Professionalism is of the utmost importance for the success of a car clinic. This includes understanding the customer's business challenges through industry know-how, personal car clinic expertise of all project employees and a very good recruitment network. Experienced partners in the markets and a deep understanding of the target group are also crucial.

A successful car clinic requires perfect organization and coordination of all elements, from recruitment and guide/questionnaire creation to programming and methods, analysis and even the quality of the food on site. All aspects must work seamlessly together to achieve optimal results.

Car clinics generally use mixed methodologies that include both qualitative and quantitative elements. In the past, pure qualitative or quantitative clinics were often conducted, but nowadays the integration of both approaches is standard. This dovetailing ensures that all the insights gathered are brought together in an integrative manner to form an overall statement. This applies to both the interview process and the reporting.

The result: reports that not only juxtapose qualitative and quantitative results, but also combine them into a comprehensive overall picture. An experienced project team is essential for this.

Clinics make a key contribution to the product development process by obtaining direct feedback from potential customers. At prototype clinics, new products are physically exhibited in a large hall, often next to important competitor products.

All vehicles are set up at the same angle, in the same color and with identical equipment and lighting to ensure comparability. Through structured discussions and targeted questions, developers and designers gain valuable insights that lead to optimized design decisions and technical adjustments before the market launch.

The core tasks of us as market researchers include in particular the methodological consulting and detailed elaboration of the study concept. This includes the creation of research instruments, data analysis and reporting. Logistical tasks are also central, such as finding and equipping suitable locations for the product studies with the models and competitor products to be exhibited.

Reliable recruitment of participants is a major challenge. In addition, security and discretion are of the utmost importance to ensure that no uninvolved parties find out when and where the car clinics with secret products take place.

Car clinics require 100% confidentiality and therefore cannot be conducted online. Online, test subjects could take screenshots and confidential designs or concepts could quickly be leaked to the public, potentially causing billions in losses for manufacturers.

In addition, the products tested are often emotional high premium or luxury goods that the test subjects need to physically experience. A tangible experience is essential for a well-founded evaluation and cannot be replaced by images, online presentations or virtual reality from the living room.

VR clinics are now widely used and in many cases offer a good alternative to physically exhibiting vehicles. They allow designs and concepts to be presented interactively and immersively, which is particularly useful in the early stages of development.

Nevertheless, these studies are usually conducted as “real-life market research” with test subjects on site to ensure a high level of safety. VR is not fundamentally better or cheaper than physical studies. Although individual expenses may be eliminated, other costs, such as longer field times, may arise. A general recommendation is therefore not possible; each project must be evaluated individually.

The term “clinic” comes from medical practice and refers to events where products are intensively examined and evaluated. At car clinics, vehicles or components are physically exhibited in a clinical environment to ensure comparability.

All test objects are set up at the same angle, in the same color and with identical equipment and lighting. This systematic and comparable presentation, similar to a medical clinic, gives the event its name.