by The State of Client Engagement in Digital Qualitative Research: A 2025 Perspective
A White Paper from Sago
Over the last couple of years, the insights industry has widely examined respondent engagement and its critical role in research. However, as we step into 2025, a shift is happening—toward client engagement in qualitative research.
Facing the Disruption: From In-Person to Digital Transition
Before the pandemic, qualitative research predominantly relied on in-person methodologies, deeply rooted in established practices. However, the onset of COVID-19 necessitated a rapid pivot toward digital methods. While this transition enabled the industry to continue its operations, it often lacked strategic long-term planning. Currently, approximately 68% of research is conducted digitally, with 32% still opting for in-person interactions. Notably, there is a growing emphasis, particularly in the U.S., on a return to face-to-face research sessions. But while this pivot is important, a deeper look at how engaged clients are in the research and the effect of this downward trend is necessary.
A Growing Concern: Declining Client Engagement
As we at Sago reviewed the state of research at the close of 2024, a troubling trend emerged—brand observers of qualitative research are increasingly dissatisfied, and their agency partners are growing frustrated. While much effort has gone into
improving the experience for respondents, we have not paid as much attention to the engagement of clients themselves.
Our analysis revealed that client engagement in digital qualitative research has declined significantly from pre-COVID levels, and it is not recovering. In 2019, approximately 34% of all digital qualitative research was actively observed by clients. By 2024, this number had dropped to 21%. This shift is significant and raises questions about how to make digital qualitative research—and research in general—more engaging for clients, moving beyond a simple report readout.
The Connection Between Engagement and Business Success
To better understand the implications of declining engagement, we examined the profile of client observers engaging in qualitative research. Using proprietary anonymized traffic data, we analyzed observer traffic to Sago’s systems, identifying which companies connected to focus group recordings or joined QualMeeting IDIs as observers. While this data remains anonymous, it provides valuable insights into industry trends.
We categorized observer activity into four key verticals—Financial Services, Pharmaceuticals, Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG), and Technology. We then examined the top 25 companies in each vertical and compared their stock price growth over the past five years to relevant ETFs. The results were striking:
The most engaged firms in Financial Services, Pharmaceuticals, and Technology consistently outperformed their respective market benchmarks, sometimes by a significant margin.
The most engaged CPG firms, however, lagged behind the market by 20%.
The CPG Conundrum: Less Engagement, Lower Performance
This discrepancy led us to investigate further. One notable trend stood out—over the past five years, the top 25 firms in Financial Services, Pharmaceuticals, and Technology have increased their engagement with in-person and digital qualitative research at Sago. Conversely, engagement among the top 25 CPG firms has declined by nearly 30%.
Correlation is not causation. There could be multiple factors at play—budget constraints, a shift in focus toward quantitative research, or broader industry challenges. However, the correlation is compelling enough to warrant further exploration. Could increased engagement in qualitative research be a contributing factor to better business performance? And if so, why has the CPG sector moved in the opposite direction?
The Path Forward
These findings highlight a pressing need to rethink how we as an industry engage clients in qualitative research. Suppose we want to create more impactful insights and drive business success. In that case, we must ensure that digital qualitative research is not only insightful but also engaging for those who rely on it to make strategic decisions.
It is clear that digital qualitative research must evolve to be more than a passive observation exercise. The challenge ahead is to develop strategies that foster deeper collaboration between brands, agencies, and researchers, ensuring that qualitative insights lead to tangible business success.
The opportunity lies in identifying solutions that reinvigorate client involvement—whether through enhanced digital platforms, real-time interaction models, or new storytelling techniques for insights. It’s time to transform how qualitative research is experienced, ensuring it remains a driving force for decision-making and innovation.
If you take just one key takeaway from this perspective, it should be clear: client engagement is just as critical as respondent participation.
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