Partners opens lab to bring customers into agency

Partners Andrews Aldridge is further bolstering its use of technology by setting up a research and user test lab designed to build stronger links with the customers of its client base.
Partners chief executive Martin Nieri says the idea behind the facility is to allow the agency to invite customers in for a variety of research sessions including user testing and focus groups.
The lab will be capable of hosting a variety of studies and will even use eye-tracking technology to capture consumer behaviours.
All Partners’ clients and their research agencies will be able to use the lab, which will also be offered to other Engine Group agencies, including Fuel, WCRS, Deep Focus and MHP.
Chief strategy officer Andrew Smith, experience director Catarina Afonso and chief innovation officer Alastair Cole – who also runs the agency’s technology and innovation (T&I) department – will spearhead the initiative.
The T&I division already has a suite of products, including a content enrichment tool, remote user testing, a mobile gamification product and CX Score – a tool that can monitor and benchmark a brand’s digital performance and quickly work out the areas they need to invest in going forward.
Nieri said: “This is about spending more time with the people who actually matter: the customers. Involving them in your conversations, iterating with them in the same way you iterate with your clients. You don’t have to wait until a campaign has succeeded or failed before you make a difference. Doing anything but this just boils down to guesswork.”