As of this writing, billions of consumers live in quarantine. They buy what they need online, comforting themselves with food, TV and toilet paper. Nobody is splurging at the mall.

To say the least, it is an interesting time to analyze discretionary consumer behavior. As Director of the Voice of Consumer Analytics at Adidas, Tiankai helps measure and manage the perception of a consumer brand that is mentioned on social media an average of 260,000 times per day. An amateur musician, Tiankai went viral himself lately with his series of “Quarantunes,” songs such as “Self Quarantine” and “Parent in Quarantine,” that poke fun at our homebound predicament.

Tiankai recently spoke with Eckerson Group about the art and science of consumer analytics, the COVID-19 conundrum, and (of course) the role of creativity in modern data analysis. 

Key takeaways:

• Human creativity drives data analytics success. The art of writing and singing music, for example, is fundamentally similar to data storytelling because in both cases you are assembling distinct notes into a harmony.
• Consumer analytics initiatives require skilled qualitative and quantitative analysis of a wide range of structured and unstructured data sets, including survey results, social media posts and product reviews.
• The Voice of the Consumer Analytics team at Adidas assesses brand perception, determines customer values, and prioritizes product preferences. This group of analysts monitors social media trends, identifies influencers, and formulates strategies to engage them. By studying customers on multiple dimensions, they help shape Adidas’ marketing messages, web content and overall strategy.
• COVID-19 poses a profound puzzle for consumer analysts. They can predict short-term behavior based on recent trends: home-based online shoppers seek comfort and normalcy as they snap up products for personal hygiene, grooming, indoor fitness, and mental health (think Yoga!). But longer-term modeling scenarios vary hugely based on medical and psychological unknowns. Will consumers embrace outdoor activities, or huddle indoors due to persistent fear of social interaction?
• Consumer analysts must continuously adapt to rapid changes in social media terminology. They should closely monitor slang on platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, then help their organizations align their brand to that terminology and even devise trend-setting slogans. Consumer analysts also must align closely with those platforms’ search and prioritization algorithms, recalibrating their approach as Facebook and Twitter do so.
• Effective consumer analysts play the role of evangelist in their organization. Business decision makers need to be educated about the value and implications of consumer feedback in all its modern forms.