21. Real-Time Customer Research

The concept of customer focus groups usually creates an image of a group of 10–12 people who meet anonymously behind a two-way mirror to discuss a company’s products or services. While this primary research method can be an effective way to get customer feedback, I would like to share a very different approach for learning about customer preferences. This approach can be used for any size of company, but it is exceptionally valuable for companies that are in the early-stage launch of a product or service.

Launch Pad is a business that was founded by Joel Appel and Frank Kvietok. Both Joel and Frank have deep consumer products experience. Joel and his family founded OrangeGlo (specializing in cleaning products), which was sold in 2006 for $325 million. Frank was a “creative PhD” scientist with Procter and Gamble. The two young entrepreneurs founded Launch Pad with the intention of funding and rapidly launching innovative new consumer products.

How do they know if a product will be successful or not? Aside from experience and “gut feeling,” they use consumer focus groups to test and validate their assumptions about the go-to-market strategy. But focus groups are not simply used as a research tool. It’s actually part of the underlying fabric of their business operations. Here’s how it works.

Every Wednesday, a group of people, mostly women who have been a part of this group for a long time, meet to give their opinions about various products. During the course of an hour, product managers from Launch Pad present concepts and ideas to the group who in turn give their opinions about the products and the way they are marketed. There are no two-way mirrors, no set agendas, and no formalities—just honest direct feedback.

The day before the meeting, the agenda is penciled out. Topics range from discussion about the likes and dislikes of a product, packaging design, messaging on a Web site, pricing, promotions, or advertising, to questions about who would buy the product and why, among other topics.

One of the most unique and valuable outcomes from the focus groups is the ongoing interactivity that potential customers have with the products. All of the products are in various stages of product launch and the group gives ongoing feedback throughout the launch process and product life cycle.

This group has the power to shape the strategic and tactical launch of the go-to-market strategy. The Launch Pad team actively listens to the comments and suggestions, makes adjustments, and the cycle repeats. Every week the goal is to get permission to move to the next level. As the product progresses through the launch process, it is progressively tested in target markets so the strategy can be refined. It’s one of the most effective processes I have seen for launching new products. It enables a company to see if a product or product strategy will be successful—or not—before thousands of dollars are wasted.

While this process is ideal for a new product launch, you can modify it for testing products and services in new markets, evaluating new features, advertising campaigns, and other important marketing criteria.

Ongoing research to understand the ever-changing wants and needs of customers is an important part of every marketing plan. As you read through this section and go through this process, you will learn various techniques for integrating customer feedback into your everyday business activities.