jpoindexter Conducting Research (Phase 1)
Overview
Phase 1 of the branding process: understand the organization before you design anything. Research informs future decisions — it should never justify decisions already made. Understanding comes from reading strategic documents, interviewing stakeholders, experiencing the brand as a customer, and auditing everything the organization already says and shows. Research is a dance between the intuitive and the intentional.
When to use
- At the very start of a new identity, rebrand, repositioning, or merger — before strategy or design begins.
- When you need consensus on the business problem, the brand's essence, or the constraints the new identity must work within.
- When you must present learnings to senior management to close the research phase.
- Do NOT use this to make design/strategy decisions — that is a later phase; here you only gather and synthesize.
Goals of research
- Understand strengths and weaknesses vis-à-vis competitors.
- Discern internal values and stakeholders' collective vision for the brand.
- Discover any constraints within which the new brand identity must be built.
- Establish consensus on the business problem to solve.
- Uncover the essence of the company.
Baseline information to request
Request and read these before any interview: mission, vision, values statement, value proposition, org chart, strategic planning documents, business plans, annual reports, financial statements, investor communications, marketing plans, existing market research, cultural assessments, employee surveys, CEO speeches, press releases, news clippings, history, trademarks and domains, social media accounts. For a public company, examine what financial analysts say.
Interviewing key stakeholders
- Best done face to face (recording aids eye contact); virtual or phone if needed. Keep under forty-five minutes.
- Read the baseline documents first and convey that you have — the interviewee list is co-created with the client.
- Don't provide questions in advance (spontaneous answers are more insightful); customize questions per interview and balance sticking to your script with letting the interviewee steer.
- Core questions probe: what business they're in, mission and top goals, why the company was created, products/services, target market, stakeholder priority, desired perception per audience, competitive advantage, competition, marketing, industry trends, five/ten-year outlook, how they measure success, unifying values, barriers to success, "what keeps you up at night," and the single message they'd communicate.
Defining the problem
Research answers questions, but only once the right questions are asked. Brainstorm, workshop, and iterate to align on how to define the problem: What do you need to know? Who do you want to learn about? What would a useful answer look like? A good problem statement includes what is known, what is unknown, and what is sought.
Audit and research methods
| Audit / method | What it examines | Output |
|---|---|---|
| Market research | Gathering, evaluation, and interpretation of data on customer preferences (qualitative: bulletin boards, ethnography, focus groups, usability testing, mystery shopping, 1:1 interviews, social listening, product testing; quantitative: online surveys, product testing, MaxDiff, conjoint, neuromarketing, segmentation, equity tracking, digital analytics) | New insights about attitudes, awareness, and behavior; hypotheses to test; statistically valid market information |
| Usability testing | Actual behaviors of a handful of target users interacting with the product or any part of the customer experience | Isolated design flaws remedied before launch; lowered risk of shipping a confusing product; historical usability benchmarks |
| Marketing audit | Methodical analysis of all marketing, communications, and identity systems past and present — names, marks, color, imagery, typography, language, look and feel, plus how things happen (process, decision making, production) | Documented learnings: equity, brand architecture, positioning, key messages, visual language, epiphanies |
| Competitive audit | Competitors' brands, key messages, and identity in the marketplace — positioning, naming, brand hierarchy, key messages, visual identity — and the experience of the competition as a customer | Understanding of the competitive field and white space; input to differentiation strategy; material for presenting the new identity |
| Verbal audit | The full spectrum of how language is used across content and design — voice, tone, messaging, clarity, naming, taglines, key messages, descriptors (the "Mount Everest of audits") | Analysis of the intersection of customer experience, design, and content; a defined voice |
| Findings report | Synthesis of all interviews, audits, and research into a succinct strategic presentation | Formal readout to decision makers that closes research, informs the creative team, and opens the strategy phase |
- Primary vs. secondary research: Primary = new qualitative/quantitative data tailored to your questions (surveys, interviews, ethnography, focus groups) — more recent and reliable but costlier and slower. Secondary = interpretation of existing statistical/demographic/qualitative data (competitive intelligence, syndicated data from suppliers like Nielsen and IRI) — cheap and quick but may be outdated.
- Usability testing process (Rubin & Chisnell): develop test plan → find + select participants → prepare test materials → set up environment → conduct sessions (moderate impartially, don't "rescue" strugglers) → analyze data + observations → report findings + recommendations (focus on widest-impact solutions, give short- and long-term recommendations).
- Marketing audit process: understand the big picture → request materials → create a system → solicit information → examine materials. Organize with a war room, a standard capture system, and a "before" picture.
- Competitive audit process: identify competitors → gather information + research → determine positioning → identify key messages → examine visual identity. Present at the end of the research phase; look for meaning, shape, color, form, and content the competition does not use.
Quick reference
- Request and read baseline documents before any interview.
- Interview key stakeholders (< 45 min, no advance questions).
- Define the problem: known / unknown / sought.
- Run market research (primary and/or secondary; qualitative and/or quantitative).
- Usability-test the product/experience — test early and often with small groups.
- Run the marketing, competitive, and verbal audits.
- Synthesize everything into a findings report and present to decision makers.
Common mistakes
- Using research to justify decisions already made instead of to inform future ones.
- Interviewing before reading the baseline materials, or sending questions in advance and losing spontaneous insight.
- Treating secondary data as answers — data alone provides none; interpretation is a skill in itself.
- Confusing focus-group intent with usability results: focus groups show what users think they'd do; usability testing shows what they actually do.
- Skipping the verbal audit or deferring "voice" until after the identity is designed.
- Dumping a vast, unorganized pile of findings instead of distilling a succinct, strategic findings report.
Source: Wheeler & Meyerson, Designing Brand Identity (6th ed., Wiley 2024).