Why 'Like' Isn’t Enough

Common limitations of like/dislike data:

• Oversimplifies consumer emotion and motivation
• Fails to capture comprehension or confusion
• Doesn’t guide actionable refinement of messaging or visuals
• Can lead to misinterpreting passivity as approval

Better Diagnostics Drive Better Decisions

The Role of On Demand Talent

• Structure Toluna tests for actionable outputs
• Craft attributes that reveal emotional and cognitive reactions
• Build internal best practices for ongoing concept testing

1. Emotional Response: How Does It Make People Feel?

• What emotions did this concept evoke? (e.g., joy, excitement, confusion, frustration)
• Did this feel authentic or forced?
• Was the tone aligned with your brand or jarring to your audience?

2. Cognitive Clarity: Did the Message Land?

• Ease of understanding the main message
• Perceived believability
• Clarity of benefit or call to action

3. Value & Differentiation: Does It Matter to People?

• Relevance to audience needs or preferences
• Perceived uniqueness compared to competitors
• Likelihood to influence behavior (like purchase or engagement)

How Experts Structure These Layers

• Reveal emotional friction points and positive triggers
• Highlight comprehension gaps before go-to-market
• Identify value perceptions that predict real-world behavior

As more businesses turn to DIY platforms like Toluna for rapid creative testing, it’s easy to fall into common traps that can limit the quality and usefulness of your results. Designing the right attributes and diagnostics for ad testing or product messaging evaluation isn’t just about ticking boxes — it requires thoughtful structure and balance across emotional and cognitive layers.

One of the most frequent missteps is trying to measure too much in a single test. While Toluna offers flexibility, trying to evaluate every possible outcome at once often leads to vague or conflicting data. Instead, define your core objectives early: Are you testing emotional response? Clarity of message? Relevance of the product benefit?

Other typical mistakes include:

• Using overly broad attribute statements: For example, “This concept is effective” is too vague. Instead, break it down into “I understand what this is” (comprehension) or “This made me feel excited” (emotional impact).
• Forgetting to separate diagnostic layers: Mixing questions about emotion with questions about product fit in the same set can muddy the insights. Keep diagnostics distinct to improve clarity.
• Skipping open-ends: While structured questions are efficient, a short open-end question allows participants to share why an ad did or didn’t resonate – leading to richer, more actionable data.
• Not testing across diverse audiences: Does your creative perform differently among new users vs. loyal customers? Testing wide but smart is key to uncovering hidden segmentation opportunities.

For example, in a fictional test of a new snack brand’s advertising, the team tested for likeability but didn’t explore whether the message (healthy indulgence) came through clearly. As a result, they focused on visuals that were well-liked, but the messaging failed at launch. Had the team included clear diagnostic layers – comprehension, value attribution, and uniqueness – the misalignment may have been caught earlier.

Successfully structuring your Toluna test for creative feedback means keeping the test lean, layered, and aligned to specific insight goals. A well-designed test flow enables sharper analysis, stronger storytelling, and more confident decision-making. And when the structure is sound, tools like Toluna can be incredibly powerful – especially when paired with expert guidance.

While DIY research platforms like Toluna are built for speed and cost-efficiency, they don’t replace the value of years of experience in insight design, creative evaluation, and data interpretation. This is where senior consumer insights professionals elevate testing from fast answers to meaningful outcomes.

Experienced researchers provide strategic oversight that goes far beyond launching surveys. They know how to ask the right questions, spot gaps in diagnostics, and translate emotional testing results into insights that move business decisions. Their expertise ensures your creative testing is aligned with business goals – whether you’re refining a product message, testing ad performance, or shaping brand positioning.

Here’s how senior insight professionals make DIY tools like Toluna reach their full potential:

• Custom diagnostic design: They craft attributes that match your brand tone, audience mindset, and creative objectives. Instead of defaulting to templates, they fine-tune each element for relevance and clarity.
• Guided interpretation: When an ad scores low on uniqueness but high on clarity, what does that mean in practice? Experts guide teams through nuance, helping avoid misreads and driving smarter decisions.
• Emotional and cognitive calibration: Senior researchers combine both sides of consumer processing — how something feels and how it makes sense — into every stage of testing, ensuring balance between gut reaction and head-level understanding.
• Storytelling with data: Numbers are important, but making the data tell a compelling story is essential for stakeholder buy-in. Experts can bridge the gap from findings to implications with clarity and confidence.

Suppose a fictional consumer brand was testing three taglines using Toluna. The internal team focused only on preference ratings (“Which one do you like most?”), but a research expert layered in diagnostics on clarity, emotional resonance, and perceived value. These revealed that while Tagline A was most liked, Tagline C performed best on uniqueness and relevance – leading to a better branding decision backed by stronger evidence.

Adding senior-level expertise into DIY research doesn’t mean slowing down. It means gaining sharper, actionable output – without compromising speed or control. Especially in high-stakes creative development, it’s the difference between chasing scores and unlocking real consumer insight.

DIY market research tools like Toluna are powerful, but to fully unlock their value, teams often need more than tech – they need the right people guiding the way. That’s where SIVO’s On Demand Talent solution gives companies a strategic edge.

On Demand Talent are seasoned consumer insight professionals who embed directly into your team on a flexible basis. Whether you’re managing a creative testing sprint, rolling out new product messaging, or seeking emotional feedback on ads, On Demand experts help you design, execute, and interpret Toluna tests with confidence – without slowing down your timelines.

Here’s how On Demand Talent helps you get more from platforms like Toluna:

1. Boosting Internal Capability

DIY tools can feel overwhelming without the right experience. On Demand professionals help your team build long-term skills in diagnostic design, emotional and cognitive testing, and smart messaging evaluation. They don’t just do the work – they help your team learn how to do it better.

2. Matching Talent to the Task

Whether you need support for a one-time campaign or steady overflow coverage, SIVO matches you with professionals who understand your needs, your category, and your tools. Assignments can start in days, not months – a major plus compared to traditional hiring cycles.

3. Avoiding the Pitfalls of Freelancers and Consultants

Unlike generalist freelancers or transactional consultants, On Demand Talent are industry-vetted experts. They bring strategic thinking, not just execution, and collaborate as true partners focused on your business outcomes. And because they’re part of SIVO’s extended team, you’re never alone – you get built-in quality, support, and alignment with your goals.

4. Flex Without Compromise

When you need flexible capacity during campaign launches, brand refreshes, or insight backlog periods, On Demand Talent offers scalability without sacrificing quality. You gain high-caliber input at the right time – without committing to full-time headcount.

For example, a fictional mid-size food company was planning a rapid test of their new health-brand messaging and had just two weeks to gather insights. They brought in an On Demand expert who quickly structured emotional response diagnostics in Toluna, guided fielding, and synthesized findings. The result? Clear, actionable adjustments – all within the original timeline and without overloading their internal team.

On Demand Talent helps insight leaders turn DIY tools from good to great. The combination of platform and expert talent gives your team the power to move fast, stay strategic, and keep insights at the center of decision-making.