04/03/2017 6 Types of Market Research Surveys Th

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6 Types of Market Research Surveys That Smart

Marketers Use
u Andrea Fryrear (https://www.surveygizmo.com/author/afryrear/) Jul 6, 2015
0 Comments (https://www.surveygizmo.com/survey-blog/6-types-of-market-research-surveys-that-smart-marketers-use/#disqus_thread) z Share

The day-t o-day craziness of market ing can somet imes prevent us from pausing long
enough t o examine t he big pict ure. But wit hout t he full view creat ed by large scale t ypes
of market research (ht t ps:/ / www.surveygizmo.com/ survey-blog/ market -research-
t ypes/ ), we risk st eering int o unchart ed t errit ory wit hout a map.

Even when deadlines loom and social media beckons, we need t o check in wit h our
cust omers t o get t heir unbiased feedback.

These six t ypes of surveys are what savvy market ers use regularly t o guide t heir
companys ships t o market ing success.

Types of Surveys to Measure Brand Awareness

Generally speaking, t hese t ypes of surveys are done t o creat e a relat ive posit ion for your brand among your compet it ors.

The goal is t o det ermine how many people wit hin your t arget demographic have heard of your brand versus your compet it ion
(ht t p:/ / www.market ergizmo.com/ brand-awareness-st udies/ ), t he source of t heir informat ion, and t he t ype of sent iment t heyve at t ached t o
your brands image.

There are four primary avenues of invest igat ion in t hese t ypes of market research:
1. General Brand Awareness: People are more likely t o buy a brand t hat t hey can spont aneous recall over one t hat t hey must be prompt ed t o
name.
2. Brand Usage: Common fact ors in measuring brand usage include how recent ly consumers have engaged wit h your product , how oft en t hey
do so, and t heir t ot al spending in bot h t he brand and product cat egories. Brand usage can be used t o measure market share as well.
3. Brand At t it udes and Percept ions: Conduct ing t hese t ypes of surveys can give you insight int o your audiences beliefs about your product s
and companys at t ribut es and benefit s. You may also ask quest ions relat ed t o percept ions about price and value.
4. Purchase Int ent : Wit hout quest ions gauging t he int ent t o buy market research cant be predict ive of act ual purchase behavior. M ake sure
you can draw t his direct connect ion by measuring your respondent s likelihood t o buy a brand or swit ch t o a compet it or. Include cont ext
relat ed t o product or brand, reason for purchase, t ime, channel, price, and any ot her fact ors t hat may affect t he int ent t o purchase.

M easure Brand Awareness

USE OUR BRAND AW ARENESS SURVEY TEM PLATE (HTTPS:/ / APP.SURVEYGIZM O.COM / T/ M JIYNDKZOA%3D%3D:ZW VKM DE2NZG

Gauging Customer Satisfaction Levels With Surveys

Alt hough cust omer sat isfact ion scores can be decept ive (many cust omers rat e t hemselves as sat isfied or very sat isfied just before swit ching
t o a compet it or), it s st ill vit al t o st ay connect ed t o your cust omers wit h t hese t ypes of surveys.

To get t he best result s, however, you should make sure t hat youre offering t hese surveys in t he right cont ext and react ing t o t heir responses
appropriat ely.

First ensure t hat youre set t ing t he st age t he right way by considering t he 5 most influent ial fact ors for increasing responses (/ survey-blog/ how-
t o-increase-response-rat es-for-cust omer-sat isfact ion-surveys/ ) t o cust omer sat isfact ion surveys:
1. Target Audience: If youre t rying t o conduct market research about a new product , you may only want t o survey cust omers who have used
it already. Or your int erest may lie only in a part icular geographic area. What ever t he goal of your research, make sure you are reaching1/6
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 t o t he right segment of your audience.
04/03/2017 6 Types of Market Research Surveys Th
2. Survey Frequency: Survey fat igue is unfort unat ely an almost ubiquit ous cult ural phenomenon. Your respondent s are likely t o already be
skept ical of surveys, so make sure youre not abusing t heir relat ionship wit h your brand by surveying t hem t oo oft en.
3. Timing: M ost of t hese t ypes of surveys relat e t o a cust omers purchase experience; if t his is t he case, make sure t o offer t he survey as close
t o t he point of sale as possible. Kiosks near a checkout , a scannable QR code, or a t ablet at t he st ore exist can all help improve t he survey
t aking experience and increase your response rat e.
4. Perceived Benefit : Your cust omers want t o know what s in it for t hem when deciding whet her or not t o t ake a survey. Assure respondent s
t hat t heir feedback is relevant and t hat it will be act ed on, and t hen do it !
5. Incent ive: You can also sweet en t he pot by offering t hose who fill out your survey t he chance t o win a prize of some kind. Incent ives can
lower your negat ive feedback rat es, so it can be useful t o conduct some market research wit hout t hem so you can observe t he differences
in responses and adjust your st rat egy accordingly.

Aside from having a good syst em in place t o collect dat a for cust omer sat isfact ion surveys, you also need t o creat e an environment where your
employees are comfort able administ ering surveys (/ survey-blog/ how-t o-use-cust omer-sat isfact ion-surveys-t he-right -way/ ).

Some companies use t hese t ypes of surveys t o penalize employees, or t hey t ie employees promot ions and benefit s direct ly t o cust omer
feedback.

This can sound like a good way t o ensure t hat employees are giving out st anding cust omer service, but in realit y it can dramat ically skew your
survey dat a. Employees will encourage cust omers only t o fill out t he surveys wit h t he highest possible scores, and t hey may even wit hhold t he
survey from dissat isfied cust omers t o prot ect t heir own rat ings.

Obviously t hese pract ices will give you an inaccurat ely rosy view of your cust omers sent iment , and it will prevent t hese market research
surveys from doing t heir jobs.

Market Research Surveys to Measure Customer Attitudes and Expectations

If youre t rying t o det ermine exact ly how t o measure your cust omers at t it udes, market research st udies can help guide you t here t oo.

Before you can ask your cust omers if t heyre sat isfied, you need t o know what t heir expect at ions are about an experience wit h your product or
service. This will help you not only creat e a more impact ful cust omer sat isfact ion survey, it can also guide you in make changes t o your brand.

You can t hen t rack what , if any, impact t hese changes had in cust omer at t it udes over t ime.

In addit ion t o driving t he creat ion of cust omer sat isfact ion monit oring syst ems, at t it ude and expect at ion surveys can also give you insight int o
your websit es performance, service policies, names for new divisions or product s, and t racking employee at t it udes.

Product Research Types of Surveys

Research int o cust omers at t it udes and expect at ions oft en ext ends int o physical product research as well.

Quest ions on t hese t ypes of surveys cover a wide variet y of product at t ribut es, including:

Performance in Relat ion t o Expect at ions: This is a balancing act for market ers; we want our product s t o exceed expect at ions, but we also
want t o posit ion our product s as superior t o t hose of our compet it ors. M arket research gives us insight int o how well were doing in
relat ion t o what our cust omers expect .

Durabilit y: A great ret urn/ refund/ exchange syst em is vit al for physical product s, but it s best if cust omers never need t o make use of it .
You want t o keep an eye on your audiences at t it udes about product durabilit y, because it can direct ly impact repeat purchases.

How W ell a Product Conforms t o Specificat ions: Part icularly for higher end consumer goods, you need t o t rack how well you are
communicat ing your product s specificat ions t o cust omers. If t here is a disconnect bet ween market ing mat erials and cust omers
percept ions, you should address it right away.

Feat ures: Your product may have t wice as many feat ures as t he compet it ion, but if your audience doesnt know about t hem t hey arent
doing you any good. Conduct ing product research can help you hone your market ing message t o draw at t ent ion t o your best feat ures.

Reliabilit y: This component of product research is, like durabilit y, closely relat ed t o repeat purchase int ent and brand loyalt y. You want t o
make sure t hat your product (and cust omer service, if applicable) is perceived as ut t erly reliable in case of problems.

Serviceabilit y: And, speaking of problems, you also want t o t rack cust omer sent iment about get t ing your product t aken care of. If t hey can
only get t hings fixed via mail, and your shipping t akes 6 weeks on eit her end, your serviceabilit y wont score well.

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Market Research Surveys to Perform a Competitive Analysis
Theres a cert ain amount of st alking t hat goes on bet ween close compet it ors, and glancing around at what ot hers are doing can be a good source
of ideas. But dont forget t hat even during compet it ive analysis research your cust omers need t o be your focus
(ht t p:/ / www.market ergizmo.com/ what -market ers-need-t o-know-about -compet it ive-analysis/ ).

A few t hings you may want t o consider asking during t his t ype of market research are:

How do buyers in your market research a purchase?

Whos most prominent in t hat research process: you or your compet it ion?

Are t here cont ent t ypes t hat carry more weight t han ot hers during research?

Does your market ing address t hose most import ant t ypes of cont ent ?Does your compet it ors?

When and how do buyers want t o int eract wit h vendors?

Are t here brand awareness issues wit h your compet it ion t hat need t o be addressed?

Determining Habits and Uses of Core Customer Group

Finally, you may want t o conduct some market research surveys t o underst and how your product or service fit s int o part icular usage sit uat ions
for your core demographic.

Try t o gain insight int o consumer habit s and t rends and see where you (or compet it ors) belongs in t hose processes.

These t ypes of surveys can reveal new opport unit ies where you could become a part of unt apped habit ual behavior. They can also help your
market ing t eam ident ify new habit s t hat you could creat e t o st art a new need for your product .

Conclusion: Make Market Research a Habit

Use a wide variet y of market research surveys t o make sure t hat you dont lose sight of t he bigger environment in which your product lives. The
daily t asks of email, writ ing, and social media are import ant , but using surveys t o rout inely reach out t o your cust omer base is also a crucial
market ing t o-do.

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