Market research for decisions that matter.

HCP designs public opinion, stakeholder, customer, employee and market studies that replace assumption with evidence and give leaders a clearer path forward.

Since 1986, HCP research has informed decisions for clients in financial services and banking, including credit unions; managed IT services and technology; economic development; destination marketing; healthcare; professional services; associations; and growth-oriented businesses. HCP also works with municipalities, cities, counties, city councils, boards of county commissioners, airports, transit authorities and other government agencies, as well as public-private partnerships and nonprofit organizations.

The decision comes before the questionnaire.

A study is useful only when it is designed around the decision it needs to inform. HCP begins by defining that decision, identifying who is affected and determining what evidence is still missing.

Only then do we determine the sample, methodology, questions and reporting structure. Research should lead somewhere.

“Research should lead somewhere.”

What good research requires

Representative sampling

Clear question design

Transparent methodology

Appropriate weighting

Meaningful segmentation

Findings written for decisions

Clear presentation of results

A baseline that can be repeated

What does leadership need to know?

Research begins when an important decision is being shaped by incomplete information, conflicting opinions or an assumption no one has tested.

What does the whole community believe, not just the people who speak the loudest?

Citizen surveys, public opinion polling, community sentiment and transit research.

Why is awareness, trust or preference changing?

Brand awareness, advertising recall, perception and customer research.

What do employees, members or stakeholders believe but may not say publicly?

Confidential employee studies, stakeholder interviews, focus groups and member research.

Is the opportunity large enough to justify the investment?

Market studies, feasibility research, opportunity sizing and economic impact analysis.

How has perception changed over time?

Longitudinal research, repeated studies and year-over-year tracking.

What should leadership act on first?

Segmentation, cross-tabulation, findings, recommendations and executive presentation.

The method follows the question.

Each engagement uses the combination of quantitative, qualitative and analytical methods required by the decision. We don’t force every question into the same methodology.

Public and Community Research

Community and Citizen Sentiment

Public opinion polling and statistically valid studies of residents, riders, visitors and voters, built to represent the full population rather than only its most vocal participants.

Intercept and Visitor Studies

On-site passenger, rider and visitor research that captures feedback within the experience being evaluated.

Tracking and Longitudinal Research

Studies repeated using a consistent instrument so leadership can measure how opinion, awareness or behavior changes over time.

Stakeholder and Organizational Research

Focus Groups and Interviews

Moderated focus groups, in-depth interviews and stakeholder research that explain the reasoning behind quantitative results.

Employee Voice and Culture

Confidential internal studies that give leadership a clearer view of organizational belief, trust and alignment.

Customer and Member Research

Satisfaction, loyalty, expectation and experience research for financial institutions, health systems, schools, destinations and consumer organizations.

Market and Brand Research

Brand and Advertising Awareness

Advertising recall, recognition, preference and perception studies that test whether market investment is changing awareness.

Market and Feasibility Studies

Market-entry evaluation, opportunity sizing, feasibility and economic impact research for organizations considering a significant investment.

Methodology and Interpretation

Quantitative Studies

Telephone, online and mixed-method surveys using appropriate sampling frames, weighting and clearly reported margins of error.

Instrument and Methodology Design

Questionnaire development, sampling plans and methodology review for HCP engagements and for consulting firms that require an independent research discipline.

Analysis and Reporting

Cross-tabulation, segmentation and written analysis that separate significant findings from noise.

Presentation and Interpretation

Findings presented in clear language that executives, boards, commissions, councils, stakeholders and public audiences can understand and use.

Four stages. In this order.

Define the decision

We begin with the choice leadership must make, the people affected and the evidence that could materially change the decision.

Design the study

Question wording, response scales, sampling, methodology and reporting are designed together and reviewed before fieldwork begins.

Collect the evidence

Telephone, online, intercept, focus group, interview or mixed method, conducted using the approach appropriate to the population and decision.

Report what it means

HCP delivers findings rather than a data dump: clear analysis, defensible conclusions, board-ready presentation and a baseline that can be measured again.

A conclusion is only as strong as the method beneath it.

HCP research is often reviewed by boards, commissions, councils, executive teams, auditors, reporters and the public. The methodology therefore has to be understandable, documented and appropriate to the population being studied.

Representative where representation is required

The sample must reflect the population the organization is accountable to.

Transparent in its construction

Question wording, field method, weighting and limitations must be explainable.

Clear about what the findings support

HCP distinguishes statistically or strategically meaningful results from noise.

Written for use

Reports and presentations explain what leadership can reasonably conclude and what the evidence does not establish.

Repeatable when change matters

When tracking is required, the instrument creates a consistent baseline for future comparison.

Research measured over time.

For four decades, HCP has conducted research for public agencies, financial institutions, health organizations, destinations, schools and private companies.

Consecutive Annual Surveys

Sarasota County

The Citizen Opinion Survey reached its 34th consecutive year in 2025. HCP has partnered on the study since 2018, presenting findings to the Board of County Commissioners.

Study Iterations Since 2008

Tampa Downtown Partnership

Nine iterations of Tampa’s Downtown Resident and Worker Study, conducted every two years to track how resident and worker perception changes.

Annual Surveys Since 2020

City of Tampa

Five annual Community Values Surveys since the 2020 baseline, most recently completed in 2024, built to reflect Tampa’s diverse demographics and communities.

Client

The Question

Method / Study

Hillsborough County

How do residents rate quality of life, County services and confidence in local government?

Countywide citizen survey by telephone and online, a rapid COVID-19 sentiment study, and a mixed-method Sustainable Growth study with the City-County Planning Commission.

Pinellas County

What does representative citizen sentiment say, beyond the loudest voices?

Quantitative telephone survey of residents, a confidential Employee Voice Survey, and the biennial Commercial Recycling Survey for the Department of Solid Waste.

Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority

How does the community at large, not only riders, perceive the transit authority?

Community sentiment baseline repeated in 2019 and 2023, presented to the Board of Directors.

Hillsborough County Aviation Authority

What do passengers want from concessions as Tampa International Airport expands?

Comprehensive passenger intercept survey, conducted as research partner to the principal consultant.

The Westshore Alliance

How do residents and workers experience the district, and what should come next?

Biennial Westshore Resident and Worker Study, with findings carried into the Alliance’s strategic plan.

Suncoast Credit Union

Is marketing investment changing awareness, market by market?

Brand and advertising awareness study built as a repeatable online instrument.

Credit Union Awareness, a CUNA subsidiary

How do Florida residents perceive credit unions?

Online survey of 1,501 Florida residents aged 25 to 54, designed for granular results.

MOSI

What would it take to renew the visitor base ahead of the 60th anniversary?

Mixed-medium study across employees, volunteers, guests, donors, members, lapsed members, the board and the public.

Clearwater Marine Aquarium

Is the Orlando visitor market worth the marketing investment?

Online panel of recent Orlando visitors and an audit of two years of media spend.

American Integrity Insurance Group

What drives Florida homeowners’ insurance choices?

Statewide consumer market study testing brand awareness for the Florida insurer.

Raymond James

Is national advertising building brand equity?

National telephone, electronic and direct mail studies, from awareness questionnaires to advertising pre- and post-tests.

Research. Strategy. Marketing.

Each discipline builds on the one before it. Research establishes what is true. Strategy determines what to do. Marketing puts that thinking to work.

Research

Establish what is true.

Strategy

Determine what to do.

Marketing

Put the thinking to work.

What decision does the research need to serve?

Tell HCP what your organization needs to understand. We’ll help determine whether research can answer it, which method is appropriate and what the engagement would require.