Audience research: how to organise the process properly

Audience research: the basic steps  

Companies that integrate target audience research into their value creation strategy will always be in an advantageous position and one step ahead of the competitors. Audience research is the first step in conversion planning. The process is systematic and requires an in-depth analysis of each component.

Audience research should be conducted in the context of previously established business objectives. In addition, it is necessary to have a clear understanding of how the company makes money and what services it provides to customers. The interrelationship of the identified factors will allow you to get a better picture of how the business operates. 

Key research stages

The first thing to do is to formulate the research question. This is essential for qualitative data collection. The question should be simple and concise. The answers can be in two forms:

1. Qualitative data. This is information about audience behaviour, observation of interaction characteristics and purchase decisions.
2. Quantitative data. This is where the answers are in numbers, such as the results of analytics or A/B testing.

There are also different types of research questions:

1. Exploratory means getting general information without going into detail.
2. Descriptive. Used to get answers to the questions: ‘When’, ‘Where’, ‘How much’.
3. Explanatory. This type allows you to find out the reasons for certain actions and the factors that influenced them.
4. Relationship-based. In this case, it is possible to find out the relationships between events or actions. These questions help to see the influence of some factors on others.

Once the questions are formulated, the marketer moves on to choosing the best research method. It is important to use one that considers the different inputs and determines their relationship.

The proper research environment plays a vital role in this process. A controlled environment is an office or laboratory that has all the conditions for conducting tests. Remote environments include software solutions that allow participants to choose their remote study location. This option is convenient to use and provides all the necessary tools for collecting and interpreting results.

The natural environment is where the consumer uses the company’s product. This could be at home, at work or at leisure. This type is ideal for a product that involves interaction with people or physical objects.

When conducting a study, participants must use their mobile devices or PCs. This approach will reduce the difficulty of testing and allow you to fully analyse the product’s usability for consumers.