Applied Marketing Science (AMS) was pleased to sponsor the IDEA Forum, a virtual thinktank hosted by the Insights Association IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equality, and Access) Council. The IDEA Forum brought together market research and customer insights leaders from all kinds of industries with a shared commitment to furthering diversity, equity, and inclusion in their organizations and in the wider community.
With formats ranging from workshops to panels, the forum equipped attendees with the tools needed to turn equitable research practices into tangible, lasting change – whether they are just starting out with DEI efforts or if there are established DEI initiatives at their organization. Sessions shed light on issues such as accessibility within survey design and the importance of cultural intelligence for customer insights.
AMS Litigation Support Manager and DEI Council Chair Dr. Raquel Mendizábal Martell and Field Operations Manager Sarah Schomp, also a council member, were able to attend this year’s event. They came away full of insights to consider and strategies to implement at AMS.
One of the forum’s highlights for Dr. Mendizábal Martell was a workshop-style session that provided hands-on exercises and practical strategies for implementing equitable research practices. She said, “The tools that were provided were valuable, can be used at a company-wide level, and will help companies assess their progress towards inclusive research and practices; it can take firms from defining their DEI mindset, identifying obstacles and opportunities for growth, and brainstorming solutions to those challenges.”
She added that intersectionality was a theme that appeared in nearly all presentations. One of the principles of inclusive design is to anticipate intersectional experiences, which has a particular salience to market research. When considering segments or groups, it is important to remember that no group is a monolith; researchers should be cognizant that despite shared traits, behaviors, or demographics, each individual comes with their own unique set of identities.
Summarizing the team’s takeaways from the event, Sarah emphasized that accessibility is crucial to effective customer insights: “Our learnings from the forum help to reframe the way that we think about research. It’s important that we provide space for our survey respondents to be co-creators in the research process. We may be the experts on the survey design and research process, but our respondents are the experts of their own experiences. We want to empower them and make sure their voices are heard in our research – so it’s important the methods we use to collect data are accessible.”
Examples of inclusive survey design include screen readers for those who are visually impaired or defining terminology in interviews and surveys to ensure that researchers approach respondents’ experiences from the same lens, which allow for a deeper understanding of their needs.
The IDEA Forum serves as an important touchpoint for the market research and insights industry: a reminder that our work, which is directly underscored by an understanding of different perspectives, must be inclusive of – and accessible to – all.
Interested in better understanding your customers? Get in touch with our team to discuss how AMS can connect you with the perspectives you need to succeed – even in niche or hard-to-reach industries.
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Tags: Conferences