Implicit research attempts to capture unconscious or deeply rooted attitudes, preferences and opinions of people that they may not consciously or openly communicate.
Such methods have the advantage in market research of revealing information that consumers do not intentionally disclose. Unconscious information can be particularly valuable for advertising tests and product development.
As a methodological toolbox, GIMplicit provides you with several implicit methods to identify hidden reactions and feelings about your products, brands or other important topics - and which are difficult to capture in surveys or interviews.
What is implicit research?
Human behavior, especially in the area of consumption, largely occurs automatically and without conscious control. This unconscious represents a challenge for consumer research. In order to reveal unconscious attitudes, so-called implicit methods are used in psychological research, but also in market research.
With GIMplicit, we offer research methods in the field of implicit procedures to make these invisible processes visible in the brand context.
Benefits of implicit research
Implicit methods have proven particularly effective in the consumer goods sector, as purchasing processes are strongly controlled by unconscious influences. As consumers, we make many of our decisions unconsciously and automatically. One example is the impulse to buy, which often occurs without conscious consideration. Implicit methods help to identify and understand these automatic processes.
In addition to buying impulses, we can also use implicit research to record emotional reactions to brands, products or advertising messages, which are also strongly linked to consumer behavior. In addition, subconscious preferences and tastes can be analyzed, even if consumers do not fully understand them themselves.
Revealing unconscious brand attitudes
We use a wide range of evidence-based methods and procedures to uncover subconscious brand attitudes. Common methods include associative tests, reaction time measurements and the combination of implicit data and explicit self-report methods. The latter in particular significantly improves the predictive power of our studies.
Associative tests: Implicit procedures often use associative tests in which participants are presented with words, pictures or concepts and asked to respond quickly. These tests aim to capture participants' spontaneous reactions. For example, brand images can be shown in conjunction with positive or negative words to measure unconscious associations.
Reaction time measurements: In many implicit procedures, reaction time is crucial. Fast responses are often taken as an indication of strong associations or preferences. Slower responses may indicate less strong or even more negative associations.
Combination of implicit and explicit data: Often the results of implicit methods are combined with the results of traditional, explicit surveys. This approach provides a more comprehensive insight into the attitudes and behaviors of the participating consumers.
Your contact
We will gladly advise you.
Dr. Jörg Munkes
Managing Director
Dr. Simone Renner
Senior Research Manager