Isurus

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the co-founder and partner at a CX strategy consulting company, serving large B2B technology clients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Isurus?

One of our clients was on the cusp of making some critical, strategic, high investment decisions on a B2B networking product they wanted to bring to market and wanted to bring in the voice of the customer to help inform their final decision.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Several years ago we started working with Isurus through an introduction of one of our most trusted partners who had worked with Isurus in the past. It was clear from the moment we met that our approach and dedication to the practice of market research were aligned.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

Isurus partnered with us on all facets of the project, beginning with research design and sample definition, through screener development, and discussion guide development. They moderated all interviews and wrote a really sharp analysis of findings, being very thoughtful about not only the original questions we set out to answer, but also some of the "reading between the lines" to help uncover other themes and patterns from the interviews.

What was the team composition?

The team was the moderator and support staff.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The insights that Isurus delivered were instrumental in helping our client make some pretty critical decisions on product-market fit and go-to-market. It caused them to look at a few things very differently with eyes wide open.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Our team engagement was very transparent, open, and adaptable to changes throughout fieldwork. Isurus was very accessible when we needed them.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Moderation was expert level. Moderation is truly art and science, and when you find someone who can ask a question crisply, and adapt on the fly while staying true to the overall learning agenda, you stick with those people.

Is there any area for improvement or anything that could have been done differently?

No. Between project management, moderation, and analysis, it couldn't have gone better.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the content lead on the marketing team at a B2B SaaS tech company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

Each year, we conduct a large survey of professionals in our target market to assess their strategic priorities, what challenges are keeping them up at night, how they're handling specific timely issues, etc. The first year, we did it with the help of a freelancer, but the second year, we knew we'd need far more help, especially as we looked to open up into new markets.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We were referred to Isurus through a recommendation and they came to the proposal phase with a strong set of capabilities, very competitive pricing, great examples of previous relevant work, and a strong understanding of how we should go about the survey. We were so impressed with their summary of the project and loved how Joe and team thoughtfully responded to and incorporated our feedback.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

The multi-month project had a few phases.

1. Scoping the needs of the survey, and reviewing our previous year's survey.
2. Developing the survey questions and setting the survey panel needs.
3. Running the survey and carefully monitoring if we were hitting our survey response goals.
4. Collecting the data and developing a detailed report with fleshed out insights.

What was the team composition?

We primarily worked directly with Joe and Jeana. While we didn't work directly with the rest of the team, we could see the signs of all the other teammates working behind the scenes.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

We took the results of the survey from Isurus to publish our tentpole original research asset that we'll use to market through this year. We saw thousands of downloads of the report, used it as key followup to events and campaigns, and integrated it with our sales enablement processes.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Super effective. They were very accommodating and easy to work with. Joe was incredibly professional and helped demystify anything that was unlc

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The team was incredibly professional both in how they ran our project and the expertise they brought. They were incredibly helpful in getting the project set up for success with clear timelines, asking relevant questions, mapping out goals, and making it easy to set up meetings with the team. And they made key recommendations along the way to improve our results. Plus the final report was incredibly thorough - providing great insights as well a the full data set.

Is there any area for improvement or anything that could have been done differently?

No improvement and we will likely work with them again!

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the senior director of product marketing at a technology services firm. We specialize in developing IoT systems and we offer hardware, software, firmware development, data science, and AI/ML expertise and apply those to building connected systems.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

Our company is in the B2B space, and we’ve just started to explore new markets. We needed a partner that’s specifically steeped in B2B with strong technology chops to help us with fundamental product/market fit exercises. Our goal was to understand how our potential target clients are wired and what their functional and emotional needs are.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We hired Isurus Market Research to handle a foundational qualitative research project. We started the project with a problem discovery. They spent time in direct conversation with us to understand what outcomes we were trying to drive from this research and where we were in our journey.

They didn’t give us any cookie-cutter solutions — they really started at the beginning to understand what we needed first and what would be the highest-leverage outcomes for us. They provided a requirements document that served as the foundation where we could collaborate with them on a prioritized list of the things we have to learn if time allows

From there, we went through a typical and thorough creation of a discussion guide for the qualitative interviews as well. After that, we worked closely together to find and thoroughly vet the right bench of B2B technologists for the project.

In the actual interview part, they took the time to build relationships with the research participants, warming them up and doing all the things to build a solid foundation for the long game. They knew that we needed our participants to commit to a longitudinal research engagement, and they did a really great job of thinking about the project from a long-term perspective instead of just a one-time, 50-minute interview. We actually slowed down at one point to find better participants, which was a great example of them taking the long game approach.

What is the team composition?

We work with two people from Isurus Market Research, both of whom are very experienced in B2B tech research.

How did you come to work with Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

Isurus Market Research and Consulting was referred to us by a business colleague.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $20,000–$30,000 for the initial project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in July 2021, and the engagement is ongoing

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

How did Isurus Market Research and Consulting perform from a project management standpoint?

Isurus Market Research and Consulting has performed very well in terms of project management. They’ve been focused and outcomes-driven since the beginning of the project, and they’ve done a great job of keeping us in scope for a foundational research project. 

We’ve laid out a great critical path and adhered to it. They’ve also helped us make evidence-based, strategic decisions that have served our purpose well.

We communicate through phone, email, Slack, and Zoom. They’re very flexible and responsive.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m really impressed with Isurus Market Research and Consulting’s ability to listen and focus on problem discovery instead of serving up a cookie-cutter solution. They made an effort to really understand what I needed and what constraints were in play before tailoring a solution and recommendations to achieve that.

Another thing that really impressed me is how flexible they are with my very detail-oriented work style. We’ve successfully established a new normal for the next project we’ll be working on together. We’ve learned a lot from each other and built a “getting better together” kind of relationship.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I think that Isurus Market Research and Consulting could benefit from being clear and upfront about their service offerings. They offer a lot more than standard qualitative and quantitative research — they’re incredibly smart and they probably need to declare that a little bit more boldly.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure to come in with your problem statement, not with assumptions or an assignment. It’s also a good idea to trust their process — they’ll definitely make your original problem statement better.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm a principal and EVP/Chief Strategy Officer of a mid-size branding and marketing agency.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

We had developed a new brand concept and tagline for a healthcare client and before launching it, were looking to test it externally to: 1. gauge overall reactions to the brand/campaign concept; 2. Evaluate the risk associated with the bold tagline having negative connotations; 3. Assess the concept's ability to convey a message that was important to our client.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We have partnered with Isurus for at least 10 years. Although we have used a couple other research resources at times, Isurus has been our go-to partner for important market, audience and brand research and testing. We find their level of strategic insights and thinking to be unsurpassed in the industry. They not only are experts in their field but have a strategic consultant's ability to understand the business and marketing context, leading to extremely thoughtful recommendations and flawless execution. Their reports focus on the data that matters and their analysis and implications are truly insightful and actionable. On top of that, they are incredibly savvy and credible presenters when we bring them into prospect or client meetings.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

This project consisted in a fast-turnaround digital quantitative survey conducted in our client's targeted service area. The survey asked consumers to express their reaction to the concept in heir own words and in a series of rating-scale questions.

What was the team composition?

For this project and others, we always work with one of the executive leads/partners of the firm.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The survey was successfully completed within our quick timeframe, reaching our ethnicity over-sample goal, and at a 95% confident interval. The results were critical in getting final approval from our client's Board of Directors and Executive Team to launch the campaign.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

They are great communicators. We were shown a timeline and work plan, and we were always updated on the project's progress. They also are very responsive to emails and always available for calls as needed.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their strategic orientation. Their ability to not only design the research that is best for what we're trying to learn/accomplish, but also their ability to derive insightful and actionable insights and recommendations from the data.

Is there any area for improvement or anything that could have been done differently?

Nothing at this time

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

At the time of the project, I was the Manager of Market Research at an educational resources company that leads in PreK-12 content and services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

The head of Technical Services at HMH felt there was an opportunity to help PreK-12 schools realize the full value of their investments in instructional technology and wanted to explore the unmet needs for technical services in the PreK-12 market. We hired Isrus Market Research and Consulting to conduct qualitative research to help us understand these unmet needs.

What were your goals for this project?

The goals of the project were to refine the view of the competitive landscape for tech services, support HMH's positioning as a supplier of tech services offerings, and develop tech services offerings concepts to refine/validate in future research.

SOLUTION

How did you select Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

We have worked with Isurus Market Research and Consulting previously, and we were impressed with the quality of their work and the consultative and collaborative nature of Jeana, who is a partner with the firm.

They also offer great value for the price. Isurus was recommend to us by a colleague for all the reasons mentioned above and because Jeana is an outstanding moderator and market researcher, and we are so grateful we gave Isurus a try.

Describe the project in detail.

Isurus worked with us to refine our business objectives and develop a discussion guide to ask the right questions to get at these objectives. Isurus recruited for and conducted 12 in-depth interviews with our target audience and distilled the findings from the interviews into unmet tech needs and outcomes that were easy to understand and clear usable concepts to test in future research.

What was the team composition?

We worked directly with Jeana, who is a partner with Isurus. She was our primary point of contact for the project. We also worked with her operations manager, who focused on recruiting respondents for the interviews and other logistics related to the interviews.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The concepts from the research serviced as the basis for other research so we could validate and test the appeal of them in a survey that we conducted internally. With that survey, we learned that there was not broad appeal of the concepts, and that learning saved HMH from making a costly investment. Isurus provided the foundation for that research.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The team was amazingly easy to work with. They were responsive, proactive, and collaborative, and consultative. Jeana always provided us status updates without us asking, and she kept the project running on time and within budget.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

We were incredibly impress with Jeana's consultative and collaborative nature. We considered Isurus a research partner and not a research vendor because it was truly like a partnership. Jeana was highly invested in the success of our research project, and she was always providing thoughtful insight and recommendations through the project.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I truly cannot think of any areas for improvement. Isurus provides outstanding services and support, and we would definitely use them again and recommend them to all of my colleagues who need an external research partner.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm a senior manager at a company that primarily works with marine propulsion systems for different kinds of commercial and recreational applications. I have a dual role in engineering and commercial sales.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

They took on a project to help us evaluate new potential technology. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They did a market study for us. We prepared some high-level material about what a new piece of technology would look like and provided a general overview of the people we wanted to get feedback from.

They conducted about 15 interviews with qualified people in the industry. Then, they summarized the results for us to assess how viable the technology might be and what the market perception would be if we brought it to a real product. 

What is the team composition?

I primarily worked with Joe (Vice President & Partner). 

How did you come to work with Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

Our in-house marketing team worked with Isurus in the past, so they came recommended internally. We gave the proposal to a couple of different companies, and the Isurus team came back with what seemed like the best proposal. 

How much have you invested with them?

We invested about $25,000 on the project. 

What is the status of this engagement?

The project ran from June–October 2019. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

The project was successful in that we got the market feedback that we needed to make an educated decision about how to proceed. 

How did Isurus Market Research and Consulting perform from a project management standpoint?

The communication was good and very clear. Isurus was reliable whenever we had a meeting. They were on time and had everything prepared quite well. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

The way they delivered the final results to us was very helpful. They categorized the results in a way that made it very easy for us to make a decision. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there aren’t. I don’t have any complaints.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Trust them and let them do their job. They're quite professional, so communicate clearly your desires and let them handle the project. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We provide complete HR software for HR service providers, as well as medium and large enterprise businesses. My role is managing product and customer marketing, including market research.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

We have hired Isurus to work on several projects and initiatives over the past few years. This one in particular was to help develop the research behind an industry trends report. We have also work with Isurus to conduct new market research on multiple occasions

What were your goals for this project?

Our goals were to identify new and evolving trends (from previous research) and provide thought leadership content to our customers and prospects.

SOLUTION

How did you select Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

We found Isurus through a team member in the group who had previously worked with Joe.

Describe the project in detail.

The HRO Trends Report is annual report (since 2016) in one of the largest industry reports available to date. The project entails building a fairly extensive survey, identifying the key areas we needed to focus on, gathering survey responses and analyzing the data to produce an internally-facing report. From there, our team takes the data and trends identified by Isusrus and builds the final report.

What was the team composition?

The group included several key stakeholders in our company, a product marketing manager, and myself.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The trends report is always our best piece of premium content. It brought in more leads than any other piece of thought leadership we've done in the past and helped drive more revenue than any other lead source.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It's a please to work with Joe and Jenna. They communicate well throughout the entire process, deliver work on time and within budget. Highly recommended!

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Our industry is pretty complex. They were able to quickly get up to speed and bring value to our organization. We even had them speak at our annual user conference to share the industry research with our customers.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No. We have worked with Isurus on multiple projects and will continue to work with them for all our research needs. They are great!

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Executive Director of the Giant Screen Cinema Association. As the leader in the giant screen industry, GSCA facilitates communication, information sharing, and the development of standards to support the production and exhibition of original, high-quality, educational giant screen cinema experiences.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

2019 Member Survey

What were your goals for this project?

The research will help to guide the GSCA’s future direction by assessing: Perceptions of the GSCA Opinions about the future direction of the association Opportunities for the GSCA to enhance the value it provides Opportunities to grow by engaging lapsed or prospective members

The 2019 questionnaire is an updated version of the 2013 study. The original questionnaire was developed through a collaborative process that included discussion groups at the 2013 Film Expo and stakeholder interviews.

SOLUTION

How did you select Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

We reviewed proposals from several other organizations. We have worked with Isurus in the past and were very pleased with their service. Their proposal was also very thorough and complete and well priced.

Describe the project in detail.

Data were collected using an online survey, from April 25-June 17, 2019. Respondents were sourced from GSCA contact lists of current, lapsed, and prospective members.

To encourage participation, potential respondents received up to 4 emails requesting their participation. In addition, GSCA promoted the survey in the eNews, and on social media, and through other outreach by GSCA leadership and staff.

A total of 183 respondents participated in the survey, and 136 completed the full survey. The survey had a median completion time of 13 minutes for current members and 11 minutes for lapsed members, and prospective members.

What was the team composition?

Several members of the GSCA Board, Committees and staff participated in this work along with Isurus.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Despite continued challenges in the industry and shrinking membership, the membership in 2019 believes GSCA is largely effective in its core activities as an association.

Members recognize that GSCA has expanded the value it provides outside of its core conference activities and expect the association to continue to deliver a balance of conference and non-conference events/resources.

Marketing to members to raise awareness of the range of resources available can help increase GSCA’s value to members. A review of utilization levels relative to the time/cost required to maintain resources may be warranted and may result in a streamlined set of resources.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It was superb.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Isurus listened carefully to GSCA's needs and hot-topics. They were able to discern the most important and pull out topics we did not realize we should be thinking of.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I cannot say I would have any areas for improvement. Isurus was excellent to work with - this is the main reason we have worked with them on several key projects over the past 15 years.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

During the period of this research, I was interim Chief Marketing Officer of a security technology company. We provides touchless security screening technology that is faster and less costly than conventional walk through metal detector screening.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

We hired Isurus to conduct original market research through in-depth interviews with customers and prospects.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goal was to test several specific hypotheses about potential areas of future product development to give us a clearer picture of where to invest resources.

SOLUTION

How did you select Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

I have worked with Isurus several times over nearly two decades shipping technology products. They have delivered quality work each time, so they were the only firm considered for this project.

Describe the project in detail.

Isurus interviewed our executive team to refine and clarify the hypotheses to be tested and the potential target customers with whom to test the hypotheses. Based on these interviews, they developed an interview guide and we provided them with a list of target customers to interview. Then Isurus proceeded to schedule and execute the interviews. After the interviews were complete, they summarized their findings and presented them to the executive team.

What was the team composition?

Isurus had two researchers doing the interviews. On our side we had the myself (CMO), the head of product, and our two founders, both of whom play an ongoing role in future product direction.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Before we undertook this project there were many non-converging discussions about future product direction. There were many opinions but few facts, and there was not enough customer evidence to move forward with confidence. Through the research process, we were able to clearly define our hypotheses and agree on the best way to validate them with customer data in an impartial way.

The research was pivotal in helping us move forward with a clear product strategy. It helped us put all the differing opinions in proper perspective and unify as an executive team. Having a neutral third party conduct the research helped increase our confidence in the results.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Isurus did an excellent job of shaping and managing our expectations throughout the project. They followed their project plan to the letter and kindly but firmly held us accountable to our commitments. They did a good job of getting buy in from across our team, and kept us abreast of their process.

When it came time to share the findings with the team, they had really done their homework and were able to answer all the questions and concerns in an efficient manner. Some people on our team had not done this kind of research before and were somewhat skeptical of the process, but in the end they acknowledged that everything had worked out splendidly.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I think the most impressive aspect of Isurus is their experience. They have deep pattern recognition for how to make these projects successful. In our case, they had recently completed projects that asked conceptually similar questions in totally different industries so they were able to guide us in ways that were unique and helpful.

Are there any areas for improvement?

None at this time.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We provide financial software to energy companies in North America. My role is the VP of marketing.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

Our market is very niche and we face different competition across our different solution suites.  As such, we need to monitor many competitors and we needed a partner to build competitive analysis in areas we didn’t have as much strength or visibility.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We hired Isurus to help build competitive reviews for several key companies. First, we identified which companies we wanted Isurus to complete a competitive analysis on. Together, we developed a predefined template, which then Isurus completed based on publicly available data, which included websites, Glassdoor.com, and similar associations. They combed through all of that information, analyzed the information, and built a complete overview. 

Upon the full analysis of the data, Isurus scheduled a call to walk us through their findings and answer any questions. Their diligence and understanding of the competitors are extremely valuable so that we could dig deeper into the information than we could our own. And, based on some of the information they uncovered we were able to drill down even further than we expected.

What is the team composition?

For our project we worked two of their Vice Presidents.

How did you come to work with Isurus Market Research and Consulting?

Isurus came to us through a referral from another software expert.  Unlike other firms, their approach is that we had access to senior-level researchers throughout the entire process. Additionally, they deep dive into the information and seek to understand what’s out in the market. They do research from ground zero and leverage their network to dive even further.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent less than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The most recent project was started at the end of October 2020, and they delivered the full report in early December 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

The data was extremely valuable and provided additional insights that we could not have gathered on our own which helps our sales team compete more effectively against these companies.

How did Isurus Market Research and Consulting perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re always great. They give us a timeline and checkpoints to make sure they’re on track. If they have questions, they always ask them. From there, the process flows.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They always seek to understand the research. The team also asks the right probing questions to make sure they’re delivering what we need.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We haven't experienced any limitations. The only random thought could be that they could add new databases that could be leveraged across multiple customers. For example, access to a database could be valuable to other clients such as S&P. It hasn’t been a problem for us in anything they have completed for our team.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to be transparent on how you plan to use the data, what you’re seeking to understand, what's your timeline and your allocated budget.