By Katy Tomasulo Remodelers and builders aren't the only ones in the industry taking advantage of high-tech tools. John Cashmore's Minneapolis company, Market Resource Associates, specializes in research for building product manufacturers and appreciates what technology can offer. In addition to punching numbers in to answer, callers respond to open-ended questions, allowing manufacturers to hear voice inflections that a paper survey doesn't provide.
Manufacturers can have the results in four days.
Cashmore also uses the Internet to conduct focus groups, eliminating the need for gathering participants at one location. Instead, they interact via their own computers in a chat room setting. This format allows participants to see products and concepts on their computer screens, then interact with others in the chat room to discuss them. The company also can broadcast a traditional focus group to numerous manufacturer execs around the world, eliminating the cost of flying in the company's top people. Another variant is to combine Internet and phone research by speaking with participants over the phone as they view images on a Web site.