Insight Study for the Forest Industry
Introduction
Understanding and having a dialogue with customers and stakeholders is key to creating change. An actor in the Swedish forest sector wanted to open-minded and curiously dive into questions like how can we strengthen the dialogue with consumers, civil society, and other stakeholders about the forest industry's role in the green transition? How can we talk about biodiversity and climate connected to products produced from Swedish forests directly to the end customer to drive commercial value?
To answer these questions, The New Division, together with the insight agency Grasp Insight, conducted a qualitative and quantitative insight study about how businesses, non-profit organizations and consumers think about the forest, biodiversity and climate impact. The insight studies were focused on Sweden and selected European countries.
Process
We conducted an in-depth, desktop analysis as well as interviews with business representatives in the supply chain, academia and non-profit organizations. The stakeholder dialogue focused on the forest as a raw material and how the dialogue with customers and society could be developed. Key insights from the interviews were formed as a short report and presented to the client.
The insights also formed the foundation for the next step – a qualitative and quantitative analysis focusing on the end consumers. We conducted a qualitative survey with consumers in both Sweden and Europe and focus groups with customers in Sweden. All the data and insights were analyzed and formulated into key takeaways presented in a final report. The final report was presented together with a call to action and advice on how these insights can be used for decision-making and business development in the future.
Change
The insights from the report have been used for extending the stakeholder dialogue, contributing to internal and external communication, and forming an insight-driven approach to discussions on how to spur the green transition.