YOUTH
Research
Agency

INSIGHT. STRATEGY. CREATIVE

We’re a diverse and leading youth research agency specialising in nuanced insight and cultural analysis to position brands at the heart of youth culture while creating a positive social impact with the grassroots communities driving the culture.

OUR CONSUMER-CENTRIC
CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE AND
RESEARCH PLATFORM

20K

GEN-Z DATA LAKE

55K

HOURS OF CONSUMER
OPINIONS

200

HYPER LOCAL
CULTURAL AUTHORITIES

Our
Approach

Nuanced Insight And Cultural Analysis

Youth
Experts

Industry-leading youth
consumer and street
culture specialists

Cultural
Intelligence

A global network
Of 200 hyper-local
Cultural authorities

Propietry
Big Data

A live data lake of
20,000 Gen-Z street
culture consumers

As the leading youth research agency, we blend cultural intelligence, global big data and cultural analysis. We help brands understand young people's motivations and demotivation, path-finding ways to create positive social impact and cultural relevance. Cultural resonance is essential for long-term brand growth. So at NERDS, we focus on spotlighting culturally-rooted insights that fuel cultural equity for brands, elevate your position within the aspiration economy, and ensure brand sustainability.

As a culture-first youth research agency, our insights are gathered from difficult-to-reach, diverse urban environments, the youth communities that fuel global youth culture, and influence high fashion to high street fashion.

Our research is conducted through our in-house insight portal and cultural intelligence platform: Frontline, and then translated into strategic insights and culturally nuanced connection plans. All our work is co-created with the communities at the forefront of the culture your brand is aiming to align with.

Our research is co-authored with the communities at the centre of the movements your brand aims to align with.

We know consumers focus their spending on brands that share their cultural positioning and lifestyle associations.

We help our clients unlock the power of diverse and rich consumer insights and social understanding to craft unique and compelling cultural selling propositions. This begins with an informed and robust consumer understanding, this starts with us.

We are the preferred consumer research agency due to our industry-leading hybrid methodology research projects for the world’s foremost consumer brands. We partnered with brands such as Twitter, Puma, adidas, Nike, Levi’s and Budweiser to help position themselves at the centre of their strategic target consumer world.

Over ten years of getting Nerdy with research and insight has provided NERDS with a reputation as an industry disrupter and leading consumer research agency as we help brands unpack consumer mindsets, behaviours, practices, rituals, trends and ideologies.

Youth
Experts

The no.1
youth research
agency

Cultural
Intelligence

A global network
Of 200 Cultural
authorities

Big Data
Platform

A global data
set of 20,000
diverse and inner
city youth consumers

Increasingly, youth audiences prioritise brands that project their cultural ideology and lifestyle. To leverage the power of youth culture and build influential Gen Z strategies, brands must really understand their audience; this starts with cultural research.

NERDS is the leading youth research agency due to our innovative mixed-methodology research projects for the world’s most iconic youth brands.

We have supported brands like Puma, Budweiser, JBL, Foot Locker, and Nike to surface game-changing insights that deliver compelling cultural positionings

Over the last decade, we have established our position as the go-to youth research agency, decoding youth tensions, aspirations, influences, motivations and associated sub-cultures.

OUR
Methodology

OUR UNIQUE METHODOLOGY TRANSFORMS OUR RESEARCH FINDINGS INTO STRATEGIC INSIGHT AND CULTURE-FIRST STRATEGY THAT INSTIL BRANDS WITH HIGH CULTURAL EQUITY AND SOCIAL CURRENCY.

Diagnose

The challenge

Test

Hypothesis

Prescribe

Strategic Recommendations

Apply

Creative Solutions

POWERED BY
FRONTLINE

OUR YOUTH CULTURE INSIGHTS AND RESEARCH PORTAL

Our youth research zeros in on brands’ blindspots: inner-city Gen Z representing 1.1B young people globally and 55% of the total youth populist. Our in-house research tool FRONTLINE helps brands get closer to urban-dwelling youth behaviours that are responsible for defining youth culture and high street trends globally.

Insight

WE UTILISE OUR AGENCY-OWNED RESEARCH PLATFORM AND CONSUMER EXPERTISE TO DELIVER GLOBAL AUDIENCE INSIGHT WITH A CULTURAL PERSPECTIVE.

CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE

A global network of 200 hyper-local cultural authorities

Real time cultural intel

Trend forecasting

Surfacing consumer-centric cultural relevance

CONSUMER PANEL

20,000+ international community

16-25 year olds

Street Culture Inspired Consumers

Middle to lower socio-economic status

They prioritise spending on branded goods

Driving mass trends

Fuelling the street culture phenomenon that’s dominating global youth culture

RESEARCH TOOL

A unique tech-platform for consumer research and consultation

Housed on our own dynamic app

Consumer profiling and segmentation

Real-time interface

Real-time insights

insight

Product Testing & Comms Testing

Using a variety of quantitative and qualitative methods, product and comms testing can be used to guarantee success for upcoming releases – rooting them in what your customer cares about.

Cultural Immersions

To meaningfully connect with consumers, brands must understand their lives. Cultural immersions do just that, putting you in the shoes of your audience, visiting the spaces and cultural touchpoints that they navigate.

Psychographic Profiling & Segmentation

Psychographic profiling and segmentation builds a picture of the motivations and rationale behind purchase decisions, and allows you to create subgroups built around shared lifestyle preferences or behavioural traits.

Smartphone Ethnography

Ethnographic research is an observational methodology which tracks how people behave day-to-day. It helps to understand people’s motivations, behaviours and preferences within their daily environment. Offering a digital alternative, Smartphone Ethnography requires respondents to actively record their daily lives, capturing moments and thoughts they have throughout the day, offering immediate access to insight.

Quantitative Research

Quantitative Research, often abbreviated to “quant”, includes all research methods concerned with collecting and analysing numerical data. It can be used to speak to a larger cohort of respondents and build objective answers.

Qualitative Research

Qualitative Research or “qual” involves smaller respondent groups, allowing for longer and more immersive interview methods such as one-to-one in-depths, ethnographic observation, focus groups, workshops and more. Used in conjunction with quant research, qual can provide additional emotional context and real life context.

Panels, Workshops & Focus Groups

NERDS is a mixed-method agency, working across quant and qual. These include designing unique research panels, moderating rich and insightful focus group sessions as well as leading stimulating workshops with both clients and respondents.

Frequently Asked
Questions

What do you define as Youth?

We specialise in working with Gen Z, the generational group representing those born between Generation 1990 and 2010. We work with age groups ranging from 11-35 and our research capabilities can be applied outside of these age brackets.

What is Cultural Intelligence?

Broadly, Cultural Intelligence refers to the ability to adapt and be accepted within distinct cultural settings. For brands, having Cultural Intelligence enables them to be part of the cultures their audiences ascribe to. To establish Cultural Intelligence, brands need detailed and specific data regarding the cultural expression they wish to be immersed within, helping them to build authentic and impactful marketing strategies.

Do you conduct research globally?

Yes, the agency was established in London but our reach, projects and clients are worldwide.

NERDS is a global consumer insights agency that has been delivering global projects for the last ten years.

YOUTHResearchAgency

OurApproach

OURMethodology