By John Davis, Infotools
Half the battle for market researchers is getting the right information to the right people at the right time. Over the past few decades, this goal is closer than ever to becoming a reality with digital advancements across the board. However, sometimes we are met with resistance – change is hard.
Shaking up the status quo may seem insurmountable for a large company with many other projects underway. But the rewards of embracing available technology are exponential.
Companies that are trying to shift away from historical methods and move to digital solutions face many similar challenges. They are asking questions like:
- How do we meet increased demands for deeper insights with limited available budgets? Additionally, how do we shift budget dollars from logistics to the “time to think” needed for the researchers (both internal and agency side)?
- How do we provide key parties, with varying levels of analytical and technological aptitude, with timely and engaging access to research data for improved decision-making?
- How do we juggle the benefits of new technology – making insights more timely, accessible and cost effective – with its inherent learning curves?
- How do we centrally manage a study from execution to analysis to get the best possible insights?
To address questions like these head-on, Orange, a multinational telecommunications company, recently took a forward-thinking approach to its market research projects. The company’s commitment to innovation and technology is part of its core culture. Not only does this mindset match with Infotool’s own goals as market research software visionaries, but this shared goal helped us to bring this particular client to that hard-to-find place where data-driven decisions positively affect business outcomes. And we can all agree – that’s a good place to be.
By implementing a digital approach to research, Orange encompassed all the features that its customers have come to expect – like speed, personalization, customized experiences, and access to information and choices into its market research program. The company operates in a hyper-competitive consumer products and services space, so staying abreast of the latest trends is key to keeping them in business.
Orange’s digital approach was vital in addressing its specific needs for consumer insights:
- Brand promise: Orange’s long-term strategic plan focuses on providing unmatched consumer experiences. This inspired an approach to market research that centers on listening to customers and getting straight to the heart of what matters to them. This can be done nimbly and quickly through a digital outreach program
- Consumer demographics: The company’s customer base spans multiple countries, languages, cultures and varying levels of brand maturity in each market. Leaving behind a narrow, static reporting set and implementing a customized digital program allows Orange to solve these unique logistical and communication challenges
- Fast results: To remain competitive in a demanding space where customers are surrounded by options, Orange had to keep its finger on the pulse of the marketplace in real-time. Its digital program, which incorporates new technologies for speed such as automation and machine learning, allowed the quick and easy delivery of results, along with a greater scope of analysis, to meet demands and take faster actions
- Centralized internal processes: By using dashboard technology, the company triggered capabilities for producing multiple levels of analysis while ensuring data integrity is kept in place. This same technology streamlines communications across stakeholder groups, encourages deeper engagement and provides seamless access to insights for the right people at the right time
Orange found that by transforming its market research to a centralized, digital approach, it has elevated the profile, timeliness and accuracy of outcomes. By embracing new technology the company is now able to deliver key metrics to stakeholders across the organization – in a manner that makes sense for each party. Goals of continuous improvement and experimentation mean that further digital adoption is inevitable for Orange, and the hope is to continue to gain a deeper understanding of their customers.
When you review the vast shifts that a digital approach to market research can affect, it truly is a no brainer. Technology is breaking the barriers down along the research continuum, from data collection all the way to interactive visualization of insights. Finding ways to marry technological advancements that will not only get to the heart of the insights but also democratise the availability of data, is going to be the true game-changer for our industry.
By John Davis, Infotools
Want to learn more about the Infotools-Orange collaboration?
Check out the paper that we recently presented at the ESOMAR Congress 2017.
