We all know that the holy grail of research is to get interesting and well thought out responses. We want creativity and depth, which ultimately lead to more authentic and engaging outputs. But how does one achieve that? How can we invigorate the research process to avoid bland responses that would be better suited to a birthday card for someone you really didn’t know? Let’s take a look at some potential ideas.
Projective Techniques for Subconscious Insights
It sounds obvious, but your first step should be as simple as using more creative techniques. Projective techniques are one of the most powerful tools in our arsenal as digital researchers. You quickly and easily unlock parts of the experience in participants’ minds that they may not even be aware of. By bringing in visual, word association or third-person exercises (which are super easy to use, by the way), you get a first hand view to their subconscious, revealing nuanced insights that might remain hidden in traditional research approaches. You can also use more visual tasks like collage-making to give participants freedom of expression in communicating abstract concepts and emotions. And you’ll enrich your reporting with diverse and imaginative outputs.
Diverse Multimedia to Freshen up the Canvas
Text responses are brilliant, but they have a time and place. Digital research is so much more than text-based question and answers. Now you can bring in different forms of media to make things interesting. Encourage participants to also share their ideas through images, videos, or audio to give them a canvas for diverse modes of expression. This will truly add vibrancy and depth to your research while allowing everyone to answer in a way to suit them. The upshot is you offer a more inclusive and engaging experience for everyone, while encourages a fresh perspective and inventive flair.
Collaborative Virtual Spaces for Collective Creativity
We can’t overstate the importance of collaboration in encouraging creative responses. If you create a dedicated virtual space designed for idea sharing and exchange, you’ll be amazed at the results. Participants can share their experiences, build on each other’s ideas, and collectively contribute to the creative process. Whether through forums or discussion boards, these spaces become a hub for collective creativity and innovation.
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It’s worth remembering that none of these strategies are standalone concepts. They summarise a bigger, more important agenda – participants are busy and they are sharing their precious time with us, so let’s make that experience enjoyable for them. They’ll want to contribute and by gosh will we benefit from the new ideas and rich content that they bring when we come to analysis and reporting!
At Whycatcher, we love to find new ways to get the best out of our participants, so get in touch if you want to learn more about techniques to truly engage your audience ❤️
