Underwater Wonder
Posted by Erin Koch
We frequently remind our clients at Gable PR of the importance of getting solid audience intelligence before launching a comprehensive PR program. Knowing which messages will move your audience to take action, as well as where they get their information is the foundation of an effective PR campaign. It’s the PR equivalent of plotting a cross-country automobile trip; know all the nuances and details long before you even start packing.
But it is absolutely crucial that this research be conducted in a way that will result in accurate data. The road map can’t be based on leading questions or a biased audience sample.
I recently received an e-mail from the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific. The e-mail asked me to complete a quick Zoomerang survey. I agreed. From the outset, it was apparent that the aquarium was attempting to find a new pricepoint for the Child ticket. So they were conducting audience research on new ticket prices: a topic that will clearly require a good road map for communicating with their guests. Here is how the survey went:
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- Screen 1 – Would you be willing to pay $18.95 for a Child admission to the Aquarium of the Pacific?
- 2 – Would you be willing to pay $17.95?
- 3 – $16.95?
- 4 – $15.95?
- 5 –$14.95?
Now, as a card-carrying father to three fish-loving kids, how do you think I answered each question? As I continued checking off the “no” box, the amount of the proposed ticket price kept dropping! A wonderful thing! So I obviously continued checking “no” until the survey moved on to a different topic.
Had the question been phrased differently, I might have had a different response. For example:
At Aquarium of the Pacific, we strive to provide each guest with an experience that is worth far more than the price of admission. In this challenging economic climate, we are currently reviewing our ticket prices to determine whether changes might be acceptable to our valued guests, and would appreciate your honest input on what you would be willing to pay for a Child admission. Please check off all boxes that apply:
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- $18-20 [ ]
- $16-18 [ ]
- $14-16 [ ]
- $12-14 [ ]
Giving the question more context, then providing the full range of prices under consideration on a single screen, makes me much more likely to give a straightforward answer, rather than trying to “game” the system to get the price to go as low as possible. It would also be easier and faster to complete, increasing the response rate.
Audience research is crucial. But the effort is wasted if the data is collected in a way that is biased. In this case, the Aquarium of the Pacific is very likely to receive data that indicate that very few of their prior guests are willing to pay even their lowest proposed price for a Child admission.
A final note: once I completed the survey, the screen stated, rather tersely, that I did not meet the qualifications to continue to an additional survey. A simple “thank you for your valued input” would have been good PR and much friendlier. And, more importantly, as a huge fan of the Aquarium of the Pacific, I dread the thought of them making a crucial pricing decision based on an awkwardly constructed survey completed by a non-representative audience sample.
Photo by Kevitivity
Tags: creative, marketing, positioning, PR, promotion, research, sales
