In real life, how often do consumers watch commercials around a table with 7 strangers?  Or taste a product labeled “924” that someone else has prepared?  Our guess is:  never.  So why construct scenarios like this for your research?

There is a time and place for focus groups.  But there is also a time when they can’t get the job done.  Focus groups take consumers out of their natural environment and the places where they interact with your brand or category.  And they don’t give consumers a chance to think deeply about any response.  Our assignments can give consumers a chance to observe their own behavior a while, and really think about their responses. Sometimes consumer behavior is so routine, they don’t even notice what they actually do, so how can they tell you around a table with a bunch of strangers?  It’s critical to give consumers assignments in the Right Context, so our clients get a glimpse into authentic experiences that result in accurate data.

If an approach hasn’t been developed yet to get us as close to an experience as we’d like, we’ll create one.  You won’t find a more creative research agency.  Give us a shout.  We’d love to tell you about some of the creative approaches we’ve developed to learn from consumers who have been placed in the Right Context.