The last blog post discussed marketing research and how it can help us make knowledge-based decisions in our pet industry business. Today, I am diving deeper to discuss qualitative and quantitative questions we can use when performing marketing research and talking to customers and other industry professionals to gather information.
As described in the Qualtrics article “Qualitative vs quantitative research”, qualitative research is described as being “used to describe WHY” and quantitative research “gathers information that can be counted”. We can see more details described in the picture from their article below.
Now that we know the differences between the two types of research let’s examine some examples of each that could be used in the pet industry.
Qualitative:
- What do you look for when choosing products or services for your pets?
- What words come to mind when you think of our brand?
- What are some of the challenges that you face when caring for your pet?
- Are there products or services you feel are missing from the pet industry?
- How do you typically find information about pet care products and services?
Quantitative:
- How often do you purchase food, toys, or accessories for your pet?
- On a scale of 1 to 10, how satisfied are you with our products?
- How often do you use pet care facilities?
- Do you own a cat, dog, or other pets? (multiple choice format)
- Have you purchased products from our brand more than once? (yes/no format)
So, what questions do you think you will use when speaking to your customers? Will you use qualitative, quantitative, or a mix of both? There are many benefits to both, but first, you need to figure out the research question that needs to be answered for your business and goals. Then, you must decide whether to do one-on-one interviews, focus groups, customer visits, or ethnographies. It is important to choose the method that works best for your business and your research goals. Once these steps are completed, the question-formulating magic happens, and companies can plan questions accordingly to get the answers they need to make future knowledge-based decisions!
“Whether you are asking qualitative, quantitative, or both types of questions, make sure that you are asking the right questions to get the right answers to your business’s most pressing research questions.”
Ashley Lee “Pet Pro gone Marketing Pro”
