Concept testing

Concept testing (or market testing) is the process of using quantitative methods and qualitative methods to evaluate consumer response to a product idea prior to the introduction of a product to the market. It can also be used to generate communication designed to alter consumer attitudes toward existing products. These methods involve the evaluation by consumers of product concepts having certain rational benefits, such as "a detergent that removes stains but is gentle on fabrics," or non-rational benefits, such as "a shampoo that lets you be yourself." Such methods are commonly referred to as concept testing and have been performed using field surveys, personal interviews and focus groups, in combination with various quantitative methods, to generate and evaluate product concepts.

The concept generation portions of concept testing have been predominantly qualitative. Advertising professionals have generally created concepts and communications of these concepts for evaluation by consumers, on the basis of consumer surveys and other market research, or on the basis of their own experience as to which concepts they believe represent product ideas that are worthwhile in the consumer market.

The quantitative portions of concept testing procedures have generally been placed in three categories:

The traditional system of concept testing has been inadequate as a means to identify and quantify the criteria upon which consumer preference of one concept over another was based. These methods were insufficient to ascertain the relative importance of the factors responsible for or governing the different reactions of consumers, markets and market segments when presented with different concepts in the concept tests. Without such information, market researchers and advertisers, with their expertise, could generalize, on the basis of a concept test, as to how consumers might react to the actual products or to variations of the tested concepts. Communication of the concept, as embodied in a new product, has generally been left to the creativity of the advertising agency. No systematic quantitative method was known, however, which could accurately identify the criteria on which the consumer choices were based and the contribution or importance of each criterion to the purchase decision. Therefore, previous concept testing methods have failed to provide market researchers with the complete information necessary for them to create products specifically tailored to satisfy a consumer group balance of purchase criteria.

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