Driving business growth: How listening to understand elevates qualitative research
Effective listening sits at the heart of qualitative research, but not all listening serves the same purpose. For example, there's a clear distinction between listening to understand vs. listening to get information. Sure, each plays a vital role in uncovering meaningful insights. And our team masters both approaches while knowing when to use each. Knowing the difference and implementing it well helps us get better insights for you - our clients. Afterall, it's about uncovering deeper truths.
What is listening to understand?
"When you're listening to understand, you're engaging with the person you're in conversation with," says Catherine Cadieux-Fredette, Insight Seeker and Strategist at Sylvestre & Co. "You're trying to get a grasp of what they're saying, their non-verbal language, their emotions, and their perspectives."
This deeper form of listening requires researchers to look beyond the literal meaning of words. As resident anthropologist Clari Sant'Anna explains, "It's about getting the meaning behind what they're saying, not necessarily memorizing or taking notes word by word."
Consider product research, where a participant might express dissatisfaction. Clari emphasizes the importance of understanding the context.
"When respondents say a product doesn't meet their expectations, we have to first understand when and how those expectations were built," she said. "Is the product really at fault, or are some adjustments needed, or are they just not the target customer?"
Listening to understand takes a deeper level of conversation. It means getting under the layers of what people are saying. While we might hear the words, the way someone acts, or interacts could signal something completely different. This holistic view of the conversation helps researchers capture not just what participants say, but what they truly mean.
One key element of understanding others lies in active listening techniques.
"When you're in person, it's important to look at the person," Catherine shares. "If I’m looking them directly in the eye, I can't divert my attention to something else or to whatever is going on in my head, because I'm focusing on them and what they're saying."
In virtual environments, these dynamics shift in interesting ways. Some participants actually feel more comfortable being honest through a screen, as the digital barrier provides a sense of protection and freedom to be themselves. People who might normally feel anxious or pressured to perform can express themselves more authentically without being physically present in a room with others.
However, virtual settings require researchers to adapt their listening techniques. They must pay extra attention to subtle cues like tone changes and pauses without the ability to read full body language. Voice inflection becomes especially revealing - a participant might say they like something while their tone suggests otherwise. Even in the digital space, engagement remains visible through cues like hand gestures and animated speaking, which signal genuine interest and passion in the conversation. While the medium may change, the core goal remains the same: understanding the complete meaning behind what participants are sharing.
Small gestures by the human moderator can help.
"Nodding your head and showing 'I'm still listening to you' is effective," said Catherine. "Sometimes when you say 'yeah' while the person is speaking, it can cut them off."
What is listening to gather information?
While understanding focuses on meaning and context, listening for information serves a different purpose. Clari describes it as adding detail to an established situation.
"When you're trying to understand, you're trying to get into the reality," she said. "And then you're getting information, you're just adding things to that reality to make it clear to our clients."
Catherine adds that information gathering often feels more transactional.
"It feels more like an interview," she said. "It doesn't feel like a conversation. It becomes asking questions and receiving answers, whereas when you're trying to understand, you're giving more space to the respondent to share their truth."
This approach typically follows establishing initial understanding. It involves filling in specific missing pieces of the puzzle through a back-and-forth exchange of questions and answers. While researchers begin fieldwork by focusing on understanding, they shift to information gathering to complete the picture with necessary details.
Creating the right environment
Successful listening demands intentional preparation. To maintain focus and engagement, we carefully manage the environment and our own mental state.
"I had to understand my limitations and what sets me up to listen to someone well," Clari reflects. "I need to make sure that my environment is clean, quiet. If I'm working from home, I need to let everyone know they're not supposed to come in here."
This preparation extends beyond physical space to mental readiness. Catherine emphasizes the importance of genuine interest.
"I love being in conversations and interacting with people," she said. "When I know I'm going to be moderating, I get excited because I'll meet new people and hear different perspectives."
Common obstacles to effective listening include the pressure to have immediate answers and confirmation bias.
"As adults, especially in Western society, it's not like you learn how to be okay with the fact that you don't know things," Clari observes. "We constantly are asked for exactly the opposite – I need to have all the answers."
Catherine points out another common barrier.
"Many people listen to confirm certain ideas they have – it's confirmation bias," she said. "They're listening, but they just want to hear that one thing that will confirm their hypothesis."
Some researchers—not ours—lack a genuine interest in the conversation, which can cause them to be distracted by other things.
How it all leads to better research for you - our client
This dedication to authentic listening ultimately serves both participants and clients.
"When we get the best of our respondents, we get the best insights for clients as well," Clari explains.
Catherine adds that our approach creates a natural, productive environment.
"When clients are watching the focus groups, it very much feels like a conversation, like friends at the table," she said. "But we do get the data. We have insights, and we're answering research objectives."
The process begins with understanding the client's needs deeply.
"When we do get to fieldwork, we have already done our homework and our listening process with our clients," Clari notes. "We go to fieldwork knowing our clients' needs and knowing them so well that we are almost incorporating their needs into our bodies. When you build empathy with the respondent, you're combining those two things in your role."
This combination of warmth and effectiveness stems from deep preparation and genuine curiosity. By mastering both understanding and information gathering, we can uncover the insights that drive meaningful business decisions while honoring the human experience at the heart of our work.
