On 31st January, Qual360 posted an article detailing an interview they conducted with FlexMR CEO, Paul Hudson, as a preview to the seminar he will be presenting at the Qual360 North America conference in March 2020!
This interview focussed on the highlights of the future presentation on the topic of artistic reporting, which is a topic that has been little-discussed but is vital for the successful future of market research. With the reporting stage of the research process having very little innovation spent on it in recent years, it’s fallen down the wayside and the engagement it used to spark is waning away. Using artistic methods to spruce up research reports will bring that spark back and gain stakeholder attention like never before.
Creative Reporting
In the first of four questions, Paul talks about the core message of his talk, the message that he would like delegates to take away the most: keep an open mind to using art in qual reporting techniques, or even just to be more creative with the techniques already in use! Paul states that “In the quant world we have seen the continued dominance of dashboards and in qual we have heard a lot about video; but neither really provoke or stimulate stakeholders into a debate about the meaning behind the insights and the nuanced detail. That’s what we want to change.”
Art in reporting is a decidedly tricky topic, but as a subjective medium, it is perfect to represent the subjectivity of the data we gather. Finding a way to artistically present the data that we gather so that we cover all possible interpretations is complex and so has the tendency to put people off; but creatively innovation the reporting process has proven doable by FlexMR’s Consumer Postcard Project, so Paul will be bringing this project up as an example of how to harness the creative energies of researchers to bring about innovative change in this way.
In the last question, Paul talks about the current state of qualitative research and what he believes the future challenges will be, to which he replies: “The challenges are twofold; first finding time in busy schedules to consider, run and debate the insights from rich qual research and, secondly, competing with a world that is obsessed with speed, large data sets and technology.” To read the interview in full, follow this link.
About Qual360
The annual Qual360 North America conference will be back in Washington D.C. on March 24-25, 2020. Join experts from international clients and research agencies for two days of updates on the latest qual methodologies, technologies and trends.
With conferences held in Europe, America and Asia, Qual360 caters to the qualitative research community with dedicated, local events in a global context. This unique concept allows for a diverse range of participants and topics at each conference, offering local trends as well as a global perspective. International experts from all parts of the world participate in Qual360 every year.
