• by Jillian Lakritz , April 6, 2010

Last week I was given a rare opportunity to participate in a friends and family market research study. The subject was dishwashing.

When I arrived at the facility where the research was taking place, I was asked to fill out a lengthy survey on my dishwashing habits. Next, I was asked to wash a stack of dishes by hand. As I spent the next hour scrubbing my way through the pile, I realized that my real dishwashing habits were entirely different from what I had reported in the survey.

In the survey, I had stated that conserving water was extremely important to me, but my behavior suggested otherwise. Not only did I keep the water running unnecessarily throughout the dishwashing process, but I found myself thinking that more running water meant cleaner dishes. Conserving water was the furthest thing from my mind.

It's not that I had lied on the survey, it's just that it is difficult to recall actual behavior when not in the moment. As a result, I had provided answers based on my aspirations rather than reality.

My experience was a powerful reminder of the importance of looking at both beliefs and behaviors when constructing product and messaging strategy. Too often, we rely on reported data, whether primary or secondary, and miss half the picture. The problem with this partial view is that you set yourself up for possible trial without repeat because you have ignored how the usage experience impacts preferences.

Over the years, I have found that it is the powerful combination of digging deep into consumer beliefs and aspirations and fully exploring behaviors and interactions with a product that leads to the richest insights and opportunities for brand development.

• During ethnographies for a healthy cereal, we met people who told us they were extremely health conscious as they poured tablespoons of sugar on their cereal. It was only through observing this behavior that we understood the extent to which the healthy positives of the cereal cancelled out the negatives of sugar and as a result we launched a highly successful frosted line extension.

• In a qualitative study for a food product, we recruited people who told us that the majority of their meals were homemade or cooked from scratch. But when we opened their cupboards and refrigerators, we found pre-made mixes, meal kits and prepared foods. Understanding that "homemade" translated into the ability to heat, stir or add a few simple ingredients and words like "from scratch" linked to aspirations in the kitchen helped to form a clear and compelling new product and messaging strategy.

In both of these examples, had we not paid attention to both the behavioral and attitudinal cues, we would have missed vital information that resulted in growth.

If you want to improve your chances of driving loyalty and growing sales, try seeking a more complete view of the consumer's relationship with your products. Create opportunities for conversation and observation. Do as they say AND as they do and you will be in a better position to create products and messaging that will endure.