Audience research is the foundation for launching a successful campaign. It is designed to understand the characteristics, size and composition of a brand’s potential customers. By analyzing their habits, attitudes and behaviors, you can get insights into their interests, triggers and problems. These insights help media brands communicate with their target audience and integrate their opinions and views into their content and services.

There is a thin line between audience research and market research. Audience research primarily deals with understanding a specific group of people. Market research, on the other hand, is aimed at gathering insights about the market in which this audience is present and includes competitor analysis, pricing etc.

Audience research can be conducted in a number of ways- focus groups, surveys, online polls, direct interviews etc. By understanding the ‘what’, ‘why’ and ‘how’ in their responses, brands can take a step closer to building a truly customer-centric brand.

While it is easy to skip conducting audience research, it adds a ton of value to your campaigns, for example- 1) increases the relevance of your campaigns, 2) validates concepts, 3) helps learn about changing consumer behavior, 4) makes you take more informed data-backed decisions, etc.

But using traditional audience research methods can severely impact the results. Let’s learn how and what you can do about it-

5 Reasons Traditional AudienceResearch is killing your Media Brand‍

#1 Lack of reliable audience research data

Traditional audience research does not eliminate response bias. The truth behind stated responses is often overlooked and leads to incorrect and irrelevant insights.

For example, a survey asks, “Rate the XYZ Cereal Ad”. Respondents may misdirect you by scoring you a perfect 10, but subconsciously they may feel it’s only worth a5.

Reliable data is essential to derive actionable insights. By reducing the scope of bias corrupting your insights, you can be confident about the success of your campaign.

How to overcome-

Irrespective of the method of audience research you choose, adopting AI-based technologies like Facial Coding, Eye Tracking and Voice AI can reduce bias considerably.This will lead to reliable insights and pinpoint actionability.

 #2 Scattered and Unaccessible Data

Consumer behavior has a pattern; there are times when a certain 70s or 80s trend would trend in today’s time. Imagine if you could access relevant insights from the80s for an upcoming trend in 2023!

Unfortunately, research repositories are outdated and not collaborative. This makes accessing data an arduous task and increases turn-around-time.

Data is scattered and often lost due to-1) the person responsible for leaving the organization, 2) improper documentation, 3) shifts in tools used, 4) multiple handovers etc.

 How to overcome-

Switch to online research platforms which provide the option to store your research data online. This primarily helps in three ways- easy cross-collaboration, all the data being in one place and easy accessibility. After all, all you need are login credentials and access to the internet to access online research platforms.

#3 Lack of In-depth Research

Traditional audience research only scrapes the surface of audience research. To understand your audience, you need to know -1) what influences their emotions, 2) their likes and dislikes, 3) their purchase triggers, 4) their needs and problems etc.

With traditional audience research, you have to only rely on their responses. If you want true insights, you need to dig into their underlying thoughts and feelings. Also, if you want to stay ahead of the curve, you need to know how your competitors are performing and how your content performs against them. 

How to overcome-

To tap into the subconscious behavior of your target audience, you need to useArtificial intelligence. AI-based technologies like Facial coding, Eye Tracking and Voice AI, an intelligent AI-powered dashboard and benchmarking is the best combination to cover all your bases.

#4 Limitations in reaching the target audience

Traditional audience research is limited by geography and methods of communication.Moreover, brands spend additional time reaching, sampling and finalizing the target audience.

How to overcome-

Online research platforms either have their own online panel or collaborate with Panel companies to give access to suitable respondents across the globe. They also take care of the entire process of selecting and registering the respondents.

#5 Lack of constant learning through Comparative Analysis

Traditional audience research stresses bandwidth due to extended timelines and manual data reporting. This makes comparative analysis feel like a dreaded task.

Brands conduct comparative analysis once or twice and use the insights for years! But with the changing market scenario, a curve of constant learning is essential.

How to overcome-

With online research platforms, conducting comparative analysis is a breeze. You can do it iteratively and add agility to your audience research process. You can put your best foot forward when you know which media performs best and make changes accordingly.

In Conclusion

AudienceResearch is essential to understand your target audience. But, with traditional research, every step you take, it pulls you back ten steps. With the help ofArtificial Intelligence and online research platforms you can overcome these bottlenecks and get agile, actionable and reliable insights.

 {{cta-button}}