Product Testing

Hall tests and in-home tests are used to directly expose products or concepts to the consumer for critical evaluation.

Hall Tests - utilise easily accessible town centre venues which offer a controlled and neutral environment, ensuring all respondents evaluate the test product in identical conditions. Respondents are carefully screened and recruited on the street and brought into the venue to undertake the test and complete an interview. This method is very cost effective and can generate over a 100 responses per day depending upon location, target audience and the length and complexity of the test.

Typical this methodology is used to test products for taste, perfume, appearance or texture, usage or packaging, or for assessing advertising or other marketing communications.

In-Home Tests - allow respondents to test products under normal conditions in their own homes. Their experiences are recorded via a self-completion questionnaire, diary or during a face-to-face follow up interview. Products are typically placed with respondents for a week or longer.

These tests may involve purchasing products from the consumer to use in the tests, for example garments which can be cut in half and washed using different detergents for comparison.

In the past we have used in-home placements to evaluate products such as washing-up liquid, powder and liquid detergents, fabric softeners, air fresheners, electric toothbrushes, paper products, chips, snacks and ready made meals.

Quantitative Research

Quantitative research uses carefully structured questionnaires to capture and measure the views of large numbers of respondents. Respondent samples are carefully chosen and controlled to project the results onto a wider population with a high degree of statistical certainty.

In general the larger the numbers of respondents, the more viable analysis by different sub-groups becomes, but in practice sample sizes will vary depending upon budget, timescale and methodology.

We use a number of different methods for collecting quantitative data including:

• Street Interviews
• Exit Interviews
• In-Home Interviews
• On-Line Interviews
• Postal Surveys
• Telephone Surveys
• Staff Completion Audits
• Traffic & Footfall Counts

In close consultation with our clients we will choose the most effective method to produce the best and most telling results for them.

Why do public services use research?

Both local and central government bodies are increasingly using market research to help with policy development, stakeholder consultation, and community feedback. The increased performance assessment pressures faced by the public sector have led to a greater demand for more accountable, accurate and strategic research. This research must be totally robust and able to withstand public, political and media scrutiny.

What is quantitative research?

Quantitative research involves the use of structured questionnaires in which the response options have been predetermined and a large number of respondents are involved.

It is research conducted for the purpose of obtaining empirical evaluations of attitudes, behaviour or performance to produce results that are both descriptive and inferential. This enables results to be projected from a small, representative sample across a much greater general population.

The numbers of people included in a quantitative survey can vary from around a hundred up to thousands. In determining the sample frame an important factor is the overall size of the larger population. Who the sample is made up of is also a key consideration to ensure representation of the total population, (the same characteristics in roughly the same proportions.)

The most common types of quantitative research methodology used are surveys, conducted either face to face, on the telephone, by postal questionnaire or on the Internet.

What is face to face interviewing?

Face to face interviews can be conducted in the respondent’s home or workplace, or in locations such as shopping malls or on the street. Such interviews allow for the use of stimulus material - for example, showing an advertisement, pictures of different packaging, playing a radio ad or video clip or prompting responses with a brand list. This research is usually conducted in a few selected locations which are believed to be representative of the region as a whole.