There is something to be said for doing things the old-fashioned way, whether it be tradition, superstition, a trip down memory lane. Sometimes returning to the way we did things before technology revolutionized the world is nostalgic.
Years ago, fishing required a near sixth sense when it came to finding where the action was by considering the time of day, the weather, plus a myriad of other conditions. Some methods and tactics have been handed down for generations. Slow and steady wins the race, and the wait – and potential lack of any results – is all part of the experience.
Now contrast this with what technology makes possible when it comes to fishing. Today’s competitive bass fishers use equipment that is a far cry from what Grandpa used to use. State of the art GPS locators and sonar fish scanners, carbon-fiber rods and boats with control panels that resemble the inside of the International Space Station making it easier to have success out on the water. While it may get expensive, technology gives fishing enthusiasts a more calculated framework to blow their previous results out of the water – pun intended.
Looking at research and business intelligence through the lens of new technology.
Being able to successfully assemble and analyze data is the core strength for almost any business in 2021. Optimal communication is a no-brainer. The smoother the daily correspondence and collaboration amongst team members or stakeholders goes, the better. In the same manner that technology has aided in more successful fishing outings, technology has enabled research teams in every industry to execute the tasks that keep the ship sailing.
Consider the prehistoric, pre-internet days– where market research standards sit today compared to the time-consuming and labor-intensive research programs even a decade ago, is a daunting thought. Frameworks and solutions that aid in communication, organization, and productivity continue to advance at a rapid rate.
And unlike fishing, no one involved in performing research or facilitating communication is longing to return to the old days. One medium, in particular, is riding the tech wave to becoming more easily accessible than ever so that businesses of all sizes in every industry can have access to the tools that propel innovation.
Video Killed the Telephone Star
Video is the future of communications. Streaming meetings, conducting interviews, editing content for clients, there’s hardly a space where video doesn’t enhance. If your business is not leveraging video in some aspect of your daily operations, you may be stuck in the time of fishing with your bare hands.
According to this article on video research by HubSpot:
“Video remains a key priority for marketers with usage and spend both, overall, increasing slightly throughout 2020, and plans to increase again in the next 12 months.”
At one point, incorporating video into your operations was a luxury and largely available to only large businesses that could afford it. It required hiring a specialist or outsourcing the work (which is another activity made easier by today’s video tech advances). The transition from teleconference to Zoom was inevitable.
Today, in tandem with the unexpected need for many employees to facilitate their work from home – video research, marketing, and digital communications have never been more vital to businesses everywhere than they are now.
Bringing Professional Video Capabilities to Those NOT in IT
The rapid shift to reliance on video to perform more and more work functions has uncovered some glaring issues.
For one, user experience needs to continue to be improved. When COVID-19 hit, many people whose previous technological competence consisted of logging into their Gmail account now had to navigate a new world, digitally. There was considerable loss of time while people dealt with the nuances – and periodic glitches – of Zoom, Loom, and others.
Also, workers responsible for conducting research at the office are facing a new challenge—figuring out how to gather insight and collaborate with consumer audiences from a living room. While video calling tools are, for the most part, easy enough to figure out, but leveraging the same video frameworks to outfit scalable, research programs remain elusive. Simple tasks, like transcribing video content, created additional processes and overhead. While video has enormous benefits, it is not always the preferred means of accessing content for everyone. Thus, providing information as a text-based option is ideal and many times– a requirement.
Luckily, cost-effective solutions for video transcribing and other functions are available. Curator Video makes video research and editing accessible to users with no prior experience. Tasks that normally require an entire day, can now be done in under an hour.
Go Fish
Just like a stroll through Bass Pro Shop will reveal a gigantic selection of new gadgets and technology claiming to haul in more fish, a similar situation also exists with video technologies. While many solutions provide similar functionality, the learning curve for creating and editing videos may be outside the scope for most market researchers and analysts. A platform like Curator Video not only features a wide range of tools and functions dedicated to enable video research easily, but it is also an end-to-end and cloud-based solution for business innovation. Any member of your team can gain access and stay dialed in without a three-day training conference prerequisite.
If you’re looking for some nostalgic relaxation, you can ditch technology and go do some fishing the old-fashioned way. But we wouldn’t recommend this same method to advance your research or business communications needs.