Seminar Topics Our seminars are for researcher who are interested in these techniques but who have had little or no practical exposure to them. They are not training classes for the related software products; rather the focus of each class is the theory and practice of that particular technique. Click on the links here to see the topics covered in each seminar Conjoint/Choice Theory and Practice Perceptual Mapping Theory and Practice Conjoint/Choice Theory & Practice This class focuses on the theory and practice of conjoint analysis and a newer form of this technique, choice-based conjoint, which is overtaking traditional conjoint in application. You first receive a solid (but non-technical) grounding in conjoint theory: What is conjoint and how is it used? What are buyer utilities? How are they derived? What are different methods for collecting conjoint data? What are shares of preference and how are they estimated? What are the different types of conjoint choice models? What methodological questions are researchers asking? When do I use traditional conjoint and when do I use choice-based conjoint? Then, the focus turns to the practical considerations of study design: How does study purpose affect study design/ Why is it important to have a "context" for data collection? What about visual or other sensory aids? What sample size is appropriate? What are data collection options? What is the process for developing study attributes and levels? What are the "rules" for developing attributes and levels? How do I handle potentially "sticky" attributes such as brand and price? Next, you learn about the analysis of conjoint data: How can average utilities aid in hypothesis generation? What are common misuses of average utilities? How does a conjoint simulation model work? What is base case? How do I use sensitivity analysis? What is simulation "scenario"? What does simulation output look like and how do I interpret it? How do I determine which scenario is best for my client? To complete the topic of conjoint analysis, you learn how to interpret and present conjoint data: How do I use standard errors? Are preference shares market shares? What are the assumptions of the conjoint model? When and how is it appropriate to calibrate the conjoint model to known shares? How do I prepare clients/managers for the delivery of conjoint results? What are the best ways to display conjoint results? What information should - and shouldn't - I show? Finally, the discussions turns to a newer form of conjoint analysis: choice-based conjoint: Why use choice-based methods? What are the different methods available for conducting choice-based modeling? What are the similarities and differences between choice-based modeling and "traditional" conjoint analysis? What are conditional variables and how does choice-based modeling use them? How is choice-based analysis done? What type of results/data are provided by choice-based modeling? [back to top] Perceptual Mapping Theory & Practice This class focuses on the variety of methods available for conducting perceptual mapping and then narrows in on one technique to show the practical considerations involved in setting up and analyzing a mapping study. Case material and in-class exercises give you the opportunity for "real world" experience with the technique. The class begins with an overview of mapping techniques and how they work: Multidimensional Scaling Factor (Principal Component) Analysis Multiple Discriminant Analysis Correspondence Analysis Then, the focus turns to the practical considerations of study design: How does study purpose affect study design? How narrow or broad should my brand/product set be? What type of rating task should I use? How many ratings should I get from each respondent? How do I decide which brands each respondent should rate? What method of data collection is best? How should my sample be sized and structured? Then, the discussion turns to the interpretation and presentation of mapping data: How many dimensions are needed in my map? How do I interpret mapping statistics? How are maps created? What are they really showing? What hypotheses can I generate and what conclusions can I draw from looking at a map? How can I add product preference information to a map? What are some of the common misinterpretations applied to maps/ What are the best ways to display mapping results? [back to top]