One pet was deathly afraid of my hair, so I had to pull it back in a ponytail. Another wanted to eat it, and he gave me a friendly chomping. Ethnography studies are always fun and unpredictable.

Utility is the expectation. Promise is the motivator. One gets you to the starting line, the other gets you on the market share winner’s podium.

Back in the day, all the cool and impressive people rocked polo shirts with a small crocodile logo. Now they wear whatever they want because they are rocking authenticity.

When brands authentically meet consumers where they are in their Live Well™ space, demographic differences become irrelevant, and huge business opportunities open up.

I walked like Gucci, learned how to reduce analysis time by 80%, and was interviewed as an industry expert at the Qualitative Research Consultants Association Conference last month. It was great!

Here is the hard truth: Consumers are never going to approach a brand and say, “You help me live well.” But they will absolutely quiet quit a brand that doesn’t do just that.

Bots are a nuisance that corrupt data and skew market research results. They are increasingly sophisticated and sneaky, so we have become increasingly vigilant.

My key takeaway from the Quirks LA conference last month is that brands really want to understand their customers better, and our Living Well lens is uniquely qualified to help them do that.

That time when a bottle of dish soap was more valuable than a designer coat.

It’s a WIIFM conundrum. The Olinger Group (TOG) runs all market research insights through a Living Well lens. Why does that matter? What’s in it for me? And what’s in it for you and your customers?