Understand consumer likes and dislikes before production begins via in-person vehicle evaluations.
Over 100 car clinics conducted and 15 years experience.
There are not a lot of companies or people out there that can make this claim. We have conducted static and dynamic clinics around the globe for ten different automotive OEMs. This breadth of experience working in different markets, and with different clients, has taught us the best processes and many potential pitfalls. We have a thorough understanding of the entire process - from planning and design, to execution, to analyzing the data.
Static Clinics
As technology evolves, car clinics have taken on many shapes and sizes. We have embraced these changes and conducted just about every style of car clinics. Virtual Reality evaluations with VR headsets, 3D theater with life-size images, smaller 2D images on large TVs, resin or clay models, and real cars…we’ve done them all, many times.
Recruiting
Quality recruiting is the heart of any successful clinic. We understand the importance of recruiting an accurate sample plan and go to great lengths to ensure respondent qualification. First, we will always try to recruit fresh respondents from a purchased (e.g. Polk/IHS) or client supplied owner list. This helps to avoid professional respondents and frequent attendees. If quotas are difficult to meet with the list alone, we will utilize local recruiters’ databases, including our own. We will never post in online classified ads or on social media.
When arriving at the clinic, our security personnel will check respondent ID and vehicle registration to ensure they own the vehicle they say they do. We never accept any photo copies or forgeries of IDs or vehicle registration.
Topics
Almost all static clinics have some element of an exterior and interior design and styling evaluation. For many clinics, this is the primary objective, while others will also address vehicle pricing, positioning, and include feature evaluation and pricing. Other smaller scale clinics may focus on more specific engineering attributes (e.g. driver seat design and comfort).
Design
We understand that the market and sample can affect the design and flow of a clinic. We know that a clinic in New York is different from a clinic in Los Angeles, and we know that a clinic with luxury brand owners is different from a clinic with mainstream brand owners. We are able to maximize the respondent throughput based on market/respondent characteristics so that fieldwork time is minimized. Additionally, we customize the look and feel of clinics to accommodate different target respondent group characteristics. For example, clinics with luxury owner respondents will have higher-end snacks and beverages, more comfortable chairs, etc.
Confidentiality
Our security personnel may be the only team who has conducted more car clinics than we have. They are highly experienced in securing facilities so no unapproved guests get in and no confidential information gets out. All attendees pass through a walk-through metal detector, including clients. All respondents must give up handbags/purses, watches, phones, and anything else that could be used to take a picture. They will disable/cover security cameras, change locks, install motion detectors at all doors, and monitor building exterior and catwalks. Our security team will be with the confidential property 24 hours per day to ensure total security of each clinic.
Format
Most static clinics follow a similar flow. Clinics typically start with a 15-20 minutes pre-questionnaire which focuses on respondent characteristics, driving habits, demographics, and psychographics. Next, respondents will usually complete detailed exterior and interior evaluations, focusing on styling, design, and functionality. They will then finish with any other topics, such as pricing, purchase consideration, and/or feature evaluations.
Most static clinics last about two hours and are self-administered. Respondents will be guided through the entire process on a tablet computer with our custom programmed survey. Attendants will be present in the rooms to assist with any questions.
Dynamic Clinics
Dynamic (i.e. Drive) clinics are sometimes conducted as a standalone project, and other times conducted as part of a static clinic. Either way, dynamic clinics can be tricky to plan and execute, but we have it down.
Recruiting
Our recruiting approach for dynamic clinics mirrors that for static clinics. We will always try to recruit fresh respondents from a purchased (e.g. Polk/IHS) or client supplied owner list and only use database respondents for difficult recruits. See above for more details.
Topics
In the past, dynmiac clinics focused primarily on performance attributes - acceleration, braking, handling, etc. Today, with the influx of technology in vehicles, there are so many other features that can be tested, most notably, ADAS features such as smart cruise control, lane keep assist, etc.
Design
Dynamic clinics are one of the trickiest types of research projects to design due to all the moving pieces (literally). Having two sets of test vehicles is always best to ensure we stick to schedule, but budget doesn’t always allow for this. Thus, flexible and accurate scheduling is needed to account for the many potential bottlenecks (e.g. traffic, late respondents, etc.). We excel at limiting the number of fieldwork days by maximizing daily respondent throughput.
Confidentiality
We use the same team for both static and dynamic clinics and much of the process is the same (read above). We will always have one guard with the test vehicle at all times, including overnight in the parking lot. Additionally, we typically will mask the exterior styling of the vehicles with tape to prevent any potential spy shots from gleaning too much about the exterior vehicle design.
Format
Most of our dynamic clinics are conducted on city streets and highways, but we also will conduct on closed courses - either already established courses/tracks or manufactured in a large parking lot. Whatever the method, we have conducted numerous throughout the US so we have a variety of established drive routes, with many in the Los Angeles / Orange County area.
