In the Aftermath of the Prototype

The most important lesson I learned from the prototype project was learning to be flexible in market research methods and changing approaches when dissatisfied with the insights gathered.  Our initial approach was to use flashcards to gain consumer perceptions of Nordstrom and the Nordstrom experience relative to other department stores.  While we generated important insights on their perceptions of Nordstrom relative to other retailers, we did not get a lot of detailed feedback on how Nordstrom “pain points” could be addressed.  We decided to take a step back and talk to consumers about the totality of their shopping experience, including online, mobile, and in-store engagement.  This is where we really started to generate insights.  By soliciting a comprehensive recap of the consumer experience, we began to determine what drives consumer decisions, what detracts them from shopping at Nordstrom, what brings them back to Nordstrom, and how the experience can be improved to align with their unique lifestyles.  The most compelling insights included the unwillingness of consumers to use mobile applications to retail shop.  However, unanimously, when we asked consumers to browse the Nordstrom mobile application, they said they were surprised at how visible the graphics were and that they would definitely download and use the app to shop in the future.  Moreover, by asking probing questions about their shopping experience, we discovered that they were unwilling to connect with retailers social media unless either a promotion was offered or they would receive significant time savings.  In sum, by utilizing a variety of research methods, we generated a holistic view on the shopping experience which allowed us to create a robust prototype.

Although seemingly obvious, I learned just how important a large sample size is in generating customer insights and in stimulating creative solutions.  While four or five consumers may have had one idea on a certain aspect of the Nordstrom experience, just as many others had another idea on this aspect.  Additionally, in generating patterns from data, the larger the sample size, the easier it is to see overwhelming trends bear out.  While several trends stood out in our data, it was even more interesting to us how different consumers think.  This allowed me to expand my interpretations of the experience and evaluate the consumer experience in a more authentic, diverse manner.  Moreover, the more consumers I interviewed, the easier it was for me to generate probing follow up questions on subsequent interviews.  Particular pain points, such as ease in the use of mobile applications and retailer’s social media websites, also became more apparent on subsequent interviews.  Thus, in conducting future market research, I am going to be very conscious of sample size, primarily as a means of generating creative thought flow and idea generation.

Surprisingly, the customer shop-alongs delivered the least compelling insights and, overall, did not add much value to our final prototype.  At the outset, my group thought the shop-alongs would deliver more compelling insights than the surveys or focus groups.  However, most of the insights in the shop-along were limited to store layout commentaries.  Customers were particularly focused on shopping for items they wanted rather than on giving well-thought out responses.  Most of the insights involved specific brands or niche ideas concerning items the customer was interested in.   Additionally, my group found that using specific question outlines for interviews was not the best practice given the range of variation in customer needs, ideas, and social media connectivity.  Rather, we learned that it was best to think of a few discrete categories of questions prior to the interview and then tailor the follow up questions to each particular consumer’s responses.  This way, we could let the consumer lead the interview while re-focusing the consumer if need be.  Generally, consumers will answer more questions and inadvertently deliver more insights by talking on their own rather than being prompted by specific questions.  Through the interview process, I became much better at generating insights and allowing the consumer a relaxed, unstructured environment in which to provide me with insights.

Admittedly, I was a little intimidated going into this project.  Nordstrom is one of my favorite retailers and the opportunity to advise Nordstrom executives was exciting but also nerve wracking.  How could our four person team provide compelling insights to folks who worked in the marketing and digital communications fields on a daily basis.  That said, as early as our first team meeting, I really began to appreciate the power of group think.  We had very different experiential backgrounds on our group, and no one had a strong marketing background.  Nevertheless, the diversity of ideas and the ability to generate ideas from one another made a lasting impression on me.  When generating customer insights, I always hope to work in groups in order to develop and hone my ideas.  Moreover, once I started conducting market research and interviewing consumers, I was impressed with how quickly compelling insights could be gathered.  The creative structure of the class gave me a forum in which to think beyond meeting consumer needs to instead thinking about how the entire consumer process could be improved.  While many of the principles taught in the class seem elementary on their face, in practice, I was impressed by the ideas that could be generated using these principles.  By using a variety of research methods such as flashcards, concept associations, and monitored mobile use our group was able to gather robust information about the Nordstrom persona.  Watching our final presentation really enabled me to see just how much I had learned in the class through the prototyping and creativity exercises.  I feel empowered and truly feel that this class will benefit me not only in my internship this summer but in my career as a marketer.  Thank you Professor Walls and Joanna!!!