How to Elevate Research Use Cases With Insight Communities and AI

What can you really achieve with an insight community? As it turns out, a lot.

In a recent webinar, Using AI to Unlock High-Impact Use Cases for Insight Communities, Jennifer Reid, Co-CEO and Chief Methodologist at Rival Group (parent company of Rival Tech and Reach3), walked through the different ways global brands are incorporating conversational research, mobile-first tech and AI to elevate different research use cases.

Tackling the biggest market research challenges

Jennifer kicked off by highlighting some of the biggest hurdles in market research today:

• Research feels like a burden and often goes undervalued.
• Storytelling is frequently missing.
• Data quality can be unreliable.
• There's a lack of genuine human connection.

These challenges, she explained, can be addressed by leveraging insight communities. It all starts with fostering authentic human connections. An insight community platform connects you with real people who actively want to share their experiences. This creates a space for ongoing conversations, allowing you to get high-quality data quickly. Over time, this leads to stronger storytelling and better market research ROI.

How insight communities elevate research

Jennifer walked us through several use cases where combining mobile-first, conversational insight communities (what we call Community 2.0) with AI market research tools delivers exceptional results. This includes:

• Foundational Customer Understanding
• Front-End Innovation
• User Experience Research
• Message and Ad Testing
• Beyond Customer Satisfaction

Foundational Customer Understanding

Understanding your customers' behaviors and attitudes is the cornerstone of being customer-centric.

Jennifer pointed out that insight communities, equipped with dynamic profiling, allow you to continuously deepen your knowledge of your audience. Add AI into the mix-such as tone-matching tools to align surveys with your brand voice-and you can capture insights that truly reflect your customers.

Jennifer shared two examples:

• Carnival Corporation uses their insight community to understand guest preferences and complement their Voice of Player program
• Kontoor Brands (parent to Wrangler and Lee) leverages its insight community to connect with and more deeply understand key consumer segments

Front-End Innovation

Innovation thrives on uncovering unmet needs and identifying commercially viable ideas.

Jennifer explained that insight communities can help here by providing a way to engage participants who are enthusiastic and ready to be part of different waves of the innovation process. AI tools like AI probing further enhance this process by getting driving depth and getting participants to provide more details.

One major snack company, for instance, uses its community to conduct in-home product testing (IHUTs) and sensory research. Over time, the quality of insights improves as the brand develops more trust with community members, who then provide more detailed feedback.

User Experience Research

From testing new apps to optimizing websites, insight communities offer a fast, iterative way to support user experience research.

Jennifer shared an example from Warner Bros. Discovery, which used its community to explore the streaming decision journey. After recruiting participants from their community and giving them detailed instructions, the company was able to capture rich video feedback alongside quantitative and qualitative insights.

Message and Ad Testing

Testing messages and ads? Jennifer suggests blending quick, instinctive questions with deeper, reflective ones. This approach taps into both "System 1" (fast, emotional responses) and "System 2" (slower, rational thought) thinking.

AI tools like the AI Summarizer make analyzing open-ended responses faster and more efficient.

McCormick, the global leader in flavors, uses its community to test potential taglines and gather input for campaigns. They've seen great results since switching from a traditional vendor to Rival and Reach's Community 2.0.

Beyond Customer Satisfaction

Insight communities aren't just for CSAT or NPS-they can extend these programs. For instance, some companies recruit participants directly from CSAT surveys, turning passionate respondents into engaged community members.

Jennifer highlighted Dell Technologies, which created a vibrant community by inviting CSAT respondents to share ongoing feedback. This approach not only brings customer pain points to life but also builds customer loyalty over time. AI tools can help put together video reels faster and thereby elevate data-driven storytelling.

One interesting outcome of using your insight community is that it provides an outlet for your most rabid fans to share their voice. Companies like Oura have seen positive outcomes from this approach, letting them capture authentic insights that help drive strategic decisions.

Uncovering New Use Cases With Your Insight Community

Jennifer wrapped up by exploring unconventional ways companies are using research communities, such as engaging B2B audiences, enhancing employee engagement, and even monetizing your communities.

The takeaway? Insight communities are more agile, versatile, and impactful than ever. While there are pros and cons to using this tool, the benefits often outweigh the potential downsides especially if you use modern insight community management techniques.

Want to dive deeper? Check out the webinar recording for more inspiration!

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