Category Archives: Food/Sensory Research

Burger, fries and a shame-spiral to-go, please

Posted on 03/20/2012 by Quirk's Staff

Recent research findings from BIGinsight call to mind the words of one of Mike Myers’ most unforgettable Austin Powers characters (the bounds of good taste prevent us from mentioning his name but the uninitiated can learn more here): “I eat … Continue reading →

Posted in Consumer Research, Food/Sensory Research, Health Care Research | Comment

Why you should care about Panera Cares

Posted on 02/29/2012 by Joe Rydholm

A recent USA Today piece about the success of the Panera Cares Cafes, at which customers can pay as much or as little as they can afford for their meals, prompted me to do a quick blog post here, in … Continue reading →

Posted in Brand and Image Research, Food/Sensory Research | Comments Off

Since when is ‘I’m sorry’ not good enough?

Posted on 11/18/2011 by Alice Davies

I make mistakes. Do you? Silly me, I thought everyone understood that this was just part of being human. Apparently, I am wrong about being wrong. The new trend, it seems, is that “I’m sorry – I made a mistake” … Continue reading →

Posted in Consumer Research, Customer Satisfaction, Food/Sensory Research, The Business of Research | 6 Comments

Great expectations: Do tipping and customer service go hand-in-hand?

Posted on 11/01/2011 by Emily Goon

Here in the U.S., we live in a tip-happy culture. From pizza delivery guys to hairstylists to baristas, tips are counted on by service-industry workers as part of their salary and accounted for on the part of consumers as part … Continue reading →

Posted in Consumer Research, Customer Satisfaction, Food/Sensory Research, International Research | Comments Off

Marketing research how-not-tos: The case of the fast-food advisory panel

Posted on 08/02/2011 by Joe Rydholm

In the original version of this blog entry, which I composed last week and had planned to post this week, I railed on about the unfortunate experience I had attempting to join the “advisory panel” of a fast-food chain: So, … Continue reading →

Posted in Consumer Research, Food/Sensory Research, Market Research Best Practices, Online Surveys and Research, Quantitative Research | 1 Comment

Is there a Greek yogurt in your brand’s future?

Posted on 07/25/2011 by Joe Rydholm

Reading a recent article about how yogurt titans General Mills (Yoplait) and Group Danone (Dannon) were caught spoonless by the Greek yogurt craze, I was floored by one analyst’s take that the firms were surprised by Greek yogurt’s rapid rise. … Continue reading →

Posted in Competitive Intelligence, Consumer Research, Food/Sensory Research, Social Media and Marketing Research | 6 Comments

Shopper insights give Red Bull wings

Posted on 07/12/2011 by Joe Rydholm

Reporting from Swissotel in Chicago for the IIR Shopper Insights in Action conference! I enjoyed listening to Monday’s appropriately high-energy talk from Guy Wootton, senior category insights manager for Red Bull, about how much Red Bull relies on and uses … Continue reading →

Posted in Brand and Image Research, Consumer Research, Food/Sensory Research | Comments Off

Kraft-y advice on improving your brand’s social media data analysis

Posted on 05/23/2011 by Joe Rydholm

I had a great time earlier this month in Chicago at the IIR/TMRE Technology Driven Market Research Event. I particularly enjoyed hearing Frank Cotignola’s views on how companies should approach social media-listening and analysis. (My Trade Talk column in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Brand and Image Research, Food/Sensory Research, Market Research Best Practices, Social Media and Marketing Research | Comments Off

Focus group: Should a beer bottle have breasts?

Posted on 02/25/2011 by Dan Quirk

Several years ago I stumbled upon this video and I’ve finally gotten the courage to share it (perhaps against my better judgement). I have no idea why this video was created, but I certainly hope it was meant as a joke. It … Continue reading →

Posted in Brainstorming Research, Brand and Image Research, Concept Research, Consumer Research, Focus Groups, Food/Sensory Research, Market Research Humor, Packaging Research, Product Research, Qualitative Research | Comments Off

Is an oatmeal facial the pathway to product innovation?

Posted on 01/27/2011 by Joe Rydholm

Lately I’ve noticed several foods now touting the presence of “all-natural” ingredients. For example, one of our household faves is Quaker Instant Oatmeal. Our kids love the apples and cinnamon variety and as parents we appreciate the convenience of stirring … Continue reading →

Posted in Business and Product Development, Competitive Intelligence, Concept Research, Food/Sensory Research, Uncategorized | Comments Off