Conversations for Research Rockstars
107 episodes - English - Latest episode: 4 months ago - ★★★★★ - 14 ratingsConversations about market research methods, analysis optimization, data quality, and anything else related to advancing the work, and careers, of Market Research & Customer Insights professionals. Topics cover a wide range of qualitative and quantitative research methods. Hosted by Kathryn Korostoff, a research pro and former college professor who has led market research teams and hands-on delivered 600+ primary research studies.
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Episodes
Jobs to be Done as a Framework for Customer Insights
March 26, 2024 14:48 - 11 minutes - 10.1 MBIn this episode, we explore the Jobs to be Done (JTBD) framework, a model embraced by many companies, including leading CPG brands, financial services, tech companies, and more. Your host, Kathryn Korostoff, gives you a brief overview of what JTBD is and how market researchers can use it to move beyond a superficial understanding of customer needs. Whether it's for physical products or services, understanding the real motivations behind purchases and brand choices is crucial. In professional...
What Really Drives Brand Connection? The Power of Authenticity.
February 23, 2024 17:40 - 39 minutes - 35.7 MBJoin host Kathryn Korostoff and special guest Dan Braker, President of Breakthrough Research, for a deep dive into the power of authenticity in shaping consumer decisions and brand loyalty. This episode explores the critical role authenticity plays in building lasting connections between brands and their customers. Drawing on psychological research, learn how authenticity impacts consumer decision-making and brand loyalty, and how these factors vary across different demographics. Dan introdu...
From Basic to Bold: AI Adoption Scenarios for Market Research & Insights Professionals
February 08, 2024 22:10 - 11 minutes - 10.8 MBWhat is your team's position on the continuum from basic to bold of AI so far? Is the status on the basic end, with AI used for personal productivity but not much else? Or is your team looking to leapfrog conventional methods with new AI-driven customer insights-driving products and services? Hint: your team is more on the bold end if it is already piloting solutions that include components such as avatars/conversational AI, data-to-text, image analysis, or synthetic data. Conversations f...
Avoiding Analysis Bias in Global Research Studies
January 31, 2024 20:17 - 8 minutes - 7.37 MBLearn how to avoid analysis bias in global market research studies. Conducting global studies requires careful planning and data collection, but analyzing the results can be even more challenging. Human beings have inherent biases that can impact data analysis, compromising the quality and accuracy of research reports. In this video, we share three types of bias that can infiltrate our research reports. Enhance your market research skills and deliver an unbiased and reliable analysis of your...
Finding Authentic B2B Online Sample with Sharekh Shaikh
December 07, 2023 21:11 - 22 minutes - 41.9 MBAs professional market researchers, one of our biggest challenges is access to quality sample. We have all had the experience of having to toss out 10% or even 20% or more of research respondents because they were likely bots, fakes, or otherwise low-quality responses. While online sample is problematic for both B2B and B2C studies, the "solutions" may be different. In this episode, our experts tackle the topic of B2B: how can we efficiently recruit authentic, qualified participants for B2B ...
Socializing Insights for Optimizing Impact with Kory Grushka
November 22, 2023 19:13 - 37 minutes - 69.4 MBNewer researchers may not realize how much of the work in Market Research and Insights is in socializing the results. We don't just send a report out by email and nothing else... not unless we want the research to be ignored. Successful researchers help their clients/stakeholders socialize the research results to influence and persuade. In this episode, Kathryn Korostoff is joined by Kory Grushka, Founder and CEO of Stories Bureau. Kory's company is a creative agency with experience helping ...
AI & The Future of Market Research with Jim Newswanger & Kathryn Korostoff
November 09, 2023 20:18 - 41 minutes - 76.5 MBHow will AI impact the work, and careers, of Market Research & Insights Professionals? Is it doom and gloom, a welcome revolutionary advancement, or does it lie somewhere in the middle? Enjoy this video of instructors Jim Newswanger and Kathryn Korostoff for a discussion about AI's current, and potentially future, impact on the entire cycle of market research projects. Conversations for Research Rockstars is produced by Research Rockstar Training & Staffing. Our 25+ Market Research eLearn...
Recruiting Tactics for Ethnographic Research
October 20, 2023 18:40 - 18 minutes - 35.3 MBWhen making methodology recommendations, many market researchers find ethnography desirable but intimidating. The biggest worry is often about recruiting: how do we find qualified people from the target population of interest and motivate them to participate in ethnographic research? Join Instructor Kathryn Korostoff as she shares 5 specific ways to recruit individuals or groups for ethnographic research. Conversations for Research Rockstars is produced by Research Rockstar Training & Sta...
Are Your Market Research Data Visualizations Client Ready?
September 06, 2023 18:32 - 10 minutes - 19.4 MBIn the world of professional-quality market research, data visualizations are not just aesthetics; they are critical to research success. You don't need to be a graphic designer, but knowing how to ensure your data captivates and convinces does reduce risk. Join us in this enlightening episode of Conversations for Research Rockstars, where Instructor Kathryn Korostoff unveils the pivotal role of data visualizations in market research reports. Learn the 5 crucial criteria vital criteria taugh...
Top-Line Reporting: Create with Confidence
August 22, 2023 18:18 - 8 minutes - 16.2 MBQualitative research professionals often create top-line reports as a key deliverable. Sometimes the top-line is the only deliverable, and in other cases, it is a preliminary one (followed later by a more thorough, full report). Unfortunately, the term “top-line” is often misused. But as a Research Rockstar, we want you to know the correct use, and in this Conversations episode, your host, Kathryn Korostoff, shares some guidance as to how you can create a top-line with confidence. This Conve...
Beyond Surface-Level Insights: Practical Neuroscience Applications in Consumer Behavior Research
August 09, 2023 17:13 - 38 minutes - 71 MBWhen confronted with superficial research participant responses, how can market researchers dig deeper? How do we design questionnaires so they uncover deeper insights without becoming lengthy? Using neuroscience-based understandings of human behavior can help uncover non-superficial demand drivers and help researchers prioritize questionnaire design. We spoke with Hunter Thurman, founder of Alpha-Diver, a research and strategy company that taps into insights from neuroscience and psycholo...
The Enduring Appeal of Slide-style Reports in Qualitative Research
July 27, 2023 17:51 - 11 minutes - 20.7 MBSurprise! Contrary to popular belief, many clients LIKE slide-deck style reports. In this Conversations episode, Research Rockstar Lead Instructor Kathryn Korostoff shares two important reasons why many clients like slide-style reports, and insider tips for how to structure a slide-style report (including 3 options for structuring qualitative research reports in a way that will show your clients that you understand their needs and aren’t just generating a cookie-cutter report). So let’s jump...
Using Market Research for Thought Leadership Programs (with Lilah Raynor)
June 06, 2023 17:32 - 29 minutes - 26.9 MBHave you ever conducted market research in support of Thought Leadership (TL) programs? Thought Leadership programs are used by companies in many industries, especially in B2B, and can be used to establish or strengthen their visibility in their market. Within TL programs, conducting survey research is very popular, as it provides a quick and compelling way to showcase data-driven insights. After all, there's nothing like a little data sound bite about what percentage of people have a specif...
Handling Contradictory and Over-Rationalized Responses in IDIs
April 11, 2023 18:24 - 12 minutes - 11.6 MBHow do you handle over-rationalized and contradictory responses in research interviews? For the sake of high-quality qualitative data, we strive to recognize and resolve these issues, but doing so in a real-time conversation can be tricky. In this Conversation, Lead Instructor Kathryn Korostoff shares some tips and tricks to turn these sticky situations into insights gold. Conversations for Research Rockstars is produced by Research Rockstar Training & Staffing. Our 25+ Market Research eL...
Setting Useful Objectives
November 22, 2022 18:19 - 19 minutes - 18.1 MBWhat makes a market research objective "good"? What makes it precise enough to guide a project such that, at the conclusion, the project will be likely to be perceived as successful? In this video, Research Rockstar Lead Instructor Kathryn Korostoff teaches the 4 components used to assess objectives. Too often, market research projects start with vague objectives that lead to operational delays or onerous research instrument iterations. Don't let this happen to you! Learn how to write object...
Insights Democratization with Guest Thor Olof Philogène
November 02, 2022 20:31 - 26 minutes - 24.3 MBAs a Market Research & Insights professional, you have likely heard the term "insights democratization." The phrase invokes a vision of organizations that have numerous data sources, and data-based findings, that are seamlessly shared within and between various functional areas in a friction-free manner. Everyone with appropriate permissions has access to all the customer data they need--whether from behavioral data, transactional data, syndicated data, or primary market research data. In t...
How to Avoid 3 Newbie Mistakes in Multinational Survey Research
June 07, 2022 16:30 - 11 minutes - 8.69 MBPlanning your first multinational survey research project? Let's make sure you avoid 3 common newbie mistakes that can cost you money, time, and (frankly) credibility. These are three common, REAL WORLD mistakes-- let's help you to avoid them! Multinational market research projects are always fascinating learning opportunities, but they can be a bit tricky. Start by making deliberate decisions about how to maximize data quality on a per-country basis (hint: the best options for data collecti...
Identifying Research Participant Emotions
May 10, 2022 13:00 - 12 minutes - 11.2 MBAs market researchers, we often have projects where we are gathering data about emotions. But identifying and describing emotions can be tricky. This Conversation will help researchers who have experienced the common challenge of how to accurately report emotion-related research results in a way that will be useful to research clients. Emotional content relates to many types of market research studies, most commonly those related to product testing, ad testing and brand perceptions. For an i...
Data Quality Research For Survey Research
May 03, 2022 13:00 - 32 minutes - 74 MBWant to feel more confident in your ability to optimize survey data quality? In this Conversation, Research Rockstar instructors Kathryn Korostoff and Julie Worwa share some of the key steps professional survey researchers take to optimize data quality. Even if you are new to professional-level market research, or feel uncertain about your statistical knowledge, these topics will help amp up your research success. Topics in this conversation are also covered in more depth in Research Rocksta...
(Part 4) What Did We Learn About Our Own Skill/Knowledge Needs In 2021?
November 30, 2021 13:42 - 31 minutes - 25.1 MBPlease enjoy this conversation with Kathryn Korostoff and Jeffrey Henning as they tackle the question, “What did we learn (about our own skill/knowledge needs) in 2021 that we should leverage as we plan for 2022?” As Market Research & Insights professionals, what do we need to know to be effective in 2022? And what knowledge gaps exist that warrant prioritization? So, what are the hot skills for Market Researchers in 2022? In this episode, Korostoff and Henning get into the details on wha...
(Part 3) How Will WFH Trends Impact Market Research & Insights Work in 2022?
November 23, 2021 13:33 - 36 minutes - 83.4 MBThe Work from Home (WFH) phenomenon has impacted Market Researchers from two very different angles: first as employees/workers ourselves, and second as research methodologists. In this episode, the discussion tackles both: What does ongoing full or partial WFH mean for our profession, our teams, our collaborations, our career paths? What skills may need to get amped up in 2022 to be successful in a WFH-heavy profession? What have we learned about doing research on WFH topics? Are some met...
Planning for Survey Data Quality Improvements in 2022
November 09, 2021 13:44 - 31 minutes - 58.1 MBWelcome to Part 2 of our 4-part series: Prepping Your Market Research & Insights Team for 2022. As Market Research & Insights professionals, what did we learn in 2021 that we should leverage as we plan for 2022? Part 2 of our series focusses on the question: “What did we learn about improving survey data quality in 2021 that we should leverage as we plan for 2022?” This episode covered important survey research topics. including identifying bogus survey respondents, reducing sample qu...
What market research methodology lessons did we learn in 2021 that should inform our 2022 plans?
November 02, 2021 12:54 - 40 minutes - 73.7 MBWelcome to Part 1 of a 4-part series: Prepping Your Market Research & Insights Team for 2022. What did we learn in 2021 that we should leverage as we plan for 2022? Part 1 focusses on the question: “What did we learn in 2021 about research methodology choices that we should leverage as we plan for 2022?” Hosted by Research Rockstar Lead Instructor Kathryn Korostoff, with fantastic guests, and true Research Rockstars: Amy Anderson, Owner of Solutions Through Research and Research Rocks...
Essential Market Research Tips: Documenting Your Sampling Plan
September 10, 2021 17:00 - 16 minutes - 39.6 MBProfessional survey researchers document their sampling plans to ensure a high-quality data collection process. If you want reliable survey data, you need to make careful decisions about sampling. In this Conversation, Lead Instructor Kathryn Korostoff shows you how to document your sampling plan in a way that will thrill your clients, stakeholders and other collaborators--while mitigating data quality risks. This conversation includes content related to the Research Rockstar course, "Samp...
Doing Survey Research: Should You Learn SPSS?
August 31, 2021 19:11 - 8 minutes - 20.5 MBIf you do survey research, should you learn SPSS? What if you have colleagues who normally do the data analysis for you, might it still be worthwhile for you, as a market research professional, to learn SPSS? The answer is, “it depends.” Here’s a short Conversation or those of you who have been debating it. Not all survey researchers need to learn SPSS, but it is a worth consideration in specific situations discussed herein. For information on SPSS Training for survey researchers, please v...
How To Do Survey Research: The Process Flowchart
August 17, 2021 16:00 - 20 minutes - 38.5 MBHow to do professional-quality survey research? Learn the key steps in the process of planning and conducting survey research in 11 steps. Professional survey researchers know that each of these steps, in turn, actually consists of even more granular steps—but start by learning the major steps and you will be on your way to conducting survey-based market research that will yield reliable, objective quantitative data. Market research newbies tend to rush right to questionnaire design, but t...
Navigating WFH Scenarios for Market Researchers with guest Maya Middlemiss
August 03, 2021 13:00 - 21 minutes - 40.6 MBFor Market Researchers being offered a long-term WFH option: should you? Many Market Research & Insights professionals are being offered the work from home or hybrid work from home/in office scenarios as long term options. What's the career-oriented market researcher to do? Would choosing a 100% work from home scenario impact your career? Your visibility with upper management? What tips and tactics can you use to make sure that the choice you make will be right for you both personally and pr...
Walking Isn't Running How to Amp Up Your Research Writing
July 27, 2021 13:00 - 17 minutes - 33.5 MBFor many people in the Market Research & Insights profession, the fun part of our projects is delivering the results in written reports. This is where we really get to shine: we get to show that our methodology has resulted in useful and usable information. The challenge? We're under pressure to deliver these reports very quickly. How do we write reports that are going to ignite insights when we may have as little as five to seven business days to do so? In the quest for speed, many market...
Are Market Researchers Ready to “Talk Data” with Business Decision Makers?
July 15, 2021 10:00 - 14 minutes - 13.5 MBMarket Research & Insights professionals often need to support business clients on projects that may benefit from more than one methodology or data source. What do we need to know about the many data options available to help our clients make informed decisions? Primary and secondary research, quantitative and qualitative, predictive and prescriptive data, cross-sectional and longitudinal data, transactional data, and many more terms need to be part of our vocabulary. Let’s get started!
Online Qualitative Research: Tips for Great Ideation
April 08, 2021 11:00 - 16 minutes - 29.6 MBOnline qualitative research is a hot methodology and can be very powerful. But it can also be challenging, especially for market research professionals working on ideation projects. In this conversation, Kathryn shares some tips for how to get great ideation while using online qualitative methods.
Why Subgroup Analysis Matters: A Case Study for Survey Researchers
April 04, 2021 10:30 - 12 minutes - 22.3 MBSurveys can be used to learn a lot about your target market’s attitudes, behaviors and perceptions. But only if you analyze this market research data correctly. In this real-world example, we see an-all-too common error. Don’t let this happen to you! See the case study origin here: https://bit.ly/3cgQ7KU
Market Research eLearning Options with Special Guest Stephen Griffiths
April 04, 2021 10:00 - 28 minutes - 52.9 MBMarket Research eLearning Options with Special Guest Stephen Griffiths. Kathryn and Stephen discuss the many options for learning about market research and advancing professional skills, including both free and paid options. Please be sure to check out Stephen’s related podcast on Digging for Insights: https://diggingforinsights.com/22-2/ And for handy links to the sites mentioned, please download our free reference sheet: https://www.researchrockstar.com/mrx-learning-reference-sheet/
Curing the Ills of Online Sampling for Survey Research
October 07, 2020 11:00 - 17 minutes - 16.2 MBSurvey researchers often use online panel providers to fulfill their data collection needs. Need 500 working moms to take your survey on vacation planning? Need 2,000 luxury car owners to take your survey on brand perceptions? You might be getting those research participants from an online panel provider. In this conversation, Kathryn Korostoff interviewed online sample expert Andrew Moffatt of OpinionRoute about current and evolving challenges with online panel quality, including fraud, and...
How to Improve NPS for Accuracy & Actionability with NPS expert Paul Abel PhD
August 10, 2020 16:00 - 14 minutes - 22.3 MBOpinions on the accuracy of Net Promoter Score (NPS) as a customer loyalty measure vary widely. But like it or not, the reality is that a lot of organizations use NPS. It has become a standard key performance indicator (KPI) that many business executives embrace. So it's not going away anytime soon. The question for those of us who care about data accuracy, is how can we augment or possibly modify it to make sure that the data story told by NPS, is going to help the business improve. Man...
3 Simple Training Examples for Market Research & Insights Professionals
February 03, 2020 10:00 - 18 minutes - 42 MBAre you looking to plan training for new market researchers? Or training to help a team develop professional-level survey research skills? Or qualitative research ones? How about a training plan that would advance use of new research methods? Or advance consultative skills? In this episode, Kathryn shares training plan tips and 3 examples. Conversations for Research Rockstars is produced by Research Rockstar Training & Staffing. Our 25+ eLearning classes are offered in both real-time and o...
Market Research & Insights Team Planning: Strategic Issues for 2020
January 06, 2020 19:08 - 29 minutes - 68 MBGetting your Market Research & Insights team ready for 2020? Inform your plans by considering the key strategic issues your clients face. In this Conversation, host Kathryn Korostoff shares her research on key challenges faced by marketing executives and how the Market Research & Insights function can prepare to help. The referenced infographic can be downloaded for free here: https://www.researchrockstar.com/mrx2... Conversations for Research Rockstars is produced by Research Rockstar Tra...
Data Privacy 101 for Market Research & Insights Professionals
November 14, 2019 16:38 - 13 minutes - 31.5 MBQuestion: How much do Market Research & Insights professionals need to know about data privacy? Answer: As much as most marketing-related professionals need to know these days, especially those who (like us) ever collect or store data. In this Conversation, Kathryn shares some basic definitions and links to curated resources. Including a free instant download: https://www.researchrockstar.com/priv... and webinar playback link: www.researchrockstar.com/privacy Conversations for Research R...
Career Planning for Senior Market Research & Insights Professionals
October 14, 2019 09:00 - 15 minutes - 34.7 MBIn this episode, Kathryn covers important considerations for senior-level market research & insights professionals who are planning the next phase of their career. If we want to advance and become a consultative advisor to c-suite executives, we have to be able to address their sources of pain. And a big source of pain for c-suite executives is achieving ROI on their many and varied investments in data-driven decision making. You can help them. Here's how. Conversations for Research Rockst...
Mixed-mode Surveys: When are 2 modes better than one?
October 10, 2019 09:00 - 14 minutes - 32.9 MBSurvey researchers know: mixed-mode data collection is gaining popularity in professional market research. And for good reason: it can address known survey data quality issues. Market researchers have several data collection options--even if most of us default to online surveys. But, ideally, once a given market research survey project’s objectives and sampling goals are finalized, the next decision is to select the data collection mode that will be the best fit. Often, we assume one mode. F...
Data Visualization Examples for Market Research & Insights Professionals
October 07, 2019 10:00 - 17 minutes - 39.8 MBA key part of our success in the market research & insights profession is based on how well people comprehend and retain our results. And a huge aid to comprehension and retention is data visualization. That’s why we teach a course on data visualization and one on infographics. It’s also why I was thrilled for the opportunity to co-present with the amazing Daren Jackson from DisplayR. We held a free webinar on data visualization specifically for market research and insights professionals. If...
Critical Thinking Conversations
June 17, 2019 20:30 - 22 minutes - 20.2 MBCritical thinking is a skill market research & insights professionals use to ensure our conclusions and recommendations are truly excellent. In short, critical thinking is the objective analysis and evaluation of a topic in order to develop a factually defensible judgment. While in the field of market research we don’t often refer to the precise phrase “critical thinking”, it is widely acknowledged as one of our profession’s tenets: the pursuit of objective analysis. [The specific phrase “cr...
Market Research Project Management: More Than Tech
May 20, 2019 14:12 - 19 minutes - 15.4 MBMarket research project management has evolved a lot over the past few years, largely thanks to the many online project management tools now available. But while tech certainly helps, it's only part of the project management success equation for market research & insights professionals. The basics of project management still apply. So how to tell if your basics might need a refresh? A good place to look for evidence is by recalling your last few kickoff meetings. In the past few months, have...
Moderating Focus Groups Online vs In person Moderation Skills
April 29, 2019 21:59 - 12 minutes - 10.4 MBPlanning to moderate your first online focus groups? Are you prepared for the differences between online versus in-person moderation? In this Conversation for Research Rockstars, Kathryn Korostoff describes 3 big differences moderators experience--and how to prepare for them. Related Article YouTube Twitter LinkedIn
Is It Time to Update Your Market Research PowerPoint Reports?
April 22, 2019 09:00 - 15 minutes - 7.27 MBHave you noticed the rapidly rising expectations for the design and “look” of market research reports? Unfortunately, when we are working to meet project deadlines, it’s hard to take time to evaluate our current reporting style. But how long can we delay? At what point will dated-looking deliverables negatively impact perceptions of our work? Includes info on a free PowerPoint template to get you started on updating your own market research report PowerPoint template. Related article htt...
Market Research Career Anxiety Due to Technology Trends: Now What?
March 11, 2019 09:00 - 17 minutes - 23.5 MBAre market research professionals widely experiencing career anxiety? The feeling of stress we may have when thinking about our 5-year career path options? Of course. And a lot is due to technology trends. In this episode, host Kathryn Korostoff discusses the realities of how and why market research career paths are changing, so that we can refresh our market research career path plans without getting distracted by short-term thinking. Related article with Pew Research and Clutch citations...
How to Create a Realistic & Effective Market Research Training Plan
February 25, 2019 10:00 - 16 minutes - 22.7 MBNeed to create a market research training plan for yourself or a team? It can be overwhelming. After all, in an ideal world, you would do a needs assessment and a gap analysis before creating the plan. Alas, that may not be feasible. So how to create an effective plan, in less time? In this conversation, Kathryn Korostoff shows how to craft learning goals, gives several market research & insights examples, and also shares 2 examples of training scenarios. For more details on this topic, chec...
Are Soft Skills the Key to Thrilling Market Research & Insights Clients?
February 25, 2019 10:00 - 18 minutes - 25.7 MBSoft skills, especially those that relate to client management, may be the key to really thrilling market research & insights clients. And client management is often the hardest part of our work. Not sure if you agree? Well, have you (or someone on your team) ever experienced pain with any of the following: --Getting agreement on sufficiently precise research objectives --Setting and managing client expectations --Ensuring that client interests don’t conflict with objectivity --Facil...
Qualitative Research or Hard core Qualitative Research
February 11, 2019 10:00 - 14 minutes - 20.2 MBQualitative research demand is shifting to more rigorous methods and analysis approaches. My hypothesis is that over the next year, we will see strong demand for qualitative research…but it will skew to what we might call hard-core qual. Thus, market researchers will be expected to deliver projects that meet the ever-increasing needs for scale and speed, while also being rigorous. What do you think? Are you seeing something similar...or different? In this conversation, Kathryn Korostoff sh...
How to Optimize a Lean Market Research & Insights Team
January 30, 2019 00:44 - 12 minutes - 17 MBRunning a lean market research & insights team in 2019? While the reality of lean teams exists in many professions, market research & insights teams have some unique conflicts that exacerbate the challenges. That’s because some of the big trends for our profession in 2018 continue to be strong in 2019. Specifically, these three: 1. Advancing consultative skills 2. Advancing data fluency 3. Shrinking the “need-to-insight” lifecycle Running lean while achieving such notable advances is...
Insights Career Coaching Step 1: Choosing Your Path
January 29, 2019 23:57 - 18 minutes - 24.8 MBNow is a great time to refresh your Market Research & Insights Career planning. Do you have a career plan? A goal? It's time to step back from the treadmill of work and deadlines and think about your 2, 3 or even 5 or 10-year career goals. Do you currently have a clear vision of what kind of work you want to be doing 5 years from now? What types of colleagues do you want to be working with? What skills do you hope to be using? If not, no worries. We can start easy—at the highest level. And...