Ponderings from the Perch

Uncomfortable, squirmy and guilty? Those are the common side effects when thinking about fundraising. But, fundraising isn’t a dirty word. Like any other business or entity right now, non-profits are facing a dilemma:  How do you break through the noise? How do you keep up your own resilience around messaging when it feels like it’s falling on deaf ears? We’re in an attention economy and translating your mission and message into bite-sized pieces is more important than ever. That being said, non-profits’ marketing and fundraising marketing efforts are held to a different standard. No one might complain about getting thirty emails from Lululemon about holiday sales, but getting a half-dozen messages from a non-profit about end-of-year fundraising goals can make people huff and puff and blow your email right until the dreaded trash can. Executive coach and fundraising consultant, Mallory Erickson, joins CEO and Little Bird Momma, Priscilla McKinney, on the podcast to discuss strategy work at the intersection of fundraising and marketing. Mallory Erickson is aimed at supporting non-profit leaders to change the way they lead and fundraise fundamentally. Through her signature framework, the Power Partners Formula™️, Mallory provides unique tools to help nonprofits fundraise more from foundations, corporate partners, and individuals. She has trained over 40,000 fundraisers using her unique win-win framework, which combines best practices from executive coaching, science-backed behavior design, and fundraising strategy. She is also the host of the What the Fundraising podcast.  In their conversation, Mallory and Priscilla unpack how to help people frame the idea of relevance and urgency, and how to clarify your message authentically through storytelling. Mallory also brings up human behavioral design and her studies under Dr. BJ Fogg. According to Mallory, “Fundraising, at its best, is us aligning our core identity and deep desires with the identity and mission and desires of the organization. It's a human coming together with a nonprofit and saying, ‘We both want to see this change being possible and we have different skills and assets to do that. I have some money. You have the skills to create change in the community. How do we come together and do that?’”  If there’s a culture of philanthropy with your donors, then there needs to be a culture of fundraising inside of your organization. “And the very first step of that is that fundraising is not a bad word.” Positively brimming with actionable insight and fodder for a solid mindset shift, this episode is not one you want to miss!

This show certainly gave us lots to ponder! Join CEO and Little Bird Momma, Priscilla McKinney, and the Former President of ESOMAR and Chair of the Board at Zappi, Dan Foreman, as they unpack a laundry list of questions about WTF is going on with market research right now? They start by pondering the big questions: Why are market researchers, albeit jokingly, bad at business? Are they really bad at business or are they just focused on their work? Do they simply lack the vernacular to have their point of view heard? Do they understand HOW their work is used for revenue or brand impact? Are they looking to solve their boss’s boss’s problem?  As Dan says, “Data is the new oil.” Dan continues on to say, “Data is what people carry around in their heads and their hearts and their guts.” When you’re advising brands, governments, foundations, and people to make huge decisions based on the data, you get to see these incredible impact stories. Yet, the market research industry doesn’t effectively communicate that to the board rooms, the c-suite, or to the public at large. As Dan says, “we have a small voice that mostly takes to ourselves.” This is a huge industry problem. And, on the podcast, Dan and Priscilla stir up some ideas for how to move through that.  Additionally, Dan also breaks down the anatomy of a private equity deal and we discuss the recent peak in interest from VC and private equity in the market research space. Ultimately, Priscilla and Dan decided that they have broken through the difficulty and solved the conundrum of the market research world. Yes, you heard it all here on Ponderings from the Perch. Don’t let the fun stop here. For business professionals, mastering social media is no longer a “nice to have” set of skills, but a fundamental need in order to advance your career. You need an effective and proven system to move from social selling all the way to digital dominance. Learn more at littlebirdmarketing.com/social Resources, companies, podcasts, and people mentioned: WPP Zappi Bakamo Social Latana Brand Tracking VeyLinx ESOMAR Millward Brown Market Research Institute International Infinita Technologies  Schroder Ventures Investment Plan Neilson IG GFK Ryan Berry Steve Phillips Leigh Caldwell of Irrational Agency Kamran Jaffrani from HatchTank Jamin Brazil Stranded Podcast Kristin Luck

What is the difference between marketing and storytelling? While marketing is promoting your business, storytelling is a method for engaging your audience that takes longer, is more honest, and asks people to pause, take a minute and connect with your brand. Is there storytelling in marketing? Absolutely. It takes time. It takes effort. It takes vulnerability. Join Little Bird Momma and CEO, Priscilla McKinney, and VP of Marketing and Communications at Fluent Research, Stefanie Cousins, as they compare and contrast marketing and storytelling, and discuss the Venn diagram when two worlds collide!  A lot of brands struggle, struggle, struggle to tell their story. As Stefanie Cousins says, “There’s a transparency to storytelling that some brands might not want to dig into.” While social media has given brands the opportunity to dig deeper into storytelling, melding and mixing storytelling in marketing takes finesse.  Brands need to think about the craft of marketing, and hold space for storytelling to create something even more beautiful, meaningful, and powerful for their audience to connect and engage with. Storytelling content marketing is what stops the scroll. It creates space for a pause.  If you’re looking for the inside scoop on storytelling content marketing, you’re in the right place. Shoutout to our sponsors: Fieldwork and Year of Joy! If you think you need a social media influence course…you do. Our 12-week Social Influence course will more than do the trick! We would also be happy, quite thrilled actually, to discuss what digital transformation could look like for your team!  On the hunt for powerful content marketing and strategy resources? Come under our wing.

"We're in a place of data-explosion. People know that they have access to so much data now and they're embracing that change." Serial entrepreneur, Sima Vasa, is not an exemption. She's making waves in the market research industry by embracing new technology and encouraging MR execs to be more than just experts in data. In this episode of the Flock Stars WIRe Miniseries, Priscilla interviews Sima Vasa of Infinity Squared Ventures and host of the Data Gurus podcast. "I've had a pretty varied experience in the market research industry. I was on the client side at IBM and now I'm an entrepreneur." Sima's specialty is her deep and longstanding experience in building and growing businesses. As CEO and Founder of Infinity Squared Ventures, she focuses on accelerating new and emerging businesses in the market research space. Keeping up with the market research industry can be exhausting, but Sima explains that WIRe has helped her recharge, refocus and tackle big goals. "I'm always delighted when I leave the WIRexec Retreat on how recharged I feel." Want to know more about WIRe? Click here to join for FREE or for more information about the organization. To celebrate the badass women featured in this miniseries, we're hosting a badass giveaway. Click here to enter! Don't miss an episode of the Flock Stars WIRe Miniseries. Subscribe to Ponderings from the Perch on iTunes! P.S. Here's a little more on TRME and the presentation by Marina Kosten that Priscilla mentions in this episode!

At PFTP we’re always pulling back the curtain to reveal the wizards behind the wizardry. To that end, I’m always looking for industry leaders who are willing to share their expertise openly. They are willing to say, “it’s just us behind the curtain and this is how we make the magic.” Today we’re going to talk about all things at the crossroads of shopper insights, marketing and behavioral science. Anne Stephenson has been a guest on PFTP before and when I heard their team at Explorer Research had a new framework for their work I just had to ask her to tell us more! Anne and I are both endlessly curious. You’ll love this guest. Welcome back, Anne Stephenson! Anne Stephenson, Founding Partner of Explorer Research, is a behavioral science shopping insights expert helping clients develop and launch effective retail strategies grounded in shopper behavior. With over 30 years of marketing and research experience with packaged goods, retail, pharmaceutical and more, she captures and translates shopper behavior to help brands create winning campaigns and experience great business impact.  None of us shop the same as we did 3 years ago. The customer journey has changed. Shopping is no longer a linear experience. Many questions need to be asked and answered with fresh perspective:  What are the category motivations when people are actually shopping?  What are the internal and highly personalized motivations for shopping?  What is driving individual shopping trips?  How are personal values interacting with external shopper influences? Now, more than ever before, we need to look at shoppers from a holistic, total person standpoint. Being able to see the shopper as a person from multiple perspectives is important for brands. This kind of thinking needs a framework - a framework that can deliver compelling insights about how to activate your shopper.  Let’s discuss with Anne on the Ponderings from the Perch Podcast. And in case you’d like to snag yourself an amazing blazer, here’s the link to Smythe that Priscilla promised! https://shopsmythe.com Thanks for the hot shopping tip, Anne!  Shoutout to our sponsors Ag Access and Year of Joy! Uncovering insights in the agricultural industry can seem like looking for a needle in a haystack. Luckily, Ag Access is a team of needle-finding experts! From recruitment and survey design to planning and execution of custom full-service market research projects, you can count on Ag Access to deliver expertise and meaningful outcomes. Our 400,000+ member community covers the breadth of the agriculture chain, including technology, ag sales, crop growers, livestock producers, feed supply and more. With a full-time engagement center, research logistics team, and 400,000 member-strong insights community, Ag Access is an irreplaceable bridge between researchers and professionals in the agriculture industry. Visit ag-access.com to learn more.  Are you looking for more joy in your life? Do you wanna improve your well-being? Increase your sense of belonging? Create more impact? Or simply have more fun? If you said yes to any of those questions, then check out the Year of Joy online community. If you are ready to find your tribe that helps you live your purpose. If you're ready for more fun, sign up for the Year of Joy at theartandscienceofjoy.com/year-of-joy The doors open to more joy on the 17th of January, so sign up now and be ready to receive that gift of joy. Learn more about the Year of Joy at the theartandscienceofjoy.com/year-of-joy or follow the Art and Science of Joy on Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. Whatever you do, choose joy today.

Be forewarned: This episode is probably a gateway drug to a Little Bird Book Club.  If you keep up with Priscilla, you probably already know some of her thoughts on competition (yuck!), and how collaboration (yay!) is a better strategy. But even collaboration can be a perilous landscape. It goes all the way back to fifth-grade group projects where one kid does all the work and the others just coast. In the professional realm, there are many examples of things that *look* like collaboration on the surface, but are not actually collaborative at their core.  In this episode, Executive VP Leighton Cordell commandeers the podcast to get the scoop on Momma Bird Priscilla McKinney’s forthcoming book: Collaboration is the New Competition. Given that Priscilla is well acquainted with the stunning discomfort of entrepreneurship, paired with the fact that her heart is always with business owners who are trying to make an impact, get traction on their ideas and sell their products and services — a book was born! She shares with us enticing sneak peeks into the tactical, practical and insightful pages of her book and drops a few pearls of wisdom along the way!  You know Priscilla and her commitment to #alwaysbehelping.  (Whitesnake fans: Stick around for the ending!) Shoutout to our sponsors: Gazelle Global and Year of Joy! Are you looking for experts and tools to collect research data worldwide? Global sampling, field management and data collection are just some of the services that Gazelle Global provides. Visit gazelleglobal.com to learn more about how our expertise can help you unearth quality data that drives meaningful insights. Get your research done anywhere around the world quickly and efficiently. Visit gazelleglobal.com today. Are you looking for more joy in your life? Do you wanna improve your well-being? Increase your sense of belonging? Create more impact? Or simply have more fun? If you said yes to any of those questions, then check out the Year of Joy online community. It really could be for you. It's a place where you can find inspiring stories and practical advice from experts to empower you to build a more joyful life. It's a place where you can connect and share with like-minded people who are also looking to lead a more joy-filled life. Sound awesome. It's actually totally free. It's being funded by generous companies who understand the importance of giving people the gift of joy. Something that is just so needed in today's world. So if you are ready in 2023 to make it a year of joy for you and your loved ones. If you are ready to find your tribe that helps you live your purpose. If you're ready for more fun, sign up for the Year of Joy at theartandscienceofjoy.com/year-of-joy The doors open to more joy on the 17th of January, so sign up now and be ready to receive that gift of joy. Learn more about the Year of Joy at the theartandscienceofjoy.com/year-of-joy  or follow the Art and Science of Joy on Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. Whatever you do, choose joy today.

Chaos isn’t a word that usually makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside. It’s a word that maybe you flinch when you hear, or your stomach does a little flip. Who wants life to be filled with chaos and uncertainty anyways? Well, chaos is inevitable. It’s part of growth and change. Personally and professionally. CEO and Little Bird Momma, Priscilla McKinney, and Executive VP Ashley Le Blanc know a thing or two about navigating chaotic situations with grace and strategic planning. Join us on the Ponderings from the Perch podcast as we become your collaborator in turning marketing chaos into marketing organization.  Does this sound familiar? “Our company doesn't have a strong system in place to generate the right leads” “Our marketing actions are not in alignment with company goals” “My team just lacks the time and/or marketing expertise to execute our plan” When strategic planning is at the forefront and there is a plan in place, marketing chaos evolves into marketing organization, which leads to *sigh* marketing clarity. And the research backs that up. Research shows that marketers who proactively write a marketing plan are 356% more likely to report success. So let’s go over five tips to build an annual marketing plan. Strategize, organize, accountability, repeat, and execute. We’ll break these five strategic planning action items down more in-depth on the podcast. If you have a hankering for more strategic planning in the name of marketing organization, don’t let the fun stop here. Download our free SMART Goals resource guide here. Shoutout to our sponsors Fieldwork and Year of Joy!

No one wants a bag of crap on their doorstep. If you’re thinking about email marketing in the wrong ways, you’re essentially delivering bags of crap to people’s virtual doorsteps. No bueno. Luckily, we have the Senior Manager of Client Solutions at iContact, Hank Hoffmeier, on the podcast to talk shop with CEO and Little Bird Momma, Priscilla McKinney about the top things people are doing wrong with email marketing. Your hazard lights will be flashing. Your red flags will go up left and right. More than a few lightbulbs will go off.  After all, you don’t know what you don’t know. Do you have a thing or two to learn about: Automation? Segmentation? Split Testing? If your answer was yes, yes, and more yes then you’re not alone. The world of email marketing is constantly shifting. We all have to keep our eyes and ears to the ground. Hank’s bottom line? Simplify everything. Don’t overthink it. There are certain things that need to be checked off your list, like email authentication, sender policy framework (SPF), and Domain Keys Identified Mail (DKim). But there are also important strategic elements to consider, like a cadence that works for your audience (not for you!), and providing value with each and every email. As Hank says, “Stop thinking about it from a marketer's perspective.” You have to think about email marketing from your client’s point of view.  For more from Hank, download his freemium 501 Examples of Good and Bad Subject Lines. Shoutout to our sponsors Fieldwork and CloudResearch! If you're ready to get your social media act together, you might consider our 12-week Social Influence course. We would be happy to discuss what digital transformation could look like for your team!  On the hunt for powerful content marketing and strategy resources? Come under our wing.

With Esomar Council elections in full swing until October 25th, host Priscilla McKinney and Lisa Wilding-Brown meet to unpack all the reasons why leaders in the insights space would take this much time and effort to volunteer for this gig. While both our CEO and Momma Bird and InnovateMR CEO are on the ballot this episode is about pulling the curtain back and showing those curious about this effort what it really takes, how you can contribute and why it is important to get more people participating with different points of views, skills and passions. Lisa opens up about her passions for data quality, DEI and mentorship through different Esomar steering committee. In the past year Lisa has contributed to each of these efforts in the global insights community. You’ll want to year more about YES (Young Esomar Society). No matter who is elected by month’s end, the association is in good hands based on the highly-qualified candidates for the council seats: Nikki Lavoie Alain Mizrahi Dharmendra Jain Priscilla McKinney Tom De Ruyck Priya Lobo Claudette Dearnaley Vanessa Oshima  Jean-Marc Leger Seyi Adeoye Martin Oxley Manny Rodriguez Michaela Gascon Lisa Wilding-Brown Mariela Mociulsky Martha Llobet Joy Uyanwune Corrine Moy Paul Hudson Diana Mitkov Shoutout to our sponsors CloudResearch and Fieldwork!

Oh, Canada. Priscilla and Ashley are back from the 2022 ESOMAR Congress in Toronto. In between attending sessions and networking events, the duo connected with colleagues to record their takeaways from the conference. Tune in to the episode to hear from thought leaders in the market research industry. This episode features: Pravin Shekar of ESOMAR Aryn O'Donnell of Fieldwork Anne Stephenson of Explorer Research Crispin Beale of Behaviorally, Insight250 and mTab Horst Feldhaeuser of Infotools Chris Martin of FlexMR Michaela Gascon of KJT Group SPONSOR: Do you know what “lies” behind your data? When the truthfulness of respondents is in question, the entire survey process is compromised. At CloudResearch, we’re exposing the hard truth about online survey fraud.  Join us in an Insights Association webinar that pulls back the curtain to reveal shocking, never-before-seen footage from actual fraudulent click farms. You’ll see fraud as it truly happens with your own eyes, and learn how Sentry stops fraudsters in their tracks. Join us, November 3, 2022. Stay tuned for how to register.

Whether you have already written a book and don’t know how to break into the publishing world, or still have a book inside you and don’t want to go to a surgeon to have it surgically removed, this episode is for you. Meet Miles Rote, Author Strategist at Scribe Media. Miles, through Scribe Media, helps entrepreneurs, executives and experts write, publish and market their books. In this episode, host, CEO (and Author!) Priscilla McKinney and Miles discuss the obstacles facing would-be authors on their path to publishing.  According to Miles, one of the biggest misconceptions about putting a book into the world is based on outdated modes of creation and distribution.  “I think often when we think about the publishing world, we’ve done it through the lens of how it was always done in the past, through traditional publishing. All of that has changed.” In that past paradigm, the feat of producing the actual material for the book, either by writing or hiring a ghostwriter was an already laborious step, followed by the even-more daunting prospect of pitching to publishers for a slim chance of acceptance. This paradigm, according to Rote, is over. Scribe’s writing methodology is based on a process of interviews that removes the writing/ghostwriting tradeoff barrier. Their publication ethos is based on the idea that the work itself can leverage platform growth, allowing authors to retain their humanity and not be supplanted by alternatives of themselves as potential earning figures.  They also discuss the catharsis of writing, retention of ownership and royalties, and how the promotion of books is a forever thing. Miles is also an author, and his book “Personal Undevelopment” is scheduled to drop in 2023. It centers on the topic of identity and perception, and encourages people to rewrite themselves using “undevelopment” and “non-self help.” Essentially, when it comes to the topic of uncovering the ingredients that make up the self, Miles Rote the book.  SPONSORS: Looking for boutique-level service and extensive global reach that will elevate your market research program? When it comes to finding a partner to manage survey programming, audience targeting, and fielding strategies as well as run your projects smoothly, on budget and within your timelines, InnovateMR is the obvious choice. Let their experts take the reins on your projects and help you answer your most pressing questions, faster. Find them at innovatemr.com. The Market Research Podcast Award is back! And it’s time to nominate your favorite kick-ass market research podcast for a chance to win the coveted title of MR Podcast of the Year.  Nominations are open now through June 30th and voting will open from July 1st to August 12th.  Nominate your absolute favorite podcast in the insights industry at littlebirdmarketing.com/mr-podcast-award!  The winner will be announced at Greenbook’s IIEX Behavior. Will your favorite insights podcast make the cut? --------------------

Have you ever wanted your customers to spend twice as much money with you? In a compelling study, Capgemini found that users who feel a connection to a brand spend twice as much money as those who don't. Priscilla and Leighton made a pact during this episode not to bury that important statistic, and here it is right at the top. Huzzah! We've been trained to hear the word "branding" and think about color palettes and typography choices. In reality, branding is a much broader subject that extends beyond visuals to encompass a wide range written, spoken and visual communication both internally and externally. In this episode, Momma Bird and CEO Priscilla McKinney talks with VP Leighton Cordell about what makes a good branding strategy and how it facilitates the aforementioned "connection" to brands. Some of the components discussed include consistency, flexibility, emotion, and employee involvement.  Small birds namedropped in this episode:  William Clift (the beautifully designed stairs with the LBM Core Values for which there is currently no documentation) Corey Mitchell (the emotionally-connected videos that make us laugh and cry) Jarrod Connolly (the beautiful story-driven photography that also sometimes makes us hungry) Recommended Reading from this episode:  5 Signs Your Brand Needs an Overhaul Loyalty Deciphered - How Emotions Drive Genuine Engagement SPONSORS: The Market Research Podcast Award is back! And it’s time to nominate your favorite kick-ass market research podcast for a chance to win the coveted title of MR Podcast of the Year.  Nominations are open now through June 30th and voting will open from July 1st to August 12th.  Nominate your absolute favorite podcast in the insights industry at littlebirdmarketing.com/mr-podcast-award!  The winner will be announced at Greenbook’s IIEX Behavior. Will your favorite insights podcast make the cut? -------------------- Ready to understand and engage your multilingual audience? With language services in over 75 languages, Multilingual Connections provides the linguistic accuracy you expect with the cultural nuance you need. Whether you need translation, transcription, subtitles or voiceovers, Multilingual Connections tailors their high-quality language services to fit your unique needs. Request a quote and mention “Little Bird Marketing” to get $100 off your first project at https://multilingualconnections.com/

Lord of the Rings. The Godfather. BACK TO THE FUTURE. Who doesn't love a good trilogy?  In the third episode of Flight Patterns with Fieldwork, CEO and Momma Bird Priscilla McKinney talks with Fieldwork Webwork/Fieldwork Anywhere President Crystal Majik about the past, present and future of research. Crystal started with Fieldwork in 1998 and has worked in the Denver, Schaumburg and Network offices. Fieldwork was already doing virtual qualitative research long before the pandemic, but the sudden global shift pushed online capabilities to the forefront. Crystal discusses the shared priorities between online and in-person research - which effectively culminates in adequately preparing respondents and moderators for a successful research experience. This shift, like most, is subject to additional levels of complication when tech enters the fray.  "You can't expect somebody to show up 5 minutes before a scheduled interview and participate through technology they've never used before and be at ease with it," Crystal says. By focusing on the people and sharing their expertise, Fieldwork was able to adapt and meet the needs of critical and time-sensitive medical and pharmaceutical research, juries and legal research, and product research in a time of great need. The quick adaptation that was so evident during this time wasn't a fluke. Crystal says the Fieldwork team thrives on innovation and adaptability, and that their facilities act as a blank slate for maximum flexibility.  "It's really about brainstorming what the best solution is for you. Whatever you're looking for, we want to try to help that. We spend a lot of time researching what's available - what are those tools we need in our toolbox to help execute the research that our clients are doing?"Crystal says she envisions a future that utilizes the best parts of online research and in-person in an integrated fashion. She and Priscilla also discuss the return of conferences, matching cowboy boots and Fieldwork's support of Women In Research. HEY YOU. If this is the first episode you're hearing of Flight Patterns with Fieldwork, we strongly encourage you to complete the trilogy: Episode 1 | Sarah Kotva Episode 2 | Aryn O'Donnell SPONSORS: The Market Research Podcast Award is back! And it’s time to nominate your favorite kick-ass market research podcast for a chance to win the coveted title of MR Podcast of the Year.  Nominations are open now through June 30th and voting will open from July 1st to August 12th.  Nominate your absolute favorite podcast in the insights industry at littlebirdmarketing.com/mr-podcast-award!  The winner will be announced at Greenbook’s IIEX Behavior. Will your favorite insights podcast make the cut? -------------------- Searching for a research partner to handle the details of your next qualitative project? When we say Fieldwork can handle it all – we mean it. From world-class facilities to low incidence recruitment, their team of experts handles the details so you can stay focused on the research. Say goodbye to traditional focus group rooms and recruitment tactics. As market research has grown from the standard focus group to incorporate other innovative methodologies and technologies, Fieldwork has expanded right along with it. With facilities nationwide, and sophisticated global recruitment services, their detail-oriented staff partners with you to achieve great insights. Focus on the research. Fieldwork will do the rest.

Flight Patterns with Fieldwork continues! In this episode, Little Bird CEO and Momma Bird Priscilla McKinney and Fieldwork’s Vice President of Corporate Services Aryn O’Donnell discuss how Fieldwork cultivates and nurtures relationships with clients. Fieldwork is famous for its research venues - this is no surprise, because their facilities are 1. gorgeously and meticulously designed for in-person research, and 2. prominently located in most major cities across the US. Undeniably, that's a pretty solid foundation, but it only scrapes the surface of what Fieldwork actually does. Through the earliest and scariest days of pandemic shutdowns, Fieldwork was able to rely on their decade-plus experience in online research to continue meeting client and respondent needs. When safety permitted a return to in-person research, Fieldwork not only led the charge, but also acted as a megaphone for the industry, sharing developments to strengthen face-to-face market research for everyone, including their competitors.  If you're noticing a recurring theme of proactivity, that's no coincidence. Whether they are developing areas of specialization like UX research, mock juries, and a recently renovated Boston medical SIM Center, or refining new methods of recruitment that allow for more inclusivity, Aryn says one of Fieldwork's superpowers is adaptability and a willingness to seek out the next big thing.  Aryn believes that the ability of Fieldwork to navigate all of these changes is because of its people. The team wants to celebrate each other and celebrate each other’s wins. “How we treat each other internally is how we treat our clients externally.” Priscilla and Aryn also discuss a shared podcast addiction, Aryn's yoga teaching certification, the intricacies of respondent validation processes, and Pat, the mannequin who lives in the Boston sim center.   If you haven't already listened to Flight Patterns with Fieldwork episode 1 with Sarah Kotva, you should get on that immediately! SPONSORS: The Market Research Podcast Award is back! And it’s time to nominate your favorite kick-ass market research podcast for a chance to win the coveted title of MR Podcast of the Year.  Nominations are open now through June 30th and voting will open from July 1st to August 12th.  Nominate your absolute favorite podcast in the insights industry at littlebirdmarketing.com/mr-podcast-award!  The winner will be announced at Greenbook’s IIEX Behavior. Will your favorite insights podcast make the cut? -------------------- Searching for a research partner to handle the details of your next qualitative project? When we say Fieldwork can handle it all – we mean it. From world-class facilities to low incidence recruitment, their team of experts handles the details so you can stay focused on the research. Say goodbye to traditional focus group rooms and recruitment tactics. As market research has grown from the standard focus group to incorporate other innovative methodologies and technologies, Fieldwork has expanded right along with it. With facilities nationwide, and sophisticated global recruitment services, their detail-oriented staff partners with you to achieve great insights. Focus on the research. Fieldwork will do the rest.

A rising tide lifts all ships. When the going gets tough in business, it takes a special kind of leader to reach out in the spirit of collaboration, using creativity and action to forge a path forward. Sarah Kotva, Executive Partner and VP at Fieldwork is that kind of leader.  Flight Patterns with Fieldwork is a special miniseries hosted by Momma Bird Priscilla McKinney to showcase a selection of leaders at Fieldwork, Inc., qualitative research recruitment and supporting service experts. Fieldwork’s ethos of sharing ideas, collaborating, and being a resource for the market industry was put to the test when the pandemic caused a series of global closures and restrictions on in-person research. They responded by becoming a knowledgeable resource and advocate for the entire industry.  Sarah Kotva began working with Fieldwork as a project manager in 2000, and has risen through the ranks to become Vice President. Her long tenure is notable, but also indicative of the loyalty and opportunity for growth that is pervasive in all of Fieldwork’s 15 locations. To help unify their efforts, Fieldwork initiated a campaign around #facetofacemrx, an effort that has kept clients, employees, and competitors in the industry in the know about ever-evolving safety concerns, restrictions, and creative solutions to perpetuate growth in difficult times. Through this, and their other efforts, they have become a hub of understanding for the qualitative insights industry.  Sarah and Priscilla discuss the importance of in-person research for providing insights that cannot be easily replicated - tactile responses, nonverbal communication, full-sensory research, and the ability to capture in-the-moment glimmers of client and respondent wisdom. Sarah highlights Fieldwork’s adaptability in these times, and their ability to crowdsource solutions that allowed them to roll with the punches (there were many punches!), and stresses the importance of communication.  In addition to Fieldwork’s nation-wide base of high end focus group facilities, they offer an entire suite of research-related services. Priscilla describes them as “the concierge desk of the MR industry,” with an innate understanding of hospitality, service, and thoughtful design.  The two also discuss the commitment to help others - a claim boasted by nearly every company that often falls far down on priority lists. Fieldwork's commitment to #AlwaysBeHelping is evident in their longstanding contributions to Women In Research and their recent partnership with the Market Research Education Foundations Race Around the World for Education.  SPONSORS: The Market Research Podcast Award is back! And it’s time to nominate your favorite kick-ass market research podcast for a chance to win the coveted title of MR Podcast of the Year.  Nominations are open now through June 30th and voting will open from July 1st to August 12th.  Nominate your absolute favorite podcast in the insights industry at littlebirdmarketing.com/mr-podcast-award!  The winner will be announced at Greenbook’s IIEX Behavior. Will your favorite insights podcast make the cut?

Fledgling. Novice. Greenhorn. Tenderfoot. Noob. We have a lot of words for people who are trying things for the first time, and generally, the more words there are to describe a thing, the more prevalent and complex that thing is. This issue presents itself in two common ways in the market research industry: 1. A steady stream of new researchers entering the field, and 2. A continually shifting landscape full of new methodology, new technology, new objectives and new(ly reduced) budgets. Researchers everywhere are being asked to do more with less, and for many, the prospect of doing everything themselves seems like the only option. But it's not. Meet Edward Staples, Senior Director of Business Development at Prodege. Edward has been in the insights industry since 2006, and has worked in both qualitative and quantitative research, including trackers, concept testing, in-person and online across a broad client base including finance, travel, CPG, QSR, apparel, retail and more. At Prodege, he helps leading brands, marketers and agencies uncover answers to their business questions, acquire new customers, increase revenue, and drive brand loyalty.  In this episode, Momma Bird and CEO Priscilla McKinney and Edward discuss Ed's true passion: helping.  "There's nothing more interesting and fascinating to me than working with somebody to help them understand 'how are we communicating with people?'" Edward (and Prodege) believe that the new DIY is actually DIT - Do It Together. DIT represents a more consultative approach to research, infusing experience and wisdom into projects that otherwise find researchers struggling against knowledge barriers that end in missed insights.  Along the way, Priscilla and Edward discuss the importance and challenge of behavioral data, the evolution of Prodege, and a societal shift toward better discussions around gender, race and ethnicity.  "I'm very proud of our industry, because we are the industry that looks at these issues and takes them head on. We're here to assume that we don't know, and to listen in order to find the information. And that's what we, as humans, could be doing in general about these things."  Connect with Edward on LinkedIn, or drop him a line.  Sponsors: Global sampling, field management, data collection and more - Gazelle Global’s ad hoc services give you access to global experts as an extension of your team, without the extra overhead. Our team is ready to lend our expertise to complete projects to your specifications today. Visit our website to learn more!

…the stockings were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that the Little Bird Marketing 6th Annual Holiday Spectacular! Spectacular! podcast soon would be there. Wait no more, Clement, the moment has arrived with a highly metaphorical clatter on the lawn!  In this very special year-end episode, you will hear the peeps battle it out in a game of obscure holiday trivia, witness the airing-of-grievances-style “Cold Weather/Hot Takes,” (prepare to have your sensibilities offended!) and hear Momma Bird Priscilla McKinney finally answer the question on everyone’s minds: sledding or snowball fight? Join us for all the fun stories, music and more! Happy holidays from the Peeps!!

Let's take a break from market research and talk about humanity. Whether in the workplace or life in general, some of us are suffering. This may present itself as burnout, anxiety, phobias or even depression. Ultimately, it's a signal — a call for change. Join licensed psychotherapist Katja Cahoon and Momma Bird, Priscilla McKinney, in this episode for a vital discussion on stigma, shifting perspectives and understanding the call for change.  You can find more from Katja Cahoon on Youtube

Need a ride? Call Lyft. Need UX research? Call Zoë Glas! Zoë leads research for Lyft’s Rentals team. While a lot of her day is research, a surprising amount of her job is devoted to advocating for and pushing the real business impact of UX research. A large part of that implementation involves diversity in the research process. By bringing in a wide range of genders, backgrounds and career paths Zoë has found her research solutions are pushed to the next level. In this episode of Ponderings for the Perch, Zoë discusses her top UX research tip: get everyone involved!

Carlos Martinez, Fieldwork’s Executive Vice President, is no stranger to constantly evolving realm of technology. Since 1995 he has paved the way in IT for Fieldwork, and in that time, he has seen many trends come and go. However, 2020 was a whole new level of change. Never before has everyone had to become their own technology experts. In this episode, Momma Bird Priscilla McKinney and Carlos reflect on how communication has developed in the field of market research and beyond since last year. They discuss Fieldwork’s major adjustments and their effect on respondents, clients and even their internal team. But last year wasn’t all gloom and doom. Along with these challenges came amazing growth in Fieldworks current technological endeavors, such as Fieldwork Webwork and their online database. But this shift has left people yearning for more, and Carlos knows exactly what is missing—the human connection.