Larry David drives one, utilities use wind and water to generate electricity and engineered species of plants fall under this umbrella moniker too.  And now it is becoming a common approach to market research as well. 

For the past four years (a little longer than most agencies),MSI has been approaching various consumer research projects from a mixed bag perspective…something that the industry now refers to as “hybrid” or “fused” research. So I guess you could consider MSI as being on trend or ahead of the curve. 

Basically, it is a blend of a quantitative (usually online) and qualitative methodology or technique and not as individual consecutive phases which has been the standard approach. The benefit is that you have both a projectable quantitative platform  along with the layers of qualitative that can provide greater or richer insights…combining what consumers said with why they said it. Sort of the emotion behind the numbers.

MSI has employed this approach for message testing, ad tests, naming studies and packaging tests to name just a few.  The approach yields more useful data for less money and in a shorter span of time. 

Share your thoughts on hybrid research on our blog or gain other perspectives by visiting conversations like this.

Tags: Brian Arnold, fused research, hybrid research, msi

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