Historical profile:
- It has its roots in
clinical psychology.
- Since its pioneering days in the 1960’s qualitative has become a vital research methodology for companies/ brands/ agencies the world over.
- It seeks to help manufacturers and advertising agencies
understand their consumers.
- Qualitative accesses relatively
small samples but researches them in
considerable detail to develop
understanding and insights.
What is Qualitative R?
- It answers questions based on:
- WHY……?
- HOW……?
- WHAT……?- It looks at the consumer as a person, an individual with
needs, desires and motivations.
- It seeks to dig beyond the
rational & superficial response to what really makes consumers tick!
What QR cannot do……?
- How many? – in testing product preferences
- Measure – the potential of a new product
- Monitor – quantify the success of an ad campaign
- Forecast
What QR can do……?
- Understand, discover, diagnose, gain insight.
- In Mar terms: explore markets and brands; develop ideas, concepts, products; diagnose problem areas.
How Q Does work ?- Group 1: Initial learning
- Group 2: Test Hypotheses
- Group 3: Increase learning; Confirm/reject hypotheses.
- Group 4: Accumulated learning/ understanding.
- Analysis
- Interpretation
- Mar focused findings
Respondent recruitment: by a printed questionnaire pre-approved. Methods are as bellow:
- Intercepts
- Door to door
- Networking
The methodology tool box:Ultimately, methodological selection will be firmly based on which best serve the objectives.
Among the
Group Discussions, choose:
standard, mini, extended, creativity or reconvened.
Group discussions are the primary interview approach used in QR. They provide:
- free flow of debate
- interchange of ideas
- flexibility
- an environment which encourages discussion
Standard groups are normally:
- 8 people
- 2 hours long
- conducted in a dedicated viewing facility (one-way mirror, camera, ...)
Depth Interviews: - Mr + Mrs- Friendship Depths- Paired Depths- Standard DepthsDI is a smaller and more personalized interview approach, and are particularly useful for:
- gathering personal/ intimate responses (e.g personal finance, sex...)
- understanding complex issues such as print media
- assessing different family members roles in the purchase of "big ticket items" (e.g electrical appliances).
OTHERS METHODOLOGIES:
- Consumer forum
- Ethnography
- Triads
- Clinics
- Observation
- Accompanied shopping
- In-home interviews
- Product placement.
(Be continued)