Emily Creek With Stable Kernel

Intro: [00:00:04] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studios in Atlanta, Georgia, it’s time for Atlanta Business Radio. Brought to you by On pay. Atlanta’s new standard in payroll. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:25] Lee Kantor here, another episode of Atlanta Business Radio, and this is going to be a good one. But before we get started, it’s important to recognize our sponsor, Onpay. Without them, we couldn’t be sharing these important stories. Today on the Atlanta Business Radio, we have Emily Creek. She is senior director of Customer Insights and Strategy with Stable Kernel. Welcome.

Emily Creek: [00:00:47] Thank you for having me.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:48] I am so excited to learn what you’re up to. But for those who don’t know, tell us a little bit about Stable Kernel. How you serving folks?

Emily Creek: [00:00:56] Yeah. So Stable Kernel is an Atlanta based software and development and technology company that has a market research division. So we not only conduct market research for software and technology products, but we also conduct tons of research for other industries such as food and beverage, construction, health and wellness, and many others.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:16] Now, market research over the years have kind of gone through an interesting evolution. Can you talk about just market research from maybe a macro level in terms of what it is like? How do you go about gathering the intelligence and the research you do as a market researcher?

Emily Creek: [00:01:33] Yeah, what a great question. So we use observational research interviews, focus groups and online surveys to gather insights that help our clients solve business challenges and gain sort of a competitive advantage.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:47] So how do you kind of get this information. It seems like today people are hesitant to, you know, participate in polls. Or if they do, they’re just saying things just for reactions. How do you kind of glean what is, you know, the truth and what is what someone’s just saying?

Emily Creek: [00:02:05] Yeah, what an awesome question. So there’s a number of different techniques that we use first, and I can’t emphasize this enough. A really good market research panel provider is key. So there’s a lot of, um, panel providers out there that provide audiences that aren’t as good as others. And so we look to work with only the highest quality panel providers. In addition, we also create a set of screening questions to make sure that we’re really finding the right people for the right study. And then we craft questions in such a way that we’re really trying to get at real authentic answers. And so it’s sort of those three components together that allow us to get really actionable and, and honest data.

Lee Kantor: [00:02:48] Now, how how does it track when you do a research and you get information and you go, okay, based upon this research, this should happen. How often does that really happen?

Emily Creek: [00:03:01] Yeah, that’s a great question. So part of my job is not only to conduct the research. Right, but it’s to set the research project up from success from the beginning, and then make sure it gets seen all the way through the end. So we work very closely with our clients in the beginning to really understand what are their big challenges, their business needs. And then we craft a research study that specifically addresses those big needs. After the study, when we’re presenting the findings, the results, we’re making sure that we’re getting stakeholder buy in along the way and as well as in the results process. And then we check in afterwards and say, okay, how’s it going? Is there anything we can do to help to make sure that we implement these findings? And we’ve had a lot of success there. I mean, a lot of companies have come back to us over and over again because they find that the data we come up with and the action actionable recommendations really do work. And so we’ve had clients come back over and over again because it it does impact their business.

Lee Kantor: [00:03:55] So for a company that hasn’t done market research before or maybe has been frustrated with it, what are some best practices to, um, you know, do this the right way?

Emily Creek: [00:04:07] Yeah, that’s a good question. I mean, I think it it depends on. Where you are to begin with. So I think the first question that any company should ask is sort of what insights do they know about their current audience, their marketplace, etc.. Right. So what do they have? What knowledge do they have, and what questions do they still have, and what business problems are they trying to solve? Once you sort of have that initial landscape, then it’s finding the right market research partner to help you through it. Right? So there’s a lot of DIY surf survey platforms out there. And I think a lot of companies say, oh, we’ll just put out this survey. Right. But garbage in, garbage out, right. So you really have to find the right, um, you know, strategic partner to help you through that process and then making sure that throughout the process, you’re always conducting the research that drives back to that initial business need or understanding, um, whether it’s developing a new product, right, or really understanding an audience or trying to figure out a new way to talk to your audience, it’s really important to keep going back to that, to make sure that it’s actionable. But I can’t emphasize enough, you know, it’s very easy in today’s world to like, go to SurveyMonkey or whatever and try to nail out a survey, but that doesn’t always get you those really, um, competitive insights that will make market research really valuable.

Lee Kantor: [00:05:24] Is there an example you can share of, uh, maybe you don’t name the name of the customer, but maybe explain the situation where they went in and they, um, thought they knew something, and then they got the research and they were able to uncover maybe an untapped area or something that that really benefited them in a surprising manner.

Emily Creek: [00:05:46] Yeah. What a great question. So we, um, worked very closely with a vitamin and supplement company. Um, and they, um, really needed to grow their online sales as well as just other sales. And they were hearing from a lot of their stakeholders that it that certain key messages were definitely the way to go. Right. Um, and they were convinced some of them were convinced of those key messages, but others weren’t totally convinced of those messages. So what they did was they worked with us, and we conducted a survey and talked to their audience in a variety of different ways to understand sort of what are their unmet needs related to vitamins and supplements? Why do they take them? What’s most important to them? Um, and then in addition to sort of understanding those needs, we tested several key messages and we have these really cool highlighter tools that allow us to highlight portions of messages to understand what really works, what doesn’t work, and why with the target audience. We also have these other really cool tools that does a rank process that allows us to really understand which messages resonate the most, or will drive the most purchases versus other messages.

Emily Creek: [00:07:01] So we put together this study for them. Um, and it came back where there were two statements that were clear winners and they were not the current statements that they were using in their current campaigns, um, in fact, their current campaign messages were sort of falling towards the bottom of the list. In addition, the sort of general questions that we asked about, you know, what are their needs? They crafted new message messages to address those customer insights they didn’t even know were out there, those customer needs that weren’t even that were out there. So it was so exciting because then they crafted an entirely new marketing campaign based on this market research for the United States, and it significantly increased sales. And in fact, they were so pleased with it that they decided to replicate this study globally. Um, so we did a market research study in five countries in Europe, etc., to uncover those unique message points. And it revamped a marketing campaign based on that study as well. So huge success by really acting on the insights that they gathered from their their audience.

Lee Kantor: [00:08:05] Now, now you’re in market research and you see the value of market research. And these types of insights is there. When you see other companies out there that aren’t kind of leveraging the benefits of market research, is there some areas where you’re like, everybody should be doing this, why aren’t more people kind of leaning into this? This is so useful. Um, like what areas to you are kind of the low hanging fruit where companies should at least be kind of experimenting with market research in some areas.

Emily Creek: [00:08:37] Yeah, I love that question. Oh, and there’s so many great ways. So I think, um, I guess three main ways pop into my head. The first is around, um, product innovation. Um, you know, I think that reaching out to customers and talking with them and observing them in their natural environment provides a lot of interesting ways to, to meet those needs. You know, customers sometimes don’t always say what they need. But if you observe somebody in their home, right, watching them do their laundry, do their kitchen, you know, chores, whatever that. And you might see opportunities there that could really lend itself to a completely new product idea that you never would have thought of before. So definitely, using observational research for product innovation is is a great way, I think. Also, um, you know, marketing is another huge opportunity. You know, we do a lot of a B testing in marketing, but I think you could do a, b, c, d e f g testing in marketing and really, um, leverage market research to not only understand consumers, but segment your audiences to figure out which messages resonate the most with which audiences, at which time. So there’s so much research you can do to really improve the effectiveness of your marketing efforts. And then the third big thing, which is sort of more specific. But, you know, right now there is just more and more customer demand around sustainable products, sustainable production processes. And I think a lot of business leaders are just trying to navigate this growing space almost blind. Right. And I wish more business leaders would use market research as sort of a GPS for their sustainability initiatives. Right? So by understanding their customers expectations and priorities in this area, their employees insights on what could have the biggest impact in sustainability? Um, I think it really could drive, you know, new initiatives, more effective initiatives, and really allow business leaders to use market research as that sound, data driven decision maker, um, to move the needle on sustainability and addressing customers demand in this area.

Lee Kantor: [00:10:55] Now, is there a niche that you guys work in more than others? A sweet spot, or is this something that’s kind of industry agnostic?

Emily Creek: [00:11:05] Yeah, we work across really all kinds of industries. Um, there’s not really any industry we don’t love to work with. We work with a lot of food and beverage. We work with a lot of construction. We work with a lot of health and wellness. We. So really across the board, we just love any kind of business challenge, opportunity company who’s really interested in taking market insights and helping to advance their business.

Lee Kantor: [00:11:30] So what is it like to begin, uh, working with you? Um, is there usually you’re going in for a specific project and then it kind of evolves over time. Or are they coming in to say, okay, now we want to implement this holistic market research as part of just our go to market strategy.

Emily Creek: [00:11:49] Yeah, yeah. Great question. So we start in a number of different ways. Um, usually we start with an exploratory conversation to see, you know, what the client needs. And sometimes they know and sometimes they don’t know. And it’s through the discussions and the conversations that we have that gets us closer and closer to figuring out, okay, what is that North Star? What are we trying to work towards? Right. So then based on that conversation, understanding what the business objective is, right? Then we’ll go back and we’ll craft a research methodology that addresses that business objective. Right. Um, for just understanding the customers at a very initial level, it might be focus groups or interviews or things like that. For testing marketing copy, it might be an online survey. So there’s just a lot of different methods that we will look into depending on sort of what that research objective is. Um, and then we work closely with our clients throughout the entire process. Um, so helping guide them along the way, we work with clients who have an in-house research team, as well as clients who don’t have an in-house research team. Right. So we can be that scalable customer, you know, partner for any of clients who are just looking to sort of dip their toe into the market research or really dive in.

Lee Kantor: [00:13:00] Now, if you’re, uh, if someone listening right now has kind of a small business, a mom and pop, or maybe it’s a solopreneur, is there a place for them to do any market research, and what would you recommend, or any advice for them to leverage some of your learnings that are happening at an enterprise level, but maybe can work for them in this kind of small or small business model?

Emily Creek: [00:13:22] Yeah, yeah. So I think about my best friend who owns a restaurant and, you know, in a craft brewery. And, you know, we always talk about, oh, wouldn’t it be fun to do a big market research? And she’s like, Emily, I don’t have that kind of money. I can’t do it. You know, I’d love to know it. But what she and I have talked a lot about is her just talking to her customers, whether they’re sitting at the bar or in the restaurant or taking doing takeout, you know, just talk to them, see what’s important to them. And that can go for anybody who owns a small retail store. For someone who is selling products online, whether it’s, you know, anything. So you can find a way to interact with your your customers and just understand what’s important to them, you can talk to them casually, one on one, as a starting point. I think that does show the benefit of listening to your customers. Um, and any information can’t hurt, right? And so, um, so that’s the way I would start. And then as the business grows, I think it’s more and more important to to really dive in bigger. But it’s a great way just to start a conversation.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:21] But when you’re talking to your customer, a lot of times, I mean, they’ll say one thing, but their behavior will be something else. You know, like a lot of people say, oh yeah, healthy food. Yeah, we want more healthy food. But then the restaurant puts healthy food on the menu. And then, you know, everybody’s buying the bacon cheeseburger. Um, how do you kind of discern whether they’re telling you what you want to hear or that may look, make them look good as opposed to how they’re really going to act?

Emily Creek: [00:14:50] Yeah, I love that question. And I think you might be a market researcher. I think, you know, not only talking to folks but observing them. Right. And so, you know, you can get a lot somebody saying something, you can get a lot from their facial expressions, their body languages, but also watching them interact in your store, in your restaurant, for example, you know, one of my favorite examples is, you know, somebody comes, sits at your bar. They like looking for a place to put their bag or their purse or their, you know, and and that is where the hook under the bar came in, right? Like people observing, no one ever said, I need a place for my bag. But people watched people try to find a place for their bag and then looking to put a hook under their their bar stool. So I think, yes, talking. But watching those nonverbal cues as well as their behaviors is, is really important.

Lee Kantor: [00:15:38] So if somebody wants to learn more about your offerings, what is the website? What is the best place to connect with you.

Emily Creek: [00:15:45] Yeah. What stable kernel.com. Also anybody can search me up on LinkedIn. Emily Creek. Um, I love having any kind of conversation. There’s no coffee. Us to just have a conversation. So if anybody’s interested in learning more about market research, I’m happy to talk to anybody. So definitely connected LinkedIn as well.

Lee Kantor: [00:16:02] Well, Emily, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing such important work and we appreciate you.

Emily Creek: [00:16:08] Thank you so much.

Lee Kantor: [00:16:09] All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you all next time on Atlanta Business Radio.