Making Behavioural Economics a Qualitave Reality

Choosing the Right Qualitave Tools to Address the Issues

Ken Parker Chairman Discovery Group

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Qual Research in today’s world

Offline Online

Which is beer for Behavioural Economics?

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Convenonal market research is largely engaged in asking the wrong quesons and the vast bulk of the money is spent invesgang hair‐ spling disncons between brands made by respondents in arficial condions which have no relaon to the context in which people actually make choices.

Rory Sutherland IPA President Vice Chair, Ogilvy Group UK

3 Why do we choose what we buy………?

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100 years ago…..

Half the money I spend on adversing is wasted; the trouble is, I don’t know which half

John Wanamaker

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Post War Models

Awareness

Interest

Desire

Acon

6 How the Brain Works

“During any given second, we consciously process only sixteen of eleven million bits of informaon our senses (feelings/ emoons) pass onto the brain. In other words, the conscious part of us receives much less informaon than the unconscious part of it.”

Tor Norretranders

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And now……..

Behavioural Economics

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Behavioural Economics

When purchasing……

We are not consciously considering ALL the possible opons

BUT Actual decisions relate to We consider only from feelings & emoons opons available or perceive to be available

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Neuromarkeng

300 years ago.. I am raonal, Descartes: therefore I am “I think, therefore I am”

I have emoons, 1995 therefore I am raonal Antonio Damasio ‐> ‘Descartes Error’

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Socio‐psycho‐cultural Tradional Behavioural perspecve on human Qualitave Economics behaviour (Groups & Depths)

Preferences Behaviour Atudes Beliefs Opinions

12 Behavioural Economics

Behaviour is King

I’ll exercise more I’m going to take aer Christmas out a pension

Intenons are dead

I’m changing from buer to margarine

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Academic World of Market Research

Many papers agree to the principles of Behavioural Economics This paper takes it further

…. And queson some of the things we’ve How to do it with qual been doing in qual

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Coverage Today

Data Collecon Method 

Mindset X

Analysis & Interpretaon X

15 Behavioural Economics

Handy umbrella term

Pillars

Heuriscs Biases 16

30 Pillars from ??? Heuriscs Biases

Rules of Thumb Usually based on Educated Guesses unfair negaves Intuive Judgement Common Sense

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Take a Step Back

Who was with us at the me? How we were making the decision? Where we were? What was around us? When did this happen?

Why we chose the thing we chose? Tradional Qual X Research (Groups & Depths) Humans are poor witnesses of their behaviour/ intended behaviour

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Tradional Groups & Depths

Discursive interacon between parcipants & moderator in a social environment

Enabling Techniques to tap into the Sub‐Conscious

Humans are poor witnesses They are excellent of their behaviour/ BUT witnesses to their own intended behaviour feelings & emoons

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The ‘Here and Now’

(Behavioural Economics Heartland)

Tradional Qual Research oen cricised (Relies on Recall)

Covered by Ethnography Other Qual Pre Tasks; Post Tasks (diaries, etc) Techniques Accompanied Shops/ Intercepts

Online Qual Tools (Short/ Long term communies)

21 Online Qual

Over Time Observaon Indirect Quesons & at ‘right me’

Self Ethnography Over days, weeks, months Or, as Insight Community

Involving others, as & when: friends, family, opinion leaders, etc

Involves creave specificaon of tasks, keen chivvying & probing, & painstaking analysis/ interpretaon

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Online Qual Tools

‐ Chivvy respondents Researcher has control  ‐ Probe for further info ‐ Higher quality work Respondents enjoy  ‐ Beer levels of engagement

Semi‐ethnographical Over me & right me = ‘Here & Now’

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Online Qual Tradional Qual Heuriscs Biases

Rules of Thumb Usually based on Educated Guesses unfair negaves Intuive Judgement Common Sense

Behaviour: Conscious & ‘The Here & Now’ unconscious thought

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Heuriscs Biases

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Heuriscs Biases Diversificaon Affect Heurisc Online Choice Architecture Qual Framing* Hot & Cold Zones Mental Accounng* Recognion Heurisc

Groups/ Depths

* Also addressed by tradional qual methods

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Online Qual The Heurisc Pillars: EXAMPLE

When people have to make several choices at once Diversificaon they are more adventurous than if they have to Heurisc make the same type of decision sequenally.

Evaluaon of self‐ethnographic tools, coupled with good probing, most likely to reveal these findings.

27 Heuriscs Biases Diversificaon Affect Heurisc Aenonal Bias Online Choice Architecture Effort Bias Qual Framing* Commitment Bias Hot & Cold Zones Mental Accounng* Recognion Heurisc

Groups/ Depths

* Also addressed by tradional qual methods

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Online Qual The Bias Pillars: EXAMPLE

When a person doesn’t examine all possible outcomes when making a judgement about a Aenonal Bias correlaon or associaon. They may focus on one or two possibilies, while ignoring the rest.

Evaluaon of self‐ethnographic tools, coupled with good probing, most likely to reveal these findings.

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Heuriscs Biases Diversificaon Affect Heurisc Aenonal Bias Online Choice Architecture Effort Bias Qual Framing* Commitment Bias Hot & Cold Zones Mental Accounng* Recognion Heurisc

Authority Bias Fairness Bias Greed & Fear Bias Hindsight Bias Negavity Bias Groups/ Status Quo Bias Choice Supporve Bias Depths Status Quo Bias Confirmaon Bias Bias Blind Spot Choice Supporve Bias * Also addressed by tradional qual methods Post Purchase Raonalisaon

30 Tradional Groups & Depths The Bias Pillars: EXAMPLE

People value something according to the opinion of Authority Bias a perceived authority figure

Discursive interacon between parcipants & moderator in a social environment

Enabling Techniques to tap into the Sub‐Conscious

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Heuriscs Biases Diversificaon Affect Heurisc Aenonal Bias Online Choice Architecture Effort Bias Qual Framing* Commitment Bias Hot & Cold Zones Mental Accounng* Recognion Heurisc

Authority Bias Fairness Bias Anchoring Greed & Fear Bias Hindsight Bias Availability Negavity Bias Groups/ Familiarity Status Quo Bias Depths Social Proof Choice Supporve Bias Scarcity Status Quo Bias Confirmaon Bias Bias Blind Spot Choice Supporve Bias * Also addressed by tradional qual methods Post Purchase Raonalisaon

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Tradional Groups & Depths The Heuriscs Pillars: EXAMPLE

When individuals overly rely on a specific piece of informaon to govern their thought process. Once Anchoring the anchor is set, other informaon is adjusted or interpreted to reflect the anchored informaon

Discursive interacon between parcipants & moderator in a social environment

Enabling Techniques to tap into the Sub‐Conscious

33 Heuriscs Biases Diversificaon Affect Heurisc Aenonal Bias Online Choice Architecture Effort Bias Qual Framing* Commitment Bias Hot & Cold Zones Mental Accounng* Recognion Heurisc Authority Bias Fairness Bias Anchoring Greed & Fear Bias Hindsight Bias Bandwagon Availability Negavity Bias Herd Groups/ Familiarity Status Quo Bias Power of Now Depths Social Proof Choice Supporve Bias Scarcity Status Quo Bias Confirmaon Bias Bias Blind Spot Choice Supporve Bias * Also addressed by tradional qual methods Post Purchase Raonalisaon

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Tradional Groups & Depths The Heuriscs Pillars

Brand Heurisc

Brand = “A unique design, sign, symbol, words or a combinaon of these, employed in creang an image that idenfies a product and differenates itself from its competors. Over me, this image becomes associated with a level of credibility, quality, and sasfacon in the consumer’s mind. Thus brands help harried consumers in crowded and complex marketplace, by standing for certain benefits and value.”

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A Quick Case Study: Baby Feeding

6 months: The Thinking Shed Physical problems Community (pre‐birth to breaseeding early months) Frustraons/ emoons ‐Video diaries Purchase decisions (heuriscs) ‐Self compleon diaries ‐Forum

Depth interviews Invesgaon of biases ‐Pre birth Full exploraon of emoons & ‐Early months feelings

36 Qual research is the friend of BE

Combinaon of qual with BE moves the discipline from the theorecal to the praccal

Many of the BE Pillars are best addressed by Online Qual tools BUT Tradional groups/ depths have very important parts to play ‐> feelings, emoons & biases

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