In qualitative marketing research, projective techniques help the moderator uncover associations with brands, products, advertising, and symbols or images. Specifically, they reveal respondents’ subconscious feelings, beliefs, needs, and desires.
Visual Techniques Used Face to Face or Online
One particular technique that is easy for the moderator and consistently engaging for respondents, is the use of collages, i.e., a random display of images on poster board that are associated with a brand, for example.
Collages may be used in person, in the context of focus groups or depth interviews. Thanks to advances in internet use, they may also be used in online research as an alternative to face-to-face research.
Effective as Homework
Collages work especially well when given as homework in advance of the group, for two reasons:
- They engage the “right brain,” beginning the elusive work of getting beneath the surface of the topic at hand; and
- They “prime” respondents so that when they arrive for the group, they are interested, ready, and keen to show and discuss their collages.
Assigning Homework
Most times, there are two collages requested, which further drives the imagination (nothing like comparing opposites, for example, to spark interest). For example:
- One collage for a particular brand and another for a major competitor as a way into brand imagery.
- One collage to represent “life with (a product or service)” and the other, “life without (a product or service)”– in order to learn about emotional end benefits relative to the competition.
- One collage meant to capture the feelings associated with use of a product in one situation vs. another to represent feelings when used in another situation. A possible use here is to learn what might encourage additional usage occasions.
Specific Instructions
Here’s an example of how the instructions might read for a brand equity assignment:
“We'd like to invite you to be interviewed about your feelings about (Brand X). In order to help get the discussion going, we would ask that you do some homework before coming in. Using pictures from magazines, the Internet, or from anywhere you want, we'd like you to do two homework assignments:”
- One collage about (Brand X) -- the feelings, images, associations, mood, or any other aspect you experience when thinking of (Brand X).
- One collage about (Brand Y) – the feelings, images, associations, mood, or any other aspect you experience when thinking of (Brand Y).
Respondents are told they’ll receive large pieces of poster board on which to design the collages. The size of the boards can vary, but 11 x 17 seems to work well: large enough to be visible to a group and provide the feeling of a canvass, without being too unwieldy.
The Procedure
When respondents discuss their collages in a focus group, they are asked to stand in a part of the room where everyone can see what they're presenting.
- They take the group through the first collage, explaining the overall and specific messages or feelings they were trying to convey.
- The second collage is then shown and discussed, after which the intended difference between the two is explained.
The result is not just rich learning derived from the images and what they represent, but also an engagement in the group from that moment on. Respondents move more easily between less accessible feelings and rational thoughts than would be the case if they hadn’t thought through and discussed the collages first.
The saying “a picture is worth a thousand words” is especially true with collages. Using collages as a projective technique is a powerful tool for uncovering associations and feelings associated with brands, products, advertising, or other marketing elements. By accessing the right as well as the left brain, collages provide rich insights guiding future marketing efforts.
Related articles:
Face It--The Power of In-Person Qualitative
Three ways to Improve Market Research PowerPoint Presentations
Lights, Camera, Action in Qualitative Research PowerPoints
Elizabeth Harrington - Poet, Freelance Writer, Marketing Research Professional, Blogger (www.allaboutqualitative.com)
