In-context descriptive sensory profiling of personal care products such as in-shower products is logistically challenging.

Certain environments and testing conditions effect the sensitivity and visibility of touchscreen devices in turn diverting attention from the sensory characteristics of the product. Voice technology is becoming an effective tool for researchers to capture consumer insights in certain conditions.

SAM wanted to explore if voice-enabled Double-Faced Applicability (DFA) offers a more practical solution for in-shower sensory profiling.

Approach

Nine trained sensory panellists assessed three shampoos in showers, at home, using two different sensory profiling approaches during two phases of research (Descriptive Sensory Profiling (DSP) and Double-Faced Applicability).

Outcome

Both methods gave comparable results with similar rank order and discrimination for seven of the nine attributes.

In the shower, the DFA task was easier than rating online scales. The number of sample assessments and fieldwork time were doubled compared to DSP.

Inaccuracy of auto-transcriptions resulted in significant data cleaning. Current voice technology is limited particularly when combined with challenging test environments.

Conclusion

DFA returned a similar sensory profile to DSP and offers a viable alternative where context makes data input challenging.

However, adjustments are needed to make DFA more cost and time efficient. Voice optimisation eliminates the challenges of visibility and sensitivity from touch screens but software reliability, control of survey pace, accuracy of transcription, and inability to provide a fully hands-free experience remain significant limitations.