Larson Research and Strategy Consulting helps clients grow their business with better, smarter, more precise marketplace knowledge. We help clients fully understand how their customers live, think, and feel – what drives their choices, what captures their loyalty, what gets in the way.
We also help clients understand themselves in the context of a highly competitive environment – what are the choices that sit opposite to their offering in the consumer’s mind? What are key competitors doing? How does the overall value proposition stack up?
In short, we provide insights that help ensure our client’s products, services and messaging are relevant, compelling and differentiated.
Two key areas of expertise are the Baby Boomer market and affluent consumers, where the firm has conducted market-leading research across a broad range of industries, including retirement planning, financial services, wealth management, philanthropic giving and “green” investing, luxury brands, retail, and e-commerce, entertainment, travel, online buying for luxury brands, and luxury publishing and media.
The firm also has special capabilities in conducting research among the elusive High Net Worth and Ultra High Net Worth consumer, as well senior executives, industry experts, media thought leaders, and other hard-to-reach respondents.
Capabilities include:
- Focus Groups
- In-Depth Interviews
- Custom Quantitative Surveys
- Ethnographic / In-Home Studies
- In-Store Observational Research
- Marketplace Audits / Retail Environment Studies
- Cohort / Spouse / Family / Friendship Set Studies
- Usability / Website Studies
We design qualitative and quantitative research to address a wide range of learning objectives, including:
- Brand Perception
- Brand Architecture / Positioning
- Advertising / Messaging / Creative Execution
- Competitive Analysis
- Value Proposition / Product Offering
- Generational or Familial Research
- Consumer or Marketplace Segmentation
- Pricing
- Satisfaction
- Product Design / Features and Benefits / Service Configuration
- New Product Development / Market Entry Strategy
A SAMPLING OF PROJECTS INCLUDE:
Industry-leading landmark research study for a Fortune Global 50 company on Baby Boomers in the context of the new economy as they approach, plan for and enter retirement; their hopes, dreams, fears and concerns in the wake of the market downturn; how they manage and think about money in retirement; how their attitudes, expectations, needs, values and behaviors are changing.
Broad-scale brand perception study of six global luxury brands to assist the world’s largest luxury house in understanding perceptions, associative imagery and evolution of their own brand, providing in-depth understanding of brand’s core essence / DNA within the context of other luxury brands, along with key new direction for brand messaging and competitive positioning.
Broad-based nationwide study of Baby Boomers and adjacent age groups to investigate and better define their relationship to new and emerging media and entertainment technologies, informing programming strategy and positioning for a major television network targeted to this audience.
Nationwide in-store ethnographic research study on women’s shoes, utilizing our proprietary innovative technique, Hot Context™. Entailed observational research and interviews with dozens of women in shoe salons across the country to gain deep insight on shoe buying and shoe selling behavior. Enabled client to implement major improvements across merchandising strategy, selling process, messaging, and shoe design.
Major national grocery shopping study for the nation’s largest media supplier to the consumer packaged goods industry. Featured an innovative three-pronged learning approach including end consumers, brand managers (e.g., Kraft) and all major leading grocery retailers. Provided critical input for segmentation, brand positioning, in-store and at-home media programs, and National Sales Force strategy.
Brand evaluation and marketplace assessment of a West Coast and mid-West retailer targeted to teens for a venture capital firm considering acquisition. Investigated brand strength, competitive position and long-term growth potential; included in-store interviews, focus groups, mall-walks / competitive analysis and quantitative research.
Consumer needs assessment, entry strategy, and brand positioning / brand identity for a private wealth management firm targeted to individuals with $20 Million + investable assets. Conducted foundational research to explore marketplace needs, profile customers and help define optimal service offering. Brought in and worked closely with design firm to then develop naming strategy, brand identity and collateral materials.
Multi-brand integration strategy and competitive analysis for a multi-billion dollar auto rental provider, providing new direction for differentiated product and service offerings across three different brands, including detailed multi-dimensional portraits of key target consumers, product positioning, and overall value proposition.
Comprehensive study on premium shopping outlets for a multi-brand fashion apparel provider, incorporating more than 100 in-store shop-along Hot Context™ interviews across six major U.S. markets. Input was key to understanding core consumer shopping segments, optimizing merchandising strategy, and identifying opportunities for improvement across all retail stores.