Testing your product before it goes to market is vital if you want it to succeed. Taste testing is a research method that allows you to get direct feedback from consumers.

Taste testing is one of the most crucial aspects of market research undertaken for food and beverage products. Fundamentally, taste testing is the process of using consumers to taste products in a controlled environment and then give their opinion.

Taste testing is considered a quantitative consumer research method and is frequently used as part of the broader process of product benchmarking. Benchmarking helps companies to understand how well a specific product performs against competitors or establishes whether a new product formulation or recipe is worse, similar, or much better than the original.

 

Why It Is Important To Conduct Taste Testing

It is important to conduct thorough taste testing of your product as customers won’t buy food products if they don’t like their taste. The way a product tastes in the eye of a consumer is the most critical and important metric in the food industry. This is why leading food brands continually invest in market research that involves food and taste testing to ensure that their products perform as desired within their target consumer base.

Food taste testing research is frequently carried out in controlled environments, it also gives you the opportunity to gain valuable insights into how your target customers feel about your products (as well as those of your nearest competitors), free of any bias.

 

What Does Taste Testing Involve?

There are two types of taste testing. The first of which is a single product taste test. This test involves panellists taste testing a single product and giving their opinions. These taste tests can be repeated frequently to allow your business to become aware of any changes in panellists tastes or views of the product leading up to the market launch.

In contrast, comparison taste testing involves a panel trying more than one variation of the same product. This is a great way of helping to determine which formulation customers prefer and understanding how your food product benchmarks against competitor alternatives.

Taste testing is carried out in a ‘central location’ where the environment can be controlled, unlike in a supermarket or shopping centre. Participants taste the products ‘blind’. This means they do not know which formulation or brand they are tasting. This helps to ensure that there is no bias because of a panellists pre-conceived opinions or notions about a particular product or brand.

 

UK Based Taste Testing Services

Wirral Sensory Services have been conducting unbiased taste testing for over two decades. Their clients include some of the leading food and drink brands in the UK. They offer a complete bespoke taste testing service, tailoring their market research to your timescales, budget and objectives.

So, whether you are a start-up company looking to develop a new product range, or you’re a well-established brand looking to evaluate new recipe ideas, our unbiased and robust food tasting research can help your business succeed. Visit their website for more information.