Client description: Wiper manufacturer

Practice area: Market Research and Analysis

Geographic scope: US, UK

Industries involved: Pulp and paper

Services applied: Market Segmentation, Industry analysis.

Business challenge: Wiper manufacturer needed a full understanding of multiple industries, facility sizes, user roles, product use scenarios, formats purchased and reasons for using different formats of wipes. The data collected would be used to inform wiper category strategic business planning; identify task synergies across users/industries that may offer commercial and product innovation opportunities; and inform portfolio optimization and gap planning.

Methodologies: Carried out site visits to pre-qualified companies, across several industries, to conduct ethnographic qualitative research observing equipment, operations, and tasks. Some staff members were interviewed to fully understand what was being cleaned and what specific products were used. Also, Geo Strategy Partners audited purchasing/use records and created an online, mobile, user-friendly database. This “digital diary” allowed recruited participants to record daily wiper use in any part of the facility.

The result: Client received a thorough report with photographs and quotes that cross-referenced products/brands used, purpose/reason for use, performance and physical location where product was used. Also delivered was a database breaking down tasks by industry, tasks across industries, industries by product code, tasks by product code, product codes used for certain task(s), and an average of product codes purchased by industry.