Aaron Shields’s Mind Terroir

We cannot use the random sample because informed opinion is not evenly distributed throughout the population…We can use the questionnaire only in broad form because we need maximum flexibility in recording the information if we are to allow the informed person to display every facet of his knowledge as he sees the situation.

-Alan R. Wilson. “Qualitative Market Research”
Harvard Business Review Vol. 30, no. 1 1952

Wilson wrote to subscribers of Harvard Business Review urging them to explore a new form of market research that could produce more actionable results than traditional quantitative methods: it was called qualitative research.

Although qualitative research is old to us now, any marketer would be wise to read Wilson’s article: I’ve seen many fall into pitfalls that would be easily avoided if they headed this wisdom from the past.

Wilson’s 2 main points are: 1) It’s not the quantity of the study subjects that really matters, but rather their quality. Those who know more about a subject are immeasurably more valuable for decision making than those who know little to nothing about your product and service. 2) Interviews should be open-ended rather than closed like the typical questionnaire. Questionnaires only allow you to select the best from a set of predetermined options that are being tested, whereas the open ended method allows you to select the best option, an option you may not have been aware of before the study.

Following these two ideas will help any business maximize the effectiveness of its research.

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