The Hunter’s Eye: What Market Researchers Can Learn from the Natural World
On a rare occasion, I sit in my small backyard without a book or screen or headphones… and just sit. At first, there is nothing.
Then, I notice the intricate life around me: an anole puffing out its pink throat, two butterflies visiting the same flower, the silent, calculated stalk of Oreo, the neighborhood tuxedo cat. In these moments, I feel less like a suburbanite and more like a naturalist. I’m no longer on my lawn chair but perched in my “sit spot” in the Galapagos Islands.
As do those of us who have worked in any industry for more than a few years, I started to make connections to my job as a marketing researcher. To understand a subject—consumer, prospect, gate-keeper—you must first observe it in its natural state (or as close to natural as you can get). This is a lesson marketers can learn from naturalists, and surprisingly, hunters. While the endgames of these two groups differ—one seeks understanding, the other dinner—their methodologies for gathering information are remarkably similar. By adopting a hunter’s discipline and a naturalist’s curiosity, we can move beyond mere data to unearth true consumer insights.
Here are four key principles that bridge the gap between the wild and the retail aisle.
Embrace Observation: Blending In for Authentic Insights
Hunters and naturalists succeed by being unnoticed. They wear camouflage, stay quiet and still. They become part of the environment’s background, so that their subjects behave naturally. For a marketing researcher, this principle is the foundation of qualitative research.
We must attempt to strip away the forced behaviors of formal settings. In a focus group, a researcher who is too well-dressed or otherwise doesn’t match the respondents in language or demeaner can intimidate participants. This can lead to inauthentic responses. Researchers should listen actively, use the language of their respondents, and allow for the natural flow of conversation. This approach, which mirrors the unobtrusive nature of a field observer, allows for the emergence of genuine feedback and unguarded opinions. It’s about becoming a fly on the wall, not the elephant in the room.
The Lure of Insight: Designing Research to Reveal Truths
A hunter uses bait, calls, and decoys to entice a subject to reveal itself. These tools attract attention and bring a wary target closer to the observer. Similarly, qualitative researchers use techniques to lure out hidden thoughts and motivations.
Instead of asking direct questions like "Why do you buy this product?", a skilled qualitative researcher might use projective techniques or creative exercises. These indirect methods can uncover deeper emotional connections and pain points that a simple survey question or script would miss. Incentives and deli trays for respondents, far from being a bribe, are a form of enticement—a way to draw busy people into a research environment to capture their valuable insights. Although these techniques may seem manipulative, researchers strategically use them to elicit clarity and understanding.
Build the Right Environment: Creating Context for Deeper Understanding
Hunters often manipulate the environment to their advantage with the goal of creating areas attractive to their prey that are also convenient and knowable for them. An angler might sink a log into a nearby lake to create a fish habitat. A hunter might plant an especially delicious corn or apple crop. They understand that by crafting the right setting, they can study behavior in a more focused way. If you build it, they will come to you.
For marketers, this translates to creating controlled research environments that closely mimic a real-world scenario. A simulated shopping lab allows researchers to watch how a consumer navigates an aisle, interacts with packaging, and makes a purchasing decision. A mock kitchen in a focus group facility enables a company to evaluate a new product's ease of preparation or a new recipe's appeal in a realistic setting. These environments provide crucial context, allowing us to move beyond stated intent and observe actual behavior.
The Patience to See Patterns: Turning Data into Actionable Insights
Scouting and documentation are critical for anyone who seeks to understand their subject. A hunter spends hours scouting a new area, looking for tracks and other signs of recent activity (IYKYK). A naturalist documents every detail of a species’ life cycle. Both understand that a single data point is just that—a single data point. Meaningful insights come from recognizing patterns over time.
Today's companies have access to more consumer data than ever before, from digital analytics to customer service logs. Thus, the challenge is not a lack of data but rather a lack of patience and discipline in analyzing it. The hunter doesn’t wake up at 3 am, trudge in the cold and wet, sit for hours, just to NOT take the shot when a buck presents itself. Similarly, companies can't afford to ignore the voice of the consumer buried deep in data warehouses. They must map the shopper journey, analyze customer satisfaction over time, and look for trends that reveal pain points and opportunities for improvement.
Gathering information is a means to an end: uncovering a story. By embracing the principles of the naturalist and the hunter—patience, strategic observation, and a deep respect for the environment—marketers can transform raw data into a narrative of who their customers truly are, what they need, and how to create products and services that genuinely make their lives better. The hunt for insight is always worth the effort—take it from this animal-loving, part-time vegetarian!
This is dedicated to Jane Goodall, a true observer and protector of nature. May her spirit and fight live on.
Author
Jennifer Murphy
Vice President
Jennifer has over 20 years of experience in marketing research in a wide variety of roles, from data processing to reporting and analysis. Her attention to detail and big picture thinking, combined with her quick wit and deep knowledge of research, makes her a wonderful project collaborator. Jennifer earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing from the University of North Texas and a Master’s in Marketing Research from the University of Texas at Arlington.
Copyright © 2025 by Decision Analyst, Inc.
This posting may not be copied, published, or used in any way without written permission of Decision Analyst.