What Is Conjoint Analysis?

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For a business to run effectively, its leadership needs a firm understanding of the value its products or services bring to consumers. This understanding allows for a more informed strategy across the board—from long-term planning to pricing and sales.

2In today’s business environment,most products and services include multiple features and functions by default.So, how do businesses go about learning which ones their customers value most? Is it possible to assign a specific value to each feature a product offers?

This is where conjoint analysis becomes an essential tool.

3Here’s an overview of what conjoint analysis is, why it’s important, and steps you can take to analyze your products or services.

What is conjoint analysis?

4Conjoint analysis is a form of statistical analysis that firms use in market research to understand how customers value different components or features of their products or services. It’s based on the principle that any product can be broken down into a set of attributes that ultimately impact users’ perceived value of an item or service.

为了公司能有效经营，领导层需要深刻理解产品或服务给消费者带来的价值。理解这点有助于制定更明智的方方面面策略——涵盖长期规划到定价和销售等各个方面。

2在当今的商业环境中，大多数产品和服务都默认包含多种特征和功能。所以，公司如何去了解客户最看重的特征？是否可以给产品的每个特征赋予特定价值？

这就是联合分析成为重要工具的地方。

3本文将概述什么是联合分析，它为何重要，以及可以采取哪些步骤来分析产品或服务。

什么是联合分析？

4联合分析是一种统计分析形式，公司在市场调研中用它来了解客户如何评价其产品或服务的各个部分或特征。它基于的原理是：任何产品都可以被拆解为一系列属性，这些属性最终会影响用户对一种产品或服务的价值感知。

5Conjoint analysis is typically conducted via a specialized survey that asks consumers to rank the importance of the specific features in question. Analyzing the results allows the firm to then assign a value to each one.

Types of Conjoint Analysis

6Conjoint analysis can take various forms. Some of the most common include:

•Choice-Based Conjoint (CBC)Analysis: This is one of the most common forms of conjoint analysis and is used to identify how a respondent values combinations of features.

•Adaptive Conjoint Analysis(ACA): This form of analysis customizes each respondent’s survey experience based on their answers to early questions. It’s often leveraged in studies where several features or attributes are being evaluated to streamline the process and extract the most valuable insights from each respondent.

•Full-Profile Conjoint Analysis: This form of analysis presents the respondent with a series of full product descriptions and asks them to select the one they’d be most inclined to buy.

• MaxDiff Conjoint Analysis: This form of analysis presents multiple options to the respondent, which they’re asked to organize on a scale of “best” to“worst” (or “most likely to buy” to “least likely to buy”).

5联合分析通常以专门调查的形式进行，请消费者对所提及的具体特征按重要性进行排序。通过分析结果，公司可以为每个特征赋值。

联合分析的类型

6联合分析可以采取多种形式。最常见的包括：

• 基于选择的联合分析（CBC）：这是联合分析最常见的形式之一，用于识别受访者对不同特征组合的评价。

• 自适应联合分析（ACA）：这种分析形式根据每个受访者对之前问题的回答来定制他们的调查体验。在评估多个特征或属性的调查中经常会使用这种形式来简化流程，从每个受访者那里获取最有价值的见解。

• 全轮廓联合分析：这种分析形式向受访者展示一系列完整的产品描述并请他们选出最有意愿购买的产品。

• 最大化差异联合分析：这种分析形式向受访者提供多种选择，请他们按照“最好”到“最坏”（或“最有可能购买”到“最不可能购买”）的顺序进行排列。

7The type of conjoint analysis a company uses is determined by the goals driving its analysis (i.e., what does it hope to learn?) and, potentially, the type of product or service being evaluated.It’s possible to combine multiple conjoint analysis types into “hybrid models”to take advantage of the benefits of each.

What is conjoint analysis used for?

8The insights a company gleans from conjoint analysis of its product features can be leveraged in several ways.

Conjoint Analysis in Pricing

9Conjoint analysis works by asking users to directly compare different features to determine how they value each one. When a company understands how its customers value its products or services’ features, it can use the information to develop its pricing strategy.

10For example, a software company hoping to take advantage of network effects to scale its business might pursue a “freemium” model wherein its users access its product at no charge. If the company determines through conjoint analysis that its users highly value one feature above the others, it might choose to place that feature behind a paywall.

11As such, conjoint analysis is an excellent means of understanding what product attributes determine a customer’s willingness to pay. It’s a method of learning what features a customer is willing to pay for and whether they’d be willing to pay more.

7公司采用哪种联合分析类型取决于其进行分析的目的（也就是说，公司想知道什么？），以及被评估产品或服务的类型。多种联合分析类型可以组合成“混合模型”，以充分利用每种类型的优点。

联合分析的作用是什么？

8公司对其产品特征进行联合分析，从中收集到的见解可以通过多种方式加以利用。

定价中的联合分析

9联合分析的机制是让用户直接比较不同的特征，以确定他们对每个特征的评价。当公司了解客户如何评价其产品或服务的特征时，它就可以利用这些信息制定其定价策略。

10例如，希望利用网络效应扩大业务规模的软件公司或可采用“免费增值”模式，让用户免费使用其产品。如果该公司通过联合分析确定其用户对某个功能的重视高于其他功能，那么它可能会选择将该功能设为付费功能。

11因此，若想了解什么样的产品属性决定客户付费意愿，联合分析是一种极好的方法。这种方法可以了解客户愿意为哪些功能付费以及是否愿意支付更多费用。

Conjoint Analysis in Sales & Marketing

12Conjoint analysis can inform more than just a company’s pricing strategy; it can also inform how it markets and sells its offerings. When a company knows which features its customers value most,it can lean into them in its advertisements, marketing copy, and promotions.

13On the other hand, a company may find that its customers aren’t uniform in assigning value to different features. In such a case, conjoint analysis can be a powerful means of segmenting customers based on their interests and how they value features—allowing for more targeted communication.

14For example, an online store selling chocolate may find through conjoint analysis that its customers primarily value two features: Quality and the fact that a portion of each sale goes toward funding environmental sustainability efforts. The company can then use that information to send different messaging and appeal to each segment’s specific value.

Conjoint Analysis in Research &Development

15Conjoint analysis can also inform a company’s research and development pipeline. The insights gleaned can help determine which new features are added to its products or services, along with whether there’s enough market demand for an entirely new product.

销售和营销中的联合分析

12联合分析不仅能够为公司的定价策略提供信息，还能提示公司如何营销和销售其产品。当公司知道客户最看重哪些特征时，公司可以在广告、营销文案和促销活动中有所偏向。

13另一方面，公司可能会发现其客户在为不同特征分配价值的想法上并不一致。在这种情况下，联合分析可以成为一种强大的手段，公司可以根据客户的兴趣以及他们对特征的重视程度通过联合分析来细分客户——从而实现更有针对性的沟通。

14例如，一家售卖巧克力的线上商店通过联合分析可能会发现它的客户主要看重两个特征：产品质量，以及每笔销售将捐出一部分用于环境可持续发展。然后这家公司就可以利用这些信息来发送不同的邮件，吸引不同的细分客户。

研发中的联合分析

15联合分析还可以为公司的研发环节提供信息。收集到的信息可以帮助决定其产品或服务添加哪些新功能，以及判断一个全新的产品是否有足够的市场需求。

16For example, consider a smartphone manufacturer that conducts a conjoint analysis and discovers its customers value larger screens over all other features. With this information, the company might logically conclude that the best use of its product development budget and resources would be to develop larger screens.If, however, future analyses reveal that customer value has shifted to a different feature—for example, audio quality—the company may use that information to pivot its product development plans.

17Additionally, a company may use conjoint analysis to narrow down its product or service’s features. Returning to the smartphone example: There’s only so much space within a smartphone for components. How a phone manufacturer’s customers value different features can inform which components make it into the end product—and which are cut.

18Conjoint analysis is an incredibly useful tool you can leverage at your company. By using it to understand which product or service features your customers value over others, you can make more informed decisions about pricing, product development, and sales and marketing activities.

16例如，设想一家智能手机制造商进行联合分析，发现其客户认为更大的屏幕比所有其他功能更重要。有了这些信息，该公司可以合理地得出结论：产品研发预算和资源的最佳用途就是用于研发更大的屏幕。然而，如果未来的分析显示客户变得更看重其他功能——例如，音质——该公司就可能会使用这些信息来调整其产品的研发计划。

17此外，公司还可能会利用联合分析来缩减其产品或服务的特征。回到智能手机的例子：一部智能手机用于安装零部件的空间就这么多，客户对不同特征的看重程度可以为制造商提供信息，提示哪些零部件该装入最终产品——以及哪些该去除。

18联合分析是您可以在公司中利用的一个非常有用的工具。您可以通过利用它来了解客户最看重的产品或服务的特征，在定价、产品研发以及销售和营销活动方面做出更明智的决策。