Force Factor runs customer research 80% faster & at a fraction of the cost with Strella

Force Factor is a nationally distributed vitamin and supplement brand. They are the leader in superfood supplements, and sell a product called Total Beets, which supports heart-health, healthy blood pressure, heart-healthy energy and endurance. 

Beet supplements are gaining wider popularity across the United States due to these numerous distinct health advantages, with national sales expected to rise at ~8% CAGR through 2033. Force Factor is working to ensure their Total Beets product is well positioned to capitalize on this market opportunity.

To do this, they wanted a way to get into consumers’ heads while they were at the ‘virtual’ Amazon shelf to understand: 

• What initially drove the decision to purchase beet supplements?
• Which beet supplement are consumers more likely to buy, and what specifically is driving that choice?
• What steps does a customer take when evaluating and purchasing products on Amazon? 

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They wanted real, unfiltered reactions - traditional methods make this difficult. In traditional human-led 1:1 interviews, it can be hard to create an unbiased and comfortable environment for participants to open up with their honest thoughts. And beyond that, for a small team like Force Factor, there just isn’t enough time to conduct these interviews. That’s why Force Factor saw an opportunity with Strella.

Interview Overview:

Force Factor worked with Strella’s integrated panel to recruit and screen for participants who have purchased beet supplements online in the past 12 months. Once qualified, the participants were free to take the AI-moderated interview anywhere and at any time - taking the pain out of traditional interview scheduling.

Each interview included video and screen recording for a multi-modal interview experience, allowing the Force Factor team to really understand the participants’ thought process (without even being there!).

Here’s an overview of the interview experience (or see it for yourself by watching the interview below and linked here):

• Dynamic follow up questions: Dynamic follow ups were turned on for the questions that were most relevant to the team’s research goals - uncovering the ‘why’ behind each response.

• Images: Participants were shown an image on the screen of several beet supplement products sold on Amazon. Participants were asked a series of questions about which they would choose and why to drill down on the most important factors driving purchase decisions.

• Interaction with a live website: Participants were asked to click a live link which brought them to a beet supplement search page on Amazon. Once there, they were prompted to go through the steps they would take to evaluate which product to purchase. Strella asked dynamic follow up questions throughout to understand the participants' evaluation process, all while their voice responses and screen were being recorded.

• Customizable experience: The Force Factor team was able to choose the AI-moderator’s voice and responsiveness (i.e., how quickly the interviewer speaks after a user pause). Participants had the flexibility to take their interview at any time, and in any one of Strella’s 14 language options. Regardless of the language selected, all insights and transcripts get translated in real-time.

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‍Outcomes:

With Strella, Force Factor was able to conduct 11, 40-minute AI-moderated interviews in less than 24 hours! “We gained really rich and actionable insights from this Strella project. It was incredibly helpful to not only hear, but also see how people navigate Amazon, and what factors are most important to their purchase decision. We wouldn’t have been able to get that level of detail from an online survey. With Strella we were able to do this entire project so fast and at a fraction of the cost!” says Eryn Palmer, Director of Brand Marketing at Force Factor.

The Force Factor team used Strella’s AI-generated insights and highlight reels to quickly and efficiently share updates with their team and drive action. “The highlight reels made it quick and easy to review the most relevant parts of each interview, and are shareable, which is great. Using these and the insight summaries, we were able to quickly make a report of all the key findings that we shared with the broader leadership team.”

We are excited to see Force Factor’s upcoming launches hit the market and to continue working with their incredible marketing team!

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