Thanks for the kind words Ben!

This is one of those topics of conversation in which having a few real-world examples becomes really important — your two examples add a lot more color to an article that probably came across a bit too monochromatic. I particularly liked the hospital story.

You’re absolutely right — testing *can* be a valuable asset so long as brands, agencies and research vendors execute intelligently. The problem I see most often is that there seems to be a severe lack of education around best practices, not to mention a lack of creativity applied to the testing process.

I’ve personally been impressed with some of the writing and ideas coming out of BrainJuicer and Hall&Partners over the years. Fresh. Empirically sound. And often, wait for it, creative.

Thanks for adding the additional commentary to the post. I’ve relied on Thought Gadgets for years, purely for the fact that it reliably pokes holes from every conceivable angle. Rock on.