"Seeing real people talk about your product gives you an intangible closeness to consumers. In quant, people become numbers, but with the video qual study through Motives, I really feel closer to my consumers!"
- Lydia, Marketing Director, Divine Chocolate

Background

Divine Chocolate, a Fairtrade company co-owned by Ghanaian cocoa farmers, was relaunching their hot chocolate as a premium product. They needed to:

  • Justify their premium price point to skeptical retailers
  • Test whether packaging communicated both their ethical story and luxury positioning
  • Get fast feedback on seasonal flavours for 2026

"We needed proof to get retailers to agree with the RRP, and needed shopper feedback that showed we were on the right track," Lydia explained.

Challenge

As a lean team, Divine couldn't afford the weeks of back-and-forth and high costs of traditional research agencies. They needed deep consumer insights at speed.

Solution

Using Motives' AI Research Assistant, Lydia designed a complete study in minutes.

"I'm a bit of a control freak, so having control over the discussion guide was brilliant! It gave me interesting questions and prompted alternative ways to pose questions I hadn't considered, like the price ladder framework. I could just change anything and self-serve faster and on brand."

Motives recruited 20 premium hot chocolate shoppers. Within days, Lydia had rich video testimonials, thematic analysis, and strategic recommendations.

Outcome

Price validation that convinced retailers: The data proved Divine's pricing was competitive. "On RRP, not only is it okay, it's actually seen as good value." Lydia used quotes and video clips directly in retailer presentations.

Packaging insights that refined the design: Research revealed a "packaging paradox": the cocoa farm design communicated authenticity but needed refinement for premium positioning. The AI Moderator also uncovered something unexpected, consumers wanted serving information on the pack. "We changed the front of the pack based on this feedback."

Flavour direction backed by consumers: With the team looking for consensus on which seasonal flavour to prioritize, consumer feedback provided clear direction. "With Motives I could go back with both my instinct and the consumers themselves to validate the decision."

Impact

"At larger companies I had access to everything - major research agencies, syndicated data, but as a challenger brand we have to spend budget on the most impactful data that we know will help deliver the right message. Motives brought everything together for us."

"We managed to cover price, sustainability, packaging, flavours, all in one discussion guide." Traditional research would have required multiple separate studies.

Lydia's reaction: "My mind is blown. I can't believe the speed and quality of results."

Divine now has the consumer validation to confidently launch their premium range, with packaging optimizations, pricing confidence, and flavour direction, all in a fraction of the time and cost of traditional research.