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Research as a Catalyst for Sound Association Decision Making
| Date post: | 07-Dec-2014 |
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Research as a Catalyst for Sound Association Decision Making
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Today’s Topics
• Research 101 – benefits, applications, definitions
• Research you can conduct yourself with no/little budget
• When to call in a professional
• Research in Action: Lessons learned by a mid-sized CESSE member
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Correctly done…
Research:
•Gives members a voice•Allows you to hear from new audiences•Validates or contradicts whims and curtails lurching•Surfaces new product ideas/unmet needs•Provides insights on competitors •Tests ideas and assumptions •Determines product/service pricing, positioning and
distribution•Monitors performance and member satisfaction
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Research 101
The First Step in Successful Research
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Primary research: Collecting data that doesn’t already exist
Secondary research: Collecting data that already exists
Qualitative: Deeply descriptive and anecdotal information
Quantitative: Findings that can be expressed numerically and applied to confidence intervals (statistical reliability)
Research 101—Definitions
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Qualitative Research+Quantitative
Research=Sound Research
Research 101
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Research You Can Do Yourself
No Money…No Problem
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Research You Can Do Yourself
• Secondary research
• Electronic survey instruments*
• Distribute questions to
market-facing staff and
volunteers
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When do you need a professional?
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CESSE Member Mini-Case Study
Budget: ~ $6,000,000Members: 5,862 – 6,120 (20% growth in corporate)Why: New exec loves data, needed myth-busting and voices from broader audiences, never did
it beforeWhat: 69 interviews, two focus groups, electronic survey (19.5% response rate), enviro scanWhen: Late 2007What’s next: Repeating in 2011
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CESSE Member Mini-Case Study
Surprises in the Data
• Members much less conservative than leaders• Very small (older) segment revered sacred cows
• Time-consuming and potentially troublesome elections were not necessary
• Academics had been over-represented in association decisions• Myths about corporate members were disproved
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CESSE Member Mini-Case Study
Forced Choice Method
• A departure from typical scale-based methods• Effective when contemplating key decisions
–Major change–Strategic planning–Program development
• Must be informed by qualitative phase• Seeks a measure of “practical significance”• Allows for segment-specific solutions
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CESSE Member Mini-Case StudyPotential Products and Services Importance Satisfaction
Opportunity I+(I-S)
Ceramic materials property database 5.63 3.76 7.50
Online repository of publications and resources related to ceramic materials
5.80 4.19 7.41
Topic specific listservs to connect to peers in your area of interest
4.89 3.78 6.00
Career-related tools, information, and resources for those in materials related professions
4.74 3.89 5.58
Reliable data on the availability of raw materials 4.67 3.88 5.46
Online courses or audio/web seminars on hot topics related to ceramic materials
4.43 3.61 5.24
Accurate and comprehensive salary information for ceramic science, engineering, and production positions
4.26 3.40 5.12
Benchmarking data and operating ratios for different ceramic industry sectors
4.32 3.61 5.03
Opportunities to work in small, peer-based groups to advance ceramic knowledge
4.22 3.64 4.80
Information about funding sources and research grants 4.29 3.84 4.75
Ceramic-specific credentialing programs to supplement academic credentials
3.63 3.66 3.60
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CESSE Member Mini-Case Study
In their own words:
“As a result of the information we gained from the survey, we were able to better identify our current audience as well as identify our potential audience and in one short year we were able to increase our total membership by 3%. “
Megan BrickerDirector, Marketing & Membership Services
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“If there is one phrase that sets remarkable associations apart from their counterparts, it’s “Data, data, data.. [In remarkable associations, ] whether qualitative or quantitative, research is always put to use, not put on the shelf.”
-7 Measures of Success – What Remarkable
Associations Do that Others Don’t
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Do you want to be remarkable?
