The most effective & efficient communications hit the biggest swath of valuable prospects with a meaningful idea that incites them to buy your brand. Of course, getting there can take forever. Knowing what to say, how to frame it and finding what will drive behavior change usually requires multiple studies and plenty of agency trial and error. Months pass, competitors advance, and in the end you could still be at square one. Not very effective or efficient, is it?
That is why we invented S+R Guided Deliberations™. Not your garden variety “great debate” methodology, it’s a learning lab that in one study reveals exactly how to influence customers with the right ideas to buy you over competitors. Plus, we’ve allied with a specific technology for a seamless and successful experience no matter where you are or the conditions on the ground.
The method evolved from “mock juries” we invented with the University of Chicago Law School. The client was a plaintiff in a high-profile antitrust case, leaving no room for academic indulgences. We needed to get under the hood of how jurors with differing interpretations of the same evidence align on a unified verdict. So, we set up a simulation where legal teams tried out different versions of their and the opposing side’s case, then observed how jurors processed all the information – the evidence and arguments that carried more weight, where confusion occurred and how it was resolved. Over multiple jury panels attorneys honed their presentation, emphasizing their most persuasive points, preemptively addressing friction and role-playing opposing arguments to prep the most effective counters.
This gave the legal teams immediate insight to apply to their case strategy, narrative and objections handling. In the end, our clients achieved some newsworthy and record-breaking awards in anti-trust, personal injury, and other jury trials.
Fast forward to today. S+R Guided Deliberations™ has been a boon to clients who want to understand how to best position their brands and overcome the counter-messaging of competitors.
Here’s how it works…
We recruit a diverse group of customers who hold opposing opinions and behaviors relevant to the issue at hand. For example, we could mix traditionalists loyal to the market leader with early adopters of emerging trends. After getting some meaningful background, the group views and discusses information about a new product or service. There is no moderation…we simply observe what transpires; the pace and intensity of the conversation, what they consider important, where they agree and disagree, and the language they use.
Once we know which offering each participant prefers, the moderator divides the group into teams, each assigned to convince the other why their preference should prevail. Again, we sit back and listen for the arguments they use to woo the other side, how they respond to questions and objections, which arguments triumph and fall flat. We even inject new information to see how the dynamics change.
Here’s where it gets interesting. Once participants’ contrasting views are exposed, we throw them a curve ball and tell them they’re all on the same panel tasked with making a blue-ribbon recommendation. In other words, they have to work together to find common ground. Now we get to see where they will give and where they will dig in. In the end, we have a full plate of insight that gives us clear strategic positioning and communication direction to up the odds of success in the marketplace.
Despite these chaotic times business must persevere, which for us means making sure we do not sideline a brilliant method because we cannot gather in the traditional way. That’s why we joined forces with Civicom®, a digital technology provider with a capability tailor-made for this method. Unlike typical viewing portals, they have virtual break out rooms that are easy to assign, simple to engage by separate moderators as needed, and seamlessly toggle back to a group setting. So, we can conduct these sessions as well virtually as we do in person, not missing a beat in defining the most compelling, market-ready communications and sales strategies today and tomorrow.
Louis Pasteur once famously said, “Fortune favors the prepared mind.” With S+R Guided Deliberations™ you have a learning lab for how to position, frame and convey the best qualities of your brand in ways that will make competitors downright nervous. How to fight for your space, define the road map to go from early adopters to more expansive audiences. In the end, you’ll know what will change people’s minds and drive them to act on your behalf.
For more details, cases and discussion of how this can work best for you just reach out and we will arrange a time that works for you.
Shapiro+Raj
S+R is a research and strategy firm that uses social and behavioral sciences to solve the toughest business and marketing challenges. Our next-gen methods dig deep to unlock market-ready insights. Then our brand planners turn these into strategic marketplace actions that create brand evolution and innovation; customer experiences and loyalty; and new platforms for growth.
