Having a good product isn’t as much a consequence of reality as it is of perception. Much like magicians rely on illusion to create intrigue, companies build brand awareness to encourage sales, each manipulating “what is” in an effort to promote “what could be” for the people around them. For businesses, in particular, this means that how people “see” a product or brand is far more important than what either actually is. And it’s why brand awareness is such a big deal. To really understand your brand’s appeal, you have to ask the people you want to have a stake in it: your employees, your customers and the people you want to become your customers. Take a look at four types of brand market research questions you need to explore with each of these groups:
Who Are We?
Whether talking to employees, current customers or consumers at large, it’s important that you have an understanding of the ways people think about your brand and your products. You can believe you represent one thing, but it doesn’t matter unless your intent matches other people’s perceptions. Consider asking questions that probe the associations that each group makes with your brand, like:
- When you think about Brand X, what comes to mind?
- What words would you use to describe Brand X?
- Who do you think are Brand X’s ideal customers?
What Do We Do?
You also need to determine how people feel about your brand: are they positively or negatively attracted to your brand when they hear your name? You must probe the emotional reasons for people prioritizing your brand above or below others with questions such as:
- How does Brand X compare to competitor brands?
- What is Brand X’s biggest asset?
- What value does Brand X offer?
- Can you find better value elsewhere?
Where Have You Interacted With Us?
Similarly, you need to assess the reasons why people feel the way they do, and the best way to do that is by assessing your brand’s touchpoints, uncovering when people interact with you and how they feel about those interactions so that you can evaluate your performance across all stages of your marketing funnel. Typical questions might include:
- What was your last experience with Brand X?
- What words would you use to describe your last experience with Brand X?
How Do You Support Us?
Indeed, your brand’s touchpoints are critical because they help influence your indirect marketing efforts. Very rarely can you market in a vacuum. A lot of good advertising is done through word of mouth, good reviews and positive press rather than the direct efforts of a marketing team. Thus, it’s paramount that companies recognize and respond to the ways in which their stakeholders talk about them by conducting brand market research. Asking questions like the following can shed light on how well (or not) they are satisfying the people they serve (and wish to serve):
- Have you ever recommended Brand X to others? Why or why not?
- Have you ever purchased a competitor’s products? Why or why not?
Ready To Learn More?
Of course, these are just a few of the questions you need to start gauging a market’s perception and recognition of your brand. To learn more about when and how to implement your own brand market research project so that you can effectively monitor, influence and retain your brand’s market share, contact our team at Communications for Research (CFR). We can help you get the data you need to maximize your branding strategy and increase your ROI.
You might also wish to download our free eBook, “6 Keys to Accelerate Growth with the Right Data Collection Partner,” for additional tips on making the most out of your market research endeavors.
