Living with Consumers: Myths and Realities

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Living with Consumers Myths and Realities

• Siamack Salari EverydayLives
• FDIN Launching Better Products for Tougher Times
• October 2008

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What we do
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Our pitch

• The difference between what is said and what is
  done
• Unarticulated needs
• What people dont do or nearly do
• How products, brands and services fit into
  peoples lives

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Typical cross market explorations

• Segment animation
• Documentary
• Innovations/NPD
• Receptivity
• Brand activation

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Hopes, fears dreams
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Coffee
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Beliefs
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Process we have internationalised

• Naturalistic filming - no interviews - no
  sensitisation
• Question generation workshop
• Co-discoveries (clients come too!)
• Final workshop split between debrief
  implication finding (examples)

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How we use ethnography

• Qualitatively
• Over time/in context
• Film to allow scrutiny and sharing
• Adding meaning to films
• Helping clients see every day events and
  realities in fresh new ways
• Making the ordinary, extraordinary

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How we dont use ethnography

• Quantitatively
• Interviews with video cameras
• Short in-home visits with discussion guide
• Deep theoretics
• In isolation

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Co-discovery
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Pundits
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The not so good
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Lessons...

• Take ethnographic recruitment seriously
• Many clients have never seen their consumers in
  real life
• Ensure they (the client) are reality checked and
  earthed
• Get sign off for each respondent
• Over recruit

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And there is always one...

• One client/market wanting to sabotage the entire
  project
• Client on whom the study was imposed
• Client who already knows...
• Client who just doesnt like ethnography (has had
  fingers burnt in the past)
• Clients who just dont get it

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Keys to successful outcomes
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Why involve clients?

• In-home visits arent a day at the zoo...
• Clients need to own some of the thinking/insights
• Ownership means advocacy and adoption
• More powerful than any report, clip or its
  contents

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Process
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Unwittingly we have created a challenge

• The QGW leaves clients desperate to know what
  subjects were thinking
• They cant wait to join the co-discovery sessions
• Each adopts their favourite household
• Each will also have their least favourite
  household

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What are clients expectations?

• Unimportant - its our job to set expectations
  from the outset (most have never engaged in our
  kind of ethnography)
• Must capture lists
• Expect delays with recruitment and in-home
• Our views and meanings over what they see and
  hear on films - i.e. interpretation
• Interpretation based on many perspectives not
  least the subjects

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Icing on cake
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Is video boring

• If too long, yes
• Limit to 90 seconds (ideally) per clip and 4
  clips per insight or theme
• Dont just let your audience view the films in
  silence - add meaning, flag things they would
  never have seen

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Pester
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Frozen treat
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Steak sizzle

• In-home experience - with real people, real
  grounding and reality checks
• Powerful on-line (Web 2.0) film and insight
  resource
• Real actions and next steps unravelled and agreed
  among clients (break out groups)
• Content which is viral and easily shared e.g.
  online
• Clients who can own insights