Greeting from Chicago, where I (Anthroguy) am attending the CEO Conference with some colleagues and students from Fresno State.
What does anthropology have to do with the market “hit rate” for new innovations? Blogger and design anthropologist Eva G:dotter Jansson answers this question nicely in a recent blog posting. Jansson makes an extended argument for the value of design anthropology and ethnographic user experience research for increasing innovation hit rates in the marketplace. The secret to hitting? Know what users really want and need. The method for finding that out? Ethnographic research – research that takes you into firsthand, face-to-face contact with users in their natural habitat, where you can observe, interact and talk with them around and about the product or service area in question. From Huggies to Lexus, user experience research has delivered the results (see Jansson’s posting for details).
Jansson cites two main sources to back her anecdotal evidence. First, she touches briefly on Standish Group’s CHAOS Report, an annual report on IT project success and failure rates. The 2009 CHAOS Report recounts the worst project failure rate in a decade. More importantly, a consistent finding across CHAOS reports over a 14 year period is, in Jansson’s words, a “lack of deep understanding of the user’s context and expressed and hidden needs.” As Mitch Bishop said over the summer: “When are companies going to stop wasting billions of dollars on failed projects? The vast majority of this waste is completely avoidable; simply get the right business needs (requirements) understood early in the process.”
Why is it so hard to get the user’s needs right? In my own experience, and that of others in my field, managers often rely on marketing to tell designers of all types what the customer wants or needs — yet, ironically, marketing often don’t know customer needs very well. Or, to put it more subtly, they know a certain kind of something about customers: they know what customers say they want. However, since people often have difficulty articulating needs, this kind of verbal report is unreliable. At its worst, taking verbal reportage of customer needs straight to the design process results in feature-listing, over-loaded products, eventual customer and/or user dissatisfaction, more feature requests, etc. (And the difficulties multiply when the customer and end user are not the same.)
Ethnography aims for the a deeper understanding of user needs, at a more general and hence more basic level than the feature.
Which brings us to the Doblin Group, a leading innovation consultancy. Doblin founder Larry Keeley has been touting for years the value of design anthropology in increasing hit rates. Going back to 2005, he told Nussbaum On Design that “companies can increase their innovation effectiveness by 35% to 70% or 9 to 17 times the norm. The norm, of course is the incredibly low 4.5% ‘hit’ rate of successful innovation that companies generally have. Keeley said that ‘if you just use anthropologists, you can triple your innovation effectiveness by three times.’” Blogger Jansson cites Keeley’s figures approvingly. The hit rate boost from using design anthropology/ethnographic research makes perfect sense to me – after all, there is no other method that gets at user needs and desires any better. But, I’m still trying to track down the data on which Keeley bases his numbers. If I turn anything up, I’ll post more.
By the way, thanks to Tim Stearns and the Anthrogeek for encouraging me to blog about this. Actually, what happened was, the Anthrogeek and I were taping The Pulse radio show (dated 10/24/09) with Tim when Jansson’s blog came up and the Anthrogeek told the listeners to tune into TheAnthroGuys for more. So, here’s that “more” A-geek promised for you.
TheAnthroGeek
anthroguy
Felicia Salcido
65 comments
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October 26, 2009 at 7:58 pm
RussellW
First off I just want to say that it is really nice to see Fresno State students getting out in the field and being able to travel to places like Chicago and Las Vegas and making a difference in their societies and others as well. These hands-on opportunities give them a chance to see what is like in the real world and will allow them to become successful in their near future. Trying to figure out the needs of consumers can be a very difficult and long process and needs to be done correctly if it is going to be successful in the end. I too believe that anthropologists and ethnography are a much better way to figure out and understand consumer needs. I don’t think all salesmen can figure out and analyze consumers in a society and hit on their wants and their needs; that is a job that needs to go into greater depths and would better suit the job of an anthropologist. Each consumer in a society is different and their social statuses may not be the same, so you cannot take into account for a few consumers, but rather all the consumers in a society. Not all consumers need the same thing, some might want to keep things simple and others might have more of a budget and think they need every gadget possible. For example some of the cars coming out these days have things on them that could do almost anything, but are those things a want or a need and do they discriminate against the people that can’t afford them. I think the needs of consumers of a society should rely on the research and predictions of ethnography done by an anthropologists rather than a salesman trying to sale you that item in the future.
October 30, 2009 at 10:42 am
Joseph A
I agree with you RussellW that it is nice to see the Fresno State students getting out and being exposed to different places. I also feel that it will give them some excellent experience and aid them in their future. While there are some good salesmen that do a great job of figuring out the needs of consumers, I agree with you that an anthropologist would be better suited for the job. They explore every aspect of a societies life and would be able to better determine the consumers needs.
October 27, 2009 at 11:21 am
Michael Brown
I liked how this article also tied itself to the concept of articulating “wants and needs” to be difficult. It says in the article that generally when designers are trying to figure out the wants and needs of the people, they go to marketers who only know what people say they want, which is unreliable. The job of finding out what people really want is perfectly suited for an anthropologist/ethnographer – not a marketer. They observe people in their natural state, and observe more than just one person. The needs of people are broad and deep – it goes way beyond just what someone says they want. You can’t find this out through pure marketing alone or word of mouth. This is just another – out of many – ways anthrpology/ethnography can be applied to benefit consumers as well as society as a whole.
October 27, 2009 at 2:40 pm
KatKingKaze
I would argue that, it is may not be marketings goal to figure out the consumers needs, but instead…what can marketing get the consumer to buy
October 28, 2009 at 3:06 pm
Josh F
People want to buy a product that they want, not just anything that is thrown out on the shelf. I belive that it is very important for companies to listen to the wants and needs of the consumer. From there they need to create a product that is perfected. Consumers in this economy are not buying much, but when they do buy something they want it to be exactly what they want.
December 7, 2009 at 3:14 pm
NimA
Yes, I would also have to agree with you KatKingKaze. I think businesses, try to find out what peaks interest in consumers and then use salacious or appealing advertising to subliminally make you want it whether you need it or not (i.e. electronics, fashion, entertainment, food?).
November 29, 2009 at 11:44 pm
Josh
I just wanted to touch on the wants and needs issue, I believe that in this tight economy consumers are leaning towards buying things they need. So you would think that companies would start making products that people need oppose to a product that they just want. I havnt seen much of that yet, but i will say products that are needs for consumers, such as groceries, are being marked up drastically.
October 27, 2009 at 2:32 pm
KatKingKaze
Ethnographic research can and does aid in the discovery of “the user’s context and expressed and hidden needs.” By a systematic, in the “trenches” observation of the customers’ process and outcome needs, ethnographic is a very useful tool. Too often, I feel that desired outcome often over shadows the actual needs of the client.
I agree with the statement by Jansson, “Know what users really want and need” is the secrete to Hit success. That being said, it is difficult to interpret the customers’ needs. As is the previous Blog articles, people have difficulty “articulating their needs”, but I have said before, that people don’t always understand what is it they want or need.
Let’s say a client wants to blow dry her hair quickly. By listening to her needs and desired outcome (to dry her hair quickly) a more powerful hairdryer is produced. Unfortunately the more powerful hairdryer now makes her fine hair fly away and full of static.
If the client’s process had been systematically observed, the design anthropologist could have suggested a process change: towel dry hair first, applies styling product and dry hair with standard blow-dryer and vented brush. Instead, R & D resources were focused on development of a product that did not meet the true needs of the consumer.
Many times in my life I have seen commercials for products that I am amazed could possibly have a consumer. But when it is someone’s job to develop new and innovative consumer products, I believe that “form doesn’t always follow function”. All too often marketing tells consumers what is needed and or desired. After all, isn’t that marketing’s job…to get the consumer to buy what they don’t need with money they don’t have?
October 28, 2009 at 11:04 am
michelleva
This is true. Wants and needs are not always black and white. Ethnographic research is rooted more deeply in understanding and analyzing compared to marketing. I agree with KatKingKaze that marketing often serves not at a need but what they want you to need. Marketing develops trends, not that we necessarily need but what can grab the attention of people. Yet if we get to the bottom of real needs trying to grab people with marketing won’t be needed. If a friend comes across a great product they are bound to tell their friends about it. Great products sell themselves as someone once said.
Hiring an anthropologist to research the wants and needs of people will be much more profitable and valuable. Their job is not to study the surface level of people but the entire story of their lives.
I believe the challenge is business people understanding anthropological research. Business people are not always trained to understand people but rather profits, and the future of the company. It is not just the business people not understanding but also anthropologists that need to sell their services. If there is further communication about what are strengths really are we can come together for great results.
I will say that the development of products is no easy job. There are many facets to consider and people are unpredictable.
October 28, 2009 at 2:45 pm
anthroguy
Thanks for the comment! I have one bone to pick: while there is an unpredictable element in all human behavior, I think that people are more predictable than we often think. You just need to sutdy and understand them from multiple angles, using sound methods.
October 28, 2009 at 2:12 pm
SoniaI
I must admit, when I think of consumer research I don’t automatically associate it with Anthropology or ethnography. But since reading this article, I am even more convinced of the effectiveness and usefulness it provides in research. With the utilization of anthropology in this arena, it works to dig deeper into the minds of consumers. With respect to ethnography, it also proves a method to obtain accurate and genuine information—related to consumers interests, values, and concerns. The uniqueness provided by the anthropologists is the ability to assess the consumers need and transform these verbal suggestions into products and services without misinterpreting the consumers feedback. Besides the actual physical interaction between the consumers and the researchers it is vital for the development of successful product. You would think, who else would know better in regards to what the consumers want to see in the market then the actual consumer. More than enough reason for the increased utilization of these professionals’ knowledge and unique perspective in marketing research. In the interesting and informative article by Eva G:Dotter Jansson, she elaborated on the success and failure rate of projects directly correlated to certain aspects. Such as the inability of the consumers not being able to articulate themselves and address there—as Jansson quoted—“hidden needs.” As a consumer myself I agree that even I have difficult time to express my ideas and thoughts in regards to products and services. Yet, I begin to think about the unsuccessfulness of the researchers prior to the use of anthropologists. I think it was partly due to the preconceived notions that had of consumers need, and for what reason the consumer needs the product. Overall, what is interesting about the utilization of anthropology in this realm of marketing is a different approach and knowledge applied by these professionals. Which has proven to more beneficial and successful in it approach to collaborate with the consumers.
November 29, 2009 at 6:12 pm
Michelle smith
I agree with Sonia. I did not link consumer research with anthropology, but since reading the article it does make sense. Anthropologists study people. They study the interaction between people, their lives and how they do things. Marketers may know products and what is in popular demand. However, anthropologists and ethnographic research aims to study people and the lives of the people or consumers. So they are more aware of what people the consumers want and need especially in each community. Every community is different and the people’s wants and needs within the community are different as well. Not every community is going to want or need the same things.
October 30, 2009 at 11:08 am
BiancaA
It’s very difficult to figure out what people want and what people need. I would assume that a company is able to figure out what people need instead of what consumers want they would be successful. During these economical hardships people are not willing to pay for things they don’t need. Ethnography would be the key to figuring this out. The process of getting out there and observing your product in action can be helpful in many ways. A company can learn of new ways consumers use their products and also what about their product is favored by consumers. There are so many failed products by numerous companies that no doubt did not due their research. When I think of research and marketing I automatically think of just getting out there and asking people what they want. This article points out that people really don’t know how do say clearly what they want. I, myself have difficulty decided what I want for lunch. I can see how important ethnography and anthropology are to learning what people want and need in products and services. I work for a major financial institution where things are always changing. Products and services are always changing as well as terms and agreements. In my opinion the failure of a certain product or service isn’t always due to insufficient research but because the needs and wants of people are always changing. I would assume that it’s absolutely necessary to get involved with your consumer to figure out what they need and I would also assume to use a diverse group of people for your research. I absolutely agree with Keeley and his statement of using anthropologist to increase the hit rate of innovations. When you’re dealing with people and their tendencies, why in the world would you not use anthropologists?!
October 31, 2009 at 1:47 pm
Angel Mendez
Where marketers go wrong is that often they feel they have the ability to tell the consumer what they are going to want to purchase rather than really putting in the effort to find out what the next big thing is going to be. Initially, I would not have considered Anthropology and ethnography to be the least bit beneficial to marketing but now that some thought has been put into the subject it is easy to see the benefits presented by anthropology and ethnography that marketing companies can take advantage of. An important point, that is worthy of being brought up again, is that sometimes consumers have an idea of what they want but are not exactly sure what it is. These is where the benefits of an outside observer can become advantageous and profitable to marketing companies.
October 31, 2009 at 4:15 pm
Chris R.
Wow…. This sounds like a great idea. Congratulations on behalf to all those who had the opportunity to participate in the CEO Conference which took place in Chicago Illinois. It is excellent to hear that students from Fresno State are showcasing their talents in front of thousands to spread the word about what and how anthropology/ ethnography can assist businesses “hit rate” when addressing consumer needs. Who better for the job than those who put in countless hours of observation and in-depth research throughout the course of a study? A true anthropologist can assist by studying the values and embedded roots and beliefs that we people posses as a whole. I think this suits the mind of an anthropologist because this type of understanding unfolds the who? how? and the why?. In comparison, to the marketing businessmen who are more concerned about hitting profits then what and why the consumer needs are to some extent. As one knows, a marketers job is to be creative and innovative in ways to “sucker” in the consumers. I think we as a society for the most part have become” suckers” taking liking to the flashy electronic systems and newly highly designed items that in reality are just the same as the original product but with “show off” type of accessories. I will be the first to admit myself; I too get caught up in the temptations wanting to buy item upon impulse. Which brings us back to the origin of the question? What one “want” and what one “needs”. What remains to be seeing here is if the businesses men and women of today anthropologists are willing to see “eye” to “eye” in regards to “consumer needs”. I must admit, I had really never thought that anthropologists can be of aid to the business world in this regard. By now, I’ve changed my perception and totally like the ideas from “ Eva G:Dotter Jansson”, which entail ideas and artifacts that show how businesses can improve their “hit rate” which has been proven. Overall I thought this was an excellent article…
October 31, 2009 at 7:39 pm
Taylor Hiyama
Wow, it’s great to see Fresno State students at work. Vegas now Chicago……what’s next? I can see how anthropology/enthrography can help businesses get the “hit rate” on new inventions. It makes total sense…if you know what the customers really wants or needs the product will be high in demand. The only problem is that many times customers may not know what they need or want. Anthropology/enthrography can help us understand the needs and wants better by getting a first hand look of their lives. If they study everyday lives of customers they can see what they have difficulties with. Customers may overlook these simple difficulties of everyday life and may not tell the marketing company. Here anthropology/enthrography can really shine by helping businesses make money and get the “hit rate”, and also help the customer make life more easily and simple. The statistics of how anthropology can increase “hit rate” is outstanding. It would be stupid of companies not to use anthropologist in their marketing. Jasson says it perfectly by saying, “The vast majority of this waste is completely avoidable; simply get the right business needs (requirements) understood early in the process.” Companies could be saving billions of dollars if they knew what customers really want and need. This article also has broadened my view of anthropology. I also thought anthropology was people going into third world countries, or African tribes and studying the way they live. I had no idea they had a place in marketing and helping people make their lives easier. Also, that anthropology is relevant and has probably impacted my life through the products I buy. Jasson says , “The hit rate boost from using design anthropology/ethnographic research makes perfect sense to me – after all, there is no other method that gets at user needs and desires any better.” I couldn’t agree more.
October 31, 2009 at 10:29 pm
JeffFord
I would have never have thought anthropology could have such an impact on product design, but it should have been pretty obvious when I thought about it for a moment, why wouldnt people who are experts in the study of humans be skilled at figuring out the wants and needs of people? The statistic for hit rates described in the article was 4%. It sound like design anthropology is pretty effective from what I read in the statistics, between 35-70%. Those stats are off the charts, almost unbelievable, Id love to see the empirical data that was collected that produced those numbers just for curiousities sake. Its probably not as easy as it sounds to specialize in design anthropology. Not only do you have be an expert in the field of anthropology but you also have to be creative and innovative. Probably not everyone who is in the field of anthropology possesses both the creativy and expertise with in the field to be effective in area of design anthropology, so it seems like a skilled and experienced design anthropologist would be high in demand in the job market. After reading the article it makes a lot of sense to me why the hit rate of new innovations are so low, relying on just marketing to tell the company what the consumer wants is very difficult. Marketing alone is insufficient by itself in determining what the customer wants, and this doesn’t take in to account that often the customer themselves dont even know what they want. Expecting that customer input in marketing research would be especially innovative is probably not a reasonable expectation when designing a product. If the statistics presented in this article are true, then hopefully more companies will take more attention to design anthropolgists and make the economy more efficient.
October 31, 2009 at 10:52 pm
JenniferB
I would think that if a company was trying to increase the “hit” rate of the product sales using the expertise gain through anthropological research would be incredibly successful in understanding the wants of their target consumer than the current marketing tactics currently being used. I feel that more and more I see products that are being “sold” to me, I feel like the company is trying to convince me of the essentialness of the product than actually presenting an essential product. I participate in online surveys. They vary from simple questions about where I’ve eaten in the past few months, what kind of products I’ve purchased or services I subscribe to and sometimes I’m asked for my option about products and commercials for products. When I am asked to evaluate a commercial I find it rather ridiculous that I’m asked which layout I like better than what I really think of the product. Do I prefer the larger text or a specific message/logo over another. I’m always asked whether I am more likely to purchase based on what I’ve seen and how much I think the product is worth. I think they forget to ask whether I was interested in the product before the survey started. I think that if an anthropologist were to follow me around they would see that my shopping habits aren’t based on logos or color combinations of packaging.
November 30, 2009 at 7:25 pm
Michelle smith
I agree with Jennifer, companies try to convince you that you must have their product and life without it is hard or not cool. I have not taken any surveys, but I did take a class on manipulation and persuasion. We learned about advertising and how companies market their product to the public. If you watch any commercial they are about trying to convince you the consumer that their product is the new cool thing that everyone has, so you must have it also. They use movie stars or other famous people a lot of the time for this. Buy this product Michael Jordan uses it. Now everyone wants to be like Michael Jordan so they go buy the product. After all if he uses the product it must be good. Companies also use the technique of marketing to the kids. They know children are very gullible and can convince them much easier. The children then bug their parents until they get what they want.
November 1, 2009 at 3:17 pm
Patrick M
I agree with the article in that using ethnographic research is the best way to find out what the consumers think of the product being tested or getting their opinion for improvements. With new products coming out pretty much every day it’s no wonder why some things are a big hit while others just flop. Good research needs to be adopted early in the development stage and carried out through the entire process from production to the final sell. It seems like every other week there is a new fitness machine is advertised on television that promises to build muscle and burn fat. However, the wants and needs of everybody can’t be met therefore, more anthropologists need to step in and get the companies the help they need to be more successful. Sounds like a win win situation because anthropologists would be getting hired to do a specific job while it would also be benefiting the company all thanks to ethnographic research.
November 1, 2009 at 5:29 pm
Brenda M
I never stopped to think about how markets do their research to know what costumers need and want. It may be that by simply asking the consumers it not enough because at times the consumer itself does not know what they need or want. They only think they do. So if research is done that way, it is not a valid source and the product will not be successful. I have also known that many companies do research by conducting surveys, and again this would not be a valid source because the information is given at one point of time and from one perspective. I can know, after thinking about the article, figure how the study of Ethnographic research would help companies make products with a high success rate. It makes better since that the research is done first hand and by observation in a natural state and setting and getting to know the consumer. This way there is numerous amounts of data that is valid, and the companies will get the best understanding of what consumers really want. This in return will get the company’s product to sell and they will get the maximum profit possible. So it would be smart for companies to hire and think about ethnographic research, will be better the company and their products.
November 3, 2009 at 8:24 pm
KatKingKaze
In my field of practice, the field of nursing, Anthropology/enthrography plays a huge part. Patients generaly don’t understand what they need or want or the resources available to them. For example; Home Health Nurses everywhere, every day, enter their patients’ homes, to evaluate the living conditions of the patient. To assess the current health status, health practices, health knowledge, and available resources. The nurse then collaborates with the patient and family to decide what resources are available and what is needed to meet the needs of the patient.
November 2, 2009 at 2:23 pm
Paloma Dominguez
I agree with this post most of the time sales people tend to focus on a very small popularity. A small sample cannot give one an input of what the whole society wants or needs. I believe that anthropologist would do a much better job a finding out what each society is most interested in. Anthropologists take the time to actually observe individuals within each society. By doing this, anthropologists are able to discover or learn about a particular society customs, wants, and needs. Many times sales people make assumptions based on what is bought the most. This may provide some information but what they are forgetting is to also include the society that does not purchase those same items. If they were to actually take the time to research who are the ones purchasing those items and who are not sales people would be able to target both groups. Wants and needs play a different role in people’s lives. Wants are the things that people do not need but feel like they have to have. Needs on the other hand are the things that people need in order to survive. It seems like anthropologist focus more on what the society or people need rather than on what they want. Sales people do not really know the difference since their main focus is to sell their product. In today’s society the popular things are of course the items that are more advanced in technology. Sales people tend to focus in providing new and cool items that target the group that is willing to buy the new technology but they tend to forget about those who are just happy with buying the same item that does not need all the new technology. For example, cars are now becoming more modern and have more technology than back than but it is not necessary. Some people do not really care about adding new things to their car but of course sales people want to please those who want the cool cars. Sales people should acknowledge the work that anthropologist do in order to learn about each society. This would probably help their business as a whole.
November 2, 2009 at 8:27 pm
Michael Brown
It’s funny..I’m always seeing advertisements/infomercials on TV that are just completely off the wall – it seems like there has been no “real” effort or research put in to the advertisement and it’s target audience etc. “Oh, this product will make this chore or action a lot easier and more convenient to do” have you put ANY effort as far as research goes to whether or not anyone would buy this and the company would make a profit? It seems if ethnographic research was employed as the norm for product-design it would eliminate all of these practically useless gimmicks that flood late night TV (it also shows how lazy we’ve gotten…can we do anything the old fashioned way anymore….elbow grease??) – I honestly cannot see how a profit is made on these products, I have never once truly considered buying a product off of an infomercial (except Tempur- pedic
)
November 6, 2009 at 12:53 pm
KatKingKaze
I am also at a loss, as to, what some marketing agencies are thinking
My question is this; Does a high “hit rate” equate profitability? Because like Michael brown, I see many infomercials and wonder.
Will Americans buy just about anything for just $19.95… But wait there’s more….?
Are these products that truely “hit” what the consumer needs, or are consumers sucked in by the marketing?
December 10, 2009 at 12:02 am
Marlene Ortiz
This is too funny. I admit that the saying, “But wait, there’s more…” gets me every time! Even the most simplistic and cheesy commercials have an affect on people. Even though people hate them, they somehow become a topic of discussion since everyone has seen them at one point or another. You might think of it as a gimmick, but if it grabs people’s attention then they have done their job. I have personally never bought any products from infomercials, but I have been tempted to want to make an impulse buy. Especially when I see that commercial where there is an older lady cooking so many different types of food within minutes in this little machine that resembles a waffle iron (if you know which commercial I am talking about then their advertising gimmick worked).
November 2, 2009 at 11:37 pm
JulianaR
I honestly have never heard of anthropologists marketing their knowledge and skills in this manner. I don’t know if it has really been done before but without much publicity, but this is really a great idea. Like mentioned, it is a resource that has definately been untapped. Who else would know how best to study humans and their ways? Every company would benefit greatly from a full time anthropologist. Not only will they study the company’s target market, but they can study the actual end user and how best to widen that margin.
I work at a retail store and I see too often clothing that does not sell at our store specifically. If there were someone that did some ethnographical research and studied our local market, then we would not have so much merchandise that failed and consequently ended up being marked down and sold at a lesser price. Something that flies off the shelves in San Francisco, like colorful scarves for men, may not sell as well in Fresno. I do know that the company I work for does do studies to see how well something sells in our area, but I don’t believe they update it very often. We use to sell slim pants/denim for men at our store 2 years ago, and being that they didnt sell well, they stopped sending them. But now, 2 years later, the style is to have slimmer pants on men, but being that they didn’t sell well 2 years ago, we didn’t recieve any this season! They need to update their info or get an athropologist ASAP. It would be a neat job title: fashion anthropologist.
November 6, 2009 at 6:04 pm
Gabriel R
I think the failure of many products is the disconnect between technological innovation of designers and current consumer need. What I am saying is, not every technological advancement is great product. But every technological advancement is a constant step forward to the next great consumer product. Sure, some guy could develop a computer that brushes my teeth, washes my car, and makes me breakfast. Even though it would be a technological feat, it wouldn’t be something I’d want to buy or need. Yet, this is what happens. Marketers and companies push products that are pushed for no other sake than them being an “advance,” even though the supposed “advance” doing nothing more than solving a problem that doesn’t exist. This is the bridge that enthographic design researchers build, by connecting human problems with consumer solutions. This approach is much more concise and successful than attempting to solve problems in a reverse fashion.
November 7, 2009 at 9:03 pm
Chirag Patel
I must admit I never think of Anthropology when it’s come to marketing or sales. It is very diificult to figure out what consumer really want. I also agree wants and need are not a same thing. I agree with the statement by Jansson, ” Know what users really want and need” is the secret it success. Taht being said It is difficult to interpert between the want and need. For example customer wants a big car. By listening to his needs and result is bigger car. Unfortunately the bigger car averge is much lower than smaller car.
November 7, 2009 at 9:17 pm
Chirag Patel
I must admit I never think of Anthropology when it’s come to marketing or sales. It is very diificult to figure out what consumer really want. I also agree wants and need are not a same thing. I agree with the statement by Jansson, ” Know what users really want and need” is the secret it success. Taht being said It is difficult to interpert between the want and need. For example customer wants a big car. By listening to his needs and result is bigger car. Unfortunately the bigger car averge is much lower than smaller car.
I think hiring an anthropologist to reserach the wants and needs of people will be more sucessful. In today comperative market big company willing to do anything to get lead(such as hiring anthropologists) and make company more profitable. For example big company like AT&T have anthropologist working for them to find out what customer really think and what they really wants. I absolutely agree with Keeley and his statement of using anthropologists to increase the hit rate of innovations. Overall I thouhgt this was an excellnet article.
November 9, 2009 at 9:27 pm
ErinM
I never really took this topic into much thought but after reading this article it makes perfect sense to combine marketing with anthropology and ethnography. By applying ethnographic research, anthropologist can get to the bottom of what consumers really want. What people want is not exactly what people need. Especially in this hard economic time people are counting their pennies. People still have the same wants however they are less willing to pull out their wallets to pay for it. Instead now a day’s consumers are only buying what they actually need. As stated in the article most people have a hard time verbalizing what they really want and need. So it makes perfect sense why businesses have such a hard time succeeding in the marketing field. I was not aware at how much money companies have lost due to this failure of not truly knowing their consumers. To simply ask people in a quick survey is not enough. Instead by using ethnographic research companies can more accurately determine what people really want. Ethnographic researchers use numerous methods to gain a deeper understanding of consumers needs by interacting and observing people in their natural environment. Ethnographers can report back to the company with new ideas about a particular product. They can even have an entirely new concept all together that a company can possibly produce. I feel that this method is much more productive and will lead to a company’s success. So by applying this ethnographic research to this business marketers will be able to identify the consumers hidden needs. It is truly amazing to think that millions can be saved by simply incorporating anthropologists into their business. I feel that Larry Keeley is absolutely correct in his idea of using anthropologists to increase the hit rate of innovations in the marketing and sales business.
November 10, 2009 at 12:08 am
Josh F.
I think that in order to figure a person out it takes some time of simply observing their behaviors. Like it was said before, anyone can be figured out with enough time. However, when it comes to producing a product that people are going to want and need it takes more than just observing. Take Apple for example. If Apple were to conduct a series of ethnographical studies throughout the U.S. can you imagine how advanced the next iphone would be? If they followed different age groups around and observed what they used their phones for and listened to what they wished the phone did, imagine what the new iphone would be. If a company like Apple learned what each age group wanted out of their phones and wad able to meet those needs i bet almost everyone would have an iphone. If a company took the time to conduct some research and really get involved with the people that are buying the product the sales would go up drastically. Don’t you think?
November 10, 2009 at 9:50 am
Michael Brown
I read through all of the comments and agree with Angel and Gabriel – it seems like companies are pushing what we should want, not really finding what we want and then creating a product around that. It also seems like companies will create a product in HOPE that people will buy it, again, not finding out before hand if people actually want or need it..basically most things you see on late-night infomercials. Things that “solve” problems that nobody actually had. The only way these products sell is because of the way they are presented in the advertisement or infomercial..if you were to see a box in a store that said “slippers that have a dust-mop on the bottom” I highly doubt people would buy them. We are pushed to consume of a daily basis.
November 12, 2009 at 3:15 pm
Ray Millard
I agree with you Michael, companies are producing products that solve problems that we don’t have. I believe that this all relates to humans becoming lazier and are willing to spend money on things that will make our lives easier. The only argument I would have against this hypothesis, should be that we companies are producing products that are advancing in technology which have made humans more efficient and productive. This argument would only stand if you don’t take into account the advancement of video games and other entertaining products. However, I believe those suppliers research through ethnographically.
December 9, 2009 at 11:49 pm
Marlene Ortiz
I agree with the comment on people becoming lazier. With all the new technology advancements, consumers fall into the trap of the added entertainment they offer. People stop becoming involved in other activities and focus their interest more on what entertains them. Usually this involves sitting in front of a screen for hours at a time.
December 6, 2009 at 4:05 pm
Gabriel R
I really like your idea that “we are pushed to consume on a daily basis.” To me, this seems to be the goal of marketing where they create a false need to an unasked question. I think researchers create products with an end need in mind but rarely connect the dots to what new problems they are creating with each new invention. Not all things require a re-invention of the wheel although if left to marketers they keep talking like it does.
November 10, 2009 at 11:24 am
adamshamoon
I read the article posted on November 9th about ANALYTIC INDUCTION and the IMPORTANCE OF TRUTH.
The article was interesting. It stated that when studying anything, “Common Sense” needs to be challenged. An author (Mariampolski), who wrote an Ethnography book, stated you have to “move beyond initial assumptions about what one sees in the field.”
He felt that to be creative you have to get beyond your own “gut instincts” to help liberate the real truth of an observation.
This is very wordy and a little confusing, but I think it means to think “outside the box. ” To me, and its the way I live, I think it also means to not just take everything at face value.
QUESTION everything you hear and see. Don’t just believe what appears to be truth, but really explore the facts.
I think as an anthropologist, particularly when you are observing in the field, it would be extremely important to look at all angles of everything you are observing. Your “gut instinct” might tell you that two people are arguing (disagreeing) about a subject, when in fact they are heatedly agreeing about a topic and exploring all the different aspects of the topic.
I guess I am a natural skeptic. I am always looking for the opposite view. I find that so many people have “tunnel vision” and don’t think for themselves.
A text book states some “truths,” you think, “well then they must be true.” I find that often, when you research on your own, you often find that the “truths” aren’t truths at all.
Interesting article.
November 12, 2009 at 3:15 pm
Ray Millard
I agree with this posting, I believe that using ethnographic research can be a successful method to finding out what exactly consumers desire. How can product suppliers produce a successful product by researching a broad field? To understand people’s demands, researchers need to look deep into their consumer’s culture and behavior to completely understand what they want. For example, grocery stores supplies should be based off of the culture surroundings in order to be successful. It would not make sense to supply more Hispanic foods over Asian foods in an Asian community. The grocery store would not sell nearly enough food to stay in business or at least maximize their profit margin. The only way the grocery store would know what to supply is through ethnographic research. When reading this article, I am surprised to find out that so few companies’s use this method when the success rate is so high.
November 15, 2009 at 2:28 pm
CelinaG
This article seems encouraging to anthropology students because it ensures some job availability. Clearly there is a need for anthropology in product design and research as well as in marketing. I am not an anthropologist but as a picky consumer I often watch commercials or see products in stores and think “who the heck thought of that” or “that’s not useful at all”. It’s about time the consumers were considered in product design. I find it a little disconcerting that it has taken so long for designers and manufacturers to realize the importance of consumer lifestyles and needs when designing products. I think the next place for anthropology input is in the design of affordable family homes. I’m not sure if they are already being utilized by major residential developers but in my experience on touring model homes in the Fresno area, developers don’t have any idea about what modern middle class Americans need in their homes.
November 16, 2009 at 9:10 pm
Michael Brown
Interesting point Celina – designer homes. I think an anthropologist would definitely be useful in this field. They could work closely with the contractor and architect and design homes based around the preferences of people around the area.
Yes, Ray..there are definitely companies that are advancing to make us more efficient – I was mostly talking about the garbage you see on late-night TV. It’s just sad that we resort to selling these useless products that make us lazier and less productive – all for profit.
November 19, 2009 at 9:23 pm
Maria A
People are afraid in some way to ask people what they want. This may be due to the fact that there are many people that would feel that their opinion does not count. The commercials on TV show us things that we know of or that are new on the market. These certain items may not have even been thought of by the consumer but the company thought about it and are risking it hoping that the consumers will buy the items. Depending on the time of day the commercials have a different impact on the people that are watching them. For example if there are young people watching the TV they usually watch it during the afternoon and later in the night. So if the commercials are about things that are in style and in fashion they would probably buy them, not interested if they really need it or in how much they cost. Adults that are lonely watch it late at night and could get involved in buying those weird products. How do the companies determine how much everything costs. There are some products out there that are expensive and there are other brands of the same thing but cheaper; what is going on with this?
November 23, 2009 at 9:52 pm
Krisa N
Finding what consumers really wants versus needs are the specialties of Anthropologist. Sale person conducting a survey or having a face to face interview with consumer about the products that they would like to see in the market are different then living in a societies and getting to know the consumers from a personal level of interest, desire, wants and needs. The accuracy and satisfaction of the consumers that Anthropologist provides the marketing industries are far more advance and straight to the point. By having Anthropologists going around and study different cultures and what is important to cultures producer will save producers time, money and resources that may be use in producing other important things. The key here is to know exactly what people really need so that resources are not wasted and when produce are made, consumer will utilize it and not waste anything. From a consumer point of view, human uses and abuses the marketing system. We let our desire shadow our needs. When this happen we tend to buy things that we do not need and it end up sitting around in our house. It takes a lot of resources and energy to satisfy our desire, which in turn hurts our earth. If we as consumer can control that desire, we can slow the progression of global warming. Anthropologist will help in the matter that they will study what particular cultures needs and convey that to producer to produce items that we know for sure that will be utilize that satisfy their necessities. Money is such a powerful piece of paper. It is money that drives to producer to try to fetch our desire or needs. Money can buy what we want if we have enough for it. Consumer need to really ask them self before they go out to the store and buy what they see that may look pleasing to their eyes that a lot of energy and work is put into it and if we all buy what we do not need we will hurt our self and our earth. Money can only go so far. Money can be use to buy objects that we want off the shelf, but it cannot ease human suffering that may occur with global warming.
November 27, 2009 at 3:35 pm
ANA D.
First, it is wonderful that Fresno state students get to travel to places like Chicago. So, congratulations to all these students.
I agree that sometimes it is very hard for the consumer to say exactly what they want from a product. Prior to reading this article, I would not have imagined that anthropologist and ethnographic research could help companies succeed. I did change my point of view after reading the article. Anthropologist and ethnographic research can be very helpful when it comes to business. A manager does in fact many times only rely on what the marketing tell them are the need of the customer. In contrast, anthropologists go to the customers’ natural habitats to observe and study them. As a result, anthropologists have a better understanding of what people really want and need contrary to only relying on what the customer say they need. This might be the reason why according to the article companies only have a 4.5% hit rate success. I do believe that with anthropology’s techniques and research companies can be able to drastically increase their effectiveness. This reminds me of what P&G researchers found when they actually went to people’s homes and observed laundry and other household routines. From these observations they came up with ColorGuard. If it would not been for these observations maybe to this date we would not have this product or it would have taken much more time for companies to discover it. This shows me that anthropologist can really get a sense of what the customer needs and wants. I agree with what Mitch Bishop that companies waste billions of dollars on projects that end up not being effective. Many companies come up with want they call “new” products, but the reality is that they only changed or added a few ingredients. In other words, they are essentially the same product. For example, many lotions or face creams labels may say “with new active ingredients” or “new and improved”, but never explain what makes them “new”. When people buy the product they find out that it is no more good than the one they had previously purchased. In the case of electronics, most new products only have a new look, but they say that they are totally different from the previous product in the market or products made by the competition. This may be the reason why they have such low success rates. At the end the customer end up not getting what they really need and only buying slight changes of the same product they already had. Sadly many of us fell for these types of advertisements. For example, when a new cell phone comes out to the market many people want to have the new sophisticated phone. In many cases they only use the phone for exactly the same things that they used their old phone. The only difference might be that they can show off that they have the phone that everyone wants to have. This endless cycle continues for ever and at the end no one gets what they really are looking for. It is here is where anthropologist are very useful since they are professionals who study people and know their roots and values. They are the ones that can say most certainly what product would really please customers’ wants and needs.
November 30, 2009 at 4:43 pm
Kat King-Kaze
YOu hit the nail on the head with the cell phone thing. How many times have I received the “FREE upgrade” offers from my cell phone provider. I look at my current phone and say..you are out of here phone! I believe the sale person that I need all the new “bells and whistle” these new upgrades will improve my “ease of use”. I become starry eyed over the new shiny phone, that can contect to the internet and find my songs just by holding it to the radio. What a smart new beautiful phone…
Wait a minute…I already have an IPod with about a billion songs on it…I only access the internet at work for…WORK! Hay this “free upgrade” just cost me 125.00!!!
Someone out there really did their homework…dangle something sparkely in front of me and I snapp it up like a starving dog
Tell me it is an improved better version of what I already have, that it will improve my “joy” add “free”and I am all over it!
November 29, 2009 at 4:31 pm
Edgar Sepulveda
This article was definitely an eye opener. I always wondered how new inventions or innovations happened to us. The fact that anthropologists help in the process of developing new innovations came as no big surprise since it actually makes sense. However, many of the gadgets or commodities surrounding us today do not seem like the work from anthropologists giving companies a helping hand but more like a competition. Once the iPhone was out in the market, an array of different touch screen phones from different companies came into the picture. We are rarely getting new things it seems but more like similar products that are trying to outdo the competition. Nonetheless, there seems to be a touch screen phone for the different needs of the people. I’m sure the success of different companies depends on how much money they are willing to spend on research.
Something I was particularly interested on was the development of Design Anthropology. Seems as if Design Anthropology revolves around the same core idea as Applied Anthropology which is to find out what issues are of concern to different social groups and think of a solution. The only big difference is that Design Anthropology deals with products instead. But it seems that they both use the same principle of finding the problem and a possible solution. What’s at stake is money but sadly, money talks.
November 29, 2009 at 6:45 pm
Kyle C
I would also like to congratulate the anthropologist that attended the conference in Chicago. That is a great way to start promoting anthropology as a profession to young students with anthropology as an interest. Now to the article, I like the fact of saving money, and it blows me away how much money is wasted by large corporations everyday. When the nation is in the most debt it has ever seen in history a large business is throwing tens of thousands of dollars out of the window every day without hesitation. They use less than accurate methods of surveying the population and do not put any thought into how they can improve their failure rate. With the simple addition of an anthropologist to a large business they are proposed to make gains of up to 70%. That is a no-brainer for me. I just do not see why a company with so much money would throw away so much money. Or is that the problem, they have so much that they do not care if a fraction of it gets wasted. I just feel that big business is killing the “mom and pop” stores that more than utilize their resources. But, ask any successful businessman, it takes money to make money. A sad but true statement, I hope the growing field of anthropology can assist in a change.
November 30, 2009 at 12:01 am
Kip Macarthur
I think that it’s really cool to see Fresno State students like myself traveling around the United States to places like Las Vegas and Chicago. I think that this is giving them a very valuable experience that many students don’t have the chance to partake in. This “real world” experience is giving them a chance to work in their field of expertise and will enable them to be very successful in the future. It helps these students to understand various cultures and people from around the country. I think that anthropologists and ethnography is the way to go when it comes to trying to figure out the wants and needs of consumers because this is such a tough and unpredictable task to perform correctly. Because consumers of different socioeconomic backgrounds and cultures are so varied in their wants and needs, the only appropriate way to estimate their needs is to do some sort of anthropologic related research. Some salesmen would probably fare okay, but if a company wants someone with more expertise then this is a job suited for an anthropologist. An anthropologist would be able to use everything that they’ve learned about human beings and combine that with professional research methods to design a product for the consumer.
December 9, 2009 at 11:32 pm
Marlene Ortiz
People are different in many ways and their expectations of a product vary just as much. It is hard to please everyone with one products. Instead of generalizing what people want, anthropology offers a new study of what people really want. If manufacturing companies are constantly reinventing their products, then why not reinvent their research strategies as well. This type of research can only help sell a product.
November 30, 2009 at 3:15 am
MattH
Hi everyone,
I too also agree that it’s good to hear Fresno state students being able to go to Chicago and participate in this conference.
Ironically I recently watched a segment on PBS that explored this topic of discussion. The segment that was titled Independent Lens “Helvetica” and directed Gary Hustwit. Hustwits goal was to show how today’s designers go out in public and use Ethnography methods to try to make already existing products better. One of the products that the film explored was how to make a carrot peeler better (Hustwit 2009). A design firm explored this issue of the carrot peeler; they used Ethnography methods such as asking the public which handle was more comfortable (Hustwit 2009). The objective of the designers was to make the handle of the peeler good for all ages (Hustwit 2009). Comparing the redesigned carrot peeler to the before, it is much easier to use has a better grip and is more eye pleasing (Hustwit 2009). I believe that the goal of the designer for redesigning the carrot peeler was to be able to make the most reliable product for the job so it would attract consumers because of the fresh new look (Hustwit 2009). Hustwit wanted to show that design should be simple and the design should also be able to express the personality of the person who owns it and that would attract the consumers (Hustwit 2009). Hustwit also believed that the product should have a purpose and to be long lasting. All of the components that Hustwit talked about are what a designer’s goal should be.
I agree with both Anthroguy and Hustwit its unfortunate that companies don’t use Ethnography methods to make a better product because it would give them a greater likelihood of making a profit. Ethnography would give manufactures a better chance because the companies would actual gets to know the needs and wants of the people that would use the product. It is true that human beings are picky our tastes are always changing. That is why it seems to me that Ethnography research is the most likely research method that would work.
As some of you have said that some companies just put a new face on a product and say it’s new. I believe that a lot of people including myself have fallen into the trap when we see either a new package or label and we think that the product is new but it isn’t. I believe that humans are easily persuaded into getting something that appears to be new. We have the tendency to try to be in the norm such either drinking under age, or even to getting a cell phone that everyone has such as the Iphone. I believe that a lot of companies are trying to make that new thing that everyone will try to get so they can just make a profit.
When companies just develop a product because they just want to make a profit that is wrong; it should be the last thing on the minds of a company. Their goal should be to design a product that as Hustwit has described benefits the life of you and me.
I believe that a perfect example of a product that benefits the life individuals is the production of the box watermelon in Japan. For the development of the box watermelon the developer used Ethnography research to develop a product that fits the lifestyle of a target community. For example in Japan’s large cities there is a large influx of people that reside so that there is little to no room to live. People have to live in small apartments so there is little space to put big size food items in the apartments. So someone developed a watermelon that would grow into a box shape and that it is smaller than a watermelon that we would get from the grocery store. The water melon is able to fit in the refrigerators on one shelf. In other words the watermelon safes space and are economical for the lifestyle of the people in Japan. That is why developing a product such as a box watermelon is great because it directly reflects the culture or people that use that product. I believe that developing a product such as that make a greater likelihood of making a profit.
Ethnography research allows a person to have a greater understanding of things around them. Such as a developer/designer they are able to understand the people that they are developing a product for. Furthermore as I have said before Ethnography research is good for designing a product for people. Ethnography research can be applied throughout other studies such as in the law enforcement community. The law enforcement community is able to reduce crime rates throughout a city by getting involved- talking to the community they are policing and making sure their face is known. So that they are respected and able to understand the people they are policing. When they are able to understand the people they are policing they are able to reduce the crime rates.
I highly recommend watching Gary Hustwit film on Independent Lens:
http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/objectified/film.html
November 30, 2009 at 3:41 pm
lawrence l.
After reading the article on hit rate it is crazy how companies put billions of dollars into projects that make and thers that fall apart. i would have never thought how some of the companies use anthropologist to help them decided what to come up with. the example about the lexus toyota and how they studied the families including the one about pullup diapers. anthropologist observing families with children who wore diapers, and how the parents are ahamed of the children being older and still in diapers. that is were they develop pull ups to get the child to learn and move onto underwear. a report that anthropologist use called CHAOS show how projects fail because of the anthropologist going out and not getting enough information and understanding in the project they are working on at the time. reading more in the article it also mentioned that managers often rely on the market to give them an idea of what costumers want, need, and are looking for, but this is why some of the projects do not make it. i like the idea of the fresno state students being able to travel and do some field work. i think that is the best way to learn about your area that you are majoring in.
December 1, 2009 at 10:49 am
Brandon Wright
This blog brings up a very valid and interesting perspective as to the relationship of business and anthropology. As some of my peers have argued, marketing departments can only play a limited role in the business world. Marketing departments are usually focused on getting consumers to purchase a specific product. Their goal is often to get the consumer to focus on the product, not getting the product to focus on consumer need. The product is designed prior to reaching the marketing department. When it is not, the focus is often on rather or not a product is marketable. Both the business as a whole and the marketing departments can benefit ethnographic research and anthropology as it relates to business.
The business can help increase their hit rates with new products by observing consumers. As with the previous blog, some consumers have a hard time articulating what they need from a product. Additionally, consumers know how to adjust a product to fit their needs without realizing that they are doing so. An ethnographer can observe and look at the needs of a certain group of people in a certain market. The needs of each individual may differ by the community, region, and demographics, all which may become evident to an experienced ethnographer. This also can help businesses improve their product to better fit their target market. They will also be able to create a product that better fits other markets they were not originally targeting. As a result, slight variations and different models of a product may develop to cater to the needs of different groups.
Marketing departments will also benefit from the work of ethnographers and anthropologist. The ethnographer can observe and relay to the marketing department the different ways that the consumer benefits from the new product, or the changes made to an existing product. It will enable the marketing group to use punch lines such as “no more worrying about…”, things that often appeal to consumers and their appreciation for change in a previously existing issue. They will also be able to tell marketing groups how most people use a product, and the funny behaviors that may relate to a product and appeal to the humor of the consumers.
December 3, 2009 at 3:58 pm
Chasity Maske
I agree that ethnographic research is an important tool to knowing what consumers want and need. Because ethnography focuses on observing people in their natural habitat, anthropologists can make conclusions based on observable data and not just based off of opinions from marketers. From the blog, Anthroguy states that marketers often don’t know customers needs very well. As I think about this statement I’m questioning how could someone try to sell a product to someone they don’t know very well or even understand why they need that product. This type of “marketing” does not make any sense to me. Why would someone spend money to create a product for a consumer of which they know nothing about? This is why I agree that to make a useful and valuable product companies should take in account research from anthropologists who have ethnographic data. The statistics from the Doblin Group only shows how effective anthropologists can be in increasing hit rates of a product.
Also, in regards to this blog and school budget cuts, it is great to see that the anthropology department is allowing Fresno State students to travel to learn more about this field. For me, I know that I learn better in “hand on” experiences. To experience the CEO Conference must have been a great opportunity for the students.
December 6, 2009 at 6:15 pm
Cary Reents
I agree with the idea that marketers don’t actually know what consumers want most of the time. I work at retail store, in the receiving department, and I continuously see dump products that get shipped to us that continuously never sell year after year. Each year they buy thousands of a certain product that never to hardly ever sell. The “wants and needs” issue that comes up is a great example of how marketers get lost. People want certain things but the drive for the “needs” is more powerful because they need certain things to survive. Especially now, people are locking their wallets for the the things they want and only want to spend money on the things they need because the economy is becoming harder on everyone. I agree with Chasity, how can marketers know the needs and wants of everyone? that is impossible! I think that people who spend their money intelligently end up knowing what is best because they know how to actually spend their money and not blow it all away and end up losing all of it.
December 7, 2009 at 3:37 pm
NimA
Quite an interesting article. I was unclear about if applied anthropologist/ethnographers are used in all aspects of consumer products or is it just the items that are needed or peripheral items that one can do with or without? I can understand the need for products (i.e. cars, housing items) that everyone uses has to be applied for the masses isn’t this were anthropoligist/ethnogrphers figure out better methods of today’s product that can be applied to future products to improve the usefulness or demise of it? And as far as “hit rate” I always thought it supply and demand-if they want it they’ll buy it (zhu zhu pets).
December 8, 2009 at 11:33 pm
Daniella Echeveste
I agree with many of the readers that ethnographic research does sound like it is more effective from the study stated in the above article. I agree with the previous comment that human behavior is more alike than different. Many psychologists try and find a pattern of similar behavior that can be generalized to a larger population. I think finding a mean of what everyone finds as a need is also important when trying to determine what a “need” is for a person. Everyone may have a different definition of what they believe they need but in a society that bombards us with advertisements trying to sell them most updated phone we get a feature loaded phone. Getting rid of the features and getting down to the essentials is a challenge. Ethnographic research sounds that it gets at this by getting at a deeper understanding of the user and focusing more general levels of the product than focusing on features. However, I see the problem that a manger may see with this method. Many people look for features when they go buy an item, even though they may not use this feature people like the idea that they can use it if and when the time comes. For, example I recently had bought a laptop that comes with a disc drive that can makes its own labels, however I have to buy a specific cd or dvd which cost more than the regular cd or dvd. I liked the feature even though it was not essential to me because of the possibility that I may one day want to use it. I have had my computer for little over a 3 month and still have not used it yet. There are people out who do live very practically but I believe that these people may be in the majority. It is a pattern in human behavior that people desire nice things and that desire them now as opposed to later. This idea makes this problem when trying to make items that are not over feature loaded yet meet what people need.
December 9, 2009 at 11:01 pm
Marlene Ortiz
When I think of advertising and marketing I do not associate it with the study of anthropology and its research techniques. While marketing research is quick to determine what the consumer wants or what they might like in order to push out the product, they fail to see past initial findings to take a deeper look. Anthropology/ethnography actually observes and studies people in their natural surroundings and learn from their interaction with a product instead of making assumptions of what they want in a forced setting. They study even the smallest things people do that most marketing researchers may miss. The type of research done by anthropologists can only prove to be advantageous to a marketing team. Introducing the idea of finding out what people really want in a product will benefit both sides of the deal. Spending the extra time and efforts will pay off because the rate of failed products in the market should decrease. I am graduating in the field of advertising and graphic design and I never saw the connection between the research I did to come up with marketing strategies and the research done by anthropologists. I just thought anthropology was something that was far from what I wanted to do. After reading several articles about the methods anthropologists use to gather research, I find that they are more useful to me than what I was already doing. I can definitely apply this type of research in my field and I strongly believe that it will help me. The ultimate goal of a designer is to tap into people’s wants, desires, and insecurities and play off of them. The idea of “doing anything to sell the product” is the direction most go, but actually spending the time to figure out what people really want can change the direction of marketing. Maybe even tone down the ethical issues of advertising.
December 11, 2009 at 12:42 am
Raul Lopez
Very interesting, prior from reading this post, I never would have imagined that anthropology can be used in marketing. I think, the combination of designed anthropology with ethnography, is what makes Jenssan’s argument strong. As stated, enthnography, welcomes a deeper understanding of the client needs. In contrast to marketing advisors, ethnography gets inside the trenches of the clients and ‘walks in the shoes’ of the client- in doing so, you become aware of their needs. Although, I agree that consumers are predicable, companies are competing to identify your needs. More so, with the current economic meltdown, companies are eager for the innovative edge to compete. This type of research is very personal, in that it allows the researcher to view the world from the client’s lens. If the needs are not met, people will not buy the product. Also, the consumer’s needs are always changing, and does the providers need to change their product. I am reminded of the famous Super Bowl commercials, in how they are so popular because of the commercials. More than half of commercials don’t apply to me and yet I look forward in watching them- mainly because of the humor in them. Based in the high hit rate and success, I wonder why corporations have not jumped on the van wagon. It makes sense to hire anthropologist to conduct this value and money-saving concept. I am interested in how the design and ethnographic research is conducted. What type of questions they ask, etc. In all, as society is rapidly changin so will marketing. Perhaps, this is the beginning of a new best-practice in identifying the needs of the clients.
December 12, 2009 at 1:18 pm
Paul Mabry
I think this post makes some good points about the effectiveness of using first-hand ethnographic research and observation to improve innovation and “hit-rates.” Observing the end-user of an intended product/service, and having an opportunity to interact and ask questions would have to be more effective than relying on market research, and findings. I almost see this approach as being similar to putting a puzzle together. When we put a puzzle together, we look at the picture, of what the puzzle is supposed to look like, and we use that as our guide to put the pieces together. We don’t ask other people what the puzzle looks like, or read a description of what the puzzle looks like – we simply look at the picture on the front of the box. Observing and interacting with consumers/end users, is a company’s way of “looking at the picture on the front of the box” (metaphorically speaking). Doing this, gets the business right to the heart of what it is trying to accomplish in its product or innovation. I would think that this method would also be effective for improving workplace efficiencies, especially in large corporations. My wife works for a very large corporation and she is routinely frustrated by the red tape, and policies and procedures that don’t make any sense. Unfortunately, the decision makers are so far removed from the people in the trenches, and they makes decisions based on 2nd and 3rd hand feedback from committees and managers, that they really don’t have a complete understanding of what those in the trenches are going through. Wouldn’t it be nice if decision makers took the time to observe the activities and frustrations of front-line workers and had the chance to interact with them to hear what their needs/concerns are? I have to wonder if this would lead to a more productive and efficient workplace environment.
December 15, 2009 at 4:31 pm
Cary Reents
I think that marketing groups can be overrated. Many people lie when it comes to marketing programs that allow people to test products and then reply about what they do and do not like about them. Even though thousands or millions of dollars is spent on marketing research for certain products, their is still a huge possiblility that the product will fail the expectations of the company. But I guess it goes back to the saying “you got to spend money to make money”.
December 17, 2009 at 8:04 pm
ChristopherP
good point Cary, i agree when you say that marketing groups can be overrated. Many of these Marketers do lie and send a very misleading and manipulated message in order to help in any possible gain/sell the product. But I believe that is the point of marketing, it is not utilized for the consumer but for the retailer/producer. Marketing is a strategy used to try and entice society into purchasing “their” product…attempt to convince you that you should/need “this.” Statistically, this approach has proven to be successful and strategic which is why so much money is spent. Yet, to what extent (in terms of success) varies greatly from one product to another (and how it is marketed). Although, applying anthropology is gaining more and more attention. Business’ and corporations that incorporate this essential aspect in combination with marketing, ethnography, surveys, will work the best and optimize profit success.
December 16, 2009 at 12:29 pm
KrumeichP
Well, I am a Communication major, but I’ve always been interested in the marketing side of business. I often think of new ways to present a product to people, or a product itself, so that they’ll instantly want to buy it. I do think there is a great difference between “fad” items and products; the example about the Snuggie was good, but I don’t know how long that one will last, its like the pet rock or the alarm clock you throw at the wall to turn off, they make good fun items, but not ones that will most likely withstand the long hall of the business cycle. I personally love the “little treasures” (or fad items) because there just so darn cool, however, I think that as far as product placement and ethnographic studies for the purposes of selling something consistently should be more applied to the Lexus example. The auto industry is such a massive machine with so much competition I wonder how companies stay in business. There really isn’t one car manufacturer that has a corner on the market; GM owns a big chunk, but then so do the Japanese brands. Maybe its just a big conglomerate, its sort of a monopoly, just a collaborated one. Anyways, I have learned over the last few years about ethnographies and the benefits that they can have in many areas of business, education, and society. The idea is to really understand, not just observe or take some notes on, but to truly understand what people outside a particular circle are like. I specifically liked the statistics, because numbers are everything in business, the bottom line is the only line, and when it was noted that through the use of anthropologists a business could expect some significant increases in overall performance, I was impressed. But it makes sense, if you can employ the talents of people with an eye for the unseen, then you’ll be able to offer the people something they really want (and will pay for) rather than something they don’t want, and will only buy sometimes.
December 16, 2009 at 3:06 pm
KenB
This article clearly shows how effective anthropology can be when used in the right situations. By apply it to find out what exactly consumers want, companies can dramatically increase their “hit rates”. I don’t see why companies wouldn’t invest in using ethnographic research. It seems that they money they could save from financing inaffective products could be put towards improving the products consumers truely desire. When presented with the overwellmingf evidence that using ethographic research cut costs, I would believe the choice for businesses would be easy. Companies are all about making money and anything that decreases profit margin is possibly cut. Wasting money, especially in today’s economy, would seem like the most important reason to cut a program. Hopefully, companies such as the Doblin Group will continue to evolve and be used by producers, and companies will be able to spend their money on more important issues and products and not waste it on inaffective ideas.
December 16, 2009 at 5:27 pm
Andrew Liddle
One of the big problems that people have with articulating their desires is that they often know when they are dissatisfied with a product, but don’t really understand why. In the early days of the automobile, I’ll bet that there were a lot of drivers who didn’t like taking long trips in cars, but didn’t have the thought of: “Hey, I’d like to be able to take my foot off of the accelerator and have the car still keep going.” Yet cruise control (renamed from autopilot after some disastrous misunderstandings) is now standard on most new cars. So, I absolutely agree that getting ideas from marketing (from consumers themselves in a roundabout way) for new products is generally a bad idea. They generally don’t have an objective perspective about what they’re trying to sell, and that’s one reason they tend to be good at selling it. One of my dad’s old Air Force buddies once told me how frustrating it was to have a group of people working on a problem and to have my dad walk up and within a matter of minutes have a working solution. Sometimes it takes an outside perspective to get things going in the right direction.
December 17, 2009 at 2:33 am
Sally S
It seems natural to me that the secret to a successful product is design anthropology and ethnographic user experience research. To know what the consumer wants, one must know the consumer. A good idea can only take one so far. The idea must fill some desire of the consumer, it must be marketable and it must appeal to a broad audience. The consumer often does not know exactly what they want as they work around what’s missing. When my family had a VHS player, I was unable to fathom a DVD player as an upgrade until it had come out and now I only watch DVDs. The average consumer just cannot see future products like that. The researcher would have to observe what the average person does in everyday life. A hit product would be something that fulfills a need or desire in the consumer’s daily routine that may or may not be something that they would remember to mention if asked what they desired. Often times if I have a new product or an improvement to a product that I desire, I will only remember it when I am doing the task it would be for.
The clothing available on the market now seems to me to be an example of disconnect between retailers and consumers. The fabric is thin and of inferior quality, often times falling apart far before it should. The cut of the garments fit hardly anyone, and they are overpriced. When I go shopping it takes me hours to find anything halfway decent, if I find anything at all. If a marketing person asked me what I wanted in clothing, I would not be able to directly tell him or her. I know what I want, but it’s difficult to put into words. The marketing person would be far more successful if he or she actually observed what I looked at, rejected and purchased. The researcher would then not only see what I was purchasing, but what I was rejecting and could theoretically learn why the items were rejected. If this research were done on a larger scale, the products available would be much closer to what the consumer actually wants. If an anthropologist were involved, he or she could provide further insight to the consumer’s needs or desires that may not be evident even to the consumer. Consumers are only human after all and sometimes what they say and what the really want are completely different.
May 14, 2010 at 6:53 pm
chihiro M
This topic is very interesting. I did not think about that anthology and business are closely relating each other. After I read this article, I realized that business comprises by seller and consumer, so a company borrows the knowledge from the anthologist is inevitable. A company wants to know what consumer want and need now or near the future. But some countries want different thing, so a company need to make such produce to suit each country. Therefore, getting a successful company is essential to help the anthologist. I think hit rate is very good way to research what consumer is interested in right now and the company use this date for how much they need to produce the product and how they can increase sales. That means a company do not need to produce waste product. Therefore, a company has a greater chance to succeed without big risk.