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Freedonia Custom Research (FCR), a division of MarketResearch.com, has published new research on the impact of New Jersey’s single-use bag ban commissioned by the American Recyclable Plastic Bag Alliance. Enactment.
The ban prompted consumers to purchase reusable polypropylene non-woven bags at retail stores instead of disposable bags, but only used them two to three times on average, leading to a significant increase in plastic and harmful greenhouse gas emissions.
The surprising data from the single-use bag ban study received tons of media coverage, including the Wall Street Journal, Fox News, Forbes, USA Today, and many other outlets.
To take a closer look at this groundbreaking study and the research team behind the data, we’re interviewing Kristen Pieffer, principal analyst and project manager at Freedonia Custom Research. Read the Q&A below for more details.
What was your role in this project?
I managed this project from inception to execution. We designed the research path, selected groups and members to interview for primary research, built a demand model, performed analysis, communicated the project to clients, and fielded inquiries from the media. We had several analysts working on this project using a combination of primary and secondary research.
Most of the projects I work on are not shared publicly or discussed with the media. Customers generally use the data for internal purposes and therefore agree to keep all content confidential.
Why do you think this study received so much media attention?
While the client’s communications team played a key role in media engagement, the report’s targeted data was also very compelling. We have been careful to include in our report the points that will generate the most interest and exclamation. The project scope had a very specific timeline to capture the peak demand surge in 2022. As a custom research team, we can go very deep into the data rather than focusing on the broader picture like a typically syndicated market research report. This allows us to uncover highly insightful targeted information.
Why is FCR the ideal research company to conduct this study?
We are very adept at identifying hard-to-measure market sizes and conducting primary market research. During the interview process, we reach out to industry leaders, participants, and other key touchpoints across various nodes within the industry to gather the full picture. We can provide color on what is happening in the market and how these dynamics are influencing purchasing decisions. In-depth interviews help explain the ‘why’.
Always in our arsenal are historic numbers from the Freedonia Group. We start the project by looking at the numbers in Freedonia. We may change this based on what we hear in real time from the market, but the data we hold internally at Freedonia Group, such as historical demand, key fundamentals and different product types in the market, provides us with: We have a good knowledge base. When interviewing, we know the right questions to ask to ensure we meet the scope of the project.
How does FCR work with customers? What is your approach?
We strive to create very specific contracts that pinpoint the scope of the project and describe what the deliverables will look like. As a team, we are very communicative and share information as we get it, so our clients have the opportunity to dig deeper if they wish. Our proposals are clearly structured around the indicators we report, our descriptions, and the outcomes we can expect. We substantiate the data in our reports in a variety of ways, through primary interviews and historical demand analysis, and then triangulate our best estimates based on this information.
Has FCR seen many repeat customers over the years?
Yes, I just spoke to a returning customer! Many of our customers come back to us regularly for a change of direction. They want to have a good understanding of the market and competitors. For example, you may need to know how your competitors are positioned in each individual product category and channel. We can get very detailed data from them.
What should potential clients keep in mind when commissioning a custom research project?
Know what data is inside, what scope you want to see, and what questions you need to answer. We always tell our clients to come to us as an extension of their team. We work closely with our clients to understand the reason for their project and how they will use their data. Customers should feel comfortable talking freely about what their intentions are.
Introducing Freedonia Custom Research
Freedonia Custom Research is a third-party market research firm that provides unbiased and verifiable market sizing, segmentation and forecasts, competitive intelligence, market voice and value chain analysis, specializing in global industrial markets. FCR conducts primary research, including in-depth phone interviews and online surveys of competitors, product end users and suppliers, and provides access to the full library of Freedonia Group syndicated reports. This targeting intelligence can be especially useful for markets that are difficult to scale or very specific market niches for which there is little or no published data. Our experience spans a wide range of industries globally.
