Usage and attitude (U&A) studies are an important tool for businesses to analyze customer behavior and better understand the motivations behind their decisions.
They are used to measure customer loyalty, brand preferences, purchasing behaviors, and other aspects of the customer experience.
Companies use this information to make informed decisions about their product or service offerings and develop better customer outreach strategies.
In this guide, our market research company will discuss usage and attitude studies – what they are, how to conduct them, and example U&A survey questions.
Article Contents
- What Are Usage and Attitude Studies?
- The Purpose of Usage and Attitude Research
- Types of U&A Studies
- Benefits of Usage and Attitude Surveys
- Example Usage and Attitude Survey Questions
- Steps to Conduct Usage and Attitude Studies
What are Usage and Attitude Studies?
Usage and attitude studies are surveys conducted by companies to better understand customer behavior, brand perception, loyalty, preferences, and usage patterns.
These surveys typically include questions about customer motivations, opinions on certain products or services, and overall satisfaction levels.
Usage and attitude research answers common business questions such as
- What is my product or service used for?
- What types of people use my products or services? Do they use them differently?
- What common usage patterns exist?
- Are my products or services used alone, or with other tools? If so, which ones?
Companies may also include demographic questions to gain further insight into customer behavior.
As a result, the data can be used to identify new and existing target markets to develop data-driven marketing strategies.
The Purpose of Usage and Attitude Research
The purpose of usage and attitude research is to gain a deeper understanding of how people use a product or service and what their attitudes are toward it.
This research helps companies identify patterns in consumer behavior, uncover preferences, and pinpoint areas for improvement.
By exploring how customers interact with offerings and gauging their opinions, businesses can make informed decisions to enhance their products or services, better cater to customer needs, and ultimately increase satisfaction and loyalty.
Much like other types of market research, usage and attitude studies come in a variety of different forms.
Businesses may opt for qualitative or quantitative studies depending on the information they are looking to glean from the research.
Companies may also opt for a combination of both qualitative and quantitative studies with hybrid market research to gauge customers’ overall experience with their brand.
Qualitative market research
Qualitative studies typically include focus groups or interviews that assess customers’ perceptions and opinions.
It is accomplished through small group discussions or with participants one on one. Qualitative studies are considered exploratory research that focuses on gathering in-depth feedback.
Quantitative market research
In comparison, common forms of quantitative research include online surveys and phone surveys. They differ from qualitative research because the methodologies focus on collecting measurable data from larger samples of people.
Secondary research
Lastly, another option to understand consumer attitudes and preferences is through secondary research.
Secondary or desk research involves pre-existing data sets such as market research reports or customer databases which are analyzed to generate insights on usage patterns or preferences.
For instance, Drive Research conducted a market analysis on behalf of a client looking to open a liquor store. We used secondary research to determine an ideal location for the new business venture.
The report covered consumer demographics, usage of alcohol, competitors in the area, and more.
Download an example market analysis report for more information.
Benefits of Usage and Attitude Surveys
Create customer-centric products/services
Usage and attitude studies help companies understand the needs, wants, and expectations of their customers. Therefore, by understanding these motivations, businesses can better align their product or service offerings with customer preferences.
As a result of creating products that are tailored to customer needs, wants and expectations, brands will likely see higher customer satisfaction and loyalty.
For context, 70% of consumers say that how well a company understands their individual needs impacts their loyalty.
Produce effective marketing and advertising campaigns
By measuring and identifying customer needs and preferences, companies can develop more effective marketing campaigns and increase brand awareness.
Conducting usage and attitude studies will provide data that states who exactly is buying your product, how/when they use it, and how these interactions differ across demographics.
As a result, companies can use this information to identify customer segments and target them with tailored marketing messages.
For example, say a bank conducts a U&A survey and the study reveals:
- Millennial women are 5X more likely to apply for new credit cards
- Millennial women discover new banking products the most on Google Search
With this insight, the bank can create paid search and display campaigns targeting millennial women with relevant keywords.
Measure customer loyalty and satisfaction
These studies can also be used to measure customer loyalty and satisfaction. For instance, companies can gain valuable insights into how likely customers are to use the product or service again.
Additionally, our market research company recommends measuring and calculating net promoter scores in a usage and attitude study.
It acts as another layer of quantifying brand loyalty.
It includes asking respondents to rate how likely they are to recommend the product or service to a friend or family member. Based on the number of promoters, organizations can determine how loyal customers are to their brand.
This data can be used to inform business development strategies and develop customer retention strategies.
Identify potential areas for improvement
Lastly, usage and attitude studies can help companies identify potential opportunities for growth and expansion.
By collecting customer feedback, businesses can make changes to their products or services that will better meet people’s needs and expectations.
This can help businesses stay ahead of the competition and ensure customer satisfaction.
Example Usage and Attitude Survey Questions
Product awareness questions
- How familiar are you with Product X?
- Which of these products are you familiar with?
- Which of the following brands do you think is the best quality?
- How did you hear about Product X?
Product usage questions
- Which of these products have you used?
- When was the last time you used Product X?
- How frequently do you use Product X?
Product satisfaction questions
- How do you rate your satisfaction with Product X?
- What would improve about Product X?
- Would you recommend Product X to a friend or family member?
Product purchasing habits questions
- How frequently do you shop for Product X?
- What stops you from buying Product X?
- Where do you purchase Product X?
- What causes you to purchase Product X?
Statement matrix questions (respondents answer on a scale from strongly disagree to strongly agree)
- I take advantage of special offers
- I like to compare the prices of different products
- I read reviews before purchasing a product
- I like to try new products
- I trust recommendations from friends and family more than branded content
How to Conduct Usage and Attitude Studies
Conducting usage and awareness surveys is a powerful way to gain valuable insight into customer preferences and product performance.
By following the steps outlined below, you can ensure that your survey yields accurate and actionable results that can inform your decisions and improve your business.
Here is the process our market research company follows when conducting usage and attitude studies on behalf of our clients.
1. Identifying your survey goals
The first step in preparing a survey is to identify your goals or objectives.
You should brainstorm a list of questions that you want to answer, such as customer satisfaction levels, customer preferences, and customer feedback on specific aspects of your business.
Our online survey company discusses these goals in a kickoff meeting during the early stages of the project.
Doing so helps us formulate the right questions to ensure the survey is focused on your specific goals and objectives.
2. Crafting U&A survey questions
Once you have identified your survey goals, you will need to craft the survey questions. Typically, our team drafts the survey in a Google document to allow for collaboration.
If you are running the study in-house, here are a few survey design tips to keep in mind.
Consider the order of the questions.
Ask the most important questions first, and then move on to the less important questions. This will help ensure that respondents answer the most important questions before they become bored or distracted.
Consider the type of question you are asking.
Open-ended questions can provide more detailed responses, while closed-ended questions can provide more quantitative, measurable data.
Our team recommends including at 2 to 3 open-ended questions.
Consider the length of your survey
If the survey is too long, respondents may become bored or frustrated and abandon the survey.
On the other hand, if the survey is too short, you may not get enough information to answer your questions.
Therefore, it is important to strike a balance between the length of the survey and the amount of information you need to collect.
Above all else, make sure that each question is meaningful and that the answers it solicits are actionable.
3. Choosing the right methodology
There are many different types of market research. Therefore, choosing the right fieldwork approach is essential for maximizing response rates.
Here are a few tips for choosing the right methodology.
- Consider your target respondent. You should select a delivery method that is convenient for your target audience, such as email or text messages.
- Consider costs. For example, sending out physical surveys in the mail is more expensive than sending out an email or text message.
- Consider your timeline. It will take longer to conduct and analyze results from phone surveys with 30 participants than an online survey with 200 respondents.
4. Maximizing response rates
Earning a high response rate is key to ensuring accurate and reliable survey results.
To achieve this, you should create a clear call to action and consider incentives for completing the survey.
Additionally, it is important to keep survey questions brief and avoid making them overly complex.
Therefore, you should use short answer formats where possible to minimize the amount of time respondents must spend on the survey.
It is also important to ensure that the survey is accessible to all respondents.
This means providing options for completing the survey in multiple languages, as well as making sure the survey is compatible with different devices and browsers.
How many responses should I get for my survey?
Our usage and attitude studies company recommends collecting at least 400 responses.
Doing so provides a low margin of error. But, the more responses the better!
5. Ensuring data accuracy
Ensuring data accuracy is essential for making decisions based on survey results. You should double-check each response to make sure the answers are valid and accurate.
For example, our market research team checks for…
- Duplicate IP addresses to remove any cases where people completed the survey more than once.
- Time to complete to check for speedy survey takers who did not answer the questions genuinely.
- Straightliners to check for survey takers who answered option ‘A’ for every question to get to the end of the survey faster.
An easy way to spot poor survey respondents is by including red herring questions in your usage and attitude survey.
Red herrings are oddball questions within a series of regular questions to easily identify those who fully read and engage in the survey and those who are not.
For instance, asking ‘Check answer option A. for this question.’
Anyone who checks answer options B, C, or D is clearly not paying attention. Therefore, their answers to other questions should not be included in the final analysis.
Use these red herring question examples for an easy quality control measure.
6. Analyzing the results
After you have collected the survey responses, it is time to analyze the results.
To analyze the data accurately, it is important to stratify the results based on demographic factors, such as gender, age, location, etc.
Additionally, use descriptive statistics and graphical representations to visualize the data more clearly. By doing so, you can spot patterns and trends that can inform your decisions.
7. Take action with the results
Once you have analyzed the results of your usage and attitude study, it is important to develop appropriate follow-up actions.
If possible, consider implementing changes immediately to address any issues that were identified. Additionally, you should use the data to inform future decisions and strategies.
Final Thoughts
Conducting usage and attitude studies is a fantastic option for businesses that want to better understand the motives of their consumers.
Understanding why consumers buy from a brand is a way for them to improve overall services and business functions. As a result, this will not only help retain customers but will likely lead to new ones discovering the business.
U&A surveys include questions about purchasing habits, product satisfaction, and other important metrics that measure the customer experience with a brand.
Partnering with a third-party research team is advised when conducting these studies, as they will walk clients through the process and distinct methodologies.
Contact Our Usage and Attitude Studies Company
By understanding customer attitudes and usage patterns, companies can make informed decisions about product development and marketing strategies.
And Drive Research can help.
We are a full-service market research company that partners with brands across the country to measure brand awareness, perception, customer satisfaction, and other key performance indicators.
Contact Drive Research by filling out the form below or emailing [email protected].
Emily Rodgers
A SUNY Cortland graduate, Emily has taken her passion for social and content marketing to Drive Research as the Marketing Manager. She has earned certificates for both Google Analytics and Google AdWords.
Learn more about Emily, here.
