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Brand Performance, Content Creation

What is claims testing for market research and why is it important for brands?

As a marketer, you should do claims testing for market research. But why? Read about factors which make your claims effective.

When you need to have a strong claim, testing it is not only important but obligated, because every business, every product, every service has something to claim. Am I right? But what does it actually mean, claim testing?

To give you a short definition: “Claim testing is the evaluation and optimization of a marketing slogan using some form of consumer feedback. Testing methods include A/B test on a website, focus groups, online panel research or, using implicit associations, derived from AI predictions.”

What are common claims? Well, we have “Natural ingredients,” “The world’s favourite lemonade,” “The most stain-resistant fabric,” “100% real chicken.” I think you get the point. But what makes these claims effective? And can we find out what claims your target audience responds the most to?

Claims are using only a few words in order to describe the product or service that your business is offering. They summarize your product or service in a quick and concise manner, aiming to make customers buy your product and make your company stand out. They inform the customer what the product or service is and what to expect and no matter what you are claiming, you want to ensure that your brand values are perceived correctly by your audience. Because only when your message aligns with your brand values, you can effectively promote your corporate identity.

Why are claims testing for marketing research so important for business?

If formulated correctly, claims can be an effective way to bring in more business and increase brand awareness at the same time. Your company will benefit when your claims are in alignment with the brand associations you are trying to build and if there is harmony across what you are saying and what you are trying to establish. Authenticity and consistency are really important as your customers will perceive your brand as reliable, honest, and real.

Imagine a company that claims to produce ethically fair and pay their workers a good wage. What would you, as a customer think if you find out that their products are produced by children in developing countries and that they are paid below average? Is this fair?! I think you get why it is so important to stay true to your brand values and prove what you are claiming. The best claims will not help you if your customers do not believe what you are claiming.

So if your claims do not align with your brand associations, you aren’t really winning as much as you could be, are you?

Thus, claims are really important for companies because they can be used to match your overall brand associations with a particular product of interest in the consumers’ minds. They are key to differentiate your brand, but did you know that the majority of customers forget branded content after three days? Yes, three days only. Think about that. Now think of all the content you are releasing – are they leaving a lasting impact on your target audience? Are they resonating enough to make your brand stand out?

You see, communicating brand values properly matter a great deal. That’s why you should never release claims without testing them on how your customers will feel about them. Claims matter because they influence how customers view your brand. And that is important because consumers are more likely to support a brand they can identify with and that they feel positive about.

But is there a way to measure how well your product claims align with your brand associations? With neuroflash’s Claim Tester, of course, there is. But, more on that below in the ‘Can You Objectively Choose a Claim?’ section.

Are all claims the same?

Well, take the following two scenarios as examples:

Can you imagine a food product that is trying to appeal to a younger audience but is using conservative and old language?

Or, can you see a beauty-based business, advertising their lipstick, let’s say, and they use language (through the claims they make) that doesn’t reinforce the brand values/associations they are trying to establish, like ‘family’? Or ‘companionship’?

Think about it: accurate, appropriate, and successful claims describe your product and simultaneously express your company’s brand values. Your brand values are a set of guiding principles. They shape every aspect of your business and intend to dictate your message, your corporate identity, your personality. So again: You want to ensure that your audience perceives them correctly and in a manner that favours your company.

Can you objectively choose a claim and perform claim testing?

The short and simple answer is: Yes! Stand assured that if you are currently developing or in the stages of product claim testing, there is an objective way to test and select claims.

Your brand and product claims can be analyzed using market research in order to predict what actual consumers in your target market will think about your claim. And which emotions will be triggered when they are confronted with your claim. This can be done through lengthy online surveys or expensive focus groups, or by using our marketing impact AI which can instantly evaluate your claim. You simply input your product claims and cross-reference them with your brand values, whatever they may be! The software can test your claims across various dimensions and target groups, giving you a deep insight into your customer’s needs, desires, and expectations. Sounds quite complicated, but all this happens within seconds and you get a detailed report with the results.

You can then adapt and optimize your claims until you receive the results you wish for. As the software consider’s how your audience will feel about your claims, it is easier for you to create claims tailored to your specific target group.

Conclusion: Claims should always be tested, and fast and robust methods are best

Our software, neuroflash, will bring new insights to your product claim testing methods by giving you numeric rankings of your proposed claims as assessed through the lens of your specific company values. If you don’t have product claims yet, that’s okay, the machine is now able to suggest claims that fit your brand and product. You only have to input your specific brand values and the software will suggest claims tailored to your target audience. Impressive, isn’t it?

Check out our article that describes this feature and how you can generate your new claim with a few clicks here.

Using neuroflash’s AI and searching for the term ‘maximus’ as was used by Snickers in the images above, the associations are presented in a graph. Rather than doing traditional market research, the associated terms are automatically presented and visualized. You can also see the respective strength of the associations, giving you quick and objective insights into your customer’s preferences and expectations. This enables you to strategically place your product and brand in the mind of consumers and communicate your brand values effectively.

The essence of the Claim Tester is the ability to ensure brand fit and instant consumer understanding of your claim. And you can start using it today and creating your business claim within seconds. Sign up fo r your trial here.