When it comes to brand development, it's easy to jump right into concepting, creative and copy. But this can often lead to creative that misses the mark and doesn't connect with the audience. Marketers are better served to slow down and use data to make informed decisions.
Research can reveal what customers and potential customers already think about your brand. The raw data is important, but the real value lies in the actionable insights revealed by research. When we present research results to our clients, we always provide actionable recommendations that they can implement immediately.
How do we ensure we can walk away with recommendations they can act on now? At the beginning of the research project, we develop objectives for our research.
These objectives can be around messaging, employee morale, naming or brand experiences. The objectives for the research serve as the guide for developing the survey and lead us to the recommendations for the next steps and future marketing decisions.
Here are some examples of common research objectives.
It’s easy to make claims about the quality of your product or your friendly customer service. But what does your community think?
Let’s say one of your research objectives is to see what your audience looks for in companies like yours and compare that to how they view your brand.
This helps ensure your company is in alignment with what customers care about most. In addition, you can see where you fall short in your customers’ eyes.
If you see a gap, you can redirect your messaging or adjust your company values if needed. Alternatively, you might just need minor adjustments, such as including a few keywords in your general messaging to encompass your whole brand.
If you have an established brand, changing its name can be a scary thought. After all, your brand has equity you may be afraid to lose.
Research can help you identify current perceptions about your name and reveal what there is to gain or lose from a name change. You are always able to test familiarity with your current name to see if people are strongly tied to it.
In today’s market, companies are struggling with recruitment across the board. It doesn’t matter what industry you are in, it’s hard to attract and retain top talent.
Some brand research polls internal employees to understand their thoughts and feelings of the brand. This can reveal if your company is meeting your employees’ expectations, where you can improve and determine where gaps exist between employees and leadership.
If there is a gap, use your insights to take actions that will help boost employee morale. Strong brands start from the inside. If your team is on board, you will have a crew of brand ambassadors who can positively impact your recruitment process.
The beauty of research is that often you uncover unexpected insights. The data may tell us something that doesn’t align with any of the objectives that were created when building the survey tool. And that’s ok! It’s all about taking the data and creating actionable recommendations to strengthen your brand.
Overall, how you act on the data depends on your set objectives. What did the data say? Was the answer what you expected from employees, clients, customers, etc.? Did you achieve what you set out to accomplish? What is the story the data is telling you beyond your set objectives?
Not sure how to get started? We’re happy to help with all your research needs, just drop us a note.
