POV

Brands must make every customer interaction count - and that includes their research efforts. Marketers obsess over touchpoints—on shelves, in feeds, through ads, at events. Every single interaction is scrutinized, optimized, and personalized in the name of driving action. In fact, 83% of CMOs rank personalization as a top priority. But there’s one touchpoint most brands continue to sleep on: market research.

If every engagement shapes how people perceive your brand, why is research treated like an isolated function instead of the experience it truly is? Done well, it’s more than a tool for gathering insights—it’s a moment to deepen connection and build loyalty. But too often, it's overlooked or outsourced with little regard for how it reflects on the brand.

Market Research IS Brand Experience

As a CMO, I spend a lot of time mapping customer journeys. And here’s the truth: many brands invest heavily in understanding their audience while completely missing the fact that the research process itself is a brand interaction. Surveys, focus groups, and feedback loops are often a customer's first direct interaction with a brand. Whether it’s a quick poll on social media or an in-depth study, these moments matter. 

Also, it’s not just what you ask—it’s how you ask. The language, tone, and experience of participating in your research say everything about your brand. Warm or cold. Transparent or transactional. Curious or self-serving. Every element—from the welcome message to the thank-you note—either reinforces or erodes brand trust.

And while many marketing touchpoints, such as ads, push messages, research invites participation. It’s not purely transactional and that makes it a fundamentally different type of engagement. It makes people feel like insiders, not just targets. When customers see that their input leads to real-world action—whether that’s a product tweak or a new feature—they don’t just feel heard. They feel valued.

Rethink the Research Experience

If you’ve ever been surveyed, you know first-hand that it can feel like a chore. That’s a miss. The best brands are reimagining research to feel less like homework and more like a conversation.

That means shifting away from rigid, impersonal forms toward formats that feel human—mobile messaging, video feedback, emojis, dynamic questions. And yes, even gamification. These approaches capture richer, more honest input because they meet people where they are.

Some brands are taking it further by building always-on communities where feedback flows in real-time. These aren’t one-off focus groups. They’re hubs of co-creation, brand advocacy, and insight generation.

It can also be very powerful to take a final, often-missed step to close the loop. Show people how their input influenced decisions—whether through an email thanking them for participating or a campaign highlighting product changes rooted in real input—and you can turn one-time participants into loyal brand champions. This approach can show them first-hand that their voices matter and make a difference.

Integrated, Not Isolated

Research isn’t a back-office function—it’s a brand asset. So why is it still siloed? Treat research like you treat any campaign. Promote it across your channels. Make it part of your loyalty program, your in-store experience, and your social strategy. When research participation feels like just another brand interaction—not some separate, clinical exercise—you’ll get better engagement and better data.

Forget the one-size-fits-all survey. Segment your audiences. Tailor the experience. Make it relevant, fast, and frictionless – like an extension of the brand rather than a separate function.

When Research Drives Brand Love

The best brands don’t just use research. They elevate it. Brands like Coca-Cola, Carnival, and Kellonova have turned conversational research into a competitive edge—refining campaigns, improving experiences, and even boosting sales. Our own work with John Deere shows what’s possible: 90% of participants preferred conversational surveys over traditional ones, and 99% said they’d participate again. That’s not just good data—that’s brand love.

Market research isn’t just about understanding your audience. It’s a chance to impress them. Engage them. Win them. So, stop treating research like a checkbox. Start seeing it as what it really is: a high-impact, brand-building moment that most of your competitors are still ignoring.