Custom Research

Trendwatch®

Trendwatch is a TRU-colonized community comprised of nearly 400 multicultural, trend-forward, savvy teens and twenty-somethings. And, they’re ready to work for you!

These articulate, hyper-engaged, socially connected, creative and insightful young people have become citizens of Trendwatch through both in-person and viral methods, with TRU vetting their profiles and using online interaction to ensure they fit our panelist criteria.

As Millennials’ means of communication continues to evolve, so, too, has TRU evolved how we recruit and engage Trendwatch panelists, relying greatly on social-networking sites like Facebook.

Each and every qualified teen and twenty-something is a “friend” of Trendwatch’s proprietary Facebook profiles. The “friend” pool ebbs and flows as panelists age out and TRU identifies new panelists and expands its reach.

As “friends” of Trendwatch, panelists are constantly in touch and engaged: TRU monitors their profiles, observes their lifestyles, and “pings” them to learn more about their activities and behaviors—with social networking becoming an ongoing direct research and observational tool. The most engaged and qualified “friends” of Trendwatch are selected to appear in a wide variety of in-person research sessions.

Each panelist is eligible to participate in only two to three paid projects each year, to keep respondents fresh and engaged. We’re also able to check panelists’ category involvement to ensure they would meet typical research screens.

There are two primary ways to work with Trendwatch panelists:

In-person projects: Anything from traditional group research discussions to in-depth interviews, in-home ethnographies, excursions, and immersions. .
Ask Trendwatch® We'll post your essay-type questions on our Facebook profiles, where our panelists will login and provide you with smart, thoughtful answers. They'll evaluate your ideas and give you the "expert" feedback you need. TRU’s deliverable: Smart, insightful topline analysis, and panelists’ raw, rich verbatims.

Trendwatch project types are listed below:

In-person Projects:

Ethnographies
In-depth discussion groups
Shop-alongs
Closet and cabinet checks
In-home product testing
And much more!

Remote Projects:

Trendwatch postings on TRU’s Facebook profiles
Videographies
Photo journals and blogs
Brand collages
Ad review "rants & raves"
And much more!

Key Trendwatch Facts:

400 panelists divided nearly equally between teens and twenty-somethings
Multicultural and geographically diverse
Trend-forward, hyper-articulate, socially connected
100% at-home online access; active users of social-network sites