INSIGHT on INSIGHT: Studying the Second Moment of Truth (SMOT)
After surviving the evaluation and planning of ZMOT and winning the shopping and purchase decision of FMOT, products need to be sure not to deliver a disappointing usage or consumption experience (SMOT) that will determine if you are ever repurchased.
In general, a product has done a good job of positioning and expectation setting if it slightly exceeds or pleasantly surprises during usage or consumption.
Delivering this slightly-better-than-expected experience can further secure future repurchase intent. However, companies should also consider if expectations are exceeded because they were poor or set too low to begin with.
Understanding this consumption dimension was a core part of the market research industry for a long time, so techniques are well-developed.
The goal has always been two-fold:
Develop products and instructions/directions that deliver a usage or consumption experience that is consistent with the needs or benefits sought by consumers.
Understand how to manage messages to ensure the perceptions or beliefs related to the experience are at least as positive as the actual experience.
Some of the classic approaches to study usage and consumption that can be easily applied to most categories include:
In-Home Usage Test (IHUT): It sounds simple, but getting live product into the homes of actual users almost always reveals surprising learning around how the product is actually used, how it performs and how people perceive the entire experience.
Blind monadic testing: Removing external stimulus can help isolate the perceptions and performance of pure product attributes. Selectively isolating individual elements like branding, packaging or price can further reveal the impact each has on the usage or consumption experience.
A/B or split testing: Comparing the side-by-side performance of different products has always been one of the clearest ways to identify which attributes are superior. This can be done to evaluate any number of individual product attributes (i.e. scents, flavors, colors, size, etc.) or overall product permutations that vary on multiple attributes.
Journals or diaries: For products that require a longer duration of use to experience the benefit or for situations where prolonged usage habits need to be understood, journals and diaries can track a multitude of dimensions.
Mobile ethnography: Using mobile devices like smartphones or tablets to capture video, audio or survey data can provide an amazing glimpse into the moments when products are being used.