“Okay, so we have all this market research data,” the executive challenged. “What do we do with it? What insights can you give me that I can really use to drive change in the organization?”
Ever heard this before?
Comments like this, especially after I’d labored long and hard producing a presentation deck, used to really tick me off. My immediate response (in my head) was, hey, you’re the big dog, aren’t you the one who’s supposed to come up with the insights, the a-ha’s? Besides, I can’t implement; only you can, so why should I give you all the great ideas so you can look like a hero and I run back off to my cubicle? (Was I an angry young man? I think you get my drift.)
Eventually I realized that the executive was not complaining about the work I had done; he or she was saying they were drowning in facts, pure information overload, and needed managers like myself to do some of the hard work of finding the information that could truly forward the company’s goals and mission from those that were just nice to know or even that simply helped break through to the critical insight(s).
But how to do so? How can market researchers move from generating data and findings to spying and championing insights that break new ground for our companies?
The old shibboleth says that success is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration. I used to do a lot of perspiring with negligible inspiring.
As market researchers we are often best positioned to have the inspirations the executives want and need. Why? We have the base data. And we directly face, hear from and listen to the customers.
But it takes much more than simply absorbing ever increasing amounts of data and information to find insights.
Over the course of several more blogs, we’ll talk about the creative process and how market researchers can optimize the information we have with insights that create major impact within our organizations.
Comments welcome!
Dr. Bob
