Understanding customer needs is an important factor in overall business success. Identifying how customers feel about a product, service or concept can create a more effective way of serving them. While quantitative research provides us with measurable data that can be used to support a theory or hypothesis, qualitative research seeks to explore the ‘why’ behind people’s attitudes and beliefs. Although the two serve different purposes within the context of B2B research, they can also be used together to improve the usefulness of the other and provide a more holistic view overall. Below is a ..read more

The importance of customer journey mapping Whilst logic might tell us that happy and engaged customers should be a top priority for b2b brands, our research tells us that only 2 in 10 companies would consider themselves ‘CX Leaders’ – namely, those fully committed to delivering on customer needs and providing a seamless experience for their customers. The core foundation to managing the experience of your customers, is to understand what your customer journey looks like end-to-end, so you can better establish what is working and where any challenges, pain points or roadblocks lie that might ..read more

The B2B Insights Podcast Channel was created to help marketing and insights professionals navigate the rapidly-changing world of B2B markets and develop the strategies that will propel their brand to the top. Subscribe today for your dose of exclusive insights from the B2B market experts.   In this episode of the B2B Insights Podcast, B2B International’s Kim Arend, Research Manager, and Pete Mullarkey, Insights Network Manager, discuss the steps researchers can take to ensure B2B research respondents are who they say they are and provide reliable and accurate insights. They define what ..read more

  What is Kotler’s Five Product Levels Model? Kotler’s 5 Product Levels model is used to develop new products or services or improve existing products or services and ensure they not only meet but exceed customers’ expectations. The model developed by Philip Kotler highlights five ways to add value to a product or service. Each additional level adds increased value to your product or service and helps to differentiate it from your competitors. The five product levels are: The core benefit – The most basic benefit the customer gets from the product or service. For example, when you ..read more

The push-pull model is a framework that is best used when organizations are looking to introduce a new product or solution to the market but are unsure of the enablers and barriers that customers see when thinking about switching solutions. The framework allows us to explore a variety of reasons why customers might want to stick with their current solution or move to use a new product or solution. Through its use, the push-pull model can inform organizations of what is going to enable or block a switch to the new solution, and hence can help to develop strategy to overcome any barriers to t ..read more

The B2B Insights Podcast Channel was created to help marketing and insights professionals navigate the rapidly-changing world of B2B markets and develop the strategies that will propel their brand to the top. Subscribe today for your dose of exclusive insights from the B2B market experts.   Market research can require a significant investment and it is vital for businesses to see a return in terms of business growth. Research is only valuable if it can be turned into actionable insights that drive growth and profitability. In this episode of the B2B Insights Podcast, B2B International ..read more

The Directional Policy Matrix (DPM) is a business tool that can be used to highlight products, services or segments which are attractive to a company (market attractiveness), where the company has a strong competitive position, and also the market size. The purpose of the model is hence to direct strategy based on the attractiveness of a market and the capability of the organization to fulfil the opportunity. It is most useful when an organization has several countries, products, or segments to investigate.   Example of a Directional Policy Matrix (DPM) chart. Bubble size indicates m ..read more

When measuring brand performance or assessing brand health, it’s very easy to quickly be surrounded by a range of questions, metrics and performance indicators which can make it difficult to confidently answer the question “how is my brand performing?”. The Brand Health Wheel combines these many questions and metrics to provide a simple, easy-to-read view of brand performance that can be compared across different brands, by business segment, markets or geographies.     Drawing from the AIDA model (the four stages that a consumer goes through before making a purchasing decision ..read more

B2B Decision-Makers and Emotion B2B decision-makers have complex needs for two main reasons. Firstly, there is usually a decision-making unit (DMU) involved in the process. The DMU is made up of several individuals, each with their own business expertise and priorities. Secondly, within this DMU, there will be a primary decision maker accountable to others within the team and wider business. This complex dynamic in effect results in the primary decision maker acting to fulfil both their individual needs and their wider business needs. Navigating this balance of individual and company needs ..read more

Porter’s Five Forces is a framework that we often use to assess the competitive landscape in which our clients currently operate or intend to enter. This framework was designed by Michael Porter of Harvard University, who felt that a more traditional SWOT analysis was not always sufficient in assessing the competitive landscape, and how attractive (or otherwise) it might be.   Why is competitive landscape analysis important? One of the key applications for this framework is when one of our clients is interested in entering a new market. It is essential to conduct some ‘due diligence’ t ..read more