Posted on Wed, Aug 25, 2010
A recent research study by Nielsen reveals that Oklahomans are among the nation's top texters.
Oklahomans, on average, send more than 600 text messages each month as do people in Kansas, Wyoming, Utah, Mississippi, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Delaware.
Those least likely to text live in Vermont, South Carolina and Idaho.
Hey parents, guess how many texts our teenagers send? Teenagers send an average of 2,779 texts a month. I just did the math - that equates to 90 a day.
Here's the link to the press release from Nielsen - there are lots more interesting facts there.
I'm off to confiscate my son's phone.
Posted on Mon, Aug 23, 2010
Occasionally research results are disputed - especially if data portrays a brand in a negative light. It's natural - especially if the results contradict perception.
However, well-designed research speaks for itself allowing the organization to accept the facts and act upon the data. It's our job as researchers to demonstrate the reliability of the facts and implications of the information.
Unfortunately for Kelkoo and the Center for Retail Research, their recent mystery shopping research has come under fire from a featured organization, Heathrow Airport, according to an article published today on researchlive.com.
The study was designed to compare tax-free shopping prices over several airports in Europe. The conclusion stated Heathrow offered the worst discounts on the continent.
Naturally, Heathrow Airport is unhappy with the results - not simply because they reportedly lost the best-discount-battle, but because the research is inaccurate.
According to Heathrow Airport, the survey used an incorrect exchange rate to calculate and compare savings. Even more confusing, a spokesperson for Heathrow said the report "includes products that Heathrow doesn't even sell."
We don't have enough information to make our own conclusion, but if Heathrow Airport is right then Kelkoo has some 'splainin' to do. An international mystery shopping project isn't cheap - and a challenge like this throws the whole project in jeopardy...and it hurts the research industry as a whole.
To allow us to sleep soundly tonight, we're going to hope that it's all a misunderstanding. We'll keep you posted.
Posted on Thu, Aug 05, 2010
Volkswagen Group's insight manager, Steve Gatt, berated many research firms for their focus on process and not product in an interview with Research Live this week.
According to Steve, there is a major problem with how research is reported and communicated within Volkswagen, leading him to conclude many research firms do not understand their clients.
As research professionals you might expect Evolve to rush to the defense of our accused brethren...but we're not. In fact, we sympathize with Steve Gatt and his friends at Volkswagen.
Yes, research can be dressed in complex analyses, mountains of tables and charts and scientific explanations of sampling methodology in a 150-page report...but, that is rarely what the client wants from his or her research investment.
Most people don’t have the time, nor desire, to read huge, wordy reports. Neither do their staff. They need an easy-to-use deliverable that contains the answers to their questions. Answers that will help them make important business decisions.
Ultimately, the way research should be reported is dependent upon each client. It's depressing to watch Steve's interview as it's clear that some firms are not a) asking their clients what they truly want from the research, and b) not delivering the research in a way it can be implemented.
Of course, Evolve is different. As our name suggests, we adapt our deliverable to each client. Each client of ours is different, which means that each project has a unique report. Some clients want us to spend a couple of weeks putting together a detailed PowerPoint presentation of results and conclusions. Others prefer a one-page executive summary and a working lunch a few days after fieldwork has ended.
It's all about giving the client what they need to move forward.
Listen all ye research firms. Our clients, our customers, our bread and butter - they invest in us. In return, we need to innovate (not replicate) and guide our customers to make the best decisions for their businesses.
Posted on Mon, Jul 26, 2010
Ever since the iPhone debuted in 2007, AT&T has been the exclusive carrier of the iPhone in the United States. Since day one, news articles, tech blog posts and user forms have praised the phone while bashing the network. Seeing all of this negativity towards AT&T over the years, it would be easy to assume that most, if not all iPhone users were dissatisfied with AT&T. However, new survey results from Yankee Group tell a different story.
According to the Yankee Group’s research, 73% of iPhone customers rated AT&T an 8, 9 or 10 on a 10-point satisfaction scale. Surprisingly, iPhone customers are actually more likely to give AT&T a high satisfaction rating than AT&T subscribers who own other devices. So what gives? Are all of these complaints written by a loud minority of users while the majority of users are happy but silent?
The conclusion that the Yankee Group drew from the research is that the iPhone has produced a “halo effect” for its users, where the satisfaction with the device masks the imperfections of the network. In other words, most iPhone customers are so satisfied with the device that they either forgive AT&T’s deficiencies or ignore them altogether.
This satisfaction has also resulted in very high brand loyalty, with 77% of current iPhone users saying they will buy another iPhone. On the flip side, only 20% of Android users say they will purchase another Android device.
Posted on Tue, Jul 20, 2010
While Facebook may be the largest and most popular social networking site, users are becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the service. According to the 2010 American Customer Satisfaction Index, Facebook scored a 64 out of 100 on their user satisfaction scale, placing it in the bottom 5% of all private sector companies. To put this into perspective, the IRS website to electronically file your taxes scored higher.
Respondents offered several reasons for being dissatisfied with Facebook. Users:
- Are concerned about privacy
- Have expressed frustration over constant changes to the website
- Dislike the targeted advertising, and
- Are becoming annoyed with frequent notifications
Being a usability nerd, the constant changes to the website have been my biggest pet peeve. It seems like every other month Facebook drastically changes the layout and users have to relearn how to use and navigate the site.
This poses a long term threat to Facebook because right now users are staying because they don’t have a better alternative. That could change though as Google is rumored to be working on a social networking site to rival Facebook and another group, Diaspora, are spending this summer coding an open-source version. If they are successful in creating a platform for users to keep in touch the way Facebook does but in a more secure and user-friendly format, then we may see Facebook dethroned as the king of the social networking world.
Posted on Wed, Jun 23, 2010
I have a love/hate relationship with my iPhone. It is a great device, I appreciate that, but it is an atrocious phone. In the 2 years that I've had my iPhone 3G I have had problems with phone call quality every single day.
I don't want to get in the finger pointing battle - Apple say it's AT&T's fault, and AT&T blame the infallible Apple. I don't care. For whatever reason, the phone is wonky.
I'll get into the research bit shortly, but before I do I want to point out a key piece of information. In the above paragraphs I've lamented about the iPhone. But guess what? I'm getting a new one on Thursday. Logic says that I should get another phone that is not stamped with a piece of fruit, but in this case logic does not predict my behavior.
If I were to take a typical customer satisfaction study it would report that I am not satisfied with my iPhone 3G. As a single measurement, the conclusion is correct. However, by looking at this question in isolation will cause you to make the wrong assumption -and this happens all the time - "Kevin is not satisfied with the product therefore he will not buy a new iPhone."
You see, in this case satisfaction is obviously not the thing driving my purchase decision. There is something else at play here, and it is a professional researchers job to figure out what it is. It is for that reason when you take a good survey, you tend to answer several questions about brand perception, investment, and satisfaction with specific attributes of the product or service in question. And, of course, there will be questions about your likelihood to purchase in the future.
In the case of myself and my relationship with my iPhone 3G, a good piece of research would uncover the following:
- I am very happy with the iPhone as device that keeps me organized (synchronization with contacts, calendar, email).
- I am confident that there truly is an app for most things I want to do.
- I think the build quality of the iPhone is amazing - it won't smash into pieces when I drop it.
- I have invested a lot of money in iPhone apps and I want to continue to get a return on that investment.
- iTunes integration is fantastic and I always listen to podcasts on my iPhone.
- I think the phone represents great value for the price I paid to do all the above and more.
- I have faith in the brand to fix the phone issue.
- I can not go a day without playing Angry Birds.
- My satisfaction with all of the above outweighs my dissatisfaction with the phone functionality.
Wrapping up, my stated dissatisfaction with the iPhone stems from my poor experience with the device as a phone. However, it is apparent that I don't think that is important enough to sway me from buying a new one. My satisfaction with the apps, the always-synced mobile office and the iPod functionality combined with my faith in Apple to fix any issues with their new device completely outweigh my bad experiences with the phone functionality.
In conclusion, when researching a product or service don't just ask questions about overall satisfaction. Split the product/service into several core components and address those individually. Ask how important those key components are and how likely the person is to buy the product again. Just remember, satisfaction alone is not a good way of predicting future sales.
Posted on Wed, Jun 02, 2010
Being a firm that specializes in producing marketing strategies by gathering and analyzing data, the presentation of complex information in a clear and easy to understand format is always at the front of our minds.
We LOVE to use pictures, charts and diagrams to communicate to our clients - a simple graphic is so much easier to digest than paragraphs of text.
Which brings me to this gem we found. The iPhone is a complex beast if you think about it. So many components and manufacturers are involved, not to mention internal and external stakeholders, distribution and promotion methods.
What would all that information look like if it were to be diagrammed? Well, it would look huge actually.
Taking inspiration from the work of Henry Beck (he is the father of the modern London Underground map - check out our post from earlier this year) Ben Millen has produced a way of showing "the analysis of the device, the corporation, the vast network of shareholders, technology and the distribution infrastructure" in two mind-blowing charts.
Millen describes these diagrams to be more like maps, and has produced two different versions. The first focuses on the physical iPhone device whereas the second is more of a cultural breakdown and impact of the Apple product.
Of course, the sheer volume of information contained within these maps is hard to comprehend - but that's half the point of this project. Have a look at the maps, and let us know your thoughts.
Click to Englarge
Click to Englarge
Posted on Mon, May 17, 2010
Only one fifth of American Hispanic women feel that social networks meet their needs, according to a study by research firm Sophia Mind.
The study, which surveyed 3,300 women from the ages of 18-60 in the U.S., Brazil, Argentina and Mexico, cites lack of specific content for Latinas and a lack of participation from Latinas as the main reasons for their social networking needs going unmet.
The most popular social network used by U.S. Hispanic women is Facebook, followed by Twitter, Hi5, MiGente, Univision and Bebo.
Interestingly, American women use social media to primarily stay in touch with family and friends. The women from the other countries surveyed use it to find information about products and services. This presents a tremendous opportunity for marketers to enhance and capitalize on social media strategy.
Posted on Wed, Apr 28, 2010
The popular video streaming website, Hulu, is expected to introduce a subscription model in the coming weeks. The plan, called Hulu Plus, would charge users $10 per month to access all of the site's content. The 5 most recent episodes of certain TV shows would still be available for free, but everything else will only be available to subscribers.
While some details about the subscription plan are clear, a few mysteries remain. The company never specified whether or not subscribers will have unlimited access or if their viewing will be capped. Another loose end is whether or not the subscription-only content will be supported by advertisements.
Being a researcher, one of my biggest questions is what kind of market research did Hulu do to arrive at this $10 per month price point? Sure each subscriber will provide them with an additional $120 in revenue, but how likely are users to pony up cash for a service they are used to getting for free? I haven't seen any of their research, but in my informal studies I have found very few people open to the idea of paying for Hulu. But on the other hand, consumers have been paying for cable and satellite television for years and Netflix has been very successful with their $9 per month plan that includes unlimited instant streaming.
My thinking is that Hulu Plus will net some subscribers, but it won't be as popular as Cable/Satellite or Netflix. Cable and satellite provide access to live news and sporting events, while Hulu does not. Netflix provides much of their streaming content in high definition (which Hulu does not) and they have partnered with manufacturers like LG and Microsoft to include streaming apps built into their devices. Not to mention the fact that Netflix's subscription also includes access to their full DVD library and their streaming content is commercial free.
So what do you think? Will you pay $10 per month for Hulu?
It appears that the poll is not showing up for some users. We apologize for the inconvenience. If you cannot view the poll on this page, you can access it here: Hulu Poll
Posted on Tue, Apr 27, 2010
Is blog writing and readership on the rise or declining? Who exactly are reading and writing these blogs? The answers depend on which research study you choose to believe.
One study was conducted in March 2010 by BlogHer and iVillage with the help of Ketchum and The Nielsen Company. According to this study, blogging is on the rise; especially among millennials who make up 40% of the blogging population. Members of Gen X/Y are about as likely to read blogs as mellinnials.
Another study was conducted by the Pew Internet Project that shows blogging on the decline among teens and young adults. According to this study, only 14% of teens (aged 12-17) write blogs and 15% of young adults (aged 18-29) are bloggers. Rather than connecting and sharing on blogs, this study shows teens and young adults using Facebook as their primary means of online communication.
Read Write Web wrote an interesting article comparing the two studies. When looking at the research conducted by BlogHer and iVillage, some immediate questions are raised. First of all, I'm confused by BlogHer/iVillage's choice of age segmentation. They did not interview anyone under 18 years old, millennials are defined as aged 18-25 and Generation X and Y are lumped together and represent ages 26-42. I'm not sure why or how they chose to segment the ages this way, but it doesn't seem to make sense. Millennials and Gen Y are often used interchangably, i.e. they're the same thing. According to their sampling methodology, two data samples were selected. The sample consisted of 48% Nielsen's U.S. online panel (to represent the total U.S. online population) and 52% from the BlogHer blogging network. The stats in this article only represent the total U.S. online population, but curiously that sample consisted of 1,373 women and only 379 men; making the sample 78% female.
The methodology for the Pew Internet survey is not entirely clear. Personally I like Read Write Web's take on the two studies: Take both of them with a grain of salt.