Instead of commissioning new research, have you mined the information you already have?

Most businesses have a treasure trove of data available to them that they are not using to its full potential. Writing in Marketing Week, branding consultant Helen Edwards says the data businesses already have is one of marketing’s most overlooked assets. Despite being underused, it should not be underestimated given its ability to “illuminate the consumer landscape and give guidance on where to focus brand efforts”, she says.

In its favour is the fact that it’s free and won’t take a chunk out of your budget, though it does require time and effort to trawl the data for the necessary nuggets. Edwards recommends combing through research conducted after the pandemic, including semiotics reports, need-state segmentations and qualitative consumer reports.

She suggests organising the material chronologically, rather than by research technique, and then looking for commonalities, underlying themes and contradictions. It’s also a good idea to note how the samples, questionnaire designs and discussion guides may have affected the findings. Don’t pass this task on to a junior or a research agency, she advises — get stuck in yourself. 

She repeats the advice given to marketers by Marc de Swaan Arons at a conference, at the time part of the Millward Brown team, to pin up all the brand data they held on to the walls of a big room, then to try to figure out what story it is telling.

Commissioning new research in a constant quest for certainty is not always the right approach, says Edwards. Not only does it mean that brand teams end up with vast quantities of superfluous data, but it’s expensive and wastes time. Instead, use the information and knowledge you already have.

The big take-out: Commissioning new research in a constant quest for certainty is not always the right approach.