Undercover Boss: don’t tell me Hooters have never heard of market research

I watched the US version of Undercover Boss on C4 last night.  It was the turn of Coby Brooks, President and CEO of ‘delightfully tacky yet unrefined’ restaurant/bar chain Hooters to go undercover in his own business.  Never heard of Hooters?  If I tell you that they’re big on cold beer, fried chicken and pretty girls in … Continue reading Undercover Boss: don’t tell me Hooters have never heard of market research

You say ethnographic, I say effectiveness

I had a really interesting chat last night with a friend who is an academic researcher.  She’s got funding for a very cushy ethnographic research project and I couldn’t help noticing the differences between her world and mine: 1) She suggested her own topic (within her specialist area) that she knew she’d find interesting and that … Continue reading You say ethnographic, I say effectiveness

the view from the other side of the research fence

I needed to get a quote from a research agency today.  For the first time in eight years I don’t have the luxury of an in-house research department and it’s been a real eye-opener. Using the excellent MRS Research Buyers Guide as a starting point, I knew I’d like to work with someone local as I … Continue reading the view from the other side of the research fence

A rogue respondent as seen from the viewing room

pic nicked from The White Rooms in St Albans (UK) - not where I was last night but v. highly recommended I was at a viewing facility last night and in the second group there was one respondent who was a real pain in the neck for the moderator. There’s always one (let’s call him Bob), … Continue reading A rogue respondent as seen from the viewing room