No More Wallflowers: Market Research Gets Social

We're just going to address the pink elephant in the room. The frenzy around social media is sort of getting in the way of market research. Recent industry articles and blogs suggest that traditional methodologies are all but becoming obsolete in the wake of advancements in text analytics and monitoring software. And if we look at the issue superficially, it's hard to blame companies for the fervor with which they are trading in traditional research for the less expensive, more immediate gratification that social media mining tools promise to deliver. That's not to say that social media doesn't have a place in our toolbox - it absolutely does - but it's cavalier to hype it as a replacement just yet.

In his article for The New Yorker, titled "Small Change: Why The Revolution Will Not Be Tweeted," Author Malcolm Gladwell says of the role social media plays in activism:

"The platforms of social media are built around weak ties. Twitter is a way of following (or being followed by) people you may never have met. Facebook is a tool for efficiently managing your acquaintances, for keeping up with the people you would not otherwise be able to stay in touch with...Decisions are made through consensus, and the ties that bind people to the group are loose."

Gladwell's article takes a critical look at how social media is evaluated as a medium for connecting people and disseminating ideas. The same type of dialogue needs to happen between market researchers and their clients. Social media can offer immediate information to help inspire, guide or complement a broader research endeavor. However, it can't serve as an adequate substitute for structured studies designed to address specific information needs. Studies that require active participant investment and engagement will yield more substantive data which can then be analyzed and interpreted into actual insights. As expert practitioners, we need to do a much better job of educating clients on the strengths and limitations of the medium - as well as remind them of the value we bring to the picture. With our clients' best interests at heart and their budgets at stake, anything less would be unethical.

ISG has the tools and knowledge to help you determine what is the best approach to your research needs. Contact us to learn more.

Will Social Media Replace Surveys as a Research Tool?

Biggest Research Buyer P&G Says It Wants Less Methodology Dogma, More Projections

Source: Advertising Age, March 21, 2011

The top research executive of likely the world's biggest research buyer expects surveys to dramatically decline in importance by 2020 and sees the rise of social media as a big reason why.

more