit of the conversation guiding the questioning and its order. W5 views IDIs as offering several methodological advantages including building a strong rapport and leading to more detailed and evocative feedback. The approach is often direct and focused, with minimal distractions, allowing for more genuine, thoughtful responses.
In-Depth Interviews can help you:
Focus Groups, a moderated discussion held with pre-recruited participants, are the most widely used and familiar qualitative research tool. They are especially powerful for conducting exploratory research, messaging evaluations, product development, or brand positioning and strategy research.
Their familiarity does not mean they are a tired approach. W5 incorporates creative exercises and activities to challenge participants to think critically and creatively about research questions. New technologies feature a host of multimedia tools that further creative thinking.
Focus Groups can help you:
Executive Interviews are in-depth, one-on-one discussions with professionals, often in specialized industries or roles. Unlike consumer interviews, they require qualitative researchers attuned to industry language and practices who can approach the conversation with an understanding of their specialization and tie their perspectives back to the research goals.
W5 approaches executive or professional interviews by staying flexible in both timing and means of communication, conducted via telephone, webcam, or in-person to accommodate participants’ schedules.
Executive interviewing can help you:
Consumer Journey maps are tools for visualizing how people interact with your brand, most often in the realm of retail and/or online shopping experiences. These maps diagram each interaction with key behaviors, considerations, and potential barriers that lie between an initial trigger to consider and final purchase.
Qualitative research is instrumental in capturing the defining moments of the process. W5 designs Consumer Journey research to be immersive, incorporating in-person or mobile ethnographic approaches to shadow the consumer during each step in the process. The learning that comes from better understanding the experience as a whole can help you identify specific pain points and barriers and create a strategy to connect with consumers at the most opportunistic touchpoints.
Consumer Journey maps can help you:
Read our White Paper on Consumer Journeys
Read our Case Study on Consumer Journeys
Ethnography is a qualitative research approach that produces a real-world understanding of how lifestyle, culture, behavior, subconscious motivations, and social context influence product selection and brand interaction.
Ethnography is immersive, putting researchers in the consumers’ world to observe how they behave and interact with their environment and how they feel about the experience. W5 ethnographers can expertly evaluate consumer behavior in detail, identifying meaningful patterns and themes that emerge from their explicit and implicit attitudes and needs. Ethnographic research can take place anywhere (home, store, restaurant, etc.) and employs a mix of virtual and in-person approaches.
Ethnography can help you:
Read our White Paper on Ethnography
Read our Thought Piece on Video Ethnography
Concept Development begins with an idea and ends in your consumers’ hands as a product or service. Concept Development research ensures the final result meets their expectations and needs.
Initial exploratory research helps create empathy and understanding of consumers’ specific needs. From there, the customer can become part of your development team, providing qualitative feedback with each iteration. By embracing Concept Development qualitative research, you are embracing a customer-centric design process that will make for more successful product launches.
W5’s Concept Development and evaluation research can help you:
Brand Positioning is a strategy to identify competitive advantages and help your brand connect with the right people, in the right way, at the right time. It assumes your brand and competitors occupy the same “space” based on subtle differences in audiences’ rational and emotional preferences. Exploratory, iterative, and interpretive, qualitative Brand Positioning research is ideally suited for understanding these nuances. W5 can help you uncover both rational reasons for brand preferences as well as hard-to-define emotional factors.
With knowledge of your current position and what’s important to your audience, you can clarify your brand’s meaning and adopt positioning strategies that offer long-term strategic value.
W5 can help your brand: