AFA Advisory Blog provides news, advice, tutorials, tools, tips, tricks, and trends in Marketing, Communication, Commerce, Management, Organization and IT.
By Ouabdelkader Mohamed
2015-10-26 |
Surveys, Polls and Marketing Research
The types of marketing studies are different and complementary. This diversity is due to the problems that arise which are also varied. For this reason, our market research company had acquired these methodologies and surveys, and especially how to use them optimally and adapt them to each specific situation.
Unlike an ad hoc research which is conducted to bring an answer to a specific problem which occurred at a time T, an ad hoc survey uses what already exists to get quickly an idea about the market at reasonable cost, in other words it is a good candidate for exploratory research.
Our market research firm may conduct in some cases such investigations to be well prepared for a major project, or to provide a customer with quick answers to the usual questions about the industry development, the competitors, the size of a market etc.
Field poll is conducted by surveying a representative sample. Data collection is done with a questionnaire and the objective consists in measuring and identifying the behaviors, opinions, attitudes, appreciations etc. of consumers.
The results can be generalized to the parent population and thus be able to validate/reject the hypotheses generally defined during a preliminary qualitative research.
Unlike the quantitative studies, we don't attempt to count, but to explore in depth the behaviors, attitudes, motivations, barriers to purchase etc. of consumers by calling on psychology.
A qualitative survey is ideal when it comes to clearly define a subject and specify what to measure.
It can be performed with:
Some consumers/customers (typically 6 to 10 people) are invited to take part in a collective meeting and answer the questions of the interviewer/moderator.
This method has a major advantage: The exchanges and interactions between participants results in the emergence of new ideas and may trigger a chain reaction.
Unlike focus groups, face-to-face is addressing sensitive and/or confidential subjects.
To avoid biased results in the case of themes which may embarrass the participants, it is possible to call on a projective method (role-playing game, sentences or stories to be completed, associations of words/images, TAT, Chinese portrait etc.).
The observation is to monitor clients/consumers behaving spontaneously in natural places (shopping centers, for example). This spontaneity makes the observation an effective marketing research tool and provides enough reliable information.
It's a custom-made and timely field survey intended to respond to a specific client problem.
Field survey conducted at regular intervals to monitor some very specific variables, such as: brand awareness, brand image, brand equity etc.
The same questionnaire and sample are maintained from one study to the next.
Do not hesitate to contact us for any request! The AFA market research company will choose from a multitude of solutions, the most effective methodology to meet your needs.
By Ouabdelkader Mohamed
2015-10-08 |
Surveys, Polls and Marketing Research
Conducting a market research requires good preparation, rigorous deployment and continuous monitoring in order to generate reliable data which may provide effective responses to the marketing research objectives.
In this logic, we ensure that any qualitative research or survey goes through an elaborate process, which involves the following steps:
We start marketing research by a scoping meeting to understand the problem and the client environment:
We work together to build strong and healthy foundation before realizing the project. Then we submit to you a proposal detailing the methodology to be implemented, the planned schedule and the required budget.
Before carrying out a market research, we perform a series of recurring preparatory tasks to frame the process and to get equipped with tools:
In some situations, our market research firm may conduct a desktop research to fully grasp the customer's business and working environment.
We specify the target to investigate (gender, age, CSP etc.). Then, to make a compromise between budget and representativeness, we generally choose a sample with the quotas method, and of course we ensure the representativeness of the sample compared to the base population.
The data collection can be realized by a questionnaire in case of polls or by an interview guide in case of qualitative research (individual interviews and focus group).
In case of quantitative research (survey or poll), we choose a mode of questionnaire administration that is effective and appropriate from the following available options: face to face, telephone, online survey, email, mail etc.
We focus on the objectives of the marketing research when writing and structuring the questionnaire in order to solve your issue without being distracted.
After putting the final touches on the reflection part before launching the operational side, we organize another meeting to validate the questionnaire, otherwise we run a second iteration.
Even after the launch of the marketing research, we continuously keep you informed of the work progress, and we respond and take into account your comments and remarks.
This part is particularly important. We strive to collect reliable data by recruiting adequate profiles and providing them with a solid training session on the market research subject and how to interview people.
We also sensitize interviewers to the obligation to preserve confidentiality and we ask them to sign a confidentiality agreement.
Each interviewer is selected according to his technical and personal skills, and in addition, he is subject to rigorous support to prepare him more to the project. We choose specialized profiles in case of technical marketing studies.
Executives, namely field supervisors, research managers and facilitators of group meetings are also assigned depending of their skills, abilities and appropriateness.
Training and briefing sessions are systematically provided at each survey or market research. They are intended to train interviewers on how to ask the participants, how to administer a questionnaire by following its instructions, how to ask follow-up questions and practice active listening ...
Our marketing research firm strives to retain some interviewers and provide them with continuous training, which may be even too specific. These advanced and loyal profiles will be prepared to recurring marketing studies that are pertaining to more technical topics.
After recruiting and briefing the field team (supervisors, interviewers etc.). We actually launch the marketing research in two stages:
Before launching the large-scale poll, we carry out a pilot survey of a small sample of the population in question, to test and validate the methods of data collection, the effectiveness of the questionnaire and the average time of its administration.
Now everything is ready and validated. We advance in the project by:
Control and quality
To increase the quality of the field survey, we implement a series of measures and perform some routine actions at all stages of the poll realization to ensure the collection of reliable data:
Several tasks are performed to exploit the collected data and to draw constructive conclusions:
Note that you can carry out an online survey with our polling platform. The data entry in the database is systematically done when conducting interviews. In addition, tables, graphics and a research report (portable CSV file) can be generated online immediately after filling out the first questionnaire. This results in lower costs, time savings and a low error rate.
To complete the analysis and further exploit the results, we use other more sophisticated processing software:
We are well equipped and we do rigorous work of analysis using all the available methods of processing, modeling and interpretation.
Indeed, the reporting and the dissemination of the first results are provided from the very beginning through our platform that allows us to carry out an online survey. At the end of the project we write a comprehensive and detailed report that summarizes all the market research and presents the results in order to facilitate the decision making process.
Our role is not to write a report with complicated charts in order to amaze the customer, but rather to respond to the initial problem and provide objective, reliable and operational recommendations that may help him to make informed commercial or marketing decisions.
Did you like our methodology? Are you planning to conduct a market study? Contact us to offer you customized solutions with solutions suitable to your problems and a continuous and personalized support.
By Ouabdelkader Mohamed
2015-10-04 |
Surveys, Polls and Marketing Research
AFA is also a polling company and an opinion research corporation. We work generally with clients in Morocco, and we carry out their marketing studies in our office based in Casablanca.
Our marketing research firm relies heavily on web technologies to automate most of the search workflow. This is part of our mission, which aims to carry out an efficient and effective market research in order to help our customers at reasonable cost, to gauge the economic environment, analyze opinions and attitudes, understand behaviors and to identify needs and expectations of the targeted market, examine the decision process and choice criteria of consumers.
Today the market is characterized by great turbulence and complexity. Lifestyles and buying behaviors are constantly changing. For this reason, the market in which the company operates becomes unpredictable, and in order to implement a marketing and sales strategy with full background knowledge, one must study several endogenous and exogenous variables that impact the company.
Unlike the former practice, it is now imperative to anticipate changes in the market, as stated in these two famous quotes:
"Only the past is certain, but we only work with the future." - Auguste Detœuf
"To be beaten is excusable, being surprised is unforgivable." - Napoleon Bonaparte
Marketing studies should not be considered as waste, but instead, they are essential to secure your investments and optimize your sales and marketing plan.
Our market research company is led by a team of experts, who are passionate about opinion polls and extraction of "insights" from the data.
We cover the entire field of marketing research with robust approaches and proven data collecting and analysis tools:
In addition to our multidisciplinary approach, we have also multi-sectoral experience and we work with all the different target categories (B2B, B2C, urban / rural, decision makers, opinion leaders, influencers, public organizations, producers, distributors etc.).
Whatever your concern, surely we have a market study which will provide responses:
We have developed rich expertise to address all these possible marketing issues:
Our proven experience in terms of new information and communications technology (ICT) has opened up the possibility of deploying an online survey and thus computerizing the data collection and analysis steps. These two phases are prone to errors and result in more costs and more wasted time.
We create your internet survey with our platform, after designing the online questionnaire, we administer it on field with tablets. Data is entered directly into the database and reporting can be accessed in real time from your administration panel.
We approach transversely your problems by combining our tools and expertise, to support you beyond the restitution of statistics and graphics by bringing you directly exploitable and operational recommendations thanks to our outside and neutral view.
By Ouabdelkader Mohamed
2015-09-28 |
Expertise
AFA Advisory adopts a comprehensive and complementary approach to solve recurring problems that marketing, management and IT decision makers face all the time.
All our expertise is geared towards improving the overall performance and added value creation.
We assist companies regardless of their sizes and industries by leveraging our broad range of skills and expertise./p>
Our consulting firm is organized into several clusters or areas of expertise and can be presented with the following entities:
We continue constantly our policy of continuous improvement to perfect our expertise and integrate other skills. Indeed, we train tirelessly our "TEAM MEMBERS" and we are always looking for new talents to enrich our team of consultants in Marketing, Communication, Commerce, Management, Organization and Information Technology (IT).
Together, let’s place your business issues at the heart of our thinking!
By Ouabdelkader Mohamed
2015-09-25 |
AFA Advisory
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By Ouabdelkader Mohamed
2015-09-19 |
AFA Advisory
Because every client is unique, we put ourselves into his shoes, then we try to shape custom communication, marketing, sales, and managerial strategy. Before starting anything, we ask you about your current and desired situation, then we move into action while keeping your goals in mind and remaining stuck to your specificity and strategic direction.
The support is the cornerstone of a win-win collaboration. No way to leave you alone in the jungle. We guarantee you a high-level strategic support.
Consulting, listening and constant exchange are fully held to deserve to be your privileged consultant for your marketing plan, commercial action and generally all your management projects.
Our consulting firm is optimized in order to practice correct rates. We capitalize heavily on close supervision, integration of new information technologies and the adoption of best practices to master the golden triangle of project, namely Quality, Cost and Time.
To avoid failures, quality processes and optimal monitoring are implemented throughout the production chain.
We have a broad and a complementary range of services and approaches that revolve around consulting in communication, strategic and operational marketing, management and computing/IT.
Our consultants know well how to combine optimally these assets in each consulting field where we operate. For example, in marketing, our goal is to mobilize all the contact points with the consumer (internet, mobile, retail outlets, printing and visual communications etc.), so that the communication campaign generates the maximum "reach" while remaining consistent. On the other hand, to ease the design and implementation of your marketing mix and strategic plan, our consultancy firm covers every brick of the value chain when deemed appropriate and builds well-studied partnerships when this sounds more advantageous.
Talk to a single interlocutor and facilitate your life! Our scope is meant to be vast and our approach is resolutely global. Indeed, we handle your projects by considering several dimensions in the interests of efficiency and we take the maximum advantage of marketing tools and management best practices in a spirit of synergy.
Flexibility, responsiveness and teamwork are core values for us.
We do respond to issues raised by our customers in a rich and deep manner, thanks to our multidisciplinary approach.
We monitor and improve relentlessly our team. Everyone remains in active monitoring mode to contribute to the innovation and the research & development of our agency. Each "Team Member" is invited to reinforce the knowledge management of each area of expertise where we operate.
We feel a great and persistent desire towards our work. This love leads us to work with pleasure and stay motivated and productive all the time.
We rely heavily on creativity to draw your brand and unlock its true potential.
Our consultants in marketing and management think in creative axes to drive original concepts and offer innovative solutions.
Indeed, innovation is invaluable, but it's recommended to keep in mind the feasibility and return on investment. According to this vision, we implement adapted solution to the problems of our customers and we deliver operational recommendations that can be directly exploited.
What concerns managers and various decision makers is the return on investment or ROI for short, namely knowing how each much revenue does it produce each invested Euro, Dollar or Dirham?
To take this requirement into consideration, we strives to:
AFA Advisory is a consultancy firm whose mission is to provide its clients with Marketing, Communication, Commerce, Management, Organization and IT consultants to help them improve their overall performance.
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