Manitou Group Innovates Its Compact Earthmoving Equipment Based on Customer Preferences

Manitou Group (Manitou) is a world leader in rough-terrain handling, manufacturing and distributing compact earthmoving equipment for construction, agriculture, and other industries. To better understand the journey customers take when deciding to buy 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.

“It was important to us to not only continue to improve product performance, but to identify the factors that matter most to today’s customers so we can exceed their expectations,”  said Jeff Weido, Senior Director of Product Management & Marketing, Manitou.

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

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

"In our mission to center our products around the customer, we strive to regularly incorporate customer feedback into product and service design. We needed to not only understand how customers feel about this equipment, but how they view Manitou and our competing brands as a whole. 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 of Product Management & Marketing

Informed by Hanover’s survey analysis, Manitou is able to:

• 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