Ethnography Services
See your customers’ world—through their eyes.
Why Ethnography Matters
- Human Insight Starts with Immersion — Ethnography isn’t just a research method—it’s a mindset. At RealityCheck, we help client teams step into the lived realities of the people they serve. Whether through in-person visits, mobile diaries, or integrated hybrid designs, our ethnographies immerse your team in real consumer environments to unlock deeper empathy, relevance, and strategic clarity.
- What People Do, Not Just What They Say — Surveys and focus groups surface what people think. Ethnography captures what they do. We observe daily life in context—kitchen routines, shopper journeys, healthcare moments, workarounds, rituals—revealing motivations, tensions, and opportunities that other methods can’t see.
- Culture in Action —Ethnography means writing culture. Our team brings deep training in anthropology, communication, and psychology—and over two decades of hands-on practice. Across hundreds of studies in categories like CPG, healthcare, restaurants, financial services, sporting goods, and VMS, we’ve helped teams turn cultural insight into brand advantage.
What We Offer
In‑Person Ethnography
We meet people where they are—homes, stores, clinics, workplaces—and capture behavior as it unfolds. From shadowing morning routines to unpacking emotional moments at shelf, we design every interaction with empathy and intention.
Digital Ethnography
We use mobile diaries, photo and video uploads, chat-based interviews, and webcam immersions to bring real life into view, no matter the geography. These digital tools allow for longitudinal insight and emotional intimacy without disrupting daily rhythms.
Hybrid Approach
We blend the depth of in-person fieldwork with the breadth and flexibility of digital tools—giving you both immersive storytelling and pattern recognition across broader sample sizes.
How It Works
Every study is custom. Every design has a purpose. But our approach always includes these core elements:
- Define the Cultural Context – We map when and where your brand lives in consumers’ lives—and identify the best moments to observe it.
- Recruit for Richness – In-person participants always go through a double-screening process to ensure great respondents for live fieldwork.
- Observe with Empathy – We use video, photo, and detailed fieldnotes to capture routines, workarounds, unspoken tensions, and emotional nuance.
- Surface Meaning – Analysis draws on our proprietary Meaning Density framework (see below), supported by robust coding, synthesis, and storytelling.
- Deliver Human-Centered Insight – From magazine-style reports to documentary-style videos, we bring the people you serve vividly into your strategy room.
Why RealityCheck?
Ethnography, Written Like a Story
We don’t just document behavior—we write culture. Our Insights Journalism® approach brings ethnography to life through magazine-style reporting: rich, textured narratives that humanize the data and illuminate strategic meaning.
Video That Moves You
Researchers trained in anthropology and experience design—versatile in both fieldwork and in-lab analysis.
Experience Meets Execution
In-person, remote, or hybrid solutions meet you where you are—whether looking for depth or broader confirmation.
A Theoretical Core: The Four Dimensions of Meaning Density
Every ethnographic study we conduct is grounded in our Meaning Density™ framework, which helps us decode what gives a brand or behavior meaning in people’s lives.
- Semantic Breadth – How many different associations and ideas cluster around the experience?
- Emotional Intensity – How strong are the feelings tied to the behavior or brand?
- Narrative Coherence – How well does the experience fit into the person’s broader life story or self-concept?
- Ritual Embeddedness – Is the behavior part of a repeated, almost sacred routine?
We use these lenses to interpret meaning, identify brand opportunities, and spark resonant strategy.
