Iterative Research – Why You Can’t Wait

The world changes every day, and your brand needs to keep up.  Iterative research is key to staying on trend and meeting the goals of your customers. 

Consider the tumultuous years we have endured recently and the rapid changes in public sentiment.  2020 began with optimism, which turned to uncertainty with the onset of Covid-19, and then ended with anger.  2021 brought the hope of Covid-19 vaccine availability in the US, only for the revelry to be quashed by variants.  So far, 2022 has seen war and inflation.  What will 2023 look like?  More importantly, how can iterative market research help you prepare? 

What is Iterative Research? 

Iterative research is a process of continually gathering and analyzing customer data, which in turn is implemented and refined as new data is received.  It is a cycle.  Iterative research is ongoing and repeatable; in fact, it can be run monthly with Fuel Cycle’s Brand Health Tracking tool. It is most useful for obtaining qualitative data.  For further information, see Translating Business Problems Into Research Objectives on our blog.  

Traditional research is completed yearly and implemented once with minimal refinement.  It is episodic and often run by an outside agency. It brings in lots of data in one large batch. Traditional research utilizes qualitative and quantitative data. 

Who Uses Iterative Research? 

Iterative research is used by many industries, such as software development and data analytics.  In market research, it is used to enhance qualitative surveys. 

One use case is a major US mobile communications provider that uses iterative research to improve the customer onboarding journey. This brand partnered with Fuel Cycle and used our Customer Journey Tracking tool in the Ignition software suite. Fuel Cycle sent out eight surveys for every touchpoint in the customer journey to learn how new customers felt about the process and where their pain-points were. 

When and Where? 

Iterative research can begin at various points throughout a project.  While starting at the beginning will provide the most data, the goal of iterative research is to gather data continuously over time, refine it, and respond.  Data gathered in June can be acted upon in July, refined in August, and relaunched in September with updated information.   

There are many times when applying iterative research methodologies is helpful.  One such time is when an economy is undergoing rapid change.  Consumers and companies have witnessed prices increasing, decreasing, and then increasing again due to supply and demand.  Some economic changes are predictable, while others are not and require an adaptive response. (Remember when a container ship was stuck in the Suez Canal and disrupted international trade?) Price testing, a form of iterative research, can supply timely insights to measure customer opinions on pricing VS value without waiting for quarterly reports. 

How? 

But things are not all fun and games.  Many parents experience wage stagnation.  Screen fatigue is a prevalent concern.  Online school is stressful, with many students falling behind in their classes.  PlayAllDay wants to learn how remote learning and soaring cost of living expenses are affecting their customers.  Particularly, it wants to gather insights on how these changes will impact shopping habits during the vital holiday season.     

Jaila, a market researcher at PlayAllDay, needs a way to answer these questions with honest responses and fast.  Planning for a Q4 product launch begins months in advance.  Her company has a strong traditional research process that delivers helpful statistical analysis.  But that only tells part of the story.  Time is of the essence, and numbers alone can’t derive how a customer thinks and feels.  The solution is iterative research.  It can be done in-house with the results returned in the next survey. 

Jaila and her team write survey discussion questions asking participants what their top concern is.  They ask participants to select their most prevalent emotions from a list.  They inquire how customers plan to cope with challenges and how those choices will affect their holiday gift-giving.  The results are illuminating, with participants giving heartfelt stories. Many participants share they are in vulnerable situations and fear for the months ahead.  Others are excited for a return to normalcy.  When Jaila shows these quick results to leadership, they have a request– “Give. Us. More.” 

So, Jaila’s team launches a video diary study where users are asked to document their biggest fears and greatest hopes for the year.  Parents of children with special needs, ranging from learning disabilities to compromised immune systems, are asked to share how they plan to navigate changes to school and society.  “Do PlayAllDay’s products fit into that?  Parents, how can we help meet those goals?  Teachers, what do you need to make your lessons educational and fun?  How can our toys bring smiles to those who need them most?” 

The customer answers bring a smile to Jaila and the leadership team. 

Using Iterative Research to Create Actionable Insights 

Iterative research is a powerful approach to gathering customer insights.  It is cyclical rather than linear and focuses on gathering small amounts of highly valuable information quickly.  You will find many potential benefits to iterative research.   It allows you to gauge customer sentiment about current events.  It reduces guess work in anticipating up-to-date consumer needs.  Support your agile market research strategy with iterative research solutions! 

The process of constantly gathering data can be overwhelming, but our tools make it more digestible and easier to act upon.  Fuel Cycle’s CoRe and Ignition software platforms are built for iterative research and deliver continuous insights.  Brand health tracking joins our product portfolio this spring! Let’s work together to ignite the spark of agile and modern market research – speak to an expert today.