Purchase-barriers research focuses on people who know a product or service but have not adopted it, have stopped using it, or use it only occasionally. The central questions are who is not buying, what is getting in the way, and how widespread each barrier is.
1. Go Beyond Lapsed & Non-Users
Purchase-barriers research is often limited to aware non-users and lapsed users. In categories with medium or high purchase frequency, consider adding light users. They have already adopted the brand but, for one reason or another, use it only occasionally.
Barriers among light users often differ from those among lapsed users and aware non-users, requiring different responses. Because frequent purchasers can represent a large share of volume, understanding the gap between light and loyal usage may be commercially important.
2. Build a Credible List of Purchase Barriers
A purchase-barriers study is only as good as the list evaluated by survey respondents. Qualitative research can be a useful first step, allowing participants to explain why they do not use the brand—or do not use it more often—before those barriers are measured with a broader audience.
Conducting qualitative research into potential purchase barriers can prevent two common research problems:
- Unproven purchase barriers—a list created internally that includes minor obstacles while inadvertently omitting more common ones
- An open-ended survey question that identifies barriers that cannot then be evaluated by all respondents
3. Prioritize & Size Purchase Barriers
Maximum Difference Scaling (MaxDiff) establishes a relative order among the barriers tested. It does not show how many people experience each one, so pair it with an agreement rating:
- MaxDiff to prioritize barriers—what is the rank order?
- Agreement ratings to size barriers – how prevalent is each barrier?
Without the agreement rating, two complications may arise:
- The top-ranked barrier may not be widely experienced, overstating its importance as a problem to solve
- Lower-ranked barriers may be nearly as prevalent as the higher-ranked ones, leaving widespread problems overlooked
4. Look for Groups with Different Barriers
It is not uncommon to have 15 to 20 or more purchase barriers spanning product or service characteristics and purchase situations. The most prevalent barriers may be unrelated to one another.
Cluster analysis can group respondents into barrier segments, making the differences easier to act on.
For example, research for a wireless carrier identified several widespread barriers. Segmentation classified the audience into three groups based on the primary obstacle: available devices, cost, or coverage. Sizing the groups and measuring the barriers within each helped the company set priorities.
5. Test Possible Responses
Add a question set that tests how barriers might be reduced through messaging, offers, products, services, or features. This can mirror the barrier evaluation: use MaxDiff to prioritize the possible responses, followed by a scale question to measure how motivating each one is.
Occasionally, one message or product feature will appeal to every segment. More often, the response needs to vary. In the wireless carrier study, each segment preferred messages that addressed its own main barrier to use.