How do we use Choice based Conjoint Analysis for Price Testing?

Choice based Conjoint Analysis is an indirect method of understanding what drives consumer choices and purchase behaviour. This article explains what it can be used for, in the market research domain and how to use it.

In the market research industry, Choice based Conjoint is used to determine which combination of features or attributes (of a product or service) has the most influence on consumer decision making. Traditional product research consists of asking survey respondents to select their preferred feature of a product and the price they are willing to pay for it.

Conjoint Model, in contrast, asks respondents to choose between realistic product options, like they would have to in a real-life scenario.

Conjoint analysis is, at its essence, all about features and trade-offs.

In a nutshell, Conjoint Model-

1. Determines the value of a product feature, based on the trade-offs respondents make, and.
2. Functions as a what-if Market simulator that replicates the experience of a consumer choosing between multiple products in the real world.

How is Choice Based Conjoint done?

In Choice Based Conjoint, you create several scenarios to evaluate an idea or a product.
For instance, let’s say that you are trying to do a complete evaluation of a retail product.

• 4 price points
• 5 package sizes
• 3 Brands

And your aim is to figure out an ideal price based on the product size for a particular brand.

In a case such as this, the total number of combinations happen to be 60. Creating a traditional survey in this scenario would mean showing each respondent 60 questions and asking them to evaluate 60 options. Since the survey would be extremely long and tedious, the chances of the result being accurate and without bias are exceedingly slim.

However, by using Choice based Conjoint, it is possible to intercept this entire process.

How?

A software that employs Conjoint Modelling, like Numr creates a choice set of 4 or 5 combinations, at a time and instructs respondents to choose among them. Now, instead of 60, a respondent is merely asked 12 to 15 questions, which decreases Survey fatigue and drastically increases accuracy. What this does is, it allows marketers to discover how important each feature of a product is (based on an aggregate score) to EVERY SINGLE respondent and the price that they are willing to pay for a particular size by a particular Brand. Therefore, Choice based Conjoint empowers an organisation to make a factual decision about-

1. Optimal size
2. The appropriate Price Point of a service or a product, and
3. Brand Equity et cetera (Numr also uses Choice based Conjoint to calculate Brand Forte)

Choice Based Conjoint has numerous applications. As showcased by a report in the Journal of Marketing titled, “Commercial use of Conjoint Analysis”, it is also extremely proficient in determining product design trade-offs and setting marketing services and mix. In the context of Product research, it empowers marketers with a rich insight into what drives consumer choice and behaviour, allowing them to make the best decisions for their organisation.