In today’s digital-first world, data must form the backbone of any marketing campaign. Without it, there’s no way to know if you’re creating effective content, targeting the right people, meaningfully reaching your audience, and truly moving the needle for your business.
But here’s the tricky part—the part that almost nobody talks about. Data alone holds no value. That’s right: none.
Unless you’re working with an agency that understands that, all the digital market research in the world won’t get your business far.
So if that’s the case, why does digital marketing research matter?
Say, for example, that clicks to your website have gone through the roof. That’s a great thing, right?
Maybe.
Customers might be click-happy because they’re crazy about your content, but they could also be digitally rubber-necking a PR crash your brand has been involved in.
Believe it or not, a lot of digital market research can be misleading. Instead of marketers drilling down into the data to determine what’s actually motivating those clicks, likes, and shares, they become obsessed with numbers for numbers’ sake, fixating on manipulating metrics without really understanding the meaning behind them.
This prevents them from exploring why your customers are doing what they’re doing and locks them into a paint-by-numbers, check-the-boxes approach that lacks agility and insight into your customers’ behavior.
That’s not us.
We understand that the data we generate is only as good as the research we conduct, and that good research depends on a sophisticated grasp of new media and the new kinds of questions the digital domain demands.
This understanding is baked into everything we do at Zen, but it bears most directly on our approach to market research.
Whether we’re conducting user-experience interviews, social listening, competitor analysis, consumer surveys, focus groups, and so forth, we’re never satisfied with the numbers until we’ve gotten to the bottom of them in a way that will move the needle for your business.
Metrics and meaning
We don’t stop at merely reporting on your business’ online “weather,” or even predicting it.
We’re concerned with the ability to strategically change your online weather to grow your business and build your brand. That requires a deep dive into the meaning behind the metrics.
With the acceleration of the digital age and the skyrocketing rates of e-commerce, marketers with a nose for the relationship between data and execution are exceptionally valuable.
At Zen, you could say we’re bilingual: we’re fluent in both the metrics (data) side of market research, as well as the meaning (execution) side. Why is this a big deal? By being fluent in both metrics and meaning, we effectively translate data-derived insights into creative execution, and that, after all, is the whole point of conducting market research in the first place!
How can Digital Market Research help your brand?
- Accurately identify and effectively target your audience
- Accurately identify competitors and what strategies are working for them
- Determine how you compare to your competitors and why your customers choose you over them
- Pinpoint strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats
- Gain insight into content strategy and development
Digital Market Research services we offer:
- UX (user experience research)
- Social listening
- Competitor analysis
- Satisfaction & Loyalty analysis
- Consumer surveys
- Focus groups
- A/B testing
