In military slang, “ground truth” describes the reality of a situation as opposed to what intelligence reports and mission plans assert that reality to be. In a research context, being on location, in-person, with consumers is impossibly time consuming and expensive, making it rare that researchers can truly establish ground truth. But smart phones and mobile qualitative research have changed that. We can now be there whenever and wherever key behaviors happen. Here are five ways to use digital qual to access the ground truth of consumer behaviors.

1. 5 digital qual techniques to get the
ground truth of consumer behaviors

2. #1 Usage Diaries
These focus on how a consumer interacts with a particular object: a phone, an
appliance, food etc. The data capture is around the moment of use — the what,
when, where, why and specifics of the use. A diary of a day at an amusement park is a
usage diary on how the consumer is using the park.

3. #2 Spotter Diaries
This is about capturing people’s encounters with things out in the world (brands,
categories, advertising, etc), to understand the presence of them in a person’s life in
context. An example of a spotter diary would be to have participants post a picture
and a description of where they encountered Apple on a given day.

4. #3 Process/Purchase Diaries
These focus on a single, significant purchase decision that evolves over time. When
someone makes a big purchase decision, they go through a process: they do
research, talk to their friends, see ads, go to stores. This path unfolds over time, and
you need the whole narrative to understand the behaviors.

5. #4 Behavior Diaries
These are open-ended explorations and focus on a topic. For example, a hair care
diary could encompass tools, consumables and going to a salon or barber. The goal is
to get the whole picture of consumer behaviors around the topic.

6. #5 Mini Documentaries
Having participants create a mini documentary is a great way to capture something
about themselves or a specific activity. The documentary is split into three video
uploads, keeping things focused and brief. This can be adapted for process and
activities, environments, and ‘getting to know you’ activities.

7. Research in the moment
Get inspired
with digital qual
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