Synovate introduces 'always on' research

Community Panels are customised online communities that allow companies to interact with dedicated groups of their customers and prospects, and learn from them over time through multimedia surveys and discussion forums. This format allows a company to recruit once for its panel of participants, and then survey this group on a regular basis, saving money on research over the long run.

“Doing research online is certainly not new,” said Maz Amirahmadi, Synovate's Director of Research Reinvented. “Six years ago we were a leader in launching custom online panels. What's different today is the new platform that's available and the types of applications we place on them. Our community panels platform integrates both qualitative and quantitative research, enabling dynamic reporting and faster turnaround, so that insights are available instantly.”

In addition to speed - the PulsePoll application in Synovate Community Panels gauges consumer sentiment within 24 hours - companies can dig further with panellists to get ideas as well as integrate data from their existing customer databases into the panel, in order to learn more about their customers over time.

“We have created nine unique applications, think of it like the applications we use on iPhones, that give clients rapid results from consumer research on their promotions, product concepts and packaging, to identifying the latest trends, and testing these to determine their commercial value,” says Amirahmadi.

'Always on' research

Synovate Community Panels allow companies to reach out to their customers and prospects at any time. Since participants in the panels are fully networked, they can initiate conversations at will rather than to wait for brands to pose the questions.

Amirahmadi said, “Insights and discoveries that can be made through community panels are priceless, especially in the current market environment where growth may sometimes mean taking each other's market shares. The ability to gain firsthand information on consumer behaviour and spot changes in trends, so a company not only can adapt their strategy accordingly but also to remain agile amongst the competition, is extremely valuable.”

For more information, visit www.synovate.com/communitypanels.