Market led development of digital media based on qualitative research (presented by Thomas Troch - InSites Consulting and Tom Armstrong - Vodafone) at the Merlien Qualitative 360 event in Berlin (DE) on Thursday April 18, 2013. Digital media users are becoming very savvy in the way they expect and consume digital content. Proliferation of different devices and interfaces necessitate accurate understanding of user needs and expectations. By adopting qualitative user trials, experiences are captured near the ‘moment of truth’.

1. Market led development
of digital media based on
qualitative research
Tom Armstrong
Principal Proposition and Customer Insights Manager, Vodafone
Thomas Troch
Research Innovation Manager, InSites Consulting

2. Tom Armstrong Principal Proposition and Customer Insights Manager, Vodafone
Business
12 years experience in FMCG,
4 years in technology
Empathy in problem solving
Technology
Vodafone
Technology led global organisation

3. Thomas Troch Research Innovation Manager, InSites Consulting
Background in product/service design
Passion for understanding people People
InSites Consulting
Strong belief in the empowered consumer
Creativity

4. Innovation at the intersection
Business
How to bring quality in
a world where speed
and simplicity in People
Technology
development are king?
Creativity

5. LET’S
TALK
TECHNOLOGY

7. Challenging the status quo
Technical challenges with
high complexity
Tech
Product

8. Challenging the status quo
Dedicated teams to keep
track of fast evolutions
Tech
Product

9. Challenging the status quo
Dedicated methods to
solve specific issues
Tech
Product

10. Challenging the status quo
Drive loyalty
Launch 10 new
internet services
in FY2012
Gain buy-in from
21 markets

11. LET’S
TALK
PEOPLE

12. Marshall
McLuhan
We shape our tools and
afterwards our tools
shape us.

13. Consumer needs and expectations
towards digital content
are changing at lightning speed.

14. Customer participation in digital media innovation
1.
Start from a relevant
consumer insight.
Parents have a need to protect their
children from unsafe mobile use.

15. Customer participation in digital media innovation
2.
Lean development,
releasing well-working
prototypes from the lab
as soon as possible.

16. Customer participation in digital media innovation
3.
Capture real life service
experience over time &
co-create development
roadmap.
Helping families to teach their children
how to responsibly use their mobile and
the internet.

17. THE
MOMENT
OF TRUTH

18. Need for a holistic &
integrated approach,
matching real life
behaviour of service
usage over time.

21. GET THE
MOST OUT
OF IT

22. Numbers
The robust qualitative
approach, adding
numbers and structure,
was able to engage
internal stakeholders
across different functions.

23. Profile
Digitalized users
Target group of who are highly
smartphone adopters involved and can
push expectations

24. Time
+
Emotion
Discovery Understanding Evaluation Trial Adoption Repeat
-

25. Capturing ‘in-the-moment’ thoughts and actions through
task-based activities on the mobile community app.

26. High consumer engagement is leading to surprising
formats of feedback; this is an example of an infographic
generated by a consumer without prompting.

27. SO
WHAT?

28. Significant impact on development
1. Guiding
Go / No Go decisions.

29. Significant impact on development
1. Guiding
Go / No Go decisions.
2. Optimized services
are surpassing targets.

30. Significant impact on development
1. Guiding
Go / No Go decisions.
2. Optimized services
are surpassing targets.
3. Buy-in with local markets,
facilitating interdisciplinary team work.

31. “The user trials we performed with Tom has been the
most powerful tool to ensure that we stay in touch
with the customer. It provides the ultimate truth, an
irrefutable source of information, representing facts
rather than opinions and arguments – the end of all
discussions. But user trials can help also in many other
ways – better than any training to make your teams
understand what customer focus is really about and a
powerful tool to show management that their view
might not be their customer’s view, especially in these
days where every CEO wants to be like Steve Jobs.”
Enrique Marti del Olmo, Head of Communications @ Vodafone

32. "The feedback we received both quantitative and
qualitative directly influenced the products changing
the priority of existing items on the roadmap and
adding new ones. Other feedback channels like
Customer Service or Apps stores give an indication
of what to change or enhance, however, to really
understand how the customer uses the product you
need to run an FUT."
Phil Grange, Senior Product Manager @ Vodafone Group

33. Significant impact on development
1. Guiding
Go / No Go decisions.
2. Optimized services
are surpassing targets.
3. Buy-in with local markets,
facilitating interdisciplinary team work.
4. Engaging in longer term relationship
with customers who want to collaborate.

35. Tom Armstrong
Principal Proposition and Customer Insights Manager, Vodafone
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/tom-armstrong/1/657/806
Thomas Troch
Research Innovation Manager, InSites Consulting
@thomastroch
http://www.linkedin.com/in/thomastroch