Market Research

The Art and Science of Answering Your Audience’s Burning Questions

Your audience is hungry for answers. Your job is to provide them. In the competitive and highly-regulated world of life sciences, brands must go beyond traditional marketing tactics to establish trust and authority with your audience. One of the most effective ways to achieve this is by providing the best answers to your audience’s questions. [...]

COVID-19 and the State of the Market

Forma conducted a survey comprised of questions regarding business behavior and the 2020 Covid-19 outbreak. Respondents were asked a variety of questions about how their organizations are reacting to the current environment.

Choosing a Name for Your Life Science Company, Product, or Service

Choosing a name for a life science company, product or service can be difficult. Any choice will generate a strong, almost instantaneous response, carry great emotional weight and (ideally) last a long time. How do you choose a name while avoiding the emotional rollercoaster that such choices often bring? I outline an eight-step process. But first, let’s talk about the importance of choosing the proper name.

We are watching you: User and Customer Research

The terms User and Customer research are sometimes used interchangeably, and while there can be some similarities between these two types of research, there are distinct differences.  In general, both of these types of research focus on understanding behaviors, needs, and motivations through observation techniques, task analysis, and other feedback methodologies.  However, that is where [...]

Avoiding Analysis Paralysis

It is a moment met with many emotions. Excitement. Nervousness. Fear even. You have just received a final data set, now you will learn if the hours you spent discussing, crafting, programming and checking the survey instrument were worth it. For many researchers this can be a moment of analysis paralysis. There is just so [...]

Getting Feedback on your Life Science Marketing Initiatives through Market Research

Getting feedback on your marketing initiatives is vital to improving their effectiveness. Without feedback it is difficult to know what’s working, and what isn’t. There are many types of feedback, and many ways to obtain it. This month we look at the process of asking for qualitative opinions about your marketing initiatives. It seems simple, but there are many pitfalls that can be easily avoided with a little advance planning.

Common Marketing Errors (Part 2)

Having worked in the life sciences for more than two decades, we have seen a number of marketing errors commonly made by life science companies. As a follow-up to last month’s article about strategic errors, this month we’ll discuss some widespread tactical errors and provide suggestions about how to both identify and address them.

Common Marketing Errors (Part 1)

Having worked in the life sciences for quite a while, we have seen a number of common marketing errors made by life science companies. This month we will address some common strategic errors – next month we’ll cover tactical errors.

Research proves: Scientists are not immune to marketing

Scientists often believe that they are immune to the efforts of marketers. They are not alone; many of us believe that we make decisions from a purely rational perspective and can therefore filter marketing messages out of our decision-making process. Scientists are particularly prone to subscribe to this belief, as their discipline and world-view places a premium on rational thought. Recent research proves that no one is immune; marketing can affect our behavior, even if the messages are only received subliminally. This article examines this research, and looks at its implication for the marketing of life science companies.

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