Consumer satisfaction plays a pivotal role in a product’s success. Taste, smell, visual appearance, packaging, and overall experience heavily influence purchasing decisions and, ultimately, brand perception.
Analyzing consumer satisfaction is key to anticipate the overall acceptability of a product on its market and evaluate perceptions and preferences. These types of studies are typically conducted through quantitative methods to generate representative and actionable data.
Benefits of Consumer Satisfaction Studies
| Marketing and Sales | R&I, Product Development teams | Quality |
| – Marketing mix elaboration and validation (e.g., consistency between product’s perceived quality and its price) – Understanding positioning vs. competitive products | – Evaluate new recipes – Validation of prototypes – Analyzing preferences (through a preference mapping) | – Evaluate perception of product over time |
Conversely, qualitative methods such as interviews or focus groups will help gain deeper insights into consumers’ motivations, the emotions the product can evoke, and identify expectations.
Our Capabilities
- 14 Sensory labs worldwide and a network of partners to deploy large consumer studies in all geographies.
- All our laboratories are certified through local standards and have specific areas for product preparation with strict hygiene norms.
- We benefit from large consumers’ panels, continuously renewed, with different characteristics in terms of diets, age, gender, etc. We take great pride in our strict personal data management, compliant with GDPR requirements.
- Each study is conducted with a minimum of 60 consumers for reliable insights.
- We propose innovative solutions to adapt your studies to your constraints or objectives: at-home tests, specific set ups, etc.
Our Solutions
To tailor our services to your precise needs, our team customizes the scale, scope, and specifics of each study, utilizing various panel configurations and offering fully customizable research options.
Simple Quantitative Studies
Quantitative studies aim to determine the level of global satisfaction of consumers toward the organoleptic characteristics of a product.
This study is delivered through a standardized survey covering:
- Global satisfaction;
- Preferences;
- Purchase intentions.
Quantitative OptiConso Tests
Our OptiConso quantitative tests measure the level of acceptability of products by consumers, globally and by key sensorial characteristics.
This study gives insights on the main strengths and weaknesses of the product (compared to competitors’ products). We utilize a customizable survey that can include additional questions related to texture, smell, and other relevant factors. Additionally, it covers inquiries concerning how well the product fits into the marketing mix and aligns with the brand’s promise
Ad’hoc Studies
We design these completely customizable studies to accommodate complex requests by blending quantitative tests and qualitative insights from consumers, employing specific methodologies and content. We customize the content, type, and format of interviews and surveys, and personalize consumer recruitment based on their specific diets and product usage.
Preference Mapping: Creating Actionable Insights for Product Development
We can cross-reference the organoleptic characteristics of products and their related intensity with consumers’ preferences to establish a preference mapping. Preference mappings are highlighting the product attributes most correlated with consumer preferences.
This type of study is particularly relevant to provide insights for product development: both at early stages of the concept and for reformulation phases.
Implicit Methods: Capturing Subconscious Reactions to Analyze Preferences
Implicit methods for sensory studies are techniques capturing subconscious or automatic responses to stimuli, providing insights on consumer preferences.
The benefit of such methods is to bypass consumers’ conscious biases and gain deeper insights .These methods can include facial expression analysis, eye-tracking, and physiological measures like heart rate and skin conductance.
Implicit methods complement traditional sensory evaluation techniques and are particularly valuable for studying sensitive topics or subconscious attitudes towards products. Incorporating implicit methods into sensory studies can enrich research findings, leading to more informed product development and marketing strategies in industries ranging from food and beverages to cosmetics and beyond.
Mérieux NutriSciences, a Unique Partner to Improve your Products
Our teams have an in-depth understanding of your product thanks to a multidisciplinary expertise gained over 40 years.
- Global network: Mérieux NutriSciences conducts sensory and consumer studies in 23+ countries around the world and has 7 Centers of excellence to locally support your research protocols.
- Local care: We have locations in 27 countries that enable us to have customer cares right next to you.
- Our team of over 160 sensory and consumer studies professionals is committed to driving your research with the most adapted methodology to answer your needs.
