What do companies need product tests for? Any manufacturer needs to know customer attitudes toward their products: what they like/dislike, want to change/improve, etc. Such studies can be useful for manufacturers and retailers who engage in private labels.

End-user tests are needed both during the launch of a new product and after it has been updated/upgraded, or in a changing competitive environment to ensure the product’s fit (such as after a launch of a counterpart by competitors or private labels). A product test can help researchers analyze the consumer choices between similar products (e.g., tested product vs. competitor) or different varieties of the same product (old and new recipes, two recipes manufactured at different factories, etc.) to identify consumer preferences overall and across individual parameters, and to find out the key product characteristics critically important for consumers.

Popular brands also need tests, given the changing consumer attitudes to products (such as to identify aspects that might inhibit further sales growth). For example, healthy eating trends have prompted many consumers to reconsider their diets. In particular, customers focus on nutrition facts, the presence of flavoring agents, colorants, stabilizers, etc. A product test can help researchers see if consumers like the product’s current version, if a modified version is attractive to consumers, etc.

Certain types of grocery product tests (such as those involving hot food and drinks) require some cooking with the tested products and / or ingredients. To this end, Business Analytica has equipped a kitchen lab with the most sophisticated Bosch and Siemens appliances. Adjacent to the kitchen is a special room for testing the cooked products and administering the interviews.