GfK Optimization Tools (HILCA and Shapley Value)

GfK HILCA

Developed in co-operation with McKinsey, Professor Voeth of the University of Hohenheim and GfK Group AG, GfK HILCA can help you assess and optimize new product and offering concepts by delivering insights about product attributes that matter most to consumers in your target market.

GfK HILCA (Hierarchical Individualized Limit Conjoint Analysis), our proprietary research methodology allows your analysis to consider more product attributes than other methods. It does so in a manner consistent with the natural thought process followed by consumers when making purchase decisions. As such, GfK HILCA helps you to find answers to key questions about consumer preferences before you bring a product to market:

  • Which product performance and price characteristics influence the buying decision?
  • How much are consumers willing to pay and where are the potential price point thresholds?
  • What are the strengths and weaknesses of current product offerings, as well as of new potential products or product ideas?
  • Where is the potential for product optimization and differentiation?
  • Which products or new concepts have the best chance to succeed in the market?
  • What do target group specific offerings look like?

For more information on GfK HILCA or any other GfK Consumer product or service, please contact us.

Shapley Value Analysis

Marketers are often faced with questions about the how to best optimize their product/service line to maximize market share against the potential array of product offerings.  Shapley Value Analysis can help you determine the best combination of products/services to offer customers. 

There are many categories of products where flavor/variety introduction is a key part of marketing strategy.  By introducing new flavors/varieties marketers generate interest in the category, support consumers’ desire for variety seeking, and work to maintain their overall share of category purchases. The success of a new variety is difficult to assess without accounting for the presence or absence of other varieties in the market.

Whether it is the introduction of a new product or simply the re-evaluation of the product line with an eye toward efficiency and reduction of offerings,  the impact on overall share (incremental volume and individual product is important to assess.

Standard analysis to optimizing lines has traditionally been TURF (Total Unduplicated Reach & Frequency) analysis. However TURF doesn't provide the relative strength of a variety across all possible combinations.

Shapley Value is a measure of the relative strength of individual items. Higher Shapley values represent stronger appeal. If the choice set is large, we have an even stronger measure of product potential in the marketplace.Shapley Value does not provide degree of overlap. E.g: if two or more varieties have high Shapley values, but appeal to same group of people, we might miss a variety that appeals to a significant, though smaller, portion of the population.

By using TURF + Shapley values, we have a better chance of identifying varieties that will strengthen the product line.

For more information on any GfK Consumer product or service, please contact us.