Our school teachers were right: Learning how to write effectively makes a huge difference if your job involves communication. This applies to market research and marketing. Improving your writing will help you write better reports, better surveys, and better campaigns. It’s not that hard. You need not learn the art of essays, novels, dissertations, or…
This week we published the Versta Research Summer Newsletter, which focuses on Turning Data Into Stories. Here is a preview of what’s inside to pique your curiosity. First, what do we mean by “Turning Data Into Stories?” We don’t mean creating little vignettes or personas around every finding. No narrative arcs or emotional connection points,…
The Versta Research spring newsletter comes out this week, and highlights some of the work we have done that is in the news and recently published. Here is a sampling: New Index for HR Management Launched Versta Research was commissioned by The Standard to develop its Absence and Disability Readiness Index, launched in March 2019,…
It seems that every time we write or speak about market research infographics, people pay attention. Leading up the Fall 2017 Corporate Researchers Conference, the Insights Association asked for a preview article of our presentation on infographics for its weekly newsletter. It ended up being at the top of the Association’s list of most-read articles…
Yesterday I was delighted to share the stage with Kate Morris at the Corporate Researchers Conference in Chicago, talking about the power, the potential, and the “how-to” of spectacular infographics for market research. Kate spent many years in the research group at Fidelity Investments, and it was for Kate that Versta Research first tried its…
When Dilbert starts making fun of the most common words in market research—actionable insights—it’s time to consider letting them go. And now that nearly every marketing and research professional, every market research firm, and every data analysis tool touts a unique ability to offer actionable insight, I think we can now safely agree that the…
The goal of great market research is to provide answers substantiated with data. To make that research really shine, the ultimate goal should be to Turn Data Into Stories. That is why, in the video we released earlier this year, we highlighted “turning data into stories” as the definitive last step to getting your research…
How far should you go when reporting your findings, into the territory of interpreting your findings? An excellent researcher never stops struggling with that question, and the better you are, the more intense the discomfort every time you stretch away from the data to advise on what it all means. The importance of stretching beyond…
If you’re looking for a career-oriented new year’s resolution, there is no better way to improve your professional skills right now, including your research and marketing skills, than to write better. You will write better proposals and better reports. You will turn data into stories that people actually want to read. And with some practice…
Two of my usually-favorite sources for information and insight (AAPOR and the New York Times) came together this week with an embarrassing, face-scrunching example of convoluted statistical reporting: But Internet use correlates inversely with age and voting habits, making [online polling] a more severe problem in predicting elections. While all but 3 percent of those…