Qualitative Research
Uncovering What “Big Data” Cannot
Qualitative research for your company provides insights beyond quantitative data by engaging doctors, patients, and caregivers.
Doctors reveal decision-making, unmet needs, and views on drug efficacy and safety
Patients share symptom impact, adherence, and emotional responses
Caregivers highlight support needs and patient outcomes
These insights help tailor drug development, communication, and patient-centered solutions, enhancing therapeutic effectiveness, healthcare delivery, and patient engagement.
Our Approach
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OLG Research specializes in qualitative research, having conducted over 800 qualitative assessments with various methodologies and respondent types.
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Qualitative research enables a laddering of questioning approach that allows for probing below the surface of high level issues in order to understand what truly drives attitudes, perceptions and behaviors.
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Our full-service study design and expert research moderators bring you the insight you need … hear them from the mouths of your customers first-hand with a range of research techniques.
Research Methods
Projective Techniques
Projective techniques are a fundamental tool in qualitative market research due to their ability to uncover deeper insights into consumer attitudes, motivations, and emotions that are often hidden beneath conscious awareness. Traditional direct questioning methods can lead to socially desirable responses or may not effectively capture subconscious feelings, whereas projective techniques encourage respondents to express thoughts and feelings indirectly through ambiguous stimuli.
The rationale behind using projective techniques lies in their capacity to bypass respondents’ defense mechanisms and self-censorship. By engaging participants in tasks such as word association, storytelling, or picture interpretation, researchers can access underlying beliefs, needs, and perceptions that influence consumer behavior. These methods provide a richer, more nuanced understanding of the target audience, revealing emotional drivers and latent needs that might otherwise remain undiscovered.
The importance of projective techniques in qualitative market research is multi-fold:
Enhanced Depth of Insight: They allow researchers to explore subconscious or nonverbalized attitudes, offering a deeper layer of understanding beyond what respondents consciously express.
Improved Validity of Data: By reducing respondents' inclination to offer socially acceptable answers, projective techniques often generate more authentic and less biased responses.
Facilitation of Emotional Engagement: They evoke emotional responses and personal connections that are critical in shaping consumer preferences and brand loyalty.
Creative Problem Solving: Through imaginative exercises, respondents can articulate complex feelings and perceptions that traditional methods might miss, aiding in innovative marketing strategies.
Flexibility Across Contexts: These techniques are adaptable to various cultural and demographic groups, helping to uncover subtle differences in consumer insights across segments.
In summary, projective techniques are essential in qualitative market research for their ability to delve beneath surface responses and reveal the hidden factors that drive consumer decisions, thereby enabling more effective and targeted marketing strategies.
Competitive Wargaming
Competitive wargaming in qualitative market research involves simulating competitive scenarios to anticipate rival moves, test strategic assumptions, and uncover potential market dynamics. The rationale for utilizing competitive wargaming lies in its ability to replicate complex market interactions in a controlled environment, allowing organizations to explore "what-if" scenarios beyond traditional research methods.
The importance of competitive wargaming includes:
Enhanced Strategic Insight
By modeling competitor behavior and reactions, wargaming provides deeper understanding of competitive threats and opportunities, helping decision-makers craft more resilient strategies.Improved Risk Management
It highlights vulnerabilities and market disruptions before they occur, enabling proactive adjustments that minimize risks associated with strategic plans.Better Stakeholder Alignment
Facilitating interactive sessions, wargaming encourages collaboration among internal teams, helping align perspectives and foster consensus around strategic decisions.Identification of Blind Spots
The simulated nature surfaces overlooked factors or competitors’ possible moves, reducing bias and preventing surprises in actual market conditions.Testing Strategic Flexibility
It evaluates how different strategies perform under varying competitive responses, assisting organizations in selecting adaptable and robust approaches.
In summary, competitive wargaming integrates qualitative insights with strategic foresight, making it a vital tool for companies seeking an edge in dynamic and uncertain markets.
In-Depth Interviews (IDIs)
In-Person Interviews
Observe your stakeholders' reactions and hear their perspectives directly. Our expert moderators can provide you with firsthand insights into the challenges your brand is facing.
Salesforce Data
Salesforce data plays a crucial role in qualitative market research by providing rich, customer-centric insights that enhance the understanding of market behaviors and preferences. The rationale behind integrating Salesforce data into qualitative research lies in its ability to offer detailed, real-time information on customer interactions, sales trends, and service history, which cannot be easily captured through traditional qualitative methods alone.
This data enables researchers to segment customers more accurately, tailor interview questions, and identify pain points or opportunities based on actual customer behavior rather than solely relying on perceptions or anecdotal evidence. It helps ground qualitative findings in real-world sales performance metrics, increasing the validity and relevance of research outcomes.
Moreover, Salesforce data supports a more holistic analysis by bridging quantitative indicators with qualitative narratives, allowing for deeper exploration of underlying motivations and decision-making processes. This integration aids businesses in developing targeted strategies that resonate with customer needs and improve overall sales effectiveness.
In summary, Salesforce data is vital to qualitative market research as it enhances empirical rigor, enriches contextual understanding, and drives actionable insights that align closely with business objectives and customer realities..
Telephone Interviews
Access insights from a geographically diverse group of respondents, all from the comfort of your office. We record our discussions, so you can listen to the research whenever and wherever it’s convenient for you.
Web-Assisted Interviews
Presenting your promotional materials, messages, and more has never been easier. There are no limits to the types of research we can conduct online.
Insights from “Group Think” Sessions
Focus Groups
Conduct thorough explorations of key messages, promotional materials, and potential market activities with a large group of stakeholders simultaneously. This approach not only expands your sample size but also offers unique insights into your brand by allowing you to observe your customers as they debate and defend their perspectives.
Online Forums / Community Bulletin Boards
Engage with your customers over several months to track how their opinions evolve as new information emerges. By leveraging online community feedback, you gain valuable insights through moderator-guided questions, allowing respondents to react and see the responses of others.