Every great strategy or outcome starts with excellent knowledge. A company’s brand is no exception.
At The Digital Connection Agency (The DCA), one focus is to uncover a brands potential. One vital activity when uncovering brand potential is brand research. If a company doesn’t know who they are and how their market perceives them, there is no chance for growth. Brand research is the first step to solving this problem.
Definitions
There are many aspects to consider when beginning any piece of brand research. When The DCA is researching a brand, the agency studies:
Brand perception is what an individual perceives the brand to be, not just what it is. A good example are fans of sports teams, as their perception of their team tends to be higher.
Definitions
Outside of the typical aspects of branding, there needs to be a consideration for the types of data a company should collect. At The DCA, the company attempts to collect the following types of data: Businessdictionary
A Brand Research Approach
Marketing professionals need to have systems in place to conduct this level of research consistently and effectively.
- Surveys: Focusing on Brand Perception, Brand Associations, Brand Awareness and Competitor Analysis.
First, conduct two types of surveys for existing customers and the company’s employees:- Survey one: Using five customers and five employees to take part in an interview to provide qualitative data anonymously.
- Survey two: An online questionnaire to the entire workforce and customer base to gather quantitative data.
- Workshop:
Put a non-exec representative from each department/section of the company into a three-hour workshop. To discuss the company, customers and the survey results to find out what they think can be improved.
Only report on the findings, keeping their responses anonymous so each member of staff can feel genuinely comfortable in
giving their honest opinion.
- Social Listening:
A six-month historical review of what natural conversations are happening across social media about the company, competitors and key industry issues and trends. - Desktop Research:
An investigation of the relevant publications, industry research and blogs to understand how the company and competitors are perceived, and to research the different influencing factors in the industry. Marketing may need to purchase industry reports if it’s necessary.
Reporting
There should be three separate reports as part of the research process:
- 1. First, a report that discusses the key findings of the surveys on the brand. To find any short-term fixes or problems that have come up.
- 2. Second, after the workshops. This report should give a brief overview of the findings from the workshops. The first section should be the review of the surveys with an initial conclusion. The second section should be a review of the further discussion had (in the workshop) about the group’s individual experiences and feelings towards the brands and what should be done. The report should end with a comparison of the three sets of data and a hierarchy of brand priorities.
- 3. The final report. The beginning summarises, the social media conversations and other topics covered by relevant publications (about the company, competitors and the industry). Following the discussion, a comparison section of industry research alongside the company’s brand research should take place. The comparison will outline weaknesses, strengths, opportunities and threats clearly. This should be concluded by a review of the current priority list, to re-prioritise and to adapt any solutions that will have changed once referencing the current industry climate.
Things to Remember
The best research that involves so many individuals use these rules to garner superior information:
- The surveys should be performed by a non-exec or third-party and kept anonymous.
- Despite knowing who was sent to the workshop, the transcripts will be kept anonymous, and the participants shouldn’t be asked about the workshop.
- Do not accept anyone in a management position for the workshops.
- This makes sure everyone can feel free to provide what they believe to be genuine feedback and to maintain the focus
on the brand and not anywhere else.
- Don’t name any individual or company in the secondary and tertiary research.
- Amalgamate the data and report the outcomes of each stage of the research to keep personnel up to date.
The best reason for taking The DCA approach to brand research is the quality and reference-ability of the data collected. The data provides options for improvement, proof of success and something a company can rely on when building a marketing strategy for the next year. In the modern battlefield that is marketing, information wins the war, and this provides the ammo.
After looking at The DCA approach, it’d be great to talk to those that are interested! Contact The DCA now and get started!
How Much Does it Cost?
The DCA Operates In Three Ways
One Last Thing!
Individual task – Billed by the day
Projects – Billed in accordance with the scope
Commitments – On retainer typically starting at £1000 per month
This is always something that everyone leaves out! Additional costs may apply depending on the services we agree, especially things like paid advertising and the tools you need. We always make sure this is completely transparent!
