DISQUS

alan p · 1 year ago

Its a good book.

I don't know if its there, but there is a great Henry Ford quote re market research which goes something along the lines of that if he'd asked people what they wanted they'd have come back with a carriage with horses that eat less, go faster and make less mess.

David Stobs-Stobart · 1 year ago

Good post, I'd recommend Herd too. A lot of good thoughts regarding influence; especially in the context of social networks and the struggle with good online advertising ("Interaction is everything").

Campbell Scott · 1 year ago

This is a topic that often gets talked about, but I think traditional research is becoming increasingly less relevant and useful, particularly with the Internet providing so many ways of really finding out what is important to consumers. Take Dell's ideastorm, where customers vote for new ideas. There are now real possibilities to involve customers in product development.

My trouble with the big quantitative research initiatives is that competitors spend the same money, using the same techniques, to sample the same type of demographic, resulting in the same outcomes, which ultimately they react to in the same way!!! So we end up with a common "greyness", with no originality or distinction.

The following video gives a nice view of the benefits of focus groups:-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ku4Ugw0lQ4Q

PaulSweeney · 1 year ago

That's the problem with Market Research into "intent". people don't always know how or why they act in particular ways. Some interesting analogies in how people pick their life-partners :)

Benjamin Ellis · 1 year ago

I've always argued that there are three aspects to product research: what people want, what people need, what people will buy". Market research tells you what people THINK they want.

It is a useful tool for sourcing information that can _guide_ what a business does. However, human behavior always need at least some sort interpretation to understand it - we are pretty complex 'simple' creatures. That expertise is in short supply.

Psychologists have had it for a long time and Earls' book does a good job of setting that in an economic and social context. Will be interested to know what you think of it when you get to the end...