Category Archives: research

Getting down to numbers: quantitative research

Posted on May 22, 2020 by Rakesh Agrawal

Are you building the right product? It’s an important question whether you are a startup or a big company. Good research can help guide you. Doing it incorrectly and you’ll go down the wrong path. There are two basic types … Continue reading →

Posted in product management, research | Comments Off on Getting down to numbers: quantitative research

Innovating with market research

Posted on February 23, 2011 by Rakesh Agrawal

One of the things that people often ask me is how does someone goes about creating innovative product concepts. What are the research methods and tools to use? One of the most powerful tools is just watching what customers do … Continue reading →

Posted in marketing, research | Comments Off on Innovating with market research

Asking meaningless questions: CBS’ faulty poll on TSA screening

Posted on November 21, 2010 by Rakesh Agrawal

In defending its actions in screening passengers, the TSA continually points to a CBS News Poll which claims that 80% of Americans support the scan. What does that really mean? Let’s take a look at the actual question that was … Continue reading →

Posted in metrics, research, travel | 3 Comments

Googling all the news that’s fit to correct

Posted on August 29, 2007 by Rakesh Agrawal

The New York Times public editor writes this week about an increasing problem: incorrect information from the Times that lives forever in search engines. The Times has started surfacing its archived content in a way that search engines can crawl. … Continue reading →

Posted in journalism, media, newspapers, research, search | 1 Comment

Spams, scams and search

Posted on December 12, 2006 by Rakesh Agrawal

During the last two weeks, I spent much of my time in focus groups on search. While I can’t talk about the concepts we were testing, one thing that struck me was the degree to which people viewed all of … Continue reading →

Posted in research, spam | Comments Off on Spams, scams and search

Focus groups – the view from the other side of the glass

Posted on November 29, 2006 by Rakesh Agrawal

I’m spending most of this week watching focus groups. It’s one of my favorite parts of my job. It’s a chance to see how real people react to the products that we create. I get to hear from people who … Continue reading →

Posted in aol, google, research | Comments Off on Focus groups – the view from the other side of the glass

Bad incentives lead to bad results

Posted on November 8, 2006 by Rakesh Agrawal

I got an email from United Airlines yesterday announcing a closed beta test of a new version of United.com with enhanced booking, Mileage Plus account information and better award travel booking. (Which is sorely needed.) United offered a carrot of … Continue reading →

Posted in airlines, research | Comments Off on Bad incentives lead to bad results