Agile software development has revolutionized the software industry, and shapes the programs, websites and apps that you love. Discover how agile software development has inspired the principles of agile market research.

1. What Top Software Firms Have to Teach
Market Researchers
Matt Warta
CEO & Co-Founder,
GutCheck
@mwarta
Jeffrey Henning
President
ResearchScape
@jhenning

2. 2
• This session will be recorded and sent out to all attendees
• Presentation time will be kept to ~30 minutes
• We’ll have time for Q&A at the end
2
House Keeping Items

3. @gutcheckit
#AgileMarketResearch
Please Tweet and Join!
Join the ‘Agile Market Research’ group on LinkedIn
+

4. 4
1. Is Agile Market Research at a tipping point?
2. What is Agile Market Research and how does it
create value?
3. What research areas can Agile Market Research be
applied?
4. How have customers applied Agile Market Research?
5. How can I get started?
Key Questions to Answer Today

5. 5
In 2011, we witnessed innovative customers using
us in an “agile way”
Interviews:
48 in-depth interviews up to 45
minutes each; testing 10 different
concepts with multiple aspects
Iterations: 5x
Completion Time:
2 days to complete all interviews
Audience Interviewed:
Females ages 25-54, income over
$40k, employed, homemaker or
student, and use liquid dish soap 5+
times per week

6. In 2012, leading companies start
heading this direction

7. In late 2012 at TMRE, GutCheck partners with P&G to
discuss Agile Market Research and its implications on
market research

8. More people are talking about Agile Market
Research…this is a good thing
2013 2014

9. Still lack of understanding
What the heck is
Agile Market
Research?
Bob Lederer
Business Research Report
http://www.rflonline.com

10. GutCheck writes the eBook on Agile MR

11. What is this process?
Software Development Process Pre-Agile (2001)
Waterfall Approach
Objectives
Deliverable
Design
Implement

12. 12
Traditional Software Development Process
Challenges in Software:
• Months long, expensive process
• Steps occur in sequence
• After objectives (requirements)
determined, little customer feedback
• Oftentimes, the most important insights
come post Deliverable
"The waterfall method amounts
to a pledge by all parties not to
learn anything while doing the
actual work.”
- Clay Shirkey, Author and NYU
Distinguished Writer in Residence
Objectives
Deliverable
Design
Implement

13. 13
What’s the Process Top Software Firms Use?

14. 14
Solution: Agile Software Development
Agile Tenets:
• Satisfy Customer through early and
continuous delivery
• Recognition of missing knowledge
• Each sprint / iteration 2 – 3 weeks
• Customer-provided feedback shapes
the next iteration
• Results in market optimal products
Deliverable
Design
Implement
FeedbackDesign
Implement
FeedbackDesign
Implement
Objectives
2 – 3 weeks
Iteration 1 …
2 – 3 weeks
Iteration n

15. 15
“Today, 88% of organizations use Agile techniques.”1
And they are reporting great benefits2
:
Sources:
1 2013 VersionOne study (3,500 software developers)
2 2013 Standish Group study (database of nearly 50,000 IT projects)
Adapted to
Changing Priorities
92%
Increased
Productivity
87%
Faster
Time-to-Market
83%
Enhanced
Quality
82%

16. 16
Traditional Product or
Creative Development Process
Challenges:
• Weeks- or months-long, expensive process
• Steps occur in sequence
• After objectives (requirements) determined,
little customer feedback
• Oftentimes, the most important insights come
after validation testing or post-launch
Objectives
Deliverable
Design
Implement
Validation or norms-based testing
becomes the “one shot on goal” to get
the product or creative right. If it’s off,
then more time / budget is lost going
through the process again.

17. 17
Agile Market Research
USES
• Segmentation
• Brand Tracking
• Competitive Intel
• Exploration
• Co-creation
• Product Innovation
• Copy / Creative
• Shopper Insights
• PR / Social Media
Deliverable
Weeks (if norms-based
testing)
$ or $$$
Days
$
Days
$
Research Time
Research Cost
Design &
Implement
FeedbackDesign &
Implement
FeedbackDesign &
Implement
Objectives

18. 18
1. Speed: Ability to complete studies – Recruit to Report – in a few
days or less
2. Specific: On demand segmentation….no pre built panels
3. Iteration = Accuracy: Ability, mindset and tools required to take
an iterative approach that drives quality
• Tools: on demand, and hybrid toolset (e.g., quant and qual)
4. Budget friendly: Extends your research dollar v. other
techniques
5. Focused: Answering the critical few within specific research
areas
18
Criteria for Picking an Agile Research Vendor

19. Agile Tools
• Real-time In-depth
Interviews
• On-demand
Communities
• On-demand Surveys
• Micro-surveys
• Mobile Studies
19
Agile Researcher’s Toolkit
Commonalities
1. Extremely time
& cost efficient
2. Integrated
recruitment
3. Comparable
quality to other
digital tools

20. 20
PR Crisis and Communications Refinement
Results
Research Time = 3 weeks
FeedbackDesign &
Implement
FeedbackDesign &
Implement
Ran GCS Survey
to understand
awareness
High awareness
but not spreading
IRCs to track
sentiment and
develop/refine
communications
(5 Iterations)
Unchanging
sentiment, and
feedback to refine
communications
Consumer-led mash-
up of
communications and
validation in market
Objectives
Understand general awareness of credible challenge to key marketing
claim; and develop communications to address the challenge

21. 21
Business Opportunity Identification
Profile of current
usage of broad
category of web
sites by state
Design &
Implement
Objectives
Deliverable
Feedback
Objectives
Profile of usage
of narrow set of
web sites by
leading MSAs of
interest
Design &
Implement
Deliverable
Feedback
Deliverable
Feedback
Gap analysis of
where current
services fail to
meet expectations
Design &
Implement
Objectives

22. 22
Creative Screening and Refinement
Results
Research Time = 24 Hours
FeedbackDesign &
Implement
FeedbackDesign &
Implement
Ran Survey to
assess key copy
measures
Strong but opportunities to
improve believability
20 In-Depth 1:1s to
understand how to
bolster believability
Prescriptive feedback on
areas to refine copy to
improve believability
Passed Action
Standard
Objectives
Assess copy for new product launch by CoverGirl,
and provide feedback for refinement

23. 23
1. Stack hands on using Agile Market
Research upfront
 Get a proof point
 Get brand team and other
constituents (e.g., ad agency) on
board
 Everyone wins
2. Gain insights from Agile Market Research
to enable collaboration
 Quant as the diagnostic and Qual as
the prescription
 Set up retrospectives to iterate on
learnings
3. Improve ideas, concepts, animatics, and
executions based on feedback (repeat 2 &
3 as needed)
Ready, Set, Go!
23 @gutcheckit #agilemarketresearch

24. Thank You! Any Questions?
Join the ‘Agile Market Research’ group on LinkedIn
+
Matt Warta
CEO & Co-Founder
GutCheck
@mwarta
Jeffrey Henning
President
ResearchScape
@jhenning