3 ways to add more value to your test results

November 29, 2021

How often do your painstaking research and test results end up on a shelf getting dusty? How often are the results just kept within your department? We strongly believe that even unsatisfactory results should be shared – if the outcome leads you to gain a better competitive edge.

Every company has multiple competitive factors. These are the special qualities in your operations or products that are important for your customers. These factors simply allow you to be in the game. You then select your product, price, place and promotion – the well-known 4Ps – to market your competitive factors to your customers. And you can support your competitive factors with countless tests and research to validate that you can indeed deliver what you promise.

Still, what we have noticed is that very few companies really understand their competitive edge. You not only need to differentiate from your competitors – this differentiation needs to be relevant to your customers. These differentiation factors can include the 4Ts: transformation, transparency, truth and trust.

Did you know that working with the right research partner can help you build more value based on the 4Ts into your brand?

The idea came to us back about two decades ago.

What if we could provide a stronger bridge between R&D and customer communications to better express that a product is fit for its intended purpose? How could we transform test results from the inner depths of an organization to truly answer the needs of end customers and specific market requirements? How could we create a way to make test results more transparent so that customers could better understand the nature of the product being offered? This would result in a differentiation factor for any company wanting to be seen as more truthful and trustworthy in the eyes of their customers – and their customers’ customers.

And then we set forth – with a concept named SOSIFI – to reinforce our own company’s name: Solar Simulator Finland.

In the beginning, SOSIFI stood for a trademark that could be placed on products tested under various rigorous simulated solar and humidity conditions. Later, we added a mark to ensure validity and a hologram to underline authenticity. And test results are uploaded into the SOSIFI library, where existing test results can be viewed transparently by anyone.

Today, the SOSIFI concept family embodies the 4Ts. It helps us work with you to define relevant test results that match your end customers’ behavior. It enables us to respond to transparency with verified testing methods. And we’re able to better support you in maintaining your competitive edge with genuine proof.

In one case, we applied the SOSIFI concept to navigation buoys. The international color code with tolerances and stability requirements exist according to an IALA recommendation. Our task was to test if a specific buoy stayed within the allocated color limits for decades. We were able to validate the color durability and stability to give our customer a clear competitive advantage. Good color durability is essential to the lifecycle of the buoy and minimizes overall lifetime costs. The material received our trademark, an NFC tag and hologram. Plus, the scientific documentation on the color stability was uploaded into our SOSIFI library.

So, what benefits can our SOSIFI concept bring to your test results?

First, SOSIFI helps to speed up your sales process. We can help you define the process modeling to best fit your targeted customer segment. More relevant test results help build greater trustworthiness into your offering. Better visibility of the test results leads to truthful disclosure.

Second, our trademark gives you proof that the test and all results are authentic. With the NFC mark, you get immediate access to the results. Your customers and their customers can trust that the results are true.

Third, the professional visual appearance of the scientific documentation can be used as marketing communications to share on down the line – building a bridge between R&D and marketing and proving to end customers that the product has been appropriately tested.

Yet most importantly – SOSIFI allows you to take your test results out of the closet – and makes them work harder to build your true competitive edge.

Ask us how we can put SOSIFI to work for you!