Fox Business: Opening Bell With Maria Bartiromo - Using Human Science To Understand The Consumer
“Samsung has a good take on what’s important to somebody who buys a TV. By taking a social-science approach and studying television culture in people’s homes [instead of asking consumers directly what kind of TV they want], Samsung found that women were the primary purchasers of televisions and that they saw TV sets as furniture rather than electronics. This insight impacted how the company designed and sold televisions from that point on.”
BY MARIA BARTIROMO & CHRISTIAN MADSBJERG
Speaking to Maria Bartiromo of Fox Business, ReD Associates co-founder Christian Madsbjerg, discusses how the human sciences are the holy grail for businesses. At his consultancy, Madsbjerg uses methods from social science disciplines like anthropology and sociology to understand people and their worlds, uncovering why they do what they do.
Companies like Samsung have turned to the human sciences to solve some of their biggest business challenges. As Madsbjerg notes: “Samsung has a good take on what’s important to somebody who buys a TV or a mobile phone—what are the things they look for? Instead of asking them directly what kind of TV they want, they go into people’s homes and ask: What is a TV experience? And what is a good experience?” By taking a social-science approach and studying television culture in people’s homes, Samsung found that women were the primary purchasers of televisions and that they saw TV sets as furniture rather than electronics. This insight impacted how the company designed and sold televisions from that point on.
Watch the full talk here: