Is social media analytics a priority that should not be overlooked?
Community-driven websites and social media are becoming a powerful outlet for people's thoughts and feelings on a specific product, brand or company. Being able to measure perceptions of a product or service is clearly valuable for businesses, and social media streams are beginning to represent a “never-ending focus group” suited to provide valuable, real-time insights into public sentiment, thus providing a good basis for informed business decisions. This has given rise to a fast-growing market for social media monitoring and sentiment analysis software and services.
One of the main topics dominating the world of business and IT today is big data. This is not surprising, given the increasing amount of digital business and communication processes causing a genuine data deluge.
How popularity – and lack of popularity – determines the choices we make.
In everyday judgments and decisions, our brains are susceptible to various fallacies known to social psychologists as cognitive biases. Among these is the bandwagon effect. It refers to a behavioral phenomenon whereby people tend to do something primarily because other people are doing it.
Recent studies from psychologists and neuroscientists are beginning to unravel how we use our intuition to make the right decisions.
Compared with careful analysis, intuition has always been viewed as a less effective approach to decision making. Whereas going with your first best feeling might seem efficient for snap decisions that are mostly routine and insignificant, for bigger decisions we usually favor a rational approach, for example by weighing written lists of pros and cons.
For most medical decisions, more than one reasonable option exists. However, each option involves different combinations of possible therapeutic or side effects. Traditionally, doctors make these decisions for their patients with little discussion about the patient’s preferences. This model of decision-making – choosing a course of action in the patient’s best interest but without the patient’s consent – is known as paternalism. Practice standards have shifted in recent years from a paternalistic model to one based on engaging patients in decision making.
Tapping into the collective intelligence of consumers
Aided by interactive technologies, today’s consumers expect to be able to communicate directly with an organization in their preferred language and style. They don’t want to have products, processes or experiences imposed on them. At the same time, consumer knowledge is increasingly being viewed as a key asset. Company-owned Interaction spaces like online user communities that enable and encourage greater degrees of participation and collaboration are on the rise.
Many economic models of consumer choice assume decision-making is characterized by rationality. This does not fit with evidence from cognitive psychology.
In economic theory, behavioral definitions assume that people are mostly economical in their decisions, making rational judgments towards obtaining the highest possible utility with the least possible input. The term used to describe this behavioral assumption is maximizing utility, epitomized in the concept of Homo economicus. However, as other scientific disciplines have shown, the concept of people acting rationally in pursuit of their self-interests can hardly be an accurate representation of reality. Alternative assumptions propose remarkably irrational behavior that contradicts the Homo economicus model in many ways.
How collaboration technology is changing the face of focus group research.
Qualitative research can offer fascinating insights into attitudes and perceptions. The most commonly used and well-known qualitative research method is the focus group. Researchers use them as both a primary and complementary method of research. In business settings, focus groups are used to study consumer needs and preferences, to test new products ideas or to investigate customers’ beliefs, attitudes and perceptions about a current business, service or advertising campaign.
Customer experience is driving growth
A handful of technologies we are increasingly relying on are reshaping IT: smartphones, tablets, mobile networks, social networking and big data analytics. Early adopters of these technologies have excelled in business. They have responded to a customer base that is reinventing how they choose to learn about new products, remain up-to-date on existing ones, and stay loyal to brands they value.
Are Social, Mobile, Analytics and Cloud the next big thing?
Four emerging technologies are rapidly changing customer behavior and expectations, thus challenging established business practices: social, mobile, analytics and cloud (SMAC). Social platforms, smartphones and tablets, analytics and cloud computing are the technologies we rely on most today. Therefore, it is not surprising that SMAC is increasingly appearing as a buzzword at industry conferences and in white papers, creating a wave of expectations and opportunities for businesses.
Binzstrasse 23 8045 Zurich Switzerland
+41 43 344 91 89 company@adviscent.com
Generel Terms and Conditions for Interactive Advisor
GetPre-Study
We use cookies to provide a user-friendly experience. By continuing to browse this site, you give consent for cookies to be used.
Contact us to discuss and plan a proof-of-value.