Innovative CPG Company Finds Success Embracing Self-Service Over Full-Service

Editor’s Note: Every year, participants in the GreenBook Research Industry Trends (GRIT) Report survey vote for the most innovative companies in market research. In Insights That Work, these top companies share the real-life challenges and solutions of their biggest clients.

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Research Challenge:

The client had adopted an iterative research approach that called for capturing customer feedback early and often with the goal of minimizing waste in the product development cycle. With this in mind, the client sought to find agile research options with varying levels of service to rapidly test ideas.

The goal was to identify DIY & automation research platforms to supplement their in-house research team while empowering researchers to do more DIY quantitative research while transitioning away from full-service providers to reduce turnaround times and cost. A senior researcher in charge of the search said, “Full service market research often takes weeks or months which is not synonymous with speed and agility. Partnering with DIY research suppliers would be a significant cost and time-saving opportunity.”

The client was specifically looking for a self-service research platform with MaxDiff and Choice-Based Conjoint automation and a high-quality integrated panel. It was also important that the platform had familiar and user-friendly data outputs, as well as quality data to meet the client’s high standards.

It was expected that the transition to DIY would also require a flexible partner that could effectively provide training and support to hundreds of researchers, while empowering them towards self-service quickly.

Research Solution:

Having identified AYTM for their expertise in research automation, the client brought in experts within their organization including researchers, programmers, and statisticians to put the platform to the test. During the evaluation phase, a parallel study using AYTM’s Maxdiff and a competitor’s more traditional model yielded comparable results, which led to a larger scale pilot program.

While initially drawn to AYTM for research automation, the client was also impressed by how quickly the platform produced quality results. They communicated that in the past, the average MaxDiff or Conjoint took 3-4 weeks. Now, with AYTM, they can go from programming to results in just 24 hours or less.

However, the transition from full service to self-service suppliers can be a challenge, especially for large research teams. Knowing this, AYTM built a customized training program for the client’s research team which included 1:1 research consultations as well as group training sessions.

AYTM also offered the client access to their team of research automation experts. AYTM’s adaptive professional services program allows the client to tap into resources, only as needed, giving them the flexibility of a DIY platform with access to additional research expertise.

Client Result:

Due to the partnership with AYTM, the client met their cost-cutting and time-saving goals while delivering the results needed for effective and timely decision making. With faster access to insights and a comparable level of data quality, the client is now able to conduct iterative research with ease.

Of the partnership, the client’s senior researcher said, “When it comes to balancing speed, cost, and quality, AYTM delivers.”

Today, dozens of researchers from the client’s global organization utilize AYTM to conduct self-service research that once required weeks or months to complete and the expense of a full-service research firm.