From Traps to Tools: How to Design Research That Drives Action
From Traps to Tools: How to Design Research That Drives Action
In this blog, we explore why so much research fails to deliver, and what to do instead.
Let’s say it plainly: most research doesn’t fail because of bad intentions. It fails because it’s not set up to succeed.
But the good news is that once you understand the common pitfalls and patterns, you can break them. And when you do, the shift is powerful: from passive data collection to active decision-making. From unused decks to insight that drives real change.
In our work over the years with brand, insight, marketing, and product teams, we’ve seen what can make research fail - but more importantly, we’ve seen what makes it fly. Here’s a look at four common traps we’ve recognised, as well as the tools you can use to escape them.
Four common traps and how to escape them....
1. Move From Flimsy Briefs to Focused Impact
The trap: A vague brief with undefined goals, broad curiosity, and no business anchor. If the research brief can be summarised as "we just want to know more about X", you’re already on the back foot. Vague goals lead to vague outputs. And when insight lacks direction, it gets filed away, not acted on.
The shift: Frame your brief around a decision, not just a topic. Ask upfront: What are we going to do differently because of this?
What this looks like in action:
- Start every project with a simple question: What will this research change?
- Identify the primary user of the insight (brand lead, marketer, strategist) and design specifically with their decisions in mind
- Challenge internal teams to move beyond "exploration" and into purpose
Recommended Tool: Decision-led Briefing Canvas
Map the research to specific commercial or creative choices and then design backwards from there.
2. From “Interesting-But-Useless” to Immediately Actionable
The trap: Insight that feels informative but fails to drive change. You get the debrief. Everyone nods. You hear the infamous: "that’s interesting… but now what?".
If there's no follow-through, no action and no application, then the research was performative, not strategic.
The shift: Design the entire research process with the end in mind - from how the brief is shaped to how the findings will land. Ask: who needs to act on this? What format will make it usable for them? Insight isn’t about being clever; it’s about being applied.
What it looks like in action:
- Build deliverables around how teams actually work - creative brief inputs, messaging guides, feature prioritisation lists
- Involve stakeholders early, so insight lands in their language
- Deliver insight in formats that drive uptake: workshops, playbooks, interactive dashboards
Tool: Insight Activation Map
For each key finding, define: who needs to know this, what will they do differently, and how will it reach them?
3. From Rearview Metrics to Forward-Looking Moves
The trap: A lot of brand and customer research still reports on what happened - but fails to explain why, or what to do next. It's like trying to steer a car while only looking in the rearview mirror.
The shift: Move from tracking to diagnosing. Bake in analysis that connects data points to business levers, from lagging indicators to leading insights. Don’t just track metrics. Diagnose shifts, understand causes, and offer strategic options.
What it looks like in action:
- Combine qual and quant to explore root causes behind movement
- Use brand tracking, for example, not just to monitor perception, but to understand what's driving it - and what to do about it
- Link findings to clear next steps: test this message, shift this channel, prioritise this audience
Tool: Action-Oriented Tracker Framework
Define how each metric connects to a lever in the business (e.g. messaging, spend, CX, pricing).
4. From Passive Playbacks to Embedded Insight
The trap: Research gets delivered but not embedded. It sits in a deck, not in the decisions it was meant to shape. And when no one knows what to do with it, it gets forgotten… fast.
The shift: Shift from delivery to activation. Make research a service, not just a document.
What it looks like in action:
- Run co-creation sessions to translate findings into creative, product, and service actions
- Create artefacts teams can reuse: persona cards, value prop guides, message testing validators
- Partner with teams post-debrief to track implementation and learning loops
Tool: Insight-as-a-Service Playbook
Codify how research outputs integrate into BAU for marketing, CX, product and beyond.
Final Thought
Bad research doesn’t just waste money - it drains momentum, erodes trust, and stalls decisions.
The good news is that these pitfalls aren’t inevitable, they’re avoidable.
With the right tools and mindset, you can turn research into a genuine force for progress - driving faster decisions, stronger strategies, and better outcomes across the business.
When insight is:
- Briefed around business decisions
- Delivered in formats people actually use
- Tied to real outcomes
- Embedded across functions
...it becomes more than data. It becomes direction.
That’s what great research does. So, let’s make that the norm.
