Clients often ask whether the results from a virtual study reflect actual shopping behavior in a real store.  During a recent oral care study, we measured a 97% correlation between dollar value of purchases on a brand-by-brand basis made by respondents buying in a virtual store versus reported industry sales.  The Pearson Correlation Coefficient was significant at better than 95% confidence level for results summed up across more than 13 brands represented in the study.  This high degree of correlation meant that all sorts of different stimuli could be tested for effectiveness in a virtual reality study with confidence that the results could be applied to real marketing strategies.

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Mobile device usage in China has surpassed the US and indications are that penetration rates will continue to climb faster in China than either the US or Europe.  Mobile device users are far more likely to access the Internet and do so more often than other internet users.  Understanding these mobile device users is going to pose a major challenge to marketers since they tend to ignore traditional surveys.  It stands to reason that any research needs to make use of the same technology platforms.

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