Introducing the DVJ Principles for Growth

Growth is the number one KPI for brands. But in the research world, we see common mistakes and incorrect assumptions which hamper our ability to help brands grow.

In response to these mistakes, DVJ have introduced the Principles for Growth which will help brands overcome these common errors in the research and marketing world. Over the coming weeks we will expand on different areas of our tool box which help brands to grow.

Common mistakes which occur include

• We are not able to predict in market success of a new product
• We are not able to find new paths for growth
• We are not able to understand the effectiveness of media because we do not understand the differences between media
• We are not able to predict the effects of a new campaign

This is because we often start with incorrect assumptions and are unable to uncover deeper consumer motivations because we

• are not able to discover deeper motives
• are not able to measure the differences between brands
• write long or boring questionnaires
• rely too much on lists of statements
• use either quantitative or qualitative techniques, but hardly ever in combination
• focus on current buyers and ignore less frequent or non-users

Our DVJ Principles for growth are based on the following solutions.

1. Develop Holistic Methods – Our solutions are always a combination of different tools and techniques where we integrate qualitative insights (explorative) with quantitative data (validating). We integrate stakeholder interviews, kick off sessions and workshops into the process to ensure true understanding and usability for all projects
2. Look at Buying Behaviour of Broadest Possible Target – we help brands to generate growth by looking focusing on potential consumers and non-consumers, beyond the current target. Utilising the ideas of Byron Sharp from How Brands Grow, we know that future growth for brands comes from outside the current buying group.
3. The strength of the mental network is the starting point for every brand. The way it is being measured by many companies today is considered outdated and wrong. DVJ measures the strength of a mental network by using free associations and integrate that in most research studies related to brands and categories, and allows respondents to classify their own stories. The strength of these unique associations has been proven to be a greater predictor of future success than attitude statements and current KPI’s
4. We have developed storytelling and free associations in such a way that this can be used with large groups of people. This makes our research truly mass qualitative because we keep on listening instead of prompting, and the quantitatively validate this input using consumer generated story markers.
5. Handling big data is one of the main challenges in the industry. We integrate big data like website visits, till transactions and turnover in our in-market solutions. This helps brands to truly understand the impact of marketing activities and start looking at the bigger picture.
6. Leverage Scientific Knowledge – all solutions are based on academic research. We closely co-operate with different universities to validate what we do.

In the coming weeks, we will expand on each of the topics in the DVJ Principles for Growth, and show practical examples and case studies of how we have achieved this. Click here to view our Brand Reality approach which showcases how we integrate story-telling and free associations in order to help brands understand their market position and grow.