Do you know what your customers, staff, donors, or indeed journalists that cover your sector, think or know about your organisation?  Simple research helps to identify any misconceptions or gaps in knowledge and helps underpin the development of a communication strategy. From five minute telephone interviews with key people to larger scale surveys - research can be invaluable in helping you protect and build your profile.

As well as finding out what customers think of you this is also a useful way of building up information on your competitors. It enables you to assess what is being offered, pricing, customer service, how they differentiate themselves, special offers etc. If you know what the competition is doing then it helps you stay one step ahead.

Research provides useful information - it can also provide a ‘news’ hook for a press release. This can be a valuable part of your communications, building up credibility with target groups and potential customers and establishing a reputation as an expert in your area.

The research technique will depend on exactly what you want to know and how you are going to use the resulting information. Each technique has its own merits:

• telephone interviews
• focus groups
• quantitative surveys
• one-to-one and small group discussion using exercises
• online polls
• mystery shopping - competitor analysis
• desk-based research.

We can carry out research for you or guide and advise you on doing that yourself.