How would I describe the Quirk's Event in three words to someone who has never been? A market researcher's paradise.
I recently had the privilege to attend the April 2019 Quirk's Event in Chicago, Illinois. As a first time attendee, I was captivated by such a large event dedicated to the researchers, clients, and vendors of the market research industry.
I experienced two days at the conference filled to the brim with presentations, conversations, and activities. I left with all the latest trends in market research and some exciting ideas to improve our market research firm in NY.
Keep reading below to get a summary of my personal experience at Quirk's Chicago.
Exhibitors and speakers came prepared at the Quirk's Event Chicago with engaging booths and insightful presentations.
Leading-up to the event
Prior to the Quirk's Event, I spent a few days exploring Chicago to get acquainted with the host city.
I was able to squeeze in all the Chicago staples like:
- Visiting Millennium Park
- Attending a Bulls game
- Watching a stand-up comedy show
- Indulging in a couple deep dish pizzas
The event was held in a festival hall on the end of the famed Navy Pier. I was spoiled on my walk from the hotel with beautiful views of the Chicago skyline and Lake Michigan. It ended up being an ideal setting for a conference with plenty of fun attractions and tasty food options within walking distance. I did my best to resist popping into one of the many nautical-themed taverns for beer on my way to the event.
The day before the conference began, I struggled to plan my schedule; there were over 70 learning sessions during the two days! I added my 15 most interesting or relevant presentations to fill my days.
Day 1 at Quirk's Chicago
The first day of the event began with registration bright and early at 8 AM. Every attendee received an electronic Klik badge for the duration of the conference. These neat badges allowed me to exchange contact information with fellow attendees just by clicking the badge in close proximity to another. I easily connected with a dozen or so market research folks to hopefully begin some new partnerships.
Once the learning sessions started, there was no shortage of options. Aside from a lunch hour break and afternoon break, I was jumping around between nine presentations about the latest and greatest of the industry.
Highlights of sessions I attended include:
- Best Practices for Market Research on Sensitive Topics
- Tips for Making Insights that Stick
- Agile Approaches to Research
- DIY Market Research
- Reaching Generation Z
- Text Analytics for Open-ended Responses
For the few minutes between sessions, I was able to visit exhibitor booths in the center of the festival hall. Every kind of market research firm was present, from survey sample or research technology platform providers to full-service research companies.
There was also no shortage of food samples and swag at just about every table on the floor.By the end of the first day, I had enough notes from learning sessions to write blogs for a couple of weeks (stay tuned for those here under my name).
Day 2 at Quirk's Chicago
The second and final day of the Quirk's Event started with sessions first thing in the morning. Presentations offered a nice variety of market research topics similar to the first day. I spent the first half of the day listening to some innovative ideas about virtual reality shopping experiences, flexible reporting platforms, memory reconstruction interviews, and automated coding.
After recharging with some lunch, I did some final exhibit browsing and took advantage of complimentary head shot photography. I dived into a couple last sessions for the day covering participant feedback on market research and Net Promoter Score (NPS) prediction using unstructured text data.
Once my sixth learning session of the day was concluded, I bid farewell to Quirk's Chicago. With me I took countless valuable insights from peers in the market research industry.
As an analyst for a market research firm, I can't wait to put the knowledge from Quirk's to the test for our business.
Contact Drive Research
Drive Research is a market research firm located in Syracuse, NY. Our team frequently attends market research conferences like The Quirk's Event to learn about new industry trends and pick up new capabilities.
Interested in learning more about our market research services? Contact us whichever way is most convenient for you.
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