Manitou Group Innovates Its Compact Earthmoving Equipment Based on Customer Preferences

Case Study
Manitou Group

Manitou partnered with Hanover Research to assess customers’ brand awareness, purchase intent, and the product attributes they find most important.

Manitou Group (Manitou) is a world leader in rough-terrain handling, manufacturing, and distributing compact earthmoving equipment for construction, agriculture, and other industries.

The Challenge: Understand the journey customers take when buying earthmovers

To better understand customers’ journeys when buying skid steers and compact track loaders, Manitou partnered with Hanover Research to assess customers’ brand awareness, purchase intent, and the product attributes they find most important. Jeff Weido, Senior Director, Product Management & Marketing, explained, “In our mission to center our products around the customer, we strive to incorporate customer feedback into product and service design regularly. We needed to understand how customers feel about this equipment and how they view Manitou and our competing brands as a whole.”

“In our mission to center our products around the customer, we regularly strive to incorporate customer feedback into product and service design.”
Jeff Weido
Senior Director, Product Management & Marketing

The Solution: Customer-centered evaluation and analysis

Manitou enlisted Hanover to analyze customers’ purchasing processes and product and brand preferences to improve performance and stand out in the compact earthmoving equipment market.

We needed to understand how customers feel about this equipment and how they view Manitou and our competing brands as a whole.”
Jeff Weido
Senior Director, Product Management & Marketing

Research Goals

Assess customers’ brand awareness and what they already know and feel about Manitou’s products
Understand what customers want in skid steers and compact track loaders
Evaluate how future purchase intent varies across equipment brands
Identify which brands are most preferred by customers and why
Pinpoint their strongest supporters and which potential brand advocates to engage

Methodology

Hanover designed a comprehensive buyer preferences survey deployed to 392 participants working at companies involved in construction, landscaping, agriculture, or forestry.

Hanover specifically engaged professionals who are involved in their companies’ decision making process for purchases in this product category who have made such a purchase recently, or will in the near future.

After analyzing the survey results, Hanover recommended that Manitou emphasizes in its advertising how its products meet customers’ biggest needs with strong warranties, good value for the money, an excellent service network, and powerful performance.

Additionally, Hanover recommended that Manitou increase its brand awareness efforts to compete against its peers through targeted advertising.

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The Outcome: Equipment that meets user needs and preferences

Jeff reports, “Hanover’s analysis provided detailed insights into customer preferences for this equipment and the competitive landscape, helping us stand out further in the market and meet our customers’ biggest needs.” Informed by Hanover’s survey analysis, Manitou can:

Improve product performance by incorporating customer feedback into skid steer and compact track loader design and development
Emphasize the compact earthmoving equipment attributes that are most important to customers in their advertising
Increase their brand awareness efforts through targeted advertising that highlights how they meet customers’ biggest needs

“Hanover’s analysis provided detailed insights into customer preferences for this equipment and the competitive landscape, helping us stand out further in the market and meet our customers’ biggest needs.”
Jeff Weido
Senior Director, Product Management & Marketing