Leveraging Consumer Insights in Marketing

The best marketers are those who actively listen to the marketplace and lean into consumer insights to build the next great product or ad campaign. In some cases, raving fans of a brand can hand marketers their next great idea on a silver platter, or in Chipotle’s case, on a sizzling platter.

In late 2022, TikTok creator Alexis Frost posted a video reviewing Chipotle’s Steak Quesadilla with fajita veggies added into the mix, which then led TikTok’s go-to food reviewer Keith Lee to try the item with the Chipotle-Honey Vinaigrette dressing and sour cream. In Feb. 2023, Chipotle announced it would add the item to its digital menu in its app and on the chain’s website after TikTok content about “Steak Quesadilla with Fajita Veggies” gained more than 30 million views.

According to Chris Brandt, CMO of Chipotle. “TikTok has not only changed the way we communicate with Gen-Z, but it’s proven it can identify areas of opportunity within our business.”

Letting Insights Lead the Way

Many brands are leveraging consumer insights to develop ads and innovations, including:  

• Bud Light 

The hard seltzer market in the US is extremely crowded. Adding to the complexity is the fact that some people don’t understand seltzer’s composition. Bud Light’s internal research uncovered that 54% of consumers believe there is beer in Bud Light Seltzer. Not ideal but perhaps understandable given that the product was built under the flagship brand’s name.  

Bud Light sought to provide greater clarity with its recent campaign. The “100% Hard Seltzer, 0% Beer” theme dispels the myth that the seltzer contains beer. Meanwhile, the ”Truckin’ Bubbles” ad brings color to the forefront to differentiate the product from Bud Light’s beer lineup. It scores 3.3-Stars with our Test Your Ad platform, predicting good brand building potential.  

• Adidas  

Research from the brand found that “92% of women feel concerned for their safety while running.” It’s a problem the brand wants to address head on through its latest campaign featuring women running at night alongside reinforcements on horse, motorbikes and in cars. Dubbed “The Ridiculous Run,” it showcases the stark contrast between what women and men face to maintain safety – a male cyclist in the spot is out alone and bewildered by the sight of women followed by a motorcade.  

• Kraft Dinner 

Kraft Dinner is bringing fun and humour to its beloved comfort food in Canada. The brand harnessed an interesting data point for a packaging refresh and OOH and digital campaign – of the 80% of Canadians who eat KD, nearly half use a spoon. KD’s packaging puts a fork front and centre…until now. The spoon lovers box launched in Canada in March, alongside social media and influencer elements and billboards giving spoon enthusiasts a reason to celebrate.  

Sourcing Insights and Feedback from Real Consumers

How can brands get useful information out of consumers? Here are some tips to follow: 

• Use interactive media channels to mine for insights.  

Don’t overlook the power of channels like TikTok, Instagram, Twitch or Reddit. Whether posting videos, comments during gaming live-streams or links and musings on message boards, content creators and users of these channels provide a wealth of quantitative and qualitative data. Once you’ve unlocked these insights, use them to drive creativity and growth. And remember, insights are media agnostic. If your strategy is based on an insight, there can be executions in any media channel.   

• Test creative and ideas with audiences. 

So, you’ve done the work to build a campaign or innovation based on consumer insights. Now it’s time to confirm that your creative or idea hits the right notes with audiences. A testing platform that leverages behavioral science to uncover how ads and ideas make people feel can accurately predict whether they’ll be successful. For even greater insights, you can expand your testing beyond the general public to capture feedback from custom samples, like parents and grandparents, sweets lovers or those who prioritise exercise.  

• Incorporate testing feedback to further improve.  

Once you have consumer feedback, including detailed reasons for emotion, types of happiness and suggestions for improvement, use this to enhance your final ad or idea. Work with experts to better understand how the testing scores can be further improved to drive sales and brand building.  

System1’s Test Your Ad platform helps you understand consumer reactions to your ad with a second-by-second map of emotional response. We can also help you improve its brand-building potential of your advertising. 

System1 also supports innovation. Our Test Your Idea platform helps you predict the sales potential of your ideas. Whether it’s a new menu innovation, an FMCG launch or updated packaging for a beloved product, Test Your Idea gives you greater insight into what will be successful and why.