Cascade Insights Archives

How Does a Person Fall in Love…with Your Product?

Users aren’t buyers. Unfortunately, B2B companies typically skip over this essential fact.

It is also true that B2B companies tend to buy buyer persona projects quite frequently, and user persona research much less so. We believe this is a mistake. Both research efforts are equally important, and the failure to do either one can lead to a lost customer down the road.

One reason for this divide is that marketers typically purchase buyer persona projects, not product research. These marketers are rightly concerned about the buyer’s journey, how buyers influence each other in the buying committee, and the customer’s key buying criteria. Regrettably, with all of this emphasis on managers, directors, and VPs, minimal attention is placed on users. And users can make or break a product’s success. Read more

Market Opportunity Research: What’s the Point?

April 8, 2021/in B2B Market Opportunity Research, B2B Market Research Blog, Blog Posts, Product/Service Research /by Krista Daly

Research needs to be acted on. Otherwise, what’s the point? A market opportunity study is one of the most powerful tools a business leader can use to drive that change.

Too often an organization falls down the rabbit hole after launching a market opportunity effort, simply because they can’t see the path forward.

At Cascade, we don’t just drop market opportunity research on your (virtual) desk and walk away. Instead we stick with you to make sure you learn, apply, and drive change inside your organization.
Read more

Success Isn’t Guaranteed: Concept Testing Can Help

February 23, 2021/in B2B Market Research Blog, Blog Posts, Concept Testing, Product/Service Research /by Krista Daly

You have a new B2B product or service that you’re rolling out to the market, but adoption is slow. How could you have avoided a slow launch? What should you have known before the launch?

Concept testing is the way to find out if your product or service will sell before you bring it to the marketplace. There are a number of concept testing methodologies to test your idea, each with their own pluses and minuses.

And if you have more than one idea, you can test multiple concepts with your prospects, too.

Make Better Decisions With B2B Concept Testing

February 11, 2021/in B2B Market Research Blog, Blog Posts, Concept Testing, Product/Service Research /by Krista Daly

Concept testing a new idea with your target market could ultimately save your business from the kiss of death. While startups and small businesses are at a much greater risk for collapse if a product fails, enterprises risk seriously damaging their reputations and losing substantial sales.

Concept testing your solution can help you make better decisions about designing, developing, and investing in your new idea for the best possible success.

5 Clues It’s Time for B2B Concept Testing

February 9, 2021/in B2B Market Research Blog, Blog Posts, Concept Testing, Product/Service Research /by Katie Swigart

“If you build it, they will come” is a great saying, but it’s not the wisest strategy for B2B tech. The only way you’ll have a successful product/service launch is if the market finds value in the concept and trusts your solution more than rival options. B2B Concept Testing lets you know whether or not this is the case.

Here are five indications you should invest in B2B Concept Testing before you finalize your launch strategy.

B2B Sales Enablement Strategy: Shorter Proposals Win

November 25, 2020/in B2B Marketing Blog, Blog Posts, Sales Enablement Marketing, Sales Enablement Research /by Sean Campbell

Proposal writing is somewhat counter-intuitive. Many sellers seek to impress with doctorate thesis style proposals. But, the truth is, the best proposals are shorter rather than longer. Smart B2B sales enablement strategies and tactics focus on the customer instead of the firm. Proposals also need to answer buyers’ unasked questions.

Unfortunately, the vast bulk of proposals I’ve seen over my life fail to meet any of these criteria. Here are some of the frequent errors I’ve seen with B2B tech sector sales enablement strategies and tactics and how to correct them.

B2B Sales Strategy: Plan Before the Rain

September 30, 2020/in B2B Market Research Blog, B2B Marketing Blog, Blog Posts, Sales Enablement Marketing /by Sean Campbell

B2B sales strategy is centered on holding a strategic viewpoint- not just a tactical one. Great B2B sellers develop and revise plans for their accounts, rather than simply taking tasks as they come.

We get it, it’s hard to remember to be strategic when a lot of opportunities are knocking at your door. In this scenario, it’s easy to just keep writing proposals, scheduling meetings, and working on statements of work. But if you aren’t regularly checking back in on the big picture, your B2B sales strategy is likely to lag far behind organizational changes and opportunities in your accounts.

B2B Churn Rate: Don’t Be A Chump About Churn

September 16, 2020/in B2B Churn Analysis, B2B Market Research Blog, Blog Posts, Sales Enablement Research /by Brian Surguine

Customer churn is a normal part of SaaS business models. Some analysts think an annual B2B churn rate of 15 percent is considered acceptable. But, you might be aiming for 10 or even 5 percent. In any case, a lot needs to go right for a customer to be happy with a new product or service, and it is impossible to please everyone. But if the churn rate gets too high, you need to quickly determine where the problem lies.

Your customer analytics can usually provide clues as to where users are struggling with your product. However, these datasets won’t tell you the whole story, such as the internal dynamics behind why a customer dropped you, or ways your solution fails to adequately address jobs-to-be-done. Worse still, your data may even be misleading you! Qualitative insights from customer conversations are the only way to understand the churn your customer analytics can’t explain.

Here are four reasons for a high B2B churn rate you may not have considered, based on conversations we’ve had with B2B buyers over the course of scores of 14+ years of market research projects.

Rebranding A Company: Dos & Don’ts

June 26, 2020/in B2B Market Research Blog, B2B Marketing Blog, B2B Messaging, Blog Posts, Brand Research, Marketing Strategy, Message Testing Research /by Sean Campbell

Rebranding a company sounds like an exciting project to most marketers. A rebrand promises a fresh new look, maybe a new logo, perhaps even a new company name. But, rebrands are also expensive, and risk alienating or confusing current customers. In short, when they go wrong, rebrands can be career-enders.

So when to rebrand or not to rebrand? And if you decide to pull the trigger, what do you need to watch out for? Read on…

No company size or industry is immune to disruption from COVID-19.

Nearly 80% of Business Activity Is Disrupted By Coronavirus

March 25, 2020/in B2B Market Opportunity Research, B2B Market Research Blog, B2B Marketing Blog, Blog Posts /by Philippe Boutros

A new study on coronavirus business disruption shows that while every industry has been gravely impacted, some, like tech, are faring better than others.

Cascade Insights’ survey reveals how the crisis is affecting business operations across company sizes, sectors, and job roles. (Hint: no business type, size, or function is immune.)
Read more

Posts

How Does a Person Fall in Love…with Your Product?

Market Opportunity Research: What’s the Point?

Success Isn’t Guaranteed: Concept Testing Can Help

Make Better Decisions With B2B Concept Testing

5 Clues It’s Time for B2B Concept Testing

Read more

B2B Sales Enablement Strategy: Shorter Proposals Win

B2B Sales Strategy: Plan Before the Rain

B2B Churn Rate: Don’t Be A Chump About Churn

Rebranding A Company: Dos & Don’ts

Nearly 80% of Business Activity Is Disrupted By Coronavirus

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