Case study: how ampersand research worked with Nottingham Community Housing Association to understand external audiences' perceptions of the organisation
Having worked with Nottingham Community Housing Association (NHCA) on a number of projects we were delighted when ampersand research was commissioned to explore the views of the charity amongst key stakeholders.
The key objectives of the research were to understand what external audiences’ thoughts, perceptions and experiences were of NCHA’s brand, values, mission and reputation.
Whilst having access to quantitative data can be really helpful in bench marking and tracking opinions over time, this project required a more exploratory approach to fully understand how NCHA were seen - both in the market and in society as a whole. Understanding the “why” behind stakeholders’ opinions would be crucial for NCHA to develop a more strategic approach to stakeholder engagement going forwards. ampersand research worked with NCHA to develop a qualitative research programme that included face-to-face depth interviews across the East Midlands and a pre-interview task to capture top of mind associations. When conducting B2B projects a common challenge can often be the relatively small number of contacts to recruit from. And for this piece of research we knew at the outset that every contact counted! Key to the success of recruiting stakeholders was in the initial planning. We worked with NCHA to send out an initial letter to open the door for our B2B trained interviewers to make the necessary appointments. In addition, we knew the seniority of potential participants could pose problems in getting time in their diaries, so we limited the interview length and were flexible in our availability – in some cases offering times between 7am and 8pm!
The research was a success!* Recruitment went smoothly. The interviews insightful and the feedback enlightening. And to quote NCHA feedback on the research… “Great communication throughout. Sarah and Mark worked out the best way for us to get the feedback we were looking for, then executed a timely plan to ensure it all ran smoothly. The final report is a really thorough, well designed presentation. ampersand research are an absolute pleasure to work with!”
Whilst we are not able to share the findings, NCHA did post some information on their website about the project:
http://www.ncha.org.uk/stakeholder-feedback They also shared findings from the research at their annual AGM, which we were honoured to be invited to.
Paul Moat, CEO of NCHA said of the research:
"...the results will form a strong basis for our future business plans. It’s been a really interesting exercise and we are very happy with the results. It’s reassuring to have our values and approach reaffirmed by those we work with, and encouraging to know that our purpose to support vulnerable people in our community is so highly valued.”
If you would like to find out more about how ampersand research can help you measure and understand your customers and stakeholders thoughts about your organisation please feel free to drop us an email: enquiries@ampersandresearch.com or give us a call on 0115 9932343
*The only slight hiccup was on the day of the debrief and caused by the heavy snow that fell on Nottingham the previous evening! It was the first time in our history we had arrived at a debrief in wellies after braving the elements to get to the debrief on foot and on time! Thankfully so had the client!
ampersand research: always & in all ways researching